Thanks to a few of my blogging buddies for reminding me to hurry up and post my 'What's In My Kitchen' for December! I'm going to TRY not to repeat too much here, but, this first one I MUST! The first item on my Top Ten for this month is Grapeseed Oil. I recently stocked up on the Natural, Garlic, and Basil Pesto Grapeseed Oils from Wildtree as we will no longer be reps but I still LOVE the product!
#2 on my list for this month is Organic Liquid Smoke which also happens to be raw vegan! I have had this in my pantry for a while and I seem to go in spurts when I use it but for the past month, I have been tossing a dribble or two in many of my dips! A little bit goes a long way! This is my FAVORITE brand!
I've blogged about this before. This is my #3 for this month. It's Sesame King's Tahini but more specifically their Garlic flavor.
As many of you know I'm garlic obsessed and will try just about anything that is vegan that also has garlic in it!
Not shocking that 2 out of my top 3 contain garlic, eh!?
This is also my secret weapon when it comes to my most recent vegan cheese sauce!
#4 is Dill. I have been adding a dash of dill in almost everything for the past month or so. I LOVE the aroma of dill and the taste.
#5 is Chickpeas. This really isn't a surprise, I realize that but when I don't know what else to eat I bust out a can of chickpeas and throw something together - real quick and easy!
Plus I thought this graphic was a wonderful comparison! Less Fat, More Fiber, ZERO Cholesterol, Less Sodium, WAY MORE Potassium and Calcium, and More Iron than chicken! Knowledge is POWER!
#6 is Justo Mayo. I realize this is a convenience item but it's pretty darn good. The price is right. And it seems to be more and more available in my area than any other vegan mayo. That and if you have followed their battles in the last couple of years I have had a soft spot in my heart for their company and how hard they fought their competitors to stay afloat and get where they are today! They have been able to educate a lot of people along the way about plant-based foods not having to be more expensive, too!
#7 on my list is Amy's Kitchen VEGAN Soups. I have to admit that I'm not sure if all 6 pictured are vegan because I have never come across a few of them but I LOVE they have as many vegan options as they do! And those few days I was sick and didn't feel like making anything or even moving - I was grateful I could find them locally.
#8 on this months list is Potatoes! Plain and Simple. Potatoes! Hillary got me on the bandwagon, finally! Thanks, girl!
#9 is Bragg's Liquid Aminos and/or Coconut Secret Coconut Aminos! Since I'm not much of a sea person I like to add these two items to my sauces, dips, vegan cheeses, etc to give it a little more savory flavor while still incorporating more aminos into my foods!
#10 has to be these Bare Coconut Chips. They have moved out of my kitchen and into my office. I like to snack on them while at work! Yum!
Scroll down for a 2nd post today and swing by the
Kitchen Link-Up, too!
Oooh liking everything here. I esp. love liquid smoke since discovering it many years ago and now its always in my kitchen
ReplyDeleteIt's funny because I was never a smoke fan but now that I'm getting older apparently my tastes for 'smoked' things has increased!
DeleteYou are so right about garlic and dill -- what great flavors! I love to slice up whole garlic cloves just before using, so it has no time to change flavor from oxidation.
ReplyDeleteI'm puzzled by the graphic comparison of chickpeas with chicken. I enlarged it, and can't anywhere find HOW MUCH of each food was used for the comparison. That would be useful for understanding the numbers.
Also, there was some publicity about Just Mayo last August when Target stopped selling all products from Hampton foods "over alleged food safety violations." An article in the L.A.Times summarized many problems with that vendor and their products. Has this all been resolved?
best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Nice observation with the measurements - I will have to look into that more!
DeleteI'm not sure the overall status with Just Mayo and Target but that was an additional battle between the two companies from my understanding. I will have to look into that again.
The original battle had to do with their labeling. The Mayo people were throwing a fit over the term 'mayo' because there wasn't actual egg based mayonnaise in the Just Mayo product. It was basically just the egg people were upset because an eggless company was doing so well. So Just Mayo changed their labeling so it didn't show the 'egg'. Now they are just going by "Just" instead of "Just Mayo", too! It was a whole thing...lol...
I love that chickpea graphic! Especially the iron count! Everyone says how meat has so much iron... but does it? XD So many people eat chicken too so it is kind-of a lame excuse.
