Functional foods are a hot topic.

The first functional food we remember, long before the term existed, was Tropicana Orange Juice fortified with calcium and vitamin D. We quickly understood the benefit:

Just by eating a particular food that had been fortified, we’d get a more nutrition. And maybe that would offset some of the empty carbs in all the snacks we ate. It’s so American: the promise of health without having to do more than eat.

We’ve been noticing more and more functional foods coming onto the market. Some are truly enhanced, and others just hyping what’s always been there to make the product seem new and better.

(Think back to the low-carb craze, when bottles of olive oil were labeled “Carb-Free!” Oils and other fats contain zero carbs. Never have, never will.)
 
 
WHAT ARE FUNCTIONAL FOODS?

Functional foods and beverages are everyday foods enhanced (fortified) with supplemental nutrition. The goal is to provide a health benefit beyond normal satiation and nutrition.

It’s not a question of the type of food. Naturally good-for-you brown rice can be functionally enhanced with flaxseed, for example; but so can chocolate chip cookies.

There are actually two kinds of functional foods. Today’s tip is about the second category, modified foods:

 
Selecting products that have been nutritionally enhanced is a painless way to add more nutrients to your diet. Alas, no one has yet invented functional french fries; but before you pluck your usual brand of whatever from the store shelf, look around and see if there’s something more nutritious to try.

Here are two we tried recently, and decided to keep them as part of our regular shopping list:

Snack bars. If you snack on any type of bar, consider those that pack more protein. A Nature Valley Greek Yogurt Protein Bar contains 10g of protein; Cascadian Farm organic protein bars have 9g per serving. The USDA recommends .37 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day. This means at least 48 grams of protein for a woman who weighs 130 pounds. It’s easy to compare nutrition labels and switch when you find a product with, say, 20% more protein.

Rice. RiceSelect’s Royal Blend with Chia (photo above) combines the company’s Texmati light brown rice and whole wheat orzo with chia seed, a superfood*. Packed with omega 3s, protein and fiber, the chia in one serving provides 18% of the recommended daily intake for calcium, plus manganese, phosphorus and protein. Serve it with chicken, fish or tofu and you’ve got a tasty, complete heart-healthy meal.
 
 
WATCH OUT FOR HYPE

Do a label-to-label comparison to differentiate reality from hype. In the boxed macaroni and cheese category, Horizon’s Super Mac exclaims 12g protein per serving! on the box front. Annie’s, which makes no special protein claims, has 10g per serving; Kraft has 11g.

You may already be enjoying these functional foods:

 
 
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ENHANCED & FORTIFIED

Both terms mean that nutrients have been added to make the food more nutritious. But there’s a difference:

 
________________

*What’s a superfood? There is no government definition, but a superfood is a natural food source that is highly concentrated with a complex supply of quality nutrients. Bee pollen is the most famous superfoods, incredibly dense with thousands of phytonutrients (plant nutrients) including enzymes, bioflavonoids, phytosterols and carotenoids, free amino acids, Omega 3 essential fatty acids, naturally chelated minerals and whole vitamin complexes. The açaí berry is considered a superfood because of its extremely high level of anthocyanins (an antioxidant), vitamins A and C and omega 6 and 9 essential fatty acids, fiber and amino acids. Others include blueberries, dark chocolate, goji berries, green tea, pomegranate, soy and yumberry. According to a 2007 report from Datamonitor, “Superfood & Drinks: Consumer Attitudes to Nutrient Rich Products,” the superfood food and beverage market is expected to double by 2011 as consumers are paying more attention to diet and nutrition and increasingly seeking food and drinks with additional health-promoting benefits.
  

Of course, there are plenty of Irish-made cheeses available, and we love them all. But you can’t beat Basiron Pesto Verde for bringing on the green.

Basiron Pesto Verde (green pesto), a Gouda-style cheese, is made from pasteurized cow’s milk and vegetarian rennet. Your local cheesemonger may carry it; or you can get it online.

The flavor is of classic, creamy Gouda-style cheese blended with basil-garlic pesto. A beautifully balanced (and extremely addictive) nibbling cheese, Pesto Rosso can also strut its stuff at Christmas or any occasion requiring a “wow.”

Basiron Pesto Verde is one of a group of fine cheeses made by The cheese is made by Veldhuyzen Kaas, a family business founded in 1884. The Basiron line includes

Here’s all you need to know about Gouda cheese, named after the town of Gouda, in the South Holland region of The Netherlands.

