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Panera Bread Hidden Menu - Or - This is how to get a MM to GO to Panera Bread?

I was just fumbling through my morning routine of empty dishwasher, make coffee, listen to morning radio.  I heard this story on NPR about Secret Menus and I stopped and thought, "Well, there's today's blog entry."

BECAUSE LOOK WHAT PANERA DID AND I WOULD HAVE NEVER KNOWN CAUSE IT WAS A BIG OLE SECRET!

Screen Shot 2013-02-21 at 7.43.10 AM
Screen Shot 2013-02-21 at 7.43.10 AM

Panera (Bread, which I avoid... because it is a BREAD. STORE. CLOAKED. AS. A. SIT. DOWN. RESTAURANT.) now offers on the sly, teh foods that I can enjoy, and that many of you can also enjoy, but we have to play the secret game to get them.

NPR -

One thing you won't see on Panera Bread's secret menu? Bread.

As Scott Davis, who oversees menus for Panera Bread, explains, "This is probably the most extreme anti-kind of Panera diet you can have, right? It doesn't include bread and flour and that sort of stuff."

Davis says that the company had been missing out on a whole group of diners: diabetics and people who were cutting carbs or avoiding gluten. This menu lets the company tap into that growing health-conscious market.

"If someone never considered Panera before because the name 'bread' is in it ... this is a way of opening that door," says Davis.

So at its 1,800 stores around the country, Panera trained its employees to either pull out the secret menu card or scan a code that'll put the menu on a customer's mobile device.

But only if someone asks for it.

Here's my rant about this -- It's A Schtick, It's A Marketing Ploy -- to get foot traffic into the restaurants to "find all the foods" that are on the "hidden" but not-so-hidden-because-we-promoted-them-on-our-website-menus.  

 

The restaurant also desires that while you are there, you will add-on a purchase of a simple-carb from the bakery-porn-case of scones, souffles, muffins, cookies, bagels, or loaves of bread?

Shortbread cookies are my nememis.  Thank you for noticing.  Let's see if I can get through there without looking.  > - <


Mock Mashed Potatoes - George Stella

Mock Mashed Potatoes - George Stella - via OAC

A perfect side-dish for the fall and Thanksgiving!

Cauliflower

Calories: 140 | Fat: 11g | Protein: 5g | Fiber: 3g | Net Carbs: 4g

Doing without your favorite foods simply won’t do, as that’s something absolutely unheard of in the Stella home! For instance, we found a new favorite when we substituted that nameless high-carb root vegetable with healthy and light, yet filling, cauliflower. And even better, we piled them high with the best ingredients we could find!

Prep Time: 15 minutes – Cook Time: 6 minutes – Serves 4

Shopping List

  • 1 medium head cauliflower
  • 1 tablespoon cream cheese, softened
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/4 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
  • 1/4 teaspoon chicken base or bouillon
  • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh or dried chives, for garnish
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, if desired

Preparation

  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.
  2. Clean and cut cauliflower into small pieces. Add to the pot and boil for about 6 minutes until well done.
  3. Drain well, but do not let cool. Pat the cooked cauliflower between several layers of paper towels or place cauliflower in a colander and use a heavy bowl to press down on it to remove the excess water.
  4. Using a food processor or hand blender, pulse the hot cauliflower with the cream cheese, Parmesan, garlic, chicken base and pepper until almost smooth.
  5. Garnish with chives and serve hot with pats of butter, if desired.