Random food items you really like

[Plutonic Panda]

Just a thread to discuss some random food items you can purchase at grocery stores or rather the brands that you really like.

For example, out here in Los Angeles, I love drinking various brands of waters that come from different parts of the world.

Lately I’ve been drinking a brand of tea called Kollo. It’s brewed in Los Angeles, But I believe it has a hint of cocoa From Morocco in it. It’s really good.

[Celebrator]

Here are a few of ours.

In the past few years, my family has really been trying hard to not consume bad oils in our food--it's tough because these oils are in just about EVERYTHING pre-made and processed. We try hard to find (the few processed foods we eat) food made with one of these three oils: olive, coconut, or avocado oils We also try and only cook and bake using those three oils.

I love chips, but most are made with bad oils, but a few brands make chips with olive and/or avocado oils--Boulder is one of those brands--their chips are excellent and MUCH of their product line is fried in good oil. Many Siete products are made with good oils as well.

We also like to eat and cook with coconut aminos, a soy sauce alternative and a better choice, health-wise. I love coconut aminos in the pit well of a fresh avocado. Thrive Market (an online, members grocery which we love) has an excellent coconut aminos.

And finally (and I have mentioned this brand on the forum here recently in the caffeine thread) is Spindrift sparkling water. It is just about the only sparkling water we have found out there that only contains fruit juice and water as its ingredients--no "natural" (read: lab) flavorings, sugar, sweeteners or anything added that isn't a recognizable ingredient. They keep it simple: carbonated water and fruit juice. Le Croix, Waterloo, Bubly, etc., all have ingredients that are more mystery than natural. Our first choice is to use our Soda Stream and add our own juice. I am partial to Nelly and Joe's Key Lime and the organic Italian volcano lemon juice in the tall green glass bottles at Costco.

[Brett]

I'm a big fan of Trader Joe's Cultured Salted Butter.

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/prod...-butter-053720

[Pete]

Speaking of Trader Joe's, I really like their Spicy Honey. I've never been a honey fan but love this stuff on pizza or peanut butter toast:

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/prod...y-sauce-076116

[Bill Robertson]

Speaking of Trader Joe's, I really like their Spicy Honey. I've never been a honey fan but love this stuff on pizza or peanut butter toast:

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/prod...y-sauce-076116

Oh my! My wife loves the glazed carrots at Hopscotch. So I learned how to make something very similar. The recipe is basically to boil baby carrots until tender then draining and cooking in honey, butter and a couple seasonings. Spicy honey might just give these a good kick.

[Celebrator]

I'm a big fan of Trader Joe's Cultured Salted Butter.

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/prod...-butter-053720

A colleague of mine made her own cultured butter. Oh man. So good.

[Roger S]

We also like to eat and cook with coconut aminos, a soy sauce alternative and a better choice, health-wise. I love coconut aminos in the pit well of a fresh avocado. Thrive Market (an online, members grocery which we love) has an excellent coconut aminos.
.

This and nutritional yeast will add a lot of umami to just about anything.... I use the nutritional yeast on popcorn

[Roger S]

A colleague of mine made her own cultured butter. Oh man. So good.

I make my own butter. I used to play it classical music while it cultured but recently I decided I wanted a bit sharper flavor. So I let it read Hondo and it was perfect.

May have been the kefir I used too but I'm sticking with the Hondo.

[Celebrator]

This and nutritional yeast will add a lot of umami to just about anything.... I use the nutritional yeast on popcorn

Yeah, I tried that and I am sticking with parm instead. My young daughter loves the nutritional yeast on popcorn, though.

[Celebrator]

Speaking of Trader Joe's, I really like their Spicy Honey. I've never been a honey fan but love this stuff on pizza or peanut butter toast:

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/prod...y-sauce-076116

Bought it, tried, and loved it based on your rec! Great idea to put it on pb toast! Fantastic.
Bought the cultured butter while I was there too and it is very good.

[Pete]

Bought it, tried, and loved it based on your rec! Great idea to put it on pb toast! Fantastic.
Bought the cultured butter while I was there too and it is very good.

Glad you liked it. TJ's has so many good things.

I have a pizza oven and put that hot honey on all my pies and my guests just rave.

[Martin]

I have a pizza oven and put that hot honey on all my pies and my guests just rave.

pizza is one thing that i tried and gave up on... for whatever reason, i could never perfect my technique for launching a pie into the oven. practically every time there'd be one tiny spot that would stubbornly choose to stick and cause the whole thing to come out misshapen... or worse.

[Pete]

pizza is one thing that i tried and gave up on... for whatever reason, i could never perfect my technique for launching a pie into the oven. practically every time there'd be one tiny spot that would stubbornly choose to stick and cause the whole thing to come out misshapen... or worse.

The key is using semolina flour on your pizza peel before placing the formed dough on top. Then give the peel a shimmy to make sure the dough is not stuck.

Semolina won't burn in the high heat of a pizza oven, unlike regular flour or corn meal.

[Martin]

The key is using semolina flour on your pizza peel before placing the formed dough on top. Then give the peel a shimmy to make sure the dough is not stuck.

Semolina won't burn in the high heat of a pizza oven, unlike regular flour or corn meal.

ohhhh, believe me that i tried all that to no avail. but thanks for the tips! there were times that i'd get the perfect shimmy, but then it'd magically stick by the time i made it to the oven... so frustrating. i will have to give it a try again sometime, though. for now, i've been sticking to detroit style... no launch needed.

[Pete]

^

You just have to practice; try one quick jerk.

Thousands of people are using pizza ovens and peels.

[Martin]

^

You just have to practice; try one quick jerk.

Thousands of people are using pizza ovens and peels.

oh, no doubt... it's me. i'm on month two of working from home, so i have way more time to get some practice in than i used to.