And they lived happily ever after in the deep blue fish sausage sea . . .

TomInSkokie wrote:Midnight Moon aged goat cheese, similar to gouda, by Cypress Grove Creamery in California, on sale at Mariano's.
One of the best cheeses I have ever tasted.

I started buying this at the Farmer's Market in the loop about 10 years ago (when it was harder to find locally). Still one of my favorites along with Jasper/Cabot's much pricier clothbound cheddar (textural similarities although the cheddar is closer to parmesan in texture and flavor - I have a cheese snob friend in France who tried it once on a visit here and could not believe it was an American cheddar).

G Wiv wrote:And they lived happily ever after in the deep blue fish sausage sea . . .

HMartFishSausageLTH2.jpg

As long as you're in H-Mart, pick up some dessert:

spinynorman99 wrote:
As long as you're in H-Mart, pick up some dessert:

I definitely need to check that out. I've had corn ice cream in a restaurant, but a sweet corn ice cream sandwich sounds like something I can't miss.

Hi,

At the Corn symposium, we served corn ice cream from Village Creamery near H-Mart.

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

At the Corn symposium, we served corn ice cream from Village Creamery near H-Mart.

Regards,
Cathy2

That's right. I'd forgotten that we had it there -- and it was excellent.

Okay -- first off, this is NOT a discovery I have tried and not one I intend to try. Nor do I recommend anyone else try it. But I still thought it was worth passing along, as I can imagine few other places it will be fully appreciated.

In China, they now make vegan/vegetarian pigs' intestines!!

Made from a base of konjac (which is stinky enough to imaging being appropriate), the ad uses such descriptors as "vivid" and "secret recipe" (I bet).
http://www.21food.com/products/vegetari ... 15218.html

If you scan to the bottom of the ad, you'll find there are also vegetarian pig ears and tripe. Yow. (Probably because they're struggling to raise enough pigs for increased demand.)

Long ago, when I was roughly college age, as was true of many broke kids, I ate a lot of instant ramen. Back then, the choices were beef, chicken, vegetable, though the main flavoring ingredient was salt. Now, with all the great ethnic places popping up all over the area, I have discovered that pretty much everyone likes instant ramen noodles, and I've had a vast array of new flavors, from green curry to kimchi and beyond.

But the one I tried this week both amused me and pleased me. Lucky Me! Brand Bulalo -- Beef and Bone Marrow Flavor, from the Philippines. Somehow, bone marrow seems so unlikely a flavor for a cheap package of ramen noodles. It admits right up front that it's artificially flavored, but maybe it's a tribute to all those companies trying to make fake meat for vegetarians -- because this was remarkably beefy with pretty convincing hints of bone marrow flavor. I'll probably buy this again. Because I still need cheap meals in my life.

Sounds good Cynthia! Unfortunately, I just looked and Amazon says they're currently unavailable online--which is the only way I could ever hope to buy any. Sigh. : (

Geo

https://www.amazon.com/lucky-supreme-bu ... +me+bulalo

But it's 48 units

That's different packaging than I found (mine was the small rectangle of noodles), and while I enjoyed it, I don't think I'd say I'd want $129 worth of it.

My first search online turned up pages of recipes for bulalo.

Then this ad -- apparently it's a local favorite:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWdQQBuGPGE

A "ramen rater," who said he loved it.

And about 30 other brands of instant bulalo -- no idea this was such a popular dish in the Philippines.

And this place -- which claims to be the world's best place to buy Filipino foods -- and appears to sell single packages. https://www.filstop.com/lucky-me/

I don't know that ramen rater, but I do know this one, and he seems to think they're pretty good:

"The noodles were a little on the spongy side at the end of the three minutes, but I found after a minute or two they became a little better. The broth has a nice beefy flavor. 3.25 out of 5.0 stars."

My most recent discovery is not a food but a YouTube food show. Did a search, and it didn't appear anywhere on LTH, so I thought I'd share it -- but I want the job these guys have. They eat food at three different price points and decide which is the most "Worth It" -- which is the name of the show. It's a lot of fun. Some of the high-end food is crazy expensive, but it's fun to see it all.

It's been on for four seasons now, but here are some samples to get you started:
Ramen in Japan https://youtu.be/QtVL76gh09U

Fried chicken in New York https://youtu.be/M6XiFKB7j0w

Filipino pork in LA https://youtu.be/IxD2NbXzgpQ

17 million subscribers, so I'm clearly not alone in enjoying this guilty pleasure.

