Chef Foundation

Archive for May, 2010

The techniques employed in French cuisine are many and varied. First of all a thorough knowledge and understanding of all the ingredients used is essential. Most of the principles of this type of cuisine are generic and can be found in many kinds of cookery but the most important element to remember is that French cookery does not rely on convenience methods however labour saving they may be.

The art of sauteing is one technique that is widely used. Sauteing is the method used to fry onions and garlic in olive oil at a high temperature. Some culinary terms in French cuisine are necessary to have some knowledge of before attempting a recipe. These three essential terms refer to basic cuts:

Brunoise – This is a square cut, each side being 8 inches.

Dice – a quarter of an inch cut

Chop – a half inch cut

A professional French chef will know the exact dimensions of these cuts and anyone who is trying to achieve an authentic French dish should be thoroughly acquainted with these terms.

It goes without saying that to achieve the correct results you should consistently use the basic French cooking techniques. French cooking relies heavily on only the freshest ingredients and if you can follow this example by only purchasing your produce from reputable greengrocers and markets. If dedicated to this aim find out when markets receive their deliveries and when these are available for sale. In this way you will have the chance to select the freshest choice of vegetables. In the spirit of French cuisine it is always good to be imaginative and make alterations to your recipe where needed.

One element of French cooking is patience. The techniques used in French cooking to produce wonderful sauces are painstaking. To prepare the stock for any sauce most recipes call for unsalted butter or occasionally clarified butter. Unsalted butter is used in preference to salted butter in the preparation of any stock as it doesn’t hamper the flavour of the the food it will accompany. In the same vein no other seasoning such as salt or paper should be used in the preparation of the stock. To retain the stock for future use it can be frozen and kept for no longer than three months for the best results.

Prepare labels to identify your stocks whilst in storage. When ready to use for the preparation of the sauce you wish to make use a copper bottom or heavy duty pan.

It is customary for sauces that are made from butter and clarified butter stocks are made prior to serving the dish that the sauce will accompany. There are different temperatures at which certain sauces should be served. White butter sauces should be served at a warm temperature and kept that way. Butter sauces should be served hot.

Some sauces require a thickening agent. However, in the case of Beurre Marie, the butter can be used straight from the refrigerator and mixed with flour. For more information about French cooking techniques there is a wealth of information on the internet and many cookbooks are dedicated to this subject.

These are just a few tops that may inspire you to learn more about French cooking techniques and give you an insight into French cuisine.

According to at least one study, something like seven out of ten adults in the United States do not get the recommended 5 daily servings of fruits and vegetables needed for good health. Many complain that it is hard to eat so much fruit or vegetables daily and so don’t even try. Well, adding smoothies to your menu will help you add the needed fruit nutrition in a tasty and satisfying way.

This smoothie mix makes use of two very different, but very compatible fruits; mangos and Peaches along with fruit juice and yogurt to create a satisfying treat that is loaded with fruit nutrition.

Mangos can be eaten either ripe or unripe and are almost always sweet. It is a favorite ingredient in ice cream, fruit juices and, of course, smoothies. mangos are rich in the antioxidant vitamins A, C, and E as well as other nutrients such as potassium and amino acids.

Peaches have been a summer favorite for years and provide a full gram of protein, a lot of potassium, some vitamin C and about 30 calories. Like mangos, peaches are widely used in ice cream, smoothies, and juices.

The folks who make the “V8 Splash” brand of fruit drinks have done a really good job of combining the taste of both peaches and mangos in a low calorie fruit juice that also works very well as a base for this smoothie recipe.

In the summer, it is easy to pick up fresh peaches and mangos but, when the seasons turn, you can still use frozen fruit just as well. Whatever you try, fresh or frozen, all you have to do is, combine in your smoothie blender:

- 1 cup of mango chunks, fresh or frozen
- 1 cup of peach low-fat yogurt
- 1/2 cup Mango PeachV8 Splash -only 10 calories and 3 grams of carbohydrates.

Blend until the mix has the consistency you prefer, pour into a chilled glass and enjoy getting your daily fruit!

Who has not eaten a pizza? Living in the US, you surely have but did you ever wonder how it is made? Well there are quick and easy recipes that you can make. The only way you can do it is by having the right ingredients and equipment.

There are 5 basic things that make up a pizza namely the dough, tomato paste, cheese, the toppings and olive oil. The first one which is the though can be purchased from the supermarket and these come in different sizes. But if you prefer to do this by hand, well that is a different story because for that, you will flour, dry yeast, brown sugar, salt and some hot water. Since we want to keep things simple, let’s just work with the premade dough.

One thing that can change when you make a pizza is your choice of toppings. You can use sausage, ham, mushrooms, anchovies, green pepper and a lot more. So you get the idea, lets work with ham and cheese pizza. If there is no tomato sauce available, an alternative will be to use spaghetti sauce which also tastes good. Once the premade dough is laid out on the kitchen table, we get a kitchen knife and spread tomato paste all over the surface of the dough. Next, we put in pieces of sliced ham and then sprinkle cheese all over it. The last thing to do before we can eat the pizza is to put this in the oven.

