Articles & News - Portion Sizes (Infographic)

Infographic provided by the CDC.

Reader questions: What do you think of the portion sizes you eat? Are they more necessary now than in the past? Are the solution suggestions possible?

Original article: http://makinghealtheasier.org/newabnormal

Quips & Anecdotes - June Foods

It's June 1st! You know what that means! It's time to see which foods we ought to be celebrating for the month. Here they are below:

• Beef Steak Month
• Candy Month
• Dairy Month
• Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month
• Frozen Yogurt Month
• Iced Tea Month
• Papaya Month
• Seafood Month
• Turkey Lovers’ Month

I haven't had a real steak since November. I guess I'm going to have to this month! Papaya Month sounds like a good way to delve into making Thai food actually so hopefully that will happen this month too. Great selections this time around it looks like!

Eatery - Cuti's Thai Food (CA)

11001 Chapman Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92840
Pricing - $ | Dining - Casual, To-Go | Cuisine - Thai
www.cutithai.com

My parents wanted to eat dim sum the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend but we didn't find any places open at the time we went that we were ready for business. I used the handy dandy Yelp app and located a Thai restaurant nearby that had good ratings so we went there. It seemed like such an unassuming place but the inside was very nice and the food great. It looked to be family run. The owner(?) came out to talk to us and was very friendly; it could've been that we were the first customers of the day or he was just super awesome.

After we put in our order, the owner said that he'd give us some papaya salad on the house because he wanted us to try it. How generous of him! It looked great when it came out but I think we're all pansies in the family. It was quite spicy! Nevertheless, the papaya was crisp and delicious. The sauce, though spicy, was very good. I loved that it didn't cross over into being salty or anything. It was just refreshingly savory.

Our first ordered dish was the Crying Tiger Rib-Eye Steak. Yes we did order it because of the name, haha. It was very good actually. I liked how thinly sliced the beef was and how flavorful its marinade was. Full of Thai spices but not crossing over into unbearable, the beef was paired with straw mushrooms that nicely picked up the thick sauce. There was even a dipping sauce to have with it which pleasantly was unnecessary because of how much flavor was in the beef already.

Our next dish was the green curry. I opted for tofu in this. What a load of lemongrass! There was definitely a lot used in making this curry. Now, I'm not a fan of lemongrass but I bore it through the meal because it was dang delicious otherwise. The tofu was thick and hearty, the bamboo a little green but nicely crunchy. My mom really liked the curry so I was happy that she did.

The favorite of dishes for my dad and younger brother was the pineapple fried rice which came out plentifully in their stone pot. It had dried pork, shaped vegetables, and a shrimp on top for some topping. In the rice itself was a mixture of chicken, pineapple, raisins, and magic, apparently. I liked that it wasn't greasy or buttery as fried rice tends to be. Delicious!

When we'd finished, the owner actually said that he was going to treat us to fried ice cream too. How nice of him! We were honestly very fortunate - thank you! The batter was a tad thicker than I like my fried ice cream but I really liked the cookies-and-cream take on it with the Oreo crumbs on top and the vanilla and chocolate ice cream inside. I'm definitely going to have to eat from here again, especially since they deliver!

Recipe - Curry Chicken Couscous

Duc had never had or heard of couscous before while I love it so I felt that it was time to expose him. We had this light couscous dish for dinner, and he ended up liking it so much that he made it himself the next day. I'd call that a success! It's super simple and quite healthy so give this a shot.

Step 1: Ingredients

• 1/4 red onion, diced
• 1/4 cucumber, diced
• 1/4 orange bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 cup garbanzo beans
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1 gala apple, diced
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tbsp butter, salted
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup whole wheat couscous, dry
• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (or cubed)

Step 2: Making the couscous
In a medium saucepan, bring the chicken broth to a boil with the butter. Add in dry couscous and stir. Turn off heat and fluff with a fork. Mix in curry powder.

Step 3: Finishing
(If you don't have cooked chicken breast pieces, cook before making couscous.) Add in chicken and all vegetables/fruits. Combine thoroughly and enjoy!

Photography provided by Duc Duong.

Eatery - 320 Main (CA)

320 Main St, Seal Beach, CA 90740 
Pricing - $$/$$$ | Dining - Dressy Casual | Cuisine - American
www.320mainsealbeach.com

I feel like I've always how great 320 Main is through any news about amazing cocktails in the general area. Yelp's mentioned them. OC Weekly has too I believe. So I finally decided it was time to head over for their Happy Hour to see what awesome drinks they had. The interior was actually a lot more casual than I had expected. Where we ended up sitting was barely lit except for a few beams that came through the slanted slats so forgive me if my pictures seem too "dramatic." I mean, uh, I purposefully did this, yes...

