Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

It's that time of year when we need to stop and give thanks for everything we have. It's a great idea to do it on a daily basis, but if you do not want to do that, Thanksgiving is the perfect time.

I am thankful for my love of food, exploring what's available, playing with it in the kitchen (developing recipes and tasty combinations) and being able to share with others.

I also am thankful for the opportunity to operate this blog and keep in touch with everyone who visits it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have writing it.

With such a bounty of tasty foods to choose from, take some time to put conventions aside. You never know what works until you try it. :)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Homemade Pumpkin Butter

If you're like me, you freeze pumpkin for year-round use. If you don't, you need to start doing this. You won't regret it. Doesn't pumpkin butter sound delicious? You can make your own for much less than the cost of buying it in the store. Plus, you control the ingredients. What more could you want? You may be surprised how cheap it is to make your own. And, it's not that difficult.  Read on....

Pumpkin contains a wealth of antioxidants, the most notable being beta carotene. The beta carotene is what gives this delicious squash its vibrant color. Once in your body, this vital nutrient is converted into Vitamin A. Numerous studies reveal that this essential antioxidant plays a key role in reducing degenerative diseases such as heart disease, some types of cancer, and arthritis.

Plus, pumpkin does not contain any fat. It is perfect for those wanting to lose or maintain their weight. Who doesn't love a NO FAT food?

It's low in calories. As a plant-based food source, calorie counting is not a concern when enjoying this tasty delight. You can fill yourself up with minimal calories. Nice.

The high potassium content found in pumpkins helps regulate your heart beat, reduce muscle cramping, and keep your musculoskeletal system operating at optimal levels.

Enough for the nutrition information...let's get down to using this delectable food.

Every year I like to steam up pumpkin, let it cool and peel it. Then, I freeze it for later use throughout the remaining year. It's a great beginning for any pumpkin recipe, including my pumpkin butter. You could probably used canned pumpkin, but I cannot guarantee the final result. I can attest to FRESH pumpkin as providing superb taste, though.

You can make pumpkin butter either on the stovetop or in a crockpot. I started making my recipe on the stovetop. Then I noticed I needed to stir it too frequently, even while cooking it on low heat. So, I transferred everything to a crockpot and let it cook. How easy is that?

This recipe relies on the natural taste of spices and the sweetness of pumpkin instead of heavy refined sugars. Most commercially prepared or online recipes, you will notice, use an inordinate amount of sugar. Not mine. You will receive the pure, natural taste of ingredients. My tasty recipe only uses minimal refined sugar. 

And, you could easily substitute unsweetened apple or white grape juice for the white and brown sugars. Of course, you can add more sugar as you like.

So....

You will need:

3 cups pumpkin, cooked and peeled

1 T. cinnamon

¼ t. nutmeg

½ t. ginger

2 t. white sugar

2 T brown sugar

Place all ingredients into a crockpot and stir thoroughly. Turn on high heat. Cook for 3-4 hours. Stir as needed.

Wasn't that easy?   Now.....
 Have you been wondering about what to do with pumpkin butter besides spreading it on your morning toast? Well....after making another tasty batch, I discovered other uses that I believe are worthy of sharing....

Use it as a topping over ice cream, muffins, rolls and croissants. 

Use it in your sandwich. Instead of traditional jelly or jam, substitute some pumpkin butter. You'll increase the nutritional value and may find the taste addicting. 

Jar some and give as gifts. Everyone loves homemade items, especially as holiday gifts. After making a batch, remove it from the heat and let it cool. Place the pumpkin butter into your favorite jar. Secure tightly. Label it and present it as a gift.

Use in recipes instead of pure pumpkin. Most baked goods recipes call for pumpkin, cinnamon and spices. That is exactly what pumpkin butter is. Save yourself the time and effort of mixing individual ingredients.

These are some ideas, and uses, that work particularly well to highlight the versatility of pumpkin butter. Can you think of any others?


Find interesting? Kindly share....

 

   

Holiday Eating Advice & Happy Thanksgiving!

It's that time of the year when I like to bring out this piece which has been around for awhile. Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving to all!



