A new nut to crack
We marveled at this unusual Swedish-made nutcracker from Chef’s Planet: Pop a nut in the cylinder and squeeze the handle–it will effectively crack the nut while housing the broken shell. We had good luck cracking a variety of nuts. The plastic nutcracker is dishwasher-safe and costs $17 by mail at Kitchen Krafts (www.kitchenkrafts.com or 800-776-0575).
Godiva goes diva
We thought Godiva already was pretty fancy but the new Platinum Collection looks even snazzier–and tastes as good as it looks, with inventive designs and ingredients. Flavors include Mokalata, milk chocolate covering a creamy cappuccino filling; the addictive sweet-and-salty Mielodi, white chocolate covering an almond-butter filling; and Bellaria, dark chocolate with a ganache center. Sizes include a 2-piece box ($4), 8-piece ($15) and 16-piece ($25) at Godiva shops, Bloomingdale’s and most Carson Pirie Scott stores; by mail, visit godiva.com or call 800-946-3482.
The Doctor is in
Doctor Kracker seed- and grain-rich organic nibbles pleased tasters. They’re great alone, but topped with cheese or a nutty spread, they’re dynamite. Flavors include three-seed (sunflower, flax, sesame); pumpkin-seed cheese (Cheddar is toasted on the cracker during baking) and Seedlander (spelt flour, pumpkin seeds, whole millet grains and poppy seeds). They’re sold as flat breads in 7-ounce packages or smaller “Snacker Crackers” in 8-ounce tubs for $4.60-$5 per package at Fox & Obel Food Market, Schaefer’s wine shop in Skokie, J. D. Mills Health Foods in Evanston and American Health Foods in Oak Lawn. To order by mail (in cases of 6 packages), visit doctorkracker.com.
Tribune photos by Bob Fila and John Dziekan.
