Food Obsessions: Sweet Leaf Tea

The other day I was walking through the culinary wasteland of Cleveland, Ohio, looking for lunch that was a cut above Arby’s, and I stumbled upon the Souper Market, a cute, independent place on the city’s West side that sells a wide variety of delicious, homemade soups.

Now, the rich and meaty Jambalaya I had was great, as was the hunk of crusty bread from the Stone Oven that was served alongside it. But the real revelation in this meal was my beverage: Sweet Leaf Tea.

I tried the Citrus Green Tea variety, which is easily the best tea—hot or iced—that I’ve ever come across. Richer and more real than in any iced tea I’ve ever had, its taste was tinged with orange and lime, and elevated by the flavor of pure cane sugar. The syrupy aftertaste that can be found in other sweetened iced teas was entirely absent. All this, and it comes in bottles and cans with a cute, cartoon grandma on the front.

So floored was I by this drink, that I popped back into the Souper Market and got two more cans for the road (my soup was spicy, so this was an extra help).

A few days later I was back on campus, and found myself more disappointed than ever with water, soda, and Gatorade. I was thinking constantly about the Sweet Leaf Citrus Green Tea. So I popped online, found their website, and ordered a case through the link to amazon. Soon my 512 ounces arrived, and since then my drinking habits have been forever changed. Until I find my next obsession, that is.

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Reading Terminal Market's Harvest Festival

Philly's world-renowned Reading Terminal Market celebrated fall this past Saturday with their 10th Annual Harvest Festival. Filbert Street was closed to vehicle traffic and transformed into an urban farm complete with a hay ride around the block of the market and a local bluegrass group. Crowds of people of all ages roamed the sawdust-sprinkled street, checking out the sights, taking in the smells, and enjoying the overall atmosphere.

Although it only spanned one block, the festival offered a variety of products and activities. Local artists sold an assortment of unique crafts, from handmade yarn hats to bead and stone jewelry. Frozen vegetable company Green Giant set up a large tent in the middle of the street, interviewing passersby about company products and handing out reusable tote bags. Large crates cradled apples for munching and pumpkins for picking, the latter of which could be decorated with stickers and markers at nearby tables.

The festivities continued inside the market. A table in the center of the market held an enormous pumpkin for visitors to guess the weight of in a contest to win a $100 Reading Terminal Market gift certificate. More vendors lined the market's aisles, selling everything from cheese to organic vegetables.

The food fare, as expected, was delicious. Vendors owning stalls inside the market set up booths outside to sell their wares. From tempting caramel apples...

... to succulent, fall-off-the-bone BBQ ribs...

...to warm freshly made donuts (the apple cider donut was particularly delicious), there was something to satisfy anyone's taste.

Of course, it wouldn't be fall without autumnal treats, like hot apple dumplings and pumpkin pancakes.

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It's Like Something Out of a Dashiell Hammet Novel

Like a Hammet novel in so far as the answer can only be found once everyone has been gathered at a dinner party. Answer? I haven't asked a question yet. That's the easy part, Can I but together a dinner for 8, have it be ready on time, and make it great tasting?

Last week I decided that I wanted to have some friends over for dinner, and at the same time challenge their palates and my culinary skills. I really like oxtails when I have tried it and I've always wanted to take a crack at making it myself. I found a pretty good recipe and I dove in, planning out the timeline to have a dinner for eight ready by 8 pm Friday night. I made the mistake of telling one person what I was making and she got a little scared, so I kept the menu to myself. So I came up with a game plan: make sure no one could resist, just based on the main ingredient. Good game plan, no?

The Shopping List
8 lbs oxtails - Reading Terminal Market
Thyme
Rosemary
Tarragon
4 lbs potatoes
Milk
2 bottles of red wine- Liquor Store
Large roasting pans
Beef broth
Balsamic vinegar

Primary shopping on Thursday night, and minor prep by premaking the mashed potatoes. Oxtails and wine could not be bought at the local Fresh Grocer and would be bought on Friday.

