Tons of great products at Expo East

Last week, I had the great opportunity to attend Expo East, a natural products showcase at the Boston Convention Center. The convention center is a truly huge space, and for this show, it was packed with thousands of booths offering natural health and beauty products, vitamin supplements, and natural foods. Guess what area I focused on?

I loved getting the chance to talk to producers and hear why they were passionate about their products. There was a strong showing of vendors from New England, and I especially enjoyed talking with them - many of them were clearly very excited to be presenting to the more than 26,000 attendees.

Some of my favorites:

White Mountain Kettle Corn makes quite possibly the best Kettle Corn I've ever had. It was very well balanced between sweet and salty. I find that kettle corn is often too sweet, but this product had plenty of salt too. Plus, it's local (not too far from Manchester, NH) and a terribly addictive snack. I loved talking to White Mountain's president, the charming Priscilla Dube, who told me how the company began as a retirement project for her and her husband. What a delicious retirement!

Putney Pasta's booth was much like it's packaging - bright, vibrant, and inviting. When I think of frozen ravioli, I think of the rather bland ones I ate as a kid, but these have changed my perception of frozen ravioli. The pasta was not too dense, and the fillings were bursting with flavor. They were also sampling their new skillet meals (complete with meat and sauce), and while I've ragged on some frozen meals before, these were delicious and tasted homemade. Considering how hectic my life can be sometimes, I think these would be great to keep on hand. Plus, it's another (fairly) local company, from Brattleboro, VT.

Baji's offers Indian-inspired convenience food. Their papadums come in four flavors (cilantro, mango chutney, yogurt dill, and tandoori). Flavors like these are hard to find in snack foods, and these crispy little snacks really fill a void in the market. Their microwaveable rice meals offer a quick, filling, and healthy meal (with real veggies!) in no time - I'll definitely be giving these a try on my days when I have about 10 minutes for lunch. Plus, Baji's was the most local of my favs - they're in Sudbury, MA!

Sunbutter is a terrific alternative to peanut butter (for those who can't have pb or want something a little different). The texture is great, not at all grainy like some pb-alternatives can be. If you're paying enough attention, the flavor is definitely sunflower seeds, but not so much that it's distracting. I enjoyed this product a lot, and while it's not going to replace peanut butter for me, it would be a great option for changing things up every once in a while.

Harvard Common Press was on hand showing off some of their cookbook selection (their other focus is on parenting books). They have tons of beautiful and creative cookbooks for kitchen inspiration. I was actually in the bookstore just a couple of days ago and saw their Baker's Field Guide to Christmas Cookies - it's a great concept and is well-executed, and knowing my passion for cookies (especially at Christmas time), I'm sure this one will end up on my shelf sometime soon.

There were also quite a few companies offering a different kind of dried fruit - crispy! I really enjoyed Bare Fruit, Danielle Snacks, Crispy Green, and Just Tomatoes. Sometimes I crave something crunchy and the only things on hand are not the most healthy choices. But crispy fruit (and veggies, in the case of Danielle and Just Tomatoes) are a fantastic alternative that sates the urge for crispiness while providing good-for-you food. (Plus, Danielle is also another local company!)

Jimmy Kimmel's Cooking Tips

So I've never watched the Bonnie Hunt Show before, but I had the tv on in the background while I worked on my homework on Tuesday and I'm so glad I did! Jimmy Kimmel starting talking about his diet and how he can eat whatever he wants so long as it's imaginary and, of course, he had to show Bonnie one of his favorite recipes.

The best part? They both took it so seriously (well, at least at the beginning). I love when he critiques her knife skills... And then they passed samples around the audience! I love it!

I Made Stock!

And it was easy!

I've been wanting to try my hand at stock for a while, especially last week when I woke up sick and wanted soup IMMEDIATELY. And a while ago, I stumbled across Michael Ruhlman's "recipe" for stock and knew it was just my speed.

So when I bought a delicious rotisserie chicken from Russo's this weekend (as did my friend Ann, who sent me home with her chicken carcass as well), it was time to try my hand at stock. I just dumped both sets of chicken bones in a large pot, covered them with water, and brought it up to a simmer on the stovetop. Once it was simmering, I stuck it in the oven (heated to somewhere between 180° and 200°) for about 5 hours. During the last hour, I added in some carrots, celery, parsnips, an onion, and a bouquet garni. The hardest part was, once the stock was all done, straining it through a coffee filter (sadly, no cheesecloth could be had in my house). This part took quite a while, but was still not hard at all.

