The Choosy Foodie: Los Angeles - Issue #6
Gluten Free Ghost Kitchens, Dairy Free Options, & Specialty Citrus!
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Hi all,
Hope everyone is well. I don’t have any major updates to share this month, but I do have A LOT of great free-from finds and news to get through.
Figured we might as well get to it!
Cheers 🍻
WHAT'S COOKING LOS ANGELES?!
THE RISE OF GHOST KITCHENS & FREE-FROM OPTIONS
Ghost kitchens👻, also known as “dark kitchens”, “cloud kitchens” or “virtual kitchens” (I know, a lot of names….) are commercial kitchen spaces that food businesses can rent out to prepare their menu items. They generally function as pick-up and delivery only sites (as they don’t have a front of house) and are becoming popular with food businesses due to their potential in overhead cost savings. Here’s a great ghost-kitchen explainer video if you need some visual clarification.
Expanding into the ghost kitchen space in LA are hospitality groups like Salted - which focuses on putting a healthy spin on traditionally unhealthy foods. They operate 6 “veggie forward” brands that are ALL 100% gluten free. Some of these brands include “Skinny Bitch Pizza” (cauliflower crust pizza), “Thrive Kitchen” (low-carb & keto-friendly options) and my personal favorite, “moonbowls” (Korean inspired bowls - some of which have purple🟣sweet potato🍠noodles🍜!!!)⬇️
What Else is Simmering...
(restaurant)- Speaking of food businesses with no storefront, Cena Vegan has some incredible gluten-free & vegan tamales🫔you can get delivered!
(bakery)- Madame Shugah, another incredible delivery-based business serves up some tasty gluten-free & vegan baked goods 🧁I recommend trying.
(food/restaurant news)- These LA restaurants are going to be incorporating a new plant-based poached egg🍳product into their menus. Your “Eggs” Benedict awaits.
(food news)- Gluten-free grains and alternative flours have more uses than you may think! I recently read a bit about the importance of millets🌾around the globe & the potential health benefits of sweet potato flour 🍠vs. other types of flour.
(product)- Dream Pops is a new 100% plant-based ice-cream🌱🍦that is giving me low-key “Dibz” vibes. I haven’t tried it yet, but it looks amazing.
(product)- These GF & DF “Pringles” from The Good Crisp Company truly get all the tastes and textures spot on.
WHAT ARE YOU REALLY EATING?!
(article)- A deep dive into available winter citrus varieties like Bergamot, Buddha’s Hand, Calamansi🍊🍋& more… I know, fancy!
(article)- Do you ever find that your refrigerator ice-cubes smell off?❄️🧊… It’s not just you, it’s a thing! Luckily there are ways to fix the problem (by either cleaning the collection bin or buying a fridge with a dual evaporator in short).
(podcast)- Dr. Christopher Hobbs talks about the health, nutrition, and therapeutic effects of medicinal mushrooms💊🍄.
(article)- In a new study, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that eating one serving of US freshwater fish contaminated with PFAS 🐠😵(also known as “forever chemicals”) could be equivalent to drinking contaminated water daily for a month. Consumer Reports also laid out there take on how concerned you should be about mercury in your tuna.
(article)- I have heard the words “Listeria outbreak”🧪😵 more times than I ever thought this past month. From breakfast sandwiches to fruit cups to ice-cream - there have been many. Just a fair warning to be on the lookout!
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
(article)- Eva Longoria is directing a biopic on the disputed origin story of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos🔥... Yes, you read that right.
(article)- In more celebrity news: Pamela Anderson is getting her own cooking show👩🍳on Food Network Canada that will be focused on plant-based recipes.
(article & images)- Leave it to Hollywood to open the fanciest shmanciest Taco Bell 🌮🔔💅you’ve ever seen.
(article)- An explainer on the “tinned fish revival”🐟 and how the humble sardines (& other whittle fishies) are getting their moment in the culinary spotlight.
(article)- New Zealand is essentially going to tax cow burps🐮🌬️as one way to tackle climate change.
Closing Thoughts…
As always, feel free to hit reply and shoot me an email or DM on Twitter. I’d love to hear your feedback on how I can improve this newsletter to better suit our free-from community.
I’ll be in your inbox next month!
Hugs,
Noam
🙆🏻♀️ website: noamleead.carrd.co
📖 book editor: Happier Being by Dr. Tal Leead
**If you’re reading this newsletter and haven’t subscribed yet, please do and support my work. It’s free! You’ll get future issues sent to your inbox once a month!**