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Enjoy These Sweet Lava Cake Recipes

January 21, 2016 by

With warm, gooey chocolate inside of a moist cake exterior, molten lava cake is a chocolate lover’s dream. This decadent dessert may look like a gourmet treat, but it’s actually surprisingly easy to make. Here are two sweet and simple molten lava cake recipes!

Paula Deen’s Molten Lava Cakes [Food Network]
Everything that Food Network host Paula Deen makes is delightfully sinful, and these Molten Lava Cakes are no exception. They take just 30 minutes to prepare, and the mix of bittersweet and semisweet chocolate with orange liqueur adds a unique taste that your guests and family will love.

Healthier Molten Lava Cakes for Two [Texanerin Baking]
If you want to cut calories while still maintaining the indulgent taste and texture, this Healthier Molten Lava Cake recipe from Texanerin Baking is the perfect choice. It makes just enough for two people so that you can share with a friend, but you won’t be tempted with leftovers. Plus, the dark chocolate and espresso powder add major chocolate flavor without the added sugar of milk chocolate.

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Healthy Recipes That’ll Curb That Chocolate Craving

August 20, 2015 by

Any chocoholic will tell you how difficult it can be to kick a chocolate craving. If you frequently dream about ice cream, chocolate bars, and decadent brownies (and just as frequently give into those cravings), you’ll appreciate these healthier chocolate recipes.

Dark Chocolate-Dipped Cherries [Whole Living]
The combination of chocolate and fruit is a true classic, and it tastes great in just about any pairing. This recipe uses tart cherries and rich, dark chocolate to satisfy your chocolate craving while still providing heart-healthy antioxidants and cancer preventative anthocyanins.

Chocolate Avocado Mousse [Fit Pregnancy]
It may sound strange, but the thick, creamy consistency of avocado makes a great base for an untraditional chocolate mousse. The dark cocoa inside masks the flavor of the avocado and leaves you with the chocolate-y taste that you know and love.

Chocolate Souflee [Eating Well]
These individual sized chocolate souflees help you to quiet your chocolate craving without overindulging. They also look as professional as a gourmet dessert, which makes them perfect for dinner parties.

Peanut Butter & Pretzel Truffles [Eating Well]
Few things go together better than peanut butter and chocolate, and this recipe is a wonderful example of that fact. These truffles are incredibly easy to make, and they also incorporate a salty taste from the crunchy pretzels.

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Steer Clear of These 4 Foods Before Boarding a Plane

March 19, 2015 by

Pre-flight jitters can be exacerbated by eating the wrong foods before take-off. However, there are ways that you can calm your stomach before your flight. Avoid these four foods before flying to keep your digestive tract in good spirits.

  1. Alcohol. Although many travelers use alcohol to soothe their nerves before a flight, if you have a sensitive stomach this is not the best idea. Alcohol also becomes more intense at higher altitudes, which can cause you to feel much tipsier in the air than you did on the ground.
  2. Greasy foods. If you’re in a rush to eat lunch before running to the terminal, avoid that greasy burger and fries. Many studies prove that your body has a much harder time digesting sodium and saturated fats at higher altitudes, which means that your supersized meal will start to feel even more supersized in the air.
  3. Beans. Avoid foods that are known to make you gassy, such as beans, cabbage, or broccoli, as bloating will cause even more discomfort at high altitudes.
  4. Carbonated drinks. Sodas and energy drinks cause dehydration, which is already problematic during air travel. Opt for hydrating water instead.

Five Foods to Avoid Before Flying [Independent Traveler]
10 Foods to Avoid Before Boarding a Plane [AARP]
What Not to Eat Before Flying! [NerdWallet]
8 Foods You Should Never Eat Before Flying [Yahoo! Travel]

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Dip a Spoon Into These 4 Recipes for Classic Vanilla Pudding

February 5, 2015 by

Sure, you've made vanilla pudding from a box, have you ever tried to make the sweet dessert from scratch? These straightforward recipes will show you how to prepare vanilla pudding a few different ways, and some are even provided by your favorite cooking show personalities.

Homemade Vanilla Pudding [All Recipes]
Just like Mom used to make, this vanilla pudding is classic, simple, and easy to prepare.

Vanilla Pudding [Martha Stewart]
You can’t go wrong with a recipe from Martha, and this one is certainly no exception.

Vanilla Pudding [Real Simple]
With fluffy egg yolks and just a pinch of salt, this is a flavorful recipe that your guests will love.

Vanilla Pudding [Picky Cook]
Add a pinch of espresso or some chocolate shavings on top to spice up this elegant pudding dish.

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Bake Your Own Bread With These Recipe Sites

December 4, 2014 by

Who doesn’t love the taste of warm, crusty bread right out of the oven? Though homemade bread may seem intimidating to many at-home chefs, these simple websites offer bread recipes for cooks of all skill levels. Whether you’re looking for a sweet cinnamon raisin loaf for tomorrow’s breakfast or an elaborate multigrain baguette for a dinner party, these websites have recipes for every type of bread imaginable.

All Recipes
All Recipes is a go-to website for just about any recipe you can think of, and their bread section leaves nothing to be desired. It features recipes of the day with mouth-watering photos of breads, muffins, and biscuits, as well as a variety of staff picks that are tested by the site’s knowledgeable employees. If you have a specific bread in mind, All Recipes also offers a handy search bar that allows you to search by the name, ingredient, or purpose of the bread.

Food Network
If you’ve ever watched a show on the Food Network and wondered how to make the fresh, delicious breads from your favorite shows, the bread section of the network’s website is the place to go. This page offers simple, instructional recipes for the simplest no-knead breads to the most complex bread puddings, and they’re all ranked by level of difficulty.

