Category: Food Items (Page 8 of 20)

Rougette Grill Meister Grilling Cheese – Product Review

December 19, 2013 / marga / 0 Comments

GRILLMEISTER-PACKAGE I found this packaged cheese at Grocery Outlet yesterday, and I went back today to pick up four more packages. My haste was due to the fact that at 50-cents a package (regular retails is $5!), they will disappear soon, plus they expired on Dec. 16th – two days ago. I don’t know for how much longer it’ll stay good, but surely a few more days.

This soft cheese is made in Germany, and is specifically made to be heated before serving. It doesn’t have a crust, per se, though the outer layer becomes harder, while protecting a semi-melted middle. It’s very good. While officially a camembert, it reminded me more of a brie, though it’s milder and less bitter than most of those. It had a slightly nutty flavor, which I liked.

It was also very easy to prepare. You can either put it on the grill or on a lightly oiled pan on the stove. Cook for six minutes, flipping from time to time. That’s it. The 3.2 oz portion is definitely dainty, and I wouldn’t buy it at its regular $25-lb price, but for $5-lb, it’s well worth it, even if I have to hurry and eat it all this week 🙂

Ciao Bella Blood Orange Sorbet

November 22, 2013 / marga / 0 Comments

CB_bloodorg_lg I have a pretty nasty cold, so I only want to eat things which are smooth going down my throat and so flavorful that I can taste them despite my stuffed nose. Ciao Bella blood orange sorbet fit the bill perfectly.

Of course, I can’t tell you how someone that has their 5 senses would experience it, but to me it was delicious. The sorbet had a strong orange flavor, with some welcome bitter undertones. It was very creamy and smooth.

They have these at Grocery Outlet here in San Leandro for $2 now, and I think I’ll stock up.

Soul Indian Wraps – Review

July 15, 2013 / marga / 0 Comments

soul_butter_chkn_3d If you’re tired of having the same old frozen burrito for lunch, Soul’s Indian wraps provide a reasonable alternative. They have four flavors, butter chicken, chicken vindaloo, chicken tikka masala and vegetable curry. I’ve tasted the three chicken ones, and I can’t say I could really distinguish their flavor. They all tasted like mildly spicy generic chicken curries, acceptable but not exciting. Of the four choices, the tikka masala has slightly less calories/fat (370 c/11 g. fat) than the others, so that may be your best choice. The vegetable curry, which I haven’t tried, has the greatest fat content.

The wraps were about $1.50 at Grocery Outlet and they cook in the microwave in about 3 minutes (you have to turn it half way).

Three Twins Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream Review – Yummm!

July 2, 2013 / marga / 1 Comment

(Note: This company has closed)

3twinsChocolatePeanutButter I found this gem of an ice cream at our local San Leandro Grocery Outlet for $2. It was the first time I came across a three twins product, but I’m one of those people who absolutely loves peanut butter and chocolate (as I write this, I’m plotting to make my husband go and get me the ingredients for a peanut butter shake), so I had to try it. I’m glad I did.

Unlike most ice creams of this type, this wasn’t chocolate ice cream with swirls of peanut butter or vice versa. Instead both the peanut butter and the cocoa powder are mixed together into a combined flavor. I think I still prefer the traditional type, but this is quite good too, albeit more peanut butter would be better. Then again, nothing stops you from adding your own.

My oldest daughter pronounced it the “best ice cream ever”, and while my youngest wasn’t as enthusiastic, this is a girl with a limited like for sweets.

Three Twins seems to be this century’s answer to Ben & Jerry’s. The company is based in the North Bay and makes organic ice cream from locally sourced milk and cream. They have four stores and they seem to mostly sell through Whole Foods (which would explain why I never heard of them). In addition to regular flavors, they have some interesting sounding ones such as cardamon, lemon cookie and sea salted caramel. They sell ice cream through their website for $10 a pint, so the $2 Grocery Outlet price is particularly tempting.

Starbucks Via: So 20th century!

July 19, 2012 / marga / 0 Comments

I will admit it. I’m an instant coffee drinker. I know I’m not the only one in America, but I’m one of the few who will admit to it. I drink instant coffee because it’s easy to make, but also because I like my coffee fairly mild. I do have a strong preference for Taster’s Choice and Nescafé – so I do have some standards of sorts, but clearly they are not very high.

I first heard of Starbucks VIA last May when I won a raffle for a Starbucks gift card and the card came with a 3 individual samples of French Roast instant coffee. I tried them and they were great. The coffee has a rich flavor, stronger and more developed than any instant coffee I drink, but without the bitterness of the real thing. As far as instant coffees go, it’s by far my favorite.

But… it’s expensive. Ridiculously expensive, about 83-cents per cup, though if you buy it bulk you can get it down to 60-cents a cup. A cup of Taster’s Choice costs less than 10-cents by comparison. So needless to say, I haven’t been buying it.

Soon after I received my sample pack, I saw VIA at Safeway, and not too long after that, at Grocery Outlet. But even at Grocery Outlet it was too expensive, though I don’t remember exactly what the price was. Today I noticed that the 3-cup packages are down to 99-cents (though they expired in June). 33-cents a cup is not too bad, so I bought a few packages to have it as the occasional treat. Lately, I’m drinking tea anyway.

