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ziracona · 4 years ago

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Do you have any favorite drinks and foods headcanons for ilm?? I feel like Meg would like Shirley templess 👀

Hmmm for sure but there’s so many characters I don’t know how to comprehensively answer this, haha. Meg probably would enjoy that. I think she drinks sometimes for fun or bc it seemed like a good idea at the time, but actually prefers non-alcoholic, because it’s not that great to her, and also because you have to not take your adhd meds if you plan on drinking that day as they interact, and amphetamine > depressant lol. I think she enjoys fruity mixed non-alcoholic stuff a lot. Specially if it got that 👌 zest 👌 to it.

Meg is a huge nerd who likes most of her favorite foods for fan reasons. Her favorite food is chocolate chip cookies with blue chocolate chips because of Percy Jackson. Favorite drink she would probably say is coke, but in reality it’s probably some kind of non-alcoholic cocktail she wouldn’t think to name.

Jake has a proficient pallet from being rich and can actually tell a huge difference in food quality, but hates this and is determined not to be the spoiled rich shithead who only deins to eat from a plate prepared by someone who graduated prestigious culinary school at the top of their class. Has forced himself to acquire a taste for lean meats and nuts. Would request like salted cashews if Meg was getting snacks & she’d throw a fit bc mixed nuts isn’t a treat and he would be offended she was judging his pick. Secretly really appreciates diligently and artfully prepared food. Does not like lamb. He will hunt and there’s not much he feels bad about eating, but he saw a lamb going to get slaughtered as a kid and absolutely will not stomach that as food ever since. Would feel weak & has probably only mentioned it to Dwight, or maybe Claudette, bc she’d never judge or be mean, or maybe Quentin, Kate, or Adam, because Quentin & Kate would agree, and Adam is like, the chillest man ever.

Dwight likes sea salt and vinegar chips, beers, Pepsi, pretzels, steak, and (secretly) those frosted animal crackers. Gets shit constantly for his taste in food and drink. Just wants to be left alone. One time Claudette drank a beer with him to make him feel better bc everyone else was making fun of him for liking beer and she is sweetheart.

Claudette enjoys a dish her mom makes out of fried onions, squash, artichokes, and optionally also mushrooms, probably more than any other food in the world. It is really good. Favorite drink is sparkling grape juice. It makes her feel like she is drinking champagne, but it actually tasted good, and won’t get her drunk or hungover. Also likes tea a lot. Most green and white tea types especially.

Nea likes almost anything with a cronch when you bite into it. Enjoys fish too, and curry the way Min makes it (which is very rushed college student but like, rushed college student with standards). Really likes empanadas after being introduced to them. Also genuinely really loved both Claudette’s amaranth oatmeal and her realm cookies, and since she and Quentin kind of ‘grew up’ inside the realm, it’s also like, surreally and kind of heartbreakingly, a nostalgic and comforting childhood memory to her. They remind her of times she was more okay as a teenager. :’-] Favorite drink is probably a kind of complicated cocktail that is very strong but also sweet and tangy, nursed for a long time. Or a sports drink if she’s on the go. (Lol her fave drink is just the alcoholic version of Meg’s).

Min likes anything spicy that is prepared well, but especially likes meat dishes. Girl wants her protein so she can kick ass. Really loves Ace’s cooking. Smell is 70% of taste. Spice it up, fam. Only knows how to cook 3 dishes on her own, but they’re a good 3. Doesn’t have a single fave. Although she does greatly enjoy just like, devouring a slab of meat if Anna cooks. It makes her feel like a powerful wild beast to just shred a flank with her teeth and she digs that. Fave drink is baijiu, although more in a competitive way because it’s alcoholic af & she can stomach it than actually for taste or pleasure. For taste she will just mooch off Nia & Ace, who both like fruity alcohol.

Ace likes a homemade bread recipe of his mother’s most (I think he and Frank are the only two with stated favorites in-fic?). Makes it a lot for the girls and for friends, and everyone likes it so this works out well. Enjoys martinis and any fruity alcohol, but is good about not actually getting drunk past lucidity. Also enjoys just really nice brands of various juice (mango is probably his favorite?)

Quentin likes his Dad’s pasta recipes probably most, but doesn’t have a favorite from among them. Also likes red velvet cake a lot because he only ever gets it on his birthday and it makes him happy. His mom died when he was really young and he pretty much doesn’t remember her, but one of the memories he still has is of her giving him birthday cake. It’s the time of year he always feels closest to her. Favorite drink is energy drinks because he’s stupid and likes to play god with his body and knock back adderall with shots of redbull. Didn’t like energy drinks so much before Freddy, and back then probably Coca-Cola or something was the fave, but now energy drinks are associated with comfort in his head, so he genuinely likes them. Also really likes M&Ms. Used to treat himself to a bag from the school vending machine if he had a shitty day, so they are also associated with comfort.

David likes chips (as in fries cut UK style/thick, not American chips). He is enlightened and sees the true value of all potato products as well, and honors them as such. Also is the enjoyable kind of person who genuinely & visibly appreciates most all good food. He likes beers too (you and Dwight, buddy) although he’s got better taste in them. His favorite drink is probably coffee though. He likes strong coffee, full body, with just a little bit of cream and sugar so it’s still bitter but has a pleasant edge to it. Not sure why that’s his favorite. He just really likes it.

Laurie likes strawberry milk. Would give that answer if asked for fave food or drink. If prompted further would consider, then suggest that as her drink, and some kind of really nice soup as her favorite—probably pumpkin. Will genuinely enjoy any gift of food someone picked out for her with some thought. Also loves Mac’n Cheese a lot, but would not admit to that to everyone because she’s kind of embarrassed that as many times as she’s had it in the past two years alone, her heart still sees a warm bowl and years for the good shit.

Kate likes fruit. Mangos, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, peaches, pears, pomegranates. Has the patience to eat a pomegranate too. Would just say “fruit” if asked. Loves to pick it fresh. Favorite drink is probably a smoothie, but she would insist that counts. What flavor would vary, but she leans towards blueberry or raspberry on default because she likes the colors.

Tapp likes Chinese food. Mostly this is because Chinese takeout was the nicest thing he could ever afford on the reg as a treat. However, he gets to eat real chow mein and mapo tofu (former made by Ace, the latter by Min—spicy mapo tofu being one of the 3 dishes she knows), and decides those are now his favorite food. Would not ask people to make that because it would be being a hassle, and he would think it wouldn’t matter and would be stupid & not worthwhile to request a dish when visiting a friend, but gets excited internally when they make that & gives sincere and generous compliments. Tried and failed super badly to learn how to make both, but Rachel Thomas (who didn’t know at all how to either but is great at teaching herself shit) helped him figure it out and now he makes them as often as he can without feeling like it will get old/annoy the people living with him. Favorite drink is whiskey but that’s for depression reasons. For genuine enjoyment, he likes probably just juice. Orange or pomegranate.

Adam shares Min’s enjoyment of spicy foods, but is really into trying new things and genuinely doesn’t have a favorite. If he had to pick, he’d probably say Bulla cake, because it is his favorite desert/treat. He really enjoys them & they are nostalgic to him. Good memories of his childhood. His uncle wasn’t always great at knowing what to say, but used to pack him one to take to school any time he knew Adam was stressed or intimidated by an exam or due project. Even if it went bad, he had a comfort reward for making it through. Always buys them when he’s somewhere he can. Favorite drink is tea. He likes a wide variety, but masala, jasmine, and ginger are some constant favorites. Would actually know, care about, and adhere to proper boiling/steeping times per tea type.

Jeff likes baked goods. He really enjoys the baking process itself a whole lot, especially if he has people he can cook for/share with. Definitely has created several original & very good bread recipes. Prefers bready goods to sweet ones. About the sweetest fave he has is basic scones (just bread/no nuts or fruit or filling. Slightly sweet bread with a little sugar on top, meant to be paired with jams etc when eaten). Likes those a lot. Favorite drink shifts from subtype to subtype, but is always one of his homemade craft beers. Also enjoys Dr. Pepper (ah I knew I was forgetting—both he & Joey also have some stated canon favorites. So does Susie).

Jane’s favorites are both things her dad makes. He has a really good ceviche recipe and a complicated secret recipe bean dip, and Jane likes snacking on those with a bowl of chips while chatting on the porch. Slow meal extends both fun of chat and fun of conversation. And her dad has a really good sense of spice use. She can make both well too, but is convinced they taste completely different when she does & distressed by this. Her dad insists they taste the same, but also always sympathetically packs her some time take home anyway. Her favorite drink is probably either coffee or wine, out of familiarity and comfort. She’s not very particular though. As a treat she enjoys moccacinos with a ton of whipped cream a whole lot though.

