A friend of mine here in Los Angeles, who runs a home-based catering company that delivers single serving meals to private homes recently turned me on to the New York based Rao’s Specialty Foods company.

Rao’s is perhaps the most exclusive restaurant in East Harlem, New York.  You can’t call and reserve a table – you have to be invited by the “owner” of one of the restaurant’s eight tables!   There is an actual online guide at SoYouWanna for how to attempt to get a seat at Rao’s.  The good news is, it may be easier to get in after they open their second location at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas.

Only recently the Rao’s family’s all-natural pasta sauces got picked up by the major grocery distributors and so you can now get a sampling of their catalog off the shelves at Ralph’s grocery stores.

On first look, I was a little shocked to see that a 15 oz jar of Rao’s Marinara Sauce cost almost twice the price of a jar of Newman’s Own, but I had to try it based on my friend’s reaction.

I cooked up some whole wheat angel hair pasta (the kind that has only one ingredient – durum semolina) and heated up the sauce in a small pot.

As soon as I put it to my lips, I began to smile.  It was the real deal; sweet with a bit of tanginess, light as air as opposed to sticky or pulpy or pasty, and utterly delicious.

The label states that the organic tomatoes used in the sauce are imported from Italy.  Beyond that I saw no artificial preservatives or byproducts.  The stuff is blissfully good.

See for yourself: simple and top-quality ingredients make up Rao's incredible pasta sauces

Here is what the Rao’s pasta menu looks like (from their website):

Rao’s Homemade Marinara Sauce—An all-natural pasta sauce blending imported sweet tomatoes from Italy, imported olive oil, sweet onions, fresh basil, fresh garlic, crushed black pepper, salt, and fresh oregano. Not only perfect for pasta, but also wonderful for preparing classic Italian dishes with shrimp, veal, steak, chicken, pork, and vegetables. Available in three sizes – 16 oz., 24 oz. and 32 oz. jars.

Rao’s Homemade Arrabbiata Sauce – The spice of imported crushed red pepper. Hot and perfect for pasta and seafood.

Rao’s Homemade Cuore Di Pomodoro Sauce – “Heart of the Tomato” Filetto Sauce with tomato, prosciutto and onion.

Rao’s Homemade Puttanesca  Sauce – An exciting combination of tomatoes, capers, anchovies and olives.

Rao’s Homemade Roasted Eggplant (Siciliana) Sauce – Our famous marinara sauce with the addition of freshly roasted eggplant. Can be used as a baking sauce.

Rao’s Southern Italian Pepper and Mushroom Sauce – made with imported tomatoes, fresh red and green peppers, fresh mushrooms with a hint of white wine.

Rao’s Homemade Vodka Sauce – A velvet blend of tomatoes, imported cheese, and vodka.

NEW! Rao’s Dinner to Go Sausage and Mushroom Sauce – is a meal in a jar. Rao’s combines its premium quality  tomato sauce with Sweet Italian Sausage and fresh sliced mushrooms.

NEW! Rao’s Tomato Basil Sauce – As soon as a jar of Tomato Basil sauce is opened, the aromatic bouquet of fresh basil permeates the senses and awakens the taste buds.

Finally, it seems that purchasing the sauces directly from the company’s site is much more economical than buying it at the grocery store.  At Ralph’s (a local grocery store in LA) a single jar of the good stuff goes for almost US$13.00!  Thirteen bucks for a jar of spaghetti sauce?!?  At the Rao’s website, one the other hand, you can get a three-pack gift box for between $28-$33.00.

I love this stuff and wish I could fit it into my daily budget.  But for those special occasions when you want to impress – do yourself a favor and get familiar with this amazing brand.

http://www.raos.com/

Tags: angel hair pasta, artificial preservatives, black pepper, byproducts, catering company, east harlem, eight tables, garlic, grocery distributors, grocery stores, harlem new york, homemade marinara sauce, label states, light as air, marinara sauce, organic tomatoes, organisms, pasta menu, pasta sauce, quality ingredients, real deal, semolina, soyouwanna, specialty foods, sweet onions, sweet tomatoes, whole wheat

Mmm.  As we continue on our divine Taste Odyssey, we move to the exquisite delights of Indian sweets, in this case, some recipes traditionally witnessed in the Festival of Sweets known as Diwali.  Please enjoy:

By Bharat Peripleko

Sweets are the best way to shower your Diwali greeting to your loved ones. Here are some of the Diwali sweets recipes:

Almond Seera

This is one of the best Diwali recipes and this sweet is easy to prepare. Following are the ingredients required for making Almond Seera:

• One cup of coarse wheat flour
• 1-1/2 cup of blanched almonds
• 1 teaspoon of cardamom powder
• ¼ teaspoon of crushed saffron strands
• 1 tablespoon of warm milk
• 8-10 blanched almonds finely chopped in to silvers
• 1-1/4 cup of ghee
• 3 cup of water
• 1 cup of sugar