Anyhow, the first thing that we actually started eating was their duck fries. What a disappointment! Honestly when we had read the description, we were beyond excited but what came out looked like normal fast food fries with some skimpy slices of duck pastrami on top and wimpy pieces of carmelized onions. 'Twas a bad first impression.

The drinks we started off with, however, were fabulous. I had the Pimm's Cup and my friend a tequila based one (I can't recall the name). I actually had been hoping that I'd get some epic pewter cup full of alcoholic wonder based on my drink's name but mine came out in a jar with some girly mint and citrus. I forgave the presentation because it was a delicious, delicious drink. I love gin. Hers was pretty awesome too.

The next out was the shrimp and scallop ceviche which was pretty darn good. Refreshing and oh so fresh in itself, this was the best of the things we had. The citrus kept everything nice and light but the chips made it all feel substantial. We both thoroughly enjoyed it.

Our last appetizer out was the roasted sunchokes which honestly had a much more fantastic description than taste. Well the sunchokes themselves were fairly good but the dip that it came with was an awful misbehavior of flavor. To mix Old Chub ale with a fondue makes sense but topping that off with some truffle was a disaster. We didn't like that one bit.

We finished out the Happy Hour with a Gin Buck and Harvest Moon, drinks on their $5 menu for the hour. Simple but delicious, they slaked our thirst for some alcohol and helped round off the night well. I honestly wouldn't come back to 320 Main unless I were in the area and even then, it'd only be for drinks. Those appetizers didn't please us at all!

Quips & Anecdotes - Strawberry Festival

Memorial Day is interesting in my hometown because we have our annual Strawberry Festival in this area that looks miniscule when not crowded with carnival games and booths. I realized as my friend and I decided to visit after a Happy Hour out that I didn't have any pictures of it. Of course, it's quite garish, blinding, and generally nothing too special but it's still a tradition.

Throughout high school, since I was very involved in Key Club, I always used to volunteer at the Kiwanis booth which sold funnel cakes. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the booth had moved to a different spot from where I had last remembered and the lines were ridiculously long. I hope they raise a lot of money for their amazing programs.

One of my personal traditions at the Strawberry Festival is to snag a strawberry cheesecake from my high school band's booth. They always stack on loads of strawberries. I bought a slice when I went ($4!) and was sad to discover that though the strawberries were plentiful as always, the cheesecake was terribly chalky, heavy, and small. I actually ended up throwing it away. Bye-bye tradition!

One of the other things I enjoy doing is walking around seeing which booths happened to be in town. I came across a booth that sold balsamic vinegars. Intrigued, my friend and I went over, and the woman running the booth ended up having us sample almost every type she had. They were pretty good and got my gears going on how to use them as marinades or salad dressings. I ended up buying their small 4-pack with their cabernet, six mushroom truffle, raspberry-lime, and chipotle garlic. I hope to post some recipes with those soon!

Tips & Techniques - Watermelon Keg

Need a super cool idea to make your Memorial Day party the best on the block? Make a watermelon keg! I came across this neat idea through my Twitter feed and looked it up. It doesn't seem too bad. I'll have to give it a shot one day! Here are the directions, courtesy of the National Watermelon Promotion Board:

"Materials

• 1 medium-large oval or oblong watermelon (seeded or seedless)
• Kitchen knife
• Cutting board
• Green dry erase marker or ¾”-1” thick painter’s trim tape
• Channel knife (can use top of a vegetable peeler as alternative)
• Large bowl & spoon or scoop
• Apple corer
• Spigot (from beer making supply company)
• Twine & straight pins
• Watermelon juice or punch recipe

Instructions

•  Wash the watermelon under cool running water and pat dry.
•  On a cutting board, place the watermelon on its side and cut off 1/4”-1/2” from both ends, being careful not to cut too deep into the white part of the rind. One side will provide a sturdy base.
• Use dry erase marker or painters tape to make a thick band on the upper 1/3 and lower third of the watermelon that will represent the metal bands around a barrel or keg and use the channel knife to trim away a thin line to represent those metal bands.
• Hollow out the watermelon with a spoon or scoop, reserving the watermelon pieces to make your favorite punch or juice. Be sure to leave about 2” of watermelon flesh towards the bottom of the watermelon so the spigot can be placed.
• Use an apple corer to cut a circle for your spigot to fit through the watermelon rind, placing it about 2-3 inches above the bottom of the watermelon. Screw your spigot into place.
• For added detail, carefully pin twine in your lines you’ve made to represent the metal bands around the barrel/keg. Be careful that the pins do not poke through into the barrel/keg.
• Place the barrel/keg on a saucer or plate and fill with your favorite chilled punch or juice recipe."

Source: http://watermelon.org/Carvings/Watermelon-Keg-71.aspx