Tuesday, December 21, 2010

The Home WineMaker's

So - you have decided that you want to try your hand at making some wine. This article will describe the basic steps and some of the pitfalls to avoid to make sure your first batch turns out good enough to drink.
First things first - how much do you want to make? tinyurl.com/2vhfr29
I recommend at least 5 gallons. Why? Because beginning home wine makers just cannot wait to taste what they have made. In addition, 5 gallons is only 25 bottles. So you'll get the batch finished, and then you will try a bottle or 2 or 3. Then you'll wait a week and try a few more bottles. Sooner than later, it will all be gone before it has a chance to age and get really good.
If you just want to do something quick and simple, you could do a gallon in a plastic milk jug. The drawback is, once you have tasted it a few times - it's all gone and you'll have to start over.
With 5 gallons - you just might be tempted to let a few of the remaining bottles age. Believe it or not, the biggest mistake beginning winemakers make is not letting their wine age in the bottle. The difference in taste is, to put it mildly, AMAZING.
The next step is to decide which type of juice you want to ferment. Grape juice, cranberry juice, muscadine, and cherry are all good starter choices. The first 3 should produce a rather normal tasting wine while cherries usually will give you a sweeter wine. Of course, you can always add sugar to sweeten your wine after it is stabilized and has stopped fermenting.
The next step is to completely sterilize all of the containers and equipment you will be using. Some people use extremely hot water, others recommend using a sanitizer. I like the sanitizer because you do not have to scald yourself with the hot water. The sanitizing solution should be poured over everything and should make contact with all surfaces. Then you just rinse everything off with hot water.
Put your juice in your 5 gallon bucket - that's the next step. BUT - it's not time to put your yeast in yet.
We first want to sterilize our "must" or our juice. You can do this with 4 Campden Tablets. These are sulfite tablets that will get rid of any type of bacteria that could be present in the juice. Crush the tablets and then dissolve them in some warm water and then pour them in your juice or "must". Let this sit overnight while the sulfites do their work.
24 hours later, you are ready to sprinkle in or "pitch" your yeast.
The type of yeast you decide to use is really a question that is beyond the scope of this article. However, I'll say that there are hundreds of different yeast strains for literally thousands of different uses. For our first batch, we can just use the bakers yeast that you can easily find at the grocery store. Later, and after some research, you will probably want to use one of the specialized strains.
Now - wait 7 days and watch. you will want to cover your bucket with a cloth towel or even put on a lid with an airlock in place. The wine will be perfectly safe during the fermentation stage because it will give off lots of Carbon Dioxide. The Co2 will protect your wine from the oxygen in the air.
Once the 7 days has passed, siphon off the wine from the bucket into another bucket or into a glass "carboy". These can be found online or at your local wineshop. When you are doing the siphoning, you will want to get as little of the gunk on the bottom of the bucket as possible. This gunk is called "lees" and is made up of dead yeast. Wine that sits on top of the dead yeast sometimes can develop an "off" flavor.
Once your wine has been transferred into what is called your "secondary fermenter", then you will want to put an airlock in place and just let it sit for about a month. There's a song about this part - "The Waiting is the Hardest Part". It's true. Every budding home winemaker just cannot wait to taste the stuff - but - don't do it. It surely won't hurt you but during this month it is still fermenting. The wine isn't finished yet. Be Patient.
After the month is up, you will want to transfer it back to your bucket, again making sure that you leave the gunk on the bottom. The process of transferring the wine from one vessel to another is called "racking". Why? That's something I am going to research for another article.
You are just about there. Theres only one thing left to do and that is to add a "stablizer" to your wine. A stabilizer inhibits yeast reproduction. In essence, it stops yeast from doing it's thing. Part of what happens during yeast growth and reproduction is that it releases Co2 gas. If that is happening after you bottle the wine, you will get popped corks or exploded bottles or both. So - put in the stabilizer, stir the wine well, and then return it to your Secondary Carboy fermentation vessel. Be sure and clean out the secondary and sterilize it before you do.
Now, all you have to do at this point is wait until the wine clears. Gravity is your friend here. Of course, it won't hurt a bit to bottle cloudy wine. But if you wait another month, it should be crystal clear. The clearing process is another subject that you can find a great deal of information on in other guides and books and I suggest you read up on this subject when you get a chance.
Bottling time! All you have to do is make sure your bottles are clean and sanitized and just siphon the wine into the bottles. Corking the bottles can be a little difficult and i highly recommend you get some king of corker. Again, these are available online or at your local wine shop.
Now - BE PATIENT and let the wine sit in the bottle for 6 to 9 months. The longer the wine ages, the better it will taste - I guarantee it. Happy winemaking!

