FoodMatch Focus: May, 2012

Wednesday, 23 May 2012 04:08 by mary@foodmatch.com

In This Issue

Fancy Food Show Preview

In The News: Verjus

Kalamata Crop Update

Grab an O

Trend Alert: Summer Sauces

In the News: Med Diet

Employee Profile: Mike Rowe

VISIT FOODMATCH @ FANCY FOOD SHOW

Booth 3401 | June 17-19 | Washington DC

Join FoodMatch at the Fancy Food Show in Washington DC, June 17-19. The Fancy Food Show hosts more than 2,400 exhibitors from over 80 countries.

Stop by Booth #3401 and sample some of your favorite Mediterranean olives, antipasti and ingredients.

Visit NASFT for more FFS information.

In The News: Fusion Verjus

Recently, the Wall Street Journal interviewed Grant Achatz, the Chicago based chef who is most famous for his deconstructed presentation of food. While snooping through Achatz's cupboards, FoodMatch's own Fusion Verjus was spotted proudly standing among the other ingredients Achatz most covets .

An ancient wine country culinary secret, Verjus has been flavoring foods with its unique combination of acidity and sweetness for more than 2,000 years. Excellent for use in salads and sauces and as a braising or poaching liquid, Verjus is the unfermented juice of unripened grapes. It is prized by chefs for the brightening, balancing effect it has on foods. Verjus presents no wine/vinegar conflict, making it the choice of chefs who regularly present tasting menus and wine/food pairings. Packaged in attractive, glass bottles, it is available in both rouge and blanc.

Visit the Verjus website for recipe ideas.

Fusion Verjus Blanc

Item #52639

Case Pack 12/750 ml bottles

Fusion Verjus Rouge

Item #74277

Case Pack 12/750 ml bottles

Fusion Cocktails Additional coverage in the Wall Street Journal followed featuring Verjus as a mixologist's trade secret. Touted as an ingredient that is the perfect bridge for wine drinkers to enjoy a nice cocktail, verjus can be consumed in alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks alike. Pregnant women in France will sip on verjus combined with soda water as the perfect spritzer. If you do want to mix in alcohol, the possibilities are endless. We loved this creation, perfect for the arrival of the warm weather.

Verjus Sour Smash

This drink was inspired by the French use of verjus in the kitchen. The Fusion blanc variety brings a little bit of bitterness with an aromatic savor to the gin botanicals and the anise flavor of the tarragon.

2 ounces gin

1 ounce Fusion blanc verjus

1 ounce honey

¾ ounce lemon juice

Club soda

5 tarragon leaves

Shake all ingredients except club soda in a shaker with ice and strain into a highball glass. Top with soda. Tarragon garnish is optional.

New Crop Kalamatas Have Arrived

After careful curing, new crop Divina Kalamata Olives are in stock and ready to order! We are very excited about the final quality of this year's crop. FoodMatch worked with our growers to harvest later than in previous years, taking advantage of the ideal late fall weather conditions that allowed the fruit on the trees to ripen perfectly. You will find darker and firmer Kalamatas than the last two crops. So enjoy this year's Kalamatas at their best!

Recipe Ideas:

Whole Kalamatas can serve as the centerpiece to a Greek antipasti platter paired with fresh Feta cheese.

Pitted Kalamatas can be added to meat and fish dishes, tossed into your favorite salad or pasta dish, or chopped up to create your own tapenade!

Perfect for Summer: Grab an O

Grab an Os are now in easy to open plastic pouch packaging. With this new design, eating olives on the go has never been easier. The pouches are packed in shelf ready cases (6 4.4 oz bag/case). Three flavors are available; French Country Olive Mix, Picholine Olives, and Green Olives w/Herbes de Provence, Pitted.

Barnier Grab an O French olives are ideal for:

Warm weather picnics
After-school snacks
Healthy travel snacking

Trend Alert: Summer Sauces

Martha Stewart Sauces for May

Fun summer sauces were featured in this month's Martha Stewart Living magazine as toppers to your summer salads, grilled vegetables, and fresh seafood.

