CELEBRATIONS | by POSY GERING

THERE’S NOTHING MORE THRILLING than being told that I’m making a difference in someone’s life. Those simple words are the most treasured gifts I receive.

In fact, one of the most amazing presents I ever received was a little box filled with little rolled-up pieces of paper. In it was a card that said, “Here are a few of the things I appreciate about you…” Each rolled-up paper held a memory, a saying, an experience or a quality. I am flooded with love and wonder whenever I unroll one.

Appreciation doesn’t cost anything. I can tell someone the thing they said or did that was meaningful to me and why. I can write it in black and white. I could even write it in cement as a permanent reminder.

The point is to do it, because it works both ways. When I notice and express appreciation, I feel rich, loved, and so lucky to be connected to the moments we share.

I’m sure you have a story about a time when you were authentically “seen.”  I’d like to hear about it.

CELEBRATIONS | by ALEXANDRA SMITH

AH, VALENTINE’S DAY. WHAT OTHER HOLIDAY INSPIRES SO MUCH anticipation, pressure or, depending on one’s relationship status, loathing? Dinner, flowers and candy feel generic, but a weekend in Waikiki is probably out of the question. Relax ― there are other options.

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• Swap dinner for breakfast. Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday this year, and what better day for a leisurely, calorie-laden breakfast in bed? French toast, eggs benedict and a mimosa or two shared atop your cozy down comforter is infinitely more intimate ― and less expensive ― than dinner at Chez Louis.
• Think old-school. Remember when Valentine’s Day meant passing out cutout cards and conversation hearts? Celebrate more innocent times with mix tapes (CDs if you must), cupcakes and construction-paper cards. Then throw in something personal like a favorite Disney movie or you and your sweetheart’s childhood photos framed side-by-side.
• Think really old-school. Back in the day, anonymous, hand-written notes were the V-Day standard for lovebirds and admirers-from-afar. Take a cue and ditch the Hallmark card. Write (or, steal from Shakespeare ) a verse on quality stationary, then slip it into your loved one’s mailbox, briefcase or back-pocket. The gesture is sweet, even if it’s obvious you’re the secret admirer.

Valentine-less this year? Not to worry. Each of these ideas can be adapted for friends and family. Host a girly pajama brunch, make friendship bracelets with your besties, or just pen your pals a reminder of how much they mean to you.

BACK TO BASICS | by JEAN GALTON

NOTHING MAKES ME HAPPIER THAN THE COMBINATION OF SALT AND SWEET, unless you add some bittersweet chocolate to the combination. These cookies will make you very, very cheerful.

© ANGIE NORWOOD BROWNE

Salted Chocolate Cookies
Makes 5 dozen

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup unsalted butter
12 ounces finely chopped bittersweet chocolate, divided
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 1/2 teaspoons flaked salt (such as  Maldon or Fleur de Sel) plus additional for sprinkling
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Melt the unsweetened chocolate, butter and 1 cup of the bittersweet chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently. Cool.

2. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

3. Beat the sugar, eggs and vanilla with an electric mixer on medium speed in a large bowl until pale and frothy, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the chocolate mixture until blended. Stir the flour mixture at low speed until blended. Stir in the remaining chopped chocolate. Refrigerate the batter, covered, until the dough is firm, about 2 hours (if the dough gets very hard, let it warm up until it’s pliable.)

4. Place a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°F.

5. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and arrange 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Sprinkle with additional salt. Bake in batches until puffed and set, about 10 minutes per batch. Cool on the baking sheet 10 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

CELEBRATIONS | by DEBRA PRINZING

VALENTINE’S DAY IS INEXTRICABLY LINKED with the bouquet of one dozen long-stemmed red roses. According to the Society of American Florists, 187 million roses are produced for Valentine’s Day alone.

SOURCE: CALIFORNIAORGANICFLOWERS.COM

Holiday demand has pushed up the price of the ubiquitous (and surprisingly scentless) red bud on a long, stiff stem. In mid-February, you can easily spend $100 or more to send a dozen.

Flower enthusiasts and floral designers are ready for an alternative ― a fresh and authentic option to industrial-grown and imported flowers. Posies grown in our own gardens or purchased from a local nursery, farmer’s market or fair-trade grower are gaining in popularity.

