Christmas Cake Recipe

December is the time for baking in the kitchen, insulated against the cold weather by a festive fug of spices, brandy and rich dried fruit: cookies, mince pies, Christmas pudding, Christmas cake. The Christmas cake should be prepared well ahead of time so it has time to develop moistness and flavour. Usually I procrastinate and bake it only a week before Christmas but this year I was determined to do it right. So yesterday the kitchen exuded a gentle spicy aroma as the cake cooked extremely slowly for four and a half hours. Just one whiff is enough to conjure up Christmas.

It is just the sort of rich, damp, heavy fruit cake that Captain Hook put out to poison the Lost Boys in the original Peter Pan story. That detail seems to have been omitted in the updated versions, maybe these days it seems too old-fashioned to believe that rich cake is death to young stomachs! My kids aren't really into the cake itself anyway, but they love the marzipan and icing, so will nibble meagrely at the cake in order to justify feasting on their icing and that of the adults as well, who Jack Sprat-like tend to prefer the cake and leave the excess sweet icing to the children.

Just before Christmas I usually get out the reliable old Delia Smith cook book to check out the cake recipe and quantities for the marzipan. Her recipes almost always work and are accurate if not always inspired. Now she is long supplanted by the younger, sexier Nigella, but her books are still at the back of my shelf for when I need to check details of some ordinary but useful dish.

Rich Fruit Cake Recipe

450g/1lb currants

175g/6oz sultanas

175g/6oz raisins

50g/2oz glace cherries(optional)

50g/2oz mixed candied peel chopped

3 tablespoons brandy

225g/8oz plain flour

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg

½ teaspoon mixed spice

225g/8oz unsalted butter

225g/8oz soft brown sugar

4 large eggs

50g/2oz chopped almonds

1 dessertspoon treacle

grated rind of 1 lemon

grated rind of 1 orange

The night before you want to make the cake, soak all the dried fruit and peel with the brandy. Leave it in a covered bowl over night or at least twelve hours.

Grease and line a 20cm/8 inch round cake tin or a 18cm/ 7 inch square one.

Sift together the flour, salt and spices. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy (make sure you do this thoroughly). Beat eggs and add them a little at a time to the creamed mixture, beating well each time. Next fold in the flour and spices gently. Stir in the dried fruit and peel, treacle and the grated lemon and orange rind. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin and spread it out evenly. Tie a band of brown paper round the outside of the tin and cover the top of the cake with a double layer of greaseproof paper (with a hole cut in the middle of it) Bake the cake at 140C/275F on the lower shelf of the oven for 4 ¼ - 4 ¾ hours. Don't open the door to check until at least 4 hours have passed. Once the cake has cooled wrap it in a layer of greaseproof paper then foil. Delia recommends feeding it with brandy every week or so, by poking a couple of holes with a skewer then letting a few teaspoons of brandy soak in.

Our cake is now well wrapped in grease-proof paper and foil and stored on a shelf in the larder to steep in its own flavours. A week before Christmas I'll make the marzipan to go on it. I'll have a lot of help with that as the children vie to gather up any scraps that fall or are trimmed off. We've even converted marzipan haters in the family to our variety of almond paste, just by leaving out the almond essence, which gives the strong almost metallic taste to shop marzipan. Without it the real almond flavour gets a chance to shine through, more mellow and delicately nutty. (I'll write up my recipe for the marzipan and royal icing in my next article.)

On top of the marzipan goes the top layer of royal icing, made with icing sugar and egg white, put on rough to resemble a snowy scene. When I was growing up we had a set of figures for a Nativity scene that always decorated the cake and it was my favourite job to arrange them with a few tiny pine trees for added effect. You can be creative with your decoration, go for elegant with a single artificial poinsettia flower or fun with plastic animals - a donkey and ox, or as I often do being in Africa, a zebra, elephant and giraffe - standing around in the snow. Silver balls could make a star or you could find a tiny angel decoration to stand atop the cake heralding Christmas.

Kit Heathcock - worked and travelled in Italy for many years, is passionate about food and loves being a fulltime mother. Co-creator of A Flower Gallery home of original flower pictures, Food and Family and Great Books Reviewed

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Fruit Trees

Fruit trees serve us in many ways. They are providers of the vitamins and minerals in our diet. They give us shade. They add to the beauty to any landscaping, and are often used for this purpose. They should grow to full size where there is no space constraint. However, there are dwarf versions available that can be grown in more restricted spaces.

