Author: mixim

Pumpkin Pie

You probably take pumpkin pie from canned pumpkin for granted. You’re there, the can is there, there’s a pumpkin on the label… open it and mix it up with spices to make a pie, right? Ah, but a pumpkin pie made from a fresh pumpkin tastes so much better than the glop that was processed last year! Here’s how to do it, complete instructions in easy steps and fully illustrated. And it is much easier than you think, using my “patented” tips and tricks! This makes a light, fluffy pumpkin pie with a fresh, traditional pumpkin pie taste. I can assure you that this will be the best pumpkin pie you’ve ever made! This is also a great thing to do with your kids! Children just love pumpkins: growing them, carving them, and making a pie from them! And who cares if Libby’s says there will be a shortage of canned pumpkin this year? As long as you can find a pumpkin or a butternut squash, you can make a BETTER pumpkin pie!

You will need
850 g pumpkin, chopped
350 ml cream
190 g brown sugar
Half tsp salt
3 eggs and 1 egg yolk
1 tsp cinnamon
quarter tsp nutmeg
quarter tsp allspice
the zest of 1 lemon
1 short-crust pastry base, ready made
1 roasting tin
1 spoon
1 fork
1 pie mold
1 jug
1 hand blender
aluminium foil
parchment paper
about 500g of beans to weigh down the crust
Step 2: Preheat the oven
Set the temperature to 180ºC or gas mark 4.

Step 3: Roast the pumpkin
Tip the chopped pumpkin into the roasting tin and cover it tightly with aluminium foil. Put the tin on a low shelf in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes (this is the first stage of creating the pumpkin puree).

Step 4: Prepare the pastry base
Gently lay the pastry crust on the pie mold and carefully press it down to form the shape of the pie. Remove any excess pastry from the edges. Now using a fork, lightly jab the bottom of the base various times. This will prevent the pastry from rising.

Put the parchment paper over the top of the pastry and pour the beans on top to weigh it down.

Step 5: Bake the pastry
Place the pie mold in the oven with the pumpkin and bake for 20 minutes.

Step 6: Remove from the oven
When the pastry crust is golden brown, take it out of the oven. Test the pumpkin to see if it’s done by piercing it with a fork. It needs to be completely soft to make the puree. Remove it from the oven and discard the foil. Take the beans off the pastry and leave it and the pumpkin to cool.

Finally, raise the temperature of the oven to 210 degrees centigrade or gas mark 6.

Step 7: Make the pumpkin puree
Spoon the cooked pumpkin into the jug and using the hand blender, blend into a puree.

Step 8: Prepare the pie filling
In a large bowl mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, lemon zest and salt. Now, whisk the eggs, add them to the other ingredients and stir. Pour in the pumpkin puree and cream and stir well.

Step 9: Bake
Pour the filling into the pastry crust, almost to the top. Carefully place it into the centre of the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Lower the temperature to 160ºC and bake for a further 35 minutes.

Step 10: Remove from the oven
When the pie is fully cooked remove it from the oven and allow it to cool and set.

Step 11: Serve
The pie can be eaten warm or cold and served dusted with icing sugar and with a dollop of whipped cream.

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese

Published on Mar 5, 2013
SIGN THIS PETITION NOW: http://change.org/kraftyellow Hi – This is Lisa Leake from http://100daysofrealfood.com and Vani Hari from http://foodbabe.com

We recently discovered that several American food products contain harmful additives that are not used — and in some cases banned — in other countries. One of those products is an iconic staple that almost every American, us included, has had at one time or another: Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese in the US contains the artificial food dyes Yellow 5 and Yellow 6. These dyes are not in Kraft Macaroni and Cheese in other countries, including the UK, because they are considered harmful overseas and were removed due to consumer outcry. It’s time we demand the same here in the US!

We are petitioning Kraft to remove all artificial food dyes from their line of macaroni and cheese products.

Kraft, which is an American company by the way, has already removed this unnecessary – yet potentially harmful – additive from their products overseas but still serves it up to their fellow Americans. Here are the reasons we are asking Kraft to remove Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 from their entire line of Macaroni and Cheese:

Artificial food dyes…

– Are man-made in a lab with chemicals derived from petroleum (a crude oil product, which also happens to be used in gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt, and tar).

