Basics Of Lamb Recipes

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

Unlike some other meats – such as chicken – lamb have a reputation for being of a higher quality when imported from other areas of the world. Notably, lamb from New Zealand has a strong reputation throughout the world for being extremely tender and flavorful – other areas include Wales and Canada. The need for imported lamb also drives up its overall cost. Despite its cost and exotic nature, lamb is an extremely versatile meat and can be used in just about any situation where beef would ordinarily be used.

Lamb is a common ingredient in Scottish food, and many countries pride themselves on the succulence of their lamb dishes. Lamb is certainly a meat that can be eaten on its own, but it works well in a number of different modes. It can be a basic dish, all the way up to one of the most complicated and expensive dishes on the menu.

The most common lamb recipes consist of slowly roasting the meat and eaten with potatoes and vegetables. Traditionally, this forms a ‘roast dinner’ and is preferential as the lamb is nice enough to be enjoyed on a bare dish. Lamb requires minimal seasoning, and

view full post »

Black Beans

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

Black beans, being such a traditional American foodstuff (and note that I’m talking about The Americas here, not USA – get off your USA centric high horse!) is featured in many traditional recipes. You can get chili con carne with them; enchiladas with them; attractive corn and black bean salads; soups with them; and stews with them. One of the simplest ways to enjoy them is to eat them stewed up with just salt, and fried onion and garlic. You could add some lime and leaf coriander (cilantro) to add some extra “Mexican” taste to it, too.

Did you know that black beans have the most fibre of any bean known to man? They are also high in iron and protein, as well as many other nutrients. In fact, that trademark black colour signifies the presence of a nutrient – anthocyanins. Anthocyanins are antioxidants, and as such protect against cancer as well as other illnesses.

The nutrient richness of black beans is such that many have found it to help with gout. A simple broth made out of it can help immensely with gout symptoms for many people. Black soya works in the same way, which

view full post »

Stuffed Hard-Boiled Eggs

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

Russian stuffed eggs

There are as many different Russian stuffed eggs recipes as there are grandmothers, and most families have their own version which is handed down from one generation to the next. Mushrooms are commonly used for stuffing hard boiled eggs, to make a wonderful and tasty appetizer or snack for your party. Other Russian households make devilled eggs with hard boiled eggs stuffed with cheese and vegetables. Others might prefer more high brow or exotic ingredients like caviar, salmon, or finely chopped bacon.

Hard boiled eggs in Pirozhki

These are small flaky buns, that are usually stuffed with either meat or fruit. These buns are a popular, traditional, Russian snack. Although most people stuff them, most often, with mince or fruits and vegetables, you can make a mean pirozhki by substituting the filling with hard boiled eggs. In both sweet and savory fillings, a substitution or addition of eggs is possible.

Sweet or savory stuffings

The sweet pirozhki often contain fresh or stewed fruit, like apples, cherries, and apricots, either by themselves or combined with cottage cheese, or jam. Whether these will go well with eggs is your decision. Take a

view full post »

Wheatgrass

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

In more recent years, however, it has become clear that hydroponic growers are mastering their craft and producing fruits and vegetables that have surpassed the taste and quality of some of their soil-grown competitors. I now confess to choosing a particular type of tomato, basil, and salad green over all others at the grocery store, and (with great surprise!) they are all grown hydroponically. That got me to thinking. If these growers can produce such outstanding tomatoes, basil, and lettuce, couldn’t I produce an outstanding hydroponic wheatgrass?

While I am a strong proponent of soil-grown, it has caused me a fair number of infrastructure problems in my growing operation throughout the years. Soil definitely has its place, outdoors and in greenhouses, but for an indoor growing operation–in my case, a 300 square foot year-round, climate-controlled growing room akin to a laboratory setting–it wreaks havoc and has caused me innumerable problems in the way of soilborne pathogens, dust, odors, storage limitations, and physical injury. Even when one works as cleanly as possible, soil has a way of taxing indoor air cleaning systems, which can turn into hundreds and even thousands of dollars in maintenance costs when the system unexpectedly

view full post »

Cook Live Lobster

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

You can cook more than 1 lobster at a time but make sure that you have a pan large enough so they won’t be crowded.

Put enough water in the pan so when the lobster is added the water will completely cover them.

Put enough water in the pan and add 1 tablespoon of salt for every quart of water.

Bring the water to a rapid boil and add the lobster head first.

Start timing. Do not cover the pot and stir a couple times.

  • If lobster weighs 1 pound… cook for 12 minutes
  • 1 ½ pound… 14 minutes
  • 2 pounds… 16 minutes
  • 2 ½ pounds… 20 minutes
  • 3 pounds… 25 minutes

If you are doing more than one lobster use the weight of one lobster not the total weight when figuring the cooking time.

