Best Stainless Steel Cookware

We have a winner!

We found what we think is the best stainless steel cookware set on the market

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Best Non-Stick Cookware Set

For Lovers of non-stick cookware

This non-stick cookware set is excellent value for money and we rate it highly

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Best Dutch Oven Overall For Quality and Color

This will be no surprise

There is no doubt about it, we had to rate the as our number 1 choice for Dutch Ovens.

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Archive for November, 2007

The Pioneer Woman Cooks – Blog of the Week

Friday, November 30th, 2007 at 12:27 am  
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The Pioneer Woman Cooks

This weeks Blog of the Week is

‘The Pioneer Woman Cooks’

This great cooking blog is written by Ree.

The recipes have detailed instructions with step by step pictures, which is extremely helpful for both novice and experienced cooks.

There is nothing more frustrating to a newbie than to not know if there mixture looks as it should.  Well Ree has this well and truly covered in her instructions.

Lots of fabulous mouth watering recipes with pictures that I know you are just going to want to dive right in and try. 

I found myself browsing for quite some time through The Pioneer Woman Cooks and I am sure you will do the same.

Ree also provides her recipes in a printable form so if you are like my friend Paula who prints off recipes for her Recipe folder, then this is ideal for you.

A great site that I thoroughly recommend you visit.  Check out the Pioneer Womans Pasta Primevera.

Cookware Review: Calphalon 10pc Tri-Ply Cookware Set

Thursday, November 29th, 2007 at 2:37 am  
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calphalon-tri-ply-10pc-cookware-set-reviewWe have just added our latest cookware review and this time it is for the Calphalon 10pc Tri-Ply Copper Cookware Set.

If you have always wanted a set of copper cookware, but like me have thought twice about spending thousands of dollars for the privilege, then this is the cookware set for you.

We have found this set on the net
for under $450 which is exceptional value for money.

The Calphalon Tri-Ply range is stylish and durable and should last you a lifetime.

Read our full review of this cookware set here: Calphalon 10pc Tri-Ply Copper Cookware Set

Or check out our complete list of Cookware Reviews.

Homemade GingerBread Latte Recipe

Wednesday, November 28th, 2007 at 12:47 am  
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hot-ginger-latte3.jpgAs promised in an earlier post, I am going to spend a little time over the next couple of weeks catching up on some recipes that I have downloaded from cooking blogs on the net.

I tried the first recipe on my list last night and because it was so nice I had it again tonight. This one was for Homemade Gingerbread Latte which came from the Baking Bites blog.

As you can see from the photo, my presentation skills aren’t that impressive. Just compare my photo with the one on Baking Bites and you will see what I mean. No matter though as it tasted delicious.

Although it was by no means difficult to make it was a little fiddly mostly because I only had whole cloves which I had to grind before using. Plus you have to heat milk, boil water, and whip cream in addition to getting all the spices together and mixing with the coffee and molasses. Still it was definitely worth the effort and something that I will be making again.

It tasted a bit like a Chai Latte and I love Chai Lattes!

The Delightful – Delectable Nashi Pear

Wednesday, November 28th, 2007 at 12:43 am  
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Nashi PearThe Nashi pear, Pyrus pyrifolia, are widely grown for their refreshingly sweet fruit and they are a popular food in Asia.

Nashi are sometimes called the Asian pear, however it has many names and is also know as a Japanese pear, Korean pear or Taiwan Pear, sand pear, apple pear, bapple, papple, and bae. In India is it called nashipati.

Imagine if you will, the crispness of a Granny Smith apple combined with the juicy ripe taste of a pear and this will give you some idea of what these delicious fruit are like. Actually they are not as sweet as pears but have a light refreshing taste. I keep mine in the fridge so the flesh is cool to eat.

Because of their high water content and grainy texture, Nashi pears are generally not baked in pies or made into jams, however, they can successfully be added to salads, cheese platters, meat dishes, juiced or made into a very tasty fruity chutney. Why not add some to your next Waldorf Salad instead of apples, they are crisp, crunchy and don’t turn brown.

Nashi Pears are low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium and are a rich source of antioxidants, vitamin C and folate. One medium sized (130gm) raw unpeeled Nashi Pear has 14 carbs, 4.5 gms fiber, 0 fat and 230 kjs

Nashi Pear Bruschetta
(as featured in Burkes Backyard)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups Nashis, peeled and diced
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • 50ml walnut oil or olive oil
  • black pepper, to taste
  • 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
  • 1/2 cup lettuce or rocket leaves, roughly chopped
  • Italian bread, sliced
  • 200g cheese, soft blue is nice but any soft cheese works equally as well

Method

1. Slice the bread and grill the slices.
2. Spread with the cheese and top with the Nashi mix.

The Joyous Occupation of Being a Chef

Tuesday, November 27th, 2007 at 4:45 am  
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female-chef.JPGArticle courtesy of Guest Author Nia from Survival Wytch and Cooking with Nia

My daughter has embarked on a journey to becoming a “JOY” maker. My daughter finds joy everywhere she goes. She is meticulous and careful, artistic and creative and loves people and discovering new things. 

What has this to do with becoming a chef you might ask? Well, being a chef is a creative occupation requiring a love and joy of preparing food for others. Without this love it is merely a process and not a creation.

My daughter wants to:

1. Travel – in order to experience and visit other places and work overseas and learn from international chefs. To discover how these chefs remember their childhood and how joy was tasted in their homes.

2. Discover – new ingredients and meld flavors, match and compliment textures, create dishes from exotic ingredients and capture the flavors of the wonderful places they originate from. In other words, wringing out her true artistry in an edible medium.

3. Praise and Notoriety – The opportunity to prepare nutritious full flavored food with fresh exotic ingredients for the enjoyment of every guest that samples what she prepares. Having friends and family and customers return just for a tantalizing aroma, a fine delicate morsel, a satisfying explosion of flavors and textures, and praising her for her culinary competence.

4. The opportunity – to share her joy of creating dishes, of having fun in the kitchen. She loves enjoying a glass of wine while chopping and stirring and sharing good conversation, and the tasting there is always the tasting to share.

5. Pride in tradition – She will make her family proud, the family traditions can survive, the skills learnt from me and my mother can live on in her to share with others.

A chef is an artist, a musician, a skillful craftsman, a perfumer, a creator, an innovator and with these tools joy is created.

My daughter will be a chef, a master of all five – a ‘JOY’ maker.

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