MiddleXpress - Food Blog

Creating sensible, easy-to-stick-with food diets

admin — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 17:31:17 +0000

With food costs rising around the world and economies in turmoil, it still remains a fact that many Americans struggle with their weight on an ongoing basis. Losing weight has become such a commonplace goal that we now have a bevy of food diets from an array of ‘experts’, typically with a low-carb, low-fat or just plain starvation-style diet, promoted as the only real way to lose unwanted pounds. Well, here we’ve got a refreshing new approach to food diets: one you construct yourself, consisting of nutritious foods you enjoy eating which also get you where you want to go. Sound good? Let’s see how you can put this no-nonsense, but tasty approach to work for you.

If you were to make a list of all your favorite foods, you’d find that, while chips and dip and chocolate may first come to mind, there are plenty of healthy foods which are worthy of inclusion in food diets designed to lose weight. For example, you may not be big on veggies, but you love avocados, carrots, lettuce and artichokes. These veggies are packed with nutritive value, while being relatively skimpy on the calories. Give these beloved veggies a starring role in your menus. You’ll enjoy what you’re eating, feel happy, pampered and satisfied and still achieve your goal of weight loss. Do the same with your list of meats, poultry and seafood. If you enjoy chicken, custom food diets are a snap! Chicken is on the menus of almost every cuisine in the world. Find new ways to prepare this economical and lean meat. Think about fruit-based recipes ?who doesn’t like a fruit smoothie of their favorite fruits? The smoothie makes an excellent breakfast, mid-afternoon snack or dessert. Make your smoothie with yogurt or low-fat milk to keep those calories in line.

Speaking of beverages, if you’re a coffee-with-sugar hound, try sweetening your coffee with Splenda(R) ?this product tastes just like sugar, without the calories. The same goes for sodas ?there are now several major soda brands made with Splenda(R) too. You also might find it useful to insert a few new fruit juices into your beverage lineup. Chilled Chai tea, with a tad of milk is another delicious alternative. Varying the types of foods and beverages within your usual food choices goes a long way towards relieving dietary boredom.

Condiments and seasonings are just one of the secrets of successful food diets. Herbs and spices can really put some zip into an otherwise bland recipe. One tomato, cut into wedges or slices, may not seem an exciting menu choice ?that is, until you make this into a small salad plate adorned with snips of fresh basil leaves and a few slices of fresh (naturally low-fat) mozzarella cheese. If carrots rank high on your list, try a dish of cooked, sliced carrots in a sauce of orange juice laced with ginger for a real taste treat. Bring the orange juice to a simmer, add a touch of cornstarch to thicken and some powdered ginger. When the sauce is thickened, return the cooked carrots to the pot, stir and serve.

Produce is fast becoming a ‘luxury’ food, due to cost. However, this doesn’t mean that food diets should be geared to less of these nutritious foods. Choose the best and freshest produce you can find. Use your best-loved fruits and veggies list to cruise the net in search of new recipes to use these favorites. Then, don’t let them go to waste! If you find you bought too much, remember that many fruits and veggies can be blanched and frozen for future use.

When you consider that we eat not only to allay our hunger, but to also please our palate, it makes sense that variety, food quality and seasonal produce are smart criteria on which to base food diets.

The last of our tips on constructing food diets concerns food portion sizes. The majority of the trendy food programs rely on small portions. When your dinner plate has too much ‘white space’, the psychological effect is that you ultimately feel deprived. Here’s a great trick to using small food portions that are still, at the end of the meal, satisfying. Start serving each course on a separate plate. For example, you might begin with a small fruit cup with a flavored yogurt as the ‘sauce’. Take the time to enjoy this course, as well as the table conversation. Don’t rush through it! Your next course might be your meat and a side of veggies, seasoned in an interesting way. This technique also gives your tummy a chance to catch up with your eyes.

Now, what about that dessert? Taking the time to savor your food, with a few minutes between courses might find your tummy full and happy, not in need of the conventional sugar-laden dessert. If you do crave a finisher to your meal, try a small, fresh fruit and cheese plate. Again, quality counts, but you don’t need much to refresh and satiate your palate.

In the end, custom food diets such as this tend to work for you ?the unique individual. Give this method a try and see those pounds disappear!

The Diet Supplements Industry Finally meets its Match in the FDA

admin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 17:31:53 +0000

If it weren’t so sad, it would be hilarious. The General Mills Corporation tries to sell Cheerios on the claim that it lowers your cholesterol. If you watched any TV, and paid attention to the commercials, you’ll certainly recognize this claim. It was the Bush administration’s understanding approach that got companies confident over getting away with just about any claim they chose to put out there. Under President Obama though, the FDA is asking Cheerios to prove it or cut it out. It’s also going against Nestle’s Juicy Juice drinks that claim they will help you with brain development. Nestl?takes that claim so seriously, they actually call the product Juicy Juice a brain development aid. The FDA is asking Nestl?to prove their claims, or stop making claims that would typically belong on serious diet supplements or on drugs.

