Secret recipe. Close up photo of chef hands with several tattoos adding a sauce to italian pasta Carbonara. Food concept

Italians are known all over the globe as the creators and masters of cooking delectable dishes like pasta and pizza. It is the home of meals that food lovers and enthusiasts absolutely love. There are even various gastronomic guides posted on the web that can be used by tourists to figure out the best restaurants to visit.

It is undeniable that Italian meals are superb, but some are not the best food you should take if you want to be healthier. Nowadays, a lot of people are investing a lot of money, time, and effort to have a more nutritious diet. Various diet trends, like intermittent fasting and keto diet, have now surfaced and the demand for healthier food and recipes has increased. 

If you have decided to recreate and make Italian dishes at home, there are recipes online, like A Guide For Your 20s, that you can follow. Most of these recipes include traditional cooking and recipes. If you want to make it more nutritious, there are ways to accomplish that.

Here are 4 ways to make Italian recipes healthier:

Add High-Protein and High-Fiber Food

Instead of adding meat to your sauce and pasta, you can use beans and legumes which are rich in protein. By adding lentils, chickpeas, and peas, your Italian dish can be cooked with more nutrients like iron, calcium, potassium, and magnesium. Also, when making pasta bolognese, you can use beans as a meat-alternative.

Adding more fiber-enriched food into your recipe can also help make your dish healthier. Fiber is a healthy carbohydrate that can reduce the chances of colon cancer and improve heart health by lowering cholesterol levels. It is also an excellent nutrient that can aid you in losing fat and weight. If you’re into Italian salads, you can put spinach, beets, almonds, or sunflower seeds to create a high-fiber meal. 

Use Gluten-Free Ingredients

Italians are world-renowned for their pasta dishes. They have carbonara, lasagna, puttanesca, and more pasta recipes that are also served in Italian-inspired restaurants all over the globe. This food is indeed delicious and versatile, though, pasta is high in carbohydrates that are more difficult to be digested by the body and also results in high blood sugar. 

Fortunately, you can stop eating regular pasta and munch on gluten-free pasta instead. These are often made of chickpea, quinoa, corn, and lentils. You can purchase these organic and healthier kinds of pasta in the market. If these are not available in stores near you, you can also choose to make your own homemade pasta, which is indeed healthier than instant pasta or noodles.

Chicken Over Pork and Beef Meat

To create a delicious, healthy, and meaty Italian recipe, it is better to use white meat than dark meat. Instead of using pork to create meatballs, you can choose to add chicken or turkey. While it is true that dark meat contains tons of nutrients like Vitamin B12, white meat is healthier as it contains less saturated fat and it is an excellent source of protein.

It is also best to broil meat instead of frying it. The process of frying includes the use of cooking oil, which contains a considerable amount of fats and calories that can be unhealthy for the body. This is not only applicable to meat but vegetables and pasta as well. Choose to include broiling and baking in your recipes to create a more nutritious meal.

Use Honey and Fruits For Desserts

Have you ever heard of tiramisu, panna cotta, and semifreddo? These are just a few of the famous desserts the Italians have created and mastered. However, everyone knows desserts and sweets are the enemies when you’re trying to be more conscious about your health and fitness. They contain high contents of sugar that are indeed unhealthy, particularly if you have medical conditions like diabetes. 

As an alternative for sugar, you can opt to use honey as a sweetener for your desserts. Because it contains antioxidants, honey is great for improving cardiovascular and digestive health. In addition to that, you can also use fruits to make your Italian dessert more scrumptious and nutritious at the same time. Incorporating ingredients that are good for one’s health in your recipes, such as greek yogurt and dark chocolate, is another great way to make your body nourished while consuming sweets. 

Conclusion

These ways to make Italian recipes healthier are also applicable to other types of dishes. Instead of dining in restaurants and fast food establishments, you can easily recreate Italian meals with a more nutritious twist in your home.

Hemp plants, specifically its stalks, stems, and flowers, contain cannabidiol or CBD, a compound that has been intensively researched for years now. Several studies had already proved how CBD plays a critical role in preventing cancer, cardiovascular-related conditions, neurological disorders, and other fatal diseases, thanks to its anti-inflammatory benefits. 

