#90: SNACKABLES with Rip and Jess - Holy Granola!
Welcome to Episode One of our new PLANTSTRONG Snackables podcast series, a bite-sized podcast where host, Rip Esselstyn, and co-host, Jess Pastore, dish on all things plants! Plus, they give you the scoop on all of the upcoming PlantStrong food items.
Jessica leads product innovation for the PlantStrong foodline and, together with Rip, will provide a peek behind the curtain on market research, ingredients, and inspiration behind the new PlantStrong foods headed your way.
Tasty Bites from Today's Episode:
New Dating Trends for Plant-Based Singles - Yes, Being Plantstrong is Important in the Dating World!
Jess is off to Get Married!
Delicious Substitutes for Cheese and Desserts
A Preview of the New PlantStrong Granolas - Why We Chose the Flavors and the Ingredients We Chose - YUM!
Live Recipe Building - “Slugs on a Boat” - Apples, Dates, Nut Butter, Dark Chocolate
We hope you enjoy this personal tour into the PlantStrong kitchen with Rip and Jess.
Episode Resources
Shop PlantStrong Foods Now - https://plantstrongfoods.com/
Bautista Farms Dates - http://7hotdates.com/type-medjool.html
Full Transcript
Rip Esselstyn:
Hello. I am Rip Esselstyn. And I want to introduce you to a new series we're launching, it's called PlantStrong Snackables. It's a bite-sized podcast where we're going to dish on all things plants. Here at PlantStrong we love plants. Plants excite us. Plants make the world go around. We love talking about ingredients that get us excited. We love talking about new innovative products that are hitting the shelves. We love talking about how to read labels and, of course, a lot of the new products that we're going to be launching at PlantStrong. I want to introduce you to somebody on the PlantStrong team. This is Jessica Pastore. Yay.
Jess Pastore:
Hi, Rip.
Rip Esselstyn:
I call her Jess.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah.
Rip Esselstyn:
Jess is the head cabbage over all things product development, innovation, sourcing the most incredible medicinal ingredients so that all of our products that we are creating are not only the most nutritionally sound, but also the most tasty and the most convenient really on the planet. That's our goal at Plant Strong.
Jess Pastore:
Absolutely. Absolutely. Thanks, Rip.
Rip Esselstyn:
Now, what I would love is for Jess to kind of introduce herself and kind of share with you a little bit about her background and how she came to be part of the Plant Strong team.
Jess Pastore:
Sure. I can do that. It is a bit unconventional. I actually didn't start in the field of food. I started in the field of mechanical engineering, so there's nuts involved, but it's more nuts and bolts. And it was great. I learned a lot, learned how to learn, but it wasn't really where my passion was. And tried out a few things, went back to school, did the MBA thing. Really, again, wasn't totally satisfied. I took a job in oil and gas, working for ExxonMobil, and again, learned a lot of great lessons, but it's not where my heart was.
Jess Pastore:
While I was working for ExxonMobil, I actually started moonlighting in the prepared food section at our local Whole Foods, because I just loved being around food and talking to people about food. And standing behind that counter, you get to talk about food all day. So I would literally, 8:00-5:00, be at Exxon and then, 5:30-11:00, work at Whole Foods. I didn't have much of a social life, but it was a really great experience. That ultimately led me to a transition to Whole Foods. So whatever I was doing for Exxon, which was actually finance, I was able to start doing with Whole Foods as well. So got my foot in the door with Whole Foods, joined their competitive intelligence team.
Rip Esselstyn:
So that's globally here in Austin.
Jess Pastore:
Here in Austin. Yep. Yep. So I got brought to Austin, the greatest city. I'm so grateful. And started working for Whole Foods on their competitive intelligence team and really understanding, why were people opting to shop at other retailers? What could Whole Foods do? How could they continue to surprise and delight customers?
