Chef Vibes

National Canned Food Month

UA — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:08:56 +0000

With January coming to a close and February just around the corner, it makes you think about your plans for the upcoming holiday festivities. No, I’m not talking about Valentine’s Day, I’m talking about National Canned Food Month! This is the month where we get a jump start on that spring cleaning and give some of our canned goods (that have not yet expired) to those in need. It’s also the time of year that we re-evaluate the way we eat, and decide if our diet is healthy and well-balanced. To help us do this, the USDA has updated and simplified their food pyramid to only include canned goods. This is to show us that canned goods are comparable to fresh, cooked and even frozen foods in their nutrient content, and can be substituted for most of the foods we eat every day.

The following infographic comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and encompasses the main food groups and their relative portion size, as well as some examples of canned goods that fulfill those dietary requirements.

Join ChefUniforms and give to the needy this February. You’ll be glad you did!

National Pie Day!

UA — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:26:22 +0000

Today is National Pie Day, one of our favorite holidays here at ChefUniforms.com! This holiday began on January 23^rd, 1986 in order to commemorate the 75^th birthday of Crisco’s “Serving Foods to Families Everywhere” campaign. Why 1/23? Because enjoying a good pie is as easy as 1-2-3! 2012 marks Crisco’s 101^st birthday and Americans everywhere are celebrating in their own personal ways. The American Pie Council’s dedication to spreading the word about the benefits of pie on a person’s body and soul drove them to create a list of a baker’s dozen ways to enjoy and celebrate pies:

Attend a pie Festival! Attend the Great American Pie Festival in April at Lakeside Park in Celebration, FL.
Eat Pie! Make it yourself, pick it up at the store, or order it for dessert. Any way you choose, eat some pie today.
Make a pie! If you’re going to bake a pie, today’s the day! You can even combine this one with #3 to make the festivities that much yummier!
Teach others how to make pie! If you don’t know how to make it, find someone who does and learn. Or, simply call Crisco’s very own Pie Hotline (1-877-FOR PIE TIPS) to speak with a live pie expert, and ask any pie question you can think of!
Have a pie-making contest! Invite the best bakers you know to compete for prizes. Have cooking teachers, pastry chefs and other pie lovers to be the judges and give scores based on texture, taste, and overall quality.
Share a pie! Whether it’s homemade or store-bought, share a slice with a neighbor or friend.
Have pie night! Celebrate the miracle that is pie amongst family and friends.
Give a pie! Have a charity contest for pie eating (or throwing) and donate the proceeds to your favorite food-based charity.
Sample some pie! Pie retailers can introduce customers to pie through special sales and promotions this National Pie Day. Restaurants can offer a pie sampler plate or a free pie with dinner.
Hold pie activities! Stage some activities for kids including pie-making, poetry and art contests. Teach math, science and world history through pie (this one is probably easier for math with pie graphs).
Remember pie! Call older members of the family and ask them to give you some pie recipes. Talk about your favorite pies and your favorite memories associated with them.
Do pie things! Sing pie songs, read pie poems and books, and make some pie graphs.
Eat more pie! There’s always room for one more slice of pie…

What’s your favorite type of pie? Do you like it a la mode or just by itself? Leave us a comment below and tell us all about it!

National Soup Month

UA — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:21:28 +0000

Every year in January, we celebrate National Soup Month here in the U.S. Though it is an American holiday, National Soup Month celebrates all types of soups from around the world. In recent years, other countries have started to get into the mix and celebrate their own National Soup Month in their unique way. As for ChefUniforms.com, we’ve decided to share some little known soup facts with our loyal readers. Bon Appétit!

