Foodie Friday: Must-Eat Spots in NYC

It's Friday, yay!

Actually, it's summer for me - so every day is the weekend! Ah, summer when you're a student. It's the best, I'm seriously going to miss it when I'm a working adult with a year-round job. But in the interim, I'm going to enjoy the seasonality of my 'career' and the slower, more relaxed pace of the summer months.

This year, I'm in NYC for the summer! I've only been here for a little under two weeks, but I've already eaten my way around the city. My camera has been on the fritz, so I'll use pictures from around the web for this post - but these are all places (and yummy foods) that I've tried myself over these past two weeks and can whole-heartedly recommend!

While this is a list of the highlights from the past two weeks (not a comprehensive list of everywhere that I've eaten, just a best-of to cover all the must-eats) it's definitely not a list of all of the worthwhile places in NYC. There are so many eateries in this city that you could probably eat out at a different place for every single meal every day and still require several years to try them all!

Anyway, here are the ones that I suggest putting on your to-eat list (in no particular order).

1) Dig Inn

Dig Inn was a real favorite last year, when I worked at an ice cream shop in Union Square and needed somewhere quick and reasonably priced to eat.

Not my tray, but I've had many similar ones (though with the chicken swapped out for tofu, beans, etc. depending on the day).

The quality is great, the portions generous, the service quick, the food relatively fresh, and the vegetarian options are plentiful! There's also an emphasis on healthy, sustainable food that I really appreciate.

2) Whole Foods

I don't know if it's just me, but the prepared foods sections in NYC Whole Foods seem better than anywhere else! The sushi is always fresh, the potatoes always crispy, the vegetarian pizza always warm, and the salad bar always stocked with plentiful fun toppings!

I especially enjoy their veggie burgers, falafels, and trying out the various fun grains they have - the wheatberry, quinoa, couscous, and various other grain dishes never fail to satisfy!

3) Maoz Vegetarian

Maoz Vegetarian is as convenient (and almost as easy to find) as any other fast food chain in NYC. I really hope they expand to Boston (and Greensboro!) because the business model is great and the food is tasty!

Sure, the falafel are deep fried - but they come with unlimited toppings from their salad bar and sweet potato fries are an option. It's delicious, convenient, speedy, and budget friendly!

4) Tasti D'Lite

I don't know what it is about their frozen treats, but they're just so yummy! Along with Red Mango, they're one of my favorite desserts.

That's an old photo from a trip to Tasti D'Lite with my mom and little sister two years ago. Mine was (obviously) the biggest cup with the blondie and fruits. Yum!

5) Organic Avenue

Nothing remains to be said, but YUM.

I still have a long summer ahead of me (although it will probably pass too quickly!) so here are some places that I would still really love to try out!

1) Chloe's Fresh Fruit Co

Okay, so I have been to Chloe's Soft Serve Fruit Co. before. 

But I don't have any pictures! Their creations are always so stunning, and so delicious, that I just need to get some good photos for the blog. Besides, it's definitely been far too long. And you can never have too much soft serve in the summer, especially with such yummy toppings as chocolate, granola, and fruit.

2) Peacefood Cafe

I really want to try Peacefood Cafe's vegetable sushi and the various vegetable dishes they have.

They even serve kabocha! Need I say more? I'm obviously already sold.

3) Chobani

I've obviously eaten Chobani often (as in: all the time - love) but I haven't been to their cafe. I think it's so cool that they have one and it sounds just like my kind of eatery!

The combos (especially the sweet ones) all sound amazing!

But why are all the best eateries in SoHo? Sort of random, no?

4) Rawlicious

I stopped by Rawlicious before they opened early last summer, but haven't been back since.

Their brownies and raw sushi both sound amazing!

5) Lula's Sweet Apothecary

Oh. My. Gosh.

Their sundaes all look to die for and their ice cream is vegan - so I can eat more of it without upsetting my lactose-sensitive stomach!

Where are your favorite places to eat in NYC?

Have you been to any of the places I want to try?

