Boy have we ever soaked up the sunshine on our vacation! I wish I could bottle this warm sunny weather and take it back to Ontario with us. While we’re getting settled, I thought I’d share the next roundup of Things I’m Loving Lately. And a quick note that there will be no Ask Angela post tomorrow due to the holiday. If you’re celebrating this weekend, I hope you have a very happy Easter!!
1. Soom Pure Ground Sesame Tahini
On an impulse, I added this tahini to my Naturamarket.ca order (the website where I buy my beloved Nutpods!) and ended up falling in love with it! I adore how smooth and luxurious this tahini is, plus it has that nice “runny” texture that’s perfect for drizzling—some brands I’ve tried in the past can be quite firm and dry with a layer of separated oil that’s difficult to mix in. Its flavour is so rich and nutty too.
2. Mina Harissa paste
I’m a bit late to the party trying Harissa, but once I did there was no turning back. While I’m by no means an expert on traditional Harissa pastes (and I’ve yet to try making a homemade version!), I really enjoy Mina’s Harissa as it’s super flavourful and preservative-free, too.
3. Vita Bio Organic Chickpeas (Jarred)
These chickpeas are a great option when I don’t have time to soak and cook my own chickpeas, and I also love that they’re stored in glass as opposed to tins. If I don’t recycle the jars, I like to throw them in the dishwasher to reuse for overnight oats or homemade salad dressings. Just a word of caution though: these jarred chickpeas have a jelly-like coating (as opposed to the liquid state of aquafaba), but it’s nothing a good rinse can’t fix. (At first I was mega creeped out though! lol.)
4. Young Lux Plates
Young Lux reached out to me last month offering to send our kids some of their bamboo plates to try out. I was actually planning to put an order in myself after seeing the brand pop up on social media, so I gladly accepted their kind offer! The kids adore their new plates, and I have to say, so does mama—their modern/stylish design is a nice change from the usual kid-friendly look (a parent can only take so much neon green and orange…ya know?), plus it’s free from plastics, too…woohoo! My only small complaint with the plates so far is that I’ve noticed some light staining on them. This could be because we use a natural dishwasher detergent (which doesn’t work super well), but I’m not sure. Young Lux does say that the plates are dishwasher safe.
5. Tarteist Glossy Lip Paint in WCW
This lip “paint” by tarte is my go-to lip colour. I adore a rich berry tone and this one has so much pigment—I simply tap a few dots across my lips and then blend all over with my finger for a quick pop of colour. I top it off with my fave Kopari Coconut Lip Glossy for shine and moisture.
6. Mama Bear Indigo mug
It’s no secret that I’m a bit of a collector (okay, hoarder!) when it comes to Indigo’s mugs…they’re just so cute and have the best catchy sayings and puns. This Mama Bear mug is one of my favourites, and I find its large 16-ounce size perfect for my French press coffee with all the fixin’s! Sadly, that one appears to be out of stock, but there’s a similar 13-ounce version here that might make a sweet Mother’s Day gift, if you’re on the hunt!
Ooh, I love tahini! It’s such an unsung hero! I’ve never used harissa but it sounds great on potatoes.
It really is…I love tahini drizzled on salads with lemon juice when I dont have time to make a full dressing.
Okay, hidden best tip ever in there with the naturamarket.ca heads up! It’s like they sell everything we can’t get in Canada. Nutpods going in the basket! :)
Hah so true!! I order over $50 of Nutpods and sometimes other things like tahini at a time so I get free shipping lol.
Hi Angela,
If I have dried out nut/seed butters or nut/seed butters that have separated, I pour the whole works in my noisy food processor, run around the house dancing with my toddler, and return to the kitchen to runny nut/seed butter that looks as good as gold. The dish washer takes care of the mess whilst my nipper grabs a spoon to dig in!
Happy Easter!
From Vancouver Island
Hey Laurie, I’m so glad I’m not the only one who has tried this with stubborn nut or seed butters. It does work well in a pinch!
