Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Melissa’s Produce 2017 Produce Trends and 2nd Annual Dessert Contest + Recipe


In the past five years, I have been eating more and more fruits and vegetables thanks to Melissa’s Produce. They sell the most amazing variety of produce in Southern California and across our great nation. Their products are readily available for foodservice companies, restaurants, and consumers. On my trip to the World Food Championships in Orange Beach last year, I found Melissa’s Baby DYPs at Winn-Dixie. I was so excited to see a fellow Californian, even in produce form, I had to post it on Instagram. In Orange and Los Angeles Counties, I have personally seen their products at Northgate, Smart & Final, JONS International Marketplace, and Vons.

If you want to know what the produce trends are for this year, I have them for you thanks to Melissa’s. (below each trend, is a listing of Melissa’s products):

Convenience to Save Time in the Kitchen

Peeled & Steamed Butternut Squash is prepped and ready-to-heat and eat right out of its convenient, single serving package.

is a variety pack of the basic fresh ingredients needed for a delicious soup in a convenient 2½ lb. tote consisting of 3 russet potatoes, 2 carrots, 1 zucchini, 1 celery stalk, and 1 yellow onion.

is a variety pack of essential organic vegetables in a convenient 2 lb. tote consisting of 1 green bell pepper, 1 red bell pepper, 1 cucumber, 1 zucchini, 1 carrot, 1 bulb of garlic, and 1 shallot.

Coconut Heart is harvested before the meat is fully developed with delicious and refreshing coconut water inside.

Varieties and Colors in Produce

Fresh Mixed Baby Carrots are sweet, tender young carrots that are peeled, washed, and ready to use.

Snack-able Sized Items

Spicy Edamame is seasoned with a mix of favorite Asian flavors including sesame, soy sauce, salt, ginger, and togarashi seasoning.

Fresh Coconuts are conveniently labeled to indicate which eye to punch with a straw. Crack them open and the thin layer of coconut meat is soft and sweet.

Trendy Vegetables

Okra are small, crisp, brightly colored pods that are a mainstay of southern cooking. They are served fried, roasted, cut up for soups and gumbo, or pickled.

Trendy Potatoes

Baby Dutch Yellow® Potatoes (DYPs®) are round with distinct yellowish-white skin.

Trendy Chile Peppers

Shishito Peppers are traditionally served in Japanese cuisine roasted and tossed with sesame oil and a dash of soy sauce.

Emerging Produce: Tatuma, Milpero, Turmeric, Organic Ginger, Thai Chiles, and Guava

Trendy Citrus Fruit

Neopolitan Tangerines are a brand-new hybrid variety and are slightly smaller in size than most mandarins. They have a big flavor with a very high natural sugar content and are seedless, easy to peel, and extremely juicy.

Seasonal Fruit

Butterscotch Pears™ are directly imported from the fields of South Korea. Each pear is carefully wrapped while still on the trees with a protective paper cover to protect them from the elements resulting in a blemish-free fruit. Each pear is tissue wrapped for moisture retention and placed in form-fitting foam socks to protect them from bruising. The prized paper-thin skin is devoid of the bitter flavor normally associated with other pears.

Trendy Tropical Fruits

Passion Fruit is an aromatic, jelly-like golden flesh fruit that is sweet-tart in flavor and filled with edible seeds. If the skin is smooth and perfect, it is not ripe yet. Let it get wrinkled and dimpled and then it is ready to eat.

Tropical Dragon Fruit is an exotic cactus fruit that has a delicately sweet and mildly acidic flavor somewhat like watermelon, cactus pear, and kiwi. The fruit inside ranges from white to pink to magenta. The tiny black seeds are edible, similar to a kiwi.

Once a year, the Melissa’s Produce family of writers and bloggers have a friendly dessert competition where the winners are amongst the attendees.

My mom submitted her tasty Manju recipe and won 4th place! She received two lovely cookbooks by Ming TsaiSimply Ming In Your Kitchen and Ming’s Master Recipes. I am a HUGE fan of Ming Tsai and had the privilege of dining at his Blue Ginger restaurant back in 2009 while working on a tradeshow in Boston.

