Fizzies a childhood favorite

Fizzies are a tablet that, when added to water, will create a soft drink.

Or if you want to create mischief you can put them in your mouth and pretend to be foaming at the mouth like we did as kids. Ah, childhood.

Fizzies are effervescent tablets that magically transform ordinary tap water into colorful, great-tasting soft drinks that are calorie-free and contain vitamin C — so they’re not just good; they’re good for you!
Best of all, Fizzies are bursting with fun. Impress your friends by dropping one of seven delicious Fizzies tablets into cold water and watching them fizz before their very eyes.

Buy Fizzies here.

In the motion picture National Lampoon's Animal House, Dean Wormer reads a list of pranks committed by members of the Delta House fraternity, which included dumping an entire truckload of Fizzies into a swimming pool during a meet.

Coming soon to the store will be a new shipment from German candy company Frigeo Brause. Brause are similar to fizzies but with a huge variety of formats. The pictured tablets are one, another is flavored powder in packets. To see more brause go to www.frigeo.de/

How to make Schnitzel at home? Use Knorr Schnitzel mixes

Wiener schnitzel (from German Wiener Schnitzel, meaning Viennese cutlet) is a traditional Austrian dish and popular part of Viennese and Austrian cuisine, consisting of a thin slice of veal coated in breadcrumbs and fried. In Austria the dish is traditionally served with a lemon slice, lingonberry jam and either potato salad or potatoes with parsley and butter. The dish may have originated in Milan, northern Italy, as cotoletta alla milanese, and may have appeared in Vienna during the 15th or 16th century. According to another theory, it was introduced by Field Marshal Radetzky, who spent much of his life in Milan, in 1857. The term "Wiener Schnitzel" itself dates to at least 1862.

Schnitzel (שניצל) or ktita (כתיתה) is a very popular food in Israeli cuisine. Schnitzel was brought to Israel by the way of Ashkenazi Jews coming from Europe. It is either made of a bread crumb and egg batter or spiced with paprika and then fried. The meat is often either chicken or turkey, in conformance with kosher laws, which do not allow pork to be used. It is usually served with French fries or rice, and ketchup or hummus are common condiments. Schnitzel in pita is a popular fusion dish unique to Israeli cuisine, and is often called the national dish[citation needed]. Many Israelis were of Viennese or German origin, but during the early years of the state, veal was unobtainable, and turkey proved an inexpensive and tasty substitute. Schnitzel is also a traditional Ashkenazi Jewish recipe and considered part of Jewish cuisine. 'Tiv'ol' was the first food company to produce a meat-like vegetarian schnitzel.

Sweden
Unlike in Austria, schnitzel is served with gravy. Some Swedish cookbooks claim that real Wiener schnitzel is decorated with ansjovis (tinned sprats cured in brine).

United States
The precise origins of Chicken Fried Steak are unclear but many sources attribute its development to German and Austrian immigrants to Texas in the nineteenth century. Chicken fried steak (also known as country fried steak) is a piece of beef steak (tenderized cubed steak) coated with seasoned flour and pan fried. It is associated with Southern U.S. cuisine and hospitality. Its name is likely due to the dish's similar preparation as with fried chicken, and it is typically served with white, cracked pepper gravy

Jägerschnitzel: "Hunter's schnitzel", served with dark mushroom sauce. (Jägerschnitzel may also refer to an eastern German variant made of Jagdwurst which originated in the GDR.)
Zigeunerschnitzel: "Gypsy schnitzel", served with a tomato sauce containing bell pepper and onion slices. A variation of this is called Red Pepper Schnitzel.
Rahmschnitzel: "Cream schnitzel", served with a sauce based on cream, often contains mushrooms.
Hamburger Schnitzel: "Hamburg-style schnitzel", topped with a fried egg.
Holsteiner Schnitzel: "Holstein-style schnitzel"; breaded; topped with a fried egg, anchovies, capers, and lemon slices.
Naturschnitzel: "Natural (i.e. unbreaded) schnitzel"; not breaded; sautéed; served with a simple sauce (e.g., pan drippings, to which sour cream may be added) or none at all.
Chicken schnitzel: Made of chicken, usually a cheaper alternative to others. Considered the poor man's schnitzel.
Turkey schnitzel: Made of fillet of turkey breast, very popular in Israel, often called the national dish.
Vegetarian schnitzel: Made of textured soy, tofu or seitan. The seasoning is in both the flavor of the meat as well as the breading so the consistency may differ slightly. In the UK the Tivall brand was (until late 2007) distributed nationwide through Tesco Supermarkets. Tivall Vegetarian Schnitzels are meat free, made with lightly seasoned, shaped and textured vegetable proteins, coated in light and crispy breadcrumbs. Although softer in texture the flavor is a close approximation to the meat based original.