Americans eat over 10 BILLION bowls of soup every year!
Women eat more than twice the amount of soup as men.
Soup can be traced back to as early as 6,000 B.C. and used to be made out of hippopotamus!
Soup used to be known as “sop”, and was a piece of bread served with a broth poured over it. As time progressed, the sop was poured into deeper bowls, and the liquid became the focus, rather than the bread. Sop became Soup, and the bread was then dipped into the liquid and eaten. Today, the word “sop” is used to soak something up.
Each year, 99% of American homes purchase soup.
Soup is a $5 Billion per year business.
In the late 1700s, the King of France was so vain that he commanded his royal chefs to create a soup that would allow him to see his own reflection in it. Thus, consommé, or clear broth, was born.
In the French court of Louis XI, the women’s meals were mostly soup, because they were afraid that chewing on solid food would give them facial wrinkles.
Back in 17^th Century Europe, thin soups were all the rage. This is because the soup spoon was invented so that the large, frilly ruffles that the men and women wore around their necks would not get dripped on.
Before going on stage to perform, Frank Sinatra asked for chicken and rice soup in his dressing room.

What’s your favorite type of soup? Leave a comment below with your favorites, or send us a recipe and we’ll post it!

A Presidential Appetite

UA — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 14:06:49 +0000

For the past 3 years, First Lady Michelle Obama has transformed the White House’s backyard into a thriving fruit and vegetable garden. She has been using the fruits and vegetables that she grows to feed not only her family, but the local community as well, as part of her Let’s Move campaign to curb childhood obesity and promote healthy living across the country. Everyday Health was able to get an exclusive interview with the First Lady, and even added some seasonal recipes that were inspired by Obama’s garden.

Click the link below to read the whole story, and get some great ideas for seasonal dishes, with recipes to help you get back in shape!

http://www.everydayhealth.com/healthy-recipes-pictures/10-fall-recipes-inspired-by-the-white-house-garden.aspx#/slide-1

Interview with Chef Jose Luis Usquiano

UA — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 13:32:35 +0000

Jose Luis Usquiano

667 Votes

Jose was one of the contestants with the most votes in the ChefUniforms.com Cash for the Holidays Contest, and is January’s Chef of the month! Below is a short interview with Jose about his experiences in the contest and his career thus far, followed by a recipe that he submitted. Enjoy!

The Interview

1. How did you go about getting all of your votes? What did you do that helped the most (Facebook, Emails, etc)?

Email, my friends’ Facebook pages, coworkers, etc…

2. Why did you want to become a chef?

The reason being, I would like for people to know my work and to be able to show others what I learned in my culinary experience.

3. What fabric and style of uniform do you enjoy wearing most?

I love the ones that have mesh panels.

4. Do you enjoy dining out in your free time?

Yes. I do enjoy going out to have lunch or dinner on my time off. That is how I’m able to try new dishes. I learned new combinations of tastes and styles of foods, especially plates from different countries. This is how I’m able to experience other culinary cultures.

5. Do you see any changes in food trends?

Yes, well going to different places that serve international food, I can say that the culinary art is changing and everything is in the imagination of the cook.

6. What are your future plans for your business?

Being from Peru, I have not seen many places to eat the food of my country, and I would really like to one day open a Peruvian restaurant. It would be really traditional, and would show people how good Peruvian food is!

7. Is there any one thing you would have done differently in starting your culinary career?

My mother Beatriz Chale showed me how to cook when I was 10 years old. Afterwards when I came to the United States I had to cook for myself for necessity. I love eating so I had to cook a large amount of food. Because of this, my cooking improved as well as my culinary knowledge. This is when Chef Leon Teow gave me the opportunity to work beside him and direct me to what I am today.

8. What advice would you give to someone who wants to go into culinary school?

I honestly believe and would say go to culinary school if you really want to work in the culinary industry. You must enjoy cooking, and not only because people would be calling you a “cook”, because you would just waste your money. The kitchen is a place that you have to love, and care about doing it right.