How to prepare Almond Seera

Firstly the crushed saffron and dissolved in the warm milk. Keep this saffron milk aside. Dry and powder the blanched almonds. Keep aside 10 almonds for garnishing. Melt ghee in a large and heavy pan and add some flour to it. Stir and fry this mixture for about 2-3 minutes. Then add some almond powder to the mixture and again stir and fry the mixture till it becomes golden and give a nice aroma. The mixture has to be continuously stirred. Add some water and again stir and cook it. Add some sugar to it. When the ghee exudes, add cardamom and saffron to the mixture. Then stir and place the dish prepared in to a serving dish and garnish with the chopped almonds.

Kheer

Kheer is the common dessert among Indians and is prepare at the time all festivals and celebrations. Kheer can be made of vermicelli or rice and the important ingredients are milk and sugar.

Ingredients for Kheer:
• Milk – 1 liter
• 200 grams of rice ( soak the rice half an hour before cooking)
• Sugar
• Finely chopped cashew nuts
• 4-5 pieces of cardamom
• Few raisins

Preparation of Kheer

Pour milk in a pan and boil it for a few minute. Keep the flame low. Stir the milk continuously to become little thick. Put some sugar in the milk and continuously stir it until the sugar melts in the milk. When the milk is ready, put the rice in to the milk and boil it for sometimes while stirring is at intervals. When the rice is cooked, garnish it with chopped cashew nuts, cardamoms and raisins.

Khoya Laddu

Khoya Laddu is most famous of all khoya sweets and the most appetizing dish prepared during Diwali.

Ingredients for Khoya Laddu
• 2 cups of Khoya
• Powdered sugar
• 1-1/2 cups of powdered and roasted sesame seeds or til
• Kesar
• Chopped pistas and almonds

Preparation of Khoya Laddu

Roast the khoya in a low flame till it becomes golden yellow color. Let it cool for some time and after cooling add some coarsely powdered sesame seeds to the khoya and mix it well. Add the sugar when the above mixture becomes Lukewarm. Mix it well and make in to the shape of small balls. Ensure that the mixture should not be too hot or else the sugar will melt and perfect balls would not be made. Finally decorate with kesar, almonds and pistas.

Bharat Peripleko Suggesting to Diwali Sweet and Get Diwali Sweets Recipes from the Giftstoindians.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bharat_Peripleko
http://EzineArticles.com/?Diwali-Recipes&id=1540853

Tags: 1 liter, aroma, cardamom powder, celebrations, chopped almonds, coarse wheat flour, diwali, diwali dishes, diwali greeting, diwali recipe, diwali sweets recipes, diwali sweets recipes 2008, garnish, half an hour, indian recipes, intervals, milk and sugar, mixture, recipes on diwali, saffron strands, serving dish, tablespoon, teaspoon, vermicelli, warm milk

By Fahnee Chang

If Gwynny can love teh Macro, why can't you?

Macrobiotics has been around for so long and celebrities like, Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, Cindy Crawford and so much more have been into it. For the reason that it gives us more than any other diet there is and has been tagged the healthiest diet. Macrobiotic diet does not only make us lose weight but there have been cases that show that macrobiotics may help cure serious medical conditions such as cancer and AIDS.

It is always not so easy starting out on something that will radically change your lifestyle, most especially when it becomes a part of your regimen. Switching to macrobiotic diet is not that tough. As long as you have the will and determination to do it. Macrobiotics is actually just using our commonsense to eating. Macrobiotics is a sensible alternative to the over processed and devitalized foods that are available in the market and fast foods.

Macrobiotic diet focuses on these balancing acts of intakes. Yin foods, among other things are ones that grow in warm climate, foods that contain more water. While Yang foods are ones that grow in cold climate and are dryer. Remember “Taking all things in moderation”? “Anything excessive or too much is bad”? Macrobiotics is focusing on eliminating unbalanced diet and promoting higher well being, it also teaches us to chew our food completely and eat only when hungry.

Some food that we have gotten used to are strictly prohibited in macrobiotics, because as we say, it is unbalanced in its own way. They are extreme. Either too sweet or too salty, hence junk foods. Foods that you should stay away from are chocolates, candies and soda, refined foods such as white sugar or flour, processed food such as sardines, corned beef, and other canned food, tropical fruits, poultry and dairy products, eggs, butter, caffeinated products specially coffee, and other products that has preservatives in it.

But there are so many benefits of macrobiotics that changing your taste bud preference is worth it. If paired together with exercise, such as yoga, macrobiotic diet can make you lose weight dramatically, because this diet is rich in fiber and low in saturated fat and reduces the risk of diseases that is associated with fats such as heart attacks and strokes, heart diseases and high cholesterol. Although not proven yet, macrobiotics helps and even prevents AIDS and cancer. Of course it’s a rule of a thumb that a healthy diet and healthy lifestyle leads to a disease free life, as our body has it’s own self heal properties, and all we have to do is to activate our body’s immune system to perform well it’s duties by cleansing him of all the impurities we fed him in years of our lives.