How Do You Pronounce Gouda?

Most Americans pronounce it “GOO-duh.” But the Dutch might not understand your request. The name of this cheese is pronounced variously as “GAOW-duh” or “HOW-duh” (with the Dutch guttural “ch” sound).
 
 
WHAT IF YOU CAN’T FIND GREEN GOUDA?

Just get a log of fresh goat cheese and roll it in snipped fresh herbs until it’s totally coated.

Some people would like a bottle of Irish whiskey for St. Patrick’s Day.

Others would rather have chocolate. And there’s one box of chocolates that’s perfect for St. Patrick’s Day.

Inspired by the Emerald Isle, Kohler’s Emerald chocolates are a beautiful box of chocolates with “green”-flavored ganaches*, enveloped in milk chocolate.

All of the chocolates are emerald-shaped shells in milk or semisweet chocolate, painted† in different shades of green.

Each flavor—Absinthe, Green Tea, Lime and Mint—has a different design.

†The “paint” is colored cocoa butter.

 
ABOUT KOHLER CHOCOLATES

Kohler, known for fine porcelain fixtures and The American Club resort in Kohler, Wisconsin, was seriously considering purchasing a chocolate company to provide guests with fine confections. But CEO & Chairman, Herbert V. Kohler, Jr., loved chocolate caramel turtles, and couldn’t find a company that made the perfect turtle.

So he challenged the chefs at his resort to create a better turtle. After much testing, a recipe emerged that met Mr. Kohler’s standards for flavor, texture and appearance. This morsel evolved into the signature Terrapins that launched Kohler Original Recipe Chocolates in 2007.

WHO WAS ST. PATRICK?

A figure shrouded in myth, the man who became the Apostle of Ireland was born in England, around 385 C.E. to a prominent Christian family. He was captured by pirates at age 16, brought to Ireland and sold into slavery.

His master, Milchu, was a high priest of Druidism, a Pagan sect that ruled religious influence over Ireland at the time. The enslaved young man worked as a shepherd, and during that time was called to Christianity.

He escaped after six years, returned to his family and entered the priesthood, returning to Ireland as a missionary. As he converted Druids to Christianity, his teachings combined Irish pagan beliefs with Christian sacrament; he is credited with devising the Celtic Cross.

After a lifetime spent converting of Ireland to Christianity—founding monasteries, organizing Ireland into dioceses and so forth—Patrick died circa 461.

His birthday is not known, but St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated on March 17th, which falls during the Christian season of Lent. A religious holiday in Ireland, it has been celebrated for more than 1,000 years with a church service in the morning and a traditional dinner cabbage and Irish bacon.

Corned beef is actually an American contribution to the holiday. Immigrant Irish learned how to make corned beef from their immigrant Jewish neighbors.

[1] A bologna sandwich: Long a cold-cut standard (photo © Francesdo Di Bartolo | iStock).

[2] Cold cuts are an American favorite—but not a nutritionist’s (photo © iGourmet).

March 3rd is National Cold Cuts Day, an American holiday.

Why American? The word is an Americanism dating back to 1940-45 according to the Random House Dictionary.

Sliced beef and turkey are not cold cuts.

The term refers specifically to precooked or cured meat, often in loaf or sausage form, that are sliced and served cold on sandwiches or on party trays.

These include salami, bologna, ham, liverwurst, Italian salume, turkey roll, other cured and processed meats and others.

Cold cuts have long been a workman’s lunch: A man went off for the day with sliced bread, sliced meat and cheese. But it didn’t stay a working-class food.

In the late-19th century, at elegant ladies’ luncheons, a popular snack was small, crustless tea sandwiches with butter and cucumber, cold cuts or cheese [source].

Today, cold cuts are ubiquitous, in vacuum packs at the supermarket. They can be sliced to order at a delicatessen (as in the old days) or the market’s deli counter.

They are served by many Americans, in a sandwich or on a party platter. They’re easy lunch and party fare.

Alas, cold cuts are not a nutritionist’s dream. Cold cuts and cured meats have too much, i.e. unhealthy, sodium [sodium].

Most cold cuts are higher in fat, nitrates* and sodium. In fact, the prepackaged kind have even more of these bad ingredients, as the larger exposed surface requires stronger preservatives.
 
