It’s usually pretty obvious if a food item is healthy. An apple or a sprig of iceberg lettuce: healthy. A double bacon cheeseburger: not so much. What isn’t so obvious, however, is if a food is exceptionally healthy.
These foods have become known as “superfoods”–nutrient-dense edibles that many doctors and nutritionists believe help prevent diseases. Examples of superfoods include spirulina, spinach and salmon. And joining the ranks of superfoods are items you wouldn’t necessarily think of as healthy at all. In some cases, these foods have gotten a bad rap for far too long. Read more…
1- Raw Chocolate - Read why
2- Buckwheat Honey - Read why
3- Avocados - Read why
4- Pumpkin - Read why
5- Black Tea - Read why
6- Eggs - Read why
7- Cinnamon - Read why
8- Tomato Paste - Read why
9- Frozen Blueberries - Read why
10- Wasabi - Read why
According to Lauren Sherman
According to the New York Times:
ITALY’S Agriculture Ministry announced this month that some wines that receive the government’s quality assurance label may now be sold in boxes. That’s right, Italian wine is going green, and for some connoisseurs, the sky might as well be falling.
But the sky isn’t falling. Wine in a box makes sense environmentally and economically. Indeed, vintners in the United States would be wise to embrace the trend that is slowly gaining acceptance worldwide.
I have to be honest: I’m always on the lookout for a yummy new cocktail (but who isn’t, honestly?) And that task can seem even more daunting that usual in New York, if not just because of the sheer volume of bars located in the city. Check out this list of New York’s finest cocktails, which are affordable (i.e.: not a $10,000 martini) and use the best ingredients to get their signature taste:
Bemelmans
35 E 76th St
New York, NY 10021Brandy Library
25 N Moore St
New York, NY 10013Angel’s Share
8 Stuyvesant St
New York, NY 10003Flatiron Lounge
31 W 19th St
New York, NY 10011Employees Only
510 Hudson St
New York, NY 10014East Side Company Bar
49 Essex St
New York, NY 10002Little Branch
20 7th Ave S
New York, NY 10014Milk and Honey
134 Eldridge St
New York, NY 10002Pegu Club
77 W Houston St
New York, NY 10012
According to MSN Lifestyle:
Plated desserts usually consist of one main item with a garnish and a sauce. The offering can be as simple or as technically complicated as the chef’s imagination and discretion allow. Lovers of grand cuisine know that creating a great dessert requires professional technique, precision, drama, and, on certain occasions, decadent presentation skills. A major culinary shift away from the pastry cart toward the individual plated dessert began in Europe during the late 1980’s. Star restaurateurs in Europe knew this would be an opportunity to allow their pastry chefs to make individual presentations, reaching a wider customer base, and even drawing traffic to their locations. The following plated desserts are offerings from some of the finest pastry chefs in New York City.
From Le Cirque:
From Union Square Cafe:
Panna Cotta with Greenmarket Berries, 25-year Balsamic and Pistachio Cookie
Summer Stone Fruit with Honeyed Goat CheeseFrom Lever House Restaurant Bar:
Strawberry Shortcake Black Pepper Pound Cake
Black Raspberry ConsommeFrom Gordon Ramsay at the London:
Lychee parfait with Granny Smith apple gelée, cider caramel and fennel pollen
From Le Bernardin:
Panna Cotta, Rose Sorbet, Raspberry Pearls Candied Cocoa Bean
Banana-Lime Cream, Dark Chocolate
Sweet Chèvre Parfait, Fig “Cylinder”, Bacon Ice Cream, Red Wine Caramel, Hazelnuts
If it were me, I’d skip the biking…
According to CNN:
MONTLUCON, France (CNN) — Every year more than 200 professional cyclists set off on the epic Tour de France, some preparing for this brutal and astounding journey by embarking on various programs of extreme workouts, strict diet and intense focus. Plus huge quantities of drugs.
This year, I thought it might be fun to have a go myself, but rather than trying to score thigh-swelling pharmaceuticals from dingy backstreet bikeshops — or riskier still, trying to do some exercise — I decided I would train by ingesting a substance that, though largely untested in the field of sports science, is one I am all too familiar with: Cheese.
Who said going out for dinner had to be boring? Throughout the world, there are various theme restaurants that bring a little excitement into the mundane. Some of them are just plain weird, while others are politically incorrect. Check out this list of the world strangest theme restaurants:
Buns and Guns - Beirut, Lebanon
Cannabalistic Sushi – Tokyo, Japan
Cabbages and Condoms - Bangkok, Thailand
Modern Toilet - Taipei, Taiwan
Hitler’s Cross - Mumbai, India
Maid Cafes - Tokyo, Japan
Pitch-Black Restaurant - Beijing, China
Graveyard Restaurant - Ahmadabad, India
Death Themed Restaurant - Truskavets, Ukraine
The Hellfire Club – Manchester, UK
Vampire Café - Tokyo, Japan
Hobbit House – Manila, Phillipines
Robot-Staffed Restaurant – Nuremburg, Germany
Mao-Era Red Guards Restaurant – Nanning, China
Christon Café – Tokyo, Japan
Forbes has compiled a list of the hardest-drinking cities in the US, and Austin Texas is at the top. They chalk its high ranking up to the fact that some big schools are located there. They also kind of make a big deal out of drunken debauchery as a bad thing, but if anything I think a high ranking might improve tourism…
Check out the details, and the whole list…
Now, I don’t necessarily consider myself a wine drinker, but I’m definitely not a beer drinker. That’s why this guide is pretty handy. If you’re having a “Beer and cheese” party for your beer-connoisseur friends, check out these pairings - compiled by MSN Lifestyle - for a sure-fire hit:
Cheeses
Mild creamy cheeses – try a Wheat Beer
Mature cheddars – try an India Pale Ale
Roquefort or Stilton – go with an Imperial StoutSalads
With vinaigrettes – try a Belgian Brown Ale
With creamy dressings – try a Wheat BeerSpicy foods
Thai – try a Wheat Beer or an American Pale Ale
Noodle dishes – try a crisp refreshing LagerSeafood
Delicate fish – select pale beers such as Pilsners and Kolsch
Fish & Chips – nothing beats an English Pale AleRed meat
Beef and Game – select darker beers such as a full bodied Ales
Pizza or pasta – look for a malty, Amber AleDessert
Dark Chocolate – a Belgian framboise is a must
Check out the details about proper glassware and how to serve your beer…
Check out these gi-normous foods. The article is called, “The World’s Freakiest Foods,” but there’s nothing freaky about a doughnut that took 40 people nine hours to construct. That’s just plain awesome. Other entries include a giant hoagie in Mexico City, a wheel of cheese bigger than a person, an 8-tonne ice cream cake, and a cookie that measured almost 10 feet across.
According to Wired:
In the 20,000 years or so that humans have been getting piss-drunk, no spirit has earned a worse rap than absinthe. Said to turn mild-mannered imbibers into raving maniacs, it was banned in the US and much of Europe in the early 1900s. (Remember Van Gogh’s ear incident? Some scholars blame the green fairy.) The chemical culprit was thujone, a toxic compound found in the crushed flowers and leaves of absinthe’s key ingredient, wormwood. Or so we thought.
