Hosting A Dinner Party

Are you going to host a dinner party soon but you do not know what to serve? Dinner party recipes might be simply discovered on-line or in cookbooks; nonetheless, looking for recipes might not be as straightforward as it seems. There are several aspects involved in determining the right dinner party recipes for the perfect dinner party.
The nature of the party has to match the food and beverages to be prepared. Seasonal dinner parties could also introduce thematic food presentation such as gingerbread man and Christmas tree cookies for Christmas, or a unique smoked turkey for Thanksgiving.If you do not own a cookbook, 1 could start by looking on the internet for dinner party recipes. Searching for Italian dinner recipes could simply bring up 710 different varieties of home-made ravioli.
The visitors' culture ought to also be considered to learn which kind of taste should be given far more weight. As an example, if a bulk of the attendees are vegetarian, dinner party recipes ought to not fully succumb to their palate. Both parties might be satisfied with food such as lasagna with vegetarian ground beef or stuffed mushrooms, which are equally friendly with vegetarian and meat lovers.
Dinner plans should also contain the number of dinner courses one wishes to serve. Ratings and reviews for the dinner recipes online should be further examined before trying out the recipe. Some of the third-party reviewers would suggest substitute ingredients for far better taste, or other times supply easy tweaks.
Anyone can share recipes the identical online but you'll find distinct versions of the very same dish because of cultural and geographical differences. Some needed ingredients are only available in certain parts of the world. Thus, one's geographical location could serve as a constraint in accomplishing the recipe.

The Dinner Is Very Essential

Planning a wedding can be a wonderful experience but it can get stressful for both the bride and the groom. If you find that your fianc? is getting really stressed out, you may want to consider a romantic candlelight dinner to help bring the romance back into your relationship.
For a candlelight dinner, white taper candles and pillar candles are excellent to use. Where you are going to have the dinner, it is agood idea to choose a dark room if you are unsure about how many candles should be used. Then, you can try various numbers of candles until you get the proper amount for the mood you want to set.
The dinner part is very essential as well. If cooking is not your forte, this is not the time to try and start learning. Take-out some food from a nice restaurant if you have to. If you go this route, make sure that you take the food out of their take-out containers and place it on nice plates. Before serving, you may have to warm the food up a little.
If you know how to cook, don't try and go super fancy. To cook a meal you know that your fianc?e will enjoy is a better choice. This will put less pressure on you if you are cooking something you already know how to make. This is going to also ensure your that fianc? will be happy with your cooking.
You are going to decide if you want to make it a surprise once you have all the items you need for your romantic candlelight dinner. It can make things more hard while surprising your fiance may seem romantic. But just announcing you want to make dinner may be all the surprise you need. Your fianc?e is probably going to know something is up when you pull out the white taper candles and pillar candles.

Chinese Food

According to our research report “China Fast Food Market Analysis”, China is the second leader in terms of fast food consuming markets after the US. On the back of large consumer base and increasingly changing food appetite, the domestic fast food industry in China has been witnessing tremendous growth. Presently, the country accommodates over 150 fast food chains and 3-4 Million stores. Moreover, with the changing consumer preferences, rising income levels, increase in young population, and the availability of standardized food, the domestic fast food industry in China is expected to surge at a CAGR of around 13% during 2011-2014.

The ongoing analysis identifies that the high growth in the industry is attracting both domestic and international players. Foreign fast food chains, such as McDonald’s, Papa John, Domino, and KFC are expanding their fast food operations in China, targeting China as a key market to increase their fast food revenue. Besides, the report gives detail analysis of the prevailing trends, such as food flavor and franchising route in the industry. It is expected that these trends will continue to grow in future on the back of huge untapped opportunities in both the sectors.

“China Fast Food Market Analysis” provides an exhaustive research and rational analysis on the fast food market in China. This extensive research will help the clients to identify market trends and evaluate the leading-edge opportunities critical to the success of the fast food market in the country. It presents an overview on the various factors driving the fast food market, together with the forces that are blocking its growth.

