Asian countries have a long and rich culinary tradition. Throughout the vast continent, it is possible to see all manner of ingredients and tastes. There is something unmistakably delicious about certain foods and flavors that capture the imagination of any cook. Dishes from Asian countries often satisfy the appetite without an uncomfortable feeling of fullness that one often finds in Western cuisine.

Every country in the continent has its own unique perspective on Asian cooking. Though the customs from different regions can seem quite different, their commonality is unmistakable. Those who would like to add some of this exquisite experience to their own dining can start by incorporating some of the most important ingredients from Asian cooking into their own kitchen.

Asian Staples

There are a few elements found repeatedly in Asian cooking that are essential to capturing the essence of the cuisine.

• Most dishes include rice, because it is the main crop of many Asian countries and is used in almost every capacity. Not only steamed rice, but rice paper and noodles can be included in a meal.
  
• Tofu is often used in vegetarian meals, because it is high in protein. It is used heavily in regions with a tradition of Buddhism.
  
• Sauces are important to flavor rice and stir-fry. Soy sauce, oyster sauce, black bean sauce, and fish sauces are easy to keep on hand.
  
• Tea is not only good for the body; it is the perfect accompaniment to Asian cuisine.

There is no doubt that recent times have seen families tighten their purse strings when it comes to luxury items, and many manufacturers have struggled to maintain sales in this sector. One brand in the UK however, has seen sales grow 12% year on year despite the high ticket price for their top-end range cooking products.

Britannia Living, based in Blackpool, Lancashire, have been the leading range cooker specialist in the UK for over a decade. They offer a selection of contemporary, modern, traditional and classic cookers, and matching cooker hoods and splashbacks.

The range topping models from Britannia are the Sigma and the newer XG cookers. The Sigma is available in a choice of cream, gloss black or stainless steel. This model is a more modern style and should match any kitchen but for the more traditional.

It comes with flame failure devices for safety, meaning that the gas will cut out if the flame is blown out for any reason. The triple glazed doors means that the ovens can be touched even when cooking at high temperatures. Other feature include an electronic programmer, a storage drawer and both ovens are A rated for efficiency.

The newer XG range cooker includes a seperate grill compartment to offer solo grilling without having to use the main oven. This saves energy and makes it easier to clean when you just use the one smaller compartment. This also features flame failure device, stay clean oven liners, A-rated multifunction and a rotisserie. The XG range now includes a 110cm range cooker with Chef Top.

All have a 2 year parts and labour guarantee as standard.

Combination toaster ovens are small electric ovens usually with a door on one side and a tray that slides out. Combination toasters are capable of performing most of electric ovens albeit on a smaller scale. Combo Toasters are toaster ovens infused with several cooking functions usually done by other appliances.

Piling up on the numerous kitchen appliances with different cooking functions can take up too much space. Save premium countertop space with the Hamilton Beach Black Toastation Toaster/Toaster Oven. An extra-wide slot on top function as the pop up toaster, it fits two slices of bread or two halves of a bagel. The oven is spacious enough to accommodate two large pizza slices or two 5-inch personal pizzas. Switching from toaster to oven toaster mode is easy. It only takes the slide of a lever to open or seal the toaster slot, trapping heat for a greater baking performance. The Toastation Toaster comes with a ready signal and an automatic toaster shut off for delicate jams and sauces. A temperature control selector is added for better temperature control. The shade selector is located in front with range of toast shades. The pushdown lever for the toaster is located conveniently at the side. The Toastation Toaster comes with stylish metallic accents and has a compact shape that fits just right on any countertop.

From the legendary boxer George Foreman's line of healthy cooking appliances comes the George Foreman 8 in 1 Toaster Oven/Broiler - GRV660. This combo oven toaster features a large and spacious interior able to accommodate six slices of toast or a whole pie. It has a healthy rotisserie roasting option; pork and chicken meats turn out crispy and evenly brown on the outside and tender, moist and flavorful inside. Grill bacon, sausages, burgers and hotdogs on the healthy grill because the fat drips away. Make pancakes and waffles on the versatile griddle while saving time and energy.

The George Foreman 8 in 1 Toaster Oven comes with a thirty minute timer with auto shut off for accurate cooking time. Cleaning this combo toaster oven is a breeze, a slide out crumb tray stores the crumbs and fat so they can be disposed of easily. Every unit of the George Foreman 8 in 1 Toaster Oven includes two reversible racks, rotisserie spit & holder, a baking pan and two bonus cookie sheets. A bun warmer on top of the unit is included.

With the fast-paced life we have today, only a few people have the luxury to whip up a complete breakfast everyday. Well, the Sunpentown 4-in-1 Breakfast Maker is here to give us that luxury back.

This combo oven toaster combines all the breakfast making necessities. This compact appliance is perfect for students and working people with a limited kitchen space. The coffee maker is capable of brewing up to 6 cups. You can fry bacon or egg in the non-stick frying pan. You can steam vegetables and fish in the steamer. The toaster is equipped with 15-minute timer for accurate cooking time, convenient switches and a heat resistant glass. Every unit of the Sunpentown 4 -in-1 Breakfast maker comes with a reusable coffee filter, a baking rack, baking tray and a steam rack.

There are numerous combinations of cooking functions in combo oven toasters. Buyers are now able to choose from a large variety of models according to their needs, available space and budgets.

If you like authentic, delicious food then you might want to learn how to prepare Middle Eastern Recipes at home.

