Takeout Tuesday - PLNT Burger in Whole Foods Rockville

Welcome to the neighborhood PLNT Burger! PLNT Burger opened inside of the Rockville Pike Whole Foods on August 14th, and I am glad I got a chance to try out their plant based burger.  For their opening day they were giving away 100 PLNT burgers or PLNT cheeseburgers and I got in on the tail end of their giveaway, woohoo!

The employees were very enthusiastic about the grand opening, helpful with answering questions about the menu, and kept things organized and well spaced out for the people waiting.  They are located in the prepared foods area by the pizza station, with a nice clear display so you can check out their menu while you're shopping.  The burger itself was tasty - I've never tried the Impossible brand products before so the texture took some getting used to on my first bite.  However, for something being plant based I was very impressed with how much it seemed like a meat based burger.  This is a great option for lunch if you're in the mood for something while in the area, and I definitely want to try more of their menu items soon.

PLNT Burger 

Whole Foods Market

11355 Woodglen Drive 

Rockville, MD 20852

Takeout Tuesday - Dolcezza's Tramontana Gelato

I noticed this Tramontana flavor of Dolcezza gelato at Whole Foods about 2 months ago and had to pick one up.  This new flavor consists of "sweet cream gelato with ribbons of dulce de leche folded together with dark chocolate pearls".  Yes please!

My favorite part of this gelato flavor has to be the dark chocolate pearls mixed throughout the container - such a nice crunch and chocolate flavor.  I always like when there's little crunchy bits to ice cream for an extra treat. But of course the thick dulce de leche is plentiful too, and so delicious without being cloying.  I definitely recommend picking this flavor up if you're in the market for a new flavor of gelato! 

 

Lunchtime Links for March 4th, 2021

• The Kitchn: Levain's frozen chocolate chip cookies. 
• Creme de la Crumb: Cinnamon Streusel muffins.
• Two Peas and Their Pod: Hash browns.
• Serious Eats: Choux au Craquelin.
• Crazy for Crust: Toll House cookies.

Sumo Citrus Season is Here!

Just a quick note to let you know about this important update - SUMO CITRUS SEASON IS BACK!!!  It might sound silly to be excited about oranges, haha - but these big ole mandarin oranges are really delicious!  I came across this display at my local Whole Foods and I was very excited to see that they were back in stores.  I also love that they're also called Dekopon mandarins originating in Japan, in reference to the protruding bump on the top of each of these huge mandarins.  If you have never had these before I highly recommend trying them out at least once - they are pricey but totally worth it!  

Nestle Toll House + Pretzel Cookies

Happy Friday! What better way to celebrate than with delicious cookies! I recently bought a "college dorm" gift bag at Whole Foods because it was a great deal for a bag full of items that I use.  Included in the gift bag was a big bag of pretzel sticks, which I thought would be perfect in a chocolate chip cookie!  

I used the Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookie recipe on the back of the bag of chocolate chips, halved the original recipe since I don't need FIVE DOZEN cookies haha, and added a generous bowl-ful of crushed pretzel sticks to the dough.  I made sure that the pretzel sticks were small enough to get distributed evenly in the dough, but large enough that you can still see them.  These cookies turned out great, and the pretzel pieces added a lot of texture and a slight salty taste to the sweet cookies. They were a big hit at work and I would definitely make these again! 

Jeni's - Sweet Potato with Torched Marshmallows Ice Cream

As soon as I saw this lovely pint of ice cream in Whole Foods, I snatched it up faster than you can say "Torched Marshmallows", haha.  Normally the Whole Foods by me carries only a handful of Jeni's ice cream flavors, but I was really happy to see this seasonal Sweet Potato with Torched Marshmallows ice cream, yum.  

You may be thinking, "Sweet potatoes in ice cream? Gross."  Well rest assured, this ice cream was sweet, rich, and all-around delicious.  I mean, if we can have pumpkin ice cream, we can certainly wrap our heads around a sweet potato ice cream, right? The torched marshmallows were definitely the highlight of this ice cream - the caramelized marshmallow bits were amazing!  Once again, a wonderful holiday-centric ice cream flavor from Jeni's! 

