Category — What I’m Loving

Ooooh, do you sometimes have a craving for something super sweet, yet satisfying?  Something chocolately and peanutbuttery?  This is a treat that you must promise me you’ll enjoy in moderation, ’cause there’s no portion-controlled packaging to save you if you get crazy over it, OK?  It’s that good that you might get out of control . . . I’ve, on occasion, threatened to throw the jar out the window to save myself from myself!

You’re dying to know now, right?  It’s Peanut Butter & Co. Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter.  It really is like a peanut butter cup in a jar . . . would be great on a nice piece of toast for breakfast (try sliced bananas on top), or heated a smidge in the microwave and then drizzled over ice cream or froyo.  But people, I believe that it’s best straight up, out of the jar.  Pure heaven.  But again, exercise caution!

For a real diet-buster, here’s a winning recipe from their site which uses the stuff to make . . . peanut butter s’mores bread pudding.  Can you stand it? 

Enjoy! 

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I like a quick lunch.  I’ve got stuff to accomplish, and not much time.  And then there are those days when I want something fancier for lunch, but I don’t want to take the time to go out.  Nothing in the fridge appeals, and I don’t want to make something from scratch – I do a lot of cooking later in the day, right?

This week I found a new solution at Trader Joe’s.  Their frozen Mini Cilantro Chicken Wontons and Chicken Shumai are tasty and not crazy for calories. To prepare them, I put a damp paper towel on a microwave safe plate, add the dumplings and the shumai, and then cover them with another damp paper towel – microwave for 2-3 minutes.  The wetter your towel, the less chance of the wrappers on the wontons getting dry and chewy.

Now folks, I realize that frozen mass-marketed dumplings are a poor cousin of homemade.  But the TJ’s  dumplings are pretty good, and compared to other convenience foods that are loaded with artificial preservatives and ingredients, these are made from relatively wholesome ingredients.  And when you’re feeling lazy but in need of an Asian fix, they’ll meet the need.

There is dipping sauce included with the shumai, but I’ve never tried it – I make my own, very easy sauce and use it on both the shumai and the wontons:

Stir.  Dip.

I also steam up some edamame (did you know you can microwave the shelled beans?  Yes – put them in a Pyrex bowl with a lid, and zap ‘em for a minute.  Stir, zap until tender).  The sauce is good on these, too.

Enjoy!

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I just zoomed in from a haircut at 1:00 and was famished – long workout today at the gym and only an apple since my breakfast at 7:00 a.m.  My husband forgot his lunch, so I ate his ham-on-wheat, and treated myself to a package of Sensible Portions Rosemary Olive Oil Garden Veggie Straws that I’d packed for him.

Now, before I go on, know this about me:  I am not a sandwich & chips kinda girl.  No, lunch for me is usually a giant salad with beans and some sort of low-calorie dressing.  Or leftovers from the night before.  Or 1/2 cup of cottage cheese with fruit or black pepper.  And I don’t like potato chips that much.  No, if I’m going to indulge in a crunchy, junky snack, I’ll go for the crunchy Cheetos, or some Cheez-its (hmmm, sensing a theme). 

Anyway, back to the loving.  It wasn’t the ham, no, that’s delicious, but it’s deli ham (it’s the hand-tied maple ham from Whole Foods, if you’re curious – uncured and SO delicious).  It was the Veggie Straws – these, my friends, are super duper delicious.  Very crunchy, sorta salty, and with just a touch of rosemary flavor.   These were the perfect counterpoint to the slightly sweet ham.  And at 135 cal./bag (1 oz.), not a budget-breaker.  I hadn’t tried these until today – picked them up in a 24-pack (assorted flavors) at Costco for $8.99.

P.S.  I ate another bag just now.  That good!  A must-try!

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Hopefully the Bostonians among you have heard of Sofra, Ana Sortun’s other place in Cambridge.  If not, you must must must check it out.  It’s a little small and crowded, and the tables and seats are a little precious and uncomfortable, but the food is out of this world.  I think it’s a destination place, but we’re lucky ’cause we live nearby.

While I’ve tried a lot of things off the menu, I hadn’t really made my way through the tea list.  And the other day I tried something new at Sofra that blew me away – Sofra’s Cocoa Rose Tea.  It’s cocoa nibs and rose tea (black tea with rose petals) and while it sounds like the cocoa might overwhelm the flavor of the whole operation, it doesn’t – instead it’s the dark, smoky backdrop to the flowery rose flavor – not easy to describe, but I urge you to try it.  You can pick it up to brew at home, too, which I did, so now I can enjoy a lil’ bit of Sofra without jockeying for a parking spot.

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