Designing a Multi Tiered Cake
Cakes are great for any celebration or occasion whether it’s a wedding, birthday, graduation, a job promotion, and the list goes on. A multi tiered cake is an assembly of more than one cake on top of each other, so that there are tiers of cake. The cake tiers can be directly placed on top of each other or be tiered using trays and pillars.
You can create multi tiered cakes on your own at home, or you could get them created by a professional who specializes in cakes. Multi tiered cakes are more difficult to make than regular cakes, however, even a novice to the art can manage if you have a good set of guidelines and instructions to follow and you follow them carefully.
Whether you plan on creating a multi tiered cake at home or getting a professional to do it, there are many options in term of possible designs. If a professional is going to create the cake, discuss with them what your expectations are in terms of design. For example, if the cake is for a party with a specific theme, you could try to incorporate the theme into the cake’s design by using a novelty cake tin. However, you could even choose a cake design that you just like, as there are no rules. There are many sources from which you could get ideas, including magazines and of course, the Internet. Cake design is an art so you can get creative, especially is the cake creator is a professional or someone who has lots of experience.
For making the cake at home, think about the design, but try to stick to a simpler design, especially if you don’t have much experience. For example, it is a good idea to start with a 2 tier cake stand if this is going to be your first multi tiered cake. Also, if the cake is to be transported, transport the layers separately and assemble it at the destination. The cost of multi tiered cakes vary greatly depending on the cake and its design.
Cooking with an Electric Oven
If you are a cooking rookie looking to explore the world of culinary arts, learning to use the oven is the best place to start. Before you go thinking there is no technique necessary to oven cooking, you should think again. Using an oven might be simple in theory, but it takes a lot of hard work and preparation to pull off some of your favourite recipes. So before you grab a slab of meat and just throw it in to cook, here are some handy tips to keep in mind to make sure you get the best tasting food possible.
While it might be tempting to just “wing it” with your electric oven, you should always look for a time-tested recipe to start with. There is a reason why many recipes are so specific and precise, it’s because you need to have every ingredient in check to get the right product. With experience you can learn to improvise a bit, especially when you have the luxury of time that comes with using a halogen oven, but you should stick to the basics when it’s your first time out.
Make sure that your oven is preheated properly and double check that you have the temperature and cooking time right. And when your food is cooking inside, you can use that time to your advantage to prepare other aspects of the meal, or even make desert. What you never want to do is constantly open the oven door to see how your dish is doing. This will only serve to let all the heat out of the oven and result in an uneven product that certainly won’t meet your expectations. When the meat is finally done, make sure to put on your oven mitts and gently take it out. Let it sit on the counter for about ten minutes so that the juices have an opportunity to redistribute. Patience is a key component to oven cooking, and your restraint will pay off in a delicious roast. And when that knife sinks in and all those juices run out, you’ll see the excitement in your family’s eyes while they enjoy the results of your great oven cooking.
Advantages of a Microwave Convection Oven
The problem that many people have with traditional microwave ovens is that they have a tendency of drying out the outer layers of food, without heating the inside. Convection microwave ovens, on the other hand, remedy this problem by having the ability to preheat, so that they can cook food thoroughly, while still being able to crisp food like normal microwave ovens.
One particular advantage of a microwave convection oven is that it cooks food more rapidly than a traditional convection oven. This is because it combines convection cooking of traditional ovens with the radiation cooking of traditional microwave ovens. This feature allows **convection microwave ovens to bake food that microwave ovens normally would ruin; cakes and other breads, for instance, can be cooked to perfection.
Another advantage of modern convection microwave ovens is that many manufacturers have begun to include quartz halogen light bulbs in the ovens, which heat the food with infrared radiation. This heats the food even more quickly, cutting down cook times, and browns the surface of the food evenly. This gives the food the crisp, cooked taste of food cooked in a traditional oven, and not the soggy, steamed taste of normal microwave food.
Best of all, while convection microwave ovens were originally far more expensive than traditional microwave ovens; their price has decreased so that they are generally the same price as normal microwave ovens. These convection microwave ovens usually have the option, however, of turning off the convection feature, meaning that they can be used as both regular microwave ovens and as convection microwave ovens; they are good as a two for one.
Convection microwave ovens are clearly superior to traditional microwave ovens. They have more features for the same price, and cook food more thoroughly and with more power than normal microwave ovens, without the disadvantages of traditional microwave ovens. Anyone who is considering purchasing a new microwave oven, or who is looking for a faster way of cooking should absolutely purchase a microwave convection oven.
What can an Angel Juicer do for your family that other juicers can’t?
Filed under: Healthy Eating, Kitchen Appliances, Simplify Life
If you have a family you have probably thought about getting a juicer. It’s not easy to get healthy food into your family these days and that’s why a juicer can really come in handy. But what is the best juicer?
