Not all olive oils are made the same, and choosing the right one can make or break a dish. But you won’t have to worry about going wrong with Lambda. This ultra-luxe olive oil is made of fruit from ancient Koroneiki olive trees, handpicked and delicately pressed. Extremely low in acidity, it’s won multiple awards for its fresh, fruity-peppery flavor; $185, SpeironCompany.com.
Meat Cure
Tired of confusing your zampone modena with your lonza stagionata? We’re happy to tell you those days are over, thanks to the new Salumi app for iPhone from Michael Graham, owner of gourmand’s paradise C’est Cheese in Santa Barbara. The app gives you in-depth profiles of over 100 different types of cured meats along with high-def photographs. Your charcuterie plate will thank you; $1.99.
Liquid Calories
We’ve all heard about the importance of watching what you eat, but how often are we told to watch what we drink? The calories in our beverages can account for a significant part of our daily intake and often don’t come with nutrition labels to help us keep track. A slice of cheesecake, what we consider a rare treat, has 257 calories. A 20 oz. Coke at the movies or in a restaurant contains 240! At one soda a day, that means an extra 86,400 calories per year. Another place we consume unwatched calories is through alcohol. Choosing a gin and tonic over a vodka soda tacks on another 120 calories, and a frosty piña colada has more calories than a Big Mac. As for coffee, a Grande Iced White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks, even with skim milk, rings in at 310 calories…that’s more than a serving of Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream! Even Diet Coke, a low-calorie beverage, contains artificial sweeteners that interfere with our ability to feel full, encouraging us to eat past when we normally would. Also, consuming calorie-dense beverages means we’re not drinking nutrient-rich ones, such as juice or milk, options which come with essential vitamins and minerals that we need on a daily basis. Choosing our beverages right can mean the difference between a long life and a short one. Remember that next time you reach for soda, grab water instead, and save your calories for later.
› Christine Benson has over 10 years of experience in the food and beverage industry. She is devoted to creating healthier versions of favorite recipes, drawing upon her background in nutrition and the exciting new field of Ecogastronomy.
“If more of us valued food, cheer and song above hoarded gold,
it would be a merrier world.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien
Looking Spotty
Do you turn your nose up at the site of speckled bananas? Though they need to be eaten quickly, bananas boasting brown spots are actually the sweetest, with 17% more sugar than green bananas.
Evil Utensils
When the world first met the fork, it was considered extremely rude, even scandalous, to use one. When an 11th Century Greek princess died after using a fork at her wedding, some called it divine punishment.
Quick Fixes
Put too much salt in your soup? Add raw potatoes. Once they’re cooked, throw them out — they’ll have absorbed some of the extra sodium. To cure excess sweetness, try a splash of vinegar…or two.