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Two Surprising Sources of High Fructose Corn Syrup

October 16, 2014 by

High fructose corn syrup is a main ingredient in many packaged or processed foods, a fact that's caused quite an intense debate among many nutritionists and other food authorities. While some think that it isn’t so bad for you, others argue that high fructose corn syrup is one of the major causes of our nation’s rise in obesity. If you want to avoid the controversial ingredient, here are two surprising products that you should steer clear of at the grocery store.

  1. Juices. Though fruit juices may seem healthy, many of the store-bought brands are actually fruit juice cocktails rather than 100% fruit juice. If a juice is more of a cocktail juice, there’s almost a definite chance that it contains high fructose corn syrup. A simple way to avoid these types of juices is by looking for types that aren't made from concentrate, or you can also check the ingredients list to look for the sneaky syrup yourself.
  2. Cereals. Even supposedly healthy breakfast cereals often contain high fructose corn syrup. Don’t believe that just because a cereal also contains whole grains or wheat it’s necessarily healthy; in fact, those types often need the syrup to make them taste more flavorful. Always check the ingredient label before you purchase your next box, or get to know a few brands that don’t use high fructose corn syrup in any of their products.

Corn Syrup in Unexpected Foods [HuffPost Healthy Living]
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]

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Learning These Culinary Terms Can Help You Become a Better Cook

June 19, 2014 by

In order to create the perfect dish, you first have to understand the proper terminology. If you’re unsure of the difference between slicing and dicing, these helpful definitions will make you feel like a professional chef the next time you’re in the kitchen.

  1. Julienne. To julienne fruits or vegetables means to cut them into very thin strips. This technique is often used when you want a dish to look more attractive.
  2. Mince. When a recipe calls for mincing, it means that the food should be chopped into the tiniest possible pieces. Many chefs achieve this by using a machine like a food processor with revolving blades.
  3. Pare. This means to remove the skin from a fruit or vegetable. Using a paring knife or other peeler, you simply peel the skin away.
  4. Puree. Pureeing is often used on vegetables in soups or fruits for desserts. It means to mash the food until it’s smooth and thick, often using a blender, food processor, or even your hand.

Glossary of Basic Cooking Terms [Les Petites Gourmettes]
Cooking Terms [Recipe Goldmine]
Glossary of Cooking Terms [UMN]
Glossary of Cooking Terms [Better Homes & Gardens]
Culinary Terms [About.com]

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Interesting Trivia from Outdated USDA Food Guides

January 22, 2014 by

Over the years, the USDA has compiled a large number of informational food guides to advise people on everything from counting calories to managing diabetes. While some of the advice remains with us today, other tips have been superseded by new discoveries and better nutrition knowledge.

Here are some interesting tips from past USDA food guides:

  • In the 1940s, food portion sizes were measured using a yardstick rather than the cups or ounces that we use today.
  • In the 1960s, the USDA recommended that people eat the same amount of grains as they did fruits and vegetables. Today, we know that we should limit the amount of grains we consume, in favor of eating more fruits and veggies.
  • Many of the USDA’s food guide tips developed in the 1980s are still in use today, such as limiting sodium intake, drinking alcohol in moderation and avoiding saturated fat and cholesterol.

Too see more past food guides from the USDA, click here.

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Three Great Websites for Fall Recipes

November 20, 2013 by

With so many festive fall activities on your calendar, you'll need some warm and filling recipes to entertain your guests and keep your family healthy. These creative websites are full of both unique and classic cold weather foods that you can easily make at home.

Spoonful’s Fall Recipes
With a simple, attractive layout and creative recipes that are good for the whole family, Spoonful is a great choice for fall cooking inspiration. Its Fall Recipes page includes delicious dishes such as cute Scarecrow Cookies, as well as cumulative recipe lists with themes like Dinner Every Day in October to help you get your meal planning under control this autumn.

All Recipes’ Fall Seasonal Cooking
Popular cooking website All Recipes organizes many of its dishes based on season, and its Fall Seasonal Cooking section will surely become a go-to tool when the weather gets chilly. With recipes such as Autumn Pork Roast and Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake, you’ll never run out of meal ideas with the help of All Recipes.

Food & Wine’s Fall Flavors
Blending the classy, tasteful feel of Food & Wine magazine with the convenience of a cooking website, this site has created a page devoted to the magazine’s best fall foods. Browse sections like Warming Drinks and Fiery Foods for Cold Weather to find hearty, elegant meals that are sure to excite your tastebuds.

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Veg Out with These Vegan and Vegetarian Recipe Sites

November 6, 2013 by

Cutting meat out of your diet is proven to reduce the risk of heart disease, help you lose weight, and lower the amount of greenhouse gases in the environment. If you’ve chosen to go vegan or vegetarian, these creative and helpful websites will help you stay on track with your meat-free lifestyle.

VegWeb
Not just a recipe website, VegWeb is also one of the oldest online communities for connecting vegans and vegetarians. Here you’ll find an expansive assortment of meatless recipes for every meal of the day, as well as a thought-provoking blog, discussion forums, and tips for transitioning to a vegan lifestyle.

Vegetarian Times
Vegetarian Times is a simple, convenient online recipe book full of meat-free recipes that expand far beyond your basic tofu. The recipes are organized extensively by type of meal, cuisine, holiday and even season, providing you with a seemingly endless assortment of meals for any given day. If you follow a specialty diet such as gluten-free or low-calorie in addition to your vegetarian lifestyle, Vegetarian Times has sections tailored to those needs as well.

Post Punk Kitchen
With humble beginnings as an online vegan cooking show featuring live bands, Post Punk Kitchen has since become a popular website with a devoted following of like-minded, meat-free individuals. The site takes a fun, laid-back approach to teaching others the ways around a vegan kitchen, and the videos that accompany each recipe make this website feel like you're hanging out with your best friends.

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