Simon Food Favourites: Yoghurt

Showing posts with label Yoghurt. Show all posts

21 January 2012

Product Sample: Chobani Greek Yoghurt (20 Jan 2012)

http://www.chobani.com

Greek culture from the USA

Thanks to Emily Schildt (Chobani) and Laura Krusza (Fleishman-Hillard) for sending me a few samples of the Chobani Greek Yoghurt range to try. With nearly 400K likes on Facebook it certainly seems to already be a very popular yoghurt in the USA. It's definitely more creamy than the usual yoghurts I get from the supermarket and it's nice to see it has real fruit inside. I believe there are a few Australian and New Zealand packaged yoghurts that also include real fruit so Chobani will be up against some existing competition I suspect to try and crack the market. For me I sort of like seeing the fruit through a clear container rather than being hidden inside the packaging so I know where to dip my spoon to get at the tasty bits. I'm still in two minds if I like the creamier and thicker texture to what I'm used to eating. I'd generally use Greek yoghurt to make tzatziki but not generally eat on its own. The fruit does tend to help break down the creaminess, especially if you mix it all up from the bottom.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Only natural ingredients, No preservatives, No artificial flavours, Apparently twice the protein of regular yoghurts, Low in fat, So far available in NSW Woolworths

CONS: Made in the US instead of Australia, Can it also be organic? I don't think all flavours are available in Australia?

MUST TRY: Other flavours to work out which one I prefer — The VerryBerry sounds like it might be my preferred one to try with raspberries, blueberries and strawberries.

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Chobani Greek Yoghurt samples

Passion Fruit or Passionfruit in Australia — seeds included which I don't mind

Mango

Pineapple

Blueberry — fruit is down the bottom

No artificial sweeteners and preservatives

Around 10% sugar although less than 2% fat and high in protein

22 December 2010

Barambah Organics: Bush Honey Yoghurt (21 Dec 2010)

Unit 2, 83 Boundary Road, Oxley QLD 4075

http://www.barambahorganics.com.au

Certified organic and Australian

This is a guarantee that there is NO chemical residue in the product and that NO genetic modification has occurred. We use holistic farming practices and the original farm, Spring Creek, in the South Burnett, Queensland, has been farmed that way for many years.

I love trying new products that are also good for you, especially if they're certified organic. Today I needed some yoghurt to go with my blueberries for dessert and thought the Barambah Organics Bush Honey Yoghurt ($3.99/200g) from Royal Randwick Fruit Market would do the trick. It had a nice creamy taste and the honey was distinctive enough without making it too sweet. It's a lot more expensive than your run-of-the-mill yoghurts but it certainly ticks the boxes for a product you can probably trust — the fat content seems to be fairly low as well. It looks like Kylie Kwong even loves it and she's a big advocate of organics and quality ingredients.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Certified organic, Tastes pretty good, Healthy for you, Product of Australia

CONS: Expensive compared to other basic yoghurts

MUST TRY: Other flavours

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Barambah Organics Bush Honey Yoghurt ($3.99/200g)
Ingredients: Certified Organic Unhomogenised Milk, Certified Organic Non-Fat Milk Solids, Certified Organic Honey, Live Cultures

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21 February 2010

Eveleigh Farmers' Market: Kylie Kwong Cooking Demo, Eumundi, Achacha, Yalla, Blini Bar (20 Feb 2010)

Saturday Weekly Market 8 am - 1 pm
243 Wilson Street, Darlington NSW 2015
http://www.eveleighmarket.com.au

Organic and sustainable produce

I'm not a morning person at the best of times but this weekend I was curious to see Kylie Kwong cook up several dishes to celebrate Chinese New Year. The start of the event was introduced by two Chinese Dragons parading through the large undercover market with the beat of loud drumming. Kylie explained to the crowd that she'd sourced all the fresh produce from the stallholders and some of them were invited to come up and have a chat about their stall. I'm glad He Needs Food posted copies of the recipes because I forgot to take them. I've been to her Billy Kwong restaurant on Crown Street twice a few years ago. It has mixed reviews on Eatability and unfortunately doesn't take bookings so it can be a long wait depending on how early you arrive. I remember the seating was quite crowded and small which made it somewhat uncomfortable after a while, especially for my elderly parents. It's not cheap either but I guess she's sourcing quality sustainable and organic ingredients which can come at a premium price and the restaurant is located in the fashionable eating strip of Surry Hills. The signature dish of Crispy Skin Duck with Plum Sauce demonstrated today looked delicious.

After the cooking demonstration Kylie kindly made the time to have a photo with me — thank you! I then ventured on through the markets to find some much needed breakfast. Starting with the Eumundi Confused Eggs Smokey Bacon with sauteed onions and famous creole sauce which satisfied me out quickly — a very tasty and hearty breakfast indeed. I then came across the Achacha stall which grows and sells this exotic fruit in Queensland which originates from South America. I remember first reading about it through A Table For Two and Grab Your Fork, which went to a launch at Baroque Bistro. I think my dad would enjoy these because they are quite similar to mangosteen — also a lot easier to peel than lychee. Next stop was delicious and generous samplings of Yalla dips, salsas and yoghurts. Oh wow, these taste great and their hummus is one of the nicest I've tried — I'd love to visit their factory one day. My enjoyable foodie tour ends at Blini Bar which makes excellent savoury and sweet crepes with ingredients sourced from the market stallholders. I hope they start working in festivals because their Spinach, Mushrooms, Sweet Onion and Cheese Crepe is so much better than the ubiquitous Turkish Gozleme. The premium full cream milk used seems to make the crepes so soft, tasty and creamy.

If you're passionate about food, sustainability and organic produce then these markets are for you. It's a great day out and the stall owners are only too happy to talk about their produce and products and provide samples to try where possible — Yalla in particular were very generous. There's some real bargains to be found and I was surprised how reasonably priced some things were.

Other visits to Eveleigh Farmers' Market:
• 21 Aug 2010 - Kylie Kwong Steamed savoury pancakes with organic vegetables and organic egg, Jonima Flowers, Block 11 Organics, The Fungi Li-Sun, Bell River Estate Mulled Wine, Naturally Falafel, HealthyFeast, Yalla, Pepe's Ducks, AJ & LA Sorbello Fresh Produce tomatoes, Alto Olives oil and olives
• 20 Feb 2010 - Kylie Kwong Cooking Demo, Eumundi, Yalla, Achacha, Blini Bar crepes
• 7 March 2009 - Food samples galore

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Fair amount of free street parking, Good range of organic produce, Plenty of quality food stalls, Reasonable prices to be found

CONS: Can be hard to find a park close by, Very popular

MUST TRY: Yalla dips and salsas, Blini Bar's Spinach, mushrooms, sweet onion and cheese crepe

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