Tonight I'm making a Bali curry using a Conimex spice paste

Tonight I'm making a Bali curry using a Conimex spice paste. I'm using chicken thighs, cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, leeks, and green cabbage. I've got the chicken going and the rice steaming. The veggies are chopped and will soon be steamed and tada mix it together - dinner is done. I always make a big dinner on Sunday so we have leftovers for a dinner or two during the week or a few lunches.
Ok this mix is over the top! The 10 year old loves in and everyone else does too! Another great 5 minute meal from Conimex.
The spices in this one are Coconut Milk, Chili peppers, vinegar, coriander, galanga, carrot, lemongrass, garlic and trassi (shrimp paste).
This kind of spice mix is such a help to me. Once you have Indonesian spices you will never want anything else. They are rich and complex and so much more flavorful than other Asian spices. I can see sadly why the world fought over the "Spice Islands".

I haven got a picture on the site of the Bali Spice paste but this Java one shows how the packaging looks.

Conimex has a fantastic line of spices click here for their English site

If you want to try and make a spice paste on your own the recipes at http://www.baliguide.com/ are really good.

Below is a basic spice paste from that site

INGREDIENTS:

300 gr large red chili halved, seeded and chopped

100 gr garlic, peeled and chopped

75 gr ginger, peeled and chopped

500 gr shallot, peeled and chopped

75 gr laos, peeled and chopped or 1tbsp dried laos

100 gr kencur root, peeled and chopped

175 gr fresh turmeric, peeled and chopped

2½ tbsp dried shrimp paste, roasted

2½ tbsp coriander seed crushed

75 gr candlenut

1¼ tbsp black pepper corn crushed

2½ pinch nutmeg, freshly grated

8 cloves

150 ml coconut oil

250ml water

¾ tbsp salt

PREPARATION: Combine all ingredients except water in food processor and grind coarsely. Place in heavy sauce pan, add all remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat for approximately 60 minutes or until all water is evaporated and marinade changes to golden color.
Cool before using.

How do I make Licorice Ice Cream?

Gillian Hirst October 16, 2007 12:00am

LICORICE, like marshmallow, has its origins in the roots of the plant of the same name. The roots of the licorice plant can grow up to one metre in length and in its natural form it is up to 50 times sweeter than sugar. The fact that it also contains bitter substances masks this intense sweetness. Licorice had an old English name of sweet root and the original Greek name glycorrhiza translates to just that. (see recipe below)

Licorice has had a long history as a medicine, and Haribo Pontefract cakes or Yorkshire Pennies were most likely created as a medicine before becoming popular as a sweetmeat. Most people would remember them from childhood as the little round licorice coins with an owl and a castle stamped into the sweet. Still produced in Pontefract, Yorkshire, these much loved sweets come from an area known for its growing and production of licorice. A die made for stamping the castle and owl image has been found with a date stamped in it for 1614, so they certainly go back a long way.

Before the creation of soft drinks it is known that children would soak a stick of licorice in water until it dissolved to make a sweet drink – something that today sounds quite revolting considering the huge range of drinks on offer. Today's recipe for licorice ice cream works on a similar idea, melting the licorice into a custard then churning it. Soft eating licorice that is readily available from most shops is the best to use. I cut it into quite small pieces as I like a lump-free ice cream and strain the custard to remove any bits that may not have dissolved. However, a friend was present when I last made it and remarked that she would prefer the little lumps left through the ice cream, so it's up to you.

If, like most people, you don't have an ice-cream machine, place the custard into a stainless-steel bowl, then fill a larger bowl with ice and sit the bowl with the ice cream in it into the ice. Whisk for as long as you can bear or until the ice cream starts to thicken. If it is simply too much work, then place the ice cream in the freezer and remove every hour to give a good whisk, then replace into the freezer. Make sure the ice cream is well covered once it reaches the desired thickness and consume within three days for it to be at its best. If you have an ice-cream machine just follow the manufacturer's instructions on churning.

LICORICE ICE CREAM

600ml cream

400ml milk

80g soft licorice cut into small pieces (Haribo Pontefract cakes or RJs soft eating)

8 egg yolks

300g sugar

Place the cream, milk and licorice into a pot and bring almost to the boil. Meanwhile whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until smooth. Pour the hot cream mixture into the egg mixture and mix well. Return the mixture to the pot and cook on a low heat stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the mix coats the back of the spoon. Do not allow to boil. Cool the mixture and churn as described at left.