There is a juicer on the market that is surprising to hear about. The Angel Juicer or Super Angel Juicer. All stainless steel, twin gear masticating fruit, vegetable, wheatgrass and seed juicer, and the price! Phew! Many people on seeing the price get scared and run off to Target to buy themselves a plain old Breville juicer. And that’s understandable, but what else needs to be understood is that the Angel Juicer does a whole lot more than just juice your average orange and apple. This is the juicer of all juicers, which can not only juice apples, oranges, carrots, potatoes (yep potato juice is both safe to drink and has many health benefits!!), celery, wheatgrass, pine needles (another surprise – these are in fact extremely high in vitamin C and are very good for you in small amounts), and all the other regular foods you would expect to juice in a juicer, it will also do:
- seeds (it will extract the seed oil from seeds, making it the only juicer in the world to effectively do this in your own home)
- it will remove 95% of the pesticide residue from fruits’ and vegetables’ surfaces by its unique mechanism of juicing
- it will unlock the nutrients found in the actual cellulose fibres of vegetables
- it is super quiet to run and will never wake up the dog/baby/shift worker/parrot/kids with its superior quiet operation – try saying that about a centrifugal juicer – nuh-uh!!
- it is a super easy to clean juicer, as there are no sieves or fiddly parts to get a brush into – all stainless steel parts do not rust or discolor and are cleaned with regular washing or dishwashing
- you can make soy bean juice and tofu with this machine
- you can grind soaked grains, coffee beans, soaked pulses/beans, and nuts to make porridge grits, coffee grounds, bean dips, and nut butters
- simple operating means small kids can help you and older kids can use the machine themselves
As you can see, this juicer has the potential to replace a huge lot of work and appliances in your kitchen, thus making it a very wise investment. Because the Angel Juicer is also under patent and is continually produced without being upgraded with silly unnecessary features all the time (it has all the features it could possibly have already!), in the supremely unlikely event that a part breaks, you will easily be able to get a replacement, under it’s excellent 5-year warranty.
Is the Angel Juicer the best juicer? Well, you have to decide for yourself… but it is definitely an asset to your kitchen, as an Angel Juicer will boost you and your family’s health, look great in your kitchen setting, and save you money when you can now make all of these wonderful drinks and foods from the comfort of your own home. What do you think?
Food Processors: Handy Help in the Kitchen
Filed under: Kitchen Appliances, Kitchen Tools, Simplify Life
Food processors are very useful in the kitchen, as they can grind, chop, blend and mince food items for you, instead of you having to do it with a knife or grinder. A food processor can even help you use your creativity in the kitchen, and help you whip up delicious and healthy meals quickly and easily. Many new moms use food processors to make baby food such as the Kidco baby food processor.
A food processor is similar to a blender, except that its blades and disks are not permanently attached to it. They can be interchanged or replaced, depending on what kind of function you need the processor to p perform. In addition, food processors do not require the addition of liquids to function, and their containers are wider and shorter.
The food processor was introduced in America in the 1970s and has since increased in popularity in America’s kitchens. Pierre Verdun is the brainchild behind the food processor. He created the food processor to make common kitchen tasks easier to perform. His invention is now considered as a basic household item in many modern households.
Food processors are popular because of their usefulness and functionality. Besides chopping and slicing food, they can also be used for making juice, smoothies, and coffee. The Vita-Mix Food Processor, a brand known for its reliability and exceptional functionality, for example, is capable of chopping harder and coarser food items such as garlic. It can even chop up six ice cubes in seconds, thanks to its powerful motor.
Another popular brand of food processor is Toastmaster. Toastmaster food processors perform well and come with cutting blades that are sharp enough to chop raw and cooked meat. In addition, these processors are very easy to clean. The combined features of Toastmaster food processors have made it a top choice for consumers.
KitchenAid also manufactures powerful and durable food processors which can process up to twelve cups of ingredients at one time. It has a powerful motor, and is capable of processing large amounts of food items at a time. Kitchenaid is considered one of the most popular brands of heavy-duty food processors. If you need something really powerful commercial use food processors are also available.
Sourdough Starter Made Simple
Filed under: Cooking, Easy Recipes, Healthy Eating, Save Money, Simplify Life
There is nothing to compare to the tangy taste and chewy texture of sourdough bread. Buying a loaf of it in the grocery store will set you back $3-$6 depending on the brand. You can make that some bread at home — it’s simple. Making sourdough bread from scratch takes time and some patience, but it is easy.
First, in case you don’t know, sourdough bread uses wild yeast instead of store bought yeast to make the bread rise. The sourdough starter captures and feeds the wild yeast. It takes longer to rise since the wild yeast isn’t as vigorous as store bought, on the other hand the long fermentation allows the bread to really develop that unique taste and texture.