Before you put it inside, be sure to preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit or 180 degrees Celsius and spray the oven tray with olive oil to prevent the pizza from sticking to the surface. That way, you can have your warm pizza ready for consumption after 5 to 10 minutes. But what if you don’t have an oven? Can you still make a pizza? The answer is yes because you can also make it happen using your microwave or a griller. The advantage of using this equipment compared to an oven is that it is much faster to cook. For those who want to impress their guests, forget making ham and cheese pizza. You should try instead making something that Shakey’s or Pizza Hut offers like Pineapple pizza. The ingredients for making this is similar to ham and cheese pizza.

The only thing you added is the pineapple chunks. When you put toppings on pizza, make sure to spread it over the pizza so everyone will be able to taste the toppings. Cut eat evenly and since it is still hot the second you take it out of the oven, wait two to five minutes first before serving it. A word of advice for those who love pizza is to watch it at all times so it does not get burned. Keep your kids a safety distance away from the oven so they don’t get hurt.

There are other easy and quick recipes that you can find through an online learning course and in know time you will have mastered the art of pizza makiing. You can look for these in cookbooks or online but if you want to experiment, go ahead and do it because the preparation phase is the same regardless of what you are planning to make. If you are too lazy to make it, just buy one already made in the grocery then heat it in the microwave.

Being invited to a baby shower is somewhat an honor that not everyone can get. However, before you go to that party, you have to make sure that you have a gift. Giving a baby shower gift is a good gesture and an etiquette, and so you may want now to hunt for something wonderful to surprise the expectant mom.

Aside from the gift itself, it is a great idea to wrap the gift with effort and creativity. Gifts for babies are always adorable, and they deserve to be wrapped or packaged just the way they suppose to be. Here are some wrapping styles you might want to consider for those cute baby shower gifts.

Sometimes, it is fun to wrap a baby present in a way that it reflects the gender of the child. If you know that the parents are expecting a baby boy or girl, one best idea is to consider a wrapping style that suits the baby’s gender. The very common style is to wrap a present that in “baby boy blue” or “baby girl pink” – but you have to remember that there are many other colors that you can choose from. Don’t limit yourself to blue or pink, rather allow your creative juices to flow so that you can come up with something unique for your baby shower gift.

If you are looking for a delicious dessert idea and love the idea of serving your guests a tasty Italian cake, this Pistachio cake recipe is for you. The delicious flavor of the pistachios and the buttery goodness of the cake will be one of your favorite recipes to serve and to cook. The glaze on this pistachio cake recipe it sweet, tart and tasty. It is full of lemon and sugar and chunks of nuts. It is excellent to be served after a delicious meal as a dessert or on its own.

Ingredients for Pistachio cake recipe:
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Cuban cooking is a mixture of Spanish, Caribbean and African cuisines. The techniques and spices are akin to African and Spanish recipes and there is also some influence from the Caribbean. There is also a small Chinese influence in the Havana region recipes.

Cuba did a lot of trading in the colonial era and this is when Spain introduced a lot of their native dishes and also colonized the area. The Africans brought to the country as slaves and the French colonists from Haiti also introduced various dishes and cookery techniques. Cuba is an island so seafood is widely available and features in many dishes. The tropical climate of the region means that root vegetables and fruit grow well and are used abundantly.

So what is a typical Cuban meal? Beans and rice are popular, either cooked together or separately, and some kind of meat usually features in the meal. Corn, plantains, bananas, and potatoes are often served and a salad made with lettuce, tomato, avocado, and maybe also carrots, radish, cabbage, and cucumber might be served as well. Various main dishes and side dishes are brought to the table at the same time for people to serve themselves.

Meat is often cooked in a light sauce and a garlic, oil, oregano, onion and citrus sauce would be typical. Chorizo-stuffed roast beef is popular and Cubans enjoy tamales too, although these are not the same as Mexican tamales. Cuban tamales are boiled in salted water rather than steamed and they are quicker to make than the Mexican ones, which are usually made in bulk for special occasions only.

Cubans also enjoy soup recipes and stews and these are eaten with rice or alone. Corn soup, meat and tuber soup and corn stew are all popular. White bean-based Spanish stews are also enjoyed in the region.

A Typical Cuban Pumpkin Soup Recipe

This tasty soup is made with west Indian pumpkin and red beans. It is a great way to use up bell peppers. You can use canned beans if you do not want to soak beans overnight. Also, try substituting butternut squash for the pumpkin if it is unavailable. This recipe serves four people.

What you will need:

1 halved and de-seeded Cubanelle chili pepper or Anaheim chili pepper 8 cups chicken broth or water 1 lb dried red beans, soaked overnight 1 each green, red and yellow bell pepper, finely chopped 4 oz diced bacon 4 oz diced ham 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 bay leaves 1 peeled, diced potato 1 finely chopped white onion 1/4 cup tomato paste 1/2 bunch cilantro 1/2 lb west Indian pumpkin, peeled and diced 2 minced cloves garlic Salt, to taste

How to make it:

Put the chicken broth, Cubanelle pepper, beans, and bay leaves in a big pot and bring the mixture to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and cover the pot partly. Simmer over a low heat for an hour or until the beans are tender.

Take the pot off the heat. Discard the bay leaves and chili pepper. Saute the ham and bacon in the oil in a skillet for a few minutes, and then add the garlic, onion, and bell peppers. Cook until the onions are soft and then stir in the tomato paste.

Put the pot back on the heat and add the potato and cooked bell pepper mixture. Simmer for fifteen minutes over a low heat. Add the pumpkin and cook the soup for ten minutes or until the potato and pumpkin pieces are soft. Season the soup and simmer it for five more minutes. Add the cilantro and serve.