Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Couscous






It is a staple in the Africas.
It is a very nice rice and alternative component.
It needs extra care when you cook if not it becomes gritty.
This is the outcome of the cooking!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

This post is amazing yet hilarious!!!Do read on....


Food and Nutrition gave us the knowledge that some food ingredients can be used for other purposes like cleaning etc...
Check this out



http://www.singaporebikes.com/forums/showthread.php/296980-Some-malaysians-using-cooking-oil-for-car-engines

Marketing manager Sekolah Golf Michael Ismail, Nik Safian Afzani Omar, said he has been using cooking oil that he buys for RM2.50 per one 1.5 kg packet as the lubricant for the engine of his Kancil car.

“My Kancil (car) needs three litres of engine lubricant. Thus, I would use two and half packets of cooking oil for that purpose.

“Before, I had to pay RM130 every time I serviced my car engine, but now it is less than RM10″, he told Bernama here.

Nik Safian Afzani said previously he used a semi-synthetic engine oil of a popular brand but he has replaced it with cooking oil that he buys from a hypermarket.

He said when using the cooking oil as the lubricant, the temperature of his cars engine never exceeds the overheat limit.

GOOD ALTERNATIVE

Nik Safian Afzani said, when he sent the car to a workshop for its engine oil filter to be changed, the mechanics there were surprised to find that the car had used cooking oil as the lubricant.

To Nik Safian Afzanis bewilderment, the mechanics said that cooking oil is a good alternative for car engine oil as the product is more expensive nowadays.

Meanwhile, Hisham Abdullah, who created a fuel-saver mechanism using water and hydrogen, said he too has been using cooking oil as a lubricant for his Proton Iswara car.

He has been using this material for about one year and found that it does not give any negative effect on his car engine.

The former engineer at a Japanese firm said, “cooking oil is actually a synthetic oil(containing esther) but we are not aware of this”.

As for mechanic Mohd Tajuddin Jalil, he learnt the cooking oils secret from a foreign expert some two years ago.

Since then, Hisham has been using cooking oil as his car engines lubricant. Hisham said he knows that 67 others in Negeri Sembilan are applying the same concept.

“However only palm oil-based cooking oil can be used. Others like that made from corn or vegetables should not be used as they tend to coagulate at low temperatures,” Hisham said, adding that it is economical to use cooking oil as an engine lubricant due to the high price of engine oils nowadays.

He said a 4-litre bottle of semi-synthetic engine oil now costs RM160 while that of the fully synthetic is about RM200.

Those who wish to know more about the secrets of cooking oil can visit Hishams website at http://ilmurahsia.name.my.

They can also visit http://www.nordicgroup.us/oil.htm#The3000 Mile Facts for similar information. "

– BERNAMA

Our five senses and how they help us



http://stickofachef.wordpress.com/category/general/page/4/



A very good blog type that is beneficial for our learning in Home Economics...
I chanced upon this word press and thought that this would help in our micro-teaching element.
;0

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

New cool widget added!!!

Right at the bottom of the page,there is a widget called 'Smart meter' which tells you the statistics on a global scale....

You can relate to the metabolic diseases statistical numbers in Food and Nutrition.

School to Work

Excerpt from wikipedia;

School-to-work transition is a phrase referring to on-the-job training, apprenticeships, cooperative education agreements or other programs designed to prepare students to enter the job market. This education system is primarily employed in the United States, partially as a response to work training as it is done in Europe and Asia.

School to Work is a system to introduce the philosophy of school-based, work-based, and connecting activities as early as kindergarten to expose students to potential future careers. School to Work emphasizes lifelong learning.

School to Work is funded and sponsored at the federal level by the U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Education. At the state level in states like Arizona, the grant is administered by the Arizona Department of Commerce, School to Work Division. This grant was funded for a maximum of five years with decreasing funds years three through five;

An example of county level involvement is the Cochise County School to Work Consortia in Arizona. It is composed of more than fifty Cochise County public and private schools, kindergarten through four-year university level, local and community-based organizations, and more than one hundred supporting business partners.

