"cinnamon stick" news and stories

The high today where I am topped off at 22 degrees. That was in the daytime, with the sun shining, so you can imagine how cold it's going to get tonight (I'm not complaining, I actually love this weather). So since it's so cold and since it's winter, how about warming yourself up with a nice Gin Toddy?

We've had a lot of winter toddy drinks here at Slashfood, but there's something about hot gin and cinnamon that intrigues me. I'm not a big drinker of hot alcoholic drinks, but I'm going to make this tonight and curl up on the couch with a good book.

I use my microplane to zest, grind and grate nearly every day (it would appear that I cook a lot). I started out with the basic one that came with no handle, just a flat strip of razer sharp teeth that take a nutmeg and turn it into aromatic pile of shavings. Then I moved up to the flexible set which I love because you can swap out different levels of grater blades quickly and easily (if you're tempted by that prospect, you need to act fast as this set has been discontinued).

Now there's a new microplane that I've got my eye on, and it's a cutie. Designed for spices, it catches the shavings in its little case, which makes it deadly easy to accurately measure your amounts (instead of eyeballing it or trying to scrape it off the cutting board and into a measuring spoon). Best of all is that if you buy it from the Spice House, they'll throw in a whole nutmeg, cinnamon stick, ginger and turmeric root. Go forth and grate!

Thanks K.F.!