Product Review: Chicken Soup for the Soul Vodka Pasta Sauce

I've always been a big fan of Italian food. I love pasta and I love sauces. From spaghetti, to marinara, to Alfredo, you name it, and I am a fan. I especially enjoy vodka sauce but have never mastered making it, every time I try, the sauce comes out too thick or too runny. Luckily, former Waldorf-Astoria Chef Jon Doherty and Daymon Worldwide, makers of Chicken Soup for the Soul, got it right. Their sauce is the perfect consistency. The sauce is a rich blend of imported Italian and domestic tomatoes, olive oil, onion, bacon, cream, Parmesan cheese, and a splash of vodka. It covers pasta smoothly, and one can taste the flavors with each bite. 

The new Chicken Soup for the Soul line features healthy, comfort foods and the products are designed to make things easy for the person preparing the meals. They are versatile enough to be prepared with a variety of dishes. I used the vodka sauce with whole wheat Penne pasta one night and served it over Eggplant Parmesan another night. Some of the other products featured in the new Chicken Soup for the Soul line are: 

• Soups: Chicken Noodle Soup, Chicken Tortilla Soup, Spicy Thai Style Chicken Noodle Soup, Beef Barley Soup, Lentil and Beef Soup, Minestrone Soup, Tomato Basil Soup, Southwestern Style Black Bean Soup
  
• Broths: Beef Broth, Chicken Broth, Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth, Beef Broth, Chicken Broth, Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth, Thai Style Broth, BBQ Beef Style Flavored Broth, Italian Style Broth, Southwestern Style Broth
  
• Gravy:  Beef Gravy, Chicken Gravy, Turkey Gravy,
• Meal Builders: Meat Loaf Meal Builder, Sloppy Joe Meal Builder, Sesame Ginger Meal Builder, Chili Meal Builder

Happy Eating!

Claire

Editor's Choice: Fusion Gourmet

It’s that time of the year. Most of us are well on our way to having enough cookies, candies and other treats in the next couple of weeks to last us through the winter. Come mid-January, however, we’ll be on the hunt once again for a little something sweet, but not too big, to go with coffee or tea, or as a mid-day treat.  

That’s why I was delighted to discover a box of Dolcetto Gourmet Cookies from Fusion Gourmet, Inc. (fusiongourmet.com) that I had recently received as a sample. The cookies are bite-size crispy pillows filled with creamy fillings. They satisfy that wish for something sweet, without being too full. In my case, it was a delicious chocolate cream that brought happiness. The cookies are great with coffee or hot cocoa. They would also be good with ice cream or yogurt.  

Besides the chocolate, the all-natural baked cookies are offered in Café Mocha, Tiramisu and Coconut. The company has also recently introduced a 7 oz. Grab-and-Go 100 Calorie Bag.

For retailers, Dolcetto Petites would be a great impulse item. It would be good in a variety of themed gift baskets or looking ahead to next year, as a stocking stuffer.

Like they say, good things do come in small packages.

Barbara

Editor’s Choice: PRESSELS Pretzel Chips (Everything)

American cities have a tendency to lay claim to certain foods, attacking counterfeits and taking bragging rights to new extremes. New York has a few items in their winners circle, but the boroughs’ introduction of the Everything bagel has made the breakfast fixe quite iconic. With its disgruntled varnish of sesame, poppy, caraway seeds and a distinct amount of salt, onion and garlic, the Everything bagel matches the frenetic melting pot of characteristics and cultures found in New York. Similar to the city itself, the bagel is complex. And don’t start to understand the schmear. It’s of course an unsaid culinary regulation in the city that a dollop of cream cheese just won’t do. Instead, bagel artists slather the high-fat, cheesy delicacy on thick, with over-sized spreading knives that rival wedding cake servers. When I lived Manhattan, my diet included weekly pre-work bagel purchases (“Everything, toasted with veggie cream cheese”), and it’s forever made a culinary imprint in my heart.

The Everything bagel is arguably one of the most “New York” items on a menu, and its crossover into other food staples is on-trend lately. From everything bagel-flavored pastas to hot dog buns, the mix of seeds and spices transitions to savory items with ease. But where the “everything” flavor is quite expected (and at the top of its game) is scattered on pretzels—crisps, buns, you name it.

The idea isn’t new, but it’s instead being reinvented for the all-natural food group. PRESSELS is making its debut in the U.S., and they’ve already got my vote for a great representation of the Everything flavor. PRESSELS is the first all-natural, non-GMO certified, pressed pretzel to hit the market, and a guilt-free snack that does my favorite New York-style bagel justice. They’re super thin and baked, with 80 percent less fat than a typical chip. They’re coated with garlic, black caraway, sesame and onion, but also available in Original (salted) and Sesame flavors.

Although I’m hard-pressed to find something I won’t dip in hummus or cream cheese (Everything PRESSELS were delicious in both), they’re seriously flavorful without anything added.


-Megan

Editor's Choice: Arvinda's Butter Chicken Masala

WWJD, What Would Jessa Do?

Jessa is a character on the HBO Series Girls. She’s spontaneous, lives in the moment and throws all caution into the wind. Sometimes, I have to remind myself that I should be more like her. One of the ways I could be more adventurous, is by trying ethnic foods.   

Until last week, I had never prepared or eaten Indian food. I was worried it would be too spicy or that I wouldn't like it for some other reason. Then, my co-worker received some samples of Arvinda’s spice blends in the mail. He encouraged me to try them, and in a “What would Jessa do?” moment, I agreed to make Butter Chicken using Arvinda’s Butter Chicken Masala.

