Pretzel rolls are a trend, delivered nationwide by Wendy’s Pretzel Bacon Cheeseburger, Dunkin’ Donuts’ Pretzel Roll Roast Beef Sandwich and Sonic’s pretzel hot dog.

We’ve been making sandwiches on the pretzel rolls from Trader Joe’s since we discovered them a year ago.

Or check your local market. Pretzilla, has a line of pretzel rolls that include burger buns, sausage/hot dog buns, mini buns (for sliders) and pretzel bites, with which you can for anything from dipping into fondue or making pretzel nachos. The products are sold nationwide (here’s the store locator).

If you can’t find pretzel rolls, lobby your grocery store manager to bring them in.

A new classic: hot dog or brat on a pretzel roll. Photo courtesy Pretzilla.

Or, make your own with this recipe, which we found on the blog Jessie-Ordinary Days. Here’s another recipe from The Dutch Baker’s Daughter.

PRETZEL ROLLS RECIPE

Ingredients

For The Dough

 
For The Bath

 
Plus

1. MIX dough ingredients together in a stand mixer with paddle attachment until it forms a ball; then mix with dough hook. Says Jessie: “I found that I had to add flour until my dough came together, was no longer sticky and quite stiff. I added maybe another 3/8 of a cup gradually, until the dough looked right.” Let dough rise in mixer bowl, covered with plastic wrap, for 1 hour in a warm place.

2. PUNCH down dough after the first rising and shape into balls. Place rolls onto well greased cookie sheet and let rise 15 minutes.

3. PREHEAT oven to 400°F. While rolls are rising, mix the bath ingredients together and bring to a rolling boil. Once the 15 minute rise is over, poach 3 rolls at a time for 1 minute. Flip after 30 seconds. Place poached rolls on greased cookie sheet.

4. MAKE two slashes with a serrated knife and sprinkle with sea salt. BAKE until a deep dark brown, approximately 20 minutes depending on your oven. Keep an eye on the rolls so they don’t burn.

Freeze any extras. They thaw quickly.

We love them for light meals, snacking or dessert. Now, we hope that the flavors will resonate with Americans, so retailers will keep them on the shelves.

Chobani Bite. How about about Chocolate Mint or Honey With Ginger, the new flavors of Chobani Bite, the 3.5-ounce, 100-calorie cups sold in four-packs. We’re crazy about both, so delightful that we can happily trade in those less-healthful snack options.

Standard Cups. Low-fat Apricot, Coconut, Key Lime and Orange Vanilla and non-fat Blackberry are the newbies in six-ounce cups. If you like coconut, it’s the winner. We wanted “seconds” immediately! The Orange Vanilla was a bit of a disappointment, because we were expecting “Creamsicle.” The flavors are a lot less pronounced. But we’d gladly have more of the others.

Chobani Flip. With dry ingredients that flip over into the yogurt, flavors include Blueberry Power–with chia seeds, hemp seeds and walnuts; Nutty for Nana with honey roasted salted almonds and dark chocolate in banana yogurt; Peachy Pistachio with pistachio and dark chocolate; and Tropical Escape, pineapple coconut yogurt with toasted coconut, hazelnut and granola.

Chobani Champions. For kids, there’s Flyin’ Dragon Fruit Greek Yogurt. This exotic fruit from the cactus family tastes like a blend of kiwi, mango, pear and watermelon. If you’ve never seen one, here’s a photo.

There are other flavors—14 in total—and most retailers have space to carry only a selection of them. But take a look in your store and “spoon in,” as they say at Chobani.

FOOD TRIVIA

 
NOTE: As we write this, there’s a recall of some Chobani products due to mold that causes swelling container tops and bad taste. A couple of the products we received from Chobani had this problem; the majority were just fine. While Chobani looks into its production issues, don’t deprive yourself of its yogurts. The suspect yogurts, with code 16-012, are hopefully off the shelves.

Certain recipes—angel food cake, egg white omelets, macaroons, marshmallows, meringues/pavlovas, seven-minute frosting, white cake and some soufflés—use only the egg whites. Here’s what to do with the extra yolks:

SAUCES WITH EGG YOLKS

 
DESSERTS WITH EGG YOLKS

MORE IDEAS FOR EGG YOLKS

 
HOW TO STORE EGG YOLKS

Egg yolks tend to dry out after a few days in the fridge, and especially in the freezer. The gelatin in the yolk causes it to thicken when frozen. Store yolks in the fridge in an airtight container with a few tablespoons of water. Plan to use them quickly.

