Archives for August 2018

Dear Friends,

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WINTER PREP FOOD IDEAS

This post is about winter food prep ideas. I’m going out on a limb here, and assume that you also love Croatian food.

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If this your first time to find me, here are some details about me and how this blog began:

It is so fresh and tasty and much of the homegrown stuff is unsprayed with chemicals or pesticides. In fact, I would go so far as to say that I emigrated to Croatia because even though I grew up in California, until now I had never tasted such delicious tomatoes.

The apple/pear/fig doesn’t fall far from the tree…

I inherited my love of cooking from my mom, Helen Kingsley. She’s French, you know. Of she, myself and my younger sister, she is definitely the slimmest -but the best cook. OK, I am in the second place (for both categories). I think cooking fills your senses with the lovely aroma that when it comes to sitting down and actually eating, a person already feels half full.

 

Winter Food Prep Ideas:

Despite the warm weather and the reluctance to think about summer coming to an end, it unfortunately will.

As Kate Northrup says, There is a cycle for everything. A three-minute You-tube video that talks about this very concept: Click here to hear Kate

Anyway, here in Dalmatia we have our rituals and as summer comes to a close, (sob, weep) there is lots to be done in the kitchen.

No, not remodeling silly – that is in Spring.

We start paring tomatoes, cooking salsa.

Related Post: Legendary Home Grown Tomatoes

 

 

 

We pick figs off our trees (as well as abandoned trees that no one tends to) and dry them in the sun.

Related Post: (add link to prior post).

We plant cabbages and potatoes for winter – even though no one “feels like it” they’ll be ready to eat right in time for early winter.

So what do cooks need to get these projects off the ground?

Tools and gadgets that I recommend:

1. A good food processor. My Gorenje “multipraktik” as it’s called here (i.e. food processor) has been in daily use since my daughter was still in her stroller – twelve years going strong (but it is time to be thinking of buying a new one).  I use it to dice onions, and even make my own peanut butter (it is tastier than the store brand and zero preservatives – good stuff when the kids need a quick sandwich)
2. A good set of knives. Because we are all a little short on cash, many of us wait for hotel presentations put on by traveling salesmen (yes sometimes these are scams) selling mattresses or massage machines – all high-end items. Because they know you aren’t probably going to sit through their presentation without at least a parting gift, we wait till the end and get our free knife set or something similar. That is how I got mine 🙂
3. A pressure cooker. I didn’t know that you can cook beans and legumes well in advance and store them in freezer bags. They stack right up. Before long, the kitchen will soon begin to smell wonderful – and you have dinners in the freezer for later -what a win-win 😀

I am a big believer in healthy eating, and most Croatian eat healthily without realizing it.

The Full Plate Diet

As a side note, there is new research out there that Fiber is the best way to keep hunger cravings at bay, and that by aiming or 75% fiber, digestion will take longer, and weight loss will be aided.

It’s also nice because you feel full and no one nags you about diet because you are actually eating a lot of food!  More details about the (easy to follow) Full  Plate diet can be found here:

How to cook legumes

However: to keep fuel costs down, I use a pressure cooker which cuts the cooking time in half. If possible, soak them overnight, rinse and then add a generous pinch of salt, celery (or selen, as it is called here. It looks like parsley but with a thicker stalk and is a MUST for good stews, soups or anything else for lunch that requires a tasty sauce) sprig, onion, carrot, garlic and tablespoon of Vegeta.

Our Goal: Save time and money

Instapots are the rage, but I prefer using the pressure cooker then add the homemade pasta and so on, I like being able to mix and match.  Maybe your family, like mine, has its picky preferences. We have a vegetarian (who could eat nothing but vegetable all day long) and a recently reformed anti-vegetarian who will eat a spoonful or two of veggies, but more than that is pushing it 🙂

Autumn (simple) lunch

Anyway, you get my point. For autumn meals I usually have a pot of legumes or brown rice, plus a pot of vegetables (grilled eggplant and zucchini, with salsa as needed) and in a frying pan I cook up some homemade sausages or some other things so that each member is satisfied.

My family actually hates to eat out, they have gotten used to healthy eating, which is a huge money saving, and they are also looking quite healthy and fit 🙂

Given that I am self-employed and don’t want to spend all day in the kitchen, I have experience in this. So, I highly recommend that you consider the following:

1. Planning meals at least a few days ahead, and cooking at least a double batch as long as the flavor doesn’t suffer (adjust spices and make sure it’s just as tasty)
2. Store the rest for future usage – freezer, canning fruit in jars, making marmalade, salting bluefish like sardines with rock salt (it takes about two months), and drying figs (see photo). I also like to make a special dried fig cake called HIB, it looks like a round of cheese and goes down well with a shot of Croatian brandy.
3. Canning fresh fruit – autumn crops include DUNJA – a wonderful fruit for winter doldrums
4. Making a double batch of burek (cheeses pita) and desserts to keep fuel costs at bay – easy to warm up later and they taste just as good 🙂
5. Focus on preparing seasonal foods now. Given the blessed bounty, it’ easy to get sick of a certain food item, but now is the time to prepare for winter.

