Category Archives: Health/Nutrition

Good Tasting, Good-For-You Freekeh With Broccolini and Apricots

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A quick and easy grain dish full of textures and flavors.
A quick and easy grain dish full of textures and flavors.

Michael Crupain has a unique background: He’s a board-certified preventive medicine physician, and former director of food and safety testing at Consumer Reports, who staged in the kitchen of the late-great David Bouley’s Danube restaurant in New York.

So when he writes a cookbook full of healthy recipes, you needn’t fear that they’ll be bland or boring.

In fact, the 75 recipes in his “The Power Five” (National Geographic, 2023), of which I received a review copy, are wonderfully tantalizing and nourishing.

The recipes spotlight the “Power Five,” the essential foods that he says we should all eat more of to optimize health. They are: fruits and vegetables; beans; grains; fish; and nuts and seeds.

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Spoon Up Sensational Shells with Miso Butter and Scallions

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An easy pasta recipe that's ever so creamy -- yet has no cream in it.
An easy pasta recipe that’s ever so creamy — yet has no cream in it.

Not that I need any excuse ever to eat more pasta, but “Anything’s Pastable” sure has me jonesing for it voraciously.

That’s because the new cookbook (William Morrow), of which I received a review copy, is full of creative and craveable pasta dishes, the kind that don’t take all day to put together but are so full of flavor that you’d swear that they did.

The book is by Dan Pashman, a two-time James Beard and Webby Award-winning creator and host of “The Sporkful” podcast, and the host of the Cooking Channel’s “You’re Eating It Wrong.”

This is a man so obsessed with pasta that he actually spent three years to create a brand-new shape, cascatelli, which he swears excels in the most crucial aspects of “forkability,” “sauceability,” and “toothsinkability.”

Named for the Italian word for “waterfalls,” its initial run of 3,700 boxes sold out in less than 2 hours. Not only that, it was named one of the “Best Inventions of 2021” by Time magazine. It’s now a runaway hit, sold online and at retailers that include Whole Foods.

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Dipping Into New Hodo Dips

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New Hodo Zesty Lemon Dip that I slathered on an Everything bagel.
New Hodo Zesty Lemon Dip that I slathered on an everything bagel.

Dip into new organic, plant-based, dairy-free, gluten-free, and nut-free dips made by everyone’s favorite organic tofu maker, Oakland’s Hodo.

Yup, no surprise, the new dips are made of soybeans and soy milk, plus flavorings. If you’ve ever whizzed soft or silken tofu in a blender to make salad dressings or your own dips, you get the drift.

I had a chance to try samples of the three new dips: Zesty Lemon Dip, Chili Crisp Dip, and Sambal Sweet Chili Dip.

Store the dips in your refrigerator.
Store the dips in your refrigerator.

The dips look a little like hummus, with a slightly thick, semi-smooth texture.

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Soup’s On With 18 Chestnuts

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18 Reasons Beetroot Apple soup that I garnished with a little parsley.
18 Reasons Beetroot Apple soup that I garnished with a little parsley.

Ilona Kossoff was running a commercial real estate company with her husband, when she decided to enroll in the Cornell University healthy living nutrition certification program, a move that would change the trajectory of her life.

As someone who suffered from digestive issues and followed a mostly plant-based diet, she decided to combine her new-found knowledge with her love of cooking soups.

Voila — 18 Chestnuts was born.

The Ashville, NC family-owned company makes shelf-stable vegan soups that are low fat, low sodium, and gluten-free.

The soups come in shelf-stable glass jars.
The soups come in shelf-stable glass jars.

She named the company for her love of chestnuts and because her best-selling Chestnut Maple Soup has 18 chestnuts in every bowl.

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Sponsored Post: Happiness Is Cider Braised Pazazz Apples With Coconut “Bacon,” and Garlic

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Pazazz apples go savory in this delightful wintry side dish.
Pazazz apples go savory in this delightful wintry side dish.

When I say, “apple,” you say…”pie”?

Chances are you automatically do.

Any way you slice it, there’s nothing wrong with sweet apple pie, especially fresh-baked and still warm. But let’s not forget that apples are also sensational starring in savory fare.

Case in point: “Cider Braised Apples with Coconut ‘Bacon,’ and Garlic,” a fabulous accompaniment to roast chicken, Cornish game hens, turkey, pork loin, sausages, duck or even grilled firm tofu planks.

February is the perfect time to tuck into it, too, since it’s National Cancer Prevention Month. I’m proud to partner with the American Institute for Cancer Research and Pazazz Apples to help spread the word about how apples are high in fiber and antioxidants that can help reduce the risks of some cancers. To learn more about how nutritious apples are and to assess how your own lifestyle choices affect your risk of cancer, go to the informative health check here.

What’s more, those antioxidants also fuel neurotransmitters in the brain that trigger the release of dopamine that boosts mood. That makes apples a veritable “happy” fruit.

Yours truly shopping for Pazazz apples at Safeway.
Yours truly shopping for Pazazz apples at Safeway.

And who wouldn’t want more bliss in their lives, right? All it takes is heading to Albertsons, Safeway, or Vons like I did to pick up some Pazazz apples (about $2.99 per pound), now at peak flavor through June.

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