A New Yummy Treat From Setton Farms

A perfect treat for Spring picnics and outings is the new Pistachio Berry Blend from Setton Farms,It's a nice blend of nuts , cranberries, cherries and white  chocolate. Best of all it's comes in a pouch that can be dropped in any picnic basket or tote bag. Bring it anywhere for a yummy quick bite.

Setton Farms is really the king of all things pistachio. It's the largest pistachio producer in the US, located in Terra Bella in south central California. The company is known for growing the nuts on ten thousand acres as well as processing them too. They offer plain as well as flavored ones in such flavors  as garlic onion,jalapeno chili and salt and pepper.They also have dark chocolate covered ones and one of my favorite snacks: pistachio bites. The last are tasty little bites made of the nuts and dried cranberries held together with agave. They're a favorite nibble, all natural and tasty, a rare blend to be sure,.Setton Farms is also known for producing dried fruit such as  pears and pineapples as well You can also buy almonds and walnuts too from them. The company is combining the almonds with the pistachios in a new gorp like mix  that also features cashews,dried cranberries,dried cherries and white chocolate chips. This is a first for them because they haven't used the last ingredients yet in any products.

The mix is a fun one , salty and sweet , depending upon how it is eaten.Each pouch is about five servings so they're a fun snack to share at  soccer games or beach parties.What is great  is that Setton Farms is thinking outside the box with the use of the cherries and white chocolate. Many other companies wouldn't put in those bold flavors. They're a nice foil to the mildness of the other ingredients. The mix is great on its' own but it can be added to oatmeal for a kicky breakfast. It can also be a great boost added to muffin or even oatmeal cookie batter. Toss it into freshly popped popcorn for a new snack treat. Home chefs could even make their own chews by combining the trail mix with melted dark or white chocolate. Each serving is only twenty-eight calories with only fourteen fat calories, There''s hardly any cholesterol or carbohydrates in it so it is an ideal snack as well as ingredient to any dish. Another plus is that it comes in a resealable pouch so the snack always remains fresh,

Setton Farms new pistachio berry blend is a great snack , full of flavor and low on calories. Pick up a pouch and savor the sweet salty taste of nuts, fruits and white chocolate.It's a fun nibble that'

s actually good for you.

Meals To Go - In A Jar?

A hearty and healthy meal on the go is a a rarity, However it doesn't have to be - thanks to Mason Jars. Mason Jars??? Yes, there is an interesting new cookbook that has all sorts of recipes that involves using these classic containers to make meals. They're great for office and school lunches as well as for picnics.

Tanya Linton, a lifestyle writer and television wrote  150 Best Meals In A Jar.(Robert Rose Press) thanks to her passion for making them. It's an innovative idea because  Mason jars make great containers. Mostly crafty gift givers use them at Christmas to fill with ingredients for soup, cookies and/or hot cocoa. Yet they can be used for so much more and  don't come with any of the health concerns of plastic containers. She includes a thorough explanation of how to scrupulously cook foods and prep produce  because even the slightest  mistake can cause food poisoning, There is even a guide for layering ingredients for both Mason jar salads and Mason jar meals. She also recommends subbing in one ingredient if you don't have the one needed. The book is divided into different sections. There is the breakfast one, a huge one devoted to all sorts of salads from veggie to surf and turf., along with one for dressings .Ms. Linton also includes the trendy rice bowls along with hearty meals and finishes up with desserts.It's a nice variety for those wanting to go from simple salads to more complicated dishes.

Home chefs will love the variety of different recipes. There are the breakfast ones that include an overnight oatmeal one that  will "cook" the grain along with a trail mix and a chocolate ricotta spread. There are some great soup recipes such as the fun pizza soup which has all the pie ingredients plus chicken broth.. There's also chicken soup n the jar, the perfect gift for a sick friend.Ms. Linton's specialty is salads and she shines in all the recipes she gives for them. There are ones that features just veggies such as kale and quinoa salad with a citrus dressing  and the triple berry spinach salad with lemon poppy seed dressing.  The meat ones feature the famed Cobb  salad with  homemade ranch dressing and the classic salad Nicoise, complete with tuna, olives and hard boiled eggs. The salads and dressings are separate so home chefs can mix and match them.I love the rice bowl and layered meal Mason jar recipes. These are full dinners in a jar.Home chefs can make a layered turkey dinner or lasagna, There is the polenta Bolognese and a shepherd's pie with lamb. The rice bowls feature a tasty Santa Fe style complete with avocado , black beans and hot sauce and fried egg rice bowl , a tribute to the Korean dish bibimbap. Finish with a jarred dessert of banana s'mores or brownies smothered in chocolates and the raspberry soaked pretty macaroon pavlova.

150 Best Meals In A Jar is a great cookbook for home chefs who want to make hearty and tasty meals on the go. It shows how to take the humble Mason Jar and turn it into a container for a salad, lasagna or even a sweet treat. It's fun and innovative way to cook.