– Require a warning label in other countries outside the US.

– Have been banned in countries like Norway and Austria (and are being phased out in the UK).

– Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 specifically are contaminated with known carcinogens (a.k.a. an agent directly involved in causing cancer).

– Cause an increase in hyperactivity in children.

– Have a negative impact on children’s ability to learn.

– Have been linked to long-term health problems such as asthma, skin rashes, and migraines.

– Add absolutely no value to the foods we are eating and are used solely for aesthetic purposes.

– To prove this last point we personally tested both the US and UK versions of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese and found little difference in color and virtually no difference in taste (see for yourself in the video below).

So please…

1. Go to our petition page and sign your name – http://change.org/kraftyellow

2. Share our petition with your family and friends

We both grew up eating this product – Lisa used to feed it to her kids years ago – and it’s available at almost every grocery store across the country. Our kids deserve the same as our friends overseas!

Kraft Foods is the largest food company headquartered in the United States. If Kraft changes their Macaroni and Cheese, we know this could inspire other food companies across the US to finally eliminate dangerous artificial food dyes once and for all.

Join us and demand this change by signing this petition now.

Thank you for all your support – together we can make a difference.

http://change.org/kraftyellow

The potential health effects of artificial colors such as cochineal, a food dye derived from crushed insects.

The effects of artificial colors on impulsivity, inattentiveness, and hyperactivity among young children.

Shepherd Pie

Ingredients:

The Filling:

Olive Oil (2 Tbsp)
Ground Lamb or Beef (about 1.5 lbs)
1 Large Carrot (grated)
1 Large Onion (grated)
Fresh Rosemary
Fresh Thyme
Minced Garlic (I used 4 cloves)
Salt
Pepper
Worcestershire Sauce (several splashes)
Tomato Puree or Paste (no more than a small can)
Red Wine (several glugs)
Chicken Stock (not sure, but it looks like about 1/4 cup)

The Mash:

Golden Potatoes (about 1.5 lbs)
Heavy Cream ( 1/4 cup)
Butter (3 1/2 Tbsp)
Salt
Pepper
Egg Yolks (2)
Parmesan Cheese (1/4 cup, minimum)

Prep Work:

Dice the garlic
Separate your herbs from the stems
Separate your Egg Yolks
Peel and Slice your potatoes into even pieces
Open your wine if it’s not already
Open your can of Tomato Paste

Cooking the Potatoes:

This part is easy as pie (no pun intended), just boil some water, throw some salt and your potatoes in, and set a timer for 15 minutes – start on your filling. Upon the timer going off, take your potatoes out and strain the water off. Put potatoes back into the pan, or into a medium mixing bowl. Mash the potatoes with their ingredients from above and keep warm (your filling should be about done by this point)
Cooking the Filling:

Pour Olive Oil into a hot, rather large pan, then add meat. Stir meat as if your life depends on it for a few minutes so it’s nice and brown, and broken into very small pieces. Add your Rosemary, Thyme, and Garlic, then stir some more. Quickly add your Carrot, and Onion, stir a little longer. The idea at this point is to get everything to a minced consistency.

Add Worcestershire Sauce, stir, add Tomato Puree, stir, add Red Wine and sweat down for a minute or two. Add chicken stock and cook for 3 more minutes. I made mine without the stock because I didn’t notice it the first time I watched the show. You can add it, or leave it out.
Final Instructions:

Scoop your meat mixture into a deep casserole or other oven safe dish and then spoon the mash over the top. Spread the mash over the top of the mix with the bottom of the spoon and then sprinkle a generous portion of Parmesan cheese over the top. Poke the top with a fork several times to give it a peaked look and stick it in the oven at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes to brown the potatoes and set the pie. Serve it up and watch people melt! Oh I love Shepherd Pie!

apple pie

Does anything smell better than an apple pie baking in the oven? Lauren Chattman from Pillsbury shows how to make the perfect apple pie. It’s so good you don’t even need the ice cream (but we’ll understand if you have some anyway).

