The holiday season is just around the corner!

It’s almost upon us. It’s that special time of year when the hustle and bustle of the holidays comes and lots of great foods are shared. My mouth is already watering thinking about a d’lish turkey dinner with all the fixins’ and holiday cocktails, but I won’t be having that as I will be in the Philippines opening the new Fairmont Hotel and am sure to be trying all kinds of new exciting dishes instead! So while everyone prepares for the upcoming festive season, take a gander of what I have been up to lately

It’s almost time for my “Over 21” Real Fruit Cakes made with Maker’s Mark!
Starting November 26^th until December 14^th (or while supplies last), my d’lish “Over 21” Real Fruit Cakes will be available for purchase!

Chock full of Maker’s Mark-soaked dried fruits (like cranberries, apricots, and cherries) and toasted nuts (pistachios, hazelnuts, almonds and more) then bound together with a tasty spiced batter. Baked then brushed hot out of the oven with a brown sugar and bourbon glaze – Yum!

These 1-pound loaves are priced at $10.95 and are will be able to purchase online and at my Food Studios (open Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 5:00pm).

Holiday Extravaganza
A lot of you have asked, “When is the Holiday Extravaganza?”

Because I am traveling so much, I have decided to take a year off from the festivities. The Food Studios will be open to pop by and get signed cookbooks, Dish D’Lish Seasonings, preserves and our Liquid Kitchen^TM “5130” Honey and other specialty preserves, candies and more. But we just won’t have a big party… though we may open for a little open house and festive cheer – stay tuned.

Tasty Travels & Fun Fundraisers

Seattle Events!
This fall has been busy here in Seattle! I had a tasty time judging the Luxe Interiors + Design Magazine‘s Battle of the Chefs event hosted at Bradlee Distributors where six chef teams were pitted against each other in a 1-hour black box cook-off, all benefitting O Wines “Opportunity for Success Scholarship Program.”

Then it was off to strut my stuff on the catwalk for the Ruby Room‘s Annual Fashion Show, one of my favorite charities. This amazing group provides formal dresses for young ladies who need a little extra help with school dances. I got to model a very sparkly, very bling-bling Not Your Mama’s Apron and did a little pre-show promotion on New Day Northwest. This year’s event raised lots of funds for many young ladies to go out in style!

Modeling the Not Your Mama’s Apron on KING 5’s New
Day Northwest!

Cooking in the Flavor Mobile in Anaheim!
Just this past month, my crew and I headed to Anaheim, California for the PMA Fresh Summit conference. This annual conference brings together the leaders and buyers within the fresh produce industry as well as the taste makers and marketing professionals.

We were there representing Sunset Produce… and dished out some tasty samples in their new Flavor Mobile! The crowds loved our Chili & Lime Slow-Cooked Pork Tacos with Sweet Twister Pepper Escabeche, Sunset Tomato Salsa and Avocado Crema as well as our Sunset Pepper
Shrimp with Thai Coconut Curry with Jasmine Rice and Kumato Tomato Mint and Cilantro Salsa. Then there were the Bloody Good Balsamic Mary … Yum

Heather, Jason, myself and Kristen at
the Sunset Flavor Mobile!

For a fun recap of this year’s PMA Fresh Summit, check out this post by DMA Solutions’ The Core Blog!

Mabuhay! (It’s Tagalog for “Welcome!”)
Associate Mixologist Danny Ronen and I are headed to the Philippines to help train the bar staff and open the brand new Fairmont Makati! So make sure you follow my Twitter for all the sneak peeks, tasty photos, and fun adventures! I can’t wait to enjoy some local Filipino foods and make cocktails with all the amazing ingredients and fruits!

Serious Sippin’ with the Liquid Kitchen^TM

It’s been great to hear all the positive feedback on my cocktail show Kathy Casey’s Liquid Kitchen and I am super happy to announce that my show
has been nominated for a Taste Award under the Best Drink or
Beverage Program category! Keep your fingers crossed!

This season was full of a variety of episodes that featured new spins on classics like my Classic Martini with Orange Fennel Walnuts, as well as new creative cocktails like the Green Goddess which I shook up with LUPEC Seattle member Lynne Becker. Lynne was the highest bidder at a LUPEC event to come on a special episode of my show – with all proceeds benefiting breast cancer research.

Season 3’s special guest and LUPEC Seattle member
Lynne Becker and I with our Green Goddess cocktails!

New holiday episodes like the Sparkling PAMA’rita and the Blinker #3 featuring PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur will be up soon – just in time to celebrate!