Jess Pastore:
If there was another retailer who was bringing in an innovative product or doing something with displays or merchandising, we wanted to understand that and bring that back to the team. Also did a stint on pricing analytics. Of course, while I was there, I had the opportunity to meet you. And one of the benefits of Whole Foods that is unique is they have a medical and wellness center for their corporate employees. And so while I was there, I started seeing a nutritionist. My cholesterol was really high. It was at 257, I think my number was, my total cholesterol.
Rip Esselstyn:
And you were at the time, what? In your late twenties?
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. Late twenties. They wanted to put me on statins before the age of 30.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Yeah. So, okay. All right.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. I didn't want to do that because I had heard once you start taking statins, that's kind of it. You're going to take them for the rest of your life. I don't even want to take Advil if I don't have to. So I was really opposed to that. And I asked, "Is there an alternative?" And of course, they suggested a whole food, plant-based diet. And I was like, "I don't know. I don't think it's going to work for me. I've been a healthy eater all my life. Taking out oi, how am I supposed to cook?"
Jess Pastore:
But they talked me through it and gave some great tips. And I was like, Okay, Whole Foods, I'll try your diet.: And of course, tested my cholesterol six weeks later, it had dropped a hundred points. Then you can't argue with it. You see the numbers. Right? So yeah, I've been plant-based ever since. Of course, we did one of your immersions as well. I brought my father because I wanted him to have the same experience that I did. I know we were only there for six days and it was five days of plant-based eating between when you initially tested his cholesterol before the event and at the end of the event. Five days of plant-based eating and his cholesterol dropped 75 points.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Yeah.
Jess Pastore:
Are those typical?
Rip Esselstyn:
Oh yeah. I mean, 75, I would say is not typical. What's typical is probably more 25 to 30 on the total cholesterol. About 20 on the LDL. And then typically triglycerides drop, fasting blood sugar drops, all those numbers. But...
Jess Pastore:
We're just sensitive, I guess. In this family, we're just sensitive to our diet and how that affects our cholesterol.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Yeah. So anyway, so Jessica, when we decided to launch Plant Strong Foods, I just knew that if there was any way I could get Jessica on board, it would be an absolute coup. And a little over a year ago, the timing was right. Kind of everything aligned. And Jessica came over to work with Plant Strong full time and is doing a phenomenal, phenomenal job. So one of the things I also want to do on Plant Strong Snackables is talk about some of the things that are kind of in the news, that are making headlines. One of the things that we've talked about is... So recently there's an app called Tinder. I've never used it. You've used it, right?
Jess Pastore:
Yes, reluctantly. I used it for a period of time and I'm so grateful that those days are long behind me.
Rip Esselstyn:
Right. But if you are into Tinder and using it, what we've discovered is that the fastest growing trend, when searching attributes in potential dates is plant-based. Is your potential partner, right, plant-based? I just find that to be so fascinating and really a testament to what is going on right now in the plant-based movement. I like to call it, the plant strong era is upon us right now. But I'd like to talk about this for just a second. And that is how important is it or was it for you that your partner be plant-based?
Jess Pastore:
Well, I'll tell you if they had that feature, I would have been thrilled. Whatever dating profile was the first to bring in that feature, I would have used. That would have been the most important. Because you think about it, three meals a day, you want to have that alignment. It just makes things so much easier every single day. And so I didn't know how important it was until, of course, I started dating Evan who is wonderful and also plant-based. We were just friends, making sweet potato, batch cooking them Sunday nights together. And that connection over food really helped us transition into a romantic relationship. And of course, we are getting married this weekend. So after this podcast, I'll be going to pick up my mom and grandmother from the airport to start on the wedding festivities.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. And you just got back from trying on your wedding dress. Right?
Jess Pastore:
I did. It's in my car, actually. It's in my car right this second.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Well, so speaking of dating, I think this is a great transition for us to go into some ingredients that we're really excited about right now. And then also some trends. And I'd like to talk about dates.
Jess Pastore:
Oh my goodness. Yes, yes.
