Today I'm heading off to Italy for a visit to Campania. I will try to post while I'm gone, but since I'll be on assignment I expect to be pretty busy! In the meantime, feel free to check out my posts, there are many of them in the queue over at Glam Dish, and posts from me every Wedneday on KQED's food blog, Bay Area Bites.

Ci vediamo!

Amy

p.s. If you have any favorite spots in Naples or the Amalfi coast, feel free to leave a comment. In the past I've checked out reader recommendations in Hawaii and Japan and have yet to be disappointed with any of your suggestions.

Have you ever had an Orange Julius? I seem to recall it being pretty popular in the 70's. Founded in Los Angeles, the juice bar chain (now part of Dairy Queen) makes a frothy kind of orange blender drink that is very refreshing, especially if you are running around town.

The first Orange Julius opened over 80 years ago and it was the official drink of the 1964 World's Fair in New York. The name comes from how people ordered the drink from the owner, Julius. "Gimme an orange, Julius!" The recipe was and still is secret but there are plenty of copycat recipes online. Some use milk, others include egg white. All of them generally have some combination of orange juice, ice and sugar.

Orange Julius makes a "Mango Julius" and while I've never tried it, I did come up with my own version. Mangoes have vitamin A, B and C and are an amazing feel-good fruit. Is it the color? The flavor? The nutritional benefits? I don't know. But I can't get enough of them! If you like orange juice first thing in the morning, try a mango orange smoothie it's delicious and invigorating. Personally I like a smoothie in the afternoon when I start slowing down a bit.

Note: The vanilla extract gives it that distinctive Orange Julius flavor. My version is not as frothy as the original, but it is nice and creamy. You could make it dairy-free, but I think the vanilla yogurt really makes it extra delicious.

"Julius" style Mango Orange Smoothie
makes 2 servings

1/2 ripe mango, peeled and cut into chunks
1 cup orange juice
1 cup ice cubes, about 5 regular sized cubes
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons vanilla yogurt

Place all the ingredients into the blender, cover and blend until thick and creamy with no chunks of ice. Serve in two tall glasses.

Enjoy!

There's another contest over at Glam Dish today! Win one of three prize packages that each include a signed copy of a Gale Gand cookbook, bakeware and 12 coupons for a product that was named to Time Magazine's list of the 100 greatest consumer products in 1998. It was invented 60 years ago. Do you know what it is? Click here to find out...

When I think of processed foods the first things that come to mind are newfangled convenience and artificial ingredients. But that's not the case with all processed foods. In Spain, preserving vegetables and seafood is a very traditional craft. Olives, piquillo peppers, anchovies and tuna are just a few of the most common "conservas" you'll find.

In Barcelona there is a famous tapas bar called Quimet y Quimet that specializes in using conservas and many shops are filled with precious treasures in cans and jars. I recently got a chance to try some of the products being sold online by AJ Gourmet and was really impressed. The father and son partners are passionate about Spanish foods and import a terrific array of olives, especially stuffed ones.

I talked to Andy Weiss to find out how his stuffed olives were different from the more typically available ones. He told me that the stuffed olives you find in most markets are for the most part standard queens, a large variety that is a bit woody and a tad bitter but easy to stuff (also known as gordales in Spanish) and standard manzanillas. They are generally stuffed with a composite paste that is chosen more for the ease of stuffing than for quality. Worst of all the pimiento in most stuffed olives is not pimiento at all, but a red gel.

AJ Gourmet uses manzanillas finas, the highest quality available, and stuffs them with real products to achieve a flavor balance between the natural nut like flavor of the olive and the unique stuffings. The blue cheese olives are stuffed with a Spanish Cabrales cheese. Other exotic flavors include olives stuffed with real piquillo peppers and olives stuffed with Valencia orange peel. Even the liquid bring is of artisanal quality rather than just plain salty water.

I was pleased to learn that Andy is working with his producer friends in Spain to introduce some new combinations including salmon, shrimp and tuna stuffed manzanilla olives. He willl also be bringing in grilled artichokes and other Spanish specialties including some more seafood items. I can't wait to try them!

Just a quick reminder to let you know that today is the last day of the $1000 Mother's Day giveaway on Glam Dish. All you have to do to enter is comment on how you would spend the prize on mom. Check it out! So far the comments have run the gamut from funny to sad to very inspiring, worth a read even if you don't enter the contest.

I'm posting 4 days a week over at Glam Dish and there are plenty of tantalizing recipes, useful tips and tidbits. Please do stop by and say "hi."

The contest is now over, but thanks to everyone for visiting and commenting. And don't forget, there will be another contest in early May.