Sunday, June 28, 2009

Chicken Salad UnGourmet Style!!



I always read the Un Gourmets Blog http://theungourmet.blogspot.com/ and get inspired to cook yummy, dishes with chicken and inspired by summer, so I marinated the chicken in olive oil, salt and pepper, lemon juice and garlic the way Kim does. Then used my panini grill to grill it with some herbs. I sauteed spinach with olive oil and garlic and made a white bean salad (white beans, olive oil, Italian herbs, salt, red onion, tomato and pepper)




It was served over greens yummy, here's to you UnGourmet LOL

Of to the NC coast tomorrow will catch up with you all in a few days and announce the winner of the giveaway so there's still a wee bit of time to send in your coffee inspired creations!

Love


Saturday, June 27, 2009

Tip to Enjoy Your Deck/Back Yard!

Plant fruit trees, veggies and herbs, this is my little fig tree and you may remember I have a blueberry bush. I have tomatoes at the front, so you can get fresh ingredients from your own yard! I had a lot of fresh herbs but had some greedy slugs about, so I now keep these in pots on the deck!

Hang some wind chimes, I love the sound they make


Get a swing and sit back and relax, I got this for Jasmine as she liked it so much, when she's a little bigger will get a swing set.
Play in the grass!!
Plant pretty plants and flowers that you can see from your deck, ones with fragrance are great 


put out bird feeders so you can enjoy watching the birdies!

Oh and I also have a paddling pool for Jasmine but she didn't have any clothes on the other day so no picture this time!!

Hope you are all having a wonderful summer, 

Rebecca

Of to the beach on monday for a few days so will announce the winner of the give away Friday/Saturday Next week 



Friday, June 26, 2009

Butternut Squash: Indian Style!

Ingredients: 1/2 a butternut squash, 1/2 red onion, masala powder, chili powder, salt, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, 4 dried red chilli's.
1. heat canola oil and pop mustard seeds add onion, coriander seeds and chilli's, after 5 min add masala powder and chili powder to taste.
2. add chopped butternut squash and cover with a lid cook on medium heat for about 20 min until soft.

This is a great and spicy dish rich in vitamin A, Vitamin C and Potassium.

Enjoy ....

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Thursday's Sunday Roast!


Hi all so my Mum and Dad are here from Scotland so we invited friends over for dinner tonight and cooked a traditional Sunday roast, with roast beef, veggies, gravy and yorkshire puddings yummy. Then for dessert with had peach crumble (like cobbler) and custard!
Good food and good company, come on over and pull up a chair!




Oh and with the lovely Girlichef's help and my Mum I made a badge for my blog, it was such fun, you can get the code on the right hand side LOL

Rebecca

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Great Find: Farmers Market Widget


Find your Farmers Market

 
So I was reading Simply Food and Nothing  extra http://iowacorndog.blogspot.com/  a great blog by the way and I saw this neat widget on the left hand side. 

Its so cool you enter your zip code and it tells you where your local farmers market is, I tried it and it worked.

Just thought I would share in case you wanted it for your blogs!, heres the link for the code

http://www.culinate.com/resources/fmwidget

Its now on my blog on the right hand side...
Rebecca

Blueberry and Chocolate Cake



Ingredients: 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 cup margarine or butter, 2/3 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 1/2 blueberries and some chocolate! 
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. sift flour with baking powder and salt
3. cream marg and sugar then add eggs.
4. gently fold in flour and scape the sides add to tin, stir in blueberries
5 arrange more blueberries and chocolate on the top with a little butter and sugar in between

I made this for the Daddy's my hubby and my Dad, it was enjoyed by all!

oh and this is my blueberry plant, no blueberries yet but with a little luck!


Rebecca


Tuesday, June 23, 2009

What Does Your Mouth Say about Your Health!


