You can tell that Americans suffer from lactose intolerance by the different types of lactose-free milk in stores.

In our supermarket, there are as many varieties of lactose-free milk as conventional cow’s milk (0%, 2%, whole, chocolate, etc.).

In fact, Prevention magazine says that 65% of the world population are officially diagnosed as lactose-intolerant. Others among us may be slightly lactose-intolerant but don’t know it.

According to Green Valley Creamery, producer of lactose-free products, there are more lactose-intolerant and lactose-sensitive people in America than gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian people combined.

That’s an estimated 30-50 million people, 12% of the population.

Many members of the lactose-intolerant community just stopped eating dairy altogether. Some switched to non-dairy products made from almond milk, coconut milk, etc.

But what if you love cow’s milk?
 
 
LACTOSE-FREE DAIRY PRODUCTS

Over the past several years, two companies have stepped up to serve the market for lactose-intolerant people who prefer cow’s milk:

 
Others participate on a smaller level. For example:

 
Now, there are two new lactose-free yogurts from Siggi’s.
 
 
SIGGI’S YOGURT (SKYR)

In 2004, Icelander Siggi Hilmarsson moved to New York City. He was disappointed that American yogurts lacked the richness of Icelandic yogurt, or skyr (pronounced skeer).

With a recipe from his mother, Siggi began to make skyr in his kitchen: a lower-sugar yogurt that uses milk from family farms.

When he got it onto the shelves of specialty food stores, it was an immediate hit with yogurt lovers: a luxurious, ultra-premium yogurt experience.

Siggi’s yogurt that is even thicker than Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt is triple-strained, but skyr is quadruple-strained.

By the way, the more concentrated (strained) a style of yogurt is, the costlier it will be because it contains more milk and less water (one cup of Siggi’s requires four times more milk than a typical American brand).

The offset: More milk means more protein.

Siggi’s line has since expanded to include yogurts in 0% non-fat yogurt, 2% low-fat yogurt, 4% whole-milk yogurt and 4% no added sugar yogurt.

For those who can’t have enough richness, there’s a triple cream yogurt made even richer treat with more added cream—an Icelandic practice.

Siggi says that the skyr his dad eats in Iceland may even have more cream than skyr!

Siggi’s also makes whole-milk, drinkable filmjölk, a beverage similar to kefir; yogurt tubes for kids; and yogurt cups with pieces of fruits and nuts.
 
And Now, Lactose-Free Siggi’s Yogurt

Siggi’s new lactose-free yogurts, in Plain and Vanilla, are a whole milk product. As previously noted, in whole milk skyr recipes, that means milk plus a bit of cream.

[1] A dish of yogurt and pomegranate arils (all photos © Siggi’s).

[2] Siggi’s new whole milk, lactose-free yogurts in Plain and Vanilla.

[3] A nutritious breakfast: Siggi’s yogurt, peanut butter, fruit and nuts.

[4] On the savory side: Siggi’s plain yogurt with smoked salmon. Who needs cream cheese? Bagel optional.

A general note about cheese products:

As cheeses age, the lactose begins to disappear, broken down by beneficial bacteria in the cheese. Thus, highly-aged cheeses like Parmesan have much less lactose than cream cheese or goat cheese.

However, even 1% remaining lactose can be too much for highly-sensitive people.

The good news: Two popular cheeses, Cheddar and Jarlsberg, have zero lactose.
 
 
ABOUT LACTOSE INTOLERANCE

Lactose, or milk sugar, is naturally found in milk and other dairy products. All animal milk has lactose, but cow’s milk has more than others.

When people consume lactose, the body digests it with a stomach enzyme called lactase. If a person’s stomach doesn’t produce enough lactase, the lactose remains undigested in the stomach and causes unpleasant symptoms: bloating, gas, diarrhea.

Some people are born without enough lactase to digest milk products. Some produce enough lactase throughout their lives. And others gradually produce less lactase as they grow older.

