Eons ago, I received these Mezzetta olives from their PR but never got around to trying them.  That all changed one Friday night when I headed over to Sarah‘s place for a movie night and I decided to bring these for us to nosh.  Honestly, I’m not that big on olives in general – I keep trying them because by definition, they are something I should like, and because every once in a while, I find an olive I like – but I was curious about these.  When I opened the jars and we began eating them, I almost wished I’d opened them at home so I didn’t have to share.  While the garlic ones were good, the blue cheese ones were fantastic.  I don’t even like blue cheese that much usually, but these were so, so good – the briny olive cutting through much of the stinkiness of blue cheese inside, and the creamy cheese mellowing the sharp salinity of the olive. 

Yeah, I liked these a lot.  I’ll definitely be hunting these out at the supermarket in the near future to keep in my fridge for snacking!  So tasty. 

Please note: I received these olives courtesy of the PR team behind Mezzetta, but that was super long ago and they probably totally forgot they even sent these to me.  In any case, I definitely did not receive any monetary compensation for this post, nor was I obligated to write about this positively or negatively.

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2011. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Product Reviews

Recently it became clear that I was the sweetest Feisty Family member… I mean, the Feisty Family member with the sweetest tooth!  As such, Yvo had asked me to attend a recent chocolate sampling event.  Try lots of different chocolates made by some the newest and best chocolatiers around? Yes please!  So here I am, giving you a look at the latest treat… Food Fete Chocolat!

There were a few chocolate events happening around NYC last week, but Food Fete Chocolat was a rather intimate event for twelve Chocolate companies, both large and small, to show off new and classic chocolate treats to the various “press” representatives.  It wasn’t too crowded, which was nice and gave me the opportunity to talk to the people at each table and learn about their products.  At first I thought, 12 samples? No problem! But my oh my, it was a LOT of chocolate. So without further ado… the chocolate!  (Oh, one more thing, please forgive some of the rather blurry pics – it was a borrowed camera and I wasn’t too familiar with all the settings.)

My first stop was Divine Chocolate. They had 4 samples in one cup! Whoa!

I eased into my chocolate feast with just one bite of eat… milk chocolate with almonds, dark chocolate with hazelnut truffle, white chocolate with strawberries and dark chocolate with ginger & orange. I enjoyed the first two, but no surprise there. However, I was surprised that I enjoyed the latter two as well, as I’m not a big fan of white chocolate or ginger-flavored stuff. But both were great and a great start to the evening!

Next was American Heritage Chocolate, distributed by Mars, Inc. They were passing out little shots of hot chocolate, the way chocolate was ingested 300 years ago by our founding fathers (so I was told). Apparently chocolate bars are a fairly recent revelation.   The cocoa was good, very creamy tasting although there was no milk mixed in. Impressive.

They also had a fun set up from the whole cocoa beans to the hot chocolate pot used, and all the stages of the cocoa in between. Cute.

Next was David Lurie Sun Cups.  The company was a specialty chocolate producer and was looking to break into main stream retail, when someone came to them requesting a Reese Peanut butter-type cup without any peanuts. Hmmm… Well, he did it using Sunflower Oil! So he had a variety of sunflower-butter cups, regular and dark chocolate.  Also for offer were mint and caramel cups.  There weren’t any samples open, but I grabbed a couple to take home and try. Nice for the peanut-averse!

Next was Fine Chocolate Industry Association, which is a non-profit chocolate association which promotes chocolate professionals.  No samples here, but they gave out a pretty large package with various samples from the companies they support.

Next was a table with funny looking ice cube trays!  As it turns out, they were truffle-making trays in various shapes and sizes from Truffly Made, Inc. How cute!  I wish I got a free sample of these!  But then again, Christmas is right around the corner (coughTTcough). But…  on to more chocolate.

Hotel Chocolat was sampling some kind of dark chocolate. I didn’t get a chance to talk to the information guy at this table because some girl wouldn’t stop talking for 10 minutes and I gave up.

There was an impressive amount of chocolate stacked at the next table for Amano Artisan Chocolate, along with some really pretty gift boxes.  The guy here explained how all the chocolates had very distinct flavors based on the where the cocoa beans were produced. Each kind tasted so different, yet there were no added spices. Neat!

I forgot to take a pic of the whole table for the next company, The Madison West Choclatiers, because I was so fascinated by there concept “Tasting Dinner of Chocolates”!!

They had 4 kinds/courses to sample, that were advertised as an amuse bouche, appetizer, entree and dessert; however, I only tried the amuse.  First, as instructed, I bit off the top flower, which sort of numbed the tongue with a tingly feeling as apparently it was alcohol.  Then, I bit into the chocolate which had such an intense chocolate taste, it was awesome.

