Vegetarian Meal Plans (Simple!)

Simmer versus boil

2015-09-11T20:38:00.000-07:00

http://www.finecooking.com/item/33518/simmer-vs-boil-202-the-master-class

Garlic

2015-09-11T19:10:00.000-07:00

Garlic contains

A sulfur compound named allin and
An enzyme named allinase.

When the raw garlic is cut,

the cells are ruptured,
the enzyme alginate interacts with th4 allinase,
Changes the alginate to a new compound - allicin.

This compound gives the garlic flavor and aroma.

The strength of the garlic, gets stronger over time. Therefore, do not cut the raw garlic cloves until the last minute.

More cuts results in more cells being ruptured. Therefore, minced garlic is stronger than sliced garlic.

If the garlic is roasted, uncut, the heat breaks down the compounds and therefore, the roasted garlic is milder than garlic which is cut the sautéed or toasted.

Eggs and Pasta

2015-09-04T16:39:00.000-07:00

Yolks

contribute rich flavor

make pasta dough soft, delicate, and pliable

are the same size regardless if the egg is large or extra-large

Whites

make pasta dough more elastic and durable (especially useful for stuffed pastas)

there is more whites in extra-large eggs than large eggs (therefore, more protein)

Air Pocket

also known as 'the chick's first breath'

increases in size as the egg ages and dehydrates thus older eggs float, slosh in the shell, and aren't as heavy as fresh eggs

Some manual and websites say that it is unsafe to let the uncooked pasta be out for more than an hour. But, other sites said it is safe. So, I contacted USDA.

USDA says:

the water content in pasta is low so the bacteria can't multiple,

and the pasta will be cooked which will kill bacteria;

therefore, it can be left out to dry before refrigerated.

Flour and Pasta

2015-08-28T16:34:00.000-07:00

Components of Wheat

Parts removed when making refined flour:
Bran (the protective outer layer)
Embryo germ

Part used in refined flour:
Endosperm

Types of Wheat

1. Hard wheat, for example, durum which is

used for most dried pasta

grown in southern Italy

rich in gluten and other other pasta

yields semolina flour

is denser with more texture and bite than soft wheat

2. Soft wheat which is

used for most zero zero flour (which is powder like and contains only the endosperm)

grown in northern Italy

contain less gluten and more starch than hard wheat

Types of Pasta Dough

Durum semolina flour (from a hard wheat) plus water

Zero zero flour (from a soft wheat) plus egg yolks (usually used for noodles)

Zero zero flour plus the egg yolks and egg whites (usually used for stuffed pasta)

Adding liquid to flour

When the proteins in the flour absorb the liquid, they relax and bond with neighbor proteins. During the resting period after kneading, the liquid is released and the proteins further relax.

Types of Flour

The type and brand of flour impacts cake's texture (large versus small crumbs), tenderness (chewy versus melt-in-your-mouth), moistness (dry versus moist), and flavor.

All Purpose Flour is made from red hard winter wheat (which is 10-13% protein) or a combination of hard red winter wheat and red soft winter wheat (about 8% protein). A higher protein content results in more gluten, thus providing more structural support. A high protein content is desired for baking that includes yeast because less support can't contain the yeast gases.

If you are using all purpose flour and want cakes to be tender (melt-in-the mouth) verus being chewy, mixing methods that inhibit gluten formation tend to have the best results.

Some flour is bleached with either benzol peroxide or chlorine gas. The chlorine alters the protein so the flour forms less gluten.

America's Test Kitchen tested the following all purpose flours:
Gold Medal Enriched Bleached Presifted All-Purpose Flour
Gold Medal Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Heckers/Ceresota Unbleached Enriched Presifted All-Purpose Flour
Hodgson Mill Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
King Arthur Unbleached Enriched All-Purpose Flour
Martha White Enriched Bleached Pre-Sifted All-Purpose Flour
Pillsbury Bleached Enriched All-Purpose Flour
Pillsbury Unbleached Enriched All-Purpose Flour
White Lily Enriched Bleached Plain All-Purpose Flour
King Arthurs Unbleached Enriched All Purpose Flour

They highly recommended

King Arthurs Unbleached Enriched All Purpose Flour and

Pillsbury Unbleached Enriched All-Purpose Flour.

Self-Rising Flour

Self-rising flour contains baking powder and salt. If self-rising flour isn't available, 1 C flour plus 1 teaspoon baking powder plus 1/4 teaspoon salt = 1 cup of cake flour.

