February Food and Drink News – While we wade through puddles and yearn for some sunshine, here is some food and drink news to cheer you up.
I’ve recently discovered an amazing range of plant-based products that contain no ‘nasties’ and taste really good. So good in fact, that twice I’ve served them and my husband hasn’t realised that they aren’t actually meat. Chefs have long used fermentation to produce deep, complex umami flavours that make food intensely satisfying. Neil Rankin now brings this to us through symplicity.® at Waitrose, with naturally fermented vegetable products. The launch includes three fermented vegetable products: umami-rich burgers, herby sausages, and fiery vegetable ‘Nduja. Made from whole mushrooms, onions, and beetroot that ferment naturally for weeks, they deliver restaurant-quality flavour without the usual additives or heavy processing so often found. symplicity.® burgers, 2x115g, (RRP £4.25), sausages, 6x 45g, (RRP £4.25), and vegetable ‘Nduja 120g, (RRP £4.50) are available from Waitrose …and really good.
Great news for fellow extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) fans: Marks and Spencer is now stocking The Olive Oil Guy’s single-origin Greek EVOO in a smart 250ml can. Sourced from a single estate in Sparta in the Peloponnese, this premium, cold-pressed oil is made exclusively from Koroneiki olives (known as the ‘queen of olives’ for the vibrant flavour and high antioxidants.) It has a bright and grassy flavour with a green almond backnote and a clean, peppery finish. At £8.50 it has a Great Taste star and the oil is certified by world-renowned olive oil sommelier Mazen Assaf, who’s on a mission to transform olive oil from commodity to craft.
And while on the subject of great tasting foods, there’s fab news from Ocado that it’s now stocking a range of those wonderfully tasty Ottolenghi sauces and spices. With searches for ‘Ottolenghi’ rising 175% year on year on site, Ocado responded to demand. There are 12 Ottolenghi flavour shortcuts including Rose, Pomegranate and Preserved Lemon Harissa, Pilpelchuma Paste, and Miso Pesto and more products to be added soon. From around £4, but on introductory offer till 24 February, so order soon.
Would you like a healthier spread, and one without seeds? Fearne & Rosie, has a mission to put more fruit and less sugar into spreads and they’ve turned two of their best sellers seedless. The Strawberry Seedless Preserve and Raspberry Seedless Preserve are bursting with fruit (70% no less) and deliver a super sweet taste with 40% less sugar…how smooth is that? Fearne & Rosie jam-packs each jar of strawberry preserve with 31 strawberries, and the raspberry preserve an impressive 51 raspberries. Each is vegan friendly, with no added concentrates (concentrates can contain high levels of fructose), making them a healthier and tastier addition to bring to the breakfast, lunch, or snack time table. Available from Ocado or fearneandrosie.co.uk at £3.50 for a 310g jar.
In this miserable cold weather a warming breakfast is perfect, and I’ve discovered a really easy and tasty option: Flahavan’s More Than Oats. Serving up benefits like cholesterol and gut health support, it’s porridge sprinkled with extra goodness. Available in two flavours – Cranberry or Apple & Bilberry – each blend brings together Ireland’s favourite wholegrain oats with real fruit pieces and selected seeds. High in fibre, a source of protein, and low in saturated fat, sugar and salt, each bowl will deliver slow-release energy to help kick-start your day. Perfect as ‘porridge with benefits’ in just three minutes, More Than Oats also works as creamy overnight oats, or as an instant crunchy muesli, splashed with your milk or yogurt of choice. Flahavan’s More Than Oats is available now in Waitrose, in-store and online, 400g for £3.60.
Vievé has launched a new range of flavour-forward, all-natural protein bars, containing 15g protein and 12g fibre in each bar, making a more complete snack than many sugary, UPF packed options. These new bars are also designed for anyone on GLP-1, following research showing that 50% of Vievé’s customers use its products as part of a weight loss regime. There are three flavours: Pistachio punch (packed with real pistachio and nut pieces); Strawberry blondie (with real pieces of strawberry wrapped in a white chocolate coating) and Coconut Crunch (with coconut flavour and pieces of real shredded coconut). With no more than 1g of sugar and less than 160 calories per bar, you have a well-rounded and tasty snack. Vievé’s new protein bars are available from Amazon and online (RRP £2.29). For more information visit drink-vieve.co.uk
FATSO, the dark chocolate disruptor, has a really good limited edition dark chocolate bar: Deep Brew. The brand’s darkest bar to date, it goes deep. Think 85% Colombian dark chocolate deep. Coffee-rich, walnut-crisp and wafer-light, it’s smooth, cool and deliciously dark. Putting goodness back into the planet, this chunky, Fino de Aroma Colombian chocolate is wrapped in black packaging printed with sustainable Kelp® Ink” the ocean-safe, carbon-negative ink that doesn’t just cut carbon, it flips it. £7.50 a bar from sofatso.com and selected outlets.
And last, but by no means least, an excellent alcohol free sparkling from Casillero del Diablo that’s not only a great drink, but one that’s very reasonably priced. Gently dealcoholized, Casillero del Diablo 0% Sparkling is made with 100% Chardonnay grapes. The result is a truly sparkling offering of light and elegant bubbles with a fresh subtle touch of lime, along with a rich, well balanced acidity, lifted by a clean, refreshing finish. It’s a great standby for whenever you want to raise an alcohol free glass, either in celebration, or just to raise your spirits and dream of those warmer, sunny days ahead…hopefully. Casillero del Diablo 0% Sparkling (75cl) is available at Sainsbury’s, at £6.
The Seasoned Gastronome