Monday, December 20, 2010

Christmas Cupcakes Ideas



A cupcake also known as fairy cake; patty cake or cup cake is a small cake designed to serve one person, frequently baked in a small, thin paper or aluminum cup. As with larger cakes, frosting and other cake decorations, such as sprinkles, are common on cupcakes.




Carrot Cake Cupcake Recipe 

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3 cups finely shredded carrots (a food processor is great for this)

1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line cupcake pans with paper liners if desired.
Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Mix at low speed for 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly while mixing.  Mix at high speed for 3 minutes, scraping bowl every minute.

Pour batter into cupcake liners until they are 1/2 to 2/3 full.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool 10 minutes in pans then move to wire rack to cool completely.
These Carrot Cake Cupcakes are especially good with a cream cheese frosting.

Cupcake Tip:

This cupcake recipe is great for baby showers or wedding showers.  Decorate each cupcake with baby trinkets or wedding trinkets.

 MORE RECIPES FROM THE LINK BELOW :



 Easy CupCakes Recipes


 


 

Monday, December 6, 2010

Christmas Gift Idea

In this festive Christmas mood everyone wondering the best ever Christmas gift or present to give to their kids, spouse, family members and friends. Thinking what to give what to buy or ever wonder how to make your own Homemade Christmas Gift??? 







Sunday, December 5, 2010

Recipes for Beauty Products


We all want to look our best and beauty products help us to look and feel the best. But often it happens that we don't have time to visit a salon or we always cannot afford buying expensive beauty products. Homemade beauty products help in this case. You only need to know the recipes for preparing these beauty products; you are all set to use them according to your convenience.

Today, the market is flooded with a wide range of beauty products - starting from hair to toe - we get beauty products for each and every part of our body. However, homemade products have their own specialties, as you get the pure and chemical free products to use, means less harm on your skin as well as hair.

Beauty Products For Your Hair

Here are some quick recipes for taking care of your hair. The ingredients are easily available; you will perhaps find all of them in your kitchen.

Hair Conditioner: Beat one egg yolk and mix a cup of plain yoghurt into it. Rub this mixture before washing your hair and wait for 30-45 minutes. Rinse well and finally wash it.

Hairspray: Take a lemon and cut it into 4 pieces. Place them in a pot with 2 cups of water. Boil it until the water becomes half. Cool, strain and keep it in a spray bottle. Keep this spray in refrigerator to use it for a long time. If you find the spray is sticky, you can add a little more water into it.

Hair Color: Coffee gives a warmer glow to brown hair. Brew a cup of coffee and cool it completely. Then strain it and rub it in your hair. Leave it for 20 minutes and then rinse it out.

Beauty Products For Your Face


Face masks can moisturize your face skin and make it glow with beauty. Here are some recipes for preparing facemasks.

Citrus fruit mask: Take 1-tablespoon of honey and 2 tablespoons of orange juice. Mix them with 1 apple puree with ½ teaspoon sage. Mix all the ingredients well and then heat the mixture for few minutes in microwave. Apply this pack evenly on your face and keep for 20 minutes. Then wash clean with a warm washcloth. This mask is suitable for all skin types.

Cucumber mask: Take ½ cucumber, 1 egg white, ½ teaspoon of lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon of apple mint, and make a mixture of these ingredients using a food processor or a blender. Keep this mixture in a refrigerator for 10 minutes. Then apply it on your face and keep it for 20-25 minutes. Rinse off with hot washcloth and then rinse with cool water. This mask is very good for oily skin.

Other Beauty Products

Recipes for teeth whitening product: Take 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and 1 teaspoon of salt. Make a paste and apply this on the yellowish tint. Take the inner white part of orange skin and rub your teeth with it. This will help you get a lovely white shine.

Recipes for home made perfume: Place cheesecloth in a bowl and fill with 1 cup of flower blossoms of your choice (Lavender, Lilac, or any highly fragrant flower). Pour water over the flowers until they are completely covered. Cover the bowl and keep it overnight. Next day, take out the water by pulling the edges of the cheesecloth and gently squeeze the scented water into a small pot. Simmer the water until one-tablespoon amount is left. Cool and place it in a bottle. You can keep this perfume for 1 month.

You don't need to use costly beauty products to maintain your beauty. You can achieve professional results following the recipes for beauty products and using these products.


Friday, December 3, 2010

Christmas Candy

Kids Love To Cook. Make Homemade Candy With Them.



