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Apple Tasting at Union Square Street Market in NYC

25 Nov

It’s apple season… and coming from the tropics, the only apples I am familiar with are the traditional Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Granny Smiths and if you want to get exotic, some Galas once in a while.

From my local experience, I prefer to use Granny Smiths or Golden Delicious in most of my cooking applications – to make an apple crisp, to eat with Brie en Croute or Camembert Chaud and to enjoy in a picnic with the Laughing Cow’s cheese wedges…  I like their flavor and look much better than the Red Delicious. To me, the typical red-skinned apple tends to be too mealy and not very appetizing, although it tends to be ubiquitous in any local potato salad recipe.

Given I was going to be in apple country during apple season, why not expand my horizons to trying other types of apples, which I have certainly heard of but never ever tried before???

So during our 2 visits to Union Square Street Market, we visited a few stalls who concentrated in selling apples and apple cider and juices. There were sooooo many to choose from so we concentrated our efforts on a few types only:

Fuji Apples

Macoun Apples

Macintosh Apples

Sonata Apples

Cameo Apples

 

The results of our research derived the following conclusions:

  • The ones my mom and I kept trying over and over again were Fuji and Macoun. They were both sweet and crisp tasting.  They were both good!!!
  • I  think my tastebuds are not as developed in apple knowledge to detect much difference in most of the apples. Sonata, Macintosh and Cameos all blended in the mix. Maybe I needed to cleanse my palate in between tastings???
  • After tasting so many pieces of apples, they all kinda tasted very similar to me. An apple is an apple is an apple…
  • I was told that Macoun apples were particularly juicy, even much so that the juice would drip down my arm, but that was not the case with the apples we had. Maybe it was the 50F degree weather that kept all that juice trapped inside the fruit, but I’ve only had that “juice down the arm” experience with mangos, peaches and nectarines. Sorry apples…
  • I do love apple cider and I do not particularly care from what apple it’s made of.

So, after much deliberation I am glad to say that I can add Fuji and Macoun apples to the list of preferred apples in my domain. If I ever see them on sale here in Puerto Rico, most probably in Costco, I will gladly add them to my shopping cart.

Do you have a favorite apple???  Do you have a favorite apple recipe you would like to share???

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Cantaloupe Juice

21 Nov

My friend Rosani is a cantaloupe melon fanatic… she really is. And her remedy for anything is cantaloupe juice.

You are not feeling quite right in the stomach… cantaloupe juice.

You need some energy… cantaloupe juice.

You need a sugar fix… cantaloupe juice.

So during our recent trip to NYC, Rosani treated us to her signature best juice concoction, cantaloupe juice. It’s delicious and creamy. Hope you guys like it too.

 

CANTALOUPE JUICE

1/3 of a cantaloupe melon, seeded and peeled
2 tbs brown sugar or agave nectar
Water
  1. Blend all the ingredients together in a blender.
  2. Rosani likes her juice on the thicker side, so you don’t need to add that much water, about 1 cup more or less.
  3. Pulse well a few times and let it go a few minutes to make sure the melon is well pureed into the juice.

Drink immediately. This is not the type of juice you make to save in the fridge. It’s best enjoyed right after it’s made.

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Gluten-Free Finds – Food for Life English Muffins

28 Oct

Recently I had to go on a wheat-free, corn-free diet and being the bread/cereal lover that I am, I was crushed. I went to my local health food store and bought a few things so I wouldn’t feel deprived, especially during breakfast.

I love fruits for breakfast… in a fruit salad or a smoothie, but it’s not enough for me. I always need to supplement my breakfast with something heartier. Something that will keep me feeling fuller longer.

Enter the Food for Life English Muffins… OMG!! I am now obsessed with these. They’re crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside. They have super delicious texture, in my opinion. It has even the “nooks and crannies” of that other more popular brand.

I like to eat them with cream cheese (ahem, Tofutti’s Better than Cream Cheese if you’re vegan ) and preserves – strawberry or apricot. YUM!!! I even had a few of these for dinner a few nights.

You find them in the frozen food section of your health food store. I just take them out of the freezer and warm up in a 350F oven for about 10 minutes. To be honest I never time it, but the muffins begin to split a bit when they’re ready.

