Product Review: Blue Diamond Nut Thins®

Blue Diamond Nut Thins® are awesome crackers. You have eight flavors to choose from (I've tried three of them). The cheddar and almond are pretty decent, but my favorite is the pecan flavor. How can you go wrong with pecans as the primary ingredient?
They satisfy the need to crunch and have a delightfully toasted nut flavor that only improves the taste of smoky cheese (like Provolone) or sharp cheese (such as cheddar). Low in sodium with no cholesterol, these hearty crackers, which are 130 calories per 17-cracker serving, are a great choice for cracker hors d'oeuvres.

Some of my favorite things to pair with this cracker include:

-light cream cheese or cream cheese substitute (such as Toffuti's Better Than Cream Cheese) topped with homemade or deli-bought low-sodium salsa.

-low-sodium roast beef and low-sodium Swiss cheese (I prefer Boar's Head brand of both) with a light spreading of horseradish cream (mix lowfat sour cream with bottled fresh horseradish to taste)

Fundraiser for Gleaners & Other Food Events

Ghoulies, ghosties and other things that bump in the night are all part of the fun in coming to the aid of Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan this month. Here's your chance to get involved and have a good time at family-friendly events that feed our hungry neighbors:

The Haunt for Hunger in Melvindale runs through Oct. 31. It's described as an animatronics yard haunt.

Fight Hunger Community Hayride takes place Oct. 16 at Whispering Pines Golf Club in Pinckney.

Gleaners' calendar page also has links to other events, which may be found here. These were just the two that I found most interesting.

German cuisine, hayrides, cider and pumpkins also are part of the fun in southeastern and central Michigan in the next two weeks.

If you're willing to take a drive, go to Oktoberfest in Lansing's Old Town today and tomorrow (Oct. 1-2). German beer and food abound; this event's described as "Mid-Michigan's only authentic German festival."  
Another nice drive with the opportunity to see fall colors is Zeeland Pumpkinfest, which started yesterday and goes through Oct. 2; closer to home, the South Lyon Area Pumpkinfest is in its 26th year of celebrating this yummy and versatile vegetable. Davison's PumpkinFest is next weekend, as is is the Tuscola County Pumpkin Festival.

A Healthier Fried Egg Sandwich (Thanks, Mrs. Dash)

I try to minimize sodium and less healthy fats where I can. In general, I find Mrs. Dash salt-free seasoning to be a good way to add flavor and lessen salt in nearly all of my meals. I thought the original flavor was pretty good, but a year or so ago, Mrs. Dash Seasoning Blend, Tomato, Basil, Garlic flavor caught my eye. I've put it in many things since that time: English muffin pizzas, pasta sauce and, indeed, anything vaguely Italian. My favorite place to put it, though, is on my fried egg sandwiches.

Fried eggs in a blog about healthy eating? What kind of heresy is this? Start by spraying the pan with nonstick canola oil or olive oil spray and add just a few drops of sesame seed oil for a richer flavor. Heat up the pan slightly before cracking the egg into it (I set the electric stove burner between 4 and 5). Spritz a serving (five sprays) Olivio butter-flavored spray on the egg after cracking it in the pan and sprinkle with Mrs. Dash, Tomato, Basil, Garlic or your choice of salt-free seasoning.

Cook the egg the way you like it. (I happen to flip mine because I detest runny yolks, but to each his own. Usually, it takes between three and four minutes until it's the way I like it.) If you enjoy the taste of bacon but don't want the fat or salt, sprinkle about 1/2 tsp. of Bacos on the top of the egg as it cooks (if it sets sufficiently, it sticks to the top of the egg). Then use a healthy margarine (meaning non-hydrogenated with good fats in it)  to lightly "butter" whole-wheat toast. It's vegetarian and tastes good without a boatload of salt. You may melt cheese or soy cheese over the top of the egg after flipping it over to cook the yolk solid; however, I think it would be rather messy to melt it over a runny fried egg. 

Community, food-related events take place this weekend

A few timely food-related events that are happening this weekend caught my attention.
This Saturday, Sept. 25, the Greening of Detroit 20th anniversary celebration takes place at Eastern Market. According to this week's 10 Things to Do in Detroit This Weekend in Crain's Detroit Business, it's intended "to celebrate local food and music in Detroit! Love Food." Cost is $35 at the door. For more information, visit the event's website.