Which is better a Crunchie or a Violet Crumble?

I have secured another Crunchie bar. Hopefully it will remain safe through the night.

Yea! It did! here is our comparison:

My first thoughts on the Violet Crumble are "ouch! my teeth!". Eating pure sugar will do that. And then I remember thinking that same thought very single time I have eaten one. ......I feel so smart....

The Violet Crumble bar is a crumbly honeycomb-like substance coated in compound chocolate. It is similar to the Crunchie made by Cadbury.

The slogan for the chocolate bar is "It's the way it shatters that matters" (replacing the previous slogan, "Nothing else matters").

I like the dry burnt sugar flavor but I can only taste a sliver at a time as it is so sweet. Cloyingly sweet. The chocolate was dull compared to the other bar.

The 10 year old liked them both but on further reflection decided the Crunchie tasted a lot better even though it was smaller.

Our other panelist thought the chocolate on the bars was very similar but the coating on the Crunchy was obviously thicker. He really liked the rich honey flavor in the Crunchie as he is a big fan of honey in general. He also commented that the term honeycomb best fit the Crunchie bar as the Violet Crumble was better described as a hard baked meringue and lacked the richness in flavors the Crunchie possessed.

It was hands down a unanimous Crunchie Victory!

During manufacturing of the Crunchie bar, the sponge toffee is produced in large slabs, and is cut up using a highly focused jet of oil. The use of a blade would lead to fragmentation, while the use of water would result in the sponge toffee melting. Oil prevents both of these scenarios and results in uniform sharp-edged portions. The sponge toffee is then covered with chocolate, cooled, and packaged.

Crunchie Ingredients: Milk chocolate with golden honeycombed centre. Milk chocolate [sugar, dried whole milk, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, dried whey, vegetable fat, emulsifiers (E442, E476), flavourings]. Centre (36%) [sugar, glucose syrup, flavouring]. May contain traces of nuts, egg and soy. Milk chocolate: Milk solids 14% minimum. Contains vegetable fats in addition to cocoa butter. Here is a Crunchie TV commercial.

I found some interesting palate similarities when comparing Marmite (UK made) and Vegemite (Aussie made) . I think that the collective palate in the UK must need stronger flavors. Very hot curries like Vindaloo curry are extremely popular there.

The popularity of the dish inspired the song Vindaloo, The unofficial anthem of the England football team for the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

I don't really know much about the food in OZ except for hand held pies. Tasty.

Marmite is very strong flavored compated to Vegemite. Both are suitable for vegetarians and are high B vitamin yeast extracts in thick sticky paste format. They both taste like beef. Weird. The Vegemite is much milder, like the Violet Crumble compared to the Crunchie.

Before I tried either I polled customers of what they tasted like and what the difference was between the two. The best answer I got (and sales reflect this to be true) was that if you were after Marmite and could only find Vegemite, you could use it in a pinch. But the opposite is NOT true because Marmite is so much stronger.

Personally I will eat Vegemite but the jar of Marmite we have is barely touched and is dated 2006 (still tastes the same as it did in 2004).

another Licorice is good for you factoid.

Buy from the largest selection of Licorice HERE



























These Klene coins are slightly salty but are what I consider a 'straight' licorice. They are earthy and a little bitter with slight salmiak ammonia taste. The texture is firm and is about an 8 of 10 in sticking to your teeth!


Diosciodes a famous herbalist and surgeon who traveled with Nero’s armies in the 1st century AD, found that Licorice could be used to treat wounds and skin disease


Thanks again RJ's for the Licorice fact!

What is the difference between a Crunchie and a Violet Crumble?

Tomorrows topic is going to be about these two chocolate covered honeycomb candy bars. It was going to be completed today but the violet crumble went missing at some point during the night.

When questioned the 10 year old said it was 'digested'. He could have at least eaten both and done the comparison!

He is working hard on his description of the Haribo sugar foam bananas which he really, really likes. He is trying to tell me it will take a third bag to finish. Right.

Bread and Chocolate

What is the difference between German and French Nutella?

Nutella®, in its original form, was first created in the 1940s by Mr. Pietro Ferrero, a pastry maker and founder of the Ferrero company. At the time, cocoa was in short supply because of rationing due to World War II, so chocolate was very limited. So Mr. Ferrero used hazelnuts, which are plentiful in the Piedmont region of Italy (northwest), to extend the chocolate supply.

