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Jamba Juice Testing Organic To Go Food Items

partysugar — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 09:00:11 -0800

Smoothie chain Jamba Juice is teaming up with Organic To Go to test out a new line of organic food products. In an effort to boost sales, Jamba Juice is considering adding Organic To Go branded items - grab and go salads, sandwiches, wraps, cookies, and yogurt parfaits - to their already existing menu of classic fruit smoothies. The testing will take place in three West Coast stores in Los Angeles and Orange County, CA, and Bellevue, WA. If the test is successful, the partnership will expand to all of Jamba Juice's 749 stores nationwide. Steven Berrard, CEO of Jamba Juice, explains the affiliation:

We’re excited about the possibilities of this test. Our partnership with Organic To Go provides Jamba customers organic and natural food that supports their growing desire for a healthy lifestyle.

The news comes as no surprise as fast food chains across the country scramble to deal with the declining economy. I'll be curious to check out the meals, how about you?

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A Glimpse Into a Gourmet Bug Tasting

YumSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:50:09 -0800

It's one thing to say you'll try any sort of food, but another entirely to truly follow through on your promise. That's why, right before an eight-course gourmet bug tasting this week, I started bugging out over it. If I screamed when I saw insects in my apartment, how was I going to bring myself to eat them?

The one-of-a-kind dinner was organized by the Stanford Club of San Francisco, and featured everything from grasshoppers to dung beetles. Read on to find out how I fared throughout the meal.

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Noteworthy Nibbles - Nov. 3-10, 2009

YumSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:00:07 -0800

Kick-start the new month with a number of celebratory fêtes that are happening this week. Learn all about the art of butchering (and enjoy fire-cooked meats) in Napa Valley; sample food from Boston's best new chefs; or watch Paula Deen's antics in the nation's capital.

Where will your stomach lead you this week? Let us know below.

Boston, MA: StarChefs Boston Rising Stars Revue - Nov. 3
Washington DC: Tour de Champagne - Nov. 6
Houston, TX: Chocolate Festival of Texas - Nov. 6-7
Big Sur, CA: Big Sur Food & Wine Festival - Nov. 6-7
New York, NY: Cook. Eat. Drink. Live. - Nov. 6-8
St. Helena, CA: PRIMAL Napa - Nov. 7
Abbeville, LA: Giant Omelette Celebration - Nov. 7-8
Washington DC: Metropolitan Cooking & Entertaining Show - Nov. 7-8
Los Angeles, CA: Great Chefs Go Organic - Nov. 8
San Antonio, TX: New World Wine & Food Festival - Nov. 8-15

Next Up For Twitter: Wine

YumSugar — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:42:20 -0700

Those who've been mystified by Twitter's business model will find themselves further intrigued by the social networking sensation's latest venture: a Twitter wine label.

Fledgling, as it's called, launched today both online and on Twitter. For $20, oenophiles and Twitter fiends can choose between a California Chardonnay or Pinot Noir, both produced by custom wine facility Crushpad. For each bottle purchased, $5 will go to Room to Read, a world literacy organization.

The partnership between Twitter, Crushpad, and Room to Read - all based in San Francisco - is being labeled the largest online wine project to date. Would you be inclined to buy a bottle of vino from Twitter?

A note to Twitter users: Don't forget to follow YumSugar on Twitter!

Will Wal-Mart's New Cookies Hurt the Girl Scouts?

YumSugar — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 10:30:00 -0700

Over the years, world's biggest retailer Wal-Mart has been the source of heated scrutiny for many organizations, from labor unions to environmental groups. The grocery giant's latest purported victim? The Girl Scouts.

According to Ad Age, the corporation, which has focused on expanding its Great Value private label, handed out test versions of its cookies at Chicago's recent BlogHer conference. One Ohio mommy blogger - and former Girl Scout cookie mom - took immediate notice of the cookies' resemblance to Girl Scout varieties.

"Wal-Mart has copied the Girl Scouts' two best selling cookie types, Thin Mints and Tagalongs," wrote C.V. Harquail on her blog, Authentic Organizations. "There goes the Girl Scout cookies' special allure, and there go the profits that fund the Girl Scouts' programs."

The issue, which has already garnered a reasonable amount of attention, once again raises the question of the corporation's concern for its community. Do you think the new cookies will cannibalize sales of Girl Scout cookies? Is Wal-Mart responsible for considering the impact of its sales on its surroundings - or is it up to the Girl Scouts to evolve with the times?

