Easy Desserts Prepared & Cooking Recipes

Slow Cooker Recipes on the Rise

2008-06-05T09:08:00.001-07:00

In the past, slow cooker recipes were most often used for special gatherings when food needed to be prepared early and kept hot. This is no longer standard practice; slow cooker recipes are making their way onto the dinner table every day.

There are several benefits to slow cooker recipes. Slow cookers allow for the meal to be prepared in advance and as the name implies, slowly cooked throughout the day. This ensures that the food is cooked nice and tender. More importantly, it helps to save time in the evening when most families are the most tired. Everyone is coming together after their day at work and school and after activities like sports, art classes, and ballet.

Everyone is exhausted and needs a nice, healthy meal to sit down to and unwind. This is not the time to try and prepare an elaborate meal because who really has the time for that anyway? Slow cooker recipes are ready when everyone gets home. It is a simple matter of spooning the meal onto the plate.

Another reason why slow cooker recipes are becoming even more popular is the health value they provide. As well as offering a timesaving way to cook meals, slow cooker recipes are one of the best ways to make a healthy meal. The base of any of these recipes is meat. The meat is then surrounded by any number of vegetables and spices. This equates to a healthy meal without having to rush around last minute.

Where to Find Slow Cooker Recipes

Slow cooker recipes are easy to find. They are easily searchable on the internet, and several sites offer specific pages dedicated solely to slow cookers. There are also plenty of cookbooks available with sections dedicated to slow cookers and even entire books with only slow cooker recipes.

Many food manufacturers are even offering slow cooker kits that include all of the necessary ingredients to add to the slow cooker to create a tasty meal. This cuts cooking time even further. Finally, there is always the option of creating personalized slow cooker recipes. This may be a process of trial and error, but is worth it to create unique and healthy meals. Slow cooker recipes are perfect for creating healthy meals within a hectic lifestyle. The good thing is that these meals are not only healthy, but delicious as well!

Smoothie Recipes Are One Of Life’s Pleasures

2008-06-05T09:07:00.000-07:00

Smoothie recipes are more than just an extra treat, and an excellent smoothie prepared for others can serve many purposes. A smoothie recipe can be a great dessert at the end of a delicious meal. A fancy cake or a crispy pie might please everybody, but a smoothie will serve the same purpose. A good recipe will make a smoothie that will provide a rich, refreshing dessert. This will gracefully replace the other desserts that take more time to prepare. The smoothie recipes can be adjusted for the tastes of those at dinner so everyone will be content.

After dinner, a smoothie will be the perfect treat to end a great meal, but a smoothie recipe can serve so many different purposes. A recipe for a unique smoothie will provide the ingredients for a special treat at the end of a long day at work or school. If someone in the group is down and out, a smoothie recipe will have the ingredients to cheer the soul. A smoothie recipe will relieve the heat on a hot summer day or restore the spirit after the loss of a coveted championship game. When friends and family finish a day helping with the chores, a smoothie recipe can express the gratitude of the thankful leader.

Smoothie Recipes Can Be Full Of Nutritious Ingredients

Smoothie recipes will make a tasty drink, but a smoothie recipe can be adjusted to provide the nutrients necessary to healthy living. A smoothie mixed with carrots, berries and bananas has important nutrients. Another recipe can appease the appetite of those on a diet with a great drink full of these important nutrients. Children who do not want to eat their vegetables might not even realize the smoothie is full of the fruits and vegetables that are so important to their diets.

Smoothie recipes are as varied as the imagination of a creative cook. There are recipes that use ice cream for a richer drink. Other recipes include some coffee for a great energy boost as needed throughout a busy day. These smoothies might even include a bit of a tasty liqueur for an exotic flavor. People can make their own recipes to please their individual tastes. There are no hard and fast rules when preparing a smoothie so a creative combination of ingredients might become the lasting favorite. A few minutes and a good blender can make a smoothie as a special addition to a social gathering or family moment.