STW is part of a comprehensive education reform movement which includes formulating new standards which emphasize higher order thinking skills, new standards based assessments, and graduation exams, such as the Certificate of Initial Mastery which insure that students are ready for job training or college prep by age 16. Reformers believe that it is important and egalitarian that all students graduate ready for jobs and ready for college, rather than tracking students one way or the other.

In Singapore,we have various schemes like 'Learn As You Earn'(LAYE).
On job trainings are vital to ensure that one is updated at the most recent time frame.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

10 Tips for Healthy Eating and Physical Activity for You

I love getting tips.....
When I worked in some part-time jobs in my early years, I always looked forward to tips....(not tips as in advices but $$$)

I loved the feeling of being tipped for a good service...
The feeling is mutual everywhere!
I love to tip people who provide good service to me....

Anyways, this website is laden with tips that are not only with food consumption but exercise as well.

Excerpts from site;



Food Guide Pyramid is a practical tool to help you make food choices that are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Using the Pyramid enables you to eat a variety of foods daily so that you can get the nutrients you need.

To make the most of the Pyramid, you need to know what counts as a serving.


Food Group: Vegetable
Serving Size: 1 cup raw, leafy vegetables, 1/2 cup cooked or chopped raw vegetables or 3/4 cup vegetable juice

Food Group: Bread
Serving Size: 1 slice bread, 1/2 bagel or English muffin, 1 ounce ready-to-eat cereal, 1/2 cup cooked cereal, rice or pasta, or 5-6 small crackers



Food Group: Fruit
Serving Size: 1 medium piece of fruit, 1/2 cup mixed fruit or 3/4 cup fruit juice

Food Group: Milk
Serving Size: 1 cup milk or yogurt, 1-1/2 ounces natural cheese or 2 ounces process cheese

Food Group: Meat

Serving Size: 2-3 ounces cooked lean meat, poultry or fish (about the size of a deck of cards.) Other foods which count as 1 ounce meat; 1/2 cup cooked dry beans, 1 egg, 2 tablespoons peanut butter or 1/2 cup nuts

Healthy Eating

Arguably,this is our strive as Home Economics Teachers....

"You are what you eat..."


I found the following tips very interesting and thought one might take a look at it!


Excerpts from site;

Healthy Eating Tips

Here are some tips for eating healthy at home, work, and elsewhere to help you get started. Try some of these ideas.

1. Start your day off right!


* Eat breakfast! Breakfast is an important meal and having a good breakfast just help give you the right start to your day.
* Have a piece of toast with peanut butter, unsweetened cereal with low-fat milk, or a steamed bun with lean meat/vegetables.
* Try livening up your cereal with some fruit like sliced banana or diced apple.
* If you are in a big rush, take a piece of fruit to munch on during your commute (OK, OK– not on the MRT!)

2. Eat a variety of foods


Our body requires over 40 nutrients for good health. No one food or food group can provide you with all the nutrients, so have a variety of food to ensure that you are getting what your body needs. Use the Healthy Diet Pyramid as a guide for what to eat and how much of each type of food.

3. Eat more fruits & vegetables

Wouldn’t it be easier to eat something if it was right in front of you? The next time you go grocery shopping, make sure you stock up on fruits & vegetables. Then keep bowls of fruit on the kitchen table or counter. Reach for a piece between or after meals. Don’t forget to cook up those vegetables you had bought too!

4. Eat less fat & foods high in fat

What can we say about fried foods? They taste great, but are not great for you. They’re high in fat. Here is a few suggestions that will save your heart.


* Deep-fry less often. Try grilling/barbequeing, baking, steaming or boiling your foods more often.
* Use oils sparingly in cooking or when flavouring foods. Choose less saturated oils, try olive and canola oils which are high in monounsaturated fats.
* Watch those fast foods. Many of them are high in fat. Check them out in the Fast Food Guide.
* If you use butter and margarine, use them sparingly. Even better, switch to reduced-fat margarine or use a little jam/jelly on your bread, bagels, and other baked goods.
* Use low-fat dairy products such as non-fat or Hi-Lo milk, reduced fat cheese, low-fat yogurt, or light ice cream. You’ll still get the nutrients and taste but half the fat.
* If you like to eat meat, you can help reduce fat by choosing the leanest cuts. If you are preparing it at home, trim all visible fat and drain the grease that cooks out of the meat. Also take the skin off chicken and substitute meat with bean curd, lentils or dal a couple of times each week.