This was already super long so I’m gonna stop here, but I wood cry if I didn’t include at least Philip in what is now clearly just a survivor lineup. So honorary addition:

Philip likes anything really cold and refreshing. Prefers things with a little bite, so he would pick a cola or alcohol over a fruity drink. Not a big preference past that. Always touched and surprised any time a friend goes into a gas station pitstop and comes back with /any/ ice cold beverage for him, no matter how many times it happens. The gesture to him is very much genuine kindness instead of a friendly nothing. For food, he likes anything with enough substance to actually make him not hungry. So meat dishes are a big plus, as is nice bread. He doesn’t have a favorite meal-meal, probably, but there is a kind of cookie made entirely of egg whites and sugar, that is beaten and fluffy and sweet like a cloud and really delicious somehow despite having almost no substance. Philip had no knowledge of these, but Claudette made him some one morning she was feeling happy not too long after they both first went home to Montreal, and the meringue chocolate chip cookie variant she made was one of the best things he had ever eaten, and probably is his favorite food. They’re like little bites of the concept of sweetness without it being an overdose, and have a very unique and pleasing texture. With the chocolate added, it’s just right. 👌 And then also, of course, it was a gift welcoming to his new home, from the person who more or less is his new home. : )

#ask #anonymous #long post #im so sorry i forgot about the updates & made this on mobile so i physically cant add a read more TuT #dead by daylight #in living memory (fic)#in living memory #hope ya enjoyed! happy to do other buddy crew (Susie-Joey-Sally-Nancy-Benedict-Michael-etc) just thought the post might become fatal if it #got any longer haha #i have another ask i am excited to answer too but its 4am where i am so i am gonna do it tomorrow TuT #ilm spoilers

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henrysdunne · 5 years ago

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place in society

family

beliefs

sexual and romantic orientation

abilities

possible addictions

strengths

flaws

habits

experiences

this or that

gryffindor, hufflepuff, ravenclaw or slytherin? melancholic, phlegmatic, sanguine or choleric? coffee or tea? cake or pie? cake or ice cream? ice cream or frozen yogurt? cookies or brownies? chicken or beef? hamburgers or hot dogs? waffles or pancakes? white rice or fried rice? bacon or sausage? fruit or vegetables? soup or salad? homemade or take-out? hard candy or gummies? milk chocolate, dark chocolate, or white chocolate? chocolate with caramel or chocolate with peanut butter? marinara or alfredo? hard pretzels or soft pretzels? pretzels or potato chips? salty food or sweet food?

#hc.#i had to look up the values of the hp houses and i guess hufflepuff fits?#lmao idk

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florablume · 5 years ago

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place in society

family

beliefs

sexual and romantic orientation

abilities

possible addictions

strengths

flaws

habits

experiences

this or that

#𝕢𝕦𝕚𝕣𝕜𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕚𝕤𝕞𝕤 [ headcanons ]#stolen from robyn's blog lmao

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paleorecipecookbook · 6 years ago

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Meal Prep: Your Best Tool for Healthy Eating

One of the main reasons why people are unable to stick with Paleo is that they feel overwhelmed; the grocery shopping and cooking involved can certainly be a major adjustment if you’re not used to preparing your own meals. Fortunately, there is a simple way around this potential roadblock and to make your diet changes stick—start meal prepping!

In this article, I’ll cover the art and science of meal prepping, as well as provide you with valuable tips and tricks for making the Paleo lifestyle affordable and time-saving, even if you’re on a strict budget and tight schedule.

Want to skip ahead? Use these links to jump to a new section:

Why meal prepping makes sense

Five steps to successful meal prepping

The best foods to use

Other ideas to help you meal prep

Why It Makes Sense to Meal Prep

Why should you start meal prepping? Simply put, meal prepping saves you time and money and, by ensuring that you have good-quality meals to eat on a daily basis, helps you stick to your diet!

If you want to start meal prepping but you’re not sure where to begin, this article is for you. Get time- and money-saving tips and learn how to plan and prep your Paleo meals successfully. #nutrition #wellness #chriskresser

You Save Time

The thought of having to cook 21 separate meals every week (breakfast, lunch, and dinner times seven) can seem daunting to Paleo newcomers. Because it’s simple to batch cook foods ahead of time, rather than making complete meals from scratch every day, meal prepping saves you valuable time in the kitchen.

You Save Money

The costs associated with regularly buying takeout or eating at restaurants really add up (and such food, unless you pay a premium, is typically lower in quality). Meal prepping, on the other hand, saves money because it involves cooking at home with ingredients that you can easily buy affordably in bulk. (Keep reading to learn more strategies for eating Paleo on a budget.)

You Prevent “Decision Fatigue”

For many of us, our action-packed days are a series of decision-making sessions that leave us exhausted and deplete our willpower—leading to “decision fatigue.” Decision fatigue can make us more likely to lounge on the couch and order takeout after work than hit the gym and cook a wholesome meal. By deciding on all your meals in advance, meal prepping reduces decision fatigue and frees up some of your willpower, helping you stay on track with your diet and your other health-related goals.

Five Steps to Successful Meal Prepping

While meal prepping pays off, it does require some planning on your part. In this section, I've provided you with handy guides, tips, and tricks to make each of these steps as painless and straightforward as possible.

Step 1: Clean Out Your Kitchen

The first step towards successful meal prep is to get rid of foods in your fridge, freezer, and pantry that aren’t serving your health. Toss or give away items like processed foods, industrial seed oils, and refined sugar. Get rid of items that have already been opened and donate unopened items to a food pantry. And before you panic that your shelves will be bare, remember that you’ll be replacing these foods with healthy staples!

Prepping for the Thirty-Day Reset Diet

If you’re brand new to the Paleo lifestyle and are unsure about the types of foods you can tolerate, I recommend trying a Thirty-Day Reset, as outlined in my book The Paleo Cure.

To start, you eliminate unhealthy foods and potentially problematic foods for 30 days. Then you systematically reintroduce those possibly problematic foods to determine which ones you can tolerate. This diet is specifically designed to reduce inflammation, identify food sensitivities, and reduce allergic reactions—in addition to improving your overall health.

If you’re beginning a Thirty-Day Reset, eliminate these foods (at least temporarily):

Alcohol

Coffee

Dairy products like butter, cheese, yogurt, milk, and cream

Grains, including rice, wheat, oats, quinoa, barley, and couscous

Beans, legumes, and related products like peanut butter and soy sauce

Chocolate

Processed “health foods” like whey protein and energy bars

All sweeteners, whether they’re real or artificial

What to Do If You’re on a Paleo Template

Not everyone needs to follow a Thirty-Day Reset. If you already have a good idea of which foods you can and can’t handle, a Paleo template might be a better fit for you.

Under a Paleo template, your main focus should be on getting rid of packaged, processed food. Eliminate foods made with industrial seeds oils and goods that include hidden sweeteners or food additives. While there are some healthy packaged foods out there (and you should check the ingredient label if you’re unsure), a good general rule is if it comes in a bag or a box, throw it out.

Here are some common items to toss:

Sugary beverages like juice, soda, energy drinks, and sweet teas

Seed oils, like vegetable, peanut, or canola

Margarine and Crisco

Packaged meals like pizza, french fries, and frozen dinners

Imitation meat or seafood

Boxed pastries and other packaged baked goods

Canned soups, unless they’re free from preservatives, processed ingredients, and other additives

Breakfast cereals and snack bars

Dips, dressings, seasoning mixes, marinades, and gravies

Chips and crackers

Candy, cookies, cakes, pudding, and other desserts

Syrups, including processed pancake syrups, sorghum syrups, etc. (Note: real maple syrup is okay)

Processed honey (Note: raw, local, and organic honey is fine)

Step 2: Restock with Healthy Staples

Once you’ve eliminated those foods from your kitchen, it’s time to restock with healthy staples.

Non-Starchy Vegetables

Non-starchy vegetables are a nutritious and affordable staple in the Paleo lifestyle. Stock your fridge and freezer with fresh or frozen broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, green onions, bell peppers, and leafy greens.

Whole Fruits

Whole fruits such as berries, apples, pears, bananas, mango, pineapple, and citrus fruits are excellent sources of vitamin C and phytonutrients. They make a great snack on their own or can be added to smoothies. However, avoid fruit juice because its lack of fiber allows fruit sugars to be absorbed more rapidly, resulting in spikes in blood glucose levels. In fact, diets heavy in fruit juice are linked to an increased risk of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, whereas whole fruit consumption does the very opposite, reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes. (1)

Starches

Starchy plants such as sweet potatoes, white potatoes, plantains, winter squash, taro, cassava, beets, turnips, and rutabaga are affordable, nutrient-dense, satiating foods to include in your diet. Stock up on these vegetables when they’re available seasonally; many of the tubers and root veggies will keep for quite a while when properly stored in the refrigerator. If you have trouble finding some of the more exotic tubers at your grocery store, consider checking out Asian markets, which frequently stock taro and cassava.

Protein

High-quality protein is a staple of the Paleo diet and can be prepped ahead of time. Purchase grass-fed and organic beef, bison, chicken, turkey, and eggs from your grocery store or farmers market or directly from local farms. Check out EatWild to find farms near you offering grass-fed and organic meats. I also recommend eating wild seafood several times a week as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, selenium, and many other micronutrients. Thrive Market and Vital Choice both offer excellent selections of wild, sustainable seafood.

Healthy Fats

As you may know by now, Paleo encourages the consumption of plenty of healthy fats such as olive oil, coconut oil, red palm oil, avocado oil, pastured tallow and lard, and duck fat. Select a few of these fats and keep them on hand for sautéing, roasting, baking, and dressing salads.

Nuts

Nuts and nut butter make for a great Paleo snack. If possible, buy soaked and sprouted nuts because these processes remove much of the anti-nutrients from nuts, making their nutrients more bioavailable. You can also soak and sprout raw nuts yourself at home. Avoid buying roasted nuts covered in vegetable oils, as the roasting process causes the fats to go rancid.

Spices

Spices can quickly add interest to any Paleo dish. Invest in a spice rack and stock it with staples such as oregano, thyme, rosemary, cinnamon, and turmeric.

Baking Ingredients

If you’re planning to do any Paleo baking, then you’ll want to stock your pantry with a few Paleo flours and sweeteners. Try cassava, almond, coconut, and tigernut flours for baking Paleo cookies, brownies, or cake. Coconut flakes are a nice addition to homemade Paleo granola. Keep cans of full-fat coconut milk (preferably a BPA-free version such as Native Forest Simple Organic Unsweetened Coconut Milk) on hand along with Paleo-friendly sweeteners such as raw honey, maple syrup, stevia, coconut sugar, molasses, and monk fruit sweetener.

Other Paleo Template-Friendly Foods

Depending on your personal Paleo Template, you can also stock up on things like white rice, buckwheat, full-fat dairy products, legumes, and chocolate. Just look for organic products that aren’t processed or refined.

