Tip Type: Guest Bloggers

Spanish Pulled Beef – Kellmy Rosado-Vargas

Butcher Boy’s guest blog series is an opportunity for us to feature some of our customers and share their recipes, inspiration, and enjoyment of great food. Follow #RealPeopleRealFood on Instagram to see new posts in this series.

spanish pulled beef
Kellmy Rosado-Vargas and Family

Guest blogger Kellmy Rosado-Vargas is the owner of two Lawrence-based businesses, independent design consultancy Left Eye Creations and custom printing company LEC Print. But more personally, Kellmy is a foodie from birth, and he shares his story and recipe for Spanish Pulled Beef.

As a great Dominican descent foodie from Queens, NY, I am quite the cooking enthusiast. During the early days of quarantine, I went into my passion for cooking and trying new cuisines.

While I have been a New Englander my entire life, my foundation consisted of about 10 Dominican women cooking with relentless spices. Today my home is no different as I am married to a Venezuelan lady who happens to be of Cuban descent. Talk about a mix of flavors and cultures.

spanish pulled beef recipe
Spanish Pulled Beef

With that said, and although my heart is with Dominican and New England foods, I could not ignore my wife’s grandmother’s passion for food. She was an excellent cook, an exquisite host who lived for entertaining everyone. In one of her many gatherings, I was introduced to “ropa vieja,” which is nothing more than shredded skirt steak with a Spanish flair. I was hooked!

spanish pulled beef tacos
Spanish Pulled Beef Tacos

This stew-like steak is the perfect recipe for foodies and busy families alike since it could be made in big batches and frozen for up to 3 months. It pairs well with arepas, white rice, tacos, even pasta! It is so versatile and certainly a comfort food that hopefully will become part of your weekly rotation.

Ingredients:
  • 2 lbs of the skirt or flank steak
  • ⅓ cup of olive oil, mild blend
  • 2 large Spanish onions (one whole, one finely chopped)
  • 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
  • 1 green pepper finely chopped
  • 8 oz. organic can of tomato sauce
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 Bay leaf
  • ½ cup of dry white cooking wine
Step 1:

Place meat and one whole onion in a pressure cooker/Instapot or a large pot (double the cooking time if choosing a regular cooking pot). Fill the pot with water until it is about 2 fingers over the meat. Cook meat on high pressure for 20–30 minutes.

Step 2:

On a separate large pan, sauté on medium heat the finely chopped onion, green pepper, and garlic with oil for about 5–7 minutes. Wait until the onions are translucent and the peppers have softened.

Step 3:

Take the meat out of the pot and shred it with two forks against the steak’s grain. Remove the whole onion from the broth and toss.

Step 4:

Merge shredded beef with the previously sauteed onions, peppers, and garlic onto the pan. Add all the remaining ingredients together with one cup of broth from the steak.

Step 5:

Let all the ingredients simmer for about 20 minutes at medium heat and add more broth as the sauce starts to evaporate. The beef should be in a runny sauce.

spanish pulled beef arepa
Spanish Pulled Beef Arepa

This recipe gets better the day after, so do not shy away from refrigerating it. Reheat it for leftovers, lunches, or dinner.

Enjoy / Buen Provecho,

Kellmy

Download and print the recipe here.

Chad Montrie, Variance – A Multi-Course Tasting Menu In Your Home

This month, Butcher Boy’s guest blog focuses on the opportunity to book your own private dining event with Variance. Variance is…A pop-up restaurant. A catered party. A private dinner. Our guest blog series highlights our customers’ recipes, inspiration, and enjoyment of great food. For our latest posts and updates from our guest contributors, follow #RealPeopleRealFood on Instagram.

chad montrie variance
Chef Chad Montrie

Variance is a lot of things, but what chef Chad Montrie aims to do consistently is serve exceptional food. Chad focuses on presenting fresh, seasonal, and fruit/vegetable-forward dishes. Variance’s cuisine is an inspired take on New American preparation with a Mid-South twist.

