Food&Drinks

Chicken and Dumplings

2009-03-30T07:19:00.000-07:00

Chicken and Dumplings

by www.foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

Chicken:

1 (2 1/2-pound) chicken, cut into 8 pieces
3 ribs celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 bay leaves
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 teaspoon House Seasoning, recipe follows
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of celery or cream of chicken soup

Dumplings:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
Ice water

Directions

To start the chicken: Place the chicken, celery, onion, bay leaves, bouillon, and House Seasoning in a large pot. Add 4 quarts of water and in water and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer the chicken until it is tender and the thigh juices run clear, about 40 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot and, when it is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and separate the meat from the bones. Return the chicken meat to the pot. Keep warm over low heat.
To prepare the dumplings: Mix the flour with the salt and mound together in a mixing bowl. Beginning at the center of the mound, drizzle a small amount of ice water over the flour. Using your fingers, and moving from the center to the sides of the bowl, gradually incorporate about 3/4 cup of ice water. Knead the dough and form it into ball.
Dust a good amount of flour onto a clean work surface. Roll out the dough (it will be firm), working from center to 1/8-inch thick. Let the dough relax for several minutes.
Add the cream of celery soup to the pot with the chicken and simmer gently over medium-low heat.
Cut the dough into 1-inch pieces. Pull a piece in half and drop the halves into the simmering soup. Repeat. Do not stir the chicken once the dumplings have been added. Gently move the pot in a circular motion so the dumplings become submerged and cook evenly. Cook until the dumplings float and are no longer doughy, 3 to 4 minutes.
To serve, ladle chicken, gravy, and dumplings into warm bowls.
Cook's Note: If the chicken stew is too thin it can be thickened before the dumplings are added. Simply mix together 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 1/4 cup of water then whisk this mixture into the stew.

House Seasoning:

1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder
Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
Yield: 1 1/2 cups

Smoothie-Orange Banana Smoothie

2009-03-30T07:07:00.000-07:00

Orange Banana Smoothie

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice (4 oranges)

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

1 cup strawberries, tops removed, and cut in 1/2

1 to 1 1/2 ripe bananas

Directions

Combine the orange juice, lime juice, strawberries, and banana in a blender and process until smooth. Refrigerate until cold.

Cocktails (Dark and Stormy)

2009-03-20T19:58:00.000-07:00

Dark and Stormy

(by Mittie Hellmich)

This is sparkling Bermuda favorite is known to combat the heat and smoothe the stomach. Classically rich in the sweet, smoky molasses tones of Gosling's black rum and the tangy bite of Jamaican ginger beer (similar to ginger ale but with kick of spice with the addition of fresh ginger.

4 ice cubes
1 or 2 slices fresh ginger
2 ounces dark rum
1 ounce ginger syrup
2 to 3 ounces ginger beer
1/2 lime, cut into 2 wedges

Chill an 8 to 10 ounces Old-Fashioned glass.
Fill the chilled glass with the ice and fresh ginger. Add the rum and ginger syrup and stir to combine.
Top off with the ginger beer. Squeeze the 2 lime wedges into the drink, drop them into the glass, and serve.

SERVES 1

Smoothies (Peachy lean)

2009-03-16T20:41:00.000-07:00

Peachy lean

(by Mary Corpening Barber and Sara Corpening Whiteford)

Skipping breakfast is a serious mistake if you're trying to lose weight. A morning meal jump-starts the metabolism, giving your body the fuel it needs in order to get going after a night's sleep. And calories consumed throughout the day are more likely to be burned for energy than stored for fat. This is irresistible blend of peach and blackberries will get your motor running with a burst of antioxidanants and a minimun of fat.

1/2 cup low-fat peach yogurt
1/4 cup unsweetened apple juice
1 cup frozen unsweetened blackberries
1/2 cup frozen unsweetened chopped or sliced peaches
1 frozen banana, sliced

Combine the yogurt and apple juice in a blender. Add all the remaining ingredients. Blend until smooth. Strain through a fine-meshed sieve to remove the blackberry seeds if you like.

MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS; SERVES 2

Smoothies (skinny minnie)

2009-03-16T17:35:00.000-07:00

Skinny minnie

(by Mary Corpening Barber and Sara Corpening Whiteford)

Honeydew and cantaloupe have hardly any calories, and yet they're full of flavor and nutrition, two things that anyone, whether they're watching their weight or not, can appreciate. The orange-fleshed cantaloupe is a good source of vitamin A and beta-carotine, which can help guard against heart disease and stroke.

2 cups diced cantaloupe

1/3 cup lemon sorbet

2 teaspoons frozen orange juice concentrate

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

4 ice cubes, crushed

Pinch of salt

Combine all the ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.

MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS; SERVES 2

What is smoothie?

2009-03-16T06:24:00.000-07:00

Thank you for all websites for all information.

What is a smoothie?

A smoothie is a blended, chilled, sweet beverage made from fresh fruit. In addition to fruit, many smoothies include crushed ice, frozen fruit, honey or frozen yogurt, although some smoothies are 100% fruit. They have a milkshake-like consistency which is thicker than slush drinks. Unlike milkshakes, they do not usually contain ice cream, but can contain milk. Smoothies are marketed to health-conscious people, and some restaurants offer add-ins such as soy milk, whey powder, green tea, herbal supplements, or nutritional supplement mixes. Smoothies became available in the United States in the late 1960s when ice cream vendors and health food stores began selling them. By the 1990s and 2000s, smoothies became available at mainstream cafés and coffee shops, and in pre-bottled versions at supermarkets. (Refer to Wikipedia website)

History

Health food stores of the West coast of the United States began selling pureed fruit drinks in the 1930s based on recipes originated in Brazil.The 1940s-era Waring "Blendor" cookbooks published recipes for a "banana smoothie" and a "pineapple smoothee." The name "smoothee" or "smoothie" was used by books, magazines, and newspapers for a product made in blenders. Dan Titus, the director of The Juice and Smoothie Association states in his book, "Smoothies, The Original Smoothie Book", that "smoothies became popular in the middle 1960s, when there was a resurgence in the United States in macrobiotic vegetarianism." Health restaurants were particularly popular in California. The first trademark for a fruit slush was in the mid-1970s with the name "California Smoothie", which was marketed by the California Smoothie Company from Paramus, New Jersey. Smoothies from the 1960s and early 1970s were " basically fruit, fruit juice, and ice"; in some cases in the early 1970s, ice milk was also blended in to create the "fruit shake". These shakes were served at local health-food restaurants and at health-food stores, alongside tofu, fruits, carob, and other health-oriented foods.

In the early 1970s the co-founder of Smoothie King, Stephen Kuhnau, began selling blended fruit drinks under the name "smoothie". However, Kuhnau admits that he "...didn't invent the word smoothie"; instead, he states that the term dates back to the "fruit and fruit juice based drinks made by the "Hippies" in the late 1960s. In the 1980s, the increasing popularity of sports and fitness led to the marketing of supplement-fortified health food products. During this time, the first "specialized juice and smoothie bars" opened. By the 2000s, the "juice and smoothie industry [was] a multi-billion dollar industry."

Since the 1990s, many smoothie companies have been using frozen yogurt to give their smoothies a thick, creamy, milkshake-like texture. Many types of fruit smoothies are found in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine, typically using yogurt and honey as well as a range of fresh fruit. Smoothies can also be mixed with soda pop and/or alcohol to make a cocktail. Smoothies appeal to a wide range of age groups because of their sweetness, fresh fruit flavor, and nutritional value. Most are high in dietary fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants. Pre-bottled smoothies such as Odwalla, Naked Juice, and Bolthouse Farms are available in the fresh fruit and vegetable sections of supermarkets. They have a short shelf life and must be refrigerated to prevent fermentation of the fruit or any milk-derived content going off. Because of their high price tag (usually $3-4 per 12oz bottle in 2007), their target market is health food enthusiasts. (Refer to Wikipedia website)