Margarine As Opposed to Butter
When following recipes when preparing a meal, there are many recipes that now list a choice between using butter as an ingredient or margarine. By using margarine in the recipe instead of butter the cook cuts the caloric content significantly yet still keeps a good taste overall. It is very hard to tell the difference between margarine and butter that is used in cooked foods and since margarine is lower in calories it is a great substitute. So, the next time you are cooking and run across a choice between butter or margarine as an ingredient make the healthy and low calorie choice by using margarine. The taste will remain great and it won’t affect your waistline!

Splenda as Opposed to Sugar
Another great way in which to save on the caloric intake is to use Splenda in one’s recipes as opposed to sugar. Splenda consists of sucralose, which was approved for sale on the market in the late 1990s. Not only is this ingredient low in calories but it is great tasting as well. Splenda is also a wonderful ingredient to use in baked foods as it is heat stable and there is no real loss of the substance during cooking. For these reasons, Splenda is a great ingredient to use when cooking using those recipes which call for sugar. You won’t notice a difference, but you will enjoy great foods and beverages with considerably less calories!

These are two ways in which a calorie-conscious individual can make fantastic light calorie meals that are abundant in the taste department and easy on the waistline as well.

Even for seasoned Barbecue vets, getting your meat consistently good is something that can be more than a little tricky. Well I’m here to tell you that it’s totally doable, and here are eleven tips that will help:

1. Purchase ribs that are evenly covered in meat. In other words, don’t buy a slab that is fatty on one end and fleshy on the other. Avoid slabs that have exposed bones!

2. Allow for one pound of ribs per guest. This is a generous helping but for more impressive appetites, make it two!

3. When preparing the meat, make sure you remove the membrane on the underside of the ribs with a sharp knife. If you don’t it blocks the flavor intake.

4. Always marinate your ribs in the refrigerator, not at room temperature.

5. Don’t even think about boiling those ribs! Above all else, boiling the meat causes it to lose all its flavor. If you just have to pre-cook your ribs before slapping them on the cooking grate, try steaming your slabs instead as this will help lock the flavor in.

6. Before placing your ribs on the grate for Barbecuing or smoking, make sure you coat the metal with a generous helping of oil.

7. Barbecuing demands constant attention! As soon as it goes on your grate, stay close by and keep an eye on it. Watch the cooking temperature and avoid going above 250 degrees Fahrenheit — the best ribs are cooked slowly over indirect heat for about five hours.

8. Put down that fork! Always use tongs to handle your meat once it’s on the grate. Why pierce the meat and let the flavor ooze out if you don’t have to?

9. If you’re going to baste during cooking stay away from anything with sugar in it. Your best bet is to use vinegar and/or water-based products only.

10. Only lay on the BBQ sauce in the last 20-30 minutes of cooking. Any sooner than that and the heat will cause the sauce to caramelize and burn your meat.

11. Let the ribs cool for 10-15 minutes before you serve them up. This is just a courtesy — you don’t want to singe your guests’ mouths with smoking hot sauce! You could lose some friends.

Now the only thing left to do is to go out and implement these tips. Happy barbecuing!!

Buy an Easy Cooking Cookbook

This might sound obvious, but you should first find a cookbook with recipes your family will love that’s very easy to follow. Many cookbooks today offer only “fancy” foods packed with bizarre ingredients you’ve never heard of. Often, the food in these books doesn’t even look tasty in the photos! Shop around online to find a cookbook that makes cooking easy and uses many of the ingredients you already keep around the kitchen. Be sure the cookbook offers your basic types of recipes such as entrees, casserole dishes, breads, fruits, veggies, beverages, and desserts.

Cookbooks also tend to favor one style of cooking, such as Santa Fe style cooking or Southern cooking. Choose one that caters to your family’s taste buds, but don’t be afraid to try something new.