The result? Clear, delicious, and nuanced stock that truly tastes like chicken. I can definitely see the benefit of this over the canned stuff. And with a technique as simple as this one, I doubt I'll be using that canned stuff too frequently (which means saving money and not having to lug heavy bags back from the store!).

Cheap Eats: Masa

Let's face it: tapas can be an expensive endeavor. Everyone shares a variety of small plates, each costing anywhere from $6 to $18. It's lots of fun to try tons of different dishes, but the little plates can adds up fast. At Masa in the South End, however, tapas in the bar are a much more economical night out.

With a predominantly Southwestern menu, Masa puts a twist on traditional tapas. Instead of ordering a plate about the size of a small appetizer, these tapas are single pieces, about 2 or 3 bites each. Luckily, they only run $1, so you can pick and choose from the list of 10. Platters of all 10 are also available for $10 and are satisfying enough to be a meal. If you have the chance, visit between 5pm and 7pm, when the whole platter is reduced to $5, a truly amazing deal.

And because each tapas is so small, the flavors are intense. The shredded chicken taquito is crispy on the outside with well-seasoned chicken on the inside. The chorizo, sliced and warmed with just a little bit of char on the edges, is salty and chewy and a little sweet from the jam on top. Crispy shrimp are tiny little sweet and spicy nuggets of joy. With so much variety, you'll definitely be able to find something you love.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

The roommate and I were both feeling under the weather this weekend, and the only things I could think about Monday morning were soup and orange juice. So, I did what I usually do when I'm sick, and I trudged off to the supermarket with a cloudy head and procured some home remedy ingredients.

I had been to the New England Soup Factory on Saturday for a filling meal before an afternoon of studying, and I had a hard time deciding between split pea with spinach or their orzo, lemon and chicken soup. So, of course, I still had the orzo, lemon and chicken soup on the brain Monday morning, and I had to try my hand at it.

And am I happy I did. Based on Greek avgolemono, this stuff is definitely a cold-killer, and it's easy enough to make when you can't entirely think straight. Although making this did make me wish I had a larger freezer - I used canned broth, but homemade stock would have been so much better, and that larger freezer would give me room to have it on hand. *sigh*

Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

10 cups chicken broth
1 cup orzo
4 eggs, beaten
Juice of 3 lemons
Zest of 2 lemons
3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
10 ounces fresh spinach, chopped
salt and pepper

In a large pot, bring the broth to a boil over medium high heat. Add the orzo and cook about 5 minutes. While stirring, pour in eggs in a thin ribbon (so they don't clump up in the heat). Continue stirring until the eggs are cooked into threads. Add lemon juice, zest, chicken, spinach, and salt and pepper to taste. Return to a boil, then remove from the heat and serve.

Cheap Eats: Fajitas and 'Ritas

Cheap Mexican food is easy to find, but cheap sit-down Mexican is not so forthcoming. Luckily, Fajitas & 'Ritas in Downtown Crossing offers south-of-the-border eats with less cafeteria-style ambiance. Whether you're looking for appetizers and pitchers of margaritas or a full meal, there's plenty on the menu that will satisfy.

The nachos are a great place to start, a huge platter of chips and cheese, starting at just $2.86. Choose your own toppings, like the tomato, olive, and guacamole nachos pictured above. Or go for a plate of sizzling fajitas or a gooey quesadilla for a filling meal. And yes, the drinks are cheap and strong and make a great accompaniment to the food (or is it the other way around?). Frozen margaritas start at just over $4 each or $11.60 for a pitcher.

Fajitas and 'Ritas is located at 25 West Street, just off Tremont Street. They open daily at 11:30am and close Sunday at 8pm, Monday and Tuesday at 9pm, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 10pm, and Friday at 11pm.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Monkey Business in a Japanese Restaurant

I would totally eat at this place if I were visiting Japan. I mean, monkey waiters!

And the people who were interviewed must think waiters and children are pretty bad if the monkeys are a better alternative...