My recipe didn’t place but if you are on a gluten-free or ovo-lacto vegan diet, you’ll love my recipe.

Coco-Chocolate Chip Cookies by OC Food Diva

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Yield: 16 cookies
Great for gluten-free and ovo-lacto vegan diets

Ingredients:
1 cup peanuts, crushed into a powder
1 tbsp grapeseed oil
½ cup granulated sugar
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs, whisked
½ cup coconut milk
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt

Directions:
  1. Preheat oven to 325°F.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together coconut flour, sugar, powdered peanuts, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
  3. Add in oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and coconut milk and mix with hands until dough forms.
  4. Mix in chocolate chips.
  5. Shape into 1-inch balls, pat down to form a patty shape, and place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
  6. Bake on the middle rack for 15 minutes until golden brown.
  7. Let cookies cool on sheet and serve.
I hope you will try some of these fruits and vegetables that are trending. The color of the rainbow is waiting for you in the produce aisle!

For more information:

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Saturday, March 11, 2017

Road to the Slab-O-Rama: Lodge on the River in Bullhead City, Arizona


As a Kansas City Barbeque Society Certified Barbeque Judge (CBJ) and food/travel writer, I travel to different barbeque competitions where I: Judge and taste the best barbeque around; Collect signatures to become a Master Judge; Learn about the teams and their cook; And visit new places around our great country. On this trip, we were on our way to Bullhead City, AZ for the Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge where I judged and the hubby followed the Shig Ninja BBQ Team during their cook.

We had a grueling 11-hour drive from Orange County to Bullhead City. It was one of the first of the storms that hit California and Nevada and caused a lot of road and highway closures including 177, 62, and 95. They were all closed due to flooding. As we got diverted into alfa fields, the hubby decided to stop to see how to get us northwest to Bullhead City. Not knowing that the gravel on the side of the road was actually silt and an uncharacteristically heavy rain just fell, the car sank into the “mud”. Thank goodness for AAA, but we still had to wait an hour for the tow truck to pull us out.
  • Travel tip: Even though we all have Google Maps, Waze, etc. on our smart phones, it is always good to know how to read a map. You may be stranded where there is no cell service and it is always handy to have state maps in your car when on a road trip. Printed materials like maps and guides are available for AAA Members at any branch.


When we finally arrived at our destination, Lodge on the River, in Bullhead City, AZ, they luckily had a clerk working overnight so we were able to check-in. Even at 1 a.m., the registration clerk was friendly and got us checked in quickly. We stayed in one of the River Front Suites. The suite is very spacious for a family of four or two couples traveling together (queen bed in the bedroom and pullout sofa in the living area). The bedrooms have either a balcony or patio and have fantastic views of the majestic Colorado River. Amenities include cable TV (Old school - tune to channel 3 on the TV and then use the remote), air conditioning in the living area and bedroom, table for 4, phone, microwave, coffee maker with Donut Shop Coffee, and mini fridge. We were beat so it was time for a shower (to wash off all the mud) and hit the hay. We had to get up in a few hours so I could check in for judging and the hubby could meet up with Shig Ninja BBQ.

We left the curtains open to make sure we woke up in time and enjoy our view a bit more. The room has a desert/Southwest theme from the furniture and décor. The hotel is a bit older and could use a little facelift with the furniture, bedding, and televisions. If you are staying here to enjoy the river, this hotel is just fine for resting and hanging out in between watersport activities (river rafting, boating, jet skiing, etc. with boat launch just a half mile away), hiking, or enjoying a BBQ competition. They also have a limited number of dog-friendly rooms if you travel with your fur-babies.

When we returned from the BBQ competition, our room had been serviced and looked just like we checked in. They don’t have an on-site restaurant, but if there are plenty of restaurants options from the Laughlin hotel buffets and restaurants to the north and lots of fast food and mom and pop places just south of the hotel.

If you’re looking for a quiet, no frills motel away from the casinos and right on the main highway, let Lodge on the River be your next resting stop.

For more information:
1717 Highway 95
Bullhead City, AZ 86442
+1.928.758.8080
Pet-Friendly: Yes (limited number of rooms)

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