Although you wouldn’t want to cook and eat one (believe me, I’ve tried), a channeled whelk has at least a few things going for it. Among others, the sea snail’s shell puts pattern variation on full display. Years ago, when I was trying to come up with a name for my venture into the culinary universe, a friend picked up a whelk shell from the beach and brought it to the house. And there it was. The shell embodied how I like to cook, holding to tradition but making it current, changing dishes without straying too far. I want what I know about classical French cuisine and Mid-South foodways to be fully present in the dishes I prepare, but always with a twist. So, I called what I was doing “Variance,” and I took the channeled whelk for its symbol.

Chicken wingI grew up in Louisville, Kentucky (by way of Montreuil, France to Québec to Toledo, Ohio) and moved to New England in 2002. To make a living, I am a professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, where I teach a range of courses, including one on Food in American History. But I’ve also worked at Boston-area restaurants, including Café du Pays, in Cambridge, and Asta, in the Back Bay. The chef and owner at Asta, Alex Crabb, has taught me much of what I know about cooking. Drawing on this experience, next summer (2022), I’ll resume plans that the pandemic interrupted and operate a seasonal pop-up restaurant in Onset, on Cape Cod. In the meantime, I’ll be doing private dinners around Boston and in the Merrimack Valley. I can cook and serve a multi-course tasting menu in your home for up to fifteen people—a safe and comfortable alternative to dining out.

Tomato Soup
Roasted tomato soup

Although the Variance tasting menu ranges from course to course, and the dishes necessarily vary according to your taste, the focus is on what’s local, seasonal, fresh, and delicious. Radish with smoked haddock pâté and fried dulse. Roasted tomato soup with basil and lemon verbena oil. Butterhead bibb with tahini citrus vinaigrette and grapefruit. Pickled golden beets with dill cream and fried chicken skin. Brown sugar Cornish hen with buttermilk grits and smoked mushrooms. Lamb chops with shredded brussels sprouts and toasted hazelnuts. Lime sorbet with lime curd and pecan crumble. Almond cake with orange sauce and sweet mascarpone cream. Rosemary pine nut brittle. The list goes on.

Golden Beets
Pickled golden beets

To book your own private dining event, contact me by email (variancepopup@gmail.com) or phone (617-870-3809). We can discuss the kind of dinner you’d like to have, the food you’d like to feature, as well as the where and when of it. I’d love to play with convention and invention for you.

Cooking Is About Passion, And Pork Chops

Butcher Boy’s guest blog this month focuses on techniques for cooking double-cut bone-in pork chops. Several customers have contributed their recipes, inspiration, and their enjoyment of great food to our series. Follow #RealPeopleRealFood on Instagram for our latest posts and updates from blog contributors.

Toby Metcalf
Passionate Cook Toby Metcalf

May’s guest blogger is Toby Metcalf. Toby graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology with a degree in Hotel Management. In his own words, he has “…done every job there is within the Food & Beverage side of things. My training gave me a love for cooking; it is my joy and therapy.”

Cooking is about your passion and willingness to learn.

A spacious, beautiful kitchen with endless counter space and top-notch appliances is something many yearn for. That spacious, beautiful kitchen will not make you enjoy cooking or even get you out of a cooking rut; your passion and willingness to learn will. I am writing to encourage you to harness your cooking passion.

Just like sports, the finest and most expensive equipment will not compensate for a lack of ability or passion. I know home cooks and chefs that can step into any environment and create a banquet; it’s not the kitchen, it’s their passion. They love to cook: it is their hobby, their therapy, and their love of giving to others. Embrace your food-joy and hone it.

Butcher Case
The Butcher Case

Getting started is the hardest part: dust off your cookbook collection, speak with your friends, stop by Butcher Boy’s wonderful meat counter and speak with one of their helpful butchers. I have always loved Butcher Boy’s steak tips, Club Sirloins, and roasts; let’s talk about another gem: double-cut bone-in pork chops.

Their thickness allows for a wonderful crust outside and a moist and tender middle. I had not seen chops like this in a grocery store before and was somewhat intimidated: should I sear on the grill or stovetop then finish in the oven, constantly turn and move around the grill? I wanted to get it right, so I asked. “How do you prepare these?” I asked. With a smile, the Butcher said: get your grill as hot as you can and lay the chops bone side down for 9 minutes; the heat will travel up the bone and cook the center, lay on side 1 for 4 min then flip for another 4. From my years on the hot line, I have always cooked by feel, and this method has always served me well. As you get comfortable with “cooking by feel,” use a thermometer and pull at 145 degrees Fahrenheit. After removing, I let them rest for 5 minutes before plating. Magnificent.

