Food And Drink Weblog

May 4, 2008

Goji Juice Jello: Goji Fun for the Whole Family

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 2:21 am

Goji juice is quickly becoming one of the most popular nutritional supplements in the world. Extracted from goji berries, it s widely considered to be one of the most nutritionally dense foods ever discovered. Around the world, thousands of families have made drinking goji juice a part of their daily routine, and because of the delicious taste of the juice, most of them maintain the same mundane schedule of downing a few ounces of pure juice.
Despite the great taste of goji juice, families with small children might wish to enhance their goji juice experience by adding some fun to the equation. This is where creative imagination comes into play. Why risk boring yourself by simply drinking goji juice day-after-day, locked into the same monotonous routine? Where s the fun in that? By making your child s daily goji consumption a more entertaining experience, he or she will look forward to the daily event and be less likely to forget this important nutritional juice. One way to add some pep to your goji is by creating goji juice jello! Below, you ll find a recipe for doing just that.
Goji Juice Jello Recipe
Ingredients:
1 Cup of Boiling Water 1 Packet of Instant Strawberry Flavor, Sugar Free, Low-Calorie Jello Gelatin 1 Cup of Refrigerated Goji Juice
Instructions:
First, bring a cup of water to a boil. Next, pour the packet of jello mix into a bowl. Add the boiling water to the bowl of gelatin, and stir gently for at least two minutes until the gelatin mix is completely dissolved. After the mix is uniform, pour a cup of goji juice into the bowl, and stir. Pour into individual serving size cups and refrigerate for 4 hours, or until firm. The result is a refrigerator full of delicious goji juice jello!
Special Tip:
To enhance the jello experience, try adding fruit. For fruit juice jello, prepare your jello as directed above, but refrigerate for only 30 minutes until the jello is slightly thickened. Stir in 1 cup of raspberries, blueberries, chopped strawberries, or another favorite fruit. Refrigerate for 4 hours or until firm.
A summer favorite, instant jello has been enjoyed by millions of children for over 100 years since its initial introduction. By combining jello with the nutritional benefits of goji juice, children will learn that maintaining good health is also fun and delicious! And best of all, their parents can enjoy the fun too, as delicious goji juice jello conjures memories of their own childhood.

May 1, 2008

Best Casserole Recipe: Hot Dog Casserole

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 8:35 pm

This recipe is a tasty hot dogs for dinner, add a little fun table.
1 1 / 3 cup dry potato eukkae mix
1 1 / 3 cup water
1 / 3 cup spoon milk
2 salt
teaspoon margarine or a sweet pickle butter
cup mayonnaise or salad on the table dressing
1 Relish
2 mustard
4 6 teaspoons instant dajin onion
2 teaspoon hot oven to 350 degrees.
prepare dogs
directions
preheat mashed potatoes as directed on package using water, milk, salt and margarine. Wavelength seasoning, mayonnaise, onions and mustard. Each of the spread of ungreased 1 – casserole.
cut quart hot dogs in half vertically, then in half diagonally. Mashed hot dogs around the edges, insert a piece bunhap potatoes.
bake 25-30.

