New Bites for to fall for

Gumbo, chili and soup, we’re ready for you. We’re standing by with sweaters and leafy décor. Here are some new bites to “fall” for:  

Cans - American Tuna cans are so attractive that I made a tower of them and admired my still life. Eventually I popped tops on flavorful no salt, sea salt, jalapeno and garlic options

I was right about their upscale packaging. I’d moved my tower to a work desk and a passerby snapped a photo for the color schemes of orange, navy, green and cream.

American Pole & Line fishing families started this company in San Diego. Albacore comes from the Pacific Ocean. Then it gets hand filleted and packed at artisanal canners in Oregon and Washington. They cook it once, in the can. They can trace every can of one-by-one catch back to the vessel that brought it in. There’s no vegetable broth or fillers.

I was right again for not wanting to drain. The liquid keeps the flavor, nutrients and omega-3 fatty acids. This is high-quality and delicious fish. This firm meat is nothing like the stringy tuna we ate in the ‘70s. It’s gourmet. I made salads with black beans, basil leaves and tomatoes. Recipes on the www.americantuna.com site are fancy, like the very photogenic smoked tuna blt, which stands for bacon, lettuce and beet.

Cups– Agave makes tequila, but now I’m paring it with fine teas. Fiore cups feature watercolors of Fátima Seehagen, a Brazilian painter whose work “exuberantly abstracts nature, unleashing emotions through a vivid natural palette.”

Tea Forté has a collection of cups with infusers and lids that turn tea time into your ritual. "We all have a story to tell, just as all flowers have a unique, irreplaceable beauty and fragrance,” the artist says. My calm comes from gazing at the blue and green watercolor of a very Texas-centric plant. It’s the difference between sipping and gulping. For more: Introducing the Fiore Teaware Collection

Elevated Street Food Sauce: Bali BBQ – Ever watched a Southerner barbecue? I witnessed a lively conversation in the park as my husband’s relatives debated over pecan wood, types of meat and placement on the grill. Who won? I did, because I got to eat the results of the day.

You may think you can’t teach us new tricks about barbecue, but here’s a way to keep the flavor going when you’ve scrubbed up the grill for the season. I’ll let the creators share about this organic food company working with farming families building products around coconut blossom nectar and regenerative food forests:

“Big Tree Farms Bali BBQ brings a smoky, savory, slightly sweet flavor to chicken, roasted vegetables, and easy weeknight meals. Inspired by the street BBQ of Bali, the sauces are made with organic coconut aminos, coconut sugar, garlic, ginger, tamarind, lemongrass, and organic spices…and are soy-free, gluten-free and made without refined sugar,” the product material reads.

My take is that a few squeezes from the bottle is why they call this original naughty medium and not so naughty mild sauce collection “elevated street food sauce.” If all you have in the pantry is rice and peanuts, you can sauce up a full flavor entre. It’s gluten free and soy free and full of possibilities.

Beans on Beans – I’ve just used crunchy Festive Chickpeas to top a pinto bean salad and float atop a bowl of bean soup. I realize that is beans on beans, but I can’t get enough. If you like your grab and go nutrition in flavors like Nacho Cheese, Honey BBQ and White Cheddar, you can rock this snack.

Makers report: “Festive Chickpeas naturally help bridge both gaps, delivering 10 grams of plant-based protein and 8 grams of fiber per bag…all from real chickpeas, with no added protein powders, concentrates or isolates.”

Little bags go right into your purse or lunch box, naturally. Here’s a new twist: try them on charcuterie boards. That will get them talking. Available on Amazon, Walmart.com, SnackFestive.com.

Chocolate – If you won’t try quinoa in a salad, how about in a chocolate bar? Quinoa Crunch offers 60 percent cacao, but you can crank it to 85 with Raspberry Blackout. These chocolates are for you, not those little ones who come knocking on your door at Halloween. The flavors are intense and  special. Alter Eco is one of those do-good companies restoring ecosystems while you indulge in flavors like Silk Velvet Truffles with wrappers fit for composting in your back yard. Look for a partnership with Practical Magic 2 because Halloween movies and chocolate are a natural match.

Darragh Doiron is a Port Arthur area foodie anticipating the season’s best flavors. Share with her via panews@panews.com

Feeling Festive? Fall for these flavors

           

Did you ever need to get to the heart of a matter of something you didn’t realize had a heart? Did your Pops love pop? Fancy some heat with your sweet? Culinary Thrill Seekers, try these for fall fun:

 

                     Feeling Festive – Festive Chickpeas has trademarked chickpeas garbanzo hearts. They have hearts? I’m not a scientist, but I am a snacker, so I’m into 20 grams of protein that crunch well, explode with flavor and fill me up. I’ve enjoyed attempts to air fry these beans, but this is better. I’m keeping them handy for snack attacks, salad croutons and lunch boxes. I dig the ‘80s style guy on the package who urges us to “celebrate snacktime.” Crave the Crunch is the slogan. Crunch on Ranch, Nacho Cheese, Sour Cream & Onion, Spicy and Honey BBQ. www.feelfestive.com

 

                  A Pop my Pops Would Love – Down south we often call any cola a Coke, but I’m hearing up north that’s “pop.” Still my born-in-Beaumont dad referred to all that stuff as “sodee pop.” I imagine he’d love popping open “Sodee Pop,”  a friendly little can of fizz one of “those” healthy moms created. The orange juice one I enjoyed says “NO” to high-fructose corn syrup, chemical preservatives, dies or artificial colors. You can subscribe to these flavors – and feel good about your kids popping them – from www.drinksodeepop.com

 

Bee’s Knees – I opened a bottle of Local Hive Honey chipotle hot sauce on Friday and it was nearly gone by Monday. Eggs, fish, salad and popcorn got this treatment. Sweet and hot is the bee’s knees for me. Local Hive Honey offers Texas Blend for breakfast joy. Try over yogurt and pastries or stirred into coffee. A spoonful helped me sooth a cough as well. American beekeepers are sourced for raw, unfiltered honey strained to retain flavor and pollen from the region. Makers say it’s an energy-boosting BFY sugar swap with 21 vitamins and minerals and 4,000 living enzymes to support digestion. But don’t make your honey complicated… just enjoy. The beese and their keepers are doing all the work. www.localhivehoney.com

 

Darragh Doiron is Port Arthur area foodie ready for fall flavors… pumpkin spice or otherwise. Share your seasonal bliss with her at darraghcastillo@icloud.com