Posted by Editor | Comments Off on 5 Amazing Tricks for Keeping Fruits and Vegetables at Home

5 Amazing Tricks for Keeping Fruits and Vegetables at Home

After cooking your own meals for a while, you may think that you’ve got everything figured out in the kitchen and even have a dedicated cooking section in your bookshelf – but there’s always more you can add to enrich your experience and improve your culinary skills. Here are a few tips and tricks for cooking and preparing vegetables that will completely change the way you do things in the kitchen:

1.  Ripen fruits more quickly

There’s a reason why you don’t want to keep certain fruits like bananas and papayas grouped together in the same place for too long. That’s because they release ethylene gas, which can make certain fruits and vegetables spoil much faster. But that doesn’t mean you can’t use it to your advantage. In fact, to make your fruits and vegetables ripen more quickly, all you need to do is to throw the occasional banana in there and then separate them when they’re ready.

2.  Re-use that pickle brine

Don’t drain that water away! Whether you made that jar of pickled vegetables yourself or bought it from the store, you can always make more than one use out of it by adding fresh vegetables in it and storing it in the fridge for a few days. For best results, you can even par-broil these vegetables before pickling them to speed things up.

3.  Keep vegetables crisp for longer

While wrapping in foil doesn’t work for all vegetables – it certainly doesn’t work for most leafy greens – using it for specific food items like broccoli and lettuce certainly helps to keep them crisp for a lot longer.  

4.  Slice your bell peppers in advance

To get the most out of your bell peppers by making them last as long as possible, the best thing you can do is to simply slice them up and store them in a zip-lock bag in your refrigerator. You can also slice them a lot more easily than normally would by doing the following steps:

• Slice the top and the bottom off; save them for later.
• Cut on one side of the bell pepper lengthwise. Be sure to slice down on just the skin for this.
• Roll out the skin and slice the parts connecting the core.
• Push out the middle part of the bell pepper’s top.
• Dice the skin, including the top and bottom parts of the bell pepper.

5.  Keep soft fruits from getting crushed

No one likes dealing with squished or saggy fruits, and the good news is you don’t have to deal with them, either. When storing fruits and vegetables in your fridge or pantry, you want to make sure to place the hardest items at the bottom, such as potatoes and cucumbers, and the softest ones, like tomatoes or mangoes, on top. This allows the weight to be evenly distributed among these various food items and keeps certain fruits plump rather than saggy.

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Posted by Editor | Comments Off on Everything You Need to Know About Milk

Everything You Need to Know About Milk

Everyone knows about milk – it’s rich in calcium and protein, which helps build strong bones and lower blood pressure. But because it’s so universal, it’s easy to ignore that this is a crucial part that adds to an overall healthy diet and lifestyle.

Aside from adding to a nutrient-rich meal with lots of fruits and vegetables, a glass of milk is also a great way to start and end a day. It can even be a sports drink for an athletes looking to replenish lost electrolytes.

Why You Need Milk

While you might think you know enough about milk, there are more things you don’t probably already know about its other benefits for your body:  

• It ‘s rich in Vitamin D – Sunlight isn’t the only way you can get your daily source of vitamin D, which is needed like calcium and phosphorus to keep bones healthy. You can also find it in a tall, cool glass of milk.
• It’s loaded in other nutrients – Riboflavin, Vitamin B12, potassium, phosphorus, and selenium can all be found in milk in addition to a healthy dose of eight grams of protein.
• It neutralizes spiciness – It contains a compound called casein, which is great at neutralizing the burn on spicy foods. If it gets a little too hot, grab that tall glass of whole milk!
• It may help with weight loss – The added protein in every glass of milk is a great way to help you with your fitness routine. It can even help with weight loss if you drink it after every meal since it can make you feel full.

Myths About Milk

There are also quite a few myths and misconceptions about milk you need to stop believing, such as the following:

• Plant- and nut-based milks are still dairy products – They are great subsitutes with their own benefits, but they’re not dairy products – they still have much lower levels of calcium and protein.
• Lactose intolerance means avoiding all dairy products – There are still friendly dairy options for those with lactose intolerance.
• Milk is low in other nutrients – The nutritional benefits of milk go beyond more than just calcium and protein. It also contains vitamins D and B12, which are necessary for the body’s development.

Adding Milk to Your Diet

There are more ways to adding milk than just drinking it by itself. You can also get the full benefits from milk by adding it into other food items, like cereal, coffee, or certain types of dishes that work well with having it in the recipe.

You can even get these benefits from dairy products, like cheese, butter, and yogurt, which are all different ways that milk is processed or prepared.

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Posted by Editor | Comments Off on Five Surprising Things You Need to Know About Your Food

Five Surprising Things You Need to Know About Your Food

Everyone is eating or has eaten a certain amount of processed food at some point in their lives, and that’s because processed food is everywhere, even if it’s something as a biscuit or a cookie. You can even find that the “healthy” food isn’t as healthy as it seems. Even if you think your fridge is loaded with all-natural food options, you can bet that there are a lot of things food manufacturers don’t tell you about their products.  

