Homemade Flavoured Butter

Nowadays, modern family find very little time at home as most of the time they are tied down at work. Thus, many are looking for quick fix without losing the quality of food and life. One of the things you can consider is to prepare flavouring butter.

You can flavour butter with different herbs and spices as spread or as marinade for barbeque foods on top of meats, fish or vegetables and leave it to melt. Flavoured butters can be made in advance and it can be kept for up to 1 week when chilled and 2 months when frozen, unlike some marinade and paste that can only keep for up to 3 days.

In this post, I will share with you two types of butter marinade.

For Seafood: (~500g fillet, prawns or scallops)

Mix 125g unsalted butter, 1 tsp of lemon juice, 2 finely chopped shallots, pinched of salt and black pepper. Chill the mixture in grease proof paper and form a regular block or cylindrical shape. When it is hardened, cut them up into slices.

For chicken or baked potato: (~1kg)

Mix 125g unsalted butter, 1 tbsp french mustard, 2 finely chopped garlic cloves, 2 tbsp chopped rosemary. Season with salt and black pepper. Chill the mixture in the same way into a regular block and slice them for use.

Lose Weight With Food Scent

Being able to enjoy eating food is a luxury to most of us. However, sometimes it gets a little harder to control the weight and we are often seeking for the pills that slim us down. The good news here is that it exist so long as your sense of smell is still sensitive.

Research Study has shown that overweight people who take time to sniff their food aromas are able to lose weight. More than 3000 overweight people participated in a trial and were given an inhaler containing the scent of apple, banana or peppermint whenever they felt hungry. This study was performed over a period of six months. The results show that the more frequently the subjects sniffed, the more weight they lose.

This finding means that you can use your scent to reduce your weight, though it may not be suitable for asthmatic conditions or people who lose their sense of smell. The following are some tips recommended to make use of the scent therapy to lose weight.

1) Take Time to sniff your food

Most of us, including me would charge into their meals once settled down while others might be busy chatting, reading or distracted while feeding themselves. There is just no habit to intensely smell the food before eating because most often, we take it for granted that we have smelled the food as we passed by or near to the kitchen. Perhaps, it is time to test it out.

2) Chew your food thoroughly

I have ever heard a friend telling me I should chew at least 10 times on my food to ensure that my food is properly digested. I have tried this once and honestly, I think the food become a little less appetizing to me and I end up speeding up on my food again. Perhaps, I was also rushing for time.

3) Opt for fresh and hot Food

Fresh, hot and unprocessed food typically gives more taste to the meal. The strong food scent would in turn be able to help you by stimulating your olfactory bulb and in turn makes you less hungry and full quite quickly. Needless to say, hot food typically gives more scent than the cold ones.

4) Add a strong herb or spice

As I mentioned in my earlier post on how to reduce your fat intake, strong spice can excite your food and reduce the salt you need to put into the food. In addition, the scent also saturates your sense of smell and thus suppress your appetitie.

5) Bring an apple with you

Green apples are the most hardy and I reccommend you use this fruit to stimulate your sense of smell whenever you feel hungry. If you are working at your desk most of the time, put the apple in front of you and clear away your titbits that is laid infront of your desk. This can help you to more effectively suppress your appetite.

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Cucumber Salad Recipe

Cucumber is well known vine fruit that is used to reduce heat and inflammation. It is full of vitamin C and can be used to apply externally for inflamed, sunburn or eczema skin.

Fresh cucumbers can soothe heart burns or acidic stomach or gastric ulcer (drink 100-150 ml every 2 hours) and may be used in the treatment of gout and arthritis. It is also known as a tonic for kidney.

To motivate you, I have this cucumber recipe you might like to try as an appetizer before or after meals.

1) Clean the cucumber and slice off the skin.
2) Cut them into strips
3) Squeeze the juice from 1 or 2 lemons and add little rice vinegar. You can also use other natural vinegar such as apple cider vinegar. Do not use artificial vinegar.
4) Mix them well, cover the bowl with the wrap and refrigerate it before serving.