5. Watch those snacks



Why do we eat snacks? They taste great, they’re easy, and they satisfy our sweet and salt cravings. And, let’s face it, crunchy food is fun. However, some snack foods are high in fat & salt. See Snack Attack table to find out how much fat & salt is in your favourite snack food! Check out the suggestions for some healthier alternatives.


6. Eat everything in moderation.


There is no "good" or "bad" food. As the American Dietetic Association suggest – All Foods Can Fit – as long as you have them in moderation. Too much of any food is bad; if you only eat vegetables and nothing else, that would be a problem too. And just because something is fat free or low fat does not mean you can eat as much as you want. Many low-fat or nonfat foods are also high in calories. Eat everything in moderation. Reduce, don't eliminate foods that are high in fat, sugar or salt.

7. Maintain a healthy body weight and feel good

Being overweight increases your risk for a wide range of diseases including heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers. Excess body fat results when you eat more calories than you are using up. If you are very active, you can eat more. However, if your lifestyle is sedentary, you need to:


* cut back on the amount of food eaten;
* choose lower calorie items; and
* increase your activity.

Calories come from all food - protein, fat, carbohydrate or alcohol - but fat have the most calories, followed by alcohol, then protein and carbohydrate. To maintain weight, cut back on calories and be more active.

8. Drink plenty of fluids


Adults need to drink at least 1.5 litres or 6 cups of fluid a day! You need more if it is very hot or you are physically active. Plain tap water is obviously a good source of fluid but variety can be both pleasant and healthy. Choose also from unsweetened juices, lightly sweetened drinks, tea, broth, milk, etc. Coffee is not a good source of fluid as it acts as a diuretic (draws water from your body).

9. Get on the move

As we have seen, too many calories and not enough activity can result in weight gain. Moderate physical activity helps burn off those extra calories. It is also good for the heart and circulatory system and for general health and well-being. So, make physical activity part of your daily routine. Use the stairs instead of the lift/elevator (up and down!). Park your car a little further. Go for a walk in your lunch break. You don't have to be an athlete to get on the move!

10. Start now! - and make small changes

Making gradual changes in your lifestyle are much easier than taking a big jump all at once. To start on the road to healthy eating, pick one tip and work on it for a couple of weeks. When you feel comfortable with that, move on to the next one.

If you want to know how your current diet is, write down the foods and drinks you eat at meals and as snacks for the next three days. Use the Rate Your Diet form to identify areas that you are low in or eating too much of. Use that as a guide to focus on problem areas. Check your diet again in 3 months & see if your diet has improved.

Food and nutrition information centre

Related to what we are going to do in the future.

The information on the site is very foundational and credible.

It is alphabetically categorised for us to be able to use the platform in the same manner as we would in a dictionary.

Excerpts from the site;

You are here: Home / Food Composition / Individual Macronutrients, Phytonutrients, Vitamins & Minerals
Printable Page
Food Composition


Collage of Foods
Find a wealth of information and resources on individual nutrients and scroll down for multiple nutrient resources:

# Macronutrients - Including general and specific resources on carbohydrates, proteins, fiber, fats and cholesterol, water, as well as interactive tools.

# Phytonutrients - Including general information, government-related sites, and resources on specific phytonutrients such as tea, lycopene, and phytoestrogens.

# Vitamins and Minerals - Including general information as well as resources for specific vitamins and minerals.


This is crucial in our professional life as we move on, we could be nutritionists!!!
;0

Food borne illness

This is a very serious matter!

We should ever discount this thinking that it may never happen in affluent country
setting such as ours....

The 'AVA' is very intensive when they screen our food products but in our natural world, nature always has the upper hand.

Excerpt from the site;

Foodborneillness.com
describes seven of the most commonly recognized bacteria and viruses that cause food poisoning. In addition to a general description of each pathogen, we have provided information on the symptoms and risks of each kind of foodborne illness, as well as how they are detected as the cause of infection, and measures you can take to prevent contracting each type of bacterial or viral food poisoning.

There is a whole list of microbial manifestation and identification on the right- hand panel of the site

We have went through most of the spoilage organisms in our course of study.