If you have too many to use, you can beat and freeze the egg yolks. Follow these instructions from the American Egg Board, which offers detailed information on storing eggs in every form.
HOW TO STORE EGG WHITES

Egg whites can be stored, covered, in the fridge for a few days; but if you’re not going to use them immediately, freeze them. Place each egg white into an individual compartment of an ice cube tray. Freeze and transfer to a freezer bag. Then, just defrost what you need at room temperature.

Yes, we’ll be publishing an article on what to do with those leftover whites!

 
HOW MANY TYPES OF EGGS CAN YOU NAME?

Check out the different types of eggs in our Egg Glossary. You’ll be surprised!

Well, it’s about time! Considering the proliferation of non-dairy milks populating grocery stores, it seems unthinkable that cashews have been entirely missing in action. Until now.

Who better to unleash the world’s first commercial cashew milk than So Delicious, having proven their mastery of both frozen and refrigerated dairy-free delights? Before I even realized my own unfulfilled nut milk desires, this turned out to be the creamy drink I had been waiting for all along.

Almond milk is my typical go-to milk alternative, the prime candidate for drinking, baking, cooking, and yes, ice cream-ing.

New cashew milk from So Delicious. Photo © Hannah Kaminsky | BittersweetBlog.com.

Currently offered in Unsweetened and Unsweetened Vanilla, my only hope would be that the line takes off and expands to include a chocolate option.

A very subtle nutty flavor defines thee background flavor, distinctly cashew in essence, and easily minimized when mixed into other recipes. Bearing a clean flavor with no sugar to speak of, they can seamlessly work in any application, a testament to their versatility.

In short, if you don’t give these cashew milks a try, you’re seriously missing out! They may very well replace my almond standby, at least once they gain wider distribution in more mainstream grocery stores.

So Delicious products are certified Kosher (parve) by Kehilla Kosher.

—Hannah Kaminsky

Surprise: Cashew “nuts” are not true nuts but seeds that adhere to the bottom of the cashew apple, the fruit of the cashew tree.

Another surprise: Cashews are always sold shelled, because the inside lining of the shells contains an inedible, caustic resin. This “cashew balm” is used to make varnishes and insecticides!

But the bounty inside the shell is a most delicious, nutritious nut/seed, with one-quarter cup providing copper (37.5% DV), magnesium (25% DV), manganese (28.4% DV), phosphorus (20.3% DV) and tryptophan (DV 28.1%), as well as iron, selenium and zinc.

Cashews’ high antioxidant components also help to lower risk of cardiovascular and coronary heart diseases.

Cashews have a lower fat content than most other nuts, and most of it comprises heart-healthy monounsaturated fats (the same fats found in olive oil).

So dig in—or drink up!

Let lettuce take the place of tortillas, bread, and other refined-carb, low-nutrition sandwich wrappers. Turn them into lunch or snack fare—or as in the photo, hors d’oeuvre.

Lettuce wraps are fun food. You’ll get family members to eat more fiber and snack healthier. You can even create a groovy hors d’oeuvre.
 
 
LETTUCE WRAPS: PICK YOUR FILLING

First decide on your filling(s):

 
Use romaine hearts or Boston (bibb) lettuce for the wraps.

Lettuce wraps are fashionable, appearing here at a red carpet party in New York City, filled with crab salad and accompanied by Champagne. Photo © Adam Sung | Chandon USA.

While domestic blueberries are still in markets, add some of the high-antioxidant, zingy nuggets to wrap sandwiches.

Ingredients

1. COMBINE yogurt, mayonnaise, celery, and salt in a medium bowl. Gently stir in chicken and blueberries.

2. MAKE a stack of tortillas separated by damp paper towels, and warm in the microwave: Microwave on high until hot, 30 to 60 seconds.

3. PLACE warm tortillas on the counter. Top each tortilla with a lettuce leaf. Scoop about ½ cup chicken-blueberry salad on each lettuce leaf.

4. ROLL each tortilla into a cylinder. Cut each in half or thirds. Secure with toothpicks, if desired. Serve immediately or wrap tightly in foil and refrigerate.
 
 

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