Double-Cut Pork Chop Bone
From Start to Finish. Magnificent.

Once I became comfortable with the procedure, I chose to put my take on this technique and replace my trusty grill with a treasured cast iron pan (a rainy night may have forced the issue). I utilized what I had learned and started the chops bone down, then on each side, turning and basting with butter, fresh rosemary, and smashed garlic. Again, cooking by feel and allowing time to rest. Wonderful. I recommend washing these down with your favorite Pinot Noir or Red Zinfandel.

After enjoying these wonderful chops, save the bones for stock or add them to a simmering tomato sauce: add flavor while maximizing your food dollar. Confidence comes from cooking and your wiliness to learn and trying new things. The next time you’re browsing that wonderful meat case, try something new and ask a friendly butcher for advice — enjoy your food.

Cheers,

Toby

Schweinebraten: My Easter Roast

Butcher Boy’s guest blog series offers up a delicious pork roast recipe for Easter. Our guest blog series highlight customers’ recipes, their inspirations, and the enjoyment of great food. Follow #RealPeopleRealFood on Instagram for our latest posts and updates from previous contributors.

Kathy Santoro

April’s guest blogger Kathy Santoro is a food enthusiast who lives and works in North Andover. Kathy developed, owned, and operated Good Day Cafe for nine years. She currently has returned to the pharmacy and is the pharmacy manager for CVS on Main Street. If she is not there, you can find her on the tennis court or swinging a golf club!

My fondness for German food was firmly established after a visit to Germany in 1995. I fell in love, not only with the landscape of this beautiful country, but the flavors and simplicity with which the food was prepared. Soft pretzels from the corner bakery for breakfast, sausage with mustard for lunch, and some version of roast with savory vegetables like spargel (white asparagus) or braised red cabbage for dinner with a cold German lager.

Schweinebraten Easter Roast

Schweinebraten (it’s even fun to say the word aloud) is a Bavarian style pork roast that marries several of the traditional spices found in German cooking: caraway, marjoram, clove, thyme and white pepper and traditionally made with a pork shoulder often with the fat cap intact. It’s scored and rubbed with spices, cooked either in a Dutch oven or roasted long and slow in the oven, basted with dark beer, and served with potato dumplings and red cabbage and topped with a delicious brown gravy.

True to my own style of cooking, I have developed a more modern recipe for Schweinebraten with a mushroom gravy. I use a pork butt with only a bit of fat still on. I dry rub the roast with a spice mix of caraway seeds (pulsed in grinder), marjoram, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Generously rub spices over the entire surface, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

Remove from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature, about 1-2 hours before cooking. This will allow the meat to relax and prevents dryness. Score the top on the diagonal in both directions to create a diamond pattern. Set roast in roasting pan with a rack and cook in a preheated 350 degree oven for one and a half hours.

Remove from oven and replace rack with chopped parsnip, carrots (I use the whole carrots that have a bit of green top still on), sweet potato, leeks, and onion. Pour the contents of two bottles of dark beer over the vegetables and return to the oven and cook pork to an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Note: I chop vegetables and toss with a bit of olive oil and 1-2 tablespoons of the spice mix used to rub the roast.

After cooking is complete, let the roast rest on a cutting board and remove vegetables. Strain the pan juices and set aside. Cut baby bella mushrooms in quarters and sauté on medium-high heat with 4-6 tablespoons butter until just tender but still firm. Add pan juices and reduce until slightly thickened. Slowly add a corn starch slurry to thicken. Slice roast and serve with vegetables and gravy.

For a larger group, add sides such as sweet and sour red cabbage and buttered spaetzle. I always make a bigger roast than needed and turn leftovers into delicious sandwiches. Make it for Easter or any given Sunday. This meal is a showstopper, not to mention a presentation of unique flavors that your guests are sure to talk about for weeks. Enjoy!

P.S. Feel free to reach out to me on Facebook with questions.

