Grilled Peaches and Cannoli Ricotta #NNM #healthy #dessert @Fruits_Veggies

Grilled Peaches and Cannoli Ricotta

with Cocoa-Balsamic drizzle

Serves 5

Ingredients

5 peach halves (fresh peaches in season or canned peaches in juice)
1 cup part skim Ricotta
1 Tablespoon (Tblsp) powdered sugar
1 Tblsp Vanilla Soy Milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
mini chocolate chips garnish - optional

Putting it all together

Wash, pit and cut fresh peaches in half. If using canned peach halves: drain and save juice to store extra grilled peaches.

To grill: spray the cut side with cooking spray. Place cut side down on hot grill and cook until grill marks are imprinted into the peach. Remove and let cool on plate or in reserved juice.

In mixing bowl mix the ricotta, sugar, soy milk and vanilla ext. Set aside in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Make Cocoa-Balsamic Reduction and transfer to a small squeeze bottle when cool.

Serve one peach halve topped with 1 oz. scoop cannoli ricotta and drizzle with reduced cocoa-balsamic. Garnish with a few chocolate chips and/or mint leaf.  

Enjoy and Savor the Flavor!
Good source Vitamin A and Calcium
Recipe and photo Copyright (C)Wind. All rights reserved.

Make your own ricotta and mozzarella cheese! @cherrygrovefarm #GardenCuizine @NOFANJ

Ricotta and Mozzarella
Cheese-making Class 

at Cherry Grove Farm!

As Harry and I set out for Cherry Grove Farm in Central New Jersey, we knew we were headed for a fun experience. We handmade ricotta, stretched mozzarella and stuffed ricotta burrata balls from grass fed whole cows milk. Even when we were in Sicily last spring we didn't get the opportunity to make or even observe how ricotta cheese was made. My last real cheese-making adventure was when I attended the Academy of Culinary Arts and learned how to make farmers cheese.

• Cheese is an excellent source of protein and calcium, but can be high in sodium and saturated fat - so enjoy in moderation. 
• What's nice about organic farm cheese is that the milk is more nutrient-dense from pastured cows that feed on organic grasses and weeds like clover. For example, some milk may have a yellow hue, a visible sign of having more beta-carotene. 
• Milk from free roaming pastured cows also contains much more beneficial conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) than milk from grain-fed cows.
• Making ricotta and mozzarella is easier than you may think. But, before you make your own cheese at home it helps to understand curds and whey.

Bariatric clients may like this information too because whey protein is recommended initially after weight loss surgery as an excellent form of supplemental protein.

What is Whey Protein?
Remember the nursery rhyme Little Miss Muffet, who sat on a tuffet, eating of curds and whey? Well, curds come from coagulated milk. And, whey comes from the leftover liquid when milk coagulates and the curds are removed. Whey is a byproduct in cheese-making and is used to make ricotta.

Ricotta
Whey cheese is ricotta. Ricotta means "recooked". it is made from the leftover fluid after straining out the curds, which are coagulated proteins in cheese-making. Proteins are coagulated by low pH and high temperatures. Milk can be coagulated through the action of adding acid such as lemon juice or citric acid powder to the solution. Time and temperature become important elements in the cheese-making process. 

In Sicily we had plenty of tastings though of warm, fresh made ricotta from sheep's milk. Molded Sicilian ricotta was served on the table with fresh bread. In Sicily, we used fresh ricotta in Italian Cassata - a classic Sicilian dessert. Ricotta is also popular in cannoli and in savory eggplant and pasta dishes.

Here in the US, most ricotta is made from cow's milk versus sheep's. There is a distinct difference in taste - with sheep's milk having more flavor, and cow's milk ricotta being more bland.

Cheers to Cherry Grove's cheese-making class!
In the cheese class, we didn't make Ricottone (whey only) ricotta, we made a ricotta variation from whole milk that some call farm cheese. The results are similar. Ricottone is finer in texture. Farm cheese has delicate ricotta curds that can be used as you would Ricottone or made into mozzarella like we did in the class. In the class, we took our stretched mozzarella and stuffed it with a creamy ricotta filling to make burratas.

Cherry Grove has over 50 milking cows that graze on 230 acres of certified organic grass pastures located in Lawrenceville, NJ. Cheese-maker Sam Kennedy, CIA graduate, uses their fresh milk production for making artisan cheeses that are sold at their farm and to chefs, restaurants and stores in the tri-state area.

I first visited Mercer County as a food vendor with my former health food store and restaurant, Garden of Eden Natural Foods and Country Kitchen, Inc. We proudly served organic foods at the NOFA Organic Country Fair on the grounds of the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed. NOFA-NJ is dedicated to supporting sustainable food and agriculture throughout New Jersey. 

If you live in the area and get a chance, visit Cherry Grove Farm for some sustainable agriculture fun. In addition to providing cheese-making classes, they have a small market that offers organic eggs, hormone and antibiotic-free meats and of course, their award-winning artisan cheeses.

Here are a few photos we took at Cherry Grove Farm

Thanks for a fun cheese-making class! 

