Frozen Vegetables

Vegetables are an incredibly expensive part of the weekly shopping budget, especially if you want to stay healthy. The problem with cooking for one person though is that significant amounts of vegetable go to waste as you simply can’t eat it all before it goes off without having the same meal three times in a week!

This is where frozen vegetables kick in! To start with frozen vegetables can actually be healthier than fresh veg as they are frozen within hours of being picked, unlike fresh vegetables which may spend a few days on a lorry, airplane or ship to reach your supermarket shelf. Even if they aren’t more healthy they are of similar nutritional value anyway. Secondly they are much easier to store.Frozen vegetables are great as they are frequently already chopped up making cooking just that bit less messy, and the fact they are frozen saves worrying about expiration dates!

Spaghetti

Always satisfying to eat and always easy to make !
250 g spaghetti
250 g mince beef
1 brown onion (diced)
2 cloves garlic (crushed)
500 g tomatoes (skinned, pureed)
1 small tub tomato paste
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp mixed herbs
1 tbsp oregano
Fresh parsley
Salt & pepper
Parmesan cheese

Cook spaghetti until al dente according to the packet.

Heat olive oil in a non stick fry pan and stir fry the mince beef until browned and crumbly. Adding diced onion and crushed garlic then frying till the onion is soft.

Add pureed tomatoes, tomato paste and water turn down and simmer. Seasoning with salt, pepper, mixed herbs, oregano.

Place the cooked spaghetti on a plate and pour sauce over the top, sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese.

Chocolate Macadamia Brownies

When going through the isle at the grocery store I came across Cadbury’s Dark Cooking Chocolate, and there on the back was the recipe for Macadamia Brownies
Ingredients
150 g unsalted butter (chopped)
250 g Cadbury Dark Cooking Chocolate (chopped)
11/2 cups caster sugar
4 eggs (lightly beaten)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 cup plain flour (sifted)
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup macadamia nuts (cut in half)


Preheat oven to 140 degrees C. Line a 20cm x 30cm slice pan with baking paper.

Combine butter and chocolate and melt in a bowl over a medium saucepan; stir over low heat until chocolate is just melted.

Add sugar, egg, vanilla, flour, sour cream and nuts.

Stir until well combined. Spread mixture into prepared pan.

Bake for 35 minutes or until brownie forms a crust on the outside. Allow to cool and slice.

Hot Apple Crumble

A perfect dessert for those with a sweet tooth, this recipe only takes 15 minutes to prepare, then its straight into the oven. We love to serve this with vanilla ice cream!
Serves 2

Ingredients
2 granny smith apples (cored, peeled, sliced)
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup plain flour
1/4 cup instant rolled oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.

Prepare the apples then place in baking dish.

Place flour, oats, sugar and cinnamon in bowl, rub in the butter using your fingertips till the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Then sprinkle on top of the apples.

Bake for 45 minutes in oven or till lightly browned on top and apples are cooked through.

Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Vegetable & Udan Stir Fry

The stir fry contains a colourful variety of fresh vegetables such as, red capsicum, zucchini, broccoli, fresh mushrooms, Chinese dried mushrooms, bok choy, and corn. Tossed together with Udon, which is a Japanese thick white noodle made from wheat flour. And no oil is used in this recipe, making it perfect for the health conscious.

This is so tasty and can be eaten hot or cold. So perfect to make extra and pack for lunch the next day.
Ingredients

Ingredients
200 g fresh udon noodles
1/2 red capsicum (sliced)
1 zucchini (sliced)
1/2 cup broccoli (cut)
1 cup fresh mushrooms (sliced)
2 chinese dried mushrooms (re hydrated)
1 bunch bok choy (roughly chopped)
1 corn cob (cut off cob)
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
1/2 cup water

Prepare all vegetables and place in a bowl, using a non stick pan, stir fry all the vegetables until semi cooked, add the fresh udon noodles, these only take 2-3 minutes to heat through.

Now add the dark soy sauce and water into the pan and stir through. Serve.

Pizza

A great way to have everybody involved with the preparation and cooking process is to make a batch of pizzas for dinner.

