Stay Warm With A Hot Bowl Of Vegetarian Pho
My favorite Vietnamese restaurant closed recently – the victim of a sagging economy. It was a terrible thing for the friendly owners (who were also the workers), but also for our family. This was the only Vietnamese place in town that made a vegetarian version of the traditional Vietnamese noodle soup, Pho.
After much trial and error (and a number of Google searches), we came up with the respectable substitute pictured here. Loaded with tofu, fresh vegetables, and chopped herb garnishes, this soup fills the stomach and opens the sinuses.
The Truth About Acai Berry Diet Programs
Can You Really Lose Weight With Acai Berry Diets in 2009?
During this time of resolution-making, many Americans are searching for the best diet to help them reach their weight loss goals for the coming year. While the weight loss scene over the last few years has seen a variety of diets ranging from the low carb varieties, such as the Atkins and South Beach Diets, to the managed pound reduction programs like Nutri Systems and Jenny Craig, to a variety of detox diets — including those rapid weight loss programs popular with many Hollywood Celebrities, this year the star diet of the weight loss world is a small berry from South America, the acai berry.
Unlike other foods and gimmicks that have graced the diet scene, this little berry just might be a superfood that lives up to all the hype, but can it actually help you lose weight? In this article, we’ll uncover the truth about the acai berry diet programs which are sweeping the Internet, reveal to you what Dr. Oz REALLY thinks of the acai berry diet frenzy, and possibly save you hundreds of dollars in the process.
The Sticky Question of Teflon Safety
Who would have ever thought that non-stick cookware would become controversial? It was approved for use in cookware in 1960, and gave cooks the option to cook with less fat. Even more exciting, the non-stick surface made cleanup a snap. And yet, for almost 20 years, there has been vigorous debate about its safety.
The culprit is a substance called perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which is used in making Teflon. Manufacturers say it’s safe to use in cookware – as long as the cookware is used properly. When it’s not, the fumes from overheated non-stick skillets can kill birds and sicken humans with a malady called “polymer fume fever.”
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Apple Walnut Raisin Bread Recipe
The Most Moist Apple Walnut Raisin Bread Recipe You’ll Find
Get your apple a day in this yummy moist quick bread. It is delicious warm from the oven as a healthy snack or smeared with cream cheese for breakfast. It is a favorite in our house.
1 1/2 cup of diced apples. I use organic and leave the skin intact
1 cup applesauce (adds moisture and more apple flavor)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup oil
2 eggs
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 teaspon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup walnuts – chopped
Mix eggs, oil, applesauce, sugar, brown sugar, yogurt and vanilla in a large bowl.
Mix dry incredients in a separate bowl.
Pour the wet incredients into the dry ones and mix.
Fold in the apples, raisins, and walnuts.
Pour batter into a 9×5 greased loaf pan.
Cook at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or when toothpick comes out clean.
Enjoy. This makes a delightfully different bread that everyone will love.
If you like this recipe, you might also like to try our easy and healthy Banana Nut Bread recipe. It was my mom’s and is another favorite. I keep a loaf or two in the freezer so I can have it handy when unexpected guests drop by. Its also treat with ice cream.
Blooming Flower Teas – Hot New Trend in Tea
One of my favorite Christmas presents this year was a gift box of blooming flower teas.
If you’re thinking of getting some flowering teas, I would recommend you get a glass pot or glass teapot or you’ll miss half the fun. Many of the companies that sell the flowering teas also carry the glass tea pots. Having the glass teapot allows you to observe the flowering process as well as filter out most of the petals before you pour the tea into your cup. (There’s nothing worse than flower petals in your teeth.)
If you’ve not seen these flowering teas in action, I found a video from one of the tea companies that shows you what you’re missing.
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Cooking In A Cast Iron Skillet
An Old Favorite Regains Popularity
After experimenting with Teflon, anodized aluminum, and stainless steel, many cooks are tossing the expensive, high-tech stuff in favor of an old standby: cast iron.
The cast iron skillet
is relatively inexpensive, healthy, and almost indestructible. Even better, well-seasoned cast iron has a slick, almost Teflon-like coating – but without the health concerns now swirling around Teflon.
If you’re wondering how to season cast iron, cook in it, or how to care for the skillets you inherited, read on. Cooking with and caring for cast iron is easier than you think.
