Category: Food Items (Page 16 of 27)

Beware of Honey!

November 11, 2011 / marga / 0 Comments

Honey. Who doesn’t like honey? From Winnie the Pooh to “natural foods” fans, honey has many fans. But a new study shows that what you are getting labeled as “honey” at the supermarket may not honey at all. Indeed, more than three fourth of all the honey sold at supermarkets and big box stores and all the honey sold at drugstores does not qualify as “honey’ under international standards.

For honey to be considered honey, it needs to have pollen in it. The pollen allows experts to identify where the honey came from, everything from the region of the world it was harvested to the flowers the bees fed from. But most of the honey in the market has had its pollen removed, through a process called “ultra filtration”. The main reason for ultra filtering honey seems to be to hide its origin. China is a huge producer of honey, but Chinese honey is kept out of the US market. To get around that, Chinese companies sell their honey to American distributors through representatives in other countries. By removing the pollen, they make sure the honey cannot be traced back to them.

The problem with Chinese honey is that some of it is adulterated with animal antibiotics (which can be harmful to some people), heavy metals and even other “extenders” such as corn syrup and other sweeteners. You think you are paying for honey – and honey is not cheap – and you are getting other stuff instead.

There is a way around this, however. The honey sold at farmers markets, co-ops and, more importantly for me, Trader Joe’s is all honey full of pollen. I know where I’ll be buying my honey from now on!

Sister Schubert’s Cinnamon Rolls – Review

October 6, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments

I really wanted to get a treat today, but Grocery Outlet didn’t have much to choose from. I’d seen Sister Schubert’s Cinnamon Rolls before, but for some reason they hadn’t really drawn me. Still, with no other real choices I got them. Lord, I’m glad I did.

I don’t tend to like refrigerated cinnamon rolls (at least the Pillsbury kind) because they have a weird metallic flavor (I imagine it’s the preservatives). They are just not that good. These rolls, however, were delicious. They were moist, not too sweet, with lots of cinnamon flavor and came covered with sugar frosting. They may not be as good as homemade cinnamon rolls or the rolls you get at Cinnabon, but for being a frozen product they are very good.

You can cook the cinnamon rolls directly from the freezer, it takes 25 to 30 minutes in a preheated oven, or thaw them first and cook them for 15 minutes or so. I did the former.

I think they sell in regular stores for $3.50 or so (but I don’t know who carries them), but they’re current on sale at the San Leandro Grocery Outlet for $2. Tomorrow I’m going to go and get a few packages – they are frozen, so I can keep them in the freezer until I need them.

Organic spices @ Grocery Outlet

September 30, 2011 / admin / 1 Comment

Grocery Outlet usually carries a selection of spices, though often times they are no-name brands. Then again, I’m not sure what “name” brands are vis a vis spaces or whether it would make a difference. Are there lower quality nutmeg trees? In any case, today I found a number of Nash Brothers Trading Company organic spices at the San Leandro Grocery Outlet. They had parsley and oregano, maybe ground cloves and definitely ground nutmeg (that’s what I got). I think they were all $2-3 for a “regular” size jar. That’s about 1.7oz in nutmeg, but it’ll vary on other spices.

Nash Brothers is a “premium” brand of the Nash Finch Company, a large distributor of private label food items. Nash Finch is hoping to develop Nash Brothers as a national branch and place it in large supermarkets. So far it doesn’t seem to have been too successful, but I guess Grocery Outlet is a start (or is it an end?). In any case, in addition to spices, GO also is carrying Nash Brothers organic vanilla extract ($5 for a 4 oz bottle). Alas, the extract is not “pure”, which means it doesn’t have as much alcohol as others, which I imagine means the vanilla flavor is more diluted. I still got some, though, let’s see how well it works.

Safeway Peanut Butter Chewy cookies – Review

September 8, 2011 / admin / 1 Comment

The Safeway in downtown San Leandro offers children a free cookie from their bakery. This is a great strategy by Safeway, not only does it create good feeling on parents but it means that kids rae eager to actually go grocery shopping with the parents. Parents shopping with kids are more likely to buy stuff they wouldn’t otherwise.