Recipe: How to make apple pie

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Roll one refrigerated pie crust into a 9 inch glass pie plate.

2. Mix 6 cups of thinly sliced apples, preferably a firm variety like Granny Smith, 3/4 cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons of flour, a tablespoon of lemon juice, 3/4 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg, and 1/4 of a teaspoon of salt. Pour entire mixture into the pie shell.

3. Take the second pie crust and roll it right on top of the apples. There should be a little bit of the pie crust hanging over the pie plate. Tuck the edges under for a thick crust.

4. To finish the crust with a scalloped edge, place your index finger and thumb on a section of the outside edge of the pie crust. With your index finger on the other hand press into that section from the inside of the pie crust to make a scalloped edge all the way around.

5. Cut four to six slits in the top of the pie for ventilation. This lets the moisture escape and ensures your apple pie has a crisper top crust.

6. Place a pie shield, or aluminum foil strips, over the pie crust edges to prevent burning.

7. Bake the apple pie for 40 to 45 minutes. About 15 minutes before the pie is finished, take the pie shield off to let the edge brown up.

8. After baking, the apple pie should cool for two hours so the juices are reabsorbed into the apples. Your willpower will pay off because you’ll be able to cut beautiful, neat slices.

Pillsubry’s apple pie recipe serves 6-8.

soda pop

Very possibly, you’re regularly drinking something that has some similarities to methamphetamine and crack cocaine, not to mention Drano and battery acid. The culprit? That would be soda. A new report out from the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) found that overindulging in a different kind of coke habit (as in Coke) could horribly damage your teeth and gums—to the extent that your mouth would look a lot like a meth addict’s.
The AGD’s report was a case study comparing dental damage to three people: The first was a meth user; the second had previously used cocaine for a long time; and the third drank a boatload of diet soda—to the tune of two liters of the soda every day for three to five years. All three said they had poor oral hygiene and didn’t see a dentist regularly. Each substance—whether an illegal drug or soda—contained acid that caused dramatic erosion of each person’s teeth.
Though the report was just a case study of three people, Jeffrey M. Cole, D.D.S., president of the AGD, told TakePart that this finding indicates that “the effects of diet soda can be as harmful to the teeth as illegal drug use, such as methamphetamines and crack cocaine.” Specifically, the citric acid in soda is to blame, says Dr. Cole. “The pH of most soda is in the same vicinity as vinegar.” And sugary sodas are a double whammy to your mouth: “The bacteria in plaque metabolize sugars into acid, so technically those sodas with sugar, once metabolized by the bacterial plaque, would add to the acid environment,” he adds. So while soda with sugar is a bit worse, “they are both bad,” he says, for the health of your teeth and gums.

In a press release about the case study, lead study author Mohamed A. Bassiouny, D.M.D., Ph.D., noted that in all three cases “each person experienced severe tooth erosion caused by the high acid levels present in their ‘drug’ of choice—meth, crack, or soda.” The case study was published in the journal General Dentistry.

If you have to have your soda fix, there’s a better way to do it, says Dr. Cole. “It is best to drink the diet soda in its entirety to reduce the acid attack and then to rinse the mouth with water,” he explains. “What is bad is to sip the soda all day long, which keeps the acid attack constant. It is also best to drink the diet soda with meals, as the chewing action increases saliva flow. Saliva helps to normalize the acid levels in the mouth.”

It’s especially bad to sip soda all day long, which keeps the acid attack on teeth constant.
You can also chew sugarless gum, recommends AGD spokesperson Eugene Antenucci, D.D.S. (The AGD also runs the KnowYourTeeth website, which has information on how to take care of your teeth and gums. ) “The best advice is to visit the dentist twice a year” even if you don’t have insurance, says Dr. Cole. “Dental disease is highly preventable, and in this case prevention is truly the best medicine,” he says, adding that dentists are seeing what he calls an “alarming increase in periodontal (gum) disease in young adults.” Smoking and poor oral hygiene make even young adults prone to dental problems.
If you don’t have dental insurance, you’re not alone. The Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) is helping to bring dental benefits to children, but not to all adults. The American Dental Association (ADA) reports that nearly 18 million adults will get some dental coverage through healthcare reform, but the ADA estimates that this will amount to more or better coverage for only about five percent more adults.  Only about 51 percent of adults ages 19 to 34 had private dental benefits in 2010—a drop from over 57 percent in 2000.

