News Taffy

Here are my favorite new products or foods that make life easier or have a superior taste compared to cost. The products can all be found locally and some of them are healthy as well.

Top on my list is a rice cooker. I am not fond of gadgets and I don’t feel the need to have every cooking utensil, dish or device in my kitchen. However, a friend convinced me to give rice cookers a try after listening to me gripe about how rice always boils over and makes a mess. For Christmas, Barry gave me an Aroma digital rice cooker which he got at Target for around $30. It’s my favorite gift. Cooking rice is so simple; you add rice and water, press a couple of buttons, and the cooker does the rest. It will also keep it warm after cooking. Clean up is a breeze - no more will I scrub the stove top after the rice boils over!

My next favorite find is Kerrygold Irish butter. Now I’m not claiming butter is healthy but I’d rather use butter in small quantities than eat something made from artificial ingredients I can’t pronounce. Kerrygold butter is made from milk from grass fed cows who live on small family farms. A friend told me it was her guilty pleasure as it is pricey, about $5 for 8 oz. It does have a heavenly taste. Save it for special occasions or recipes.

I am a fan of the bagged chopped salads and now several brands make a kale chopped salad. I love kale both for its taste and because it is a powerhouse of nutrition, containing over 100% of the daily value for vitamins A and C plus a good bit of calcium and iron. Whole Foods and Kroger make a kale superfood salad in their deli but I’d rather buy my own and know what goes in it. You can add blueberries, strawberries, nuts or edamame to the bagged salads and create your own superfood salad.

Chia seeds are my new favorite add in to smoothies, muffins or homemade trail or health bars. Use chia seeds to boost your nutrition - they containing 10 grams of fiber, 5 grams of protein and are a good source of calcium and iron per serving. Sprinkle them on yogurt, mix them in pancakes, whatever suits you.

Kroger carries a couple of different California olive oils which are reported to be pure, authentic oils. Instead of buying extra virgin olive oil imported from Italy which may be neither pure nor from Italy, support American growers and try one of the California olive oils. (See my article from a couple of years ago on huge olive oil fraud problem.) Don’t forget that olive oil is good for your heart!

Check out the produce department carefully. There are always new varieties of fruits to try. Two of my finds this winter are Green Gage plums, tiny but delicious and yellow Opal apples, wonderfully sweet and crunchy!

Last, though it doesn’t come close to being a health food, give Tom’s Tiny Kitchen pimento cheese a try. Made in Memphis, Tn. by a man who needed a job, this pimento cheese features sharp cheddar cheese, hand chopped green onions, pimentos and a few secret ingredients. Found in the Kroger deli.