9. Would you please send us a recipe (either a favorite food or one you made up) to post for our readers?

Ceviche de Pollo

Cut a chicken in small pieces with skin and bone.
Marinate the chicken with yellow hot sauce (Peruvian yellow pepper) for about one hour (the amount of hot sauce depends on how spicy you would like it).
Fry cut red onion (julienned) until it is translucent (about one and a half red onions).
Add a spoon full of chopped garlic with the onion until it is well cooked.
Add a little bit of chicken base, then add the chicken and let it cook.
When well cooked, turn off the stove and add a little lime juice. Stir well.

Afterwards, the chicken is served with white rice and yellow Peruvian potatoes

Thanks again to all who participated in the ChefUniforms.com Cash for the Holidays Contest!

George Washington Carver Recognition Day

UA — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 13:19:48 +0000

George Washington Carver was a scientist, botanist, educator and inventor (not bad for a day’s work!). He spent his time coming up with alternative crops to cotton that would be a source of food for the farmer, as well as improve his or her quality of life, by being both lucrative and useful in everyday activities. Products that he researched included peanuts, soybeans and sweet potatoes, but he is most recognized for his peanut research. He created bulletins for farmers with 105 food recipes that used peanuts and developed over 100 other products that were made from peanuts for everyday use. These products included but aren’t limited to: cosmetics, dyes, paints, plastics, gasoline, and nitroglycerin. George Washington Carver died on January 5^th, 1943, which is why we celebrate his life’s works on this day every year.

Take a moment today to think of everything we use peanuts for in our everyday lives (there’s probably more than you think!). What are your favorite ways to use this legume-of-all-trades? Leave us a comment below for ChefUniforms.com!

National Drinking Straw Day

UA — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 14:21:49 +0000

Happy National Drinking Straw Day! Every year, on January 3^rd in the US, we celebrate the greatest invention since sliced bread. Actually, since the first modern drinking straw was invented back in 1888, it’s probably the greatest invention since the wheel! Since they were invented, drinking straws have evolved into something entirely different. The first drinking straw was made out of dry, hollow, rye grass, but was not adopted fully because it astonishingly made beverages taste like grass! As an alternative to this design, a man named Marvin Chester Stone wrapped a piece of cigarette paper around a pencil and coated it with wax so that it wouldn’t leak. Stone worked in a factory that made paper cigarette holders, so he had access to all of the materials he needed. So, on January 3^rd, 1888, the modern drinking straw was born.

It’s been exactly 124 years, and the drinking straw has changed in its appearance, design, and material makeup. Today, we have plastic straws, glass straws, steel straws, bendy straws, crazy straws, spoon straws, candy straws, mini straws, wide straws, cereal straws, color changing straws, and many more to choose from, all in different colors and sizes. And, to cater to today’s health-conscious citizens, some companies are even selling BPA and toxin-free straws! Essential Safe Products is one such company, which is currently selling stainless steel drink straws, as well as glass drinking straws that are good for the environment.

RSVP Endurance ~ Stainless Steel Drink Straws, Set of 4

Glass Dharma ~ Set of 4 Beautiful Bends Glass Drinking Straws, 9.5mm x 9”, w/ Cleaning Brush

For more information and environment-safe cooking products, visit LiveESP.com!

As for today, please enjoy a beverage with a straw, and celebrate all that this great little invention has become in the past century.

New Year’s Resolutions

UA — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 13:26:18 +0000

It’s time to start thinking about your New Year’s Resolutions! If you’re like me, you usually come up with some seemingly impossible goal, and then are surprised when it has not panned out by February 1^st. However, this year, ChefUniforms.com is encouraging you to really dig deep and come up with a resolution that will challenge you (but won’t be impossible to achieve) and then work hard to accomplish your goal. We decided to ask around the office about past New Year’s Resolutions that have been accomplished, as well as new ones for 2012, and here are a few responses we received:

- Travel more

- Go back to school

- Stop eating meats and poultry

- Quit smoking and lose weight

- Do a better job of keeping in touch with family

- Eat healthier

- Save more money

- Recycle

- Volunteer to help people

- Learn a new language

What’s your New Year’s Resolution? What goals have you set in the past that you’ve accomplished? Leave a comment below and tell us all about them!