The most lactose-tolerant people are descended from dairying people of northern Europe.

Certain other ethnic groups, particularly those that historically have consumed little dairy, tend to be more lactose-intolerant. Some of these groups are people of Arab, East Asian and West African, descent.

If you believe you may be lactose intolerant, a physician can give you a simple test.

Then, head to the grocer’s and stock up on Siggi’s lactose-free yogurt.

[1] Frosecco, a frozen Prosecco drink (photo © Cavit).

[2] Flutes of Prosecco at BLT Prime | New York.

[3] The Veneto region of Italy (photo courtesy Wikipedia).

A toast to National Prosecco Day, August 13th (photo #2)! The Bellini cocktail, created in 1948 at Harry’s Bar in Venice, was made with Prosecco.

Here’s the recipe for a Bellini, but our focus today is something new.

Three years ago, the drink rage of the summer was the Frosé, a frozen rosé drink made by adding a scoop of sorbet to a glass of rosé (recipes below.

Now, we propose a new frosty drink: Frosecco, a frozen Prosecco cocktail made with Italy’s famed sparkling wine (photo #1).

It’s a blender drink created by Cavit Winery.
 
 
FROZEN DRINK RECIPE: CAVIT’S FROSECCO

Ingredients For 4-6 Drinks

 
Preparation

1. POUR a bottle of Prosecco into a freezer-proof container and freeze overnight.

2. COMBINE the frozen Prosecco, lime juice, lemon juice, agave and ice in a blender, and pulse or blend to desired consistency.
 

HERE’S MORE ABOUT CAVIT, which also makes Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Moscato, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Rosé, Select Red Blend and Sweet Red Blend.

Here’s a store locator.

Here are more Prosecco cocktail recipes from Cavit.
 
 
ABOUT PROSECCO

Prosecco, from the Veneto region of northeast Italy (photo #3), is the best-selling sparkling wine in the world by volume.

The history of Prosecco is not well documented. Until recently, there were different theories about its origin. The name Prosecco is derived from the Italian village of Prosecco near Trieste, where the grape and the wine may have originated.

Now it is believed that the first Prosecco was created in 1868 by Antonio Carpene, who subjected still white wine of the area to a second fermentation, which produced the bubbles.

Today, Prosecco is controlled by DOC or DOCG†. Under these wine laws, Prosecco can be spumante (“sparkling wine”), frizzante (“semi-sparkling wine”), or tranquillo (“still wine”).

The laws also specify which towns can produce Prosecco, typically because of the quality of their soil, which impacts the flavor of the wine.

The flavor of Prosecco is crisp, often described as having notes of apricot, pear, white peach and/or yellow apple.

It is lower in alcohol than Champagne, typically 10.5%-11.5% A.B.V., and nice for a summer apéritif (photo #2) before dinner.
 
 
FROSÉ RECIPES

  
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*If you want a different sweetener, note that gave is twice as sweet as sugar or honey. Here’s conversion information.

†DOCG and DOC are Italian quality classifications. DOCG is Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita, Denomination of Controlled and Guaranteed Origin. DOC is Denominazione di Origine Controllata, Denomination of Controlled Origin.The labels are an assurance of the provenance and quality of the wines. DOCG is the higher category. The regulations for each delineate the production area, permitted grape varieties and production techniques. DOC Prosecco can be produced in nine provinces in the Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia regions. Prosecco Superiore DOCG is even more restricted.
 

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

[1] Tomato-Peach Gazpacho. Here’s the recipe from Botanica Restaurant | LA.

[2] Chilled Zucchini-Basil Soup from Botanica Restaurant.

[3] Peach-Jalapeño Gazpacho garnished with cucumber, jalapeño, watercress and white peaches (all photos © Botanica Restaurant)

A bowl of soup can be more than a bowl of soup.

Botanica restaurant in Los Angeles shows us how.