Spice It Up

After buying a cookbook, go through the cookbook marking recipes you’d like to try for the month. You might try one or two new recipes a week just to add a little excitement to the dinner table. Write down the ingredients required, but don’t forget the spices. Spices are usually what can make or break a meal. Buy spices that are required for the recipes and maybe a few extra spices for later. You can stock up on spices and keep them for a long time. When you become familiar with the new spices, you can test them in a variety of foods to enhance the flavor.

Create Menus in Advance

Preparation is the key to saving time and sticking with a meal plan. Plan menus in advance so there are no surprises. Keep ingredients on-hand that you know you will need. Most recipes give a preparation and cooking time. Plan your meals according to your schedule. Check out the available time listed for cooking. On days that you get off work late and will be rushed, find simple meals that you can cook quickly.

Prepare Mixes and Simple Foods in Advance

If you plan to make a dessert or a large meal, prepare your mixes and simple foods in advance to save time. For instance, if you plan to serve rice, potatoes, or macaroni with a meal prepare these the night or morning before and store them in the fridge. Then you’ll only have to warm them up when needed.

Cake, cookie or brownie mixes for dessert can also be stored in the fridge for later cooking. Tip: To make your flour last for months and months, store the bag of flour in the freezer. The flour itself will not freeze, but it will last a very long time.

Mix Old with the New Just to be Safe

When preparing a brand new dish, be sure to mix some old food items in the menu just in case your family dislikes the new dish. This will ensure that everyone has something to eat even if they don’t like the new recipe. For example: Perhaps you’re introducing sourdough bread for the first time. You can cook some regular bread along with it and present both types of bread for everyone to try. Some family members might like the new bread and some might not. At least they are trying new foods!

With any new cooking venture, you will need to take some extra time and effort to give it a try. Once you become familiar with some new recipes, you’ll find that it gets easier and easier to add new foods to your family meals.

You can make herb vinegars for salad dressings, marinades, or soups. Herb oils are very useful in cooking whenever a recipe calls for it.

Fresh herbs as garnishes dress up any dish making it look truly spectacular. Lay individual sprigs of rosemary over broiled lamb chops. Chop fresh parsley and sprinkle it over the top of your potato salad. The combinations are endless and the outcome delicious.

Fresh herbs will keep in the refrigerator for several days but then you must freeze them. They can be frozen by laying them a paper towel and putting them in a plastic bag. Once they are frozen only use them in cooking not as garnishes. A friend of mine washes them, puts them an ice cube tray, covers them with water and then freezes them. When she needs them for soup, stews or sauces she just drops a cube in.

My favorite herbs to grow are basil, oregano, lemon balm, parsley and mint. Mint is great but be careful, mint can over run your garden. A tip here would be to bury an empty coffee can and plant the mint in it. The can prevents the mint from “creeping” all through your garden.

I love to make herb butters. Take a half of a cup of softened butter and mix in about 4 tablespoons of a fresh herb. Lay out a piece of saran wrap, place the butter in the middle roll the saran wrap up to form a “log” out of the butter. Put in the refrigerator and anytime you need a pat of butter just cut it off the “log”. (Hints for “log” butter: potatoes, bread, steaks, noodles or any kind of sauce).

A fresh herb in any salad dressing really makes it sparkle. You can use any herb or a combination, be creative.

I learned a trick a long time ago using basil, lemon and avocados to create and instant natural face mask. Put a big handful of basil in a blender and run it on high. Once the basil has been pulverized, throw in a half of an avocado and a large teaspoon of lemon juice, mix until smooth. Wash your face, pat it dry and gently rub the avocado mixture on. Leave it on as long as you like, then use warm water to it wash off.

Nicoises: Is a earthy rich olive commonly used in salad. The curing of this olive in red-wine vinegar gives it a distinctive taste.

Green olives with herbs de Provence: This vibrant citrus flavored olive is a delightful blend of herbs de Provence spices and large green olives. It is an excellent choice to use in surf dishes and with sweet spices.

Mount Athos green with Sicilian herbs: This is a second olive that utilizes herbs to dominate the pallet. Rosemary, garlic, mustard seed, and red pepper flakes give this olive a spicy appeal.