Step 3: Plan Your Meals

Now that you’ve eliminated unhealthy foods and restocked your kitchen with healthy staples, it’s time to start planning your meals! This part of the meal-prepping process is fun, will save you time in the kitchen, and will even tempt you to try new tastes and flavors.

Start by planning your meals on a weekly schedule. You can do this in one of two ways.

Old-School Style

Take a pen and paper and figure out how many breakfasts, lunches, and dinners you will need for the upcoming week. Factor in things like date nights, meals with clients, and travel. Once you know how many meals you’ll need for the week, decide what to eat for those meals. See the sections “What makes a good meal?” and “Which foods work best for meal prepping?” below for ideas. Make a grocery list based on your notes.

Use a Meal-Prepping App

There are many useful apps that will help you with meal prep—and some are even tailored specifically for Paleo. These apps provide you with recipes, chart out your meal schedule for the coming week, and automatically generate a grocery shopping list based on your meal plan. (Check out Step 4 below for an overview of my favorites.)

Once you’ve laid out your meal plan for the week, display it in a place where everyone in your household can see it. This way, you can get input from them and ultimately create weekly meal plans that will make everyone well fed and happy.

After the first few weeks of planning meals regularly, I realize it can be easy to fall into a rut, using the same few recipes repeatedly. But dietary diversity is crucial for meeting our nutrient needs and for feeding our gut microbes, so I recommend introducing new foods and recipes regularly. Start by adding one new vegetable per week and work your way up from there.

What Makes a Good Meal?

What exactly should the meals on your meal plan look like? First and foremost, choose nutrient-dense, whole foods. To learn more about how to select nutrient-dense foods, read my article “What Is Nutrient Density and Why Is It Important?”

Secondly, try to create meals that contain a balance of carbohydrates, fat, and protein. Eating well-balanced meals promotes satiety, modulates your body’s blood sugar response, and even enhances nutrient uptake from food. For example, eating protein with carbohydrates moderates the spike in insulin caused by dietary glucose, and consuming fat with vegetables enhances the absorption of fat-soluble nutrients such as carotenoids. (2, 3)

While I typically don’t advise people to count calories or obsess over macronutrient ratios, some people need to do so for health reasons. If you are one of those people, I highly recommend using a meal planning app to make the process easier.

Step 4. Use an App

The amount of planning involved with meal planning is significant, but fortunately, there is a way to make it infinitely easier—meal planning software and apps. I’ve taken the guesswork out of selecting the best ones for Paleo meal planning by creating this list.

AnyList App

AnyList collects and organizes recipes and adds them to a meal plan calendar. It then generates a grocery shopping list that you can easily edit and share with friends and family.

Cook Smarts

In addition to creating weekly meal plans, Cook Smarts also offers helpful cooking guides, infographics, and online cooking sessions.

eMeals

eMeals lets you choose from a variety of different meal plans (including a Paleo plan, of course). Each meal plan includes recipes with main and side dishes, a shopping list, and step-by-step instructions.

Mealime

Mealime produces weekly meal plans with over 200 personalization options.

Keto Diet Tracker

The Keto Diet Tracker app is helpful for tracking net carbs and storing recipes for those following a keto diet.

Nom Nom Paleo App

The Nom Nom Paleo app has nearly 150 recipes, 2,000 step-by-step photos, and a Whole30-friendly monthlong meal plan and generates customizable shopping lists, all for a low cost.

Paleo Leap Meal Planner

This app includes only Paleo-friendly recipes—every single one is free of gluten, grains, legumes, sugar, soy, and corn. The app offers over 1,500 recipes, generates grocery lists, and lets you set your own food preferences and restrictions; for example, you can indicate if you’d like low-FODMAP, egg-free, or autoimmune protocol-friendly recipes.

Paleo.io

The Paleo.io app answers a simple question: Is it Paleo? It helps users determine whether a given food is Paleo or not using a database of over 3,000 foods. It also includes hundreds of Paleo-approved recipes. This app is particularly helpful for those who are new to Paleo.

Paprika

The Paprika app helps you organize recipes, make meal plans, and create grocery lists. Paprika’s built-in browser allows you to save recipes from anywhere on the internet so you can create your ideal meal plan.

Plan to Eat

Plan to Eat allows you to add your own recipes from anywhere on the internet into a recipe book. You can then drag and drop recipes into a calendar to plan out your meals for the week. The app also generates a grocery list for you based on your planned recipes.

RealPlans

RealPlans creates and organizes recipes, develops a weekly menu, and generates grocery lists so that you can get healthy, delicious food on the table. If you need to track your macros, Real Plans has you covered. A subscription will give you access to all the app’s meal plans (Classic, Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Paleo, Keto, autoimmune protocol, and more) and over 1,500 recipes. You can add on recipes from well-known food bloggers for an additional fee.

Yummly Recipes and Recipe Box

Yummly takes a cue from Instagram, allowing you to browse through a photo gallery of recipes and save them to your own digital cookbook. Yummly also uses a proprietary program called Food Genome and a patent-pending technology called Food Intelligence to recommend recipes to users based on their allergies, tastes, and more.

Step 5: Cook Your Meals

You’ve cleaned out your kitchen, restocked it with healthy foods, and created a meal plan—now it’s time to start cooking! Here are a few simple strategies that will make it easier for you to follow through on your commitment to stick with Paleo.

Set Aside Time for Grocery Shopping and Meal Prepping

For many people, Sundays work best. You may also want to consider doing your shopping and main meal prep session on a Sunday and a second, smaller meal prep session mid-week to keep your fridge stocked with fresh options. Use a list when grocery shopping and check off items as you add them to your cart.

Organize Your Recipes

Organizing the recipes you intend to use in meal prepping will save you time in the kitchen. The meal prep apps I mentioned above make organizing your recipes easy, but you may also want to keep a few cookbooks in your house and print out recipes from blogs and websites and collect them in a binder. Find 15 to 20 recipes that you really enjoy and rotate them throughout the weeks (and check out some of my favorite Paleo-friendly recipes).

Keep Things Simple

You don’t need to cook an elaborate meal to satisfy your nutritional needs and appetite! Uncomplicated meals should be a staple in your weekly meal plans. For example, a high-quality protein source; steamed or roasted veggies with salt, pepper, and some healthy fat; and a sweet potato can make for a wholly satisfying and effortless meal.

Incorporate Leftovers into Your Weekly Meal Plan

Don’t be afraid of leftovers! Eating leftovers is an easy way to cut down on meal prep and prevents food waste. Label and date leftovers so you keep track of what’s in your fridge and freezer. And speaking of the freezer, use it! When you batch cook (see next item), you’ll have extras that you can stash away for later.

Batch Cook

Batch cooking, including doubling and tripling your favorite recipes, is a critical component of food prepping and can be applied toward many types of foods. For instance, bake several batches of egg muffins at a time to have around for breakfasts or roast a bunch of sweet potatoes to use as sides throughout the week.

Which Foods Work Best for Meal Prepping?

Some foods are more suitable for meal prepping than others; for example, roasted sweet potatoes hold up well to reheating, whereas pre-dressed salads quickly wilt in the refrigerator. In this section, I’ve outlined some of the best foods to include in your meal prepping process.

Meat

Cook chicken, turkey, beef, bison, or game meat in a slow-cooker. Shred the meat and set aside to use in stir-fries, in Paleo tacos, on top of salads, or in soup.

Sauté ground turkey, chicken, or beef in a pan with garlic, onion, and sea salt. Use the ground meat in Paleo “taco” salads, on top of spiralized vegetables, or in hearty stews.

Bake chicken breasts, wild salmon fillets, burgers, or meatballs in batches. Use them throughout the week with roasted or sautéed veggies, salad, and starchy vegetables as sides.

Eggs

Hard-boil a dozen eggs. Hard-boiled eggs are ideal for a quick and easy breakfast and are also an excellent portable snack.

Vegetables

Roast sweet potatoes, white potatoes, winter squash, and root vegetables in batches. These vegetables hold up well to reheating and are nutrient-dense sources of carbohydrates.

If you tolerate white rice, make large quantities in a rice cooker or Instant Pot.

Cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts, also hold up well to reheating throughout the week.

Sauces

Make several sauces to use throughout the week. Salsa, guacamole, gremolata, and chimichurri are just a few examples of Paleo-friendly sauces that can be made ahead of time and quickly spice up any meal.

Four Meal Prepping Tips and Tricks

Now that you know the basics of meal prepping, you’re well on your way towards saving time in the kitchen and eating well.

To build on your new skills and help you stay on track with Paleo eating, here are more ideas you can use, including strategies for how to shop Paleo on a budget, where to buy healthy staples and fresh ingredients, how to shop seasonally, and—when home-cooking isn’t on the menu—recommendations for Paleo meal delivery services.

1. Stick to a Budget

Shopping Paleo can be expensive if you don’t know how to grocery shop to your advantage. With the tips I’ve outlined here, you can successfully shop Paleo on a budget while still filling your cart with high-quality, nutrient-dense foods.

Buy conventional instead of organic (for some produce). Organic produce is ideal because it reduces our exposure to harmful pesticides and herbicides. However, costs can really add up when buying nothing but organic foods. If this is a problem for you, check out the Environmental Working Group’s Clean 15 and Dirty Dozen lists to determine which conventionally grown fruits and vegetables are lowest in pesticides and thus safe to buy conventional rather than organic.

Whether you buy organic or conventional produce, thoroughly wash your produce before eating. Almost no food is completely free of pesticides. The most effective way to remove pesticides from produce is by washing produce in a baking soda bath. (4) To wash vegetables, fill a large bowl with water and add a teaspoon of baking soda. Add the veggies and soak for 10 to 15 minutes. Scrub with a scrub brush and then rinse under clean water. For leafy greens, soak in a baking soda bath for a minute, thoroughly rinse, and then spin dry in a salad spinner. Wash smooth-skinned fruits (like apples and nectarines) in a baking soda bath like you would for veggies.

