The Ripple Online » Food

What do we eat and why?

Jonny — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 12:57:45 +0000

“What shall I eat today?” It is an elementary question that requires a significant, yet simple answer that is seldom satisfied. Nowadays, when it comes to eating, it is quite impossible not to be influenced by the guidance found in women’s magazines, by the special offers proposed by supermarkets and by the food ads plastered all over the place, to the point that without the aid of these entities we are not able to chose by ourselves what to eat. Hence, the fact that the most natural of human activities (eating) has become a mission that necessitates a remarkable amount of help from experts, nutritionists, psychologists, dieticians- you name it, does not leave me perplexed.
Eating well simply means eating fresh products with delight, tradition and serenity (slowfood), regardless of the various food pyramids that have been published. This would explain why in the USA, a nation positively obsessed with healthy eating, there is the highest rate of obesity in the world , whereas Italians and French, who religiously consume foods regarded as fattening such as pasta, olive oil, cold cuts, cheese and foie gras are, on average, happier, healthier and skinnier.
If we are not able to understand what to eat and why we eat it, it is also due to the lack of an adequate knowledge related to food, which, in turn, makes us vulnerable to the recommendations of food science and marketing experts, who see this as an opportunity for profit-making. Indeed, it is in the interests of strategists of the food industries to consolidate our food related anxieties, in order to relieve them by packing the supermarkets’ shelves with new ready-made products (to be bought) which are put forward as ‘solutions’ to our ‘problems’.
One of the most subtle tricks used by supermarkets is to place fruit, vegetables and flowers at the entrance, in order to indirectly communicate that everything is fresh. Indispensable items such as sugar, salt and flour are regularly moved in different departments in order for you look for them and therefore to be tempted to buy other products that you encounter during the search. The pleasant background music is relaxing and also notice the total absence of clocks, so as to make you momentarily lose the notion of time, and therefore prolong your stay whilst you buy, buy, buy.
A possible solution to the immunity to slowfood eating would be to favour organic food …it’s more expensive, fair enough, but it definitely pays off, if you think about all the money we spend for anti-cellulite creams, anti-imperfection serums and so forth. Or at least we could prepare our own food: it is inexpensive and the plus is that you actually know what you’re eating. The burden of preparing everything in advance may seem to be excessive, but in reality knowing what you eat and why will eventually give you many satisfactions.
Claudia Sciumbata

SUPER FOODS!

Jonny — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 13:16:09 +0000

Foods that are so great they are positively SUPER!
Here are all the Super Foods we have covered so far. Make sure to pick up a copy of the ripple to see what the next one is going to be. Don’t forget to try and mange as many of these a day as you can. Yummmm

Baked Beans: Every student’s favourite and healthier than we thought! This student staple is packed with protein, fibre, iron and calcium as well as being low GI. The tomato sauce that beans come in is also a source of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant and can help to prevent heart disease and cancer! So let’s stick to the stereotype and keep eating our baked beans!

Bananas: I love bananas and you can also get them really cheap. You can get a bunch of 8 bananas from Sainsbury’s for £1 and they are fair-trade! They are a great source of energy and more filling than other fruits. Bananas are also jam-packed with potassium that helps lower blood pressure, and vitamin B6 for healthy skin and hair. They are also stuffed full of antioxidants, so do something great and gobble a banana today!

Apples: Apples are overloaded with vitamin C and antioxidants which are great for healthy skin and gums. One apple contains a quarter of your daily requirement of Vitamin C and they are low GI. They help to lower cholesterol and keep the digestive system healthy.

Garlic: An excellent cancer fighter, garlic also helps to stimulate the immune system by encouraging the growth of natural killer cells. Finally, a new study has shown that eating raw garlic after heart surgery may help to limit the damage done to the heart, due to its strong anti-oxidant properties.

Saving Money

Jonny — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 13:06:06 +0000

One of the most important things to a student is saving money. There are so many ways that we can save when it comes to food. In this week’s section I’ve included a number of ways to help you spend less on stuffing your faces without having to starve.One thing that is applicable to even catered students is to make your own sandwiches! If you’re buying a sandwich for around £3 a day that’s £720 a year. If you have busy day of lectures then make them the night before. You don’t even need to cook them so no kitchen is needed.

If you eat a lot of salad then again, make your own, rather than buying the readymade ones in a bag. Buy whole lettuces and only break off the leaves you want, they keep a lot longer.

Also use your leftovers. Try mixing left over vegetables into mash to make delicious bubble and squeak or add them to a stir-fry! Rice can be saved to be used in loads of dishes. Cool it quickly after cooking, running it under a cold tap and store it in the fridge. Try frying it and mix in a beaten egg and 2tsp of oil, spring onion or peas and even a tin of tuna! Leftover meat can be chopped up and fried along with some chopped onions and peppers and served in a flour tortilla to make tasty fajitas.

So don’t break the bank when it comes to food. Use your initiative, a lot of money can be saved through creative uses of ingredients you already have. You often can make a meal out of nothing. Also don’t forget the open market in town is really cheap and often cheaper still at around 4:30 before they close. However, when buying from the market you will need to use what you buy a lot quicker.