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Is a Detox Diet Program Right for You?
It seems everywhere you turn these days, there’s a new detox diet popping up. From the Master Cleanse, and acai berry diets, to diets featuring raw foods, rice, grapes and water, there seems to be an extreme diet for every food.
The questions are… do these diets work and are they a healthy way to achieve long term weight loss, health and fitness? This article will seek to answer those questions, give you the pros and cons of detox diets and provide you with the information you need to make an educated – and healthy – decision about detox diets.
Gluten Free Recipes and Cookbooks
New Year’s Resolution Diet Tips
Homemade Pecan Treasures make great last minute gift giving
by Mike
I love to cook and especially to bake, so I love the holiday season for making cookies and special breads to give as gifts. Here are a couple of ideas that make great gifts.
Pecan Sandies
This recipe makes a shortbread-like cookie with the great combination of cinnamon and pecans.
1 Cup butter, cut in pieces
1/3 Cup Sugar
1 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 1/4 Cups Flour
1 Cup Pecans chopped fairly fine
granulated sugar (about 1/3 cup for coating)
In a mixer, combine butter, sugar, water, and vanilla. Mix 30 seconds to creamy
smooth. Add cinnamon, mix in the flour by hand in increments, then add nuts. Dough will be very stiff.
Roll dough in 1″ balls, roll the balls in the granulated sugar, place the
sugared balls on an ungreased cookie sheet and criss-cross the tops with a
fork. Once pressed down, cookies will not spread much.
Bake at 325 degrees for 20 mins, or until the bottoms are lightly golden
brown.
Makes about 3 dozen cookies.
Note: A trick for making more evenly-sized cookies is to divide the dough, wrap in waxed paper or plastic wrap, and roll/squeeze it out into a 1″ diameter cylinder, then slice into evenly sized pieces before rolling the pieces into balls.
Honey Pecan Spread
1 Cup honey
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 Cup finely chopped pecans
Place about 1/2 of the honey in a small 1 pint decorative canning jar. Add the lemon juice and cinnamon, stirring to combine. Add the nuts, stirring to coat. Top off with more honey, and carefully stir to integrate. Pop a decorative top on the jar and it is ready for gifting (or eating!)
Best after sitting for a couple of days for the flavors to harmonize. Serve on bagels or pancakes. It can also be poured over a block of cream cheese and used as a spread on crackers.
Healthy Chicken Fruit and Nut Salad
Here’s a healthy salad that can be a nice alternative. This salad is full of healthy yummy ingredients the whole family will love.
For one bowl of salad, mix the following in a salad bowl:
2 – 3 handfuls of Spring Mix lettuce
1 small handful dried cranberries
4-5 pieces of Tyson grilled chicken strips
1 medium handful of Shredded Monterrey and cheddar cheese
1 medium handful of Sunny Cranberry trail mix (from Archer Farms at Target) or a comparable trail mix that has nuts and berries
½ Apple, diced
Poppy Seed Dressing
Mix well and enjoy. You can also toss in croutons, dried blueberries, and other fruits as desired.
Holiday Gluten Free Diet Tips
Fast and Easy Turkey Tetrazzini Recipe
Turkey Tetrazzini – a delicious turkey casserole
During the holidays we frequently have extra turkey on hand and one of my favorite dinners is to take the leftover turkey and make a yummy Turkey Tetrazzini.
There are a thousand different recipes and variations for Turkey Tetrazzini, but it is basically:
2 cups turkey,
Can or jar of cream sauce,
1-2 cups spaghetti noodles,
1 can mushrooms
1 cup mixed vegetables for color
Cheese (sprinkled on top)
To make the cream sauce I will often use either a can of cream of chicken soup (and ¼ cup water) or a jar of Ragu Alfredo sauce (my favorite is the low fat cheesy alfredo sauce). I mix the sauce with a can of mushrooms and vegetables. I then add the diced turkey and noodles and mix it up. I sprinkle cheese on the top.
Bake in often at 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until hot.
It is delicious and is a great way to use up the Turkey. Enjoy.
