How to hard boil eggs perfectly.

How to cook hard boiled eggs perfectly every time.

Start with filling your sauce pan with cold water... 
enough water that your eggs are completely covered in water.


Turn your stove top to medium high 
with no lid on your pot and when the water 
comes to a  rapid boil,  let the eggs sit in the hot water 
for at least 10 full minutes with the lid on.
After the 10 minutes are up, take the lid off, carefully pour 
the hot water out and  run cold water over all the eggs.
You can also place the eggs in a bowl of cold water and ice cubes. 
Ice water will literally shrink the eggs away from 
their shells, making it super easy to peel.

No more ring around the yolk, Let's Cultivate Food

SUPER HERO themed Catered Company Lunches

Our company catered lunches always have a fun theme.

This week's theme is  "Superhero Lunches"

Some of the food items that go into our personalized boxes this week are:

Super strength spinach and blue cheese burgers...

If you'd like it veggie friendly - we can make it with black beans, 

spinach and blue cheese as well! 

French onions and mushrooms sauteed for  Superman's French 

onion- shroom melt 

Wonder woman's Greek yogurt with fruit topping  

Here is a picture of  'Wonder dog's pepperoni pizza bites' 

our 'Kryptonite sweet potato fries

the 'Kryptonite sweet potato fries in the sauna...

Superman's French onion shroom melt.

KEEP CALM and be a SUPERHERO,  Let's Cultivate Food

Sugar can be sneaky!

Have you noticed as the time goes on-
our food becomes more and more unhealthy?

There are so many additives and sugars and preservatives
in food these days that it's really, really not healthy!

Today, I wanted to just talk about sugar.
You should ALWAYS read the labels.
If sugar isn't listed in the ingredients section
but listed in grams... often it can be natural sugar.

BUT! There are sneaky words for "added sugars"
BE on the look out for these words below.
These are ADDED sugars.

Agave
Barley malt
Beet sugar
Black strap molasses
Brown rice syrup
Brown sugar
Cane juice
Cane  sugar
Caramel
Carob sugar
Coconut sugar
Coconut palm
Confectioner's sugar
Corn sweetener
Corn syrup
Demerara sugar
Diatase
Date sugar
Dextrin
Dextrose
Diastatic malt
Evaporated cane juice
Fructose
Fruit sugar
Galactose
Glucomalt
Glucose
Grape juice concentrate
Grape juice
Honey
Invert sugar
Lactose
Maltodextrin
Maltose
Maple syrup
Palm sugar
Raw sugar
Rice syrup
Refiner's syrup
Saccharose
Sorghum syrup
HSucrose
Treacle
Turbinado sugar
Xylose



Stay naturally sweet,  Let's Cultivate Food

How to tell if your eggs are still good.

Do you know how to test the approximate age of an egg? 
When is it time to throw your eggs out?

All you need is a glass cup and cold water. 
Gently drop the egg into the water and if the egg:

~ sinks to the bottom and decides to stay there, 
    it is about 3-6 days old (good) 
~ if it sinks,  but floats at an angle, it's more than a week old  (ok)
~ your egg sinks, but then stands on end, it's about 2 weeks old (still ok)
~ if it floats, it's too old and should be discarded (not good)

 

Couples Cooking Classes in Philadelphia

Couples Cooking Classes are popular throughout
the Greater Philadelphia area.

We have couples cooking classes for birthdays, anniversaries,
Valentine's and any occasion for that matter.
Some couples just want to learn a few tips and tricks
on the weekend with no occasion except how
to learn how to cook the dishes they frequently
order from a restaurant.

  

Zestfully,  Let's Cultivate Food

Mini Cinnamon Rolls

Have you ever heard about----girl math?
When you go shopping and something is on sale or if you return
something-- that extra money you save or have received
from your return is free money?  In the same mentality-
if something is mini you can eat more of them and it's.... ok?

Alright,  come to think of it... the "because it's mini- you can eat more"
is probably not just a girl thing.  It's a people who love food thing!

Whichever type of math it is or isn't...
it's super easy to create mini cinnamon rolls.

Take some dough (store bought Pillsbury works well)
especially to save time.
Roll it out into a rectangle as best you can.
Sprinkle some brown sugar and cinnamon and then roll again.
Cut them into 1/2 inch pieces almost as if you are cutting sushi rolls.
Lay them into your mini muffin/cupcake tins that you have
sprayed or paper toweled oil into to prevent from sticking
and making it easier to pop them out when done.

You will bake them on 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes.
(just until they are golden brown) and that is all!

Zestfully,  Let's Cultivate Food

Game Night!

Who doesn't love game night!?!

Ok, some people may not like playing games but part of me
also thinks that they just haven't had games introduced
to them in a fun way. I know this sounds kind of funny
but I've encountered many people who say they don't like
playing games but after playing them  for someone's
birthday or during camping or any ole occasion...
they just can't get enough!

I enjoy doing many things in themes.
Creating and following themes for me  keeps things
organized and definitely more fun!  It keeps it fun
for the guests/participants but it also keeps things
organized when shopping for the items as well!

The catered lunches I create are all in themes along with
the classroom class menus are always in theme
more often than not of an ethnic place.

When you're having game night...  there should always
be food involved.  Yes, I said  "should always have food involved"  :)

You can take it a step further and create your snack foods into
the games you might be playing.

Below are just a few examples.

Settlers of Catan... notice the the shape of the little food trays but also

the food itself represents the boards of the game... 

red salami for the brick board, the  pretzels and broccoli for the forest, 

the crackers for wheat etc...

You can also bake sugar cookies in the shape of dominoes...

Ever play checkers or chess with cheese balls and crackers?

Or... if you just don't have the time or energy to fully go all out-

you can simply lay some cheese and crackers out.

But, maybe lay your cheese out like the game Jenga.

Whatever you do... have fun with it!  Sometimes creating fun snacks

can be just as fun or even more than the game itself. Sometimes.

Zestfully,  Let's Cultivate Food