Grandma O’Connor’s Irish Soda Bread

Butcher Boy’s latest in our guest blog series is here. We highlight our customers and their recipes, inspirations, and enjoyment of great food. Follow #RealPeopleRealFood on Instagram for our latest posts and updates from previous contributors.

Guest Blogger
Guest Blogger Kathleen O’Connor Potter

Our March guest blogger is Kathleen O’Connor Potter from Bradford, MA. Kathleen shares her Irish grandmother’s Irish Soda Bread recipe direct from County Kerry, Ireland. Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day.

My Grandparents, Jack and Ethel O’Connor, were born and grew up in Dingle Bay, County Kerry, Ireland.

Jack left Ireland in 1919 when he was 23, all alone. I often think about his bravery — if he had not had the courage to leave everything he knew behind — where would we all be now? After he found work, he sent for Grandma. They married and settled in Springfield, Massachusetts. Grandma was very proud of the fact that they were not matched by the matchmakers who arranged marriages in Ireland — they were in love. They became part of a community of Irish immigrants who yearned for the old country while celebrating their new life in America.

Jack Ethel O'Connor
Jack and Ethel O’Connor with Kathleen

Jack and Ethel raised their four children in the Hungry Hill (Irish) section of Springfield, where they faithfully attended Our Lady of Hope Church and observed the holy days with feasts of simple food, carefully prepared for a house full of grandchildren.

This is what I remember most about my grandmother’s immaculate kitchen — there was always a warm loaf of Irish soda bread on the counter.

Many traditions and cultures have come together in the persons of my two marvelously diverse granddaughters. And now I am the grandmother who will be baking the soda bread and celebrating the Irish in them, with Ethel and Jack looking on from the “other side.”

Irish Soda Bread Recipe Card
Grandma O’Connor’s handwritten Irish Soda Bread recipe hangs in Kathleen’s kitchen today.

Grandma O’Connor’s Irish Soda Bread

  • 4 cups flour
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
  • 3 teaspoons baking powder
  • 6 tablespoons butter
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 6 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup raisins
Cooling loaves for family & friends

Sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda

Cream together butter and sugar – add buttermilk and eggs and blend

Add wet ingredients to dry and blend

Stir in raisins

Place in greased tins (I use small cast iron frying pans) – and bake at 350º for one hour (test for doneness after 40 minutes) – After about 15 minutes in the oven – I brush the tops of the loaves with a mixture of egg and water and cut a cross in the top with a knife (the dough is too wet to do this when it first goes into the oven). Baking time can vary depending on how hot your oven is.

Makes two loaves.

ps: We are a no caraway seed family.

Download and print the recipe here.

Sweet and Savory Sue

Butcher Boy’s guest blog series is an opportunity for us to feature some of our customers, and to share their recipes, inspiration, and enjoyment of great food. Follow #RealPeopleRealFood on Instagram to see new posts in this series.

February’s guest blogger is Sue Cobb, an attorney by day and a food enthusiast at home. See her story below:

Hi! I’m Sue and I started Sweet and Savory Sue because, during this unprecedented time, I decided to ride out the pandemic focused on joy and gratitude. What better way to celebrate the joy of staying home with loved ones but to come together over great food! I do have a day job practicing law in downtown Boston, but teleworking has allowed even more time (no more long commutes) for creating and preparing wonderful meals that I love to share on sweetandsavorysue.com and on Instagram and Facebook.  Sweet and Savory Sue has become a family affair as well with regular posts that include my husband, Grill Master Steve, and our two wonderful adult children, Guest Chef Harrison and the Lovely Lydia!  The whole family loves to call and text about getting together for a great meal, and meal planning has included many masked-up shopping trips to Butcher Boy.

steaksAs I share on my website, I grew up in Andover, went to college in Maine and law school in Boston, and spend a lot of time in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.  My family and I love all things New England including its natural beauty and rich history.  I try and include interesting pieces in my postings about the many wonderful things in New England, and have in the past posted about the tradition of the local farmer’s market, the Ammonoosuc River that runs off of Mt Washington, and visits to Whitefield, Littleton, Bethlehem, and Sugar Hill, New Hampshire.  My hope is to include more posts about interesting places to visit throughout New England when travel is safer.

