Use Green Tea To Add A Shot Of Healthy Antioxidants To Your Cooking

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Posted by NelsonB | Posted in home cooking | Posted on 15-01-2012

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I’ve been drinking Japanese green tea for decades. I started drinking tea when my doctor put me on a detox diet where I wasn’t allowed any coffee. To begin with I was concerned that I would be unproductive and sleepy all day without my caffeine boost in the morning. But what I actually found was that my productivity actually increased, I became less jittery and I felt relaxed and centered.

I subsequently learned that the way caffeine in tea affects the body chemistry is different from the way caffeine in coffee does (more on this). In particular it is only released into the bloodstream slowly producing a longer-term stimulation in contrast with the short term coffee high.

So enamored was I with the effects of green tea on my health and well-being that I decided to try to incorporate the leaf into my cooking as well as my drinking rituals. I did some reading and I learned that it’s possible to use green tea as a cooking ingredient in a huge variety of different ways.  We really are only limited by our imagination.

But I won’t leave you dangling.  I’ll close this article with some insight into how to use green tea in your cooking (and baking).

The easiest way is to take tea leaves that have been steeped and add them freely to your cooking sauces, salads and vegetables. It’s best to use tea leaves that have been steeped just once as they will retain their vegetal fresh flavor. So next time you’re cooking up some pasta or frying some filling for an omelette just stir in some tea leaves from your teapot.

Your next step in the journey of using green tea and cooking is to start to experiment with powdered green tea. You may have come across this as a hot beverage known as “matcha green tea”.  This is widely drunk in Japan and is the type of tea used in the most traditional Japanese tea ceremonies.  Matcha is made by grinding fresh tea leaves between 2 rotating stones so that a powder is produced.

I’ve been experimenting with matcha spreads such as butter and cream cheese and it tastes brilliant. I’ve even started sprinkling the green tea powder into bread and pasta dough.  And of course green tea ice cream is the perfect end to any meal.

Five reasons to buy a cake pop maker

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Posted by Eve | Posted in bakeware | Posted on 02-01-2012

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The top five reasons to buy a cake pop maker are:

1.)  To be trendy
2.)  You love cake, but you don’t want or need a whole one
3.)  To make individual cake portions quickly
4.)  To give as a gift
5.)  To make party favors

Cake pop makers are very trendy these days.  People of all ages seem to love them, and cake pops are making appearances at high end parties and celebrity events.  Everyone seems to be in love with the tiny decorated cakes on a stick.  Buying a cake pop maker now will let you get in on what’s quickly becoming a hot dessert trend.

cakepop maker

Perhaps you’re one of the millions (or billions) of people that love cake, but you don’t want or need an entire cake for yourself.  Instead of restricting yourself to only enjoying a slice of cake whenever someone has a birthday or gets a promotion, why not invest in a cake maker and treat yourself more often?

Cake pop makers are a great way to control your portion size.  Instead of cutting a piece of cake without a guide and hoping you’re only having a single serving, a cake pop maker makes uniformly shaped pops so you know exactly how large of a portion you’re having.  As a bonus, the smaller size of the cake pops means they bake much faster.

One of the hottest gifts this past Christmas was a cake pop maker.  With the wide range of cake pop makers available at different price points, it’s easy to find one that fits into your gift budget.  It’s a universally loved gift, and oftentimes a cake pop maker isn’t something an adult would think to purchase for themselves, but would love to receive as a gift.  Children also love getting them as gifts, and a cake pop maker would be sure to be a hit.

Last, but not least, you should consider purchasing a cake pop maker if you’re planning on throwing or hosting a party in the upcoming year.  Cake pops make wonderful party favors, they’re easy and fun to make, and guests love receiving fancily decorated cakes in cellophane bags.  You can customize the cake pops to fit your parties theme, and they cost just a fraction of the amount of more traditional party favors.

Blueberry Chia Bran Muffins

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Posted by Margery | Posted in recipes | Posted on 30-12-2011

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There’s nothing better than starting your day off with a piping hot bran muffin. Bran muffins are absolutely loaded with a variety of healthy ingredients that will give you energy to get you through the day and taste great at the same time.

