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Potato News: Robuchon’s mashed potatoes, Swiss giant potatoes to be fed to pigs, calorie counting at chain restaurants, how potatoes changed the world

Published by Jonell Galloway + Tuesday, October 25, 2011 Permalink 0

by video

If you’ve ever had to the good luck to taste Joël Robuchon’s mashed potatoes, made with the variety Ratte, you probably daydream about them often enough. This here explains how to make them. Click Swiss Info to watch a video that explains how to make them.

Gawker says more than 10,000 tons of potatoes will end up in Swiss troughs this year. The dry spring and warm autumn made them too big to meet the standard sizes that can legally be sold in supermarkets.

Ever wonder how many calories are in those KFC mashed potatoes and gravy? article calculates “680 calories, and an even more shocking 2130 mg of sodium per serving.”

Potatoes from the New World most likely saved Europe from a famine in 18th century. This Smithsonian Around 200 varieties of Peruvian potatoes were... is a fascinating history of the potato and how it changed the world, and full of interesting facts.

David Downie: Part 1 of his take on Salon du Chocolat in Paris

Published by Jonell Galloway + Monday, October 24, 2011 Permalink 0

by David Downie

Choc Around the Clock in Paris at the Salon du Chocolat

The annual chocolate feast, fete and orgy known here in Paris as the Salon du Chocolat takes over the city this year from October 20 to 24. If you’re not in Paris already, get here fast. There might not be any chocolate left if you arrive on the last day.

It has been remarked (by yours truly) that if you toss out a euro these days it will probably land on a Paris chocolate shop or pâtisserie with a celebrated chef bent on titillating his customers’ taste buds while dazzling their eyes and lightening their wallets.

No other city, not even Brussels, has as much fine chocolate as Paris. Paris is the chocolate capital of the world.

While the Swiss and Belgians weren’t looking, Paris stole their milk cows and became the swaggering global capital of chic chocolate.

All challengers to this claim please take one of our chocolate tours and then decide whether to proceed with the duel.

Click here to continue reading article.

Chocolate News: Paris Salon du Chocolat Roundup

Published by Jonell Galloway + Monday, October 24, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

This year’s fashion show at the Salon du Chocolat in Paris was probably the most stunning and creative to date. The fashion designers gave a burlesque atmosphere to the entire show, and there was a full array of top top models to show their creations to their best advantage.

I’m melting! Chocolate catwalk show comes a cropper after model’s dress falls off. The Daily Mail has one of the most complete coverages of the chocolate dress fashion show, with a full photo show, including the several shots of Karine Ferri’s dress as it gradually desconstructed as she walked down the runway.

Trendhunter show a great closeup of the gladiator bikini that 2005 Miss France Cindy Fabre paraded.

Japan was the featured chocolate country this year, and Japanese Susumu Koyama, 47, was even named “Best Foreign Chocolatier” — winning out over top masters from celebrated chocolate-making nations like Belgium and Switzerland.

The Telegraph has a great photo of Anca Radici, with a close-up of her chocolate stockings and shoes.

ShoppingBlog shows some highlights in video, including the deconstructing dress.

Good photos to be seen on Out and About in Paris as well.

The show ends tonight, so if you’re in Paris, you still have time to pay a visit.

Health Challenge: 101 ways to use quinoa, well actually 5 easy ways

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, October 21, 2011 Permalink 0

by Tamar Chamlian

Quinua (Quinoa) plants near Cachora, Apurímac,...

Quinoa is a health food addict’s best friend. I have a love affair with it.

If I were to tell you that it could be used in 101 ways, yes there would be. I’ll keep it simple to start, however, by listing 5 easy, quick-fix ways to incorporate this magic grain in your everyday meals.

Do you want to know what so “magical” about quinoa? Its glory is that it is high in protein and fiber, yet provides you with lots of long-lasting, balanced energy.

But I don’t only like quinoa because of its nutritional values. I also like it because it is easy to combine it with other ingredients when cooking.

I often come home after a long day and the just the thought of thirty minutes in the kitchen making a big homemade meal overwhelms me. And can my digestive system really handle a big heavy meal?

The quinoa is sitting there, set, ready to go in just 10 minutes (and sometimes even less).

Here are my 5 easy, healthy quick-fix dishes:

Mix cooked quinoa with salad greens, small green peas, corn, steamed zucchini and cherry tomatoes. Drizzle a generous amount of olive oil and lemon juice. Add some salt and pepper, and you have a wonderful salad that can serve as a well-balanced meal
Substitute it for rice as a side for grilled vegetables and chicken.
Growing up in the Middle East, we regularly had tabbouleh. Tabbouleh is made with bulgur. I now cook my traditional homemade tabbouleh with quinoa. The replacement of bulgur with quinoa is much healthier and lower in carbohydrates.
Eat quinoa as a breakfast cereal. Simply mix the cooked quinoa with non-dairy milk and let it simmer. Add some slivered almonds and cranberries. Add cinnamon if you want to spice it up.
Substitute your burger patties with a mixture quinoa and chickpea patties. Add herbs and spices, such as paprika, cumin, garlic, coriander, and thyme.

