21 May 2010

Love Me Some EVOO!

    Hey my friends! It's been too long! I wanted to share what is on my mind this Friday which is a few recipes that Extra Virgin Olive Oil takes all the credit for making so perfecto! So, you probably here about olive oil and its benefits on the food network or other cooking shows. Truth is olive oil is so great for you! In fact, I rarely ever buy butter anymore unless I am baking. I have come to substitute olive oil for everything, and I want to share a few recipes with you on how I do that!

Cooking With EVOO
It's not very helpful to us if we are using EVOO in cooking, but not using it properly to receive all the nutrients! To make sure we are getting all those great polyphenols everyone speaks of we must heat it to only about 400 degrees that is a pretty low smoke point for sauteing... Once we go over our smoke point, we no longer have all the benefits of EVOO in our food!  So, keep the sauteing and cooking on medium.

Too Much Of Anything Isn't Good For You
Just like drinking red wine, there is a limit. Olive oil is a really healthy fat that helps with your skin, heart, and just easy on the gi tract; however, a little goes along way. If you typically have a hard time with portion control, note this: Fat should consist of 30% of your daily intake. Also, if you tend to pour oil heavy in the pan then try a aerosol can especially designed for oils to be spritzed on your food! I know Harris Teeter and most specialty grocery stores carry them for about $20. Great kitchen investment!

~Recipes Using EVOO~

This is a great way to get creative for those especially weary of trying the greenish yellow liquid that is not butter. So, if you swear up and down you don't like EVOO, I promise you, you just haven't found how you like it! This is a great way to bring extra to flavor to traditional EVOO.

This takes 10 minutes! I absolutely rather eat a bare salad then put some of the junk that people call salad dressing! There is sooo many calories and chemicals in salad dressings, even the ones that have less this and more good stuff. Nothing beats a homemade vinaigrette! So, once you get this basic vin down, you will be adding shallots and red wine vin or lemon juice and poppyseeds.... make it your own! There are so many wonderful combos for a great homemade salad dressing!

This a quick recipe that will have your party guests thinking you are so sophisticated... well, you may be but this recipe is so simple! Add some pita chips and its an appetizer! Or what I love to do is hit up the Harris Teeter Olive Bar if you have no time and add some fresh mozzarella with it and its a great snack!!

I hope you enjoyed these tip and recipes on what to do with your bottle of olive oil! If create some yum vinaigrette we can feature it on the blog!

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