You’ve probably seen the Ramen Burger floating around the Internet. If you’ve been coveting this ridic trend like we have, we’ve got a treat for you! The good folks at Annie Chun’s did the hard part and perfected the recipe for the ramen “bun” using their own products—follow their instructions and grab your favorite burger patty, and you can enjoy this crazy creation in the privacy of your own home, which is probably for the best.
I don”t like Labor Day weekend that much. Weird, right? I mean, three-day weekends are the best and all. But to me, Labor Day signifies the end of summer and I love summer! I don”t want it to end! Luckily here in Texas your typical “summer” weather lasts from about April-October. Still though, the fact that September is coming is stressing me out—I feel like I have to cram in as much summer fun and flavor as possible.
One of my very favorite summertime foods is watermelon. I”m obsessed. It”s obviously delicious and refreshing on its own, but I”ve also gotten really into using it as a component in more savory recipes. I always love a good watermelon and feta salad, but here”s something even better. Our friends at Pompeian sent over a recipe for a savory watermelon salad with olives and homemade ricotta. Game changer! If you”re looking for a unique side for your last barbecue of the summer (sob!) I think this would do the trick.
Here we are, back in Iceland. We’ve talked about cheap and easy hot dogs and we’ve talked about exotic whale meat, so now let’s meet somewhere in the middle: burgers.
Specifically the ones at Vitabar, which is said to have the best burgers in Reykjavik. It’s a pretty divey restaurant/bar and I mean that in a good way. I heard people call it “fast food” but it’s nothing like American fast food restaurants—there’s no drive thru, no neon logos, no franchises. But it is really cheap! Especially by Icelandic standards (as you may recall me lamenting in past posts, going out in Iceland costs a pretty penny).
Getting your grub on at Vitabar is simple. You go up to the register, order your beers, burgers, and whatever sides you want (basically french fries or onion rings) and then they’ll bring everything to your table in just a few minutes. It’s very no-frills but hey, it’s a greasy burger joint, what did you expect? Vitabar is especially known for its Forget-Me-Not Burger, which is absolutely slathered in melty blue cheese and stinky garlic. Your breath will definitely not be forgotten after one of these bad boys. Just check out that monstrosity below. Woof.
The Forget-Me-Nots were really great though! The patties were a little thin but they were flavorful with a nice charred texture, firm enough to stand up to all the sloppy blue cheesy glory. Topped off with a classic sesame bun and paired with a pile of thin, crispy onion rings plus a slightly mysterious packaged “cocktail sauce,” this meal was a bar food lover’s dream.
For more Iceland travel tips (not to mention cocktails, healthy recipes, and restaurant reviews), check out ES Emily’s individual blog, A Time to Kale, or tweet her @emilyteachout with all your burning food travel questions.
I generally don’t buy ice cream. I don’t like to have it in the house. Not because I dislike it—the opposite! I love it and if I keep a pint of Ben and Jerry’s (or Bluebell! My people in the southern states know what I’m talkin’ about!) in my freezer, I keep going back for one more spoonful until all the sudden it has magically disappeared. Into my stomach. Oops.
All that might be changing, though. Arctic Zero is now available all over the country. Have you heard of this stuff? It’s ice cream… kind of… well, it’s a frozen ice cream-like dessert with only 150 calories in an entire pint. 150! How do they do it? They use monk fruit concentrate and organic cane sugar (no artificial sweeteners) to sweeten and mix in whey protein concentrate. Not gonna lie here—Arctic Zero is good, but it doesn’t taste like full-fat, ultra-sugary ice cream. You know what, though? The fact that an ice cream binger like me can eat the entire pint if I so choose and not bust my healthy eating plan for the day or feel like a sluggish failure is a major, major plus. I would almost call it… healthy!
Arctic Zero offers an impressive array of flavors as well as cute little chocolate-covered bars that clock in at 85 calories a pop. I’m partial to vanilla maple and cookies & cream varieties. One warning: this stuff is rock hard straight out of the container, so I’d recommend letting it sit for about 10 minutes before digging in. Or! If you’re not into eating it plain, Arctic Zero is really great in recipes. You can use it to replace ice cream or whipped cream when making frozen pies or as a totally guilt-free base for smoothies and milkshakes. The peeps at AZ were nice enough to share some recipes with me and now I’m going to share one with you.
I’m usually pretty skeptical of monthly Internet deals and delivery services. “Pay $____ and we’ll send a monthly delivery of snacks/makeup/shoes/jewelry/whatever to you” websites usually turn out to be a disappointment, in my experience. But! I might have finally found a monthly food delivery service I like! (And I’m not talking about a dieting program like Nutrisystem or something.)
The good folks at NatureBox sent me a box of goodies to try out, and I have to say I’m pretty impressed with the quality. The whole point of NatureBox is to provide tempting snacks that are actually healthy for you—every snack item is nutritionist approved, made with natural ingredients, and minimally, if at all, processed. You can pay NatureBox $19.95 (a flat rate including shipping) per month and they’ll send you a big “Discovery Box” containing five full-size bags of snacks. If you don’t like the food, you can return it for a full refund, but I don’t imagine that happens very often.
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What does whale taste like? GUILT. Sweet, meaty guilt.
I recently took a trip to Iceland and one of its (many, many) highlights was the seafood. While the expected specialty dishes, such as arctic char and langoustine, were incredibly fresh, I want to talk bigger. I want to talk WHALE.
The first night we had dinner in Reykjavik we headed to Tapasbarinn, a dark, romantic little tapas bar (yep, tapas in Iceland! Who knew”) where we ordered the “Icelandic Feast” tapas set to share. One of the first dishes brought out was whale, and I can’t deny that I was excited to try it. I had expected something really blubbery, but it was really lean! I would describe whale meat like kind of like a rich, rare steak. It was absolutely delicious. I don’t have any photos of our food from that first night, because I meant what I said—that place was super atmospheric, but super dark, and I didn’t want to be the a-hole with the flash photography ruining the ambiance.
Anyway, let’s talk. You can’t deny the controversy surrounding the consumption of whale. Whaling is internationally banned, but three countries choose to ignore the ban: Japan, Norway, and Iceland. In defense of Iceland, I only saw minke whale, an un-endangered breed, served in restaurants. Plus they don’t have a ton of natural resources that far north, so I suppose that traditionally they had to take what they could get. Boyfriend Rob and I took a whale-watching tour (recommended!) on the last day of our trip, though, and the guide explained to us that only about 10-15% of whale is eaten by native Icelanders, and the rest is just for tourists. That made me feel kind of bad.
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When you think of Icelandic food, you probably think of fresh seafood and exotic delicacies. What you might not think about is hot dogs, but you’d be making a grave mistake. In fact, cheap hot dogs are so beloved over there that they’re often called the Icelandic National Food. I recently returned from a trip to this magical country, and while I ate tons of exciting meals (don’t worry, those will be recapped later on), one of my most memorable culinary encounters was a 2:00am street hot dog. I mean, I love unique hot dog experiences, so how I could I resist seeing what all the fuss was about?
After a night of drinking in downtown Reykjavik we ventured out into the night to find Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur, Reykjavik’s most popular hot dog stand. It’s extremely well-known in these parts, named the best hot dog in Europe by the Guardian and a favorite of visiting celebs—most famously, Bill Clinton is a fan.
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