Alice Waters: Put Your Menu Where Your Mouth Is
Recently, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) printed a piece on food and specifically the food of the south of France. Underlying the story is a question: Why are we so hungry for the food of the South of France right now? In trying to answer that question, Alice Waters, the 79-year old founder of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California said
We need to make our diets healthy by eating more fruit and vegetables and less meat, and we need to respond to climate change with farming methods that protect and renew the earth…which is what they’ve been doing in the south of France for centuries.
Great Food Discoveries of 2023
2023 has been a banner year in my kitchen with 8 really great plant-based food discoveries made throughout the year including ice cream, chocolate, soup, cheese, granola, nuts, and salami. All 8 of these companies deserve a food Oscar for their healthy and delicious creations. Read more 
Reine Vegan Cheese
Plant-based cheese (or vegan cheese) has been growing in popularity in recent years with growth expected to increase at an annual rate of 16% over the next 7 years, according to a market research report by RationalStat (a company that does market research, analysis, forecast and trends).
The growth is being fueled by turophiles (cheese lovers) who want the savory creamy texture of dairy-based cheese without the lactose, and for those seeking a healthier alternative to animal-based products. Read more
NoBull Burgers: The Ultimate Veggie Burger
There are two camps of people in the vegan burger market: those who want a great tasting veggie burger and those who want a meat imitator. I belong to the veggie burger segment and have spent years trying to find the best veggie burger: both store bought and homemade in the hopes of finding the holy grail of veggie burgers. It’s been a long road.
Ingredients matter so making my own veggie burger with beans, rice, onions, spices, lentils, mushrooms, zucchini, and other veggies and grains seems to be a good idea but I’ve yet to find a recipe that makes a moist, delicious, and healthy veggie burger with an abundance of flavor (and that doesn’t fall apart). Frozen veggie burgers have been a disappointment in that most are greasy or have ingredients I try to avoid (i.e. oils, fillers, and ingredients I can’t pronounce) until recently when I discovered the NoBull Veggie Burger: a whole food, real food veggie burger. Read more
Plant-Based Oatmeal Banana Bread (No Oil)
Everyone makes banana bread (what else would we do with those aging brownish bananas in the fruit basket?) but the typical recipe calls for some combination of white flour, refined sugar, butter (margarine, or oil) and eggs. The challenge is to make a banana bread that is moist and delicious without those ingredients, and it’s not easy.
Eight years ago I posted a recipe for whole grain banana bread made with whole grain flours and maple syrup but it still contained oil (albeit only 3 tablespoons). So, of course, I kept thinking about how to make a great tasting banana bread without oil. After many attempts, I came up with a recipe that checked off all the boxes: the bread rises high but is moist, each slice tastes delicious, and this traditional favorite is actually nutritious. Plant-Based Oatmeal Banana Bread is slightly sweet and full of banana flavor and scrumptious. Read more
How to Make Delicious Vegan Meatballs
These vegan meatballs are a great alternative to the good old fashioned meatball. Instead of relying on meat, eggs, cheese, and breadcrumbs, these super easy vegan meatballs are made primarily of beans, couscous, tomato sauce, onions, lots of seasoning, and brown rice flour to make an alternative meatball that goes great with your favorite pasta. Moist and “meaty,” these “beanballs” are simply delicious (and full of fiber). Read more
Healthy Blueberry Muffins
Most blueberry muffins are made with butter or oil, eggs, white flour, and refined sugar with the only “healthy” ingredient being the blueberries. But, what if I told you that a moist, high-rising great tasting blueberry muffin can be made without butter, oil, eggs, and refined sugar?
The secret to making healthier blueberry muffins without giving up flavor or texture is to use healthier ingredients: a mixture of almond flour, whole grain spelt flour and a small amount of cake flour instead of just white flour; a non-dairy milk that is naturally high in fats (oat or walnut by Elmhurst work well) instead of butter or oil; and maple syrup instead of refined sugar – all of which combined with other clean ingredients create a healthy blueberry muffin that is truly scrumptious.
It is also important to include 10 full ounces of blueberries (I often use frozen wild). Don’t skimp on the blueberries as these super nutritious berries are not only natural sweeteners but also add moisture and flavor.
Alfajores: The Oreo-Mallomar of Argentina
A traditional alfajore from Argentina is two buttery cookies filled with creamy dulce de leche caramel. Although these scrumptious treats are typically made with butter, milk, eggs, and sugar, there are as many versions as there are types of cookies (some are plain, some are covered in chocolate, etc.). What they all have in common is a loyal following of alfajore enthusiasts who couldn’t imagine life without this luscious treat.
Alfajores are to Argentinians what the Mallomar and Oreo cookies are to Americans. The idea is similar: take a cookie or two and fill the center with a soft sweet filling and then enjoy as is or add more decadence by covering the cookie in chocolate. Read more
Nairn’s Oatcakes
An oatcake is a cracker made primarily from oats. A Scottish creation, the oatcake is to the Scots what a Ritz cracker is to Americans, a Rosca to the Spaniards, and what a TUC cracker is to the French: that is, a traditional cracker that is often used as a chariot for a topping with bold flavor. Read more
Rawmantic Bars
If there is one product that has commanded more shelf space in recent years, it’s the energy/protein/snack bar. From a one shelf allocation in the cookie aisle of grocery stores years ago to a partial grocery aisle today, bars have become the go-to supplement for millions of Americans.
Although bars are convenient, most of them have too much sugar and/or unhealthy ingredients, or just taste awful. For me, it got to the point that the only time I packed a bar was if I was going for a hike or a road trip because the alternative was worse – no food or SAD (Standard American Diet) food. Read more
Paddock Post 