Day 98 - Imperfect Foods Apple Crisp Garanola

 

You don't need to be a hippie to enjoy granola.  I love cereal, granola is cereal.  We have been getting our groceries delivered this year but I remember as if it was several months ago.  The cereal isle is a wonderland of flavors, textures, shapes, colors and moods, promising everything from health and well-being to strength, virility and a sugar crash worthy of a heroin overdose, good times!

We have been getting some of our delivered groceries from a company called Imperfect Foods.  They sell items that are perfectly edible and tasty but would go to waste because stores don't want them for a number of reasons: fruit and vegetables that are small or wrong in appearance, meat that wasn't cut properly (good example: we got center-cut bacon pieces, delicious but not the perfect strips you'd expect) overstock items, packages that are slightly damaged or have the wrong appearance do to redesign or printing errors.  

Imperfect Foods organic Apple Crisp granola is made in small batches in a solar-powered bakery by elves.  It's made with organic nuts, seeds, apple pieces and spices.  They have a natural taste, not too sweet, decent crunch, definitely some cinnamon.  The biggest problem, not nearly enough apple pieces.  I see this time and again.  When something is advertised as an "apple" thingy, it should have enough apples damn-it!  I shouldn't get mad though. (Calm down Mike, think of your blood pressure) It is from Imperfect Foods.

Another granola I wanted to mention because it is fucking delicious is Love Crunch!  This is the tastiest granola I have tried.  It is a chocolate granola with dried strawberries, rasberries, coconut and dark chocolate chunks.  I have only seen it at Costco.  I highly recommend it.

Next time I review L'Epicurien Apple Cider Confit with Calvados Brandy.  Crunch on!

Day 97 - Sailor Jerry Savage Apple Rum vs. Captain Morgan Apple Spiced Rum

 
I have tried a lot of apple flavored spirits and I don't mean apple flavored ghosts.  Don't mix apples with the dead, that's what I always say, almost on a daily basis.  Can I get a boo-boo!

Rum is a category of liquor that I enjoy.  It mixes well with apple cider, eggnog, cola and many cocktails.  Sailor Jerry Savage Apple and Captain Morgan Apple Spiced Rum are almost identical in taste!  I have tried and enjoyed both their standard versions before.  Sailor Jerry Savage Apple has a little more of a tart green apple taste than the Captain and for the apple version, they reduced their abv from 46% alcohol to 35% for a little less bite.  They are comparable in price, usually about $18.99 for 750 ml.  The Captain Morgan's was on sale for $14.99.

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Laura made a kick-ass cocktail with the Captain Morgan Apple Spice Rum.  It was made from the aforementioned, apple cider, Buttershots Butterscotch liquor, Canada Dry Bold Ginger Ale and a garnish of fresh apple slice and it was fucking awesome, yum!  It would have been just as good with Sailor Jerry Savage Apple.  Thanks Laura!

Next time, we have breakfast with Imperfect Foods Apple Crisp Granola with a bonus review of Love Crunch Granola.  Crunch on!

Day 96 - Crimson Topaz

 

This wasn't a great year to peruse the apple section for new subjects to dissect.  I used to hit grocery stores, farmers markets, orchards, back alleys, dark webs, every warehouse, farmhouse, henhouse, outhouse, doghouse I could find.  You know, the COVID hit.  We have been getting our groceries delivered since April 4th.  I have only experienced 4 new apples this year.

I bought a quarter peck of Crimson Topaz at Peck and Bushel Organic Fruit Co.  The Crimson Topaz was developed in the 1990's in the Czech Republic.  It is a cross between a Vanda and a Rubin.

The flavor is tart, sour, or as they say on the Great British Baking Show, sharp but still sweet.  They are small to medium in size and have a uniform round shape with a white inner flesh and a bright red exterior with yellow highlights.  The one pictured above had a cool racing stripe!  I found them to be crisp and juicy but they browned rather quickly once the skin was breached.  I prefer my apples a little less tart but if you like that then check 'em out.

Next time, I compare Captain Morgan Apple Spiced Rum with Sailor Jerry Savage Apple Rum, crunch on!

 

Day 95 - Laura's Apple Ginger Crisp

 

Laura likes to cook and bake.  It makes me want to fill my plate and lick it clean for goodness sake.  Baretta was played by Robert Blake.

Baretta had a cockatoo named Fred.  It was a cool looking bird.  I don't think I'd like to own a bird, filthy creatures really.  In 1990, the cockatoo who played Fred was stolen from the San Diego Wild Animal Park.  He was found safely and went on to live a long life.  He celebrated his 100th birthday in 2014, wow, very old for a cockatoo, average life expectancy 50-70 years.  I don't know what age he lived to but I digress. 

I am lucky that my wife enjoys cooking like she does.  She feels true joy in the process of figuring out what to make, gathering and prepping the ingredients and finally, presenting the finished dishes in all their glory!  I reap the benefits for sure.

I'm not much of a cook myself.  We did Plated for 2-3 years.  They send ingredients and detailed recipe cards for 2 meals a week.  We were quite busy at the time and thought it would save some meal planning/shopping time and also give me a chance to work on cooking.  I made some meals successfully but I have to say the actual process of cooking gave me no joy.  The eating is always good but thank you Laura my dear for thoughtfully filling the bellies of your loved ones!

Laura's Apple Ginger Crisp was dynamite!  It was made with Liberty and Crimson Topaz apples, cut up candied ginger, sugar and spices with a delicious, buttery streusel on on top.  The tart apples were cooked just right and were a great compliment to the spiciness of the ginger, the sweetness of the gooey stuff and the crunch of the streusel.  I had it with a little vanilla ice cream and some whipped cream, YUM!

Next time, I review the Crimson Topaz.  Crunch on!