Cake Flour

is made from soft red winter wheat, which increases tenderness, is finely ground, produces a better texture(smaller crumbs), and is chlorinated (in the United States). Choloration makes the cake set sooner and thus having a btter texture, increases the starches ability to absorb water, and increases the fat's ability to stick to the starch. If cake flour isn't available, 1 cup of all purpose flour less 2 tablespoon = 1 cup cake flour.

Self-Rising Flour contains baking powder and salt. If self-rising flour isn't available, 1 C flour plus 1 teaspoon baking powder plus 1/4 teaspoon salt = 1 cup of cake flour.

Types of Pasta Dough

Durum semolina flour (from a hard wheat) plus water

Zero zero flour (from a soft wheat) plus egg yolks (usually used for noodles)

Zero zero flour plus the egg yolks and egg whites (usually used for stuffed pasta)

Meal Planning

2015-08-21T00:00:00.000-07:00

LifeHacker lists 10 mistakes that we make when shopping that causes us to spend more time or money than necessary.
The number one mistake is not having a meal plan. (others include shopping on the wrong time, shopping at the wrong store, buying the wrong things, choosing the wrong checkout line.)
Another LIfeHacker page lists three steps for creating a meal plan:

Gather recipes
Plan the week’s meal plan.
Go shopping
Plan the next day’s meal at the end of each day (start thawing, organize equipment, and ingredients)

My strategy is somewhat different.

Gather recipes: I’m trying to gather 100-150 recipes that I can tweak to keep them fresh.
Maintain a pantry of dry goods and freezer items.
Buy produce within each food group to meet the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines Committee.
Decide each day what to make,
Ensure that the protein (nuts, seeds, legumes, roasted soy beans, eggs) and dairy (milk products, excluding butter and cream) are added to either the entrée, a side dish, or salad.

I think that being a vegetarian makes it a little easier. The protein contributors – nuts, seeds, legumes, and eggs – tend to last longer than beef and are a little easier to adapt to recipes.
What is your meal planning strategy?

Cooking with Limited Time

2015-08-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

As Gordon Ramsay said, “In our busy lives, time for cooking is often limited. The solution is to choose dishes that taste great, are made from the best ingredients, and are simple in execution.”
Other strategies include:
(1) “A well-stocked pantry is essential to fast cooking. If you have most of the ingredients you need on hand, it’s easy to pick up a few items.” Gordon Ramsay
(2) “If you can prep in advance, do so.” Cat Cora
(3) “Freeze left over sauces.” David Burke
(4) “Nine times out of ten, if something goes wrong, it’s your preparation that was at fault. Get your ingredients out, prep the vegetables, have all your pans ready and in easy reach. Not only will it make your cooking more efficient, it will also make it far less stressful. “ Gordon Ramsay
(5) Clean as you go. It will make your life easier.” Cat Cora
For more information about “Cooking Like a 3-Star Chef in Your Own Home (Almost), see Mark Bittman’s article in the New York Times.
What tips do you have for cooking with limited time?

Modifying Recipes

2015-07-31T00:00:00.001-07:00

Gordon Ramsay has supplied home cooks with the following advice regarding modifying recipes:
A recipe is a guideline.
Ingredients:

Adding, subtracting, changing it is part of the pleasure.
If a particular herb isn’t to your taste, use something else.
If your not excited about a vegetable, substitute something help.
Adapting the recipe’s ingredients is completely in your hand.

Techniques:

But, the method is what really matters.
The techniques are rigorous and imperative.
The techniques are your passport to a successful results.

----
For a long time, I liked making slow cooked tomato sauces and using tomato paste. After reading April Bloomfield’s book A Girl and Her Greens, I adopted her techniques and have successfully applied it to the ingredients of other tomato sauces. Since I omitted the tomato paste in the various sauces, I thought there would be less savory-ness, but reducing the sauces seems to compensate of leaving out the tomato paste.
What changes do you make to recipes?

Popeye–the Sailor Man

2015-07-31T00:00:00.000-07:00

I have great news for ol’ Bluto, by way of "What Einstein Told His Cook 2", by Robert L. Wolke.

Popeye ate spinach to give him strength. Maybe he had read the German report that was released at the end of the 1800’s, which showed spinach as having ten times more iron than meat.

If Bluto had only known that

the decimal point was in the wrong place and that the amount of iron in spinach is only comparable to the amount in meat; and,
in raw spinach, most of the iron in spinach is in an insoluble form – ferrous oxide!

