| Staff Of Life Morning and Evening Cooking Classes |
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Basics Of Healthy Cooking, Principles Of Balance and Vegetarian Cooking Techniques.
Discover how easy it is to prepare food that tastes delicious and is good for you, as we focus on the three headings above. You'll find out how to prepare non-dairy dishes, whole grain and pasta dishes, high-protein beans, calcium-rich greens, salads, dressings, and sugar and dairy-free deserts. Learn to use basic cooking techniques such as steaming, baking, sautéing and stir-frying. You'll also practice knife skills and learn time saving steps for meal preparation as well as how to organize your kitchen. We'll carefully guide you through these principles which you will be able to use for a lifetime of delicious cooking and eating. Most classes consists of preparing and tasting a full meal.
If you are ready to make some healthful changes in your diet and don't know where to begin, these are the classes for you! Discover a variety of health-supportive foods in addition to the previous listings, such as sea-vegetables, fruits, oils, vegetables, natural sweeteners, and more. You'll find out why we use them and how to gradually incorporate them into your eating habits. We'll discuss the ABC's of menu planning, which foods to have on hand, and how to create nutritional balanced meals.
We will try to introduce you to an entirely new way of thinking about food, and give you the tools to help make some sense out of the many different types of dietary advice that you may hear or have heard. You will learn basic principles of nutrition and the science of creating balance.
Check Calendar Events for time and location of weekly classes community events as well as cost.
Don't forget to check out the schedule for the Gourmet Cooking School!
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ORANGE GLAZED BLUEBERRY SCONES
2 CUPS BREAD FLOUR, PLUS MORE FOR ROLLING BERRIES
1 TABLESPOON BAKING POWDER
1 TEASPOON SEA SALT
1/3 CUP FRUCTOSE SUGAR
¾ CUP SOY BUTTERMILKE *SEE NOTE
5 TABLESPOON COLD SOY BUTTER
1 PINT FRESH BLUEBERRIES
ORANGE GLAZE
2 TABLSPOON SOY MARGARINE
2 CUPS POWDERED FRUCTOSE, SIFTED
2 ORANGES, (JUICE OF AND ZEST)
PREHEAT OVEN TO 400 DEGREES F.
In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder (featherweight or rumford without aluminum), salt and sugar, mix thoroughly. Cut in soy butter using 2 forks or a pastry blender. The soy butter pieces should be coated with flour and resembles crumbs.
*Soy Buttermilk: ¾ cup soy milk, one tablespoon lemon juice or enough to curd.
In another bowl, mix soy buttermilk and then add to the flour mixture. Mix just to incorporate, do not overwork the dough.
Roll blueberries in flour to coat. This will help prevent the fruit from sinking to the bottom of the scones when baked. Fold the blueberries into batter, being careful not to bruise. Drop large tablespoons of batter on an un-greased cookie sheet or flatten on floured counter top like pizza dough and cut into 8 sections and place on cookie sheet. Be careful not to over work dough while shaping.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until brown. Cool before applying orange glaze.
ORANGE GLAZE:
Combine margarine, sugar, juice of oranges and zest in a saucepan. Cook until butter and sugar are melted and mixture has thickened. Remove from heat and beat until smooth and slightly cool. Drizzle or brush on top of scones and let glaze get hazy and hardened. Enjoy and share them with a friend!
Note: If oranges are not sweet as should be, you may use one tablespoon of frozen orange juice, added to juice of fresh orange.
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RECIPE OF THE MONTH
(SEE PICTURE RIGHT OF SCREEN)
Blackened Tofu with Bell Pepper Relish
Makes 6 servings. Prep. Time 30min
One pound of Tofu
drained and cut lengthwise
into ¼” thick slices
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
Relish
3 medium bell pepper, finely chopped
(one each red, yellow and green)
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ teaspoons olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- Line baking sheet with 2 layers paper towels. Arrange tofu slices on towels. Cover with another double layer paper towels and weight down with cutting board or another baking sheet. Let drain for 10 minutes.
- In shallow bowl, mix flour and all herbs and seasonings. Season to taste with sea salt and cayenne pepper or you can use spike seasoning in their place. Coat both sides of tofu slices in flour or flour mixture. Shake off excess.
- Place oven on broil. Coat baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray; Place tofu on baking sheet. Broil until blacken or you may fry in cooking oil until dark brown. Remove from skillet. If using oven. Put oven on 350 degrees F. and replace tofu back in oven for 15 minutes.
- Make relish. In medium bowl, combine all relish ingredients and mix well. Season to taste with sea salt and cayenne pepper. Serve blackened tofu slices with pepper relish alongside.
If you’ve made tofu every way imaginable, here is a Cajun twist we bet you haven’t tried. It’s easy to make and the presentation is eye-catching.
Meal Plan: Complete the meal with steamed collard greens and basmati brown rice.
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TEMPTING TOFU
Soybean are perhaps the most potent ingredient we have in our arsenal of healing foods. Recent studies show that compounds found exclusively in them (called isoflavones) can lower cholesterol levels, balance hormones, activate toxin-destroying enzymes and play a critical role in preventing many forms of cancer. How can you take advantage of the unique properties of this wonderpod? It’s easy: just integrate it into your daily diet in its most versatile form, tofu.
Tofu is made by separating soy milk into curds and whey (a thin, clean, light-amber-colored liquid), pressing the curds together, cutting the resulting soy cheese into blocks and packing them into the whey or water.
Tofu is the most popular soy food in the United States today, with hundreds of producers. It can be found in the produce section of most supermarkets as well as in natural food stores. While tofu is usually sold fresh in Asian markets, you can also find it in dried, fried, fermented and aged forms. The latter variety is more like an aged dairy cheese with a strong flavor.
The amount of whey pressed out of the soymilk curds during the tofu-making process is what ultimately determines its texture. Soft tofu (some-times called Japanese-style tofu) has a custardy consistency, which is great for making dips, dressings, custards, puddings or any dish with a soft texture. Firm tofu has a medium density and is the best type to use when making tofu salads, cheesecakes and scrambled tofu. Extra- firm tofu is dense, holds sliced or cubed shapes well and is ideal for cutlets and stir-fried dishes.
The market for ready-made tofu products is big, and it’s only getting bigger. You can buy several different types of baked and marinated tofu or tofu that’s been seasoned with Chinese five-spice powder or French herbs. These varieties can be eaten straight from the container or cooked with other ingredients. Tofu mayonnaise is a creamy condiment that spreads and tastes like egg mayonnaise but has 50 percent less fat. Tofu salad dressings are available as a more healthful alternative to creamy, dairy-based salad dressings.
If you’re a “from-scratch” kind of cook, you will enjoy the above recipe that make excellent use of firm or extra-firm tofu. Soft tofu can also be used in this dish. The above dishe showcase its remarkable versatility.
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