What's your favorite kind of food to eat out? I really love desserts out - especially ice cream/froyo sundaes! And yogurt parfaits, a.k.a. why I need to get to Chobani SoHo ASAP.

The danger of science denial: It happens even on Science-Based blogs.

Poor Benjamin Franklin. I know how he felt! ;-)

I do not believe that he wanted to be doing that!

This post will be highly critical of Dr. David Gorski MD, as some of his comments have been either trolling, downright stupid, or both. They're definitely in denial of science. This post is intended to encourage Dr Gorski to leave comments here, as I will never leave any further comments on any blogs that he edits, for reasons mentioned previously. I will be copying comments from his blogs and pasting them here, with my comments after. If this is considered to be "bad form", I really don't care. Leaving derogatory comments about me on blogs on which the commenters know that I will never return (because I told them so) is definitely "bad form".

I will also be quoting other commenters on Dr Gorski's blog, for the same reason. Everyone is free to leave comments here, that meet my fairly lax moderation criteria. In Vitamin D, cancer, cliques and flouncing. , a commenter from Dr Gorski's blog called flip was initially whitelisted, to allow his comments to appear without me having to moderate them. I eventually blacklisted flip after I detected intellectual dishonesty. That's how I roll. If you don't like my rules, don't let the door hit you on the way out! By the way, calling me a liar on here is a sure-fire way to get yourself blacklisted.

I've just turned Blogger word verification back on, as although Disqus automatically deletes anonymous comments containing links, I still get email notification of them. I've been getting a lot of email notifications. This may or may not have an effect on commenters.

Firstly, please read http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/a-closer-look-at-vitamin-injections/#comment-127850 , as it's my "letter of resignation" from that blog. With that in mind, read on.

# David Gorski on 27 May 2013 at 9:49 am
Regarding Lappe et al, one notes that that study is not the be-all and end-all of vitamin D research. It’s an old study, for one thing. Also, cancer was not its primary endpoint. Finally, there was no vitamin D alone group, as I recall, only a vitamin D + calcium group, a calcium group, and a placebo group.
There is a recent review of the literature from the Endocrine Society, which includes Lappe et al and puts it into context:
*quoted text redacted*

# Nigel Kinbrum on 27 May 2013 at 11:16 am
David Gorski said…

Regarding Lappe et al, one notes that that study is not the be-all and end-all of vitamin D research. It’s an old study, for one thing.

Irrelevant.

Also, cancer was not its primary endpoint.

Irrelevant.

Finally, there was no vitamin D alone group, as I recall, only a vitamin D + calcium group, a calcium group, and a placebo group.

Irrelevant.

# David Gorski on 27 May 2013 at 12:28 pm

Finally, there was no vitamin D alone group, as I recall, only a vitamin D + calcium group, a calcium group, and a placebo group.

Irrelevant.

How so? It’s actually very, very relevant, as is the issue of cancer not being a primary outcome measure of the study. That you don’t understand why these issues are so relevant indicates to me that you don’t understand clinical research very well.

#Nigel Kinbrumon 27 May 2013 at 1:42 pm
David Gorski said…

Finally, there was no vitamin D alone group, as I recall, only a vitamin D + calcium group, a calcium group, and a placebo group.

Irrelevant.

How so? It’s actually very, very relevant, as is the issue of cancer not being a primary outcome measure of the study. That you don’t understand why these issues are so relevant indicates to me that you don’t understand clinical research very well.

1) The RCT used Ca + D. Therefore, the conclusions apply to Ca + D. If they’d wanted to test D alone, they would have. They didn’t. Why don’t you write a letter of complaint to Joan M Lappe about it?

2) Whether the outcome was primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary or n’ary is irrelevant because the parameter in question (all-cancer diagnoses) was still accurately recorded. That you can’t understand such a simple concept boggles my imagination.

#David Gorski on 27 May 2013 at 2:34 pm

As I’m leaving permanently, what’s the point?

Ah, flouncing off again. It’s probably long overdue. I’ve been getting a few complaints about you here as well. Perhaps you should ask yourself why complaints seem to follow you wherever you go.