Mom and I watched the fried chicken followed by brunch. All the places selected I would want to visit depending on mood and how much I want to spend. There were no dogs in their selection process at all.

Good find!

Regards,
Cathy2

My kids turned me onto Worth It about a year ago. I really enjoy it too. My son and a couple of friends did the fried chicken/caviar at momofuku, and said it was really good, though not necessarily worth it.

-Will

Yes -- I like fried chicken and I like caviar, but just piling caviar on fried chicken doesn't appeal to me much. I'd pick Red Rooster, of those three -- because I've had Marcus Samuelson's food before and think he'd always be worth it.

Today, at Tony's, I picked up a package of Chaakri Roasted Crispies. Under the line with the specific flavor (I got Peppery Oat Khakhra), it says "Empowering under-privileged women in rural India." The back of the package goes on to say that the treats come from a charity called Shramic Naan Sangh. So doing good buying snack food.

As for the crispies -- they are, very. Just slightly thicker than a sheet of paper but less fragile than one might expect (a bit stronger than a potato chip). The ingredients in the type I bought are oat flour, wheat flour, pepper, cumin seeds, vegetable oil, salt, water. And that pretty much tells you what they taste like, too -- oats and spices, with enough pepper to give it a bit of bite.

A fun change of pace when only something crispy will do.

Today, in the "reduced for quick sale" section of the refrigerator case at Valli in Hoffman Estates, I saw a few plastic containers of flavored butter from Isola -- one porcini mushroom, the other Italian truffle. They were marked down to 99 cents, so easy decision. Just got home and tried the Italian truffle. Not going to replace shaving actual truffles over your food, but very nice. And in addition to truffle oil, it has actual truffle in the butter. Didn't look to find out what the full price would be if it weren't about to out date, but I'll look for it next time I'm at Valli.

I was invited to a lunch at Quartino Ristorante in downtown and they had these interesting Parmesan mini blocks in its own plastic grater on every table. I have never seen such a thing sold as its either already shredded Parmesan or at fancy restaurants the waiter will come around shred the Parmesan cheese for you.

When I got home I looked up the brand and item and found this from an Italian company (Agriform) and cheese inside is called Grana Padano which tastes a little milder than Parmigiano Reggiano.

Twist & Grate Grana Padano


https://www.agriform.it/en/prodotti/gra ... ratta.html

I love those things! Stopped at Quartino for a snack on Saturday and was reminded how much I love these and want to seek one out for home. I think I've seen them at Conte Di Savoia, but don't quote me on that.

mtgl wrote:I love those things! Stopped at Quartino for a snack on Saturday and was reminded how much I love these and want to seek one out for home. I think I've seen them at Conte Di Savoia, but don't quote me on that.

Thanks for the tip on Conte Di Savoia. Usually brick and mortar stores are cheaper for this kind of specialty item than ordering it online.

JoelF wrote:

Cynthia wrote:Unbelievable. I've often thought there were some things that simply would never show up Chicagoland, however inclusive and exotic we became -- like fermented mare's milk. Seriously.

And yet there it was, at Garden Fresh in Buffalo Grove -- from Russia, rather than Mongolia, so called Kumis, rather than Airag. But with a picture of a horse and the translation beneath it "horse milk." And next to it, your choice of camel milk or goat milk.

I think I've seen camel milk at Fresh Farms (Niles north). Is it true that unfermented mare's milk is severely laxative?

Camel milk could be the next superfood—thanks to East Africa

https://qz.com/africa/1636775/camel-mil ... st-africa/

Dave148 wrote:Camel milk could be the next superfood—thanks to East Africa

https://qz.com/africa/1636775/camel-mil ... st-africa/[/quote]

When we were in Jordan a few years ago our driver kept pushing camel's milk with a lot of "Viagra" references. For the tourist crowd.

Dave148 wrote:

JoelF wrote:

Cynthia wrote:Unbelievable. I've often thought there were some things that simply would never show up Chicagoland, however inclusive and exotic we became -- like fermented mare's milk. Seriously.