I would’ve liked to try the whole “meal” but there was too much else to taste. So I was sent on my way with two “appetizers” to try at home.

Next was Kallari, a small Ecuadorian company owned by the small groups of farmers who grow the cocoa bean, giving them complete control over the product. It was really interesting to hear the guy’s story and take on the chocolate industry. They were sampling a couple different dark chocolate bars.

My stomach was starting to churn at this point, but I moved on to the next table.

There were a lot of words and each sample sounded very complicated… what was this place?  Gnosis Chocolate – healthy, organic, raw, vegan, kosher, and free of gluten, soy and refined sugar.  To say I was hesitant to taste this would be an understatement, but after talking to the representative I forged ahead and tried the “Superchoc” with goji berries, raspberries and some other stuff.  It was actually really good! Like a cross between a fruit bar (think fruit roll-up) and chocolate bar. Impressive.  They also sell spreads and drink mixes.

Next stop, Gail Ambrosius Chocolatier.  They were sampling chocolates that come with beer-pairing recommendation. They provided a sampling box to take home, but had a few out to taste there. Since there was no beer available, I decided to wait and try them at home. Maybe I’ll invite Beerboor too.  They had quite a few cute gift box options too.

With only three stops left, I moved to a very familiar looking table – Lindt!

My mom is a huge fan of Lindt and so I was brought up eating it (and always have some stored in my nightstand!)  They were showcasing a new bar this evening – cranberry!

It was so good and tasted perfect for the upcoming holiday. Luckily, it won’t only be available during the holiday season but year-round. Yay! Lindt has always been my go-to for chocolate as it tastes good and it very reasonably priced (and my mom buys it in mass amounts). Though after this show, I’m sure I’ll be expanding my horizons more.

Another familiar company, Valrhona, was showing a few products.

First a chocolate mousse pannacotta with apricot jelly – this was a pretty big portion and delicious! Even better, we got the recipe!

They also showcased a couple dark chocolates and chocolate salted caramels (which I saved for TT).

Last, but certainly not least, Chuao Choclatier.

This girl at this table was so nice and friendly. Though she could see how full I was, she insisted I at least take a bite of her chocolates because they were that good.  If I must!  First up at the table, a crushed potato chip-chocolate.

I only had one small piece, but it was pretty good.  However, it was quickly overshadowed by a the next piece of chocolate-filled and covered strawberry goodness. Whoa, I was really glad she insisted. I ate two bites of that one.

As I was about to keel over in pain, she wrapped the last one in a napkin for me to take home – pop-rocks chili chocolate.  Crazy.

Most of the these chocolate are available around NYC, especially in Whole Foods, but all are also available online for a range of prices.  Many of them also have a lot of cute gift boxes available for the upcoming holiday season.  And, in case it wasn’t yet obvious, all of them were delicious.  I’d recommend perusing through their sites for some quick and easily holiday shopping.  And as if I hadn’t eaten enough chocolate for three lifetimes, I walked (or slowly rolled) out with a huge bag stuff full with lots more chocolates!

I know I’ll have some happy friends and family this winter!  Thanks to Food Fete and each of the sponsors for this choctastic event!  What’s your favorite chocolate during the holidays?

Please note that I attended this event courtesy of Food Fete, but I did not receive any monetary compensation for posting this. I was under no obligation to post my opinion, positive or negative; feel free to take from that what you will.

© CT for The Feisty Foodie, 2011. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us
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Brilliantly, when my friend realized this, he shoved this at me.  Though it isn’t widely available in the south – this was shipped from good ol’ Alabama – Grapico is a sugary, high calorie grape soda.  210 calories for a regular sized can of soda seems excessive to me; while I don’t drink much regular soda anymore, I’m pretty sure it’s in the 140 range for a can of soda. 

I decided to pour some into a cup to see what it looked like and all that.  It poured happily without any head, and while bubbles did break the surface, they quickly dissipated, leaving me with a not-very-carbonated drink.  So if you like super fizzy drinks, this is not for you.  It smelled super grapey – maybe the grapiest of all grape sodas? – basically, like a grape lollipop melted into my cup.  A sip confirmed that it tasted just like drinking a grape lollipop – the kind I grew up with, the kind that back in those days, your doctor might give to you because you didn’t cry when he stuck a needle in your arm.  You know? 