When it’s cold outside it’s so much nicer to take something out of storage. First, you don’t have to go to the grocery store, and second, you feel like an ace. Believe me, it is so much nicer to take a winter walk, then read a book and/or learn how to knit a sweater or a potholder by the fire!

One of the advantages of living here is feeling that you are on Nature’s timeframe, so why not just go with the flow and like Kate mentions above, follow the four seasons.

Related Post: All about Figs 

Winter food prep ideas are as abundant as the types of fall harvest foods available. Of course, we resist it, but late summertime really is the time to prepare for winter. More details to follow in future posts.

Tell me in the comments which ideas appeal to you most and what you would like to see more of.

Have a great day! You can also follow me on Facebook + Pinterest and Instagram!

Disclaimer:  I do use affiliate links for the products which I  myself use and recommend below. I may earn a commission, but at absolutely no cost to you.

Friends,

This post is all about the full plate diet, something I have been doing most recently. When it comes to food, fiber can be key to naturally regulating your weight so you or I don’t have to diet ever again.

Now, wouldn’t that be nice? As the former queen of up a kilo, down 1/2 kilo, I would personally love to, once and for all, wear out a pair of jeans instead of simply growing out of them.

Tell me if you can relate to what I am saying, here.

It’s true, I am a foodie, and always will be – how about you?

To be honest, I don’t personally know “anyone” who doesn’t like to eat. But let me get to the point, there is actually a non-profit org out there, a fairy godmother of sorts, to help figure out what works – and what doesn’t – when it comes to healthy food choices. Yes, that also includes weight and fat loss.

Changes in nutrition and movement

Let’s face it – compared to 100 years ago, we are mostly 90% sedentary and 10% active (instead of the other way around).

Plus, factors like middle age and processed food don’t help much, now do they (insert laughing while crying emoticon), LOL?

If you add to the mix: hormones, GMO,  chemically treated foods with obscure additives that create profit for the food industry and wreak havoc in our own bodies,  the whole spectrum looks pretty staggering. However, I believe that there is hope. These studies seem extremely important for modern living and healthful eating. Best of all, the changes are not terribly obvious and definitely manageable for eating away from home.

The Full Plate Organization

Full Plate has been around for the past ten years, and here is their mission statement:

“We’re a passionate group driven to improve the health and vitality of people to live more meaningful lives.”

Like its name, the concept is that you can be healthy and fit without starving yourself. For me, it also means a commitment to actually sitting down to eat my meal, which is both spiritually and visually more satisfying.

So, let’s get down to business…

How does the Full Plate diet work?

The principle of the diet is,

Fiber is your friend.  The more time it takes you to digest one’s food, the longer the stomach (and entire organism) will feel satisfied. For anyone that doesn’t know, fiber means those things that usually crunch, require more chewing and which force the body to literally churn the nutrients out of them. They are not easily processed, i.e. whole grain wheat bread compared to white bread; apples with the peels on compared to applesauce, and so on. Fun fact: Eating a fistful of nuts every day has been linked to longevity, as shown by the many centenarians who follow this practice.

FREEBIE:

Here is a list of Fiber Friendly foods, is this cool or what? I plan to make it my new shopping list. Click to the right to open it and download it.  Table of Fiber Friendly Foods

If all this seems a bit much, ie.e you are brand new to this way of thinking, there is an even easier method. I am pretty jazzed about this, myself because there is an even simpler approach, namely the Apple challenge, which you can see by clicking on the link below.

They weren’t kidding when they said, “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

For more details, Click here

Joe Hamilton’s story.

Here is a great success story!

Joe lost 90 lbs in 14 months by making some key adjustments in regards to adding fiber to his meals.  He claims that, although skeptical, he began powering up his meals with fiber-filled foods, and lo and behold, discovered he really wasn’t all that hungry. What’s more, he is easily maintaining his weight loss.

It’s 3 minutes long:  Joe’s story 

As they say, from a plump 280 to a movie-star 190 lbs.

Full plate began with a book, which can be ordered on Amazon if you want to know more about it (affiliate links).

 

By clicking on the picture above it activates a link to order the Full Plate Diet Book, which contains an affiliate link, which means, if you do order it, I get a small percentage of the proceeds. I only promote things that I like and believe in, which most of us do in everyday conversation. This is my first time to try and combine affiliate links with a topic, so I hope it works out well for both my readers and myself.

VITALmaxx 07125 Vibration Plate, Profi Vibrationsplatte inkl. Trainingsbänder, 99 Stufen Power Vibro Technologie, Profi Vibrationsgerät mit rutschsicherer Trainingsfläche, LCD Display & Fernbedienung

Lose Weight in Six Steps.

Here is the link to learn more about their program which is a free service to all who want to find a clear way through the jungle of food. Click here: Full Plate

The Full Plate Diet has a special program designed for middle-aged Women

A special program has been designed for middle-aged women, i.e. post-menopausal, who find it increasingly hard to keep trim. The inevitable “spare tire” and other problems make weight loss more difficult, however, can be counteracted with a proven 7 step program to reverse the trend of gaining to losing.

