Friday, June 26, 2020

Food Spotlight : Capsicum Annuum (Peppers)

My late sister liked bell peppers. Me? I never paid any attention. It was an ingredient in a recipe. Fine! If it wasn’t in the recipe, I never missed it. To me, if I had celery why did I need bell pepper? Moved from Florida to Texas and in this state, particularly in two cities where I lived (El Paso and Austin), the folks love their fajitas, which is made with small pieces of meat (chicken, beef or pork), and chunks of veggies, mainly onions and bell peppers. Bell peppers in all different colors. I must say they make the dish pretty.

 Anyway! I like fajitas. If it weren’t for this dish I don’t think I would have even realized that different color peppers exist and also have different flavors. For example, the red bell pepper actually tastes sweeter than the green bell pepper. The green pepper if you put too much in a recipe can taste kind of bitter. I blame my ignorance on a family tradition. My mom only bought green bell peppers. My sister only bought green bell peppers. So? I only bought green bell peppers. I learned by example. It’s not my fault! I watch a lot of cooking shows and once heard one of the TV chefs say that a red bell pepper has more vitamin C than an orange. Did you know that? Coming from Florida I was inclined not to believe that. But even though it’s true, I would still rather have an orange. Wouldn’t you?

 I also recently discovered that there was such a thing as purple bell pepper. There is a website called johnnyseeds.com. There is even a sweet chocolate organic pepper. I’m not sure I want to try it. But if you’re brave enough, go for it!

There seems to be a little confusion over the use of the word capsicum. In my mind, that is. I always thought capsicum was the word used for a hot red pepper. But I was watching an Indian chef on TV and she used the word “capsicum” for the dish she was preparing, however, she was talking about bell pepper. I was confused but an Indian guy on a Q&A site called Quora clarified the difference between the bell pepper and capsicum. It turns out that we are both right!

 I am not really a huge fan of bell peppers. But I can live with them. So if a recipe calls for the ingredient, I prefer to use RED.

 What about you?
♦ ♦ ♦







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Grocery Shopping on Amazon ~
The Best Fresh Peppers in Best Sellers.



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Saturday, June 20, 2020

Strawberries or Blueberries? Pineberry or Pink Lemonade? Choose!

Life is full of difficult decisions. As if it isn't hard enough to choose between whether to grow strawberries or blueberries. There are these two exquisitely delicious variations of these fruits and you have to choose.
White Carolina Pineberry Plant VS 
Pink Lemonade Blueberry Plant.

 Let's Discuss.


If you are a gardener and you like strawberries, then you might like to try planting the White Carolina Pineberry plant. It tastes like pineapple and strawberry TOGETHER! If you can imagine that. Sounds so exotic, doesn’t it? (Although some people describe it as weird.)

PROs:

  • Can a fruit which tastes like strawberry and pineapple be bad?
  • Great gift idea for gardeners
  • People might be impressed if they saw it in your garden
  • Can be dipped in chocolate like the red strawberry
  • Natural Medicine endorses it as a healthy food


CONs:

  • Uh? Any fruit claiming to be a strawberry “relative” should be RED.  (O.o)  What?  It's not red!!
  • Need to be a good gardener

* Learn more: Specialty Produce: Pineberries

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

 Do you like lemonade? I do. What I like about lemonade is that you can vary this drink recipe and make it even better adding another fruit. Do you like blueberries? Well then there is no reason why you wouldn’t love the Pink Lemonade Blueberry plant.

 PROs:

  • For people who always wanted blueberries to be PINK
  • Has been suggested for people who are NOT gardeners
  • Great gift idea for gardeners and non-gardeners
  • People might be impressed if they saw them in your garden
  • Can still be used to make blueberry pancakes


CONs:

  • Any fruit claiming to be a blueberry “relative” should be BLUE.  (O.o)  What?  It's not blue!!

* Learn more: Specialty Produce: Pink Lemonade Blueberries
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦


 ♦  White Carolina Pineberry Plant




 ♦  Pink Lemonade Blueberry Plant






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Do You Have a Favorite Summer Fruit and Do You Like Popsicles?

Don't you love when you're listening to the weather forecast and they announce when the first day of a season will begin? I do. 

 Even though spring is my favorite season I get excited when they announce that summer will begin. Summertime means summer fruit! 

 I love summer fruit. My favorite is nectarines. I also love popsicles and found some recipes for you to enjoy your summer fruit as a popsicle.

