8 Inspired Easter Food Ideas |
Easter is a fun food-themed holiday I always look forward to. Who doesn't love a holiday centered around chocolate and eggs? Even if you don't have a sweet tooth why not have some fun with your food and party favors.
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1. Melt-in-your-mouth carrot cake
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You don’t have to be literal with your Easter party foods. Carrot cake is always a party pleaser, and delicious.
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2. Cheesecake filled Easter eggs
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Buy hollow chocolate Easter eggs shells, or make your own by melting chocolate over egg shells. Fill the chocolate egg shells with any no-bake cheesecake or mousse recipe as filling, and let it set. Mix passion fruit pulp with apricot jam and butter to make the “yolk” filling.
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3. Cinnamon bunny tail buns
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These sweet buns are excellent for an Easter breakfast or brunch. You can also make them savory and match them up with the cheese platter in #7.
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4. Colorful deviled eggs
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Add a touch of color to your deviled eggs to make them look like colorful Easter eggs. Fill a glass of water with a teaspoon of cider vinegar and 3 drops of food dye. Leave the egg whites in the dye until they have turned a pastel shade.
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5. Carrot-shaped bread cones
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These carrot shaped bread cones are an original way to serve egg or tuna salad as appetisers.
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6. No-bake flower pretzel bites
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Impress your guests with this cheerful bite sized snack. No baking is necessary. Cover pretzels with M&Ms using frosting as the glue. You can buy the frosting in a can.
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Continue the Easter theme with a fun carrot-shaped cheese platter. Either grate soft cheeses or you can cover a harder cheese with layers of grated cheddar.
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8. Decorate Easter eggs with glitter
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Use glitter and white glue to make your egg shells sparkle. Use wash tape to cover the areas you don’t want glitter covered and remove afterwards to see the contrasting empty shell spaces.
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| H/T: www.youngcraze.com |
Saturday, April 4, 2015
EASTER FOOD SURPRISES!
Health Benefits of Broccoli
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15 Wonderful Health Benefits of Broccoli
As a kid, I used to hate broccoli. Whenever my mother would cook it, I would make up all sorts of elaborate fibs hoping she won’t make me eat it (and it never worked). As an adult, I found that I love the green vegetable and enjoy it in most dishes. After reading about it one day, I was amazed to find out how healthy it is, and decided to share it with you.
Interesting Broccoli Facts:
Broccoli was first cultivated in Italy back in the 6th-century B.C.E., and its name comes from the Italian broccoli meaning “the flowering crest of a cabbage”. The broccoli is a member of the cabbage family, along with the radish, turnip, mustard, and more. It was introduced to the United States by Italian immigrants in the 1920’s and wasn’t wildly known until then. 77% of the world's broccoli is produced in China and India. The part of the broccoli we eat is the flower and the stem.
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Health Benefits of Broccoli:
1. It protects your skin from aging
Broccoli is rich in antioxidants, such as Vitamin C, which reduces and prevents the damages caused by free radicals, such as pigmentation and wrinkling. In addition, the healthy content of Vitamins B and E aids in giving your skin a healthy glow.
2. It protects you from UV radiation
Using broccoli extract instead of sunscreen has been shown to provide a better level of protection than sunscreen. While sunscreen absorbs UV radiation, preventing it from reaching your skin, broccoli extract gets absorbed into your skin, defending it from the inside-out. It was also shown that its effects can last up to three days while sunscreen is only good for several hours at most.
3. It’s good for pregnant women
During pregnancy, women need to consume large amounts of folate, and broccoli has it in abundance. Folate helps in preventing neurological and spinal defects in the fetus.
4. It helps control diabetes
Broccoli contains chromium, which is effective in regulating insulin levels and thus keeping diabetes symptoms at bay.
5. It can prevent anemia
Rich in iron and folic acid, broccoli is one of the best foods for preventing and treating anemia, as well as improving your levels of hemoglobin.
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6. It regulates blood pressure
The high levels of calcium, potassium, omega-3 and magnesium help improve blood flow in the circulatory system and even reduce LDL levels (“bad cholesterol”).
7. It boosts your immunity
Your immunity system needs nutrients such as trace minerals, zinc, and beta-carotene – all of which are quite common in broccoli.
8. It’s also good for your bones
The zinc, magnesium, and calcium, along with Vitamin K and phosphorus help prevent bone-related ailments and strengthens the bones.
9. It promotes eye health
Broccoli contains antioxidants such as lutein and carotenoid, which help in deterring cataracts and macular degeneration. It also contains Vitamin A, which is known to aid in improving vision in low-light conditions, as well as discerning colors.
