Archive for the ‘Blog’ Category

April 18th, 2014 Blog, Breakfast, Eggs, How To & Tips Comments Off on Easy and Safe Soft or Hard Boiled Eggs – In Pictures and Video

Easy and Safe Soft or Hard Boiled Eggs – In Pictures and Video

All right! Adios, snow – bring on spring! The weather’s getting better – yah! We’ve got a big holiday weekend ahead. Boiled eggs – either plain white or brightly colored – are gonna’ be centerpieces of kids’ dreams Saturday night and breakfast tables Sunday morning – and, yes, it takes a real man – or woman – to eat those eggs out of the cups you see above – all in fun.

For the easiest and safest way I know to make soft or hard boiled eggs, just click any picture on this page for a free, newly revised much more colorful Gotta’ Eat, Can’t Cook step-by-step picture book recipe, and/or check out this short step-by-step video.

 

April 11th, 2014 Blog, Breakfast, Pancakes Comments Off on Nut Butter, Yogurt, Fresh Fruit and Dried Fruit Topping – All in Pictures

Nut Butter, Yogurt, Fresh Fruit and Dried Fruit Topping – All in Pictures

Last time, I showed how to make almond, quinoa and flaxseed pancakes, shown below, that are a great energy-sustaining alternative to sugar “spike and crash” traditional flapjack pancakes.


Here are the ingredients to make a nut butter, yogurt, fresh fruit and dried fruit topping that goes great on those pancakes – or any pancakes, French toast, or waffles – that’s both terrifically flavorful and provides sustained energy. As mentioned in the recipe, though I’m using almond butter (which I’ll show how to make fresh next), any nut butter will work. The same goes for the fresh fruit, dried fruit, and yogurt. It’s all about taste and imagination – and imagining that what you’re going to make is gonna’ taste great! 

Click the top picture or bottom two pictures on this page for a complete step-by-step nut butter, yogurt, fresh fruit and dried fruit topping picture book recipe and/or the second picture from the top for the almond, quinoa and flaxseed pancake picture book recipe. 

 

 

April 4th, 2014 Blog, Breakfast, Pancakes Comments Off on Almond, Quinoa and Flaxseed Pancake – Picture Book Recipe

Almond, Quinoa and Flaxseed Pancake – Picture Book Recipe

Do traditional flapjack pancakes, especially when they’re soaked or slathered with your favorite sweetener, tend to give you – or your kids – an eye-bugging, “take-on-the-world” energy spike followed not long after by a nose-diving, “UGH!” full body crash?  You bet I know the feeling,..and it’s all caused by sugar.

But why give up pancakes just because of sugar? Here’s an energy sustaining, easy-to-make alternative made with ground almonds, cooked quinoa and ground flaxseed that cuts the sugar, boosts the protein – and IMPROVES both flavor and texture. You can see what they look like fresh out of the pan in the photo above. Here’s one of my favorite ways to have them with full-on flavor: topped with non-fat Greek yogurt, fruit, dried fruit and a good shot of fresh whipped cream.

I’ll put that topping recipe together this weekend and post it soon. In the meantime, here’s what you need to make almond, quinoa and flaxseed pancakes. Yah, I know: some of the ingredients might look or sound new to you, but give ’em a shot. That’s half the fun of it all. As always,…

…just click any picture on this page for a complete, easy-to-follow step-by-step picture book recipe.

 

March 25th, 2014 Blog, Environment Comments Off on Inviting Businesses to 16th Annual Westborough Earth Day Cleanup

Inviting Businesses to 16th Annual Westborough Earth Day Cleanup


It’s human nature. A clean town attracts business.

Over the past few years, more businesses (H&S Environmental, Ted’s Montana Grill, Energy Federation Inc. and Green Park Mortgage) have participated in The Westborough Community Land Trust’s annual Earth Day cleanup.

Here’s what Rt. 30 at Rt. 9 looked like before and after last year’s cleanup.

This year we’re again asking for business support for an event that only takes a few hours to complete but makes a night and day difference that lasts a full year. Please consider lending a hand on Saturday, April 26th.

We’ll have two start times: 6:30 a.m. to clean Bellows Rd. and Westmeadow Plaza, and 9:30 a.m. to clean identified sites throughout town. For more information or to report a site in Westborough in need of cleaning – or to schedule a date to participate other than April 26th that suits your needs, please contact me, Bruce Tretter, (508) 446-7790 or earthday@westboroughlandtrust.org.

Together, let’s make Westborough shine!

