Three Things Thursday (5) – Foodie Edition

I love food and everything that comes with it! In fact, if I could have my way, every conversation EVER would revolve around food – recipes, restaurants, the cooking channel, etc.

When I was in DC last week, I realized that not everyone likes to talk about food the way I do. Shocker! Upon taking my lunch order, our administrative assistant asked me a question about feta cheese. That one innocent question was all I needed to bring up my favorite Greek foods and talk about a restaurant I tried in DC a few years ago. As I was talking, she inched her way to the door. I eventually took the hint and shut up!

Just a fair warning if you ever meet me!

With that, here’s the food related edition of Three Things Thursday.

1. When I blogged about new-to-me dairy-free products, a few people suggested I try Daiya Cheese. So I picked up a bag at Whole Foods last weekend and have used it several times since. It definitely tastes better than the Trader Joe’s vegan cheese, and I would say that the “melty” factor is about the same.

 

While these cheeses are great to have on hand, I prefer not to use them if I don’t have to. There’s nothing natural about them, and let’s be honest…they don’t taste like cheese at all! But it’s always good to have options.

2. As part of a Fitfluential campaign, I was sent a bottle of Pylian Estates Extra Virgin Olive Oil to use and blog about. I wanted to make an olive oil centric food/dish because in my mind that was the only way to tell the difference between this oil and the one I buy at Costco. I decided to make basil/walnut pesto. While I don’t think Vishnu could really tell the difference, I definitely tasted the buttery and slightly fruity flavor of the oil. And that’s pretty impressive considering that pesto is made up of very strong flavors as it is. I can’t wait to buy a hearty loaf of bread this week and use it as sponge for this oil!

 

And just because I love “fun” facts like this, here are a few interesting points about what makes Pylian different..

– A small family maker controls the oil from the trees in Greece all the way into the bottles.
– All of the oil is labeled with exact harvest and press dates to ensure freshness.
– The exact location of the trees is noted on the bottles.
– The oil is processed without heat and chemicals.
– The bottles come with a re-sealable cork to keep air out in between uses. This prevents oxidization and rancidity.

 

3. My friend Monica gifted me The Flavor Bible last year as part of my Secret Santa gift. I have to admit that while I peruse the pages every now and then, I never sat down and gave myself the space to think of creative meals based on suggestions from the book.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, this book is a home cook’s dream. Basically, every food ever known to man is included along with an extensive list of other ingredients that pair well with that food. For example, I looked up balsamic vinegar the other day and learned that truffle oil and mustard pair well with it. After noting the flavor combo, I made a truffle oil and mustard balsamic reduction. I never would have thought of that on my own…I LOVE this book!

My 2015 plan is to use this book to help me create original recipes and be more daring in the kitchen. If nothing else, it’ll make for some interesting and hopefully delicious blog content!

Your turn – any new foodie finds I should know about?

If you’re a blogger, write a post and link back to one or all of the hostesses; Raj from Pink Chai Living, Nisha from Love Laugh Mirch, or Salma from The Write Balance.  Then share a link to your post (not your blog’s home page).