10. It’s great for weight-loss
Broccoli is low in calories, making it ideal for dieting.
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11. It is also an effective detoxifier
Your body needs to be able to get rid of waste and contaminants and that’s where broccoli comes into play: containing rare nutrients like glucobrassicin, glucoraphanin, and gluconasturtiin, all of which are effective in eliminating toxins.
12. It makes your hair shine
The erucic acids in broccoli give your hair a lovely, natural shine.
13. It also helps your hair grow
Vitamins A and C aid in moisturizing your scalp, while the calcium in the broccoli helps in strengthening your hair follicles.
14. It fights cancer
The glucoraphanin in broccoli can be converted in the body into a cancer-fighting chemical called sulforaphane, and the indole-3 carbinol helps reduce the risk of breast, cervical and prostate cancer.
15. It takes care of your heart
All of the amazing nutrients we’ve discussed help in preventing damage to your blood vessels, reducing the risk of stroke and heart attacks.
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Daniel A.
Save your Extra Food
12 Ways to Save Your Extra Food |
Food is one of the easiest expenses to forget all about, especially because we waste so much of it. On the other hand, it's hard to buy the exact right amount you need, so who can blame us? But there are ways to waste less on food and reuse it instead of just throwing it away. Here I've collected 12 ways for you to save up on your extra food:
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| 1. Reusing Green onions |
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It may sound strange but this is true. Green onions can grow back when you save their white roots. How? Just cut off the green leave and put the white ends in a cup of water. Put the cup on a sunny window seal. The onions will start growing almost immediately, and you will be able to harvest the green leaves almost indefinitely.
From time to time empty the water, rinse the roots and return them to a cup of fresh water.
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| 2. Reusing Ground Coffee |
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Ground, used or dried coffee can be used to solve a lot of situations, so before you throw it away, you can:
- Use it as an ant repellant by spreading it a little where ant groups can be found.
- For skin peeling, you can massage coffee grains on your face and rinse.
- To fertilize plants, you can spread ground coffee on acidic earth
- To neutralize bad odors from the freezer, put a bowl of ground coffee (you can add a few drops of vanilla extract).
- To remove scents of foods from your hands, we recommend rubbing them together with ground coffee and then washing.
- To get fleas away from your dog, wash him, then rub ground coffee on his fur, and then wash him again.
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| 3. Peels vs. Insects |
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While the citrus fruit gives the body essential vitamins, its peel is also quite useful. It helps keep away flying insects and ants, as well as neutralize bad moldy smells. Use a scraped peel to rub on surfaces that attract a lot of flying insects or ants.
Another option is to throw the peels in a blender, add a glass of water and grind until getting a smooth mixture. Then, pour the liquid on ant hills or on the entrance to the house. To get rid of moldy smells, put an orange peel in a cloth bag and hang it in old closets. You can also throw a citrus fruit peel in the trash compactor to get rid of bad odors.
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| 4. Ripe Banana to Bake |
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Bananas which are too ripe may not be good for eating, but they can become delicious banana bread. So instead of throwing them away, make a terrific and delicious dessert.
You will need:
2 cups of flour / 1 spoon of drinking soda / 1/4 spoon of salt/ 1/2 a glass of softened butter / 3/4 a cup of brown sugar / 2 scrambled eggs and 2 cups of squished ripe bananas.
Instructions:
Pre-heat the oven to 175 C and oil an English cake baking mold. In a big bowl, mix: Flour, drinking soda and salt. In a different bowl you mix: Butter and brown sugar. Add the eggs and the squished bananas to the wet ingredients bowl and mix well. Add the banana mix to the dry ingredient bowl and mix well.
Spill it to a mold and put in the pre-heated oven for 60 minutes. Let the banana bread cool for 10 minutes, and then serve.
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| 5. From Dry Munchies to Crunchy Munchies |
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Snacks such as potato chips or crackers are expensive and can take a big bite out of your budget over time, and so it can be quite annoying when a big bag of chips or crackers gets too dry after only a few days. However, instead of throwing them away, put them in the microwave for 10 seconds. They will make a short trip back in time to a higher level of crunchiness
Another option is to preheat an oven or toaster-oven to 200 degrees C, put the crackers or chips on baking paper (one layer) and heat for 1-2 minutes.
Carefully, take them out of the oven when they begin to get golden, and the crunchiness shall return.
Please note: The freshness cannot be returned to crackers or chips who have begun to give a bad odor, are moldy or hardly have any taste.
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6. Crumbs Will Do!