We all know the month of February includes Valentine’s Day which for Sweet and Savory Sue means another opportunity to prepare a wonderful meal.  This year I’m thinking of making filet mignon with herbs de Provence and a red wine bearnaise sauce, which will of course include another trip to Butcher Boy. I haven’t prepared this in a while, but if I recall correctly – it was so good! So good!  I usually serve this with some simple sides like roasted new potatoes and asparagus with mustard bread crumbs. Please check out sweetansavorysue.com for these and other recipes.

The goal of my food blogging journey has been to share some of my family’s favorite dishes in the hope that my recipes and postings might inspire others to try them at home with their loved ones, or, at the very least, make people smile.  There has been a lot of stress and dark news during these past months, but Sweet and Savory Sue has provided me, and I hope others as well with some much-needed respite and the opportunity to connect and collaborate about food.

Please connect with me at sweetandsavorysue.com or on Instagram.  I look forward to collaborating with you!

Christmas In the Old Center

Nathaniel House_North Andover MA
Nathaniel House at Christmas, North Andover

Our December guest blogger, Wendy Wakeman, takes us to a historic hearth and kitchen in North Andover’s Old Center for a peek into her family’s Christmas traditions.

Nathaniel House, with its ample, sun-soaked rooms, was built for entertaining. When Brad and I were considering moving here, its suitability for hosting parties was a factor in the decision.

We were happy in our previous house, a sweet cottage near the library which Brad’s family had occupied for more than 70 years. A baby grand took up almost the whole living room. My favorite Christmas tradition is gathering friends around to sing carols. Over the years, our annual caroling party grew to include a punch bowl full of homemade eggnog and so many friends that we worried about the floor joists. As much fun as the party was, the little house had reached maximum capacity.

Nathaniel House would accommodate the party, and even had room in case we found new friends to invite. Brad and I are always making new friends. We’ve hosted five great Christmas parties here. This year, we’ll take a break.
I’ll miss that happy tradition. Fortunately, Christmas holds many other joyful rituals.

Aga Cooker_Nathaniel House
Traditional Aga Cooker at Nathaniel House

Christmas Eve belongs to Brad’s family. A quiet and adult celebration, we gather for a candlelit dinner followed by services at St. Paul’s. Christmas Day belongs to my big, noisy clan. My brother Josh was born on December 25, 1967. My mom was on her own that year taking care of me, 2, and Barbie, 6. My dad was in DaNang, serving our country in the Vietnam War. For us, Christmas holds extra meaning.

Traveling from family to family is fun, but wanting our own tradition, too, Brad and I carved out a quiet space Christmas morning.

I rise early and toss a batch of popovers in the Aga cooker. The gold-trimmed china tea set that belonged to Brad’s grandmother comes out of the cupboard. I set a tray with tea, softened butter, honey, and a few flavors of jam. Last year, the jam was a jar of grape made by our neighbors the Wordens.

When the popovers are ready, I arrange them in a silver bowl lined with a linen tea towel. The three of us sit by the tree, a fire ablaze in the hearth, and enjoy a special meal while we open gifts.

May you and your family find peace, joy, and love this holiday season. I am certain we will.

Wendy as Santa at Butcher Boy
Wendy, dressed as Santa, shopping at Butcher Boy for a past Christmas.

Writer Wendy Wakeman is a former Selectman for the Town of North Andover.  She and her husband Brad share quarters with a couple of cats.  While daughter Millicent now calls Minneapolis home, Brad and Wendy keep a sunny bedroom at the ready, in case she wants to visit.

Not Quite Home For The Holidays

Laura Ciampa, Kitchd
Laura Ciampa, KITCHD

We asked Laura Ciampa, owner of KITCHD and longtime customer, to share some of her thoughts about enjoying the upcoming holidays in a challenging year—she was excited to do so! 

KITCHD helps cooking enthusiasts fall in love with their kitchens by curating a personalized selection of housewares and appliances tailored to an individual’s needs and interests. Using data, research and experience, the KITCHD team sources and suggests the best cookware and products to help customers create the optimal culinary environment for their lifestyle and aspirations. 

