New Orleans, La., home of some of my favorite dishes such as beignets and fried catfish, ranks #7. To see the complete list, go here. The 150 most populated U.S. cities are ranked in order of Overall Rank, which is determined by “Wallet Wellnes” and “Diversity, Accessibility & Quality”.
You can also find on that page the following ranked listings:
Lowest & Highest Groceries — Houston has the lowest, go figure!
Lowest & Highest Average Beer & Wine Price — Milwaukee, Wis., is the best for beer & wine
Highest & Lowest Number of Restaurants per Capita — You’ll find more restaurants in San Francisco!
Highest & Lowest Ratio of Full-Service Restaurants to Fast-Food Establishments — My home town of Santa Rosa has more full-service than fast food restaurants, imagine that!
Highest & Lowest Number of Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Shops per Capita — If you like frozen dessert, go to Garden Grove, Calif!
Highest & Lowest Number of Craft Breweries & Wineries per Capita — Again, my home town of Santa Rosa, Calif, brings the best value for craft beer and wine lovers!
Highest & Lowest Number of Coffee Shops per Capita — Java lovers should head on over to San Francisco, Calif!
Highest & Lowest Gourmet Specialty Food Stores per Capita — Like gourmet? Visit Honolulu!
This recipe was created and submitted by Jenny Engel and Heather Goldberg of Spork Foods, a Los Angeles-based gourmet vegan food company. The recipe is nutritious, gluten-free and vegan. To make the dish even faster, substitute the pistachios and dried cranberries with four Pistachio Chewy Bites.
10 oz fresh or frozen organic cranberries (2 1/2 cups)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
Dash sea salt
1/4 cup Setton Farms roasted, shelled Pistachio Kernels (roughly chopped)*
2 tablespoons dried cranberries*
Directions:
Heat a 2-quart sauce pot and add water and brown sugar. Bring to simmer over medium heat and add cinnamon stick, fresh or frozen cranberries, lemon juice and zest, and sea salt. Stir to incorporate all ingredients.
Simmer covered until berries burst and sauce thickens, stirring occasionally about 10 minutes. Remove cinnamon stick and add in diced pistachios and dried cranberries. Cook about 1-2 minutes uncovered and remove from heat.
Serve warm or allow to cool, then refrigerate sauce overnight.
Pistachio cranberry sauce can be made up to 3 days ahead.
* To make the dish faster, use 1/3 cup packed organic brown sugar and substitute pistachios and dried cranberries with four diced Setton Farms Pistachio Chewy Bites.
This recipe is courtesy of Chef Laura, Head Chef at Just salad, an international healthy fast food chain focused on green living through healthy diet and lifestyle.
Ingredients:
Romaine
Iceberg
6 pieces of Cajun Grilled Shrimp (we use a paprika based spice and a little bit of oil to grill our shrimp)
1/4 of an Avocado
3 oz Grape or Cherry Tomatoes
1 oz Black Beans
1 oz Corn
1 tsp Cilantro
1 oz Onion Crunch (or Crunchy Onions)
1.5 oz Pepper Jack Cheese
Directions:
Southwestern satisfaction is just a salad away with Romaine, Iceberg, Cajun Grilled Shrimp, Avocado, Tomatoes, Black Beans & Corn, Onion Crunch and Pepper Jack Cheese paired with Chipotle Vinaigrette.
This recipe is courtesy of Chef Laura, Head Chef at Just salad, an international healthy fast food chain focused on green living through healthy diet and lifestyle.
Ingredients:
4 oz Iceberg
2 oz Red Cabbage
3 oz Grilled Chicken
2 oz Black Beans
1.5 tsp Cilantro
3 oz Shredded Carrots
1 oz Unsalted Peanuts
Directions:
Take some inspiration from the East with an Iceberg-Red Cabbage Mix paired with Grilled All-Natural Chicken, Black Beans, Cilantro, Shredded Carrots and Unsalted Peanuts dressed in Sweet & Creamy Sriracha.