And yet there it was, at Garden Fresh in Buffalo Grove -- from Russia, rather than Mongolia, so called Kumis, rather than Airag. But with a picture of a horse and the translation beneath it "horse milk." And next to it, your choice of camel milk or goat milk.

I think I've seen camel milk at Fresh Farms (Niles north). Is it true that unfermented mare's milk is severely laxative?

Camel milk could be the next superfood—thanks to East Africa

https://qz.com/africa/1636775/camel-mil ... st-africa/

Always good to get a camel milk update. Here are a few bits of more local interest. Unlike the fake horse, camel, and goat milks from Russia, camel milk from US-based Desert Farms is still the real thing. Since Mike Sula wrote that article four years ago, the Muslim Women Resource Center Community Store has closed and it seems Desert Farms has stopped selling camel colostrum. On a more positive note, they've added an exciting new product – hump fat. Also it seems Desert Farms has a new competitor in the expanding American camel milk market – DromeDairy.

Rene G wrote:Always good to get a camel milk update.

Speaking of camel milk, at 9:50 The Food Ranger goes straight to the source.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZLaODxJv8c

Pickled cherry tomatoes at Garden Fresh. They are in the barrels, along with multiple other pickled things, all for $3.99/lb. I'm usually there for the fresh pickles (aka half salts), but these caught my eye. Be careful helping yourself, as they crush very easily (even more easily than a normal cherry tomato). But what a wonderful treat. Don't try to bite one -- pop the whole thing in your mouth, as they kind of collapse/explode when pressure is applied. But they are delicious.

I'm guessing they'll be at multiple outlets of Garden Fresh, but the one I shop at is in Buffalo Grove.
Garden Fresh Market
770 S Buffalo Grove Rd
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
http://www.gardenfreshmarket.com/

Cynthia wrote:Pickled cherry tomatoes at Garden Fresh. [...edited for brevity]

I'm guessing they'll be at multiple outlets of Garden Fresh, but the one I shop at is in Buffalo Grove.
Garden Fresh Market
770 S Buffalo Grove Rd
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
http://www.gardenfreshmarket.com/

Wow, I did not know there still a Garden Fresh. I do not leave my area much <grin.>
But I do miss certain items since the Highland Park store closed. Chief among them was the sauerkraut in a barrel.
Going to take a road trip. Thanks Cathy!

polster wrote:

mtgl wrote:I love those things! Stopped at Quartino for a snack on Saturday and was reminded how much I love these and want to seek one out for home. I think I've seen them at Conte Di Savoia, but don't quote me on that.

Thanks for the tip on Conte Di Savoia. Usually brick and mortar stores are cheaper for this kind of specialty item than ordering it online.

Any definitive spotting on this grater/cheese item? Perfect hostess gift!

Cynthia wrote:Pickled cherry tomatoes at Garden Fresh. They are in the barrels, along with multiple other pickled things, all for $3.99/lb. I'm usually there for the fresh pickles (aka half salts), but these caught my eye. Be careful helping yourself, as they crush very easily (even more easily than a normal cherry tomato). But what a wonderful treat. Don't try to bite one -- pop the whole thing in your mouth, as they kind of collapse/explode when pressure is applied. But they are delicious.

I'm guessing they'll be at multiple outlets of Garden Fresh, but the one I shop at is in Buffalo Grove.
Garden Fresh Market
770 S Buffalo Grove Rd
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
http://www.gardenfreshmarket.com/

If that's too far, the Old South jarred Tomolives are great pickled cherry tomatoes.

spinynorman99 wrote:

Cynthia wrote:Pickled cherry tomatoes at Garden Fresh. They are in the barrels, along with multiple other pickled things, all for $3.99/lb. I'm usually there for the fresh pickles (aka half salts), but these caught my eye. Be careful helping yourself, as they crush very easily (even more easily than a normal cherry tomato). But what a wonderful treat. Don't try to bite one -- pop the whole thing in your mouth, as they kind of collapse/explode when pressure is applied. But they are delicious.

I'm guessing they'll be at multiple outlets of Garden Fresh, but the one I shop at is in Buffalo Grove.
Garden Fresh Market
770 S Buffalo Grove Rd
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
http://www.gardenfreshmarket.com/

If that's too far, the Old South jarred Tomolives are great pickled cherry tomatoes.

Not too far at all, appreciate the info.
Are Tomolives olives as well? Can not go near olives.
Thanks,
Jill