Rip Esselstyn:
I know how much you and Evan love dates. In fact, you guys are the ones that turned our family on to dates and we are now buying these... They're kind of high-end dates. But once you try these, you can't ever go back to the store-bought dates. These are phenomenal.
Jess Pastore:
They're the most incredible. The brand is Bautista Farms. And again, this was the recommendation of a Whole Foods health coach who told me about this brand. And I know Lori, I think, a member of the Plant Strong team, found it for you independently. But they are juicy and moist. I think you call it a wet pack, is what it's called. But they're sold out for the season, Rip. You can't buy them right now.
Rip Esselstyn:
This is a Medjool.
Jess Pastore:
It's a Medjool, correct. Which is the best kind. We've done some internal taste testing and those seem to win out, but they have a lot of varieties on their website.
Rip Esselstyn:
So about two years ago, we did a really exhaustive consumer insight survey because we wanted to find out what all of you, what our Plant Strong audience liked and didn't like. What you craved as well in in foods. And could you speak to what we discovered?
Jess Pastore:
Sure. So first off I would say, one thing that I love about the Plant Strong community is how responsive everyone is to anything that we ask, any survey, a lot of insights. That is so helpful to us. And we are really listening. I will read every email that comes through, inquiring about products or what sort of things we should do next. But what we saw when we asked people, what is the biggest challenge of eating and living a Plant Strong lifestyle? What's the thing that you miss most? Two responses really rose to the top. Cheese and desserts.
Rip Esselstyn:
Right.
Jess Pastore:
Right.
Rip Esselstyn:
Right. Now, as far as cheese is concerned, I mean, do you have any solutions there? I mean, I think we both have our own. Personally, I'm not a fan of any of the cheese substitutes. I kind of think that for the most part, they're too high in fat, they're too unhealthy. They're high in oil. For example, I'm not going to name names, but... So I've just gotten to the point to where I don't miss cheese whatsoever. If I use nutritional yeast on broccoli or cauliflower, or on top of a pizza, popcorn, that usually does the trick. But I know you might want to speak to some products that are out there.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. That's great. Well, in our household, the number one thing, we love doing a whole grain, Kabocha squash mac and cheese. So blended Kabocha squash, especially if you skin it, you get that nice yellow, cheesy color, right? It's creamy. You add a little almond milk, some nutritional yeast, of course, a little lemon juice. And you spoon that in with some pasta, you get a great mac and cheese alternative.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. That's one of our favorites. And then in terms of brands, there are some cleaner ones out there. Evan and I are both really active. So we don't shy away from fat in the same way. Tree Line, for example, is a cashew based cheese, nut cheese, and there's really nothing in it. Cashews and cultures, and a little bit of salt. So super clean, but again, for anyone who may have a specific health condition and is trying to reduce the amount of fat that they're taking in, I think the Kabocha squash mac and cheese is a great option.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So let's move on from cheese to desserts.
Jess Pastore:
Yes, yes. So, Rip, thinking about creating a dessert product for our consumers, we looked at the entire spread of Engine Two products and asked ourselves, are there any products that can serve a dual purpose? That can be either a breakfast item and a dessert? I personally eat Rip's Big Bowl every day as a dessert. Right?
Jess Pastore:
I'd never eat it in the morning. It's always my evening snack. So we were wondering, was there some breakfast item that could play that dual role? And it really felt like there was a huge opportunity in granolas. But can I confess something first? And you promise you won't get upset.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yes.
Jess Pastore:
Okay. I wasn't a fan of the original Engine Two granolas.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Well, I mean, you can pick one up right here, if you want.
Jess Pastore:
Sure. I got a package right here. Some of the SKUs had a little bit of cinnamon. Of course, they had their berries. There was just a touch of maple syrup. But I really found them to be a little bit bland and some people like that. Right? But for me, the biggest issue was they were just too crunchy. They were so hard.
Rip Esselstyn:
Well, you know why? That's because of the steel cut oats.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. That was the culprit.