But the FDA and the Institute of Medicine are not stopping there. They’re wondering now if diet supplements and nutrition supplements are being marketed accurately either. They’re wondering if the strict standards that they apply to drugs before passing them for sale to the public, should be applied to diet supplements too. That’s quite a thought there – no one will be able to sell vitamin tablets without proving that they actually do any good. The FCC says that there is really no scientific reason why you should have strict standards for drugs, and lenient ones for nutritional supplements. There may be no scientific reason why they should be treated difeferently; but there certainly is a political one. The food and diet supplements industry is a richly funded one.

So according to research done by the FDA, it is now believed that the best way to get makers of diet supplements to prove the merit in their products, is to get them to use biomarkers – standard measures of the way the body responds to a drug, a diet supplement or anything. This could be really big. If the makers of diet supplements were made to prove that their products actually did anything, nine out of ten of those companies would go under. You’d better be prepared now to see most of your favorite supplements and potions are wiped off the face of the earth. There is certainly going to be some terrible opposition from the industry over this. You can expect a lot of news coverage too.

Most of the makers of diet supplements are set up in Utah, home to Senator Orrin Hatch who under President Clinton, pushed through laws that let manufacturers of diet supplements and foods say just about anything they wanted. Still, in removing the diet supplements firms from existence, the FDA has a pretty tough job cut out for it. It needs to prove that the products are actually harmful. It took the FDA years to do anything about ephedra for instance; and that was a product that was actually killing people.

Middle East recipes with RAISINS (part II)

admin — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 15:36:23 +0000

Enjoy the previous salad? You surely will not just satisfy with this lighit delicious side dish. So, are you ready to level up and learn something more advanced recipes with raisins? The most traditional dish with a very long long history that I like is Pilaf. In fact, the word “pilaf” is originated in Turkey while pilaf recipes were developed in Iran, Central Asia and Turkey. There are a lot of cooking variation in Pilaf as it includes many ingredients with the rice including carrots, raisins, peas, potatoes, lamb or beef.

Ok…so ready to get started now!

Pilaf Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup long-grained rice

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 yellow diced onion

1.5 peeled and diced carrot

1 tbsp crushed garlic

2 cups chicken broth

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup toasted, slivered almonds

Instructions:

Saute the onion, carrots and garlic in the olive oil until they become softened.
Add the rice and continue cooking for approximately 2 minutes
Add the broth and cinnamon and bring the mixture to a boil
Stir well and lower heat, allow the mixture to simmer for 15 – 20 minutes until the broth is absorbed
Finally, don’t forget to stir in the raisins and almonds before serving.

Middle East recipes with RAISINS (part I)

admin — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:33:33 +0000

Today I am going to teach you guys a very simple but traditional Middle East appetizer / side dish called carrot raisin salad. Easy to prepare as both carrots and raisins have long growing seasons.

Carrot Raisin Salad Recipe

Servings: 3

Ingredients:

1.5 cups of carrots, grated

1/5 cup raisins

1.5 tbsp olive oil

1/8 cup strained yogurt

1/8 cup slivered, toasted almonds

Directions:

Combine the carrots and raisins in a medium sized bowl
Stir in the yogurt and olive oil and mix well
Add the almonds and refrigerate for 2 hours before serving

That’s it! Bon appetite~

Raisins: The magic ingredient in Middle East.

admin — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 13:23:26 +0000

If you are observable enough, you will find out that there are really a lor Middle East dishes contain raisins. Why? The fact is for many of the countries in Middle East, grape vines grows everywhere, and most importantly, no part of the plant gets wasted including its leaves and fruits.

Therefore, in order to create authentic Middle Eastern food at home, I highly recommend to add raisins in the dish, not only it can help add sweetness and flavour, it can also help bring the taste of the Middle East to foods of all kind.

Just want to give more magic tips about raisins in different dishes.

Add raisins to lamb with time can allow the moisture to reintegrate with the raisins.
Add raisins to salads, stews and meats can help balance out stronger flavors.

In the next post, I would try to include my favourite Middle East dishes contains raisins. Stay tune! =)

Grilled lamb chop (yummy!)

admin — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:33:10 +0000

Lamb is popular in the middle eastern cuisine. Normally middle easterners serve lamb in rice with mint & yogurt sauce. I, however, served it with baguette and mango chutney. It tastedexcellent.

Ingredients:
Lamb chops 4 pieces (about 3/4″ thick)
handful of mints for garnish
Stir fried vegetable
Sourdough bread (such as baguette) or rice if desired.

Procedures

Prepare seasoning rub for Lamb Chop by grinding 1 tsp Cumin seeds and 1 tsp Coriander seeds roughly. Then add 1 tsp salt, combine 1 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp oil. Finally rub mixture onto both side of the chops and marinate it for an hour or more.
Heat up the grill.
Place chops on hot grill into oven until golden brown on both sides for medium doneness.
Spoon mango chutney on the side, garnish with mints or parsley.
Serve hot with vegetable, rice and/or bread.