Why? Because the only way of experiencing high quality and tasty Middle Eastern food is by preparing it at home. Of course you can eat Middle Eastern food at restaurants or get it at grocery stores, but you will be missing the freshness and the unique taste of home cooking.

The special taste of Middle Eastern foods is what happens when ingredients like olive oil, garlic, eastern spices and fresh vegetables are combined together. Also, Middle Eastern foods contain nutritional properties that contribute to your health and well-being.

One of the main reasons that people from the Middle East are known for being in excellent physical condition is the traditional food they have been eating for generations. You can also enjoy preparing and eating high quality Middle Eastern food, but do be gentle and mindful while preparing this food, so that you receive the full benefits of Middle Eastern cooking.

Don’t be pressured for time when cooking this type of food - if you are, prepare something else. On the other hand, you don’t really need to spend hours on cooking – actually, most of the recipes take no more than 10-30 minutes to prepare.

While Middle Eastern cooking in basically simple and easy, it is in no way limited to only one style. There are a huge variety of Middle Eastern foods, including many different kinds of pickles, salads, dips, breads, soups, meats and much more. The Middle Eastern kitchen is a rich world of colors, tastes and shapes that attracts people from around the world

Middle Eastern cuisine is not only famous for its unique and authentic taste, it may also play a role as a bridge between Israelis and Arabs, who share common culinary experience. While Israelis and Arabs often find it hard to agree on the same point of view on political issues, they usually share positive feelings when sitting together around a table with falafel and pickles.

If you want to discover the secrets of the Middle Eastern kitchen, go to :
and get all the information you need for preparing top quality Middle Eastern food at home.

Has your child ever asked you to make a Or a for their next birthday?

When I first started baking and decorating my kids birthday cakes, the variety of decorating tools I could buy seemed endless. And there was so much advice out there on cake decorating! It was a whole new world to me. Still, I reined in my impulsive nature to buy everything I thought I needed, and purchased some basic tools.

It is these basics which have 'stood by me' in my quest for decorating those colourful creations and my kids ask for each year on their birthdays.

In addition to these ideas, I've added some helpful suggestions for decorating kids' novelty birthday cakes - some of which were given to me freely from others whilst a few goodies were borne from my own mistakes...

Cake Decorating Equipment:

You don't necessarily need elaborate equipment but you will need some basic supplies. You can purchase most of the following supplies at specialty baking shops or even your local supermarket. They are indispensable for baking and decorating any novelty birthday cake your child might dream up.

Rubber Spatulas:

It's good to have a set of assorted sizes that are made of flexible rubber. They're the best tool for scraping frosting from the sides of bowls.

Metal Spatulas:

Have at least one large and one small angled spatula for spreading and smoothing frosting. Avoid your cake crumbling by using a small metal spatula to gently ice the cake with a very thin layer of frosting before adding the 'real' layer. This process is called 'crumb coating'.

Piping Bags:

Reusable 8", 12" and 18" bags with plastic coating on the inside for easy cleaning. Clear plastic disposable zip-lock bags are great for small jobs.

Coupling Nozzles:

These nozzles are essential because they allow you to change your tips according to the design. They can also act as a very large round writing tip for piping figures.

Gel, Powder or Paste Food colouring:

These are preferable to liquid food colouring because they are more concentrated and will not thin down the frosting.

Tips:

1. Have all ingredients at room temperature.

2. Use an electric mixer when beating the cake mixture. You've more chance of eliminating bumps in the pre-cooked cake mixture.

3. Wire Cake Racks are essential for cooling and inverting cakes.

4. Trim baked cake so it sits flat. Use the smooth base as the top of the finished cake and decorate with icing.

5. To stop crumbling, bake the cake the day before you need to decorate it and put it in the freezer. Decorate while still cold.

6. Cake boards are quite cheap to pick up from cake decorating shops. Or you can cover a large piece of cardboard (cut from a box) with coloured foil.

7. Butter Cream Icing is great for decorating cakes. The only thing I have found with butter cream icing is that when you add colouring, a pastel colour is the only colour it will go to. This is because of the fat in the butter. If you want a darker colour, you have three options:

Use plain icing sugar and water then add colouring;

replace the butter in the butter cream icing recipe with vegetable shortening or;

add black coloured powder to your icing mixture - it will deepen the colour.

8. Cut strips of waxed paper to slip underneath the edges of your unfrosted birthday cake. When finished, you can pull them away and you won't smear the cake board.

Good luck with baking and decorating your next masterpiece - a unique birthday cake your kids will be proud of!

You may be used to putting a knob of butter or lard into the frying pan before adding the streak bacon – this does not mean that you should. Instead of adding the saturated fat, try grilling without any added fat. Instead of streaky, try bacon and trim off any visible fat. You could even get rid of the bacon altogether. Knowing what the alternatives are is the key to enjoying your new low fat diet. You don’t have to forego everything you enjoy eating. Sitting down to a family meal together can be one of the most pleasurable parts of your day.

As a rule, avoid frying, as it is the least healthy way of cooking. Stir-frying is better as long as you use very little oil. Use a good quality wok and keep the temperature high, tossing the ingredients constantly so that they do not stick Try Prawn Stir-fry as follows:-

Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes

INGREDIENTS:-

8 spring onions
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
2 tbsp groundnut or sunflower oil
2 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
1 tbsp grated fresh root ginger
200g/7 oz mange tout
450 g/1 lb raw prawns, thawed if frozen, peeled and divined
4 tbsp Chinese rice wine

STEPS:-

1)Using a sharp knife, trim the spring onions and finely chop. Deseed and slice the peppers.
2)Heat the groundnut oil in a preheated wok or heavy-based frying pan. Add the spring onions, garlic and peppers and stir-fry over a medium heat for 4 minutes
3)Add the mange touts and prawns and stir fry for 4 minutes, or until the prawns have changed the color. Stir in Chinese rice wine, then transfer to four large, warmed serving plates and serve.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:-

Calories……………………..203
Protein………………………28g
Carbohydrates………………..5g
Sugars………………………...4g
Fat…………………………….8g
Saturates………………………1g

VARIATION:-

Substitute thinly sliced broccoli florets for the mange tout for an equally colorful and tasty dish. Replace the Chinese rice wine with dry sherry.

