All About Foods, Drinks etc.

Like many mixed drinks, the Old Fashioned has a number of variations and a history.

It is one of the few cocktails that survived from the days of the Martini and the Manhattan. When prepared well, it is a full-bodied, delicious drink. It was one of my mother’s favorites as a young woman in the 1940’s and still carries the glamour of the era.

Accounts agree that the Old Fashioned originated at the Pendennis Club, in Louisville, Kentucky.

This Old Fashioned recipe appeared in a book written by George J. Kappeler, published in 1895, called Modern American Drinks.

THE OLD-FASHIONED WHISKEY COCKTAIL

Dissolve a small lump of sugar with a little water in a whiskey-glass; add two dashes Angostura bitters, a small piece ice, a piece lemon-peel, one jigger whiskey. Mix with small bar-spoon and serve, leaving spoon in glass.

Robert Hess, writing for Drinkboy.com, cautions that it is common for modern bartenders to top off the drink with an ounce or more of soda. In his opinion, the soda spoils the drink.

Here is another recipe from Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix’em by Stanley Clisby Arthur.

Old Fashioned Cocktail
1 lump sugar
2 dashes Peychaud or Angostura bitters
1 jigger rye whiskey
1 piece lemon peel
1 chunk pineapple
1 slice orange peel
2 maraschino cherries

Into a heavy-bottomed barglass drop a lump of sugar, dash on the bitters, and crush with a spoon. Pour in the jigger of rye whiskey and stir with several lumps of ice. No shaking allowed! Let the mixture remain in the glass in which it is prepared. Garnish with a half-ring of orange peel, add the chunk of pineapple and the cherries with a little of the maraschino juice. Twist the slice of lemon peel over all and serve in the mixing glass with the barspoon.

It is suggested by some that it is best to dissolve the sugar into a small amount of water first since sugar does not dissolve well in alcohol.

The appearance of additional fruit became commonplace after the days of prohibition.

Try both versions and decide which you prefer.

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Nothing is more frustrating than trying to cook a delicious meal and having it stick to the bottom of the pan. A well season or cured pan will make cooking more fun, easier to clean and create better tasting food. There is a saying in the restaurant business; Hot pan ? Cold oil. Meaning never put the oil in a cold pan and then heat it up. By heating the pan first and then adding the oil, then immediately the food, you’ll have much less sticking. Furthermore if you season the pan when you first purchase it, you will have even better results.

Curing by metal types

Stainless Steel ? Unfortunately stainless steel cannot be seasoned because of the hardness of the metal. A matter of fact I don’t know of a single restaurant which uses stainless steel pan. They are great for storing food because the food won’t react with the metal, but horrible for cooking. My advice is just stay away from them altogether.

Aluminum ? First wash the pan with soup and water using a sponge or cloth (no steel sponge). Rinse and dry thoroughly. Heat the pan until hot then add two ounces of oil to the pan. Carefully swirl the pan so the oil coats every part of the pan. Let the pan cool. Remove the oil and repeat the process one more time. From this point on, never use soap again. Wash with warm water and dry with a paper towel. If some food does stick us a little salt with oil and a paper towel to remove it.

Teflon and other non stick surfaces ? Non stick technology has come a long way over the years and there are dozens of infomercials to prove it. But the truth is even non stick pans will eventually stick. Follow the steps for seasoning aluminum pans and your non stick pans will last longer and perform better. Remember after the first time, never wash with soup again.

Cast iron and wok’s ? For cast iron and wok’s the process is similar, but because of the nature of the metal you’ll heat the pans to a much higher temperature. Fist wash the pan with soup and water then dry thoroughly. Heat the pan up until it is very hot. Add two ounces of oil and swirl to coat all sides. Let cool and remove excess oil. Heat the pan up again until it begins to smoke. Add more oil and repeat the process until you’ve done this three times. Never wash again and always store you pans at any angle or by hanging so they won’t rust.

By taking the time to properly season you pans, you will enjoy cooking much more and increase the life of your investment. I recommend spending a little extra money and buying good quality pans and take care of them, in the long run you’ll be much happier. Another tip is to never buy pans with plastic or wooden handles because you can’t place them in the oven. As you increase you cooking skills you’ll find many recipes start on the burner then move to the oven. By having an all metal pan this transition is flawless.

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This is usually the forgotten element of most mass programs. Food. The truth is, no one will gain muscle without food. It seems so simple and basic, yet most don’t get enough of it to build muscle.

Dieting for muscle gain is simply a matter of eating. You must eat more calories than your body burns off. Now, when I say eat, I do not mean just anything. All calories are not created equal. In other words, some types of calories are not equal to others for gaining muscle. For example, if I said that you need to eat 2,000 calories per day to gain weight, and you eat 4 bags of potato chips each day, do you think you would gain muscle? Not likely.

The majority of your weight would be fat. Why? Because potato chips, like most processed junk food, contains empty, totally nutritionless calories. These foods do not provide you with the correct nutrient breakdown essential for gaining muscle.

High quality protein, which the body breaks down into amino acids, should be the center point of all your meals. Intense exercise increases demand for amino acids, which support muscle repair and growth. When you train with weights, you should eat a minimum of 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. So, for example, if you weight 100 lbs., you should be eating at least 100 grams of protein per day. You also must have protein at every meal.