“Whether the outcome was primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary or n’ary is irrelevant because the parameter in question (all-cancer diagnoses) was still accurately recorded. That you can’t understand such a simple concept boggles my imagination.”

I rest my case that you do not understand clinical trial methodology and interpretation. I couldn’t have demonstrated it better myself to anyone who actually does understand clinical trial methodology and interpretation. Thanks!

You sir, are an asshole. I spelled it the American way, just for you!

I rest my case that you're either trolling, or stupid, or both. Whether the outcome is primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary or n’ary is completely and utterly irrelevant. It always has been and it always will be. You're effectively saying that only the first item in a shopping list should be bought because all of the other items in the shopping list are irrelevant. Bullshit!

Denice Walter May 27, 2013
@ Marc Stevens Is Insane:
I believe that Nigel is like two bright guys I know: they are well educated and professional in fields outside of SBM/ life sciences (business). Thus they read alt med ‘research’ (also see today’s post by Orac) and don’t get how it DOESN’T work in reality. It sounds like nutrients can do all of these wonderful things – that they can’t- at least not in RL. But the woo-meisters don’t tell you that part. We do.

So of course they think that these products are very useful- and they need celtic salt or ground organic flaxseed- as I know all too well.

However, if they’re smart- we can talk to them:
explaining how that *in vitro/ in vivo* thing works.
Or- as I often do- illustrating how much of the so-called science they read ( woo) is actually more accurately called “advertising copy”.

Businessmen seem to grok that.

Denice, seriously? I'm disappointed. I thought that you were one of the few reasonable posters on Gorski's blog and then you go and write that crap?

I do not read "alt med ‘research’", unless you're calling what's on PubMed "alt med ‘research’"? I've been reading studies on PubMed for years, so I know about the use of shoddy methodology to fudge results. The Lappe study doesn't use shoddy methodology. It's a Randomised Controlled Trial using double-blinded placebos and randomly-selected subjects who were post-menopausal women. Try to pick holes in it.

flip May 29, 2013
Hmmm… it occurs to me I probably haven’t been that overt about one other thing:

Lilady, I am sorry that you were called those things, and I certainly don’t think you should have been called names. I do think Nigel was wrong and do think he should be called out for it.

And I’m sorry for not making that clearer before.

flip, I'm not going to question your intelligence. However, why you're apologising to lilady boggles the imagination. lilady is a despicable human being. She pushed me to the point where I called her rude names, names that were not misogynist and for which I apologised. I explained about "twat" on SBM. I even posted a link to Wiktionary! You don't read things thoroughly before commenting.

Marc Stephens Is Insane May 31, 2013
Oooooh, Nigeepoo is ANGRY! He’s pulled a DJT, posting a “rebuttal” to all the comments here and on SBM. I’m suprised it’s taken him this long.

He’s calling Orac an a**hole and stupid, among other things. He’s invited us all to comment on his blog because he has an “open moderation policy” and “allows all comments.”

http://nigeepoo.blogspot.com.au/

I see that you idiots on RI are still reading my blog. I'm not the slightest bit angry, so you can give the projection crap a rest. For the record, most of you come across as assholes. You can't even quote me correctly. I said that I have fairly lax moderation criteria. Do try to get something right, for once in your miserable lives.

Anyway, you lot are now boring me with your never-ending inability to discuss things either accurately or rationally, so I'm not going to bother polluting my blog with any more of your crap.

P.S. I still occasionally read the comments on Gorski's blogs, so for the benefit of you peeps who read mine:-
1) "Black-list" means exactly what it says. It means that you're banned from posting comments.
2) The Lappe et al 2007 study was a good study. Just because some Messiah-like person says that it's a bad study and applies false reasoning to back himself up, doesn't make him right and me wrong. As I've previously pointed out, surgery's not exactly rocket science is it? I designed complicated electronic communications systems for 29 years. Just saying! ;-) Denice, I've got nothing against you. You've just been drinking Gorski's Kool-Aid for way too long. That's not a euphemism, by the way! :-D

Look what I just found. Exposing Dr. David H. Gorski, M.D., Ph.D. who believes he can use a cloak of anonymity and character assaults to discredit opposing views. Sorry Doc, but your game is up.