Due to its advantages in one’s well-being, more and more governments across the world are now embracing its health benefits and now legally allowing products generated from hemp plants. You can now use it for medical purposes, from topicals to edibles. Adding to that, here are three easy ways to enjoy the therapeutic benefits of CBD this cold season. 

CBD Tea

Due to its calming effects, CBD-infused tea is becoming globally popular. In fact, ancient medicine wouldn’t be complete without it. You got it right! People have been intaking it for millennia! 

If you’re into do-it-yourself, it’s always easy to check online stores that have dried, raw hemp flower for sale at reasonable prices, like the Discount Pharms. This online store has trusted vendors that can offer you boutique hemp and hemp flower biomass. If you want to curate your own hemp strain, they can help you with it too. 

In preparing the tea, you have to dry the raw hemp material first before putting it to a cup of hot water. Unfortunately, the heat from the boiling water can only extract terpenes, not the cannabidiol. It’s less likely considered as the ‘CBD tea’ or a stand-alone CBD. 

It’s not an issue, though. Terpenes still have a lot of health benefits, including the following: 

• Treatment of pain
• Fungal and bacterial infections
• Inflammation
• Depression and Anxiety
• Addiction
• Epilepsy
• Cancer

If you want to enjoy the benefits of CBD, you’ll have to undergo an intricate, yet simple process. First, you have to heat the raw part of the hemp plant (scientifically called decarboxylation process), in your oven at 100° Celsius to extract and activate the cannabinoids.

After 20 minutes, increase the temperature to 115° Celsius and leave it that way for an hour. Summing it up, you’ll be baking the raw plant for 1hr and 20mins—20mins at 100° Celsius and 1hr at 115° Celsius. 

Lastly, take the now-baked plant out and steep it in a cup of hot water. You can mix it together with full-fat milk (i.e., coconut), vanilla extract, honey, cinnamon, or loose leaf chai tea or other flavors. If you don’t like blending hemp flowers or leaves, you can add CBD milk into a cup of tea, instead. Either way, you are going to be mellowed out after you sip.

CBD Latte

Latte can only be made with espresso and steamed milk—says who? Get ready to experience the next-level latte with hemp extract! Yes, you can feel much better with CBD’s health benefits in your already wonderful cup of coffee greatness. 

Reports claimed that after drinking a cup of hemp latte, you’d experience the following: 

• No shakiness or caffeine jitters, headache, and nausea
• No negative influences on your emotions, like anxiety 
• An overall feeling of relaxation and balance
• Improved energy

In making this latte, choose a milk source first. You can either use ready-made hemp milk or produce it by yourself. In making self-made hemp milk, use your preferred milk source, like coconut or oat, and mix the raw seeds with it, together with a little sea salt and honey. By contrast, others will only use hemp seeds and water with a little sweetener like vanilla extract. 

Combine the milk of your choice with your preferred coffee grounds. You’ll be needing a little flavor from sea salt, as well as vanilla extract, date syrup or honey, or any other sweeteners of your choice. For more details, check Daintri’s recipe of this hemp latte. It’s totally a mug of bliss—creamy, a mixture of sweet and salty, yet super healthy!

Hot Chocolate or Strawberry CBD Smoothie

A chocolate drink might not sound dietary at all, but this Creamy Chocolate CBD Smoothie surely does! Let us tell you how free-ish is it. It’s grain-free, oil-free, refined sugar-free, soy-free,  and gluten-free! And did we forget that it’s vegan, as well? 

It’s super easy to do, too. You only have to combine all the ingredients, including almond milk, Medjool dates, unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder, hulled hemp seed, frozen banana, and cinnamon, in a blender until smooth. 

Try to visit Oh She Glows. They made an elaborate recipe for this creamy chocolate hemp smoothie. If you have issues with buying costly pints of vegan chocolate, this smoothie will surely be your saving grace. 