Lunchtime Links for July 10th, 2012

• Miss Advised: Recap from TVGasm. 
• Big Girls Small Kitchen: Avocado hummus.
• The Kitchn: Bringing back old reusable shopping bags.
• How Sweet It Is: Sour cream and onion oven fries. 
• Serious Eats: Pizza at Teresa Caffe in Princeton, NJ.

Lunchtime Links for October 6th, 2011

• Elle Decor: Liberty of London + Hello Kitty.
• Serious Eats: Dan dan noodles.
• Whole Foods: Cream cheese cookies.
• In Good Taste: Baked pumpkin donuts.
• La Fuji Mama: Roasted parsnip fries with curry salt.

Whole Foods Strawberry Whoopie Pie

At the new Whole Foods by my apartment, the whoopie pies definitely caught my eye.   Seems like we're seeing these more and more everywhere, don't you think?

I was particularly intrigued by the strawberry whoopie pie, mostly due to the cute pretty pink color, haha.  But I'm also a huge fan of strawberries so I figured it was worth a try.

 

Unfortunately, looks can be deceiving, especially with cute pastries.  The cake itself was pretty good with a strong strawberry flavor, but it was about 90% cake and 10% frosting.  For me personally, there needs to be a good ratio between the two components for a good whoopie pie.  Also, it felt like this was almost too big - like if it had been all over a little smaller, maybe it would've been more moist and tastier.   I still love whoopie pies, but will probably look elsewhere for my fix!

Whole Foods Rockville Pre-Opening Blogger Tour, Part 2

Continuing on from yesterday, we have Part 2 of my pre-opening tour (here's Part 1)...lots of yummy treats!!

Tower o' Chocolate - how could I *not* photograph this?  I especially liked the little tubs of chocolate pearls (bottom left in the photo) - I think these would be really cute as cupcake decorations!

Over in the Coffee section, they have lots of different coffee brands to choose from, including a wide selection of local coffees.  Holla Mayorga Coffee! (I used to work there part-time a long time ago, haha).  Always nice to show some local pride and support local vendors!

In the Restaurant Row section, which includes a pizza oven, smokehouse, burger bar, as well as an all-organic salad bar, there is also an Arepa station.  Yum, crispy grilled cornmeal cakes with lots of tasty fillings- I'm definitely going to try one soon!

And saving the best for last: the Bakery section, ooh la la!  SO many different treats to choose from, it was so overwhelming to take it all in - and they hadn't even finished putting everything out yet, haha.

It was nice to see Sticky Fingers, a local DC bakery, displayed in the Bakery section!  Hopefully this will entice people that haven't been to the bakery yet to try their products out. 

See anything interesting - besides the cupcakes obviously?

1- Whoopie pies!  A few different flavors along the bottom shelf.  That strawberry one was definitely calling out to me, I can't wait to try it out!

2- Cake Pops!  To be honest these looked pretty much like cakes on sticks- much larger than other one-bite cake pops I've seen, haha.  But hey, not complaining!  I think this would be a cute option for customers that need some party treats, especially in a pinch.

The Bakery department graciously offered us samples of their tea cakes - these were really good, and a cute little size to boot.  At the time they had four flavors: Earl Grey, Chinese Black, Pomegranate, and Lavender.  I will definitely be picking up some of these for a snack!

 

At the end of the tour, we were offered fresh fruit, cheese, and desserts, as well as a stuffed gift bag full of goodies (above).  Lots of things I already like and new things for me to try!

Thanks again to Whole Foods for providing bloggers a chance to check out the new store before it opened-  I seriously can't wait to start shopping here soon!

Whole Foods Rockville Blogger Pre-Opening Tour, Part 1

Some of you might recall my posts (Part 1 and Part 2) about the then-new Whole Foods in Friendship Heights, DC; it was such a great way to check out the store right before it was officially open! 

Well, earlier this week, I had a similar opportunity- this time it was for the new Whole Foods in Rockville, MD.  I was very excited to check out the inside of the huge store!