I hate aspects of this time of year. Not for its crass commercialism and forced frivolity, but because it's the season when the food police come out with their wagging fingers and annual tips on how to get through the holidays without gaining 10 pounds.

1. About those carrot sticks. Avoid them. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. Like fine single-malt scotch, it's rare. In fact, it's even rarer than single-malt scotch. You can't find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnogaholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It's later then you think. It's Christmas!

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other peoples food for free. Lots of it. Hello? Remember college?

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Years, You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.

7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa. Position yourself near them, and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. You can't leave them behind. You're not going to see them again.

8. Same for pies. Apple. Pumpkin. Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or, if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day ?

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean have some standards, mate.

10. And one final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Reread tips. Start over. But hurry! Cookieless January is just around the corner.

Heart Healthy Fruity Oatmeal

Instead of simply eating a bowl of hot oatmeal with brown sugar (or other refined sugars) for breakfast, try this variation. It is all natural, adds extra sweetness and fiber.

Serves 1.

1/2 cup whole oats (oatmeal, quick or regular cooking variety)
1 cup water
1/4 small apple, peeled and diced
1-2 Tablespoons raisins or chopped dried prunes
sprinkling of cinnamon
low fat soy milk

Place water into saucepan on stove top. Cook over medium heat until water starts to boil. Add in oats, apple and dried fruit. Stir frequently. Bring to boil. Lower heat and cook until apples are tender.

Add more water as needed.

Pour into serving bowl. Sprinkle on cinnamon. Pour milk over oatmeal.

If you don't have apple, add fresh blueberries.

Enjoy!

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Learning about Garlic & Its Byproducts

One of my students did not understand garlic and products made out of it. So, simply put...

Garlic granules is processed garlic, with no added ingredients.

Garlic powder is garlic granules processed a step further. It
contains nothing but garlic.

Garlic salt is a mixture of garlic powder and salt.

Hope this helps.

Interesting? Kindly share....

Heart Healthy Yogurt

Instead of buying those prepared and packaged fruit yogurts, try this recipe. It is quick, easy and can be altered to your preference.

1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup pineapple wedges
2-3 T pineapple juice
1/2 t flax seeds

If using canned pineapple, buy the variety in its own juice. Avoid the syrupy variety since this has a high added sugar content.

The flaxseeds provide a crunch texture, while also containing fiber.
You can adjust the amount of both pineapple and juice to suit your taste.

Curious about Tempeh?

Curious about tempeh and how to use it? Here is an easy and quick way to make a tasty meal with it. It is from my cookbook, Cooking with Soy. My students have loved this...

Tempeh Sloppy Joes

½ block of tempeh, crumbled
¼ cup onion, chopped
spaghetti sauce, your choice
¼ t garlic powder
¼ t Italian seasoning
whole grain hamburger bun or large roll cut in half

Lightly spritz a frying pan with oil, or use a nonstick pan. Place the tempeh and onions into the pan. Add garlic powder and Italian seasoning.

Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook until tempeh is brown around the edges and onions are translucent. Add spaghetti sauce. The amount of sauce will depend upon your liking.

Stir and heat thoroughly. Scoop onto the bread of your choice.

NOTE: You can make an open face sandwich out of this recipe by simply scooping the tempeh mixture onto one piece of bread.

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Mango Pudding

Sometimes, no matter what happens, people have preconceived notions about tofu. There are ways to enjoy this soy food without it overwhelming your taste buds. Here is a very easy to prepare recipe that has always been a kick in my classes:

Mango Pudding
1 medium mango, peeled and sliced
1 cup tofu, silken variety

Cut off a slice of tofu and crumble it into a measuring cup. Or, if you are not concerned about measuring (which I am not), simply crumble the tofu into a blender. Add the sliced mango.

Puree until smooth. You may want to adjust the amount of tofu to arrive at your desired pudding-like consistency.

Spoon pureed mixture into serving bowls. If desired, sprinkle with coconut. Chill prior to serving.

Option: Add a ½ teaspoon of fresh mint leaves when pureeing for a refreshing taste treat.

Recipe taken by my cookbook, Cooking With Soy.

