theredstove

chocolate school

All schools should be chocolate schools, but until that sweet day comes you could move to France and attend Valrohna's Ecole Grand Chocolat. If thats too far, you could take a class from Mary Loomas, she attended Ecole Grand Chocolat. Her Saratoga, California shop,  Saratoga Chocolates, also sells chocolates on-line. Just one box and you will be planning a trip to Saratoga....FRESH CHOCOLATE!

3 food tips

If you are cooking for your family and friends this holiday season, these three tips will keep them healthy.

 

1. Measure the temperature of cooked meats with a accurate meat thermometer. A list of recommended temperatures is provided here .
2. Measure the temperature of the refrigerator and freezer you will be storing food in. The fridge should be 40 degrees Fahrenheit or colder. The freezer should be 0 degrees Fahrenheit or lower.
3. The most obvious...wash your hands. Don't just wipe them on your clothes, soap and water still is the only way to go.

pear for two

The high dynamic range (hdr) photo of this pear tells nothing about how it tasted. It was great.

This recipe would make a romantic desert for two

Pears for Two

POW pomegranate juice...1 ea. 16 bottle
Pear ripe sliced...2 ea.
Vanilla ice cream best quality...2 big scoops
Honey...1 tablespoon

• Place pomegranate juice and honey in a sauce pan and heat slowly until the liquid is reduced to a syrup. It will coat the back of a spoon.
• Place the pears into wine or margarita glasses or whatever looks cool to you.
• Put the ice cream on top of the peaches and drizzle the pomegranate syrup on top of the cream.
• Garnish with a sprig of mint.

nuts

The Journal of the American College of Cardiology has just put out a study on walnuts. Test done at the University of Barcelona's Hospital Clínico have shown that a handful of walnuts, taken before meals high in saturated fat, prevent the saturated fats from harming  the arteries. Emilio Ros, MD, PhD, director of the Lipid Clinic at Hospital Clínico in Barcelona, Spain adds this,

Each time we eat a high-fat meal, the fat molecules trigger an inflammatory reaction that, among other ill effects, reduces the elasticity of the arteries. Over time, this repeated damage is thought to contribute to hardening of the arteries and, in turn, to heart disease. Our latest research shows that eating walnuts helps to maintain the elasticity of the arteries.

flake or puff

How do you like your breakfast cereal, puffed or flaked? If you are into nutrition, the Journal of Food Chemistry's report shows that flakes make a more nutritious meal. It has to do with heating sugars and amino acids. Heat produces the golden brown quality in cereals, to much heat inhibits the availability of nutrients for the body. Puffed cereals require more heat to manufacture than their flaked counterparts.

FIRE!

National Fire Protection Association's Fire Prevention week  is October 8-14. Not so lucky for us food lovers, the kitchen is the most likely place in the home to catch fire. Things to think about in terms of fire safety:

• Change to new models of smoke detectors every 10 years. Check the battery twice a year.
• Buy and learn how to use a small fire extinguishers.
• Watch what you cook. You knew that, right?

 

hi-def super food

Seems like every week a new study comes out on how great the pomegranate is. The studies are right. Vanderbilt University Medical Center just found that people who drink pomegranate juice, three or more times a week, are at a 76 percent less likely to show sings of Alzheimer's disease than those who only had the juice once a week. My study found it also taste good.

cup of relief

Black tea may relieve stress. The University College of London has found that drinking black tea brings down levels of the stress hormone, cortisol. This substance is produced in the adrenal gland and effects these functions:

• Immune system processes
• Glucose metabolism
• Blood pressure
• Insulin release for blood sugar control
• Inflammatory response

University College claims more research needs to take place before any definitive statements can be made, on black tea as a stress cure.

picky eats

Picky Eating Adults is a site for people who are...well,  picky eaters. It a growing problem that may have roots in obsessive compulsive disorder(ocd). Sings you may be an adult picky eater:

• Fear of eating at someone else's home.
• Love of bland foods.
• Only eating meats and cheese thinly sliced.

life changing potatoes?

Potatoes often go bad because of light exposure. This is called greening, and it makes for a bitter spud. Mountainking  potatoes have come up with a new bag that provides air circulation and light protection all in one package. Flavor Fresh is what they call this technology. It works. This is not earth changing news,  just a small improvement for a simple and tasty food.