Kitchen Nightmares

US
S01E01 – Peter’s – Babylon, NY  **closed**
S01E02 – Dillon’s – New York, NY   **renamed Purnima, closed**
S01E03 – Mixing Bowl – Bellmore, NY   **closed**
S01E04 – Seascape – Islip, NY   **sold**  **Closed**
S01E05 – Olde Stone Mill – Tuckahoe, NY **Sold**
S01E06 – Sebastian’s – Toluca Lake, CA  **closed**
S01E07 – Finn McCool’s – Westhampton, NY  **Sold**
S01E08 – Lela’s – Pomona, CA   **closed**
S01E09 – Campania – Fair Lawn, NJ  **sold, then closed** 3 years later
S01E10 – Secret Garden – Moorpark, CA

S02E01 – Handlebar – Mount Sinai, NY   **closed**
S02E02 – Giuseppe’s – Macomb Township, MI   **closed**
S02E03 – Trobiano’s – Great Neck, NY   **closed**
S02E04 – Black Pearl – New York, NY  **closed**
S02E05 – J Willy’s – South Bend, IN **closed**
S02E06 – Hannah & Mason’s – Cranbury, NJ   **closed**
S02E07 – Jack’s Waterfront – St. Clair Shores, MI   **closed**
S02E08 – Sabatiello’s – Stamford, CT   **closed**
S02E09 – Fiesta Sunrise – West Nyack, NY **closed**
S02E10 – Santé La Brea – Los Angeles, CA**closed**
S02E11 – Cafe 36 – La Grange, IL **closed**

S03E01 – Hot Potato Cafe – Philadelphia, PA   **closed**
S03E02 – Flamangos – Whitehouse Station, NJ   **renamed The Junction** **closed**
S03E03 – Bazzini – Ridgewood, NJ   **closed**
S03E04 – Mojito – Brooklyn, NY
S03E05 – Lido di Manhattan Beach – Manhattan Beach, CA
S03E06 – Le Bistro – Lighthouse Point, FL
S03E07 – Casa Roma – Lancaster, CA  **Closed**
S03E08 – Mama Rita’s – Newbury Park, CA   **closed**
S03E09 – Anna Vincenzo’s – Boca Raton, FL  **closed**
S03E10 – Fleming – Miami, FL **Closed**
S03E11 – Sushi-Ko – Thousand Oaks, CA   **closed**

S04E01 – Spanish Pavillion – Harrison, NJ
S04E02 – Classic American – West Babylon, NY
S04E03 – PJ’s Steakhouse – Queens, NY   **closed**
S04E04 – Grasshopper Also – Carlstadt, NJ
S04E05 – Davide – Boston, MA
S04E06 – Down City – Providence, RI  **Closed**
S04E07 – Cafe Tavolini – Bridgeport, CT **closed**
S04E08 – Kingston Cafe – Pasadena, CA
S04E09 – La Frite – Sherman Oaks, CA
S04E10 – Capri – Eagle Rock, CA
S04E11 – Zeke’s – Metairie, LA
S04E12 – Oceana – New Orleans, LA

S05E01 – Blackberrys – Plainfield, NJ
S05E02 – Leone’s – Montclair, NJ
S05E03 – Mike & Nellies – Oakhurst, NJ
S05E04 – Luigi’s – Anaheim, CA
S05E05&06 – Burger Kitchen – Los Angeles, CA **closed**
S05E07 – The Greek at the Harbor – Ventura, CA
S05E08 – Michon’s – College Park, GA
S05E09 – El Greco – Austin, TX **Closed**
S05E10 – Park’s Edge – Atlanta, GA
S05E11 – Spin-A-Yarn Steakhouse – Fremont, CA
S05E12 – Charlie’s – La Verne, CA
S05E13 – Cafe Hon – Baltimore, MD
S05E14 – Chiarella’s – Philadelphia, PA
S05E15 – Zocalo – Philadelphia, PA