He's not the Messiah. He's a very naughty boy! :-D

High saturated fat and cholesterol consumption associated with a slight decreased risk of Parkinsons

This study was published in the American Journal of Epidemiology 2003 Jun 1;157(11):1007-14

 

Study title and authors:

Dietary intakes of fat and risk of Parkinson's disease.

Chen H, Zhang SM, Hernán MA, Willett WC, Ascherio A.

Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA. hchen@hsph.harvard.edu

 

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12777364

This study investigated the associations between fat intakes and risk of Parkinson's disease. The study included 135,894 subjects who were followed for up to 18 years.

The data from the study found:
(a) Those that consumed the most animal fat had a 2% decreased risk of Parkinson's compared to those who consumed the least animal fat.
(b) Those that consumed the most saturated fat had a 1% decreased risk of Parkinson's compared to those who consumed the least saturated fat.
(c) Those that consumed the most cholesterol had a 5% decreased risk of Parkinson's compared to those who consumed the least cholesterol.

High saturated fat and cholesterol consumption associated with a slight decreased risk of Parkinsons.

ohso Yummy!

Probiotics are all the rage - they're the healthy bacteria found in yogurt that can help your natural gut bacteria do its job, keeping your tummy happy! I love yogurt, but not everyone does. So isn't it great that you can get probiotics from chocolate, too?

Most chocolate does not contain probiotics, before you get too excited. This isn't an excuse to run to the cornershop and stock up on Reese's (though you really don't need a justification for that - the combination of chocolate and peanut butter is enough).

It turns out that the Brits have more than just super cool accents to offer - they have some pretty great snacking ideas! ohso is a brand of chocolate that currently comes in two varieties, plain and chocolate orange, of 53% Belgian chocolate with over a billion healthy, gut-friendly bacteria per little 72 calorie bar!



Such a small treat fits into any daily diet and it's also gluten-free, wheat-free, nut-free, and dairy-free. Those with allergies and special diets can enjoy the bars as much as anyone else!

The bars are really cute.



They're like a normal chocolate bar, but shrunk down to a fraction of its size! For scale, here's the bar next to a regular pen.



If you like munchkins just because they're mini-doughnuts, or cupcakes just because they're mini-cakes, you'll really like these.

But that's not reason enough for me to like these. I like them because they're creamy, sweet (but not excessively so), and melt in your mouth - absolute chocolate bliss. Though both bars are dark chocolate, 53% is still quite mild and even those who are new to dark chocolate, or tend to prefer milk chocolate, can enjoy these bars.

My favorite is definitely the chocolate orange variety, though I enjoyed both a lot.



The orange flavor is, again, strong enough but not excessive. The chocolate is creamy and smooth and the tartness of the orange cuts the sweet, creamy chocolate is a delightful way.



It's rich and indulgent and definitely one of the yummier ways to keep your gut healthy!

Have you heard of ohso chocolate?

What's your favorite kind of chocolate?

What is your favorite food movie? Examples include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Ratatouille, etc.

WIAW #91

It's WIAW time! 

I enjoyed letting the photos talk for themselves last week, so I'm doing that again this week. Enjoy!

Yes to all those nuts and all that bread with all that jam :)

Oh my gosh. Organic Avenue, will you marry me? And please stop charging me so much money? I'm a student.

But your food is so yummy.

And I'm a poor student. Can the government please subsidize their food? Or can they decide to go non-profit?

In the mean time, fruit, banana bread, and a big bowl of creamy greek yogurt (with granola and walnuts, unpictured) makes a cheaper and still delicious, late night meal.



Sometimes nothing hits the spot like those veggie-banana smoothies.

There was a nice handful of sundried tomatoes, but those things are so darn delicious that only one survived until photo-taking time.