To enable your body to actually assimilate and use the all the calories you will ingest, you have to reduce your meal size and increase your meal frequency. Splitting your calories into smaller, more frequent portions will enable food absorption and utilization of nutrients . I always eat six meals each day, evenly spaced out at three-hour intervals. My goal is to provide my body with constant nourishment throughout the day.

You don’t have to have carbs or fat at every meal, but you must have protein. When I say protein, I am referring to high quality protein derived from animal sources. Soy protein, tofu and bean curd have their place, but for getting bigger and stronger, the only protein you need to be concerned with are those found in whey, casein (cottage cheese), eggs, beef, poultry, and fish.

High Protein Foods

Whey protein

Eggs

Egg whites

Chicken breasts

Turkey Breasts

Lean Beef

Fish (tuna, salmon)

Protein bar

Soy protein Isolate

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High Carbohydrate Foods

Potatoes (baked, fries, hash browns)

Sweet Potatoes, yams

Oatmeal, cream of wheat, cream of rice rice

Beans

Any green leafy vegetable

Bread

Pasta

All cereals (hot or cold)

———

Healthy Fats

Olive oil

Sunflower oil

Safflower oil

Flaxseed oil

Walnuts

Avocados

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Ordering wine in a restaurant is not much different than buying it in a wine store. The main difference is that you have an audience. Yet ordering wine in a restaurant can be intimidating especially if the wine list is extensive.

Experiment or Homework
Keep in mind that even the experts will not be familiar with every selection on a wine list. If you are a novice and your are going on an important date, you should do a little homework to get some idea of what you might want to order. Unless you are feeling extremely adventurous, a restaurant is usually not the place to try something new since the mark up can range from 100 to 200%.

The Wine List
Today, most restaurants have a wine list, but expect a myriad of shapes and sizes. Some establishments might simply offer just a house red or white, while others have a daily blackboard to outline their rotating selection. Most wine lists are presented as a printed menu, with the wines arranged by color; red, white, and rose and the region of country. Additionally, many establishments will number their wines on the list, which helps big-time if you do not know how to pronounce the wine. You can simply say, “I will have the number 8″.

Before you order, you are going to want to factor in what you are going to be eating. Unfortunately, not a lot of menus give advice on food pairing. If you need some help talk to the wine steward, or sommelier. They are there to help you make the best decision for your occasion, and a good one will not try to take you out of your price range.

Getting the Best Wine for Your Money
? Skip the house wine. Unless you are familiar with the house wine, don’t bother because they generally carry the highest mark up.
? Scan the wine list too quickly to get an idea on the average price of a bottle. Try to stay within this median price range where the mark ups tend to be average.
? Choose a wine from the same region as the restaurant’s food specialty. A good French restaurant, for instance, should have a solid selection of French wines.
? Ask the server for a recommendation. Just ask if they have any special values currently.
? If two or more at your table are going to have a few glasses of wine, it is cheaper to order by the bottle than the glass.

Corkage
Many restaurants will open and serve a bottle of wine brought by the patron. A quick call to the restaurant will confirm if this is possible, and if so, they will charge a corkage fee. They usually charge between $5 and $15 per bottle, although some restaurants will charge a lower fee if the wine brought is not on their wine list.

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Lobster has always be one of those extravagant meals which few people ever try because of the high cost. With restaurants paying thirty dollars a pound, by the time they put their markup on it, you’re easily paying sixty dollars for a ten ounce tail. This high cost leaves lobster dinners for the well-to do or at least only for special occasions. But, this doesn’t have to be.

With more and more retail store offering lobster, you can create a romantic dinner for two at a reasonable price. If you buy two eight ounce tails for thirty dollars, that’s only fifteen dollars a person. Add a starch and vegetable and it’s still cheaper than going out to dinner and having steak or even chicken. Turn the lights down low, add a candle and ship the kid’s off to grandma’s house.

Cooking lobster is relatively easy. There are hundred’s of recipes on the internet or in books. The simplest way is to split the shell down the top, pull the meat out of the shell about 90% of the way and lay it on top of the shell. Place in a pan with a little water and cover with foil (do not let the foil touch the lobster). Cook at 350 degrees until the meat turns white (around 140 F) then baste with butter and season with salt and pepper. As with any food, avoid the temptation to overcook it. When overcooked the lobster meat will become tough and less appealing.

About Lobster

Lobsters are ten legged arthropods, meaning they have no backbone. The lobster creates its skeleton on the outside in the form of a shell with joint appendages. There are two major types of lobster on the market. Maine also called Canadian or American lobster and spiny sometimes call rock lobster.

The Maine lobster inhabits the cold waters of the Atlantic in the area of Canada and the northeast United States. This lobster has two claws, one claw very large and flat, while the other is smaller and thinner. These lobster take up to seven years to reach one pound and average about one to three pounds when harvested. The Maine lobster is sold live or already cooked and usually the meat used in mixed dishes or dishes like lobster thermador

The spiny lobster is a clawless warmwater variety, which are actually large seagoing crayfish. There are 49 species of spiny lobster which swim the world’s warm waters. Because the tail is the only real edible part of the spiny lobster, it is usually sold frozen as a lobster tail. The spiny lobster found off Florida, Brazil and the Caribbean are called “warmwater tails”, while those found off South Africa, New Zealand and Australia are markets as “coldwater tails”. The coldwater variety of spiny lobster is considered superior and favored among restaurants.

Cooking lobster at home can be a delicious alternative to going out. Why not give it a try?

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