Harvest Moon Celebration outdoors at the Sundquist Pavilion in Farmington's Riley Park gives autumn a jump start this weekend with beer and wine tasting, farmers market, pig roast, and more. I'm not sure much of it's healthy food, but it's all in what you pick. Cost is $8 at the door.

The 33^rd annual Rochester Area Heritage Festival takes place at Rochester College, 800 W. Avon Road in Rochester, Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and includes food, music, family friendly fun and games as well as a chance to explore Rochester's history.

A New Rachael Ray Show starts Saturday

Wow; twice today, I've found timely food news. This is much better news than my last post about the Granola Thins recall.

Rachael Ray has a new show debuting on The Cooking Channel (which, by the way, is Channel 232 on my Direct TV satellite system).  I saw the ad the other day, but happened to be looking for the day and time of the show, which I couldn't recall. It's Saturday (tomorrow!) at 3 p.m. I'll be watching it.

I found an article on a blog called Everything Rachael Ray, which I think may become my new favorite blog to follow (thanks for the tip, Madeline!). The new show, called Week in a Day, uses the concept of cooking ahead for the week and simply reheating your meals when you want them. It's not a new idea by any means (I have a couple of 1990s cookbooks based on the same principles).

I like the idea that Rachael will be test-driving the recipes first; although I often make substitutions and (less frequently) errors in making her recipes, it's usually turned out well. (We won't, however, discuss the results of putting in too much minced garlic as a substitution for chopped garlic cloves!) Another "mistake" I made I'd do again on purpose. I turned a vegetable side dish into stoup by putting in an entire can, rather than just a cup, of chicken stock.

Recall Notice: Nature Valley Dark Chocolate Granola Thins

Don't open that box of Nature Valley Dark Chocolate Granola Thins if you are allergic to  peanuts! 

This is sort of a weird recall, because a simple (presumably mechanical) error could cause serious illness or even death.

According to a WalletPop article, some Nature Valley Dark Chocolate Granola Thins boxes were instead filled with its Peanut Butter Flavor Granola Thins. "The only item subject to this recall are 10-count boxes of Nature Valley Dark Chocolate Flavor Granola Thins with this date code: 05JUN2011 YO 12," stated the article.
As peanuts are not among the ingredients listed on the Dark Chocolate boxes, someone with a peanut allergy could eat them ... and peanut allergies can be fatal. So far, according to the Food & Drug Administration, "no reactions or illnesses have been linked to the recall." I pray that remains true.

Island Chicken with Pineapple and Roasted Sweet Potatoes

I'm winging it again in the kitchen. (Yes, that was a bad pun, but it could be worse. Trust me.) 

The chicken features tastes of the Orient (soy and sesame) with a hint of Hawaiian pineapple and a southern barbecue favorite, roasted sweet potatoes. Everything's cooked in the oven.
Island Chicken with Pineapple and Roasted Sweet Potatoes

While getting this ready, scrub, and put two skinny sweet potatoes (about 6 oz. each) in a preheated 370-degree oven for 20 minutes. (Make sure you stab them a couple of times with a steak knife so they won't explode and place in a small pan with a small baking rack in it to let them drip without messing up the oven, but don't cover them.)

Marinate 1 1/2 pounds of thinly sliced chicken (the kind I usually pan fry): in the following marinade for 5-10 minutes.

Marinade:
1/2 a medium-sized lime, juiced
Grated lime zest, if desired (I didn't do that this time)
a few drops of sesame seed oil
3 TBSP olive oil
about two TBSP. pineapple juice from a freshly-cut pineapple. (You can buy it cored and ready to slice.)
5 sprays of Bragg Liquid Aminos (if you don't have this, you may substitute 1/2-1 tsp. of light soy sauce). Just don't include any salt in the next step.

Put the following spices on both sides of the meat: a pinch of salt, ground pepper to taste (preferably freshly-ground mixed peppercorns) and a dash of McCormick's Perfect Pinch Roasted Garlic and Red Pepper.

Mix marinade ingredients thoroughly in a 9" by 12" glass oven-safe dish; place chicken in marinade for 2 to 5 minutes; turn and marinate for 3 to 5 minutes more. It's cooked in the marinade to create a light sauce.

Cover dish with foil and place in a preheated 325-degree oven for 35 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink in the center (check it by cutting the thickest piece in the center). 
Spoon a couple of teaspoons of sauce over chicken; serve it with the pineapple and baked sweet potato.

Next time I make this recipe, I plan to brown the chicken slightly by taking the foil off for the last three to four minutes.