With vanilla protein powder, so good.

With plain protein powder, letting that banana and honey flavor shine.

With some chocolate protein powder for a little swampy color.

With citrus protein powder, refreshing!

And sometimes you just need those late-night carbs with a side of The Devil Wears Prada! 

I ended up having quite a bit of Skippy natural crunchy peanut butter and Jem Raw Cinnamon Red Maca Almond Butter with that - yum!

Have you ever tried Organic Avenue?

What's your favorite splurge place to eat out?

What are your favorite types of bread?

Eggplant Bake A La Mom (C3)

Eggplant Bake a Mom (C3)

Source: Simmie's Mother

Serves: 8

4 ozs whole wheat spaghetti, broken into 2” pieces (1 cup)
1 large eggplant, peeled and cut into ½” cubes (6 cups)
1 med onion, chopped
1 med carrot, chopped
1 med green pepper, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
14 ½ oz can reduced sodium tomatoes
6 oz can reduced sodium tomato paste
½ cup dry white wine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ tsp dried basil, crushed
1 tsp dried oregano, crushed
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
2 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Cook spaghetti according to package directions except omit the salt; drain.

Meanwhile, in a steamer basket, place eggplant, onion, carrot, green pepper and zucchini.

In a pot suitable for steaming vegetables, place vegetables in a steamer basket in the pot with hot water, making sure the vegetables do not touch the water; bring the water to boiling, cover, then reduce the heat and steam for 5 to 7 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender.  Remove the vegetables from the pot.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together steamed vegetables undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper.

Spread 2 cups of the tomato mixture on the bottom of a 22x7 ½ x 2” baking dish.  Top with cooked spaghetti and sprinkle with half of the cheese.

Spoon the remaining tomato mixture over the top; sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake, uncovered, in a 350 oven for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Spinach-Artichoke Greek Yogurt Dip (C1)

Spinach-Artichoke Greek Yogurt Dip (C1)

16 oz container Plain Nonfat Greek Yogurt
14 oz can artichoke hearts, drained, chopped, squeezed dry
1/2 to 3/4 cup parmesan cheese
Half of 10 oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry
2 scallions, chopped
2 Tbsp chopped fresh dill
2 tsp dry Greek seasoning
1 tsp grated lemon zest

Garlic to taste
Red pepper flakes (optional--for those who enjoy a little more spice to their dip!)

1 head green cabbage (optional)

Combine all ingredients except for the cabbage head.

If desired, serve the dip in a hollowed-out cabbage head.

\ curves and U curves: Vitamins D3 and K2 again.

Here are some curves relating to Vitamin D. Ref: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23601272

Hazard Ratios (HRs) vs serum Vitamin D level

The solid lines are the 95% confidence intervals (CI) & mean for all-cause mortality. 95% CI's are the values within which 95% of the subjects tested fall. 2.5% fall below the lower CI and 2.5% fall above the upper CI. The dashed lines are the 95% CIs & mean for coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality. Most of the curves follow a \ curve, indicating that more Vitamin D is better, up to 66ng/mL (150nmol/L, the level that I'm at). The interesting curve is the upper dashed line, which follows a U curve.

The U curve indicates that a Vitamin D level of greater than 30ng/mL (75nmol/L) increases the Hazard Ratio (HR) for CHD in the top 2.5% of subjects only, relative to 30ng/mL, even though the mean HRs for CHD & all-cause mortality (the more important parameter) are decreasing, up to 66ng/mL. What's occurring?

See Vitamin K. The increase in HR for CHD mortality above 30ng/mL in the top 2.5% of subjects only is probably due to calcification within artery walls, due to under-carboxylation of osteocalcin in bone Matrix Gla Proteins, caused by insufficient Vitamin K2 rather than excessive Vitamin D. This is why I supplement with ~1mg/day of Vitamin K2. See also Vitamin D toxicity redefined: vitamin K and the molecular mechanism.

Pantene Relaxed & Natural Hair Care for African American Women!

