Charles Rosenberg, M.S., Certified Nutritionist

Today's Healthy Happy Hour drink was made with Spindrift Sparkling Water (blood orange/tangerine) and Golden Farms Foods Tropical Sauce (pineapple, papaya and passion fruit), plus a splash of tequila. Simple and refreshing. We pulled out the rainbow 🌈 tablecloth since it's Gay Pride Month. Cheers!

We made chocolate blancmange! So easy. We used one 14oz bottle of Darigold FIT Chocolate milk (reduced fat, lactose free and 40% less sugar than standard chocolate milk), an equal amount of Chobani oat milk, four tablespoons of Chocolates Valor Valorcao hot chocolate mix and two packets of gelatin. Mix all ingredients and heat until warmed. Refrigerate in jello mold. You can substitute agar powder for gelatin. Results will be equally light, refreshing and delicious.

Healthier Happy Hour cocktail last night was made with TheHealtea Nettle Rosemary Sparkling Botanical Infusion. Ro water, listed on the front of the can, means reverse osmosis filtered water. It's sweetened with a light touch of maple syrup, but it won't remind you of pancake breakfast. We added lemon juice, a touch of raspberry syrup, a shot of vodka and a drop of bitters.

Did you know that Torani has an all natural line? It's happy hour and we're having a strawberry margarita made with Torani Puremade strawberry syrup.

Sfoglini is the pasta company that makes the famed Cascatelli noodle designed by Sporkful podcaster Dan Pashman. I'm listening to him being interviewed on KCRW's Good Food with Evan Kleiman as I write this. As of now, there's no whole grain Cascatelli but I was very pleased to see the wide variety of whole grain pastas Sfoglini does make, including this Reginetti, at Natural Products Expo West. Such good pasta!

Tempeh is an Indonesian fermented soy food that is prepared in many ways including being fried into crunchy chips. We liked Jans high protein tempeh chips when we tried them at the Natural Products Expo West. They were thinner and less greasy than other tempeh chips I've tried in the past.
https://jansfood.com/products/

Yuzu, the Japanese citrus fruit, seems to be "on trend". We saw many yuzu flavored products at the Natural Products Expo, including this Sparkling Yuzu Lime beverage from Fever-Tree . Very lightly sweetened so it's a healthier alternative to conventional sodas and mixers.

Wildwood Black Truffle Tofu is delicious! I sauteed it in a little olive oil.

It's difficult to find buckwheat noodles that are made entirely of buckwheat ( which is not actually a wheat and does not contain gluten) so I was pleased to to be able to say "Hello Felicia" to this brand of Italian pasta that I saw at the 2024 Natural Products Expo West last week. www.felicia.it/en/

I spent the last few days walking the miles of aisles at the 2024 Natural Products Expo West, looking for new products to share with you. There were hundreds of new beverage brands. In fact, the beverage sector seemed to have grown substantially this year (my 25th year at the show). Here are a few I liked. Click on the photo to read a little more about Hella Cocktail Co. and Mela Watermelon Water. Hella and Mela: they rhyme!

Recommended: A tasty snack or light meal that's especially useful if you are moving towards a plant-based diet, as this Wild Tuna White Bean Salad from Wild Planet is heavier on beans than tuna. There's still plenty of protein: 21grams!