Also, let me share with you one of my personal favorites, The ‘Low Fat’ Coffee Ice Cream:

Preparation Time: 1 hour, plus
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Freezing: 6 hours

INGREDIENTS:-
25 g/1 oz plain chocolate
225g/8 oz ricotta cheese
5 tbsp low fat natural yogurt
85 g/3 oz caster sugar
175 ml/6 fl oz strong black coffee, cooled and chilled
½ tsp ground cinnamon
dash of vanilla essence
25 g/1 oz chocolate curls, to decorate

STEPS:-
1)Grate the chocolate and reserve. Place the ricotta cheese, yogurt and sugar in a blender or food processor and process until a smooth puree forms. Transfer to a large bowl and beat in the coffee, cinnamon, vanilla essence and grated chocolates.
2)Spoon the mixture into a freezer proof container and freeze for 1½ hours, or until slushy. Remove from the freezer, turn into a bowl and beat. Return to the container and freeze for 1½ hours.
3)Repeat the beating and freezing process twice more before serving in scoops, decorated with chocolate curls. Alternatively, leave in the freezer until 15 minutes before serving, and then transfer to the refrigerator to soften slightly before scooping.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:-

Calories……………………..150
Protein…………………………6g
Carbohydrates………………..21g
Sugars………………………...21g
Fat……………………………...6g
Saturates………………………..4g


VARIATION:-

Omit the cinnamon and vanilla essence and substitute 40 g/1½ oz grated mint chocolate for the plain chocolate.

Trying to trace the history of the first pizza is a surprisingly controversial subject. Some claim that this popular food is based on early unleavened breads served in the early centuries in Rome. Others trace a connection from modern pizza back to the pita breads of Greece.

It is fairly well established that the first pizza as we know it today was created by a man named Raffaele Esposito from Naples, Italy. Esposito's creation was designed to honor the visit of Queen Margherita to Naples in 1889, and he decorated it with the colors of the Italian flag, using white cheese, green basil, and red tomatoes (tomatoes, which had arrived from the west about 60 years earlier, were originally thought to be poisonous, but by Esposito's time they were already embraced by Italian cuisine).

As the years passed and the turn of the century came about, Italian immigrants brought this recipe with them to America. The first pizzeria was opened in America in 1905. It remained popular almost exclusively among immigrants until the end of World War II, when American soldiers returned to their home soil and brought back a love of the pizza they had discovered overseas. With that, the pizza boom in America began and this food became a mainstream meal instead of an underground Italian snack.

The concentration of Italian immigrants in New York in those olden days explains the fact that many people feel you must visit New York to get true pizzeria-style pizza. It is where the pizza got its American start, after all. And nobody who has experienced New York style pizza can disagree. New York is famous for its pizzerias, where a true slice of pizza consists of a thin, wide crust loaded with plenty of toppings and marinara and smothered in heady Italian seasonings. A side of garlic bread and some heady pastas and tortellinis usually round out the menu. Pizzerias in New York are not for the faint of heart.

In the early 1940s, the city of Chicago, IL took pizza in a different direction. It is believed that the first pizzeria in Chicago was Pizzeria Uno, opened in 1943 by Ike Sewell. Sewell's pizza creation was a new twist on the old New York standard. He created what is known today as deep-dish pizza, where the pizza is sunk low into a deeper pan, and the crust is allowed to rise in thick bubbles around the edges. People flocked to Sewell's pizzeria, and a whole new way of looking at this favorite food was born.

To this day, you can find yourself in some heated debates if you argue with a New Yorker or a Chicagoan about what constitutes authentic pizzeria-style pizza. But whatever crust style you choose, pizza is a unique food with a foggy past and a definite appeal that has lasted through many incarnations.

So you are lucky enough to find yourself in New York or Chicago, or any city for that matter that has a true pizzeria, complete with checked tablecloths and plenty of garlic on the menu, indulge yourself in an old tradition and order a slice. After all, it is tradition.

Bar-B-Que history and style
Barbeque, in the southern and Midwest parts of the United States, consists of slow-cooking meat over indirect heat. Chicken, beef, pork, sausage, ham, and ribs can all be barbequed – even mutton is sometimes barbequed, at least in Kentucky. With so many ways to make so many dishes, the perfect way to make barbequed meat can be a regional “bone” of contention.

In Memphis, Tennessee, barbeque is almost a religion. Barbeque ribs – most often pork, are cooked for long hours, until the meat is so tender that it is ready to fall off the bone. The city bills itself as the pork barbeque capital of the world, and has over one hundred barbeque restraints to back up that claim, many of whom participate in the annual pork cook off that is listen the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest pork barbeque contest anywhere.

The contest, part of the celebration called “Memphis in May”, draws some 90,000 cooks and spectators. Competitors come from fifty smaller cook offs sponsored by the main contest. It even runs a series of training seminars for potential barbeque judges. Good barbeque, they say, is all about being tender, without being too mushy, and being smoky, without being overpowering.