 
A COLD CUT BY ANY OTHER NAME

Cold cuts are also known as deli meats, lunch meats, luncheon meats, sandwich meats and in the U.K., cold meats, cooked meats and sliced meats.

_____________________________

*Why nitrates? They maintain the desired pink color.
 

National Beignet Day, September 17th, was declared in 2024 by the Ralph Brennan Restaurant Group.
 
 
WHAT’S MARDI GRAS?

The Carnival season begins on or after the Epiphany or King’s Day (January 6th) and culminates on the day before Ash Wednesday.

Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday refers to the practice of eating richer, fatty foods the last night before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season begins on Ash Wednesday.

Mardi Gras is sometimes referred to as Shrove Tuesday, from the word shrive, meaning “confess.” But the idea of rich foods is far more appealing.

Why “Carnival?”

Centuries ago, Catholics in Italy started the tradition of holding a wild costume festival right before the first day of Lent. It stuck, engendering huge Carnival events elsewhere, including New Orleans and Rio de Janeiro.

[1] Beignets should be enjoyed warm, with a cup of strong coffee (photo © Orsay Restaurant | New York City.

A beignet (pronounced bayn-YAY, the french word for bump) is deep-fried choux pastry dough.

It’s a fritter similar to the German Spritzkuchen, the Italian zeppole and the Spanish churro. It can take on different shapes and flavorings depending on local preferences.

 
Beignets were brought to Louisiana by the Acadians, immigrants from Canada*, whose fritters were sometimes filled with fruit. Today’s beignets are a square or round piece of dough, fried and covered with powdered sugar. The fruit (in the form of jam) is now served, optionally, on the side.

The beignets at Café du Monde in New Orleans are worth going out of your way for (they taste best at the main location). After buying their mix and making them at home, we were unable to match the glory of the original, although we admit, we did not use cottonseed oil as they do.

In New Orleans, the beignet is also known as the French Market doughnut, and it is the Louisiana State doughnut. (How many states have an official state doughnut?)

At Café du Monde, beignets are served in orders of three. The cafe is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except for Christmas Day.
 
 
HOW TO EAT A BEIGNET

In New Orleans, beignets are served with the local favorite, chicory-laced coffee.

You can enjoy them plain, with fruit curd or jam or with chocolate sauce.
 
_________________

*The Acadians are the descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia. That colony was located in what is now Eastern Canada’s Maritime provinces—New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island—as well as part of Quebec and present-day Maine to the Kennebec River. Acadia was a distinctly separate colony of New France (which became Canada); the Acadians and Québécois developed two distinct histories and cultures. (Source: Wikipedia)

The recipe below is from Nielsen-Massey, manufacturer of some of the finest extracts in the world, including the vanilla extract used in the recipe.
 
 
RECIPE #1: VANILLA BEIGNET BITES

Ingredients For 6 Dozen Beignets

1. COMBINE warm water, yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar n a small bowl; set aside to activate yeast. In a medium bowl, add butter, half-and-half and vanilla extract; stir and set aside. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl; set aside.

2. COMBINE the flour, sugar, salt and cardamom in the bowl of a freestanding electric mixer. Place the bowl on a mixer stand fitted with a dough hook. Turn the mixer on low speed and combine the dry ingredients. Turn the mixer to medium speed, then add the activated yeast mixture. Add the half-and-half mixture, then add the whisked eggs. Mix until well combined, scraping the sides of the bowl when necessary. The dough will be slightly sticky.

3. PLACE the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead, about 2-3 minutes; add additional flour if needed. Lightly coat a large bowl with cooking spray and place the dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and keep warm until the dough has doubled in size, about 2 hours. After the dough has risen, place it on a lightly floured surface and gently knead. Roll the dough into a rectangle, about ¼-inch thick. With a pizza cutter, cut the dough into small rectangles, about 1 x ½-inch pieces.

4. HEAT the oil to 375°F. Carefully place dough in hot oil and fry until golden brown, about 45-60 seconds. Turn the beignets so that both sides are golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Dust with Vanilla Powdered Sugar (recipe below) while bites are still warm. Serve with plain, with chocolate sauce, lemon curd or raspberry jam.
 
 
RECIPE 2: VANILLA POWDERED SUGAR

Ingredients For 1/2 Cup

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the ingredients in a small bowl.