Easter Monday Picnics

The Easter weekend is a great time to get together with family and friends.There's church  services, egg hunts, fun dinners and wonderful desserts. Europeans extend the holiday to Monday where it'sa time to enjoy family and friends on the first outing of the season.

If you and your family or friends are lucky to have Monday off, then take advantage of the weather. Even if it's a rainy or snowy day, have a lunch together with the leftovers from Easter Sunday. Nothing beats ham sandwiches and they can either be thick slices of it , carved from the holiday roast or made into deviled ham. This last is easy . Take about two cups of coarsely chopped ham, along with  about three tablespoons of mayo and put into a food processor. Pulse until smooth You can add Dijon  mustard or celery seeds for some kick. Some add a drop of maple syrup for sweetness but it's really not necessary . Homemade deviled ham tastes best on a crunchy baguette. but can also be good on whole wheat bread too. Use up any potato salad leftover that went with the ham and throw in some pickles or gherkins,If you've had a snowy or rainy holiday, then use the holiday ham to make a hot and satisfying hot pea soup. The ham bone will definitely add to the flavor

Any extra hard boiled eggs can be made into a tasty egg salad. Add some tarragon for more flavor and color.. You could also just bring the eggs and then peel and salt them when you're hungry. If you didn't cook for Easter , then think about buying an already roasted chicken . It can be sliced and eaten as or made into sandwiches. Buy some potato or macaroni salad too for a more substantial lunch. An Easter Monday picnic is also a good time to sneak some fruit into the diet after a weekend of candy and cake. A nice apple or pear  along with grapes is a refreshing change from all those jelly beans and Peeps. You can also bring granola or Kind bars if you're planning on hiking or playing ball.


Extend the holiday weekend if you can. Turn Easter Monday into a picnic day, full of fun and food. Spend it with friends and family

Good Friday Good Deeds

It is Good Friday,one of the most solemn and reflective days of the Christian calendar. It is the ay when most, especially the Catholics give up meat. It should also be the day we give up some of our other foods, donating them to the poor and needy.

If you have any cans or even just want to buy some for your local soup kitchen please do so. charity doesn't just apply to the other holidays . It also applies to this weekend as well. Share cupcakes or cake if you're baking or even an Easter bread. Spend the day with the homeless.It's a great lesson for the kids. If they received a ton of candy from relatives as well as the Easter Bunny , himself, then have them share the overage with kids form the shelter.Learning to share is a great gift and they may even make new friends along the way.

This is a day for reflection and prayer. Reflect on how good and abundant your life is. Pray for those who are not so fortunate  and then share your Easter bounty with them.

A Good Dish For Good Friday

Tomorrow is Good Friday,a day when most Christians, especially Catholics, forego meat.It's a day usually spent visiting churches and then settling down to pasta or fish for lunch and dinner. Most settle for fish and chips.It's usually a greasy messy affair  however there is a way to get around it..Baking .

Melissa Clark wrote about this as well as experimented with it in her A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Food section. This British classic is tasty yet loaded with grease. Traditionally both the fish and the potatoes are fried in deep fat . This does lead to a crunchy batter for the fish and a golden fry, however every bite is loaded with grease. It's not only bad for digestion ,it' can be to much. Home chefs want a balance of crunchy and flavorful. Ms. Clark has found that this comes in baking. It eliminates the need for a sometimes dangerous deep fryer along with making the dish relatively healthy.The end result is more or less the same, but without that greasy coating on the tongue and an equally greasy aftertaste. Another plus is that its not a heavy batter but a coating of light, panko breadcrumbs. As for the fish cod is the most traditional, Ms Clark also recommends hake too or any white fish. As for the potatoes russets work well here. These are the brown Idaho  potatoes also used for baking and will give a mealy, substantial chip.The dish can be served with malt vinegar or a homemade tartar sauce.

The first step in making fish and chips is prepping the fish. The oven should be first preheated to 500 degrees Farenheit  and two pans, one for the hake or cod and a second for the potatoes should be placed inside. Then it's browning the breadcrumbs  in olive oil, thyme and garlic first because the crumbs don't brown in the oven. Afterwards dredge the fish fillets  in plain flour , then a mix of eggs and Dijon mustard before getting a final coating of breadcrumbs.Make sure each piece is well coated before baking.This process can be done up to four hours before cooking if you want to do it earlier in the day.Cut the potatoes into 1/4 inch sticks to ensure that they'll be crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. They should be tossed in oil along with salt and pepper.Olive oil is the preferred oil to use here.Spread both the fish and chips on the two preheated baking pans and reduce the temperature to 425 degrees Farenheit The fish should be flaky and tender when done while the chips should be  a golden brown. Serve with a homemade tartar sauce as Ms. Clark recommends but you can also go traditional and serve with a malt vinegar or just ketchup.

Fish and chips are an appropriate Good Friday meal. It's a healthier spin on the traditional recipe while sticking to religious traditions. People can enjoy a tasty good for you lunch or dinner while observing the holy day.

