Calories - how to do count?

Calories are on all food items. How do you count them? Many people forget that the calorie count is usually per serving. So, if one serving (probably a few ounzes) has 300 calories and you have 2 servings, you are already into 600 calories.

A woman needs about 2,100 calories, ie. on an average. Say you have one bagel for breakfast, then a lunch (sandwich and salad) then a hearty dinner. Don't you think that could amount to at least 3,000 calories? Oh, don't forget the cream cheese and salad dressing!

Appetizing, savory vegetarian chilli

Check out my delicious vegetarian chilli recipe of this week. Here's a list of all my recipes.

Broccoli Raab - Does it exist in the midwest?

Ever since I came here, I've been looking for my most favorite veggie - Broccoli Raab. Can someone help me with this? Where would I find them? There is a huge market place in downtown St. Louis that doesn't carry it. There is no Italian market either to go hunting for broccoli raab.

Food tastes very different compared to the east coast. Italian places are not anything Italian, the cheeses used are different, the way dishes are made are different as well. Mexican food-- forget that. None of the other ethnic foods come close to those in the east coast, actually many don't exist. It is quite frustrating when people can't cook in restaurants when do find one.

'The Hill' supposedly has good Italian restaurants. We went to one some months ago and found the food to be decent. By accident, thinking it was another Italian place we went there again. What a disappointment!

It's been a while since I moved here and still looking for decent places to eat.

Hot and spicy pakodas south indian style

Oh, what a drab Sunday.

The only exciting event of today were my hot and spicy pakodas. Here is a picture. Look for the recipe tomorrow at vidyaswamyskitchen.com.

Soup Challenge Contest - A piece of good news

The soup challenge was a fun cotest which I entered way back in October or November of last year. Mid February I heard back from the organizers saying that I am a finalist.

If things go as planned, then I would be doing the final show in Peoria, IL at the Illinois Central College. The finals will take place at Illinois Central College (ICC) in Peoria, IL. The event will be held at ICC’s fabulous Culinary Arts Institute.

Thanks to all my fans who voted for me and continued until the last day of the challenge. I would love to hear back from you and will keep you posted as to what happens on March 24th at the finals.

Homemade Mushroom Soup

Check out recipe of the week - Homemade mushroom soup

Soft drinks - do you really need them?

I am not a great fan of soft drinks but I do like the taste of an orange soda or lemon/lime as in Sprite or Dr. Pepper off and on. I head toward these if they are available at gatherings.

For months on end I had not had a soda. But this morning I went out to get breakfast. They had an option of coffee or a softdrink. Coffee is not an option for me anytime, so I picked Dr. Pepper.

I eagerly had one sip. Although I wanted to drink at least half the cup, I couldn't get myself to have another sip. I just didn't want it anymore. It was a regular soda not diet but even the first sip left an after taste. So, I just poured the whole thing down the drian. Either my system is rejecting it or my taste buds have become too sensitive to artificial sweetners and high sugar drinks. I'm not quite sure. I'll try these sodas maybe on a pizza day and see what happens.

The surprising fact is some people get addicted to these sodas while others have experiences like me. Do we really need these sugar drinks in our diets?

Vegetable Quesadillas

Recipe of the week - Try these absolutely tasty vegetable quesadillas for dinner tonight.

Leftovers

I rarely had left over food when I was growing up. But after I left home, it became a necessity of life. I didn't have the time initially to cook a fresh meal every evening; now I have 45mins. to an hour to spare in the evenings after work. So, I cook everyday and am now used to it. Besides, my left over food was often consumed only by me. Thanks to my uber picky family.

Here's how I make cooking a meal every evening efficient. I plan the meals during weekends and make sure I have the ingredients ready. Even if they are not all fancy meals, at least a couple of them are involved ones. The planning makes it a lot easy. I take my leftovers for lunch. My refrigerator is clean and has just what is needed for the week.

Finally, they are here. The Food Police. At least in some cities and states.

We've all heard these statistics. One in three adults is obese and about 17% of children as well. There is growing awareness everywhere with promotion of exercise, diets, making good food available in poor neighborhoods, proper food labeling, stacking convenience store shelves with healthier foods, promoting and selling fruits and less sugared food varieties in cafeteria's and vending machines.

The Food Police is getting to be louder and louder. Now they are being heard. Yet not all local governments are able to execute their ideas in all areas. The Food Police are being pushed back in some cities.

Unfortunately, anti-obesity agendas have put convenience stores in the crosshairs of the food police, with at­tacks on sweet and salty snacks and beverages. Sales in grocery stores and convenience stores are bound to increase. Slowly and steadily. Until that happens, businesses would do well by working with the Food Police and helping out our obese citizens.