Try these FoodMatch similar products to add to your summer food repertoire:

72000 Divina Roasted Tomato Bruschetta 6/3.75 lb

D0248 Divina Muffuletta Salad 2/5 lb

D0246 Divina Chopped Olive Tapenade 2/5 lb

D0310 Divina Kalamata Olive Spread 2/5.3 lb

50900 Divina Gigandes Bean Hummus 6/4.4 lb

CLS743 Barnier Preserved Lemon Spread 3/2.2 lb

In the News: Med Diet

The New York Times recently reported on Peter Kaminsky author of Culinary Intelligence: The Art of Eating Healthy (and Really Well) (Alfred E. Knopf, 2012) in which he writes about the healthy diet taken on after the threat of diabetes and obesity.

Kaminsky and the Times toured Mario Batali's Eataly in New York City exploring great food options that both fill and satisfy hungry diners. Kaminsky says that "telling a food writer that he's got to stop eating stuff is like telling a piano player that he's got to use 44 keys," so the flavor per calorie or F.P.C. plays a major part in his choices guiding him toward items such as "anchovies, chickpeas, capers, plain yogurt, olive oil and roasted almonds."

By switching to this Mediterranean Diet Kaminsky dropped 40 pounds with a healthy blood sugar level. The dangerous empty calories lie in flavored drinks and sodas, anything with a lot of sugar or lots of processed ingredients like white flour, sugar and potatoes. One example of the ease of the switch was "what used to be pasta dishes became lentil dishes or farro dishes."

May 2012

Tuesday, 1 May 2012 15:25 by foodmatch

FoodMatch Celebrates Med Month & The Mediterranean Diet

Imagine a lunch of freshly baked bread, extra virgin olive oil for dipping, hummus, stuffed grape leaves and bruschetta. Top it off with a glass of red wine and a long walk around town with friends and family. In America, this type of lifestyle is often reserved for vacations and retirement. But in the Mediterranean, this is typical of an average day.

The Mediterranean Diet is steadily making its way into mainstream American culture. Oldways Preservation Trust, launched in 1990, declares its primary mission as "promoting healthy eating and drinking, with programs that help consumers improve their food and drink choices, encourage traditional sustainable food choices, and promote enjoyment of the pleasures of the table."

This way of life has been deemed so essential that in November 2010, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) recognized the Med Diet as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Italy, Greece, Spain, and Morocco.

Tips, Recipes & Inspiring Ideas for Med Month

Mediterranean Diet Tips

In place of salt, try using fresh or dry herbs and spices. You can add depth of flavor without raising your blood pressure.

Greek Yogurt is a tangy and protein-packed substitute for recipes that call for sour cream or mayonnaise.

Red meat can be enjoyed, but try to limit your intake to a few occassions per month.

Fish and poultry should be enjoyed at least twice per week.

Ditch the soda for red wine. In moderation, red wine has shown itself to have health benefits.

Visit Oldways for more information about the Mediterranean Diet.

An Interview with Oldways President, Sara Baer-Sinnott

FoodMatch had the opportunity to sit down with Oldways President, Sara Baer-Sinnott, and much was learned about the popular Med Diet and how easy it is to incorporate into an everyday food routine:

The Mediterranean Diet Pyramid/Plate vs. Traditional Food Pyramids:

"The USDA pyramid separates grains, fruits, and vegetables while the Med Diet Pyramid values all of these essential ingredients equally."

The effect of habit and culture on our daily routines and diet:

"Eating habits vary widely and are influenced by lifestyles, level of physical activity and the distraction of social media. The sturdy base to the Med Diet pyramid is people because this human element is vital in a world becoming more consumed with technology."

Current Med Diet Must Have:

"Grain Salads! I love mixing together whole grains and leafy greans."