Our own space…

We have moved to our own space on the Web, From now on get  C and C Recipes at CC Recipe dot com. We are excited to have our own website, so visit us at ccrecipe.com for our daily recipes!

Side Dish Week

We have dedicated the next 7 days to side dish recipes, 7 days of side dish recipes created or tested and tried by us!

Most people think first of the main dish when planning a meal but, side dishes are what make a main dish a meal, a good side dish can make or break a meal! A side dish, sometimes referred to as a side order or simply a side, is a food item that accompanies the entree or main course at a meal. A side usually refers to a smaller portion served as a side dish, rather than a large main dish serving. For example, a “side salad” is usually served in a small bowl or salad plate, in contrast to a large dinner-plate-sized entree salad.

Side dishes can be hearty or healthy, hot, cold, and just about anything you can think of, pasta, rice, couscous, beans, vegetables, fruit, salad, potatoes, soups and bread, all of these foods make fantastic side dishes that complement a variety of main dishes.

Simple additions can give your side dishes a little something extra. Try adding a few fresh or dried herbs to mashed potatoes or steamed vegetables for extra flavor. Add sauces to your side dishes to create elegant additions to the meal, and add a bit of fresh lemon, lime, or orange juice to fresh vegetables to bring out their flavor and color. Cook or dress your pasta with flavored oil, such as garlic oil, to take it from bland to outstanding.

Some Side Dish Ideas:

• Try adding dried fruit, nuts, or chopped vegetables (such as green onions, garlic, broccoli, or others) to cooked rice. It will give the rice something extra and added texture.
• Cooking vegetables too much will make them mushy and tasteless. Cook until they are still a bit crispy, and they’ll taste better and retain more of their vitamins and nutrition.
• Create non-traditional type side dishes like stuffing or fresh fruit to add variety to your weekday meals. Have fun and experiment!
• Don’t forget the crock-pot, Crock Pots aren’t just for main dishes; you can create a variety of side dishes and casseroles in Crock Pots, too!

Looking for side dish recipes? Well then stay tuned for the next 7 days for side dish recipes created or tested and tried by us.

Featured Recipes:
Chive & Onion Scalloped Potatoes
Roasted Green Beans
Baked Beans – Vegetarian
Corn Pudding
Zucchini & Cheese Gratin
One Pot Macaroni and Cheese
Green Veggie Risotto

C and C Dish
Camala and Christine

Smoothie Week

This week we have dedicated to smoothies, 7 days of wonderful smoothie recipes, created or tested and tried by us!

Smoothies are typically a blended, chilled, sometimes sweetened beverage made from fresh fruit or vegetables. In addition to the fruit or vegetables, many smoothies include ice, frozen fruit, honey, yogurt, milk, soy milk, kefir, protein powder, herbal or nutritional supplement mixes, coconut oil, ground nuts, ground flax seed and more, the add-ins for smoothies is an endless possibility. Smoothies contain your desired ingredients and is blended until smooth. Smoothies have a milkshake-like consistency however, unlike milkshakes they usually don’t contain ice cream, but can contain milk. Whether you are trying to eat healthier or are trying to incorporate more fruits and vegetables into your diet or want to boost up your intake of nutritional supplements and antioxidants, making Smoothies is a great way to do so.

Smoothies are a delicious, nutritious, and fun way to maximize your health in a creative way that is limited only by your imagination. Smoothies are a great chance to experiment with your personal taste and creativity. You can start with fresh or frozen fruits, just be creative and avoid ingredients that you do not care for.

Smoothie’s can be a great way to get your day started. Smoothies are super-fast, convenient, energizing and sometimes can be used as a meal replacement. If you choose your ingredients carefully, your smoothie can relieve fatigue and constipation, balance your blood sugar, establish proper PH levels in your colon, and improve mental sharpness. Some ideas when you are trying to think up combination’s on your own is to try to balance tart and sweet fruit, pair mangoes and pineapple with watery fruit like strawberries, kiwi fruit and oranges. Add yogurt for creaminess and calcium, add ice cubes for extra chill, fresh root ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg or vanilla extract to add flavor, again have fun and experiment. Smoothies are also a great pre-workout energy booster. I find that drinking a smoothie before a workout provides just enough energy without the feeling of being too full.

