Tuna Diet, Lavender French honey and more at chefshop.com/enews EXCLUSIVE SUBSCRIBER 5% OFF CODE honey  Recipes | Chef's Pantries | Shop for Food & Ingredients | Food Blog Tuna New Year I have been eating a lot of tuna fish salad these days since the end of the “gluten” enriched holidays, otherwise known as the bloated time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. If you are gluten intolerant you might find it a bit annoying that every party and meal circles around the all mighty glutine. And thus, when the new year starts, it is a bit of relief to have all those gluten enriched, fattened relatives gone. Though the issue still needs to be resolved as to what to eat. For me, I have been eating tuna fish with abandon. It doesn’t hurt that the stocking was full of our favorite cans of tuna! The problem is that part of our job is to eat everything. Sometimes this is good, and sometimes not so much. So, as I consumed lots of tuna from our “shelves”, I realized it was time to try some tuna from the grocer’s shelves. I was actually looking forward to it, thinking that tuna, cheap tuna in a can, had turned the corner and it would be at least acceptable. I was really wrong! The first can of albacore was worse than I remembered; all wet yet tasted dry, and no (and I mean no!) flavor at all. The second can, which was skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis), was a crumbled mess inside. It had a flavor matching the weird orangish color “fish” I found inside. It was not appealing in any way. I ended up using a lot more of my gourmet Mayonnaise, and my current favorite, sweet relish from southern Oregon. The end result was edible, though I wish I had tasted first and not wasted the mayo and relish! If you hate tuna in a can, bad, cheap, tuna could be the reason. Try a great tuna, and you will be hooked for life. Your mouth doesn’t lie! 1) As Do Mar Tuna in Olive Oil As do Mar is our tuna of choice for Salade Niçoise, and it's a perfect addition to any antipasto plate. Or try it on a bed of greens with sliced, ripe tomatoes and a handful of good olives for an easy, delicious and very healthy lunch - no mayo required! Shop now for As do Mar from Spain 2) Sacred Sea Albacore Tuna Sacred Sea Albacore tuna has won double-blind taste tests by a private consortium of sashimi buyers from Japan three years in a row. "Feed Your Body, Mind & Spirit" says the label of this excellent tuna. That sums up why we love Sacred Sea and support canned tuna made with healthy, wild unstressed fish! Shop now for Sacred Sea Tuna 3) Ortiz Bonito Del Norte Tuna in a Tin This can of tuna is the perfect size for lunch! We love the shape of the can, which fits easily in the palm of your hand. Opening it reminds us of those romantic (fantasy or real) wicker basket picnics in a green field in your locale of choice. A pantry must! Shop now for Ortiz Bonito Del Norte Tuna Tin 4) Ortiz Ventresca Tuna in Olive Oil This can contains the most prized cut of tuna, the belly or "ventresca" as it is called in Spain. The tuna's belly has the highest fat content, and so it is the richest in flavor and the silkiest in texture. The belly of the tuna is also the most highly sought after cut in Japan for sushi and sashimi. Shop now for The Belly of the Tuna 5) Bonito del Norte If you love the tuna, you can’t really share it with anyone, nor can you make a tuna casserole, tuna burgers, tuna stuffed potatoes, quesadillas or even a tuna sandwich for two. So that’s where this can comes in. At more than twice the size as the oval tin, you can make almost anything for you and your friends (and even a little for your cat). Shop now for Bonito del Norte 6) Atun Claro Jar Yellowfin tuna is known as Atun Claro in Spain and is some of the most flavorful tuna you will ever taste. These beautiful loin segments of Atun Claro are packed in extra-virgin olive oil and hand-cut from yellowfin caught on the dense tuna banks off the coast of Basque Country. Shop now for Atun Claro Yellowfin Tuna Les Ruchers de Bourgogne Apiaries of Burgundy Food shows are a strange version of a farmer's market; a global Agora, really. Though we get to taste foods, and often meet the representatives of the producers, we rarely buy anything. And even if we do buy, we never take an order home. It's a "virtual" buy, to show up at some later date. Though not nearly as romantic as the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, it's still a bit overwhelming to go into Javits or Moscone for the first time and see a sea of aisles and booths choked with people. As you can imagine, it is difficult to catch the good while passing on the twinkies that fill many of the booths. Our best finds come to us from friends, like Debra, Francoise, Lewis and Tina. It's this finding and sorting that takes time. A bit ago we were lucky enough to meet a fifth generation beekeeper