Have you tried these amazing little fruits yet?  If not, you’re missing out.  Kiwiberries look like teeny, tiny kiwis with an edible, fuzz-free skin.  They’re adorable, but even more importantly, they’re delicious.  Biting into a kiwiberry give you a burst of sweet-tart flavor.  To me, they taste sweeter and less acidic than their regular-size cousins – a combination of melon and strawberries, with the smoothness of banana. They’re also a nutritional powerhouse; packed with antioxidants, Vitamin C, and significant amounts of Vitamins A, E, B6, B2, folate and carotenoids.  Eat them when they’re soft to the touch and slightly wrinkly.

Kiwiberries are in season in February-March in Chile, September-November in Oregon and September-October in Pennsylvania.  I look for them whenever I pass by the berries in the fall/ winter, but sadly only find them on occasion.  When they’re available, you can get them at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Fairway.  Start asking for them at your local grocery store and hopefully they’ll start to stock them too.  Or you can order them directly from the growers in Pennsylvania, KiwiBerry Organics, when they’re in season.

Serve these bite-size berries on a fruit platter at a fall party, or skewer them and use them as a garnish for a kiwi-flavored cocktail or smoothie for brunch.

So often we think of salads when trying to come up with summer dinner ideas, but salads aren’t the only entrees that don’t require use of the oven.  Stir-frying is a great option for a quick, summer meal.  Turning on a burner won’t heat up your kitchen, especially since you can cook a stir-fry in a matter of minutes.  Even a stir-fry involving meat cooks quickly – about 10 minutes of stove time.  Summer vegetables, such as green beans, snow peas, bok choy, cabbage, broccoli, bell peppers, zucchini, scallions, carrots and mushrooms are all great stir-fry ingredients.

The general method for making any good stir-fry is simple: Prepare all of your ingredients in advance since the cooking goes so quickly (cut your meat into very thin pieces and cut your vegetables bite-size); heat oil in a wok or skillet over medium-high; add garlic and ginger to the oil for about 30 seconds before adding any meat or veggies to season the oil; cook the meat in a single layer (no more than about 1 cup of meat at a time) until about 80% cooked, remove from pan and set aside; cook vegetables according to density (thicker vegetables, such as carrots, first since they require the most cooking time, lighter vegetables like bok choy last); add meat to cooked vegetables and add ingredients for sauce into a well in the center of the wok, letting sauce thicken for a few seconds before mixing with the rest of the cooked ingredients; season to taste and serve immediately.

Using a rice cooker is a quick and cool way to prepare rice to serve along with your stir-fry.  As for sauces, there are so many possibilities.  For a simple stir-fry, I like to use a good toasted sesame oil, garlic and ginger (fresh grated or pureed ginger that comes in squeeze tube) for the seasoning.  Sometimes I add a little tamari (wheat-free soy sauce), vegetable or chicken stock, crushed red pepper flakes for an added kick, or cornstarch if I am after a thicker sauce.  There are so many good stir-fry recipes around – give one a try while the temp is still rising so you can keep your cool while cooking.

Here’s a super simple and fun way to designate seats (and keep track of drinks): Use name tag place cards on your glasses.  They’re inexpensive and easy to remove from your glasses.  These tags can also be used to label party favors, or to label beverages on a bar (I like to put mixers in glass bottles instead of their original packaging and labeling the bottles keeps things clear).

Use the Etch-it labels, pictured above – they work like a chalk board, and you use your nail or a pen instead of chalk to write the names – or any other name tag label, though they might not be quite as easy to remove as the Etch-it labels, which are specifically made to be removable from glassware.

The Etch-it labels are sold in packages of 15 and cost $3-4 per package.

Birthday Express – $2.99/ package

Shindigz Party Supplies – $3.99/ package

Here’s a fun idea for a St. Patty’s Day party:  Make your own potato place card holders to use for place settings or labeling food on your buffet.  Print the names on regular printer paper.  Using a business card as a template, trace the shape on the back of the paper behind each name so it’s centered in the template.  Cut the name cards out, lay them flat on a table, place a toothpick in the center of each and affix it to the name card with a single piece of tape. Stick the toothpick into a potato, using the potato as the place card holder. If your potato is wobbly, slice a thin strip off of one side to create a flat surface for the potato to rest on (just be sure to place a sliced potato on a plate or napkin to prevent damage to your table or tablecloth).

Place anything in simple glass baby bottles to make a cute baby shower favor.  Use a jelly bean mixture that compliments your color theme, or the mom-to-be’s favorite candy.  Pictured is a Dragee mix (chocolate covered sunflower seeds, dried apricot, etc.) from The Cocoa Room.  Their chocolate mixes come in beautiful color and flavor combinations.  Check out their selection online at www.thecocoaroom.com (all varieties can be ordered in bulk for $15 per lb).

How many salon products have you purchased and decided you didn’t like after a few uses?  For many people (myself included), too many to count. Here’s a fun way to purge without adding to a landfill: Host a product swap for friends to exchange barely used products they purchased and decided they didn’t like after a few uses.

Ask each guest to bring a few products (at least half full) that they would like to exchange for other products.  Moisturizers, hair products, skincare, perfume, nail polish, self-tanners and sunscreen are all sanitary to exchange among friends.  Host this party in the afternoon and serve coffee, tea and cookies for snacking.  Invite guests to use a mud mask (leave the tube and disposable guest towels next to the sink in the bathroom) during the party.  The mud masks will make for some interesting party pictures.  Serve spa-type snacks, such as roasted edamame, trail mix, carrots, hummus and water with sliced cucumbers.

Photo credit:  Back Garage - www.backgarage.com

Simmer cinnamon sticks, cloves and apples in a pot of water to infuse your house with the warm and inviting smell of fresh apple pie.  Turn off the heat once guests arrive to ensure that the mixture doesn’t burn.

Use pretty potted flowers for a centerpiece – either one large pot or several smaller pots with different flowers and/or herbs.  A potted plant works especially well for a party in the garden or any outdoor event, and will last longer than fresh-cut flowers.  Tie ribbons around the pot for added interest.  For a shower or birthday party, place a colored napkin under one plate on each table and let the guest who chooses that seat take the centerpiece home.

Photo Credit:  Flowers Quata (potted Hydrangeas)

Whether you’re hosting a wine tasting or just a dinner party, add some interest to your table with wine cork candles.   No need for expensive crystal candle holders; use empty wine bottles and faux wine cork candles to add ambiance.  Wine cork candles are available from a number of online retailers.  A few I have ordered from in the past are listed below. 

Uncommon Goods – $22/ set of 12
http://www.uncommongoods.com/item/item.jsp?itemId=12841

Amazon – $10/ set of 6
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0029K2TKS/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?ie=UTF8&cloe_id=0f2fabef-c00a-4420-a0b0-4c76d1c57e3f&attrMsgId=LPWidget-A2&pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000199GC8&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0WE3GAKN9X5WMTXNSTPQ

Beau Coup – $7.20/ set of 4
http://www.beau-coup.com/wine-cork-candles.htm