Appetizer!

I am nearing the final stages of my planning process. Hurray!
I am now starting to plan the first course of my meal: the appetizer.
I will be incorporating all the information that I've gathered in the previous entries, to help me choose which food I should cook for the course.

I must include:
Low carb (carbs come in not only starchy breads, but fine sugars as well)
No Peanuts
A balance of the meals, so as one course is not too heavy
A salty/sweet option

I would argue that the appetizer is the most important course in the entire meal, because it gives my guest their first impression of the meal. They will immediately form an opinion on the flavor once the food hits their tongue.
This means I must make a spectacular, yet light first course for my meal.
As a recap, my appetizer must be light because if the stomach of my guest is full immediately after the first course, the rest of the meal will not be as appealing.

I will give myself three options to choose from for my final appetizer ideas.

Option #1:

Melon and prosciutto

Pros:                                                    Cons:
Salty sweet aspect                                 High salt content (prosciutto)
(prosciutto salty, melon sweet)              high fat prosciutto
Melon low fat                                        high calorie
low-carb
Low number of ingredients
easy-make

Ingredients:
3 Cups cubed melon
1 pound deli prosciutto



Option #2:

Cranberry Walnut Spinach Salad with homemade raspberry vinaigrette 

Pros:                                                        Cons:
salty/sweet aspect                                     High fat content
range of daily vitamins                             High carb content
high fiber                                                  high calorie content
                                                                 many ingredients
                                                                 complex-make





Ingredients:














Option #3:
Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil

Pros:                                                        Cons:

easy-make                                                 many ingredients

range of daily vitamins                             High carb content

low # ingredients                                      high calorie content

low fat content                                          no salty-sweet combination

                                                               

                     

Comparing the pros and cons for each option, I have decided to choose the third option as my appetizer. 

The option is a high source in vitamin C from the tomatoes,  giving an average of 6% of the daily needed amount. 

Although the amount of carbohydrates is high, running on an average of 24g per serving, I will be sure to include a low-carb main course to balance out the meal. 

The dish is simple to make, and I have had previous experience making it before, so I know that I am comfortable serving the dish to my guests.
I must make no however, that although the tomatoes are slightly sweet, this course does not offer a prominent salty/sweet combination.
I won't panic, this just means that in one of the other courses, I must choose to incorporate this aspect.

On my next post, I will be deciding which main course I will choose! 

Ciao,

Kate xx                                   

Nutrition!

As promised, this is the nutritional part of my meal planning.
This is one of the most important parts of the meal, because of various health factors involved, along with meeting my guests' needs in the meal, taking into account problems such as diabetes or lactose intolerance.
In order to meet these needs, I must first choose my guests!
I've decided to host 5 guests including myself.
I think this is a reasonable amount of people to cook for, without being too small a number or two big a number.
I've listed (below) the people going, and what possible health problems may be involved.

Myself: No restrictions

Guest 1: Preferably low-carb

Guest 2: No peanuts

Given that these restrictions are simple, they will not be hard to incorporate into my meal plan.

The no-peanuts is self-explanitory, which simply means I need to leave peanuts out of my dish.
I must also be wary of products put into a recipe that were made near or around peanuts.
A label to watch out for, to be especially careful that peanut products don't mix in with my meal, would look something like this (below)

This would be an acceptable label of a product I could use in my meal, however if under the 'factory' section if it stating something like 'may contain nuts', then I should not use that product.
I would not wish to put one of my dinner guests at risk of negative health affects.

A low-carb dinner is beneficial for the dinner guest because a late hour of the meal along with a high carb meal can lead to weight gain.
I do not want my guest worrying about weight gain whilst eating one of my courses, but to simply enjoy and savor the food.

How do carbohydrates cause weight gain?