Thursday
7:30 pm
Food Shopping

8:00 pm (24 hours till game time)
Peel, slice, and cook potatoes for mashed potatoes

Everything goes as planned, I'm feeling pretty good about getting dinner for 8 together.

Friday
10:00 am
Go to class then run downtown to Reading Terminal Market to pick up 8 lbs of oxtails and the liquor store to buy 2 bottles of red wine (a volunteer offered to bring wine to drink).

Reading Terminal Market is surprisingly busy at 2 on a Friday afternoon and I had to wait in a fairly long line to pick up my oxtails. But hey! did you know there is a wine purveyor in Reading Terminal Market? I get to cross Liquor Store off my shopping list. Sweet! Because by then I was running out of time. The oxtails needed about 3.5 hours total cooking time. I need to get the oxtails in the oven by 4:30, so I have have them braising by 5:15, and maybe have some time to finish the sauce before everyone is too hungry.

I don't quite manage this. Following the recipe I set in cutting off the fat from the individual joints of meat. Discarding all the excess fat from the oxtails takes longer than I anticipated. It's a slightly tough cut of meat, and I ended up cutting some corners, as it were, and leaving more of the fat on than I should have, for flavor I told myself.

They finally make it in the oven for the initial cooking time at 4:45. I took a break, opened up the bottles of wine and didn't drink too much of it.

5:25 pm
Back in action pouring in the braising liquid and herbs, back in the oven at 5:30, only running 15 minutes late.

6:00 pm
I take the mashed potatoes out of the refrigerator to come to room temperature before reheating them

7:30 pm
I start getting anxious that the oxtails are not quite fall-off-the-bone-tender yet. I need at least 20 minutes to reduce the cooking liquid to make the sauce. I put the mashed potatoes on the stove and slowly reheat them, at the same time, trying to move my desk into the kitchen to serve as a table extension because my tiny dining table will not fit 8 around. While my back is turned the potatoes start to brown at little - my first real misstep.

7:50 pm
I cut my losses and take the oxtails out of the oven and start reducing the sauce. Sadly my sauce never makes it on the table; it takes much too long to reduce sufficiently and everyone votes to start eating before I can finish it. The oxtails were still delicious, if a little tough to eat, with some fat still encasing them. My second real misstep, even though technically I left the fat on before the first misstep, this is where the less-than-desirable result shows up.

Everyone resorts to using their hands to eat the oxtails and - horror of horrors - someone asked for the salt and pepper for the mashed potatoes.

The answer to the question raised initially: I can, for the most part, put together dinner for 8 people. Things to work on for next time include doing all of my prep the night before, considering how difficult it might be to eat what I have on the menu, and budgeting more time than I think I need.

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A Fast Fix for Fall

Take
2 Gorgeous Green Granny smiths
Peel, core, slice and fry in a pan with
¼ stick Bubbling Butter, until Browned
Then throw in
1 tablespoon Dark, Delicious Demerera sugar
and
1 teaspoon Cinnamon, and Cook till Caramelized
remove from pan and serve with
1 stack Fluffy French toast
and top with
1 Sprinkling Slivered almonds
and drizzle with
1 tablespoon of Honey for some extra Happy
then Eat!

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Butterbeer Cupcakes

I love Harry Potter. In third grade, I read the first three books in quick succession, spending entire days just with Harry and friends. Thus began my relationship with the magical world of J.K. Rowling. I was disappointed when my eleventh birthday rolled around and there were no owls or Hogwarts missives to speak of. Outwardly I denied that I’d believed it could be possible, but in truth, I’d been pretty sure I was a wizard. So when I came across this recipe for Butterbeer cupcakes on the cooking blog amybites, I knew I had to make them. The recipe is based on the Butterbeer drink they’re now serving at the new Orlando Harry Potter theme park, and includes cream soda, butter flavoring, and oodles of butterscotch. Even if you’ve never even seen a Harry Potter movie (let alone dressed up as Ginny Weasley, as I did for the release of the seventh book), you will enjoy these cupcakes. They are delicious!
Butterbeer Cupcakes

For the batter
2 cups flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 stick unsalted butter
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup dark brown sugar
3 eggs
1 ½ tsp vanilla
1 tsp butter flavoring
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup cream soda

For the icing
1 stick unsalted butter
1/3 cup butterscotch syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp butter flavoring
1 16 oz package powdered sugar
Extra butterscotch syrup and butterscotch morsels for decoration!