When you prepare this salad, you will notice the water is leeching out from the cucumber. You can drink the liquid portion as it is very nutritious as well. It is really cooling and the acidic taste gives the salad the additional zest to the chill.

Excess Breast Milk Uses

Having excess breast milk? Cracking your head on how to best use the excess breast milk? Or do you throw them away anyway because your baby doesn't want to take them, or finds semi-solid food more interesting. If you thought of offering to your family members, they might be uncomfortable about the idea of drinking your milk.

There are a few ways mothers can use their excess breast milk and that you might consider:-

1) Donate
Consider donating your milk to your neighbours or friends who needs it for their baby because they were not able to give them due to some health reasons or other circumstances. There are some who consider selling them too.

2) Add your milk quietly into food recipe
This idea sounds very cheeky but if you are not uncomfortable in sharing your breast milk with your family members, then the next option may be to add it into your baby's food. You can add it to your biscuits, pastries or even cake. It is really useful way but just make sure that you check your milk supplies first before using it for a meal.

3) Use it for facial wash
Haven't you heard of people using milk as a facial wash. Why not try the breast milk? Perhaps the excess breast milk can be a good excuse to pamper mothers on their face to relieve the tiredness especially after birth.

Interesting article

1) Holistic uses of Breast Milk

Ginseng potency and side effects

For many generations, ginseng has benefited many and has been passed down. It has helped those who are diabetic and raise energy for those who are easily fatigue. To me, the most interesting thing about ginseng is the aphrodisiac properties and it has been known to delay or even treat impotency.

Ginseng, a libido lifter
Research studies have been done on animals to show that ginseng increases sexual activity and mating behaviour in rats. I used to have this supervisor who gave birth to her third child when she was past her mid forties. She told me once that she takes ginseng regularly and her husband takes tonic almost everyday as well. I guess this must be one of the reasons why they conceived at their age.

Precautions on ginseng
Despite all its benefits, there are some precautions that should be observed, just like any herbs. Some users might experience mild side effects such as diarrhea, headache, palpitations, heavier menstrual flow, insomnia and irritability. During pregnancy or after giving birth, it is not advisable to take ginseng as miscarriage might occur; heavier menstrual flow after birth might mean losing more blood from your body after the child birth.

Do not take ginseng with anti-coagulant medication as it thins the blood and might lead to internal bleeding. Ginseng should not be taken with vasodilator medication as it can over-dilate blood vessels.

Due to ginseng's usefulness, care should be taken to prevent ginseng abuse syndrome (GAS). It is usually caused by users who takes ginseng regularly even when they do not need it. Symptoms include euphoria, hypertension, insomnia, diarrhea, nervousness, rashes or breathlessness. I have a friend who takes them too regularly that she feels sick if she didn't take the ginseng. I suspect she might be experiencing ginseng abuse syndrome. I have noticed that there are some who do not believe in this but I believe in all things that is good, we should always take them in moderation. So take ginseng by all means, but be more mindful of its side effects and take them with care.

How to Reduce the Fat Intake

It is no secret that taking too much fat is unhealthy. Fast foods are convenient, tempting and more appetizing than the so-called healthy food. Today, I will look into some of the useful methods people do to start a reduced fat diet. Though it may not be fool-proof, but I think it is a less torturous alternative you can consider as a start and move on to a stricter fat diet. Afterall, not many of us have strong mind to resist against our unhealthy palate desires.

1) Consider Low-fat meat or vegetable stock

Soup stocks are very useful to enhance the taste in your dishes. Sometimes, you can prepare in advance and has a storage life of 3 months in a freezer. Using low-fat meat or vegetable stock for cooking or soup is one of the useful way to reduce the fat intake. Typically, some housewives would remove the skin of meat before using it to prepare for the soup stock. Alternatively, you can use lean meat to prepare your stock as well.

