Thursday, November 1, 2012

10 Healthiest Fall Fares!


As the temperature begins to cool, kids go back to school and college football seems just around the corner. You know what's coming: fall.

Summer gets a lot of attention for roadside farmers' stands selling everything from tomatoes to cucumbers to watermelons. True, a lot of healthy and tasty foods are harvested in the summer.
But what about the fall? This season doesn't disappoint, either.

There are so many fresh fruits and vegetables that come with the fall that it can be hard to narrow down which ones are best for you. But in this article, we'll look at 10 of the healthiest fall fares.
You'll want to consider a number of factors when evaluating whether a food is healthy, and opinions on different items are as varied as the foods themselves.

10: Sweet Potatoes

The fall is a great time for root vegetables. Often these types of veggies need time and warmth to develop, meaning they're best harvested in early or late fall depending on when they're planted.

9: Parsnips

What's shaped like a carrot, grows like a carrot, but isn't one? If it's white, you're looking at a parsnip.
A relative of the carrot, parsnips are root vegetables that are best harvested in late fall or even early winter.
 

8: Pears

For our next healthy fall food, let's takes a break from vegetables and consider something naturally sweet. Pears are the perfect treat for a sweet tooth, but they're also versatile enough to be cooked into a number of dishes.

7: Winter Squash

Next up isn't really one food but many, typically clumped together under the name winter squash.
There are numerous types of winter squash, all of them healthy for you.

Pumpkin

Technically a winter squash, the ubiquitous pumpkin deserves a spot of its own on the list.
What would fall be without pumpkins: the carving of jack-o'-lanterns, the centerpiece of the table? And did you know that in addition to serving as a decoration, pumpkins are a great food to add to your fall diet?

5: Brussels Sprouts

Do you remember when you were a kid and being served over-cooked, bitter little cabbage heads? If so, you're not alone. But Brussels sprouts deserve a second chance. Brussels sprouts are gaining renewed interest, especially in the U.S., as a superfood -- one packed with a number of healthy nutrients that may prevent certain diseases.

4: Pomegranates

The pomegranate is a festive fall food that is a great boost to your health. The inside of a pomegranate is full of inedible white pulp that surrounds arils, little red pods of pulp and juice that surround the seeds. The arils are the part that you eat.

3: Apples

What list of healthy fall foods would be complete without a little slice of Americana?
One of the most popular fruits on the market, apples are such a part of U.S. culture. Apple pie, the Big Apple, Apple computers ... apples are all around.
 

2: Turnip Greens

As we progress onward in our list of top healthy fall foods, we move into the area every nutritionist loves, dark leafy greens. Dark leafy greens are full of vitamins and minerals. An often overlooked leafy green is the turnip top.

1: Kale

At the top of our list of 10 healthy fall foods is one you may have not tried, but one that is certainly gaining notoriety as a great tasting, super healthy leafy green.



Posted by Joanne Vanderhoef
Marketing and Media Specialist

Bone's Steakhouse
http://www.bonessteak.com
Visit out Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/bonessteak




 








 

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Join us for a discounted Halloween dinner!

Halloween is tomorrow! Not so into Trick-or-Treating? Come on in to Bones Steakhouse and enjoy a nice hot meal while everyone else is in the rain! Attached is a coupon for you!



Posted by Joanne Vanderhoef
Marketing and Media Specialist

Bone's Steakhouse
http://www.bonessteak.com
Visit out Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/bonessteak

Monday, October 29, 2012

Spooky Halloween Punch Idea!

Halloween is perhaps the spookiest, and most fun, day of the year. It gives children the chance to live out their fantasy as their favorite character, while allowing adults to be like kids again if only for one night! 

Celebrated on October 31, Halloween is also known as All Hallow's Eve. The holiday, which is thought of by some to be a Pagan holiday, originated from Samhain, an ancient Celtic festival. 

The festival was originally celebrated in the winter. At that time, days were short, and food supplies were even shorter. The threat of cold and hunger loomed, and many people didn't want to leave their homes because they were afraid of the dark. They were also afraid of the spirits of the dead who were thought to return for just one night to haunt those who were still alive. 

In order to leave their homes and blend in with the spirits, people would dress up in costumes so the spirits wouldn't recognize them. Food would also be left on doorsteps to further placate the spirits.
Today the tradition of dressing up still lives on. And, instead of leaving food for spirits, children go Trick or Treating in hopes of filling their bags with lots of goodies.
If you plan on throwing a costume party for the holiday, you may want to consider serving pumpkin flavored drinks, drinks inspired by your favorite Halloween treats, or even a fun spiked punch served in a cauldron that everyone can enjoy. 

SKYY Wicked Witch Apple Punch

Ingredients

2 cup(s) Pineapple Juice
1 bottle(s) Apple Cider (750 ml)
1 bottle(s) Cranberry Juice (64 oz.)
1 bottle(s) Ginger Ale (1 Liter)
1 bottle(s) Skyy Infusions Passion Fruit Vodka (750 ml)
Apple (Red)

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a large black witch's cauldron with ice and stir. Garnish with large slices of red apple floating on top and dry ice.