Happy Gobbling!

Dips, Dips, Dips

Jonny — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 12:32:59 +0000

Here are a variety of different dips that you can try making at home. All are extremely healthy and are also detox friendly. These are a great accompaniment to the bruschetta recipe when your having friends over to watch a film. So stuff your mouth with these today!!! TODAY!!!!

Beetroot Dip
Preparation time 5minutes

225g can beetroot slices, drained  ¼ cup (70g) sheep milk yogurt

To prepare simply blend the ingredients together, if desired you can sprinkle the dip with coarsely chopped chives

Per Serving 4.4g total fat (0g saturated fat) 17.6g Carbohydrate 136 calories 5.3g Protein 4g Fibre

Carrot Dip
Preparation time 10minutes Cooking time 10minutes

1 medium carrot, grated coarsely 125ml fresh orange juice 2tablespoon goats milk yogurt  1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint 1 tablespoon dried currents 5g fresh grated ginger

Place carrot and juice in a small saucepan; cook over a low heat for about 10 minutes or until liquid is evaporated. Cool for 10 minutes. Blend carrot mixture with yogurt; stir in mint, currants and ginger.

Per Serving 2.2g total fat (1.2g saturated fat) 26g Carbohydrate 136 cal 3.8g Protein  4.4g Fibre

Raita
Preparation time 10minutes

140g sheep milk yogurt 65g finely chopped cucumber  1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh coriander 1 crushed clove of garlic  2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Combine ingredients in a small bowl

Per Serving 3.8g total fat (0g saturated fat) 3.9g Carbohydrate 70 cal 3.2g Protein 0.7g Fibre

Hummus
Preparation time 5minutes Cooking time 15minutes

375ml water 300g can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice 1 clove of garlic, quartered

Place the water and chickpeas in a small saucepan; bring to the boil and boil for 10 minutes. Strain chickpeas over a small bowl and reserve 100ml of the cooking liquid. Cool for 10 minutes. Blend the chickpeas, juice and garlic with the left over cooking liquid until just smooth.

Per Serving 4.3g total fat (0.6g saturated fat) 28.5g Carbohydrate 206 cal 13g Protein 9.9g Fibre

All these super healthy dips are detox-friendly and as such are best eaten with sticks of carrot, pepper or cucumber (or any other vegetable you want). However if your not on a detox and want carbs like me then you can make some yummy and healthy pitta-bread crisps really easily. Just half the pitta and cut each half into 4, put it on a baking tray and brush with oil. Sprinkle them with some mixed herbs if you like, as a good alternative to salt and pepper, and bake them until golden brown in a pre-heated oven at 180C.

Bruschetta Recipe

Jonny — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 12:24:58 +0000

This is a really easy one guys so everyone should give it a go. It can also be changed and adapted however you want. Its great to munch on when watching a film!

Ingredients
1 ciabatta loaf, cut in thin slices
1 clove garlic, peeled and rubbed in a little salt
about 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
For the topping:
6 red, ripe plum tomatoes
a few torn basil leaves
a few drops extra virgin olive oil
rock salt and freshly milled black pepper

Prepare the tomatoes before toasting the bread. All you do is place them in a bowl, pour boiling water over them and leave for exactly 1 minute before draining them and slipping off the skins (protect your hands with a cloth if they are too hot). Then chop them finely.

Pre-heat the ridged griddle over a high heat for about 10 minutes. When it’s really hot, place the slices of bread – on the diagonal – and grill them for about 1 minute on each side, until they’re golden and crisp and have charred strips across each side. (Alternatively, toast them under a conventional grill.) Then, as they are ready, take a sharp knife and quickly make about 3 little slashes across each one, rub the garlic in and drizzle about half a tablespoon of olive oil over each one.

When the bruschetta are made, top with the tomatoes and basil leaves, season with salt and freshly milled black pepper and sprinkle a few more drops of olive oil over before serving. It’s hard to believe that something so simple can be so wonderful.

Stuffed Vegetables Recipe

Jonny — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 12:18:53 +0000

For this recipe you can use pretty much any vegetables you like. It’s cheap, healthy and filling and great as a side to another meal or a meal in itself! It is also extremely easy to prepare so there are no excuses why you shouldn’t try it!

Ingredients:
1 aubergine
1 green pepper
2 beef tomatoes
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion
2 garlic cloves, crushed
115g mushrooms
1 carrot, grated
225g cooked rice (brown rice is healthiest)
90g crumbled feta cheese
Salt and pepper
Note that almost everything in this recipe can be swapped for something you would prefer, like adding different cheese, herbs or vegetables. You could even replace the rice with couscous.