The biggest problem with VIA, besides the price, is all the needless packaging. I guess they need it to make you think you are getting more from your money than you really are. It’s unlikely that anyone seeing a $40 7-oz jar of VIA placed next to a $10 jar of Taster Choice would reach towards the former. But all of this means a lot of wasted materials which come at a significant environmental cost.

I’m sure that Starbucks did a lot of market research before introducing this product, but I just don’t see who it would appeal to.

Raymundo’s Caramel Flan – Product Review

March 23, 2012 / marga / 2 Comments

I got this at Grocery Outlet last week. The 21 oz package was on sale for about $2, I think. Its first ingredients were milk and sugar so I thought it was worth trying. It wasn’t bad but I wouldn’t but it again.

I found the flan both a bit insipid and too smooth for my taste. I prefer flans that are a bit rougher, with air bubbles throughout. I assume this is because this flan is made with whole eggs, but I imagine the fillers don’t help either.

Immaculate Baking Co. Ready-to-Bake Pie Crusts – Review

March 18, 2012 / marga / 1 Comment

I found these at Grocery Outlet (in San Leandro) for $1.50, and I figured they were worth a try. I don’t think I’d buy them again.

The crusts are refrigerated, rather than frozen, but you still need to bring them to room temperature before unrolling – which takes about half an hour. Otherwise, they’ll easily break. Even fully room-temperature crusts don’t stay together that well. As they come rolled in, there is no pan included – so make sure you have your own.

My real problem with them, however, was the flavor. Even though they are “all natural” they have this very unpleasant bitter taste that you feel at the back of your mouth. It lingers. Not pleasant.

Whiting Fish: the Best bargain around?

March 13, 2012 / marga / 0 Comments

I came across this fish yesterday at Grocery Outlet. I was a bit reluctant to buy it because it was only $4 for a 2lb bag – at least one third the cost of most fish I buy. But it was the only fish I could find at that store that didn’t come from China or Vietnam (instead, it was wild caught in the US), so I figured it was worth the risk. I think it was.

Pacific whiting, also known as Pacific hake, is a relative of the merluza I grew up eating in Argentina. It’s a medium-sized fish, with relatively fragile flesh and a distinctive, somewhat sweet, flavor. It has a greater oil concentration than other species, so it tastes fishier than most of the white fish I usually eat (catfish, cod, sole, tilapia, etc.). This flavor was too strong for my daughter, and didn’t particularly thrill my husband either. I liked it, but probably because it took me back to childhood.

That said, if I was cooking just for the adults I would definitely buy it again, specially at $2lb!

La Lechera Dulce de Leche @ Grocery Outlet – Review

March 3, 2012 / marga / 0 Comments

As an Argentinian I grew up eating dulce de leche every day. We ate it on sliced bread and toast and in pastries and cakes of all types. We use it as a topping for flan and, of course, in panqueques (crepes). And as an Argentinian I still LOVE dulce de leche. For years, I made the fake kind by boiling cans of condensed milk. Then a bit over a decade ago importation of Argentian products took off and I started being able to get the *real thing*, all the way from Argentina.

Alas, in recent years the Argentinian economy has been doing relatively well, and the American economy has not, so the peso is relatively strong now against the dollar. This means that authentic Argentine dulce de leche is pretty expensive, about $10 for a 1.5lb jar at Los Angeles Latino supermarkets (where I usually get it, as it’s cheaper over there). Needless to say, I don’t get it much.

For that reason I was thrilled to find La Lachera Dulce De Leche at only $2lb (at the San Leandro Grocery Outlet). I compared the ingredients with those in regular dulce de leche and they’re pretty close (milk and sugar) – though La Lechera’s doesn’t contain vanilla but includes salt as well as sodium and disodium phosphates, in addition to a preservative. I’ve no idea why.

As for the taste? La Lechera’s dulce de leche is pretty good. It’s thinner than dulce de leche I’m used to, but then again it comes in a bottle with a picture of pancakes, so clearly it’s marketed as a topping not a spread. The taste is pretty close, though perhaps a bit more intense. It may be left to caramelize for longer than regular dulce de leche (though I’m not sure why it’d be thinner, then). In all, at $2lb it’s a great alternative to the real thing. These bottles retail normally for about $3.50 to $5. The ones at the San Leandro Grocery Outlet expire in May 2012, but they should last longer than that.

Sensible Portions Pita Bites @ Grocery Outlet – Review

March 3, 2012 / marga / 0 Comments

I got a box of Sea Salt flavor Sensible Portions Pita Bites to go with the Rougette Bavarian cream cheese I picked up at Grocery Outlet, and I’m in love with them. The crackers are super crispy without being tough, they taste very fresh (a little over a month before the expiration date) and are very tasty, both by themselves and specially with the cheese. By themselves they are a bit dry, though. They don’t contain any sugars, so they seem to be good for diabetics.

They usually retail for $3.50, but they are just $1 at the San Leandro Grocery Outlet (while supplies last, of course 🙂