Rip Esselstyn:
And I agree. To me, this was a product that could use some enhancements. Right?
Jess Pastore:
Yep.
Rip Esselstyn:
For sure.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. I really think so. The best advice that we got was to opt for something like an old fashioned rolled out. And that makes total sense to me, because if you think about something like a croissant, you want those nice flat layers. A rolled oat gives you those nice flat layers. You can get that nice crunch. What we had before was dense and chewy and baked to a super teeth-breaking crunch.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Although we have people that absolutely loved it and adored it.
Jess Pastore:
That's true.
Rip Esselstyn:
But that is going the way of the Dodo bird. But we have something very exciting that's coming out.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. So I am most excited, of all the products that we're working on, my personal favorite is really these granolas. And I know, with the samples early on that we created, and we finally got to a good place. We were very specific. And we doled out little bits of amounts, right? Calling each other, like, "Hey, do you have a little bit of the chocolate flavor? Oh, no. Okay. What are we going to do?"
Jess Pastore:
But yes, they're absolutely delicious. And as I said, thinking about creating flavor profiles, we really wanted to go with a classic dessert series, right? At Plant Strong, we look at categories, we look at brands, we look at items that are performing well. What flavors of these brands of granolas or soups or cereals are doing well? And then try to do a Plant Strong version of those.
Jess Pastore:
And so thinking about classic desserts and thinking about you, what came to mind at first to me was apple pie. An all-American, wholesome type flavor. So that was the first one that really came in. When I was thinking about what we would add to these granolas to really make them delicious, I put up the most delicious looking picture of an apple pie and envisioned the consumer experience of taking your fork and going into the top of that flaky crust, down through the apple slices, the gooey filling, the crust in the bottom. And tried to incorporate ingredients that captured all of those elements.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah.
Jess Pastore:
So I think we did it. So for the flaky crust on top, we brought in some toasted quinoa, right? That buttery, super brittle crunch. Apple pie, of course, has sliced apples so we're doing diced dried apple bits. For that gooey filling that you get in most of those apple pies, of course, we're doing blended dates and apples. And then for the bottom crust area where it gets a little soft, right? Where the filling hits that crust, it's kind of soft right in there. We're doing a puffed amaranth and of course a rolled oat, right? So you get that softness. And then we flavor it with the same spices you would do with an apple pie, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon peel, a little bit of salt.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah.
Jess Pastore:
But yeah, it's amazing.
Rip Esselstyn:
Well, yeah, no. So you, in partnership with our supplier partner, have really done a fabulous job in creating flavor profiles without using any added sugar. Right?
Jess Pastore:
Yeah.
Rip Esselstyn:
Without using copious amounts of salt. Oils, which to me makes this product... Really there's nothing like it on the market.
Jess Pastore:
There's nothing like it on the market. In doing our competitive assessments, one of the best brands out there is Purely Elizabeth. And it's, got coconut sugar and it's got oil in it as well, but it tastes great. In terms of taste, it's very indulgent. What we learned is that for 140 calories worth of granola, there's 140 milligrams of sodium, which is a one-to-one ratio, for a dessert product. Which is pretty high.
Rip Esselstyn:
Right. So in the granola category, that's kind of pushing the limits a little bit.
Jess Pastore:
Really pushing the limits. I was surprised to see so much salt. So ours range from 20 to 30 milligrams of sodium per serving. So we're at about a fifth or sixth of what Purely Elizabeth is doing. But that little salt helps, just a little bit of salt with sweetness. I learned long ago from a professional chef, you want to set your desserts off with just the smallest amount of salt.
Rip Esselstyn:
Gives it a little kick?
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. It really, really does.
Rip Esselstyn:
Okay. So we got the classic apple pie, right?
Jess Pastore:
Yes.
Rip Esselstyn:
All-American apple pie.
Jess Pastore:
All-American apple pie.
Rip Esselstyn:
What else we got? How many skews are we talking? How many different iterations of granolas?
