What's
the latest at lunch? What's the dish during dinner? Here's where you'll
find out what's new in the food world, from new temptations in the
market to new cookbooks in your bookstore's cuisine section. Check
in frequently for updates. After all, news is like food — you
want to get it when it's fresh!
Just
as there are hundreds of shoe styles, so too is the case with chopsticks.
A recent interest in Sushi Bars and Asian foods for
healthy eating are among the contributing factors for the variety
of chopsticks on the market. Originally, when the Chinese first
employed them as eating utensils, they were just twigs. Now, chopsticks
come in various colors, different metals and woods, and with blunt
or tapered points. Chopsticks cost anywhere from $2 to $20, and
range from plastic to silver, ceramic to inlaid tropical woods.
If you already know how to use them, you'll fit in well with the
crowd at Asian restaurants. If you don't, using them may feel awkward
at first. But once you know how to use them, it's like riding a
bicycle- you never forget! Think of chopsticks operating like a
hinge. Grab the two chopsticks, letting one stick rest between your
thumb and index finger, and those two fingers grab the top stick.
Place your middle finger on the fixed chopstick and let your ring
finger and pinky bend to support it. Reach for food by keeping both
sticks parallel and flexing your pointer finger to grab. Practice
with (unsharpened) pencils if chopsticks are not handy. By the way,
etiquette says it's okay to lick your chops... sticks that is.
Are
you one of the many who assumes that reaching for a banana is the
best way to boost your potassium level? You may want
to reach even further than a banana which only offers a mere 451
mg. How about a baked potato with 844 mg? Or an avocado with 700
mg or a cup of cantaloupe with 494 mg? Even a quarter cup of raisins
has more potassium than a banana, with 563 mg. The recommended daily
allowance for potassium is 2,000 mg, or double that to really help
keep blood pressure down. A glass of orange juice with 474 mg will
help the daily allowance add up.
Have
you noticed that egg cups are back? You
can now find them in cookware stores to match china. They are also
sold in a variety of styles based on the basic shape that resembles
an eye-wash cup, but has a much larger basin to hold an egg upright
on end. Egg cups have been around since the late 1800's when soft-boiled
eggs for breakfast were popular. To make, cover eggs in cold water
in a saucepan coated with DuPont SilverStone®
non-stick and bring water to a boil. Cook over a gentle boil for
about 3 minutes so that the yoke is soft and the whites are a little
firm. Place the egg in the cup and with a teaspoon or knife, gently
crack open the shell just below the top. Add a little butter, salt
and pepper, and scoop out of the shell.
Summer squash is getting more notice these days. And
food critics believe pattypan has had a lot to do with it. Pattypan
resembles a Halloween gourd and is usually 3 inches in diameter.
The well-rounded squash has fluted or scalloped edges and ripens
to a milky white or yellow. Now, this squash is showing up in
supermarkets in miniature (about an inch in diameter). Chefs use
the miniature squash in pasta primavera, or they steam and mix
with summer tomatoes and an herb dressing. The larger version
does well quartered and sautéed in olive oil, served as
a side dish or garnish.
Just
as there are hundreds of shoe styles, so too is the case with chopsticks.
A recent interest in Sushi Bars and Asian foods for
healthy eating are among the contributing factors for the variety
of chopsticks on the market. Originally, when the Chinese first
employed them as eating utensils, they were just twigs. Now, chopsticks
come in various colors, different metals and woods, and with blunt
or tapered points. Chopsticks cost anywhere from $2 to $20, and
range from plastic to silver, ceramic to inlaid tropical woods.
If you already know how to use them, you'll fit in well with the
crowd at Asian restaurants. If you don't, using them may feel awkward
at first. But once you know how to use them, it's like riding a
bicycle- you never forget! Think of chopsticks operating like a
hinge. Grab the two chopsticks, letting one stick rest between your
thumb and index finger, and those two fingers grab the top stick.
Place your middle finger on the fixed chopstick and let your ring
finger and pinky bend to support it. Reach for food by keeping both
sticks parallel and flexing your pointer finger to grab. Practice
with (unsharpened) pencils if chopsticks are not handy. By the way,
etiquette says it's okay to lick your chops... sticks that is.
Are
you one of the many who assumes that reaching for a banana is the
best way to boost your potassium level? You may want
to reach even further than a banana which only offers a mere 451
mg. How about a baked potato with 844 mg? Or an avocado with 700
mg or a cup of cantaloupe with 494 mg? Even a quarter cup of raisins
has more potassium than a banana, with 563 mg. The recommended daily
allowance for potassium is 2,000 mg, or double that to really help
keep blood pressure down. A glass of orange juice with 474 mg will
help the daily allowance add up.
Have
you noticed that egg cups are back? You
can now find them in cookware stores to match china. They are also
sold in a variety of styles based on the basic shape that resembles
an eye-wash cup, but has a much larger basin to hold an egg upright
on end. Egg cups have been around since the late 1800's when soft-boiled
eggs for breakfast were popular. To make, cover eggs in cold water
in a saucepan coated with DuPont SilverStone®
non-stick and bring water to a boil. Cook over a gentle boil for
about 3 minutes so that the yoke is soft and the whites are a little
firm. Place the egg in the cup and with a teaspoon or knife, gently
crack open the shell just below the top. Add a little butter, salt
and pepper, and scoop out of the shell.
Summer squash is getting more notice these days.
And
food critics believe pattypan has had a lot to do with it. Pattypan
resembles a Halloween gourd and is usually 3 inches in diameter.
The well-rounded squash has fluted or scalloped edges and ripens
to a milky white or yellow. Now, this squash is showing up in
supermarkets in miniature (about an inch in diameter). Chefs use
the miniature squash in pasta primavera, or they steam and mix
with summer tomatoes and an herb dressing. The larger version
does well quartered and sautéed in olive oil, served as
a side dish or garnish.