UK
S01E01 – Bonapartes Restaurant – Silsden, England   **closed**
S01E02 – The Glass House – Ambleside, England
S01E03 – The Walnut Tree Inn – Llandewi Skirrid, Wales   **closed**
S01E04 – Moore Place – Esher, England   **sold, now Esteem**

S02E01 – La Lanterna – Letchworth, England   **closed**
S02E02 – D-Place – Chelmsford, England   **closed**
S02E03 – Momma Cherri’s Soul Food Shack – Brighton, England
S02E04 – La Riviera – Inverness, Scotland   **renamed to Abstract**

S03E01 – Oscar’s – Nantwich, England   **sold**
S03E02 – The Sandgate Hotel – Sandgate, England   **sold**
S03E03 – Clubway 41 – Blackpool, England   **closed**
S03E04 – La Gondola – Derby, England   **sold**

S04E01 – La Parra de Burriana – Nerja, Spain   **closed**
S04E02 – The Fenwick Arms – Claughton, England  **sold**
S04E03 – Rococo – King’s Lynn, England   **closed**
S04E04 – Morgans – Liverpool, England

S05E01 – Ruby Tate’s – Brighton, England   **closed**
S05E02 – Piccolo Teatro – Paris, France   **closed**
S05E05 – The Priory – Haywards Heath, England  **sold, now La Capilla, a tapas bar**
S05E06 – The Fish and Anchor – Lampeter, Wales
S05E07 – Curry Lounge – Nottingham, England
S05E08 – The Granary – Titchfield, England   **closed**

Great British Nightmare
S01E01 – The Dovecote Bistro – Devon, England
S01E02 – The Runaway Girl – Sheffield, England

Imam Bayildi

Tomado de http://recipes.epicurean.com/recipe/2241/imam-bayildi.html

Ingredients:

2 medium onions, chopped
Olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
2 medium eggplants
2 teaspoons sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions:


Saute the onions in a little oil. Add the garlic, tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pep per. Cook until mushy. Cut the stem ends from each eggplant. Make 3 lengthwise slits, almost from end to end. With and hold each slit apart and spoon the onion mixture into each cavity. Arrange eggplants in a baking dish. Sprinkle with sugar, lemon juice, and 1/2 cup oil. Bake, covered, in preheated moderate oven (350 F.) for 40 minutes, or until tender.

Serve hot. or as they do in Turkey, cold with yogurt. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

One modification. Instead of making three slits in the eggplants, etc. hollow the eggplants out, but leave a firm outer edge . Take the insides of the eggplants, chop them up, toss them into the pan with the other sauted ingredients. Saute the new mixture.

Then stuff the eggplants with that mixture. I f you want to microwave, I found that 15 to 20 minutes on medium works well . Actually, I microwave for 15 minutes then I baste the eggplants with the liquid at the bottom of the dish. I then cook for the remaining 5 minutes at high. You can tell by looking when the outer edge is done. We slice it for serving.

TURKISH IMAM BAYILDI (The Imam Fainted)

“There are many stories about the origin of the name of this dish. One of them we heard while visiting Ankara, Turkey’s capital. A long time ago a Turkish Imam (Mohammedan priest ), known for his love of good food, surprised his friends by announcing his engagement to the young daughter of a wealthy olive-oil merchant. The friends did not know about her ability to cook. But they presumed part of her dowry would include olive oil. They were right. For her father gave the groom twelve jars, each one large enough to hold a person, of the precious oil. After her marriage the bride proved to be an excellent cook and each day prepared a special dish for her epicurean husband. One of them, eggplant cooked in olive oil, became his favorite. And he ordered that his wife prepare it each night for dinner. This she did for twelve consecutive days. On the thirteenth, however, the dish was missing from the meal. Queried about its absence, the bride replied, “Dear husband, I do not have any more olive oil. You will have to purchase some more for me.” The lmam was so shocked that he fainted. And since that day, according to the story, his favorite dish has been known as Imam Bayildi, The Imam Fainted.”