Nutella is a modified form of gianduja. The exact recipe is a secret closely guarded by Ferrero. According to the product label, the main ingredients of Nutella are sugar and modified vegetable oils, followed far behind by hazelnut, cocoa and skimmed milk, comprising together at most 28% of the ingredients. The recipe for Nutella varies in different countries. In the case of Italy the formulation uses less sugar than the product sold in France. Nutella is marketed as "hazelnut cream" in many countries; it cannot be labeled as a chocolate cream under Italian law, as it does not meet minimum cocoa concentration criteria.

Tom's Danish Milk Chocolate Thins for Bread

These are super thin, so thin that if you hold it for 5 seconds it will start to melt!

Tom's Danish Dark Chocolate Thins for Bread or Chocolate Sandwiches

Because of this super thinness they make great gooey smores!

Sarotti German Thin Dark Chocolate for Sandwiches

These thins are not really that thin. They are actually about 1/4 inch thick so if you make a smore with these it is the same consistency as using a Hershey bar, but the chocolate tastes better and it's already graham cracker sized. So no waste, although how anyone can think extra chocolate is a waste is beyond me!

Dutch Dark Chocolate Spread for Bread, no nuts added Nusco

Because it has no nuts the consistancy is very unlike nutella. It is shinier to look at and is more gooey since there is no protien to bind it. It is also stickier.. kind of like stiff finger paint. It is made with dark not milk chocolate.

Norwegain Chocolate Spread for Bread, no nuts

This is very similar to the Dutch Nusco.

At our house none of these are turned away. We use them for the most part to make Peanut Butter and Chocolate sandwiches. Yum!

RJ's Soft Eating Black Licorice from New Zealand

RJ's soft eating licorice is a huge hit in our town. It is one of those items that once you try becomes your favorite. The softness in the description is no joke. Not as soft as a marshmallow but close, a firmer mallow. It is not a sticky licorice so it will not stick to your teeth. An advantage if you have teeth 'issues' but a disadvantage if you like those bits stuck there 'for later'.

RJ's is one of the few varieties that make flavored licorice that I deem fit to carry. The raspberry variety has real licorice extract in it so it does qualify as being a 'real' licorice it just has extra flavors added. As a rule I refuse to pump up the numbers by adding colored products that call themselves licorice when they are really just flavored, artificially colored paste sticks.

Licorice and chocolate are a great flavor combination. RJ's makes an interesting variation on this theme. Think of a pencil that is about an inch in diameter. Inside this lovely soft log is a 1/4 inch chocolate 'lead'. Ingenious! The chocolate is so thick that it has snap when you bite it :) We have this chocolate log in both black and raspberry.

What a way to go. Next week I am getting in a new version of the log, it is a dark chocolate 'lead' and a -get this- orange licorice covering it. I am actually not that hip on the chocolate and fruit combination. Well to be honest, I'm just not really into fruit. But I am intrigued by this since so many other people love fruit & chocolate and I'd like to add another type to the mix.

The other chocolate and licorice I have follow: Roly Polys - a very thick covering of milk chocolate covers black marble sized licorice.

Raspberry bullets, cute packaging- they look like they are shooting up at you to land gently in your mouth so you can chew the explosive taste up.

Licorice Facts courtesy of RJ's

Licorice is also Called: Liquorice, Yashtimadhu, Mithi-lakdi, Mulathi, Sweetwood, Licorice root
Biological Name: Glycyzrrhiza glabra
LeguminosaeKnown as the ‘Blue Flowering Snow Pea’

Plant Parts used: Dried Root

Did you know:

Licorice is a traditional herbal remedy with an ancient history and world wide usage Nearly two-thirds of all traditional formulas in Chinese Medicine contain Licorice. Another reason to drink licorice tea or China Cola.

Kong Haakon

This is the first time I have bought a box of Kong Haakon and while tough to review mixed chocolates, I thought it would be nice to describe the flavors so that someone interested in this box would have a good idea of what they are getting for themselves or a gift recipient.

First of all, you just can't compare this to the average box of chocolates. It's a big one for sure, but each chocolate is high quality and just the right size. (Unless you are me and just eat them all.)

There are 16 different varieties and several have marzipan and/or liquor flavor which is quite pleasing. The centerpiece is the Dyten (Cognac Marzipan) which is a treasure. I love marzipan and dark chocolate, and throw in cognac? Heck, I couldn't ask for anything more!