Alternatively, for people who don’t prefer chocolates (yes, they surprisingly exist), this strawberry hemp milkshake will get you covered. It’s also refined-sugar free as it uses frozen strawberry that gives the thick and creamy ice cream-like texture, instead of using ice cream like how traditional milkshakes are made. What’s more, it’s vegan and gluten-free, not to mention it’s rich in protein. It’s very healthy, so you drink to your heart’s content! 

Takeaway

Hemp plants don’t only contain cannabidiol (CBD). They also have high levels of fiber, essential fatty acids, and several micronutrients. It’s also worth mentioning that despite being a plant-based source, hemp is a complete protein source. Meaning, they contain all the nine essential amino acids. Unfortunately, despite its benefits, other countries are still not open to legalizing it. Hopefully, everything will straighten out in the future. 

Cheese curd chili recipe is very simple and easy even for beginners. This recipe pairs well with fried rice, Hakka noodles and can also be served as an appetizer. It will surely make your taste buds wanting more. Cheese curds in Australia are easy to get in a local store so I usually make this recipe as a side dish and sometimes as a starter.

Let me share you my homemade cheese curd chili recipe so that you can have something different and delicious to serve your guest next time.

There are lots of ingredients need for this recipe so, let’s start with the ingredients needed to prepare our cheese curd chili

Ingredients 

Cheese curds 1 pound

All-purpose flour 3 tablespoon

Corn flour 4 tablespoon

Salt and pepper to taste

Vegetable oil 7 tablespoon

Minced garlic 3-4 cloves

Minced ginger ½ tablespoon 

Chopped onion 1 cup

Chopped Green chilies 3 piece

Chopped capsicum 1/2 cup

Chili sauce 1 tablespoon

Soya sauce 1 tablespoon

Tomato sauce 3 tablespoon

Green onion        ½ cup

Direction

• Cut the cheese curd into 1-inch cubes. 
• Prepare the paste – mix all-purpose flour, corn flour (1 tablespoon), salt and pepper with water. 

(Use water as needed, until a medium thick paste is ready).

• Coat cheese curds cubes with the paste and set aside for 10-15 minutes to marinate.
• Heat oil 5 (tablespoon) in a pan over medium flame and deep fry coated cheese curds cubes until golden brown.
• Strain them and drain the excess oil on a paper towel.
• Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium flame. Add ginger and garlic and sauté for around 20 seconds. 
• Switch the flame to high and add chopped onions and sauté until its light brown. Add capsicum and green chilies and sauté until they get cooked slightly. 

(Keep stirring while cooking, all the vegetables shouldn’t be overcooked it should be crunchy)

• Add soya sauce, tomato sauce, chili sauce, and a pinch of salt. Mix all the ingredients properly and cook over medium flame for around 1 minute
• Add fried cheese curds cubes and Stir and cook over medium flame for 2-3 minutes.
• Turn off flame and transfer prepared cheese curds chili dry to a large bowl. Sprinkle the green onion and serve hot with soup or fried rice.

If you love a cheesier dish, you can sprinkle some Mexican shredded cheese to give an excellent cheesy finishing touch.

Quick tips

• Dissolve one tablespoon corn flour with three tablespoons of water and mixing it in gravy will make the paste thicker.
• Adding to much water in the sauce will overcook capsicum and onions and make them soggy.

Cheese curd chili can be an excellent choice for winter, serving chili paneer dry with soup will quickly warm up the body, or you can serve it with Chinese fried rice or schezwan rice as a side accompaniment.

About the Author:

Rosemary Kobe is a homemaker who loves to play with her two little twin-toddlers at her homes in Sydney & Melbourne. She is one of the greatest foodies in Australia experimenting with a lot of dishes at home and occasionally heads out in search of the best burgers in Gold Coast or Melbourne. If you know one – let her know in the comments below or mail me at [rosemariikobe@gmail.com]

Mmm, cookies! Cookies serve as a delightfully sweet treat and are easy to whip up at home and enjoy. In this article, we will share some delicious cookie recipes using matcha tea. Love the taste of tea? Then you will adore these cookies! Looking for various other recipes, check this website out.