A great way to take that to the next level is the addition of chia seeds, so we’ve spiced up our original blueberry bran muffin recipe with some chia and other exciting ingredients. This thing will be packed with protein and fiber and be the perfect way to have a quick meal in the morning that will sustain you all day!

Here are the ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups wheat bran
  • 1 cup skim milk
  • 1/2 plain yogurt
  • 1 egg
  • 2/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup regular flour
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup blueberries – fresh or frozen
  • 1 tbsp orange zest
  • juice of 1 orange
  1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Prepare your muffin cups – either grease up a muffin tin really good (we like coconut oil!), or use muffin cups – we really prefer silicon muffin cups. They are reusable so they are great for the environment, plus you save money, AND they are super easy to remove the muffins from.
  2.  Mix together wheat bran and milk, and let stand for at least 15 minutes.
  3. In a large bowl, mix together yogurt, orange zest, orange juice, egg, brown sugar, and vanilla. Beat in bran mixture. Sift together all of your dry ingredients – flour, coconut, etc, and salt. Stir into bran mixture until everything is evenly distributed.
  4. Carefully mix in blueberries. Fresh blueberries may tend to break easily so you may need to use extra caution. Frozen blueberries should mix in easy.
  5. Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes. You can tell when it is done when a toothpick comes out clean.
Enjoy and don’t forget to experiment by adding other types of your favorite berries and nuts!

Is it Easy to Use an Ice Cream Maker?

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Posted by Eve | Posted in desserts | Posted on 26-12-2011

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There are more kitchen appliances available than ever, and that’s why some people are hesitant to buy new ones. We all know the experience of buying a fancy breadmaker or blender, only to see it go unused in the storage room. Ice cream makers have been getting more attention these days because of great prices and convenience. But a lot of people who are used to buying ice cream at their local grocery store might be skeptical about purchasing an appliance like this. At the end of the day, it’s all about how practical a particular piece of equipment is. You want to know whether or not you’ll get full value for your money and if it’s worth buying a machine like this. While an ice cream maker might not be for everyone, it’s definitely a good choice for aficionados of this delicious frosty treat. It’s also for people who have a bit more time on their hands to want to explore more options with delicious desserts.

When it comes to the question of how easy it is to use one of these devices, it depends on your perspective. But in general, most people find it to be an incredibly user-friendly experience that results in a delicious product. If you get a simple machine that covers all of the basics, you won’t have to do much work at all. In the past, handcrank models were rather popular but they involve a lot of physical effort. These days a common model by Cuisinart will basically do all of the work for you.

Using an ice cream maker effectively requires a bit of planning because you’ll need to pre-freeze the bowl beforehand. A frozen bowl is the main component responsible for being able to create the chemical reaction necessary for the final product. That means you’ll have to put the bowl in the freezer around two hours before you actually want to begin the process. Other than that, most of the work goes into gathering the ingredients you’ll need. As for recipes, it’s incredibly easy to look online for delicious ideas and after a while you’ll be able to make your own delicious flavors.

The process itself with a basic machine is rather simple, and in most cases all you have to do is add the ingredients and push the “on” button.  The machine will eventually turn out an edible product as the frozen bowl cools the ingredients while the spinning process blends everything together. Most machines these days allow you to add your own components during the mixing process so that means extra treats in the form of chocolate or fresh fruit. One of the advantages of making your own product is being able to create healthier versions of ice cream for your entire family to enjoy. Overall, most devices these days are affordable enough that you can give it a shot without really risking anything at all. If you’ve always been interested in creating your own delicious frozen desserts, you can find a great model for your home at icecreamakers.com.

Recipes for starting your own food blog

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Posted by Eve | Posted in blog | Posted on 18-12-2011

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The blogosphere is full of innumerable wannabe Shakespeares who all want to be famous and welcome any chance to display their erudition and their writing skills. If you crave attention, long for a loyal following and wish to display your own skills, start your own blog. If you are a genuine foodie and passionate about your food your route to fame in cyberspace could well be your own food blog. Here are some recipes for starting a successful food blog.