This research supplements the past and current information on the Chinese fast food industry with forecast on various important industry aspects, including the market size of fast food industry. The report also provides extensive information on the country’s fast food market, besides discussing the growing segments, such as Noodle market, Pizza market, and snack food market. Facts and figures regarding market size, growth, share, and trends in technology development have been thoroughly analyzed in the report to provide clients a comprehensive overview of the market.

have a wonderful dinner

Planning a wedding can be a wonderful experience but it can get stressful for both the bride and the groom. If you find that your fianc? is getting really stressed out, you may want to consider a romantic candlelight dinner to help bring the romance back into your relationship.

The heart of a candlelight dinner is the candles. Picking out the ideal type of candles and the right amount of candles will set the mood for your dinner. Too many candles and the mood won't be very romantic, and too few will make it hard for you to see each other.For a candlelight dinner, white taper candles and pillar candles are excellent to use. Where you are going to have the dinner, it is agood idea to choose a dark room if you are unsure about how many candles should be used. Then, you can try various numbers of candles until you get the proper amount for the mood you want to set.

The dinner part is very essential as well. If cooking is not your forte, this is not the time to try and start learning. Take-out some food from a nice restaurant if you have to. If you go this route, make sure that you take the food out of their take-out containers and place it on nice plates. Before serving, you may have to warm the food up a little.If you know how to cook, don't try and go super fancy. To cook a meal you know that your fianc?e will enjoy is a better choice. This will put less pressure on you if you are cooking something you already know how to make. This is going to also ensure your that fianc? will be happy with your cooking.

You are going to decide if you want to make it a surprise once you have all the items you need for your romantic candlelight dinner. It can make things more hard while surprising your fiance may seem romantic. But just announcing you want to make dinner may be all the surprise you need. Your fianc?e is probably going to know something is up when you pull out the white taper candles and pillar candles.Of course, you are way sure that you are making your lifetime partner feel really special when you do all these romantic actions to your fiancee. You will both discover a whole new romance ahead of you with the soothing ambiance accompanied by nice music.

Do the children need nutritional supplements?

You know the perfect diet for your children. Breast milk for the first year at least. Then solids in the form of pureed fruits and vegetables starting at six months until twelve months. Then fresh fruits and vegetables all through the day, whole grains, clean protein products in the form of eggs, dairy products, and poultry, nuts, and maybe some grass fed beef, and all preferably organic. Do your kids eat that diet?
Most of us are lucky if our kids will eat one or two favorite vegetables. And once they leave the protected nest of your organic home, then they will be exposed to processed foods. If they are school age, then they probably want pizza and hot dogs and fast food and candy. Plus they have cravings that drive us all crazy. And some kids limit themselves to just eating a few starchy white foods no matter how much cajoling and bribery we use to broaden their diets.
Children should not eat fish or other seafood. The dangers of possible exposure to mercury, pesticides, and radioactive elements far outweigh the possible benefits. Children should also not eat seaweed, kelp, or algae supplements for the same reasons unless parents are certain they are not grown in areas with high radiation levels.
Some cooperative kids will eat a wide range of fresh foods. If you have one of those, then rest assured they are getting most of the nutrients they need. But most kids will benefit from some supplements. And picky eaters need supplements to prevent deficiencies. Vegetarian families have specific needs. And kids who have food sensitivities or allergies may also require some specific supplements.
Some supplements are suitable for every child regardless of the quality of their diets.
All kids need to take vitamin D3 in the winter months to ensure proper immune function. The dose is about 35 IU per pound of body weight. Infants need 400 IU, toddlers 800-1,000 IU, and school age kids 2,000 IU.
Omega-3 fats in the form of fish oil, krill oil, or organic flax seed oil will ensure proper brain development and help prevent inflammation that takes the form of nasal congestion or allergies. All children could use an omega-3 fat supplement. Be sure that fish or krill sources are from Arctic or Antarctic waters.
Most children would also benefit from a multivitamin and mineral supplement. The ideal is organic, food-based nutrients, rather than gummies and synthetic vitamins. IntraKids by DruckerLabs.com and Children's Chewables by mercola.com are some of my favorites.
If children have limited dairy products because of choice, allergies, or sensitivity to dairy then they need a calcium/magnesium supplement. Children under two years of age can take a liquid mineral supplement. MRM (Metabolic Response Modulators) Calcium/Magnesium/Zinc is a good one. Preschool and school age children can take chewable calcium tablets. Kids need at least 500 mg of calcium per day. Older children need 800 mg.
Vegetarian children will need additional fats. Organic coconut oil will provide saturated fat, and a supplement with vitamin B12 is also necessary.
Try packing some nutrition into healthy smoothies with coconut oil, flax oil, whey protein powder, and fruit.
At this time of exposure to radioactive fallout, older children can take a chelating supplement in the form of powdered fruit pectin (econugenics.com) or zeolite to eliminate heavy metals. Antioxidants such as reduced glutathione, vitamin E, CoQ10, or alpha lipoic acid taken either through a multivitamin or a separate supplement will help to detoxify radiation and its resulting damage. Of course antioxidants from fresh fruits are a welcome source for kids as well.

