You are here: Home / Archives for Food

Sate Your Craving for Chocolate With These Molten Lava Cake Recipes

April 7, 2016 by

Molten lava cakes are the ideal dessert for a dinner party or other social gathering because their individual sizes give each person a little cake of their own to enjoy. When you cut into these warm, moist desserts an explosion of hot chocolate sauce spills out, which gives the cakes their fun name. If your mouth is already watering, try one of these molten lava cake recipes for dinner tonight.

Molten Chocolate Cakes [Food and Wine]
Food and Wine’s gourmet spin on the dessert classic brings an air of sophistication to the usual molten lava cake. Bittersweet chocolate and unsalted butter provide a rich, complex taste, and the thick chocolate inside is just the icing – or, rather, the lava – on the cake.

Molten Chocolate Cake [Pioneer Woman]
This recipe from the Pioneer Woman is just as indulgent as her other recipes, and the addition of an extra egg yolk ensures that the inside is even more runny than most lava cakes. Serve them with homemade whipped cream for an extra special treat.

Red Velvet Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes [Half Baked Harvest]
This recipe not only uses a red velvet cake exterior, but a chocolate ganache center as well. If that doesn’t already sound decadent enough, a coconut whipped cream topping should do the trick.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

Must-Know Tips When Serving Wine

January 21, 2016 by

You may enjoy drinking wine at home, but how much do you really know about serving it to your guests? If you want to learn how to properly serve reds, whites, and even dessert wines at your next dinner party at Christina Mill, check out these simple tips.

  • Invest in a good set of wine glasses. They don’t have to be expensive (many closet less than $5 a piece), but having the proper wine glasses is the first step toward serving great tasting wine. Choose tulip-shaped glasses with stems or without, and make sure that they’re made of real glass to avoid that plastic taste.
  • Clean the glasses. Before serving wine, clean your glasses thoroughly by hand using simple dish soap and hot water. Rinse thoroughly before using.
  • Serve at the proper temperature. If you’re serving light white wines or sparkling wines, keep them at a cool 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Full-bodied whites, such as chardonnays, and lighter reds should be served at 50 to 60 degrees, while red wines and ports should be served at 60 to 65 degrees.
  • Keep it at the proper temperature. Keep your wine tasting great all night by using an ice bucket for white wines. Red wines can simply sit on the counter to stay at room temperature.

25 Tips on How to Serve Wine [Bauduc Blog]
Organic Wine Serving Tips [Frey Vineyards]
How to Serve Wine 101: Tips on the Perfect Serving Temperature [Wine Spectator]

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

Beware of These Three Surprising Sources of High Fructose Corn Syrup

November 5, 2015 by

Avoiding high fructose corn syrup seems like it would be fairly easy if you read your labels and eat a plant-based diet. However, there are still ways in which this artificial sweetener can find its way into the food you eat. Here are three surprising sources of high fructose corn syrup that you might want to avoid:

  1. Salad dressing. Low-fat or not, many salad dressings contain high fructose corn syrup as a main ingredient. Make your own with oil and vinegar dressing or buy organic to avoid this.
  2. Honey-roasted peanuts. There are only seven ingredients in this sweet snack, and corn syrup is one of them. Choose raw or oven-roasted nuts instead.
  3. Ketchup. It might be no surprise that ketchup includes sugar, but some brands contain exceedingly high amounts. Look for all-natural brands or use ketchup sparingly.

Corn Syrup in Unexpected Foods [Huffington Post]
Surprising Products That Contain High Fructose Corn Syrup [Divine Caroline]
(Not So) Sweet: Surprising Foods Containing High Fructose Corn Syrup [Babble]
6 Popular Foods with High-Fructose Corn Syrup [FitDay]

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

Sink a Fork Into These 4 Macaroni and Cheese Recipes

August 20, 2015 by

Even the pickiest eater in any family loves macaroni and cheese. Whether you make it with creamy goat cheese and flavorful spices or good old-fashioned cheddar and milk, mac and cheese is a fun dinner treat that unites the family around the table. These macaroni recipes offer a variety of different takes on the beloved pasta dish.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese [Food Network]
With a consistency that’s more like a casserole than a pasta, Alton Brown's awesome baked macaroni and cheese recipe is ideal as either a hearty dinner side or a decadent main course. Sharp cheddar gives it the cheesy flavor that you love, but bay leaf and paprika add a sophisticated bit of spice to take it to the next level.