It Starts With Starter

The best tasting bread starts with a bubbly piece of bacteria. Sourdough is nothing without starter yet it's hard to come by. Home bakers  have to inherited it from a family or friend - or so it was thought. The truth is anyone can make their own sourdough starter. The surprise  - is isn't just for the bread either.Almost any baked good can have it as a vital ingredient.

Sam Sifton explored and experimented with this wonderful  bunch of fermentation in today's New York Times Food section. The idea of using a starter is not new. It's how all home bakers baked bread even as late as a century ago . Many think it's the bread itself, but sourdough actually refers to the process.Most people usually "inherit"it , either from a friend or relative who inherited it from one of their friends or relatives.Some starters go back to the late Forties. However now it can be bought , from farmer's markets to etsy.,the online flea market where people can buy anything homemade. What home bakers do need to know is that a starter is a living being and it should be treated as such As Mr. Sifton suggests think of it as a pet turtle, It needs to be tended to regularly .It needs to be fed , sometimes every  two to three hours,if it;s to be used frequently. If it's in the fridge and not being used. then it needs to be tended to every week. Starter also has to be taken out too when fed, usually for one to two hours .An equal mix of water and flour is what keeps the starter alive.

For those home bakers who want to get started with starter, the best bet is acquiring it from someone..  Besides etsy and farmer's markets , it can be bought from Cultures For Health and King Arthur's Flour websites. However starter can be made at home too.It can be as simple as flour and water mixed together , then  letting it sit in a covered bowl at room temperature until it bubbles and blooms. The process can be sped up with the addition of grapes as baker Nancy Silverson advised years ago on Julia  Child show or with a few ounces of unsweetened  pineapple juice according to Peter Reinhart, author of "The Bread Baker's Apprentice." It then has to be fed.. Many obsessive bakers feed theirs daily and even use them daily (along with naming them, William Butler Yeast, Roxanne, and Sky pilot to name a few. Mr. Sifton doesn't believe in naming his livestock as he puts it).The good part about starter is that it can be used for other baked goods. Use it before feeding to make an overnight sponge to be used for pancakes nd waffles.It's also good for pizza crust, giving it depth as pizzeria owner , Anthony Falco's of Roberta's in Brooklyn can attest.It can also be used for rye bread too.

If home baker's are up to the challenge of "owning " starter then they should. It does need tender loving care but it does pay off.There's not only crusty, tasty bread but waffles , pancakes and even sourdough pizza!

Vive Le Cuisine Belgique!!

Belgian cuisine is as diverse as the country itself, influencing the world with their  chocolates,frites and waffles. There are also influences from neighboring countries of France, Holland and Germany, but reworked to a distinctly Belgian taste. It is a cuisine of the sea and the land, perfectly married together.

Belgium was one of the first ":manufactured" countries, having been established in 1830. The original people, the Belgae were a Celtic-Germanic mix of people.Through centuries and the French Revolution the country either belonged to France or The Netherlands.It  finally came into its own during the Belgian Revolution of 1830 when the  French  nationals of the country's southern region overthrew the despotic rule of the Dutch king William I. The Dutch influence is still felt in some of the cuisine, especially the seafood.Mussels or moules are huge  throughout the country and feature largely in stateside Belgian restaurants , especially in the Manhattan ones. A pot of steamed mussels in white wine,or moules Marniere  is a treat.It is a savory and briny blend of plump mussels steamed in white wine, garlic, tarragon and parsley. Some chefs add cream to it for more lushness. Eels are also popular  as they are served in an herbal green sauce, rich with spinach and parsley, tarragon and dill . Mint and sage are also added for more flavor along with an onion. A truly hearty dish is carbonade flamande,a take on the famed French dish, boeuf Bourguignon. It  loaded with beef and onions along with beer and mustard.Thyme and bay leaves are also added to it, and it's served with a crusty baguette.

Of course most of these dishes are served with the famed frites or fries, first made as early as 1760. This is where America gets its' fries from however there is a slight twist. Pomme frites are served with mayo along with other sauces that features tomatoes, garlic , peppers and pickles.. They are usually bought from friteries , stands or restaurants that feature them along with kebobs,carbonade flamade as well as meatballs , hamburgers and sausage.Many Belgian home chefs have fryers at home and make them fresh on a regular basis, using beef fat for the frying oil. This gives them a more meatier flavor. Waffles are another Belgian import, beloved around the world. The original recipe produces a lighter crisper version usually served with fresh whipped cream, strawberries and occasionally a dark chocolate sauce, Chocolate, too , has put the country squarely on the map of culinary contributors.It's been associated with the country since the 1630s when the country was under Spanish rule and raw cacao was being brought in from Mesoamerica. It was Belgian chocolatiers who gave us the praline, a chocolate dipped nougat and the fancy ballotin box.


Belgium cuisine has influenced the world. It's is an amazing blend of cuisines , and influences  melded together to  create a mouth watering array of savory and sweet . We have them to thank for our favorites, from our waffles to our fries to our chocolates.!


Stay strong Belgium, our hearts and thoughts are with you, toujours!

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