Directions
For the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line cupcake pans with paper liners. Combine your flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, cream your butter until light and fluffy. Add your sugars and beat until well-combined. Beat in your eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Then beat in your vanilla and butter flavoring. Alternate adding your buttermilk, cream soda, and dry ingredients. Fill each cupcake 3/4 full, then bake for 20 minutes until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

For the icing, cream butter in a large bowl until fluffy. Add in butterscotch syrup, vanilla, butter flavoring, and mix until well combined. Beat in powdered sugar 1 cup at a time until reaching desired consistency.

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Feature-a-Blog: Celiac Teen

When Canadian high school senior Lauren McMillan was diagnosed with celiac disease at 14, an unexpected feeling overwhelmed her: gratitude.

Having gone through weeks and months of discomfort and uncertainty, Lauren welcomed the diagnosis because it gave her a sense of empowerment. She now knew what was wrong, and could do everything in her power to counteract it - which she has done successfully ever since.

Lauren's blog, Celiac Teen, describes her fascinating experiments with gluten-free food. Her posts, bursting with liveliness and optimism, explore the various ways of substituting other grains for tricky wheat.

Determined not to let celiac deprive her of yummy childhood favorites, Lauren has come up with her own gluten-free adaptations for any traditionally wheat-based food you might imagine: pancakes, muffins, shortbread, ladyfingers, focaccia, cranberry loaf, tiramisu, pita...and the list grows larger every week. She frequently takes part in Daring Bakers challenges, too, going the extra mile to devise a gluten-free version of each recipe that features wheat.

A daring young lady herself, Lauren boldly bakes in the face of celiac disease. She manages to completely overturn its implications - a lifetime of deprivation becomes an opportunity to explore, invent and - most importantly - to play with her food. And she dares all of her readers to do the same.

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Cheap Eats: Ode to a Burrito

Food Emergency! What do you do when you have a sudden craving for food, but know it has to be fast, cheap, and delicious? The obvious answer: a burrito!

Unfortunately, although tempting, Chipotle is a little bit more money than you would want to spend on a college budget and Qdoba is just, well, gross. But what would you say if I said that you could get a burrito that is better than Chipotle, and half the price, right here on campus?

Go down to Lucky’s Mexican Spot, a food truck located on Spruce, right across the street from the Quad. It's convenient whenever you've got a class nearby, and always convenient for those who live in the Quad.

Lucky's serves burritos with all kinds of different ingredients inside, from sweet potatoes, to tofu, to steak. Each one comes wrapped tight with guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo, rice, beans and other delicious ingredients. Our favorite aspect of Lucky's burrito is its lightly toasted tortilla, giving it a slight crunch as you bite into burrito perfection. All in all, it's a great, cheap option that's right in our backyard.

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My Favorite 5 am Food

Last week at 5 am in the tail end of an all night study session, I was struck by a feeling. “What was this feeling?” you might ask. Well, this feeling was hunger. Not really breakfast and certainly not dinner time I faced a dilemma. What could I eat? Of course I had the college standby, ramen noodles, but I had just eaten those for dinner. Or I had pudding cups and granola bars, but those didn’t really seem substantial enough for the hunger I was experiencing. Then it hit me. I needed a Hot Pocket.

At 5 am there is nothing better than a cheesy, gooey, delicious Hot Pocket. They’re also perfect for snacking on the go, quick breakfasts when you only have ten minutes to get to class. So that’s where I found myself that 5 am morning, in my room studying like crazy, and needing my Hot Pocket fix. Luckily in my infinite wisdom, I had bought a box of Hot Pockets two days earlier at Fresh Grocer, knowing I would want a Hot Pocket sometime soon.