Yesterday, my kids (and I!) got a Safeway Chewy Peanut Butter cookie and I have to say it may very well have been the most delicious cookie I’ve ever had. As promised, it was very chewy, it almost felt like it had caramel inside (but I don’t think it did). The flavor was out of this world, not too sweet, not too peanut butterish, with a chocolate chip here and there to balance the flavor. Even though it was so chewy it did feel a bit dry (a common problem with peanut butter cookies), so I think it’d be best eaten with a cup of milk or coffee.

These cookies retail at Safeway for $4.50 for a dozen (I think) – almost twice as much as their “regular” cookies cost (on sale). But as they’re twice as good as their regular cookies, I can’t complain. I just wish they sold them by the unit, as good as they are I can’t expect to buy a box and not eat them all (so I won’t).

I found a recipe for chewy peanut butter chocolate chip cookies at the Safeway site, I’ll try it and hope it’s the same one they are using.

Betty Crocker Warm Delights – Review

September 6, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments

Betty Crocker Warm Delights are individual-sized cakes, cookies and brownies that you prepare at home in your microwave. The bowls come with a small package of cake mixture, to which you add water. Then you put it in the microwave for about a minute, and top it with ready-made fudge from a packet included in the kit. You have a warm dessert in 2 or 3 minutes. Really, it couldn’t be simpler or faster.

These warm delights bowls taste much, much better than they have any right to. Indeed, they taste just as good – it not better – than most similar desserts you can get at a restaurant or even make yourself. Because you make the cake right before you eat it, it’s moist and airy. The fudge adds intensiveness and sweetness. They are even better with vanilla ice cream on top. Of course, I’m sure they are terribly bad for you and I don’t even want to look at the ingredients, but as a quick dessert to hit your sweet tooth they can’t be beat.

Warm Delights came in two sizes, a regular bowl (pictured) and “minis”, bowls about half the size. A mini is definitely large enough as a dessert. They retail for about $2 (for either a large bowl or two minis), but I get them at Grocery Outlet (when available) for 50-cents each.

Claim Jumper Frozen Dinners – Review

August 22, 2011 / admin / 8 Comments

I’m not a frozen food fan, but sometimes I want something that is quick and easy and cheap and frozen food is /it/. Today, for example, my original plan for dinner was to make Cajun jambalaya, but we went to the movies, and then to the supermarket, and then it was too late to cook (really, I can’t really make anything in less than an hour). So it was mac & cheese for the girls and a trip to Grocery Outlet for me, to see what was in the frozen food aisle. Alas, there weren’t too many choices that fit my palate.

I had already tried Claim Jumper lasagna before – I’d found it edible. There was too much sweet sauce, too little cheese and meat, but while it’d never be my first choice, I could eat it again. Today I decided to try something else, the meatloaf. My expectations were low so I was pleasantly surprised to find the dish not just edible but satisfying. Now, I think that was because the food was super hot and I was very hungry, but I only eat frozen food when I’m really hungry :-). The meatloaf itself had a mild taste and a non-offensive texture, it smelled of liquid smoke but it didn’t have any overwhelming flavor. The mashed potatoes were light and the gravy non-offensive. The portion is definitely much smaller than the picture implies, but it was enough for dinner – and a reasonable 540 calories (though mostly coming from fat, some of that is probably in the gravy and you don’t need much of it). I’d this dinner again over the lasagna.

Update: Today I tried the Claim Jumper fried chicken. Once again it looked like it wouldn’t be enough food for dinner, and once again I was wrong. The meal consisted of a breaded/fried boneless chicken patty, mashed potatoes & gravy & some corn in the cob. The chicken itself wasn’t that great. It had a weird flavor, similar to food fried in really old oil. The texture was fine, though. I did like the mashed potatoes, the fact that they were very hot helped. I didn’t try the gravy or the corn. I don’t think I’d buy this meal again.

