November 5th, 2009
It is that time of the year again when we all start thinking about roast turkey’s, football, holiday parades and great food. This is a good time to try new foods and recipes at home so you can incorporate them into your Thanksgiving feasts. This year we are having a mango salsa turkey meatloaf along with our traditional roast turkey. Just to change things up a bit.
Side dishes are always fun to play around with. Here is an easy one. Take zucchini, squash, butternut squash, acorn squash, red peppers, sweet potatoes, vidalia onion, dried cranberries and maybe some nuts. Pick your favorite. I like pine nuts or almonds. Dice the veggies in chunks about 3/4 of an inch. Toss in the cranberries and the nuts. Toss them all together in a large bowl then coat them with a little olive oil, add a few spoonfuls of brown sugar. Then take some melted pareve margarine and pour over and toss. Just enough to coat the mixture. Then spread the whole thing out on a greased roasting pan. Pam spray is fine to use. Try to get it so it is one even layer across the whole pan. Roast at 400 for about 35 minutes. Check to see that veggies are tender. If not then rotate pan and cook for a few more minutes until veggies are tender. It makes a nice colorful and tasty side dish that is so easy to prepare.
Have a safe and happy holiday.
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June 22nd, 2009
I think the sun actually came out for a few minutes today. Hopefully we will start to see more of it and be able to get out in our backyard for some grillin’. When we BBQ in summer we typically think of hamburgers and hot dogs. Chicken has made its way into that mix as a staple nowadays but one of my favorites is grilled salmon. Salmon is one of those fish that holds up well on the grill without having to use one of those basket contraptions. Salmon will also go well with just about any marinade you can think of. Try it a few ways to see what you like best. Take your favorite salad dressing and pour it into a ziplock bag with the salmon and let it sit for about 30 minutes to an hour in the refrigerator. Take the fish out and let it sit for about 30 minutes inside the ziplock until it comes to room temp. Then toss it on a really hot grill. Baste the fish with the dressing then lower the grill to medium and close it. Check the fish in about 5 minutes and turn. Baste some more and close grill for another 3-5 minutes depending on how thick the salmon is. You don’t want to burn it. Discard the rest of the marinade. Take the hot fish off the grill and put it o top of a big pile of fresh baby spinach and then top with some more of your favorite salad dressing. Grab a nice fresh
piece of bread and a glass of wine and enjoy the summer evening. Try the same thing with fresh tuna or mahi mahi.
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June 15th, 2009
It seems like every so often the public gets hold of a few buzz words related to food and then markets the heck out of them causing many people to follow blindly. Trans Fats seem to be the popular thing to stay away from in our diets these days. Many manufacturers of food that is still bad for you have grasped onto this fad and have attempted to make the unhealthy healthy again by claiming it to be trans fat free. Today’s blog is meant to educate you on what a trans fat is and why it is bad and where to go to avoid them.
Simply stated, a trans fat, also known as trans fatty acid, is a specific type of fat formed when liquid oils are made into solid fats (i.e. shortening). Small amounts of trans fat are also found naturally in some animal-based foods. A long time ago (when I was a kid) these were known as partially hydrogenated oils. Trans fats are created by a chemical process designed to increase the shelf life and flavor stability of foods.
Trans Fats are bad because the raise the low density lipoprotein (LDL or bad cholestorol) and reduce the high density lipoprotein (HDL or good cholestorol) This lethal combination increases the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke. It also increases the risks of developing type 2 diabetes. Kind of a compelling reason to heed the warnings and limit trans fats in our diets.
So if you limit foods that typically contain shortenings such as cookies, crackers, candies, some margarines and as much fried food as you can you can drastically reduce your trans fat intake. Many fryer oil companies are jumping on the bandwagon and creating “Trans Fat Free” deep frying oil so not all french fries are trans fat bad. In keeping with this health trend, all of our fryer oil is Trans Fat Free and always has been.
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June 11th, 2009
As the end of the school year approaches rapidly and most people are wondering how they will look in their bathing suits our thoughts turn towards easy summer salad recipes that are filling enough to be meals yet light enough to help us look buff in our summer attire. No need to compromise on taste.
Start with some whole grain pasta and cook it according to the directions on the box. I think penne is best but any type will do. Separately saute some grape or sliced plum tomatoes, and asparagus cut into 1 inch pieces with some olive oil and fresh minced garlic. Add some fresh basil then toss with the pasta. For protein add some grilled chicken, tofu or chic peas. This can be eaten hot or at room temperature. What is nice about this type of dish is that you can pretty much add almost any type of vegetable, meat or fish to this and have it be different and tasty every time. Fresh baby spinach is a particularly nice enhancement.
Check back throughout the summer for more easy, simple, delicious and healthy recipes.
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