Ribs commonly come “wet,” that is, with barbeque sauce of some kind, usually mild and sweet in Memphis and basted on before and after cooking, or “dry,” with a dry rub of herbs and spices that is applied during or right after cooking. Regardless of which style is favored, the taste of the meat should come through – this is what separates good barbeque from something lathered with barbeque sauce and put in the oven for a few hours.
In Missouri, there is not one, but two predominant styles of barbeque, both of which favor beef, which is not surprising given the history of both Kansas City and St. Louis as “cattle towns.” They share a tomato-based sauce that is added after cooking, and can be replicated by mixing ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. Interestingly, Missouri’s Ozarks are the source of almost half of the charcoal briquettes produced in the United States.

Kansas City, like Memphis, has a large number of barbeque restaurants and hosts several annual competitions. However, it is particularly famous for its sauces, which are thick, rich, tangy, and spicy. The sauce is basted on during the last few moments of cooking, and more can be added thereafter. Dry rub, too, is common on Kansas City style barbeque.

In St. Louis style barbeque, ribs are the flagship dish. These famous spare ribs are a rack of ribs with the chine bone and brisket bone removed. They are cooked with a sauce that is less vinegary, tangier and thinner than its cross-state equivalent, closer, in fact, to that served in Memphis.

Whether sweet or spicy, dry or wet, slow cooked or grilled over an open flame, barbeque is one of the most diverse of all American foods, and one to which many cities lay claim. Each has its own unique character, so get some bread and crackers, or some cole slaw, or even beans, (all traditional barbeque side dishes) and give them a try.

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Chopsticks is used many cultures in Asia and it has been around for thousands of years while the fork is relatively new and only used by Europeans. I wonder what Europeans used before, oh, yes, the hand and fingers. Most of the world still uses hand and fingers to eat.

Chopsticks works like two fingers grabbing food. Forks were only invented after they had good knowledge of metallurgy.

Anyway, imagine when you go camping, you have no fork, and what do you do? Use your hand to pick up your food. But it's too hot, so you grab a stick!

Westerns always feel curious about chopsticks, and find it impossible to eat western food. The food culture difference between east and west explains the large difference with dining tools.
What westerns worries doesn't realise is in Chinese cooking, everything is sliced and diced into smaller pieces before cooking so Chinese people don't need forks and knives. Western cooking dictates chunks of meat or vegetable that has not been diced so that is why most Westerners use forks and knives - because they need to!

It's a cultural thingy. It's the way they serve their food. They actually use chopsticks and spoon. Generally, for a family meal, all the different dishes (meat, fish, , soup) are placed in the center of the table and each diner will have a bowl of rice. The meat and veggies will have been chopped up into smaller pieces. So they use chopstick to alternatively pick the dishes they want followed by shoveling rice into their mouths.

Westerners generally serve large chunk of meat individually and thus need fork and knife to assist in cutting these into smaller pieces before placing into the mouth.

There are several things to remember when you use chopsticks.

- Don’t dig in the food on a plate but just get the piece which you want to get
- Don’t pick one piece then drop it back in the plate and change to another piece
- Don’t let your chopsticks be covered with food juice or residue
- Don’t use chopsticks to beat any utensils to make any noise
- Don’t wave your chopsticks
- Don’t use chopsticks like forks
- Don’t use chopsticks as toothpicks
- Don’t lick or suck your chopsticks
- Don’t put chopsticks vertically in rice in a bowl since it resembles the incense sticks for the dead

-Particularly after SARS, it is more common these days that people use a pair of common chopsticks for fetching the food on the plates. Don’t forget to swap your own chopsticks with the ones provided when getting the food because of hygiene reasons.

In a Chinese meal, an even number of dishes should be ordered. Odd numbers of dishes would be appropriate only for occasions such as the meal after a funeral.

The best dish should be put in front of the most important person in order to show your respect. Chicken head or duck head on a plate should not point at guests. The big bowl of soup should be placed in the middle.

With chopsticks you can practically pick up anything with them, without a mess and neatly. Chopsticks are easier and quicker for me to use while eating, and also they are more agile. With chopsticks you can pick up many side dishes; mix and stuff in my mouth with ease. Forks break your food because you have to stab it. Forks are for baby. Once you get the hang of chopsticks, you will find it much easier to do things with. are all connected to different food culture.

It’s a culture thing, each has its own merits, we can’t say which is good or not. It all depends on totally different food culture between east and west, From a Chinese perspective, chopsticks are more handy. Why not try for your own and decide for yourself.

You do not have to go by the book to create tasty, easy, sociable food. Easy meal preparation is all about stripping cooking down to its bare essentials using little techniques and conveniences to make the most of your recipes. It is so simple: Skip the fuss and follow your heart.

Here are some tips to take the stress out of cooking, whether you are stirring up supper for your mate or hoping to impress the new in-laws:

Dinners-in-a-Bag

Make these dinner bags involving glorious aluminum foil and write on them,

25 minutes at 425 F”, for example, with a marker pen. Even though Jools didn’t like cooking, she never had a problem with cooking the bags. I just program the “Favorites Cycle, in your microwave . Here’s just one version, but feel free to vary the recipe with things like grated parsnip, smoked bacon or red wine.

