Category Archives: New Products

Nutty About Sahale Snacks & Food Gal Contest

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Cashews with pomegranate and vanilla.

I’m a bit nutty.

By that, I don’t mean I’ve lost my marbles. At least not yet.

I just mean I’m wild about nuts. I love their crunch, their richness, their unique shapes, and the way they make most any candy or baked good just so much better and far more interesting.

So when I recently tried some samples of Sahale Snacks, I got even nuttier, if that’s possible.

These all-natural nut blends and glazed nuts assortments are so creatively flavored. The Seattle company was founded six years ago by Josh Schroeter and Edmond Sanctis after the duo managed to climb Mt. Rainier even after subsisting on a lackluster supply of ho-hum trail mix and energy bars. When they got back down to sea level, they vowed to make something much tastier. And they named the company after Sahale Peak, which is north of the Cascade Pass in the North Cascades National Park in the state of Washington.

The glazed nuts come in three varieties: Honey Almonds, Almond PB&J, and Pomegranate Cashew (a 4-ounce bag is $5.29). The nut blends come in six varieties, each based on the flavors of a different global cuisine (a 2-ounce bag is $2.99).

Almonds with apple, flax seeds, date, balsamic vinegar and red pepper.

The Soledad Almonds Nut Blend, for instance, is reminiscent of the Mediterranean with its mix of almonds, flax seeds, dates, balsamic vinegar, and a touch of cayenne. The nuts have a fresh crunch, and the mix has sweetness, savoriness, and a whisper of heat. The flavors are almost reminiscent of a fabulous fruit stuffing for roast pork. It’s addicting stuff.

The Almond PB&J mix with dried strawberries is delightful with its salty and fruity marriage.

And the Pomegranate Cashew has real vanilla bean, giving it an almost creamy nature. It’s like the flavor of a rich vanilla milkshake in your mouth with just a faint tang from the fruit.

The 2-ounce bags of glazed nuts have 112 calories each, while a quarter cup of the pomegranate cashews has 150 calories. The nuts are available online, as well as at Andronico’s, Draeger’s, Lunardi’s, and Whole Foods stores.

Want to win some samples to try for yourself?

Or a total of four bags (2-ounce each) of nut blends, three (4-ounce) glazed nuts packages, and a Sahale Snacks apron to be exact?

To enter: Just tell me your nuttiest cooking escapade. The most amusing, original or memorable will win. The contest is open to anyone in the continental United States. Deadline to enter is end of the day, Oct. 24. Winner will be announced Oct. 26.

To get you in the nutty mood, here’s my own nut-case cooking fiasco:

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Orange Krispys and Winners of Food Gal Contest Announced

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Find crunchy, airy honeycomb candy inside.

A new See’s Candies confection has rolled into town just in time for autumn.

Orange Krispys can be found online or at any See’s store. An 8-ounce box of individually wrapped chocolates is $7.80

I’ll use my patented scale of 1 to 10 lip-smackers, with 1 being the “Bleh, save your money” far end of the spectrum; 5 being the “I’m not sure I’d buy it, but if it was just there, I might nibble some” middle-of-the-road response; and 10 being the “My gawd, I could die now and never be happier, because this is the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth” supreme ranking.

New Orange Krispys.

See’s Orange Krispys: Squares of airy, crisp honeycombs flavored with orange are enrobed in dark chocolate, then wrapped up in shiny orange foil bags. They’re a fun little treat for fall or even Halloween. The bright citrus flavor is lollipop-sweet. I wish it had a little bit more orange rind flavor to lend a slightly more bitter edge. Five pieces equal 190 calories. Rating: 6 lip-smackers.

Speaking of chocolate, there sure are a lot of you who can’t get enough of the stuff. Nearly 40 of you entered the Food Gal milk chocolate contest with the Amano Artisan Chocolate prize of two milk chocolate bars and one dark chocolate one.

So many of you had such wonderful responses to the statement, “Milk chocolate is…,” that it was hard to pick just one winner. So hard, in fact, that I’m adding two prizes. First place still gets the Amano chocolates. But I’ve added second-place and third-place winners, who will each receive a cookbook from my vast collection.

Without further adieu, here are the winners:

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Not Your Kid’s Milk Chocolate & Food Gal Contest

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Yes, it's milk chocolate.

Milk chocolate doesn’t get a whole lotta respect.

Dark chocolate aficionados turn up their noses at the stuff, sneering that it’s weak, sweet, and uncouth.

But there’s a new milk chocolate in town that just might change even those snobby taste buds.