Cold and sweet. It’s the perfect treat for a hot summer’s day or night! Don’t you think so? **







https://foodways2017.tumblr.com/post/621302834049302528/nectarine-ice-pops-recipe-easy-summer-dessert

https://foodways2017.tumblr.com/post/621303239568179200/summer-fruit-popsicle-best-healthy-homemade

https://foodways2017.tumblr.com/post/621303239568179200/summer-fruit-popsicle-best-healthy-homemade
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Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Spices in Filipino Cuisine by Carlo Villamayor (Guest Post)

It's no secret that Filipino cuisine is one of the best in the world, but like any good food, it has to have its secrets. Few people have really mastered authentic Filipino food, not the washed-down fare you get in fast foods and diners, but real, home-made native dishes. Although most of us can whip up something when we need to, it can be hard to capture that distinct Filipino taste.

So what really goes into our food? How do you make your food taste truly Filipino? There's really no single answer because no one can define our food; we come from a hodgepodge of cultures, after all. But one thing that sets us apart from our Asian neighbors is our heavy use of spices. Whereas other cuisines prefer subtle hints of flavor, we like a big burst of it with every bite.

So that's the first rule: be generous with the spice. If you want your dish to fit in with other Filipino recipes, get to know the spices that go into them. Here are some of the most common. 


Ginger

Ginger is used in most of Asian cuisine, and Filipino food recipes. In the Philippines, it is most commonly used in soups and stews; dishes such as arroz caldo (rice porridge), and tinola (chicken stew) use garlic as their main spice. It goes particularly well with chicken and fish dishes, where it provides a nice contrast to the strong meat flavors. Ginger is used both for flavor and aroma, although the flesh of the root is not always eaten. Most people just crush the root and drop it into the dish, then take it out just before serving.

Chili

We're not as wild about spicy food as the Thais, but we do like a bit of bite in our food. Virtually every Filipino dish can be spiced up with chili peppers, from rich meat viands to everyday soups and noodles. Sauces like patis (fish sauce) and soy sauce are often mixed with crushed chili and used as dips or marinades. Bicol, a region in southeastern Luzon, is known for using chili peppers in most of its dishes. Perhaps the most popular is Bicol express, made with meat, bagoong (saut'ed shrimp paste), coconut milk, and chopped green chilies.

Garlic and onions

These two almost always go together, especially in meat and vegetable dishes. You may be more familiar with Taiwanese and Australian garlic, which have larger cloves and are easier to work with. But if you want a stronger, spicier flavor, go for native garlic. Philippine garlic comes in smaller bulbs, with cloves less than half the size of other types. This makes them hard to handle, but it's well worth the trouble.

Philippine onions are strong and pungent, making them a great source of flavor. Use native red onions for saut'ing and pickling, but use the white ones for salads and sandwiches. If you're making rice porridge, top it with chopped green onions for extra spice.

Lemongrass

Lemongrass has strong-smelling leaves and stalks commonly used in soups, teas and sauces. The leaf is slightly sweet with a hint of citrus, a perfect complement to gravy and other meat sauces. There are several ways to use lemongrass, but the most common method is cooking the fresh leaves (sometimes the entire stalk or bulb) with the food to release the flavor. If you're using the stalk, take only the soft inner part and chop it up before dropping it in. You can also use dried and powdered lemongrass, especially if you're in the city and fresh leaves are hard to find. 



Pandan

Pandan is mostly an aromatic ingredient, most commonly used with plain white rice. Just add a couple of leaves to your rice as it boils, and it comes out with a strong, inviting aroma. Some regions even weave it onto rice pots for an even stronger scent. You can do the same with rice cakes, puddings, and other Filipino desserts recipes.

Bay leaf

The strong, pungent taste of bay leaves makes them a perfect fit for Filipino cooking recipes. The leaf has a wide range of uses, from meat sauces and dips to main dishes like adobo, menudo and mechado. Dried bay leaves are traditionally used; fresh bay is seldom available in local markets. The leaf itself is not usually eaten; like ginger, you can take out the leaves once you're ready to serve. However, most people just leave them in and set them aside when eating.



About The Author:  
Carlo Villamayor is a devoted cook, he makes it his personal mission to spread the joy of one of his Filipino food recipes with food lovers the world over. Bon appetit!  (Source:  ArticleCity.com)




EES shares recipes, cooking tips
and all things foodie!
 