A skill that we seem to be losing in our society is cooking. Proper homemade cooking, the type grandma used to do. Homemade cooking should be taught to all kids, and it's up to you as a parent to do so. And start your kids with homemade candy.

If you start teaching your kids to cook something they don't like they probably won't develop a love of cooking. But if you start the kids out cooking homemade cakes or homemade candy you can just about guarantee that the kids will love it, and want to do more.

Last night I did some great cooking with my kids who are 8 and 11, and I can't still see their faces as they licked out the bowl. Kids love cooking something that is easy to cook and yummy to eat. Homemade candy is both easy to cook and yummy to eat.

And once they learn to cook some they'll graduate from candy to bigger things, and they'll have a skill for life.

There's some basic things to remember. And it applies whether they're cooking candy or anything else. Allow plenty of time and expect a mess. That's normal, and part of the learning to cook process for kids. Start them on a simple recipe and start them on simple steps from that recipe, so the hard ones yourself.

And of course you've got to keep them away from heat, so avoid candy, for example, that requires a syrup. Syrup is heated to a high temperature so kids shouldn't be stirring it, for example. No syrup burns.

There's some wonderful simple homemade candy recipes to begin with. I already mentioned syrup. I've suggest keeping away from making any candy that starts with a syrup to begin with. Many candies need a syrup, and getting the temperature right can be tricky, and a little boring for kids. So start with some simple candy recipes first. Pralines and truffles would be a good start.

But when you've got the kids confident at their cooking they can try so many different candy recipes. I just love toffee, especially the chewy type of toffee, how about truffles, or nougat. Yumm.

Now I'm hungry, got to cook some candy.

But seriously, homemade candy making is a fine way to get the kids to learn, and enjoy, the art of cooking. They're making something they will be guaranteed to love to eat, and they're learning one of life's essential skills.

So get out there and find some hot homemade candy recipes, there's thousands, including lots on my website. It's cheaper to make your own candy and it makes great candy. Get the kids involved, in the future they'll thank you for it.



More Information:



Find some great Homemade Candy Recipes? Visit Peter's Website Homemade Candy Ideas and find a great Homemade Candy Recipe and get the kids cooking candy.



Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Christmas Mood

Hello December......Christmas is coming soon the greatest season...Best time of the year, the happiest time in the world that everybody love and waiting for...How blessed is this wonderful holiday season














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~ Rejuvenating Skin Care Recipes ~


Beginning with natural skin care scrub recipes, toners, and facial steams to peels, wraps, under eye treatments and moisturizers there is simply no other anti-aging skin care recipe book that comprehensively addresses the rejuvenating needs of all skin types and aging skin care issues like "Naturally Skinsational" does.

Chapter Outline:

    * Introduction: Saving Face ~ Naturally
    * Skin Essentials
    * Getting Started
    * Facial Mask Natural Recipes
    * Facial Scrub Natural Recipes
    * Facial Toner Natural Recipes
    * Facial Steam Natural Recipes
    * Facial Mists for Skin Spritzing
    * Rejuvenating Moisturizer Recipes
    * Anti-Aging Facial Wraps
    * Under Eye Treatments
    * Special Occasion Recipes
    * Natural Skin Care Ingredient Glossary
    * Resources
    * References




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~ Firming Facial Mask ~

    * 1 egg white
    * 1 package unflavored gelatin
    * 2 tablespoons fresh peppermint leaves
    * 1/2 grapefruit or passion fruit

Using a mixer, whip the egg white until stiff peaks form then continue to whip while gradually sprinkling in the unflavored gelatin.

Finely mince the peppermint leaves, mash 1/2 of the grapefruit or passion fruit completely and add both ingredients gradually to the egg whites, whipping until thoroughly combined.

Followed by one of a plethora of skin rejuvenating "Skinsational Tips"
like this one: Passion fruit is considered to be among one of the most powerful of the fruit acids with strong antioxidant, exfoliant, and antibacterial properties to heal and protect the skin.

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Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Recipes for Pleasure


Pleasure describes the broad class of mental states that humans and other animals experience as positive, enjoyable, or worth seeking. It includes more specific mental states such as happiness, entertainment, enjoyment, ecstasy, and euphoria. In psychology, the pleasure principle describes pleasure as a positive feedback mechanism, motivating the organism to recreate in the future the situation which it has just found pleasurable. According to this theory, organisms are similarly motivated to avoid situations that have caused pain in the past.