I won't go into a ton of detail about the store (I'm assuming most of you have been inside a Whole Foods/supermarket before, haha), but I did want to post about some of the highlights of my tour:

Lots and lots of different flowers greet shoppers when they walk in the front entrance.  I loved this big display of bright colored flowers!

On our first stop at the coffee bar, we sampled a mini cup of coffee.  Not just any old cup of coffee, but a $70/lb cup of coffee.  I don't even like hot coffee but obviously I couldn't pass up this opportunity, haha.  By no means am I any sort of expert, but this coffee, even with nothing added, tasted very smooth and without that bitterness that I typically associate with coffee. 

The produce section was laid out very nicely with lots of clear signage and labeling for organic and local items.  I especially like this tropical fruits section, with hanging b-a-n-a-n-a-s! Haha.

Over in the friendly Seafood department, they have lowered the partitions so that there is more interaction between the employees and the customers.  Also, I'm sure most supermarkets do provide cleaning and preparation services, but it was nice to see the options all laid out clearly for the customers. 

Over in the Bulk section is also the Cooking Rockville section.  According to the Whole Foods info sheet we were provided, "Shoppers at the new location will be the first to experience Whole Foods Market's new Cooking Rockville department and program, which combines designated workspaces, cookbooks, cooking tools, demonstrations, and themed, seasonal menus to engage, inspire, and educate shoppers about the joy of cooking.  The Cooking area will be an inviting, warm space featuring butcher block workspaces, chalkboards, and touch-screen technology, where Cooking Coaches - Whole Foods Market team members with in-depth culinary knowledge- will help shoppers bring the passion back into cooking seasonal meals at home."

It's an interesting concept, and I'm looking forward to seeing what sort of demonstrations and events they might be having around this Cooking Rockville idea.  Also, I am finding myself more and more interested in the Bulk section, considering I am normally cooking small amounts of food, and wouldn't always want to buy a full bag/container of grains or beans just for one recipe.  

One notable feature in the Dairy section are these doors that are energy efficient and keep the cases cool without distributing all the cold air throughout the rest of the store. 

Over in the Cheese and Specialty Foods section, there's lots and lots of cheeses to choose from, yum.  I also thought this sign featuring all of the local farms and vendors was interesting- always nice to know where your food is coming from!

"Where's the Bakery???" you might be wondering.  OBVIOUSLY I would not miss out on posting about it- the rest of the store tour will be posted tomorrow! :o)


Whole Foods Rockville
11355 Woodglen Drive
Rockville, MD 20852
301.984.4880

Martha Stewart Lemon Squares

 

Normally, I'll pick out a chocolate dessert over a fruit-based one, but I had recently bought a bag of Meyer lemons on sale at Whole Foods and no idea what to do with them, haha.  I found this recipe for Lemon Squares in the Martha Stewart Cookies book, and figured it was a great chance to use a few lemons up!

Since I don't have a juicer, the most time consuming portion of this recipe was actually manually juicing the lemons.  However, the rest of the recipe was easy.  Just remember that since you have to chill the crust before baking it, the recipe doesn't come together as quickly as a regular bar cookie.  

Overall, the use of Meyer lemons made these much more sweet than regular lemon bars, so keep that in mind if you're looking for a sweet bar, or a really tart, "real" lemon flavor from using regular lemons.  They are v. pretty in person and were a big hit at work!

Whole Foods Recipe - Pumpkin Chocolate Cake

A while back, I came across this Whole Foods recipe for pumpkin chocolate cake, and decided to make it for my co-workers.  Pumpkin + Chocolate = Mmmmm, haha.  Plus, it looked v. simple to make and a great way to welcome in Fall :o)

 

I don't have whole wheat flour, so I used the same amount of regular all-purpose flour for this recipe.  Luckily for me I love pumpkin, so I had everything I needed on hand to make this cake. 
This recipe is v. simple and comes together easily.  As the cake bakes you get this really fantastic pumpkin/cocoa fragrance filling up the kitchen- yum! 