We start with the starter. To make a good and strong sourdough starter, we start with two simple ingredients — flour and water. You put 4 ounces of each in a bowl. Here’s the catch — that’s ounces as in weight, not ounces as in volume. Water is heavier than flour so 4 ounces of water is like a half of cup, maybe and 4 ounces of flour is over a cup full. The sour (the sourdough starter) needs lots of food, so you need lots of flour. You mix the two ingredients, cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for two days. After that you’ll need a kitchen scale to help you with the feeding the sour. (Once you have the hang of the look and feel of the right amount of water and flour to sour, you can fore go the scale, but it is handy for all bread making, so spend the $25 if you don’t have one.) To feed the sour use 1 part sour (it will take over your kitchen if you don’t discard some of it), 2 parts water and 3 parts flour. So, for instance, you decide to use 4 ounces of sour. That means you need 8 ounces of water and 12 ounces of flour. That is a lot, by the way. You will find that you get tired of swirling sourdough starter down your drain and quickly shift to 1 ounce of sour to 2 ounces of water to 3 ounces of flour.
You have to feed it every day, or store it in the fridge for use on the weekends. You can easily store the sour in the fridge for three weeks without worry. To make bread on the weekend, take the sour out on Thursday night. Leave it to sit and warm to room temperature until Friday evening. Feed it like usual. Saturday evening you’ll be ready to bake!
What kind of sourdough bread to make is the next question. There are tons of recipes out there, so experiment and see which one you like and find easy. The best sourdough recipes call for overnight, in the refrigerator, fermentation. This allows the bread ample time to rise and ferment and develop the distinctive flavor and texture. There are some shortcut sourdough recipes out there that use yeast in addition to the sourdough starter. These are fine, but you will lose almost all of the sour taste. It still makes lovely bread that tastes good, but it is nowhere near real sourdough bread.
Why The Microwave Oven Is The Best Kitchen Appliance
When you first used a microwave oven, then you would right that instance know that you will always need one from that moment on. A microwave oven is so versatile that you can cook a lot of different foods with just a push of the button. Well, you will have to set the time and the power level but at least almost everything else has been simplified.
But perhaps among the best thing that you can get from it is that there are so many styles and designs of a microwave oven that you can easily find one that matches your taste and your kitchen’s looks. Take for example a red microwave oven. Now that is something you do not see everyday and that only the homeowners who have strong personality and disposition would usually buy such an appliance. And although the color might be adventurous and different from the norm, its functionality stays the same.
1. It’s for quick heating.
That is what the microwave oven is all about. Quick heating equals to quick food. Especially if you are always in a hurry or you just want a meal instantly, a microwave oven is the best kitchen appliance for the job.
2. All the operations are simple and easy to understand.
You set the timer and the temperature settings and you’re all set. It can’t get any simpler than that. You just set it and forget it. You can go open the television, set your plate and by the time you’re done, so is the microwave.
3. It’s small and fits all kitchens.
Well almost, especially if we are talking about red microwave ovens because that kind of appliance usually needs to be matched with an appropriately designed and painted kitchen. But still it is one of the most convenient appliances ever designed. Convenient to use and to place in any corner of the room.
Do You Need A Food Strainer, A Colander, Or Both?
When shopping for the stuff to fill up your kitchen it’s easy to get confused by tools and gadgets that look like they do the same thing. This is especially true when it comes to the food strainer and colander. They do similar things, but one of them is very limited in what it can do beyond that. This post is going to help you clear the two up by showing what each does, and the major advantages that one of them provides.
A colander is generally a metal bowl that has large perforations and a stand that allows it to stand on its own. These are what you need when you want to drain water from pasta, potatoes, and soaked beans. They also work great for rinsing vegetables, lettuce especially. Unfortunately, this is pretty much the end of the list of what a colander does! If this is all you need it for, this is your tool.
A food strainer, on the other hand, does all of this stuff and much more. Strainers generally don’t have a stand and have to be held onto while working with them. Also, they are made with mesh or much smaller perforations than the colander. Some are even conical rather than bowl shaped.
So what do they do differently? They make juice, thin soup, and separate pulp from liquid for delicate sauces. Any fruit or veggie can be juice in a strainer as long as it’s small enough (naturally or chopped). All you need to do is put it in the strainer then press it down with the back of a large spoon. To give your sauces a more thinner consistency, just dump them into the strainer and allow it to cath all of the thick stuff, while the liquid passes out the other side.
As you can see, one tool is limited in its scope, whereas the other does the same stuff but a heck of a lot more! You’re the only one that can decide which you need, but if you plan on growing your cooking skills, it’s a good idea to have a food strainer so you don’t have to go shopping twice!
To learn more about the different styles of strainers, visit foodstrainer.net.