2) Refrigerate your fattening soups

If you try cooking chicken curry or even chicken soup, there is always a layer of oil floating on the top. It may taste good but the oil often gets in the way. Thus, I prefer to scoop away the layer of oil before serving. But to make the scooping easier, you can first refrigerate your meat soups or gravies that contains fat. Once it is refrigerated, you can scoop off the hardened fat that rise to the top.

3) Have a large-cut french fries

If you really crave for french fries, order large-cut ones (Note: Not Large Fries in portion!!) as it will have smaller surface area and will not absorb as much oil as smaller-cut fries.

4) Herbs as taste enhancer

Herbs such as mint, basil or coriander are known for its function as a taste enhancer and can make your dishes interesting. If used appropriately, you can reduce the oil used for the dishes as well. It is practically no calories.

5) Give a slippery touch

Sometimes, it is not the flavour of fat, but the slippery, smooth texture you crave. If this is the case, you can include unflavoured gelatin powder to thicken your cold salad dressing. Avocado may be high in fat but you can be sure that it is healthy. Consider avocado in your dressing or as butter spread.

6) Soften your butter

This might sound a little strange but if you soften butter or margarine at room temperature or in microwave before you spread on your bread, you are likely to end up using only one quarter of the fat as compared to when you take it cold. Test it out to see if it is so.

Substitute of sodium salt

There has been many news about the use of sodium salt. Most of them are negative. I am sure you probably have read, heard or talked about it. You have decided to cut down so that you can live longer with your love ones, or to see your long-awaited grandchildren grow up or even to accomplish the things you have not attained. But cutting down on sodium doesn't seem to be as easy as it seems. Fast foods are convenient, but the sodium in the diet is generourous as well.

Isn't there anyway to reduce the sodium salt intake without sacrificing the taste? I have read some books and found that there is. If YES, then, here it is:-

1) Use more herbs and spices

Pepper and other spices can create the heat sensation. The loss of sodium can be compensated by strong flavours. If you like the intensity of the spices, it may help you slow down with eating and savour on your meals. Strong flavours and aromas such as garlic can also influenece your sense of fullness and add an illusion of thickness to food. Mint, basil, coriander and other fresh herbs can also liven up the simplest dishes so you do not need to put in too much salt.

Research studies show that those who lose their sense of smell tend to overeat, while those who sprinkle their food with aromatic flavouring or sniff scents through an inhaler throughout the day actually eat less and lose weight.

2) Include vinegar or lemon in your diet

Adding vinegar itself can create an intensity to your food. In fact, I found that vinegar help me to control my cravings for high salt potato chips and highly sugared sweets. If you like, you can start your vinegar diet with salad. I found that green apples dressed with natural vinegar taste great on its own. If you detest the taste of vinegar, you may consider using lemon or lime instead. Cucumber slices taste great when dressed with lemon too.

3) Reduce your intake of sugar

There are some similiarities on the effects of salt and sugar and typically, they come together. This is because they make food more palatable and when they are consumed, the body releases trace amounts of opiates that can elevate both mood and satisfaction. Although release in small amounts, these opiated-related food rewards could reinforce a preference for foods that are most associated with these feelings. In some ways, it is a form of addiction. Thus it is quite useful to keep that in mind to reduce the sugar intake while reducing the salt.

4) Cope with your stress

Sometimes, it takes more than food to understand how best to cut down on salt. Stress disrupts a normal eating pattern and this can not only cause a tendency to seek for more palatable salt and sweet foods, but also increase in fat consumption. Learn to listen to your body and find different ways to cut down on negative stress around you. Make time for exercise or walk or even meditation.

5) Don't totally cut down on salt

Just like any other kind of cravings that include smoking, it can be quite dangerous to suddenly cut down from it and highly dependent on your will strength. Try to make this change in salt diet more comfortable for yourself and take it in moderation. Total avoidance to salt may turn tables and cause a higher salt cravings. Also, sodium salt is an essential electrolyte in our body so there is no need to avoid it totally.

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