Strolling up and down the aisles, we wandered into the salad dressing area.

We found ourselves hungering for a big salad with ginger-miso dressing—the type of dressing, often orange in color, served on green salads at most Japanese restaurants. So…

We purchased three different brands, chopped up a big salad for dinner, and tossed it with dressing.

OMG: Is every prepared consumer food product sold in America drowning in sugar? Would the same brand sold in Japan be this sweet?

(Indeed, manufacturers alter their recipes to suit the tastes of different nationalities. For example, the original Dutch Heineken beer is much heartier than the watered-down product sold in the U.S.)

At $4.59 for a 12-ounce bottle, we were, to say the least, disappointed.

We rarely purchase salad dressing because it’s so easy to make, and the price is very high given the low cost of a bit of oil, vinegar, and seasonings. If we buy a bottle, it should taste great!
 
We knew we could do better than these overly sweet bottles. The next day, mixed our own, using it to top a dinner of grilled chicken on greens.

The recipe that follows took us 5 minutes (just toss all ingredients into the food processor); and the ingredients cost pennies, not dollars.

> Check out the information below on how to choose a salad oil.

> See our Culinary Oils Glossary for more information on the different types of salad oils.
 
 
RECIPE: GINGER MISO DRESSING

This recipe makes 3/4 cup dressing, enough for a salad for four. Feel free to double it and refrigerate the extra dressing—for your next salad, as a dip with raw vegetables, or as a sauce for grilled chicken, seafood, or vegetables.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE all the ingredients in a food processor or blender and process until creamy.

2. USE immediately or refrigerate.

[1] Freshly chopped and waiting for ginger miso dressing (photo by Elvira Kalviste | © THE NIBBLE).

[2] Fresh ginger root (photo © Good Eggs).

[3] Garlic bulb and cloves (photo Wesual Click | Public Domain).

When choosing oil for any culinary use, head to the monounsaturated fats, the “heart-healthy” oils.

Canola oil and olive oil, two popular cooking oils, are low in unhealthy saturated fat and not-so-healthy polyunsaturated fat, and high in healthy monounsaturated fat.

Scientists believe that monounsaturated fats help lower the bad cholesterol (LDL) that can clog arteries, leading to heart disease or stroke, while increasing the level of good cholesterol (HDL) that removes cholesterol buildup from the arteries. Integrate more of them, as well as the other oils listed above, into your diet.

> Here’s more on good fats vs. bad fats.
 
What about corn oil and vegetable oil?

While all oils are a combination of monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and saturated fats, a heart-healthy oil has a preponderance of monounsaturated oils.

In contrast, corn oil, vegetable oil *, and other popular cooking oils are largely polyunsaturated oils, where the preponderance of the fat is not monounsaturated: corn oil 62%, grape seed oil 71%; safflower oil 77%; sunflower oil (linolenic—69%).
 
_______________

*Vegetable oil can be a blend of oils, e.g. corn, soybean, and sunflower, or it may be only one type of oil. There is no requirement for the label to list the type(s) of oil in the bottle. Generally, “vegetable oil” is refined to have a high smoke point but very little taste or aroma. This makes it a good all-purpose oil for baking, frying, and sautéeing. However, it is not of sufficient quality to be used as a condiment oil or for salad dressings.
  
 
 

Here are two of the amazing banana dishes we found on TheBananaPolice.com. There’s quite a selection of them, turned into create fruit plates and cereal.

And there are simpler versions that any of us could create. See them all at TheBananaPolice.com: boats, butterflies, cars, dogs, dolphins, elephants, horses, snails, sunsets, trees and more.

The website is the creation of Katy Koontz and Kelsey C. Roy, the writer and illustrator, respectively, of a children’s book called The Banana Police.

The story takes place in a jungle town where the formerly loveable elephants become increasingly annoying to their neighbors. When the Mayor calls on the Elephant Police to devise a scheme to get the elephants to leave, the town ends up buried in all the extra bananas that the elephants usually eat. The tale underscores the value of peaceful co-existence and cooperation between inherently different groups.

A banana tree, cantaloupe giraffe and honeydew grass. Photo courtesy The BananaPolice.com.

The website also has family-friendly banana recipes and trivia, some of which is included below:

Here’s more banana trivia.
 
 

Most people don’t understand Fair Trade. One of the reasons is that, unlike the USDA Certified Organic Seal that appears on all organic product packaging—regardless of the particular certifying agency (there are certifiers in every state)—the different Fair Trade-related certifying organizations have their own logos. Some, like Equal Exchange and Rainforest Alliance, aren’t even called anything related to “fair” or “trade.”

Rather, the complexity is more like kosher certification, where hundreds of different kosher certifiers are involved, each with their own logo or mark (called a hechsher, pronounced HECK-sure). Consumers decide if they want to buy products certified only by the largest and best-known, or if they’ll trust a hechsher they don’t know—or recognize that it’s a hechsher in the first place.

Pick just one product you use regularly, and make it Fair Trade. Photo courtesy Green Mountain Coffee.

But let’s start with the basics.

WHAT IS FAIR TRADE

Fair Trade International, Fair For Life, Rainforest Alliance and other certification organizations ensure that farmers are paid fair value for their products. Without Fair Trade, brokers can strike deals that pay the farmers less than it costs them to grow their crops.

