The thought of my mother making fruit cake using candied cherries is one of the greatest memories that I get to recall vividly from time to time. These candied cherries that were cased in light air tight containers come in two colors: green and red however, they did not have that special and distinct taste. Of course, the candied fruits available now, given that there are more choices are way better in terms of quality and taste.

Making your own candied fruit to use as a garnish for dishes, in cookies, as a snack, and in cake decorating. Making candied fruit is a simple process. You infuse fruits and citrus peelings in a sugar syrup. You can candy orange wedges, orange peel, lemon peel, grapefruit peel, pineapple and fresh cherries. You can also candy fruits, such as carrots for carrot cake decorating.
You will need two sauce pans, one for making the syrup, and another to blanch the fruit. This is a recipe for Candied orange peel.

Simple Syrup
This syrup is used for making candied fruits, adding flavor to cold drinks, and adding moisture to sponge cake. There are different strengths of simple syrup for different uses. Thin simple syrup, made with 1 part sugar to 2 parts water, is used to brush on cake layers, mostly sponge cake, to provide extra moisture and sweetness. Medium simple syrup is made with equal parts of sugar and water. This is excellent for adding sweetness to mixed drinks, coffee, iced tea and to candy fruit. A syrup made of 2 parts sugar and 1 part water is used as a base for sorbet, and making rock candy.

Combine equal parts of sugar and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and let the sugar dissolve. You do not need to stir the syrup, but if you do it will do no harm. You can flavor the syrup. Take the syrup off the heat and cool slightly. Stir in 1 or 2 tsp. Of vanilla for a basic vanilla syrup. This syrup can be kept in a lidded jar in the refrigerator for up to a month.

Remove the bottom and top of an orange. Set the flat end of the orange on a cutting board. With a sharp paring knife, slice the peel off in strips, starting at the top and slicing downward, following the curve as much as possible. Don’t worry about cutting off the white pith of the peel. Although it is usually bitter, blanching it will make it translucent and the syrup will sweeten it.
You can candy the peel as it is, or cut into strips that are 1/4 inch wide, to use in cake decorating and garnishes. You can also dip it in chocolate and use it for a snack. Larger peels, like grapefruit should be cut into strips for even cooking.

Place the peel in a pot of cool water. Bring water to a rolling boil, remove from heat and transfer the peel into a colander to drain. Repeat the process twice more. For grapefruit or a more tart flavored fruit, you will need to blanch them seven or eight times. Cherry and pineapple do not need blanching and can be placed directly into the syrup. Between blanching taste the peel, if it is tender it has been blanched enough. Place the peel into the pot of syrup and bring to a low simmer. Let simmer for 15 to 30 minutes or until the orange rind becomes translucent and the peel tastes sweet and tender

Remove the pot from heat and let it cool. The orange rind can be stored in it’s own syrup for weeks in the refrigerator. You may choose to drain them and roll them in sugar. Sugared rinds tend to dry out quite fast and should be eaten within a couple of days. You can dry the peel and dip it in tempered chocolate to make it last a bit longer.

You can use the orange flavored syrup in other drinks or dishes. Nothing really goes to waste!

Camille Heimbrod
http://www.cakedecoratingthemes.com

A certain occasion is set and you need to bake a cake to commemorate it. Even though you have an idea how to bake a cake and trust your sense of creativity, you still need a fresh and new idea to work with. Cakes are a part of almost all types of special celebrations if you come to think of it that is why it is important that you know how to bake your own cake and decorate it creatively as well. Here are some cake decorating ideas that you might want to use for your reference:

- Characters: There are hundreds of famous characters to use for cake decorating. You can make any cake special by drawing in Dora the Explorer, or Blues Clues. Or you may want to cut up the cake to make the entire cake into a favorite character.

- Themes: Maybe you would like to go with a 50’s theme, underwater adventure, sport theme, or a roaring 20’s theme for your cake decorating. Use your creativity and find a theme that will thrill the person you are making the cake for, and the guests . You may want to have a masquerade party in that theme. Whatever you decide, have fun.

- Motor Cakes: Boys are usually crazy about trucks, cars, fire engines, boats, tractors, helicopters, or airplanes. Again you can use your cake decorating expertise to make a farm with a 3-D tractor, a racing strip, or a scene showing a fire being put out by firemen. Of course it all depends on what the particular birthday boy is fond of.

