One-Dish Meals For New Veggies

A slice of curried vegetable pie is the perfect comfort food on a rainy Sunday.
Photo: SG

Today's post was inspired by an episode of Jamie's Food Revolution, a TLC programme that chronicles renowned UK chef Jamie Oliver's journey to different parts of America, helping people cook and eat healthy. This morning's episode saw Oliver go head to head with a stubborn radio deejay intent on thwarting Oliver's mission in the latter's West Virginia town. Oliver made a bet with the deejay that he would get 1000 people to participate in his cook-a-thon and not only did he achieve that, the same deejay happened to be the 1000th person!

Of course it helped that Oliver got the townsfolk to cook a one-dish-meal: stir-fried noodles with plenty of vegetables, which is far less off-putting than a five-course dinner. In fact, it was this dish that got me thinking: many people harbour a secret desire to go vegetarian or vegan, but they are 'forced' out of it by naysayers who tell them how inconvenient a new diet would be.

7 Ways To Stay Awake Without Coffee

As a recovering coffeeholic, I find that caffeine- despite the quick boost it gives on a cold, rainy morning or during the occasional boring class- wears off faster than I like and does nothing to get rid of the heavy feeling in my body. Sometimes I skip the coffee altogether and reach for an isotonic drink to kick me awake.

Same difference.

For the uninitiated, here's what caffeine does to your system: your body takes between 30 and 45 minutes to absorb it, and the short boost wears off in about three hours. Isotonic and other energy drinks do pretty much the same thing, except that the high sugar content in these leave you feeling lethargic and a little dull after the burst of energy wears off.

Do your mind and body a favour and go on a caffeine fast. Here are seven healthier ways to stay awake at your desk:

Before You Eat That Apple, Read This

Apples contain high amounts of pesticides.
Photo by SG.

While many of us who live in Asian climates skin apples before consuming them, we forget that as these fruits are imported, they contain high levels of pesticides. In fact, US-based Environmental Working Group (EWG), a non-profit research organisation, has rated apples no.4 on their 2010 list of fruits and vegetables with the highest pesticide content.

Exotic Dining: Marigolds

Marigolds add some 'kick' to desserts and salads. Photo: SG

Just the other day, I was watching TLC when they ran a commercial for "Dining With Death", a new reality series on 'exotic dining' the channel is promoting locally. Needless to say I went a bit white about the lips at some of the things people were popping into their mouths. But the commercial got me thinking, why is it that 'exotic foods' almost always refers to the slaughtering of some kind of animal? Why should vegetarians be relegated to boring meals because their diet is less glamorous in the media's eyes?