Here are some more money-saving tips:

Buy frozen produce. Buying frozen produce saves money while still providing you with nutrient-dense food; most fruits and vegetables are flash-frozen immediately after picking, thus preserving the nutrients they contain.

Buy in-season produce. Out-of-season produce is typically shipped from distant locations, including other continents, increasing costs. It’s also generally picked before it’s allowed to ripen (so that it can be transported without bruising or other damage), and that can impact its nutrient content if it’s improperly stored or subjected to temperature extremes.

Start a garden. Growing your own produce takes some work, but it ultimately is a really low-cost way to obtain organic fruits and vegetables.

Buy lower-quality cuts of meat. You don’t need to buy expensive cuts of meat to eat Paleo. For example, ground beef and brisket are cheaper than filet mignon but have the same nutritional value. In fact, some of the so-called “less desirable” cuts of meat may actually have higher nutritional value than pure muscle meat; for instance, nutritious gelatin-rich cuts of meat such as chuck roast and beef shank are often cheaper than cuts such as sirloin.

Choose more affordable species of wild fish, such as wild sardines instead of wild salmon.

Make eggs a staple in your diet. Eggs are a very economical protein source, including high-quality, farm-fresh eggs from a local source.

Buy in bulk. Many bulk grocery stores now offer many healthy options, including organic produce, wild seafood, and pastured meats, at lower prices than regular grocery stores. Consider buying a quarter, half, or or whole animal for meat directly from a rancher or farmer instead of single cuts from the grocery store; while you’ll need to invest in a chest freezer, this strategy can significantly reduce the cost of meat.

2. Shop Around for Healthy Food

Contrary to popular belief, Whole Foods is not the only place you can buy healthy food! All the stores listed here have excellent selections of healthy, Paleo-friendly foods. Even your local grocery store is likely to have some options.

Trader Joe’s

Natural Grocers

Sprouts Farmers Market

Super Target

Wegmans

Harris Teeter

Hannaford

Albertsons

Food Lion

Publix

Pathmark

Kroger

Aldi

Lidl

Costco

Sam’s Club

Farmers Markets

Don’t forget about your local farmers market! Farmers markets offer fresh produce, meat, and (depending on where you live) seafood at lower prices than most grocery stores. You might also want to investigate a CSA—community supported agriculture—in your area from which you can purchase a subscription to locally raised foods including produce and meat, delivered weekly or monthly.

Online

Healthy grocery shopping can now be done online as well as in person. The following online grocery stores offer organic, healthy options and deliver right to your door:

Thrive Market

Vitacost

AmazonFresh

Shop Seasonally

Shopping seasonally is a great way to tune in with your local food system and save money. Check out the Seasonal Food Guide to find out what produce is in season near you.

3. Use Real Food Delivery Services

If you are really tight on time but still committed to eating healthy meals, you may want to consider a Paleo “real food” meal delivery service. There are countless options out there, but I’ve curated the very best in this list.

Beetnik Foods

Beetnik Foods meals are certified Paleo friendly, delivered nationwide, and also available in select health food and grocery stores.

ButcherBox

ButcherBox delivers 100 percent grass-fed and grass-finished beef, heritage breed pork, and free-range, organic chicken. That can help if you’re short on time or if you’re struggling to find a local provider of grass-fed meat.

Caveman Chefs

Caveman Chefs offers both meal delivery services and catering. It is based in Colorado but ships nationwide. Choose from meals that are Whole30 approved, autoimmune protocol, low FODMAP, and ketogenic.

Factor 75

Factor 75 meals are premade, 100 percent organic, and free of hormones, GMOs, and antibiotics. Choose from bundles of four, six, eight, 12, or 18 meals.

Green Chef

Green Chef provides you with prepped ingredients to cook three two-person Paleo dinners (or two four-person dinners on the family plan) each week. All recipes are organic and gluten-free, feature protein and fresh veggies, and contain zero grains or dairy.

Kettlebell Kitchen

Kettlebell Kitchen meals are free of artificial ingredients, preservatives, gluten, dairy, soy, corn, industrial vegetable oils, and refined sugar. Some of the meals contain non-Paleo ingredients that are tolerated by many people, including white rice, lentils, and gluten-free oats.

Paleo On The Go

Paleo On The Go operates out of a completely gluten-free kitchen and specializes in Paleo and autoimmune protocol-friendly frozen premade meals that can be delivered nationwide. You can purchase meals individually or in bundles.

Paleo Power Meals

Paleo Power Meals offers premade meals with generous portions that pack a large amount of protein.

Pete’s Paleo

Pete’s Paleo offers seasonally inspired, farm-fresh prepared Paleo meals. Order bundles of five, 10, 14, or 20 meals in vacuum-sealed packages from anywhere in the United States.

Sunbasket

Sunbasket allows you to select three two- or four-person meal kits per week without gluten, grains, soy, corn, added sugar, or dairy. The ingredients and recipes are delivered fresh so you can cook great meals without any planning or shopping.

The Good Kitchen

The Good Kitchen sources organic produce almost exclusively from local farms in North Carolina (where its operation is based) and delivers its refrigerated and frozen meals nationwide.

Trifecta Nutrition

Trifecta Nutrition provides ready-to-eat dinners and lunches that are non-GMO, 100 percent organic, and free of sugar, grains, gluten, dairy, and soy. You can also upgrade to add breakfasts and additional entrées or choose build-your-own meals.

TrueFare

TrueFare uses the highest-quality ingredients in their meals, including organic produce, grass-fed beef, heritage pork, and organic or free-range poultry. They offer Paleo-, keto-, autoimmune protocol-, and Whole30-friendly meal plans.

4. Stock Your Kitchen with the Essentials

To successfully meal prep, you’ll need to stock your kitchen with some essential tools. This includes basic tools that everyone should have in their kitchen, Paleo-specific items, cookware and bakeware, and maybe some “nice to have” extras for when you decide to get creative with cooking.

Kitchen Basics

Measuring cups

Measuring spoons

Potholders

Kitchen towels

Vegetable peeler

Spice rack

Cutting boards

Chef’s knife

Slotted spoons

Spatula

Ladle

Utensil holder

Mixing bowls

Glass storage container

Wooden spoons

Paleo Kitchen Essentials

Meat cleaver

Paring knife

Whisk

Grater

Probe meat thermometer

Hand-held lemon squeezer or citrus reamer

Mason jars

Salad spinner

Cheesecloth or cotton/linen fine mesh towel

Potato masher

Tongs

Food processor

Blender

Immersion blender

Cookware and Bakeware

Sauté pan

Saucepan

Skillets

Baking dishes

Stockpot

Soup pot

Dutch oven

“Nice to Have” Items

Kitchen shears

Pepper mill

Mandoline

Muffin tin and muffin liners

Ramekins

Spoon rest

Meat grinder

Hand mixer

Mortar and pestle

Slow cooker

Sous vide

Dehydrator

Spiralizer

Fermentation pot

Juicer

Spice grinder machine

Garlic press

Tool for making your own meat jerky (such as LEM Products 468 Jerky Cannon)

Food processor

Instant Pot

Countertop toaster oven or convection oven

Water Filter

For drinking and cooking water, I recommend investing in a high-quality water filter. Berkey water filtration systems sit conveniently on your countertop and remove viruses, pathogenic bacteria, cysts, and parasites to undetectable levels. They also reduce heavy metals without eliminating beneficial minerals. Additional white filters can be added to remove fluoride. If you want to filter your home’s entire water supply, you may want to consider a reverse osmosis filter instead.

Food Storage

Once you’ve prepped your meals, you’ll need containers for storing everything. Since plastic containers contain chemicals that are known endocrine disruptors, I prefer people use glass storage dishes with BPA-free lids.

For wrapping up foods, use unbleached parchment paper or beeswax-coated reusable food wrap (such as Bee’s Wrap) instead of conventional plastic wrap, which may leach endocrine disrupting chemicals into your food. (5) Finally, try reusable silicone storage bags (such as Stasher bags) instead of plastic freezer/storage bags, which may also contain endocrine-disrupting plasticizers.

Now I’d like to hear from you. Do you practice food prepping? If not, do you think you’ll try the food-prepping strategies I’ve outlined in this article? Let me know in the comments below.

The post Meal Prep: Your Best Tool for Healthy Eating appeared first on Chris Kresser.

Source: http://chriskresser.com February 12, 2019 at 06:10PM

#paleo #recipe #food #delicious #healthy #yum #diet

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nathankt · 6 years ago

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Day 11 - First Update (Results)

Kia ora Koutou,

Sorry for the late update, I’ve had Friends stay over the last weekend and never got around to updating, but better late then never right?

Before I get into my results for the week a quick run down of where I am and where I plan to be. My Weight as of Sunday (14/05/2019) was 150.5 kg. My goal weight by the end of all of this would be 110 kg, where I would then reassess my goals and look into either strengthening or losing more. Something to consider once I get there. My current daily calorie allotment is 2080 Calories with nutrition goals being Carbs 260g / Fat 69g / Protein 104g.

So my Weight as of Yesterday (13/05/19) was 147.9 kg. Which is a 2.6 kg loss which I was pretty happy with considering I had a few cheats this week. With a Birthday lunch I had for my younger brother along with friends coming up to stay with us over the weekend, I did end up having a couple cheat meals but also made sure to temper these by eating less in general over the week. Details of my Performance this week as follows (This is going to be long so feel free to ignore this. From now on I plan on doing updates daily instead to avoid the end of week updates being so long):

Day 1:

Gym Session at 6:30am:

- 5 min Treadmill (9 intensity, 0 incline non-stop)

- 10 min Treadmill (9 intensity, 0 incline, 1 min on 30 sec off)

- 18 min Exercise Bike (13 intensity, non-stop)

Overall a short but vigorous workout burning roughly 330 calories in 35 minutes. I would like to have longer sessions in the morning but they are determined entirely on my ride. Will need to look into solutions to extend this for better results. Over all happy with performance.