Nevertheless, spinach is a dark leafy green – one of the recommended DAGC recommended food groups and one of my favorite foods, especially Wilted Spinach with Garlic and Chilies.

What’s your favorite recipe for spinach?

For more information about spinach, see the Vegetarian Times.

Keep on cooking!

Salt

2015-07-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

Salt. Have you noticed how many different kinds of salt are on the market now, some with a every so slightly different taste – barely perceivable, sometimes nonperceivable – some with exotic names like Jurassic salt (which is from my second cousin’s family salt mines).

Salts from various seas and lands. Salts with different characteristics. Salts with different traces of minerals that impact its color and flavor.

Table Salt: The salt that I grew up on. It’s usually comes from underground mines, is refined with most of the other minerals removed, and may contain additives such as iodine and anticaking ingredients. Iodine may give it a slightly metallic taste.

Sea Salt: My go-to-salt now. It is from evaporated water. The size, shape, and mineral content of the grains may vary.

Kosher Salt: Its jagged flakes help to draw blood and liquid from raw meat --- a process called koshering --- thus its name. It can be mined or from evaporated water. Its large grains make it good for evenly sprinkling on meat, but also make it slightly slower to dissolve. So give it time to dissolve before tasting and adding more salt.

Fleur de Sel: Hand-harvested sea salt. It is scraped from surface of the water before the crystals sink.
Fleur de sel means "flower of salt" in French. The delicate crystals gently dissolve, making it a great finishing salt for recipes such as salted caramels.

Salt can also be categorized by its cut (salt flakes), purpose (pickling salt), origin (Himalayan salt).

For more information, see Food Republic.

What are your salts of choice?

Why Some European Cheeses are Illegal in the United States

2015-07-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

It’s believed that if a cheese is aged more than 60 days:

the acidity and salt in the curds is increased,
the cheese dries out, and
the undesirable bacteria cannot multiply under these conditions.

Therefore, the milk for cheese that is aged at least 60 days in the United States, does not legally have pasteurized.

If the cheese isn’t going to be a aged for at least 60 days, the raw milk is pasteurized – heated – to destroy harmful bacteria. Food and Drug Administration

However, some people believe that raw milk (not pasteurized) produces healthy and more flavorful cheese. Cheese of Choice Coalition

Thus, in Europe, a cheese may be ages less than 60 days and be made from raw milk.

This cheese cannot legally be sold in the United States.

Pareto in the Kitchen

2015-07-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

I buy most of my kitchen equipment based on America's Test Kitchen recommendations and I'm usually satisfied with the quality of the product.

The problem with my knives is the Pareto Principle, which applies to my kitchen in general.
In 1896, Italian economist Vitfredo Pareto reported that 20% of the Italians owned 80% of the land.

He later observed that 20% of the pea pods in his garden produced 80% of the peas. Since then, this observation - that 20% produces 80% of the results – has become known as the Pareto principles.

I think that 20% of my kitchen equipment produces 80% of the results.

Things I don’t use include

Most of my knifes. I have a complete set plus, but only use a paring knife, chef knife, and serrated steak knife.
Skillets - I use only the T-Fal Jumbo and electric skillets.
Multiple, wooden, silicon spoons, spatulas, and tongs: I use my 8” slotted silicon spatula, 9” OXO serving spoon, and OXO 9” tongs with silicon tips for stirring, turning, and serving.
Roasting pans
Etc.

Some of the excess is due to

no longer making things that I used to make
buying more than I needed
better products introduced to the market

Does the Pareto Principle apply to your kitchen. Do you tend to use the same item for multiple tasks instead of specialty items?

Keep on cooking!

Sauté Pans and Skillets

2015-06-26T00:00:00.001-07:00

America's Test Kitchen lists a large skillet as one of the top essential kitchen equipment and the most important pan in the kitchen. It certainly is in our kitchen. We use it to sauté vegetables, make sauces, and to make risotto pasta.

Last year, it was time to buy a new skillet (a pan with slopped sides that allows for evaporation) or sauté pan (a pan with straight sides that are usually higher than those of a skillet). My electric skillet has a none detachable pan and is too awkward for day-to-day use and the non-stick finish was wearing off my everyday pan.

So I researched the factors to consider when buying a pan:

A stainless still with an aluminum core (tri-ply or clad pan) or with an aluminum disc improves the heat distribution and browning. If the bottom is to thin, it will rapidly overheat. If it is too thick, it will take too long to cool down,
Flared sides speed evaporation and reduces steaming.
High sides prevent splatters, but they should be low enough to use tongs
A tight-fitting lid for when evaporation isn’t needed
Generally, a wider pan is preferable to a taller pan because the food can be cooked in less batches.
A helper handle that is opposite the normal handle to help balance it when moving it.
Can be placed in the oven for part of the cooking or warming process.

