Aug 11

Pondering Peanut Probabilities

Most of us never think anything of the bag of peanuts that is now served on most domestic airline flights in the United States. We either decline or accept the bag with resignation, remembering a time when there were more than peanuts and pretzels served. I travel a lot, spending most weeks traveling between home and a client’s location somewhere in the United States. For years I would just eat the peanuts in the hope that the time spent chewing would help make the flight go faster. Then one day out of sheer boredom and maybe for the need to freak out the passenger next to me, I started to count the number of peanuts in the bag and record the count on my Blackberry.

Bags of SWA Lightly Salted Peanuts

Bags of Southwest Airline Lightly Salted Peanuts

Over a number of flights I began to notice that there was a significant variation in the number of peanuts in each bag. I know enough about food packaging that the peanuts are portioned by weight versus count and that the range of the number of peanuts could vary based upon the weight of each peanut. I also realized that to record the number of whole peanuts versus peanut halves was impossible since handling of the peanut bags would inevitably separate the whole peanuts into halves. In addition to this, I only kept bags of “lightly salted peanuts” and ate the “honey roasted peanuts” since the weight; therefore count of the two different seasonings could skew my analysis.

Contents of a Bag of SWA Lightly Salted Peanuts

Contents of a Bag of Southwest Airline Lightly Salted Peanuts

Over a period of a couple of weeks I tried to remember to gratefully take the bag of peanuts from the flight attendant and save them for my test. When I collected 20 bags of peanuts I felt that I had enough of a sample size to run my test of how many peanut halves per snack bag regardless of weight. Not exactly a hard core scientific method, but fun for a bored frequent flyer.

Distribution Graph of Number of Peanuts Per SWA Light Salted Peanuts

How Many Peanut Halves Per Bag of Lightly Salted Southwest Airline Peanuts

The distribution graph above indicates that there is in fact significant variation in the total number of peanut halves per snack bag from Southwest Airlines. Even without counting the contents in each bag, I could visually tell that some snack bags were fuller than other bags. It is possible that in a row of three seats on the plane that window seat receives 23 peanut halves, the middle seat has 34 peanut halves and the aisle seat gets the jackpot and has 44 peanut halves to enjoy for their inflight snack graciously provided by the airline. On average, should a passenger accept a bag of lightly salted peanuts they can expect to enjoy 35 peanut halves.

 

Aug 10

Healthy, Tasty and Satisfying: McD’s Premium Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken

You can laugh all you want, but I do enjoy the Premium Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken from McDonald’s. I will admit that I will always have a weakness for Double Cheeseburgers, but I finding myself ordering the McDonald’s Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken with greater frequency. There are times when traveling for work when you have this craving and need for some green leafy vegetables.

McD's Southwest Salad with Dressing Packet

McDonald’s Southwest Salad with Dressing Packet

The Southwest Salad with Chicken (Grilled or Crispy) has been offered by McDonald’s since around 2007. I believe that their intent was to begin offering lighter, dare I say it healthier options than a Big Mac, Quarter Pounder with Cheese or Chicken Nuggets. For me, the element of “healthy” does play into my decision, and when you include the Newman’s Own Southwest Restaurant Dressing with the salad and grilled chicken, total calories is less than 400.

McD's Southwest Salad without Dressing

McDonald’s Southwest Salad without Dressing

Personally, I enjoy this salad and find a degree of comfort knowing that McDonald’s pursuit of consistency ensures that the salad is going to taste and look the same each and every time. That is more than I can say about ordering at McDonald’s which has some significant variation in the experience of placing the order.

McD's Southwest Salad with Dressing

McDonald’s Southwest Salad with Dressing

For those that have not yet eaten the McDonald’s Southwest Salad, the ingredients include; Lettuce, , Roasted Corn with Red Pepper, Black Beans, Shredded Cheese, Carrots, Roasted Red Pepper, Corn Chip Strips and Lime Wedges (I throw these away). I choose the Grilled Chicken versus the Crispy Chicken and select the Newman’s Own Southwest Restaurant Dressing. With all of the ingredients well mixed with the salad dressing the flavor is tangy and spicy (but not extremely hot). The size of the salad including the chicken is just enough for those times when you are hungry but not so famished that a salad is not going to be enough. I usually order a fresh fruit parfait with the salad and find this to be the perfect amount of food.

 

 

Aug 09

Marah’s Chopped Salad, A Light Meal or Perfect Dish for a Buffet

Long before I even attempted to cook a meal, I knew how to boil macaroni / pasta and that was enough to make one of my most favorite meals, a Chopped Salad. What I love most about this salad is that is a complete meal in itself, covering all of the basic food groups and leaving you satisfied. Whether served as a light meal or as a part of a buffet table, it will be enjoyed by everyone. The key thing to remember when preparing a Chopped Salad is to make the ingredients as uniform in size as possible.

Ingredients for my Chopped Salad

Ingredients for Marah’s Chopped Salad

Ingredients:

  • 1 Head of Romaine Lettuce chopped
  • 2 Roma Tomatoes diced
  • 1 small container (8 ounces) of Fresh Mushroom
  • 4 Green Onions chopped
  • 1 can of Corn drained
  • 1 can of Palm Hearts (Palmito) drained and chopped
  • 1 can of Artichokes (not marinated) drained and chopped,
  • 2 cups of Cooked Small Pasta
  • 2 cans of Tuna or Chicken
Marah's Chopped Salad

Marah’s Chopped Salad

Dressing:

  • 1 Garlic Clove pressed / minced
  • 1 Tablespoon of Brown Mustard, 1 Tablespoon of Mayonnaise
  • 2 Tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar,
  • ¼ Cup of Olive Oil
  • 3 Tablespoons of Lemon Juice
  • Black Pepper and Salt to taste

Prepare the dressing and then add to the salad ingredients thoroughly mixing everything together.