I'm a mixed girl with mixed girl hair and it's definitely been a journey to learn how to deal with my hair. 

When I was in elementary school, I struggled to figure out how to keep it knot-free without too many tears. 

When I was in middle school, I struggled to figure out how to keep it from doing the whole upside-down yield-sign thing. I wore braids for two years in a row, just because I couldn't figure out any other hairstyle that looked reasonably presentable and didn't take two hours each morning.

Not me, but the hair is pretty much spot-on

In high school, I continued to battle the inevitable inverted yield sign and wore a granny bun for way too many years (my mom and big sister still groan whenever I do any sort of bun, now, for fear that I'll start another 5-year bad hairstyle streak). 

By college, I had finally learned out how to (more or less) tame my unruly mixed girl hair, at least some of the time. But there's still always room for improvement and part of that is definitely learning what products to use.

Pantene, the world's number one hair care brand, has two collections of hair care products that are designed just for African American women! There's the Pantene Pro-V Truly Natural collection for girls with natural hair and the Pantene Pro-V Truly Relaxed collection for girls with relaxed (chemically straightened) hair.

Since African American women (and mixed girls, like me!) with natural hair tend to have a tight curl pattern, it can be tough for the scalp's natural sebum to moisturize the hair. The result? That oh-so-flattering inverted yield sign of dry, frizzy disaster. 

The Pro-V formula promises deep cleansing without stripping away natural moisture, like harsher shampoo and conditioners can, helping keep our hair shiny and looking good. At $4.99 per bottle (for both the shampoo and conditioner) it's an affordable option for those of us who aren't willing to drop $30+ on salon-priced products.

I couldn't wait to try the Pantene Pro-V Truly Natural shampoo and conditioner! 

My before:

That's from the side/back. I'm not Cousin Itt of the Adams Family.

Time for to try it out!

Because this?

Could definitely use some work.

They sent me several different products to try - I didn't realize how much the line extended beyond just shampoo and conditioner!

There's shampoo, conditioner, co-wash cleansing conditioner, shine serum with argan oil, and a styling custard. 

Yay! Enough to establish a whole hair routine. 

The shampoo and conditioner were thick and creamy, and they smelled really good. I enjoyed using them, unlike other products for African American women, that tend to smell weird or extremely cocoa butter-y. 

I towel dried my hair, combed it, scrunched the styling custard through it, and headed off for my day as usual. 

It rained, it blew, and the elements did their best to make my hair a bird's nest. For all that, I would say it held up pretty well!

Not bad for the end of such a crazy day! I'll definitely keep using these products. I also like how soft my hair felt!

What shampoo do you use?

How often do you shampoo/condition?

What products are in your hair routine?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Gluten-Free Raspberry Coconut-Almond Bars

Gluten-free almond raspberry bars with coconut are sweet temptation.

Let's Party

Let's be honest. I am here today to tempt you. To coax you. To seduce you with a (gluten-free vegan!) dessert worthy of every single luscious calorie. In full transparency, I am admitting up front these are not fat-free. Or sugar-free. These aren't diet food. They're not proper for breakfast (unless you serve them with Champagne).

And you won't be able to sigh ever-so-wistfully at parties and mention, off hand, how hard it is to eat gluten-free at family gatherings and parties. Because, Darling Reader, you'll score zero sympathy points once people sink their teeth into the luscious raspberry jam filling nestled between buttery toasted coconut-almond crunch topping and tender hazelnut cookie crust. Nope.

In fact, these decadent raspberry coconut-almond bars should come with a warning:  

Be careful who you share these with.

{Because they are sure to fall madly in love with you.}

Read more + get the recipe >>

Is Coenzyme Q10 a supplement or a drug? It all depends.

This is the molecular structure of Coenzyme Q10.

Ubiquinone

I saw the following Tweet by Evelyn Kocur. Back in October 2009, a trial was started, to test the effect of CoQ10 supplementation on congestive heart failure (CHF). See Coenzyme Q10; an adjunctive therapy for congestive heart failure? See also Overview on coenzyme Q10 as adjunctive therapy in chronic heart failure. Rationale, design and end-points of "Q-symbio"--a multinational trial.