My biggest gripe with these meals is that they take too much work. If I’m going to have to eat frozen food, what I want to do is put the damn thing in the microwave, set the time and come back when it’s done. For the meatloaf, I had to remove the cover, add water to the green beans, recover, cook, come back, remove the cover, remove the meatloaves, stir the mashed potatoes, return the meatloaves, recover, cook some more, remove, pierce the gravy package, put it on a plate, microwave, open the package and pour it on the food. It may not sound like much, but if I have to do multiple things I might as well cook some pasta.

Claim Jumper dinners are $3 a Grocery Outlet, they’re about $4 at the supermarket.

High end salts & herb mixes at Grocery Outlet

August 18, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments

I just came back from Grocery Outlet with a beautiful glass bottle of Himalaya Pink Salt. According to the bottle, Himalaya Pink salt, a product of Pakistan, was originally “formed from marine fossil deposits over 250 million years ago”. The rock salt tastes like salt to me, but I’m not a salt connoisseur. Still, for $3, I thought it was worth it. If nothing else, the bottle is nice.

The salt is distributed by La Collina Toscana, an Italian company. It doesn’t expire until 2015 (though, really, if it’s 250 million years old I’m sure it’ll hold for a few more years). In addition to this salt, the GO in San Leandro had gray salt from Brittany, and three herb mixes: Herbes de Provence (though this mix didn’t contain lavender and other typical ingredients), a Tuscan herb mix and another Italian herb mix. All are $3.

Flat Iron steak

August 1, 2011 / admin / 1 Comment

Flat iron steak is a newish cut in America that has become popular at posh restaurants. There are only 4 flat iron steaks per cow, so it’s not a cut that you can often find at supermarkets (though Safeway sell them pre-packaged). They were on sale for $4 lb at Lucky’s this week so I bought some for dinner. Mika loved them. Though they had a thick piece of connecting tissue in the middle, the steaks themselves are very tender. They are not terribly flavorful, however, though a good sauce can take care of that. At $4 lb, they are a great alternative to filet mignon.

I grilled them on the BBQ grill outside and they are quick and easy to prepare: pre-heat the grill on medium-high, salt & pepper the steaks, brush with olive oil, grill on each side for 4 minutes for medium rare, let rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.

I’ll definitely buy this cut again when it’s available at this price.

Cucina & Amore Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce

July 28, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments

I got this pasta sauce at Grocery Outlet ($2 for a 17.6 oz box) because I was looking for a higher-quality pasta sauce to go with a dish I was making for dinner. This sauce, made in Italy, contains all natural ingredients: tomatoes, tomato paste, sweet red peppers, evoo, anchovy paste, salt, parsley, garlic, sugar and chili powder. The results is a very nice and fresh tasting sauce, with a strong (but pleasant) red pepper flavor. My daughter found the sauce too sour, and I have to agree with her though that wasn’t a problem with me. It didn’t go well with the dish I made, the flavor of the sauce is too strong to mix in with other ingredients, but I think it’d be pleasant enough by itself. At $2 for basically 2-cups worth of sauce it’s a pretty expensive for a place like Grocery Outlet, but I think it’s worth it.

Note, because the sauce comes in a box rather than a jar, you can’t actually reseal it so plan to use it quickly.

Hart Orange Beef – Review

July 15, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments

Orange Beef is the latest product from Hart Food Products, a small mom & pop frozen food company that seems to mostly distribute through Grocery Outlet. I had tried their Orange Chicken before and I had been less that impressed, but it was another kidless night when I didn’t want to cook and, if nothing else, the Hart Orange Beef ($4 for the 2+lb package) seemed like a good value. So I decided to give it a try.

Like the chicken, this product consists of small pieces of beef heavily battered. You sauté them on some oil for about 12 minutes, stirring often, heat up the orange sauce in a different sauce pan, and then mix it in with the beef. It’s not too complicated, but it does use up two cooking pots (not good for those of us without dishwashers).

The results are mediocre. The beef has way too much breading and it was too oily (I’d recommend using a non-stick pan and only minimal oil when cooking them), the sauce wasn’t painfully sweet but I grew sick of it quickly. In all I think I’ll steer clear of Hart products.