GardenCuizine Ricotta Nutrition: Based on USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference calculated by Diana Wind, RD
Excellent Source: Protein, Calcium, Phosphorus, Selenium
Good Source: Riboflavin, Vitamin A
Whole milk Ricotta: 1/2 cup (124g): Calories 216; Protein 14g (28% DV); Calcium 257mg (26% DV); Magnesium 14mg (3.5% DV); Phosphorus 196mg (20% DV); Selenium 18mcg (26% DV); Riboflavin 0.24mg (14% DV); Vitamin A 552IU (11% DV); Vitamin D 12 IU (3% DV)

Related Links
Making Mozzarella, a Hands-on Affair
Ricotta recipe and using leftover whey
New England Cheesemaking Supply Co 
Blog post and photos Copyright (C)2013 Wind. All rights reserved. 

Fun at our local Farm! Stinging Nettles @cherrygrovefarm Artisan Cheese #GardenCuizine @SuperBowl snacks

 Cherry Grove Farm

Look for local farms and CSA's in your area to seek out fresh eggs, fruits, vegetables, herbs, local honey, jams, apple butter, organic meats and other sustainable local fare. We recently discovered Cherry Grove Farm in Lawrenceville, New Jersey in the Princeton area; they even make their own handcrafted farmstead cheeses. 

For Superbowl Sunday snacks we're trying one of their award winning cheese blends made with stinging nettles - Full Nettle Jack. Cheese can add nutrients, especially calcium, to your diet, but cheese can also add fat and sodium. Select reduced fat varieties when available and keep the portion sizes small and bite-sized. Serve cheese atop low sodium, multigrain crackers; melt cheese over veggies or multigrain nachos; enjoy shredded cheese atop salads and prepared foods.

Artisan Cheese with Greens = a Winning combo
Artisan cheese with Nettles...what is that? We used to have herbaceous perennial Stinging Nettles (Urtica dioica) growing near our garden that I actually planted there on purpose; and someone (we won't mention any names) dug them out to get rid of them thinking they were unwanted weeds, which to many they are. Stinging Nettles can actually be eaten like other nutritious weed greens - ie dandelion, purslane, violets, watercress. Nettles contain nutrients that include dietary fiber, calcium and vitamin A. 

Go @Ravens!

GardenCuizine Nutrition Analysis Stinging Nettles: calculated by Diana Wind, RD from USDA Nutrient Database 
Excellent Source: dietary Fiber, Calcium, Vitamin A
Good Source: Magnesium 
1 cup (89g): 37 calories; dietary Fiber 6g (24% DV); Calcium 428 mg (42% DV); Iron 1.5 mg (8% DV); Magnesium 51mg (13% DV); Potassium 297mg (8.5% DV); Riboflavin 0.142 mg (8% DV); Vitamin A 1790 IU (36% DV); Lutein + Zeaxanthin 3718 mcg

Related Links
Test your Cheese Knowledge 
Edible Wild Plants
Photo collage and blog post Copyright (C)2013 Wind. All rights reserved.

DRIs for Calcium and Vitamin D - Institute of Medicine

 

New 2010 Dietary Reference Intakes 

for Calcium and Vitamin D

Sunshine has been a controversial source for our bodies to get Vitamin D. Too much sun could lead to skin cancer, too little sun from sunscreens, clothing, or the time of year, may mean not getting enough Vitamin D. Supplemental forms of both Calcium and Vitamin D can be found in multivitamin and minerals, or as separate supplements. Calcium and Vitamin D have important functions in the human body. A primary function is to work together to benefit overall bone health. On the other hand, these necessary nutrients have also been shown to be harmful if too much is consumed. 

The public's burning question -- how much Calcium and Vitamin D is needed? -- was answered today by the Institute of Medicine. Click on this link for the new 2010 recommendations:  

DRIs for Calcium and Vitamin D - Institute of Medicine

Vitamin D Food Sources

And, if you are wondering about food sources of Vitamin D... there are not many. The best sources include: fatty fish, such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel; or beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks. Mushrooms provide smaller amounts. Milk is one of the better sources for both Calcium and Vitamin D. Almost all milk sold in the United States gets fortified with 400 IU of vitamin D per quart. Your healthiest choices are: fat-free skim, low-fat 1%, or reduced fat 2% (1 cup = 300 mg calcium). Vitamin D is also added to some breakfast cereals and some brands of orange juice, yogurt, margarine, and soy milks. Read the product labels to be sure.

Calcium-rich Foods Sources
Calcium fortified Orange Juice ~ 1 cup juice = 300 mg calcium

Yogurt ~ 1 cup = 300 mg calcium
Cheese ~ 1 ½ ounces natural cheese = 300 mg calcium
Collard and Turnip Greens ~ ½ cup cooked = 100 mg calcium
Almonds ~ ¼ cup = 100 mg calcium

Broccoli ~ ½ cup cooked = 50 mg calcium

 

Related Links: 

IOM Report Sets New Dietary Intake Levels for Calcium and Vitamin D To Maintain Health and Avoid Risks Associated With Excess 
Vitamin D Fact Sheet 
Is Calcium Citrate better than Calcium Carbonate?
Vitamin D (Calcitriol) Structure and Synthesis
The American Dietetic Association Supports New Institute of Medicine Recommendations on Calcium and Vitamin D Intake

Blog Article and Photo: Copyright 2010 D.Wind. All rights reserved.