Archive for March, 2009
Many people have no idea where chocolate originated, if you asked some they might say Hershey, Pennsylvania! In actuality the confection that is adored by millions of people all over the globe comes from the Amazon region of South America and Central America where it was found my the Mayans and then was spread through the rest of America coming through Mexico and the Aztec Empire. Like many other things, the Aztecs attributed the existence of the Cacao plant to their god, Quetzalcoatl.
We don’t think anything of it when we eat chocolate but to the Aztecs Cacao beans existed as food for the gods, literally. These beans were valued so highly by their culture that they were used as money for a time. The way modern chocolate came into being is from when the conquistadors came to America and then brought it back to Europe with them in the 1500s. This is when the dark confection was introduced to the Western World.
The chocolate we know of now exploded in popularity in the 1900s in the United States. Before this time only the wealthy and affluent could afford chocolate because it was so expensive. As a chocolate lover myself I know that I am grateful to Milton Hershey for making it affordable for everyone through delicious creations like the chocolate bar and kisses. The way he accomplished this is by taking after the Swiss milk chocolate making process and combining it with the recipe he came up with which brought the United States into the world of chocolate lovers.
In the U.S. medical doctors have been touting the benefits of the dark variety of chocolate because research seems to indicate that the darker the chocolate is the higher it is in antioxidants. Milk chocolate remains more popular because it tastes much better, the darker chocolate has a higher percentage of cacao which makes it more bitter, like baking chocolate.
I can almost guarantee you that somewhere in your home that you will have something that contains cocoa somewhere. I love the taste of Haagen Daz, especially in any form of chocolate. They have even come out with a special Mayan version of chocolate that will give you a little insight on how the taste may have been back in their day.
No you should see why we really owe the ancient Mayans and Aztecs a great debt of gratitude for bringing chocolate to the world. If it hadn’t been for them you would have never had that chocolate bar you are munching on.
By: Gregg Hall
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Growing plants for food may require much more skill and knowledge as compared to that of regular gardening. After all, when you are growing vegetables, you are trying to nourish your plants to be able to produce nutritious and healthy products. When pursuing this goal, you’ll surely want to avoid compromising quality when it comes to food you plan to use. If you are new to this whole concept, here are the most basic things that you have to know.
Soil Preparation
Preparing your soil for planting is very vital because this provides the foundation of where your plants will grow. Take note that your soil is responsible for providing proper irrigation as well as nutrients to your plants, and choosing a healthy type of soil is very important.
Apart from choosing the right soil, it would also be helpful for you to add on some improvements to make it even healthier. By adding natural fertilizers, like aged manure, peat moss and even compost, you can make your soil richer and healthier with nutrients for your plants to absorb.
The soil pH is another thing that you must control. The ideal pH level where vegetables tend to grow the best is around 7.0. If your soil doesn’t have the right pH, then your plants may whither. Add lime if your soil is too acidic and gypsum if it is too alkaline.
Irrigation And Fertilization
Watering and fertilizing are also very essential steps to growing healthy vegetables. It is important that you take note of the right ways to do these things, or else you might not get the results that you want.
Make sure that you water your plants to a depth of at least an inch every week. This allows proper irrigation and will help prevent vegetables from drying up. And as for fertilizing, it is best to do this once every two weeks, with a balanced fertilizer.
Monitoring For Pests
Do not forget how important it is to monitor your plants for pests. After all, you certainly would not want your vegetables to be destroyed by worms or insects, as this could place a grave risk for you when you try to eat this food. You could end up with rotten food and acquire any number of diseases.
You can make use of row covers for young seedlings in order to protect them from insects as well as harsh elements. But make sure that you remove these covers once your vegetables start to blossom so that you may allow pollination to occur.
However, if your problems with pests have gone out of control, then you may need to use pesticides. As much as possible, organic controls like pyrethrum and rotenone are best and safest to use.
Harvesting
Lastly, you may not realize this at first, but harvesting is very crucial in growing vegetables because this can affect the quality of the products that you collect and how your next batch grows.
Remember not to wait too long when harvesting because your vegetables might turn bitter and tough. Harvest while the produce is still young. In this way, you can allow them to ripen beautifully while in storage and the chances for spoilage is greatly decreased.
Growing vegetables can certainly be very different from just merely taking care of regular flowering plants. After all, you are not only after the aesthetic or environmental value of these particular plants, but you are after their nutritional advantages. Gardening for food requires a lot of skill and knowledge, but just remember that all you have to do to succeed is follow the right and healthy way of gardening in order to collect healthy food as well.
By: Steve C Boulden
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A restaurant’s equipment is one of its important investments. That is why you have to take care of them and observe proper maintenance and checkups. There are lots of measures that you can do in order to preserve their value and maintain its good condition. Here are some preventive maintenance tips that you can follow to ensure that your restaurant equipment will last far longer.
Commercial ovens are one of the most common equipment that your restaurant should have. These can be deck ovens, countertop ovens, conveyor ovens, convection ovens, char-broilers, and barbecue roaster ovens. These ovens should be maintained by wiping out spills from the oven cavity daily. Failure to do this can form rust and corrosion to the oven cavity as well as increase the possibility of fire hazards.
Walk-in coolers and freezers are restaurant equipment used to provide longevity to your food and maintain their freshness. To ensure utmost efficiency, you have to keep the doors closed when they are not in use. If the doors are left open for a long period, there will be ice build-ups on the evaporator coils and these can cause various cooling problems.
Steam tables and warmer wells require the immersion of the heating element in water at all times. It is important that the water level in the well should never drop to a level where the immersed element will be exposed because this can cause early signs of failure. These heating elements should always be kept clean and free from mineral build-up in order to prolong the life of your restaurant equipment.
These are just some of the most common restaurant equipment that you can have for your business venture and their corresponding maintenance measures. There is still a lot to be included in the list such as air conditioning, heating system, and ice machines. Just like the ones mentioned above, these should also be maintained regularly to ensure their efficiency.
By: Kristy Annely
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