Mount Athos green stuffed with garlic: For a modern twist on the martini this olive is an excellent choice. It is stuffed with rich flavorful garlic and lends itself well to pizza as well as martinis.

Mount Athos green olives with sun-dried tomatoes: Sun-dried tomatoes give this heavy olive an intense flavor that is sophisticated and ideal for snacking.

Sun-dried olives: The drying of this olive gives it a rich flavor that blends wonderfully in sauces for serving over pasta.

Kalamatas: A tangy black olive cured in red-wine vinegar that can be from Italy or California. The California variety is denoted with a ‘c’ spelling rather than a ‘k’.

Alfonsos: This robust winey tasting olive is soft and similar to the kalamata. It is a popular choice in antipasto salads.

Halkididis: Very similar in flavor to the kalamatas this olive is excellent blended with cream cheese and garlic for a flavorful dip.

Lucques: This meaty buttery olive contains pits but is still a wonderful choice with provolone cheese and bruchetta.

By these simple instructions you are on your way to a healthy and tasty meal.

To bake chicken we need either a whole chicken or six chicken breast pieces. Wash the dressed chicken thoroughly and coat with olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. If we want, we may put some marinade mix, like a concoction of rosemary herbs, thyme or oregano, dried or fresh. As we’re doing these, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Here’s the steps:

1. Put the chicken on the baking dish. Then place it in the oven and make sure it is uncovered.
2. Bake chicken for an hour in 350 degrees till we see the chicken skin turn into golden brown.
3. Place inside a meaty part of the chicken a meat thermometer to check if the meat temperature has reached 170 degrees. If it has then we’re ready to take it out of the oven. To bake chicken thighs we need the meat temperature to reach 180 degrees. These standard meat temperatures make sure we bake chicken well with all parts cooked.
4. Then we cut the fleshy part of the meat deep. This should reveal white meat inside instead of pink and clear lip-smacking juice, not reddish. To bake chicken correctly all these tests should be satisfied. If not, we bake the chicken some more. Then we’re ready to serve tender and juicy baked chicken, in all its yummy goodness.

When we bake chicken we can have a healthy and tastier chicken than when we fry it. Deep frying may be a good idea. But baked chicken is still many times better. When re-heating left-overs through the oven chicken often comes out tasting better than if we re-fry left-over chicken.

When we bake chicken we can mix it with things like potatoes, or garlic and onions. By adding these things will decrease the chances of burning the meat or ruining the skin cover. Lots of times, we need breading to fry chicken–that’s added cholesterol.

For this mashed potatoes recipe we will need:
1 1/2 lbs potatoes (Yukon Gold are pretty good for mashed potatoes for instance)
4 Tbsp heavy cream or a half half mix of cream and milk
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
Salt and Pepper

First you need to peel the potatoes and cut them into big pieces. If you cut them into small pieces they will absorb more water and you don’t want that (tip no.1). Now cover them with cold water (not warm, tip no.2), add salt in bring them to boil. When they are boiling turn down the heat and let them simmer. Potatoes are cooked in 15 to 20 minutes. You can test them by sticking a knife or a fork in a potato and if it’s soft it’s done.

Drain the potatoes and put them back on low heat so all excess water evaporates (tip no.3).

Now add warm milk and butter (cold milk can turn your mashed potatoes gluey, tip no.4) and some more salt and pepper if you want. Take a wire masher and mash them. You are done. Here you can find more mashed potatoes recipes including garlic, cheddar cheese etc…

and for the crisp
1 cup flour
1 cup oats
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup cold butter

Now we can begin. Set the oven at 350 degrees. Thin slice the apples into a pan and mix them with 3 tablespoons of flour, 2-3 tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Done? Good, now we will do the crispy part. In a bigger bowl mix in 1 cup of flour, oats and brown sugar then slice the butter into the bowl. Mix it in with a fork and spread everything over the apples. Apple crisp is done when it turns golden brown.. That should take about 45 minutes. Let the apple crisp cool down a little and you are done. If you liked this one, you can find more apple crisp recipes here.