Posted by Joanne Vanderhoef
Marketing and Media Specialist

Bone's Steakhouse
http://www.bonessteak.com
Visit out Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/bonessteak
 

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

How to roast the perfect pumpkin seeds!

It's that time of year again!  Kids will be carving pumpkins giving me an excuse to roast the seeds!  Here is how to make perfect roasted seeds!

How To Roast Pumpkin Seeds:

1. Clean the seeds. The annoying-but-necessary task is that you have to meticulously clean the seeds until there are no signs of pumpkin guts. After picking off the strands, give them a GOOD rinse with water in a colander.

2. Boil for 10 minutes in salt water. I added the pumpkin seeds to a medium-sized pot of water along with 1 tsp salt. Bring it to a boil and reduce the heat to simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes over low-medium heat. Apparently, this method helps make the pumpkin seeds easier to digest and produces a crispy outer shell during roasting.

3. Drain the seeds in a colander and dry lightly with a paper towel or tea towel. The seeds will stick to the towel, but just rub them off with your fingers. Don’t worry, they don’t have to be bone dry – just a light pat down.

4. Spread seeds onto a baking sheet and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil (I only needed to use about 1/2-1 tsp). Massage oil into seeds and add a generous sprinkle of fine sea salt. Try to spread out the seeds as thin as possible with minor overlapping.

5. Roast seeds at 325F for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and stir. Roast for another 8-10 minutes (if your oven temp is off, this could vary a lot!). During the last 5 minutes of roasting, remove a few seeds and crack open to make sure the inner seeds are not burning (you don’t want the inner seed brown). Cool a couple and pop them into your mouth to test. They are ready when the shell is super crispy and easy to bite through. The inner seed should have only a hint of golden tinge to it. They should not be brown.

6. EAT! Remove from oven, add a bit more salt and dig in! Ah, so good, so good! There is no need to remove the outer shell; it’s quite possibly the best part.



Posted by Joanne Vanderhoef
Marketing and Media Specialist

Bone's Steakhouse
http://www.bonessteak.com
Visit out Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/bonessteak


Friday, September 28, 2012

Preserving Fresh Herbs


Preserving Fresh Herbs

It seems that the end of summer is when my herb crop is at its peak. This is perfect for me because it means that I have plenty of my favorite seasonings to save to use through the fall and winter.

Freezing Herbs
Just chop the leaves of your favorite herbs, such as basil or Italian parsley, and put 1 teaspoon into each cube of an ice tray and fill with water. After the cubes have frozen, pop them out and put them into a ziplock bag for easy storage. Then when you want to add the fresh taste of herbs to your favorite soup recipe, just drop in a few of these pre-measured cubes and let the flavor melt in.

Drying Herbs
Gather the herbs in the early morning, then wash them and pat them dry. Gently remove leaves from stems - herbs such as basil tend to bruise easily.
Place the leaves in a shallow basket for air-drying. If you're drying herbs with small leaves such as rosemary or oregano, it's best to use a holder with a tighter weave, like cheesecloth stretched over a frame.
Cover the leaves with newspaper to keep them from drying too quickly. The drying process usually takes three to four days. Once a day, shake and redistribute them so they dry more evenly.
Once all of the moisture is driven from the leaves, just crush or crumble them and then store them in labeled, airtight jars in a cool dark place.



Posted by Joanne Vanderhoef
Marketing and Media Specialist

Bone's Steakhouse
http://www.bonessteak.com
Visit out Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/bonessteak
 

Friday, September 21, 2012

How the Martini was Born

 

The Martini

The most well-known of cocktails, Western culture has created quite the lore and mythology surrounding the drink. The three-martini lunch became a popular phrase coined for expensive, long lunches taken by business executives. In fact, the Martini has become more of a class of drinks than one drink in particular – with variations like Appletinis, Vodka martinis and others becoming popular over the years.

The famous and powerful people who have favored the simple, yet potent, original – Winston Churchill, Truman Capote, Ernest Hemmingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald to name a few – have only added to the lore of this popular classic cocktail. The first Martini – or Martini-like drink – was poured sometime between 1862 and 1871 and was called a Martinez, a name to honor the humble town of Martinez, California, where it was purportedly first dreamed up by bartender Julio Richelieu, proprietor of the eponymous Julio Richelieu Saloon. That similar (but sweeter) version of the cocktail consisted of sweet vermouth, gin, bitters and was garnished with a maraschino cherry. This version (which was essentially a gin Manhattan) eventually gave way to the more contemporary drier version that includes gin, vermouth and bitters and was supposedly first made popular when John D. Rockefeller started downing them at the turn of the 20th century.

Although the origins of the first Martinez date back to the 1860s, the modern Martini first rose in popularity starting in 1900s. During prohibition, the Martini became the drink of choice (or no choice in many cases) in speakeasies across the country due to the quick accessibility and production of gin. In fact, it was often a gin Martini or no drink at all for customers hiding out in their secret watering holes. The modern Vodka Martini, which James Bond stalwarts will surely order shaken not stirred, was not created until much later and many Martini purists still claim the idea of a Martini made with vodka is preposterous. A steadfast and iconic cocktail, however, the classic Martini is here to stay, whether made with vodka or gin, dirty or not, with varying amounts of vermouth, neat, or over ice.