Food (Nutrition):

-Three Pepper Chicken Wrap (548 Calories, Carbs 51g / Fat 26g / Protein 29g)

-Homemade Spinach Wrap Pizza (472 Calories, Carbs 42g / Fat 20g / Protein 31g)

-Baked Pea Crisps 48g (223 Calories, Carbs 21.7g / Fat 10.8g / Protein 7.5g)

-Banana Berry Smoothie (275 Calories, Carbs 44g / Fat 4g / Protein 14g)

Total Calories: 1518 calories, Carbs 159g / Fat 61g / Protein 81g

Overall a decent day of dieting. Was GOT night where the flat typically buys pizza but I managed to compromise by making a homemade healthy pizza using a spinach wrap as a base. Overall pretty happy with today's Nutrition.

Day 2:

Gym Session at 6:30am:

- 20 min Rowing Machine (Max intensity, 4.8km in 20 min)

- 13 min Treadmill (9 intensity, 1 min on 30 sec off)

Gym Session at 7:30am:

- 5 min Treadmill (9 intensity, non-stop)

- 40 min PT session. Consisted off:

5 min Lunges/sprints / 5 min sprint speed run / 5 min sprint/jog / 15 min weight relay, 10 kg weights, x5 runs back and forth / 10 min rowing machine sprints, 10 intensity

- 20 min walk home

Overall a very intense day of working out. Burning roughly 600 calories total. PT sessions can be pretty intensive but ultimately satisfying. Overall happy with today's performance.

Food (Nutrition):

-Roast Chicken Sand-which (Rough Estimation) (500 Calories, Carbs 42.2g / Fat 11.9g / Protein 23.8g)

-Garden Side Salad (Rough Estimation) (153 Calories, Carbs 8.4g / Fat 9.8g / Protein 9.3g)

-Chunky Beef Stew (533 Calories, Carbs 50g / Fat 15g / Protein 9.3g)

-Baked Pea Crisps Original (223 Calories, Carbs 21.7g / Fat 10.8g / Protein 7.5g)

-Banana Berry Smoothie (275 Calories, Carbs 44g / Fat 4g / Protein 14g)

Total Calories: 1684 calories, Carbs 167g / Fat 52g / Protein 102g

Overall happy with today’s nutrition. Cheated slightly with the roast chicken sand-which as I am trying to tone down my the carbs however am still happy regardless when tempered with my exercises for the day. Overall happy with nutrition today.

Day 3:

Gym session at 6:30am:

- 35 min Exercise Bike (13 intensity non-stop)

A simple exercise today. using only one machine. A endurance session to increase my long distance capacity. Burned roughly 300 calories today. Solid effort.

Food (Nutrition):

- Three Pepper Chicken Wrap (548 Calories, Carbs 51g / Fat 26g / Protein 29g)

- Chunky Beef Stew (560 Calories, Carbs 70g / Fat 13g / Protein 42g)

- Baked Pea Crisps Salt & Vinegar 48g (218 Calories, Carbs 20.8g / Fat 26g / Protein 7.3g)

- Banana Berry Smoothie (275 Calories, Carbs 44g / Fat 4g / Protein 102g)

Total Calories: 1601 Calories (Carbs 186g / Fat 53g / Protein 92g)

Happy with todays Nutrition. Stayed well under calorie limit & Consumed a decent amount of Protein compared to Fat. Will aim to decrease Carbs. Overall happy with my nutrition for today.

Day 4:

No gym session today as Thursdays will typically be my rest days. Give my today a rest before the Friday session and Saturday PT session.

Food (Nutrition):

- Pulled Pork Burger (Rough Estimation) (516 Calories, Carbs 73g / Fat 7.8g / Protein 33.5g)

- Fries (Rough Estimation) (220 Calories, Carbs 40g / Fat 6g / Protein 7.3g)

- Baked Pea Crisps Salt & Vinegar 48g (218 Calories, Carbs 20.8g / Fat 26g / Protein 7.3g)

- Banana Berry Smoothie (275 Calories, Carbs 44g / Fat 4g / Protein 102g)

- Vege Crisps (Cassava) (44 Calories, Carbs 5.8g / Fat 2.2g / Protein 0g)

Total Calories: 1273 Calories, Carbs 184g / Fat 31g / Protein 59g)

Somewhat disappointed with today's nutrition. Took my younger brother out for lunch & I indulged in a pulled pork burger with fries. Trouble with going to restaurants to eat is that you cannot reliably track the nutritional value of the food so I will assume the worst just to be sure. I attempted to make up for this by only having a smoothie, and vege crisps for dinner. Remained relatively low in the calorie department but not happy with my nutrition. Could definitely be better.

Days 5/6/7:

These were wish washy days for me as these three days were the days I had friends come down from New Plymouth and from Christchurch so there was a fair bit of Drinking and Eating involved. Thankfully I was still able to stay under calories each day by staying away from snacking throughout the day or snacking whilst drinking. In regards to the drinks I kept to Coke Zero and Liquor which also helped in keeping my calories down. Also when we did go to restaurants I stayed away from heavy foods and kept to mainly salads or low calorie foods like the following:

Thai Veal Salad^

Subway Three Pepper Chicken Wrap^

So although cheating did happen during this weekend, I was able to change my habits to avoid over eating or over cheating.

The exercise was Decent. Had another Gym session Friday morning and had another PT session on Sunday which was pretty decent. We went through weighted sled pushes (80kg) and weight relay runs (Carrying 10kg weights) which built up a decent sweat. Overall a decent effort all round.

Week Summary:

Overall I was pretty happy with this weeks performance. Although I did end up cheating in the weekend with friends down, I was able to tone down the type of cheating that I did. Instead of indulging in Fat fulled restaurant foods I was able to keep myself to more healthier Salads, and instead of snacking on chocolates or Potato chips, I kept top smoothies or Vege Crisps. Not to mention I had a pretty intensive week of Exercise and gym sessions which also helped balance the extra eating. And with losing 2.6 kilo even with the not stellar nutrition I’m pretty happy with this performance. Gives me more hope for the weeks to come.

A blog update is that I may change things up starting next Monday so that I update daily rather than weekly and every Sunday I’ll give a summary of the week. Just stops these posts from being so damn long and It’s easier to track what I’ve done If I record it when its still fresh in my memory. So that’ll be the plan from the 20th of May on wards I believe.

Any questions about the dieting or the nutrition then feel free to hit me up and I’ll answer what I can. First week down, many more to go!

Ka kite ano!

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imoteb · 2 years ago

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#IFTTT #Imoteb Magazine

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foodcloud · 3 years ago

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Munchies: Homemade Non-Fried Snacks

The best snacks are the ones that you've made yourself. And the process is just as simple, quick and easy as you'd think.

What is Foodcloud?

FoodCloud is a food sharing app that helps reduce the amount of good food going to waste. It's changing how we think and talk about leftover food and giving people and business a simple way to Order Homemade Non Fried Snacks.

Why is Foodcloud different from other meal delivery services?

What sets FoodCloud apart is the fact that it's focused on fresh, local ingredients and ingredients sourced from Ireland. The company also avoids producing buy homemade non fried snacks food waste due to their extensive surplus management program.

How does it work?

order non fried snacks in a food processor for about 30 seconds. If it's too dry, add some water or almond milk. The dough should be nice and gooey.

Reviews of Foodcloud

Foodcloud is an app that connects companies who have surplus food with people looking to donate some of their spare food. Foodcloud is an Irish start-up that allows people to donate unwanted food (usually surplus or foods nearing their sell-by date) to charity instead of throwing them away. Foodcloud has the potential to revolutionize our attitude towards wasting food.

Conclusion

In conclusion, baking is a great way to make your own snacks. It makes it easier for you to eat healthier and you can control the ingredients that go into it. Plus, you end up with a delicious snack that is filling and tastes better than anything you could buy at the store.

#anniversary gift hampers #order diwali hampers #order homemade gluten free snacks #order homemade pickles online #order non fried snacks #order roasted snacks #buy homemade non fried snacks #buy homemade vegan snacks #birthday gift hampers #corporate gift hampers #food gift hampers

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celsafleet152 · 4 years ago

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Are Free Marijuana Seeds Really Worth Your Time And Effort?

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wrath-of-the-thunder-chicken · 4 years ago

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Half game

Log for Monday:

Breakfast: coffee, toasted bagel, Babybel

Snack; second coffee

Lunch: pizza

Treat: homemade ice tea

Dinner: poutine, rye and Coke

Treat: big glass of milk.

Comment: I’ll take homemade ice tea over store bought any day. And making it is too easy and cheap to buy it premade anyways. I resisted ordering in, because it’s so hard to find offering that are acceptable to the challenge, especially when all the meat options are being shoved in your face, in about 90% of pictures advertising on delivery apps. I broke down, because I found out that on some services, you can request substitutions if the options are available; it’s just that they don’t really want to have too cluttered a menu, and so they offer omnivore OR vegan, with nothing in between. However, you can order a regular poutine because cheese is fine, but switch the sauce for the vegan one.

So that’s a thing.

Note: I’ve passed the halfway point, and some observations are in order. For one thing, without any change in my activities, my lower abdomen is feeling tighter, so the challenge is having an impact that wasn’t planned, but is a nice bonus. I still need to balance out my nutrient/vitamin intake, so that I don’t end up with unexpected deficiencies.

So to that end, I’ve determined that I need to vary my food sources, and allow the experiment’s impact to continue past the 30 days end point. Enter the 10% diet.