Not Quite Home for the Holidays 

Ordinarily, for me, Thanksgiving planning is a satisfying ritual that usually begins in September. My family’s traditional celebration consists of dear friends, immediate family, and other nomadic guests lacking a festive option. A small group of us orchestrates this annual gathering, from menu planning to meat carving. In all the years we’ve been doing this, we like to mix it up by introducing new dishes to complement the timeless family favorites: poblano chili cornbread stuffing rubbing elbows with mom’s homemade cinnamon applesauce. 

Each year, we begin perusing notes from the previous Thanksgiving, deciding which recipes to keep and which to retire. And then we brainstorm about what new dishes we should introduce to our ever-food-curious guests. Once settled, we move to the logistics: ordering the turkey, planning the appetizers, coordinating the side dishes, and determining the desserts. We then distribute the cooking and preparation tasks across many cooks in many kitchens, ensuring that everything shows up at the table at right time, in the right amount. 

But this year, as we all know, is different. Even if “home for the holidays” right now conjures up some anxiety, stress, and uncertainty, we have to make a concerted effort to keep it special. Many of us will not be able to travel. Some have sadly lost loved ones. And dining inside together in large groups is considered a dangerous option, especially for guests of advanced years. But celebrate we will. And for my geographically scattered group of loved ones, it will be a much different, pared-down version of our traditional feast. 

So right here and now, let’s commit to finding joy in the face of these challenges and unusual circumstances! In addition to giving thanks, why not seize this opportunity to reflect, reimagine, and hope? 

Celebrating one of the biggest holidays away from family and friends doesn’t have to be sad when you creatively infuse it with elements with intention and meaning. 

Here are a few things to consider for making your Thanksgiving a bit brighter: 

To feel closer with those who are far away or no longer with us: 

  • Use a family heirloom at the table, perhaps a serving piece, vase, candlestick holders, tablecloth, or something passed down, given to you, or borrowed—a lovely way to remember special people 
  • Make a treasured recipe that may or may not be specific to the holiday 
  • Play music that was special to them 
  • Select a favorite color theme 
  • Burn a scented candle that reminds you of a particular time together 

To melt the miles away: 

  • Connect with friends and family for a virtual toast or blessing at a designated time 
  • Create a holiday cocktail and share the recipe with family and friends 
  • Invite new guests, especially those living alone, to share in your virtual toast or blessing 
  • Send those not able to attend a bouquet of flowers or a small gift for entertaining to use at their table 
  • Write a short note or card telling them that you are missing them at your table 
  • Drop off a card, flowers, plant, or small plate of Thanksgiving goodies to those in assisted living or the hospital who are able to eat but not able to visit 
  • Mail a special note, photo, or poem for them to share at their table 

In your home:

  • Treat yourself to a new serving piece, vase, or linens that you love and will look forward to using
  • Plan the meal around a special bottle of wine or pick up a special bottle to compliment your meal 
  • Give yourself permission to reshape, innovate traditional staple dishes, or try new dishes to expand your culinary repertoire (you’ll be ready to use them next year!) 
  • Set up your table in a different location from where you normally eat 
  • Make it a family affair, involve children by enlisting their help with food planning, prepping, cooking, making table decorations, and setting the table 
  • Remember that most recipes can be halved or quartered, adjusting accordingly except for baking cakes (but really, an abundance of cake is probably not a problem) 

Most of all, be kind to yourself. We’ve all been doing a lot more cooking this year. Permit yourself to keep it simple and smaller. It won’t be any less delicious. 

How will you make your Thanksgiving special in this most unusual time? However it feels right to you. 

From our family to yours, have a healthy, safe, and delicious holiday!

Laura Ciampa

Kitchd

 

 

 

You can follow KITCHD at kitchd.com or on Facebook or Instagram @kitchdco  

Gluten-Free, Vegan, and Delicious – Onesto Foods

Onesto Foods_Gluten Free Onesto (OH-NEST-OH) means “honest” in Italian. 

After having children, Jane Ciccone and her husband, Jesse, wanted to continue the same Italian tradition they both grew up with: gathering in the kitchen as a family around 5 o’clock and sharing an antipasti platter before dinner. However, their young daughter at the time seemed allergic to gluten. Rather than give up the delicious combination of crackers, cheese, olives, and roasted veggies, Jane began searching for gluten-free crackers that her daughter could eat. Discouraged at the amount of overly-processed and preservative-filled options on most grocery store shelves, Jane began tinkering with her own recipes and promised to never use less than honest ingredients.