We decided we might want a stainless steel pan to develop a fond and we chose the recommended (by America's Test Kitchen) All Clad 3 1/2 quart sauté pan.

It turned out that for our vegetarian recipes developing a fond wasn’t a priority and that when cooking in batches, it built up and caused burning.

Nonstick coatings differences include ingredients, how it is applied, how it is cured, and how many coats are applied. But, none of the brands sell a pan with a permanent coating. The minute we start cooking, it begins to wear away. High heat, cooking sprays, scrubbing with abrasives, and putting it in the dishwasher all speed up the process.

In addition to the coating, nonstick pans also vary according to how easy it is to handle, how wide the bottom is (that is the bottoms of all 12" pans aren't the same size), the size of the handle.

So we researched nonstick pans. Since none of the nonstick material is permanent, it wasn’t cost-efficient to chose an expense pan and we chose the 12" T-Fal recommended by America's Test Kitchen.

Unfortunately, it's sides weren't high enough to sauté large quantities of spinach or to make our sauces. But, other than that, I liked it.

So, we purchased the T-Fal 5 quart jumbo cooker and have used it almost every day since.

Do you have a favorite pan?
Keep on cooking

Eating a Vegetarian Diet: 3 Things to Know

2015-06-19T00:00:00.001-07:00

It’s really not that hard, anymore, to eat a vegetarian diet.

It’s no longer necessary to balance amino acids, vitamins, and minerals.

In 2003, the position paper¹ of the American Dietetics Association and Dietitians of Canada stated that a vegetarian diet can be healthy, but that menu planning could be simpliﬁed with a food guide that speciﬁes food groups and serving sizes.

In 2010 and 2015, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee provided the a vegetarian guide (pattern) that specifies food groups and serving sizes, making it unnecessary to balance micronutrients.

However, food patterns and health aren’t the whole story.

There is a Sufi tale about a man being pursued by a thief. He leapt over a brick wall. On the other side of the wall, a bystander said, “That was a close call. The thief almost caught you” The man replied, “What thief? I’m running to met my beloved!”

That’s the other part of the story.

As discussed by Rene Redzeip² and Adam Sachs³ in the December 12, 2003 issue of Bon Appetit:

The reason we should eat our vegetables isn’t because they’re better for us.
We should eat them because they are delicious.
“The dimension of flavors you find in roots and fruits and berries and mushrooms, it’s just so much more diverse and exciting than the three or four animals we eat all the time.”

There’s only three things to learn:

To use the correct equipment
To use correct ingredients – vegetable, herbs, etc..
To use the correct technique, including knowing how long to cook it

And, that’s why it’s not that hard, anymore, to eat a vegetarian diet.

Keep on cooking!
___________________________________________________________________
¹Journal of the American Dietetic Association. “Position of the American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada: Vegetarian Diets, 2003 June; 103 (6); 748-65.
²of Noma which was named as the world’s best restaurant
³contributing editor of Bon Appetit

Price Books

2015-06-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

I am amazed at the range of prices at items at the different stores. For example, Hunts whole tomatoes have been consistently less expensive at my local Target stores versus Safeway (even when they are on sale at Safeway. So, whenever I go to Target, I replenish my supple of tomatoes.
One method to help identify which is the least expensive store and when a sales price is really the least expensive price, is to keep a “price book”, which tracks the prices per date at the various stores.

It can be either an electronic record (in Word, Excel, etc.) or kept in a notebook binder.
I keep mine in a three-leaf binder as follows:
Each item has it’s own page.
The pages are kept in alphabetical order.
Sometimes, I record the information at the store.
At other times, I copy the information from the receipt after I return home.
At first it takes time to set up, but after that there is less maintenance.

The following is an example of a price book page:

Tomatoes - Hunts Whole Plum – 28 oz

Date	Store	Brand	Price
April 28, 2015	Safeway	Hunts	2.99
Everyday price	Target	Hunts	1.99
April 28, 2015	Target	Hunts	1.79

For more information about price books, see the following websites:

Do you have any tips for keeping a price book?

Keep on cooking.

Why British Eggs Are Illegal in the United States

2015-06-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

School’s out.

