Onsuri EVOO Celebrates Thanksgiving Day Spirit
Doubtful the pilgrims used extra virgin olive oil for their Thanksgiving dinner, but that doesn’t mean we can’t use it. While Onsuri EVOO is based in the United Kingdom and Jordan, out of respect for a “celebration involving making memories with food as a centerpiece,” the company passes along ways to use Onsuri EVOO on Thanksgiving Day.In Jordan, our dinners revolve around Middle Eastern flavors, dishes that are rich in spices like za’atar, and utilize olive oil in nearly every recipe,” the company said in a press release. “Dishes like Mansaf, a Jordanian staple made of lamb, rice, and flatbread, is a dish intended to be enjoyed by a crowd.
“While you’re likely to have turkey on the table, it could serve as an alternative for those looking for something new and different. You could try adding hummus to your Thanksgiving table as a spread for dinner rolls with a nice well of EVOO poured on top. The best thing about EVOO is that it works so well in many of your favorite recipes.”
A few more ways to incorporate EVOO into Turkey Day:
- Mashed potatoes with EVOO in place of butter. We’d use a lighter oil like our new Signature “Edition” oil, a blend that works well in nearly any recipe.
- Toss your veggies in oil and roast with a sprinkle of salt and some za’atar spice. Arbosana is our go-to in this case.
- Infuse olive oil ahead of time with herbs like rosemary, thyme, and sage to mix in with your stuffing before baking. Our Sensory blend is perfect for this.
- Rub your turkey with oil to create crisp and juicy skin. Arbequina is a great oil for this.
- Keep EVOO on your table for drizzling and dipping all day long. Koroneiki has a strong flavor but is a great oil to finish off any dish.
Gourmet News is thankful for everyone reading this. Have a filling and fulfilling Thanksgiving Day!
Olive Oil Industry Leaders Ask FDA for U.S. Standards
Courtesy California Olive Ranch
The American Olive Oil Producers Association, North American Olive Oil Association and Deoleo, the world’s largest olive oil producer, submitted a joint citizen petition to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to adopt enforceable, science-based olive oil standards.
The petition puts forward clear definitions for olive oil grades – extra virgin, virgin, and olive oil – that will help American consumers better understand and have confidence in the quality and authenticity of the olive oil they buy. This clarity will also lead to a better grasp of nutrition benefits at different price points.
For two years, AOOPA, Deoleo and NAOOA have collaborated on determining more stringent olive oil grading and labeling standards that will benefit everyone. The new standards, which the FDA would be empowered to enforce following a final ruling and public comment period, would mark the first time the federal government has adopted mandatory regulations for olive oil, and it’s a key step toward ensuring a more honest, fair, and competitive industry.
“For the first time, top-selling brands such as California Olive Ranch, Pompeian, Bertolli, Filippo Berio, Colavita, Star, Cobram Estate and other major producers have joined forces to drive standards that will help eliminate consumer confusion around one of the healthiest and most delicious foods they can eat. Stricter labeling practices will allow consumers to feel confident that the olive oil they buy will deliver the quality, value, and health benefits they expect,” said NAOOA Chairman Marco de Ceglie.
If approved by the FDA, the standards would give growers, producers and bottlers an edge in a highly competitive market, and it will instate practices that drive a more trustworthy industry, according to the groups. The current joint petition responds to FDA’s request for a robust and unified effort from the industry, and it addresses all relevant points of reference.
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Summer Fancy Food Show: Day 3
The third day of the SFA Summer Fancy Food Show saw less foot traffic than Day 2, but many exhibitors were excited about the contacts they made the previous day. Somehow, I thought it was going to be a slower-paced day for me, but I still didn’t get to visit some booths I’d wanted to see.
Nancy Wekselbaum, aka The Gracious Gourmet, and I keep crossing paths! I interviewed her by phone last year for an article on Hatch chiles. Then at the Winter Fancy Food show, which she was attending but not exhibiting, she happened to sit at the table I was at between booth visits.
This time, I was invited to a scrumptious five-course seafood dinner and olive oil tasting sponsored by Onsuri and who should be seated next to me but Nancy! The next day, I stopped by her booth and finally got to taste a variety of her products. I love pesto, so there was no arm-twisting to get me to try her Roasted Tomato Pesto and Lemon Artichoke Pesto – I could eat a whole jar of those. The Strawberry Black Pepper Jam was outrageously good. She’s got a new Hatch product that’s delicious, too, White Balsamic Hatch Chile Jelly.
I was impressed with Yoele’s new chips, made with the ancient West African grain fonio. The gluten-free chips have the texture of tortilla chips, but not as crumbly. When I got home, I made nachos with them – yum! Fonio is a tiny grain and grown using regenerative farming. Yoele is planning to have more fonio products on the market.
Sweet Logic showed off its Mug Muffins and cake and brownie mixes. They’re keto friendly and just right for those of us who just need a quick, sweet snack. I’m told the Ultimate Carrot Mug Cake mix tastes just like carrot cake. I brought a packet home to test that theory (haven’t made it yet).
I met John Arnold and his family, who create small batch craft nut butter in Vermont as Mixed Up Nut Butter. I can’t say enough good things about the Mud Season nut butter, crunchy cacao nib and coffee with late-season maple sugar and vanilla bean. I also liked Maple Creemee with Vermont maple, cashew, pecan and vanilla bean. I learned that creemee is a rich, soft-serve ice cream, famous throughout Vermont. They had a large poster pairing nut butters with wines – these are my kind of people.
While we’re talking sweets, I got to chat with Eileen Gannon, founder and CEO of Sunday Night Foods. All of the premium dessert sauces were delicious and Eileen says they’re much more versatile than adorning ice cream. If you add powdered sugar, they can make frosting and with vodka and cream, chocolate martinis.
David Little promised me a chocolate food fight at this booth for Immunity Goodness, which didn’t happen, though he gave me handfuls of infused chocolates to take home with me. (I should have taken more Immunity Chocolates – Belgian Milk Salted Caramel Apple Chocolate bites with Vitamin C, zinc, elderberry extract and tetrahydrocurcumin from turmeric – with me because apparently, I brought a cold home.)
We’ll have a roundup of the Summer Fancy Food Show in the August issue of Gourmet News. Subscribe now so you don’t miss anything!