A very exotic cocktail from Middle East.

admin — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 16:30:15 +0000

Venus cocktail

All ingredients are fresh fruit juice only. However if you would like to have a dizzy feeling, alcohol could be also added.

Type of dish : Nibbles
To serve : 2
Preparation : 0 min
Cooking : 0 min
Budget : Cheap
Difficulty : Easy

Ingredients :
150ml apricot juice
150ml peach nectar (peach juice)
250 ml crushed strawberries
5 drops orange flower water (the essence of Middle East)

Recipe :
1. Mix all ingredients in a blender and serve chilled.

2. Decorate with lemon slice and some little flowers.

Advice :
This cocktail will stimulate desire?!?! Y

You have been warned! =P

Common herbs and spices that you gotta know (Part II)

admin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:16:25 +0000

Marjoram

It is often confused with oregano. However, marjoram is actually a member of the mint family as well. Marjoram has a more mild, sweet flavor than oregano. Common to Middle Eastern foods, marjoram is grown domestically and imported mostly from Egypt.

Dried marjoram is a natural fragrance and it combines well with other seasonings and will enhance so many different dishes. It is especially good along with other herbs in beef stew.

Nutmeg

Nutmeg is a kind of seeds with oval shape, that have a sweet, spicy flavour. They come from East Indies and since they have a quite high oil content and and a very rich aroma, nutmeg are commonly used in dishes made with milk and cheese, such as rice pudding, béchamel sauce and whipped cream.

Turmeric

Originated in South Asia, turmeric, a member of the Ginger family, has been now widely used in Middle East due to its special deep yellow-orange colour. They are usually grinded into powder as a major ingredient in curry powder and is also used to color sauces and syrups and rices and to flavor meat and vegetable dishes.

Sumac

Sumac is a member of the Cashew family. It produces bright or dark-red berries or drupes. In the Middle East, the drupes are harvested, ground, and used as a spice. This purple-reddish powder has a sour taste and is used to flavor rice dishes and stews. Sumac berries are cooked in water until they reduce to a thick, sour essence which also serve as the same purpose for flavoring meat and vegetable dishes.

Five-Spice Powder

Five-spice powder is a spice mixture that originated in China that integrates the sweet, sour, bitter, pungent, and salty. The powder is most often used in cooking duck and beef stew.

Common herbs and spices that you need to know (Part I)

admin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:34:34 +0000

Herbs and spices are very much important i adding more flavor and depth to a Middle Eastern meal. Each herb and spice has unique effect that work well in the culinary world. Here introduce the usage of some of the major herbs and spices before moving on.

Harissa

A kind of Middle Eastern spice. It is commonly used as a base for slow cooking lamb shanks; sprinkle over roasting vegetables or even cook with herbs and peas as a salad.

Mint

Mint is an herb that is associated with dessert. Mint goes well with fruits and sweets in Middle Eastern cooking.

Cumin

Cumin is the dried seed of the herb Cuminum cyminum, a member of the parsley family. We could buy the best cumin in india. There is a kind of very popular street food called Falafel where fried balls of puréed chickpeas and spicy seasoning are served with tahina sauce and salad.

Coriander

Coriander is the dried leaves of the herb, Coriandrum sativum, an annual herb of the parsley family. For an Indian raita, stir chopped or grated cucumber, Coriander Leaf, salt and pepper into natural yoghurt.

Dining Etiquette in Middle East

admin — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 14:03:08 +0000

As a Middle Eastern food lover, how could we do not know anything about the table manners when having this cuisine? It is all about respect other countries and yourself. Therefore, make sure you remember all the dos and don’ts below.

Guests are honoured with prime choice of meats. Don’t get too excited since the definition of “prime choice” may be cultural variation. They are head, eyes or even some internal organs. Well, if I were you, please accept them as a big smile.

Eat with right hand only. Especially if you are invited by a Saudi for a meal, you should never eat with your left hand since it is considered unsanitary.

How to eat without utensils? Food is shaped into a desired amount bolus with all the fingers of your right hand and then use your thumb to push it into your mouth. Just one reminder, make sure your hand is clean.

You should always remember to try every single dish offered to you on the table. And most importantly, no matter what the fact is, it is proper etiquette to compliment the host on the food and his hospitality.

Meals are usually served in large portion, so make sure you have a good appetite! Since eating large quantities is a mark of showing your appreciation. Besides, if you have finished all the food, don’t be happy as they will re-fill your plate immediately! So, it is better to leave food on your plate always.

Last but not least, alcohol is NOT allowed under Islamic law, and for this reason many Saudis will not drink. But still, friendly Saudi hosts may accommodate guests with alcoholic beverages. However, just a kind reminder, make sure you drink very fairly since Becoming drunk and behaving outrageously will be considered as totally offensive, and may result in harsh punishment.