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| A moment before you throw away bags of pretzels, croutons, cereal, crackers or other snacks that have crumbs - collect the crumbs in one big plastic bag and crush the crumbs with a rolling pin. Then you can use them to dress up other courses or freeze them in big chunks and then cook slightly for resurrected snacking. |
7. From Old Bread to Croutons
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Don't throw away old bread! You can dice it, fry it with butter and make delicious croutons for your salad or soup. HOW?
Dice the dry bread. If it is a bit too dry, put it on a baking pan and warm it for about 10 minutes until the surface becomes very dry. Put a pan on a medium to high fire and melt a little butter. Put the bread dices in the pan and mix until all the sides begin to turn brown. When the bread has been toasted, remove from the fire. If you do not plan on using the croutons right away, let them cool and only then put them in storage.
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8. Dry Rice for Drying
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If you have encountered an old bag of rice and you're worried it's no longer good enough to eat, don't throw it away. Instead, next time something gets wet (like your phone, for instance) put the rice in a bowl and the wet object on the rice. The rice will drain the liquids from the object. So if it is your cell phone, for example, wait 24 hours and then turn it back on.
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| 9. Defunking that dish sponge |
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If you need to clean and you are out of good sponges, just put that old funky one in the microwave for 2 minutes. It will look much cleaner after 99% of its germs have been killed, and will be almost good as new.
CAREFUL! Do NOT put any sponges that have any metal fibers in them, as no metal can be put inside a microwave!
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| 10. Getting More from Your Lemon |
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| If you need to add just a few drops of lemon to a recipe, don't cut it in half. Instead, prick it with a tooth pick and gently squeeze out the amount you need. Cover the hole with a little tape or paper and put the lemon back in the fridge to be used again later. |
| 11. Oiled Eggs for Extra Freshness |
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To prolong the life of fresh eggs, dip a paper towel in plant oil and gently rub the egg shells before putting them in the fridge for storage. The oil will keep those eggs fresh for another 3-4 weeks.
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12. Too Many Potatoes? Not a Bad Thing!
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You peeled too many potatoes or sweet potatoes? Don't throw out the extra ones or cook too much. Just take the uncooked ones, put them in a bowl with cold water, add a few drops of vinegar and put in the fridge. The potatoes will last like this for another 3-4 days.
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Photos courtesy of: Freedigitalphotos.net
Samantha W.
Foods to help you Sleep
5 Foods That'll Help You Sleep
Lack of sleep can ruin a lot of things: Our mood, our patience, our focus and our sense of enjoyment in life. We've all had those sleepless nights. But taking sleeping pills is usually a problematic strategy, because they don't give you the same natural sleep that strengthens you, and they can become quite addictive until you can't sleep without them. Better to eat something that will help you fall into a relaxing, renewing, deep sleep.
Here are five recommended foods to put you to bed:
Frozen Bananas
Frozen bananas become a thick and tasty ice-cream. All you need is the right technique of consistent mixing. The idea is to mix for several minutes until the bananas become a creamy delight. Add a handful of chopped peanuts for an extra tryptophan boost and you have a great combination. Not only will the potassium in the bananas help you fall asleep faster, it can also prevent you waking up for no reason in the middle of the night.
Low Fat Popcorn
The carbs in popcorn will help your body better utilize a chemical called tryptophan. This chemical is known to relieve tension and put you to sleep. This happens because the tryptophan is converted to serotonin, which is responsible for putting you to sleep and waking you every day. Since a heavy meal about 2 hours before sleep can actually keep you awake at times, a low-calorie popcorn bowl is a recommended treat for late night snacks. If you want to add some flavor, we suggest some curry powder or garlic, instead of butter.
 Halibut
The halibut fish comes with two great sleep aids: Tryptophan and vitamin B6. It has a meaty, gentle texture that is recommended to sea fruit lovers.
Other foods rich in Tryptophan:
Chicken, Beef, soy, yogurt, bananas, peanuts, and eggs.
Mango shake
Mangos are packed full with antioxidants, proteins, and vitamins and are also a natural treat that may put to bed your need for something sweet without blasting your body with sugar.
To make a mango shake:
Cut up a fresh mango and put it in the blender. Add a scoop-full of ice, a small scoop of low-fat greek yogurt and just a little splash of milk or water. If you want it a bit sweeter still, you can add a bit of honey. And if you don't like mangoes, the same can be done with strawberries in winter and watermelons in summer.
Dried Cherries
A handful of dried cherries won't just give you carbs and serotonin, but is also one of the better-known sources of melatonin, known as a sleep-inducing hormone (also good against jet-lag). If that's not enough for you, they also come packed with antioxidants.
