Ten Best Edibles of 2015/Retail

1.  Sauteed Onions from Citarella   I can eat these out of the container, by the spoonful, hot or cold.  (Do I have an onion-related deficiency?)  Sometimes they're a little too salty and sometimes not quite enough, but that just proves they are being made in house.   Great umami-boosting ingredient or consider them like a sauce or compote with meats or vegetables.    www.citarella.com

2.  Corn AND wheat tortillas combine the best characteristics of both.  I've seen a few brands, but as good as any and endearingly inexpensive are Trader Joe's Corn & Wheat Tortillas di mi Abuela.  Chewy and corny, they don't crack like standard corn tortillas but have a lovely, earthy corn sweetness superior to plain flour tortillas. 


3.  Moroccan Lentil Soup from Pret   Now that there is a Pret in like four blocks walking distance from any other Pret, this is one easy-to-find cup-of-soup.  It's dense a meaty for a wholly vegetarian soup. and it's got nice chunks of tender carrots and turnips in there to keep it from getting leaden.  Super warming with a lovely balance of spices.     http://pretamanger.com/en-us/704-soups-moroccan-lentil-.aspx


4.  Seafood Sausage from Agata and Valentina    This reminds me of the seafood sausage at Elan, only easy to fix at home and a whole lot cheaper.  Great on the grill, grill pan or even cooked up in a regular old frying pan.  Don't forget the mustard!   http://store.agatavalentina.com/Homemade-Seafood-Sausage-P17730.aspx


5.  Healthy Choice Vanilla Bean Greek Frozen Yogurt    I know things like this have been said before, but this does NOT taste healthy at all.  It's potently vanilla-y, and really creamy.  The yogurt just adds a hint of tang but it's not sour at all- it almost tastes more like cheesecake.  Swoon.  It's only a pity it doesn't come in a larger container.

7.  Organic Mulberry Juice   from Smart Juice.  This super juice boasts a quarter of your daily iron requirement and reminds of pie.  It's got 100% of your Vitamin C, too, so aside from being crazy-delicious it's really good for you, too.       http://www.vitacost.com/smart-juice-100-juice-organic-black-mulberry-33-8-fl-oz  

8.  Coolhaus Balsamic Fig and  Mascarpone Ice Cream   Crazy dense and creamy, the mascarpone gives a rich, nuanced character to the ice cream, and the balsamic cuts the sweetness of the figs to perfectly balance the three elements.  It is simply drool-worthy.

9.  Joseph's Flax, Oat Bran and Whole Wheat Flour Tortillas   I'm not an Atkins proponent at all, but sometime a little more protein does a body good, and these are super tasty, pliant and flavorful.

10.  Iggy's Seven Grain Bread  from Whole Foods.  This bread is probably the best store-bought sliced loaf you can get, and even much better than a lot of the unsliced ones you can find.   Really moist but sturdy.  Organic whole wheat flour, filtered water, natural sourdough starter (wheat flour (wheat, malted barley flour) and filtered water), organic sesame seeds, organic sunflower seeds, organic flax seeds, wildflower honey, fresh yeast, sea salt. Topped with organic rolled oats.