And here we have the finished cake!  This was a big hit at work and everyone seemed to enjoy it.  It's not overly sweet but v. moist due to the pumpkin puree.  If you'd like to add some texture, I'd recommend chopped walnuts or chocolate chips.  If you'd like frosting, I think a simple cream cheese frosting would be a nice pairing to this cake.  Try this out if you're looking for a pumpkin baked good that's not just your regular pumpkin pie or pumpkin bread!  

Lunchtime Links for November 15th, 2010

• Bakerella: S'moregasbord.
• Lady Gaga: Wax figures, woo!
• The Kitchn: Cheese "ends" at Whole Foods.
• Serious Eats: Mixed Review of cornbread mixes.
• Tasty Kitchen: Taco Rice recipe.

Vita Coco Coconut Water with Peach & Mango

Generally speaking, not a fan of coconut.  Hate the texture, don't like the taste, etc. etc.  This fact might be the most obvious in my Georgetown Cupcake reviews, as the coconut cupcakes were some of the more difficult ones for me to review, haha.  However, you'd have to be living under a rock to not notice the influx of coconut water these days.  Celebs are photographed carrying various brands of coconut water, there are ads in magazines, and people have touted it as a great post-workout hydrator and hangover cure, haha.   

Even with all the coverage, I continued to ignore the coconut water craze due to my aversion to the main ingredient.  However, my love of free things trumped my hatred of coconut during the Passport to Style event in Wisconsin Place, where Vita Coco had a stand.  I was given an ice-cold...carton? juice-pack? whatever you want to call it, of their coconut water with peach & mango.  Well color me impressed, it was REALLY good!  I think it helped that it had peach and mango in it, since I like those flavors, haha.  But still, it was super refreshing and tasty, and I could see why fans of coconut water are so jazzed up about it.  I've seen Vita Coco sold at Whole Foods and CVS, but I'm sure they are also sold at other stores/supermarkets as well.  Give it a try if you're curious about coconut water!  

Peeled Snacks Prize from Whole Foods NYC

I recently won a prize pack from Peeled Snacks, courtesy of Whole Foods NYC's 30th birthday celebration contests.  I wasn't sure what to expect as my prize, but was excited to see that it was a big variety pack of some of Peeled Snacks' fruit offerings. 

The packaging is v. bright and super cute- I especially like the fun names for the fruit snacks, like Cherry-go-round, Much-ado-about-Mango, etc.  I think these would be appealing to kids just as much as adults.  I've tried the Apple-2-the-core and it's a tasty, sweet snack that is fun to munch on.  They're a good size for snacking during the day, depending on how much you love dried fruit I guess, haha.  "Thank you!" to Whole Foods NYC and Peeled Snacks for such a generous giveaway!

Review: Gatorade Natural

I recently received these two bottles to try out the new Gatorade Natural drinks, which are now available at Whole Foods stores.  I don't normally buy sports drinks, but I figured it would be interesting to try out a new formulation of Gatorade.  There are a few positive changes to these drinks, according to the press release that came with the bottles:

- Natural versions of Gatorade Thirst Quencher and low-calorie G2 made with natural flavors, colors and ingredients.

- Provide the same scientifically proven hydration and performance benefits as Gatorade Thirst Quencher and G2.
 

Since I already like the regular Orange Gatorade, it's really no surprise that I'd like the G Natural Orange Citrus flavor as well.  This one tasted significantly less sweet, in a good way.  You definitely still get that hyper-orange flavor you'd expect, but it's dialed back a few notches for sure.  I would definitely buy this flavor again! 

The G2 Natural Berry bottle was good, but I didn't like it as much as the Orange Citrus.  This is mainly based on personal preferences, as I tend to prefer orange flavors over berry flavors, especially for drinks.  It had that sorta "miscellaneous berry" flavor thing going on that I don't really like, because to me it's a little too close to "medicinal" in flavor.  However, like the Orange Citrus, the sweetness was dialed down so it wasn't as artificial tasting as I expected it to be. 

