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Did you know Rich in Essential Vitamins and Fiber?

The Mediterranean Diet is based on the diet of people living in Greece, Italy, Southern France and Spain. Mediterranean’s consume about the same amount of fat as Northern Europeans and Americans yet live longer, have a lower incidence of heart disease and cancer, and lower cholesterol levels.

An American doctor called Ankle Keys was the first person to comments favorably on the Mediterranean diet, way back in 1945, but its current popularity is based on research and observations from the last twenty years. For more details login on to www.july4-recipes.com. The surprising thing is that people living in the Mediterranean typically consume more fat than North European countries and the USA, but have much reduced incidence of heart disease – the exact reasons are unknown, but it is likely that the main reason is that most of the fat in the Mediterranean Diet comes from olive oil and that there is more physical labor involved in their lives.

Nevertheless, we can all use Mediterranean diet recipes in our daily lives to be healthier.

The Mediterranean Diet is rich in olive oil, fresh fruit and vegetables, legumes, fish and unrefined cereals. Mediterranean people have a moderate consumption of dairy products and wine, and a low consumption of meat, meat products and saturated fat. The typical constituents of a Mediterranean diet are: -

Olive Oil
People living in the Mediterranean use olive oil, a monounsaturated oil, instead of saturated fats. They drizzle olive oil on their bread instead of butter; they use it as a salad dressing and cook with it.
Olive oil is rich in vitamins and antioxidants which help to prevent cancer, clogging of the arteries and heart disease. Olive oil lowers bad cholesterol and increases the amount of good cholesterol, keeping our arteries healthy. It helps to keep our digestive systems healthy, is good for brain development and is thought to help dissolve blood clots.
Look in your recipe collection for diet recipes using olive oil and substitute olive oil for saturated fats.

Fish
Northern Europeans and Americans eat a diet high in red meat; Mediterranean’s eat a diet high in fish and shellfish. Red meat is a source of saturated fat which can cause heart disease whereas fish and shellfish are high in minerals and proteins, and low in fat. Oily fish such as salmon, fresh tuna, anchovies and swordfish are a good source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids which help to prevent heart disease.
Browse online for free recipes and Mediterranean diet recipes to incorporate more oily fish into your diet.

Fresh Fruit and Vegetables
The Mediterranean Diet is high in fresh fruit and vegetables. Mediterranean people shop at markets and buy fresh, seasonal produce. Fruit and vegetables are high in fiber, vitamins and minerals including antioxidants and do not contain cholesterol. A diet high in fruit and vegetables helps to protect us against cancer and heart disease, and also keeps our digestive systems healthy.

Wholegrain
Wholegrain is rich in essential vitamins and fiber. The fiber helps to keep our digestive systems in good working order. Wholegrain help to reduce cholesterol, reduce our risk of heart disease, some types of cancer and diabetes.

Legumes
Legumes are a good source of vitamins, minerals and soluble fiber. You can also visit us at www.apples-recipes.com. They help to reduce cholesterol, keep our digestive systems healthy and help to balance blood sugar levels. Look for diet recipes which use dried beans and pulses and add beans to stews and casseroles.

Red Wine
Mediterranean’s enjoy drinking red wine in moderate amounts. Red wine is rich in flavanoids which contain antioxidants.

It is fairly easy to find Mediterranean diet recipes to add to our recipe collection, and even easier to modify our normal recipes to include more of the above foods, so why not give it a try.
www.camping-outdoors-recipes.com

www.classic-dessert-collection.com

Did you know Rich in Essential Vitamins and Fiber? / Author: mandeep.dec2008

Different Flavors Of Wine

Although the four main flavors – sweet, salty, sour, and bitter are all your tongue is really capable of tasting, the long lasting impression that wine leaves in your mouth is far more complex. When you drink or taste wine, your taste buds and your sense of smell are involved, adding to the way you interpret wine overall. The flavors, aromas, and sensations that wine is comprised of provide the interaction that you taste when you sample wine.

Sweetness is something that wines are well known for. With most types of wine, grapes are responsible for the sweet taste. Grapes contain a lot of sugar, which breaks the yeast down into alcohol. The grapes and yeast that were used to produce the wine will leave behind various sugars, which your tongue will be able to quickly detect. Once your tongue detects these various sugars, the stimulation of sweetness from the wine will be ever so present in your mouth.