Some romantic and organic flower-giving ideas:

• Plan ahead and force one dozen hyacinth bulbs or paper white narcissus bulbs in vases along your windowsill. When they bloom, their heady perfume rivals any fragrant rose. Stems can be cut and arranged in a tightly-packed bouquet for gift-giving.
• Harvest a natural winter bouquet from your garden. Look for delicate flowering branches, winter-blooming shrubs and early perennials. Gather the blooms and branches in a repurposed container and deliver the bouquet to a sweetheart or friend. Some of the best February-blooming plants include camellia, witch hazel, forsythia, winter Daphne and helleborus.
• Plant a winter annual in a tea cup. A 4-inch African violet or tiny cyclamen looks charming tucked into a piece of vintage china or a flea-market collectible filled with organic potting soil. The china probably won’t have a drainage hole, so it can be watered lightly with a spray bottle (water the soil area, not the leaves or flowers).

If you or your sweetheart really desires Valentine’s Day roses, seek out companies that supply organic, sustainably raised and domestically grown roses. Two of the best sources are Organic Bouquet and David Austin Roses.

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EDITOR’S CHOICE: Field-grown on a certified organic farm in Chico, Calif., and picked the day they’re shipped, the 24-stem bunch of ‘Soleil D’Or’ narcissus flowers (shown above) is a great organic choice for Valentine’s Day. Order from California Organic Flowers by 1 p.m. on Feb. 11 for Valentine’s Weekend delivery. $39.95 plus shipping.

CELEBRATIONS | by JANNA LUFKIN

VALENTINE’S DAY IS FAST APPROACHING. It’s that one special day each year when we get to show the ones we love how much we love them. This year, think about your home, too.

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Your home might not be your “dream house”, but these days, having a home of your own means more than ever. Give it some love; show it how much you appreciate it. It’s just as much a part of the family legacy as is those who live within.

Here are a few ideas you can easily wrap your arms around to give your home a little TLC. Yep, it’s winter, but pick a few sunny days here and there to tackle these tasks. Your home will shine and so will you.

• Wash the windows, inside and out. It’s amazing how beautifully they’ll sparkle and make everything look just a little bit brighter.
• Give your woodwork a good wipe down. If you take it a room at a time, the task won’t seem so daunting. It nurtures the wood and the fresh, clean smell brightens up every room.
• Spruce up your laundry room. Decant soaps into clear glass jars and add a scoop. Find a pretty tray (look in your kitchen) and corral liquid soaps and bleach onto it. Purchase a new ironing-board cover.
• One pretty pillow can wake up a whole room. Find, or better yet make, one in a bright spring color or pattern.
• Replace a tired lampshade. In the darkest of winter days, you might discover how much more light you actually have!

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young were right: Love The One You’re With. Be thankful for the home you have and what it’s provided. It’s much more than just the roof over your head.

CELEBRATIONS | by KAT SPELLMAN

CAMPBELL-SOUP-KID CHERUBIC FACES… The happy graphics of the golden age of radio… Grainy stills from film reels or gloriously retro album covers…

NEW VALENTINES FROM OLD

If you’re like me and adore collecting bits and pieces of inspiring treasures, whether nostalgia-inducing vintage greeting cards or old sheet music from crooners like Bing Crosby, you’re well on your way to creating one-of-a kind valentines.

Flea market forays can launch a whole new collection of valentines, created just by you. The must-haves for turning yesterday’s jewels into today’s chic greetings? A multipurpose scanner/copier/printer, along with a basic editing tool such as Microsoft Publisher or another affordable computer program. With a scanner you can copy scraps of vintage textiles, postcards, handwritten letters from the attic and more.

Got kids? Have them collect their own idea of “treasures” and leaf through a folder of finds ― joining you in picking their favorite images, photos or words to create unique valentine’s for their school-age pals and teachers. Layer and crop, zoom and colorize. Print on card stock and have the kids add glue and glitter to white and light portions of the designs, and their art will positively glow.

As will you, when you step back to share some simply sweet sentiments in an era of store-bought Sponge Bob and Bratz greetings.

STORYTELLING | by SHERRY STRIPLING

I WAS DRIVING TO WORK ON A BLEAK GRAY MORNING WHEN TWO SQUIRRELS, hot on each other’s little heels, dashed across the road right in front of my car.