with apiaries in Burgundy. With a giant selection of honey in front of him, we tried them all! Cautious at first, he warmed to Eliza who asked all the right questions about this honey and that honey. And, as usual, we asked about the more obscure honeys and our desire to have them. All in all, it was a wonderful meeting, a connection we hope will last a lifetime. And if we could, we would carry them all! We, after a bit of a dry spell, have five favorites back-in-stock: Acacia, clear as can be. Rosemary, white and smooth. Linden, with a bright taste that I can’t describe. And two out-of-this-world Lavenders; a French Lavender is the reason we have been searching for a new French beekeeper for over five years. Shop now for the new honey from France's apiaries. 7) Golden Clear Acacia Honey Acacia honey is actually from a false acacia, Robinia pseudoacacia, commonly known as black locust, a tree native to eastern North America and widely planted in Europe. Acacia honey has lower acid content than other honeys and its high fructose content means that it can stay liquid for a long time. Its color ranges from a light yellow to white to clear. Shop now for Acacia Honey 8) Rosemary Honey This Rosemary honey is a perfect topper to those summer grilled fruits. Lending a slightly herbaceous smell and flavor, the woodsy notes lend a nice balance to the sweeter, sugary flavors of the honey. My first choice mixed into a little creme fraise and spooned atop grilled peaches. Shop now for sweet Rosemary Honey 9) Linden Tree Honey Known as Linden, or Basswood, honey in the US, it is known as Lime honey in Europe. To me, "Lime" seems like a more appropriate name, given the flavor of the honey. Always one of my favorites, because of the shockingly citrusy brightness that shocks your palette at the back of the throat. Add a little zip to your English afternoon tea, or morning English muffin. Shop now for Linden Tree Honey 10) Les Ruchers de Bourgogne Wild Lavender Honey Made by busy bees from pollen gathered off wild lavender bushes in Provence. Solid and pale yellow, perfect for your favorite French dish that calls for honey. Classically woodsy and herbaceous, it is what you would expect from French lavender honey. Delicious. Shop now for French Wild Lavender Honey 11) Maritime French Lavender Honey This honey is from pollen gathered from lavender planted along the shores of the Mediterranean. As a result, Maritime Lavender honey has a slight saltiness that enhances the overall flavor; like lavender honey on steroids. With a hint of the sea in the honey, this is the most unique Lavender Honey we have tasted and love too! An all time favorite! Shop now for Maritime French Lavender Honey   Just-in-Updates - Cooking Classes Katz is back in Stock! Maybe you didn't know but almost all the vinegars vanished off the shelves! It happens, especially when a big order comes in from a special chef. So check the cupboard and re-stock your vinegars. The Hearty Hungarian Class This fabulous new class is a favorite of ours. Don't know Hungarian? Don't let this keep you from coming to it. Learn a lot of cooking stuff, but also get to eat the fruits of the labor! Winter Parm - cutting soon Our last "cut" wasn't enough, so we went looking for and found more. If you missed it in the fall, we have more to cut. We will mention it in the next newsletter, but to ensure a wedge order it up as soon as you can as it is extremely limited. Order today.   This Week's Recipes Fried Bajra Roti Traditional Indian bread made using the hearty and healthy Millet Flour. Perfect topped with the Hot Mango Chutney. Hungarian Goulash or Paprikash Recipe Our friend, Don, was Chef Louis' Night Chef at The Bakery in Chicago. This recipe is adapted from The Bakery Restaurant Cookbook by Lois Szathmary (CBI Publishing, 1981). Beets with Goat Cheese & Walnuts Recipe Some how fresh Goat Cheese and Beets just go so nicely together. Something about the sweetness of the beets together with slightly acidic, pithy taste of the goat cheese creates a perfect flavor balance. Add the slight crunch of the toasted walnuts and you have a perfect combination. We made the dish as a vegetable side. But you can add a little more dressing and serve it on a bed of greens or butter lettuce, and you have a side salad. Many chefs add chunks of avocado -- to add a little more anti-oxidant punch. See what you missed in previous Newsletters Honey & Hazelnuts, Pralus Pyramide Top Ten Favorites for 2015 Ships for Free, Gifts for Everyone ChefShop.com Toll-free: 1-800-596-0885 You've received this email because you have purchased from us or subscribed. We respect your privacy online, and will never share your email address. Help | Contact | About | Terms | Privacy Policy | Search | My Account DESIGN: JODI LUBY & COMPANY, INC. NEW YORK CITY, NY; EMAIL STRATEGY: CRM Group USA, SEATTLE, WA