So Delicious Coconut Almond Minis Review

So Delicious Coconut Almond Minis

Turtle Island’s So Delicious brand has really made waves in the nondairy products department with the introduction of their coconut milk-based line. Each product I’ve tried has been a hit. Well made, with a clean, slightly coconutty taste, but full of flavor. And they’re all natural, which is always a plus.

By itself, coconut milk is a bit heavy and while it may readily be drunk, it’s more palatable when it’s lighter or mixed into other products. Coconuts are also one of the few plant foods to contain saturated fat, so keep that in mind. However, these saturated fats are not the terrible, artery clogging monsters you should be worrying about. Coconut milk as  base for nondairy foods makes absolutely perfect sense. The only problem for some would be to tone down the coconut taste. So Delicious has done that for some of their products, like the Coconut Milk Beverage, but in others, chooses to play it up.

I’m a coconut lover, so trying the Coconut Almond Minis was a no-brainer. No stranger to vegan and nondairy ice creams, I’m familiar with the taste and texture of frozen desserts made without dairy. Let me tell you, these minis are incredible! The chocolate coating is a delight, filled with pieces of toasted coconut and almonds, and infused with coconut flavor. The center is creamy and even a little rich. The texture is almost completely right if you’re looking for something that can go head to head with a dairy bar. I think most people wouldn’t even realize it was vegan. The creaminess and richness of the ice cream here is just that good.Previously, some of the soy or rice-based nondairy ice creams and treats I’ve tried had good flavor, but either had an aftertaste or a consistency that was a little grainy. You always knew it wasn’t dairy, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t good. But eating is a sensual experience, and if the texture is off, it can throw one.

These minis are delicious, but also pretty indulgent. As you might guess from the name, they are small. Each packs 170 calories and 10g fat (7grams of saturated coconut fat) into 2.3 ounces. However, the size turns out to be just right for this treat. They’re just enough and they taste so good. They’re vegan, and suitable for those with lactose intolerance or dairy allergies, but they deserve to be loved by everyone.

For more info: So Delicious Coconut Almond Minis. There’s a coupon offer on their website.

 

Fulfilling a Craving for Grilled Cheese

I”m back! I’ve been rather busy lately, but expect more posts on a regular basis now.

I’ve been really craving a good grilled cheese sandwich lately. The other night, I came home from work all set to make one when I discovered I was out of cheese. That was a real bummer, especially when I sat down to watch the latest episode of Top Chef Masters, where the Quickfire Challenge asked contestants to create —grilled cheese! Reluctantly, I had to wait a day until I was able to stop after work and plan my own perfect grilled cheese. Although I’m a big fan of the traditional cheesy, melty, buttery grilled cheese using Kraft slices, sometimes you just have to have something a little more grown up and flavorful.  So I decided to buy apples, sharp Cheddar cheese slices, and a little bottle of imported black truffle oil. The truffle oil was a little bit of luxury that I decided to splurge on. However, no matter what’s on my grilled cheese, I always cut it diagonally, like my grandmother always used to do for me.

I love the combination of Cheddar and apples. I chose a sweet yellow apple, Golden Delicious, which is not only my favorite variety, but would balance the tang of both cheeses I planned to add to the sandwich. That’s right, two cheeses. The other was some shaved Pecorino Romano that I love for its nuttiness and tang. I’m a big fan of sheep’s milk cheeses on the whole.

The result was earthy and creamy meets sweet. I wound up putting in slightly too much apple, but overall, the sandwich was delicious. Sorry I don’t have any photos, but there wasn’t any good light (and my sandwich was so warm and melty!). The truffle oil and Pecorino played extremely well off of each other, and I can’t wait to use the two together in a pasta dish soon.

 

Food Nostalgia

It happens to us all. Catching a particular smell brings you back to another time, place, or even person. Themeals your grandmother used to make while you were growing up. An ex lover’s hair. The time you and your cousin spent the whole day at the fair trying every color of cotton candy to see if they tasted different.

Just like any other sudden rush of memory, almost any little thing can spark food nostalgia, though it can pop up seemingly out of the blue too. Recently, I was walking to the gym when memories of a meal I’d had at a restaurant about ten years ago popped into my head. I could almost taste the grilled mushrooms again, sitting atop similarly grilled polenta wedges. These were topped by an amazing (and as I’ve come to learn, amazingly simple) balsamic reduction. Altogether, not a complicated meal, but one which struck me powerfully in an instant and led to ongoing cravings ever since.

It doesn’t take many ingredients or a complex process to make really good food. Something that a person will suddenly recall and almost taste when that wisp of the experience suddenly rushes back. Even ten years later. As for me, I’ve resolved to recreate this mushroom and polenta dish on my own, and I’ll feature it here as soon as I do.

For those who would like to make something similar, there’s a mushroom and polenta recipe in the latest (Jan-Feb) issue of Everyday Food magazine. It doesn’t feature a balsamic reduction, but it looks good. The magazine arrived after my cravings had struck, but surely this would’ve also jogged my memory similarly.