Chicken Breasts Baked in a Bag

(Serves two)

2 7-ounce skinless chicken breasts

1 handful of dried porcini

9 ounces of mixed mushrooms, torn up

1 large wineglass of white wine

3 large pats of butter

1 handful of fresh thyme

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced

Using wide aluminum foil, make your bag by placing two pieces on top of each other (about as big as two shoeboxes in length), folding three sides in and leaving one side open. Mix everything together in a bowl, including the chicken. Place in your bag, with all the wine, making sure you do not pierce the foil. Close up the final edge, making sure it is tightly sealed and secure on the sides, and slide it onto a roasting pan. Place the pan on a high heat for one minute to get the heat going, and then bake in the middle of a 425-degree oven for 25 minutes.

Bare-Bones Cooking Techniques

* If you invited friends to come round but they are running late, pop up to four plates of food in the separate warming oven. Your glorious food not only stays warm, but also keeps the kitchen smelling wonderful until they walk in the door.

* If your side dish is ready but you still have other things to cook, just slide the pot onto the middle of the cook top. The “warming zone” there acts like a fifth burner, keeping it warm and freeing up the other burners so you can finish cooking.

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Almost every family has a treasured recipe, handed down through generations, that is not only beloved because it is delicious, but because it evokes memories of favorite family get-togethers.

A family heirloom recipe book is a wonderful way to combine favorite dishes and family folklore. According to Cheryl Wolf, a performance artist and graphic design instructor at The New England Institute of Art, "Family recipes are a valuable resource for a family history. I have built an entire performance around my family's recipes and the stories they evoke! "Breaking bread" together is life-affirming. What better way to reach back and bring personal history to the present?"

Wolf adds, “A family recipe is also a family history, and can be a wonderful work of folk art.” For example, she says, take the opportunity to not only write down family recipes for generations to come, but include famous family stories (every family has them), photos and memorabilia as well.

But how to turn family culinary gems into actual recipes? Try these few tips: “Start with a family letter, asking everyone to send back one or more of their ‘specialties’ by a particular date. Ask those who can to reply by email so you can cut and paste recipes right into your final document.”

If you have a relative who never writes down recipes (it seems like all the best recipes are never written down), but rather cooks by "a dash of this, a little bit of that,” consider having someone in your family be the “helper,” and prepare the dish along with them. The “helper” should measure, guesstimate, and generally keep track of how the dish is prepared, including cooking times and temperatures. The “helper” should also be sure to ask about consistency, color, texture and doneness. “This last bit of information is always the most important part of passing along a recipe.” Once you have a written recipe, prepare it again according to the directions, and adjust the recipe as necessary to get as close as possible to the original.

When you are asking for recipes, provide everyone with a similar format. For example, ask family members to list the ingredients to be used in order, together with the quantities. Lay out the steps that are needed in order to make the item, and always add little comments about what to look for as the dish is prepared, and when it is done. It can be a lot of work, especially with recipes that were never written down. But ultimately it’s worth it because you will be saving an important -- and delicious bit of your family’s history.

Once you have the recipes, you will want to create a look for your cookbook that reflects your family. A simple way to do this, is to include family mementos or old photos, along with the recipes. A simple way to share one-of-a-kind memorabilia is to take them to a local copy center and make color copies.

“You can use the color copies you make as background, and print a recipe over the photo, or have the recipe on one page, and a photo on the facing page. You can also create a collage using items such as blue ribbons (won for a cooking), tickets stubs or airplane tickets from a favorite trip that produced a great recipe,”

For text, use simple fonts like Times Roman or Arial so that they are easy to read for all ages. Save decorative fonts for recipe titles or chapter headings. Consider creating a box -- with shading and borders -- for the recipe itself so that there is enough contrast between the recipe and any background artwork you use.

Write an introduction about the cookbook, its organization and how family responded to the project. Be sure to date the book and have a table of contents so family and friends can easily find a favorite recipe. Here are a few of these suggestions for organizing recipes:

* by category, for example, appetizers, soups, salads, entrees and desserts

* by family, for example, grandmother, aunt and uncle, or cousin recipes

* by holiday, for example, favorite dishes for the 4th of July, Thanksgiving or Labor Day

To keep recipes easy to read and clean, consider putting them in plastic sleeves (available in craft and office supply stores) and then in 3-ring binders. “This way, you can add a new recipe every year.”

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The East Caribbean island of Cuba has a rich cultural heritage from which has arisen culinary traditions that are as vibrant and varied as the variety of cultures that have contributed to the development of this distinct and delicious cuisine. In addition to the ancient influence of the native peoples of Cuba, the Spaniards brought their own culinary styles, tinged by those of the Moors who held huge parts of Spain for centuries. The slaves that were brought from Africa made significant culinary and cultural contributions, with other culinary traditions being brought to the island with the French colonists fleeing uprisings in Haiti.



As these various influences came together, a distinctly Cuban flavor and style evolved, which is reminiscent of country peasant styles of cooking by oral tradition and eye, rather than relying on specific measurements and the creation of dishes that tend towards the simple and hearty, and that can be left on their own to simmer. Fussy, heavy sauces are unusual and deep-frying is simply not a favored cooking method. The island nation, naturally, uses a great deal of seafood in its cuisine, which encourages the use of simple cooking techniques and spicing that is meant to enhance, not smother, natural flavors.

The most common spices used in Cuban cuisine are garlic, cumin, oregano and bay or laurel leaves. Sofrito is also popular, and used in a wide range of dishes, from those of beans to those of meats to those that are made from a base of tomato sauce. A typical sofrito is made of green pepper, onion, garlic, oregano and black pepper fried in olive oil until the pepper, onion and garlic are soft and translucent and the flavors blend to perfection.