I enjoyed my can of Grapico – many thanks to my friend for sharing a childhood delight with me! – though I wouldn’t go out of my way to acquire it.  But I’m also not a huge grape soda person – I enjoy it, but it isn’t my favorite fruit soda (I think that goes to elderflower with lemon and then European Fanta [orange]… I like citrus), but if you love grape soda, I definitely recommend looking this up just to try! 

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2011. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: drinks, soda

Can’t have cheese without condiments, right?  (Actually, you can; I’m sure I’m not the only one who sometimes stands in front of the fridge, door open, munching on cheese…) C’mon guys, I’ve admitted in the past to having a drawer in my fridge dedicated to cheese, and at one point had up to 27 different kinds/types of cheeses in my fridge… I cannot be the only one who eats cheese like it’s… um, cheese. 

Anyway, I bought some bread, summer sausage, there’s honey, cranberry mustard, hot mustard, elderflower & orange marmalade, pepper&onion jam, and cherry butter.  Yes, the labels are all flipped around for a reason, I wasn’t cool enough to put masking tape on them to hide the brands so I just flipped them.  Haha. 

I know, I’m a funny little girl who likes to put stuff out in bowls to enjoy.  Hey, I had company, have to impress, right?  Smoked almonds, Kalamata olives, and a tumbler with breadsticks, melba toast and sesame breadsticks as well. 

Onto the cheese.  I bought three kinds, and put two slices each out on my bamboo board.  Cutely, Beer Boor started tasting and thought the front and back slices were different kinds, though it was really three sets of two slices each.  In any case, two of them were the same type (according to the labels) and one was obviously different. 

Sargento’s pepperjack, sliced.  I liked how spicy this was – I really like pepperjack (in moderation) – there was a lot of flavor with the peppers interspersed.  Beer Boor noted that one slice had more peppers than the other, but that’s how most are, in my experience.  This is definitely a good sandwich cheese for a little extra zing in your sandwich. 

Without even tasting this, easily this was the worst cheese.  I thought it was pretty obvious that this one was different – but anyway, this is the “other brand” sliced cheese I bought to compare.  I got excited at the store when I realized this rather famous brand (that I grew up eating, actually) also makes sliced cheddar, because in all fairness, I didn’t think we could compare Sargento’s sliced cheddar to what I knew would be American cheese.  So when I saw the sliced, individually wrapped cheddar, I grabbed it for the blind taste test.  Beer Boor was not there when I ‘plated’ the cheeses, so he had no idea which was which, but we both immediately sneered at this one.  Probably because there was about a 15-20 minute lapse between the time I put the cheese on the board to when he arrived, this cheese was oozing all over itself and just horrible.  It stuck to the board and refused to come off; I guess if you wanted to melt it on a grilled cheese that would be OK but this was just… terrible.  (I had a lot of trouble cleaning this off the board later.) 

But you want to know about the taste.  Well, Beer Boor didn’t know what it was and started eating it.  He was not pleased.  Worse, he began to argue with me about whether or not this was cheddar.  He insisted it was American.  Hey look, it’s par for the course – we fight all the time, that’s just how we are I guess – but I freakin’ said I bought cheddar, so it’s freakin’ cheddar.  He wanted to see the label, which I eventually showed him, and we agreed that not only did it taste nothing like cheddar, it tasted worse than this brand’s American cheese (which I generally like – for grilled cheese sandwiches).  Horrible. 

Lastly, the Sargento’s cheddar.  While I don’t tend to buy pre-sliced cheeses, I understand that if I made more sandwiches with cheese at home, I’d want to.  And this was pretty good, as far as pre-sliced cheddar goes.  I’m happy to still have some left in the fridge for any sandwiches in my near future. 

I think it says a lot that after our blind tasting was concluded, we continued to eat the Sargento’s cheeses and completely ignored the horrible individually packaged one.  After all was said and done, we probably ate about half of each Sargento’s package… along with the bread and everything else, of course.  And the pepperjack definitely made an appearance on a sandwich I made for Beer Boor a few days later (with the Hellmann’s chipotle lime crusted chicken I mentioned).  Yum!  A little extra zing?  Don’t mind if I do…

Conclusion: it’s nice to have pre-sliced cheese in the fridge for sandwiches or for grilled cheese, burgers, and all that.  Since I like having stuff on hand as opposed to having to run to the store to get some, I think I’d do well to keep this in my fridge – and so would you.  The flavor is right, the price is good, and it’ll make adding cheese to sandwiches a snap (I either do without [and just eat cheese on the side] or struggle with my non-existent cheese slicer). 

Opinions expressed herein are my own (and Beer Boor’s).  We received no monetary compensation for this post. 