I was worried that I would wake my roommates with the sound of the microwave, but at this point I was on a mission -- I needed to get that Hot Pocket. So I opened the door to my room which was squeaky as usual, went to the freezer, and got out my frozen Hot Pocket. The microwave seemed louder than ever and I was sure that the ding that lets you know your food is ready would wake up my roommates and anger them. (It was 5 am, after all, so I was a bit delirious). My mission was complete and I sat in front of my computer once again, my hunger satisfied, so I could try to finish all of my homework.

Well, it’s 4 am now as I am writing this post. I find myself hungry as I always am at this point late in the night. Sadly, this time, I am out of Hot Pockets. So instead I will go to ramen noodles, though I hardly find that to be an adequate substitute for my first true love, the Hot Pocket.

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Tim and Jordan's Best of . . . Indian Food

This week in Tim and Jordan's Best Of: it's a delicious, flavorful, spicy cuisine that's ubiquitous on campus. It's Indian food, oft-enjoyed by undergrads discovering Penn's ever-varying tapestry of ethnic offerings. Our campus has its fair share of basic staple smorgasbords, but don't settle: skip Sitar, nix New Delhi, and venture a bit off the beaten track if you're looking for the best. Today we'll take a look at some of the more Indi-pendent joints around campus that are the cream of the Calcutta crop.

Tiffin

Founded by a Wharton MBA graduate, Tiffin is primarily a delivery service. After all, a tiffin is a lunchbox in India, into which wives (or servants) diligently package freshly-prepared food to be delivered midday to their working spouses (or clients). Appropriately, Tiffin is just that–freshly prepared, delivered, home-cooked Punjabi-style cooking. Tiffin's major selling point is its sincere authenticity. It's not overspiced, or swimming in cream and oil like in much of the buffets' standard fare. Rather, each bite is delicately spiced and exudes lightness. One lunch or dinner tiffin will run you $7.50 to $8.50 and includes two vegetable dishes, a generous smattering of dal (lentils), a heap of rice, and a serving of accompanying chutney. Compared to the 12 or 13 dollars you'd have to shell out at one of those buffets, Tiffin is an amazing deal. Tiffin's cuisine suits all, vegetarians and meat-eaters alike, and we were amazed by their expansive but concentrated menu.

Our tiffin featured gobi manchurian, a delicious marriage of sautéed cauliflower and a zingy tomato sauce; aloo mutter (a simmered curry of potatoes and peas); and dal tadka, delicately cooked yellow lentils with a hint of cumin. Needless to say, each dish left us extremely impressed.

For the more adventurous, be sure to try their Indian pizza, which has become a very common dish in India. It consists of a bang-on combo of a western crust layered with paneer, curry sauce and various spiced toppings, combining the best of cream and spice into a familiar form factor. In this case, better ingredients really does mean better pizza–a veritable Papa Jain's, if you will.

Bottom line, Tiffin offers some of the best indian food you can get in Philly, in our opinion. And it's convenient to boot! They also boast a collection of physical restaurants, which we're itching to try. And who says Wharton graduates don't go on to do great things?

Desi Village

Situated west down Baltimore Avenue, Desi (pronounced DESS-ee) Village is a hidden gem in an already overlooked but foodie-approved section of West Philadelphia. Even from the outside, there is a welcome and warmth to its ambience, not unlike the food itself. Abandon the all-you-can-eat approach and tailor your meal for your cravings: Desi Village's menu covers it all, from ajwain to zindagi.

The reviewers' typical meal starts off with a platter of pakoras, served with a plop of mouth-watering pudina chutney. Our curries arrive–malai kofta, paneer tikka masala, and saag paneer, say–not to discount the side of raw onion and garlic naan. We suggest going the family-style route: the more the merrier. Everything can be spiced just to your liking, so no capsaicin complaints there. The curries are clean, fresh, and flavourful. The malai kofta, those classic balls of vegetables and cheese, bathe in a savory tomato curry sauce, but aren't drenched. Sop up the spinachy saag with your garlic naan, or taste some tikka, whatever you like. Both are scrumptious and smooth, flavored to the last detail.