Method:
Firstly preheat the oven to 190 degrees (Gas 5), lightly grease and ovenproof dish. Cut the aubergine and pepper in half through the stalks. Remove the core and seeds from the pepper and scoop out the middle of the aubergine taking care not to pierce the skin. Dice the aubergine flesh.
Cut the tops off the tomatoes and hollow out the centres with a spoon. Chop up the middle and add to the diced aubergine. Place the tomatoes upside down to drain.
Bring a pan of water to the boil and blanch the aubergine halves for 3 minutes. Add the peppers and blanch for 3 minutes more. Leave the vegetables to drain then place hollow side up in the baking dish.
Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a pan and cook the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes. Stir in the diced aubergine, tomato and mushrooms. Cook for a further 5 minutes until softened. Then mix in the rice and feta cheese, grated carrot (and anything else you want to add), season with salt and pepper to taste.
Divide the mixture between the vegetable shells, sprinkle with the remaining olive oil and bake for 20 minutes, until the topping has browned.
These are great as they can be served hot or cold! This recipe makes four portions.

Price:
ASDA
1 aubergine – £0.98
1 green pepper – £0.68
2 beef tomatoes – £1.16
1 onion – £0.26
1 whole garlic – £0.34
Mushrooms 250g – £0.90
1 carrot – roughly £0.20
Brown rice 1kg – £1.19 (225g = £0.30)
Feta Cheese 200g – £1.47 (90g = £0.67)
Total: Per portion = £1.37.

This pricing is calculating by using the cost a whole garlic which is something you always want in your cupboard anyway. The rice is also something you are more than likely already going to have. This is a recipe that you can make, eat there and then and then save the rest to eat another time. You can also save money on the vegetables by buying them from the market in town!

Cereal Bars Recipe

Jonny — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 18:35:11 +0000

Cereal bars are tasty and great for snacking, and are usually healthy too. But why pay more for shop-bought when you can make your own for a fraction of the price? It’s healthier too, and only takes about 20mins! Also you can buy the cheapest ingredients you can find and it won’t make a difference to the taste, how different can oats taste after all?

How to make them:

Combine 175g unsalted butter, 100g soft brown sugar and 4tbsp clear honey in a pan and melt, gently stirring. Simmer for 30 seconds then remove from the heat. Place 350g of oats in a large bowl, add 50g of sultanas, 50g flaked almonds, ½ tsp ground cinnamon. Chop 75g of dried apricots into 1cm pieces and chop 50g hazelnuts. Add to the bowl and mix. Grease a 23×30x5cm baking tin, add ingredients and in a preheated oven at 190C/375F/gas mark 5 for 35 mins. Makes about 20.

Cost:

Scottish porridge oats 500G – 39p = 27.3
Smartprice clear honey 425G – 76p = 10
Sugar – light brown soft 1K – £1.17 = 11.7
Unsalted Butter 250g – £1.06 = 74.2
Raisins and sultanas 50G – 28p = 28
Almonds (flaked) 100G – 65p = 32.5
Soft apricots 125G – 78p = 46.8
Hazelnuts 100G – 88p = 44

Total for batch = £2.75
Cost per Cereal Bar = 14p

Special K bar from multi pack = 29p

Pizza Recipe

Jonny — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 18:26:13 +0000

Pizza is great! Its cheap, we all love it and if you make it yourself you can put what ever you want on it! Pizza is cheap enough to buy but why not try making it yourself? It’s a lot healthier, you’ll know exactly what has gone into it and it is really fun! Chances are they you will already have most of the ingredients lying around the house anyway! So give it a go and make it with your friends!

Pizza base:
This recipe makes three 11inch bases
500g flour (strong white bread flour works best)
4 tbls olive oil
1 tsp salt
200ml warm water
2 tsp dried yeast
½ tsp sugar

Method:
Put the flour into a bowl. Mix the yeast and sugar with some of the warm water and leave for 10 minutes. Add the olive oil and the salt to the flour, and then add the yeast. Slowly add the water and mix it all together, using your hands is best! Mix it until it is a smooth dough. When you’re happy with the consistency cover the dough and let it sit for an hour. You can speed this up a bit by putting it in the microwave for about 20 seconds or leaving it by an open oven. It’s always best to leave the dough somewhere warm so all the little yeasts can be all alive and do how they do!
You can make your own tomato sauce to go on top of the pizza or just buy cheap tomato puree, either way is fine!
When the dough has risen pre-heat the over to about 240 degrees, I basically just turn mine up full. Take one third of the dough and roll it out to a pizza shape, or if you have a pizza tray you can just spread it out to fit the tray. Its best to then let the dough sit for a further 10 mins. Then its time for the best bit of all, the toppings! Spread on your tomato sauce and then add what ever else you want it’s totally up to you!!!
When that is all done you want to cook the pizza for about 20 minutes and it’s ready to eat! Yesss!

Pricing:
ASDA
Strong White Flour 1.5kg – 48p
Yeast 42gr – 50p
I’ve decided not to give the prices for everything in this recipe because the amounts are so small and chances are the two above will be the only things you don’t already have! If the flour and yeast are all you need to buy then it works out at just over 10p per pizza base. This really is a super cheap recipe!

TIP: Why not try making lots of mini pizza’s as an excellent snack or party food. I find that pressing the little bits of dough into yorkshire pudding or muffin tins makes a treat little pizza ‘tart’ as it were.

Also folding the pizza over like a pasty makes a delicious calzone. Mmm I could so eat one of them right now, yummy you guys! Mmmmm yummy!