Eggplant Parm of My Dreams

Holy Smokes. This Eggplant Parm is friggin amazing. I was sitting at the kitchen counter back home in NJ, hunched over a Tupperware container holding what might as well have been hidden treasure. I ate quickly, stealing furtive glances at the door. I’m a thief. This eggplant parm wasn’t meant for me.
My big brother T had come home as well to help me plan my bridal shower menu, and well, there are a few things that are a given whenever we go home. 1) My mom makes us drink healing potions of Chinese herbal teas and soups (that’s for another post), 2) We start our diet of a bagel a day, and 3) Our Italian childhood friends bring us leftovers from our #1 most requested dish – homemade Eggplant Parmigiana.

It sounds funny now that I write about it, but yes, it’s true, my brother and I each have our own eggplant parm suppliers.
Mine is my girl, Michele, who I’ve known since the first grade, whose mom was my CCD teacher, and who recently stood next to me as my maid of honor. My brother’s eggplant parm connect is Corinne, who he’s known since the second grade, whose house he goes to every Christmas for their massive dessert spread featuring about a dozen different pies and cakes, and who will be a bridesmaid at his wedding next October. I know, the parallels are frightening.
In any case, it happened that my brother left behind his container of Corinne’s eggplant parm. Big mistake bro. Huge. At the Im household, ya snooze, ya lose. Especially when it comes to an unguarded eggplant parm.
So I dug in. And wow. I mean really. WOW. Sorry Shell, I love you and all, and no disrespect, but Corinne’s square of eggplant parm magic was just that. Magical. It was like the pinnacle of eggplant parm tastiness. Everything I wanted in the dish. Creamy, cheesy, savory, rich, comforting, homey perfection. (Shell: for the record, please don’t stop bringing me your eggplant parm. I will always eat it with gusto).
In any case, I was so moved by the explosion of tastiness in my mouth that I had to email Corinne for the recipe and make up for all these years I had been missing out on it.
I was dying to find out more about this magical eggplant parm of my dreams. Was it an old family recipe? Was it something she made all the time or just special occasions? Does it take a long time to make? What kind of mozzarella did she use?! It was astoundingly creamy and seemed to just melt into almost a sauce. I had so many questions. Did she use the big round-bottomed Italian eggplant, or the regular long ones? Did she “sweat” her eggplant before breading? Ok, clearly I was obsessed.
To my utter delight, Corinne was happy to share her family recipe! As it turns out, there are no crazy secrets to it. Except maybe lots of love and some time to devote to it. Interestingly, she says that between her mom, her sisters and herself, they all make it a little bit different. Corinne prefers thin slices of eggplant (as do I), while her sister prefers thicker slices. Corinne likes to make it in a square pan, her mom likes using a round one. Mom usually makes it for all holidays, but she likes it every now and again as a good comfort meal.
I gave the recipe a go – to be honest, it didn’t come out as good as Corinne’s, but I’m hoping I’ll get better with practice. Here’s what I learned:
Apple-bottom eggplant works best because the bigger bottoms are good for the bottom layers.
No need to “sweat” the eggplant, Corinne doesn’t do it, nor does her mama.
Slice the eggplant thin (a bit under ¼” thick)
Use whole milk mozzarella for the creamy results you’ll want — no one said this was a healthy dish! A note on the mozz: Corinne recommended the brand Polly-O for best results. It’s a common brand on the East coast, but I haven’t been able to find it in SF. She warned against using Sorrento, saying that for some reason, it doesn’t work as well.
Barilla Three Cheese Tomato Sauce is recommended for the sauce. A great choice if you don’t have time to make your own tomato sauce from scratch.
Make sure oil is hot in skillet before putting eggplant in — they’ll get too soggy if it’s not hot enough. To test, drop a piece of breading in the oil. If it starts to bubble right away, the oil is ready.
Complete layers. I realized my eggplant parm didn’t look quite right in the end because of the way I layered everything. Next time, instead of neatly stacking everything like I did, I’m going to try layering the pieces of eggplant overlapping one another to create whole uninterrupted layers.
Slice mozzarella rather than shredding to safe time.
This Eggplant Parm of my dreams is a bit time-intensive, and it’s not the healthiest dish, but mamma mia, is it good. Grazie mille to Corinne and the Testaverde family for sharing their prized family recipe. And Big Brother T, you better guard your Tupperwares now that I know what’s up.