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Images courtesy of vanillaechoes, piyato, graur codrin / freedigitalphotos.net
Cover image courtesy of FrameAngel / freedigitalphotos.net
Useful Food Tips
16 Useful and Delicious Food Tips |
As any one who has done some cooking knows, cooking is both art and science. There are thousands of little shortcuts and techniques one can learn to make a meal faster, better and more delicious, and so I do hope you will find the following useful enough to add to your growing knowledge of the art of food.
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1. How to perfectly boil an egg
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2. Not all teas are to be brewed the same...
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3. Is your egg fresh? Find out once and for all.
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4. Yogurt is amazing and can make for a healthy substitute for many items.
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| 5. If you don't want your potatos to bud, place an apple with them and they won't. |
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5. How to tell if your avocado is truly ripe
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6. Keep your cake from drying out by placing a piece of bread on it overnight.
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7. How to make dried fruit using your oven.
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8. To keep your salad fresh and avoid sogginess, place a paper towl over it.
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9. How to make cookies without eggs!
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10. Make corn without the hairy mess.
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11. Cook fish over lemons to avoid sticking and to give it a great flavor.
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12. How to heat your leftovers more evenly.
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13. One little hole in the egg and you can boil it to perfection!
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14. The best way to make a BLT or a toasted sandwich.
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15. A few methods of folding pastry for stunning results.
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16. How to make a salad in a jar.
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Simon J.
Simple Home tips
15 Great and Easy Home Tips
If you thought that objects and food stuffs has only one use, you'll be surprised by some of the new and effective uses for storing, keeping fresh, quick solutions and cleanliness tips you'll find here!
How do you make tomatoes ripen faster? How to neutralize the smell of onions? what you sprinkle the bottom of the candle so you don't have to clean wax later? What is the connection between citrus peel and brown sugar? 15 great tips!
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 An apple to make tomatoes ripen
If you're tired of waiting and would like to make your tomatoes ripe in half the time, put them in a bowl with an apple or two, and cover them up with plastic wrap.
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 Beans for wax
fill up the candle house with a layer of raw beans. It's not only a nice decoration, but the beans will also keep the candle steady and capture the wax drops.
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 Toothpick on scotch tape
Mark the end of the scotch tape by rolling it up with a toothpick at the end.
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 Orange Peel to conserve moisture
Keep the moisture and softness of brown sugar and prevent it from become rough lumps by adding a long and narrow orange peeling into the sugar vessel. .
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 Coffee filter to clean dust
Clean dust from the computer and television screen using a coffee filter. You won't even have to get it wet to use it!
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 Paper cloth to clean the shower doors
Remove insistent soap accumulation from the shower's glass doors by spraying a little water on a paper cloth, the kind used for the dryer and cleaning doors.
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 Eggshells to clean narrow places
Use a hard boiled eggshell to clean the hard to reach areas of bottles, jars and vases. Throw a few pieces of shell in the object, add hot water and a little bit of dish soap, and stir it well. The shells will scrape off that hard-to-reach dirt.
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 Pillow cover to clean the ceiling fan.
Slip an old pillow cover on the blades of the ceiling fan and then pull it backwards quickly to draw all the dust and dirt into it, without dropping them all over the floor.
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 Ginger to deal with pain
Calm down blisters and burns by swatting some fresh ginger juice on the aching spot.
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 Lemon to clean a grater
After you've grated soft cheese or other sticky foods, use half a lemon to get rid of the leftovers. Just use the soft side of the lemon on both sides of the grater and you'll see how easily it becomes clean again.
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 Nail polish to fix a loose button
Smear a thin layer of transparent nail polish on the center of the loose button, it will harden and keep it from falling.
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 Onion to get rid of the scent of mildew
Air out the smell of mildew from the basement or the tool shed with onions. Cut an onion in half, put half of it on a plate and leave it in the room for the night. The morning after, the air in the room will be cleaner and you won't even smell the onion!
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 Vinegar and salt against the smell of onion
However, you might be concerned of having that pesky scent of onions on your hands. A combination of vinegar and salt neutralizes the smell of onions. Mix the two materials and pour this on your hands to rub together until the scent is gone. Then wash with soap.
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 Pumice to clean a sweater
Take a rough pumice and gently rub it on any thick sweaters to get rid of little fibers and other junk.
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 Empty wine bottle to stabilize boots
Use empty wine bottles to keep tall leather boots stable, so they don't lose their shape in storage.
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Submitted by: Sveta A.
Harry T.
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