Fair Trade affords money for adult (instead of child) labor, sound agricultural practices and a minimum standard of living, including healthcare and education for their families.

The term “Fair Trade” is used generically, but it is a trademarked term authorized by TransFair USA, a nonprofit organization that audits transactions between U.S. companies offering Fair Trade Certified™ products and the international suppliers from whom they source.

TransFair is one of some twenty members of Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO), and the only third-party certifier of Fair Trade products in the U.S.

Fair Trade is completely separate from organic certification. Some products pursue both certifications.

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO

You are one of the stakeholders in Fair Trade. In addition to helping some of the world’s poorest people improve their lots, you help with sustainability.

Small actions build into large ones. You can help the Fair Trade movement buy buying just one Fair Trade-certified product. Whether it’s your coffee, sugar, or anything else, your purchase tells retailers that Fair Trade products are important to consumers.

If no one buys them, they won’t stay on the shelf.

So browse your store shelf and buy one—or more—items. Help to make the world a better place.

NOTE: If you can’t find Fair Trade Certified products in your supermarket, try a natural foods store.

Following the growing preference for spicy flavors in everyday foods, Bumble Bee launched new Prime Fillet Gourmet Flavors. The seasoned premium white albacore tuna is ready to go directly onto salad greens, pasta or rice—along with the healthful olive oil they’re canned in. There’s no need for mayonnaise here!

To add to a burrito, sandwich, wrap or other “holder,” drain the oil—but save it to use with a can of plain tuna.

Bumble Bee’s latest canned tuna offerings. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.

A new non-flavored variety, Omega-3 Prime Fillet Albacore Tuna, offers amped up levels of Omega-3 EPA and DHA. Each serving contains 500 mg of EPA and DHA—312% of the 160 mg daily value. For consumers who want to add more of these important nutrients to their diets, it is used as any canned tuna, in all your favorite tuna recipes.

Salmon with garden pesto. Photo courtesy
Bumble Bee.

BUMBLE BEE SUPERFRESH PREMIUM FRESH
FROZEN

Bumble Bee fish and shrimp never get to the cannery. Instead, they’re filleted and turned into all-natural, premium frozen fish entrees in parchment paper, ready to heat and enjoy. The flavor-rich, protein-rich gluten-free choices include:

 
We all know we should eat more fish, and research confirmed that consumers are looking for high-quality seafood that tastes fresh and delicious. These new frozen entrées are flavorful and moist and taste freshly made: a restaurant-quality meal.

Each premium fish fillet is wrapped in parchment paper, which seals in flavor and juices. The packets go from freezer to table in 20 minutes or less. The shrimp entrées sauté quickly on the stove top.

The line launched in the Northeast in June, and is rolling out nationwide. The MSRP ranges between $8.99 and $9.99 for two portions.

That’s the buzz!
*Romesco sauce (salsa romesco) is a nut and red pepper-based sauce that originated in Catalonia, Spain. It is typically made from roasted or raw almonds, pine nuts, and/or hazelnuts, roasted garlic, olive oil, bitxo chiles and/or nyora peppers (a small, round, variety of red bell pepper). Other common ingredients can include roasted tomatoes, red wine vinegar and onions. It is a popular sauce with seafood (with fennel or mint leaves added) and anything from poultry and lamb to vegetables.

The Lovely Candy Company of Woodstock, Illinois is committed to all natural, gluten-free and non-GMO candies made from the best ingredients. Its products include caramels, fruit chews and licorice.

We love good caramels, and devoured the two bags we received: Original (vanilla) and Chocolate Swirl. We also received Fruit Chews—not our thing—which were devoured by the rest of THE NIBBLE team.

Buttery and soft yet chewy, no dentures or fillings will compromised by these tender caramels. They’re made from brown rice syrup (a lower glycemic* sweetener), sweetened condensed whole milk, butter, dried cane syrup, molasses, vanilla and lecithin, with chocolate liquor† added for the Chocolate Swirl variety.

Our preference is for the Chocolate Swirls, which are less sweet than the Original. We’ve earmarked them for stocking stuffers.

But give us either flavor—the contents will disappear just as quickly.

The line is certified kosher by KOF-K.

Or, head to Amazon.com for:

 
You can also find the Fruit Chews on Amazon.
 
ABOUT BROWN RICE SYRUP

Brown rice syrup, also called rice bran syrup and rice malt, is a low-glycemic sweetener. This means that its complex sugars are absorbed more slowly into the bloodstream—usually a boon for people with diabetes (see the next paragraph). It’s about half as sweet as table sugar and one-third as sweet as agave syrup/nectar.

Although brown rice syrup has a GI (glycemic index) of 20,* it is not recommended for diabetics. That’s because its sweetness comes from maltose, which causes spikes in blood sugar. But, check with your healthcare provider if you are a diabetic who’d like to try brown rice syrup or products it contains.

*Table sugar has a GI value of 60-65. Pure maple syrup maple syrup has a GI of 54.

†A misleading term, chocolate liquor contains no alcohol. It is a thick, gritty, dark brown paste. Here’s a longer explanation of chocolate liquor.