There are several reasons why I enjoy eating this salad; easy to make, each bite has nearly every ingredient included, the crunchy texture and the fact that with the exception of the lettuce, tomatoes, garlic and mushrooms, all of the other ingredients are from cans, jars or bottles which makes shopping for this Chopped Salad very easy. This Chopped Salad will be enough to feed a family of four a light meal or perfect for a dish on a buffet table and my favorite as leftovers the next day.

 

Aug 08

Julian Hard Cider (Apple)…”American To The Core”

Bottle of Julian Hard Cider with a Glass

Glass of Julian Hard Cider and the Bottle

Until this year, my experience with drinking hard apple cider was restricted to a pint of hard cider at a local pub or an occasional 12 ounce bottle. More often than not, I selected hard cider when I was looking for something other than beer, but not wanting to drink hard liquor. Unfortunately, most hard cider available for consumption in bars tends to be sweet versus dry.

In my travels, I am always looking for new and different foods and drink to experience. I do not remember when I first read about Julian Hard Cider, but earlier this year I was able to spend the weekend in southern California and knew that I was going to make a stop in Julian, CA. There was something cool about the idea of purchasing a couple of bottles of Julian Hard Cider in southern California, located about as far as possible from the historical hard apple cider producing region of New England.

If I was restricted to one word to describe Julian Hard Cider, that word would be impressive. Whereas most of the well-known hard apple ciders are sweet and not always bottled from fermented pressed apple juice, Julian Hard Cider is the real deal. It can be described as experiencing a superior dry sparkling wine with just a hint of apple. Julian Hard Cider is bottle in a 22 fluid ounce / 650 ml bottle with a 6.99% ABV (Alcohol by Volume) content. The color of the cider is pale (nearly colorless) and the carbonation was perfect (extremely small bubbles of CO2). I enjoyed the cider very much and was feeling quite good after drinking the entire bottle.

Close up picture of Julian Hard Apple Cider in a Glass

Julian Hard Apple Cider in Glass

The history of hard apple cider is the United States stretches back to the first apple orchards planted by some of the earliest colonists. There was a time when hard apple cider was the preferred beverage. However, between the changes in demographics, improvements in grain production and then the period of Prohibition, the hard apple cider industry nearly disappeared from the United States. Julian Hard Cider Company and similar hard apple cider producers have done an amazing job of revitalizing an industry that goes back to the very beginnings of the immigration of Europeans.

Bottle of Julian Hard Apple Cider

Julian Hard Apple Cider Bottle

It was only when I came back from southern California did I specifically look to see which brands of premium hard apple cider were available for purchase in Houston, TX. It was then that I saw that I could have enjoyed Julian Hard Cider sooner versus waiting for a trip to Julian, CA.

 

 

Aug 07

Re-Purposing Hydroponic Grown Basil

Packaged Hydroponic Grown Basil

Hydroponic Grown Basil in Packaging

In recent years there has been an increase in the selection of fresh herbs available for purchase in the grocery store year round. Initially, these were herbs that had been cut and sealed in plastic packages. More recently, some herbs are being made available even fresher and being offered for sale with their roots intact for they have been grown at hydroponic farms.

One of these herbs available for purchase with the roots intact is herb Basil, also known as Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum) an aromatic herb which is an annual favorite for most gardeners and those that grow a Basil in a pot on their patio. Sweet Basil is a part of the Mint family (Lamiaceae), originally native to India and has been cultivated for 5,000 years.

The Basil is very sensitive to cold weather and unless you live where there is no frost or temperatures that reach freezing, Basil will not survive freezing temperatures. Therefore, for most of us, the only means to incorporate fresh Basil into our cooking is to purchase fresh cut Basil or Basil with the roots intact. Personally, I am grateful for these horticultural and packaging advances that allow me to use fresh Basil in my cooking during the colder months, but I am not so keen on the price for one of these plants which typically sells for around $3.00.

In most instances there are enough leaves on one of these plants for two meals to be prepared with a few leaves remaining. Instead of discarding the remaining Basil plant, I attempted to salvage the hydroponically grown Basil by potting the Basil plant in a pot of Seed Starter Mixture (Vermiculite). For the first two weeks, it was “touch and go” with the Basil plant looking like it was going to die. However, the hydroponically started Basil plant established itself and survived.

Hydroponic Basil with Root Ball

Hydroponic Basil with Root Ball

Hydropic Basil Transplanted into a Pot

Hydropic Basil Transplanted into a Pot

Although re-purposing a hydroponic grown Basil plant into a pot with soil is not always successful, I have found the following tips to increase the success rate:

  • Use Seed Starter Mix (Vermiculite)
  • Water well and either place in a sunny location, or under grow lamp lights.
  • The plant will let you know when it requires water for the leaves will begin to droop.
  • If the bottom leaves turn yellow, this is a good indication that you are over watering the Basil.
  • When the weather has turned warm, bring the Basil plant outside in indirect sunlight. Direct sunlight will burn the plant if it has been growing inside for any period of time.
  • In a few days, the Basil plant will been conditioned to outside indirect light you can then plant the Basil in your herb garden or into a larger pot and enjoy fresh Basil leaves with your cooking all summer long.

In most locations, Basil plants are available for purchase at garden nurseries, but if you can get a jump on the season by re-purposing a hydroponically grown Basil plant into soil then why not save some money?

Basil Growing in Soil that was Oringinally Started Hydroponically

Hydroponic Basil Re-Purposed into a Pot with Soil