- Animals: You can also use an animal theme by cutting the cake to look like any animal, or draw in a scene using animals. It could be a zoo scene with several animals or choose one animal and decorate the cake with other decorations showing where it came from. Use your imagination.

- Food: Maybe you are making a cake for the opening of an Italian restaurant. You could create a scene depicting the building, or if it is for a chef opening the restaurant, a scene of the kitchen with different Italian dishes would be fun. You can also cut the cake to look like a hamburger, hot dog, taco etc… The sky is the limit when it comes to cake decorating using a food theme.

- Holiday Themes: I remember when bunny cakes became popular at Easter, Wilton has pans and decorating supplies for all holiday cake decorating designs. A heart on Valentine’s day, or a 4 leaf clover on St. Patrick’s day is a wonderful way to say happy holidays.

- Your Own Creation: If you have been involved in cake decorating for quite some time, or if you are a novice with an artistic flair, you can create your own cake based on the theme or the celebration.
Regardless of the type of cake that you bake, it is certainly the center and core of any type of occasion. In fact, the existence of cakes in special occasions can even be regarded as a tradition of its own sort. Of course, knowing that you are the one who especially decorated the cake in a certain occasion can definitely give you the attention and applause that you deserve.

Camille Heimbrod
http://www.cakedecoratingthemes.com

It is very common for you to see edible flowers being used to garnish a salad or to use it even as an ingredient to make the appetizer much tastier. Of course, not all types of flowers are edible but it shouldn’t be hard for you to find as much options as you can find out there.

Nasturtiums have a Peppery flavor, Chive blossoms taste like a mild sweet onion, Roses, Violas and Pansies taste a bit like grapes. Other edible flowers are apple blossoms, almond, lavender, borage, chamomile, lovage, lemon, orange blossoms, plum blossoms, peach blossoms, and squash blossoms. We also have daisies, chrysanthemums, geraniums, marigolds, jasmine, lilacs, and violets.

Candied Flowers
Candied flowers are great for desserts and in cake decorating. Here is a recipe to make that you can use and even make your own when it comes to candied flowers for cake decorations.

Time to prepare: 8 hrs. and 15 minutes
Yield: 2 dozen flowers.
1/4 cup beaten egg whites
1/2 cup superfine sugar
2 cups edible flowers of your choice

Clean and blot flowers dry with a paper towel. With a paint brush, brush on a thin layer of egg white on each side of the flower petals or blossoms. Place flowers into a shallow bowl of superfine sugar and sprinkle more sugar over the flowers so that they are coated. Make sure all of the flower has been sprinkled with sugar. Remove flowers and place them on a sheet of waxed paper. Sprinkle each flower with another layer of sugar, again, make sure the entire flower gets a layer of sugar.
Allow flowers to dry on the waxed paper for 8 hours. Store these tasty treats in an airtight container at room temperature until they are needed.

We are seeing more real flowers and fruit in cake decorating than ever before. The addition of these wonderful edible gifts of nature, gives the cake an elegant look. Whether you are making a wedding, anniversary, retirement, birthday, or a cake for any special occasion, you will get many compliments on your choice of decoration.

Cake decorating can be a bit frustrating and time consuming, but once you learn the techniques and utilize the newest ideas when cake decorating, you will find that it can be fun, rewarding, and lucrative. Most cake decorators have an artistic background, or artistic talent.

If you are thinking of starting a cake decorating business at home, you will need to keep up with the latest trends in cake decorating to be able to offer your clients new unique and wonderful choices. As with anything designs get old, while some will stick with the traditional white or ivory for a wedding cake, but there are those who want to step out of the mold and have a little color in their wedding cake.

Camille Heimbrod
http://www.cakedecoratingthemes.com

White zin is a much loved wine for scores of folks because of its fruity makeup and wide-ranging allure. The wine is referred to as “white” and most folks feel that this is wrong because of its pink tone. However, this is the accurate name for the product. It is not really a blush because the process of formulating the final item is different in a white zinfandel than in a blush wine. Have you ever wished to sit back with a nice glass of wine after a rough day of niche marketing? If so, find out more about the energizing taste of white zin.