Source: Flickr User zaui

Julie & Julia's Julie Powell Sets the Record Straight

YumSugar — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 15:20:00 -0700

The highly-anticipated film Julie & Julia, set for release Aug. 7, has sparked a renewed curiosity about both protagonists portrayed in the film: The late Julia Child, as well as writer Julie Powell, author of the memoir Julie & Julia. Over drinks, the self-effacing Powell, who was in town promoting the film, discussed the movie, the extramarital affair that is the subject of her next book, and her response to less-than-kind feedback from both Julia's editor, Judith Jones - and Julia herself. Get the scoop when you keep reading

Happy Hour: Josh Wesson on Pairing Food and Wine

partysugar — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:00:16 -0700

Despite the long lines and hungry event goers, there was one thing the organizers of the Great American Food and Music Festival did right: they invited Josh Wesson to give a special wine seminar. Wesson is a highly regarded wine professional. He's won countless awards and cofounded New York's acclaimed Best Cellars. I was lucky enough to attend Wesson's seminar, Fast Food/Faster Wine! In it he discussed the foundations for pairing food and wine. To learn what he had to say, read more.

Look for similarities. An obvious pairing is a dessert with a dessert wine. Just make sure the dessert (cake, cookie, pie, etc.) is sweeter than the wine.
Balance sweet and sour. When a dish is highly acidic, look for a sweet wine. If the pairing works, the food will taste less acidic and the wine will taste less sweet.
Think about the dominant taste. Do you want the strongest flavor to be the food or the wine?
Look for ways for the food and wine to complement each other. When a fish tastes oily, it's often served with fresh lemon because the acidity mutes the fishy flavor. This same effect can be achieved with an acidic white wine.
Consider the smell of the wine. Without a sense of smell, the wine is tasteless.
Drink a lot of wine. Don't be afraid to try new wines and different pairings.
The final point that Wesson stressed was that drinking and pairing wine is subjective. If it doesn't appeal to your palate, don't drink it.

Do you enjoy pairing wine with food? What are your go-to matches?

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Traci Des Jardins on Being a More Savvy Home Cook

partysugar — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 10:15:59 -0700

I had the chance to speak with one of San Francisco's most prominent female chefs, Traci Des Jardins. You may be familiar with her, thanks to an appearance on the Food Network's Next Iron Chef competition. Now Des Jardins is happy to be out of the spotlight, "I don't like being that recognizable," and back in the kitchen. Her elegant eatery, Jardiniere, recently launched a Monday night themed price-fixe dinner and she's working on a signature restaurant at Tahoe's NorthStar resort, which will be mountainesque with a casual feel (think wood tables), great service, and sophisticated food.

Des Jardins believes the key to restaurant success during a tough economy is to "control costs and be really financially savvy." We talked about how this concept can translate to the everyday kitchen. To find out what she had to say and check out her advice for being a better home cook, read more.

According to Des Jardins, being a clever cook is not about having the latest gadgets. It's about properly stocking your kitchen with the components to make a meal. Items she recommends having on hand are salt, olive oil, capers, anchovies, and tomato sauce. Here are her tips for being a more practical home chef:

Go to smaller farmers markets and speak with the farmers. You don't always have to purchase organic to get fruit and vegetables that are pesticide free.
Go to the farmers market when it's closing down. You'll see more deals that way. None of the farmers want to carry their produce home with them, so they may be willing to bargain or cut costs.
Select lesser cuts of meat and consume less meat. In general, vegetarian cooking is cheaper.
Cook your kids' favorite foods in batches and freeze them.
Skip the boxed macaroni and cheese and Stove Top stuffing and stock your pantry instead, with the fixings for burritos (tortillas, canned beans, rice) and pasta.
Fill your freezer with ingredients that can be used to make quick meals like frozen peas and fresh bread.
If you are going to splurge on one cooking item, make it olive oil. Since it's the foundation of so many dishes, purchase a high-quality oil that will enhance and enrich the overall flavor of the dish.

What do you think of Des Jardins's tips?

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Marco Pierre White: "You Have a Duty to Put Reality Into TV"

YumSugar — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 15:00:32 -0800

If you're a fan of reality cooking shows, you may have heard about NBC's upcoming show, Chopping Block, which airs March 11. The show stars Marco Pierre White, the UK's original bad-boy chef, who has been known to make even Gordon Ramsay cry.

When I spoke to White today, the Chopping Block host was, in stark contrast to his deviant reputation, incredibly gracious, even-keeled, and - dare I say it - sentimental. He denounced bad behavior in the kitchen and on his show ("I will not tolerate bad language or anybody raising their voice") and insisted on being called by his first name ("Marco's my name; chef's my trade"). The one negative thing he had to say, however, was about Hell's Kitchen, Gordon Ramsay's reality cooking show. Get to know the chef when you read more.