This statement must be checked first. Most people fear carbs, because the body burns carbohydrates first because carbs are a main source of energy for the body. If carbs are not present, the body will start burning fat.
This is common knowledge about carbs.
There are, however, two different types of carbs; complex and simple.
Simple carbs are generally made up of sugars, and appear in refined sugars and processed breads. The Sugars from the carbs build up in the bloodstream because the insulin levels get too high to store the sugars. Insulin removes glucose blood and stores it in various muscles and the liver, however if the glucose levels are too high, the insulin reaches a point where it cannot contain the insulin. The excess glucose stores itself in other areas of the body and becomes fat cells. The simple carbs have such a high insulin level, that the 'storage' for insulin runs out very quickly, and starts storing the fat. I want to try and avoid too many other these simple carbs, so my guest who requested low-carb meal isn't preoccupied in worrying about her weight during the meal.





I was considering asian cuisine for my main course of the meal, due to abundance of flavors, natural ingredients, and nutritious elements.

There is however, a major health difference between various asian meals.

A high-carb asian dish called Pad Thai may be delicious, however is extremely high in carbs.
Most online recipe's come with nutrition facts. You must look under the carbohydrates section, as highlighted below.

Someone reading the label may not realize exactly how many carbohydrates that really is. The daily intake An average woman should consume somewhere between 180-200 carbohydrates a day. In just one course of the meal if fed Pad Thai, these would take up around 1/3 of the total number of carbohydrates required for the day. The dish contains noodles, causing the number of carbs to stack up. Due to the late hour that dinner normally takes place, the body has less time to burn off the stored carbs, causing weight gain.
Again, I do no wish my dinner guests to be worried about how terribly unhealthy the meal is, but to incorporate fresh, light, yet filling ingredients throughout my meal.

An example of a light asian dish ideal for my meal, would be a Panang Curry. It is a favorite of mine, and I would love making this recipe. A typical Panang curry nutrition facts would look like this (below).

As you can see, the carb level is significantly lower than the carb-filled Pad Thai dish.
The ingredients are light, containing fresh peppers, lime leaves, and other natural ingredients. Light protein from the chicken, and coconut milk make the meal filling and satisfying, without the excess carbs.

The no-peanut, and low-carb restrictions must be incorporated into all aspects of my meal, including the dessert and appetizer.

The carbs can easily stack up when using the processed fine sugars in a dessert, so I must find a recipe with the same lower-carb options as my main course.

Again, the same rules apply for my appetizer, low-carb, no peanut meals must be served, however the low amount of restrictions will leave me plenty of options for dishes to make.

Keeping in mind no peanuts, low carbs, and sweet/salty,
Next time... I will be deciding what appetizer to make!

Ciao,
Kate xx

Heavy vs. Light foods

As I promised, I've done some research on heavy and light foods.
This makes a huge difference in my menu choices, because it affects how the dinner guests feel after the meal is over.
I'm sure you've had that feeling of regret when you're just finished eating a big, greasy burger.
This is how I don't want to make my guests feel after they are finished with my meal.
I want them to feel satisfied, yet not regret a bit of what they ate.
In order to do this, I needed to do some research, to find out what kinds of foods will make my meal heavy, and light.
Since I am doing 3 courses in my meal, I will need to limit the amount of food in each course, so my guests aren't full after simply the first course.

So what is a heavy food?
A heavy food is a type of food that could be rich in carbs or starches such as a baked potato or lasagna
Heavy foods also typically have a high fat content, or contain thick sauces or heavy in sugar.

Heavy foods are usually extremely dense, which gives you that full feeling so quickly!
Okay so now you get what ingredients cause that feeling but... what happens in the stomach as a result of those foods, that make you feel full.

Well it's all about brain signals. Anybody could keep eating until their stomach literally bursts, but since we have special mechanisms to signal the brain, we are able to tell when we are full.