I like to combine 3 different cheeses for our very own pizza cheese. The Mozzarella being the main cheese, it’s mild and creamy flavour perfect for giving those stringy cheese bits when you pull apart the slices. To give the cheese a bit more flavour tasty cheddar band Parmesan are added.
300 g mushrooms (sliced)
1 brown onion (diced)
1 green capsicum (thinly sliced)
1 red capsicum (thinly sliced)
1/4 cup black olives (sliced)
1 cup pineapple (sliced)
250 g honey leg ham
250 g salami
250 g spicy pancetta
2 cup mozzarella
1 cup cheddar
1 cup parmesan
mixed herbs
salt & pepper

Tomato sauce

Beef Lasagne

6 lasagne sheets

Meat Sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
1 brown onion (diced)
500 g mince beef
500 g jar pasta cooking sauce
100 g mushrooms (sliced)
Cheese Sauce
� cup butter
� cup plain flour
2 cups full cream milk
1 cup grated mozzarella and cheddar
Salt and pepper to taste

Additional
� cup grated mozzarella and cheddar
Grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven 180 degrees C.

Meat Sauce
Using large non stick fry pan, heat oil, adding mince beef, onions and mushrooms then frying meat till brown.

Stir in pasta cooking sauce and add salt and pepper to taste

Cheese Sauce
In a medium saucepan, add butter, flour, milk and heat on medium, continuously whisk to maintain a smooth consistency, this will gradually thicken. Stir through one cup of cheese till smooth.

Place a layer of lasagne sheets at the bottom of baking dish. Top with a third of the meat sauce sprinkle a little cheese and a third of the cheese sauce then add another layer of lasagne sheets. Arrange other layers the same. Smooth the top layer and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake in oven for 1 hour.

Chocolate Cupcakes

Chocolate Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs

1.Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celscius line 12 cup muffin tin. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cocoa powder and salt; set aside. Mix milk and vanilla; set aside.
2.In a large bowl beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy for 3 to 4 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. With mixer on low speed, add half of dry ingredients, followed by milk-vanilla mixture, then remaining dry ingredients. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups.
3.Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool cupcakes 5 minutes in tin, then remove and cool completely on a rack.

Fruit Platters

A fruit platter is a lovely addition to any gathering, whether you are hosting it yourself or are bringing a platter to someone else's home, or to a public event. Although it is more economically-savvy to make your own fruit platter, rather than buying one. To help you create a lovely decorative fruit platter I’ve found some exquisite fruit platter pictures.

This is a very simple platter, which is very easy to prepare.


Fruits, being healthy may be hard for some people to eat, but fruit organized in designs like this will make something simple as fruit look very attractive.

Cooking Vegetables

Cooking vegetables takes usually no more than 15 minutes maximum in boiling water or steaming in a steamer. Here are some rough guidelines as to how long vegetables should be cooked for. Take them out earlier if you like them slightly crunchy still or later if you like them soft and over cooked! Always have at least a couple vegetables per meal ensuring at least one is also green. Put your vegetables into the water when it boils rather than leaving them in the pot while the water is heating up.

Broccoli, around 5-7 minutes.
Carrots, Parsnips, Potatoes, around 10 minutes.
Swede and Turnip, around 20 minutes.
Runner Beans, Kenya Beans, around 7-10 minutes.
Spinach, about a minute.
Leek and Cabbage, around 7-10 minutes.
Mange Tout, around a minute.
To roast vegetables instead of boil them they will need about 25-30 minutes. Not everything can be roasted either, peppers, potoatoes, tomatoe and onions can though

Cooking Potatoes

New Potatoes: For new potatoes, place the scrubbed potatoes with skins still on in a large pan of boiling water. They should take around 10 minutes to cook, but check them with a fork to see if they are soft on the inside.

Potato Wedges: Cut up your scrubbed potatoes into wedge shapes, do this by cutting the potato in two, then cutting to where the middle would have been, so you end up with lots of wedges. Cover these wedges in a bit of oil and cook in the oven at around 180 degrees for 10-20 minutes. They should be cooked through and a bit crispy.

Roast Potatoes: Firstly para-boil your potatoes the same way as New Potatoes, but take the skins off this time, then place them on a baking tray cover with a bit of oil and place in the oven for around 20 minutes or until they are crispy.