I tried out both of these over the course of a week after working out at the gym.  Did I notice any sort of performance-related benefits from drinking these?  Not really, although they were both refreshing to have after working out.  I'm probably not the best person to test out the performance benefits since I'm not a marathon runner or anything, ha.  I didn't notice any negative side effects though, so that's a plus? Haha. 

For another blogger's perspective of these new Gatorade drinks, check out Q's blog here.  If you are already a fan of Gatorade and/or like having it around at home, I'd recommend trying out these natural versions to see how you like them.  Also, if anyone's interested in more information or coupons, let me know!  

Recipe: Cucumber and Couscous-stuffed Tomatoes with Mango Mint Salsa

Generally speaking, I'm not really a recipe-creating-type of person.  I like cookbooks and usually don't stray too far from the instructions in them.  Boring, I know, but I bought these cookbooks for a reason, right? 

However, when I saw that Olga of the Mango & Tomato blog was holding a recipe contest for her 2-year blogiversary, I figured it was a fun chance to make my own recipe, using mangoes and tomatoes.  After considering a few ideas, I came up with (drumroll please)... Cucumber and Couscous-stuffed Tomatoes with Mango Mint Salsa! This dish is simple, vegetarian, easy to revamp with other veggies if you want, and a nice way to celebrate fresh produce.  Granted, this recipe isn't anything groundbreaking, but I think it would be a nice salad/side dish option for summer BBQ's and dinner parties.  Please let me know what you think if you try it out, and fingers crossed that I do well in the contest! :o)  

Mise en place (minus the lime, whoops)

Cucumber and Couscous-stuffed Tomatoes:

- 4 medium-to-large tomatoes
- 1 box (5.8 oz) couscous (I used the Near East Whole Grain Wheat Roasted Garlic and Olive Oil Couscous.)
- 1 1/4 cup vegetable broth
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 cucumber, diced (I cut the seeds out to keep the dish from getting watery.)
- Salt and pepper to taste

Mango Mint Salsa:

- 1 ripe, peeled/pitted mango, diced
- 1/2 of a small onion, finely diced
- Juice from 1/2 a lime
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped mint (I used around 10 mint leaves.)
- Mint leaves for garnish (optional)

Cook couscous according to package directions, substituting the water with vegetable broth to add more flavor.  Set aside to cool completely. 

Combine all of the Mango Mint Salsa ingredients in a bowl, mix thoroughly, and place in the fridge to chill. 

Cut the tops of the tomatoes (I cut about 1" around from the stem) and scoop out the innards with a small spoon, creating a tomato "bowl".   Set the tomatoes onto individual plates or a serving plate.

Once the couscous is cooled, add the diced cucumber, and mix thoroughly.  Salt and pepper to taste. 

Fill each tomato "bowl" with the Cucumber and Couscous mixture, then top each stuffed tomato with the Mango Mint Salsa.   Garnish with mint leaves if you're feeling extra snazzy.  Enjoy!

Pre-salsa-ing...

 

Post-salsa-ing!

En-hance. (Super Troopers reference, haha)

Lunchtime Links for June 2nd, 2010

• Apps Only: Char No. 4 in NYC.
• Top Chef Masters: Recap from TVGasm. 
• Serious Eats: Peanut butter coffee blended drink recipes.
• Mango & Tomato: Post/photos of the Whole Foods Friendship Heights tour. 
• The Hills: Recap from TVGasm.

Whole Foods Friendship Heights, Blogger Pre-opening Tour: Part 2

Just wanted to fit in some photos of the Bakery section of the new Whole Foods Friendship Heights during the tour from last night- so many photos, so many great foods!!  We got to sample their natural Jelly Beans, Macarons (Chocolate and Lemon flavors), and see all the yummy stuff they had to offer!

Bakery area

  

Mini Black & White cookies; Two-bite brownies

Cakes 

Cupcakes!!

Macarons, Cakes, Mini cupcakes, etc.

Haha, love it!

Yummy chocolate macaron!

Mini Whoopie Pies!

Mmm... bulk candy!

Sounds SO good!

As you can probably tell, the Bakery section was my favorite part of the tour, haha.  Can't wait to go back and try more items!