TJ's New Product Roundup

The past few months we've road-tested a few new products (or new to us) from Trader Joe's. A quick review:

* White bean hummus: It's a nice break from regular hummus, which is always in the Bistro fridge. But it comes topped with a cloying layer of olive oil and sun--dried tomatoes that's hard to avoid. Grade: C+

* Cherry-granola cookies: I used to be indifferent about dessert. Sure, a bite of ice cream or a biscotto would be nice, I would say, but do I need it? Nah. Until now. The cherry-granola cookies are crunchy and moist at the same time, an addictive balance of rich molasses and tart cherry chunks. Grade: A

* No-boil lasagna noodles: Finally. TJ's always carried other fresh pasta options, why not lasagna? Grade: B

* Fage Greek-style yogurt: Thick and creamy, just like I remember eating at a beachfront cafe on Santorini after sleeping all night on the beach. (Those were the days.) One slight difference: the lady of the Bistro demands no-fat, so we get the no-fat. Not nearly as rich, but the texture is about the same. Grade: B+

Yogurt Curry Makes the World Go Round

Here's a wonderful way to escape the chicken-again blues. Make a marinade of plain yogurt, spice up with curry powder, and let the chicken soak in it for an hour. Adjust the flavor of the marinade as you see fit. I like squeezing in a clove of garlic, a generous amount of lemon zest (instead of juice, so it doesn't curdle or water down the yogurt), salt, pepper, perhaps a shake of paprika and a dash of worcestershire, and a lot of dried crushed mint. Make sure you get the right flavor BEFORE you dunk the chicken.

Pre-heat oven to 400, arrange the pieces on foil, bake until nearly done. Half-way through, flip the birds and spoon on more yogurt sauce, assuming you have some left over. When they're almost ready, spoon a bit more sauce on them and pop in the broiler for a few minutes.

Even if they overcook a bit, they remain juicy thanks to the yogurt.

Adventures in Kefir

Mac, a friend of the family, Duchampian champion and all-around intense dude, gave me half his yogurt starter the other day. It looks like enlarged, slightly yellow cottage cheese, or from the other end of the telescope, very small misshapen lumps of mozzarella. Making yogurt from the starter is a rather complicated process that requires boiling milk, hand-held thermometers, and ice baths, so I've followed Mac's lead and made kefir -- basically, soured milk.

I pour milk over the starter curds, seal it up tight in a screw-top travel mug, and let it sit out for 8 to 12 hours. The curds float to the top, the scent is reminiscent of an Afghani goatherd's leather slippers, and it's ready to be strained through a colander.

The curds go back into the travel mug for the next round. If kept in the fridge, they stay dormant. Otherwise, they grow like mad, like Tribbles. Or Gremlins. Or bacteria, which is what they are.

Yes, it's an acquired taste. If you like the sour yogurt drinks usually flavored with nothing but mint and salt and available at most Middle Eastern places, you'll like my version. Also good: throwing it into a blender with a banana, a tablespoon of honey and/or maple syrup, and fresh mint. Call ahead and I'll have a batch ready for you.