1. Green Tea Cookie Recipe

This is a simple and no-frills matcha tea cookie recipe that makes approximately 7 dozen cookies.  These cookies are crispy, buttery, and utterly delicious.

Ingredients

– 2 cups of flour (all-purpose)

– 1 tablespoon of matcha green tea powder

– 2 tablespoons of green tea leaves (finely ground)

– 1 cup of unsalted butter, softened (two sticks)

– 1/2 teaspoon of salt

– 1/2 powdered sugar, plus 2 extra tablespoons

Directions

1. Begin by mixing your flour, matcha, salt, and ground green tea leaves in a bowl. In a mixer bowl, cream together your butter and your sugar until fluffy and pale. This should take you roughly 3 minutes if you are mixing on medium speed. Then, on low speed, slowly begin to mix in your flour mixture.

2. Divide your dough in half. Place each half on a piece of parchment paper. Shape each half into a log that is 1 1/4 inches in diameter. Roll each log inside the parchment paper, and as you turn, press to release any trapped air. Once this has been done, allow your two logs to freeze for 1 hour.

3. After 1 hour in the freezer, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. While it is heating, unwrap your logs and begin making slices that are 1/4 inches thick. On parchment-lined baking sheets, place your cookie pieces 1 inch apart from each other. When your oven is ready, bake your cookies for 14 minutes, or until they are a golden color. Allow them to cool, and then enjoy!

2. Green Tea and White Chocolate Cookie Recipe

This is a delicious matcha tea cookie recipe that adds the element of white chocolate for an extra tasty finished cookie. This recipe makes approximately 2 dozen cookies.

Ingredients

– 2 cups of flour (all-purpose)

– 1 tablespoon of matcha green tea powder

– 1/2 teaspoon of salt

– 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

– 1 cup of brown sugar (packed)

– 3/4 cup of unsalted butter, melted

– 1/2 granulated sugar

– 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract

– 1 egg

– 1 egg yolk

– 1 1/2 cups of chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips

Directions

1. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper, and preheat your oven to 325 degrees. While it is heating, mix your flour, matcha powder, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. Using your mixer, and in a larger bowl, beat together your brown sugar, white sugar, and butter until it is all well blended. Then, add your vanilla, egg, and egg yolk. Beat until creamy.

2. Mix in your flour mixture until the dough is just blended. Then, add in your white chocolate and gently fold it into the dough using a wooden spoon. Separate your cookie pieces, using approximately 1 tablespoon-worth of dough per cookie. Place the pieces on your baking sheet(s), giving the pieces 2 inches of space from each other.

3. Bake the cookies for 9 minutes, or until they are a golden color. Allow them to cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes, and then transfer them to a rack so that they can cool down completely. Then, all that is left is to enjoy!These are two very delicious matcha green tea cookie recipes. We use matcha powder from PiqueTea as one of the well known brand in tea industry. Look for a kind that specifies it is okay to use for cooking. You may read “culinary grade” on the packaging. This type can be used for these cookies. Enjoy!

If you are an athlete, bodybuilder or crossfitter, I am sure, you aware of your caloric balance (calories in equals’ calories out). I can also assume how bothering it is to prep food everyday based on your calorie intake and keep track of your diet. For instance a 4 ounce chicken breast would provide about 187 calories and an 8 ounce baked sweet potato would provide around 200 calories. Measuring each of your ingredients before preparing your meal is annoying and eating same menu every day is more annoying.

That is the reason why, I have come up with 6 succulent low calorie barbecue chicken recipe just for you. Whether you’re using a barbecue grill out on your patio, or an indoor grill these will taste delicious and super simple to prepare. Without any delay let me introduce these easy grilling recipes to make your taste-bud tingle.