The results of that trial have just been made public, but are not yet available on PubMed. See First Drug to Significantly Improve Heart Failure Mortality in Over a Decade. Wait, what? Back in 2009, it was a supplement. Now, because it works, it's a drug.

Supplementation in meaningful amounts of a substance that the body needs but lacks makes the body work better. Who knew?

Wallaby's Organic Nonfat Greek Yogurt - Review and Giveaway!

It feels like ages since I've last had a giveaway, doesn't it? To make up for lost time, today's giveaway is super awesome and there will be three winners!

Why is this giveaway so super awesome? Because it's of ohmygoshridiculouslydelicious Greek yogurt!

I've reviewed Wallaby Organic Yogurt in the past, but I've only recently had the chance to try their new line of nonfat Greek yogurt.

Wallaby Organic Yogurt has been making really great lowfat yogurt and really great lowfat Greek yogurt for a while now. I've always liked how they kept the fruit flavoring and the plain yogurt separate in their Greek yogurt cups (the regular low fat yogurt cups are all mixed up) as it's more DIY and fun that way!



I prefer swirling the fruit preserves in only partially and this setup allows me to do that. I think it tastes better that way, because that helps maintain the integrity of the individual flavors of the yogurt and the topping!

Anyway, Wallaby Organic Yogurt came out with a new line of nonfat Greek yogurts a few months ago, to complement their line of low fat Greek yogurts.

Inspired by their travels and always free of artificial ingredients, their products are all the sort of great, whole food that you can feel good about putting into your body.

Just like the low fat Greek yogurts, their nonfat Greek yogurts are smooth, creamy, and delicious! They also come with the fruit topping separate and come in lemon, mixed berries, peach, raspberry, and plain flavors.

Of all the flavors, the lemon is my favorite flavored yogurt (it strikes the perfect balance between sweet and tart, without erring on the side of saccharine - a lot of flavored yogurts do, which I find makes them less appealing for breakfast).

But I'm a plain yogurt girl through-and-through, so the plain flavor was my absolute favorite! I loved pairing it with granola, dried fruits, and peanut butter for a breakfast or snack that keeps me going (Greek yogurt has great protein content)!

The nonfat plain greek yogurt, with coconut sugar, vanilla protein powder, and cinnamon stirred under - yum!

While their other products, including their blended, Australian-style low fat yogurts, their low fat Greek yogurts, and their sour cream, are available at a variety of shops, the nonfat Greek yogurts are available exclusively at Whole Foods stores.

Okay, so now for the part of the post that you guys are most excited about: the giveaway!

The folks at Wallaby Organic Yogurt have been extremely generous and are offering to send five (5) VIP coupons each, redeemable for free 5.3 or 6oz Greek yogurts (they're good for both the low fat and nonfat Greek yogurts) to not one, not two, but three lucky Living, Learning, Eating readers!

If you're based in the US, enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below for your chance to win - the odds are triple as good in your favor as usual!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Muscle disease is a dangerous side-effect of statin drugs

This paper was published in Ugeskrift for Laeger 2010 Feb 15;172(7):544-5

 

Study title and author:

Statin-induced dysphagia

Edholm B.

Øre-naese-halskirurgisk Afdeling, Slagelse Sygehus, DK-5000 Odense C, Denmark. bjarkeedholm@hotmail.com

 

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20156405

Dysphagia is the medical term for swallowing difficulties.

The paper reports on a man who developed dysphagia and muscle fatigue after statin therapy.

(i) A 68-year-old man was referred to hospital with progressive dysphagia.
(ii) The patient further developed muscle fatigue (it was difficult for him to lift his arms above his head) and additional signs of myopathy (muscle disease) such as high levels of creatine kinase.
(iii) The dysphagia was diagnosed as a late-onset side-effect of statin therapy.
(iv) He stopped taking statins and 14 days later the power to his arms returned, his swallowing function was significantly better and his creatine kinase levels normalised.