So now that we know a bit about smoothies and know that smoothies are absolutely delicious, nutritious and versatile, and make for an  ideal breakfast, lunch or snack any time of day, Let’s get BLENDING! The only equipment you will need is a blender and you will have a glassful of goodness in just seconds. We hope our smoothie week inspires you and you can try seven wonderful smoothies throughout your week! It is time to get blending=}

Featured Recipes:
Tropical Avocado Smoothie
Berry Medley Smoothie
Tropical Fruit Smoothie
Strawberry Mango Smoothie
Peaches & Cream Smoothie
Blueberry Bliss Smoothie
Green Smoothie

C and C Dish
Camala and Christine

Breakfast Week

We thought it would be fun if we did a breakfast week, that is seven days of breakfast food recipes. Recipes we have made up ourselves or have tested and tried, and continue to make ourselves because we think they are great=}

Breakfast is the first meal of the day and it is easy to get into a rut with this meal and just eat the same things. For people breakfast often includes a carbohydrate such as cereal, fruit and/or vegetable, protein, sometimes a dairy product, and a drink. Nutritional experts have referred to breakfast as the most important meal of the day.

Many people believe that they will lose weight if they skip meals, but that just isn’t true; the body expects to be refueled a few times each day, starting with breakfast. This is based on studies of the large numbers of people who skip breakfast, to adverse effect on their concentration, metabolism and weight.  Actually, eating breakfast is good for weight loss. In fact, studies show that people who eat breakfast are more likely to maintain a healthy weight.  Studies also show that children who eat breakfast do better in school. We also think adults will feel better and perform better at work as well, if they don’t skip breakfast. It is not a good idea to skip breakfast.

Eating a good breakfast sets the tone for the rest of the day.  Notice how much better you feel through the morning and the rest of the day when you don’t skip breakfast. So, let’s all not skip breakfast this week and enjoy the recipes featured the next seven days.

Featured Recipes:

Orange Cream Cheese Muffins
Broiled Grapefruit
Homemade Granola
Fresh Pineapple Oatmeal
Spinach and Potato Frittata
Buttermilk Pancakes
Yogurt and Fresh Berry Parfait

C and C Dish
Christine and Camala

Wash your Strawberries

Are you properly and thoroughly cleaning your strawberries? Is there something you may be eating without knowing it? I watched THIS and I was pretty grossed out even though I do personally very thoroughly wash my strawberries. You have got to watch the video, it is a video that describes the most common insect found on strawberries. The video also teaches the proper method of cleaning strawberries.

In addition to washing them like this video demonstrates you could also gently wipe each strawberry with a damp cloth or paper towel. This may take a bit more time but it does ensure you remove anymore dirt on the strawberry. I personally use a fruit and veggie wash on all my fruit and veggies to clean them and I try to buy as much fresh organic locally grown produce as I can.

This summer we joined a CSA and we will be getting all our veggies from an organic farm, which I am super excited about, it start May 1st and I can’t wait! Well, hopefully you were already properly cleaning your strawberries and if you weren’t than you were ingesting all those wonderful insects, YAY, For You, Yum, added protein=}

*Camala*

My Loquat Tree

My loquat tree is displaying some beautiful fruit this year.  There are so many different varieties of this tree and I’m not sure exactly what mine is but she sure is beautiful!  Apparantly the tree is indigenous to China.  From there it went to Japan, then to Hawaii and then to California.  The fruit is small, kind of pear shaped and yellowish orange in color.  It has soft, downy skin, like a peach.   To me the fruit itself tastes like a cross between an apricot and a peach.  Sometimes sour and sometimes sweet, (I guess you could say “tartly sweet”)-but very juicy.

I’ve never made anything with the loquat before, but maybe this year I’ll attempt to….  Why not, I’ve got so many!!!   The fruit is very fragile though so not sure what would work.  I have been hunting for some recipes and have come across some– mostly for jams and jellies.  I did notice that they could be poached is syrup or made into pies or tarts.  So if any one has had some experience  or a recipe they have tried with this unusual fruit I would sure be interested in it…  I would like to try something before the birds eat them all!!!

* Christine*

Feast your eyes…

Well, I can’t tell you all enough or even really explain how much I love searching for recipes and trying new things. I have always enjoyed doing that and now as I get older I like experimenting more and more and widening my horizon’s with food. I think it is so much fun and I love getting the kids involved as much as I can as well, then when we finish something and it is ready to be eaten the kids really feel like they got to take part in what they are enjoying.

Well back to the point of this post…I have also enjoyed looking at pictures of food but now it’s starting to take a different turn, I am really loving looking at all these amazing pictures people take of their food creations and I have found a great site to feast your eyes…www.foodgawker.com

This site is so much fun to look at all the awesome pictures of food, just thought I would share!

*Camala*

Our Debut…

Welcome to C and C Dish! We are so excited to share our recipe experiences with you. We look forward to you trying these as well and giving your feedback. Happy Cooking and Baking!

C and C – Camala and Christine