You can port the concept to any soup, hot or cold.
 
 
TOMATO-PEACH GAZPACHO

Garnishes include:

 
Here’s the recipe for the soup.

While you’re on the website, check out the other recipes.

And subscribe at the bottom of the page to receive regular culinary inspiration.
 
 
CHILLED ZUCCHINI BASIL SOUP

Garnishes include:

 
 
For more soup recipes, use the pull-down menu at the right.

How do you eat sushi?

Most people simply pick up the sushi with chopsticks and dip the bottom of the rice into soy sauce.

But many Americans don’t know that there is actually a “proper” way to eat sushi. This example is on the “improper” list.

Sushi comes with its own set of table manners. Even if you are at a casual sushi eatery in the U.S. and don’t want to mind your manners, you’ll need to learn them before a eating sushi in Japan.
 
 
EAT SUSHI LIKE A NATIVE

Here are some basics from Ken Sato, the sushi chef and director of restaurants for True World Foods, the leading distributor in fresh fish in the U.S.
 
1. Can you use your hands to eat sushi?

Yes, you can eat sushi with your hands, although—as with chicken drumsticks—not at a fine restaurant.

Sushi was originally a food for gamblers, so they didn’t have to stop playing cards in order to eat. Then, it was a street food, which people ate with their hands.

That’s why, at a restaurant, you receive a damp towel to clean your hands before eating sushi.
 
2. Can you pass food with chopsticks?

No, you should not pass food to another person with your chopsticks. It’s considered rude. Put the food on a plate and pass the plate instead.

Reverse the chopsticks to use the clean end (the larger end) when moving food, or when taking from a communal plate. But it is considered more refined to ask for a clean set of chopsticks to transfer food.
 
3. What is the proper way to dip sushi in soy sauce?

In the case of nigiri, you don’t want the soy sauce to touch the rice. The reason is that sushi rice is already reasoned with sweetened vinegar.

Instead, grasp the nigiri with chopsticks and turn it upside down. Lightly dip the fish side into the soy sauce.

With a sushi roll, also dip the piece lightly. You don’t want the salty soy sauce to take away from the delicate flavor of the fish.

With gunkan maki (the oval shape used to serve ikura [salmon roe] and uni [sea urchin), you cannot turn the piece upside down to dip it or the contents will fall out.

So while Americans tend to dip the seasoned rice side (the bottom) into the soy sauce, Japanese would dip a piece of ginger in soy sauce and brush it over the top of the seafood.

Using a lot of soy sauce is rude to the sushi chef. It’s a sign that the chef is not serving the freshest fish.
 
4. What should I do with the ginger and wasabi?

The wasabi can be placed directly on the fish or it can be mixed into the soy sauce.

Wasabi and ginger were originally used to help the stomach fight off potential bacteria, in the age before refrigeration.

In the modern era of food safety, they have become flavor enhancers and palate cleansers.
 
5. Chopsticks Position

Place the pointed ends of chopsticks on a chopstick rest when the chopsticks are not being used. If a rest is not provided, make a chopstick rest by folding the paper case that the chopsticks came in.

Americans rest the chopsticks on the plate or the soy sauce dish, which is fine. The tips should be pointing to the left.

Do not place chopsticks on the tabletop, cross them on a plate, or vertically stick them into a bowl of rice.
 
 
PRINCIPLE TYPES OF SUSHI

[1] A deluxe sushi plate at Sushi Inoue (photo © Sushi Inoue | NYC).

[2] A plate of nigiri and maki. The three bottom maki are uramaki, with the rice on the outside. (photo © Sushi Takibun [now closed]).

[3] Vegetarian futomaki—fat roll or big roll (photo © Haru Sushi).

[4] Futomaki special: salmon, tuna and yellowtail with takuwan, pickled whole daikon, with added color at Zuma | NYC (photo © Zuma).

 
 
WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT SUSHI & SASHIMI?