Quinoa is revolutionary in the world of cereals and grains. It is chock-full of nutrition and fiber.

Betty Bossi’s Swiss Cookbook

Published by Jonell Galloway + Wednesday, October 19, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

Betty Bossi’s “The Swiss Cookbook”

The Swiss Cookbook, by the famous but fictional Betty Bossi, the equivalent of Betty Crocker in the U.S., can make a good addition to a cookbook collection for those who want to cook Swiss dishes but can’t read French or German. It makes a great Christmas gift, and is handy to have in the house, whether you’re a gourmet cook or just an occasional one.

The recipes are organized by region. In a land with four languages and such cultural diversity, this is a necessity. There is a brief description of each region and its cuisine, along with attractive photos. Each recipe is accompanied by a photo.

The ring binding and glossy pages make it practical to use. The Swiss Cookbook is appropriate for Swiss people as well as for expatriates, because it gives a good overview of traditional Swiss cuisine and contemporary cuisine using Swiss ingredients.

It is an attractive gift for most anyone interested in food.

It can be ordered online from the Betty Bossi online shop, and is also available in many supermarkets in Switzerland.

Related articles

Miracle Water Village: A Visionary Model of Water Management as Climate Change Sets In

Published by Jonell Galloway + Tuesday, October 18, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

The video Miracle Water Village in India is a wonderful story and lesson for the rest of the world. Shiyam Sundar says: “As the world reels under the threat of unrelenting climate change, erratic monsoons and fast depleting groundwater reserves, The Miracle Water Village narrates the inspirational story of impoverished farming community in India that reversed its fortunes through its visionary model of water management.”

Click here to watch the video.

Food News Daily: September 27, 2011
Miracle Water Village in India: on village’s fight to get water for its farmers
Climate change impacting agriculture in India: Swaminathan

Health Challenge: Getting your vitamin D fix this winter

Published by Jonell Galloway + Monday, October 17, 2011 Permalink 0

by Tamar Chamlian

Vitamin D is of vital importance to our bodies. Most of us know that simple exposure to the sun for up to 10 minutes a day is sufficient for the body to make its own vitamin D.

Now that winter is setting in, if you live in countries that barely see the sun for months on end, you will need to seek other sources of getting your vitamin D.

It’s actually simple and easy. Here are the top three foods that can provide you with Vitamin D, with suggestions on how to use them.

The Many Faces of Swiss Fondue and Chasselas wine

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, October 14, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

The word “fondue” means literally “melted” in French. In Switzerland, fondue is made by melting cheese with white wine, pepper, garlic and kirsch (cherry schnapps).

Photo courtesy of Fribourg Tourist Bureau.

Different regions use different cheeses and have different recipes however. In the canton of Valais, no starch, butter, or eggs are added, while in many other regions they are used for thickening. Today, many people use corn starch.

Fribourg fondue is different from other cantons in that it uses Fribourg Vacherin cheese. Both Gruyère and Fribourg make what is referred to as “half and half”, meaning they use half Gruyère and half Fribourg Vacherin cheese.In central Switzerland, it is common to use Gruyère, Emmental and Sbrinz, a hard cheese from central Switzerland that is claimed to be the oldest cheese in Europe.

Jonell Galloway: Kentucky Fried Chicken meal recipes from Swiss radio station RSR

Published by Jonell Galloway + Thursday, October 6, 2011 Permalink 0

I passed an afternoon with the charming radio presenter Florence Farion, for her show La Fourchette du Dimanche, and this is the result: a Kentucky fried chicken feast, including loads of vegetables to help you digest the fat.

By popular demand, the recipe for my Kentucky Fried Chicken meal. Click on Télécharger l’émission at bottom of page to download radio show & pdf file of recipes (in French). Click here to listen, or go to the RSR site and find the July 3rd edition, listed at the bottom of the page:

http://www.rts.ch/la-1ere/programmes/la-fourchette-du-dimanche/3215460-la-fourchette-du-dimanche-du-03-07-2011.html#3215459

And here are the winners of the 6 Kuhn Rikon knives at our Expat Expo drawing

Published by Jonell Galloway + Tuesday, October 4, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

Husband Peter and I and Rosa Mayland, author of our column “Rosa’s Musings,” had a great time at the Expat Expo Geneva on Sunday. It’s a great way to make contacts in Geneva.


Jonell Galloway at The Rambling Epicure’s stand at Expat Expo Geneva 2011

We had a drawing for 6 red polka-dot Kuhn Rikon knives.


Kuhn Rikon Knives Drawing, The Rambling Epicure, Expat Expo Geneva

Here are the winners:

Paula Davies-Smith
M. Rowe
Peter Zornow
Sayjel
Alison Farley
Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter

Congratulations. You are now the proud owner of knives made by one of the most reputable brands of cookware in the world, and they’re made in Switzerland!