Not Just Pizza and Pasta

Not Just Pizza and Pasta

~ Blog post #4 ~

April 22, 2015

By Julianna Zukowski

Despite the steriotypical assumption that Italians live of pizza and pasta, it actually is never intended to be their entire meal. Pasta is the traditional first course meal Italians eat, followed by a small serving of vegetables, fish, or meat. In comparison, American Italian style food is often larger portions, along with a heavier sauce. A healthy Italian salad that is often used during the summer months is the Caprese Salad. The salad was first created in the 1950's at the Trattoria de Vincenzo for a light lunch. 

Recipe: http://www.growthis.com/how-to-make-caprese-salad/

http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/the-italian-diet

Though pasta and pizza are not the most healthy dish, changes in recipes have created a lighter, and more low carb/fat diet. Many Traditional Italian recipes have been modified to fit a more healthy diet by cutting out breads and adding vegetables. For example, a popular traditional dish was changed from cheese and meat stuffed shells to mushroom stuff shells. This dish is still satisfy with half the calories. Also, another classic food changed was the homemade crust. More recipes include a whole wheat version for a healthier option. Most online cookbooks include healthier alternatives to the traditional recipes. I think it is a great option to have as more people take consideration into ingredients and health benefits. 

 

Below is the link to the healthy Italian recipes

 Chicken and Eggplant Parmesan

Mushroom-Spinach Stuffed Shells

http://www.foodnetwork.com/healthy/package

s/healthy-every-week/healthy-international/healthy-italian-dishes.html

Margherita

Margherita

~ Blog post #3 ~

April 22, 2015

By Julianna Zukowski

Sitting at the front of the “boot”, Campania is know around the world for their pizza, home grown vegetables, and fresh farm house cheese. Pizza a food we all know and love) was first created in Campania made with fresh mozzarella, sweet tomatoes, and bread. Surprisingly, the introductions to tomatoes were the start of the true Italian pizza. In the 1500’s, tomatoes were thought to be poisonous, and only used for decoration.  Fortunately, the peasants of Campania started to use tomatoes and since then, Italian cuisine hasn’t been the same. Italians traditional pizza is often cooked in a wood oven and is known for its round shape. Deepening on what region of Italy you are in determines the ingredients most commonly used.

One of Italy’s most popular types of pizza is margherita. In 1889 Queen Margherita and her husband took an inspection tour of her Italian Kingdom. During her tour she saw peasants eating large flat bread and wanted to try it. Though the queen loved the bread, she was looked down upon for eating the same food as peasants. To solve her problem she hired a Chef Raffael to make the bread into a pizza. Raffeale created the Italian flag on her pizza using tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and basil to represent the colors. This pizza today is known throughout the world. 

Below is the recipe for margherita pizza:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/margherita-pizza-recipe.html

Traditional is Healthy, Westernized is Not

Traditional is Healthy, Westernized is Not
~Blog Post #4~
By: Sarah Olson
 April 20, 2015

Contrary to what we as Americans believe, traditional Chinese food is actually very healthy! In America, we have "Chinese restauraunts" with "authentic Chinese food", but in reality, those are just high fat, high cholesterol versions of the real thing. Even though Chinese cooking uses alot of rice, it is made from wheat flour, which is healthier than white flour. Also, they eat veggies with every meal, and take in liquid food. Also, their ingredients are overall healthier and they don't use many processed foods. Vegetables are very abundant! Chinese cabbage (napa) and bok choy are the base of many salads, as opposed to lettuce or spinach. Eggs and almonds and peanutes are also used a lot. The Chinese do have fried foods, but they are mostly fried in vegetable oil, and way less fatty than western fried foods. Most 'desserts' use peanuts, almonds, bananas, or melons. There is minimal sugar, minimal fatty ingredients in desserts. I don't even think pizza exists in China, unless they are trying to copy American food.

This can be hard to believe, since when we think of Chinese food in America, greasy potstickers and fatty fried rice come to mind. These meals are not TRADITIONAL Chinese cooking. We "westernized" Chinese food. If the food isn't heart attack inducing, it doesn't belong in America :)

To get a better taste of what Chinese food actually is, I suggest looking up traditional recipes online. It will be really fun to look up and prepare the food first hand. That way, you know everything going into it, and you can know it's more authentic than the take out you get from Panda Express. Here is a link to some pretty legitimate, authentic Chinese recipes: http://www.daydaycook.com/recipe/1/section/192/index.html

Rice, Rice, Rice

Rice, rice, rice
 ~Blog Post #3~
 By: Sarah Olson
 April 20, 2015

The food used in traditional Chinese cooking has much to do with the history of China. Throughout history, it has been difficult to feed China's huge and growing population. Meat was scarce at times, so the Chinese relied on rice and noodles, which were much more plentiful and available. Veggies were added in and stir fry became a staple. Rice is the most abundantly used ingredient in Chinese cooking. In this post, I am going to focus on the Cantonese region, since that is where most Chinese immigrants come from. Cantonese cooking uses mainly rice, along with veggies and some pork. Chinese archeologists have evidence that rice has been farmed along rivers as early as 5000 B.C.

