My snack of choice while hiking is an RXBar protein bar. Made of egg whites, nuts and fruit and nothing else. They come in lots of yummy varieties but the only one I carry anymore is the chocolate raspberry, which I never tire of. — KK
It’s been a long journey for me to become a full-blown tea fanatic. It turns out I just needed to find the “right” tea! These organic whole flower infusion teas by The Qi are beautiful to look at and are so deliciously sippable. The founder Lisa Li sources her single-origin flowers (Rose, Chrysanthemum, Blue Lotus) from a high mountain farm in Shangri-La, Jiangxi, and Hainan, an island province of China. It has become an effortless daily ritual for me, and I’ll admit, an addiction — but what a healthy, nourishing addiction to have! Here is a referral link for $5 off (a pop-up window will ask you for email address to get the code). — CD
Here’s a super-simple recipe for ultra low carb, fluffy bread. I made a 1-minute video that shows how I make it, and the results. This is the almond flour I use. — MF
Someone recently made me a hot drink containing cinnamon, espresso, oat milk, and lion’s mane mushroom powder, and it was delicious. Now I make my own, using KOS Organic Lion’s Mane Powder. I use one included scoop of lion’s mane powder, one teaspoon of Ceylon cinnamon powder, a cup of hot oat milk, and a double shot of espresso. Then I whip with a stick blender. It’s a perfect afternoon pick-me-up. — MF
This search engine pulls from more than 2 million recipes that you can filter by ingredients. I’m not a step-by-step recipe follower, but this is great for discovering variations of a recipe and inspiration for ingredients I hadn’t thought of. I’m also impressed that it found two different recipes for my parent’s homeland dish: Sopa Tarasca — CD
I came across this cool visual guide to making your own spice blends on Reddit. It made me realize I should be utilizing my coriander more often. — CD
I’ve been baking a lot with almond flour lately. It is low in carbs, high in healthy fats, and has almost no sugar. The brand I buy is Anthony’s. Start with a 2-lb bag and see if you like it. If you’re like me, you’ll soon be buying the 4-lb bags. (Try my recipe for almond flour bread) — MF
Why don’t they just make spaghetti noodles half as long so you don’t have to messily break them to fit into the pot? Well, they do! Half-sized, or what they call “pot size”, noodles are available from brands such as Mueller’s and Barilla, and from big box stores and on Instacart. As far as I am concerned, this size should be the standard. — KK
Almost any vegetable you can think of tastes better roasted, and this article by Emma Christensen, shows you how to do it. The key is cutting the vegetable into bite-size pieces to increase the surface-area-to-volume ratio, using enough oil, and spacing out the pieces in the roasting pan. — MF
There’s really no excuse for food waste. On Save the Food you can find recipes to cook with your leftover scraps and food that’s “past its prime”. You can build a meal prep plan and create a shopping list based on the people in your household and how many days you are cooking for. They even have a storage guide with all the tips and tricks you need to keep your food fresh. — CD
My family is drinking a lot more coffee than we used to. We go through about a pound of whole espresso beans per week. On a whim, I bought Amazon’s brand, Go for the Bold, which comes in 2 lb bags. It’s better tasting than Starbucks, about the same as Pete’s, and costs quite a bit less. — MF
I don’t eat beef, pork or lamb, but I still miss a good burger. I’m a big fan of veggie Impossible Burgers, but I like Beyond Meat’s burgers, cooked at home, even more. They are really delicious in flavor and texture. You can get patties of Beyond Burgers at Target, Walmart, and Costco, among other retailers. The rest of my family, who do eat beef, love these plant-based burgers too. — KK
I’ve long been a fan of Montezuma’s Absolute Black chocolate bars, which are made from 100% chocolate and cocoa nibs and no sweeteners of any kind. (The best way to enjoy unsweetened chocolate is not by chewing them, but by letting a square melt in your mouth.) Recently, Montezuma’s introduced a version with sea salt and almonds and it is even better. I buy mine at Trader Joe’s for $3 a bar. — MF
I’ve been spoiled by Kewpie mayonnaise, made in Japan. No other mayo comes close. The secret is extra egg yolk and MSG. My kids and I squeeze it on everything (especially sweet potato chunks roasted in coconut oil). Kewpie also has a U.S. made version, but Amazon sells the real Japanese version. — MF
Two images I find myself pulling up from time to time are 1) this chart of apple varieties lined up from most tart to most sweet, and 2) a visual guide to major types of wine grouped by flavor characteristics. I may never be able to articulate tasting aromas or textures, but at least I’ll be able to pick a delicious wine I’ll enjoy. — CD
It’s been hot for the last couple of months here in Los Angeles and my family is guzzling the iced hibiscus flower tea I’ve been making. We go through a half gallon a day, and each glass costs about a penny. I make it with this one pound bag of Feel Good organic dried hibiscus flowers I bought for $15. I make it by putting two tablespoons of flowers into a half-gallon mason jar and fill it with boiling water. When it is cool enough I put the jar in the refrigerator. The ruby red liquid is pleasingly tart and satisfying. — MF
One of the disadvantages of never having TV is that I miss ads for things everyone else may already know about. For instance I recently discovered spreadable butter. This is real butter that has been blended with a small amount of oil (olive or canola, your choice) to keep it super easy to spread straight out of the fridge. Comes in many styles at any supermarket; Land O’Lakes Spreadable Butter is a national brand. It’s the best thing since sliced bread. — KK
The plant-based vegetarian Impossible Whopper at Burger King is pretty good for fast-food. It tastes comparable to a beef Whopper, according to my memory. (I last ate mammals 15 years ago.) Now available in most BK outlets in the US, Impossible burgers can also be found at other burger joints like White Castle. — KK
I bought these dark chocolate bars for my wife as a Christmas present, and now we’re hopelessly hooked. They’re a bit like peanut butter cups, but in bar form, and less sweet. A 4-pack runs $25, but if you order them via Amazon subscribe and save, it’ll cost you $21.25. — MF
Ever since I tried Teavana’s Golden Monkey Tea a few years ago, no other tea can compare to its bold flavor. The problem is that 2 ounces cost $22. I’ve tried other, less expensive, brands of golden monkey tea to no avail, but finally found one that is as good as Teavana. It’s called Yunnan Golden Special by Tealyra and 4 ounces cost $15. — MF