Date Almond Cake
Pan de Dátil Almendrado is Spanish for “Date Almond Cake” – a freshly pressed “cake” handmade in Valencia, Spain with two ingredients: dates and Marcona almonds. The two contrasting flavors and textures of sweet, chewy dates and rich, crunchy almonds makes for a simple and delicious dessert that is both sweet and savory, and completely different from what Americans think as traditional “cake.” Read more 
Yumbutter G0
Get some crazy nutritious, mouth-rockin’ delicious energy.
Adrian Reif and Matt D’Amour, co-founders of Yumbutter – world-changing nut butters – have a dream: to nourish the world while running the world’s most responsible food company. To accomplish these goals, they set out to make some of the most delicious and nutritious nut butters – peanut, almond, and sunflower – with wholesome ingredients that nourish on-the-go because eating nut butters out of a jar isn’t easy outside the home. Read more
The Peanut Shop of Williamsburg
Anybody want a peanut? ~Fezzik
There are thousands of types of peanuts but only four major groups: Runner, Spanish, Valencia, and Virginia. These nuts (actually legumes, but that’s another story) differ in flavor, size, shape, and oil content and are therefore used differently. Most peanut butters are made with either the disease-resistant Runner or the Spanish (higher oil content) peanut while the Valencia is preferred for a southern favorite – boiled peanuts. Virginia peanuts – known for their large size and exquisite flavor – are generally sold in shell or roasted and salted. Read more
Sunfood Super Foods: Nut and Trail Mix
I wonder if the person who invented trail mix actually thought of it as they were cleaning out their car and moved their kid’s car seat? ~TheRat
Trail mix has come a long way in the past decade. No longer is the choice between a monster sized container filled with peanuts, raisins and chocolate candy or just plain GORP (good ol’ raisins and peanuts). Today, the selection is vast with some of the best options offered by Sunfood Super Foods – a San Diego based company dedicated to providing nutrient-dense, non-GMO, raw, organic super foods to consumers, including two incredibly wholesome and natural trail mixes that also happen to be delicious. Read more
Top Picks at Trader Joe’s
With more than 430 stores across the United States, Trader Joe’s offers a shopping experience that keeps customers loyal: great products at competitive prices. Most of the retailer’s packaged products are under their own private label although some well-known manufacturers (i.e. the French chocolatier Valrhona) are also available.
Smaller than the average grocery store (12,500 square feet compared to 50,000), Trader Joe’s has a limited selection but one that brings shoppers back time after time. Some of the best products available at Trader Joe’s include: Read more
Des Moines’ Downtown Farmers’ Market
Many people start thinking about Farmers Markets during the early days of summer but Iowans living in the central part of the state have been patronizing the Des Moines Downtown Farmers Market since early May. They haven’t forgotten about meat and potatoes (the market has plenty of these items) but instead celebrate the fresh local harvest of fruits and vegetables every Saturday from May thru October in the capital city on the west bank of the Des Moines River. Read more
The CORE Meal
Core Foods – based out of Oakland, California – was established by Corey Rennell, a self-confessed adventurer who traveled the world and learned two lessons along the way: eat mainly whole fresh fruit and vegetables, and treat others the way you want to be treated. Sounds simple, but as we all know, the day-to-day demands of life often keep us from eating healthy and forgetting about the people we interact with each and every day. Read more
Salad Essentials
Creating a great tasting salad is all about combining fresh food while thinking about color, taste, and texture. Most salads are colorful – light green lettuce leaves, dark green spinach, red or yellow tomato chunks, orange carrots, green avocado, light green cucumber, pink radishes, red pepper, black olives, burgundy cranberries – tasty, and have some texture differences, but lack a super crunchy and delicious addition that takes a salad from good to great. Read more
The Robert Lambert Fruitcake
It’s that time of year when we are all thinking about decadent desserts so before David Letterman delivers his top ten list of fruitcake uses or the NRA suggests using slices of Aunt Martha’s fruitcake in the next skeet shooting contest, consider for a moment that fruitcake isn’t as bad as the masses make it out to be.
Most people believe there are two truths to fruitcake: people either love it or hate it but nearly everyone would love this traditional holiday dessert if they tasted a fruitcake made by Robert Lambert of San Rafael, California, a man totally dedicated to the art of making decadent, delicious fruitcake that can make even the most vocal critic grin and beg for seconds. Read more
Miyoko’s Kitchen: Vegan “Cheese”
A vegetarian lifestyle has always been a natural fit for me and the only two things that really hold me back from becoming a vegan is butter and cheese. Although infrequent, I do indulge in a Levain Chocolate Chip Cookie or a Salty Oats oatmeal cookie by Kayak Cookies – both of which are made with butter (and eggs). And, then there is cheese. A slice of Comte or Vermont Cheddar on a toasted bagel with lettuce, tomato, and red onion is my dream bagelwich and my go-to snack when I’m on the road and fresh out of energy bars. I can go to any bagel shop and get my fix. “Hold the meat, keep the cheese, and add the veggies” and I’m off and running. Read more
Paddock Post 