Mason Jar Salads and More book giveaway

During the busy back-to-school time, don't forget to pack yourself a healthy lunch. Julia Mirabella's new book about grab-and-go layered lunches in Mason jars can help -- and you can win a copy.

Unless you've been living under a very large rock on the South Pole, you know it's back-to-school time.

And you don't know that simply because the calendar page flipped to September: You know it because it's being crammed down your throat everywhere you look, whether you have school-aged children or not. Major retailers have been working hard since practically July to sell you oodles of backpacks, lunch bags, plaid skirts and Number 2 pencils.

(Is there even such a thing as a Number 1 pencil? I imagine it being all uppity, like "I'm Number 1! I'm Number 1!" What a prick.)

And yes, I realize I'm dating myself with the calendar page and pencil references. Should have been an iPad reference, I guess. Whatevs: I'm still pretty analog.

Food bloggers are also guilty of riding on the coattails of the back-to-school fever. Packable snacks, cutesy lunchbox options and "kid food" boards are popping up all over Pinterest.

(Don't get me started on "kid food." Really, if I get started, I'll get all ranty and won't be able to stop.)

But while we're all focused on getting the wee ones back to school with the right supplies and a good lunch, we may have forgotten about ourselves. At least in the lunch department.

Bringing your lunch to work is a great way to reduce your dependency on fast food, processed food or other less-than-healthy food options -- and you know that helping you do that is pretty much The Ninj's raison d'etre. So put down that nasty-ass frozen Lean Cuisine because The Ninj wants to talk about a better, healthier lunch option that is still yummy and portable: Mason jar salads.

Banana espresso breakfast muffins (+ a giveaway)

Banana espresso breakfast muffins: a healthy, easy recipe reminiscent of banana bread but with a shot of espresso for a delicious morning pick-me-up.

 You know what's better (and a wee bit healthier) than coffee for breakfast? Coffee in your breakfast. In the form of banana espresso breakfast muffins.

Yeah, I'd call that stealthy. Here's how they happened:

I was excited when Staples asked me if I'd like to try out the Verismo home brewer from Starbucks. One of the biggest pluses is that the brewer comes with a recipe booklet for making many of your favorite Starbucks drinks at home. I mean, how cool is it to just whip up a chai latte or an iced Americano or a caramel latte whenever you want?

It's very cool. And handy.

And easy to use: just pop a coffee pod into the sleek brewer and press a button. There are also milk pods (made of real milk, not "creamer" chemicals) for making the specialty drinks, so there's no separate heating or frothing necessary. And the used pods are collected in a little built-in container which makes clean-up a snap.

Artichoke hummus (and a book review)

I came upon this recipe for artichoke hummus in an unusual way. Knowing that The Ninj enjoys cooking and living in a generally healthy way, a college friend of mine asked me if I'd like to review a lifestyle book to which she had contributed. Since she herself is an awesome writer, of course I agreed to check it out.

So what does this have to do with hummus, you may be asking? Don't worry, I'll get there.

The book turned out to be Vibrant Living by Molly Shattuck, a health and fitness advocate and philanthropist from Baltimore who has designed a program to help people embrace a healthier lifestyle in 21 days.

Now, bear with me – I, too, was skeptical. I'm not an advocate of fad diets or “fix your life in 3 easy steps” kind of crap. You know me by now. My motto is everything in moderation: I think we often sabotage our efforts to be healthier and fitter by shunning every single “bad” food or by only eating restrictive, special diets that are too difficult to maintain, as well as setting unrealistic fitness goals.

I'm happy to report that Molly's ideals are quite similar (good thing, or it would have made for some awkward email exchanges with my college pal). She, too, embraces the idea that being fitter and eating better involves a fundamental lifestyle change but that need not be difficult or require you to subscribe to a packaged meal plan or to eat crazy-ass food. Her program emphasizes taking 21 days to establish a new routine of daily exercise (she includes easy-to-follow workout plans that don't require more than a pair of sneakers) and, my favorite part, eating “real”, unprocessed food.

Hellz yeah, Molly! High five from The Ninj.

Which brings us, at long last, to the artichoke hummus (See? I told you I would get here).

Best of 2013: your favorite recipes and mine

A round up of The Ninj's most popular recipes of 2013 and some that deserve a second look.

Yowza -- 2013 was a big year here on the blog, wasn't it?

In honor of the year's end and all the yummy recipes we've cooked together, I've created a year-end wrap-up of your 10 favorite recipes (as indicated by total page views), as well as my 10 favorites that I think you might want to give a second look.

As I mentioned last year, cooking these recipes and writing these posts is a bit like being a parent: you insist you love each one equally but, really, in the deep honesty of your heart, you have favorites.

Did any of your personal faves make it onto these two lists? And what do you want to see more or less of in 2014? Leave a comment: The Ninj wants to know.

Top 10 Most Popular Recipes of 2013

1. Black Bean Chocolate Cookies
2. Homemade Nutella
3. Overnight Crockpot Oatmeal
4. Oat and Yogurt Breakfast Bars
5. White Bean Burgers
6. Cherry-Apricot Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
7. Fruit Leather
8. Guinness Beef/Venison Stew
9. Watermelon Soda
10. Maple-Pumpkin Mini Muffins

The Ninj's Top 10 Favorite Recipes of 2013

1. Port and Cherry Brownies
2. Chicken and Biscuit Casserole
3. Homemade Granola
4. Asian Pork Burgers with Quick Pickled Cucumbers
5. Vermont Potato Chowdah
6. Pasta Con Sarde
7. Roasted Red Pepper Spread
8. Lightened Clam Chowdah
9. Carrot Cake Cookies
10. Banana-Zucchini Muffins

Burlington Food Tours

Whether you’re a resident of or a visitor (or even a wannabe visitor) to my home state of Vermont, you’re probably well aware that the Burlington area is a food-lover’s paradise.

