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Posts from the ‘Food’ Category

5
Sep

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 »

3
Sep

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 »

1
Sep

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 »

26
Aug

Organic and Natural Sugars

Until recently, I didn’t think there was really that much difference between refined sugar and organic sugar but there is a big difference and one worth knowing about.  Bone char (which are primarily pelvic bones from cattle that have been ground, heated, and charred) is often referred to as a natural carbon and is widely used by the industry to filter sugar through an absorption process giving sugar cane that “pure” white color we’re all used to seeing when we open a bag of refined sugar. Not all sugar companies use bone char to process sugar – some use other carbon systems – but many do so the easiest way to avoid bone char is to buy organic and natural sugars.  Read more »

24
Aug

The LenkaBar

York, Pennsylvania may be well-known as “The White Rose City” but many people don’t know that York is also the home of Lenka’s Fresh Snacks, the maker of LenkaBars: granola bars made with organic granola and fresh, natural ingredients. It all started in Mom’s (Lenka’s) kitchen six years ago with her recipes for homemade granola bars that called for the freshest ingredients. The popularity of the bars grew and although LenkaBars are now made in a commercial grade kitchen, Lenka still makes the bars using her unique recipes in small batches. Read more »

20
Aug

Sorghum: The Hearty Grain

Sorghum is a small circular grain that is often referred to as the traditional grain of India although it originated in Africa thousands of years ago. Popular in geographic areas that can be prone to drought, sorghum is hearty and has a chewy texture making it a staple grain in India and Africa. The flavor is neutral although some varieties are slightly sweet which allows spices and seasoning to shine through in a dish. In the west, sorghum is more often cooked and then added to soups, salads or used as an alternative to rice in recipes although more recently sweet sorghum flour has become a popular ingredient in gluten-free recipes.  Read more »

18
Aug

Erewhon Supergrains: Buckwheat and Hemp Cereal

A big part of everyone’s day is breakfast and what better way to start the day than with a delicious bowl of cereal?  With most grocery stores devoting the whole side of an aisle to cereal selections, there is usually something for everyone.  But, what if you’re looking for a delicious, nutritious cereal that has simple recognizable ingredients with no artificial colors or additives? Look no further because there is a new cereal on the market called Erewhon Supergrains: Buckwheat and Hemp that not only tastes incredible but is also nutritious.
Read more »

16
Aug

The Chocolat Moderne Bar

Chocolat Moderne Bars – six exquisitely flavored chocolate bars – are the invention of Joan Cuokos, one highly educated Chocolatier who earned a degree in French and Russian from Duke University and an MBA from the University of Chapel Hill before studying chocolate and confectionary arts with a coterie of French, Belgian, Swiss and American chocolatiers in New York and Las Vegas. Read more »

12
Aug

Holy Crap!

When Corin Mullins couldn’t find a healthy great tasting breakfast cereal that addressed her husband’s food allergies and sensitivities, she created her own and called it Hapi Food cereal. At the local farmer’s market on the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia, Corin started selling her bagged cereal and when one of her first customer’s tasted a sample and said “Holy Crap…this is amazing,” the name of the cereal was changed to Holy Crap. That was May of 2009 and since then, the popularity of Holy Crap has skyrocketed  (literally, to the International Space Station where Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield enjoyed it during his five month mission earlier this year). Read more »

10
Aug

Amaranth: The Golden Grain

At a food show recently, several vendors were showing amaranth bars which reminded me of the snack bars I would see in Mexico. Nearly white in color, amaranth almost looks like sesame seeds from afar and bits of popcorn up close. Intrigued, I read the label and was impressed with the nutritional information so I ordered a bag of whole seed amaranth and started on a journey to learn about this ancient grain and how to incorporate it into modern recipes. Read more »