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Organic packed lunch

December 8, 2011 By

It can often be difficult deciding what to make for your daily packed lunch, but don’t be afraid of the idea of an organic packed lunch. It’s the same as a normal packed lunch, but it is just so much tastier and incalculably better for the planet when you decide to buy organic.

If it is a sandwich you’re after, then purchase some organic bread. It contains organic products and there are an endless amount of healthy sandwich fillings to help you fill the bread with something tasty. Go for organic spreads such as butter, jam, honey, and mayonnaise, which is actually available without egg for vegans.

You can also purchase organic biscuits and cakes or, if you’re not so fond of buying them, then you can make your own if you have a spare afternoon on your hands at the weekend. There are plenty of supermarkets which stock organic ingredients that are necessary for baking, so don’t despair. Organic fruit is much tastier than anything most shops have to offer, so always take at least one fruit item with you as a packed lunch. You should also take some organic juice; both the fruit and juice are a great way of getting your all-important 5 a day!

There are also organic soups available in certain supermarkets or, if you prefer to make your own, purchase organic vegetables and use them for your soup, and whenever you make a roast save the stock for making soup.

Organic pasta is also available. You could try adding some organic cheese to it, along with a glug of olive oil. You will certainly taste the difference. Finally, if you want some snacks in your packed lunch, organic potato crisps and chocolate is most definitely the way forward for all the family.

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Tasty snacks using organic foods

November 8, 2011 By

As anyone who tries to eat well will know, it can sometimes be difficult thinking of new and fresh meal and snack ideas. However, organic food offers a range of tasty possibilities. You can liven up your usual food choices and enjoy fresher-tasting meals simply by choosing organic ingredients.

One of the simplest ways to do this is by making healthy sandwiches using organic salad ingredients and a protein such as cheese, ham, tuna or chicken, along with your favourite bread. There are so many ways that you can ring the changes using healthy and organic sandwich ingredients. A personal favourite of mine is organic tomatoes with lean beef on wholemeal bread. Simple but very tasty!

Introducing healthy, organic food into your diet has a number of benefits; first, to your health. Eating organic means that you are getting all of the nutrients that natural food has to offer, without most of the pesticides that are found in non-organic foods. Secondly, you can feel happy that you are avoiding genetically-modified food products. And thirdly, you are benefiting the environment, as organic farms produce less harmful chemicals and allow ecosystems of plants, insects and animals to flourish.

If you don’t like the thought of rushing out and replacing all the food in your cupboards with organic products straight away, you can introduce organic foods to your diet bit by bit. Instead of your usual margarine, you could try using organic spread. Or you could choose organic, free-range eggs instead of non-organic eggs from barn or battery hens. There is so much choice out there these days that it’s easy to make choosing organic and healthy foods part of your daily routine.

Start today by replacing one of your favourite foods with an organic version. You’ll probably notice that it tastes fresher and is well worth the price!

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Curry Leaves, what are they?

August 3, 2011 By

Curry leaves are the leaves of the curry tree, sometimes called Murraya koenigii. These leaves are used at length in Southeast Asian cooking, adding a distinct flavour and scent to a variety of dishes.

Outside of Far East, curry leaves can be tricky to get, though some markets carry them in dried form. From the name, one might imagine that curry leaves smell and taste like curry powder. Actually curry leaves aren’t related to curry powder at all, though both come from the same root, kari, which is Tamil for a stew of veg cooked in a rich sauce.

While curry leaves can actually be utilized in curries and even with curry powder, they may also be used on their lonesome in a selection of soups, stews, chutneys, and that kind of stuff. At first sight, one may be forgiven for confusing curry leaves and bay leaves.

Both are lengthened, pointy, and barely glossy. Nonetheless their scents and tastes are clearly different. When sold fresh, curry leaves are typically sold on the branch, permitting clients to strip them off as required. Curry leaves may also be found frozen in some markets, and dried, in which particular case more curry leaves may be required to form the required flavour. Historically , curry leaves are toasted in oil in the cooking pan before any other ingredients are added. As they toast, the leaves begin to release variable scents and flavours which should seethe the dish cooked in the pan. The leaves are left in the pan across the cooking process, and they can be eaten or put aside by diners. If you’ve ever eaten a Southeast Asian dish with little lengthened leaves floating in it, you have experienced the curry leaf.

In some bits of Southeast East Asia, curry leaves are gnawed, because they are said to be of benefit to digestion, and particularly good for forestalling diarrhoea. You can see curry leaves in some conventional herbal preparations, particularly for the skin, as curry leaves are meant to promote clear, clear skin. The flavour of curry leaves is tough to copy. Some cooks achieve success with basil or keffir lime leaves, either or both of that may be more widely available than curry leaves. For people that have not tasted the special flavour of the curry leaf, reproducing the flavour is definitely quite challenging, and ordering the leaves thru a mail order company is highly recommended so that cooks can get an understanding of the flavour of true curry leaves.

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Yogurt

July 6, 2011 By

Yogurt, also spelled yoghurt or yoghourt, is a fave breakfast, lunch, or break food found in the dairy aisle of the grocery.

A thick, custard- or pudding-like food, yogurt is created by the natural bacterial fermentation of milk. The method of making yogurt involves culturing milk or cream with live and active bacterial cultures ; this is achieved by adding bacteria straight to the milk. Commercially made yogurt is mostly made with a culture of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Streptococcus thermophilis. Some makers use Lactobacillus bulgaricus instead of L. Acidophilus. Yogurt made at home is mostly started by adding a dab of commercially made yogurt to boiled milk, and then keeping the blend at 112 Fahrenheit ( forty five Celsius ). In Western cultures, yogurt is enjoyed in a selection of ways, most generally as a cool dish blended with fruit. Yogurt are often used to make healthy shakes or frozen to eat like ice cream. Yogurt may also be used when cooking, in the place of milk, sour cream, and even some cheeses.

In Middle Eastern cultures, yogurt is commonly served with beef, beef sauces, and plants. It can be blended with diverse other sauces or used as a sour spoon on top of a meal. When buying store-bought yogurt, customers must check the label for live cultures. If yogurt has been pasteurized or heated after the cultures have been added, likely, the cultures will die. Correctly made yogurt will keep well in a chiller at forty Fahrenheit ( four Celsius ) for at least 10 days.

After this quantity of time, the cultures regularly become feeble. Traditionally , some of the first yogurt most likely incorporated goat’s milk that fermented in the goatskin bags carried by early traveling folk of Turkish origin. Today, yogurt is basically made with cow’s milk in the US, but around the globe, it’s also made with the milk of goats, sheep, buffalo, and even camels.

It is straightforward and cheap to make yogurt at home. Simply boil milk, lower its temperature to 112F ( 45C ) and then add a spoon of store-bought yogurt to a touch of the milk. Stir it well, and then add the remainder of the hot milk. Keep the entire batch in a warm place for one or two hours so that the yogurt can set. When the yogurt is prepared, chill instantly. To enjoy, add fresh fruit, jam, granola, honey, or anything more that strikes your fancy.

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