Even as I spend my days watching cooking videos, the news alerts pop up in the corner of one of my screens and I can’t help reading, watching and wondering what is going on?

Thankfully, food videos are quite entertaining and make you hungry for something good to eat. Use the senses of the mouth to overwhelm the senses of the ear!

What does it take to get our spirits up? A good recipe. Something fun to make. You will need to decide: do you want to be fully involved for hours so that your mind is occupied? Do you want to make something that is easy, so you can sit for an hour while it cooks and read a cookbook mystery?

Or do you need something super-fast because you’re hungry and you want your reward ASAP!?

I have been looking for new recipes that are dishes I consider to be comfort food. I also have been looking for simple, easy ones. And for dishes that have lots of spices because I am trying to figure out what they do, precisely what they add, and how they work together.

The goal is to eat amazing, better-tasting food that will make my heart healthy, my body feel good, and most importantly, take my mind and mouth on vacation.

Cheers!

Click Here To See Everything Featured in This Newsletter!

The hardest part of this recipe is remembering to soak the beans the night before. It really is a put-everything-in-a-pot-and-cook recipe.

See the Sardinian Minestrone Recipe here!

The term fregula (also fregola) may derive from the Latin word fricare, meaning chopping up: little fragment, splinter, crumb, scrap, corpuscle. These tasty little balls of pasta are created by rubbing coarse semolina into balls in the presence of water.

Unlike North African or Middle Eastern Couscous, these little balls of Sardinian couscous are then toasted in an oven, giving them a toasty, rustic-homey taste. This medium fregula is a staple in the Sardinian kitchen, both on the coast and in the interior.

Fregula Sarda pasta is suitable for meat and seafood dishes, or try it with a bean dish like Fregula con Fagioli, the Sardinian version of Pasta i Fagioli, or Pasta with Borlotti Beans and Kale.

Fregula Sardinian Pasta may be seasoned with tomato and sausage or used to make its most famous dish, fregula con cocciula (fregola with clams) from Cagliari. Given its density and texture, it can absorb a ton of liquid without becoming mushy, and so it just may be the ultimate pasta for soups. Serve it like the locals, in brodo (broth) with either beef, chicken or mushroom.

Fregula Sarda pasta is best when cooked in boiling water for 10-12 minutes.

La Casa del Grano has been making traditional Sardinian pasta for over 50 years. The result of ancient traditions, the company is dedicated to preserving the rich history of their products, using only the finest ingredients, and employing a unique (and top secret!) production method.

Shop now for Fregula Sarda from Sardinia!

This recipe is based on Micheal Natkin's Herbivoracious Cookbook. He is a James Beard Nominated and an Oscar winner for his work making special effects possible. If you don’t have a copy of his cookbook, I highly recommend it. Filled with recipes that are not fussy in preparation, and they are filled with flavor.

And getting more lentils in your life is a good thing!

See the Spanish Lentil and Mushroom Stew Recipe Here!

This beautiful blue/green mottled lentil originated in the Le PUY region of France - and is now grown in the Palouse region of Washington State - the lentil-growing capital of our world.

Its distinctive appearance is matched by its excellent flavor and smooth texture.

Throw in its fine cooking qualities and ability to hold its body, and it is easily understood why the exquisite DU PUY LENTIL is preferred by gourmet chefs in Europe.

Highly recommended as an ingredient in broth-based herb soups and gently flavored hot or cold salads. Cooking time is 20 to 30 minutes.

Shop now for Madeline Petite French Green Lentils!

When you open the jar for the first time and go for a pinch, the first thing you will notice is the silky smooth feel between your thumb and forefinger. Wow!

This incredibly fine grind is amazing! Understand it is not a powder like so many commercial spice blends.

This Kefta has texture and feels fabulous. And the “whiff” is wonderfully effervescent. This Moroccan spice blend is smooth and distinct, complex and simple, all at the same time. Though initially the aroma is “recognizable” with cumin leading the “flavor”, it shares the olfactory epithelium with the other spices for a perfect balance.

We couldn’t wait to fire up the grill (we did) and top our chicken with this very special Moroccan spice rub!

Adding olive oil, salt, a little lemon juice, Ras el Hanout and Kefta Rub and we had a party! We can’t wait to rub it on everything this summer!

Named koofteh (kofta) by the Persians, the root of kefta, which means literally “pummeled meat”.

Kofta is most commonly used and as a description for a minced meat “dish” - a meatball. Known as “kefta”, it found it’s way to Morocco from Persia via every country that separates the two, including Morocco, Turkey, Lebanon and of course, Persia. Each with their own distinct versions of kefta.

Not just any meatball like we have in the West, this “fist” sized, full-flavored dish is most often served with a yogurt sauce to contrast with the spices.

The act of “pummeling”, working the meat so that the proteins break down, and the lamb, onion, garlic, salt and the spices bind together.

Kefta Rub with roots in Casablanca:

This Kefta recipe is from Mehdi’s great Uncle, one of Casablanca’s finest butchers. This “Morrocan” version of Kefta is inspired by local cuisine and includes cumin, paprika, cayenne, cinnamon and mint; hazelnut was in the original recipe but has been omitted for allergy reasons.

But you don’t need it to just make Kefta the dish, it works wonderfully in shakshuka, or as a marinade for gulf prawns with lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, parsley & cilantro. Even add it to a tomato sauce, that's how versatile this spice mix is!