1. Lemon and Herb Chicken Skewers

Ingredients

For Chicken Skewer:

1.       Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2.       Chopped Dill

3.       Chopped Parsley

4.       Chopped Garlic

5.       Lemon

6.       6 oz Chicken

7.       Salt

8.       Black Pepper

For Capers Dip:

1.       Capers

2.       Yogurt

3.       Chopped Dill

4.       Lemon

5.       Garlic

6.       Salt

Directions

Start by preparing a simple marinade for your chicken. It’s just a matter of combining some extra virgin olive oil with some freshly chopped dill, parsley add some garlic. Next you need to zest a lemon and get some good amount of juice by a squeezer. Finally hit the marinade with salt and pepper.

Once you’ve got that marinade all mixed up and it is time to pour it over your chicken. Cut your boneless, skinless chicken breasts about 1 inch cubes not necessarily have to be perfect. Pour all of that marinade over your chicken breast and give everything a good toss, so it’s evenly coated.

Cover it with plastic wrap or pop the lid of your container in which you have marinade your chicken.  Keep the marinade chicken into the refrigerator for at least an hour but overnight is actually ideal.  The longer the marination the more delicious your chicken skewers are going to be.

After the marination is done you can go ahead and start making skewers. Using metal skewers is a good Idea I love using metal because the metal itself heats up and helps cook the inside of the chicken while the outside. Skew all your chicken and get those on the grill. As I said you can use an indoor grill but if can do it on a gas smoker or a charcoal smoker that’s even better. Fired up over medium heat, make sure that you are flipping your skewers every few minutes so that they’re cooked evenly on all sides.

While those are cooking away you can prepare a simple lemon caper dip. I think it is a perfect accompaniment for chicken skewers. Starts with a base of plain yogurt in your bowl and add some tasty capers which have really a salty bite with delicious flavor. Then add some fresh dill and grate in a little bit of fresh garlic and then add the zest and juice of one lemon. Hit this with some salt and pepper give it a whirl and it is ready to be enjoyed. By this time your skewers should look gorgeous and golden and be fully cooked through. That means it is time to get them off the grill and right into your belly where they belong. If you want go ahead and give these little skewers a lemon splash right before serving.

2. Peachy Balsamic Grilled Chicken

Ingredients

1.    Lettuce

2.    Peaches Preserve

3.    Balsamic Vinegar

4.    Cooking Oil

5.    Red Pepper

6.    Salt

7.    Black Pepper

8.    4 pcs Chicken Breast

Directions

I love it best served over a beautiful bed of lettuce with some grilled peaches on the side. For this you are going to start by mixing up your marinade with some peach preserves which you can always find in the jam aisle at your supermarket. Add a little bit of balsamic vinegar with a splash of oil to help prevent everything from sticking. If you like heat then add some red pepper flakes and finish it off with a little bit of salt and pepper.

Once that’s all mixed together, just use a measuring cup to reserve a bit of the mixture to use this to rub your chicken while grilling, the rest of the mixture will go boneless, skinless chicken breast for marination. As always when it comes to marinades the longer it sits the tastier it is going to be. So, you’ll want to marinate this in the refrigerator for at least an hour but hey if you’ve got two three four hours that is even better.

When it’s time to get them to the grill you’ll want to make sure you’re cooking these low and slow. The idea is that you want to make sure that your glaze doesn’t burn before your chicken is completely cooked. If you’re working on a charcoal smoker outdoor, you can always cook with indirect heat.  Where you can burn your charcoal on one side and then cook these on the other side with just heat from the burning charcoal.

In this way your chicken is going to cook through before any of the sugars in that glaze have a chance to burn. You need to keep the chicken grilling & flipping them once until they’ve reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Just before you pull them off the grill brush them with a little more of your reserved marinate mixture and then it will be ready to be enjoyed. Serve over a beautiful bed of greens and with some grilled peaches on the side.

3. Honey Dijon Drumsticks

Ingredients

1.    Oil

2.    Honey

3.    Dijon Mustard

4.    Apple Cider Vinegar

5.    Minced Garlic

6.    Salt

7.    Black Pepper

8.    6 Chicken Drumstick

Directions

This recipe is great for the young!  Start with a really wonderful but simple marinade. Get some oil in your bowl, add some honey and add Dijon mustard which has a classic flavor. Then add a good splash of apple cider vinegar and minced garlic, a little salt and pepper to round all of this out. Give it a good whisk until it’s well combined and keep away a little bit of this marinade to use at the very end of cooking to brush on to your chicken

With the rest of your marinade pour it over the chicken drumsticks and flip it one or two times to make sure they are evenly coated with the marinade. Cover the bowl and get it into the refrigerator to chill it out for at least an hour.