Here are a few things you seriously need to know about your food to get you started:

1.  Processed foods contain more sugar than you think

While you already know that many foods you see on the grocery shelf contain a lot of sugar, you probably don’t know exactly how much – and that’s because food manufacturers can get around the label by disguising the sugar.

These are just some of the names manufacturers use to hide the sugar:

• Dextrose
• Cane crystals
• High-fructose corn syrup
• Fruit juice concentrate

2.  Manufacturers also pack foods with lots of salt

Two things food manufacturers love are sugar and salt for the same reason: they’re a cheap way to make cheap, tasteless food instantly palatable. But unlike sugar, salt is a miracle ingredient that not only serves as a seasoning, but also acts as a preservative that makes food items last longer and substitute for otherwise expensive herbs and spices.

3.  Food has an ideal sound

It doesn’t seem as important now, but some foods have an “ideal” sound you need to look for ensure maximum freshness. For instance, in the case of potato chips, people tend to buy them more if they have a louder crunch. The average potato chips snaps at about two kilos of pressure for every 2.25 square inch, or which is about 12 to 14 psi.

4.  “Healthy” cereal isn’t as healthy as you think

Cereal contains more sugar and carbs than you would think, and it doesn’t help that it says “multigrain” on the label. Even if the cereal is made from whole grain, much of the extra vitamins and minerals are destroyed in the process of making the cereal.

However, the good news is that you can still enjoy your bowl of healthy cereal in the morning – as long as your cereal contains less than eight grams of sugar per serving.

5.  There’s no need to worry about synthetic flavoring

Ever since artificial sweeteners started to become really popular, the use of synthetic flavoring has stuck around, and it’s likely to stay in your pantry for a long time. But that synthetic vanilla extract isn’t necessarily bad for you – in fact, it’s just as good as the original.

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Posted by Editor | Comments Off on 4 Delicious Recipes with Beer

4 Delicious Recipes with Beer

Who says beer is just for washing down greasy food? Here are fantastic recipes with beer you can try at home.

• 

Onion Soup with Beer

• Ingredients: 1 bottle pale ale, 10 cups onions, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon flour, ¼ cup butter, 4 cups chicken broth, 2 cups grated sharp cheddar, 6 pieces toasted baguette, salt, and ground black pepper

• Preparation: In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and cook onions for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add a dusting of flour. After 1 minute, stir in beer. Keep stirring and bring to a boil then pour broth. Bring to a boil again then simmer for 10 minutes. Season and add more broth if necessary. Meanwhile preheat broiler and transfer soup to oven-safe bowls. Place 1 baguette in each bowl and sprinkle with cheese. Place in baking sheets and broil until golden.

Beer Batter Fish and Chips

• Ingredients: 1 filleted and halved tilapia, 3 tablespoons baking powder, 1 cup flour, 1 ½ bottles beer, 3 russet potatoes, 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 diced pickle, 2 ounces caper berries, 1 ounce pickle brine, ½ lemon juice, ground black pepper, vegetable oil, and sea salt

• 

• Preparation: To make a tartar sauce, combine mayonnaise, pickle, pickle brine, lemon juice, and caper berries in a bowl then season with pepper. Meanwhile, prepare the chips by rinsing the potato slices under running water. Strain while heating oil to 325°F. Blanche the fried until they’re just about done, then let cool.

Heat oil to 375°F then cook the fries again until golden brown. Drain excess oil and season with salt. Prepare fish by seasoning with salt and pepper. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and black pepper in one bowl, then pour beer another. Dredge fish in flour and soak in batter. Heat oil in a pan to 350°F then cook fish for 5 to 6 minutes on each side.

Can Can Chicken

• Ingredients: 4 pounds chicken, 12 ounces beer, 1 tablespoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon ground mustard, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

• Preparation: In a bowl, combine salt, sugar, onion and garlic powder, cayenne pepper, paprika, and ground mustard. Loosen skin from the chicken then rub mixture all over the chicken including under the skin. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

• 

Cover baking pan with aluminum foil and place chicken and place a rack in the pan. Remove half the beer from the can and make additional holes. Place the can in the chicken rack and stand the chicken vertically. Grill while covered over medium heat for 1 ½ hours. Remove from grill and tent chicken in foil for 15 minutes before serving.

Spicy Chuck Wagon Beans

• Ingredients: 1 cup beer, 1 tablespoon canola oil, 1 onion, 56 ounces baked beans, 45 ounces undrained chili beans, 30 ounces rinsed and drained black beans, 14 ounces cooked sausages, 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and 1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce

• Preparation: In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat and sauté onion for 4 minutes. Stir in the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Simmer while uncovered for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.