This recipe is courtesy of Chef Laura, Head Chef at Just salad, an international healthy fast food chain focused on green living through healthy diet and lifestyle.
Ingredients:
5 oz Romaine lettuce
3 oz Grilled Chicken
1.5 oz shaved Parmesan
2 oz multigrain croutons
2 oz celery
3 oz shredded Carrots
Directions:
Spice up lunchtime with a combo that pairs Romaine and Grilled All-Natural Chicken with Shaved Parmesan, Multigrain Croutons, Celery and Shredded Carrots with Spicy Buffalo Dressing.
This recipe is courtesy of Chef Laura, Head Chef at Just salad, an international healthy fast food chain focused on green living through healthy diet and lifestyle.
Ingredients:
2.5 oz of Romaine
2.5 oz of Kale
1 oz of Pirate’s Booty
2 oz grilled turkey bacon (you can purchase the “turkey bacon bits” too!)
4 steamed Brussels Sprouts
2 spears steamed Asparagus
2 oz sliced radishes
Directions:
Gear up to wear less with this healthful combination of Romaine and Kale tossed or chopped with Turkey Bacon, Steamed Brussels Sprouts, Asparagus, and sliced Radishes with Pirate’s Booty thrown in for crunch and Low-Fat Horseradish Chive dressing.
Photo Source: www.stephanetreand.comThis fall, Chef Stéphane Treand is opening a pastry shop and school very close to my neck of the woods. St Pâtisserie Chocolat & The Pastry School will be opening at South Coast Collection (SOCO) in Costa Mesa.
“It has been my lifelong dream to live and work in Southern California,” said Chef Stéphane. “I came here in 2005 when I became Executive Pastry Chef for The St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point. After four years, I opened The Pastry School in San Clemente, but this pâtisserie in SOCO will be my first in the United States. I am confident and excited about the public’s reaction to the amazing masterpieces we will be creating.”
St Pâtisserie Chocolat & The Pastry School will offer a rotating selection of sweets, showcasing seasonal ingredients, innovative techniques, and new forms of artistry. The first offerings will focus on Chef Stéphane’s interpretation of Paris-style macarons, chocolate truffles, éclairs, a special “built to order” tart, and traditional tarts with a creative twist, all made with fresh ingredients sourced from the SOCO Farmers’ Markets. The menu, which also includes coffee and hot chocolate, will rotate based on customers’ preferences, as well as what is fresh and seasonal. Chef Stéphane also plans to create a special, weekly, one-off cake, highlighting a new technique, presentation, flavor profile, or ingredient, which will be available for customers to view on Saturdays.
Considered one of the top Pastry Chefs in the world, Chef Stéphane is a master craftsman, an innovator, and a mentor to pastry chefs the world over. With decades of accolades, awards and honors behind him, Chef Stéphane continues to re-imagine the art of Pastry every day, leading the way for modern pastry internationally. He chose to relocate his pastry school to SOCO because he believes it is offering the best epicurean classes in Southern California – LCA Wine & Neptune School of Wine offers classes for sommeliers ranging from basics to master classes, and many bakers take Chef Stéphane’s classes when deciding to open their own bakery.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with SOCO (and, I’ll admit, I wasn’t), it is a premier interior design, culinary, event and boutique shopping center. Located in Costa Mesa just off the 405 Freeway, SOCO is easily accessible from all of Orange County and also makes it the perfect day-trip from anywhere in Southern California. For more information, visit www.southcoastcollection.com.
The design and aesthetic of the bakery and school encourages interaction with guests. The windows into the kitchen and adjacent school will be treated as performance areas, where Chef Stéphane and his team will create various pastries, displaying the level of intricacy and care involved in creating each work of art. The school will offer classes for students of all ages, and will also have classes catered to families, since that is a large part of SOCO’s demographic.
