When you’re entertaining for the holidays, you want to serve food that will impress your guests. This is a given! Even when it’s just close family and friends, you don’t want to set out a box of stale crackers and tell your guests to have at it. But during this hectic time of year, you don’t have the time to spend all day working on the perfect appetizer spread. This is why I love the line-up of products by Cat Cora’s Kitchen. Not only do they make entertaining a cinch, they’re healthy alternatives to the typical cheese-and-creamy-dip starters we often serve during this time of year. Instead of heavy appetizers, why not do Mediterranean-style tapas instead?
For this review, I was able to sample these three products from Cat Cora’s Kitchen by Gaea:
Santorini Cooking Sauce
- Famous cherry tomato, comes from the volcanic island of Santorini and is characterized by its concentrated taste and aromas.
- Ready to use sauce, based on the tomatoes and the capers of the Santorini island.
- 100% natural. Free from artificial colors, flavors and preservatives.
I wasn’t sure how this sauce would differ from Italian tomato sauce, but the taste of the oregano really shines through in the Santorini Cooking Sauce. It would be fabulous with chicken, but since we don’t eat meat, I tossed it with roasted chickpeas.
Organic Mixed Marinated Olives
- Mixed olives, carefully selected and packed in glass jars with extra virgin olive oil.
- An ideal appetizer from the Greek Mediterranean table, adding color and taste to every meal or snack.
- Organically grown and processed.
I love olives! I love cooking with them, but they’re great for snacking on too. Olives are one of those things that you either love or hate, but they’re marinated in heart-healthy olive oil, so really, what’s not to love? This particular jar of olives is great for serving while entertaining–the different colors of olives are so pretty!
Kalamata DOP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1st olive oil in the world to be certified Carbon Neutral!
- Protected Designation of Origin (D.O.P.), Kalamata, Greece.
- Taste profile: peppery, green fruits, bitter almond, green apple.
- Derived from the first cold pressing of olives without refining.
I was really excited about this olive oil because I love kalamata olives. Although it didn’t taste exactly like kalamatas, it did have a nice flavor that was perfect for serving with bread or drizzled onto a big Greek salad. Extra Virgin Olive oil is best used for finishing dishes rather than cooking with, so it’s good to invest in a quality oil like this one.
Cat Cora’s Kitchen by Gaea is now available for the first time nationwide at specialty food stores and major retailers including Kroger, Target and Whole Foods.
*Kiersten received the above product samples, free of charge, to facilitate this review.