With options like these, anyone can easily go gluten-free, even if it’s just for 30 days!!!!

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Soyrizo Apricot Quesadilla

24 Oct

My dear friends Angie and Ana are taking these cooking classes on Wednesday nights… I am not participating because these classes are not vegetarian and I would not be able to cook or actually taste almost anything they make. But the ideas their teacher shares are quite good sometimes and I like to vegetarianize them to be able to enjoy them.

Such is the case with a croissant idea filled with chorizo and apricot jam… Refrigerated croissant dough does not come in whole wheat form, unfortunately. So I decided to make-over the recipe given to me by Angie into a quesadilla.

Never been too fond of Mexican chorizo… I much preferred Spanish chorizo. But this Soyrizo tastes like the Mexican version with strong cumin notes. I take it easy with this soyrizo because after my first trip to India, I developed a strong aversion to cumin. For years I was not able to taste cumin or even smell it up close. Now I’m better, but I am still not a cumin fan.

What I do love about this recipe is the salty/sweet combination… and it has a very rich flavor, so be prudent and don’t over stuff your quesadilla.

SOYRIZO APRICOT QUESADILLA

1 FlatOut flatbread or whole wheat tortilla
2 handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese
1 ½ tbs of apricot jam
About 2 inches of soyrizo
2 large scallion, chopped finely
2 tbs softened butter
2 tsps brown sugar
Butter-flavored spray
Olive oil
  1. In a small non-stick skillet over medium high heat, with a tad bit of olive oil, cook the soyrizo. Start moving it around allowing it to brown on one side before mixing it up and moving it around. It will cook and brown until it turns into crumbles. Set aside.
  3. Pre-heat toaster oven to 425F.
  4. In a baking sheet, spray butter-flavored oil to make sure your tortilla or flatbread does not stick. Place your flatbread halfway in the pan.
  5. Start mounting the fillings… spread most of the apricot jam on the bottom half of your quesadilla. Add the cheese, the crumbled cooked soyrizo, the scallions and a tad bit additional apricot jam if you wish. Fold the tortilla to create a half moon. Press it lightly to make it all “stick together”.
  7. Spread some softened butter on top of tortilla or flatbread and sprinkle some brown sugar on top.
  8. Place in oven for about 5-7 minutes. The cheese will melt, the fillings will fuse together and the top will get brown and crunchy. Take it out if the oven and allow a few minutes for the cheese to cool down.
  9. Cut into wedges and enjoy…

I did this with 2 tortillas and the flavor was too rich for me. But I encourage making it with two tortillas if you are sharing.

The scallions are my addition to this recipe and I feel they help cut a bit of the oiliness of the cheese and soyrizo plus it adds some freshness.

Try it… and tell me if you like it or not. What are your favorite quesadilla ideas???

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Frozen Grapes

3 Oct

The best things in life are simple… The best food is the simplest…

With the heat rising close to 100F every day here in PR (yes, even in early October…) sometimes all you crave are liquids and fruits. Sometimes all you want is to drink your way through the day to avoid heat exhaustion. Sad to say… I know about heat exhaustion and it’s the WORST feeling in the world.

Something I learned about many years ago at one of the fanciest weddings I’ve been to is the goodness of freezing grapes. I had them first as a palate cleanser in between courses. The presentation was spectacular in a bowl made from ice and everything. Too bad I was not into this blogging thing then or I would certainly have pictures for you to also admire. But those grapes stayed in my mind, waiting for a good time to re-appear in my life.

I’ve told you how in Costco you need to buy fruits in BULK. Or at least it seems like that for someone without a hug family to feed every night. So I decided I would freeze half of the green seedless grapes I bought for a future use because I was afraid they would spoil if I left them all in the fridge. Besides, my fridge can’t hold that many huge containers of food at once…

One stifling night… I was soooo “salapastrosa”… those days you need to shower about 4-5 times to feel more comfortable. I felt like snacking… but what???? And I remembered those grapes in the fridge!!!!!! They’re amazing!!!!

It’s like a very natural ice pop or bom bom. Just serve yourself a few grapes in a plate and munch the heat away…

Hope you like this idea as much as I do every night it’s too hot to snack on a pizza…

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