Here’s everything you need to know, in our Sushi & Sashimi Glossary.

[1] The Roussillon commune produces red, white and rosé wines, plus sweet wines (photo #2) (photo courtesy Wine Goblet).

[2] The sweet wines of Roussillon, vins doux naturels, are also available in the “three colors.” They’re often referred to by their initials, VDN, and indicate naturally sweet wines (photo courtesy Vignerons Catalans).

[3] Languedoc-Roussillon, an administrative region of France that combines the communes of Languedoc and Roussillon. Compared to the small size of Roussillon, Languedoc is one of the world’s largest wine regions (photo Wikipedia Commons).

If you’re a wine drinker, you’re no doubt familiar with the French wine communes (regions) of Beaujolais, Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne.

How about Alsace and the Côtes du Rhone?

And then there’s Roussillon (roo-see-YONE), a region not well known among American wine buyers*.

While exports to the U.S. market are steadily increasing, and the U.S. is Roussillon’s fourth-largest export market, most people we know have yet to try a bottle—or to even know that it exists.

That’s even though Roussillon produces delicious wines at affordable prices—many in the $18 range. Thus, our Top Pick Of The Week is the wines of Roussillon.
 
 
THE COMMUNE OF ROUSSILLON

The area, in southern France, is nestled between Spain, the Mediterranean Sea, and two mountain ranges: the Pyrenees and the Corbières (photo #3).

It’s the sunniest wine region of France, with more than 320 days per year of sunlight and ideal temperature variations.

Heavy autumn rains fill the water tables and enable the vines to find abundant moisture during the hot summer months.

In other words, Roussillon is a land “blessed by the gods” for winegrowing.

Roussillon is a small community of some 1,500 people, as opposed to the neighboring commune of Languedoc, another wine region with a population of some 2.5 million. (The two areas were combined into the Languedoc-Roussillon administrative region in the late 1980s.

Roussillon’s unique geology and microclimates enables cultivation of 24 authorized grape varieties.

The grapes produce red, white and rosé wines, both still (photo #1) and sweet (vins doux natureles, or fortified sweet wines, photo #2).

These are quality wines: There are 15 PDO wines (Protected Designation of Origin) and 3 PGI wines (Protected Geographical Indication) wines (here’s an explanation of these designations).

The first vines may have been planted by the Greeks as far back as the fifth century B.C.E., by Corinthian sailors who had wine-making skills [source].

These vineyards, along with some areas of Languedoc and Provence, are among the oldest planted vineyards in France [source].
 
 
VINS DOUX NATURELS

You know about dry red wines and dry white wines, but how about sweet wines?

Vins doux naturels, often referred to as VDNs, are fortified sweet wines—very high quality, and costlier than most of the still wines.

Fortified wines, which are made in many wine-growing regions worldwide, have grape brandy added to the wines. This gives them a higher alcohol content (about 17%-20% A.B.V.†) and a longer shelf life after the bottles are opened.

Fortified wines can be either be dry or sweet. The fortified wines of Roussillon are sweet (doux).

These wines also pair beautifully with spicy international cuisines, such as the sweet-and-sour or savory-sweet dishes of Chinese, Indian and cuisines.
 
 
HEAD TO THE WINE STORE

The only way to get to know Roussillon wines is to head to a wine store and discuss the available options with a knowledgeable clerk.

Red, rose, or white; still or sweet: It’s time to get to know these wines.

Some of our favorites are below. By the way, if your store only has wines from the Languedoc, be wary. While wines are improving there, the region has long been known for average wines.
 
 
FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT WINESOFROUSSSILON.COM.
 
 
WINES WE LIKE

  
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*France’s other wine-producing regions include Jura, Languedoc, Loire Valley and Provence

†A.B.V. is alcohol by volume. Double the A.B.V. to get the proof. For example, an 80-proof spirit is 40% A.B.V.