A wide variety of fruit trees can be grown according to the region you live in. These include apple, mango cherry, plum, apricot, peach and orange trees, to name a few. They can form a part of your home garden, but for commercial purposes, they are planted extensively in large orchard plots.

The growth of the trees and the quality of their output depends on various factors. The weather and soil conditions play an important role in their growth. The amount of care you give a fruit tree also determines the quality of the fruit they produce. Late autumn is an ideal time to plant fruit trees, and a good nursery will give you good quality saplings to plant, as well as advice regarding nurturing.

Different fruit trees need certain climatic conditions to grow and will only bear fruit if the conditions are right. Most fruit trees need lots of sunlight to bear good quality fruit.

While buying a sapling, various things have to be kept in mind. The sapling has to be healthy. The roots should not be slimy. Only a healthy sapling can grow into a healthy tree. Doing some research about fruit trees in general and the tree you like, in particular, is good to do before purchasing any fruit bearing tree.

Fruit provides detailed information on Fruit, Tropical Fruit, Organic Fruit, Dried Fruit and more. Fruit is affiliated with Gourmet Fruit Gift Baskets.

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Diabetes and The Ampalaya Extract - How Effective Is It?

Diabetes is a condition, wherein blood glucose levels are above normal. Most of the food we eat is converted into glucose, or sugar, which our bodies use for energy. The pancreas, an organ that lies near the stomach, produces a hormone called insulin to help glucose get into the cells of our bodies.

When a person has diabetes, the body either doesn't manufacture enough insulin, or can't use its own insulin as it should. This condition causes sugar to build up in the blood. This disease can create negative health complications, which include heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, and lower-extremity amputations. Diabetes is considered as the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.

Signs And Symptoms Of Diabetes

Individuals who think they might have diabetes must first consult with a physician for proper diagnosis. Some of the common symptoms of diabetes are frequent urination, excessive thirst,unexplained weight loss, sudden vision changes, extreme hunger, numbness or tingling in the hands or feet, very dry skin and sores that are slow to heal.

Ampalaya, Or Bitter Melon, Is A Staple In Southeast Asian Medication

Ampalaya is the native name of Bitter Melon, and this vegetable variety is commonly found in the Philippines and Southeast Asia. It is famous for its bitter taste. Ampalaya is used as a regular ingredient for a lot of Asian dishes.

Recently, it has been scientifically noted to possess well-documented blood sugar-lowering effects. Aside from having good fiber content and nutrients such as iron and potassium, many vital compounds have been identified in the fruit, notably charantin, vicine and polypeptide-p, which is plant insulin, in which numerous laboratory studies and limited clinical trials have attributed to the plant's blood sugar-lowering effects.

Many diabetic supplements have been developed using Ampalaya, and there are teas, capsules and extracts that use the dried fruit. For generations, many Asian diabetics have benefited from the wonders of Ampalaya, and only recently has Western science confirmed the potential of this vegetable. In many clinical studies conducted on the plant, researchers have particularly isolated a plant insulin that mimics animal insulin.

Even before researchers started unraveling the plant's anti-diabetic properties, Ampalaya has long been utilized as a traditional home remedy in most Asian homes, in helping control blood sugar levels. Many diabetics regularly consume the fruit, which is prepared as part of the daily meals. Diabetics who have come to trust this natural remedy have claimed to be able to live normal, active lives by having the vegetable as an integral part of a healthy daily diet.

Ampalaya Should be Taken On A Regular Basis

To reap the plant's full benefits, this vegetable should be taken on a regular basis. However, many individuals are taken aback by its natural bitter taste, and this often poses a problem. To make the vegetable appealing for users, some manufacturers are producing all-natural Ampalaya teas and capsules, which is a more convenient and pleasant-tasting way to get the plant's healthy benefits. These products retain the key compounds, while removing the bitter taste.

http://primeherbal.com - Prime Herbal

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Creative Serving and Entertaining Ideas

I love to cook and bake and I am always looking for some helpful kitchen and cooking tips along with some creative entertaining ideas.

If you are entertaining for 2 or for a crowd, your dining area doesn't need to be fancy nor expensive. Here are some ideas to get you started.

