FIND THE MIDDLE GROUND

What's your favorite treat? Come on now ? If you could eat your way out of a room filled with one kind of food, what would it be? Cake? Potato Chips? Chocolate? Cheese? Ice cream? When you know that you can never have just one potato chip, it's tempting to swear off that food forever.. Especially now that you're focused on improving your health, diet, and physique. But as many of us have found out from experience, labeling Something as "forbidden" makes it all the more appealing!

A critical step in renouncing the destructive, all-or-nothing mind-set Is knowing how to walk the line between self-denial and self-indulgence. It is the middle ground that offers the best foundation on which to build your new life. Denying yourself little pleasures such as an Occasional glass of wine or a chocolate truffle will only make you feel deprived, frustrated, and ultimately hopeless about maintaining your discipline. A temptation is a lot less powerful if it isn't totally forbidden. This is where moderation comes in.

There is room for all foods, no matter how "bad" they are; it's just a matter of being conscious and careful of how often and how much. It's fine to have a piece of cake now and then, just not every day, and not the whole cake.

The Associated Press

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LEARN HOW TO USE OVEN CORRECTLY

Ovens come in many shapes and sizes. Here we will focus only on convection ovens. Earlier, they used to come tin a round, lightweight variety, with a glass window. Simple equipment, but very effective. Some companies still make this model and even the best recipes can be made in it.
Modern Kitchens use sleek, square OTGs (Oven-Toaster-Griller) operated on electricity. You can bake a cake, toast sandwiches, or grill kebabs with the press of a button. There are instructions manuals and recipe booklets that come along with the oven. Do make it a point to read them thoroughly. There are gas ranges that have flame burners on the top and large oven at the bottom. These too are effective as electric ovens, ensure to read the manual and learn about the gas marks.
Baking : When baking cakes, cookies, breads or pies, ensure that the oven is preheated to the correct temperature as the recipe demands. It is the simplest rule for getting perfect results. When baking, use the setting that gives both top and bottom heat.
Toasting : To make pizzas, open sandwiches or simple toast, use the setting for top heat. Place pizzas on the tray and toast on the wire rack.
Grilling : To make kebabs in the grill, use the skewers provided and the basting tray to catch all the drips. Use the setting that gives top heat and remember to baste the kebabs regularly and rotate them.
Reheating : Ovens are great for reheating samosas, patties or stale bread. Use the setting as for baking.
Safety Tips :• Use the oven only for its intended use.• Never heat water in the oven. Never try to cook a whole egg.• Never use an oven to heat a room• Never leave a working oven unattended especially if there are children around.• Never use an oven to store things. If it is switched on accidentally, there could be a major disaster.• Keep the are surrounding the oven clean. Keep it free of bags, towels, drapes, crockery and other equipments.• Use of oven mitts is highly recommended to handle the hot baking dishes.

By Sanjeev Kapoor. Sourced from the asian Age 4th aug, 2007

How to make whipped cream

If you're serving a pie for dessert over the holidays, it's going to look naked without whipped cream. You could go the spray-can route, but for a better-tasting alternative, whip up your own. Here's how:

# Before you begin: Make sure the cream is very cold; if you have time, chill the whisk (or beaters) and bowl in the freezer for about 15 minutes. This will help the cream whip quickly and will increase its volume.

# Adding flavor: If you plan to use any flavorings, such as extracts, liqueurs or spices, add them with the sugar in Step 2 (below).

# A sweet substitution: You can replace granulated sugar with an equal measure of confectioners' sugar.

SWEETENED WHIP CREAM

Makes: 2 cups

1. In a deep mixing bowl, beat 1 cup heavy cream until soft peaks form. If you use an electric mixer, beat on medium speed; do not overbeat (or the cream will turn buttery).

2. Sprinkle 1 to 2 tablespoons granulated sugar over the cream. Beat until soft peaks return.

-- Adapted from the Holiday 2007 issue of Martha Stewart's Everyday Food

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