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Posted by Editor | Comments Off on 3 ways to spice up your lunchbox

3 ways to spice up your lunchbox

What other great way to break everyday monotony than by looking forward to surprised conveniently located in your packed lunch? Not only are these affordable, it also ensures cleanliness in food preparation compared to usual takeout routine. Not only that, these lunchbox ideas are sure to entice health advocates and enthusiasts, since every packed-lunch has all the right nutrients in just the right amount.

Here are three lunchbox ideas for those anticipating delightful treats:

1. Crunchy Peanut Butter and Apple Wrap
This treat will surely tickle the child in you. Mostly popular with kids, this wrap is packed with goodness in just the right texture. For this you will need flour tortillas, a cup of peanut butter, chopped apple and a cup of low-fat granola. First off, prepare the tortilla. In each, spread a generous amount of peanut butter. Next, take your apple and granola and apply the same procedure, the amount depending on your liking. Roll up the tortillas tightly, then cut it in equal halves. Wrap with another layer, but this time using plastic wrap. These are ready to pack in insulated containers.

2. Asparagus and Greens with Farro
One way to keep healthy is to make sure you have an adequate amount of greens in your diet. For this lunchbox idea, you will need a cup of uncooked faro, a bunch of thin asparagus, a cup of whole almonds, lemon, kosher salt, olive oil, baby spinach, baby kale and baby mustard greens, black pepper and parmesan cheese. Boil three cups of water in a medium saucepan. Next, add faro and let it simmer in low fire until tender. Drain water afterwards. Next, arrange a steamer basket in a large skillet, with water below basket level. Boil then add asparagus. Steam until tender to a crisp. Place in a bowl together with the faro. Squeeze lemon while still warm. Add in flavors with your almonds, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add in greens and mix well. Place parmesan for a finish.

3. Burrito Bowls
Give your usual bowl a twist it deserves. For this one, you will need cauliflower florets, salt, canola oil, reduced-sodium taco seasoning mix, lean boneless pork loin or skinless boneless chicken breast halves, poblano pepper, frozen whole kernel corn, black beans, lime, avocado, romaine lettuce, Pico de Gallo, Mexican-style four cheese blend and lime wedges and fresh cilantro. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. After which, cover and pulse the cauliflower which is neatly placed in a food processor. You should achieve rice-size pieces in this process. Next, transfer cauliflower in a baking pan pined with foil. Add in oil, and salt and coat well. Spread cauliflower evenly. Until lightly charred, roast the cauliflower, uncovered. Ina separate bowl, add avocado and lime zest. Mix well. Prepare another mixture of oil, taco seasoning and lime juice. Prepare lettuce in a separate bowl with the cauliflower and pork mixture. Using a spoon, place the avocado mixture at the center. Place Pico de Gallo and cheese on top. Coat with lime juice mixture. Servings go well with either lime wedges or cilantro.

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Posted by Editor | Comments Off on Three Quick Breakfast Foods for People On-the-go

Three Quick Breakfast Foods for People On-the-go

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but if you don’t have a lot of time to sit down for a full meal, you don’t have to skip it entirely. In fact, breakfast meals should be easy to prepare and take no more than ten or fifteen minutes at most, and the faster the better.

Here are a few quick ones that you can do in less than five:

Sandwich
Bread is a pretty versatile carbohydrate food item that goes well either on its own or as the carbohydrate cornerstone of any nutritious breakfast. These are the following ingredients that bread goes well with for a quick sandwich:

• Mayonnaise
• Peanut butter and Jelly
• Cheese
• Butter

And these are the ingredients that go along with bread, but can also stand alone on their own as a full meal:
• Eggs – Great protein and one of the greatest versatile food items in the kitchen that you can add scrambled, as an omelet, or even paired with a few slices of avocado in between two slices of loaf bread for an eggs benedict.
• Ham/Bacon – They go amazing with or without cheese and eggs, with their only downside being that they may take some time to thaw from the fridge. Add sausages to the plate and you have yourself an English breakfast.

• Chicken – This might take a little time to prepare, so it’s best to cook it the night before if you have to wake up really early. Mix with fresh lettuce and tomatoes and a dash of mayonnaise for a quick chicken sandwich.

Cereal / Trail Mix
These are quick grain meals full of vitamins, minerals, and fiber that anyone can prepare. Cereals only need milk, and you can buy pre-mixed trail snacks as they are, or you can combine them yourself from a whole host of different nuts and berries available at any supermarket.

Fruits
Fruits make for a good healthy option – apples, bananas, and even oranges are relatively cheap and should last a while with proper storage. Another advantage to fruits is that they’re quite versatile.

For instance, you can throw them in the blender for a quick smoothie, add them to yogurt to make it more flavorful, or even make fruit salad simply by adding diced pieces of them together in a bowl. You can put yogurt or condensed milk in the mix for more sweetness.

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