Green Tea is Not Just For Sipping

Green tea can be enjoyed in ways other than as a beverage. An easy way to enjoy it is by adding it to your water when steaming some fish.

Place a teaspoon of green tea leaves into the water. If you don't have the leaves, open up a teabag and pour the contents into the water. Place the steamer basket in your pot. Then, add the fish. Bring to a boil and steam until done. It will only be a few minutes. Poke fish for doneness.

The green tea adds a mild sweetness to white fishes such as halibut and tilapia. Green tea steaming is good even with salmon, though not as noticeable since salmon has such a strong flavor on its own.

I have found a good alternative is to mix some green tea leaves with some chopped fresh basil. Use twice as much basil as green tea leaves. Place the basil and leaves in a flat pan. Lightly spritz the fish with some water or milk. Dip the fish into the herb tea mixture to coat. Place into the steamer and steam until done. This gives a stronger taste than the first method, but is still tasty. (In my opinion, anyways :) )

Enjoy? Kindly share with others....

Why You Need to Buy Local Organic Foods

Buying and consuming organic foods can provide benefits that noneaters may not be familiar with such as:

Obtaining true taste of foods. Pesticides cover up the actual taste benefits of food. By eating organic foods, individuals can know for sure how a certain food was intended to taste.

Help farmers. Eating organic foods aids local farmers, since a variety of the organic producers operate local farms.

Support local community. Buying from your local farmer keeps your hard earned dollars in the economy.

Know your source. By communicating with the person who grew your food, you're not supporting a faceless corporation (or commercial “organic” farm). It gives a sense of personalization in this rather impersonal world.

Sense of helping. When you purchase from your local farmer, you can feel better about helping another individual in their business.

Learn more about the food. When you buy from the party who grows your food, you can learn about “insider secrets” such as how to cook it, store it, how it was grown, and share in the passion of what it is like to know your source of food.

Eliminate middle person. By buying directly from the local organic farmer, you eliminate others shipping and handling your food. This is a great way to reduce your chances of obtaining any unwanted contaminants.

Hope this helps you choose organically grown food as part of your daily meal plan.

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Healthy Deviled Eggs

What's a party without deviled eggs? A bore, I'd say. Everyone knows that eggs are high in cholestrol. Here is a healthy and easy way to decrease both the cholesterol and fat content.

8 large eggs
2 T fat free mayo
1 T mustard
1/3 C nonfat cottage cheese
1 T lemon juice
1 t dill weed
paprika

Hard boil the eggs. Peel and cut in half. Place half of the yellow portions into a bowl with the remaining ingredients. Discard other half of yellows. Scoop mixture into egg halves and place on serving platter.

Place into refrigerator to chill prior to serving.

To remove

Red Pepper Vinaigrette

This salad dressing is nothing like your basic vinaigrette formula — but you'll soon want to use it nearly every day. The classic vinaigrette is made with 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar. As you can see, this version has no oil in it at all, making it extremely low in calories.
Once you've tried this I'm sure it'll become your basic everyday staple for salad. And you can never eat too much salad!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup apple juice
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried whole oregano
Pinches of rosemary and thyme
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 of a roasted red bell pepper

Per serving:
8 calories
0 g total fat (0 g sat)
0 mg cholesterol
2 g carbohydrate
0 g protein
0 g fiber
50 mg sodium

Reprinted from Dr. Weil's website at:

Why Organic Food?

If one is not familiar with all the benefits of organic food, they are missing out. It is not just a fad or trend. Choosing organic food over non-organic food has many advantages, including:

* Taste. This is the deciding factor for choosing organic food. Once you taste unadultered food, you won't want to go back.
* No pesticides. Many times, a non-organically grown food will have a very strong aftertaste of chemicals. It is just repulsive.
* Environmentally friendly. By not using chemically-produced pesticides, the soil is healthier for all involved.
* Less food allergies. The pesticides used on traditional agriculture crops is known to cause food allergies in a variety of people.

These are but a few of the reasons to eat organic. Yes, the products will cost more than the traditionally grown, but the alternative is well worth it.