On Hell's Kitchen and host Gordon Ramsay: I've seen nothing original about Hell's Kitchen. Gordon is allowed to conduct himself as he wishes. It's quite interesting, watching someone's legacy unravel. Of course, it would be easy to swear, to shout, to suppress people, and to cut people down. Do I want my dear children seeing that? There's a very fine line between being a bully and a protector. [But], let's not forget Gordon Ramsay is a great cook.

On what sets Chopping Block apart from the rest: I will never be a performing seal. I do not perform for a camera - I am myself. If you do reality TV, then you have a duty to put reality into TV. If you don't do that, then what you're doing is questioning your integrity. The one thing we do deliver is reality. That's what reality TV should be all about.

On his contribution to the restaurant industry: I showed people what was possible. I helped people create their dreams. I remember Heston Blumenthal on his first day in the kitchen, Mario Batali on his first day in the kitchen, Gordon Ramsay, as a little boy, coming to work for me. All I did was share my dream with them. All you can do is share your story, your philosophy.

On the organic and healthy food movement: I came from the most humble side of society. They can't afford organic. If everything was organic, what would the price of bread be? Of eggs? If you're going to question farming, then question farming on every level. Let's not forget that there are a lot of people out there who have not a lot of money.

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Jeff: "Nothing Is Too Surprising on the Show"

partysugar — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 08:00:12 -0800

On Top Chef, Jeff seemed like a pretty strong competitor. However, I wasn't surprised to watch Padma ask the blond to pack his knives and go. I spoke with Jeff yesterday, and he's still incredibly disappointed by his dismissal from the show. He spoke candidly about his relationship with Fabio and openly expressed his opinion of Toby Young. To find out what the chef, who's currently working at the Ritz Carlton in South Beach, had to say, read more.

On his elimination: Everyone is a little upset when they get kicked off. Watching it was just a reminder. It's definitely something I will remember for awhile.

I wouldn't change my cooking style, but I was pretty let down. I thought I would have at least made it to the finale. It was really hard. You're cooking, you're stressed out. You're away from home not using your own toothbrush. You're always on your feet. You're out of your element, then before you know it, you got kicked off before you were ready to go.

On Fabio's dish: I thought Fabio was going to go. I was surprised. The judges kept saying to him: You overcooked this. You over dressed that. Scott said something about cheddar cheese not working with the dish. There were four main points that they didn't like about Fabio's dish. They didn't really even critique my dish. They never said, "oh it had too much salt, or tasted to sweet." They said, "you gave me a watered down version of ceviche." I didn't even use water in the dish, so I didn't know how to take the response. I guess I thought I was going to scoot behind that one. There was a little feeling in the back of my throat that I might go home, but it was small.

On competing against the All-Stars from previous seasons: It was different. Nothing is too surprising on the show. They could tell you to run off into the forest and hunt a unicorn and cook it on a grill. And we would do it. It was good to work with them. It was fun to meet the people from the old show.

On the judges: I liked Toby Young. I thought he was very intelligent. I did some research on him after the show. He's a very smart guy. He pulled out the drama and had big character. He had some important, witty things to say. He's definitely quick. There was plenty of people who didn't like him. They were scared of him. He made a lot of harsh comments that those chefs will carry around for awhile. Tom and Gail give critiques: too much salt, did you taste this/not taste this? Toby is good TV. The things he said are funny - unless you are on the other end of it. Padma is very intelligent. She has a great palate. She serves her purpose. She always liked my food: the spices and different elements I brought to the table, the fact that I cook globally, that I do a lot of different cuisines.

On Fabio: Fabio is a good friend of mine. I just saw him recently. He's a good guy. He's hilarious. He just finished a book and so did I. He's been helping me with that, to get it to a publisher. He was a great roommate. Did you know he cuts his own hair?

On who should win: I think everyone has the potential to win. Hosea and I became good friends. Hosea is the underdog. He's lost his focus and I am pulling for him. I hope he gets his head back in the game. No one can be underestimated. Everyone is definitely talented.

On his future: I just bought a house. I'm cooking at the Ritz Carlton. Hopefully the book will do well. It's called The Natural Course. It comes out this June. It's about cooking with organics. Taking what the earth gives you to make food. There is a lot on savory sorbets. I plan on staying here and cooking. I'm not going to try and open my own restaurant right now. It's not the day. Today isn't the day. Miami just had a lot of new restaurants open. The economy isn't good. Maybe 4 to 5 years down the line. I definitely want to do TV again. I'm happy right now, but if something comes along, who knows?

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