A great time to take vacations and many Americans head out for parks, islands, Europe . . .
When they return, what do they bring home with them? If they are like our friends and families, they bring home with them the stories of the food where they visited . . . the ingredients, the freshness, preparation techniques and, if they visited Europe, the story of the egg.

The average European hens, like American hens, lays about 260 eggs during her lifetime. Her eggs, like those of an American hen, have a shell, whites of the egg, yolk, thread that attaches the yolk, and the air pocket with the chicks first gasp. The yolk, like American yolks, reflect what the hen eats. Until they leave the hen, the eggs are not unlike American eggs.

Then the story diverges.

In Europe, eggs sold in the supermarket must not be washed or refrigerated, about about 90% of the hens are vaccinated against salmonella. The reasoning behind this is
It encourages farmers to produce clean eggs, because no one will buy dirty eggs.
Careless washing in dirty could increase the pathogens.
Washing in cold water causes the contents of the shell to contract and pull the pathogens into the egg.
Washing removes the cuticle (also known as bloom). Before an egg is laid, the hen coats with the cuticle. The cuticle prevents moisture and carbon dioxide loss; therefore, slows the degradation of the egg quality. It also contains antimicrobial properties which protect the egg from pathogens.
Refrigeration could cause the egg to sweat on the way between the supermarket and the consumers home. This condensation could provide a pathogen habitat.
The vaccine is to prevent salmonella from entering the egg before the egg is laid.

In the United States, the egg is washed, is refrigerated, and only about a third of the hens are vaccinated.

USDA believes that no matter how careful the farmer is, a percentage of eggs will pick up matter such as manure.
Feces on the shell pose food-safety hazards.
There’s a possibility of micro-organisms passing through the porous shell and contaminating its contents.
So the USDA requires farmers to sanitize (wash and dry) their eggs. Drying is essential because a moist surface provides a habitat for pathogens and allows them to pass through the shell.
Refrigeration prevents the growth of the salmonella.

For more information, see the Forbes, October 12, 2012 article.

Either way 1 egg is equal to 1 ounce of the protein food group.

Keep on cooking!

Smokin hot! - The Views of 3 Chefs

2015-05-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

(1) “Always start with a smokin’ hot pan” Cat Cora

(2) “The two things I notice home cooks don't use confidently enough are heat and seasoning. Get your pans properly hot before adding your ingredients and don’t be afraid to get a good colour on meat and sometimes vegetables, as this will translate into extra flavor.” Gordon Ramsay

(3) “I have talked to scores of chefs over the years about this issue, and most agree that the most beneficial home cooks could make would be to preheat skillets before beginning to cook in them. Even if you have a propane stove, if you rest an empty skillet above a medium flame for a couple of minutes before adding oil, butter or the steak you’re preparing, you will begin to sauté and pan-grill like a champ.

“High oven heat is almost as important, as in using the oven more frequently, even in preparing dishes that are not roasted. An oven set at 450 or 500 degrees can help you get food off the stovetop while you continue to brown it.

“This has a couple of advantages.
First, it can compensate for the lack of an exhaust fan, which mean you can brown fish or meat in the house without setting off the smoke detector.
It also means you can gain room on top of the stove.
And, finally, if you equip your oven with a pizza stone or ceramic cooking tiles, you can produce the kind of strong, even bottom heat that chefs gain by putting their skillets directly on the floor of their ovens.” Mark Bateman

"Low temperatures dry out and concentrate flavor; high temperatures produce a brown, flavorful surface enclosing a moist interior." Harold McGee.

----

Some pots and pans aren't supposed to be heated empty or to high temperatures. So, I’ve always roasted vegetables at 350 to 4245 degrees. But, after reading the above and other chefs, I decided to preheat the oven and crank the heat up to 500 degrees.

I oiled a flat rimmed baking sheet and placed it into the oven to preheat before adding the vegetables. When I opened the oven door, smoke billowed out.

Next, I placed the pan in the oven without oil, let it preheat, then added oil when I placed the vegetables on the pan. The vegetables came out nicely caramelized.

I placed a second flat sheet in the oven, on top of a pizza stone and roasted two pans of vegetables at the same time. Both batches came out caramelized.

From now on, I plan to roast vegetables at 500 and to account for density by staggering when I put the vegetables into the oven (carrots for 20 minutes, then asparagus and Brussels Sprouts added 10 minutes later.)

I've also started heating empty stove top pans for sauntering .... I'll see how it goes :)

Keep on cooking!