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I slammed on my brakes but only one squirrel emerged alive, beating my driver’s side wheel by inches.

Discouraged thoughts went through my head as I sat for a long, desolate moment slumped forward against my steering wheel.

It was bad enough that I was going to work. Did I have to start off the day killing something? Were the squirrels rivals, buddies, sweethearts?

Just then I looked up to see a city utility worker standing by her truck 10 feet from the passenger side of my front window. Her expression was intense but inscrutable.

With her eyes locked on mine, she pulled my view up to a knoll on her side of the street. There sat Squirrel No. 2, twitching his tail, impatiently waiting for me to move on so he could catch up with Squirrel No. 1, who was safely on my side of the road.

Zoom! I returned my eyes to the worker in record time. She met my huge grin with a slight nod and softening smile.

I suppose the sun didn’t really break out. I wasn’t really greeted with flowers and a raise at work. But I felt buoyed by gifts all day:

The squirrels were alive. And I’d touched hearts with a human being without exchanging a word.

TRENDSPOTTING | by MOLLY MARTIN

I’VE GIVEN UP ON FOOD SUBSTITUTIONS, for the most part. Quickly abandoned the carob-for-chocolate movement ― not much fun for me there. After original Fresca, never really hopped on board the artificial-sweeteners train ― don’t trust ’em. Eventually realized through the low-fat and low-carb trends that I feel better when I eat a variety of real foods. Get more satisfaction from indulging in, say, some great chocolate.

SOURCE: TRUVIA.COM

But two sweeteners have gotten my attention recently, because both come from natural sources and also might have less of an effect on blood sugar. With my family history of Type 2 diabetes, I try to pay attention.

The first is agave syrup, derived from a succulent native to Mexico. It’s sweeter than honey, and although its calorie and carb counts aren’t far from sugar’s, for some reason it doesn’t seem to make blood sugar spike. Manufacturers, naturally, offer sugar-to-agave conversion charts and recipes.

The second, and I think more promising, is stevia. Also known as sweet leaf, the plant native to Central and South America has a long and sometimes controversial history , in part because it was not until December 2008 that the Food and Drug Administration granted two stevia-based products, Truvia and PureVia, the prized “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) status for use in foods.

Stevia’s big selling points? Much lower in carbs and calories than other natural sweeteners, and little apparent impact on blood sugar. Drawbacks? Slight licorice aftertaste (to me, a worthwhile tradeoff in flavored waters), and adapting it to recipes.

Since one of Truvia’s developers is The Coca-Cola Company, and one of PureVia’s is PepsiCo, you can imagine that I’m not the only one who sees some promise here.

CELEBRATIONS | by JEAN GALTON

WHEN EVERYONE DESCENDS ON YOUR HOUSE FOR THE SUPER BOWL, make these simple Barbecue Pork Buns. There’s no need to spend the day cooking and I guarantee they’ll be consumed in 2 seconds flat.

© ANGIE NORWOOD BROWNE

Barbecue Pork Buns
Makes 4 servings

3 cups grated green and purple cabbage
1/2 cup grated carrots
5 tablespoons cider vinegar, divided
2 teaspoons kosher salt or sea salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 teaspoon brown sugar, divided
1 1/4 pounds pork tenderloin, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch medallions
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1/3 cup bottled barbecue sauce
4 multi-grain hamburger buns, toasted

In a large bowl, combine the cabbage, carrots, 3 tablespoons of the vinegar, 1 teaspoon of the salt, 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper and sugar. Toss to mix and let stand while making the pork.

Stack 2 slices of the pork on top of each other and cut down through the stack creating 1/4-inch thick strips. Continue with the remaining pork until it’s all cut into thin strips. Place in a bowl and toss with 1 teaspoon of the salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper.

Heat the oil in a heavy (cast-iron is perfect) skillet and warm over high heat. Add half the pork and cook, stirring, until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pork to a plate and repeat with the remaining pork.

Add the onion to the pan and cook, stirring frequently until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the barbecue sauce, 2 tablespoons of the vinegar and the pork and toss until pork is warmed through. Place the bun bottoms on four plates and top with the pork, coleslaw and the bun tops.