Organic Beans by Fig Food Co.
FIg Food Company was started in 2009 by Joel Henry whose company’s mission is to improve the health of people and the planet by promoting the consumption of plant-based food. The company makes, sells, and distributes nine organic and kosher 100% plant-based soups (in microwavable BPA-free pouches) that are low in sodium and offer a healthy alternative to the sodium-laden canned soups on supermarket shelves. But, what most people don’t know is Fig Food Company also sources, sells, and distributes eight types of ready-to-eat organic beans with no added salt, preservatives, or flavorings. Just organic beans and water so the flavor is simply delicious beans. Read more 
Quinoa: Gluten-Free Goodness
Quinoa is a grain-like crop that is actually a seed making it immensely popular in gluten-free diets. Highly cultivated by South Americans and particularly by those who live in the mountainous regions, quinoa is one of the few crops that thrives in high altitudes and in less than ideal farming conditions. Read more
Matt’s Munchies
Ever wonder why fruit roll-ups/leathers can’t be made with fruit and natural ingredients? Chef Roberts did and decided to create healthy, organic, gluten-free, vegan certified, and kosher fruit leathers without artificial additives, colors, and preservatives. How you ask? By using organic great tasting fresh fruit to make flavorful squares of pure dehydrated mango, banana, and apricot puree. Read more
Remembering Colleen Ann Meehan Barkow
My prayer for today is that you will remember Colleen’s smile, that it will dry our tears and ease the eternal pain and anguish we are feeling … We hope you are in a better place, and we will love forever in our hearts, which remain broken.
Thomas J. Meehan III, father Read more
“Eleanor and Park”
He loved how much they loved each other. It was the thing he thought about when he woke up scared in the middle of the night. Not that they loved him – they were his parents, they had to love him. That they loved each other. They didn’t have to do that.
16-year old Parker “Park” Sheridan lives in a suburb outside Omaha, Nebraska with his parents and younger brother, Josh. Next door are his paternal grandparents (his maternal grandparents live in Korea where his mother is from). A tight-knit family, the Sheridans “were practically the Waltons” although Park feels somewhat disconnected from the love fest his parents share between themselves. Read more
Crunchy Nut and Seed Granola Clusters
The granola bar is at one end of the granola spectrum and on the other end is loose granola. Popular as both a cereal and snack food, granola in its two major forms is the go-to food for those who want a nutritious meal or snack on the go. But, what if you want a granola that is more substantial in texture than a cereal but not as rigid as a bar? The answer is the granola cluster: chunks of loosely held together pieces of granola that have the texture of a bar but the flexibility of a crumbly cereal. Read more
Fruit Bliss
Fruit Bliss is a family of preservative-free, soft and moist dried fruit that is juicy and delicious. Made only with non-GMO fruit and water, these naturally sweet fruits are loved by both adults and kids and are a healthy alternative to dried fruit that has been preserved with sulfites. You won’t find any hard, powdery, or overly chewy pieces of dried fruit in Fruit Bliss because real pieces of dried fruit rehydrated with water ensures that every bite of Fruit Bliss is an all natural, pure and healthy snack. There are no added sweeteners, artificial colors or flavors added to this gluten-free nutritious snack food. Read more
Kamut: The Ancient Grain in Modern Times
Kamut is the trademarked name of Khorasan wheat – a grain whose name refers to the northeast region of Iran, where it was widely grown. Popular in ancient times and especially in Egypt, some people refer to Kamut as “King Tut’s Wheat” because legend holds these grains were found in the tombs of pharaohs. Kamut is an organic, non-genetically modified ancient wheat variety (although many gluten intolerant people can easily digest Kamut) that is delicious and nutritious. Read more
Purely American Foods: Soups, Stews, and Chowders
Several years ago, I stopped buying canned soups and started making my own because I wanted to have soups with no additives and a lower sodium content. Most soups are relatively easy to make but have two challenging aspects: time and flavor. Cutting up vegetables is time-consuming but if a food processor is used, the chopping and mincing is a snap. Onions, celery, and carrots are three very common vegetables used in soups and my mini chopper dices these vegetables in seconds. Read more
“Tenth of December”
George Saunders is a master short story-teller whose talent is skillfully displayed in The Tenth of December, a collection of ten short stories that was recently published (2013). A writer who seems to be writing about the mundane aspects of life – work, buying a puppy, planning a birthday party, or picking the kids up from school – Saunders is, in fact writing about the big picture: parenting, corporate greed and power, entitlement, human rights, mental illness, and despair. With George Saunders, there is always a message that says something about our culture and what we value and that’s what makes his short stories so thought-provoking, hilarious, and often heart-breaking. Read more
Paddock Post 