Macaroni and Cheese [Pioneer Woman]
The Pioneer Woman’s traditional mac and cheese recipe uses the usual elbow macaroni noodles and cheddar cheese, as well as an egg for extra texture and ground mustard for a boost of tangy flavor.

Perfect Macaroni and Cheese [Martha Stewart]
Martha Stewart can do no wrong when it comes to adding a gourmet twist to family favorites, and her macaroni recipe does not disappoint. This recipe serves 12 people, so it's ideal for dinner parties.

The Best Macaroni and Cheese Ever [Kitchen Treaty]
This is a true cheese lover's mac and cheese recipe. It’s extra gooey, and it even recommends an optional bacon topping. Need we say more?

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

Learn to Bake This Simple Black Forest Ice Cream Pie

May 21, 2015 by

When you think of the easiest baked goods to make at home, pies usually aren’t top on the list. After rolling the dough, making the filling, and adding all that elaborate crust decoration, making a pie seems downright difficult. This delicious Black Forest Ice Cream Pie recipe is so simple, it will put all of your pie-baking fears to rest.

Black Forest Ice Cream Pie

12 sugar ice cream cones, broken into pieces
5 tablespoons butter, melted
1 pint chocolate chip ice cream
1 pound fresh or thawed frozen cherries, pitted (about 3 cups)
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch

For detailed instructions on preparing this Black Forest Ice Cream Pie, visit Oprah.com.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

How to Reduce Your Daily Caffeine Intake

February 19, 2015 by

You might feel like you simply can’t function without your morning coffee, but that boost of caffeine may be doing you more harm than good. Caffeine addiction causes you to rely on drinking coffee, soda, and energy drinks throughout the day, and it is also proven to contribute to stress and anxiety. If you want to cut back on the amount of caffeine you consume per day, these simple tips will make it easier.

  1. Examine your intake. Studies show that 200 milligrams of caffeine or less is a healthy amount for the average adult to consume per day. This translates to about two strong cups of coffee, so this is an easy way to decipher how much you need to limit yourself. If you can’t make it through the workday without that third cup in the afternoon, that’s a good place to start.
  2. Gradually cut back. Quitting caffeine cold turkey is just as painful as quitting any other bad habit. To prevent headaches, grogginess, and other signs of caffeine withdrawal, mix your usual coffee with a bit more decaf every day, or work your way down to just two cups of coffee instead of your usual amount.
  3. Be smart about caffeine. Once you know that you can only have two cups per day, you should choose when to drink them wisely. If you feel most tired early in the morning and around 2 p.m., plan on drinking your cup of joe about an hour before those times.

Easy Ways to Reduce Caffeine Intake [U.S. News]
How to Lower Your Caffeine Intake Without Headaches [Fitday]
10 Ways to Start Your Day Without Caffeine [Everyday Health]
Caffeine [McKinley Health Center]

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

4 of the Web’s Best Recipes for Banana Pudding

August 21, 2014 by

Banana pudding is sweet and rich, with a creamy taste that people of all ages simply adore. It’s also a very simple dish to make at home, and it serves a large number of guests at one time. Here are a few of the best banana pudding recipes from around the web.

Banana Pudding IV [All Recipes]
When you’ve only got a few minutes to spare, this banana pudding recipe comes together quickly and easily.

Easy Southern Banana Pudding [Kraft]
Use simple vanilla wafers to create this banana pudding in just 20 minutes or less.

Not Yo’ Mama’s Banana Pudding [Paula Deen]
True to Paula’s signature style, this recipe is rich, creamy, and truly decadent.

Banana Pudding Recipe & Video [Joy of Baking]
Visual learners will love this tasty recipe because it includes a simple video to help you along.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

Pin It on Pinterest