Some best food you are not eating

Although some guys aren't opposed to smoking some weed, most wouldn't think of eating one. It's a shame, really, since a succulent weed named purslane is not only delicious but also among the world's healthiest foods.
Of course, there are many superfoods that never see the inside of a shopping cart. Some you've never heard of, and others you've simply forgotten about. That's why we've rounded up the best of the bunch. Make a place for them on your table and you'll instantly upgrade your health -- without a prescription.

Beets
These grungy-looking roots are naturally sweeter than any other vegetable, which means they pack tons of flavor under-neath their rugged exterior.
Why they're healthy: Think of beets as red spinach. Just like Popeye's powerfood, this crimson vegetable is one of the best sources of both folate and betaine. These two nutrients work together to lower your blood levels of homocysteine, an inflammatory compound that can damage your arteries and increase your risk of heart disease. Plus, the natural pigments -- called betacyanins -- that give beets their color have been proved to be potent cancer fighters in laboratory mice.
How to eat them: Fresh and raw, not from a jar. Heating beets actually decreases their antioxidant power. For a simple single-serving salad, wash and peel one beet, and then grate it on the widest blade of a box grater. Toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the juice of half a lemon.
You can eat the leaves and stems, which are also packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Simply cut off the stems just below the point where the leaves start, and wash thoroughly. They're now ready to be used in a salad. Or, for a side dish, sauté the leaves, along with a minced clove of garlic and a tablespoon of olive oil, in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Cook until the leaves are wilted and the stems are tender. Season with salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice, and sprinkle with fresh Parmesan cheese.
Cabbage
Absent from most American kitchens, this cruciferous vegetable is a major player in European and Asian diets.
Why it's healthy: One cup of chopped cabbage has just 22 calories, and it's loaded with valuable nutrients. At the top of the list is sulforaphane, a chemical that increases your body's production of enzymes that disarm cell-damaging free radicals and reduce your risk of cancer. In fact, Stanford University scientists determined that sulforaphane boosts your levels of these cancer-fighting enzymes higher than any other plant chemical.
How to eat it: Put cabbage on your burgers to add a satisfying crunch. Or, for an even better sandwich topping or side salad, try an Asian-style slaw. Here's what you'll need.
4 Tbsp peanut or canola oil
Juice of two limes
1 Tbsp sriracha, an Asian chili sauce you can find in the international section of your grocery store
1 head napa cabbage, finely chopped or shredded
1/4 cup toasted peanuts
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Whisk together the oil, lime juice, and sriracha. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl and toss with the dressing to coat. Refrigerate for 20 minutes before serving. The slaw will keep in your fridge for 2 days.