Amazing presence!
"Wow! This is actually THE versatile solution that is not like a generic “curry” flavor. It is fresh and reliable for everything you’re working on, whether it’s got Wings, hoofs, roots, leaves, etc. I don’t need any other solution of flavor for a dish."
-- evelyn

Shop now for Villa Jerada Kefta Rub!

We met Danny Meyer many moons ago when he stopped by one of our warehouses we had just moved into. He was working on getting Shake Shack to be environmentally friendly and was on a book tour for his business book, Setting the Table.

And just recently a friend made these nuts for an afternoon tea. They were spectacular! I had to restrain myself from becoming my father and standing by the nut bowl and settling in to graze. And it turns out it is a recipe from The Union Square Cafe bar in NYC. This is a restaurant that is worth visiting when you are in NY.

See the Best Bar Nuts Recipe here!

A handful of mixed nuts is hard to beat. Finding the right mix is harder to do than you think. And that’s where Fastachi’s Cranberry Nut Mix, which has been with us for virtually forever, comes into play.

This is our go-to, always have-in-hand staple, the best bag of nuts you can find.

This mix, the nuts are hand-salted with sea salt to perfection, double-sifted to ensure whole nuts in your hand, with just the right combination of soft, hard, harder, crunchy, salty; doesn’t get much better than this.

A handful of the right nuts is a good mouthful for creating joy in life!

This cranberry nut mix is simply roasted in small batches with sea salt for clarity, perfection, and a clean, distinctive flavor. We have enjoyed these assorted roasted nuts for years, and find them perfect for an office snack or a party mix, these are good!

From the producer, who describes it best...

The cranberry nut mix is a one-of-a-kind twist that leaves a tart and salty taste dancing on your tongue. The assorted roasted nuts are chewy and have a crunchy texture with cranberries, salted pistachio meats, salted almonds, roasted unsalted almonds, salted hazelnuts, roasted unsalted hazelnuts, salted peanuts, unsalted peanuts, red skin peanuts, sesame peanuts, and salted cashews will keep you coming back for more.

Shop now for Fastachi Cranberry Nut Mix

Delicate without adding a flavor, rice bran oil just may be the world's healthiest edible oil. Rice bran oil comes from the most nutritious part of the rice grain, loaded with monounsaturated fats & polyunsaturated fats, as well as vitamin E. These are the good fats that help your body lose weight.

Which means that Non-GMO rice bran oil is not only nutritious, but a superior salad, cooking, baking and frying oil that leaves no lingering aftertaste.

Extremely versatile, rice bran oil is an excellent choice for baking as well as just about any cooking method, from deep-frying to pan-frying, sautéing to stir-frying, baking to grilling.

BENEFITS OF NON-GMO RICE BRAN OIL:

High Smoke Point: At 485 degrees, it is higher than either peanut oil or grapeseed oil, preventing fatty acid breakdown at high temperatures. Its light viscosity allows less oil to be absorbed in cooking, thereby reducing overall calories - many of our chefs have reported using about half the cooking oil they used to use, due to the fact that Rice Bran oil is so thin.

Non-GMO rice bran oil mixes better in salad dressings and improves the taste of baked goods, providing cholesterol reduction, nutritional and anti-oxidant value.

Almost no flavor: Which means it mixes well with others. Will not impart flavor to foods, letting all the other ingredients shine though.

Excellent Shelf Life: Rice bran oil has a long shelf life compared to other cooking oils, partly because of these antioxidants. Most of the commercially produced cooking oils don't have the same level of anti-oxidant protection - which means many of the commerical oils (vegetable oil, canola oil, corn oil and safflower oil, to name a few...) have already gone racid when you buy them in the grocery store. Yuck!

Non-GMO unlike almost all commercially produced cooking oils: The highest quality Rice Bran Oil comes from Brazil, and most of the finished product goes to Japan. (Rice bran oil is the preferred frying oil for tempura.)

Health Benefits of Non-GMO Rice Bran Oil: Excellent source of vitamin E complex, antioxidants and other micro-nutrients to help fight free radicals and oxidation (otherwise known as rancidity).

Source of many other anti-oxidants, including tocopherols and tocotrienols, a unique antioxidant known as gamma oryzanol (known to decrease the symptoms of menopause), phytosterols, polyphenols and squalene.

Excellent balance of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, as recommended by such organizations as the American Heart Association and the World Health Organization. Approx lipid breakdown: 0-2% Omega 3's, 34-39% Omega 6's*, 38-42% Omega 9's, 0-3% Stearic Acid, and approx 18-21% Omega 7's (Palmitic Acid), know to help decrease C-reactive protein (CRP), as well as triglycerides and LDL cholesterol, and increase HDL cholesterol**

*As compared to Sunflower and Safflower oils, which contain approx 65% ad 75% Omega 6's respectively.

**Journal of Clinican Lipidology

Our rice bran oil is made from certified Non-GMO rice.

Best high heat oil around!

"I can't swear to the health benefits included in the product's description, but it is definitely the best oil for use in high heat cooking I've ever seen. I've used peanut oil, avocado oil, almond oil, etc. and nothing has a higher smoke point than this rice bran oil. It's neutral in flavor and has a very long shelf life. I love it."
-- gregory

Shop Now for Rice Bran Oil!