Alcohol is also present in wine, although your tongue doesn’t really know how to decipher the taste of alcohol. Even though the tongue doesn’t really taste alcohol, the alcohol is present in the mouth. The alcohol found in wine will dilate blood vessels and therefore intensify all of the other flavors found in the wine. After you have samples a few types of wine, the alcohol level can easily have an effect on your taste buds, making it hard to distinguish other drinks that you may have.

Another flavor is acidity, which will effect the sugars. With the proper balance of acidity, the overall flavor of wine can be very overwhelming. Once you taste wine that contains it, the flavor of the acidity will be well known to your tongue. Although acidity is great with wine, too much of it will leave a very sharp taste. With the right levels, acidity will bring the flavors of the grape and fruits alive in your mouth – providing you with the perfect taste.

Yet another effect of flavor are tannins, which are the proteins found in the skins of grapes and other fruits. If a wine has the right amount of tannins, it will give your tongue a great feel, and bring in the sensations of the other flavors. Once a wine starts to age, the tannins will begin to breakdown in the bottle, giving you a softer feel to the taste. Tannins are essential for the taste of wine – providing the wine has been properly aged.

The last flavor associated with wine is oak. Although oak isn’t put into the wine during the manufacturing process, it is actually transferred during the aging process, as most wines will spend quite a bit of time in oak barrels. Depending on how long the wine is left in the oak barrel or cask, the ability to extract the flavor will vary. Most often times, wine will be aged just enough to where the oak taste is visibly there – and adds the perfect sentiment to the taste.

Although there are other flavors involved with the taste of wine, they aren’t as present as those listed above. The above flavors are the most present in wine, and also the flavors that you need to get more familiar with. Before you try to taste wine or distinguish flavors, you should always learn as much you can about the components responsible for the flavors. This way – you will know more about what you are tasting and you’ll truly be able to appreciate wine.

Find tips about how to grow grapes and grape plants at the Grape Facts website.

Different Flavors Of Wine  / Author: Jerry Shannon

How To Care For Your Wine

Over the years, wine consumption has become more and more popular. With more and more money going into wine both as an investment and for later consumption, the history of the wine will always be in question. With this in mind, many people often wonder how they can properly store their wine and take care of it at the same time.

How you store your wine is extremely important. If you store it right it can lead to euphoria, while if you store it wrong it can lead to depression. When you tear into a bottle of wine that has properly been stored, it can be glorious indeed, while tearing into bottle of poorly stored wine can be quite the letdown. Often times, drinking a bottle of wine that was poorly stored is much like drinking vinegar.

To properly store wine, you’ll need to meet several factors, such as humidity, temperature, lighting, the cleanliness of your storage area, the angle of the bottle while it is stored, and the vibration of the bottle on the rack. The temperature is the most important, as you should keep it around 50 degrees at all times. This way, the lower temperature can help to age the wine. If there are any fluctuations in the temperature, you should make sure that it happens slowly. As long as the temperature doesn’t go to high and it fluctuates slowly, your wine should be ok.

The proper level of humidity for storing wine should be around 70%, although it is perfectly accepted to keep it 10% above or below the 70% level. If you have too high of a humidity temperature, the labels can easily rot or mold, which can affect the wine’s value. On the other hand, if the humidity gets too low, around 50%, the cork could shrink and bring air into the wine, which would ruin it in little to no time at all.

The angle that wine is stored is important as well. If the wine stays in contact with the cork during storage, the cork won’t dry out. If the wine doesn’t stay in contact with the cork, the cork could dry out and allow air into the wine. You should also strive to keep the wine out of the light, as light can ruin any type of wine. Light causes the wine to age prematurely, making it in your best interest to store wine in a dark location.

To prevent damage to the wine from sediment, you should also store wine in a location that is free of vibration. If you store wine in places that are free from vibration, it will give the sediment in the bottle ample time to settle. Vibrations are never a good thing for wine, as the sediment becomes unsettled and can ruin the wine or shake it to the point where it tastes horrible.

To protect the quality and investment of your wine, storage and care is very important. Storing it in a proper location will also bring the best taste. In the world of wine, nothing is more disappointing than waiting several years to open a bottle of fine wine, only to find that it is nothing but vinegar. You can prevent this from happening though, by taking care of your wine. Wine isn’t hard to care for or store, it just takes the right conditions and location. Everyone loves some fine wine every now and then – which is why storage and care is so very important these days.

Want to find out about grape plants and muscadine grapes? Get tips from the Grape Facts website.