 

Move Over, Bacon Chocolate

Everyone makes a fuss over Vosges’ Mo’s Bacon Bar family of chocolates, but I’ve just discovered their Organic Habana bar. A mix of milk chocolate containing 45% cocoa and crunchy plantain chips, this bar is calling my name to try it soon.

I love plantains. If you’re unfamiliar with them, they look like larger bananas with thicker skins. While bananas are edible raw, most of the time, plantains must be cooked. Depending on the dish, one picks a plantain by color, indicating ripeness. Their ripeness cycle parallels that of bananas too, starting out green and starchy, then turning yellow, and finally brown and black. They are super versatile and delicious sweet (as maduros), savory, roasted, baked, fried, in chip form, or in dishes like stews.

Growing up with a Puerto Rican family, plantains were a staple food. Nothing compares to my grandmother’s cooking, but I enjoy preparing them in familiar ways like tostones (a side dish of salt water soaked, then twice-fried, flattened plantains), and discovering new methods, such as African-inspired stews. Plantains are suitable for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or anywhere in between. They also cook up pretty fast, making a great option if short on time.

Now, of course, there’s chocolate to explore as well. Already I’m wondering if the plantain chips are from green immature fruit, salted perhaps, or made from riper plantains, crunchy and mingling their natural sugar with the chocolate blend.

Organic Habana chocolate bar available at Vosges.

 

Guava Cheesecake

A slice of my guava cheesecake.

It’s summer, so what better time to use some tropical fruit? I’ve actually had a can of guava paste sitting around for a while. I was going to make cheese empanadas, but then I started craving cheesecake a couple of weeks ago. The natural solution, of course, was to make one, but I actually didn’t think about incorporating the guava until a couple of days ago. I stopped into a nearby supermarket yesterday for the first time to look for cream cheese and I saw a can of guava in syrup on the shelf. That just sealed it.

If you’ve never had it, the taste of a guava can be a bit difficult to describe. It’s sort of dry and fibrous like some pears, sweet but not too sweet, slightly reminiscent of strawberry. It’s quite distinct, however. My dad is from Puerto Rico, and that’s how I’ve had lifelong familiarity with the guava, since it’s very popular in Latin America.

As far as cheesecakes go, I love them, but I dislike those that are way too dense. Try sticking your fork into a slice of those and it’s like attempting to cut a brick. No, I love my cheesecakes creamy and lighter.

I’m probably an unlikely person to be writing a food blog, since I rarely ever follow recipes exactly, and often when cooking, I’ll wing it. I did that while making this cake, but the results were incredible. I tried making the cake not quite as deadly by using lower fat ingredients. I also didn’t feel like a traditional graham crust, so I used animal crackers.

Here’s my recipe.

Guava Cheesecake

Ingredients:

• 1pkg cream cheese (8oz)
• 1pkg Neufchatel cheese (8oz)
• 6oz low fat cottage cheese, small curd
• 6oz reduced fat sour cream
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 can (21oz) Goya guava paste
• 1 can guava chunks in syrup, drained (optional; I used Libby’s)

• 6 oz animal crackers, crushed
• 1 T butter, melted
• water
• 2 tsp cornstarch, divided

Combine crushed animal crackers and butter, and press into the bottom and slightly up the sides of a cake or pie pan. Set aside.

Process cottage cheese curds in blender with several pulses just until smooth. Do not overprocess, as it will become watery. Mix cream cheese, Neufchatel, sour cream, and cottage cheese in a bowl until blended . Add eggs and vanilla. Mix well, then add flour and sugar and blend together until very smooth.

In a small saucepan, add 6oz guava paste, cubed, along with 1tsp cornstarch, and about 1oz water. Heat over low-medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture becomes a thickened sauce.

Pour about half of the cheese batter into the cake pan. Top with guava sauce and swirl the sauce into the batter slightly. Reserve saucepan. Preheat oven to 300º.

Swirling the guava layer atop the first cheese layer.

Then, pour the rest of the cheese batter on top of the guava layer, covering the fruit completely.

Lower oven temperature to 250º. Bake for 1 hour.

While the cake is baking, make the second batch of guava sauce. Add 6-7oz guava paste, cubed and about 3/4 of the canned guava. Add 1tsp of cornstarch and small amounts of water if necessary. Repeat until you have another batch of sauce. Set aside.

The cake will not look set in the middle, but it is done after 60 minutes and will set when cool.

Let cool for about 30 minutes. Top with guava fruit and sauce mixture. Chill for a couple of hours and serve. Or if you’re like me, you’ll put it in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes before giving in and cutting a slice. Then, when you realize you didn’t take a picture of that first slice, you have a second slice, but only because you need a picture for your new food blog.

The finished product:

Adding the guava atop the cooled cake.