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2011. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: meats & cheeses

No matter, as I wound up sitting with Andrea and Esther, and we benefited from the extra first course that wound up at our side of the table – three giant shrimp cocktail.  Okay, I don’t particularly care for shrimp – after working at an establishment where one of the easiest things to eat between serving people was the shrimp dish, and just eating too much shrimp in one summer – but these were huge, tender, sweet, cooked perfectly, and I really enjoyed my portion.  I happily gave up the second plate to the other girls, but I was pleased with what I ate. 

Hot, crusty bread arrived as well, and it was good. 

Next up: meats & cheeses!  We all had our favorites, but mine was definitely without a doubt oh my gosh what is this it’s so good… the duck prosciutto.  Fatty, meaty, so freaking good… I would love to pile that on some bread and just omg… fantastic. 

Our next course, goat cheese ravioli, wasn’t to my tastes.  Still very good – loved the smokiness of the tomato and the corn bits, but I’m not a ravioli person and by this time, I’d totally filled up on the meats and cheeses.  Whoops! 

Our final course, lamb two ways, included a lamb sausage that I didn’t care for but a lamb chop that was perfectly cooked – tender, medium rare, and just deliciously seasoned.  Yum! 

I was pretty impressed with Almond’s food, and now definitely want to go back to order as I please from the menu.  The only negative I could think of was the very odd service; I realize we were a party in the back, and while we were never ignored, our plates were kind of thrown on the table and in no order.  There was always a plate per person, but the plates were often just stuck in the middle of the table, which confused us initially.  Very odd.  But I will definitely be back for a real meal and give a proper review – TT has already checked them out at Madison Square Eats!  

But the point of the evening, aside from mingling and eating with fellow food bloggers, was to introduce the Dolce Gusto.  The Nestle people kindly sent machines to each of our homes for us to test, enjoy, and play with – and while I’ve had my share of fun playing with mine (already purchasing chococino capsules to replace my morning joe), the true coffee expert here is Beer Boor, so I’ll let him tell you about his experience. 

I managed to get a cappuccino at the event before I had to leave Almond. The representative happily walked me through the steps she took to produce the drink, which yielded a drink of about six ounces, all told. In a nutshell, the Dolce Gusto machine we were given takes its proprietary capsules (much like the Nespresso machine you see in the background, except — naturally — a different size capsule) of coffee or chocolate — and, for some packages like Cappuccino, powdered milk — and forces heated water through them to produce the drink, much like an espresso machine. With this machine, the amount of liquid you ultimately receive is controlled manually, so if you forget to switch off the water, you’ll wind up with a large, watery beverage.

At any rate, the rep generated about three ounces of hot milk from the milk capsule, removed that, inserted the coffee capsule, and created another three ounces or so of coffee, producing a cute little cappuccino. How did it taste? Well… it wasn’t unbelievable, but if you’re addicted to coffee drinks, this might work as a quick alternative to standing in line at the local coffee shop.

Of course, I also had to set the machine up at home to see how I got along with it. I haven’t got clear coffee mugs, so a beer glass was pressed into service.

I inserted a Caffe Lungo capsule, made of “100% Arabica Roast & Ground Coffee”, and set to work. The machine is quieter than the Nespresso by a long shot, but delivers a steady stream of hot espresso, which I shut off after about four ounces as directed.

The espresso cascades beautifully in the glass, and once it settled — like the Nespresso, it does drip for a while — I brought it out of the kitchen to give it a fair shake.

The benefit to this machine is its ease of use and ability to make just a cup at a time. Once you get the hang of the sequence, it’s fairly easy to use. And of course, it’s easy to generate just one cup/shot to start your day. My issue is a recurring one: there’s little choice, little freedom to choose your beans, so you’re at the mercy of the Nestle product managers. To that end, this coffee is… well, boring. It’s reasonably roasted, with definite coffee flavor, sure, but it isn’t bright nor focused. It’s coffee as commodity, which is the problem I’ve had with most of the single-serve machines.

On top of that, I’m not a fan of the price one pays for convenience. A pack of sixteen capsules — either 16 capsules of coffee or chocolate, or an 8-8 split with the milk capsules — is expected to retail around $9-$9.50. So a large espresso as above will cost around 60 cents, while a cappuccino will set you back $1.20. For a six-ounce drink. I’m fairly certain I could make several pots of coffee, or espresso, with my own beans for 60 cents.

But the machine will find its adherents, simply because it’s small, it’s easy and quick, and compared to retail coffee outlets, it’s cost-effective. If that’s what you want in the morning, then the Dolce Gusto will do a fine job filling your coffee and coffee-drink needs.

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2011. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: coffee, meats & cheeses, press event