Oh, and… HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

Happy Kwanzaa from ChefUniforms.com!

UA — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 13:10:18 +0000

Today is the first day of Kwanzaa, which is a holiday celebrating African American heritage, unity and culture. Beginning in 1966, this holiday has been celebrated annually from December 26^th through January 1^st. The number 7 plays a significant role in this holiday, as there are 7 days of the celebration, 7 principles, 7 symbols, and even 7 candles to light. For a brief synopsis of what this holiday is all about, read on:

The 7 Principles of Kwanzaa

1. Umoja – Unity

To strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race.

2. Kujichagulia – Self-Determination

To speak for yourself and make choices that benefit the community.

3. Ujima – Collective Work and Responsibility

To help others within the community.

4. Ujamaa – Cooperative Economics

To support businesses that care about the community.

5. Nia – Purpose

To set goals that benefit the community.

6. Kuumba – Creativity

To make the community better and more beautiful.

7. Imani – Faith

To believe that a better world can be created for communities now and in the future.

The 7 Symbols of Kwanzaa

1. Mazao – The Crops

Crops are symbolic of the African harvest celebrations and of the rewards of productive collective labor. This is why eating fruits, nuts and vegetables during this holiday is popular.

2. Mkeka – The Mat

The symbols of Kwanzaa are all arranged on this mat, which may be made of straw or African cloth. It symbolizes the foundation on which the communities are built.

3. Kinara – The Candle Holder

This candleholder holds seven candles (there’s that number again!) and is said to symbolize the stalks of corn that branch off to form new stalks, much like a human family is created.

4. Muhindi – The Corn

Another popular holiday food, corn is symbolic in this holiday of the children, and the future which they embody. Traditionally, an ear of corn is placed on the mat for each child present.

5. Mishumaa Saba – The Seven Candles

A different candle is lit each day. They are also symbolic of the 7 Principles (see above) which African people are urged to live by in order to rescue and reconstruct their lives in their own image and according to their own needs.

6. Kikombe cha Umoja – The Unity Cup

The cup is symbolic of the foundational principle and practice of unity, which makes everything else possible. People celebrating the holiday drink from the cup in order to honor their African ancestors. Before drinking from the cup, each person says “harambee,” meaning “let’s pull together.”

7. Zawadi – The Gifts

Gifts are symbolic of the labor and love of the parents, and the commitments made and kept by the children. Traditionally, an educational or cultural gift is given to the children on the last day of Kwanzaa.

ChefUniforms.com would like to wish a very happy Kwanzaa to all of our friends, family and customers who celebrate the holiday.

A Very Yummy Christmas

UA — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 21:30:07 +0000

It’s finally December 25^th! You know what that means… it’s National Pumpkin Pie Day! Oh, and it’s also CHRISTMAS! It’s time to eat, drink and be as merry as can be, among our closest friends and relatives. It’s not difficult to be merry with such delicious food around, and who can pass up a nice glass of eggnog? And let’s not forget that feeling one gets when giving a gift.

So, in the spirit of the season (and National Pumpkin Pie Day), we’ve decided to give you, our readers a gift. Here is a delicious and easy recipe for a tasty pumpkin pie that the whole family will love:

Prep Time
15 Min

Cook Time
55 Min

Ready In
1 Hr 10 Min

Servings: 8

Per Serving: Calories: 379 | Total Fat: 14.3g | Cholesterol: 70mg

Ingredients

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Whisk pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, spices and salt in medium bowl until smooth. Pour into crust. Bake 15 minutes.
Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking 35 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted 1 inch from crust comes out clean. Cool. Garnish as desired. Store leftovers covered in refrigerator.

This recipe is courtesy of AllRecipes.com.

ChefUniforms.com would like to wish a very Merry Christmas to all of our friends, coworkers and customers! We hope you have a happy, healthy and delicious holiday!