Mash Potato: As new potatoes only take the skins off this time, once cooked, drain the sauce pan of water, and mash the potato, you can then add a tablespoon of milk, mustard, pepper and a bit of grated cheese to give your mash a bit more flavour! Mash until it is lump less… unless you like lumpy mash of course!

Baked Potatoes: Clean a baking potato, and place in the oven at 180 degrees for about an hour, leave it longer for a crispy skin. You can also do it in the microwave in around 10 minutes, ensure you split the skin in both cases so it doesn’t explode! You can then add whatever filling you want to your potato. Cheese, carrots, beans, tuna, sweetcorn… whatever you like!

Food Gone Bad?

You should be able to tell if certain food has truly gone off for the most part, it usual smells bad, has mould growing on it or has changed colour! When this occurs its a good idea not to eat it unless you plan on having food poisoning. Sometimes though it can be difficult to tell whether food has gone off and below is a guide as to how long you should keep certain food items, knowing that they are probably still safe to eat.

Warning: This is only a guide! If food is smelling bad already or has mould growing on it then use common sense and don’t eat it! Make sure you wrap your food up well after opening it so that nothing else can get in!

Opened Raw Meat: 1-2 days in Fridge.
Opened Bacon: 1 week in the Fridge.
Butter and Margarine: 1 month.
Cheese: Hard Cheese can last 2 or 3 weeks if properly wrapped. Soft cheese a week.
Eggs: 3 Weeks.
Green Vegetables, Carrots and Parsnips: Keep in the Fridge, once opened will last around a week.
Onions and Potatoes: Keep in a dark place, they can last up to 2 weeks.
Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Courgettes, Lettuce, Peppers: Up to a week.
Supermarket Salad Packs: Up to 2 days after opening.
Tins: Keep forever near enough, but in your cupboard.
Dried Pasta, Rice, Noodles: Keep for years in your cupboard.
Bread: Keeps for around a week before going stale (can still be used for toast unless mouldy)
Fruit: Varies, soft berries for around 2 or 3 days, Apples for around 1-1.5 weeks. If it looks bad don’t eat it!
Supermarket Sandwiches: Within a day or purchase.
Milk: 4-5 days after opening. Keep in fridge.
For anything unopened, trust the use by date, for the most part you can probably go a day or so past it, however don’t do this for raw meat (unless frozen) or dairy (unless frozen).

Homemade Chicken Nuggets

One of my favourite easy recipes is Homemade chicken nuggets, they taste so much better than shop bought ones, mainly because of the higher quality chicken! Why bother you may ask! Well besides the extra tastiness homemade chicken nuggets are a great way to use up bread that is stale or about to go off!
Ingredients
Bread/Stale Bread
Pinch of Pepper
Pinch of Cajun Spice
Honey
Mustard
1 Chicken Breast
Chips, Potato Wedges
Sweet Corn, Peas etc.
Recipe
Firstly take the bread and place it in a freezer back, then using your hands or a rolling pin rip it apart and continue doing this until it is breadcrumbs! Add to this bag a small amount of cajun spice and pepper for taste if you want to! You can always send the breadcrumbs through a sieve if you want them to be perfect!
After this create a Honey and Mustard marinade as previously describe by mixing together 2 tablespoons of honey with 2 teaspoons of mustard creating a paste.
To this add chunks of chopped up chicken breast, so they are complete coated in the honey paste.
Now add the breadcrumbs to the marinade and ensure that all the chicken is covered completely
Place your chicken nuggets in the oven for around 20-30 minutes with some chips added with around 15 minutes to go!
Once they are ready serve and eat!

5 Tips about Pasta

1. When serving pasta, people tend to eat more than they need. Once cup of cooked pasta has about 200 calories. Measure a cup of pasta once or twice to see what a serving should look like. It would also be helpful to measure how much your pasta bowl holds. If you find your eating too much, cut back a little big. Replace a portion with more vegetables to expand volume.
2. When choosing pasta, look for 100 percent whole grain varieties for more fibre. Try something new. Pasta made from different whole grains such as whole wheat semolina, brown rice or flax.
3. Pasta is a low glycemic index food. This means that it supplies a more sustained release of energy which can help feel full longer and can help manage your blood sugar. Just because it is a low glycemic index food doesn’t mean you could eat unlimited amounts. Portions still matter.
4. Although you can buy pasta favoured with vegetables such as spinach or tomatoes don’t count on it for a serving of vegetables. These pastas typically are made by adding powder to flour so you get the colour but not much else. Serve vegetable alongside or mix them into your pasta sauce.
5. The best sauces are tomato based because they are low in fat and calories. There are lots of store bought sauces in the market. Look for products that are lower in fat and have less than 400 mg of sodium per ½ cup serving. It’s always best and tastiest to make your own!

