As noted in the article below, mangoes are considered the most consumed fruit in the world – and for good reason. They’re full of tropical flavor and rich in nutrients and fiber. For details, including mango health benefits and recipe ideas, click the picture below for a link to an April 2014 Medical News Today article.
How to Ripen and Cut a Mango – All in Pictures
May 18th, 2015 
Blog, Fitness Food, One Bowl Meals, Pasta 
Comments Off on Pasta with Fresh Chicken Sausage Sauce – All in Pictures Pasta with Fresh Chicken Sausage Sauce – All in Pictures
Last post showed how to cook pasta to “al dente” (or, “firm to the teeth”) perfection. Here’s a great way to enjoy that pasta – with fresh chicken sausage sauce.
As the word “fresh” implies, the key to making this recipe turn out full-on flavorfully is using fresh garlic, fresh tomatoes, and a good handful of fresh basil – and, you bet, fresh sausage, if you can find it, sure makes a difference.
Here are the ingredients needed to make this recipe.
Click any picture on this page for a complete, easy to follow step-by-step picture book recipe.
Read more »
Cooking Mistakes Can Taste Great!
It’s all about not giving up, being flexible, and staying calm – and, you bet, that’s sometimes a lot easier said than done. And while some cooking mistakes are better to walk away from; burned chocolate is a great example – here’s an example of a cooking mistake that turned out tasting great.
I’d recently intended to make a mixed berry fruit pancake that was supposed to look like this…
March 19th, 2015 Beans, Blog, Cycling Food, Fitness Food, Snacks, Special Recipes Comments Off on How to Make Hummus – All in Pictures How to Make Hummus – All in Pictures
Like I mentioned in the last post that showed how to cook dried garbanzo beans (also known as chickpeas), garbanzo beans/chickpeas are nut-like in flavor, versatile, meaning they can be used in all kinds of recipes, and are highly nutritious, especially regarding their protein and fiber content. Read more »
March 12th, 2015 Beans, Blog, Cycling Food, Fitness Food, How To & Tips Comments Off on How to Cook Dried Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas) – All in Pictures How to Cook Dried Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas) – All in Pictures
If you’re not familiar with garbanzo beans or chickpeas, they are nut-like in flavor, versatile, richly nutritious (especially regarding protein an fiber), and extraordinarily appetite-satisfying. Below is a summary of nutrition facts (164 grams is 1 cup of cooked garbanzo beans), which you can click for a full garbanzo bean nutrition graphic posted by Condé Nast that was derived from USDA information.
NOTE: If you’re not used to eating foods high in fiber, like these beans, you can acclimate your body and minimize uncomfortable bloating by starting with a small amount of beans added to your meal and then steadily increasing that amount. I followed that advice myself, and it worked out great.
Spectacularly Tasteful DIY Travel Through Scotland Made Easy
Just as this site provides practical tools to empower people to make meals for themselves, Marie Cruickshank’s Scotland Made Easy site and service empowers people with personalized guidance to travel the spectacular sites of Scotland – and more – all on their own. Read more »
February 25th, 2015 Blog, Breakfast, Cycling Food Comments Off on Microwave Cooked Oatmeal – Flavor, Nutrition & All in Pictures Microwave Cooked Oatmeal – Flavor, Nutrition & All in Pictures
Last post showed how to make flavorful, energy-sustaining microwave cooked power cereal to give you a warm, full-powered start to these exceptionally cold days we’ve been experiencing. Considering those temperatures aren’t expected to change much in the foreseeable future, here’s something else to look forward to as you climb out of bed in the morning and hit that cold floor running that’s flavorful, richly nutritious, and easy to make – microwave cooked oatmeal.
Here’s what you’ll need to put together a simple version of microwave cooked oatmeal. Next post, I’ll show how to take what you see here from simple to exciting!
February 16th, 2015 Blog, Breakfast, Cycling Food, Eggs, One Bowl Meals Comments Off on Microwave Cooked Power Cereal – Warm, Flavorful, and All in Pictures Microwave Cooked Power Cereal – Warm, Flavorful, and All in Pictures
You bet it’s cold outside, but there is a bright side. It’s mid-February, the days are getting longer, and everyday forward brings us closer to spring.
Still, all we ever have to deal with is the here and now. So, to make that here and now more comfortable, flavorful, easy to deal with…and nutritionally sound, here’s Microwave Power Cereal. Microwave Power Cereal has a lot going for it. First, it tastes great and requires only commonly found ingredients. Secondly, it gives you just what you need for a sustained energy burn by combining complex carbohydrates with protein. And finally, you use the same bowl to mix, cook, and eat the cereal from, which greatly minimizes cleanup. All good stuff! Read more »
February 12th, 2015 Blog, Vegetables Comments Off on How to Take Microwave Cooked Kale From Simple to Exciting – All in Pictures How to Take Microwave Cooked Kale From Simple to Exciting – All in Pictures
Last time I showed how to cook kale in the microwave oven, which is a great way to prepare kale both to maximize it’s flavor and not just retain but even boost its terrifically nutritional properties. But eating kale all by itself? Not for me.
So, here’s how to take microwave cooked kale from simple to exciting, which really is an example of just how easy – and flavorful – improvising in the kitchen can be. What I mean specifically regarding this recipe is that all the ingredients you see below or in the full picture book recipe you can download by clicking any picture on this page are just suggestions. Sure, they taste great together – for me. But what about you? You might not like onions or chickpeas (I used to not be a chickpea/garbanzo bean fan at all). Fine. Don’t use them, or substitute them with something else you do like, for example, chopped red – or any color – bell pepper, kidney beans, sun dried tomatoes, cucumber; you get the picture. Read more »
February 7th, 2015 Blog, Vegetables Comments Off on Resetting New Year’s Resolutions & Microwave Cooked Kale In Pictures Resetting New Year’s Resolutions & Microwave Cooked Kale In Pictures
I laughed the other day when I heard that February 1st is becoming the new start date for New Year’s resolutions. But then after I let the idea sink in, it began to make sense. By February 1st, the winter holidays and their tempting, flavorful excesses are all over. The football playoffs are over – or sometimes just about over. We’re starting to look at least somewhat more optimistically toward the light of spring at the end of the dark tunnel of winter. So, why not make February 1st a much more fitting start date?
Regarding that new start date and the desire among most to eat better, how ‘bout looking at what kale has to offer? Kale has a lot going for it in that it’s flavorful, versatile, easy to prepare, and richly nutritious (you can click the graph below for a link to The World’s Healthiest Foods for more detailed information.)