Recipes to Celebrate Irish Heritage

2007-12-27T06:05:00.000-08:00

The Irish, at one time in the history of the United States, made up a large portion of the immigrants coming to this country. As a result, many people in this country can claim some Irish blood in their veins, whether its one generation removed or several. And of course, every year the nation celebrates St. Patrick’s Day, when everyone is treated as if they’re a little Irish. Whether you are looking to celebrate your own heritage or just trying to experience a taste of another culture, these Irish recipes might help.

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Corned beef and cabbage, perhaps one of the most recognizable of Irish recipes, is also very simple to make if you buy the corned beef, which is pickled brisket. What you’ll need is a joint of corned beef, placed in a pot and covered with water. Boil the water, and then add 2 large onions, two large carrots, some potatoes, a bay leaf, and some pepper to taste. Simmer for 20 minutes, then add one cabbage, quartered, and simmer for another half hour.

For this meal, serve the meat surrounded by the vegetables, and as with many Irish recipes, extra mashed potatoes will make the meal perfect. With just a little time, that’s all you need to create this simple meal.

Soda Bread

Another one of the traditionally Irish recipes is that for soda bread. As the name may imply, soda bread is one in which the leavening agent is baking soda, rather than yeast as in many traditional breads. All you really need for soda bread is about 4 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 1 teaspoon of salt and about 2 1/2 cups buttermilk. The rising comes from the reaction of baking soda, which is a base, with the lactic acid in buttermilk, which is acidic. Because this bread is so easy to make, you can quickly perfect your own recipe and learn to add other ingredients, such as raisins, to improve it.

Boxty

Many Irish recipes feature potatoes heavily, and none exemplifies this more than boxty, which is a traditional potato pancake. This meal is made by grating 1 cup of raw potato which has been squeezed so the liquid has escaped, and by adding 1 cup of mashed potatoes, 2 cups of flour, then about a teaspoon each of baking powder, salt, and butter. Knead the mixture and divide into flat cakes that can be baked or fried. While this recipe might sound similar to hash browns, it tends to have a much finer texture. This, like the other Irish recipes here, are simple to make, so give them a try and see how good a celebration of Irish cuisine can taste.

Classic Spanish Recipes

2007-10-29T19:53:00.001-07:00

Mediterranean cooking has become quite popular in recent years and has even been purported to be an extremely healthy diet. The Spanish diet is highly influenced by the Mediterranean coast line. There are many great classic Spanish recipes which include seafood and other coastal foods.

These Spanish recipes are enjoyed for their freshness and flavor by many chefs world wide. This was even seen on the recent Bravo TV show Top Chef where one of the top four finalists was noted for his use of a Spanish influence in his recipes. Exploring classic Spanish recipes can be a joy for any amateur chef.

The Classic Paella

Paella is a traditional Spanish meal with many varieties offered in the different regions of Spain. The basis for this Spanish recipe is rice cooked with different varieties of meat. The typical Spanish recipe for Paella calls for chicken, pork, shrimp, scallops, clams and mussels to be cooked with tomato and pepper sauce and garnished with vegetables such as green peas or green beans. The rich taste of Saffron is used as a seasoning. This meal will delight the palettes of all who indulge.

The Use of Fish in Spanish Recipes

There are many Spanish recipes which call for the use of fish since Spain is bordered on two sides by water. These recipes often include potatoes and are baked into casseroles. Olive oil is used as a cooking base and creates a nice basic Mediterranean taste. These recipes can be flavored with tomatoes, peppers, olives or garlic. Spanish recipes truly take a basic fish and turn it into delightfully flavored meals. With the recent studies which encourage increasing fish in the diet these recipes are worthwhile for the amateur chef to incorporate in their repertoire.