Americas First Celebrity Bartender

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 8:35 pm

The cocktail is practically an American institution. One of the very first Bartenders to popularise the cocktail was Jerry Thomas, Americas original “Celebrity Bartender”. Thomas wrote what is widely considered as one of the first books to contain cocktail recipes, The Bartenders Guide .
When I first came across this little volume (last published in 1887) in a dusty old book shop I was blown away. Here at last was cocktail history laid bare! I bought it on the spot and literally sat up all night and read the book cover to cover. For anyone with even a flicker of interest in cocktails and drinks its an enthralling read. Jerry Thomas is to cocktail culture what Louis Armstrong is to Jazz!
Here at last, set down on paper, were some of the very first cocktail recipes ever recorded. It was amazing, but it wasn t just cocktails, the book contained a host of other recipes, for “Punch, Egg Nogs, Juleps, Smashs, Cobblers, Mulls, Sangarees, Toddies, Slings, Sours, Flips, Negus, Shrubs, Pousse Caf , Cups” and many, many more.
In total there were some 230+ original recipes. Some were famous, some I d never even heard of! They represented an amazing cross-section of exciting and wonderful drinks.
Jeremiah P. Thomas was born in Jefferson County, New York in November 1830 and first learned the bartending trade in New Haven. He then went to San Francisco and the California gold fields.
In 1851 he opened the first of four saloons in New York, below Barnum s Museum at Broadway and Ann Street. He then seems to have travel around the US for several years. Working as head bartender at top hotels in St. Louis, Chicago, San Francisco, Charleston, S.C., and New Orleans. Slowly turning himself into Americas first celebrity bartender! In 1859 he visited London and Paris. He took with him a set of solid silver bar utensils constructed at a cost of $4,000!
Returning to New York Thomas became the principal bartender at the Metropolitan hotel. Then in 1866 he opened his most famous bar located on Broadway between 21st and 22nd Streets.
Thomas was “an imposing and lordly figure of a man, portly, sleek and jovial, yet possessed of immense dignity”. His trade mark was a “jacket of pure and spotless white which encased his great bulk”. He also sported a huge moustache, in the Walrus style! Obviously a man once seen, not easily forgotten!
The various saloons he operated became showplaces where he demonstrated his mixologist s art. They were very popular with the sporting and theatrical celebrities of the day. To quote the New York times on his death in 1885 he was “at one time better known to club men and men about town than any other bartender in the city, and he was very popular among all classes”.
He is credited with inventing the “Blue Blazer” and the “Tom and Jerry” and certainly popularised many other early cocktails and drinks. In reference to the Blue Blazer the Bartenders Guide says, The novice in mixing this beverage should be careful not to scald himself. To become proficient in throwing the liquid from one mug to the other, it will be necessary to practise for some time with cold water.
Thomas s book was first published in 1862, and quickly went through half a dozen printings. The book was updated in 1876 and the final edition published in 1887. In the first edition there were ten recipes which Thomas referred to as cocktails (by the 1887 edition the cocktails numbered some 20+). His book was probably the first to include actual recipes for cocktails and certainly the world s first bartender s guide.
Looking for amazing new cocktail and drink ideas? Then instantly download the new digital edition of Jerry Thomas Secret cocktail book The Bartenders Guide at http://www.cocktailoriginals.com