Due to honey in the marinade, the chicken drum will get burn easily on the outside before it is cooked thoroughly. To prevent this make sure you’re cooking on medium heat and flipping them regularly. If you’re using an indoor grill you always have the option to finish them off in the oven for the last five or ten minutes of cooking. Once the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit that is how you know they are ready to be devoured.  Give these drumsticks another quick brush with that delicious honey mustard sauce and  cook for maybe one to two more minutes more before it is time to enjoy.

4. Southwest Style Chicken Grilled Sandwich

Ingredients

For marinate

1.    One tablespoon of garlic

2.    Shallot puree or two cloves of crushed garlic

3.    One tablespoon of ground cumin

4.    One tablespoon of ground chili powder

5.    Lime juice and their zest

6.    One cup of extra virgin olive oil

7.    Quarter cup of fresh chopped cilantro

8.    Freshly baked bread

For topping

1.    Pepper Jack Cheese

2.    Southwest Sauce

3.    Tomatoes

4.    Avocado

Directions

Aside from a great hamburger, a grilled chicken sandwich is one of my favorite recipes for outdoor grilling.

To begin you start by placing two boneless skinless chicken breasts in a ziploc bag and pound out. The reason you need to pound out the chicken breasts is to even them out to ensure even cooking and it also cooks a little bit faster on the grill.  After pounding out the chicken cut it in half so that you can make two to four sandwiches.

Before you chop your fresh cilantro always soak in a bowl of cool water to remove the dirt. Now let’s combine the ingredients so you can start marinating your chicken. Take one cup of extra virgin olive oil in a bowl; add one by one ingredient that has been mentioned above in the ingredients list and whisk all together.

This zesty Southwest style chicken marinade goes great with boneless grilled chicken breasts. Now let these flavors meld for about 15 minutes and then marinate your chicken for at least an hour in the refrigerator.

After marinating for about an hour and since there’s no salt in the marinade you’re going to go ahead and put a little salt on them next before you put them on your gas grill. Put a little olive oil on the towel and I wipe down your grill this will helps from keeping things sticking. Make sure your grill is preheated on high. Lay those pounded breast down on the grill and sprinkle more salt to them. Grill them on each side for three minutes. Add the pepper jack cheese on the grilled chicken and grill the bun on the side.

When the cheese is melted and buns toasted. Now let’s assemble the awesome chicken sandwich. For the spread use a Southwest sauce and place the chicken with cheese, fresh sliced tomatoes and fresh sliced avocado in the bun to make a sandwich. This recipe is hard to beat and taste really good.

5. Peri Peri Chicken Grilled

Ingredients

1.    Chicken Breast

2.    Lime

3.    Garlic seasoning

4.    Garlic Powder

5.    Onion Powder

6.    Pepper

7.    Smoked Paprika

8.    Peri Peri Sauce

Let’s start by cutting a lemon in half and only use the half lemon juice to put on the chicken breasts. Next you’re going to add some garlic plus seasoning and garlic powder after that you’re going to add some onion powder, salt and pepper. Then you’re going to add a nice amount of smoked paprika. Adding smoked paprika will give a nice smoky flavor. Next use your favorite piri piri sauce, you can find this in most of the grocery stores.

After all that’s added you’re going to massage your chicken, don’t be afraid to get your hands in there but you got a massage so that all the flavors coat the chicken thoroughly.

Then you’re going to wrap the bowl with saran and you’re going to place that in the fridge for an hour. After an hour up you need to remove it from the fridge. Then you need to lightly oil the griddle or your gas grill if you are grilling outside. You’re going to preheat and place the chicken once it’s pretty heated.

It is probably going to take about four or five minutes per side. Once one side is done you need to flip it to the other. Use any generic salad to serve with chicken. This is very macro friendly, low calorie and low-fat peri peri grilled chicken.