The zin grape is actually red and it frequently makes a red wine as its final product. The creators of white zinfandel adjust the winemaking technique a little bit in the course of creating the pink-colored favorite among mainstream wine drinkers. The skins of the grape contain the shade. When the skins are left in through the fermentation process, the final product is a red-tinted drink.

The white zinfandel is pink in hue because the outsides are left in the fusion for a short span of time then they are taken out. Removing the skins in the fermentation time results in a creation that has a pink tone because only some of the element that holds the shade (the outsides) are only there for a trivial amount of time. Once they are taken out, the hue is as well. Only a trace of the red grape is visible in the ultimate creation.

This pink wine has turned into a favorite among the majority but scores of wine enthusiasts in the know are a little turned off by the poor little white zin. Many wines are of finer excellence and taste but these wines also have to be acquired to suit the appetite. Only some individuals love their very first glass of fine wine. White zin is a perfect bridge between the casual wine drinker and the experienced wine aficionado. For instance, like getting a personal trainer certification is the opening step to building a viable training company, so white zin is the initial move to a life of wine admiration.

After the taste for a respectable white zinfandel is acquired many advise progressing to another drinkable wine. Riesling is my foremost preference since it is quite agreeable and easy on the palate. It is not totally as sweet as a port wine or a white zin but it gives a fantastic way to investigate more intricate wines. They are a wonderful way to unwind if you are worried, for example by yeast infection symptoms.

Once you build up a preference for a decent Riesling you might turn your nose up at the modest white zinfandel but this can be wrong. There are a lot of fantastic wines formed via this unique process. If truth be told white merlot has come on to the marketplace. Pink is a shade for all times after all.

Would you know what food products to buy to put into your survival food kits? Would you simply go to the greengrocer and purchase standard canned products? What are the differences between emergency food rations and an MRE, for instance? When would an emergency become survival and how would you have to think about different strategies? Basically, if an emergency extends outside the fourteen day period, the requirement for survival takes over. If the emergency services have not managed to right themselves inside two weeks, you are in a situation of survival and need to draw on your own resources for so long as it might take to get the infrastructure back active. Another thing to think about is where you are when the disaster happens - in the home, travelling, running away from the area.

Each situation is distinct and needs evolving according to circumstances. Food, water and keeping warm are always going to be the 3 most critical factors. Keeping warm and staying dry, with acceptable food and liquid will keep you alive. You may be bored and fed up, upset or irritated - but, you'll be alive.

What kind of food would you want to guarantee acceptable survival, particularly when you factor in the desires extend to your folks as well as yourself? Any food that contains liquid to save it is going to be quite heavy and, if you want to move enough food for a survival situation on foot that is going to be reasonably prohibitive. These food bars contain further minerals and vitamins to those considered the minimum adult daily obligation and they come in different calorie sizes, from 1200, 2400 to 3600 calories. Food bars have been designed with a minimum 5 year life and made to resist temperatures from -40 degrees to three hundred degrees, making them quite useful food items to have around.

Generally food rations are offered in packs lasting 72 hours, sometimes containing nine food bars at four hundred calories each. These have been authorized by the US Coast Guard and, except for their nutritive content, are simply packed, being little and adequately light to include inside a straightforward backpack. They are advised to be kept in your car in the event of emergencies and essentially taste quite good.

MREs are the army style food packs and are not quite so nice to eat, in spite of the incontrovertible fact that nutritionally, they contain everything wanted to maintain satisfactory nourishment indefinitely.

There is a lot of information about MRE's on our site. There are MRE recipes, MRE law information, how to read MRE Dates, and how to prepare for an emergency.

The term "meals ready to eat" certainly seems generic enough and only implies that food has already been prepared. However, as already discussed, there's a longevity period associated with MREs. It is meant to have a shelf life of a couple of years. The packages also have good nutritional value. Easy portability is another factor. In fact, campers, backpackers and hikers take MREs on camping trips due to all the above mentioned benefits. Therefore, one could say that if any meal meets the connotation of survival or emergency preparedness food, then it can be considered an MRE. The term has certainly been generalized but for a true definition, we have to refer to the US military.