Fruit Candle Holders

Select three large lemons or other whole fresh fruits of equal size and height and 3 tea light candles. Using a paring knife, cut a circle the size of the candle in the top of each lemon and discard. Remove enough pulp to set candle in the lemon so that the candle top is level with the top of the fruit. Trim the base of each lemon to allow fruit to sit flat on a safe surface.

Dish Towel Napkins

Bright patterned dish towels make great napkins! Larger, extra absorbent and easy to clean!

Fun Shaped Cookie Bars

Use large cookie cutters to create fun shaped bar cookies and sandwiches. Carefully press cutters into warm bar cookies. Place on a clean cookie sheet or plate and chill until firm.

Messy Hands?

Finger foods tend to get messy. Tuck a couple of individually wrapped hand wipes into napkins. Now your guests can clean their hands easily.

Easy Butter Corn

Place warm, husked corn in a rectangular container. Add four tablespoon pats of butter along with your favorite seasoning. Seal the container and flip several times to coat the corn in butter.

Cotton Bandana Napkins

Red cotton bandana's make great napkins for themed Western meals or for casual laid-back picnic BBQ style meals.

Buffet Style Party

When serving buffet-style for a party, consider using small cards to describe the food. These help guests spot foods that may be favorites, those that may cause allergies or new dishes that sound too good to pass by. Your guests will appreciate your thoughtfulness.

Pepper Dip Holders

Use fresh red, green and yellow peppers to hold dipping sauces. Slice the top off the pepper. Remove the seeds and the pulp. Slightly trim the base of the pepper to allow it to sit evenly. Fill with dip.

Need a quick bottle cooler?

When you need a bottle cooler for the patio or deck, use a large, clean terra-cotta plant pot filled with ice. Place a plant coaster under the pot to catch the water as the ice melts.

Instant Cake & Pie Serving Stand

Need a quick elegant display stand for your round cakes, tortes or pies? Take a pretty decorative bowl and turn it upside down and place a large round decorative plate on top! You now have instantly created a cake serving stand!

Chopping Dried Fruit Tip

If you want to chop dried fruit, coat a knife blade or food processor blade with oil first to more easily slice through the dried fruit. You can also freeze the dried fruit before chopping in a food processor or blender.

Do-it-Yourself Decorative Napkin Rings

You can go to a craft store, kitchen store, department store, etc and buy plain napkin rings for a few dollars. Pick up some lace trims, artificial flowers, beads, sequins, charms, etc and hot glue your trinkets onto the napkin rings.

You can also go to the dollar store and buy plastic round shower hooks and hot glue your trinkets onto them to make your own custom napkin rings!

Do-it-Yourself Decorative Napkin Basket

Go to our local store and find a square shaped rattan or wicker basket. Pick up some crafting trinkets at your local craft store and hot glue them to the basket to match your DIY napkin rings.

Do-It-Yourself Decorate Utensil Holder Basket

Again, go to your local department store, find a rectangular small basket. I like to line mine with a cloth napkin. Then hot glue your craft trinkets onto the front of the basket to match your other DIY table items.

Entertaining and coming up with something special, doesn't have to be expensive or complicated. Try to "think" outside the box and make your own items.

Shelly Hill
Shelly has been working from home in Direct Sales since 1989 and is a Manager with Tupperware. You can contact Shelly at Ravish30@my.tupperware.com Recipe Blog: http://wahmshelly.blogspot.com

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Stomach Pain Relief Secrets - Information to Help You Obtain Stomach Relief For a Better Lifestyle

Believe it or not, eating fruit can cause stomach pain such as stomach aches, bloating, diarrhea, excessive gas/wind, stomach cramps and acid reflux just by eating fruit at the Wrong Time.

Fruits, especially fresh fruits are full of essential nutrients that are not only good for you, but also remove toxins from your body and is a source of energy, but only when eaten at the Right Time!

Fresh fruit is made up of a combination of water and natural sugars and with the exception of more dense fruits such as bananas, avocados and dried fruit, is easy for your system to digest, traveling quickly through the stomach into the intestines where the beneficial nutrients are extracted... that is if your stomach is Empty!

If your stomach is already full of other foods to be digested after a meal say and then you eat fruit such as a dessert or fruit platter, the swallowed fruit becomes blocked behind that food just eaten, preventing an easy passage through the stomach. The swallowed fruit has no choice but to sit on top of the other food and wait it's turn to go through... that's when the problems start. Whilst waiting, fruit will quickly start to ferment and putrefy which can cause... yep, you guessed correct...stomach pains, acid reflux, cramps, bloating, diarrhea, gas/wind, even diverticulitis or a combination...not very nice. You can easily prevent this happening to you.