To check if the lobster is done pull on one of the small legs, they should come off easily and the meat should be opaque, not translucent and the shell should be bright red. The best way to check is with a meat thermometer. Lobster is done at 140 degrees. Overcooking will

view full post »

Way To Find Breweries Near Me That Welcome Kids

Norah KnightCafe/Restaurant

Think about a general family trip to a chain restaurant. You, your spouse, and the kids file into a booth, and start the process of ordering. If you and your spouse decide to have a cold beer, you have limited options but having a brew isn’t off the table. Everyone orders their food, there might be some crayons & coloring activities for the kids, you pack up leftovers, and you head home. You see this type of family outing everyday. So, what’s so “out there” about taking the kids with you to a brewery?

It may just be your perspective about what a brewery actually is. The modern brewery is not like the industrial-looking complexes that we’ve come to expect from the big beer companies. In those environments, the idea of children being around would be inconceivable. Nowadays, breweries are also hubs for the general public to gather for well-made, award-winning beer, as well as tremendous food options. In many respects, you could say that the modern brewery understands that as a business, being able to appeal to a larger audience makes the most sense, and families looking for a place to go out for the night

view full post »

Ice Pops

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

With all the food colorings and preservatives that go into commercial ice creams and frozen snack foods, I do not feel comfortable offering them to my grandchildren. Especially if you have kids with allergies, you know how essential it is to stick to natural ingredients. And with all the processed fast food that kids consume nowadays, it only makes sense to try and introduce more healthy ingredients whenever we can. This is why self-made ice pops are the perfect treat. Even the pickiest eaters among my grandchildren will consume fruit in the form of ice pops. Sometimes I will even “hide” healthy fruits and vegetables in an ice pop, that my grand-kids would not consume otherwise. Avocados and beets, if blended with a banana, offer a very good color and tons of nutrients while the little ones cannot determine the “secret ingredient”, thanks to the sweet taste of bananas. The best aspect is that you can allow your kids to eat as many ice pops as they want, since they are actually good for them!

I have considered a couple types of ice pop makers and they all work, but my personal favorite ones are the ones

view full post »

Popcorn

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

Popcorn is a snack that gives you a wide array of options- there are several ways to cook it, with near infinite seasoning options. Popcorn can be savory, salty, sweet, spicy… it’s all up to the chef!

There are three basic type of popcorn poppers on the market today- air poppers, microwave poppers, and oil poppers.

Air poppers make the healthiest popcorn. Air poppers are basically big hair driers repurposed to pop popcorn. Did you know that nutrition experts are beginning to consider popcorn to be a superfood? It’s hulls have an extreme concentration of healthy stuff. Despite the health benefits of air popping, there’s trouble in paradise- air popping leaves some kernels unpopped, sometimes the popper will prematurely eject kernels, and the popcorn tends to come out a bit on the bland side.

Then we have microwave poppers, which look like little more than a microwave-safe bowl with a lid. These have lots of problems but are incredibly convenient and easy to clean. You have to experiment with different power settings to get the popcorn popped right, the bowl gets very hot in the microwave, and the bowls can even scorch and crack from

view full post »

Benefits of Cloves

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

Eugenol is an anesthetic benefit of clove, and is used for toothache, sore throat and gum pain. This active ingredient is used in some mouth washes, and sore throat treatments because of its germicidal and antiseptic benefits. Eugenol is specifically known to help improve dental health, and is used in toothpastes and dental antiseptics. The health benefits of cloves toward the dentistry profession are known by all. Remember the last time you were sitting in the dentist’s chair, before getting a shot of novacaine? Your dentist rubbed your affected gum area with an anti-bacterial, helping to numb the area, and leaving your mouth tasting and smelling like fresh clove. Where would modern dentistry be without eugenol?

Honestly, cloves are just an absolutely amazing little spice. Cloves are effectively used in many medicinal products to help cure digestive health problems. Indigestion, stomach ulcer symptoms, nausea and gastric discomfort are just a couple of ailments helped by this miracle spice. Diluted clove oil can be applied to cuts, burns, wounds and bruises because of its natural antiseptic characteristics. Benefits of clove oil can even help relieve muscle spasm when applied around the spasming area.

The eugenol in clove

view full post »

FDA Frozen Dessert

Norah KnightFood and Drinks

Ice cream and frozen custard

An ice cream, according to the FDA guidelines may contain one or more of the optional caseinates, some optional hydrolyzed milk proteins and suitable nonmilk ingredients. They must contain 10 % milkfat, 20 % milk solids, and must meet specific fat and calorie guidelines for labeling as reduced, light, and lowfat. Other food fats are excluded, except the ones that might be part of the flavoring. The sweeteners are to be safe and suitable. Ice cream must not weigh less than 4.5 pounds per gallon.

Frozen custard should have only 1.12% to 1.4% egg yolk solids by weight, and both ice cream and frozen custard may contain other optional dairy ingredients such as dried cream, plastic cream, butter, milk, concentrated or evaporated milk, condensed milk, part-skim milk, skim milk, sweet cream buttermilk, and so on.

Mellorine

Mellorine should contain a minimum of 1.6 pounds of total solids to the gallon, according to the FDA guidelines, and must weigh no less than 4.5 pounds to every gallon. Minimum amount of fat is 6 % and that of protein 2.7 % with protein efficiency ratios (PER) equal to that of whole

view full post »