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. So we're launching with four. Of course, we're dreaming up grand plans for additional skews. But the four that we're doing are the apple pie. We wanted to do a banana bread. Do you remember? We tried to do a banana bread. Folks, we're not doing a banana bread because here's what happened. We tried to do a banana bread and no matter how much banana flavor we added to it, it still didn't read like a banana bread. It read like an oatmeal raisin cookie. It tasted just like it. It was delicious.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah.
Jess Pastore:
It was so good.
Rip Esselstyn:
So what was interesting is in chasing after a banana bread, we actually inadvertently found ourselves right at the front door of oatmeal raisin.
Jess Pastore:
That's my favorite skew. That one's my absolute favorite. We couldn't get rid of it. I know we want to do a banana bread. But-
Rip Esselstyn:
Okay, what else do we got?
Jess Pastore:
When we were sampling the different ingredients we could play with to create these granolas, I don't know if you remember, but the berries that are supplier partner... You open the bag of these dried berries and they're so fragrant. It's incredible. They are exceptional quality dried berries, especially the raspberries. Those stood out to me, right?
Rip Esselstyn:
What are the three?
Jess Pastore:
The three berries, we're doing raspberry, strawberry and blueberry. So with those, we're coming up with a crispy mixed berry crumble, that's our third skew. And then we knew we wanted to do a chocolate one. Right? You needed a chocolate skew to kind of round out that assortment.
Rip Esselstyn:
I've got kind of an insatiable sweet tooth.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. And so the chocolate one really, this is my favorite of all four. Go ahead.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. So I remember when we were brainstorming what flavors we wanted to do, this one was the one that the team was unanimous. But what we shied away from, we came up with a chocolate cherry chia that we were like, "Nah." Samoa, right? Those Girl Scout cookies. But we, at Plant Strong, don't like to dabble in coconut. Right? So that one was off the table.
Jess Pastore:
What was the other one? Maybe it was a chocolate banana bread swirl, but again that banana bread, it was so hard. So what we decided to go with was a tahini chocolate chip cookie. There's a recipe out there on the Internet that's kind of famous for... It's like "life-changing chocolate chip cookies" is the recipe.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah.
Jess Pastore:
Again, I wanted to use that recipe as inspiration and create a cleaned up version of that cookie in granola form. And I think it reads like a crumbled cookie, that granola.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. But for all of you kind of Plant Strong veterans that are out, that have a very sophisticated palette, that can appreciate all the nuances of lower amounts of salt, sugar and fat, these granolas will knock your socks off.
Jess Pastore:
They're really-
Rip Esselstyn:
Guaranteed, guaranteed.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah, they are exceptional. The one little detail, I wanted to give folks kind of a behind the scenes when my favorite podcast out there is, How I Built This. Everyone has a story of a hurdle that you overcame. I think for the granola development, I'm sure you remember, Rip, we got to really good skews by sweetening them with apple juice and pear juice. Right? We were using fruit juices to sweeten them as opposed to blended dates-
Rip Esselstyn:
Whole fruits.
Jess Pastore:
And apples, right? Whole fruits. And I remember calling back our supplier partner and being like, "Thank you for creating these amazing skews for us. They taste delicious. We think they'd do great on shelves, but is there any way we could just try it with a whole fruit sweetened version?"
Jess Pastore:
And I was so impressed with their patience, but I think they saw the potential. They saw that this is really where the market is going. We want that extra sweetness, but we want the fiber with it too. Apple juice is going to affect your blood sugar in a way similar to sugar. You need that fiber too, to kind of blunt the effects. So yeah, so grateful that we have a patient supplier partner who was willing to go back to the drawing board.