A clean elegant look is important because clutter is going to distract your readers and possibly even drive them away. Moreover, avoid themes or visuals that are not connected with food because you only have a few seconds to grab the reader’s attention. Use something that will announce to the readers that this is a blog about food even before they get to the content.

Just copying and pasting recipes that you find online will not turn your blog into a success. The reason why food blogs are successful is that the blogger adds some value to the content. You could make knowledgeable comments about experimenting with the ingredients and substitutes for them or how you use your own creative skills in creating successful dishes. This will attract a following looking for good quality content and keep them involved. The best autoresponder will help you stay in touch with your following.

Looks are very important when it comes to the appeal of food and attractive photographs are an absolute must. You can download photographs from the Internet [keeping in mind of course copyright] but your own photographs of your creations will provide your blog with a lot more authenticity. If you are worried about somebody stealing your photographs, it is a pretty straightforward process to put your watermark on your pictures. Finally, you can market your blog and distribute it effectively by posting links on your social networking accounts and using blog directories.

Before you Eat your Bakery Foods, Eat Healthy with Diet to Go

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Posted by Eve | Posted in blog | Posted on 16-12-2011

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Bakery Food… who doesn’t like it? Throughout the centuries various foods have held a lot of importance in various events, such as turkey on thanksgiving for example. While all foods should definitely be celebrated and cherished, the fact remains that in recent years food has become a major problem source, especially in first-world countries. If you are living in one of the larger North American cities, then chances are that you will not be able to walk down your block without seeing some type of restaurant or have some type of food commercial shoved down your throat. With all the importance given to food, it is no surprise that many see it as a source of comfort and simply indulge in it, especially sweets and bakery. As a result, there are a lot of people who would like to lose weight, but simply cannot trade their health for the good taste of food… which is perfectly reasonable.

Now sweets and bakery foods are not bad, but be sure to add some healthy options into your diet if you eat bakery foods. 

You see, the truth is that it is actually possible to still be eating well while eating healthy; there are actually various diets out there that are centered around making foods that are low in carbohydrates, calories and free of other hazards all while tasting great, with some of the recipes even being recognized internationally. Next time, before you start eating your bakery foods, try to look into Diet to Go to see what they have to offer. I guarantee that you will not be disappointed by the unimaginably large selection of amazing foods and recipes, with the best part being that you can have them delivered to your door. If you are a bit short on money and don’t want to or can’t afford to spend extra money on more food, then you should keep in mind that you can redeem a Diet to Go coupon for a certain discount, so keep your eyes peeled for them.

Starting A Small Cake Decorating Business

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Posted by Lance Brumbelow | Posted in baked goods | Posted on 08-12-2011

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Cake decorating can be a fun hobby that can also be turned into a small business.  With the right tools, skill, practice and a way to get the word out you can start making some extra money with your cake decorating skills.

You’ll need the basics like cake stands, decorating kits, cake pans of various sizes and the necessities to make plenty of colors of frosting.  But there are two more important things that can make your cakes stand out and drive business you way.  The appearance of the cake and the flavor of the cake.  These are the main things to work on if you want to make you cakes distinct and you want to get people talking about them.

If you need to hone your skills or learn a few new tricks try looking for a couple of good cake decorating books or videos.  Sometimes with the help of just a few simple tricks and tips you can start picking up and refining new skills.  You can also adapt them to give them your own style.

Finding a few really good cake recipes can be a fun but surprisingly tedious process.  You’ll need a good white, yellow and chocolate cake recipe to start so you have the basics.  Then you may want to expand into other popular flavors like mocha, or white with raspberry filling.  Ask friends, family and new clients what other cake flavors they would want.

If you have an aptitude for decorating cakes and it is something you love to do consider turning it into a part time job or even a career.