The stomach is able to expand, so when it's full, it takes up more room in your body than when its empty. Once stretched out, attached stretched nerves send signals up to the brain that the stomach is stretched out, and you should stop eating. When you've eaten enough, hormones travel from your gastrointestinal tract (including stomach, small and large intestines) to the brain. There are certain foods that expand and fill up the stomach more quickly, and these are the foods that I should stay away from in creating my meal, because i'm doing 3 courses total in the meal.

Gastrointestinal Tracct

Highly dense foods fill up the stomach more quickly. Why is this?
Well, the stomach starches from glycogen. Starchy foods such as potatoes, breads, and pastas contain lots of starch. The starches as stored and used as energy, and are made up of two kinds of sugar molecules called amylopectin, and amylose.
Amylose are chemical chains of glucose, and high-amylose foods (listed above), are also generally low-glycemic. This means that they take more time to digest in the body, making you feel more full after eating them.


Well,
Let me give you an example... chocolate.

Chocolate, although delectable, is very highly dense, so amounts in my meal will need to be limited. I would only use chocolate in my dessert, but I need to keep in mind that my dinner guests will have just had 2 other courses of food in their stomach.
Since chocolate is so filling, I will need to have other components of the dessert to be lighter, to balance out the meal. This means I should not add too much sugar, fattening elements, or fatty cremes so as not to make the dessert too 'heavy'.

For my main course,
Major ingredient options would be cheeses, and breads.
I especially want to avoid this in the main course of my meal, because it is right in between my two courses. My guest will still be (potentially) hungry from the light appetizer, but the main course cannot be too heavy, or the person will not have room in their stomach for dessert.

I need to structure my main course off of avoiding these highly dense foods.
Likewise, I need to structure my dessert ideas based off of avoiding the dense, or highly rich foods.

You can probably easily guess the light foods.
Remember, those are the ones that you're not usually fully satisfied after?

These are foods like various vegetables like carrots, lettuce, cauliflower, peppers etc.
These foods are not as filling as the starch-filled heavy foods, but they are equally important in any meal. They give that vital sense of balance, so my dinner guest is not filled up immediately following the appetizer.

For a main course, a light, yet filling ingredient would be some sort of light meat incorporated into the dish. This could range from a fish, to chicken. I could incorporate this into my dish, to add that sense of balance to the dish.

For an appetizer, a soup or salad would be entirely appropriate, and is used at most if not all restaraunts, simply due to the light, satisfying elements.

I must keep that in mind when shortly, I must decide my final dishes for the 3 course meal!

The heavy and light foods have various elements of nutrition, that I must keep in mind when choosing my final dishes, bearing in mind the possible accomidations a dinner guest may need with the final menu (i.e. lactose free, nut allergies, etc.)

Next blog, I will be procuring various nutrition elements I will add to my menu.

Ciao!

Kate xx

The perfect meal!

Hello everyone!
So today, i've been thinking about how I can create the perfect meal.
I recalled that people (including myself) tend to like a mix of sweet/salty foods. Such as the classic peanut butter and jelly, or salty taffy.

People all over the cooking world are loving the combination of sweet and salty flavors.

When confronted with the question,

 Do Sweet and Salty Treats Do "It" for You?

These were just a few of the many responses from people who love this combination of flavors on their taste buds:

especially when chocolate is involved. I've found myself more likely to eat chocolate bars with nuts as a result, too.

—Guest eric

I put a good amount in both my peanut butter balls and their coating. My favorite, however is candy corn and salted peanuts. It's awsome.

—Guest Julie

I love chocolate covered pretzels and sugared peanuts. Moroccan cuisine also combines sweet and salty (and spicy) in meat and fruit dishes - yummy!

—Guest moroccanfood

Well, i'm wanting to incorporate that aspect into some portion of my meal, whether it be the appetizer, main course, or dessert.
To be able to make a delectable dish, I wanted to do a bit of research behind why that is that people tend to gravitate towards these tasty treats. I've found there to be no concrete answer to this, however there is quite a solid theory that I read about.

