This summer's "it" food

Get these from our Foodtrainers' shop while they last (or before we eat them all).

Whether you’re paleo or gluten free (or neither), many of us are conscious of decreasing our grain intake. We’ve noticed a wave of products and restaurants filling the grain gap with cassava and tapioca. Cassava, a root vegetable, is native to Latin America, Asia and Africa, it is also known as yucca. Today, our Chip List newsletter (be sure you’re signed up to receive our Monthly Morsels) mentioned Siete Chips. These are made from cassava and there's pretty damn delicious.

Then, there’s tapioca. Tapioca is the starch extracted from the cassava root.  I know this is a little confusing, bear with me. For now, just know that cassava and tapioca come from the same place but are different nutritionally.

Cassava is nutritionally like a sweet potato. Cassava has more protein, a ton more vitamin C (cassava a great source), slightly more potassium and about the same amount of fiber. Cassava is higher in calories, if that matters to you (not to me). Cassava is used to make flour and breads (Otto’s cassava flour is a great brand). The concern with cassava processed improperly is that it contains compounds that convert to cyanide, sounds scarier than it is. The truth is many foods contain these compounds, flax is one of them. These compounds are in the leaves and peel of cassava and not the flesh/root. The bulk of the issues with cassava have been with people processing the tuber versus consuming it. Companies, such as Otto's, test their products for these compounds.

And tapioca, I have to admit as a gluten free-er, I love the taste of the tapioca “sandwiches”. The tapioca makes a crepe-like wrap for any type of filling. A couple of places in NYC such as Tapnyc and Oca serve these. We tasted Wrapioca's creations at the fancy food show and, also in NYC, is yubakery, their yubuns are not to be missed. In the sandwiches, tapioca has a slightly crunchy texture, yum. However, the more I researched tapioca, I realized it isn’t a nutritional superstar. The saving grace for tapioca is that it’s a source of resistant starch. These starches feed probiotic bacteria. So, tapioca versus white flour? Tapioca wins. Tapioca versus cassava, that one goes to cassava. 

If you are in NYC, I would check out Tap. The whole place is gluten free, the “sandwiches” are delicious. We liked the vegan and also the one with prosciutto. They are very ingredient conscious, in terms of quality. Plus, they have matcha (odd for a Brazilian place but I'm happy about it). 

Have you tried cassava, yucca or tapioca? Let me know your thoughts.

What to do when only a bagel will do?

Following my poke' post on Monday, a friend texted me the following question:

I read your post on lunch. Can I ask a professional question?  What do you recommend to overcome stress eating when only a bagel will do??

I’m sharing my response as I think many people feel entangled with bagel:

OK, step one is to methadone yourself with better carbs.

Try sprouted bagels or Free Bread gluten free toast. 
Step two is to vegify. When we’re on the carb coaster salad isn’t appealing. 
Have greens or a green vegetable with lunch and eat it first pre-bread.

Have better carbs and greens for a week.

Thanks!  I’m on the hunt for these to make my own East Pole/Le Pain Quotidien avocado toast. 

Send me pictures (proof).

I will!!  Love it. 

Can you relate to my friend's question? What do you do to cut carb cravings? 
If you try this you can send me photos too.

Poke' is worth leaving your desk for

Usually, when I have a healthy discovery I cannot wait to spread the word. But there are certain instances where I hesitate, there’s an inclination to be greedy. I had that “I’m not sure if I should spread the word” thought as I ate my lunch on Friday.

For weeks Carolyn has been talking about poke’, poke’ poke” but I didn’t get it. I thought it looked like tartare. What was all the fuss about? Carolyn said, “it’s like a sashimi bowl”.  I looked Wisefish Poke’ up online and grew increasingly curious. The concept originated in Hawaii and seemed to be some hybrid of a make your own salad and the rice/quinoa bowl craze. There’s raw fish, a choice of sauces and other add-ins. I hear poke’ (poh-kay) is already “the thing” in LA.

I was in Chelsea on Friday and decided to hit Wisefish poke’ for lunch. My favorite nutritionist (the RD formerly known as One Smart Brownie,) couldn’t meet so I poke’-ed solo.  Wisefish had some suggestion combinations, the “Heat Wave” sounded good but given the choice I always make my own. My poke’ consisted of:

Zucchini noodles (brown or white rice are also options)

Salmon

Spicy shoyu (all sauces are GF)

Jalapenos

Hikjiki

Scallions

Cucumbers

Avocado

Sesame seeds

After I paid ($16 this included an unsweetened matcha ginger tea), I made my way to the window seating and of course snapped some pics of my poke’ It was definitely pretty but I still didn’t know what I was in for. Sometimes I make my own salad and it’s fantastic, other times it's too spicy or contains combinations that taste weird together.

Not this time. This was mind-blowingly good. It was super flavorful but not overpowering.  I was fantasizing about eating this lunch every day. Part of me didn’t want this dream lunch it to end but when it did I was surprisingly satisfied.