Because food that is made with the best possible ingredients not only tastes better, but also makes one feel better, Jane began creating her own “honest” recipes and the seeds of Onesto Foods were planted.

Onesto Foods will never sacrifice taste. Just like you, we care about what we eat. Each cookie and cracker recipe starts with simple, real ingredients. Every hand-crafted batch is baked with the promise of being gluten-free, vegan, and non-GMO. We strive to make food that we want to eat and feel good sharing with others. We think eating honest has never tasted so good.    

Onesto Foods is also passionate about doing its part to protect our environment. Did you know that…

  • our bakery is solar-powered?
  • our packaging is printed with sustainable vegetable and soy dyes”
  • 90% of the waste generated during the printing or our cookie packaging is recaptured and reused in a Waste to Energy Program?
  • our cracker packaging is printed with 100% wind energy?
  • we participate in the Forest Stewardship Council?

  “There is nothing else that can nourish your body and soul more than sharing delicious, healthy food with family and friends. It doesn’t have to be fancy or overly complicated. Slowing down and enjoying good food, a glass of wine and laughing with good people–always fills my cup!”     – Jane

—

WINNER: 2019 BEST ACCOMPANIMENT by CULTURE MAGAZINE

WE’RE ECO-MINDED!

We’re proud that our cookies and crackers are baked using solar power. And, our packaging is produced using 100% wind energy, printed with 100% vegetable dyes, printed on recycled cardboard and is 100% recyclable. 

“…make amazing food, as responsibly and mindfully as we can.”

 

Navigating Butcher Boy Gluten Free with GFSavvyMama

By Jamie Norris

GF Savvy MamaThose of us who eat Gluten Free are on a constant mission to find new and improved GF products that allow us to avoid gluten while enjoying great tasting food! Did you know that Butcher Boy carries some amazing GF products? In addition to high-quality meats, fresh produce, and fine cheeses that are naturally gluten-free, Butcher Boy stocks quite a large selection of Gluten Free specialty items, many from small local companies, as well as some of the more recognizable mainstream GF brands.

You can shop Butcher Boy for GF Italian pastas, breads, artisan crackers, sauces & marinades, and some pretty decadent gluten-free desserts. Even some of Butcher Boy’s convenient prepared foods are Gluten Free**.

Here are some of GFSavvyMama’s favorite GF finds at Butcher Boy*:

Pasta

Butcher Boy has a great selection of GF pastas, both dried and fresh/frozen. You can find several brands of traditional dried GF pasta on the endcap of the mainstream pasta aisle. My family recently enjoyed the Rustichella D’Abruzzo Gluten Free Corn Spaghetti, imported from Italy and made from 100% organic corn. Bionaturae is another great Italian GF pasta brand, made from a blend of rice flour, potato & rice starches, and soy four. Try the Penne Rigate!

Check out the freezer case for these Pasta goodies:

Taste Republic: this gluten-free fresh pasta (yes I said FRESH!), is frozen to maintain freshness and cooks in 2-3 minutes!  Perfect for busy nights when you need food on the table fast. Both delicious and convenient. This is a staple in my freezer. Pasta Goddess (Nantucket, MA) GF Ravioli in Mushroom & Goat Cheese, Butternut Squash and Sei Fromaggi varieties.

Breads

Julie's Z Breads Gluten FreeIn addition to Aleia’s (Branford, CT) bread and Udi’s tortillas, bagels, hot dog and burger buns (located in the freezer section), look for half loaves from Woburn-based Something Sweet Without Wheat (freezer) and Julie’s Z Breads (Ashland, MA) Gluten-Free Zucchini bread (located with the fresh bread in the bakery section). You can also find GF bread-based staples like gluten-free bread crumbs from Aleia’s and gluten-free Panko from Ian’s Natural Foods (Framingham, MA) in the packaged bread aisle, top shelf. Add the perfect crunch to your salads with Aleia’s GF Croutons – try the Parmesan flavor!