I’m not telling anyone what to do, it’s completely a thing for me. What I’m going to do is limit my animal flesh intake to 10% of my meals. Now, at 21 meals a week, that makes it two meals per week with meat, with some spare for flexibility. Going straight from a meat heavy omnivore diet to a meat-less diet for a limited time has it’s challenges, like the availability of non-meat options, and the cravings. Having some room to maneuver allows the cravings to be managed, and it feels less like failing if you end up having burger juice running down your chin because you just couldn’t handle it anymore.

I am very good at handling meat in nearly all methods (just don’t ask me to grill stuff, that’s my blind spot) but it’s become something of a crutch, and easy fallback for when I can’t think of what to eat, and it’s really easy to just have meat and sides (especially just starches like fries) which is good for the protein intake, but less so for the overall vitamin spectrum.

How long can I maintain the 10% diet? I don’t know, I haven’t started it yet, but keeping a log of what I eat helps me, because it keeps me accountable, even if no one reads it, it’s out there, it’s public, it’s accountability.

At least I drink more water. So stay hydrated, kids!

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easyfoodnetwork · 4 years ago

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11 Useful Items to Keep Hidden Away in Your Freezer

Frozen mixed berries | CLICKMANIS/Shutterstock

From cooking fat to freezer cake, these are the items that make cooking easier for Eater editors

For active home cooks or even those who generally dread the task, the freezer deserves credit for helping get dinner (or dessert) on the table. It’s a place that offers a wealth of shortcut meals and snacks, from exceptional frozen dumplings to nostalgic treats like tater tots. Frozen ingredients like chicken stock or marinara sauce can get a home cook most of the way to a finished meal. As long as people know the best way to store and defrost their freezer items, whether they’re cuts of meat or bagels, a freezer is undeniably an indispensable tool, during a pandemic and otherwise.

Here’s a roundup of the useful items Eater editors are most likely to keep hidden away in their freezers.

Cooking fat: Meat isn’t an everyday item in our house, so when we do cook with it, my partner and I like to save every last bit. That means saving the fat. Grease is one of those pesky residuals of cooking that’s harder to dispose of. It really shouldn’t go directly down the drain. Some people wait for it to cool in a container and then pour it in the garbage. However, I recommend saving that flavor. When you cook chicken, duck, bacon, or anything else particularly precious and tasty, save the drippings in a glass container and stick it in the freezer. Then use it in place of butter or oil in your cooking to impart more flavor. Duck fat is particularly tasty for cooking fried eggs at breakfast time. —Brenna Houck, Eater Detroit editor

Ice cube tray and ice cubes: The most important items in my freezer are my two ice cube trays and the ice they hold. Since shelter-in-place has coincided with my pregnancy, I’m drinking a lot of non-alcoholic beverages, each of which is greatly improved by being even colder. I make cheater iced almond milk lattes by stirring drip coffee with ice and then adding more ice and almond milk. I cool down cups of herbal tea I discover I’ve left on the counter and enjoy iced tea. I drink so much more tap water when I remember to put ice cubes in it. The trick: Refill your tray with water every time you take cubes from it. Just make it part of your routine and it’s never empty. —Hillary Dixler Canavan, restaurant editor

Frozen fruit: My biggest freezer staple is frozen fruit, mostly because I love a good smoothie. Great for breakfast or anytime you feel like you need a Vitamin C boost, the secret to a thick, filling smoothie is to use a fresh banana and frozen fruit without adding ice. I just buy the bags frozen from my local grocery store (even tropical fruits like pitaya are now pretty easy to find), but this is also a great way to store those final few strawberries before they go bad. Other uses of fruit in your freezer: cocktail ingredients, drink garnishes, a snack (especially frozen mango). —Erin Russell, Eater Austin associate editor

Dino nuggets: Why eat boring chicken nuggets when you can eat chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs? It may be childish, but I will never stop getting a kick out of dino nuggets. It’s an easy lunch on a hectic day; just toss them in the toaster oven. Flip once. I guess you could make a side salad if you’re feeling fancy. But the only required side, as far as I’m concerned, is a dipping sauce — ideally barbecue sauce from Dinosaur Bar-B-Que because (a) it’s good and (b) obviously dino nuggets go best with Dino sauce. —Rachel Leah Blumenthal, Eater Boston editor

Homemade gumbo: Gumbo is one of my favorite meals to make at home, but let’s be real; it’s a project, a cooking task that’s going to clock in at a couple hours before it’s done. Luckily, since there are only two of us at home, making gumbo always means gumbo leftovers, and I don’t think there’s a more satisfying freezer meal for me than a bowl of gumbo that I simply pulled out of the freezer (stored in a quart container) to defrost the night before in the fridge, and reheated for dinner that evening. Gumbo doesn’t really deteriorate significantly in the freezer; all you have to do is throw some rice in the rice cooker, and you have an easy weeknight dinner that totally makes up for all the effort you initially put into making a roux, simmering your ingredients, and just having patience for the gumbo to finish the first time around. —Missy Frederick, cities director

Frozen dinners from mom: Being far away from my family is hard, especially now that I don’t really know when I can safely go back home to New York. Thankfully, I usually have deep-frozen containers of my mother’s home-cooking in my freezer, from my last visit home. Whenever I fly home, my mother usually asks me what foods I want to bring back (my favorites: shrimp and potol, a Bengali pointed gourd; chicken with squash), along with biryani. My mom batch-cooks everything and my dad portions out the food into 16-ounce deli containers, labels each one, and carefully packs everything into a disposable cooler with ice packs, ready to be placed in my overstuffed suitcase. This way, I can hold onto tastes of home even though it’s 1,700+ miles away. —Nadia Chaudhury, Eater Austin editor

Banana ice cream: Forget cookies and cream or chocolate chip cookie dough. Banana is the best ice cream flavor, and I make sure to keep a half-gallon in my freezer at all times. Living in Newark, I’m lucky to be within walking distance of the scoop shop that makes it best: Nasto’s. I have three scoops after dinner every night, always with a drizzle of chocolate syrup, and it’s pure bliss. I understand that ice cream isn’t the most exciting thing in a freezer compared to frozen dumplings or mochi, but the flavor takes me back to sitting on my late grandmother’s balcony in Ankara, where we would split a bowl of fruit — mostly bananas — together. —Esra Erol, senior social media manager

Freezer cake: I don’t remember what life was like before I discovered Freezer Cake. I don’t care to look back on that era. There’s something special about knowing a slice of banana upside-down cake or a thick slab of banana bread is waiting there, whispering my name gently from the back corner of the freezer. In these not-very-sweet times, being able to eat a slice of cake without ever cracking an egg or dirtying a bowl feels like a victory. All you need to do is let whatever cake you’ve so wisely frozen defrost slowly on the counter. Because sometimes turning on the oven is just too much work. —Elazar Sontag, staff writer

Stock: The one thing I always try to have in my freezer is stock. Usually it’s chicken stock, either made from the carcass of a roast chicken or from a big pile of chicken wings I dumped in my Instant Pot, because so many recipes call for it, whether a little bit to help finish a sauce or several cups to make a soup or stew. Homemade stock tastes noticeably better, and since it’s easy to keep in the freezer, making up a big batch doesn’t risk any going to waste. To freeze stock, I measure it out into plastic baggies in rough one or two cup amounts, using a ladle with a half-cup measure on it, and then lie them flat in the freezer one on top of the other, so when they harden, they’re easy to stack. When I need to defrost, I zap a frozen bag for 30 seconds or a minute in the microwave and break off roughly as much as I need, or drop the whole cup or two into the pot. I have endured the shame of throwing out all sorts of things from my freezer, but I have never, ever wasted stock. —Meghan McCarron, special correspondent

Homemade pesto: My frozen secret weapon is an ice cube tray full of homemade pesto. Pesto sauce, to me, is a special thing. Basil is a precious, flavorful commodity that seems expensive if you don’t have a farmers market nearby, and it doesn’t stay for very long either. Pine nuts are also quite pricey, so when I do make a big batch from scratch, I make sure to make it last. Pesto is so flavorful that you don’t need to use a lot for any single dish. That’s where the ice cube tray comes in. Filling a tray with pesto and freezing it into cubes is a trick I learned long ago when Pinterest was new on the scene and basically church for those interested in recipe ideas and hacks. Popping out one or two cubes of pesto as needed is a great way to make use of the sauce you may have made months ago when basil was in season, without having to defrost an entire Tupperware. It’s such an easy and fast way to add flavor to a quick pasta dish, some beans, a sandwich of any kind, and even to make into a vinaigrette for a salad on the fly. —Terri Ciccone, audience development manager

Salted caramel ice cream: If it’s freezer junk food you seek, I present Lotus Biscoff Salted Caramel Ice Cream, something I started hoarding during the pandemic. I swear it’s the softest ice cream I’ve ever found. The instructions even recommend leaving it out for five minutes to soften before you dig in. There is a straight Biscoff cookie version, but I like the salted caramel mixed in. I buy it at Target, and do a search before I venture out to make sure it’s in stock. —Susan Stapleton, Eater Vegas editor

Honorable mentions: Fresh herbs frozen in ice cube trays, bags of pre-peeled garlic, brownies, Eggo waffles, tortellini, peas, pierogis, homemade marinara sauce, cooked beans, rice cakes for stir fries, cookie dough.

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From cooking fat to freezer cake, these are the items that make cooking easier for Eater editors

Here’s a roundup of the useful items Eater editors are most likely to keep hidden away in their freezers.