Macrobiotic diet is not a medicine to cure your onset illness but a lot of illnesses are brought about by wrong diet and excessive intakes of unnecessary food in our body, thereby resulting into branches of different complications and sickness, correcting all of these and switching to a more sensible and balanced diet such as macrobiotic diet and lead a healthy lifestyle together with exercise can surely shun away troubles brought about by modern day diseases. A complete turn around of diet means a complete turn around of illness into wellness. Macrobiotic diet is a way of life.

Fahnee Chang is the publisher of http://www.macrobioticonline.com A website wholly focused on Macrobiotics and its resources.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Fahnee_Chang
http://EzineArticles.com/?Macrobiotics:-Tips-and-Advice-on-Starting-a-Macrobiotic-Diet&id=636329

Tags: alternative, cancer, candies, canned food, cindy crawford, cold climate, dairy products, diet, flour, gwenyth paltrow, gwyneth paltrow, healthiest diet, junk foods, Macrobiotic, Macrobiotics, macrobiotics diet, medical conditions, refined foods, sardines, taste bud, tropical fruits, unbalanced diet, warm climate, weight-loss, white sugar, yin foods

Tofu Turkey and Vegetarian Stuffing

Check out this vegetarian turkey and stuffing recipe!

Recipe by Carol van de Erve Tracy

Turkey:

5 pounds of firm tofu
1 pound of tofu for the drumsticks – optional

Stuffing:

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 large onion, chopped fine
1 and 1/3 cup celery, diced (about 4 stalks)
1 cup mushrooms, finely chopped
3 to 4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup sage (may use 1/8)
2 teaspoons marjoram
2 teaspoons thyme
1 teaspoon winter or summer savory
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon rosemary
2 teaspoons celery seed
1/4 cup soy sauce or tamari
3 cups Mrs. Cubbison Stuffing (choose your vegan stuffing of choice)

Basting mixture:

1/2 cup toasted sesame oil
1/4 to 1/3 cup soy sauce or tamari
2 tablespoons miso
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 teaspoon mustard of choice

Directions:

Mash tofu or mix well with hands. Be sure that all of the lumps are out. Line a 12 colander with wet cheesecloth over lapping the sides. Add the mashed tofu to the cloth covered colander, press down and cover with the overlapping sides. Place the whole thing in a large bowl. Cover the cheesecloth with a plate that fits inside the colander and place a 5 pound weight on the plate. Refrigerate and let sit for 2 to 3 hours.

When time is up, start the stuffing. Saute the onions, celery and mushrooms in the 2 tablespoons sesame oil. When soft, add the garlic and all the rest of the stuffing ingredients, except stuffing, mixing well. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add herb stuffing and mix well.

Remove tofu from fridge and take off weight, plate and top of cheesecloth. Hollow out tofu to within 1 inch of the sides and bottom, placing the tofu in a bowl. Place the stuffing inside the she’ll and pack in firmly. Cover with the remaining tofu and pat down firmly. Turn stuffed tofu onto a greased baking sheet, flat side down. Gently press on sides of turkey to achieve a more oval shape. If desired at this point, you may mold drumsticks out of one pound of tofu, and place on each side of the turkey.

Mix up the basting mixture and baste tofu turkey with half of it. Cover the turkey with foil, and bake at 400 degrees for about 1 hour.

Remove foil, baste with all the remaining mixture except a few tablespoons and return to oven for 1 hour more, or until the turkey is golden. Remove from oven and use rest of basting mix. Using at least 2 large spatulars, move to a large plate. Serve with the gravy of your choice, if you wish, and cranberry sauce.

Found at: http://vegweb.com

Find many more vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes at the following destinations:

Tags: carol van, celery seed, cheesecloth, cloves garlic, colander, cup mushrooms, cup soy sauce, firm tofu, free, mash tofu, oval shape, salt and pepper, sesame oil, stuffing recipe, teaspoon rosemary, thanksgiving recipe, tofu turkey, tofurkey, vegan turkey, vegetarian thanksgiving, vegetarian turkey

It looks like the new farming paradigm in America is starting to take hold in the popular mainstream.  Wired Magazine’s Jargon Watch listed “cowpooling” this week as one of its hot and useful terms:

Cowpooling v. Teaming up with neighbors to buy a whole cow from a local farm. It’s then divvied up as T-bones and sirloins butchered to order. The practice is fashionable with urban locavores who want to eschew feedlot-raised, hormone-laced, corn-stuffed meat.

Tags: farming, grass fed beef, grass-fed, jargon, mainstream, paradigm