The dense, nutritious, energy producing vegetables commonly used belie the African and native peoples’ influence on the cuisine of Cuba. Yuca, malanga, boniato, and plantano are among these, and are often simmered together with complementary vegetables and served simply, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with chopped fresh onion – a satisfying, strengthening and simple dish for a hard working people.

Meats are often prepared using island flavored marinades of that use lime juice or the juice of a sour variety of the orange as a base. Then, the meats are roasted or simmered very slowly with spices, often for hours. Beans and rice are an essential part of most meals, with black beans being well known as a Cuban specialty.

Cuban cuisine is also notable for its baked goods, which include a variety of turnovers. Some are filled with spiced meats and other types feature a particularly Cuban blend of cream cheese and guava paste. Flan is among Cuba’s most beloved dessert items.

In Cuban cuisine, the subtle flavors of healthy foods are enhanced by cooking and spicing methods designed to bring out the best in each component of a dish. The culinary traditions of Cuba are a delight to the tongue, naturally, but they also offer a fascinating glimpse into a culture that has brought together many varied elements to create a cohesive whole.

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Tomatoes are a fruit and part of the nightshade family (like potatoes and eggplants), but they are served and prepared as a vegetable, which is why most people consider them a vegetable and not a fruit. Tomatoes come in a variety of colors, shapes and sizes: large red beefsteaks are slightly irregular; globes are red, medium-size and round; plum tomatoes are egg-shaped and red or yellow (grape tomatoes are baby plums); cherry tomatoes are small and round, etc. There are many heirloom varieties that are not marketed widely but come in red, yellow, green and even purple, as well as striped.

Raw vegetables are dangerous and must be thoroughly fried, steamed, and boiled into submission. So thought our ancestors. The original sin of a recalcitrant vegetable was of course lessened by heat, but the conscientious nineteenth-century cook continued to boil it long after it had sagged into a jelly-like mass, just in case some evil remained.

In the nineteenth century an hour’s cooking barely sufficed for cabbage and for corn on the cob. They did not fix broccoli at all, and I can understand why. I have tried to imagine broccoli after an hour of cooking, but the mind rarest back and refuses even to approach the sheer horror.

Which reminds me of an event in the summer of 1956, when my classmate Patsy Sutherland and I lived with Grandpa Hess while we went to business college in Missoula, Montana. Grandpa was a crusty old widower, set in his own way of housekeeping, but he tried to be gracious. In midsummer he bought a whole crate of tomatoes. Luscious, red, ripe tomatoes. They sat in the cellar way for two days, and each time Patsy and I passed them our mouths watered. Each evening we thought he’d invite us to have a tomato or two, but he didn’t. When we arrived home on the third evening, he said, “Girls! I fixed the tomatoes today. Help yourselves!”

He had stewed every last one of them.

Some of those old tomato recipes are good, though. The originator of Tomatoes Maryland probably had an old-fashioned wood stove that could gently simmer something all afternoon on a back burner or in the oven. Which means this was most likely a fall or winter dish rather than a summer one, as people let the cook stove fire go out on summer afternoons.

TOMATOES MARYLAND

Break into bits 2 slices of stale bread. Add to 4 cups canned or fresh tomatoes, peeled and quartered, with half an onion, chopped, and about 2/3 cup brown sugar. Salt lightly.

Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer gently for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

My notes say, “It does need three hours to cook, even with the pan lid off most of the time. Perhaps some of the thin tomato juices could be poured off at the beginning, shortening the cooking time.”

Tomatoes Maryland is the kind of sweet side dish American cooks like to serve with chicken or pork. I was going to say, “cooks from regions other than the Northeast.” Then I remembered applesauce with pork, cranberry sauce with turkey, mint jelly with lamb, and baked beans with salt pork. Not to mention pancakes and syrup with sausages cuddled up close. And mincemeat pie, that ultimate mixture of meat and sweet. (And, yes, real mincemeat, as opposed to a packaged mix, does contain meat.)

I will add that some people of Grandpa’s generation did eat diced raw garden tomatoes for breakfast, just as one would eat strawberries, with sugar and cream. You see, it was safe to eat them raw with sugar and cream, because the tomatoes then ceased to be a vegetable and became a fruit.

And actually those old-time breakfasters were right. Fresh vine-ripened tomatoes are good with sugar and cream. Let’s face it, most things are good with sugar and cream. And of course tomatoes really are a fruit.

The sizes range from 50cm to 60cm with most of the manufacturers who promote freestanding cookers. A freestanding unit offering oven, grill and hob in one appliance, designed to slide between kitchen cabinets. have adjustable feet to fit flush to worktop height.

If you have gas you may wish to consider a dual fuel cooker as these combine the speed of an electric oven with the flexibility of a gas hob.

As well as these options, further options available include double oven cookers, allowing you to cook within both ovens at the same time; single oven with separate grill, allowing you to cook in the grill and oven at the same time; single oven and grill, allowing you to cook on either the grill or oven but not at the same time and fan ovens which cook more quickly that conventional ovens.

Then there are many choices to make on the extra features available on a modern or cooker. Here are examples of the main choices:

Conventional ovens

Conventional ovens can be gas or electric. In a conventional gas oven, the heat comes from the gas burner at the rear bottom of the oven. In a conventional electric oven, the heat comes from elements under the base and at the top of the oven.

In a conventional oven, heat rises to give a hotter temperature towards the top of the oven, and a slightly cooler temperature towards the bottom of the oven.

The heat zones in a conventional oven make it ideal for cooking a number of dishes together, where different cooking temperatures are required. Conventional ovens are perfect for traditional cooking for things like cakes and roast meat.