Rip Esselstyn:
That's a great point because in being in the food business now for over 11, 12 years, it's not just... Because the Plant Strong nutritional criteria is so kind of rigorous, we have to find supplier partners/manufacturers that are willing to think outside the proverbial box and not everybody has it in them. And so we literally have to sometimes spend months and months and months finding the right supplier partners that are willing to work with us and be patient to create these just spectacular, healthy, nutritious products.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Well, all of this talk about granola has made me a little bit hungry, hungry all the time these days. And so, I was thinking, in the spirit of talking about dates, in the spirit of talking about apples. Again, because our granolas are our whole fruit sweetened. I wanted to share a recipe using those two ingredients. And the one that came to mind is something that I think we made for your family a few months ago now. For those of you who don't know, back in February, there was a really crazy-
Rip Esselstyn:
February 14th to about February 21st.
Jess Pastore:
Yes. Not a good way to spend Valentine's Day. Most of Austin lost power. It was freezing. Evan and I sought refuge with Rip's family and got to spend a few days with electricity. We didn't have running water. You guys lost that at that point.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah.
Jess Pastore:
So we were carrying buckets to flush toilets, but we got to enjoy some really great plant-based food.
Rip Esselstyn:
So you and Evan shared with our family one of your favorite... I think, is it a dessert kind of treat?
Jess Pastore:
I usually have it with coffee. It's my afternoon snack, but it is absolutely a dessert. Absolutely.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. And since then, we make it probably three times a week. What's it called?
Jess Pastore:
So you've heard of ants on a log, right?
Rip Esselstyn:
Oh yeah.
Jess Pastore:
Celery with peanut butter and raisins.
Rip Esselstyn:
I've never been a fan.
Jess Pastore:
Me neither. We call this slugs on a boat, is what we call it. And so we slice apples, we put a little bit of our favorite nut butter. That's the slime of the slugs. And then of course the slug is just a sliver of a Medjool date. It's great. It's great. It's a kid-friendly snack. It's delicious.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. If you're game, why don't we make some right now?
Jess Pastore:
My gosh, I would love that.
Rip Esselstyn:
So all of you at home can see how this has done. Those of you that aren't watching on YouTube, we'll do our best to explain it via audio.
Jess Pastore:
Sounds good. Let's do it.
Rip Esselstyn:
Let's do it.
Rip Esselstyn:
Okay. Jess, we're back. We just went into the kitchen, got some of the supplies for the slugs on a boat.
Jess Pastore:
Yes.
Rip Esselstyn:
I am so psyched to try some of these. So tell us what you have going on here?
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. So of course the boat part, as I said, we've got some sliced apples. For this one, I used an organic Honey Crisp. You could really use any apple variety you like. What do you guys eat in your household?
Rip Esselstyn:
The kids love Honey Crisps. My favorite in the whole wide world, it's either... I like the Braeburn, the Fuji. And then there's one out of New Zealand that's my all time favorite. And it's kind of escaping me right this second.
Jess Pastore:
Is the Sugar Bee? No?
Rip Esselstyn:
No, it's not the Sugar Bee. It's the Pacific Rose.
Jess Pastore:
Oh, Pacific Rose. Yeah.
Rip Esselstyn:
To me, there's nothing like a Pacific Rose on this planet.
Jess Pastore:
Those are great.
Rip Esselstyn:
But yeah, Honey Crisp was a close second.
Jess Pastore:
They're great. And if you can find those Sugar Bees, those are incredibly sweet too. And there's an apple out there called a Pink Pearl. Have you seen these? They have a pink flesh on the inside. They're green on the outside and pink fleshy on the inside. If you see those, pick them up, they're quite a sight. You're going to be confused when you bite into it. Like, "Why is my apple pink?"
Rip Esselstyn:
I know the Pink Lady, but not the Pink Pearl.
Jess Pastore:
Pink Pearl. Got to check it out if you can find it. That's great.
Rip Esselstyn:
Johnny Depp would probably like it.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah, right? He would be all about that one. So we've got our sliced apples and I've started applying just a little bit of nut butter. Again, for those who are trying to reduce the amount of fat, you can go with no almond butter or no nut butter, or just a thin sliver. My brand of choice, I really like this Artisana, they do a raw almond butter. They also do a raw walnut butter, pecan butter. They're a great brand.
