Week
of February 24, 2008
How
to Peel Tomatoes
If
you love the flavor of fresh tomatoes in sauces
and cooked dishes but don't like the texture when
the skins are left on, try this simple trick for
peeling tomatoes.
Cut
a small "x" on the bottom of each tomato,
then place them one at a time in boiling water
for just 5 - 10 seconds.
Using
tongs, pull the tomato from boiling water and
dunk into a bowl of ice water. (After a few minutes,
they are cool enough to handle.) Then you can
easily peel the skin off with a small paring knife.
Week
of February 17, 2008
Using
Eggs and Egg Substitutes in Baked Goods
Eggs
help to bind batters and have leavening properties.
- Egg
yolks provide fat, which give much of the fine
texture and color to baked goods.
- Egg
white are a drying and leavening agent.
Replacing
a whole egg with egg white or egg substitute can
be a good nutritional savings, if watching your
cholesterol. One whole egg contains 5 grams of
fat and 210 milligrams of cholesterol. The equivalent
of 1 egg in egg whites or egg substitutes contains
0 fat and 0 cholesterol.
If
more than one egg is called for in a recipe that
you are baking, you will obtain the best results
when you replace only part of the eggs with egg
whites or egg substitute. That way you will retain
the texture of the original recipe. Using only
egg whites usually results in a baked good being
dry and rubbery. If a recipe call for 3 large
eggs, consider using one large egg and 4 large
egg whites.
Keep
this guide in mind when substituting:
- 1
large egg = 2 large egg whites
- 1
large egg = 1/4 cup egg substitute
- 1
large egg white = 2 tablespoons egg substitute
Week
of February 10, 2008
One
of the easiest and quickest ways to interest and
flavor to a dish is to a ZEST.
Use
lemon, lime, orange or tangerine zest, the colored
part of the peel. It holds the true flavor of
the fruit.
 |
When zesting a fruit, be very careful
to get only a thin layer of skin and
none of the white pithy parts, as
this is very bitter.
A grater or citrus zester can be used
to obtain zest. For larger pieces
of zest, simply use a potato or vegetable
peeler and cut the pieces into thin
strips.
Zest
can be used in breads, muffins, cakes,
desserts, salads, sides dishes, as
well as savory entress, dressings
and soups and stews. It is usually
subtle but definitely taste tingling. |
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Week
of February 3, 2008
We
usually try not to mention or hype brand names
on this site, but we have to break the rules every
once in a while when an exceptional product can
help our visitors.
If
you have not seen it or tried it, take a look
at Reynolds Wrap® Release® NON-STICK foil.
If you are trying to cook with less fats and oils,
this stuff is FANTASTIC!
According
to the Reynolds web site, "It
has an added food-safe coating that gives it outstanding
non-stick qualities. In the manufacturing process,
the non-stick coating is applied and cured onto
the foil. The foil is also imprinted with the
words "NON-STICK Side" on one side to
indicate the side that provides the best non-stick
surface."
Where
I have found it to be exceptional is when oven
frying foods with a coating. Before this, I was
always spraying more oil on than I wanted to because
the coating would always stick to the pan or plain
foil and half of the breading would rip away from
the food. With the release foil, you can turn
your breaded food and the breading holds to the
food without having to spay lots of oil on the
pan or food.
It
is also wonderful when baking with sticky sauces
(like sweet barbeque or honey sauces). And like
with all foil, cleanup is easier.
I
have got to say this product has made low fat
cooking a lot easier.