5 Tips for Healthier Baking

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Posted by Margery | Posted in blog | Posted on 07-12-2011

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The festive season for many includes a lot of baking and eating baked goods. This usually means ingesting a lot of high calorie foods. If you want to forego the calories but still enjoy the yummy stuff there are a number of things you can use as substitutes in your baking recipes  for this Christmas and beyond.

  1. For those cookie recipes that call for chocolate chips you can substitute these with dried fruits. You can use prunes, cranberries, cherries, figs or any other dried fruit that will complement the taste of your cake. These will still add some sweet to your cookie but less calories than chocolate chips would.
  2. Replace white flour with wheat flour. You may need to only substitute a portion of the flour depending on the recipe as wheat flour may not bind well. Wheat flour gives more fiber and helps with digestive  regulation. You can also add some oats especially when baking cookies.
  3. Replace oil and butter with applesauce.
  4. Use only egg whites instead of whole eggs or use an egg  substitute.
  5. Instead of using white sugar use a natural sweetener such as stevia or sucanat.


Those are just five ways to still enjoy the festivities of the holiday without packing on the pounds. That alone may not prevent you from putting on any weight but there are other measures that you can use in conjunction with healthier baking.

You can check out a flex belt coupon that can save you some money towards your purchase for a great item to help you to get rid of any flab you may gain over the holidays.

 

Incorporating fruit and vegetables in your diet

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Posted by Louisa | Posted in home cooking | Posted on 05-12-2011

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If you are spending a lot of time thinking about how to invest in the stock market, you would be better off spending a little time thinking about how best to incorporate fruits and vegetables in your diet. Experts advise you to have at least five servings every day with at least three made up of yellow fruit and vegetables and green leafy vegetables and the other two of other fruit and vegetables. How are you going to deal with this if you do not really like fruit and vegetables?

Each more of the fruit and vegetables that you like rather than compelling yourself to eat things that you do not. For instance you may dislike berries and cabbage while liking carrots and bananas. Just eat more carrots and bananas instead of forcing cabbage down your throat. You can, for instance, add sliced bananas to your breakfast bowl of cereals or grated carrots to your dinner salad. You can also try eating two different kinds of vegetables with your meals instead of just one or add a salad with greens.

Sometimes people dislike eating fruit and vegetables because they do not like the process of cleaning and preparation. Try using tinned fruit as a dessert or frozen vegetables to cook with your meals. Make sure that you check the expiry date because you should never eat or drink any foods that are past their expiry date. Semi dried fruits or dried fruits such as prunes or apricots make for healthy snacks in between meals…

You could also try drinking your fruits and vegetables instead of eating them. Drink fresh fruit juice in place of fizzy drinks, tea or coffee. A smoothie made of milk, yogurt, ice and fruit can provide you with a large portion of your daily requirement. A vegetable soup can help you to eat several different kinds of vegetables without your realizing it.



Home Cooking Can Transform Your Family

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Posted by Louisa | Posted in home cooking | Posted on 01-12-2011

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You can’t beat home cooking, you know exactly what went into the recipe, and you know exactly when it was made. That is the problem when you buy ready meals and pre prepared foods, you do not know how good the ingredients are, how much salt went into it, and how many days ago it was made.

So home cooking is definitely the way to improve the quality of the food you eat. It is also a really great way to try new things, you just need to be a little bit more organised.  the best way to do this is to decide before you shop what you are going to be eating for the week ahead. Then make a shopping list of all the ingredients you will need, add up the different quantities so that you have a total of, for example all the flour you will be needing. This way you should have everything you need to make all those delicious home cooked meals.

If you really want to try some new things, why not get a luxury hamper and use the different ingredients to give your cooking some extra flavour. if you enjoy this you can also think of giving one as a top Christmas Gift, and also pass on the recipes you have tried too, this makes a more personal gift to friends and family.

One really nice thing that can come about from you cooking more at home is that you could get all the family involved, and make cooking something you all participate in. Choosing your menu together, and steering away from the kids’ favourites of chips with everything. Children often are more willing to try new things if they have had a hand in making it. Home cooking could transform your family life in more ways than one.