This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Jewel-Osco. All opinions are 100% mine.
Last week I got to see my friend Debi Lilly for a virtual event with Jewel-Osco. It was so wonderful to see a friend again! Debi is an events, entertaining, floral design, and gifting guru. She’s one of those people who puts together flawless events and manages to make it look easy. She always has creative and trendsetting ideas and I was eager to hear her ideas for this holiday season.
One of the many reasons why I love shopping at my local Jewel-Osco is that they carry an entire line of debi lilly design™ florals, vases, candles, and home décor items. During the virtual event, Debi explained that her bouquets come already arranged – so shoppers just need to unwrap them and cut the stems before putting them in a vase. Being able to grab flowers that just need to be put in a vase without trying to arrange them makes entertaining at home a bit easier. And I love that I can find these affordable florals right at my local Jewel-Osco – it’s a place that is already a part of my weekly routine.
While you can simply place the bouquets in a vase, each bouquet has enough flowers so that you can divide one bouquet into multiple vases. You can place different floral arrangements in various spaces in your home. Debi also suggested gifting smaller bouquets to friends and family, or the doctors, nurses, and essential workers in our lives. Flowers are a great way to spread joy and to show our appreciation for others this holiday season.
For the virtual event, Jewel-Osco sent me the lovely alpine frost bouquet and a vase from the debi lilly design™ collection. I was able to split it into two floral arrangements and I used some extra leaves and greens for some gift wrapping. Even four days later, the floral arrangements look fresh! I was also sent a candle with a winter spice scent in a glass votive that says Fa La La. The candle helps to give my home a cozy atmosphere and inviting scent – what an easy way to get my home holiday-ready.
I always have fresh flowers in my home and I love the ease of picking them up at Jewel-Osco while I am getting groceries and household essentials. It’s so convenient – plus these days I am trying to limit the number of places that I go. Jewel Osco is great for one-stop shopping. They have all the groceries, supplies for entertaining, cleaning products, florals, and gifts that I need. They also offer delivery and DriveUp & Go™ options if you don’t want to go into a store or if you just want to save time.
If you are looking for holiday gifts, Jewel-Osco carries potted amaryllis flowers as part of the debi lilly design™ collection. Amaryllis are long-lasting and one of my favorite winter seasonal florals. I also love the candles that are part of the debi lilly design™ collection. They come boxed up so that you can just add a bow – no wrapping necessary. Debi pointed out that the floral section at Jewel Osco even has satin bows!
Something that Debi is known for is little clever ideas that make me think, “Why didn’t I think of that?” For example, she suggested incorporating extra greens or leaves from bouquets in your holiday gift wrapping. It’s an easy way to add an extra festive touch.
I put Debi’s ideas to use with my family’s chocolate truffle recipe. This recipe is so simple and easy to customize! You can stick with classic chocolate truffles dusted with powdered sugar or cocoa powder, or you can add a nut to the center, or you can roll the truffles in chopped nuts, or you can add a treat like edible cookie dough or a mini marshmallow to the center! Get creative and customize the truffles for your own friends and family.
To make the truffles, I used ingredients from Jewel-Osco’s exclusive in-house brands. I used O Organics® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips, Lucerne® Heavy Whipping Cream, O Organics Powdered Sugar, and O Organics Madagascar Pure Vanilla Extract. I didn’t even have to make a special trip to the store! I keep these staples in my home at all times. I like to shop for Jewel-Osco’s in-house brands because they are high-quality products at an affordable price. Plus, Jewel-Osco proudly stands behind their exclusive brands with a 100% money-back guarantee.
These truffles come together easily with just about 30 minutes of active preparation time. Once you have made your truffles, arrange them in a small box lined with parchment paper. Then use Debi’s technique of adding a bow and some greens to wrap them up in a box. It’s a homemade gift with a beautiful presentation. I love the idea of gifting small floral arrangements, boxes of homemade truffles, and candles this holiday.
I shopped at Jewel-Osco, but you can also find these exclusive products at the Albertsons Companies family of stores, including Albertsons, Safeway, ACME Markets, Randalls, Shaw’s Supermarket, Star Market, Tom Thumb and Vons.
How to Make Chocolate Truffles:
Chocolate Truffles
An easy recipe for classic chocolate truffles. These rich creamy melt-in-your-mouth truffles are just the thing to serve at a holiday party or to wrap in a box and give as a gift.
Ingredients
- o 1 cup O Organics Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
- o 1/2 cup Lucerne® Heavy Whipping Cream
- o 2 tablespoons Butter
- o 1 cup O Organics Powdered Sugar
- o 2 Egg Yolks
- o 1 teaspoon O Organics Madagascar Pure Vanilla Extract
- o a dash of Salt
- o Finely chopped nuts, Powdered Sugar, or Cocoa Powder for rolling out the truffles
Instructions
Combine chocolate, cream, and butter in a double boiler. The trick to using a double boiler is to get the water steaming hot - but not boiling hot. You don't want to risk burning the chocolate. Whisk frequently until the chocolate has melted.
Add sugar, salt, and egg yolks and whisk until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
Place in bowl and chill until malleable - about 2 hours.
To roll out the truffles, first pick something to roll the finished truffles in (powdered sugar, cocoa powder, or finely chopped nuts all work) and pour that into a small bowl. Then scoop out a heaping teaspoon of the chocolate and roll it into a ball, finish by rolling it in the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, or finely chopped nuts. Continue until you have used all of the chocolate.
Keep refrigerated.