In our organic world, we have to use our knowledge to safeguard ourselves to minimise the risks from food spoilage and the after effects from having to consume.

Baking Lesson Plans



Insightful and more for baking frenzy individuals....

What caught my attention the most is the baking segment.

I help my mum in cooking at home and I also do the marketing

for the ingredients.

My mum is very clever and she is my inspiration to cook!

She knows many types cooking, baking and god knows what else!


Reviewing the site,I found a whole load of baking tips!!!

These are the excerpts found in site;

Baking pans

* Don't crowd the oven. The pans should never touch each other or the sides of the oven, or be placed over or under each other on the racks.

* Grease pans using a piece of paper towel, rub a small amount of shortening, butter or margarine evenly over the bottom and on sides of pans, if directed. A small amount of pan spray may be used and spread over the pan, also using the paper towel technique.

* Prevent sharp edges on muffins, bar cookies or quick breads by greasing the muffin cups or pans only on the bottom and halfway up the sides so the batter is higher than the greaseline. This is one time you might not want to use a pan spray.

Cleaning up


* Hand-washing how-to: Anyone who cooks, caterers, home bakers or restaurant professionals, should incorporate the following hand-washing steps to prevent the spread of germs and disease:
o Always wash hands before making or eating food.
o Use warm water and soap. Lather all over hands and wrists.
o Scrub the front and back of hands and between fingers and fingernails, too.
o Wash hands for at least 20 seconds.
o Rinse under running water, rubbing hands.
o Dry with a clean towel.

I will lean on this site when I need tips on baking.
;0

Food and Drug Administration



A very extensive information platform for food and consumables in general.
They have a standardisation of the technicalities that are used in their interim.

We have studied about food additives in our course.

This is an excerpt from the site;

"Color Additive - A color additive is a dye, pigment or other substance, which is capable of imparting color when added or applied to a food, drug, cosmetic, or to the human body. The legal definition can be found in Section 201(t) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) and provides exclusions as well. Color additives for use in food, drugs, and cosmetics require premarket approval. Color additives for use in or on a medical device are subject to premarket approval, if the color additive comes in direct contact with the body for a significant period of time. For additional information, consult the Color Additive Program on the CFSAN Internet.

Colorant - A colorant is a dye, pigment, or other substance that is used to impart color to or to alter the color of a food-contact material, but that does not migrate to food in amounts that will contribute to that food any color apparent to the naked eye. The term 'colorant' includes substances such as optical brighteners and fluorescent whiteners, which may not themselves be colored, but whose use is intended to affect the color of a food-contact material. (21 CFR 178.3297(a)).

EAFUS - The "Everything Added to Food in the United States" (EAFUS) database is an informational database maintained by CFSAN under an ongoing program known as the Priority-based Assessment of Food Additives (PAFA). PAFA contains administrative, chemical and toxicological information on over 2000 substances directly added to food, including substances regulated by the FDA as a direct food additive, secondary direct food additive, color additive, GRAS and prior-sanctioned substance. In addition, the database contains only administrative and chemical information on approximately 1000 such substances. Information about the more than 3000 total substances comprise EAFUS. For a complete listing of EAFUS substances, see the EAFUS list.

Food Additive - A food additive is defined in Section 201(s) of the FD&C Act as any substance the intended use of which results or may reasonably be expected to result, directly or indirectly, in its becoming a component or otherwise affecting the characteristic of any food (including any substance intended for use in producing, manufacturing, packing, processing, preparing, treating, packaging, transporting, or holding food; and including any source of radiation intended for any such use); if such substance is not GRAS or sanctioned prior to 19581 or otherwise excluded from the definition of food additives."

A little too wordy but in our module of FPQA/FPQAp, we have came to terms with these proponents.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

The machine that we see on the right is Bernina from Switzerland....
It is awesome and crazily smart!
Technology these days is way too astounding...
What would be next?
Only time can tell....

The Blogspot Launched

The skin is pretty much basic but stay tuned for the transformation!!!
This is my second blog....
One thing that I have noticed about blogging is that it requires the quality of a book-keeper.
I lack that but I will cultivate it in time to come...

Meal planner

BERNINA

BERNINA