March 19th, 2014 Blog, Vegetables Comments Off on How to Make a Warmly Comforting Vegetable Tian – All in Pictures

How to Make a Warmly Comforting Vegetable Tian – All in Pictures

They say spring is on the way, but, wow, it’s been biting cold both in the morning and evening here in the Northeast. And, though there’s not a lot we can do about the temperature outside, we sure can do something in the kitchen to warm us from the inside out – all very easily.

As I mention in the TIPS section at the beginning of the step-by-step picture book recipe you can get by clicking this link or either picture on this page, the word “tian” that you see in the title above is Greek for “frying pan” and is both a shallow earthenware cooking pot and a fantastically flavorful dish made with the layered, thinly sliced vegetables, herbs, oil, and garlic you see in the ingredients picture below and then baked in that same tian pot. Long sentence? You bet. Great stuff? Try it!

February 26th, 2014 Blog, Fitness/Health Comments Off on New Sweet & Savory Power Tuna Salad Video

New Sweet & Savory Power Tuna Salad Video

Been out for some great cross country skis lately right around the corner from where I live. And when I come back in, I’m soaked wet from the inside out and good to go for something darn flavorful and nutritionally sound to take a bite out of hunger.

Recently, I posted a new step-by-step picture book recipe showing how to make Sweet and Savory Power Tuna Salad… Read more »

February 14th, 2014 Blog, Fitness/Health Comments Off on Incredible Nutritional Difference: Mayo vs. Non-Fat Greek Yogurt

Incredible Nutritional Difference: Mayo vs. Non-Fat Greek Yogurt

Last post I mentioned that I’d show the nutritional difference between regular mayonnaise and non-fat Greek yogurt. Before showing that difference, though, I will say that I’ve used non-fat Greek yogurt not only as a more nutritious substitute but also as a fresh and lively flavor-enhancing alternative to mayonnaise.

Most importantly, when making this comparison – as with any other nutrition label comparison, make sure to check the serving size as circled below.

The serving size listed on the mayonnaise label is 1 tablespoon, or about 1/2 ounce. The serving size for the non-fat Greek yogurt is 1 cup, or 8 ounces. That means you either have to multiply the nutritional values on the mayonnaise label by 16 (there are 16 tablespoons in 1 cup/8ounces) or divide what you see on the non-fat Greek yogurt label below by the same 16 (1 cup = 16 tablespoons).

Below is a table comparing the nutritional values of 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise to 1 tablespoon of non-fat Greek yogurt. The difference is significant!

 

February 10th, 2014 Blog, Fitness/Health, Salads & Salad Dressings Comments Off on Sweet and Savory Power Tuna Salad – All in Pictures

Sweet and Savory Power Tuna Salad – All in Pictures


Sweet & Savory Tuna Salad

Not too long ago, I showed how to turn plain old tuna salad into much more flavorful and nutritious POWER TUNA SALAD by replacing high fat, high calorie mayonnaise with high protein, low calorie non-fat plain Greek yogurt. I’ll write up a mayonnaise to non-fat Greek yogurt nutrition comparison next.

But first, here’s a great way to add variety to that power tuna salad by using the sweet and savory ingredients like fresh apple, dried cranberries and sun dried tomatoes shown below. Great stuff! Just click either picture on this page for a complete, easy to follow SWEET AND SAVORY POWER TUNA SALAD step-by-step picture book recipe.

 

February 7th, 2014 Blog, Fitness/Health Comments Off on Sugar Is NOT Just Sugar

Sugar Is NOT Just Sugar

1 Taspoon Sugar (sucrose)
Until about a month ago, I believed all sugars were about the same. Wrong.

Briefly, as shown in the diagram below,…

Sucrose is 1 part glucose and 1 part fructose

…sucrose – white table sugar – is made of one part glucose (the energy of life) and one part fructose (what I now regard as “feast or famine” energy).

Bottom line: glucose and fructose are two very distinct molecules structurally that are metabolized entirely differently in our bodies. Read more »

February 5th, 2014 Blog Comments Off on “Snowful” Exuberance!

“Snowful” Exuberance!

Screenshot 2014-02-04 21.19.00

Anyone else have a tough time going to sleep last night knowing a good pounding of snow was on the way today?

I’d only first heard it was really coming as I finished up a terrific winter walk in the woods at Lake Chauncy late yesterday afternoon. I ran into a woman walking her dogs who told me a bit stressfully that she was making the most of the time she had right then to get outside before the snow.

“We’re really supposed to get snow?” Read more »

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