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eknowledgetree2015 · 5 years ago

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12 Of The Coolest Kitchen Gadgets Needed for Your New Kitchen

Description: Read throughout this post to find out the top gadgets that you must have in your new kitchen. Plus, you’ll find out the importance of having these kitchen gadgets in the kitchen, or if you want to be a master one in cooking. Continue reading below and learn more! For those who plan to move, or have already moved to a new house, one of the best areas you might be too excited about in the kitchen. In fact, you might have a lot of plans on what to do in your new kitchen and that includes the basic, essential kitchen tools or gadgets. Well, in this post, you’ll get to know some of these best kitchen gadgets that you should have in your new kitchen. Having the most essential tools or even the small kitchen gadgets for cooking in the said area would make your life a lot easier. And take note that the most basic tools are what you need to begin cooking those delicious meals for the family. So, what are the latest kitchen gadgets you must have?

Food Processor

Definitely, this one is the first absolute kitchen gadget that you must have in the kitchen. It should come along with switchable blades or disks. Using a food processor, you could shred block cheese or you can slice stick pepperoni. Plus, this gadget could allow you to make peanut butter, mayonnaise, or even whipped cream. Use this as well to slice or chop any number of veggies faster and easier. Food processors are known to be among the coolest kitchen gadgets for many essential things that you need to do in the kitchen. They are as well easy to clean and also these would save you loads of time. As you start using the food processor, you’ll discover more uses of it for saving your time in cooking.

Rice Cooker

And this is another must-have item in the kitchen! Rice is indeed a staple of cook’s pantry and is usually used often. Rice cooker is the best and also the most energy-efficient way in order to cook rice whether brown or white to absolute perfection. Imagine those times wherein your rice has boiled over or rice has been burned because it has been cooked for too long. Or the rice dried out having lesser liquid or it took up valued burner space making you wait to cook another part of the meal. Well, all these obstacles will never be experienced if you have a rice cooker. Plus, this gadget comes with precise measurements that are plainly marked on its cooking vessel, so you wouldn’t have to guess at all. Rice cookers can also be used to make oatmeal and you’ll be amazed that there’s more you can do with these electric kitchen gadgets.

Slow Cooker

Of course, you must also have a slow cooker or referred to as the crockpot. You can definitely save energy by using this and also this is a great item used for leftover vegetables and meats. Most crockpot dishes like soups to beans could offer many meals. Crockpot cooking could also easily fit into a busy schedule of the family, wherein different family members might eat at different times too. With the use of such a simple cooking method, each could eat a hot meal without having to put in the effort of cooking many times.

Blender

This gadget doesn’t need to be expensive. You can find cheap yet efficient ones out there. It would provide a multitude of uses like making smoothies as well as blended cocktails and even making sorbet from frozen juice and fruits. Blenders are indeed great help to save your time in the kitchen, as well as it is a fun way to make variety in the menu experience every single day. So, these seem to be among the fun kitchen gadgets that you definitely must-have.

Juicer

Juicer is also a must-have item in the kitchen, as it is not just great for squeezing lime, orange, and lemon juice once needed for a recipe, but it could also juice vegetables. Using a juicer could save you muscle and lets you extract the most juice as possible. It also allows you to extract juice coming from plants. Besides, you don’t need to worry about the pulp or the seeds.

Stainless Steel Grater (Four-Sided)

Having a good grater will not just save your time to quickly grate cheese, but it could also be handy in grating almost all kinds of vegetables like potatoes, radishes, carrots and more. A grating is a lot faster than chopping with the use of a kitchen knife.

Rubber Spatulas

You will save more time and money in the kitchen if you will have a good set of rubber spatulas in at least three sizes. Food will not be wasted if using the last of the mayonnaise, or if you are pouring batter from the baking mix. Also, rubber spatulas are among the amazing kitchen gadgets once spreading condiments on toasted sandwiches or bread. Compared to butter knives, they spread so much more nicely and could do the job in a fell swoop.

Colander

This is also an efficient and fast tool if you are to drain vegetables or pasta and even your sliced potatoes for your homemade French fries. With this kitchen gadget, you can avoid holding the cover and pouring the water which might also lead to burning yourself badly. It might take some time to deal with an injury or burn, so better use a colander instead.

Non-stick Frying Pan

Indeed, every household would need a non-stick frying pan, especially for breakfast duty because pancakes and eggs are made best on this kitchen tool. This one is also a versatile and one of the quirky kitchen gadgets which can be used for sautéing vegetables, searing meats, and making sauces. It is recommended to buy a two-piece set for you to have two sizes around and you could also cook two things simultaneously.

Knives

Once you are cooking, you would be using a knife of course. Getting a chef’s knife is best if you have money and space for one knife. You will surely use this kind of knife for almost 90% of food preparation, so better buy a nice one and take good care of your kitchen knife. Also, it is recommended that you get a paring and a serrated knife since they serve different purposes. Parking knives are for more delicate and smaller jobs, and serrated knives are for slicing tomatoes and bread easily. You can also look for kitchen gadgets for men that suit best their preferences.

Cutting Boards

And to go along with your new and sharp knives, there is a need for you to have a cutting board. These boards come in almost sizes, shapes, and varieties. These are among the unique kitchen gadgets that many shouldn’t ignore as they help a lot in preparing food meals.

Food Storage Containers

These airtight food storage containers would save both your money and time since you could neatly store your pasta, rice, snacks, rice baking ingredients, and more. You can even organize your meal mixes and spice packets. Having such storage containers would help you find what you need in the pantry easily and they would keep the ingredients fresh.

Conclusion

There you have it – dozens of important kitchen gadgets that you must have for hassle-free life in the kitchen. Taking advantage of these latest kitchen gadgets and items would not just save your time, but your money as well. Indeed, you will find both cooking and clean-up time to be greatly reduced. These useful kitchen gadgets will surely make you master in your own kitchen! Author’s bio: Rich has unquestionable when it comes to both expertise and experience in writing great articles to help readers learn insights about the latest kitchen gadgets needed in one’s kitchen. He is known to be a reputable and credible one who is passionate and smart enough to address the need for knowledge of his readers. Read the full article

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foodcloud · 3 years ago

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bloomingtrenz · 5 years ago

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10 Amazing Ways to Start Eating Healthy

With the spurt of online food ordering apps, life has become much easier for a lot of busy bees out there who find the whole cooking process a tedious and time-consuming exercise. However, we must point out right here that “eating out” or “ordering in” though seems like quite an easy way to get food on your plate, it’s totally unhealthy in the long run when done on a frequent basis. If weight loss and getting fit is on your mind, go slow on outside food and switch to homemade food. We cannot even begin to tell you how much change it can bring to your body. If you are someone who also works out religiously, eating healthy will get to your dream shape sooner than you think. So, in this post, we are going to tell you about 10 amazing ways to start eating healthy:

1. The first thing you should probably do is to change your cooking oil: Stop all trans-fat oils, seed oils. Switch to healthy oils for cooking, olive oil, canola oil, sesame oil, coconut oil are good for Indian cooking. Here’s the list of 7 Best Non-Cooking Oils for Indian cooking.

2. Include one protein source (fish/chicken for non-vegetarians and beans/nuts/legumes/dal for vegetarians), one vegetable, one whole grain, and one fiber rich food during each meal. A portion of fruit is also recommended. If you are eating a plate, fill one quarter of your plate with a healthy protein source and one-quarter of your plate with whole grain (like quinoa, brown rice), and fill half of your plate with vegetable. And by the way, potatoes don’t count as a vegetable when you are on a diet, sweet potatoes are a good alternative. Eat at least one fruit each day.

3. Completely replace white food items from your diet: From white refined sugar to white rice, to maida, weed out all white things except for of course vegetables like cauliflower and dairy. These white things add loads of calories with little to zero nutritional value to your body.

4. Eat from a bowl rather than a plate: There’s an amazing scientific study that states that your brain gets tricked and feels satisfied when you eat from a bowl than from a plate. You would feel full when you eat from a small bowl with the same quantity of food that you eat from a larger plate. Also, the bowl’s weight in hand will give you the feeling that you are consuming more food. So, dump that plate and pick that bowl.

5. Replace simple carbs with complex carbs: Switch to whole grains rather than refined grains. Whole grains provide nourishment to your body without adding a whole lot of empty calories. We do suggest replacing white bread with whole wheat bread, whole grain pasta. Quinoa and brown rice are good options to replace white rice. Here’s the list of Best Carbs to Eat for Weight Loss.

6. Include millets of all varieties in your diet: Millets are super healthy for your body because not only do they have complex carbs and protein content, they help with weight loss, reduce your risk of colon cancer, supply antioxidants, and help regulate high blood pressure and diabetes. Some options are kodo, finger millet, ragi, sorghum, foxtail, banyard, little millet, and pearl millet.

7. Meal prep for the entire week: Dedicate one hour during the weekend to plan out your meals for the entire week, Monday through Sunday. Take the help of Rati Beauty diet programs to zero in on healthy breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack options so that instead of piling up calories, you would be able to shed some weight. Spend a few hours chopping up vegetables and storing them up in the fridge for use through the week. Also, keep a food journal and jot down every thing that you consume through the day and weed out anything that counts as junk.

8. Refrain from buying anything junk during grocery shopping: This is one of the most important things to remember – don’t shop for any junk food during grocery shopping (chips, processed meat, packaged food, colas, fried items, etc. all are counted as junk). Remember, what does not reach your pantry and fridge, would not show up on your plate.

9. Keep yourself hydrated: We cannot stress enough how essential water is to keep your whole system running smoothly and efficiently, and keep you healthy in the process. Eight glasses or more is often recommended. A tip from us – don’t gulp down water, sip slowly in a chewing motion. And sugary drinks and aerated beverages are not allowed.

10. Subscribe to Rati Beauty app: Your one-stop solution to lose weight in an extremely healthy way – all the diet programs in this app help you shed weight without compromising on your nutritional requirements. All details here.

#Makeupandbeauty.com

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kayleygoestolondon · 5 years ago

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Hola, Spain!