I’m not sure if you caught (pun…) this article on lunch in the New York Times yesterday. “Failure to Lunch” revealed that 62% of professionals eat lunch at their desks. This statistic sounds a little sad but there’s an upside. When we eat lunch alone, we tend to eat less. I’m curious if this holds true for meals consumed alone at home or dinnertime. My guess would be alone is not always a good thing.  The article disputed the notion that having a “desk lunch” leads to more productivity. Just because you’re not getting up doesn’t mean you’re working (Facebook trolling isn’t work).  I strongly believe, when possible, get yourself outside. This is important for your mood and energy.  Maybe, now that you have the lure of something new for lunch, you’ll step away from your desk.

Have you heard of or tried poke’? What’s your typical lunch? Do you eat it at your desk?

There's something about mayo

 I love mayo. I love tuna salad and egg salad and of course lobster salad (but even borderline mayo folks like lobster salad). I know there are people who shun anything creamy or mushy  but I say 'bring it". Mayo is one of those foods I feel I shouldn’t love as much as I do but I can't help it.  Of course we have Hellman’s “real” mayo in our fridge but I can’t completely ignore mayo’s truth.  It contains EDTA (pretty much poison), soybean oil- soy is sort of GMO’s mvp and don’t get me started on Unileaver who owns Hellman’s.  Oy, not so "real" after all.

So I’ve found a mayo substitute I really like (and usually I don’t like any sort of food substitute) Avocado Mayo (avocado oil, eggs, vinegar and salt). One of my favorite easy lunches is 2 hard-boiled eggs (I make these 6 at a time and usually have on hand) mashed with avocado mayo over greens. In this photo I used my boys’ fave pea shoots. The egg salad is satisfying and feels a little indulgent. And this is a mayo that’s ok to love.
Are you a closet (or open) mayo fan? Have you tried Avocado Mayo? What are your favorite, easy lunches?

How Harper's Bazaar and Chloe's fashion director can improve your food day

There are certain magazine features I always enjoy. I’ve written about Us Weekly’s “What’s inyour bag”? but also make sure to read Bazaar’s “My List” where a designer or fashion VIP lists what happens in a typical day. Different from the gum and mints in US Weekly’s purse feature, these days discussed in Bazaar are super snooty. There’s always a little something international “calls with the Paris team” or “preparing for fashion week in” (insert amazing city). For about 30 seconds I feel boring and inferior in comparison (we all compare) but I push through this and read on. I focus on the meals or non-meals  mentioned. I think I'd rather know mundane details about someone's day than something scandalous.

The most recent “List” featured Clare Waight Keller. I had never heard of Clare (fashion director at Chloe) before reading about her 24 hours. So Clare, she has been known to step on her dog when she first wakes up. Before you feel badly for the dog rest assured he gets blowouts. I’m not sure why I wanted to know more but I did. We must not assume children in Paris eat better, Clare's children (twins “and a little one called Harrison”) have “pain au chocolat or a baguette with Nutella, or they might go for a peanut butter sandwich or cereal”. Back to Clare, her exercise includes walking her son (the one called Harrison) to school and “playing tennis in the woods on Saturdays.” She plays tennis in the woods “come rain, snow or anything” not sure if that makes her sound committed or silly (tennis in the snow?).

Clare doesn’t check email until 8am (no email in the kitchen) and follows fashion people “and a few surfers” on Instagram. Sure, I get the fashion/surfing connection…

I learn that they’re “launching” new fragrances at Chloe; I contemplate whether “launch” is a word I now hate but then I see something I really like love about Clare.

this circle is tough to read, happy to discover printed normally in the link/online

1:00 P.M. We're in France, so lunch is at one o'clock on the dot. Everybody vanishes and you cannot get a hold of anyone. Sometimes I eat with friends at a restaurant called Market, with colleagues in the office, or at my desk. I have something light, local, and organic—mostly salad.

Did you hear that? Everybody vanishes for lunch. They aren’t at their desk eating sad desk lunches or skipping THE MOST IMPORTANT MEAL OF THE DAY, they are having lunch or maybe “dunch” as I call it in Little Book of Thin (although a light, salad is not exactly dunch or the ideal lunch).

So, this week (regardless of the impending blizzard) focus on lunch. A solid lunch really sets you up for the rest of the day. As for the rest of Clare’s day? Even the most amazing blowout wouldn’t make it ok for you to step on me.

Why do you think we (I’m including you, I can’t be the only one) like reading about people’s day? Do you make lunch a priority? Do you read or watch anything that makes you feel your life is boring because you aren’t launching anything?

My Vending Machine Dream Came True (almost)

Imagine this in our waiting room (of course then no clients could fit)

What do you dream about? Exotic adventures? Romantic encounters? Seeing someone you no longer can? Playing professional sports? I imagine those are fairly common. Me? I’m a little different (as you may know) and food-centric and so I ponder what life would be like if there was an Organic Avenue in every airport, if all burgers were “grass-fed” all coffee fair-trade things like that. Truth be told, I’ve never had an actual nighttime dream about a vending machine (yet) but it would probably be more of a nightmare. And stop- if you tell yourself you made  “better” choice  when you hit the vending machine c’mon better than a Twix bar doesn’t mean much. Vending machines are a last resort or guilty pleasure but healthy? Not so much.