Oregon Trail Bread

　　Last year Sam's Club brought Oregon Trail Raisin Cinnamon w/ Vanilla bread back to their clubs. The bread is now being sold in a special double pack bag. Oregon Trail Raisin Cinnamon w/ Vanilla bread can be found on shelves or tables. If you can't find it at your club please ask a manager.
Now we're working with a new bakery back East that is going to be baking Oregon Trail Raisin Cinnamon for us. Look for us in Sam's Clubs beginning the week of July 5th throughout Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia. These will most likely be packaged as single loaves.

Sign up to receive the latest news on Oregon Trail breads. Also be sure to connect with Oregon Trail on facebook. This is great news for everyone who has contacted us recently asking about where to find Oregon Trail Raisin Cinnamon w/ Vanilla bread. We appreciate all the support from everyone who contacted Sam’s Club requesting the bread..
The raisin variety recently took top honors in the Ideas category during the 2nd Annual California Raisin Bread Contest sponsored by the California Raisin Marketing Board. Look for the double pack to feature a mark honoring this achievement.

Yats: New Orleans Po Boys

　　When I first visited New Orleans as a young and adventurous 21-year-old, I had the luxury of staying at my friend Zachary’s house in the burbs (with 9 other young and adventurous 21-year-olds), under the incredibly generous hospitality of his mom, Miss Dawn. Miss Dawn kept us well-fed, full of hearty, delicious, filling sustenance that would…er…provide the proper base, if you will, for a night of revelry. Two of my favorite meals from our time there was the epic crawfish boil she set up our first night in, and the constant supply of po’ boy makings she kept on hand for 1 pm breakfasts…5 pm snacks…4 am nightcaps. Piles of roast beef, fresh French bread, and plenty of mayo. Mmmm, thanks, Miss Dawn!

As soon as I saw Yats‘ menu, I was brought right back to sultry nights of sucking crawfish out of the shell and feasting on the ubiquitous po’ boy.
In case you’re wondering about this order window with the sign “Yats” pointing to it, well, that’s it. Yats is actually, brilliantly, located inside Jack’s Club, an homage to the divey, friendly bars of New Orleans, and naturally, makes good use of its well-loved, deep fryer.
Cue…specimen A: NOLA Fries. Thick, golden, wedges of starchy goodness, dusted in a snowfall of parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. These huge steak fries were crispy on the outside, nice and soft on the inside.
You may be overwhelmed when you see Yats’ lengthy selection of Famous Po’ Boys. I don’t mean to be bossy, but Get the Crawfish with Remoulade, and Ask for Extra Sauce! Succulent bits of crawfish meat, coated in a crunchy cornmeal crust, and stuffed inside a loaf of fresh French bread with a soft airy center, and crispy flaky crust (so crispy that I actually cut my lip in my excitement of getting it in my tummy! …oops). Sigh, I wish I got a whole foot-long.
A classic favorite, the Debris Po’ Boy is a monster of a sandwich spilling over with tender, juicy, roast beef, and slathered in thick gravy. A touch of horseradish mayonnaise also adds a nice bit of heat. Traditionally, roast beef po’ boys served hot with “debris” gravy is made with pieces of meat and juice that have fallen into the roast’s drip pan while cooking. Much more savory than the name let’s on, don’t you think?
I had to try the Jambalaya. Like a tangy, kicked up version of paella, this dish was full of smoky sausage and chicken, and Creole spices. It wasn’t my favorite though, and would reserve stomach space for the delicious Mac-n-Cheese next time.

Turkey and Most of the Trimmings

　　Whether you're a novice at preparing a holiday meal or an old hand, Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner can be daunting. Even if you are able to delegate preparation of some of the dishes to friends and relatives, more than likely you will be responsible for the basics; that is, the turkey, the dressing (that's stuffing to you non-Southerners) and the gravy.