Rip Esselstyn:
What is that? Is that about $75 a jar?
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. There's a reason there's just a little bit on here, Rip. There's a reason that there's just a little bit on here. But what I love about this snack is it really is a kid-friendly option, right? It's kind of fun. You can involve kids by having them spread the nut butter on there, or having them apply the sliced dates. And it's a great way to engage the kids and get them in the kitchen and get them excited about plant-based eating.
Jess Pastore:
So we'll start finishing applying the nut butter here. And then the next step, I've got some of those great Bautista Farms Medjool dates. And I'm just going to apply a little sliver on each one.
Rip Esselstyn:
I'm going to help you.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. No, thank you. But can't you picture a kid getting excited? You could have a two-year-old in here putting these little slugs on their boat.
Rip Esselstyn:
This is good two to 99.
Jess Pastore:
Two to 99. Totally, totally. And so again, the nut butter is the slime, as we like to call it. You can do a little bit of slime or a lot of slime. And then what I typically like to do, I do slugs on a boat two ways. Some them I'll do with a little bit of cinnamon, right? So you get that nice cinnamon apple. And an alternative, again for people who aren't shying away from fat in the same way, I have this 100% unsweetened, dark chocolate, melted chocolate chips that I have here.
Jess Pastore:
What I like to do is just put the thinnest little drizzle. It's so, I mean, dark, dark chocolate, a hundred percent, you know that's fairly flavorful. So a little bit goes a long way. Just a very thin drizzle.
Rip Esselstyn:
It's gorgeous.
Jess Pastore:
And those, yeah, are looking good. You can pop them into the fridge for a little bit, let that chocolate harden and serve to guests. Your kids devoured these, I remember. As soon as they got put out, they were gobbled up.
Rip Esselstyn:
Shortly after you and Evan left the house, we had these every night for probably two weeks in a row.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. Oh no. I believe it. Oh, and I was going to say, I don't know if you've ever tried it with cashew butter, a little bit of cashew butter with that Medjool date, it reads like a caramel apple. That's the effect of it. It's absolutely delicious. So dessert, after coffee snack, breakfast if you want to, because it's healthy enough. You really get the fiber, of course, from the apple, you get the protein and the fats from the nut butter of your choice and that extra fiber from those dates.
Rip Esselstyn:
Then what's that little guy you got hiding there?
Jess Pastore:
Oh yes. So my secret for desserts, is I put on just a little bit of salt. I really like the Mo Maldon flake salt, because again, a little bit goes a long way. So at the very end, if you want to just sprinkle a little bit of salt right here on the top, it's going to really set it off. If you're doing a party and want to impress some guests, that might be the way to go.
Rip Esselstyn:
And who taught you that little trick again, with the salt?
Jess Pastore:
It was a chef friend of mine from a long time ago, who was like, "You want to make a dessert perfect? Add just a hint of salt." It brings out the sweetness. And somebody told me about salting strawberries.
Rip Esselstyn:
Ooh.
Jess Pastore:
It does the same thing. You don't put salt on your watermelon? You're not one of those families?
Rip Esselstyn:
No. We put either lemon juice or lime juice on our watermelons and that really helps kind of amplify it.
Jess Pastore:
Yeah. Watermelon sounds good.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. So Jess, this has been a fabulous first episode of Plant Strong Snackables, the bite-sized podcast where we talk all things food. Thank you for this so much.
Jess Pastore:
Thanks for having me, Rip. And cheers.
Rip Esselstyn:
Cheers. And here is to a fabulous wedding and honeymoon.
Jess Pastore:
Thank you.
Rip Esselstyn:
You and Evan are really... I mean, it's a very cliché thing, but meant for each other.
Jess Pastore:
Thank you. We agree and let's toast to that as well. Thanks, Rip. I appreciate you.
Rip Esselstyn:
Mmm. Give it a try.
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