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/22/AR2009062201657.html

This is a great article talking about what a good dentist will see inside your mouth and how it correlates with your overall health 

beef red gums: heart disease
bleeding gums: type 2 diabetes
acid damaged teeth: acid reflux
black spots on x-rays: osteoporosis
big tongue: sleep apnea
swollen gums often bleeding: pregnancy I remember bleeding more when pregnant its related to the high levels of oestrogen this also causes the glow!
thin upper teeth and enamel erosion: bulimia

So make sure you keep up with your annual exam its more than just your teeth!

Oh and a little reminder about the giveaway I will judge it on saturday 



Rebecca, oh and my baby is so much better today LOL

Monday, June 22, 2009

Is Your Teen Getting Enough Milk?




It was found that in a study with 1500 participants conducted by the University of Minnesota that teens in high school decreased their calcium intake. In fact more than 1/2 of boys and 2/3 of girls were not getting the recommended daily amount. Its crucial to get enough calcium and vitamin D at this stage in life to ensure peak bone mass is reached.
1300mg/day is needed for high school students and 1000mg for young adults. 
Encourage a glass of milk with dinner, a refreshing fruit smoothie or calcium fortified orange juice to help get this vital mineral.

Oh and my little one has a rash took her to the Dr. she has a viral illness poor darling so its actually a wee bit more than teething, smoothies are great for her right now LOL


Sunday, June 21, 2009

Spicy Baked Mushrooms


This one is easy and tasty simply cut up some mushrooms, with a few cloves of Garlic, a little butter or olive oil and some garam masala and salt and bake at 400 degrees for 15 min. 

I ate this today with dal, okra and rice, yummy. It was so nice to have my Mum and Dad here to celebrate fathers day with hope you all had a good day with your Dad's

Enjoy

Rebecca

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Peek a Boo! and Pizza

We went to Brixx oven pizza for lunch all in all pretty good we got a cajan sausage and scrimp pizza, had a great peppery and spicy flavour and a mushroom one.




We played peek a boo with my little angel, it was a joy to see her smile she has been suffering with teething the last few days. Making her not want to eat and crying a lot, I think going out for lunch was good for her, to take her mind of it.

 I went to a friends yesterday and the swing did wonders so I bought one, pictures to follow.. 

My Dad now has a job to build the swing!

Please all you mommies can you share your teething tips, would appreciate it 

Love Rebecca.....

Friday, June 19, 2009

Walk Early to Beat the Summer Heat


Great tip: try and walk early in fact as soon as you get up. I went today threw on some clothes, Jasmine was in her PJS he he and we went to the park. It was 7.30am nice, quiet and cool.

 When we returned we had breakfast, put on the coffee and took our showers, it was a lovely start to the day. 

Oh and on another note I am studying a home study on youth and toddler fitness and I just read that young kids are more at risk of thermal injury (overheating) as their bodies are less well equipped than adults. As they have a lower sweat rate, greater energy expenditures during exercise and lower cardiac outputs so they can't dissipate heat as well.
It states that kids should be monitored carefully in high heat over 85 degrees ensuring good hydration. I didn't know this so I thought I would share it, so be extra careful with the kiddies in the heat lol 

Rebecca

Smart Kids Drank Mommies Milk


First and foremost I just want to say its a personal choice to breast feed and sometimes its not possible, there is no right or wrong, love is the best gift to give to a child.

A recent study conducted in Denver compared siblings who were either breast feed or not and they found the breast fed children had a higher GPA in high school and were more likely to attend college. Yet another benefit of breast feeding.

I am nearly at one year with Jasmine I am proud of myself, despite her struggling to latch at the beginning and a bout of mastitis we made it. Its not easy but well worth the benefits, feel free to comment with tips for success and I am here to help.


Oh and Nestle has recalled Toll House cookie dough just in case you have any,  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124541930544731395.html

love Rebecca

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Find Your Local Farmers Market...

