End Of The Week Treat # 3 “Vodka Macerated Rambutans”

Apr13

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Yesterday after work I finally was able to enjoy what had been getting ready in my fridge during the past week:
Probably the best dish that includes rambutan
Lately, rambutan which used to be pretty exotic around here, have become easily available, but strangely enough, they are still not very popular. That’s actually a good thing, because it keeps the price down, at least for now.
In my opinion, rambutan is one of the best tasting, most beautiful fruits . They lend them self to a large variety of uses. The following is one of my favorite ways of preparing them.
Peel the fruit, top with your favorite spirit, cover airtight and keep in refrigerator for at least 5 days. When you eat them, either just pick the fruit and use the liquid for something else, or do the “sensible” thing, eat them with a spoon, mixed with the liquid. Either way, have fun, but please don’t operate heavy machinery after you enjoy these

Note: My favorite Spirits used to macerate are vodka, dark rum and red wine. Just make sure you use the best quality liquor you can afford, no point of skimping here.
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Cheers ! Life is Good !
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End Of The Week Treat # 3 Vodka Macerated Rambutans

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Death by Chocolate

Mar15

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” Chocolate & Mascarpone Terrine “

This is my gift to anybody who is not a well versed pastry chef, but a diehard chocolate lover (or a lover of a diehard chocolate lover), who sometimes has to prepare his or her own chocolate fix on short notice without much fuss. I doubt that there are many chocolate desserts out there which are as easy to prepare, yet as rich in texture and pure chocolate goodness as this little gem. Even if you have two left hands, had a few too many drinks, are legally blind and have a case of the jitters, you should still be able to prepare this dish at a moments notice without any difficulty
You have a choice of the texture being ultra smooth, or, as I did here, studded with shards of chocolate for a more crunchy version. (I’ll explain below)
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Chocolate & Mascarpone Terrine

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Ingredient’s :

Mascarpone cheese,
Chocolate fudge brownies, (or substitute with your favorite brownies or cookies)
Dark rum, (or substitute with your favorite booze)
Dark bitter chocolate, (or substitute with your favorite chocolate
Mango, (or substitute with your favorite fruit)

Method :

1) Soak brownies in plenty of rum.
2) Crumble and whisk until smooth.
3) Whisk mascarpone until smooth.
4) Temper chopped chocolate until melted and smooth.
5) Mix cookies and mascarpone until well blended and smooth.
6) Slowly add chocolate to mascarpone while whisking vigorously.
7) Or, alternatively, in order to have a more crunchy texture, add a thin film of chocolate to top of mascarpone without stirring. Let set for a few seconds, then break up the set chocolate and mix into mascarpone. Continue to add remaining chocolate to mascarpone while whisking vigorously.
8) If desired, add sugar, vanilla and lemon juice to your liking. ( I usually don’t add anything, for me, the taste of the cheese, rum, chocolate and brownies is just perfect, nothing else needed.
9) Fill into mold of your choice, let set overnight.
10) To serve, slice terrine or scoop into spheres or quenelles. Decorate with fruit of your choice.
11) Eat, be very happy

Chocolate & Mascarpone Terrine

Life is Good !
Say hi to your sweet tooth from me
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Fruit Yogurt

Nov14

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Most times I buy those little cups of fruit yogurt at the
supermarket like most other folks. They are convenient and
an easy, mostly guild free fix for a little sweets – craving.
But lately I use a lot of plain greek yogurt in my cooking,
so earlier when my sweet toot acted up, I took some Fruits
I had in the fridge, (apples, grapes and strawberries), mixed
some yogurt with vanilla essence, castor sugar, freshly
squeezed lime juice and a bit of cayenne pepper. Some
of the Yogurt on the bottom of the plate, then the fruit,
then topped with more of the yogurt. Very quick, cheap,
delicious and pretty to look at.
Question is, WHY do we buy these little expensive
tasteless cups of fruit yogurt if this is so much better ???

Life is Good ! Enjoy a better Fruit Yogurt ! :-)
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” Fruit & Veggie Sprays Clean Better Than Water : Make Your Own For Just A Few Cents “

Aug27

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Once in a while I come across a great tip or info I just have to share.
This is one of them :

Fruit & Veggie Sprays Clean Better Than Water :

Make Your Own For Just A Few Cents
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” Watermelon & Mango Smoothie “

Jul26

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Plenty of watermelon & mango smoothie,
Bella and I enjoying a breezy afternoon in the garden.
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Life is Good ! :-)
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1 qt coarsely chopped watermelon
1 qt coarsely chopped mango
1 cup yoghurt
2 cup whole l milk
10 ea mint leaves
1 ea large lime, juiced
I qt ice cubes

Blend everything until thick and smooth.

Cheers ! Enjoy !
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” Doctors Write A Prescription For Fresh Produce “

Jul23

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Michael Nishan at Eatocrazy

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Good Stuff :

Doctors write a prescription for fresh produce

Original post by Posted by: Greg Clary – CNN

Bad cholesterol, depression, high blood pressure; these are all conditions that often prompt a trip to the pharmacy. But now, physicians are administering a different treatment entirely: produce. Doctors at select clinics across the country are writing some obese patients “prescriptions” for fruits and vegetables.
The Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Program provides daily $1 subsidies to buy produce at local farmers markets. FVRx, as it is also known, is funded throughWholesome Wave, a non-profit organization which operates from private donations. Each member of a family gets the $1 prescription so, for example, a family of five would end up getting $35 per week to spend on fresh fruits and vegetables.
Janet Lopez is a cashier at a sporting goods store and lives in Washington, D.C. with her two children, brother and mother. She and her family are part of the Unity Health Care clinic’s prescription program and have been buying the subsidized produce since May. She said they all have been eating more fruits and vegetables because of the program.
“It is an encouragement because now I actually see that my kids love all of this stuff and before I couldn’t get it because it wasn’t cheap. Not only that but I also didn’t know how healthy it actually is,” Lopez said.
In addition to subsidies, FVRx has patients meet with their physicians to check up on their health including their height, weight, blood pressure and body mass index. The program also offers exercise and cooking classes.
“A lot of kids are picking up on how to eat vegetables and realizing they’re not actually yucky, it’s actually, ‘Oh, it’s delicious,’ because they’re learning to cook it themselves,” Lopez said.
And organizers said they use this family oriented approach because even if the whole family isn’t obese, they don’t want one member of the family eating fruits and vegetables while the rest just keep eating junk.