Or try some other nuggets: their chicken tikka is some of the best there is (or so we've heard, the authors are vegetarian), or have a go at more lamb vindaloo than you can shake a stick at. Top off your meal with a glistening gulab jamun, and you'll see why this place is second to naan.

Desi Chaat House

Looking for something different? Desi Village owner Hassan just can't seem to quit. He's added yet another treasure to the toolbox. Desi Chaat House, a stone's throw away on 43rd on Balitmore, offers something completely unique to Philadelphia: authentic Indian street food, also known as chaat (pronounced like "chart"). Bits of bhel peppered with papris are placed in a pool of tangy yoghurt and sweet 'n' spicy tamarind chutney. Cold and salad-like, these are surprisingly satiating as a quick bite or dinner on the go.

For beginners, don't be fazed by their confounding conglomerate of choices. And don't let the sulfurous odor dissuade you: it's the natural brimstone-containing black salt pervasive in these parts. If you're planning a trip, we'll help you out with your order. The papri chaat, samosa chaat, and bhel puri are all safe bets, each with their own spin on this crispety, crunchety treat. Be sure not to miss out on their student deal (but which doesn't include authentic Indian sodas like Thumbs Up! and Limca). If you're itchy for a litchi, they've got that, too. Unlike Taglio and Già Pronto, this dynamic duo really packs a punch...to your tastebuds, not to your wallet.

So there you have it: our take on the best of Bharat. The next time you have a craving for curry, transcend Tandoor and try out one of these Hindustani havens that are sure to keep you cumin back for more.

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Food Week at Penn

October 18 - 22
All FOOD and EVENTS are FREE!
RSVP to events at Foxleadership@upenn.edu

Tuesday: "Food and You: Health and Nutrition"
Sponsored by School of Nursing
Terrace Room, Claudia Cohen Hall
12:00-1:30pm
RSVP at: Foxleadership@upenn.edu

A question and answer seminar with luncheon featuring Dr. Stella Volpe, Registered Dietitian. Get YOUR questions answered about food and healthy eating.

Wednesday: "Farmville Forum: Where Your Food Comes From"
Sponsored by BonAppetit
1920 Commons, Lower Level
5:00-6:30pm
RSVP at: Foxleadership@upenn.edu

Beef, cheese, lettuce and tomatoes. Come find out where it all comes from. A panel of local farmers who supply food on Penn's campus will talk about how and why they farm and the values they bring to campus.

Thursday (Afternoon): "Feed Philadelphia"
Sponsored by More than Pennies
Kings Court2nd floor
Build bags 12:00-2:00pm; Lunch Included
RSVP at: Foxleadership@upenn.edu

Come join More than Pennies and Food Week to help feed some of Philadelphia's less fortunate. We will be putting together bagged lunches and delivering them to shelters across center city.

Thursday (Evening): “'How to Get Fat Without Really Trying'—Secrets of Obesity Revealed"
Sponsored by Moral Voices
1920 Commons
5:30-7:00pm
RSVP at: Foxleadership@upenn.edu

Please join Moral Voices for their kick-off event of the year, a film screening of Peter Jennings reporting followed by a discussion, beginning a year-long exploration of the moral issues revolving around hunger and obesity. We look forward to a thought-provoking session, which is sure to leave you questioning.

Friday: "Fall Festival at the Penn Garden”
Sponsored by Penn Garden
Penn Garden (West side of Rodin College House, 3900 block of Locust Walk)
12:00-4:00pm
RSVP at: Foxleadership@upenn.edu

Stop by throughout the afternoon for a local lunch, apples and hot apple cider. Help us paint a permanent sign for the garden, plant garlic and learn more about urban agriculture!
** Rain Location Rodin Underground

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