Winning Food Products at DC Metropolitan Cooking Show

My wife, daughter, and I attended the Metropolitan Cooking Show in DC on November 3-4.  This makes the third time I have attended.  There are aisles of food product booths set up handing out samples, trying to entice you to buy their products.  There is no short supply of olive oils, dips, sauces, desserts, spices, drink mixes.  You name it, they probably had it.  The show also features celebrity chefs who provide entertainment with their cooking demos.  This year, we attended the cooking demos by Iron Chef Michael Symon and Carla Hall of The Chew as well as legendary chef Jacques Pepin with his daughter Claudine.  All were quite entertaining and provide great inspiration to those who love to cook. 

Below are my top 10 favorite foods from the show.  I have put a link to each of their businesses for you to check out.  Each one is a small business owner.  I am sure each would appreciate your business this Christmas season. 

Carolina Candy Company

If you love chocolate covered toffee, this is the product for you.  This is the best toffee I have found. The chocolate is smooth and very high quality.  The toffee is crunchy, yet melts in your mouth when you eat it.  This toffee will be snapped up quickly around your house. 

Emily G's Jam of Love

Emily G's has a large collection of 18 jams to chose from.  The hardest part is picking which one you want to buy.  My favorites are the Triple Berry, Cranberry Port, and Cabernet Sauvignon jams.  The finest ingredients go into these jams and you can tell in the finished product.  The flavor profiles in these jams are useful in many different types of sweet and savory recipes.   

Basik's Spice Blends

This company specializes in blended spice mixes.  I like to have a large selection of different spices at home to use in my cooking.  These are also great in olive oil to create a special dip for parties.  They can be used as a rub before grilling or roasting or added to your veggies when sauteing.  My favorites are the Italian Blend, Key Lime Citrus, or Hunter Blend. 

Dimitri Olive Oil

This olive oil from Greece is quite outstanding.  The olive oil is unfiltered and has a truly wonderful depth of flavor.  The fruity flavor is rich and goes well in both salads and sauteing.   

Tom's Roid-Rippin BBQ Sauce

Barbecue sauces are a popular commodity at the food show.  This one was my favorite barbecue sauce.  I prefer some sweetness in my sauces and the mixture with the mesquite flavors here make for a great sauce.

Tsp Spices

This company sells collection of complimentary spices in small teaspoon sealed packets.  These are perfect for adding to recipes in the right amount.  Since each package is sealed, each remains fresh until you use it.  The spice profiles include Game Day Chili, Cookie Jar, Dinner for Two,  and Sweet Heat.  They also have a holiday collections. 

Sarah N' Dippity Salsa

As with the barbecue sauces, there are many types of salsa at the show.  They range from the very mild to the kinds that leave you breathing fire.  The Sarah N Dippity salsa came out as my winner.  The fire roasted flavor of the tomatoes and peppers really set this one apart from the others.  They had a mild and spicy variety and each was just the right amount of heat for those categories.  This salsa would make a great hit with friends and family.

Cookies and Corks

This company specializes in selling cookies that can be paired with wine.  We bought some of these cookies a couple of years ago and served them at a party pairing them with different kinds of wine.  Folks at the party really enjoyed trying the cookies and wine.  The company sells three different types of boxes, one for white wine, one for reds, and one for sparkling wine.  Some cookies are sweet and others are savory.  These would be fun to have at your New Year's party.   

La Boella Olive Oil

This olive oil from Spain is also quite good and has won many awards in Spain.  I am a fan of arbequina olive oils in general, but this one rises to the top.  I really like the spicy notes in this olive oil. 

No Bull Burger

I don't have a picture of these scrumptious veggie burgers.  However, check out their website for info about their products.  While I love my beef, I am also becoming a fan of a good veggie burger.  This one ranks very highly on my list.  My only regret was that we couldn't buy any at the show since they needed to be refrigerated and we had no way to keep them cold until we got home.  I will have to look for them in the future. 

Hope you check out some of these small businesses.