The six steps, which are provided as a series (every day a new one) and delivered directly into your inbox over a week’s time, which basically gives the reader time to digest this new perspective (to eat more, and not less!) The topics are all about

1. Increasing slowed down metabolism with HIIT training, 5x 30 minutes per week. For me a step machine works best to reduce any harmful impact on the knees.
2. Increasing upper body muscle mass by lifting light weights (10 minutes 2x week),
3. About making a new pact with Sugar, i.e. sugar addiction, (see PDF) Don’t fully eliminate but DO take control.
4. Are you dehydrated? How to increase your water intake
5. Sleep plays a major part in dieting, so get at least 7 hrs per night
6. Focusing on fiber as a low-calorie filling food that will keep you

What did you think about Joe’s story?

Does 75% fiber seem a bit too much? It did to me, honestly, but I feel very noble eating better (and more filling) foods, and less inclined to snack than on other restrictive food plans.

The 25% is for the foods you don’t want to, nor have to, give up completely (i.e. meat, bread, chocolate – etc.).

Remember,

Have a great day!  You can also follow me on Facebook  + Pinterest and Instagram!

Dear Friends,

Watermelon Jam to make for winter!

Summer is here, thank goodness! It’s watermelon season, which is such a nice, naturally sweet way to cool down.

Fresh Watermelon

A couple of slices of watermelon can be a great summer lunch (or breakfast, or dinner) especially when it is just too hot to cook.

But what if that nice sweet and luscious watermelon is a little bit off? Maybe it’s pink – or grainy – or a little bit flavorless.  What to do? Instead of throwing it out or giving it to your pets, I discovered a third option –  watermelon jam.

Why Watermelon Jam?  Q & A

1. First of all, it is not expensive to make.

Fruit in Croatia can range from 2 euros to 3 euros per kilo, which can be a little high. If you are lucky to know a local grower you can try to buy fruit when it’s already getting a little bit mushy. At this stage, especially if you plan to buy more than a couple of kilos, you may be able to get a 50% discount.

Watermelon, on the other hand, is usually less than 0,5 euro per kilo. Granted that you are probably going to throw out the rinds, it is still a good deal. Besides that, you can make a lot of jam from just one watermelon!

2. What about the seeds?

I personally like just a few watermelon seeds in my jam to remind me where it came from.

3. How do I get the red color

I avoid artificial coloring because there is no guarantee just how safe they are. Several years ago, red dye #2 was shown to cause cancer, so I prefer to use natural color boosters. Just cooking the watermelon and sugar mixture on the stove will bring out some of its natural colors. Occasionally, I add plums or berries to the recipe and mix it together.

4. Finally, the fun aspect!

There is definitely something unexpected about watermelon jam.

Before I came to Croatia, I didn’t know it was possible to make jam from watermelon. This is another good reason to give it as a holiday gift to friends, colleagues, neighbors, postal carrier etc. as a personal “thank you”. It is kind of a special touch.

Watermelon jam is popular in Russia! People like to put a tiny teaspoon full of this jam into their teacups, and the jam there is more syrupy than here with traces of fruit chunks.

Winter is long, can be windy and cold, and there is nothing like watermelon jam on an English muffin to brighten a wintertime breakfast!

Particulars of Watermelon Jam

Watermelon is extremely sweet (alkaline) so you will need the juice of fresh lemons (acid) to offset that. Many jam recipes include vanilla flavoring, but not with watermelon jam.

 

1. Remember – sterilize your jars first – better to have too many than not enough.
2. Use wooden spoons to stir the fruit
3. Gardening gloves or plastic household gloves (new ones) are good to prevent burns from bubbling fruit.
4. If you decide to add berries or plums to your watermelon jam, you will need to cook it separately and add it to the watermelon jam mixture.

 

Make it a Family Tradition

Get helpers involved and they too will consider it a seasonal activity to prepare watermelon jam for the wintertime!

Now is the time

I recommend doing most of the work in the early morning or evening when it is not quite so hot outside.

Summertime is great, fruit is plentiful and the days are long. It is not likely that making marmalade will come into your mind, but believe me, when autumn rolls around, you will be very glad that you preserved fruit or made jam in the summer.

Especially if you have kids, lazy summer days will become a whirlwind of activities. There is Back to School, and cold weather duties like buying new shoes and coats and storing summer clothes for next year. preparing clothes for the cooler weather. Then, before you know it, it’s the holidays.

Yelp!

Storing

Just keep the fruit in a cool, dry place, like a kitchen cupboard or in the garage.

Preparing fruit for the cooler months is a good insurance policy because you know that the fruit was not overly processed and you made it with your own loving hands. It is both economical and feels like an old friend when you pull out of the cabinet.

Gifts

Besides that, you are already prepared for last minute guests or hostess gifts.

 

Have a great day! You can also follow me on Facebook + Pinterest and Instagram!

All the best,

The Amerikanka in Croatia