Lamb from Muzbi to Modern

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 8:33 pm

What is your favorite lamb recipes? Bokeum? Shoulder? Bridge? Steak? Barbecued? Baked? Vinegar? Rub?
most run out of our way of mint jelly before it is completed to prepare the lamb. The little lamb, the environment settings to rank high on the list, you are interested in cooking empire mogul to know the different royal India was ready to make a day of the year each of the lamb. That& 39;s more than 300 dishes – Today& 39;s suit, if much more than cooking, or inclination, appeared mugale create.
although other meat dishes, lamb meat of choice for the reason of their religion and geographical reasons, the two dahapnida. Muslims did not eat pork. The bulk of the beef used predominantly Hindu country. Sueopseup (India) They are dominant. Fish and other seafood dishes are not familiar with the Mediterranean and the wealthy are easily available empire.
these mughals, builder of the Taj Mahal memorable, living a life of luxury, drama, and complicated – an reflect the richness of food they had. They want to summon all the ingredients to suit the table. Gold and silver foil garnished food summit. 50 different dishes are ready for the banquet. Many favorite spices are ground muzbi meals.
a everyday mogul lamb appetizers. Yang started the preparation of the breast. a marinade of garlic, onions, ginger, green chili, simhwang, ground red chili, along with the garam masalra mixed with yogurt. I was fired from a cube to the local crushing breast and dipped in thin almond paste, vinegar, poppy seeds and sesame seeds. Immediately following the hot stones muzbi sizzled. Each person is provided with several pieces of a plate garnished with sliced onion, green wedge of cheoteunigwa lime.
you – also do not want this facility – to prepare a platter of the amount biyuk all about the legs and divide it in the air, but Cooks mogul holder. They were first to bare the prejudices of each incision and animals are filled with condiments. She skewered grilled. After the meat is cooked rice stuffed with mateului of the body, the whole roasted chicken, and hard – boiled eggs. Roast the whole cauldron is mixed with butter, water, vegetables, rice, seasonings and more. Graphical always glamorous, but if the taste is a powerful combination of lamb, chicken and eggs combined with Ask a trademark combination of spices, vegetables and rice. These were some of the big season plattered essential kitchen animals.
mughal However, many recipes are gone, some of them variations, still the favorite in many parts of the world. The complexity and under preparation, without using more than lamb – - top – are found in abundance too often mogul food.
one This is a combination of rice and lamb and rice. Keomin such as seasonings, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, cardamom soap, Mace, yukdugu, saffron and various combinations. Small sheets of edible silver rice garnished leaf.
another, hard-packed ground lamb meatballs – cooked eggs, about the number of audits mughals visually stunning dish. When Crockett nargesi slices, exposing the middle of the egg is reminiscent sunnily name.
a narcissus reflected a third of the kababs, the longest appearance of a seasoning ground lamb sausage " & quot; around the skewer. They can enjoy various dishes made from grilled or highlights of the event to bring the source jwotui masalra and perhaps taking Pistachio, almond, is ready cardamom soap and a variety of cream.
lamb can masalas, each of wanseongpum change the taste. Masalra is a combination of spices, seasonings and other hubs or knock on the ground for the summer ttaewaeun Indian curry sauce used as a base. They are fresh daily, and adjust the ingredients to the present. Coconut, koriaendeo, hot pepper, ginger root, garlic, onion powder while cooking lamb ingredients.
complex relating to non-employees and abnormally large plate ready to extend substantial royalties and limits the very rich. The rest of us in a cookbook that provides a wide range of materials and the basic values of those gifts entr e.
a lamb, home – today& 39;s style lamb curry dish is the source and to achieve it by creating the dish, the meat. dajin saut 2 onions, 4 cloves garlic, " dajin fresh ginger, 1 t koriaendeo powder, one spoon simhwang, keomin t powder, masalra garam t, 1t chili powder. Add water and cook for 10 minutes in the keophapnida. Dajin another five minutes, add the tomatoes and cook 2. Curry is now ready for the source of 10 ounces of lamb pieces, and 2 cups of water. Cooking and serving until complete adherence dajin ppuryeotda leaf.

April 27, 2008

High School Chefs Set Their Sights On the Best Teen Chef Competition 2008

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 2:54 am

The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institutes are summoning the best teen chefs across the U.S. and Canada to strut their culinary chops in The Art Institutes Best Teen Chef Competition 2008.
Open to high school seniors in the U.S. and Canada, the Best Teen Chef Competition was created to encourage and recognize young culinary talent.
Now in its ninth year, the Best Teen Chef Competition awards more than $250,000 in tuition scholarships to The Art Institutes schools. Top prize winners in the Competition can win a full-tuition scholarship toward an associate s degree, certificate or diploma program, to study culinary arts at one of the more than 30 participating Art Institute locations. According to Chef Michael Nenes, Assistant Vice President of Culinary Arts for The Art Institutes, this year the stakes are higher than ever before for the young competitors. As the Competition has built a reputation in the past eight years, the skill level of those students entering has risen exponentially. In addition to a full-tuition scholarship and the title of Best Teen Chef 2008, the first place winner in the national competition, in partnership with Food Network, will be an “Intern for a Day” at the Food Network Kitchens in New York City. The winner will also receive a tour of the Food Network Studios, dinner for two at a Food Network chef s restaurant and a library of Food Network Kitchens cookbooks. To be eligible to participate in the Competition, high school seniors must first send a complete Entry & Release Form to The Art Institute school where they wish to enter the competition or fill out an online entry form at http://www.artinstitutes.edu/Competitions/BestTeenChef.aspx?prid=btc 1207 004 pr, by February 8, 2008. Deadline for entries to be received into the competition is February 29, 2008. Local Best Teen Chef Cook-off Competitions will be held at participating Art Institutes locations on April 12, 2008. The National Best Teen Chef Final Round Competition will be held on Saturday, May 17, 2008, at The Art Institute of Las Vegas. For more information on The Best Teen Chef Competition, visit http://www.artinstitutes.edu/Competitions/BestTeenChef.aspx?prid=btc 1207 004 pr.

