Welcome to the first ever
Good Hearted Foodie-Find Awards
An unapologetically subjective, completely biased list of new-to-me food discoveries from IFBC 2014

Best [Healthy] Addiction
Raincoast Crisps
from Lesley StoweSometimes it pays to stay late at the party.  On the first night of IFBC, I lingered talking with a small group of fellow foodies while that night’s sponsoring vendors started folding up and putting away.  As the folks at Leslie Stowe’s began packing up their Raincoast Crisps, a few of us asked for an extra box or two – strictly for research purposes, of course – and were rewarded for our patience ten-fold.  The truth is, I was grateful to have a good selection to take home, because I didn’t sample them with intention at the event (mostly because I was pretty focused on the savoring the salmon). But a cracker is a cracker, right?  Wrong.

Anyway, when I got home, I popped open the first box for the family and announced: “Here – give these a try and tell me what you think.”  Next thing I knew, we were all munching them non-stop. I brought home seven varieties, and after a lot of “intense research,” we unanimously chose the Cranberry Hazelnut variety as our favorite.

My new favorite lunch: A short stack of Raincoast Crisps, a wedge of Laughing Cow, a serving of Noosa Coconut Yoghurt (I’ll get to that!) and a piece of fruit.  (If you want to try Raincoast Crisps – and you should! – use this store locator to find a retailer near you. Pacific Northwest can find them at New Seasons.)

Best Sensory Swag
Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans
from RodelleOh, how I wish we had smell-a-vision! This little vial of vanilla beans may not look like much, but Wow!  Open it up, slice a bean down the middle and suddenly your whole world smells like Heaven. (If Heaven were baking cookies and dabbed a little batter behind her ears.) I have fallen hard for these Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans, so look out: next year, my whole holiday post calendar may be filled with empty little vanilla vials.

Best Party Food Boat
California EndiveI just can’t stop thinking of things to put on adorable little endive boats. I love the crunchy texture, the spoon-like, mouth-size shape, and the sweet, slightly bitter flavor that seems to enhance everything it carries. And what an easy party set-up! Just make fillings the day before, and plate it up onto endive boats at the last minute – no fuss, no muss. I love it.California Endive can be found nation-wide at Whole Foods, and at select stores around the US.

Best Tasty SurpriseQi’a Organic Superfood Breakfast Cereal
from Nature’s PathI have to admit that when I picked this unassuming little sack of seeds up in the Swag Room, I just threw it in my bag and didn’t think much more of it until I got it home.  I mean, what’s one little bag of seeds, anyway? But then my 17-year old started eating it, and told me that she loves it.  Loves it!  So then we all gave it a try, and she’s right!

Qi’a (pronounced Kee-ah) is made with Chia, Hemp and Buckwheat, and just two tablespoons of cereal soaked in 1/3 cup of milk (we use unsweetened vanilla almond milk) will give you long lasting energy from early morning until lunch. Why so little? Chia expands up to sixteen time it’s volume to fill you up. The flavor is rustic, hearty, and very satisfying in a nutty-sweet kind of way. (And if you happen to have a textural problem with chia seeds as I do, you will find that pleasant crunch of the buckwheat and hemp dramatically offsets that chia-gel feel.) You can buy Qi’a at Fred Meyer stores, on Amazon, and at select stores around the country.  Retail price may appear to be a little spendy, but one bag goes a very long way. (To find a store in your area, check their store locator.)

Best of Show
Noosa Coconut YoghurtIf I had to pick the one product I’m most likely to buy on a regular basis, given my middle-class income, I’d have to choose Noosa’s Coconut Yoghurt, because it is luxuriously amazing and great with practically everything.

Noosa Yoghurt is available at New Seasons and other select stores. (Download a coupon for .55 off your first tub here!)

Lifetime Achievement Award
Bristol Bay Sustainable SalmonIf I could have only one product from IFBC, and never have any of the others ever again for the rest of my life, I would most definitely have to go with sockeye salmon. Because, well… it’s the best salmon on the planet. Healthy, rich in Omega 3’s and vitamin D, and sweet, savory and delicious in every possible way, Bristol Bay sockeye boasts 5,000 years of sustainability, having fed Alaska Native communities for hundreds of generations, and comes from one of the most pristine ecosystems in the world.

Where can you get it? Because Bristol Bay is the largest wild sockeye run in the world, the odds are good that if you are eating sockeye in the U.S., it’s from Bristol Bay. (Note that salmon labeled Atlantic, Norway, Chile or even Organic is farmed, not wild.) If you are curious about where your salmon comes, just ask your grocer!

If you want to learn more about the products featured at IFBC, check out 10 Favorite Food Finds from IFBC 2014 from Veg Girl RD.