I’ve just logged on and realized that I haven’t posted since last summer... eek. In my defense, I didn’t travel anywhere exciting the first half of the school year, and by the time I went to Paris and Morocco, I thought people had surely lost interest in reading my posts. We have more important things to read about! Brexit! Donald Trump’s latest tweets! What bizarre name Kim Kardashian will give her newest baby! However, I had such an incredible time in Spain and Portugal that I figured I might as well write it down. Even if my grandparents are my only devoted readers, it’ll make a good memento for me to reflect on fondly when I’m 80 years old in a retirement centre in Camrose.

My latest trip began with arguably the best flight I’ve ever had. Since I usually fly alone, I’m always stuck sitting beside one of the following Flight Ruiners™:

Crying infant who will not be soothed

Severely overweight person who insists on taking up most of my personal space

Armrest hogger

Somebody with a terrible illness (most likely the plague or Ebola) that coughs and sneezes the entire flight

NOT THIS TIME! I was seated with two guys from central London who were on their way to Barcelona for a bachelor party. At first, I expected the worst: when I flew to Morocco, an entire bachelor party boarded the plane at 6 AM already drunk and proceeded to be the most obnoxious human beings I’ve ever encountered for three hours. These guys redeemed my faith in good old British lads. They chatted with me the whole way about travel and insisted I have a drink with them to celebrate being hired at a new job! They even paid, which was great, because I am the stingiest person in the world and would never pay for a beer on a flight. It’s also part of my personal vendetta against RyanAir. When we arrived in Barcelona, it was after midnight and pouring rain, so they offered to share their cab with me to make sure I got to my AirBnB safely. Chivalry isn’t dead after all!

My friends from Canada (Dillon, Candice, and Bal) were waiting up for me at the AirBnB with McDonald’s chicken nuggets and a batch of questionable homemade sangria. If that isn’t a welcome, I don’t know what is.

BARCELONA

We had breakfast at the cutest tiny cafe and I had the best omelette of my life made by an equally cute and tiny Spanish woman. Also discovered that “cafe con leche” (Spanish coffee with milk) is pretty delicious.

We did a walking tour of the city and learned lots of interesting historical facts while seeing some of the main sights. On the tour, we met some other Canadians so we went for drinks with them afterwards. What a small world.

Discovered you can go into a store and buy an entire jug of wine. Or, if you’re an efficient on-the-go type of person... wine juice boxes.

Checked out the Sagrada Familia. I’ve been to nearly every famous cathedral in Europe (#humblebrag) and this was the best one. If you go to Barcelona, it is 100% worth seeing.

Walked up to Parc Guell, which has a beautiful view over the city. Fun fact: the park was designed by Gaudi, the same designer of the Sagrada Familia. If you’re gonna read this all the way through, you bet I’m gonna give you some unrequested knowledge. His architectural style is pretty distinct and I really loved seeing how those elements were incorporated into the design of the park.

Hopped in the car and prepared for the first portion of our journey. This is where it’s really important for me to note that we started our trip with “Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under” by Shania Twain (more like Shania SPAIN, am I right? lololol). This song did not leave our heads for the entire week. I’m not exaggerating. We sang it constantly. In the car. At the beach. In the bar. SHANIA TWAIN EVERY DAY.

DRIVING IN SPAIN

Since Spain drives on the right side like we do (sorry UK friends, but the left side is stupid and I will fight you about it), it was pretty easy to navigate... excluding the massive traffic circles with stoplights in them and no lanes marked. We circled those in terror, not knowing what we were doing but somehow avoiding collisions.

There are tolls EVERYWHERE. We paid 40 euros in tolls between Barcelona and Valencia, which is a toll-tally ridiculous amount (lol, I’m not even sorry for these jokes)

The highways are really well-maintained, but are virtually empty. We encountered almost no traffic at all and didn’t see any police either. Dillon did not take advantage of this and drove a respectable speed the whole way, rather than living out our Fast & The Furious fantasy

The Spanish countryside is really gorgeous. It’s much more mountainous than I realized, particularly the areas that we drove through. We got some really stunning scenic views along the way.

We all had important roles within the car. Dillon was the Driver, I was the Navigator/DJ, Candice and Bal were the backseat Snoozers and Snack Providers. This meant that Dillon was the MVP of the trip, because he drove without any road rage at all (how is that even possible... my driving is just like a constant stream of swearing), whereas my sole contribution was playing 500 Miles by the Proclaimers as often as possible.

VALENCIA

We had the unfortunate timing of arriving Valencia just as a massive football game was ending; Valencia had won against Barcelona to win the Copa Del Rey. The streets were swarming with people and the honking was endless. Easily the second-most stressful part of our drive. Want to know the worst one? READ ON FOR MORE (#clickbait)

Spent our whole day there at the beach. The weather was great, if not a bit windy, and Dillon was magically transformed into a red lobster thanks to the sunshine. We all went home with sand everywhere. I think I still had some in my ears at the end of the trip.

We enjoyed beers and a selection of meats and cheeses on the beach. We ate so much meat and cheese during this week. You may be thinking, “Meat and cheese seem very impractical to eat on the beach because of all the sand”, and you would be CORRECT... but sandy cheese is better than no cheese.

There were no toilets or change stalls at the beach so we had to go on a bit of an excursion to find somewhere. We eventually infiltrated a fancy hotel to use their lobby bathroom. Candice and Bal got caught going in the second time when the concierge asked if they “had enjoyed the toilettes, and would they perhaps now like to pay for something from the hotel bar”. They ran away. Classic escape!

We sampled a traditional Spanish drink, horchata, which is a “plant-based milk drink” according to Wikipedia. Sounds appealing, right? We collectively hated it. That’s what we get for trying something non-alcoholic. Therefore, it was logically much safer to stick with beer for the rest of the trip. At least, that’s what I told myself.

GRANADA

En route to Granada, we passed through a place called Lorca. High on top of a mountain, we could see a massive fortress. We spontaneously decided to drive up there and check it out. Turns out Castillo de Lorca was built in the 9th century and is one of the largest castles in Spain. Super cool... and we were the only tourists there!

Most Stressful Driving Moment: leaving Lorca Castle. Obviously because it’s on top of a mountain, the roads coming down were windy and steep. Our Google Maps got confused and took us down a side road into this local area that was hellishly narrow and we ended up going down a road that was like a 75 degree angle. I had visions of us driving our poor Volkswagen Polo off the edge of the cliff. Dillon, ever the stoic hero, got us out of it while I panicked and failed at asking locals for directions.

Our apartment in Granada was in the historic part of the city, within the old city walls. Think super tiny, winding cobblestone streets with high buildings. It was very charming, if not excessively sweaty climbing all the stairs. Good thing there was beer at the top!

In the evening, we went for a really great traditional dinner and then to a flamenco show. Definitely one of the highlights of the trip for me. For some reason, the waiter did not seem to think we were capable of drinking 2L of sangria when we first placed our order. We proved him wrong.

We sampled churros with chocolate the next morning. This is apparently quite a traditional thing and honestly I could eat it every day for the rest of my life. Who doesn’t want to start their day with deep-fried dough and chocolate dip?

As we left Granada, we stopped at Alhambra Palace & Gardens. It was founded in 889 AD and mostly constructed in the 13th century. The gardens were stunning and were more impressive than anything I’ve seen before, including the gardens of the Taj Mahal. (#humblebrag2)

SEVILLE

It was a long walk from our AirBnB to the centre of Seville and it was about 35 degrees out, so we punctuated our stroll with frequent beer stops. This meant that we were feeling pretty good by the time we arrived at the Plaza de Espana. Some scenes from Game of Thrones were filmed here, so you could probably add our names to the credits now.

We then had the best seafood paella and sangria at a local restaurant! The paella was HUGE... and we ate all of it. No regrets.

Seville was one of the friendliest places I’ve ever been. When we went for breakfast the next morning, we went to a local cafe where literally nobody spoke any English. The manager seemed really excited that we were there and got us our own separate table. There was no menu, so we managed to communicate that he could bring us whatever he wanted. We got this awesome selection of incredible sandwiches and he checked to make sure we were happy with them. Everywhere we went, people were super eager to please and would joke around with us, despite the language barrier. I’d go back here in a second.

FARO

We crossed the border into Portugal after leaving Seville and made a pitstop at Praia de Faro. It’s a small island that’s basically just beautiful beach and little bars and restaurants. We had some great beach time and beers because it was a scorching 37 degrees. Dillon attained an even higher level of lobster.

Women on the beaches of Spain and Portugal often go topless... so when we asked a stranger to take a photo of the four of us on the beach, I realized afterwards that there was a mostly-naked lady in the background. Thank goodness for Photoshop; I made that disappear.

LISBON

People in Portugal speak better English than people in Spain. I only managed to learn two words in Portuguese: “cerveja” (beer) and “obrigada” (thank you). I got along with those pretty well :)

The metro system in Lisbon is super easy and efficient, so for the first time we took advantage of public transit and spared ourselves walking everywhere in the extreme heat

When we went out for dinner that evening, we discovered that boiled meats are pretty standard in Portuguese cuisine. This was not my favourite :( On the other hand, Portuguese custard tarts (pasteis de nata) are phenomenal.

We checked out the seaside and a couple of cool markets. We also took a walking tour here to learn more about the city. Our tour guide recommended a super cool bar underneath a church. There was some kind of street festival going on, so there were outdoor bars and decorations everywhere. We explored that and then ended at an outdoor cinema.

I had to get up at 4:30 the next morning to get an Uber to the airport. Note to self: next time I have an early flight, don’t have so many cervejas the night before. Lesson learned.

If you’ve made it this far, wow - you probably need a hobby! This trip was so much fun and so interesting; I really wanted to take the time to tell the story. If you haven’t been to Spain or Portugal, maybe I’ve convinced you to go. I couldn’t recommend it enough. I owe the biggest thank you to Dillon, Candice, and Bal for being my travel companions and for making me laugh a million times during the trip. What an amazing final experience before I head back to Canada in August :)

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