Cooking Pasta

Pasta is easy to cook and easy to love. With different shapes and sizes, it’s enjoyable and you can never go wrong. For healthy pasta dishes try using whole wheat pasta, lots of vegetables and low fat protein ingredients.
Always cook pasta in a large pot of boiling water. To prevent boiling over, the pot should be large enough so it is only ¾ full.
Never: Add oil to cooking water. This has been one of my many mistakes. The oil tends to cling to the pasta when drained and the sauce can slip off more easily.
Tips:
• Salt the water just before adding the pasta.
• Taste the pasta to see if it is done rather than depending on recommended times. It should be tender and not mushy. If you do happen to add oil, by mistake your pasta will by slimy and mushy.
• Drain pasta well but do not rinse it. Rinsing prevents the pasta from sticking to the sauce nicely. Toss immediately with sauce.

Pasta!

Pasta; a healthy food? Pasta is very low in fat and sodium and is a great source of energy, fibre and carbohydrates depending on which variety you choose. The bonus of living in Canada is the opportunity to eat enriched pasta that contains vitamin B. Canada is the world’s largest exporter of durum wheat. You can also buy pasta that is gluten free with omega-3. That is the good, nutritional news. Depending on the past you choose can change your nutritional profile.

Changing Our Diet Could Help Fight Global Warming

Can’t run out and buy a new hybrid car, can’t afford to install solar panels on the roof of your house or public transit just isn’t an option for you? Well there is something simple that each of us can do to help fight climate change and the answer just might surprise you. By cutting back on our consumption of animal based foods; meats, dairy and eggs we can greatly reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. Why is eating less meat so beneficial for the climate? Right now there are just too many cows, sheep and other livestock on the planet. Individually, they may seem harmless enough, but their numbers take a huge toll on the global environment. It is encouraging knowing that on the most powerful solutions of all is also the simplest and its right under our noses, on our plates.

How to eat a slice of cake with no regrets!

Tired of playing "Diet Deal or No Deal" with yourself as a delicious chocolate cake practically dances before your eyes?
Here's how to decide whether to pass up a temptation or enjoy it with no regrets: Put a fitness price tag on your favourite indulgence that shows how much extra workout time it will take to burn off its calories. For example:
Enjoying an occasional cheesy slice of pizza may be well worth the price -- adding 36 minutes to your regular brisk walk, 20 to a bike ride, or only 15 on the stair-step machine. Boom! Just like that, those calories are gone. But do you also have 60 more minutes to spare to walk off that chocolate cake?
I found this chart on the internet and found it very resourceful and thought I would share. There is also a bonus; exercising regularly expanding at least 3,500 calories of energy a week can make your real age 3.4 years younger. Although I don’t need to look younger at my age, I thought it would help others, perhaps my English teacher!