Here you can find out more about survival food
mres for sale
military mres

I know almost all BBQers or “slow smokers” reading this have done this before when cooking your favorite barbeque recipes… your butts or briskets are not done yet, it’s about dinner time or competition turn in time and you start to panic. You either crank up the heat in your smoker or give up on the smoker altogether and commit a cardinal sin by throwing your meat in the oven. What kind of half way decent BBQer would use an oven!? This all starts out about 3/4 of the way through your cooking time. You are using some kind of meat thermometer to measure the internal temperature of your meat like any good BBQer would do. The internal temperature reaches 165 deg F and doesn’t seem to change. After banging on your thermometer and re-inserting it about 10 times, you start having crazy thoughts… is my meat thermometer broken? Is my fire not hot enough? Is my smoker not working right? Is it too cold outside? What’s wrong!?

Don’t worry! Calm down! The barbecue “plateau” is normal! Just take a deep breath, go get another cold beer and relax! Your temperature will seem like it’s stuck 165 deg or 170 deg. But after a couple of hours, it will slowly begin to move up. Sometimes it will shoot up quickly. Just keep an eye on it. Now you know one of the “secrets” to slow smoking brisket and butts. This happens with chicken and ribs too but nowhere near the same degree as the bigger cuts of meat. You know the BBQ plateau is coming, so be prepared for it and stick to your guns! Whatever you do, keep your smoker temperature steady and don’t use the oven or microwave!

Here’s two more tips that will help you finish by dinner time… give yourself enough time to start with. Brisket and butts cook in about 1 to 1.5 hours per pound. So… prepare for the longer cook time of 1.5 hours per pound. Add in 1 or two hours just to be safe. You can even cook it a day ahead of time. My brother-in-law swears his brisket tastes better and is more tender after it’s been sitting in the refrigerator for a day after cooking. The other secret tip is you can pull your meat off the smoker, wrap it in plastic wrap and then in tin foil and put it in a cooler (with no ice of course) to keep it warm until dinner time. It will actually continue to cook in the ice chest. Many competition BBQers will take their meat off early, wrap it, and finish the cooking in the ice chest. It will stay hot for many, many hours. Of course, always unwrap your hot meat and let it rest for half an hour to 1 hour before slicing or pulling.

Now you know not to panic when you get stuck on the BBQ “plateau”! For more great barbeque recipes, get "Competition BBQ Secrets" today!

I am a great lover of wines but I've never had much time for the wine-tasting and collecting game. For me, wine is for drinking and enjoying. Taste is, after all, so subjective.

I've never been too interested in the scores, points or awards received by various wines or vineyards. I can never remember what are supposed to be the really good years for various wines and I even have trouble remembering the names of many wines that I really like. Perhaps I'm drinking a little too much? Rather than rely on the scores handed out by various Sunday newspapers I trust my local wine seller, who I have been patronising for over a decade, to make sound recommendations and he has never given me a duff recommendation.

Now he is a man who totally buys in to the whole slurp-spit and describe routine. He uses all of the flowery descriptive language used by wine aficionados like 'aggressive', 'racy' or 'fat'. I am sometimes a little scornful of these terms, preferring references that I can more easily understand like 'sweet', 'fruity' or 'honeyed'. For me, these are more apt, descriptive terms that give an indication of what a wine actually tastes like. Terms like 'focused', when applied to a wine, don't tell me what the wine tastes like.

Myself and a few other lucky neighbours were recently lucky enough to be invited to one of is popular wine tasting evenings where we were guided by his expertise, tasting around 24 French wines. We were instructed in what to look out for on the bottle labels, how to pour the wine, the best wine glasses for different types of wines and, of course, how to slurp-spit and then describe the wine.

It was a fun-packed evening, particularly when people began to stop spitting, choosing to swallow instead. I learned lots of interesting facts about various
French Vineyards, the struggles some are having with the effects of climate change and the uncertainty over their future. I also learned that I have been using all the wrong glasses and that I need at least a set of glasses for white wine and another set for red wine. I was even told off for using huge brandy glasses (my favourite due to their high capacity).

During the course of the evening a huge range of terms were used to describe the wines that we tasted. A few memorable descriptions were:
'The aroma of a wet dog and taste of soggy cardboard'.
'A flabby wine with a hint of Geranium and an Oxo aftertaste'
'A lively wine with a harsh, astringent flavour that might work well as a sink unblocker'.