The Art Institutes (http://www.artinstitutes.edu) is a system of over 35 education institutions located throughout North America, providing an important source of design, media arts, fashion and culinary arts professionals.
Contact: Jacki Muller Vice President, Public Relations The Art Institutes jpmuller@aii.edu
Devra Pransky The Art Institutes 412.995.7685 dpransky@aii.edu

April 22, 2008

Best Recipes: Cherry Tomato Corn Salad

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 8:43 pm

For a bright alternative to tomato and lettuce, you can make this salad of corn and tomatoes with its refreshing mixture of olive oil, cucumbers and lime juice. This cherry tomato corn salad makes a great impression on any table, and it is easy to do.

1 / 4 cup fresh basil, minced
3 tbsp olive oil
2 teaspoons lime juice
1 tsp sugar
1 / 2 teaspoon salt
1 / 4 teaspoon pepper
2 cup frozen corn, thawed
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped

Directions

In bank with a glass lid tight installation, add the basil, olive oil, lime juice, sugar, salt and pepper. Close lid and shake until the pot ingredients are well mixed.

In large bowl, add corn, tomatoes and cucumbers. For dressing and toss to completely coat the salad. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

April 19, 2008

Veal: A Few Notes

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 5:17 am

Veal is a calf under one year-old with the teeth of a young animal, weighing less than 600lbs. and of approximately four months of age. Today young calves start eating forages of various type and unfortunately, often with added hormones, quite early. The true veal must have been fed only with milk. This kind of feeding confers to the meats the characteristic delicate flavor and offers to gastronomy one of its delights. The “paiata”, an Italian delicacy, consists of the first part of the tenuous intestine that, as soon it is removed from the animal, gets tied at the extremities so that the inner milk does not come out. Lamb and kid “paiata” are delicious too, when they are from milk fed animals.

Boiled, if cooked to perfection, veal remains one of the fundamental dishes of international cuisine, for flavors and for the role played in the preparation of other dishes. Boiled it can be served warm, with the many various vegetables, but it can also be used to prepare salads with herbs and spices, vegetables, olives, eggs, cheeses and anything imaginable. Boiled with crustaceans is one of the best delicacies you can offer to your guests. The resulting stock is indispensable in cuisine: beyond soups it can be employed in risotti, sauces, jellies, polentas and minestrone. In order to roast veal must be certain to enrich it with lard. Ideal for consistency and flavor, extremely thin slices of lard will help to make a perfect roast. Lard, melting during baking, confers flavor and fragrance to the meat. As par beef, another fundamental rule is that the cooking must not dehydrate the meat: if there is fluid in the baking container, the veal was improperly roasted. Not only will the consistency of your preparation be fibrous, but also the taste will be insipid since part of the flavor will have gone with the juices. In order to avoid dehydration some rules should be followed.

First, the meat must be salted when a little external crust has formed which prevents spillage of juices. An other rule is to use pots that allow fast and effective heat conduction: the best tool is the iron frying pan. Moreover it is fundamental that roasting is short (same as beef). Meat slices must be cooked fast on a live fire. Roasts must maintain a pink color inside. Cooking continues when the roast is taken out of the oven, so this also must be considered.