Leftovers - Worse or Better

2015-05-22T00:00:00.000-07:00

Some of our leftovers lose their flavor, become, wilted, or mushy. Other leftovers improve.
Gizmodo describes some of the things that can go wrong:

Proteins can relax and release elements, such as iron, that create a “cardboard”.
Water that is inside ingredients, such as the vegetables, is released and turns the food soggy.
Enzymes turn food rancid, bitter, and slimy.

On the other hand, as Forbes describes, leftovers can taste better than the fresh:

When the dish includes multiple aromatic ingredients (such as onions, garlic, peppers, and herbs), the flavors mellow and mingle.
Reheating breaks down protein which then release umami compounds (such as those found in mushrooms and tomatoes) and increasing the savory-ness.
The gelatin between protein cells is released, causing the sauce to thicken.

The following recipes make good leftovers and help to meet the recommended requirements for the red/orange food group:

Tomato Sauce with Adobe
Tomato Sauce with Red Wine
Tomato Sauce with Red Pepper Flakes

Happy eating! Keep on cooking!

8 Reasons Why I Use Paprika

2015-05-15T00:00:00.000-07:00

I have stored recipes and meal plans on scraps of paper in drawers or binders, on notecards, in magazines, books, recipe manger applications and other databases.

To date, my favorite application is Paprika Recipe Manager. The downside of the application is that a fee must be purchased for each type of device.

Device	Price per Paprika Website
IPhone	$4.99
IPad	4.99
Android	4.99
Kindle Fire	4.99
Nook Color	4.99
MAC	19.99
Windows	19.99

1 Exporting and Syncing Files

Of course, the upside is that the recipes, shopping lists, and meal plans can be seamlessly synced between each of the devices and backed up in the the Paprika Cloud.
Paprika also allows the user to email, print, or copy and paste the recipes and shopping list to another program.
It also allows the user to export the recipes as an html file that can be read by and downloaded to recipe managers such as Paprika.

2 Adding Recipes

Paprika automatically recognizes sites that adhere to hrecipe or microdata specifications and recipes can be downloaded from those sites. Recipes can also be copied and pasted or typed into Paprika. Although I haven’t tested it, Paprika has been reported to work well with up to 50,000 recipes.

3 Locating Recipes on the Internet

An integrated browser can be used to search for recipes. Also, the program includes links to a multitude of recommended websites (such as Bon Appitit, Martha Stewart, and Jamie Oliver.com).

4 Input Fields

The pre-created input fields include the name of the recipe, list of ingredients, directions, photograph, number of servings, difficulty level, preparation time, cooking time, ranking of 0 to 5 stars, flagging as a favorite recipe, source of the recipe (text), URL source of the recipe, notes, and nutritional information. The user can also create categories; for example, I categorize my recipes by chef, source such as book or magazine, main ingredients, and type of cuisine.

5 Locating Recipes

After a recipe has been entered, it can be pulled up by name, one of categories, ingredients, source, favorite, top ratings, and most recently used.

6 Using the Recipe

The recipe includes timers which can be paused or reset, and which beep when the designated amount of time has elapsed.

A convertor box, which coverts metric and US weights, volume, and temperature (Celsius to Fahrenheit).

It also includes a scale that converts the listed ingredients to as little as 1/6 or to as great as 100 3/4 times the original amount,

Ingredients can can temporarily crossed off the list (for example, as they are added to the mixture).

7 Shopping Cart

The ingredients of a recipe can be automatically added to the shopping list.

A pantry list and other items can be added to the shopping list.

The shopping list can be sorted according to store aisle, to purchase, or already purchased. Items can also be temporarily crossed off the lists.

8 Meal Planning

The software includes a calendar which can be accessed by date or month.

For each date, the field breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, or notes can be selected. The name of a recipe can be entered or a link to the recipe (within Paprika) can be entered.

For more information, LifeHackers Review of Recipe Management Programs.

Keep on cooking.

Harvard University’s Healthy Eating Plate

2015-05-08T00:00:00.001-07:00

Source of graphic: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-eating-plate-vs-usda-myplate/

Comparison of Harvard's Plate and Food Patterns of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee:

Harvard recommends 1 to 2 servings of dairy per day.

The Mediterranean Food Pattern includes 2 cups of dairy per day for adults.

The US Food Pattern and the Vegetarian Food Pattern (in the "Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Committee) include 3 cups of dairy per day.

Harvard’s explanation for their dairy recommendation:

The Healthy Eating Plate encourages consumers to drink water, since it’s naturally calorie free, or to try coffee and tea (with little or no sugar), which are also great calorie-free alternatives.