The author of the paper, Bjarke Edholm from the Slagelse Hospital in Denmark, concluded: "As an increasing number of patients are being treated with lipid-lowering drugs (statins), it is important to recall that myopathy is a dangerous side-effect which may have either quick or delayed onset, and that dysphagia can be the initial symptom".

Bandaoke with Jukebox at the Falkners Arms, Friday 5th April 2013.

This was Jukebox's 1st time performing this song live and my 1st time singing it at the correct pitch (at karaoke, I would have the pitch shifted down 2 keys). Ouch!

Recipe: No Fail Lemon Meringue Pie

Pie is one of those things that I've wanted to try to make for a few years, but have always been a bit too intimidated to make.



Correction: I've been too intimidated to try making homemade pie crust and didn't feel like just making the filling. It just wouldn't be the same.

Anyway, now that I'm 20 years old and a full-fledged young adult, I figured that it's high time that I master pie. I've mastered bread, cookies, muffins, and pretty much any other baked treats. Pie? No problem!

And it really wasn't with this recipe. I love that the crust didn't need to be chilled, as so many of them do, because I get in baking frenzies and want to bake right then, not prep a bunch of stuff and bake later.

No Fail Lemon Meringue Pie

Makes 8 large slices

INGREDIENTS:

Crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/8 cup butter, softened

2 tablespoons water 

Filling:

1 can condensed milk

3 eggs 

Juice of 2 large lemons

Zest of 1 large lemon

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

A few drops yellow food coloring (optional, it will taste the same without it, if you want to make the pie more natural)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Preheat oven to 350F.

2) Cut the butter into the flour, until you have approximately pea-sized clumps.

3) Mix the water in with a fork (you may need slightly less or slightly more) until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl. You may need to finish mixing with your hands, but don't knead or overmix.

4) Sprinkle flour on the waxy side of a sheet of wax paper.

5) Transfer the dough to the wax paper, sprinkle flour over the dough.

6) Cover the dough with another sheet of wax paper.

7) Roll out the pie crust to an even 12" circle. 

8) Peel off the top sheet of wax paper. 

9) Slide the pie crust round into a greased pie pan. 

10) Prick all over with a fork.

11) Bake for about 15 minutes, until the crust is lightly golden.

DON'T WALK AWAY AND GET CAUGHT UP ON THE MINDY PROJECT. This is when you need to work on the filling!!

12) Separate the eggs, with the egg whites in a small mixing bowl and the yolks in a medium bowl.

13) Add the condensed milk, lemon juice, lemon zest, and optional food coloring to the yolk, mix them together for a few minutes until well-blended and thickened.

14) Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until they form soft peaks.

15) Mix the sugar and vanilla extract into the egg whites and beat some more, until you can form shiny stiff peaks (but trust me, don't try to the form peaks until you turn the mixer off. It's a mess you don't want to clean up). 

16) Pull the pie crust out of the oven. Let cool for ten minutes.

17) Pour the lemon and condensed milk mixture into the pie shell.

18) Spread the beaten egg whites gently over the lemon filling with a spatula. If you want to be aesthetically awesome, you can try pressing the spatula in lightly and lifting lightly at intervals to make the pretty peaks people associate with lemon meringue pie. Or if you're a beginner, like me, you can just smooth it into an even layer. 

19) Heat oven to 375F.

20) Bake for 15 minutes or so, until golden brown.

21) Remove from oven and resist the temptation to slice until it has cooled a bit. You can stick it in the fridge for 30 minutes to get it extra firm.

22) Slice into 8 large slices. Enjoy!

23) If you don't eat the pie on the porch (attracting the neighbors and making you the most beloved member of the neighborhood for the afternoon) there might be leftovers. Be sure to refrigerate them, since the recipe has eggs!

What recipe are you known for?

What's your favorite kind of pie? Mine is pecan pie, hands down, served warm with vanilla ice cream! I've never tried a chocolate pecan pie, but it sounds delicious.

Do you like your neighbors?