Day 94 - Liberty

Liberty 

Liberty has it's blemishes.  It can be sweet, it can be sour.  We refer to our cat Eliza as sweet and sour.  She's a sweet girl but sometimes she turns on a dime and claws your face off.  We put up with it because it's what we know.  America is sometimes like this but I'm talking about an apple, the Liberty apple.

The Liberty apple was first developed in 1955 in New York state, a mix of the Macoun and the Purdue 54-12 with the Macintosh as a grand-parent but was not available to the public until 1978.  It is a small, uniform shaped apple with a mostly dark red color.  It was developed to be resistant to disease (like America?) and therefore, yields a good harvest but only lasts a couple months after being picked.

I bought a half peck of these at Peck and Bushel Organic Fruit Co.  It has a crisp, white flesh, a juicy bite and is fairly sour.  My wife made an apple crisp (see future review) with these and some Crimson Topaz apples.

Liberty has a short growing season but is supposedly an easy apples to grow so if enough of us work together, maybe we could have enough liberty for all!

Next time, I review Laura's Ginger Apple Crisp.  Crunch on!

Day 93 - Honeycrisp Apple Spumante (Non-alcoholic)

I did not drink alcohol for almost 4 months starting in Mid-February, what a year to go sober!  It was the longest I've gone without drinking since my freshman year of college.  On November 22nd 2019, I went to the doctor because I had some soreness in my chest and some dizziness.  They sent me to the hospital.  It turned out I had a blockage in one of my arteries and I had to have a stent put in.  I was put on a few different meds after, some that I need to take for life, one was a blood thinner called Brilinta (later it changed to Plavix) that I need to take for at least a year.  This was all quite a bummer so I was determined to get healthy.  I started eating better and exercising regularly.

Early February, Laura and I went on a lovely trip to Turks and Caicos in the Caribbean.

It was the most beautiful place I've ever seen but I was scarily out of breath while we were down there.  I thought it was a side-effect of the Brilinta, which can sometimes cause shortness of breath.  When we got back, I went to the cardiologist to switch from Brilinta to Plavix.  They suggested I get a chest CT to check for possible blood clots and lo and behold, I had 'em, a pulmonary embolism, hooray!  So then I had to start taking Eliquis to break up clots in my lungs.  I would need to take it for 6 months.  I was now taking two major blood thinners so would need to be very careful about getting hurt so I wouldn't bleed out, and I bruise like a bastard.  My doctor said I should stop drinking while on Plavix and Eliquis because alcohol also thins the blood.

I did not make it the whole 6 months without drinking.  As a world-wide pandemic kicked in and things were stressful, I started drinking a little the last couple months but during the sober period, I experimented with non alcoholic beers, cocktails and wines.  It was a learning experience.

There are a lot more NA beers than there used to be.  There are NA versions of every style: Stouts, Porters, Lagers, IPA's, Weiss beers, Radlers, ect...  I tried several.  Unfortunately, most of them taste like a watered down version of the real thing.  I found two German options that were pretty good, Buckler Lager and the best one, Paulander Weizen-Radler.  I am not usually into Radlers (more commonly known as Shandy) but this is the only NA I have tried that tastes like a High-Octane beer.

I tried some NA cocktail mixers:  Seedlip Grove 42 Citrus and Ritual Whiskey Alternative.  They have a variety of ingredients that try to mimic alcohol, heat from peppers, citrus, herbs and I made some cocktails.

Now for the review:  Lautenbach's Orchard Country Honeycrisp Apple Spumante (Non-alcoholic).

It is from a vinyard in Fish Creek, WI.  It is very sweet, not very exciting.  I would rather go for Welch's Sparkling Cider than this.  As a kid, I would sometimes have Welch's sparkling cider or grape juice for occasions like Thanksgiving and that stuff is pretty good!

Live and learn and then get Luv's!  Next time I review the Liberty apple.  God bless us, every one.  Crunch on!

Day 92 - Walls Berry Farm Organic Honeycrisp Organic Apple Fruit Spread

Organic, what else you got?  Honeycrisp, the days of that being the best apple around are over!  I saw this whopping 42 oz jar of Walls Berry Farm Organic Honeycrisp Organic Apple Fruit Spread at Costco for $3.97 so why the hell not!

It's pretty good stuff, 35 calories per serving.  It has a smooth texture and some light spice.  It's good on toast, waffles. ice cream, your lover's skin.  I put some on my Costco Apple Crumb Muffin, as seen in my last review.

My first problem with it, however is the word organic is on the jar, I kid you not, 12 times!  Depending on how you read it, it actually uses the word organic twice in the name.  Check out these previous blogs discussing the pros and cons, the mystery and grandeur of organic apples: 

https://mikegrunertblog.blogspot.com/2019/03/day-78-crimsoncrisp-apple-cult-and-is.html

https://mikegrunertblog.blogspot.com/2017/03/day-26-organic-honey-crisp.html

If the best you can do to make this jar look appealing is to print organic on it 12 times, that's lame.

Next complaint, the Honeycrisp name is used too much to sell apple products.  I have reviewed Honeycrisp Apple Tea, Honeycrisp Apple Chips and my next review is actually for Honeycrisp Apple Spumante.  The Honeycrisp was the rockstar of the apple world for several years but there are lots of great choices now and specifically, in regard to what it added to these products, I don't think it was that significant. 

In conclusion, Walls Berry Farm Organic Honeycrisp Organic Apple Fruit Spread is fine and certainly a bargain at $3.97 a jar.  My favorite product like this is Musselman's Apple Butter.  See review: https://mikegrunertblog.blogspot.com/2018/01/day-59-musselmans-apple-butter-and.html

Next time, I review Honeycrisp Apple Spumante (non-alcoholic) and discuss my current period of sobriety.  Crunch and drink on!