Well that’s about to change, last week Farmer’s Fridge launched.Farmer’s fridge offers fresh salads and snacks and restocked every morning. You’ll recall last week Joanna posted about Salad in a Jar, Farmer’s Fridge offers multiple, beautiful jarred options in recyclable jars. Farmer’s fridge has also partnered with SPE Certified to confirm the quality of their ingredients. Kale salad or hummus and veggies with the push of a button? Pretty amazing.

I spoke with Farmer’s Fridge founder Luke Saunders yesterday. His background is in manufacturing (which had to help) and he is one of those people who brings a cooler and stocks up at the nearest Whole Foods when on the road. He realized people needed better solutions; not everyone is not on team “cooler” unless of course the cooler comes to them. Farmer’s Fridges are nice looking, wrapped in reclaimed bar wood, no need to tuck these away in a back room or at the end of a hotel hallway. 

The offerings are mostly gluten free, organic for the Dirty Dozen and affordable (salads start at $7.99). This is a game changing concept, the only sad part is that they launched in Chicago. However, Luke says to contact them on Facebook or Twitter and say “I want you here” they are working on their expansion plans. My dream vending machine would have kale, quinoa, salmon and Greek yogurt… and not it's a reality, it just has to come to NYC. I told Luke we’d be happy to test market at Foodtrainers.

What would your dream food-situation involve? What would you put in your personalized vending machine? Where would you like to see Farmer’s Fridge?

Salad in a Jar

vis Designworklife
I may have mentioned our office “snackqueenRD” Joanna Li before. Joanna runs the Foodtrainers store. She’s also our resident product taste, recipe taste and gets more excited about trying new things (a totally underrated great quality) than almost anyone I know. For todays post Joanna tackles a lunch concept that’s been taking Pinterest and the blogosphere by storm.

I love how versatile mason jars are and use them for many things from holding smoothies and juices to storing oatmeal and applesauce (I could go on forever). For some time, I’ve been eyeing “Salad in a Jar” photos on Pinterest and Instagram but those Pinterest people have skills that I often do not possess. Finally, I got up the cooking courage and decided to do a little bit of experimenting in the Foodtrainers test kitchen. After all, leafy greens and mason jars, how could I miss out?

I enjoy salad but not the soggy salad that often greets me at lunchtime. With Salad in a Jar your salad contents do not mingle and mush until you say it’s time. Here's what I did:

For my salad in a jar, I used a wide mouth quart sized mason jars (you can use a smaller size for side salads).

Our Mise en place (fancy French way of planning-it thin)

1.  For the first layer, I drizzled the dressing into the bottom of the jar (1/2 tablespoon walnut oil, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, and 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar) By adding this in first and leafy greens last, you keep your greens nice and crisp.
2. Next come your harder, heartier ingredients such as carrots, cucumbers or beets. I used carrots and beets for layers three and four.
3. After hard veggies comes protein. This could be a chopped hardboiled egg, turkey or poached salmon. I used 4 ounces of poached chicken poached in water with a little bit of salt, pepper, and a clove of garlic.
4. The fifth layer is for nuts or seeds, ideas include: sunflower seeds, quinoa, walnuts or almonds.  I sprinkled one of Foodtrainers’ favorite salad toppings, hemp hearts.
5. The sixth layer is for any other soft ingredients. I used roasted some butternut squash (made with a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper), I have also used avocado.
6. By the time you reach the last layer, you should have at least 1 1/2 inches from the rim of jar for your leafy greens. This could be spinach, kale, arugula, or dandelion greens or microgreens. I chose kale. Be sure to leave a little bit of space in between your greens and the lid for pre-lunch salad shaking.

Here is our recipe, layer by layer from top to bottom,  for

Foodtrainers’ Kale Salad in A Jar

Room for shaking

Layer 7: fill with kale

Layer 6: 1/2 cup roasted butternut squash

Layer 5: 1/2 pack hemp hearts

Layer 4: 4 ounces poached organic chicken

Layer 3: 1/2 cup beets

Layer 2: 1/2 cup chopped carrots

Layer 1: Dressing: 1/2 tablespoon walnut oil, 1 Tablespoon maple syrup, 1 T apple cider vinegar

When ready to eat, shake the jar to toss all the ingredients together or pour onto a plate and dig in!

Salad in a jar is easy to assemble, can be made ahead of time, last for 4-5 days in the fridge and are easy to transport. As Lauren says in LBT “skinny starts Sunday” so prepare your jars on Sunday, and you won’t have to worry about getting off track once the week starts.

Some other salad in a jar inspiration:

Thanksgiving in a jar, perfect for leftovers

Kale and Quinoa Salad in a jar

Have you ever tried making salad in a jar? What are some of your favorite combos?