6. Sesame-grilled Burger Patty

Ingredients

1.       ½ kg ground Chicken

2.       4 cups finely chopped watercress, hard parts removed

3.       1 cup shredded carrot

4.       2 scallions, Chopped

5.       2 cloves garlic, minced

6.       3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

7.       1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

8.       1 tablespoon rice vinegar

9.       2 teaspoon sesame oil

Preparation:

This makes recipe will give you 4 servings with 217 calories per serving.

Mix 1 teaspoon sesame oil, soy sauce, scallions, garlic and ginger in a small bowl. Pour half of the sauce in a medium bowl then add chicken to the bowl. Form into 4 and 3/4-inch thick patties. Add remaining sesame oil and vinegar in the sauce mixture then set aside. Grill burger patties over medium-high heat until cooked through, about 4-5 minutes per side. To serve, mix watercress and carrots in a large bowl, toss with remaining sauce mixture then divide among 4 plates. Top with grilled burger.

Enjoy these low-calorie grilled recipes today for a surely satisfied appetite, without having to worry about your weight or your health.

During the holiday season, many different opportunities to spend time with family and friends occur. While festive interactions bring the majority of people great happiness, making the required preparations and the process of cleaning up afterward can seriously detract from that joy.

Eating out at a restaurant or buffet can make things much easier. Not having to cook the meal or clean up after everyone means that enjoying a meal together becomes much easier for everyone. There are other benefits to this, of course, but there are also a few drawbacks that you might want to keep in mind.

It’s true that everyone can choose their own meal, drink, and dessert, but splitting the bill can pose some complications. Does everyone contribute to a temporary fund and everyone pay out of that? What if the fund doesn’t cover everything ordered? Is everyone expected to contribute equally or only as much as he or she can afford? Should the wait staff get the rest as a tip? What if the rest is not sufficient for the tip? These are things that you need to think about and decide on before venturing out.

Keeping in mind that nobody needs to commit hours to cook anything, realizing that favorite traditional foods might not be on the menu can quell disappointment. If a particular element is missing, how much will its absence detract from a person’s overall enjoyment and satisfaction? Those with food allergies already know how difficult eating out can become at times, so this aspect also needs some consideration.

Children and their needs also need to come into play when making reservations. Nap times can clash with a restaurant’s atmosphere, and others might want to interact with younger children. Colds and flu can also create a situation many parents want to avoid. Older children can often feed themselves or even grab their own items at a buffet out of the hot food display, but younger children should have more supervision. Recruiting teens to help can eliminate accidents by helping parents of younger children by entertaining toddlers or loading plates with food.

Each establishment is going to have its own particular set of additional benefits and drawbacks. Wherever you and your family decide to enjoy the holidays together, remember that it is the festivities that are important. Who paid the most or had the best-behaved child are unimportant and trivial. Coming together to spend time with each other is always more important.

Chewy, crunchy or melt in your mouth. No matter what their form or texture, chocolate chip cookies will always be a universal favorite. But just because it’s a classic does not mean you can’t experiment with it. If you are craving for something different here are some mouthwatering and downright amazing twists you can put on the usual chocolate chip cookie. These recipes will tickle the tastebuds of curious foodies of all types, from the adventurous eater to food god level:

Level 1: Adventurous Eater

Bacon Chocolate Chip

Ah, bacon. The crowning glory of any breakfast feast. Bacon isn’t just great for pizza and breakfast anymore, though. In recent years, it has found its way into many unlikely concoctions from artisanal chocolate to brownies. Now it’s time for your favorite cookie to feature this savory ingredient. Here’s how:

Ingredients:

• 1 pound cut smoked bacon
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups melted unsalted butter
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. 1. Cook bacon until it is crispy. Once done, place it on top of paper napkins to lessen the grease.
   2. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and arrange parchment paper on the cookie sheets.
   3. Sift the flour, baking soda and salt and set aside.
   4. In a medium bowl, mix the melted butter and sugars until they are well blended.
   5. Beat in the vanilla, egg and egg yolk until the mixture is light and creamy.
   6. Mix in the sifted flour, baking soda and salt.
   7. Add in the chocolate chips and chopped bacon and stir.
   8. Use 1 tablespoon to put the cookie dough on the cookie sheets. Leave an allowance of 3 inches between cookies.
   9. Bake from 15 to 17 minutes and leave to cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes.

