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Posts Tagged ‘food’

We all know the effects (and after-effects) of beer. But lifting a glass of cool liquid to your mouth on a scorching hot day, have you ever stopped to consider the processes and ingredients involved in making it? Well maybe not but here is the answer anyway!

Simply, beer is a fermented combination of water, barley, yeast and hops. The major variation in any beer is the type of yeast used in the fermentation process.

Let’s look at the properties of this beverage.

Water is the main ingredient of beer. In the past, the purity of the water influenced the final result and was specific to the region of the earth from which it came. Today, water is filtered of these impurities, although pure water supplies are still ideally preferred by elite brewers.

Barley malt is an extremely important ingredient in beer as it is the main source of fermentable sugar. Many new breweries use barley malt extract, in either syrup or powder form, as this form ferments much quicker. It also contains many minerals and vitamins that help the yeast to grow.

Without yeast, beer would not exist. Yeast is a unique single cell organism that eats sugar and expels alcohol and carbon dioxide, two of the more recognizable ingredients of beer. Yeast comes in several variations, of which there are two major categories that determine the type of beer produced; Ale yeast and Lager yeast. If yeast alone were used the beer would be extremely sweet and therefore another ingredient needs to be added to reach the final product.
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Barbecue party tips can help a host put together an extraordinary event for family and friends. Eating outdoors is a favorite pastime enjoyed by everyone and planning the event can help make it more memorable and stress-free for the host. Big or small, a barbecue party requires an adequate amount of planning and preparation to ensure that everything is laid out properly.

It is advisable to plan the event around a theme in order to create a focal point for the barbecue party. This way, all aspects of the party such as the food, games and decorations can be fashioned around a central theme. Favorite themes for barbecue parties include a Hawaiian motif, nostalgic seventies get-together, or, if you are near the sea, opt for a beach bbq party!

Planning the menu is perhaps the most important part of any get-together especially for a barbecue party as most guests will be looking forward to an array of lip-smacking roasted meats dripping in bbq sauce.
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If you are just starting to cook, or are moving in on your own, chances are, you don’t have much in terms of cooking equipment. Here is what we recommend for you to get, as you are starting out. As times goes by, you will, of course, get more kitchen gadgets. But here are five that we recommend starting out with:

- Chopping board. This is something very basic, as you can’t chop anything without having a chopping board. It is very versatile, as you can chop pretty much anything on it – onions, potatoes, tomatoes, meat, herbs, etc.

Some people prefer to get separate chopping boards to meat, dairy items, vegetables, etc. Others get differently sized chopping boards, and use them depending on the volume of things they need to chop. Start out with one, and see what else you need.
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What’s your favorite birthday cake? For me, nothing beats cheesecake. In fact, I can’t imagine what the world was like before cheesecake was created!

Turns out, you’d have to search back pretty far to find a time when the Earth was cheesecake free. In fact, way back in 776 BC, long before the first Cheesecake Factory opened, the Greeks are said to have served cheesecake to the athletes at the first Olympic games. The Romans soon caught on and spread the divine taste of cheesecake throughout Europe. From there it was only a matter of time before European immigrants brought their cherished cheesecake recipes to America.

It seems that every region of the globe has embraced cheesecake in one form or another, adapting the recipe to local tastes and adding local flavors. In America, cheesecakes are typically made with a cream cheese base, but even here we vary the recipe by region. New York cheesecake is famous for its ultra-smooth texture and decadently rich flavor– achieved by adding extra egg yolks and a hint of lemon – and you’ll find other regional variations from Chicago-style to Pennsylvania Dutch. Many American bakers add sour cream for a creamy cheesecake that can be frozen without compromising taste or texture.
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