Mimi Goodies – Cooking healthy

American Home Cooking clubs have been specially formed so that members can take part in the cooking activities. These clubs provide their members with new recipes, help members interact with each other and exchange notes on food, and also help create cooking forums.
I chef is one such great American club devoted to home cooking. They have a recipe section where people post recipes on how to prepare different types of meals, drinks, tasty desserts, appetizers and small eats like sandwiches. Normally one can find a special recipe for the week which individuals can try using different combinations and choices according to their taste for the help www.july4-recipes.com. The recipe for the week which has been featured is that of stuffed chicken breasts. Here this club offers members tips and ideas on how to finish the meal that they are preparing. Individuals will be shown their most favorite recipe using their favorite ingredient.
For those people who are interested in finding out news about their favorite foods will find that I chef is a great American home cooking club that gives plenty of information about food. The club also provides its members links which would be useful to them to gather more information. People who hate to search for information would find this I chef’s newsletter which is being sent every week to members very informative. Those that subscribe to this newsletter would find recipes and news information not only about local and national food recipes but also about international food recipes.
I chef helps create cooking clubs in which individuals help to create websites in which they post their favorite recipes. You can also find stories and articles written by various members which would be very interesting. Anyone can form a club for recipe which they can share with their friends and other interested people. These clubs can also be found listed under specific food topics. There are websites and clubs which tell you all you need to know about cake decoration to French cooking, how to cook using less than a dollar and also outdoor cooking. Stories and articles from the various clubs are featured by I chef.
The forum which is featured in I chef allows members to post their views and opinions. Various features like Japanese cooking recipes, recipes for vegetarians, requests for recipes are all featured here by I chef. Also you can find useful information on what type of cookware and utensils to buy, special recipes for those who are on diet, useful kitchen tips and ideas, cooking tips for large groups or parties can be found here for the help www.book-of-cookies.com. Those wishing to post the opinions need to register themselves and get a free email id and password before they can make a comment. It is also possible for them to have their photos uploaded along with their signatures if they wish to do so.

Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or you can’t, you are usually right.” If you really want to improve yourself, know that you can. You will not be dieting, you will be changing ingredients and you will give in to some changes without turning your nose up before trying. It took a long time to put that weight on, it will come off, but not in 6 weeks like the skinny models on your TV screen. Have patience! Don’t have the mindset of a dieter. Remember, you are not starving. You are eating delicious, tasty food.

My husband was 241 lbs. and had a triple bypass six years ago. Today he weighs 178 lbs. and his cholesterol is 108. I never lied to him about his food; I just neglected to mention that I did things like replacing the ground beef in his chili with veggie protein crumbles (from the frozen food case) and the shredded cheddar was veggie cheese from the supermarket produce department. Believe it or not the shredded veggie cheddar tastes and melts so much better than the regular no-fat cheddar. He loves it! I finally had to tell him why he was losing so much weight. He was beginning to think there was something terribly wrong with him.

I bought a cook book with lots of creamy comfort foods that he always craved. None had the heavy cream, butter and cheese that comfort food usually has. I learned how to substitute fat-free half & half or evaporated skim milk for cream. I used margarine with no trans-fat and after a while, I didn’t need a special cookbook. It was easy to convert any recipe to low fat, low calorie, low anything.

Here’s a good example of a recipe conversion: Original recipe was made with veal not chicken. I used healthy olive oil and margarine, reduced both to 1 1/2 teaspoons. The half-and-half was replaced with the fat free kind.

Chicken in a Creamy Mustard Sauce:

2 chicken breasts (boned & skinned)
1 1/2 tablespoon flour
1/4 teaspoon each salt & pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons each olive oil & margarine
1/2 cup each diced onion & sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup fat-free half-and-half or evaporated skim milk
1 tablespoon each Dijon & fresh parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

Dredge chicken in flour, salt, & pepper. In a non-stick skillet heat oil over medium heat, add chicken and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides and cooked throughout (about 2 minutes per side). Remove chicken.

In same skillet heat margarine until bubbly; add onions & mushrooms. Sauté until lightly browned. Reduce heat, add half-and-half, mustard, parsley and lemon. Stir constantly until sauce comes to a boil and thickens. Serve over the chicken.

Learn this method of good eating; forget the fad diets and the pills. Stop killing your husband and the kids with what you think is kindness cooking. Serve more vegetables and salad. Get healthy and then look in the mirror and be proud of your accomplishment!

If you want to make your food taste like the recipes from restaurants, you’re going to have to beef up your arsenal of cooking skills.  Don’t fret, however, because some of the techniques and ingredients that give restaurants their edge are ones you can easily learn yourself!  Here are 2 things you need to learn to imitate recipes from restaurants.

 

1. Use High Heat!

 

Now you certainly shouldn’t use the highest possible for everything you cook, not by a long shot.  However, one of the things that the recipes from restaurants take advantage of is the tastiness that using very hot pans can give your food.

 

This is especially true for meat.  The reaction of the proteins denaturing on the outside of a peace of meat in response to high heat is called the maillard reaction, and it is responsible for that nice, tasty crust on the outside of pan-seared pieces of meat.

