By Eric Nusbaum, Assistant Editor, JTNews
In the tradition of eating as much delicious kosher treats as we can so you don’t have to, we welcome you to our annual Hanukkah kosher food tasting. As we do every year, we had the pleasure of trying out delicious kosher foods that can either be served at your gatherings or given as gifts. This year, we got our eats from PCC and, in a stroke of cheap genius, Grocery Outlet, which has aisles and aisles of high-end kosher packaged foods for far less than you’d spend anywhere else — plus some bonus items sent our way straight from the source.
In the great tradition of noshing, we opted against fully formed main courses and went for a slew of snacks instead. There were crackers and cheeses and chips galore; piles of cookies and truffles and chocolates; and of course, beverages — after all, what’s a feast without a glass of beer or wine, or even gourmet soda?
We’ll start with appetizers: Fellow taster Stacy and I had a great time mixing and matching different cheeses, especially the Redwood Chevre (PCC, $5.69) and Mozzarella Fresca’s bite-sized fresh mozzarella (Grocery Outlet, $2.99) with Eden’s organic cherry butter (PCC, $8.49). “Delish,” said Stacy of the combo.
If you want to keep your noshes centered on the Mediterranean region, why not start with some subtle rosemary croccantini from local bakery La Panzanella (PCC, 4.99)? “The best for dips,” according to Susan. “They really allow for the flavors to come through.”
Build from there with the aforementioned cheeses, or drop on a few of Mama Lil’s Peppers (PCC, 7.49). The peppers are spicy and marinated — the result of an old Hungarian-Jewish recipe — and go great with cheese and crackers. Top things off with a drizzle of Olivos Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Grocery Outlet, $5.99). Olivos was an overwhelming favorite for its cost, its flavor (“sweet, smooth, delicious!” according to Joel), and its packaging, which Karen called “show-stopping.”
But if that’s too much work, other more easily dip-able kosher options abound. In the hummus department, everyone agreed that Sabra provides the best options (Grocery Outlet, $2.99). Their spinach and artichoke was praised for its “good flavor” and “nice texture,” while the Supremely Spicy variety lived up to its name (beware of the peppers) while remaining “smooth and tasty.”
Not every item was a consensus success. For example, I found the Naturally Wild Smoked Salmon (Grocery Outlet, $4.99) delicious, bursting with salmon taste, and Janna found it “smoky and very flavorful,” but to Stacy it was “too fishy.” All Joel had to say of it was, “Ick.” Joel and Stacy preferred the mellower smoked sockeye (PCC, $6.99), but this writer/taster found it lacking kick.
If kick is not your preference, but subtlety is, I highly recommend Dry Soda Co.‘s Vanilla Bean soda (PCC, $5.75 for 4). The soda was described as “elegant,” “light,” “refreshing,” and “effervescent.” One anonymous taster even suggested it would make for a great cocktail ingredient.
There were, alas, no spirits within reach at the JTNews office — but we did try some beer and wine. First off was the He’Brew Jewbelation Fourteen, a dark, strong, and symmetrical beer: 14 hops, 14 malts, and 14 percent alcohol (Available at Whole Foods, Bottleworks in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood, and Central Market). I won’t say we were rolling after sharing a 22-ounce bottle of the stuff, but I will gladly admit that for some of us an afternoon cup of coffee was immensely necessary. That said, this beer could have replaced the coffee to go with some of the sweets we ate (see the Cougar Mountain Cookies).
We also uncorked a bottle of Teal Lake Shiraz (PCC, $14.50) — a wine that was roundly enjoyed as spicy, smooth, and flavorful but drinkable.
“I’ve had this before,” said Karen, “and I didn’t even know it was kosher.”
And then we came to dessert. Our dessert table was, if anything, chocolate-filled (perhaps this was a reflection on the JTNews official shoppers, above all else). We learned that good things come small and large, simple and elaborate packages.
For a small, elegantly packaged treat, you can’t go wrong with one of Jo’s Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Grahams (PCC, $1.50).
These treats were praised as delicate and “not overly sweet” by one taster. In my book, they were the perfect combination of sweet and salty — and the graham cracker provided just the right amount of crunch.
But what if you want something a bit more lavish…and a bit more seasonal? If that’s the case, then we suggest Peppermint Place’s Peppermint Truffles (Grocery Outlet, $2.49). Susan says praised their mintiness and called them “refreshing.” Stacy centered on their gift-giving potential: “Such great packaging for the holidays!” she said.
My favorite combination of familiar holiday packaging and creative new taste came from the Ferrara Pan Chocolate’s Toffee Crunch Orange Chocolate Ball (Grocery Outlet, $1.50). At first glance, it looked like a regular spherical chocolate orange, but bite in and discover something far better. “A great crunch,” said Joel. And great to share too — just break open and serve.
For a cozy winter night, however, perhaps something a bit more familiar should be in order. On those nights, there’s always Cougar Mountain Cookies (PCC, $3.99). Cougar Mountain is a local favorite, and their flavor of the month, Double Chocolate XXXX Stout, would go great by the fireplace — “they melt in your mouth,” Karen said. And go great with He’Brew Jewbelation!
Going chocolate-free for a moment, note the box of fruit candy from Liberty Orchards, the folks who bring you our state’s official candy, Aplets & Cotlets. You can’t go wrong with a classic. Or as Becky said, “always a great gift.”
And speaking of classics, the natural rival for the title of state candy, Almond Roca from Brown & Haley in Tacoma, was just cited in the Seattle P-I’s Big Blog as one of the biggest hits in Chinese exports. Well, we’ve gone even bigger. The good folks at B&H know when they have a good thing, and even better, they know when that good thing should be doubled, then tripled. That’s the idea behind their “classics,” which clock in at double the size of your standard foil-wrapped Almond Roca and with the triple the types of nuts: Almonds, hazelnuts and cashews on a bed of chocolate over a chunk of toffee. But more than anything, they were quadruple the deliciousness. B’teyavon!