Foodness Goodness

creamy figgy heaven

Allison — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:08:20 +0000

my heaven companion

i’ve died and gone to greek yogurt heaven and voskos greek fig yogurt is coming with me! i ate it the other night and it was so good and creamy, just how i like my greek yogurt. i often find that flavored greek yogurt isn’t as creamy as plain greek yogurt so i was pleasantly surprised that voskos’ fig yogurt was creamy and great consistency. YUM! there are other flavors like vanilla, strawberry, honey, and blueberry and i intend on trying them all. that’s right!

oaty & rosy(?) choco-chip cookies

Allison — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 23:11:02 +0000

so good!

i have a weakness for warm chocolate chip cookies and i found this recipe and decided to make some minor changes. i gave it a try and was pleased!

pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

3/4 cup rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda + a single pinch
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter softened
1/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup evaporated cane juice sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp rose water
1 1/4 cup bitter sweet chocolate chips

-grind oats in food processor
-transfer to medium bowl and add flour, baking soda and salt
-melt butter on stove or microwave
-add oil, both sugars, egg, rose water and vanilla and beat until smooth and creamy
-add dry ingredients until well combined
-add chocolate chips and stir unil evenly distributed
-drop cookies (rolled into mounds) 1 inch apart on baking sheet
-bake for 15 minutes or until firm around the edges and golden on top
-cool cookies for 2 to 3 minutes, transfer to wire rack, and ENJOY!

the changes i made to the recipe was the addition of the additional pinch of baking soda because i wanted the cookies to have some mass, rather than bake and flatten out. i added rose water because i think it’s a nice subtle flavor, but i don’t think i added enough because i couldn’t taste it in the final product. instead of using refined white sugar i used evaporated cane juice sugar because i think it’s more flavorful than refined white sugar and it’s better for you.

mi-del..not mi-favorite!

Allison — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 06:28:42 +0000

graham crackers are good, i mean the old fashioned honey kind. i usually buy the 365 wholefoods brand graham crackers and they definitely suffice. the other day i decided to dabble in a different brand of graham cracker, mi-del 100% whole wheat honey grahams. even the “100% whole wheat” was a selling point for me so i bought them. needless to say, i was largely disappointed big time! the graham crackers tasted like cardboard, yuck! i don’t recommend these graham crackers to anyone. stay away!

trader joes greek style pomegranate yogurt

Allison — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 03:38:39 +0000

Trader Joes Nonfat Greek Style Yogurt - pomegranate

I looove greek style yogurt and was pleasantly surprised at how good Trader Joes Greek Style Nonfat Yogurt pomegranate style! It’s all tart, sweet, and yummy and at the same time full of antioxidants from the pomegranate juice. I think it’s a sweet and creamy indulgence, and not too shabby for 0 grams of fat and only 11 grams of sugar…evaporated cane juice sugar that is!

Trader Joes sells other flavors too! Tell me how they are.

untraditional cinnamon raisin loaf

Allison — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 03:10:05 +0000

untraditional cinnamon raisin loaf

Even though it’s still warm in L.A. I consider it fall season because I can slightly feel a difference in weather and it is noticibly getting dark earlier in the day now. With the emergence of fall is emergence of my baking obsession.

I recently baked a cinnamon raison loaf with some untraditional ingredients like greek style yogurt, egg whites, and honey.

The whole loaf consisted of:
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 egg whites beaten
1 cup vanilla greek style yogurt
1/4 cup honey
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1.5 cups raisins
1.5 tbs cinnamon

preheat oven to 350 degrees

pour 2/3 cup boiling water over raisins and let soak for 5 minutes. mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Add yogurt, egg whites to flour mixture. Add soaked raisins and stir to combine. Batter will be thick. Pour into a buttered loaf pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean after insertion. Cool in pan for 10 minutes.

When my loaf cooled and placed it on a medium cutting board with foil placed over it so that I or my housemate to slice a piece at our leisure.

Note: I did this recipe and my loaf came out a little dry, so I might have to make some alterations to it eventually.

If you try this recipe or alter it, please share your results!

Alcove Cafe, Los Feliz

Allison — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:10:04 +0000

I am all about word of mouth and someone suggested Alcove Cafe in Los Feliz. So, I went. If you love Aroma Cafe in the SF Valley but don’t live and/or work near by then Alcove Cafe an uber great substitute. They’re actually owned by the same people and it’s obvious with everything from the way you order, the outdoor furniture and ambiance, desert case, and food. I have to say the deserts looked just as divine at Alcove as they do at Aroma, YUM! Unfortunatley, I didn’t order a cupcake, slice of pie, or brownie but I have every intention the next time I go.

Now to details. I ordered the Grilled Veggie Salad and I was expecting it to be warm as if the veggies were just off the grill, yet the salad arrived room temperature. I was good, but I would have prefered the salad slightly warm from freshly grilled vegetables. My boyfriend had the Philly Cheese Steak Panini and Alcove delivered! It was cheesy goodness and the the bread the perfectly grilled.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that Alcove serves beer and wine, which I don’t think Aroma does. If you’re ordering beer, get the Duvel Golden Ale is crisp and top quality.

Please share your thoughts on Alcove Cafe!!

spreading the luv

Allison — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 05:33:45 +0000

this is my blog about all things food, delicious, and natural. i enjoy trying new flavors, restaurants, and recipes surrounding good and good for you ingredients. i hope you all enjoy what i find.

stay tuned!