I am so glad that I have a trusted vintner for a friend and that he continues to provide me with some fantastic wines, even though I can't remember their names. Happy drinking.

This is fairly new concept and one that many people are still unsure about how it works and why to switch from conventional cooking to waterless. There is no real trick to waterless cooking; the one thing that you must have is a proper set of waterless cookware in order to utilize this new cooking technique properly. The basics of waterless cooking are:

• Preparing food without adding additional water which can ruin the flavour and evaporate the vitamins and minerals within them.
• Usage of medium to low heat only to prevent burning.
• Wait for the natural juices of the vegetables or meats which will then turn into steam (this is how waterless cooking begins)
• Turn the heat down or off completely and let the steam do the rest of the work.

The main question everyone wants to know the correct answer to is “can I add any water when cooking?” Because it has been labelled waterless cooking it can be hard to know if this means no water at all or just a little. The basic rule of thumb for waterless cooking is to consider the foods you are cooking. For example, vegetables are made of mostly water and therefore they can create enough steam on their own without adding water. On the other hand if you are cooking spaghetti or rice you will be required to add a bit of water to supplement these dry foods. Consider 1oz. of water per square inch of pan you are working with.

It can seem unnatural and even wrong to turn off the heat before you are done cooking but this essentially how and why waterless cooking works. Once you have a pot full of enough steam your waterless cookware will whistle letting you know it is time to turn the heat down to low or turn it off completely. If you do not have these special knobs on your waterless cookware products, you can watch the pot manually and when the steam begins to seep out between the lid and the pot you know it is full and time to turn the heat down or off.

You can cook virtually anything in your waterless cooking pans and you will discover quite a difference in your cooking. You do not have to be a professional or even an experienced cook in order to utilize this method successfully. Whether you are cooking something dry, something water based or meat your waterless products can accomplish a far better finished product than conventional cooking ever could. Experience food with more flavour, stronger taste and more vitamins we need for our health. Try out waterless cooking today; start with vegetables and advance to dryer foods as you begin to get used to the method.

For more information on healthy cookware and healthy cooking visit CookForYourHealth.com

Cocktails are back in fashion. Back in the 1960s cocktails suddenly seemed to go out of fashion when people began to choose much simpler drinks. Before this time every film star and well known personality had their own cocktails named after them.

But you too could have your own cocktail and who knows, it could even make you famous.

There are basically no rules when it comes to designing cocktails, anything goes. I even came across one cocktail recipe, recently, that used a Salmon garnish. Not an ingredient I would choose but hey, there is no accounting for taste.

Taste is a great place to start when designing your own cocktail. Start by listing all of the drinks, fruit juices, cordials and liquors that you like. Then list all of the herbs, spices and garnishes that you like in your food. Add to this a list of your favourite colours and styles of cocktails that you have tried.

If you are serious about your cocktail making there are a few basic tools that you will need. You will definitely need a good, sharp knife for cutting up lemons, limes and other fruits. You will need an ice-bucket for ice, obviously. But it's also good to get yourself a pair of good ice tongs. Then you will need some means of measuring your ingredients. A couple of simple measures should do the trick. Some people recommend a blender for cocktail making but this is entirely up to you.

If you are making cocktails that contain fruit you might like to add a blender to your cocktail making equipment arsenal. You will definitely want a cocktail shaker, essential for many blended cocktails. Then you will need a selection of cocktail glasses. I recommend the classic cocktail glass but you might also like a set of tall 1920s style cocktail glasses. These are particularly good for those non-alcoholic cocktails.

While on the subject of non-alcoholic cocktails, these can be great for children's parties. Kids feel so sophisticated when served their own special cocktails. Or why not make cocktail making the main party activity with prizes for the best.

Tooled up with the essential cocktail making equipment the next thing you will need is a good selection of the all important ingredients. Fruit juices are essential of course. Citrus fruits are always good but why not try something a little different using Pomegranate juice or Kiwi fruit pureed in the blender. Refer back to your list of favourite flavours for inspiration when choosing ingredients.

For the adult cocktails you will need a good selection of spirits, some wines and liqueurs. The trick with these elements is quality. Always buy the best quality you can and a variety of wines is also a good idea.

You will want a good selection of what are generally referred to as mixers. Tonic water, lemonade, coca-cola and soda water are all good. But don't overlook things like Angostura bitters, ginger ale and even cream.