The Secret: Eat Fruit Only on an Empty Stomach.

Try this out:

Breakfast: Eat fresh fruit on its own...nothing else... a mixed fresh fruit salad would be ideal. This will set you up perfectly for your day ahead. (TIP: forgo the coffee or tea and drink a glass of water instead).

Fresh Fruit Snacks: Morning and/or afternoon fruit snacks are highly recommended but make sure to allow at least 25-30 minutes before and 3 hours after any regular meal or other food is consumed. For example: 1. Eat fruit on an empty stomach then wait 25-30mins before eating other foods. 2. After eating other foods, wait at least 3 hours before eating fruit.

Main Meals: A fruit dessert at the end of your main meal will only encourage Stomach Pain... why not try having fruit as a 1st course instead. Then allow 25-30 minutes digestion before you eat any other foods. You will not only benefit from the fruit's natural goodness, it will also cleanse your palate ready for tasting your next food course.

Remember: Only Eat Fruit on an Empty Stomach.

Many people are completely unaware that fruit can be harmful to their overall health and wellbeing purely because it is eaten at the wrong time. Now you know the best time to eat fruit and keep healthy, so inform your friends and family of this important information.

Paul Hassell is an Internet Marketer, Writer, Film Maker and Baby Boomer who's passion is to help people achieve a better lifestyle through quality information and enjoys good food, a good wine and being Happy!

stomach pain relief secrets

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Fruit and Great Health

While there is life--and fruit--there is hope. When this truth is realised by the laity nine hundred and ninety-nine out of every thousand professors of the healing art will be obliged to abandon their profession and take to fruit-growing for a living.

Many people have heard vaguely of the "grape cure" for diseases arising from over-feeding, and the lemon cure for rheumatism, but for the most part these "cures" remain mere names. Nevertheless it is almost incredible to the uninitiated what may be accomplished by the abandonment for a time of every kind of food in favour of fruit. Of course, such a proceeding should not be entered upon in a careless or random fashion. Too sudden changes of habit are apt to be attended with disturbances that discourage the patient, and cause him to lose patience and abandon the treatment without giving it a fair trial. In countries where the "grape cure" is practised the patient starts by taking one pound of grapes each day, which quantity is gradually increased until he can consume six pounds. As the quantity of grapes is increased that of the ordinary food is decreased, until at last the patient lives on nothing but grapes. I have not visited a "grape cure" centre in person, but I have read that it is not only persons suffering from the effects of over-feeding who find salvation in the "grape cure," but that consumptive patients thrive and even put on weight under it.

The Herald of Health stated, some few years back, that in the South of France where the "grape cure" is practised consumptive patients are fed on grapes alone, and become quite strong and well in a year or two. And I have myself known wonderful cures to follow on the adoption of a fruitarian dietary in cases of cancer, tumour, gout, eczema, all kinds of inflammatory complaints, and wounds that refused to heal.

H. Benjafield, M.B., writing in the Herald of Health, says: "Garrod, the great London authority on gout, advises his patients to take oranges, lemons, strawberries, grapes, apples, pears, etc. Tardieu, the great French authority, maintains that the salts of potash found so plentifully in fruits are the chief agents in purifying the blood from these rheumatic and gouty poisons.... Dr. Buzzard advises the scorbutic to take fruit morning, noon, and night. Fresh lemon juice in the form of lemonade is to be his ordinary drink; the existence of diarrhoea should be no reason for withholding it." The writer goes on to show that headache, indigestion, constipation, and all other complaints that result from the sluggish action of bowels and liver can never be cured by the use of artificial fruit salts and drugs.

Salts and acids as found in organised forms are quite different in their effects to the products of the laboratory, notwithstanding that the chemical composition may be shown to be the same. The chemist may be able to manufacture a "fruit juice," but he cannot, as yet, manufacture the actual fruit. The mysterious life force always evades him. Fruit is a vital food, it supplies the body with something over and above the mere elements that the chemist succeeds in isolating by analysis. The vegetable kingdom possesses the power of directly utilising minerals, and it is only in this "live" form that they are fit for the consumption of man. In the consumption of sodium chloride (common table salt), baking powders, and the whole army of mineral drugs and essences, we violate that decree of Nature which ordains that the animal kingdom shall feed upon the vegetable and the vegetable upon the mineral.

