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Play It Safe: 5 Steps for Handling Eggs

April 17, 2014 by

You parents have probably warned you about food-borne illness since you were just a child, but how much do you really know about handling raw eggs? These simple steps will teach you how to safely prepare and serve eggs.

  1. Purchase eggs in good quality. Only buy eggs from a refrigerated case, and open the carton to make sure that none of the eggs are cracked. Refrigerate them as soon as you get home.
  2. Know their expiration date. As a general rule, eggs are only good for about three weeks. After that, you should throw them out and buy a new carton.
  3. Cook thoroughly. When cooking eggs, make sure that there are no runny parts before serving. Things like casseroles and baked goods should be cooked to at least 160° Fahrenheit to ensure that the eggs inside are safe to eat.
  4. Serve properly. All foods containing eggs should be eaten immediately after cooking. To serve a large party buffet-style, keep hot dishes hot by using a slow cooker or heated serving pan.
  5. Store safely. If you must refrigerate a dish with eggs, be sure to use it within three to four days and reheat to at least 160° before serving.

Playing It Safe with Eggs [FDA]
Eggs & Food Safety [Incredible!]
Tips to Reduce Your Risk of Salmonella from Eggs [CDC]

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Baking Tutorials From These Websites Have Delicious Results

March 6, 2014 by

If you’re the type of person whose idea of baking includes placing store-bought cookie dough on a cookie sheet, read on: Though it may seem intimidating, learning to bake is much easier than it seems. Learn the basics of baking with these helpful websites!

Baker’s Corner
This accessible website provides just about every resource a beginning baker will need to make something warm and fluffy or gooey and sweet. The Learn to Bake page includes detailed descriptions of the necessary utensils, lists of staple ingredients, and a toolkit of weights and mass that will help you get the proportions straight. Once you become familiar with the ins and outs of baking, you can even browse the recipes to test out your new skills.

Become a Better Baker
Designed for bakers of all skill levels, Become a Better Baker aims to improve everyone’s baking skills and understanding. It offers tutorials for techniques like kneading with a dough hook, properly rolling cinnamon rolls, and even greasing a pan to perfection. If you prefer to learn from example, this is the site for you. 

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Eat Healthy With These Smart Pasta Recipes

February 20, 2014 by

Though some pastas are packed full of bad carbohydrates, there are many healthy alternatives to fattening pasta dishes. These simple to prepare recipes can be quite healthful, too!

Classic Macaroni and Cheese
Macaroni and cheese is probably one of the last things you would expect to eat while dieting, but this simple recipe demonstrates how to turn the childhood favorite into a healthy adult meal. Using fat-free milk and low-fat cheese, this delicious comfort food contains only 200 calories and 4 grams of fat.

Mushroom Penne
A mushroom-lover’s dish straight out of a gourmet restaurant, this healthy pasta will impress even the pickiest dinner guests. It contains only a few household ingredients as well, using chicken broth, red wine and, of course, mushrooms to give it its warm and savory flavor.

Turkey Bolognese With Shell Pasta
This unique pasta dish uses turkey in place of the usual beef Bolognese. The anise gives the turkey a taste similar to that of sausage, without the saturated fat, while the red wine and garlic add hearty Italian flavor without adding excess calories.

For more heart-healthy pasta recipes, visit the NIH website here.

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Healthy Recipes for Vegetarian Diets

February 6, 2014 by

Cutting meat out of your diet is an admirably healthy choice, but it can be difficult to find meatless recipes. If you’re growing bored of standard tofu, these exciting vegetarian recipes will help you mix things up.

Caribbean Casserole
Full of spicy, tropical flavors, this Caribbean Casserole is a unique alternative to regular vegetarian dishes. Though many Caribbean recipes include meats like jerk chicken, this one contains no meat and gets its protein from flavorful black beans.

Lentils With Brown Rice and Kale
Kale is a superfood beloved for its numerous health benefits, and it has become a staple in many vegetarians’ diets. This hearty recipe combines kale with protein-rich lentils and flavorful onions, and then places them over brown rice to create a nutritious and filling meal. With 21 grams of protein and only 9 grams of fat, this dish provides vegetarians with everything they’re missing from not eating meat in a much leaner way.

Three-Bean Chili With Chunky Tomatoes
It may seem impossible to eat chili as a vegetarian, but this completely meatless recipe is an almost indistinguishable alternative. The protein-packed blend of three different types of beans makes a sturdy base, while the variety of spices gives this dish the zesty flavor that you love from a good chili.

To browse even more healthy vegetarian recipes, check out the NIH website here.

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