Pine Nuts for President
Whole Foods used to really offend me: from the moment I walk in, my olfactory glands are attacked by various weird smells; the prices induce cringes and gasps; the fruit tarts look inferior to my own; I am invited to sample "cheese snacks" but upon closer inspection, they turn out to be bullshit "healthy" alternatives to Cheetos. The phrase "alternative to Cheetos" makes me angry.
But lately I've been looking forward to grocery opportunities so I can suggest going to Whole Foods. I really can't pinpoint any reason why Whole Foods, especially since all of the above complaints have not subsided and I'm certain Trader Joe's would suffice. One explanation could be that I want to recreate my parent's salads, which I am sure include two things I have never been inclined to buy until this newfound desire: arugula and pine nuts. Phoebe has been busy promoting the former on her blog, so I will volunteer to pick up the latter's campaign over here.
Pine nuts are EXPENSIVE. At Whole Foods, you can scoop your own amount for $16.99/lb. They are kind of like the saffron of nuts. They sit next to the macadamia nuts; perhaps they are just as oily and fatty, and that's what makes the price go up?
I think you can buy them roasted. Even if they are pre-roasted, my mom re-roasts them again. I believe these were raw, so I roasted; maybe one side roasted too much.
Perhaps they soften the blow of vegetables. Until about five or six years ago, I wouldn't eat my parent's salads because they contained so much of what I sincerely thought was garbage. I think nearly all vegetables require getting used to, and maybe the softness and mild flavor of pine nuts soothes you while you wonder why you're eating all this crunchy crap when you could be having Cheetos as an alternative.
3 comments:
These things are starting not to surprise me, but I have been meaning to buy pine nuts for weeks now! There's one place in NYC--Sahadi's in Brooklyn on Atlantic Avenue--where they seem to be not-so-expensive. How good they are remains to be seen, but expect a full WWPD report.
they need to incorporate these into salads
until then the southwest salad at mcdonalds is the only one i deem fit for homo habilis and above
i used to hate whole foods. but i recently discovered that some of their products are actually considerably cheaper than stuff at jewel or dominicks. their hummus is good. their meats are all good and the quality of the fruits and vegetables are amazing compared to jewel and dominicks.
i always feel weird about having nuts in salads because they all tumble to the very bottom of the bowl only to soak in the dressing. but if u have a decent amount of lettuce or spinach, you get a nice stratification and distribution of nuts.
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