The experience of pleasure is subjective and different individuals will experience different kinds and amounts of happiness in the same situation. Many pleasurable experiences are associated with satisfying basic biological drives, such as eating, exercise or sex. Other pleasurable experiences are associated with social experiences and social drives, such as the experiences of accomplishment, recognition, and service. The appreciation of cultural artifacts and activities such as art, music, and literature is often pleasurable.

Recreational drug use can be pleasurable: some drugs, illicit and otherwise, directly create euphoria in the human brain when ingested. The mind's natural tendency to seek out more of this feeling (as described by the pleasure principle) can lead to dependence and addiction.

So dear reader's...what's your pleasure....I'm into music, food and all kind of things that can make me stress free...Anyway enjoy the music below :




Another Korean Hit's....Enjoy...









Love this drama so damn pleasure.....








Monday, November 29, 2010

Recipes Carrot Cheese Cake


Hello Christmas is around the corner...soon everyone searching and wondering for the best dessert to welcome family members and friends even the kids also looking forward for the delicious desert. This recipes is one of my favourite dessert all year around. Here is the recipes :




Carrot Cheese Birthday Cake!
Another Collection Of Carrot Cheese Cake



The Carrot Cake for Happy Father's Day!


The Engagement Cake Using this recipe!





Ingredients :

230 gm Corn Oil
200 gm Castor Sugar
240 gm Eggs 
 
200 gm Self Raising Flour 
1 Tsp Sodium Bicarbonate 
80 gm Pineapple (Crusted)
200 gm Carrots
50 gm Cashew Nut
70 gm Sultanas/Raisin

Cheese Frosting :

500 gm Cream Cheese
160 gm Butter
240 gm Icing Sugar
1 Tsp Lemon Juice
1 Tsp Orange Paste

Method :

Preheat the Oven 170 degree C. Grease 2 x 9" round cake tin. Now mix corn oil and caster sugar until creamy.  Add and beat the eggs one at a time, add the sieved ingredients that is the self raising flour and the sodium bicarbonate. Then add in the pineapple, carrots, cashew nut and the raisins. Pour the batter evenly into the cake tin and bake at 45 - 50 minutes or until  the cake tester come out clean. Let it cool and decorate with the cream cheese frosting as desired. *To make the frostings just mix all the ingredients as above. 

Happy Baking and Enjoy.

Carrot Cheesecake on FoodistaCarrot Cheesecake

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Recipes Chocolate Moist Cake

Hi Good Morning...Greetings from My Recipes Blog..

Today I want to share the Chocolate Moist Cake Recipes



Ingredients :

170 gm Butter (SCS Butter)

250 gm Soft Brown Sugar

225 gm Self Raising Flour

A Pinch of Salt

40 gm Cocoa Powder

1 tsp Baking Powder

3/4 tsp Sodium Bicarbonate

3 Eggs

100 ml Milk

1 tsp Vanilla Essence

1 tsp Kahlua/Rum (Optional)

100 ml Water

1 tsp Hot Water

1 tsp Instant Coffee Granules

Method :
Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius.

Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, sodium bicarbonate and salt for 3 times. Leave aside.

In another bowl, mix the hot water and instant coffee granules to a paste. Leave aside.

In another separate bowl, beat butter and brown sugar till soft and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Fold in the sifted ingredients into the creamed mixture alternately with water and milk, starting and ending with flour.

Finally add vanilla essence, rum, coffee paste and combine well.

Pour the batter into a well greased and floured cake tin (8" round). Bake the cake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Remove cake from oven and let it cool completely before decorating it. 





Chocolate Ganache
  
Ingredients :
  • 250 g bittersweet cooking chocolate, chopped
  • 235 ml heavy whipping cream
  • 15 ml dark rum (optional)

Directions

  1. Place the chocolate into a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, watching very carefully because if it boils for a few seconds, it will boil out of the pot. When the cream has come to a boil, pour over the chopped chocolate, and whisk until smooth. Stir in the rum if desired.
  1. Allow the ganache to cool slightly before pouring over a cake. Start at the center of the cake and work outward. For a fluffy frosting or chocolate filling, allow it to cool until thick, then whip with a whisk until light and fluffy.  
 
Howdy...Enjoy your baking and happy eating!!!



Cake Decorating Techniques

Hi....no idea how to decorate a cake??? 





Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Recipes For Happiness

Today I want to share with you all about this RECIPES FOR HAPPINESS....


Happiness is a state of mind or feeling characterized by contentment, love, satisfaction, pleasure, or joy. A variety of biological, psychological, religious, and philosophical approaches have striven to define happiness and identify its sources.

