Monday, May 23, 2011

Soda Pop! and Delicious Restaurants

I love finding new treats, sweets and things with variety. This post is about a few "finds" in the soda world along with a few restaurants at the end. The great thing about these Soda's: none of them have high fructose corn syrup and they all use fresh fruit ingredients.

This is Fresh Ginger Ale,it looks wonderful and I want it in my tummy! With the fresh ginger in it, you shake it a little before opening...no warnings about it exploding because of this process :) They also have a ginger ale with pomegranate and hibiscus added. Delicious!


Next us is a selection of Dry Soda from the Dry Soda Company. I love their unique varieties in flavor: Lavender, Lemon Grass, Blood Orange, Rhubarb, Juniper Berry, Vanilla Bean and Cucumber.






Then, there is Hot Lips Soda! They are a fresh fruit soda company and it makes my heart throb a bit dreaming about what they might taste like. Their flavors include: Apple, Black Raspberry, Blackberry, Boysenberry, Cranberry, Cherry, Pear, Raspberry and Strawberry. Someday, I think I'm just going to work for them so I can sneak berries into my mouth as I cook them up to make this sweet stuff! I'll have stained hot lips all the time from eating so many fresh berries every day :)


And, lucky for me, Hot Lips is sold in Utah...and not just anywhere, but right here in Bountiful!!!! It's a place called Moxi Bistro and they will be seeing my face very soon...they may even be making my upcoming birthday dinner so I can drink this berry juice till I'm plastered with it...not that that's possible, since it's pop...but I am looking forward to trying their Lamb-loin medallions with a cucumber-mint bombe and grilled yams with Panna Cotta for dessert.

If that didn't make your mouth water, then head a little farther south to a place called Trio. If you plan on dying and going to heaven for your next meal, I'm sure this is where you will be eating. When I get hungry I crave their Trio Flatbread served with olive tapenade, white bean puree, and basil pesto. When I die, I plan on eating massive amounts of olive tapenade...because I'll be able to...won't it? I'm pretty sure that's how it will work. If you think just their appetizer alone sounds great, then imagine trying their Chopped Salad (includes blood orange, pistachios, currants, beets, mixed greens, cucumber, feta and a vinaigrette dressing), Chianti Braised Short Ribs (served with creamy polenta which I would be willing frost a cake with, its just that good, root vegetables, braising jus, and horseradish gremolata), and top it of with their Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding...that's what just finished me off and made me a lifetime lover of all things on their menu. Before my death, I will eat here daily for a month...I'm certain I'll be able to afford it by then too :) since I plan on living for a long time...I can start saving up now.

Last of all, I need to mention a hidden gem here: Thyme and Seasons located in North Salt Lake. I thought it was just a tiny little store that sold spices, but boy was I wrong. I didn't expect my short stop in to turn into an exciting adventure. I tried to hurry out with my friend while finding out as much as possible and it was just about closing time. Before I knew it, we were talking to the head chef who ended up locking us into the store to spend an hour sharing his passion for food with us. We sampled gluten free chocolate cupcakes (three ingredients only), sticky rice, and tales about his love of simple cooking. By simple, it means there are very few ingredients that have very rich flavors. His spaghetti sauce alone is heated for hours...I think he said 11? It sounds crazy, but divine and beautiful. He gave us a tour of the entire open kitchen, , his herb garden, his store, his restaurant and explained his cooking classes. Each Saturday he holds cooking classes at amazing rates. They are by reservation only and he's book out well in advance. But he has one rule, before you can even think about registering for a class, you must eat at his restaurant. The way he explained it, it only makes sense to see if the food he cooks is good before wanting to learn how to make his food. His menu changes each week according to what is in season. I definitely recommend checking it out!

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Tuna Patties

Why, you say, would you want to make tuna patties? They sound gross, don't they. That's what I thought. So why did I make them? Go back to december. I went to a christmas party and was asked to bring a white elephant present. I love playing the white elephant game, I always get so excited, wondering what crazy item I will get from it in return for the crazy gift I brought. I don't remember what I brought, but I do remember that I returned home with a very large family size can of tuna. I realized if I opened it I would have to get a little more creative than making my standard tuna fish sandwich...cause that's a lot of sandwiches. So I gave the tuna patties a try and sort of fell in love. If you are willing to give them a try, I think you will enjoy them too :)

Tuna Patties
7 oz Tuna, drained
3 cups Bread Crumbs
2 Eggs
4 tsp Onion, chopped
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice

Mix everything together. Form patties. Fry in 3 Tbsp olive oil. Brown on both sides for 4 minutes.