Other Spanish Classics

With any great Spanish meal one must consider the best drink to offer. Traditional Spanish Sangria is a great beverage to serve with any meal. The Spanish recipe for Sangria calls for mixing a good reasonably priced red wine with fresh fruit such as oranges, peaches and lemons and sweetening with sugar. The sangria should be refrigerated and served well chilled.

Another Spanish recipe classic is flan. Flan is a caramelized custard dish which is a great treat for the dessert course. The trick to making flan is caramelizing the sugar; this caramel is then placed in a metal mold and a custard base is poured over the top. The dish is then baked in a pan with a water base. Once the dish is done the flan pans can be inverted and a beautiful dessert presents itself. Any amateur chef will be greatly praised when serving a meal with Spanish recipes completed by a Spanish flan.

Vegetarian Recipes Offer Variety

2007-10-29T19:52:00.001-07:00

Vegetarian recipes can help every person feel like a chef. These recipes offer the chance to try out a variety of vegetables and cook them in new ways to create new recipes and delicious meals. Meat does not need to be the backbone of every meal; with many people choosing to become vegetarians, everyone should have some vegetarian recipes on hand to make sure they are prepared when the time comes that they host a vegetarian.

Variety is the key when it comes to vegetarian recipes. They must go beyond the standards of broccoli, carrots, and potatoes. While these are certainly staple foods, they can become boring and predictable. Instead, a little research will provide hundreds of potential vegetarian recipes to try. The next time a meal calls for vegetarian, consider such excellent vegetables as eggplant, zucchini, and even acorn squash. All of these make great bases in and will make sure that every family will have the diversity of meals and vegetables that will keep mealtime from becoming boring.

Get the Protein into Vegetarian Recipes

One of the most major concerns for vegetarians is getting enough protein into their diet. While occasional vegetarian recipes without any protein are not going to wreak havoc on the body, protein is a necessity and should be included as often as possible. Vegetarians have their own way of including protein in vegetarian recipes.

Beans are an excellent source of protein. Many vegetarian recipes call for some form of beans. Another great source of protein is nuts. Nuts have also become a very popular ingredient in many recipes. Rather than being eaten as a snack in front of the television, nuts are being used to add flavor and texture to many dishes and this is perfect for vegetarian recipes.

Finally, these recipes can be given the necessary protein by using tofu. Tofu used to have a small stigma surrounding it, but now tofu has become fully integrated into recipes that are vegetarian and even those that include meats. The wonderful thing about tofu is that it takes on the flavor of the food that it is cooked with. This is an excellent way to increase protein without having to compromise.

Vegetarian recipes are a great way to introduce variety into every day meal plans. This will help families try new recipes and new vegetables. Different sources of protein are available to ensure that vegetarian meals include the necessary amounts of protein that the body needs. These recipes may just even get picky kids to enjoy having their greens.

Mexican Recipes to Impress

2007-07-22T10:23:00.001-07:00

Mexican food is popular in the United States, and for good reason. With plenty of flavorful dishes and a lot of ingredients that are authentically New World, Mexican food is a cuisine that plays to the heritage of native people of North America, and has spread north, becoming a common sort of food everywhere.

If you look around, you can find places that sell Mexican food, from fast food to stylish restaurants, to mixes that imitate Mexican recipes, bought at the supermarket. However, Mexican cuisine is more than tacos and burritos, and with a willingness to try new things, you can add to your repertoire of Mexican recipes and impress friends and family with your knowledge.

Horchata

Coming from a blend of Spanish traditions and changes made by local native people, the horchata is a sweet drink, great if you want to pair your Mexican recipes with traditional Mexican beverages as well. This nonalcoholic drink takes a little time to prepare, but offers a unique sort of taste.

Pulverize six tablespoons of rice in your blender and add six ounces of blanched almonds, one inch of a cinnamon stick, and a little lime zest. Let the ingredients rest overnight to allow the flavors to mingle. The next day, add two cups of water, blend in your blender, and then strain the mixture. Add sugar to taste, and you've got a sweet drink with a great flavor, one of the Mexican recipes that can be a hit with adults and kids alike.