Fruit is a Food.

Until quite recently the majority of English-speaking people have been accustomed to look upon fruit not as a food, but rather as a sweetmeat, to be eaten merely for pleasure, and therefore very sparingly. It has consequently been banished from its rightful place at the beginning of meals. But fruit is not a "goody," it is a food, and, moreover, a complete food. All vegetable foods (in their natural state) contain all the elements necessary to form a complete food. At a pinch human life might be supported on any one of them. I say "at a pinch" because if the nuts cereals and pulses were ruled out of the dietary it would, for most people, be deficient in fat and protein (the flesh and muscle-forming element). Nevertheless, fruit alone will sustain life if taken in large quantities with small output of energy on the part of the person living upon it, as witness the "grape cure." The percentage of proteid in grapes is particularly high for fruit.

Those people who desire to make a fruitarian dietary their daily régime cannot do better than take the advice of O. Hashnu Hara, an American writer. He says: "Every adult requires from twelve to sixteen ounces of dry food,free from water, daily. To supply this a quarter of a pound of shelled nuts and three-quarters of a pound of any dried fruit must be used. In addition to this, from two to three pounds of any fresh fruit in season goes to complete the day's allowance. These quantities should be weighed out ... and will sustain a full-grown man in perfect health and vitality. The quantity of ripe fresh fruit may be slightly increased in summer, with a corresponding decrease in the dried fruit."

I am the editor of a website devoted to all aspects of food and the creation of great food. You can find recipes, articles, cooking terms, and numerous other food related topics by directing yourself to my website, http://www.foodcreate.com/

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Should Our Kids Be Preservative Free?

I think this is an impossible ask, but if we can at least make a difference to our kids diet and allow them to consume a little less preservatives then maybe just maybe we as parents may be a little more sane and not have to deal with as many behavioural outbursts. Well, that's just a thought and in some case a dream as well.

Sticking to a preservative free diet does require quite a bit of work and commitment, of which sometimes I tend to lack, but when I do stick to it, I believe it does make a difference.

There have been times with my daughters, particularly my 2 year old where they have really gone a little mad and it has been directly after consuming the wrong type of food. If may be a little treat or even a supposed 'healthy snack' but if it has a certain preservative in it, then it doesn't matter if it's a lolly, chocolate, dried fruit or a muesli bar. For my children if it has the preservative 220 in it, then my kids can have a really bad reaction and end up incredibly hyperactive.

Many of these preservatives used to flare up my eldest daughters asthma a few years ago and so I learnt to stay clear of them, but now it seems that almost every food we consume is laden with preservatives that are no good for us and preservatives that can affect our behaviour and that of our children in a very detrimental way.

The preservatives, that I believe should be avoided as much as possible are E200-203; E210-219: E220-227; E230-232. All of these preservatives have a tendency to bring on headaches and can result in stomach or intestinal upsets. They can also increase hyperactivity in kids and can make asthma worse.

I am not infallible and I do sometimes get slack but I certainly do notice a difference when I stick to this diet. My 2 year old throws a lot less tantrums and my 6 year old doesn't seem to be as tired or get as many headaches. I notice with myself as well, that my stomach doesn't tend to react or become bloated if I stay away from these preservatives as much as possible.

If I can give my daughters healthy snacks, like homemade icypoles instead of the bought ones, made with fresh fruit and ice then at least I know what I am putting into their little systems. Perhaps too sorbets or home made cakes are worth sticking too instead of all the processed bought stuff that nowadays seem to adorn our shelves. As I said before at least we know what goes into the food that we make, as opposed to what someone else makes in a shop or supermarket operating purely for profit.

By the way, I am not suggesting that we all throw out our store bought stuff and resort to making all our own food, as these days I realise how busy we all are and how un-realistic that is. Life is so busy that sometimes it can be hard just making healthy sandwiches, but even if we elect to no longer purchase one or two items that are laden with these preservatives, we will still be doing our kids an enormous favour.

I say let's think of our kids and make our life easier by hopefully having to deal with less upset stomachs, less headaches and less behavioural problems. And remember next time you go shopping, look for these preservatives on the food labels and see if you can find a better alternative. Good luck and happy shopping.

From Melinda Walker. For more information on alternative treatments and improving your way of life please visit [http://www.counselling4life.com]

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