While direct measurement of happiness presents challenges, tools such as The Oxford Happiness Questionnaire have been developed by researchers. Positive psychology researchers use theoretical models that include describing happiness as consisting of positive emotions and positive activities, or that describe three kinds of happiness: pleasure, engagement, and meaning.

Research has identified a number of attributes that correlate with happiness: relationships and social interaction, extraversion, marital status, employment, health, democratic freedom, optimism, endorphins released through physical exercise and eating chocolate, religious involvement, income and proximity to other happy people. Happiness is mediated through the release of so-called happiness hormones.

Philosophers and religious thinkers often define happiness in terms of living a good life, or flourishing, rather than simply as an emotion. Happiness in this older sense was used to translate the Greek Eudaimonia, and is still used in virtue ethics.

Happiness economics suggests that measures of public happiness should be used to supplement more traditional economic measures when evaluating the success of public policy.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

HAPPINESS RECIPES 1


The Ingredients : 
 
2 Heaped cups of patience
1 Heart full of love
2 Hands full of generosity
A Dash of laughter
1 Head full of understanding

Method :
  1. Sprinkle generously with kindness
  2. Add plenty of faith and mix well.
  3. Spread over a period of a lifetime
  4. And serve everyone you meet.
Author unknown

HAPPINESS RECIPES 2


" I have a little recipe that isn't hard to make But you must always start as soon as you awake.
  1. Take a great big mixing bowl and fill it with a smile
  2. Mix half a cup of sunshine with good deeds to last a while.
  3. Add a pinch of work and play, a pinch of thoughtfulness and care
  4. But don't bake it in the oven, just spread it around everywhere."
Author unknown

HAPPINESS RECIPES 3

You have to take a cup of what you think, stir in a few ounces of what you feel, and sprinkle generously with what you do.
If what you think is positive, what you feel is joyous, and what you do is loving then you will always create a glorious dinner of delight and happiness for yourself and others.

Joseph Mozzella


HAPPINESS RECIPES 4


  1. Take twelve whole months, cleaning them thoroughly of all bitterness, hate and jealousy.
    Make them just as fresh and clean as possible.
  2. Now cut each month into twenty-eight, thirty or thirty-one different parts, but don't make the whole batch at once.
    Prepare it one day at a time out of these ingredients.
  3. Mix into each day one part of faith, one part of patience, one part of courage and one part of work.
  4. Add to each day one part of hope, faithfulness, generosity, and meditation and one good deed.
  5. Season the whole with a dadh of good spirits, a sprinkle of fun, a pinch of plan and a cupful of good humuor.
  6. Pour all of this into a vessel of love.
  7. Cook thoroughly over radiant joy.
Author unknown
HAPPINESS RECIPES 5


The Ingredients :

4 glasses of LOVE
2 glasses of PATIENCE
3 glasses of KINDNESS
4 glasses of UNDERSTANDING
1 glass of FRIENDLINESS
1 glass of FAITH
5 spoons of HAPPINESS
5 spoons of TENDERNESS
1 liter of HUMOR


Method :
  • Take love and patience, mix with faith. Separately combine tenderness, kindness and understanding.
  • Combine everything and mix with friendliness and happiness.
  • Sprinkle abundantly with humor.
  • Bake in sun rays.
  • Serve every day with generosity of your soul
  • Garnish with a smile and serve with quietness, unselfishness and cheerfulness.
Author unknown

HAPPINESS RECIPES 6


Ingredients:

1 cup of plenty
2 spoonfuls of humour
Bundle of joy
Generous helping of health
Sprinkle of blessings
Flavour according to taste
Bake lovingly
(valid for 120 years)

Author Unknown 

 
HAPPINESS RECIPES 7
 


Serves: All Mankind
1 Funny bone
1 Big smile
1 Big handful of patience
1 Dash of Courtesy
Mix with lots of love and humility.
Put through a sieve to strain out all unkindness.
Serve to anyone and everyone you meet.





Author Unknown


HAPPINESS RECIPES 8

Simplicity is the key here, and being in touch with your key values. 


Tend your goats
Take your children by the hand
and walk humbly with God
Be Happy

R.Giraldi

HAPPINESS RECIPES 9


Ingredients :

1 bag of smiles
2 cups of sharing
2lbs of positivity
1/2 cup of good humour
1 cup of self-esteem
2 spoonfuls of simplicity
1 dash of goodwill
4 drops of easy going
and 1 packet of life loving

Home-made happiness always go down well, just like home-made smiley cookies. Just remember to share them around!

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