Chorizo Con Huevos

Chorizo is a spicy Mexican sausage that is great with eggs, making a great traditional Mexican breakfast. Among Mexican recipes, this is one of the easiest to create and is full of flavor.

Chop and fry the chorizo until it's browned and add some diced onion and diced peppers, whether you use bell peppers or something spicier. Beat some eggs as if making a scrambled egg dish and add to the mixture, then cook as if you were making scrambled eggs. Mexican recipes like this are basically simple omelets that have a spicy, Latin American flavor to them. For a great serving suggestion, serve with avocado and wrapped in tortillas for an authentic breakfast burrito.

Pollo Poblano

If you're searching for Mexican recipes that can make up a main dish for dinner and has plenty of flavor; then Pollo Poblano will be a great choice. Pollo Poblano is essentially chicken, sautéed then baked with cheese and a cream sauce made from poblano peppers.

Blend seeded and chopped peppers with milk in order to create a puree; then add to a mixture of melted butter and flour. Add the puree and stir the ingredients until smooth, then add 1 cup of heavy cream in order to create the sauce. When you're ready to bake the chicken, pour the sauce all over the chicken in a baking dish, sprinkle cheese on top, and bake until the cheese is golden and bubbly. Just as with the other Mexican recipes, Pollo Poblano can help you create authentic Mexican dishes that are simple to make.

Vegetarian Recipes Offer Variety

2007-07-22T10:22:00.000-07:00

Need To Make Low Fat Desserts? - Top 7 Proven Techniques Help You Keep All The Taste And Flavor

2007-06-24T00:15:00.002-07:00

We all love desserts! But there nothing worse than regretting and feeling bad after a meal followed by a rich dessert. Low fat dessert recipes don't have to be boring or tasteless. In fact, by following the Top 7 Proven Techniques for low fat desserts, you will be amazed at how you can easily keep desserts on your menu!

Whether you are weight watching, dieting or just a little health conscious, there is no need to skip and deny yourself on life's simplest little treats.

Skipping desserts can actually be bad for you. You are left craving for your well-deserved treats and this can often lead to unnecessary bingeing.

All you need to do is simply make a few little changes and know where to keep your desserts as low fat as possible.

Here are seven tips on benefiting from healthy and tasty low fat desserts:

Tip 1. Do-it-Yourself

Avoid buying desserts and opt for homemade desserts. Choose quick to prepare recipes and enjoy the pleasures of homemade low fat desserts.

You will not only benefit from knowing what exactly was used in the recipe, but also appreciate the desserts more. This also leads to less cravings and avoids instant gratifications, as with store-bought treats, that can be bad for you.

And, you can lose some calories by DOING something!

Tip 2. Reduce Fats for Low Fat Dessert Recipes

When preparing your favorite dessert, reduce the amount of sugar by half.

You can (most times) also reduce the amount of fat, like butter and oils, in recipes by one-third up to to one-half! You will not lose out on too much flavor at all.

If it's a recipe that you use often, perhaps the first time you will taste a little difference, but the next time, you won't even notice that this is your same favorite dessert but with half the fat.

Tip 3. Fresh Fruit Wonders

Not only does fresh fruits add color to your desserts but they are full of natural flavor and goodness.

Choose delightful fruit salads or bake your fruits within your recipes.

Tip 4. Use Yoghurt

Use yoghurt instead of ice-cream. Yoghurt can be mixed with flavors just as ice-cream can.

The active agents within yoghurt can also help your digestive system after a meal.

Desserts that are good for you? Yes, it IS possible!

Tip 5. Go a bit Nuts!

Try choosing lower saturated nuts over the higher type (like coconut or macadamia nuts).

Nuts have some benefits to our daily diet so you do not have to completely cut it out. But a lower fat alternative would be to reduce the amount in half stated in recipes.