I came across this site for North Carolina, its awesome just put in your county and it tells you where your local farmers market is. It also has a produce schedule so then you know when your goodies are in season. I have a great little garden center near my house that sells fresh produce, how blessed we are to have farmers.

http://www.ncfarmfresh.com/
 
This site is Nationwide, check out your local farmers markets and enjoy and tell us all about it..


Rebecca


Wednesday, June 17, 2009

What I Prepared Earlier!

So we were going to have a busy afternoon ahead of us, dropping hubby at the airport and shopping he he. So I prepared some roasted veggies in fresh herbs and tomato sauce for later. 
This is a great tip, when you know your day is going to be busy cook ahead of time. When we returned after shopping and looking at Harley Davidson's, my parents want to buy one and keep it in my basement!, we were famished and little baby tired and hungry. I had cooked earlier so all I needed to do was boil pasta and there you have it, a healthy and tasty home cooked meal.

I hope it stops raining so I can show them the sights and walk in the old beautiful neighbourhoods tomorrow.

 much love

Rebecca

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Goodies From Scotland!



So my parents arrived today from Scotland loaded with British goodies, love it, Scotts Porridge Oats, Tea, whiskey, shortbread, chocolate, would anyone like some?... but I don't think they will last long!
 I asked them to bring walnut whip, its a little cone of chocolate with vanilla fondant cream inside topped with a walnut! 
The slogan is lose yourself in a walnut whip, and I can see why I just did he he, yummy

 Oh and I am going to send this post Spinach South Indian style to Girlichef for this weeks BSI, I noticed that cookbook cuisine used spinach and a previous post so I thought why not!

This is really the only way I cook spinach its tasty, healthy and quick but I will learn more ways from my fellow bloggers!



Gift from her Grandparents, how sweet they are here for the next 3 weeks, so will be sharing fun, food and family with you all


Love Rebecca



Give Kids Healthier Choices: They May Just Choose Them!


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/16/health/16well.html?ref=health

Research shows that kids are choosing more yogurt, grilled sandwiches and fruit at fast food restaurants, cola and hamburgers are down. This is a little ray of light in the dim reality of the alarming levels of childhood obesity.
Maybe if healthier choices are also offered at home and dare I say only healthy choices for example would you like a banana, a fruit smoothie or cereal for a snack. Our children would eat better.

Its great that the fast food chains are providing healthier choices so if folks are ready to take charge of their health its easier to do it when eating out.

Rebecca

Monday, June 15, 2009

Spinach and Strawberry Salad and Berry Nice Smoothie



When the weather is warm and humid sometimes you don't want to cook, so make a refreshing yogurt, banana, blueberry and strawberry smoothie (great for babies). With a spinach, strawberry and blueberry salad with ham and cheese, delicious and healthy.

Love 

Rebecca

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Malaysian Style Curry with Scrimp and Eggplant





I saw the base of this simple recipe on a Gordon Ramsay show scribbled it down in the back of a cook book!
Ingredients: 1 can of coconut milk, 1/2 big eggplant or thai eggplants, green beans, red pepper, shallots, garlic, ginger, lemon grass, red chilli, salt, zucchini, cherry tomato, scrimp.

1. fry shallots about 4 small ones, with garlic, ginger and lemon grass, I used frozen (I got in Vietnamese store) and 4 red chilli's then grind into a paste and keep for later
2. then fry a little more shallot in canola oil with green beans, red pepper, zucchini, egglant and scrimp until nearly cooked about 15 min.
3. mix paste with can of coconut milk and add to the stir fry, simmer on low for about 10 min and its cooked. 

Great with rice and steamed veggies

I made a little for Jasmine without paste but she didn't like the coconut, aw well will try her with it another time. 


Enjoy .. 

Rebecca

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Foods That Provoke A Discussion!....


http://peachkitchen.blogspot.com/2009/06/balut.html

I just found peachkitchen its an awesome blog based in The Phillipines, check it out.

The above post is called balut a fertilised duck egg, as you may know I have a ducks nest near my front door and am hoping for little ducklings to hatch he he  so this turned my stomach. 