And since friends and families like to get together for these dinners, you will no doubt find yourself cooking for more people than you are accustomed to. Cooking a meal for a comparatively large number of people is a challenge for most of us, unless you happen to be regularly employed as a quartermaster cook. The trickiest part of such a meal can be getting everything to the table, hot and ready to eat, at the same time. Many of us face this task with only four burners and one oven, so coordination and timing are important.
Selecting the turkey:
The "rule" stated by some authorities is three-quarters to one pound of turkey per serving; so if you are expecting 10 guests with healthy appetites that would mean you buy a 7- to 10-pound bird, right? Wrong. I don't know about your crowd, but I'd have a riot on my hands if I presented my Thanksgiving regulars with a bird that size. There are two reasons I ignore that rule:
It completely overlooks the deep and abiding need Americans have for Thanksgiving dinner leftovers; and
Turkeys these days are bred to have as much white meat as possible. In my experience, there are plenty of people who demand dark meat, and you need a bigger bird to accommodate them.
My advice, then, is to at least double the rule.
Okay, so that decided, should you buy fresh or frozen? If you know you can get a fresh turkey no more than a few days before you need it then, by all means, buy a fresh one. Some meat markets let you reserve a fresh turkey. If, however, you show up on Tuesday and discover that all the fresh turkeys have been gobbled up (couldn't resist the pun) and no more are available, you have a problem. Frozen turkeys take a long time to thaw. In an emergency, you can use the cold water method, but it's messy and troublesome. Quoting the Butterball people: "To speed thawing, place breast down in cold water, changing water every 30 minutes. Allow 30 minutes per pound. DO NOT THAW AT ROOM TEMPERATURE."
You can avoid all that by simply making sure that you buy your turkey early enough for it to thaw in your refrigerator.
Fresh or frozen, it doesn't matter a whole lot really. I've cooked many of each, and either can be excellent. I think it depends as much on the individual turkey, not to mention the individual cook, as anything else.

Chocolate Chip Cookies Tested Recipe

　　The Chocolate Chip Cookie is America's most famous cookie. It was invented in 1930 by Ruth Wakefield, who was the owner of the Toll House Inn in Massachusetts. The story goes that one day she decided to add small chunks of a Nestle's Semisweet Yellow Label Chocolate bar to her butter cookie dough. These 'chocolate chip' cookies were an instant hit with her customers and word of their popularity reached the Nestle company. Nestle must have realized that adding small chunks of their chocolate bar to cookie dough would appeal to the mass market because by 1939 Nestle had already developed, and was selling, small chocolate morsels (or chips) in a yellow bag. Nestle then went on to buy the rights to the Toll House name and to Ruth Wakefield's 'chocolate chip' cookie recipe. They called her recipe "The Famous Toll House Cookie" and printed it on the back of the Yellow bag of chocolate chips.

This Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe is very similar to the recipe on the back of the bag of Nestle's
Chocolate Chips and my kids never seem to tire of them. Made with unsalted butter and a combination of white and brown sugars, it produces a rich and chewy cookie with caramelized edges. Although flour, sugar (white and/or brown), butter or margarine, baking powder and/or baking soda, eggs, vanilla, and chocolate chips make up a chocolate chip cookie recipe, taste and texture do vary by recipe. So if you want to try another type of chocolate chip cookie I have included a recipe for Chocolate Chunk Cookies.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) with rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the white and brown sugars and beat until fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in eggs, one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until incorporated, adding the chocolate chips and nuts (if using) about half way through mixing. If you find the dough very soft, cover and refrigerate until firm (from 30 minutes to two hours).
For large cookies, use about a 2 tablespoon ice cream scoop or with two spoons, drop about 2 tablespoons of dough (35 grams) onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake about 10 - 14 minutes , or until golden brown around the edges. Cool completely on wire rack.
Makes about 4 dozen - 3 inch round cookies.
Note: You can freeze this dough. Form the dough into balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Freeze and then place the balls of dough in a plastic bag, seal, and freeze. When baking, simply place the frozen balls of dough on a baking sheet and bake as directed - may have to increase baking time a few minutes.