The Likor Troffel (Liquor Truffle) is a delicate, lighter truffle with a hint of liquor flavor and does not pack the wallop of some of the others in the box.

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The Marador (Crispy Nougat) is a creamy milk chocolate with a light crispy nougat finish. This is one the kids will enjoy, and keep them out of the ones you really like!

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Mandelsplitter (Roasted Almonds) is also a milk chocolate nut-filled truffle. It is very smooth with a great nut flavor.

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Orangemarsipan (Orange Marzipan) is the classic marzipan flavor with orange peel wrapped in delicious milk chocolate. It reminds me quite a bit of the taste of Cointreau. The Mocca (Nougat with Coffee) has a great taste and a very nice long finish. My mouth was watering 5 minutes after tasting that one.

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Eggedosis (Egg Liquor) is something I have never understood. I guess it comes down to me not really knowing what egg liquor is. It doesn't taste like liquor at all to me, but the chocolate is good quality and the overall taste is mild and sweet. I know that egg liquor is popular among Scandinavians and found in many chocolates from the region as well as the EU.

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The Rom-rosin (Rum Raisin) is delicious and just what you would expect from high quality mixed chocolates. I have always liked this combination and this is a good example of it. The Punsj (Marzipan with Punch) is a nice marzipan and chocolate treat and since I love marzipan, this is among my favorites.

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The Lucullus (Cherry and Liquor) is indeed the best of the bunch in my opinion, but that is based on a magnetic attraction between my taste buds and anything with dark chocolate, cherry, and liquor. I could eat these all day.

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Also included in this amazing array are several other delightful chocolates, but at this time, I cannot possibly taste another.

More good health news for Licorice!!

" Scientists at the UCLA school of dentistry have developed a
sugarfree lollipop infused with licorice extract that they claim can help prevent tooth decay. They use a licorice root extract that destroys the bacteria responsible for cavities. Importantly, the extract does not kill the other bacteria in the mouth necessary for good oral health. The lollipop was chosen as the ideal vessel for the ingredient, as consumers generally suck the product slowly, which keeps the licorice extract in the mouth for longer. Flavored with orange extract to add more taste appeal, the lollipop's are currently being sold to dentists in Japan and Europe to test on patients at high risk for tooth decay"
Food trends-
Denise Shoukas

I am pretty excited about this news! Although I don't think these lolly's will be available for awhile (I'm on that!) there are allot of sugar free licorice items already on the market Lakerol from Sweden, Ga-jol from Denmark and de Bron from Holland just to name a few.

For the purist there is sweet wood which is the licorice root itself. You can't get more sugar free than that! Licorice tea is great too, it has such a light delicate woodsy licorice taste.

Check out the other health attributes of the pictured de Bron licorice:
• Low Carbs • 30% Less Calories • Sugar Free • Kind to Teeth • Gluten Free • Gelatine Free • Colour Free • Nuts Free • Lactose Free • Milk protein Free • Fat Free • Low Saturated Fat • Soya Free • Sodium Free

Black Licorice is good for you!

Daily Tips from Dlife an e-newsletter from a Diabetes Life
Forget Twizzlers® and the like found in this country, genuine licorice is an entirely different thing. Most licorice candy is flavored with anise oil these days, unless you shop for licorice made in places like Holland and Finland. When you find the real thing, it is made with licorice extract (from the Glycyrrhiza glabra plant), albeit a small amount. Why would we talk about a sugary candy on a web site for people with diabetes?

Licorice root and extract has been used since ancient times for all manner of illnesses. Recent research shows that it is rich in antioxidants with strong anti-inflammatory properties. Chronic, microscopic inflammation has been found to be involved in several conditions, such as arthritis, heart disease, and cancer.

If you are someone who can have a sweet treat now and then, think about switching from jelly beans or gummies to real, soft licorice (you can order it over the Internet). Of course, don't overdo it –– it’s still candy. A better option for you might be licorice tea.

Licorice Haiku of the day

After stumbling around for a interesting haiku blog I've decided to add an element of food fun to the blog in the form of haiku. What do you think of this one?

Licorice Haiku 1Salmiakki

tastes of seawater and earth

tastebuds smiling again

Well it makes my tastebuds smile. My husband said the taste makes his toenails fall out. Hmm, I have to rethink his status. He may be banned.

Licorice Haiku 2

Black, Brown and tan

Salty, Chewy or Sweet

Licorice is not red

I think that after a bit of practice I will get better at this.