Broccoli for Breakfast: Besaw's Restaurant Review

Original bar from 1903

Restaurants like Besaw's in Portland's Northwest side are one of a kind and a rarity these days in more ways than one.  Not only is there the original 1903 bar in the restaurant, but their use of local ingredients is quite impressive.  I was fortunate to visit there for breakfast while in town for the International Food Blogger's Conference.  Besaw's was first opened in 1903, and with the same original bar in the restaurant, it feels a little like stepping back in time.  The short version on the history of Besaw's is it started as a bar back in the turn of the century and food was added on the menu after Mr. Liberty sold his share of the company to Mr. Besaw. 

Homemade ketchup and jam

Besaw's is committed to being a sustainable, locally sourced restaurant.  They use as much local food as possible.  They even have a garden in the back of the restaurant, use local, grass fed beef, local cage free eggs and 100% hormone free dairy.  It doesn't get much better than that!  They make their own marionberry jam which is delicious on their sourdough toast.   As a ketchup lover, I was a big fan of their in house made ketchup too.

For breakfast, they have a wide selection of dishes.  I love egg dishes when going out to breakfast, so I decided to order 2 egg breakfast that comes with sourdough toast and garlic rosemary potatoes.  I ordered a side of seasonal vegetables not knowing what I would get.  I was pleasantly surprised when a plate full of broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini and onions came back.  Some  people may turn their nose up at eating a side of broccoli and cauliflower for breakfast, but I was delighted!  They were well seasoned, not overly cooked and added some color to my egg plate.

Yum! Eggs, toast and garlic rosemary potatoes

Broccoli: it's whats for breakfast

Sure you can put non-traditional vegetables in an omelet.  But what about just as a side dish?  I was challenged to start using different veggies for brekafast more on my own.  Would you do it or do you associate certain vegetables as lunch/dinner only?  Mad props to Besaw's for serving delicious, local, out of the box meals.

What is Food Styling?

Yesterday my roommate and I took a tour of Souders Studios in Golden, CO.  This studio photographs food and beverages for different restaurants, food companies, cookbooks and beverages companies.  Companies like Red Robin, Max and Erma's, Atkins and many others use Souder Studios.  We got to see their high end equipment and some of their finished products.  Everything was very professional, creative and beautiful!  It was so fun!  Yesterday they were taking pictures of Atkins bars.  Even simple shots with these bars can entail a lot of detail and adjusting!
Do you love food?  Do you love taking pictures of food?  You can spot a foodie if someone is always posting pictures of food on instagram, facebook or twitter.  Food styling is actually a profession that merges photography and cooking.  At Souders, they had professional expertise on both ends.  They have a professional chef, Stephen Shern, that cooks food and photographers Rick, Robin and John.  They offer tours, and you can see pictures of their studio on Souder website.
If you want some practical tips you can incorporate in your own food photography, desserts for breakfast has an article on current food photography styles and trends.

Just some of the plates and cups they have for pictures!

Kitchen at Souders Studios

Atkins bars getting ready for a photo shoot

Here are just a few examples of photos from Souders Studio:

 

 

Souders Studios has weekly recipes with pictures posted on their website.  This week's is charred tomato and onion salsa......yummmmm.

 

Healthy Chocolate Berry Pudding

Do you like the consistency of pudding and gel foods?  A pudding recipe I love is chocolate chia seed protein pudding.  I'm also a fan of putting chia seeds in drinks (water to tea to smoothies) so that it forms a gel like consistency.  What about you? I have another recipe for a delicious pudding that I LOVE!  This one is chocolate pudding and would also be great for kids.  Unlike the boxed kind in the store, there are no artificial ingredients, it is high in fiber, vitamins and minerals and protein.  It is loaded with fruits, so no need for extra sugar.  The recipe is from One Green Planet's Raw Chocolate Berry Pudding.

Ingredients:

• 1 banana
• 1 large handful frozen strawberries
• 1 large handful blueberries
• 3-5 dates or prunes (I used prunes)
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons cacao
• 1/4 cup non-dairy milk (or more, add as needed) (I used soy)
• 1 tablespoon nut butter/coconut oil to make it creamy
• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder (My optional addition)

 Directions:

1. Blend all ingredients together until silky smooth.  Top with optional fresh mint leaves.  Serves 2-3.  The consistency is like a thick smoothie.  It is sweet with a subtle chocolate flavor.  Delicious breakfast, summer treat or post workout recovery snack.

 Another favorite pudding recipe is a Turkish gum pudding.  I was lucky enough to have it in Istanbul, and it was so good!  Although not as healthy ;-).

Nutrition Labeling Current Trends: Helpful or Harmful?

Do you look at nutrition labels when grocery shopping?  Most of us who are health conscious do.  I know I am always looking at the nutrition facts even for foods that I know I don't want.  What factors are important to you when buying food?  Ingredients, calories, fat, sugar, fiber, protein?  According to research in 2007-2012 from the European Food Information Council cited in www.foodnavigator.com, price, taste and brand over rule nutrition labeling.  The research suggests people know how to read a nutrition label but don't usually make food choices based on nutrition.  Instead, pricing, taste and brands are more of an influence for purchasing something.  Food Navigator also notes that shopping in a hurry or feeling pressured makes us more likely to choose foods based on taste, price or brand over nutrition.

So how can people make more health conscious decisions, especially when in a hurry?  What about health claims or eye catching nutrition symbols on packages?  Many foods have colorful or stand out health claims or symbols on packaging.  Consumers can just look for these symbols and be able to make healthier choices, right?  Well, maybe not according to another European study from Food Quality and Preference cited in www.foodnavigator.com.  Nutrition claims may have a negative effect on perceived quality of food according to their research findings.  Researchers studied people's perception of a regular biscuit and a non-sugar biscuit.  Information on the biscuit packaging had a strong influence on perception of how the biscuits were going to taste.     

These 2 studies suggest we make decisions to buy food products based on price, taste and brand instead of nutritional quality.  When foods have nutrition claims on the packaging, this may actually cause a more negative perception on sensory indicators like taste.  Do you agree?  These studies were done in Europe.  Do you think the results would be different here in the US? 

How can we shift consumers to make food choices based on nutritional quality instead of taste and price if nutritional claims don't seem to help?