Along with rice, there are native spices that add to our knowledge of Chinese cooking. Ginger is native to China, and so is anise. Anise is used to make black licorice! Rice stir fries with veggies and ginger and sesame/peanut oil is pretty huge and common in China.

However, this rice addiction in China is starting to affect people's health. It is so delicious and starchy that more and more Chinese are starting to get little pot bellies and round faces :) It is way less common to see an obese Chinese person than an obese American person.

http://www.foodbycountry.com/Algeria-to-France/China.html

Blog post 4, Sugar isn't Always Better

Sugar isn't Always Better 

Blog post #4

21 April 2015

Clarice Martin

In France, French people often don’t eat breakfast. If they do eat breakfast, it is usually a very light meal that may consist of coffee with a croissant or boiled egg.  They practice fasting in the morning and call this petite dejeuner which means ‘little breakfast’.  Lunch is a much bigger meal as well as long, with many platters and wine on the side.  Dinner is then a smaller meal and desert if often fruit or yogurt. Snacking is usually not an option for adults.  Many healthy meals are starting to use less cream and butter and replacing it with much healthier ingredients.  Some French meals would  be, roast and Spinach Salad, which consists of beets, sweet potatoes, squash and spinach leaves, this is an all vegetables meal, which consists of many nutrients. Another meal would be Mussels with tarragon and crème fraiche, this is healthier version of mussel because it uses crème fraiche instead of double cream.  Some unhealthy foods are crepes, crème puff, fruit tarts and éclairs, along with Pate de Fois Gras, (meat paste that is made from goose livers), and anything deep fried.   France is known for having healthy food and good eating habits, but they have a sweet tooth as well. There desserts are a huge hit in France. It is always tempting to choose the sweet sugary dessert but the healthier food is a much better way to go and once you get into the habit of eating healthier it is it is less common to crave the junk food.

http://frenchfood.about.com/od/salads/r/roastvegspinach.htm

http://renegadehealth.com/blog/eating-habits-france

http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/the-nutrition-of-mussels.html#b

blog post #3 Cheese Please

Cheese please
Blog post #3
21 April 2015
Clarice Martin

When it comes to French cuisine, it’s important to have a lot of flavor. In France many dishes contain cheese. Cheese is sometimes a course before the main meal. It is also very popular to have a plate of assorted cheeses while having a glass of wine, but mostly it is put into their well-known cuisines.   There are three main categories of cheeses, soft cheeses, pressed cheeses, and blue cheeses. It is made from three different types of milks; cow's milk, goat’s milk and sheep's milk. There are four ways cheeses are produced. A Fermier which is a farmhouse cheese, that’s produced on the farm with the milk they receive from their own cows.  An Artisanal is a producer who makes small quantities of cheeses using the ingredients they have on their farm and from local towns. Cooperative is a dairy in a local area that produces cheese, considered to be factory made. Industriel, A cheese made from a factory with milk from all over the country. Some French cuisines consisting of cheese would be, Baguette Sandwich, which can have brie or Gouda cheese put onto it. Another dish is Croque-Monsieur also contains Swiss cheese and known as Ham and Cheese Sandwich and cheese soufflé which contains pepper jack,   cheddar, or Gruyère cheese. Popular French cheeses are Camembert, Brie de Meaux, Boursin and Reblochon and so many more. Cheese not only tastes delicious but also has many health benefits such as a good source of protein, phosphorus, zinc, vitamin B12 vitamin A and Calcium.   So whether is making a simple sandwich or a fancy meal for a holiday, cheese is a must have ingredient. 

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/classic-cheese-souffl

http://www.healthyeating.org/Milk-Dairy/Nutrients-in-Milk-Cheese-Yogurt/Nutrients-in-Cheese.aspx

http://about-france.com/cheese.htmhttp://www.foodbycountry.com/Algeria-to-France/France.html

Good Doesn't Mean Healthy 

blog post 4 

April 21, 2015

Michael Butler

     While southern food is tasty and delicious, it can pose some problems for your health. When eaten in moderation southern food is a great dinner choice. This delicious soul food is not the healthiest. Fried chicken, a staple in most parts of the south isn't that healthy. Chicken on its own is healthy but after frying it and adding salt, it turns into a heart unfriendly meal. Many southern foods such as chicken, have large amounts or cholesterol, fat, grease and salt. These things, unfortunately, are what make soul food so good for your soul, but not so much your body. Soul food is popular because it is often cheap to make, delicious, and makes you feel good when you eat it. There are a couple things that make meat taste good. Fat creates flavor and salt is a tasty additive to meat before and after it's cooked. Even though these things make food taste good, they aren't healthy in excess. Another popular choice in the south is sweet tea. Sweet tea is loaded with sugar and is not a healthy alternative to water. One last food, biscuits and gravy, this consists of fat and carbs. These two things are unhealthy and promote weight gain. There are good choices in the southern food selection, such as collared greens. Eating right and being healthy depends on the individual to pick the right balance of things, such as fat, salt, protein (which are all necessary).