Angela, First thing to know is I’m a fan and get inspired from you all the time. Second, I’m crazy about harissa. I have an easy, quick homemade recipe that I’ve been using for 30 years. It’s from Martha Rose Shulman’s cookbook, Mediterranean Light.
I’m too lazy to use dried whole chiles and instead buy the crushed red chiles that can be found in cellophane packs at the grocery store.
Harissa
3 0z dried red crushed chilies
5 or six cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tsp caraway seeds, ground
1/2 tsp cumin seeds, ground
1/2 tsp coriander seeds, ground
1 tsp salt
4 T extra virgin olive oil, or more as needed
Soak the chilies in a glass bowl with hot water for about 15 min. Drain leaving about a T of water.
Add the spices, garlic, salt, and olive oil and stir to blend. After using for a few times you may want to add a little olive oil if it seems dry.
What is it good on? Try adding it to the rice on your plate with a little lemon vinaigrette, and a little soy sauce. It’s the trinity of ingredients. Also, great in soups, on pizza, in pasta, and a complete necessity in hummus.
Hey Lizabeth, Thank you so much for the sweet words…I’m so happy you find inspiration here! And thanks for sharing this Harissa recipe. I can’t wait to try it.
Ooh, I adore Nutpods! A game changer when it came to my coffee, because I really don’t like almond milk plain in it. I still have never bought a Harissa – will have to check that out!
Hey Michelle, I hear you on the Nutpods…my coffee has never tasted SO good. I like to do a mix of Nutpods and califia almond milk so it stretches the Nutpods a bit further. :)
LOVE this section! I’ve been looking for jarred chickpeas forever. Where did you find them?
Thanks Carlotta! I found the jarred chickpeas at Organic Garage in Oakville. :)
I absolutely love tahini too. I always add a generous dollop to rice before removing it from the rice cooker. It tastes amazing.
Oh, I love the Youn Lux plates! You’re right, they are so stylish and so good. Love this roundup, thanks for sharing :)
So glad you enjoy their plates too..such a fun option! Sometimes I use them myself..heh.
Gurl have you tried their chocolate sesame paste?! Get it now, thank me later. It is heavenly.
Also try mixing harissa with miso and roasting food. I have a recipe on my blog for miso-harissa squash tacos, but you can google up similar recipes that are yummy.
Chocolate sesame paste? whaaaaat. Didn’t even know that existed! I’ll have to check next time I order.
And your harissa-miso squash tacos sound like a dream!!
FYI, the link to the Mama Bear mug is broken.
Thanks for the heads up! I’m going to remove it now :)
I went to Dizengoff and became obsessed with their hummus! I have made and eaten a LOT of hummus and something was different about theirs. Then Food52 published the recipe. And yup, Soom tahini is a big part of the magic.
The recipe is a little fussy and absolutely worth it, i can’t recommend it strongly enough!
I can’t seem to paste the link for you, just search “Zahav’s hummus” on Food52.com.
Oh thanks for the tip! I can’t wait to try hummus with Soom. mmmm
Hope you had good Easter, Love your things that u like, specially, Organic Chickpeas.
Thank you for writing these posts! They’re enjoyable to read and a great way to find new favorites :) I also love tahini. There’s a tahini shop near me where they grind their own tahini right on the spot with a huge millstone and it’s so cool! Also delicious :)
I use the “Heritage The Rock Non-Stick Frying Pan” which is typically $119 but it’s on sale at Canadian Tire right now for $30. I have been using it for about 3 years and it’s solid, cooks evenly and REALLY easy to clean :)
Thanks Stephanie…awesome deal on it!
Gurl have you tried their chocolate sesame paste?! Get it now, thank me later. It is heavenly.
I haven’t but I’m thinking about trying it after all these great reviews!!
I bought the Soom tahini based on your recommendation and you’re so right…it’s the best tahini I’ve used so far! So smooth, no separation, and it’s really delicious. I guess the only downside is that I just bought it yesterday and I’m almost half way through because I can’t stop eating it ?
haha sounds like me! I’m so glad you love it as much as I do! :) I can’t wait til it’s back in stock where I buy it from…I’m all out *cries*