Crackers

Onesto Crackers Gluten FreeButcher Boy stocks several varieties of gluten-free crackers for your snacking and entertaining needs. My current favorite is Onesto Hand Crafted Crackers (West Newbury, MA), Everything flavor. These crackers are divine!  Perfectly crafted to hold up with your favorite toppings (no crumbling), crisp and savory enough to devour them plain.  The Rosemary and Sea Salt is also excellent. There are many gluten-free spreads and toppings available in-store. I like the Mt Vikos products which are 100% GF. Try the Kalamata Olive Spread paired with cheese on a crisp GF Cracker like Onesto.

More great GF Frozen Finds

Pineland Farms (New Gloucester, ME) GF Meatballs and Against The Grain (Brattleboro, VT) Three Cheese Pizza (gluten-free & grain-free). Choose from a full line of Bell & Evans Gluten-Free Chicken Products: Breaded Chicken Fingers, Nuggets, Patties, Cutlets, and Chicken Burgers.

Sauces, Marinades and Dressings

Gluten is often hidden in these types of products, but Butcher Boy carries many great Gluten-Free options. I love using a high-quality GF BBQ sauce (No HFCS), like Stubbs Original or Bone Suckin’ Sauce in GF Pulled BBQ Chicken and Pork, as a marinade for grilled chicken, or simply as a condiment. Have you tried Gotham Greens Dressing? This is so much more than a dressing and can be found in the fresh produce section above the lettuce. The Vegan Lemon Basil is my favorite! It’s a great marinade for grilled chicken and makes a zesty GF pasta salad!

Gotham Greens Gluten Free Dressings

Don’t Forget Dessert!

Butcher Boy does not skimp in the GF dessert department! Some of my family’s favorites are the Maine Pie Co (Biddeford, MA) gluten-free pies. The apple and wild blueberry pies taste like homemade. The dark chocolate tart is, well, you will just have to try it for yourself!

My Dad's Cookies Gluten Free DessertsMy Dad’s Cookies: Black & White, Linzer and Sprinkle cookie varieties will remind you of old fashioned NY bakery-style cookies. Perfect for any GF cookie platter or to pop in a lunch box.

Have you ever needed a small cake to accommodate a GF guest at a party or for your GF kiddo to take to a birthday party? Check out Sweet Sense (Plymouth, MA) Sweet Sense Gluten Free CakesGluten Free Baked Goods. Butcher Boy stocks the Chocolate Obsession, Very Vanilla, Carrot Cake and Vegan Cupcakes in their refrigerated case beside the bakery counter. So good!

*Not an exhaustive list – there are plenty more gluten-free products available at Butcher Boy. Please check labels as ingredients may change.

Prepared Foods:

Most people that follow a Gluten-Free diet cook the majority of their meals at home. Finding Gluten Free prepared foods is a huge win and can provide a much-needed break from the kitchen! Butcher Boy now has signs posted in their cold prepared food cases that list Gluten Free** items. In addition, their hot, juicy Rotisserie Chickens are also GF – so many possibilities!

Need a GF meal that involves zero cooking for a busy weeknight?

No-Cook Summer BBQ: Pulled pork sliders with coleslaw and baked beans. Grab a container of Butcher Boy’s pulled pork. Warm it up and serve it over toasted Udi’s burger buns with a side of their housemade coleslaw and baked beans

Easy Fiesta Dinner: Chicken & Cheese Quesadillas.

Use a container of Butcher Boy pulled rotisserie chicken, shredded cheese, and Udi’s tortillas to make GF Chicken & Cheese quesadillas. Jazz them up a bit by adding pre-cut peppers & onions from the produce section (pan saute), ready-made guacamole, and one of the many available GF salsa brands available at Butcher Boy.

As you can see, Butcher Boy has a wide variety of Gluten-Free products for you to choose from. From easy meals to entertaining, they’ve got you covered.

**While they are not a dedicated Gluten-Free kitchen, Butcher Boy takes precautions to avoid cross-contamination.  If you have questions, be sure to ask a friendly associate for help.

Jamie Norris is the owner of GFSavvyMama, a Gluten-Free lifestyle blog, a personal Gluten-Free diet consultant, and Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, who inspires people to live their best GF Life. Follow Jamie at www.gfsavvymama.com or on Facebook and Instagram @gfsavvymama