It recommends limiting milk and dairy to one to two servings per day, since high intakes are associated with increased risk of prostate cancer and possibly ovarian cancer;

MyPlate recommends dairy at every meal, even though there is little if any evidence that high dairy intakes protect against osteoporosis, and there is considerable evidence that too-high intakes can be harmful.

Regarding full-fat dairy, Walter Willett of Harvard School of Public Health, elaborates:

"In current US guidelines, the need for high intake of dairy products is overstated, in part because the requirements for calcium have been overstated. I think one or two servings a day (about 250 to 500 grams of milk) will provide adequate calcium, and with this level it is fine to be full fat.".

Note: 250 to 500 grams of milk equals 1 to 2 cups of milk.

For more information on this topic, see Harvard Nutrition Source website.

Keep on cooking.

Scientific Report of the Dietary Advisory Committee, 2015

2015-05-01T00:00:00.001-07:00

Source of clip art: MyPate.gov

In January 2015, the "Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Advisory Committee" was released.( see Note 1)
The report (Part D, Chapter 2) restates findings of the 2010 committee, including the following statements:

Prior to 2010, the DGAC focused on specific nutrients, foods, and their relationship to health outcomes.
When consumed in the recommended amounts, the food groups provide important nutrients.
However, it is not possible to separate the effects of individual nutrients and foods. (Nutrients are interdependent and the presence or absence of one impacts the absorption, metabolism, and excretion of another. For example, at the level typical of a healthy diet, antioxidants act like antioxidants; but at typical supplemental doses, they may act as pro-oxidants, stimulating free radical production, altering metabolism, and creating disease. It is clear that we do not know the identity and action of every chemical in food.)
Although they do not meet the goals for potassium and Vitamin D and may not meet the goals for choline and vitamin E, a healthy diet can be achieved by any of the following dietary patterns:

US Food Pattern (Table D1.10, page 100)

The Mediterranean Pattern (Table A2) compared to the US Food Pattern has

more fruit
less diary
more seafood

The Vegetarian Food Pattern (Table A1) compared to the US Food Pattern has

less ounces in the protein food group
more legumes
more nuts, seeds, and soy products
no meat, including no seafood.

Purdue University Nutrition Department: Quiz Regarding Vegetarian Diets

Keep on cooking.
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Note 1: Every five years, US Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture appoints a Dietary Advisory Committee, which consists of nationally recognized nutrition and health experts. The committee releases a report that is based on scientific evidence and which used for national policies including food programs and consumer information such as My Plate and Dietary Guidelines for Americans

Oscars of the Food World

2015-04-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

The Oscars of the food world, the James Beard Awards, are announced on two dates - the first of which begins in a few hours.
The first to be announced, today (April 24th) are

Book
Broadcast
Journalism

Those to be announced on May 4th are

American Classics
Humanities
Leadership
Lifetime
Restaurant and Chef
Restaurant Design and Graphics
Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America

Vegetable Focused and Vegetarian is a subcategory of the Book.

In 2013, the nominees were

Morgan, Diane. Roots: The Definitive Compendium with More than 225 Recipes. (Winner)

Natkin, Michael. Herbivorcious: A flavor Revolution with 150 Vibrant and Original Vegetarian Recipes.

Wong, Tama Matsuoka and Eddy Leroux. Forage Flavor: Find Fabulous Ingredients in Your Backyard or Farmer’s Market.

In 2014, the nominees were

Copeland, Sarah. Feast: Generous Vegetarian Meals for Any Eater and Every Appetite.

Fearnley-Whittingstall, Hugh. River Cottage Veg.

Madison, Deborah. Vegetable Literacy. (Winner)

On March 24th, the 2015 nominees were announced:

**WINNER! Chaplin, Amy. At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen: Celebrating the Art of Eating Well. **

Ottolenghi, Yotam. Plenty More: Vegetable Cooking from London’s Ottolenghi.

Scarbrough, Mark and Bruce Weinstein. Vegetarian Dinner Parties: 150 Meatless Meals Good Enough to Serve to Company.

Winners will be announced on April 24, 2015.

Keep on cooking.

Missing: The Asparagus Tale

2015-04-17T00:00:00.002-07:00

The Various Varieties of Vegetables infographics includes over 400 vegetables. Of them, how many does my family routinely eat?

Fifteen.

Dark Green: Broccoli, Spinach
Red/Yellow: Carrots, Tomatoes
Starchy: Corn, Peas, Potatoes
Legumes: Kidney Beans, Roasted Soybeans
Other: Artichokes, Asparagus, Brussels Sprouts, Garlic, Mushrooms, Onions

Needless to say, we notice when one goes missing. And this week, it was asparagus.