In the meantime, stir yourself a Maple Bourbon Old Fashioned. Real maple syrup is so tasty in this twist on the Old Fashioned cocktail. It adds not only a touch of sweetness but also a depth of flavor. Be sure to use a high quality maple syrup and keep your maple syrup refrigerated when not using.

MurrayAid
For over three decades, legendary barman extraordinaire Murray Stenson has been renowned locally and internationally for his contribution to the cocktail community, earning him a Tales of the Cocktail Bartender of the Year award. Now, he is in need of our support. It was recently announced that he has a heart ailment that is preventing him from working in the profession that he is so passionate about. Bars, bartenders and cocktail enthusiasts from all over the world have been called forth to help set-up special events for him and spread the word on how everyone can help donate. For more information, ways you can donate or to check out the list of events across the world, check out www.MurryAid.org.

Tasty Reads

My 10^th cookbook is currently being printed off…yay! D’Lish Deviled Eggs is all about that time-honored classic appetizer and my fun takes on it. Due out in February 2013, pre-orders can be made on Amazon! I can’t tell you how excited I am about this book – deviled eggs are one of my favorite appetizers and with over 50 recipes there is sure to be a favorite for everyone in this book!

A Sneak Peak at the Cover of my New Book – out in February!

Looking for the perfect holiday book for your favorite cook? Then look no farther! Good friends and authors Cynthia Nims, Kim O’Donnel, and Jeanne Sauvage all have new cookbooks just in time for the holidays! For the snack lover, Cynthia’s Salty Snacks book is perfect for those with a “salty tooth” and is loaded with exciting tasty recipes such as Salami Chips with Grainy Mustard and Coconut Crisps with Basil and Chiles – yum! Kim is known nationally for her promotion of Meatless Mondays and has the perfect book for those vegetarians on your list or just anyone who is looking to eat a little less meat and more delicious veggies. Her The Meat Lover’s Meatless Celebrations cookbook is just in time for Thanksgiving and Christmas – just last night I poured over the pages thinking what will I cook first – ooh, I know… I’ll leave it out for my hubby as a dinner-time hint! For the gluten-sensitive, Jeanne’s Gluten-Free Baking for the Holidays has lots of recipes to choose from for a gluten-free holiday, including an amazing pie crust …and those fluffy little rolls … yes, I have personally tasted them and they are delicious!

So check out these amazing ladies’ latest books and check off a few of those Christmas gifts off your list.

Be sure to visit my blog for the most up to date tasty news, recipes, and tips. And stay tuned for my next newsletter with lots of great stories and photos from my trip to the Philippines!
Wishing you a D’Lish Autumn! –Kathy

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This week on Kathy Casey’s Liquid Kitchen, I make a Gin with House-made Bitter Lemon and Soda! Home-made syrups give an added to touch when shaking/stirring up cocktails, both in the overall quality and flavor of the drink. And it’s super easy to make my House-Made Bitter Lemon when using the Vitamix Bar Boss Advance: cut up whole lemons (peel and all!) and pulse with sugar and water until smooth. Add this syrup with some gin and Perrier Natural Sparkling Water and you’re ready for some laid-back summer sippin’!

To good health! -Kathy

This week on Kathy Casey’s Liquid Kitchen: I shake up a Smitten cocktail! Fresh muddled in-season watermelons adds a great “cool” taste to the tequila’s bite while the dash of hot sauce adds a lil zing to the flavor. The Citrus Salt rim completes the sipping experience and works great as a garnish.

Remember: the hot sauce should be used sparingly and should enhance the flavor, not overpower it!

Salud! -Kathy

We’re already nearly halfway through July, and that always means one thing to me – it’s almost Tales of the Cocktail time again! I’m getting ready to head down to steamy New Orleans at the end of the month for the premier spirit and cocktail event of the year, and looking forward to an exceptionally exciting time this year, because Tales is celebrating its 10th birthday – proof positive that some things only get better with age! There will be tons of fab events (including a birthday/kickoff party with cake and, of course, cocktails), seminars, demos and tastings to attend, and of course it is always a fantastic chance to network, meet new people, and catch all the latest buzz in the cocktail world. There are even excursions to go on, like swamp tours, bike and garden tours, and even a pig-butchering demo – oh my!

Continue reading at Amazon’s Al Dente blog!

This week on Kathy Casey’s Liquid Kitchen, I shake up a VSOP Lemon Derby. This light and refreshing cocktail is perfect for the summer and combines fresh mint and lemon juice with Remy Martin VSOP and vodka. To top it off, I add a velvety Honey Lemon Foam!