April 17, 2008

Finding the Best Green Tea to Drink

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 12:37 am

Today one of the most popular drinks in America is fast becoming green tea and for good reasons. Green tea is known for its taste and health benefits far and wide, including weight loss assistance, reducing cancer risks and adding antioxidants to your diet.

It is something of a challenge to select the best green tea, especially if you are new to the green tea world. Some of the best green tea examples available on the market today are found below. There are also some excellent ways to bring out the wonderful flavor through brewing.

Sencha green tea is one of the most popular types of green tea. As an introduction to the green tea family this is perhaps the best green tea since it is very economical and has the most recognizable taste of all green teas for sale.

Kabusecha is another choice and it considered one of the best green teas today. It remains a favorite with customers throughout the world because it is taken from the first and finest harvest. It has a signature scent that is a grassy aroma associated with the best green tea.

A Japanese green tea option is Myou-Kou which is a green tea that is deep steamed. This tea has a thicker, bolder flavor compared to the lighter green teas and is considered the most unique and best green tea available.

Brewing Your Cup of Green Tea

How green tea is brewed is half the enjoyment as any fan of green tea will tell you. Unlike your normal oolong and black teas it is unfermented so the brewing method is a little different for green tea.

When brewing the best green tea the one thing you need to remember is that the tea leaves need room to expand and add their health benefits to the water that they are infused in. To the flavor of the resultant tea can be hindered by tea bags or tea balls. Allowing the tea leaves to sit loosing in the water and steep for a few minutes is the best way to brew green tea and then is should be strained if desired.

A matter of taste and preference is the best way to find the best green tea. Try a number of different types to see which is your favorite green tea.

Introduction to Italian Wine

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 12:36 am

Each year, it is not uncommon for Italy to find itself at the top of a number of wine-related lists, not the least of which ranks it as the largest producer, exporter and consumer of wine in the world. This fact is all the more impressive when you consider that Italy is not a very large country – indeed it is less than three-quarters the size of California. Even considering the roughly 8 billion bottles of wine it produces each year, the country manages to stay true to wine styles that go back four thousand years. As a result, Italy not only has more local grape varieties than any other country, but it also has some of the most distinctive wines on Earth.
One of the major considerations with Italy s unique wine style is the wide range of diverse cultures that exist throughout its twenty wine regions. Each of these cultures has a robust sense of pride that translates directly into wine making. At best, understanding Italian wine is intimidating, at worst it seems all but impossible.
Like any journey of significance it s best to take it one step at a time. While Italian wine is both vastly complex and inconsistent, there are some concrete starting points.
First, let s take a look at the general qualities of Italian wine:
Italian wines tend to be high in acidity – This is because wine with a strong showing of acidity tends to pair better with food. No surprise then that the food oriented cultures of Italy have opted for wine that compliments their amazing dedication to cuisine! This means white wines tend to be crisp and red wines tend to be firm.
Subdued, earthy aromas – One of the overriding characteristics of Italian wine is the touch of the land that one can smell and taste in every bottle. The nose might have hints of mushrooms, soil, minerals or grass. These qualities are commonly referred to as an earthiness that prevents the wine from competing with food.
Medium Body – Though there are some excellent heavier wines in Italy (such as Barolo), the majority are more medium bodied in nature. Again, more suitable to the wide array of food dishes that perform better when not overwhelmed by a heaviness.
Distinctly Italian Grapes – While Italy does grow most of the grapes found throughout the world, it also has many, many local varieties that are only grown in their respective regions. Nebbiolo, for example, is the grape used to make Barolo and is only found in Piedmont and Lombardy. Because the Italian climate is perfect for grape growing, many varieties have evolved over thousands of years to respond specifically to one region. As such, it is extraordinarily difficult to try and transplant them to different countries.
Major Red Grapes
There are over twenty major types of red grape varieties in Italy, but we can start with what are arguably the most important three:
Sangiovese (san joe VAE sae) – Planted in plenty throughout the country, particularly in Tuscany and Umbria, this is the major grape of Chianti and the popular Super-Tuscan wines. Medium in body, the grape typically carries strong tannin, high acidity and flavors of herbs and cherries.
Nebbiolo(nehb be OH loh) – Specific to the Piedmont region, this grape makes two of Italy s most notorious wines: Barolo and Barbaresco. These wines are a shoe-in for anyone building a cellar because they age particularly well. The grape is full-bodied with high acidity and strong tannin, invoking flavors of strawberries, mushrooms, tar and truffles.
Barbera (bar BAE rah) – This grape runs neck and neck with Sangiovese as the most planted in the country. It is a lighter grape with little tannin and high acidity. The fruit flavors tend to be more pronounced than in other varieties and as such it is an excellent summer red and great on its own.
Important Italian Whites
Pinot Grigio(pee noh GREE joe) – The Italian version of Pinot Gris, this white grape has won widespread acclaim all over the world. Though not as rich as its French counter-part, it carries flavors of peach with a high-acid, minerally quality.
Trebbiano (trehb bee AH noh) – Though undeniably common in Italy, it has also suffered from casual growing habits. It is primarily known for producing inexpensive whites that are crisp and bland. It is a wine that at best pairs well with food, particularly shell-fish, and rarely can be enjoyed on its own.
Tocai Friulano (toh KYE free oo LAH no) – Fans of Pinot Grigio tend to be pleasantly surprised by this grape. With characteristic Italian crispness and acidity, it can also carry rich and full textures that are more complex than is typical for whites. It grows primarily in the Friuli region.
Verdicchio and Vernaccia – These grapes have some of the same body, crispness and acidity as Trebbino, but with a bit more spunk. Richer flavors and aromas including hints of lemon and sea air are common. They are typically un-oaked.
One could spend a lifetime learning all there is to know about the dozens of grape varieties grown in Italy, particularly when you explore how they are best paired with foods from their respective regions. Further articles will explore some of the rules governing wine production in Italy, including how to sift your way through wine labels, but having a familiarity with the major grapes listed above will form a firm foundation for discovering the distinctive personalities of Italian wine!