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Friday, June 5, 2020

Practical Food Storage Tips to Avoid Waste

Countless consumer reports indicate that Americans waste a lot of food. Sadly, even during the coronavirus pandemic, food was wasted. In defense of the consumer Americans, there was a breakdown in the supply and delivery logistics. Fortunately, a few smart young folks got together with the farmers and fixed the problem. (Not-for-profit FarmLink.)

For many, the food gets wasted because they just don't know how to store the food properly. Like the typical mom, I always told my kids not to waste food. They don’t always listen and sometimes they throw away food that could have been given away. Ah well! They can never accuse me of not practicing what I preach. I do my best to store food properly so that it does not spoil or waste. Below are a few practical tips for food storage.


♦

Do you have a particular food storage method you use a lot? (Freezing, canning, dehydration, etc.)



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Friday, May 29, 2020

Enjoy Your Fruit By Season and in a Salad

Not sure how many of my blog readers have ever eaten an American Thanksgiving meal. If you have then you know how heavy that meal is. Is it any wonder many people just want to go to sleep afterward? LOL.

I have been preparing Thanksgiving dinner ever since I got married. That was over 40 years ago. My kids say they have good memories of our holiday meals and I'm glad. There was one holiday in particular that one of my kids remembers because I made a fruit salad. Instead of a cake with icing or a pie, I wanted to make something sweet but not so heavy. When I went shopping that year there was some great fruit in the produce department. So I decided to put fruit salad on the Turkey Day menu.

That memory got me thinking about fruit salads and whether or not there were specific recipes for every season of the year. I managed to find fruit salad recipes for winter, spring, summer, and fall. The Thanksgiving holiday occurs during the fall season and it was no surprise that there are quite a few fall fruit salad recipes.
If you like fruit (and who doesn't?), you'll probably love these fruit salad recipes. There is a delightful winter fruit salad, loaded with the best fruits of Autumn and Winter; and dressed with honey; a spring salad recipe is super sweet, hydrating and nourishing; and a summer salad made with fresh summer fruits mixed together with crunchy peanuts and a dressing made of Thai herbs and fish sauce. Enjoy!















More Wonderful Fruit Salad Recipes
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Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Perfect Gift for the High School Graduate Who is Off to College - A Cookbook!

A Cookbook? For a college student? Am I nuts?

No. No I am not. During my freshman year or first year at university, I was fortunate because I had a meal plan. As long as I got to the cafeteria before closing time, I didn't starve! But for my remaining 3 years at the university, I lived in an on-campus apartment and my roommates (friends I made when I was just a freshman who lived in the apartments) loved to cook!! The Chinese-Jamaican guy who lived in the apartment above ours always had good smelling coming out of his kitchen! His specialty was curry chicken. 

 But before I get too far down memory lane and forget why I am writing this post, let me get back on track. The purpose of this post is to recommend a cookbook for a student you know who is heading off to college, already in college, getting ready to graduate from college. In fact, this cookbook is great for anybody!!!


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Thursday, May 21, 2020

How to Cook Everything (Emphasis on the Greens)

Mark Bittman, is one of America's best-known, most widely respected food writers. Happy to suggest two cookbooks written by him. One for those who want to learn how to cook and the other for those who have a goal to eat healthy with an emphasis on consuming green leafy vegetables (that would be moi!).

How to Cook Everything The Basics:All You Need to Make Great Food -- With 1,000 Photos
This book offers a collection of delicious recipes, from fried eggs to steamed mussels, along with practical tips and helpful photos. Learn fundamental techniques and variation ideas for modifying or customizing recipes. Available in Hardcover and Kindle edition.
This cookbook has been recommended by some as "the new kitchen bible".

Leafy Greens: An A-to-Z Guide to 30 Types of Greens Plus More Than 120 Delicious Recipes is one of Bittman's books which is sure to delight both vegans and non-vegans. From arugula to kale to wakame (a sea vegetable), Bittman offers 120+ healthy recipes to make it easy to go green. Delicious anti-oxidant-packed recipes for salads, soups, stews, stir-fries, etc. Also, nutritional information, advice on buying and cooking greens, and which greens make good substitutes for one another.
* * *
Cooking Basics ~ How to Cook Everything - Emphasis on the Greens


Related Links of Interest
♦ Green Leafy Vegetables: On a Roll With Escarole
♦ Healthy Eating Tips: Eat Your Greens! Drink Your Carrots!
♦ YAPAS (Yet Another Post About Spinach)
♦ Health and Wellness: Where to Find Advice on Healthy Eating and More!


Source: Webnuggetz.com

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