Electric grill

Electric grills consist of either single or dual elements, and may have fixed or variable heat settings, depending on the model. The heat output of variable grills can be controlled by turning up or down, between low heat and high heat settings.



Fan assisted ovens

A fanned oven has an even cooking temperature throughout the oven as the fan circulates the heat. This makes it perfect for batch baking. Heat comes from the element in the back of the cavity, beit in the middle or top of the oven, and the hot air is circulated around the oven cavity so that an even cooking temperature is achieved throughout the whole of the oven.



Fanned Grilling

Available in ovens showing multifunction and fanned ovens in the specification.

Heat comes from the grill element, and hot air is circulated around the food, so that there is no need to turn during grilling. Ideal for grilling meats as it helps cook through the food as well as browning it.



Fan and base cooking

This feature is available in selected multifunction ovens only.

Heat comes from the element in the base of the oven, and is circulated throughout the oven by the fan.

Ideal for cooking moist dishes where the filling and the base need to be cooked evenly.



Hotplate lids

Some freestanding and range cookers feature hotplate lids. These are toughened glass on some models, or solid cast iron lids on our more traditional Farmstyle range. Lids to gas hotplates (on gas or dual fuel models) have a safety feature – so that if the lid is accidentally closed while a hotplate burner is on, the hotplate burner will be switched off.



Automatic programmer and clock

An LED automatic programmer - clock has a full 24 hour digital clock display.

It also has a minute minder function and it’s main function is that it can be programmed for automatic cooking in the oven under control of the programmer. You can set cooking start time, or end time, along with the length of cooking time required. When the programmer reached the end of the cooking time set, it will automatically switch the oven off.



Minute minder

The LED minute minder / clock has a 24 hour clock display. It also features a minute minder function – which acts as a timer to let you know when your cooking needs attention. The desired time is set, and an alarm will sound after the time set has elapsed. The minute minder works independent of the oven, so if your cooking needs an extra few minutes, there’s no need to reset the oven.



Multifunction oven

A Multifunction oven is an electric oven which has many cooking functions. These functions will include a selection of the following; fanned oven cooking, conventional oven cooking, grill, fanned grilling, base heat only, top heat only, fan plus base heat, intensive bake and defrost.



Pyrolytic

These ovens usually have a triple glazed door so the oven can withstand the heat required to burn off excess food. The ovens go to extremely high temperatures and automatically lock themselves so you cannot get close to the heat produced.



Shelve supports

Most ovens feature removable shelves and shelf supports. This makes cleaning even easier – especially as they can be cleaned in a dishwasher.

Shelves can be placed in a variety of different positions inside the oven, so that you can position the food you are cooking at the perfect height.



Stay clean liners

Stay clean liners help reduce dramatically the amount of cleaning an oven needs. The special coating burns off most of the fatty by-products and food splashes on impact, leaving your oven much cleaner and needing less wiping.



Top heat only

This function is available in some Multifunction ovens, and some electric conventional ovens.

Heat comes from the element at the top of the oven. Top heat is ideal for browning the top of oven cooked dishes.



Inner door glass

Most ovens feature an inner door glass panel, which is removable for easy cleaning.



Warming plate

A heat resistant toughened glass warming plate is a feature of some electric range cookers. It is perfect for warming plates before serving, or for keeping a pan warm at a low heat before serving.



Wipe clean enamel interior

This is a smooth hard wearing enamel oven or grill interior finish, which can be wiped clean after use.

For more information see the

Eating in Morocco is serious business. The midday meal is the main one and you can expect large portions - enough to keep you going all day! They usually start off with a series of hot and cold salads. Then, they have tagine or stew. Next is the main portion - normally a lamb or chicken dish with a huge plate of meet and vegetable couscous. Mint tea is normally drunk after the meal.

The strong Arab influence found in two of the royal cities, Fez and Marrakech, contributed greatly to Moroccan cuisine, as did the Andalusian sensibilities of Tetuan and the Jewish traditions from the coastal city of Essaouira. In Morocco, they often eat with the first three fingers of their hand and to use bread as a utensil. Don't be alarmed. It's quite normal here.

Morocco's best loved dishes include; couscous (of course), which is basically semolina grains served with a variety of meat and vegetable toppings; mechoui - roasted lamb; djej emshmel - a roast chicken dish cooked with lemon and olives and bisteeya - a delicious savoury and sweet pie with three layers, wrapped in very thin pastry.

While spices have been imported to Morocco for thousands of years, many commonly-used raw ingredients are home-grown: mint and olives from Meknes, oranges and lemons from sunny Fez, prickly pear from Casablanca and shad from the Sebou River. Also cultivated in Morocco are pomegranates, almonds, dates, walnuts, chestnuts, honey, barley, cherries and melon. Seafood is abundant along the Atlantic coast while lamb and poultry are raised on higher ground.

In this land of abundant, high quality food, there is a huge emphasis on home cooking. Most Moroccans will tell you that the best meals are found at home and not in the restaurants. This is after all, a very traditional country, that is why it is the women of the house who cook the meals and they spend hours in the preparation. Again, there are no chairs but rolled carpets or cushions that serve as seats. The ladies dress in long colorful robes.

It is not a secret that, almost all business decisions from buying leather to buying any with foreign representatives are took place at home and host with all Moroccan hospitality meet his guests. Every household in Morocco makes their own bread which is made from semolina flour. When the bread has been kneaded and shaped each family puts its own mark on it before sending it to the bakery for cooking.