Chop nuts finely and spread throughout your dessert allows you to keep that nutty flavor we love. Or, instead of packing your desserts full of nuts, try to decorate by placing a toasted nut (or just even half of one) on top of you dessert. This creates a classy element to dessert and keeping it low fat at the same time.

Tip 6. I want my Chocolate

No, we are NOT going to cut out the chocolate! If you can, great! But for the rest of us, choose the better alternative - the dark chocolate.

I never thought I'd enjoy dark chocolate in the past, but now, nothing tastes better. Normal milk chocolate taste too sugary and 'fake' to me now. Not only that, dark chocolate has anti-oxidants that are good for us!

Don't abuse chocolate, but opt for dark chocolate. I swear, you will not look back! Plus, you will be thankful for the lower fat benefits.

Tip 7. Essence-tial Taste

Use essence and spices to flavor your low fat dessert recipes.

Use vanilla, almond, orange or lemon extracts to flavor your dessert.

Add nutmeg or cinnamon to bring your recipe to life.

You can also use a zest of lemon or orange peel throughout the recipe mix or simply as garnish or topping.

Being satisfied is the key to lower fat eating. By being a little creative and make tiny changes to your favorite recipes, you won't lose out on flavor nor taste.

This is the true pleasure that lies within a dessert.

~* Janlia Chong has held onto her title as Baking Sensation because of her near endless knowledge of baking and packaging treats. Her ability to impress is one of her biggest traits. What's her trick? Simple, she takes something that sounds difficult and makes it easy and fun. Follow Janlia's advice and you'll be busy baking treats for the entire family. Visit http://www.BakingHugs.com *~

Copyright 2006 Janlia Chong

Desserts from Cooked Whole Grains: If You Like Rice Pudding, You'll Love These

2007-06-24T00:15:00.001-07:00

Healthful whole grains can be featured in every part of your meals: breakfast cereals, salads, soups, main dishes, and even desserts. Try these recipes that use cooked whole grains sweetened with fruit and seasoned with fragrant spices.

If you're not sure how to cook whole grains, where to find them or even what they are, read the section on whole grains in The Good Food Book. It's online and it's free. The link after the recipes, below.

Banana Rice Pudding
2-4 ripe bananas, sliced
2 cups cooked oats, brown rice or barley
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon dessert spice blend or cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a microwaveable dish and microwave on high for 3-4 minutes, or until the bananas are soft and the grains are heated through. Stir and serve.

Variations: You may add raisins, currants, pieces of dried apricot or other fruits, or tiny pieces of candied ginger if desired. If you wish, add a little of your favorite flavored liquer or rum. Garnish with fresh fruits or sprinkle with a little dessert spice blend.

4-6 servings

Carrot Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding)

4 cups shredded carrots (use a food processor)
1 cup bouillon
2 cups cooked oat groats or barle
1 cup soy milk
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 tablespoons brown sugar, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon dessert spice blend

Bring the carrots and bouillon to a boil in a medium saucepan and cook, stirring, about 10 minutes or until the carrots are soft. Drain off any excess bouillon. Stir in the remaining ingredients and cook over low heat for 5-10 minutes. Serve warm or chilled.

4-6 servings

Quickest Rice Pudding
1/2 to 1 cup of cooked whole grains such as brown rice or barley
4-5 tablespoons of your favourite flavoured yogurt -- vanilla, blueberry or any fruit flavor
Options: sliced bananas or other fruit, a handful of nuts or raisins

Combine these ingredients and you're ready to eat! If you like warm pudding, heat the cooked grains first in the microwave for a couple of minutes, then mix in the yogurt.

Yield: One serving

Read my Good Food Book FREE, with 100 healthful recipes.

Dr. Gabe Mirkin has been a radio talk show host for 25 years and practicing physician for more than 40 years; he is board certified in four specialties, including sports medicine. Read or listen to hundreds of his fitness and health reports at http://www.DrMirkin.com