But in different countries what one person finds strange another adores. 

In Scotland where I grew up black pudding is popular, its made from oats and meat and cows blood and eaten like a sausage

I just came across a recipe for it on UK Food Bloggers!


The Chinese eat chicken feet dim sum, not bad actually and the French eat frogs, snails and horse.

Lets start a discussion is there anything unique to your country that to others seems different, or what is the most unusual food you have eaten.

Snails is about as bold as I have been in France and they were actually really good, not chewy and full of flavor..

Just for fun.....



Rebeccca



Friday, June 12, 2009

Micro blogging on iMDAdvisor.com

Just a wee note to say I am now micro blogging for www.iMDadvisor.com a website that serves as a portal for health information, its a gate way for folks to get brief information, then go to other sites for more details.
Its  fun and a good experience for me, as I try and find my way in the freelance writing world. 

I am on a steep learning curve, and there's a lot of rejections along the way, but the Key is to learn, find what folks want and keep practicing to improve in writing and never never never give up.....


 Oh and I will judge the giveaway with my Mum and Dad and announce the winner June 27th before going to the beach, then come from Scotland on tuesday!!


Love Rebecca

Berry Good Oatmeal and an Award




I got this award today from the lovely Dajana, http://dajana-bakerscorner.blogspot.com/ so sweet of her she's a Croat from Bosnia married to an Italian and cooks amazing Italian and European cuisine, check out her blog. 

Oh and she writes in both languages impressive. I am a Brit living in America, married to an Indian and I cook a lot of Indian food, so I can really relate to the merging of two cultures. 

I am supposed to pass along to 10 new blogs, but I just posted 8, http://dietitianforhire.blogspot.com/2009/06/friend-award-and-lunchtime-memories.html so I am going to give one to Gina at the Candid RD I love her blog, http://candidrd.blogspot.com/ and one to Sweta of Bonne Nutrition http://bonnenutrition.blogspot.com/, really my first blogging buddy so she has a special place in my heart.

Oh and I want to give a friends award to Dajana,



Now onto Breakfast I made this yummy oatmeal or porridge as us Brits call it!

1/2 oats 1 cup milk, frozen berries - blueberries, raspberries and strawberries and a little sugar.

Oatmeal fills you up good and is a great source of soluble fiber to lower cholesterol and control blood sugar, also its great for babies!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone, Rebecca


Thursday, June 11, 2009

Oikos Greek Yogurt: A Dietitians Perspective..




So Stonyfield farm send me coupons for Greek Yogurt I have seen lots of other bloggers have gotten them also!!, very clever marketing campaign, impressive. They emailed me and noticed my blog sent the coupons and a personal note, nice touch. So many of you awesome food bloggers have made great recipes with it, so I thought I would just comment. 

It tastes great and Jasmine loves it, I noticed the label states no fat, wow amazing apparantly due to the filtering process. Its all natural, probiotic and very high in protein a whopping 13g. A regular yogurt is about 7g/carton.

Its great for babies, as no sweetners, and good source of protein as a company Stonyfield farm has great products for babies like yo baby yogurts and they even have drinkable ones, great when your out and about! The baby yogurts are again all natural and made from whole milk a good source of protein and vitamin D and Calcium. Babies have high protein and calorie requirements so these are a great choice, I introduced them at about 6 months. 

One of the best things about being a mum is at the end of the day often after nursing they fall asleep in your arms, heres a picture for all the mums or future mums to bring a smile to your face. 

Love Rebecca




Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Chicken and Pasta Inspired by Girlichef





http://girlichef.blogspot.com/2009/06/quickie-dinner.html

So I saw Girlichef's post and got inspired, got my chicken tenders and away I went, I just added some fresh Basil, and lemon oregano. To the Marinara sauce I added, fresh garlic and herbs, squash, baby portabello mushrooms, green pepper and cherry tomatoes, thats the dietitian in me, adding veggies to everything!