My Pantry

I thought it might be helpful to share what ingredients I keep stocked in my pantry (and fridge) to allow me to prepare quick, home-cooked meals every day. Here's what you can find in my kitchen right now:
Pantry
• Oils: extra-virgin olive (salads, sauteing); peanut (frying, wok-cooking); sesame, walnut, truffle (embellishment)
• Vinegars: sherry, balsamic, apple cider, red wine, rice
• Salt: coarse and fine sea salt
• Pepper: black, and a blend (always from a grinder), ground white pepper (for Asian dishes)
• Sauces/Condiments: dark soy sauce
• Canned veg: whole plum tomatoes, beans
• Chicken broth (2 boxes)
• Pasta: various shapes, but mainly spaghetti and penne (our faves). I buy Barilla or DeCecco for everyday pastas and I stock up when they are on sale. I prefer dried pasta to fresh pasta, but I do make fresh pasta once or twice a year and freeze any leftover dough.
• Other noodles: soba, rice vermicelli
• Grains: rice (short grain, jasmine, basmati—
• For baking: Unbleached all-purpose, cake, and whole wheat flours; baking powder, baking soda, dry milk (for bread)
• Sugars: regular and brown
• Coffee (regular and espresso), teas
Fridge
• Dairy: milk, yogurt, cheese
• Non-dairy: soy and rice milks
• Juice
• Eggs
• Peanut butter
• Unsalted butter (also frozen)
• Assorted lettuce
• celery
• carrots
• onions (yellow and green)
• ginger
• Herbs stored in a glass of water with plastic bag over
• yeast
Freezer
• Frozen veg: peas, corn,
• Van's waffles
• Morningstar Farms "sausage" links
• Assorted meats/poultry (for example, we stock up on whole chickens and rib-eyes when they are on sale)
• stock in plastic tubs
• pie crust
On the counter
• garlic, bananas, avocados, tomatoes, other fruit in season
As far as spices go, unless I am cooking something that requires a specific spice or blend of spices (like Indian, Mexican, or Morrocan dishes) I don't really use them every day. I prefer to stick with salt, pepper, and fresh herbs.
I know this list seems long, but most of the pantry items on this list can last for weeks or months if stored properly. If you have a well-stocked fridge and pantry, basic meal components are at your fingertips and cooking is a breeze. What do you always have on hand for quick meals?

Frozen Foods

You know one of those days where you’re just too lazy to cook anything at all? Then find yourself eating some frozen foods? I’ve had those days; actually I’ve had lots of those days. Today I would like to talk about frozen dinners that we love. I have a favourite from every cuisine, the most popular; Italian! I love the Michelina’s frozen foods! From Alfredo Fettucine to pizza and chicken nuggets, I love them all. Michelina has got some really good pastas, but after eating one every week, you will never want to look at it again! How about Kraft Dinner? Macaroni and cheese always works, but is more as something you can only eat once in a month or two. Then we have the frozen pizzas, chicken wings, burgers, fries and all the other unhealthy stuff. Well this is embarrassing, for a person who loves food to confess about eating frozen foods and actually liking them, it is unusual. What can I say? I think we all have those days. So if you know any great frozen foods that you think are awesome it would be nice to hear about them so that I can go out and save them for a lazy day!

Are you skipping breakfast?

Teaching children to eat healthfully these days is, unfortunately, more complicated than just encouraging them to eat their Brussels sprouts. Studies suggest that many children and working adults often skip breakfast, and missing a morning meal has been linked with lower overall intakes of a variety of nutrients. Kids are also eating more foods prepared outside of the home (which often means bigger portions), drinking more sodas and consuming less dairy (which is important for growing strong bones). From experience, I can say that cafeteria food is what leads to children being obese. Many students skip breakfast because they don’t spend time in the kitchen in the mornings preparing a lunch because they buy fatty foods at school.
In the last 30 years the percentage of U.S. of children aged 6 to 11 who are overweight has nearly tripled. As childhood obesity becomes more common, diseases previously only seen in adults are becoming increasingly prevalent in children. For example, estimates predict that one in three American children born in 2000 will develop type 2 diabetes at some point during their lives. Other research shows that plaque building up inside arteries; the most common cause of heart disease, can begin in childhood
As for adults, the trend is increasing. Rushing to work with a drive through coffee is ruining the routine for adults. Lack of eating and sleeping is the cause of unhealthy eating. Adults must start getting on track with their diets so they can teach children to be sharp during the day. Adults need to teach children good eating habits that ensure they’re getting the nutrients they need, but not too many calories. To that end, the nutrition experts online and at your clinic can offer you tips and guidelines.

Halloween!

Well you know yesterday was Halloween. I had some great recipes on fun Halloween foods and if anyone followed up with that I’d like to hear how that went. As usual I was very busy with working and what not and did not have much time to make anything crazy. I baked some special Halloween cookies and was headed to a Halloween party. The cookies were a great hit! They were done in, say 2 minutes? They were simple macadamia nut cookies with a little icing and spooky designs on top. Although I didn’t get the chance to cook anything creative this year, I would like to know if anyone came up with something scary and nasty! And most important, did it taste good? You want to make something that will scare your pants off but also something that actually tastes good. Otherwise, there would be no fun in cooking something that looks good, but tastes horrible. So if anyone has any disaster stories, or successful cooking stories, reply to this post!