Then you will want some flavourings including salt, sugar, honey, Tabasco sauce and even horse-radish sauce. A few syrups are also a good idea. Try a little Grenadine, chocolate syrup, coconut syrup or a dash of fantastic Elderflower syrup.

Equiped with these essential ingredients and tools you’re ready to start mixing. I’ve had a lot of fun inviting people over for a cocktail party where they have all invented their own. But be warned if you do this, people are rarely in a fit state to drive home at the end.

This article was written to answer many of the most frequently asked questions on this topic. I hope you find information helpful. Unless we really love cooking or plan and prepare ahead with our meals, we can fall victim to the easy way out - fast food or junk food.

Here is a story; could it be you? The weekend is here and you think you now have a couple of days to relax. Saturday morning - you make the coffee to start the day and then you're off shopping. You get back just before lunch and discover that you have to get the kids to their hockey practise. Too late for a healthy lunch, by the time they are organized it will be time to go. So you pick up a hamburger on the way. Traffic is a nightmare. By the time you put your feet up, you find it is time to get the kids. It's almost supper time and you're really tired now and you're in no mood to prepare a meal so you pick up pizzas from a well-known fast food outlet. Sunday and time to prepare brunch and you go downhill from there so you pick up some chicken with chips and some salad…

So what is a good diet? One which contains the nutrients your body needs in the correct amounts. That is the key to a healthy lifestyle. The main things your body needs from food are proteins (for growth and repair), carbohydrates (for energy), fats (gives a store of energy and the fatty layer protects and insulates your body from impacts and temperature loss), vitamins (for good health), minerals (for the correct functioning of your body systems) fibre (aids digestion and production of faeces) and water (70% or so of the body is water).

Does the hamburger provide all the things your body needs? Does it supply the nutrients you need? The answer is yes. The burger itself contains some meat, so there is the protein, some minerals and fat, the burger also contains fillers and those, plus the burger bun provides carbohydrate. The salad that comes with the burger meal provides fibre, water, vitamins and minerals. The fries provide more fat and carbohydrate and the main bulk of the water comes from the drink. To our surprise, the burger meals do provide all you need!

The problem is with the quantities of these nutrients. There is usually way too much fat and carbohydrate compared with the other nutrients. There is very little fibre. The vitamin and mineral proportions are low, unless you have a shake with the meal, which will increase the proportion of dairy product based minerals such as calcium. Now you need to make sure your next meal makes up for this out of balance meal. For your evening meal you should eat a low fat, high fibre meal, plenty of vegetables cooked lightly or eaten raw so as not to destroy the vitamins. If you must eat between meals, snack on fruit or vegetables.

Another issue is the use of additives. For example, the addition of salt improves the flavour of food so naturally manufacturers put it in so eating processed food increases your salt levels - increases blood pressure and leads to heart problems. A little salt is necessary; it provides your body with the mineral sodium which is needed in small quantities. Preservatives are another issue here. In small quantities, these are not supposed to be harmful. Do you eat processed food all of the time? This is something for you to think about because you are really causing great harm to your body.

Antioxidants are so important. They help to prevent damage to the cells of your body, damage that can lead to cells becoming cancerous. Teas are a very good source of antioxidants. Ordinary (black) tea provides some but a lot of the beneficial constituents are lost during the fermentation process. Unprocessed, pure organic teas like Green Tea or Oolong (the latter is only partly fermented) are the best. So instead of coffee in the morning, try tea, because it is more beneficial. Tea also contains the caffeine, but not as much as in coffee. You might have to drink more but think of the extra benefits to your health. Also, Green tea is thought to inhibit the absorption of cholesterol. The high levels of animal fats in burgers inevitably mean more cholesterol so there is another good reason for switching from coffee.

Simple changes to your diet can make your hectic lifestyle more healthy. Enjoy the odd burger or other fast food; just compensate healthier foods for the rest of the day.

I must say, a system that works very well for me is when I am making meals, cook extra and freeze them. When I come home tired, I just get the individual meals out of the freezer, heat them up and in minutes I'm eating a super meal. It's even faster than fast food and tastes better too!

Thank you for joining us. We hope you have a look around while you're here.

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Fat Loss 4 Idiots
Fat Loss 4 Idiots