ReplyDeleteI just need to find the measurement to measurement for the portion size...Oops!
DeleteI did some number crunching on Cronometer. 1) Canned chickpeas have less nutrients than cooked from dried. 2) I THINK they are going with 1.25 cups chickpeas about 330 calories. 3) I am not sure what number they are comparing to with chicken, maybe just one breast? But even if you do calories to calories chickpeas have better numbers in those fields.
DeleteThanks for this additional info!!!
DeleteOooh, I need that garlic tahini! I've never seen that! I'm all about some garlic too. And thanks so much for buying my book :-) That means a lot!!!! <3
ReplyDeleteI'm better you would like the Garlic Tahini! I found mine at Tops Markets. I will have to see where they might have it near you! Sorry it took me so long to buy your book! I can't wait to add it to my collection when it does come in!
DeleteHmmm...my earlier comment just disappeared into thin air. :D
ReplyDeleteWe only have Campbells' here and a couple of local brands. My girl is more into freshly-made soups though, not a fan of the canned ones.
I totally understand about making our own soups at home!! I agree! This is certainly a convenience item.
Deleteoh yes i am a huge chickpea fan. i always have tins in the pantry so i can whip up a salad or couscous etc. so versatile! yep a huge garlic fan too! thanks for joining in IMK. have a great Xmas. cheers sherry x
ReplyDeleteThanks! Merry Christmas to you, too! I actually need to get more chickpeas! YIKES! I didn't realize I was out already!
DeleteYes! Potatoes forever! And dill forever! It is one of my favourite herbs. I always add way more to a recipe than the ingredients actually call for.
ReplyDeleteWe have only recently gotten the Just dressings here, but none of the original mayo itself! Thankfully we have Vegenaise here, which I love love love. But I have been wanting to try the Just Mayo as well. I bought some of the sweet mustard dressing, though.
I forgot to include the info-graphic I found for dill - I will save that for another day. It's rare if I find the dressings locally...bummer. I have tried the Ranch and it's ok if you like a peppercorn type ranch. I prepare a buttermilk type, personally.
DeletePeppercorn vs buttermilk type ranch? I have no idea there was any difference! Ranch is not a common thing in Australia, so I only know it from my cookbooks. And I bought the Daiya ranch dressing.
DeleteQuite informative and interesting post! The chickpea graphic is a real help, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! Chickpea - I can't get enough of them!
DeleteI have only recently discovered dill and I do like the flavor!
ReplyDeleteYou are in for a wild ride! LOL - Can't wait to see what you do with dill in the near future!
DeleteChickpeas and tahini are must haves for me too! I've never seen garlic tahini, that sounds amazing! And of course POTATOES!!!!
ReplyDeleteKeep an eye out for garlic tahini - I'm betting you will like it!!! Let me know if you find it!
DeleteLiquid smoke is great, I need to get a new bottle! That tahini also must be very tasty. Lovely stuff in your kitchen!
ReplyDeleteThanks! This Liquid Smoke has certainly lasted me a LONG time so far!
DeleteGreat list and I have been obsessed with liquid smoke lately, perfect for popcorn spritzing, bean soups, and potato recipes.
ReplyDeleteI will have to try the Liquid Smoke with popcorn! Great idea! Maybe a Smoked Nutritional Yeast Combo!!!!!
DeleteLove that chicken versus chickpea chart. Must get one.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I love all the charts that are coming out lately!
DeleteFrancesca (Almost Italian) shared that comparison chart and I love it! Really don't need to say anything else do we? Must investigate the smoke, sounds interesting.
ReplyDeleteLet me know if you try the liquid smoke!
DeleteThat chickpea vs. chicken chart is great! And I too love tahini and liquid smoke :-)
ReplyDeleteI added a little liquid smoke into a dal I made today!
DeleteHi Jennifer, just popping in to say best wishes for a delicious Christmas and all the best for 2018 xxx
ReplyDeleteHi Liz! Thanks so much for stopping by and for the wishes! Same to you and yours!
DeleteI like everything on your list, mostly the tahini and liquid smoke, although my liquid smoke is not organic, but that is the only one I can get here. Grapeseed oil is great too, have it in my pantry, but we just have the regular kind here, not flavored
ReplyDeleteI have tried infusing natural grapeseed oil with things like garlic or lemon or basil I think that would be just as good (if not better)
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