April 14, 2008

Blended and Varietal Wines

Filed under: Uncategorized — flamesgill @ 6:48 pm

Novice wine lovers soon come across the concept of blended and varietal wines. The two questions that spring to mind are, what does it mean? and does it matter?
At the basic level, the difference is quite simple. Varietal wines are made from a single grape variety, while blended wines are made using two or more. The most obvious example is the difference between the two great red wine styles of France. Burgundy red wine is composed of the single variety Pinot noir. Bordeaux red wines are most often blends of up to five varieties, Cabernet sauvignon, Cabernet franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit verdot. There are a few Bordeaux wines made from a single variety, but they are the exceptions that prove the rule.
So much for theory. The distinction between varietal and blended wines is less clear in practice. Many varietal wines are made from blends of wine grown in several regions. Australia s iconic Grange is such an example. Each year hundreds of samples from many vineyards are tasted and evaluated before the final blend is decided upon. The result is a blend of regions, rather than varieties.
Many more modest Australian wines with lesser claims to fame are also regional blends. The process of selecting the blend is similar but much more simplified. The clue on the label is often the words wine of South Eastern Australia . This is almost as general a statement that you can get about the origins of an Australian wine.
Some wines made from a single variety are blends of several different vintages, but this is quite rare for table wines.
While on the topic of labels, you should be aware that many wines bearing a single varietal name can legally contain up to fifteen percent of other varieties. If the wine is labelled as a blend, then the variety with the largest percentage composition should be named first, for example wine labelled Cabernet Merlot, should contain a greater percentage of Cabernet than of Merlot.
Our second question is does it matter? Well, if you find a wine that you enjoy and it is a blend, then you should continue to drink it.
However if you wish to extend your wine knowledge and thus enhance your wine experience you should try varietal wines whenever possible. There are hundreds of varietal wines available, each with a special subtle difference waiting for you to discover.

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