Dark chocolate lovers already know Amano Artisan Chocolate, the Utah specialty chocolate maker, for its amazingly complex dark chocolates. The company, founded by a scientist who develops search engines, has now gone the milky way. It has created two different milk chocolate bars, ($6.95 for each 2-ounce bar), which I recently received samples of. So just how do they taste?

I’ll use my patented scale of 1 to 10 lip-smackers, with 1 being the “Bleh, save your money” far end of the spectrum; 5 being the “I’m not sure I’d buy it, but if it was just there, I might nibble some” middle-of-the-road response; and 10 being the “My gawd, I could die now and never be happier, because this is the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth” supreme ranking.

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Spread It On Thick

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A thick, tasty fruit spread loaded with antioxidants.

That’s what you’ll want to do with the new Crofter’s Superfruit Spreads.

The organic Canadian jams are made with Fair Trade sugar, and have no artificial flavors or preservatives. They’re also made with so-called superfruits that are apparently high in antioxidants. Those include yumberries, a subtropical fruit from China; acai, palm berries that grow in tropical Central and South America; and maqui berries from Argentina and Chile.

The jams come in four flavors: “North American” (classic cranberry and blueberry), “South American” (exotic blend of Maqui berry and passionfruit), “European” (Old world pomegranate and black currant), and “Asian” (bright blend of yumberry and raspberry).

What you’ll notice right away is the nice tang they all have. They’re not overloaded with sugar like so many other jams. Because they’re all made of dark red, blue and purple fruits, too, the spreads have a deep, complex berry-like taste. Each small jar contains a whopping pound of fruit.

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Delicious Fund-Raiser, New Zagat, Michelin Guide News, & More

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Enjoy grilled halibut at Yankee Pier Lafayette on Thursday to help a good cause. (Photo courtesy of Yankee Pier)

Enjoy a seafood lunch or dinner at Yankee Pier in Lafayette on Sept. 24, and benefit a good cause at the same time.

Twenty percent of sales from that entire day will be donated to the Taylor Family Foundation.

The non-profit partnered with the East Bay Regional Park District in 1998 to build Camp Arroyo in Livermore. The camp serves Northern California children suffering from life-threatening and chronic illnesses, as well as kids with developmental disabilities, and at-risk youth.

Yankee Pier's fish & chips. (Photo courtesy of the restaurant)

Whether you sit down to some grilled halibut, clam chowder, or oysters on the half shell, you’ll be helping to make a difference.

The new Zagat 2010 San Francisco Bay Area Restaurants Guide was released today. Results were based on the opinions of more than 9,700 diners.

San Francisco’s Gary Danko reclaimed the No. 1 spot for food, edging out Cyrus in Healdsburg (which came in second), and the French Laundry in Yountville (which took the title last year, but dropped to third this year).

Gary Danko also came in first for “Most Popular” restaurant, edging out San Francisco’s Boulevard (second place), the French Laundry (third place), San Francisco’s Slanted Door (fourth), and Cryus (fifth).

Given the beyond-dismal state economy, it’s probably no surprise that 52 percent of responders say they’re dining out less. Indeed, 36 percent said they find it easier to score a previously impossible-to-get reservation, and 40 percent feel their patronage is now more appreciated by restaurants.

Even with diners watching their pocketbook, 73 percent still feel that it’s important to eat local, organic, and sustainably-raised foods.

(Image courtesy of Michelin)

You’ll have to wait until Oct. 20 for the new 2010 Michelin Guide San Francisco.

But you can get an early taste of what’s to come by following the local San Francisco Michelin inspectors on Twitter (@MichelinGuideSF). Yes, the usually secretive inspectors actually will be tweeting about their experiences in the weeks leading up to the launch of the guide book.

Diners can get in on the fun two weeks before the release by playing along in a restaurant IQ game. Clues will hint at some of the inspectors’ “Picks for Value’.” Daily winners who guess the restaurnts correctly can win a set of the new guides. Plus, one grand prize winner will garner a Michelin dining experience for two. Just check the FamouslyAnonymous.com site each day, beginning Oct. 5, to find out more details.

A new component has been added to the 18th annual San Jose Mariachi and Mexican Heritage Festival, now going on through Sept. 27. Two cooking classes, Sept. 25-26, will be held to educate the community about healthful, local, and sustainable foods.

The “Food for the Heart & Soul” classes, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each of those two days at the Mayfair Community Center in San Jose, will teach participants how to cook more healthful Mexican food. Registration fee is $75.  To reserve a spot, register here.

Whole Foods has added a new line of kosher chicken and turkey products to its poultry offerings nationwide.

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