I ate it with pasta, yummy, my little Angel, loved it also, thanks for the idea Dar

Rebecca

Move to Japan!!

small world maps.com

... because  Japan has the highest life expectancy at 83 years the World Health Organisation has recently realized figures

  • Japan: 83
  • Australia, Iceland, Italy, San Marino: 82
  • Andorra, France, Israel, Monaco, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Sweden: 81
  • USA 78 
  • and the lowest of a baby born in 2007 were...
  • Sierra Leone: 41
  • Afghanistan: 42
  • Lesotho, Zimbabwe: 45
  • Chad, Zambia: 46
  • Central African Republic, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Swaziland, Uganda: 48
  • Burkina Faso, Burundi, Mali: Nigeria 49
The bottom line is medical care has advanced especially in developed countries, then in war torn African Nations and places like Afghanistan we can understand this number. We are truly blessed if we live in highest ranked countries.

But don't forget, the US has one of the best health systems but Japan and other countries top it, you have to take ownership for your health, follow a balanced diet and keep active. A lot of the countries with high numbers probably do. I know a lady here who's 107!, she still mops the floor, and makes the effort to walk with her walker and eats healthily 

Again if you need a helping hand I am here for ya...

Rebecca

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Email Reminders Help Folks Get Healthier


Image: www.nasddds.org
This is a nice article stating that a recent study showed that when folks got email reminders it really made them think and become healthier. If you know of anyone trying to make positive lifestyle changes or trying to lose weight. Drop them an email with a tip, encouragement or offer to walk with them
Fellow bloggers, post tips and support to give each other a helping hand. Support and reminders are so powerful as its hard to do it alone, 

Rebecca

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1902832,00.html

Friend Award and Lunchtime Memories....




The lovely Lauren of round the kitchen table gave me a friend award thank you, she has a very nice family orientated and heart felt blog with some great eats, check it out at 


we are to pass  it along to 8 fellow blogging friends with this message so here goes...

The description of this award is:These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award.

1. Steph at Steph Chows great blog and lovely girlie she also has fab giveaways! http://stephchows.blogspot.com/  
2. Nicisme of Cherrapeno a great blog based in the UK, and fun cooking  http://cherrapeno.blogspot.com/ 
3. Kristin of Eating RD, a great blog by a fellow RD and it has a very friendly tone http://mytastytravels.blogspot.com/
4. Dar at Girlichef (may have already given this!) she's lovely always comments and has great ideas http://girlichef.blogspot.com/
5.Sabrina I love this blog its a recent discovery she has a fab writing style and loves good eats http://sabrinaspassions.blogspot.com/
6. Bernie at yo yo no more, check her blog and cheer her on as she gets healthier http://yo-yonomore.blogspot.com/
7. Sam at Carolina Kitchen Sam is a food writer and awesome cook http://mycarolinakitchen.blogspot.com/
8. Donna at my tasty treasures, she has a great blog, it will make you laugh http://mytastytreasures.blogspot.com/





Finally here's a picture of lunch, fresh french bread from The Fresh Market, salad and deli ham, it reminds me of the little French towns we visited, and how some how we always parked around lunch time, followed the school kids to the baguette shops and sat and ate in the squares.


What food lately has sparked a fond memory for you?


Rebecca 

Oh and Don't forgot the giveaway I have had a fab coffee flan from Erica of my Columbian Recipes so far http://www.mycolombianrecipes.com/2009/06/coffee-flan-flan-de-cafe.html

Monday, June 8, 2009

Hubby's Spicy Potato Slices and Back to Home Cooked Food..

Ingredients: one large potato, paprika, salt, chilli powder and tumeric
1. simply coat the sliced potatoes in the spices and lightly shallow fry in olive oil till brown.
So simple and tastes great.

Oh and the best thing about coming home is having home cooked food again, we had spinach dal, spinach, spicy fish, spicy potatoes and green beans, wonderful...

Rebecca

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