Level 2: Exotic Epicure

Avocado Chocolate Chip

Avocados are a tropical daydream with their smooth texture, rich taste and multitude of health benefits. In recent years, this fruit has become even more popular thanks to all the things you can do with it. You can enjoy it blended into a yummy smoothie or spread over golden slices of toast. Why not enjoy it with your favorite chocolate chip cookie as well? Are you ready to let your tastebuds go on an exotic tropical adventure?

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup mashed avocado
• 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• a handful of chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Grease your cookie sheets.
3. Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
4. Stir the avocado, coconut oil, vanilla extract and maple syrup together.
5. Mix in the wt ingredients into the flour, baking soda and salt mixture.
6. Mold the batter into balls about 1” in diameter.
7. Arrange the balls on the cookie sheet and flatten them with the palm of your hand.
8. Bake from 11 to 13 minutes.
9. Allow to cool away from the oven.

Level 3: Rockstar Ravager

Whiskey Chocolate Chip

Some people love snacks with a kick. If you’re one of those people, then how about you make your chocolate chip cookies worthy of rock-stardom by mixing it with whiskey? That’s right, don’t just serve whiskey on the rocks. Start serving it in the form of crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate chip cookies. Perfect this recipe and you might just have a crowd of foodie fans fawning after you.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups dark chocolate wafers not cookies
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup rye flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon bourbon
• 1 vanilla bean (split)
• 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt

Instructions:

1. Process the 3/4 cup of dark chocolate wafers in a food processor until they are pea-sized.
2. Whisk the all-purpose flour, rye flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
3. Beat the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in an electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy.
4. Add in the egg, vanilla and bourbon and beat until well blended.
5. Set the mixer speed to low and then gradually add the dry ingredients until they blend.
6. Fold in the chocolate and the last pieces of wafers.
7. Divide the dough into 16 balls and then place on a rimmed sheet.
8. Tightly wrap it with plastic wrap and chill for at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours.
9. Place the rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
10. Mix the vanilla seeds with the sea salt into a bowl.
11. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
12. Arrange the dough balls on the onto a baking sheet and flatten with the palm of hand until each ball is about 3/4” thick.
13. Sprinkle the balls with vanilla salt.
14. Bake the cookies and half way through, rotate the sheets. Bake until the edges become golden brown.
15. Allow to cool on the cookie sheets before letting them completely.

Level 4: Food God

With marijuana legalization spreading like wildfire across the United States, it’s unsurprising that this plant has also become a star ingredient in many recipes. Take your baking skills to an unprecedented high (pun intended) by infusing your chocolate chip cookies with cannabis. Try this recipe out if you’re daring enough to experiment and reach food god level with your kitchen concoctions.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cup flour
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup cannabutter
• 1 1/3 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 egg

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease your baking sheets.
2. Combine the all-purpose flour, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl.
3. In another bowl, mix the canna butter with the white and brown sugar until creamy.
4. Add in the vanilla extract and egg once the mixture has set.
5. Keep mixing until the mixture becomes light before putting in the chocolate chips.
6. Slowly add in the flour mixture in the medium bowl. Keep mixing until the cookie dough looks firm.
7. Scoop out the mixture using a spoon and form 1/4 cup cookies on the cookie sheet. Spread the dough equally.
8. Put the sheet into the preheated oven and bake from 18 to 25 minutes.
9. Once the cookies look golden brown, allow the cookies to cool away from the oven.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle takes dedication, but without it, it is too easy to fall into bad habits. Ensuring there is clean food to eat, making time to fit exercise into your hectic schedule and taking the appropriate supplements, means you are making your health a real priority.

So, how can you let yourself actually indulge? (more…)