How To Care For Your Wine  / Author: Jerry Shannon

How To Make Red Wine

Among the many types of wine available, red wine is among the best. There are many types of red wine available, although most are made using the same methods. This very exhilarating type of wine is made from black grapes, drawing their color from the skins of the grapes.

During the beginning stages of making red wine, the grapes that have been picked are put into a crusher. Here, the crusher will gently break the skins of the grapes. Depending on what type of wine is being made and the tannin that’s required, the stalks will either be used or discarded at this point. Next, the grapes are put into a fermentation vat with the skins. This can be a long process, taking several weeks to complete. If a higher temperature is used, more tannin and color will be extracted from the grapes.

When making soft wines, the whole grapes are fermented using sealed vats. The carbon dioxide that becomes trapped in the sealed vats ferment the grapes under pressure, which is normally a quick process, taking only a few days. Keep in mind, the color and tannin content of the wine is based on how long the fermenting process takes. If the fermenting process takes a long time, the wine will generally hold more flavor and color.

The remaining bulk of the grapes will go through a press, being crushed to create a tannic wine. Sometimes, this tannic wine is added with a free run wine in order to add a bit more structure to the wine blend. Both the press and vat wine are then mixed and transferred to either tanks or barrels for a second fermentation. The second fermentation will take the longest, although it brings out the quality and taste from the wine.

All types of fine red wine will spend a minimum of a year in the barrels. Some types of red wine will spend a lot more time in the barrels, possibly several years. Red wine is also fine tuned with egg whites, which will suspend the yeast and other solids found in the wine downwards, before the wine is racked, filtered, and eventually bottled. Once the wine has been bottled, it is then shipped off and sold. Some wine however, will be stored for a period of time in the bottle before it is offered for sale.

The time a wine spends in the bottle is very important, although not every wine needs to spend a lot of time in the bottle. The more complex and more expensive types of red wine will benefit the most from aging in the bottle, to preserve flavor and color. The simple types of red wine however, don’t need to spend much time at all in the bottle.

Learn about grape stomping and how to grow grapes at the Grape Facts site.

How To Make Red Wine  / Author: Jerry Shannon

Antique Coffee Mills for Contemporary Coffee?

For the true coffee aficionado, an antique grinder is a marvelous tool. The majority of antique coffee mills are similar to contemporary hand grinders—most are burr grinders turned by a hand crank, and usually made with a combination of wood, steel, and/or cast iron.

Nearly all modern hand grinders, however, are designed for personal use. They normally don’t hold more than six cups worth of grounds. If you desire the low-heat, consistent grind of a manual burr grinder on a larger scale, a well-restored and maintained antique grinder may be your best bet.

If you plan to use your antique coffee mill on a daily basis, you might prefer one with a cast iron body over than a wooden grinder. While age has virtually no negative effect on cast iron coffee mills, the joints and nails in a wooden mill tend to lose strength over time.

Using an antique grinder is about more than getting the job done. A fine cup of coffee is an experience from start to finish. Using an antique mill is similar to kneading your own bread. You will taste (or at least imagine you taste!) the sweetness of your work in the final product. The quiet, consistent grinding sound of the manual grinder is pleasant on the ear, for those who dislike the loud whirring of an electric machine.

If you have a small space to work in – or simply don’t wish your kitchen to be dominated by espresso equipment – antique grinders come with a special advantage. Unlike all modern grinders, many antique coffee mills were designed to be mounted on the wall. Aside from space issues, the decorative effect of a mounted grinder is striking on both wall and counter mounted antiques. Of course, many models simply sit on a counter top just as contemporary grinders do.

From the traditional Parker Nation coffee mill with a bronze finish, to the European grinder with a landscape painted on the porcelain face, there is a wide variety of styles and decor available in ready-to-use antique grinders on the market. Common antique grinders on the North American market include Arcade, Enterprise, Parker, Steinfeld, and Frary & Clark.

Antique coffee mills are available through eBay and an assortment of individual dealers and auction houses. When buying an antique coffee grinder, look for an experienced seller who does his or her own restoration and cleaning. From sleek and simple to intricately decorated, Victorian to Art Deco, small to large, the selection is wide and inviting.

Read more about advantages and drawbacks of a manual coffee grinder. Also find out why it’s a good idea to have a dedicated Turkish coffee grinder.

Antique Coffee Mills for Contemporary Coffee? / Author: K. Braun