In California, asparagus is in season from February through April. In Michigan from May through June.

However, this year, we found more imported than California-grown asparagus.

According to the Huffington Post

Asparagus crops are labor-intensive. It grows about 9' every 24 hours. If the growth isn’t cut, it turns into an inedible fern. Therefore, each plant, must hand cut about every 24 hours --- nipped in the bud.
In California, the drought increased the cost of water.
Meanwhile, due to the 1990’s North American Free Trade Agreement and the Andean Trade Preference Act, which removed tariffs on Latin American asparagus, American asparagus is competing with foreign crops.
The amount of US land used to grow asparagus has decreased by 61% – from 66,000 to 25,800 acres.

When I lived on Romar Street, in Chatsworth, California, wild asparagus grew in the field across the street. Can someone please let me know if it is still there?

We’d like to try Alton Brown’s recipe for roasted asparagus with nutmeg.

Thank you for reading. Keep on cooking.

Resources for Nutrition Information

2015-04-10T00:00:00.000-07:00

One of the bounties of a good class is receiving a list of reliable resources. Dr. Kersten provided the following list of resources for nutrition information:

PubMed Health - US Public Library of Medicine

MedlinePlus: A service of the US Public Library of Medicine

British Nutrition Foundation

Harvard University

American Diabetes Association

American Heart Assocation

Waageningen University students in the BSc and MSc Nutrition and Health courses use the following books:

Whitney, Eleanor and Sharon Rulfus. Understanding Nutrition

Since receiving the book, we have new questions and wish that we had it during the class. We will probably repeat the class next time it is offered.

Bender, David A. Introduction to Nutrition and Metabolism.

Bloen, Martin and Richard Semba, Nutrition and Health in Developing Countries

Burk, Louise and Vicki Deakin. Clinical Sports Nutrition

Gleeson, Michael and Asker Jeukendrupt. Sports Nutrition.

Gropper, Sareen and Jack Smith. Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism.

Raats, M. and R. Shephard. The Psychology of Food Choices.

Unglaubsilverton, Dee. Human Physiology.

Webb, Penny and Chris Bain. Essential Epidemology.

Purdue University Department of Nutrition: Quiz Regarding Food Allergies

Keep on cooking :)

MOOC

2015-04-03T00:00:00.000-07:00

Nutr 101 from Wageningen University was on of the top ten most popular MOOC classes in January 2015. Finding information on the internet can be a little like selecting fast food. It can look good, be fun, but still be so wrong.

Luckily, the internet also provides MOOC (Mass Online Open Classes) classes from top universities.
Dr. Sander Kersten, Wageningen University, offers Nutr 101, one of the ten most popular MOOC classes.

His current research interests include 1) lipid regulation of gene expression, emphasizing the role of PPARs and other nuclear hormone receptors, 2) functional roles of specific proteins in lipid metabolism, and 3) the relationship between lipid metabolism and immunity.

Other universities also offer MOOC classes and post lectures on YouTube.

Does Coursera, Edx, or another site offer a university MOOC class that interests you?

Keep on cooking!

Nutrition Jargon

2015-03-27T00:00:00.000-07:00

MyPyramind, MyPlate, Dash, Mediterranean, USDA Food Pattern, Vegetarian, Vegan, Paleo, food pattern, diets to lose weight
Organic, local, natural, pesticide free, gluten-free
GMO, natural, processed
Canned, frozen, processed fresh, seasonal
Cage free, range free
Pasture fed, grass fed, certified humane
Antibiotic free, hormone free, growth hormones, probiotic, prebiotic,
Wheat, whole wheat, whole grain, refined carbohydrates
Heart-check
Low-sodium
Phytochemicals, flavonoids
Cholesterol, trans-fat, low fat, reduced fat, fat free, LDL, HDL, VLDL, saturated fat, monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, omega-6, omega-3, essential fatty acids, DHA
Whole grain, fortified, enriched, supplements, free radical, antioxidant, pro-oxidant,
Sugar, honey, stevia, sugar-free, artificial sugar, added sugar
Bison, beef, poultry, turkey
Wild salmon, farmed salmon, Atlantic salmon, Pacific Alaska salmon, tuna

My word there is a lot of nutritional jargon!

Take the quiz: What Do You Know About Nutrition Quiz, Huffington Post

And, keep on cooking!