Arvinda’s is a line of spice blends (also known as masalas) that are roasted and ground in Canada. They allow home cooks, like myself, to prepare healthy, delicious and home-style Indian meals easily. The blends can also be used as rubs and marinades for meats, poultry, fish, seafood, vegetables and tofu. All of Arvinda’s spice blends are gluten, preservative and oil free.

The recipe that I used to make Arvinda's Butter Chicken Masala can be found here and it only requires a low to moderate level of skill to prepare and cook. I invited a friend who likes Indian food over for dinner that night. I was anxious about how it would turn out, and paid very close attention to the directions. After removing the pan from the stove, we (me much more nervously) dug in and to our delight, loved it! The seasoning was moderately spicy (although I am sure that if I had marinated the chicken for more than a few hours it would be hotter), was slightly tangy and tasted fresh. Next time I make this dish, I will make naan to go with it. The sauce is good enough to eat without the chicken.

To summarize, Arvinda’s Butter Chicken Masala was a hit and I can’t wait to try Arvinda’s Tandoori Masala which smells a even stronger…after all, that is what Jessa would do. 

-Claire

Editor's Choice: Justin's Peanut Butter Cups

When I was asked if I could take my little nephew out for trick or treating a few weeks ago, I couldn't have jumped higher at the chance. Not only was it a great excuse to dress up in costume (which I did, as Chewbacca from Star Wars), but it brought back great memories of sifting through a pillowcase of candy, looking for the "good stuff."

In my day, the "good stuff" was any kind of king-size candy bar. After looking through my nephew's haul at the end of the night, it was pretty evident that his total volume of "good stuff" was way larger than what it used to be when I was a kid. Thankfully, my nephew is a kind, sharing sort of fellow, and as he sat surrounded by his candy treasures, he granted me permission to partake from his sweet stockpile.

I have a crippling weakness for peanut butter, so I was intrigued by the clean, white packaging of some Justin's Peanut Butter Cups that some unknown neighbor was kind enough to introduce into our lives. I popped the packaging open, and we both had one. The results were unanimous: this was the most delicious peanut butter and chocolate item possible.

To make the deal even sweeter, each individually-wrapped Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup is 100 percent organic, vegan and Rainforest Alliance certified. The company uses only the highest quality organic and fair-trade peanut butter in their products.

The company also works hard to lessen their environmental footprint. All of their cartons, boxes and caddies are made with wind power, while all packaging cardboard is made with 100 percent recycled paper. All ingredients are sourced as locally and sustainably as possible. For example, they get the nuts for their peanut butter from Georgia, not China, using local ingredients to support local economies and lower their carbon footprint.

Their peanut butter cups come in Milk Chocolate and Dark Chocolate. Retailers can order them in packs of 12. These would be great items to stick by the register almost anywhere. Learn how to order some for your store, or check out their other peanut butter-related products at Justin's.com.

-Marc

Editor's Choice: Tribes-A-Dozen

For some of us, there’s nothing like the aroma of bread baking. I remember last summer one morning being in a cab in New York and as we turned the corner there was the delightful smell of bread baking and it continued for at least another block. It was a fine way to start the day.

Fresh-baked bread is one of the great comfort foods. It was always a treat to see a long loaf of bakery bread on the dinner table. I remember Tuesdays in college enjoying lunches of Italian beef sandwiches made with fresh-baked bread from the bakery down the street. Good bread helps create good memories.

The owners of Tribes-A-Dozen (tribesadozen.com) feel the same way about bread and also about carrying on tradition. They have introduced Voila! Hallah, bread mixes that make the traditional egg bread, known as hallah, challah, barches, brioche, kalács, osterbrot, or, simply, twisted bread. The mix is all-natural, kosher, and brings convenience to old world bread baking.

The mix contains everything and you only need eggs, water and vegetable oil. And full disclosure: Not much of a baker myself, I enlisted a friend to test out the mix. The dough rose properly and once baked produced a bread that was moist and full of flavor. It would be perfect to serve for any meal, large and small. 

The hallah bread is great on its own or as sandwich bread. It also makes terrific French toast. It is available in three varieties: Traditional Egg Bread Mix, Wholey Wheat Egg Bread Mix and Simply Spelt Egg Bread Mix.

For retailers, it would be a great product to stock for the upcoming holidays and winter weather.

Barbara

Editor's Choice: Almondina Toastees

Now that Halloween is over, retailers have shelf space for more healthy and delicious snacks such as Almondina Toastees.

These crisps come in four delectable flavors; Cranberry Almond, Sesame Almond, Lemon Poppy Almond and Coconut Orange Almond.

Here at the office, we tried the Sesame Almond. They are thin and crunchy, and are bite-size with the perfect consistency which keeps them from crumbling and making a mess. They can be prepared with both strong and mild cheeses. I recommend serving them with goat cheese and preserves or with creamy havarti. They would also be appetizing paired with fresh mozzarella, tomato, basil and a balsamic glaze for a twist on a traditional caprice salad. Almondina Toastees can also be paired with coffee or used as a garnish for frozen yogurt.

Almondina Toastees are a lighter version of founder Yuval Zaliouk’s grandmother Dina’s Petit Gateau Sec cookie recipe. These Toastees are great by themselves as a snack or light dessert and remind me of a cross between a cracker and my own grandmother’s Norwegian Christmas cookies.

Unlike my grandmother’s Norwegian cookies, they are a lot healthier. Almondina Toastees boast no added fat or salt, don’t have preservatives and are dairy free.

Almondina Toastees make a great snack or dessert alternative to Halloween candy. I would recommend them for their versatility, easy preparation and consumption, and most importantly, their delicious flavor.

-Claire