Cranberry Juice Holiday Party Punch Recipe
Holiday Party Punch Recipe with Cranberry and Pineapple Juice
This is my all time favorite holiday party punch recipe. The mixture of red cranberry juice gives it a festive look and the pineapple juice lends a sweetness everyone enjoys. My mom used to make this and put it in a large bunch bowl. She would wrap a holiday garland around the base of the bowl for decoration. It was my job to add the cold ginger ale to the bowl right before the guests arrived.
Holiday Party Punch Recipe
Mix and stir the following ingredients until the sugar dissolves.
4 cups cranberry juice
4 cups pineapple juice
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 Tablespoon almond extract
Chill the mixture. Add 1 quart Ginger Ale right before serving. Enjoy.
Speaking of the holidays, do you need some holiday gift ideas? Read our Kitchen Gadgets as Holiday Gifts article for some gift giving inspiration.
Helpful Hints for Cooking with Herbs
Catch a whiff of savory rosemary and you’re instantly transported to your favorite Italian restaurant: deeply inhaling the steaming scent rising from the marinara sauce on your pasta. Rub a little sage between your fingers and the tangy aroma reminds you of the roasted chicken grandma served for Sunday dinners.
The flavors and fragrances of herbs enhance many of our favorite dishes. Knowing when to add herbs to recipes, and whether it’s best to use fresh or dried herbs can make all the difference in the potency and flavor. Many culinary schools teach aspiring chefs to add most fresh herbs to recipes near the end of the cooking time for a variety of reasons.
How to Make Gravy – The Easy Gravy Recipe
Gravy Recipe Secrets: How You Can Make Fantastic Gravy in Only 5 Minutes!
Gravy. It is the finishing touch on homemade mashed potatoes or stuffing. You may not realize it, but making gravy is actually easy. How? In the next 5 minutes, you will learn the secret to making lump-free, delicious gravy!
I had the hardest time with making gravy. I would either have lumps or it would be so thick and jello-like that you could cut it with a knife! But then, I learned the secret to a good gravy recipe.
First, you have to understand what goes into gravy.
How to Make Flaky Pie Crust Recipe
Easy Pie Crust Recipe Guaranteed to be Flaky and Delicious
If You’re Looking For An Easy Pie Crust Recipe, Here It Is
Pie is a popular dessert during the holidays and there are a variety of pie types so you could have a different pie evey day of the week and still not run out of new recipes. While the fillings may change, the foundation for a great pie is a great pie crust.
Have you ever been served pie that has crust so tough you can’t get your fork through it? Sure, we all have. Well, here’s an easy pie crust recipe that makes crust that is always tender and flaky.
Delicious Corned Beef Brisket Recipe
If you are looking for a delicious meal for family or friends, corned beef brisket is a great choice. This is one of those recipes where everything goes into one pot and allows you to get other things done as it cooks away slowly. Since it includes meat and an arrangement of vegetables there is no need for side dishes or starters.
Read on to discover this simple meal for six people.
The Key Relevance Factors for Grading Honey
What are the key relevance factors for grading honey?
Honey is nature’s perfect food: it is the only food that humans eat that harms neither plant nor animal in its production and consumption.
Honey is derived from plant nectar, with each individual honeybee contributing perhaps only 1/12 of a teaspoon to the hive’s honey production during her entire lifetime. Because there are so many different nectar sources being visited by a single hive of bees, even a single pound of produced honey will contain nectar from thousands and thousands of different flowers. In order to standardize the sale of honey, the USDA developed a set of standards for grading honey. As of 1985, these Standards are now in their fifth issue. According to the National Honey Board, honey is graded, on a voluntary basis, using these USDA standards.
There are 6 relevant factors in evaluating the honey’s grade (5 quality factors and color):
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Pinto Bean and Barley Soup
Low fat, inexpensive, and delicious!
It’s October, and we’re starting to feel the crisp bite of fall. Unfortunately, many of us are also feeling a painful bite in our wallets as prices rise. The US Department of Agriculture reported in August that food prices this year will show the biggest annual increase since 1990. And there’s no end in sight.
Struggling to get your food budget under control? Remember the humble pot of soup. It’s a wonderful cold weather meal that’s easy to make, and relatively inexpensive if you start with basic raw ingredients like dried beans.
Here’s one of my favorites: Pinto Bean and Barley Soup. It’s a chewy blend of common kitchen staples that freezes well. Add a salad and warm bread and you have a delicious – yet inexpensive – meal.
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