This theory is quite a simple answer, receptors. Confused? Let me explain.

Our tongues each of different channels for each type of flavor such as sour, sweet, salty, and bitter. We each have little taste detecting cells. When a sweet flavor enters one of these, it essentially senses and tells your brain that you're eating something sweet, by stimulating the "taste-detecting" cells on their outermost parts. These two parts can't work without one another. You need something sweet, and the sweet receptors to tell the brain that you are eating something sweet. These cells are embedded into our taste buds on the tongue. Around 25 percent of the cells detect sweet foods, whereas the rest respond to sour/salty foods. Salty foods are detected similarly to that of sweet cells. Immediately following when salt hits the tongue, it dissolves into our saliva, and changes membrane potential in our taste cells, resulting into triggering the brain that you have just tasted something salty.

How does this relate to delicious treats?
Well, a strong theory is that when salt is present with the our sweet-detecting cells, then the triggering to our brain happens more quickly, because of the increased amount of sodium ions near the apical membrane (where the taste cell to brain signal takes place).
This is a fancy way of saying if a slight bit of salt is added, then it will taste better to some people!

Now that i've added some science behind why this tastes good.... why don't I add something salty/sweet to my menu!

I've thought of three ideas that I could use.

For Appetizer:

Melon with thinly sliced prosciutto 

For the main course:

Thai coconut curry

For dessert:
Salty toffee bark

I was looking at these sweet/salty ideas... and came up with a new idea.
I was thinking... if sweet and salty foods are so beautifully combined to create a great taste, then i could add this aspect to each course of the meal!

This would certainly turn the meal from average, into spectacular!
Since the majority of people enjoy the sweet and salty combination, i'm not worried about having one of my dinner guests who doesn't enjoy these flavors.

I realize now that I will come up with 2 more options for each course, so that I can be sure I am creating the perfectly balanced meal.

Various factors come into play when creating the perfect meal such as having a balance between heavy/light foods, as well as having nutritional food to serve to my guests. Before I choose my courses for my meal, I will be exploring the value of nutrition in a meal, and the science behind heavy/light types of foods.

This research will enable me to pick the perfect blend of foods, to create the perfect overall meal for my guests. Next time, I will be explaining and researching heavy vs. light types of foods.


Ciao for now!

Kate xx

First Post!

Hello this is Kate (Katherine) Grable.
My school assigned to me an extended project, on any given topic that fit their criterion. 
This will be my first entry for my personal project assigned. Before deciding what I wanted to do, I tried getting advice from the upper grades who had already experienced the excruciatingly elongated project, and the number one bit of advice i'd received from them was to pick something I enjoyed doing.
 Unfortunately... I forgot to use this advice when picking my project. I came up with combining a song with photography and creating the music video, so I wrote that down as my outline for my project. I had been deliberating for a while whether this idea was something I was really interested in doing after remembering the advice given to me, so I decided to change my idea. 
I have always been a food lover... likely from my french/italian heritage. I've entertained the idea of being a chef since I can remember, and i've always immensely enjoyed cooking for my family in the past. 
I've decided to use this love for cooking, to research and create the 'perfect' '3 course meal. 
This blog will guide you through essentially my every thought-process and researching when deciding what to make.
At the very end of all my researching and the meal, then I will videotape each person that i've invited to the meal, to give a structured review of the meal. 
As a clarification, I would define a 'perfect' meal as being completely from scratch, using no frozen/processed foods, having flavors that blend very well together, and lastly a meal with balanced nutrition. I will be incorporating all these aspects into one, to create a so-called 'perfect' meal. I decided to include one component into my meal that would add a uniqueness to the meal. I will research this component, and then incorporate it into one of my courses. 
I've decided that my component will be including a sweet/salty foods into one of my courses. 
I will explain later how this component works, and I will do extensive research on the component. 

I want to use my ability and love for cooking, to bring joy to other people. So let's begin!