Now there's even a food-focused walking tour of Burlington.

Burlington Food Tours offers a cultural walking tour of the downtown area, with tasty sampling stops along the way at various vendors at the farmer’s market as well as specialty food shops and area restaurants. The experienced guides also provide some Burlington food history and overview of the area farming and locavore culture along the way.

I recently took part in this food-focused walking tour. You can read about my experience in this piece I wrote for Vermont Life magazine's web site.

Bon Affair wine spritzers (a review)

Remember wine spritzers? Basically a glass of wine watered down with some club soda?

Yeah, I know I just made them sound lame and gross, but I for one enjoyed them in the hot summer months. They were light and refreshing, so I never felt that I was overdoing it by having more than one.

But really, they were still just watered down wine.

Not anymore. Behold the new Bon Affair wine spritzer:  top-shelf, all-natural, ready-to-drink.

Bon Affair is California wine (either Sauvignon Blanc or Syrah) blended with carbonated water, electrolytes and grape seed extract, and no added sugar or sweetener. I went crazy for this idea when I first heard about it. It's so smart -- so smart I wish I had thought of it. With less alcohol than wine and served well-chilled, it's the perfect drink for summer -- or, as founder Jayla Siciliano cleverly points out, "a long wedding or a night out before a big day of work."

OK, sure, you're probably with me on the concept -- but I bet you're wondering how it tastes.

I wondered, too, which is why I tried it.

Verdict? Crisp, refreshing and, thankfully, not at all like the DIY wine spritzers of my 20s. If you like the fizziness of prosecco and champagne, you'll love these.

I'm hooked -- Bon Affair is my new go-to summertime drink.

Do or did you drink wine spritzers? Would you be willing to give a more quality version of the spritzer like Bon Affair a try? Leave a comment: The Ninj wants to know.

(Note: While I was provided with a complimentary sample of Bon Affair, I was in no way compensated for this review, nor was I influenced to provide only positive feedback. The opinions expressed above are genuine and mine alone.)

Foodist (a review)

I was asked to review another book: Darya Pino Rose's Foodist: Using Real Food and Real Science to Lose Weight Without Dieting.

I know what you're thinking: The Ninj? Reviewing a diet book? Despite the title, it's not really a diet book. To use the author's own term, it's about developing a new "healthstyle", a new relationship with food and movement that can eliminate the need for fruitless dieting.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about Foodist is that it really doesn't contain anything revolutionary, anything that couldn't be found in multiple other sources. However -- I mean that in a really good way! Rose has synthesized the thinking behind many current food theories -- eating real food, embracing sustainable and local food sources, rejection of processed food -- and put them all in one place, with a how-to element to accompany it. This is great news for those who might not yet be of a mindset to sit down and read The Omnivore's Dilemma and try to change their lifestyle but who would pick up an apparent "diet book" and learn the same information.

Vermont potato chowder

 
Earlier in the week, I posted my review of Tracey Medeiros' new book, The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook: 150 Home-Grown Recipes from the Green Mountain State. (Spoiler: I loved it.)

As I noted in my review, while the book includes the expected recipes from chefs at Vermont's most celebrated restaurants, it also offers favorite family recipes shared by the farmers who provide many of the key ingredients to those same food professionals.

(And Oliver Parini's accompanying photographs are a feast for the eyes.)

As part of the review process, I have been cooking my way through the The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook, based on seasonality, and I've come across some new favorite recipes.

Case in point: the Ski Vermont Farmhouse Potato Chowder.

According to the accompanying story, the recipe was created by chef Gerry Nooney of Timbers Restaurant at Sugarbush Resort, as a way of helping Vermont farmers sell more potatoes. (Again, I love the connection between the food professionals and producers that the book highlights.)

The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook (a review)

Have you ever wanted to eat your way across the entire state of Vermont? Or get a first-hand taste of real farm-to-table eating?

Well, now you can, in your own home, via Tracey Medeiros' new book, The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook: 150 Home-Grown Recipes from the Green Mountain State. 

(photo courtesy of The Countryman Press)

Medeiros' book, supplemented with gorgeous food and Vermont scenery photography from Oliver Parini, is refreshing in that while it includes the expected recipes from chefs at Vermont's most celebrated restaurants, it also offers favorite family recipes shared by the farmers who provide many of the key ingredients to those same food professionals.

Additionally, Medeiros offers a profile of each contributor or the backstory behind the recipe, which makes each feel like one you received from a friend or relative.

Maple walnut crackers

Maple walnut crackers from The Cracker Book

Late last year, I was asked to review and test some recipes from a new book entitled The Cracker Book: Artisanal Crackers for Every Occasion.

I love self-explanatory titles, don't you?

Burford Books thought I might like to try out some of the cracker recipes from this new book by Maine author Lee E. Cart. I immediately agreed because Lee's book promises that "making your own crackers is surprisingly easy."

Now, you know about my penchant for recipes that are wicked good but also wicked easy. And easy is the key word for these cracker recipes: mix the ingredients together, roll out the dough and cut out shapes with cookie cutters.

That's it! You're practically a Keebler elf.

I love the idea behind this little book: starting with a basic foundation recipe, you can add a variety of ingredients to create interesting artisanal crackers. The book includes recipes for more than 50 different kinds, including the unique and delightful-sounding

• Bacon crackers
• Carrot and ginger crackers
• Cocoa and whole wheat crackers 
• Green tea and brown rice crackers
• Guacamole crackers
• Rosewater crackers
• Tequila and lime crackers