 

To make your food taste like the recipes from restaurants, a basic method you want to master is pan-searing followed by roasting.  When you’re cooking steaks, chicken breasts, and other hearty pieces of flesh, sear them in olive or canola oil for 1-2 minutes per side in a skillet, and then move them to a 300-350 degree oven to finish.  The tasty crust on the outside will be well worth the effort!

 

2. Use you Aromatics

 

“Aromatics” is the term chefs use for onions, shallots, garlic, and other ingredients they use in recipes from restaurants. Almost anytime you start a dish in a skillet, you want to begin by sautéing some of these ingredients until they are golden brown, and until you get a nice aroma going in the kitchen.

 

Even if you don’t like the flavor or texture of these ingredients individually, this is an important step to imitate recipes from restaurants!  If you dice them finely and sauté completely, you will not notice them in the final product, but the flavors will be excellent.

Whole Gourmet Natural Cooking – How to cook pounded chicken breasts. Lightly battered. Easy natural cooking tips and techniques. Healthy eating and organic food in your own kitchen.

Mexican Cooking Recipes

Among the world’s great cuisines, Mexico dishes stand out in their diversity. Rooted in a history of ancient Indian civilizations, inspired by the Spanish Conquistadores of the sixteenth century, and influenced by European tastes in the later revolutionary years, it is dynamic and adaptable but remarkably complete as it combines different culture. I ll share these four Mexican cooking recipes and show you where to download over 25000 recipes from around the world

CHICKEN TORTILLA CASSEROLE

Corn tortillas
1/2  cup           Milk
1/2  pound         Cheddar cheese — shredded
1      can           Green chili salsa
1      can           Cream of mushroom soup
1      can           Cream of chicken soup
Chicken breasts; cooked — cut up

Cut or tear the tortillas in 1/2″ squares. Put half of them on the bottom of a baking dish and cover with 1/2 of the cheese. Mix salsa, both soups and chicken together. Add half of this mixture to the baking dish. Repeat the layers and top with cheese. Cover and put in the frige for 24 hours. Bake at 350~F for 45 min. Uncover for the last 15 minutes to brown.

CHICKEN WITH AVOCADO SALSA – Mexican Cooking Recipes

1      pound         Boneless chicken breast — halves Chili powder — salt and pepper

Ripe avocado
1      tablespoon    Fresh lime juice
1/2  cup           Chunky salsa
Tomato — chopped
Green onions with — tops,thinly sliced
Heated corn tortillas or — lettuce leaves

Arrange chicken around the edges of a 9″ pie plate or baking dish.

Sprinkle with chili powder, salt and pepper. Cover with vented plastic

wrap.

Rotating dish midway through cooking, microwave on high 5 to 6 minutes;

set aside. Peel, seed and chop avocado. Combine with lime juice in a small bowl. Add salsa, tomato and green onions; toss gently. Slice cooked chicken, lengthwise, into 1 to 2″ strips and arrange on tortillas, making 4 servings. Top with salsa. Microwave on 50 % (medium) 2 minutes or until heated.

Makes 4 servings.

Chilaquiles (A Casserole Of Tortillas In Chili)

1/2  pound         Queso fresco, crumbled — or mild cheddar — grated
1-1/3 cups)

Stale tortillas — cut into or            triangles

1      cup           Thin sour cream
Chorizos — crumbled and
1      medium        Onion — thinly sliced into
Limes — cut into wedges

Ready: A flameproof dish at 3 Inches deep and about 10 inches across

The Sauce

Heat the griddle and toast the chilies lightly on both sides.  Be

careful– they burn very quickly.  When they are cool enough to handle,

remove the seeds and veins.  Cover the chiles with hot water to cover and leave them to soak for about 20 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon to the blender jar.  Add the rest of the ingredients and blend to a smooth sauce.

The Chilaquiles:

In small frying pan add 2 Tbsp. peanut or safflower oil, 1/2 cup chicken broth.  Heat the oil and cook the sauce until it darkens in color and is well seasoned–about 3 minutes.  Add the broth and let the sauce cook over a high flame for a few minutes longer.  Set aside.

Heat the oil and fry the tortilla strips until they are a pale gold, but not too crisp.  Remove and drain on the toweling.

Cover the bottom of the dish with one third of the tortilla pieces. Cover them with a layer of one third of the cheese and a layer of one third of the sauce. Repeat the layers twice more.

Add the 3 to 3-1/2 cups chicken broth and bring to a boil.  Lower the

flame and continue cooking the chilaquiles at a brisk simmer, until most of the broth has been absorbed — about 15 mintues.  Add the epazote a minute or so before the chilaquiles have finished cooking. (2 large sprigs.)

Pour the sour cream around the edge of the dish, then garnish with the

chorizos and the onion rings.  Serve in small deep bowls with lime wedges on the side.

Chile con Queso – Mexican Cooking Recipes

1      cup           Cheese — Shredded *
4      ounces        Green Chiles — **
1/4  cup           Half & Half
2      tablespoons   Onion — Finely Chopped
2      teaspoons     Cumin — Ground
1/2  teaspoon

Use either Cheddar or Montery Jack Cheese (4 oz) ** Use 1 4-oz can of

chopped green chiles, drained.

Heat all ingredients over low heat, stirring constantly, until the cheese is melted.

Serve warm with tortilla chips. Makes 1 1/4 cups dip.