Archive: May, 2011

Microwave Cooking – Tips For Using, Cooking, and Cleaning Your Microwave

cooking tips

My teenage daughter thinks that means we started fire by rubbing sticks together!

The microwave oven has certainly made life easier, especially for households like mine where both parents work outside the home. We want our meal times to be fast and easy, while remaining healthy and affordable. Our microwave oven is one of the appliances that help us spend less time in the kitchen.

We use ours all year long, but it really helps in the heat of summer to not use the oven as often and heat up the kitchen at the same time.

It sounds simple, but needs repeating – read and follow your microwave oven manufacturer’s instructions. Here’s some other safety tips:

· Remember, the food will be hot! Be careful when removing from the appliance
· Never use your microwave if the door does not close completely or there are any other defects
· If you cover the food being cooked, be sure to leave it vented so steam can come out naturally
· Don’t use any metal utensils
· Use only “microwave safe” dishes
· Follow recommended cooking times. If the time is a range (5-7 minutes for example), start with the lower time

Now some general cooking tips:

· Cut food in uniform sizes for more even cooking
· Arrange evenly sized food in a circle
· Follow the recipe or manufacturer’s cooking directions! Stir at stated times, turn food over when required, and let food stand as directed after cooking
· Margarine can be softened by using half power for 45-60 seconds
· Wrap left over pizza slices in damp (slightly damp) paper towels and cook for 35-45 seconds. The damp paper towels help to keep the crust crispy. Otherwise, you may have a crust that you cannot bite!
· Baked potatoes are a microwave favorite. Just remember to pierce them with a knife to release steam.
· If you are defrosting meat in your microwave (which is a great idea!), be sure to cook the meat as soon as defrosted. The meat may be partially cooked and become a home for bacteria.
· Add salt after cooking. The microwaves are attracted to the salt and can cause your food to dry out.
· Use a dish larger than your food so it won’t spill over while heating.

Gotta clean it!

· Place ¼-cup lemon juice and one cup water in a two-cup container. Heat until it boils (about 2 minutes on high). Leave the lemon water in the microwave another 5-7 minutes, then wipe clean with paper towels or a clean dishtowel.
· You can also use a mixture of ½ water and ½ vinegar and do the same thing as above.

Janet B Pearson is the editor of http://www.thrifty411.com She is married and a mother of 2 with a grand-daughter, and a new grandson! She recently completed an ebook “Thrifty Living: Be Thrifty, Make A Budget, and Save Money!”

Her website, http://www.thrifty411.com, offers thrifty living tips, money saving ideas, and help on how to create a personal budget.

Free Low Calorie Recipes – What Kind of Recipes You Must Choose

low calorie recipes

The moment your body feels starvation, it begins to protect itself by making use of your calories, then the fats in your body and your muscles later on. That is why although you intend to indulge yourself with those free low calorie recipes in the web, you must not go beyond limits. Your body like everyone else’s body still needs nourishment regardless of what size you are currently in. Remember that your body has to possess not only a wonderfully shaped figure but a healthy system as well.

Before you intend to believe with these free low calorie recipes in the web, you must ensure that it suits your current lifestyle and it contains these kinds of foods.

- Make fiber a favorite

Turning into oatmeal accompanied with skim milk or low fat milk will really assist you in achieving a healthier and sexier body. Diet conscious people usually have oats for breakfast with a slice of fruit. Fiber has four purposes: It easily makes you feel full; it assists in digestion, cleanses the colon and assists in a more efficient bowel movement. Thus, fiber-rich foods provide you with an easier access to a much slimmer body.

- Savor the soup

Canned soups are usually preferred in obtaining great low calorie recipes. When you look at various cans, you have to be careful not be deceived by the label. Most often than not, healthy soups are more expensive, larger and better when tasted compared to inexpensive ones. You may also want to prepare your own soup; however, you must still be mindful of the fat and calories it contains per serving.

- Be happy to shake

Opt for breakfast shakes instead of preparing a hearty meal. All you have to do is to make use of your blender, a cup of milk, and a banana, drink it and nourish your body. The advantage of shakes is that it does not require you to think a lot about what to prepare to get another low-calorie meal, all you need to have is the ingredients and the patience in waiting for your shake to be ready in minutes.

- Turn to white

A lot of recipes that require white meat are not only healthy but less fatty as well. White meat is 3x healthier compared to red meat. The white meat that usually comes in the form of fish and chicken are less fattening compared to red meat, which could be in a form of pork or beef. Although the latter produces more iron content compared to the former, but if your sole intention is to obtain a trimmer body, then white meat should currently suit your taste buds.

Remember that as you indulge into a low calorie diet, you would normally feel less energetic during the first few weeks. This is expected since your body would have to adjust in dealing with various changes. In coping with these changes, you may have to

- Indulge less on chips and crackers

These snacks can be easily grabbed during instances of hunger. Eating these is not part of the diet but this can be an answer to rare instances wherein you are in the middle of a hypoglycemic moment and you need instant glucose. Moreover, eating these foods when you are really hungry prevents you from indulging into binge eating later on.

Overall, obtaining free low calorie recipes in the web should be merely used as an aide in aiming for a good weight loss plan. Choosing the right food and having the right attitude are equally essential factors to achieve a healthier and leaner body.

Cooking Tips TV Scam

cooking tips

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