Spices also take center stage in Moroccan kitchens, with chilies, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, saffron, paprika, and ginger often playing starring roles. The Moroccans are very proud of their food. The sharing of meals is an integral part of the culinary experience and the foundation of the Moroccan way of life.

On October 2007, participants of Moroccan American Trade and Investment Center and the National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce in Washington where was discussed opportunities on trade and investment were very enjoyed of marvelous and delicious tastes of Moroccan cuisine.

Whether you're planning on visiting this mystical destination in Northern Africa, or simply adding flavor to your cooking repertoire, Morocco's culinary spirit is sure to seduce you.

My Italian mother-in-law bought me a pressure cooker earlier this year. She uses hers all the time as her speciality is soups. However I have found it one of the most used utensils in my kitchen – not just for soups, but for casseroles, roasts and sauces. Yes, I use my pressure cooker at least once, if not twice every single week. I have found my pressure cooker so wonderful, I want to share with you my experience.

What is a Pressure Cooker?
Pressure cooking is cooking in a sealed pot (pot with lid) that does not allow air or liquid to escape, causing the liquid in the pot to rise to an extremely high temperature accelerating the cooking of the food while retaining all the nutrients. Miss Vicky (from www.missvicky.com ) says the reason that food cooks so much more quicker in a pressure cooker is because “steam has six times the heat potential when it condenses on a cool food product”.

How does it work?
Food is placed in the specially designed pressure cooker pot with lid (with special valve and pressure indicator button) with some amount of liquid (depending on the recipe) and put on the stove. When the liquid reaches boiling point, steam is produced (pushing the pressure indicator button to stick up on the lid), and the high level of pressure of this steam cooks the food. This method of cooking copies the simmering method, but is much much faster with equivalent results.

Now, on completion of the cooking, there is a challenge. You can’t simply open the lid. If you do, it can be very very dangerous and the pressure can cause – like an explosion. You need to ‘release’ the steam / pressure using the special valve on the lid and once all the steam / pressure is released (causing the pressure indicator button to go back down into the lid – thus not stick up anymore) then the lid can be safely opened. The first time I used my pressure cooker, I didn’t allow all the steam to be released and all my sauce ‘exploded’ all over the roof and over my oven and wall (not good). I was very lucky not to burn myself. So it’s very important to follow the instructions that come with your pressure cooker and make sure that all the steam has been released (and the pressure indicator button is all the way down) - so basically you can’t open the lid until that has gone all the way down and sits flush with your lid).

What can you cook?
Of course you can cook soup, but I also cook my roasts (just add cheap beef, can of tomatoes, 1 cup of red wine, onions (and other vegetables as desired) and when liquid is boiling (button on lid is all the way up and the cooker is making a rattling noise, reduce heat and cook for 45 minutes, then turn off stove, release button on top of lid, wait until button goes back down and there you have – super tender beef with a nice thick sauce). You can also do casseroles as well with only 1/3 to ½ the cooking time of simmering. Its fantastic because its a great way of cooking really really cheap cuts of meat - making them tasty and super tender in a short amount of time.

For more recipes, refer to:

References
www.missvicky.com
www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pressure_cooker
www.underpressure.com.au/

You can make delicious ice cream at home, as good as any premium store brand, if you choose a good ice cream maker and follow a few tips. Ice cream makers can range in price from under $100 to over $500. The more expensive models contain built in freezing compressors. The less expensive models are perfectly suited for use in the home and come in two basic types. There is the type that uses rock salt and ice to cool the ice cream mixture and the type that has a canister that is placed in the freezer. Each of these is equipped with an electric crank or a manual crank. Your particular needs will determine which is right for you.

If you want to make a large quantity of ice cream, you will need to purchase a model that uses rock salt and ice. The canister models will only make up to 1.5 quarts at a time. If you would like to turn ice cream making into a family activity, you can choose the hand-crank model, which will also use rock salt and ice. The crank must be turned manually for a fairly long period of time, thus allowing each family member a turn. An electric crank is quite a bit easier than the manual crank models. You will also get more consistent results due to the bowl turning at a constant speed. Most electric crank ice cream makers will have an automatic cut off feature that will stop the motor when the ice cream reaches the desired consistency. The consistency is judged by the amount of resistance while the bowl is turning.

After you choose which type of ice cream maker is right for you, you will need to find the perfect ice cream recipe. Remember that the faster the ice cream freezes, the better it will taste and the smoother the texture will be. It will be best to pre-mix all your ingredients and let them chill for several hours before placing them in the ice cream maker. When your ice cream is done, it will resemble soft-serve ice cream. You can place the canister in the freezer for a few hours and you will be much happier with the results. If your canister is plastic, consider removing the ice cream as soon as it is done, and placing it in a metal bowl covered with foil. The metal will allow the ice cream to freeze faster and become firmer more quickly than in a plastic container.

You can purchase a mix that is quite easy to make into ice cream very quickly. While the mixes are convenient, the best homemade ice cream is made from fresh ingredients. Milk, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and cocoa if you desire will give you the best results. You can find numerous ice cream recipes, some which require cooking some which require no cooking. The ice cream recipes that do not require cooking are generally just as good as the cooked type, and require a lot less time. The best ice cream recipes usually contain eggs, however there are many recipes that do not use eggs if you or someone in your family is allergic to eggs.

The coffee club concept is relatively new but is taking the world by storm. Reward yourself or your friends and relatives with coffee clubs by joining up and saving loads. Each month, you will get a shipment of coffee delivered direct to your door. This is a great way to taste new coffees, sample different varieties, find a b

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