Food and Nutrition Labeling

Helps consumers...
...understand links betweens diet and health
...see how individual foods contribute to daily nutritional needs
...choose more healthy food

Incentive for companies...
...to improve the nutritional qualities os their product
...marketing opportunity

The label must be...
...clear and easy to read
...permanent
...easy visible
...not misleading


The ingredient list...
...all the ingredients must be listed in descending order of amount present, so the ingredient with greatest proportion os product's weight is listed first.

Why food additives?
...to maintain or improve safety and freshness of the food (e.g. antioxidants as preservative)
...to improve or maintain nutritional value (e.g. vitamin add to food)
...to improve taste, texture and appearance (e.g. colours)

Supermarket shopping

No matter what the goal of our shopping trip, the supermarket has been designed to make us buy more than we came to buy. And to make us consider buying the most expensive versions of those items.

The more processed a food is, the more a company can charge for the final product. So, even within the processed food aisles, the heavily processed versions of a food will be placed at eye level, and will be easier for us to reach. For example, if you go to the baking aisle, the cake mixes and ready-made frostings will be easier to reach than the less processed baking goods, which are also less expensive. 

If you look at foods specifically marketed to young children, they'll be placed at two levels. One is low down at the level of a typical three year-old and the other is exactly at the level of a child who's sitting in a shopping cart. So that's just the low shoulder level for an average height adult. So, highly processed food aimed to appeal to children, is also going to be easy for them to see, and easy for them to ask for.

Then, a lot of research has gone into the music that's played in a supermarket throughout the day. There's evidence suggesting that instrumental music with a slow tempo actually slows down the flow of traffic in the store, and this increases the daily sales volume of the supermarket.

Some stores even use artificial aromas that are released by machines designed to deliver a constant smell of things like freshly baked bread in the bakery section. There's evidence to suggest that these scents make customers hungrier, and in this way, they increase sales.

Now, one easy rule to follow in the supermarket is, in general, try to stick to the periphery of the store, where fresh whole foods, like fruits and vegetables, eggs, meat, and dairy products, are usually displayed. If possible, try and make a shopping list before you go to the store, and, when you're there, try to stick to that list. And finally, try not to go shopping when you are hungry, because if you enter the supermarket hungry, you are much more likely to be tempted by the unhealthy, high calorie and highly processed foods.

learn more with http://justcookforkids.com/

My big and healthy breakfast

Just mix a cup of low fat and plain flavour yogurt, fresh fruit (pear and banana), nuts (hazelnuts and brazil nuts) and seeds (pumpkin seeds and linseeds).

Portuguese Fish and Chips

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into whatever size you prefer. Wash well in cold water, drain and pat dry with a clean tea towel. Put the potatoes into the fryer and allow them to fry gently for about 8-10 minutes, until they are soft but still pale. Check they're cooked by piercing with a small, sharp knife. Lift out of the pan and leave to cool slightly on greaseproof paper. 
2. Increase the heat of the fryer.
3. I used salted cod, traditional in Portugal, where I'm from. Cut in small pieces and dust lightly with egg and then in the flour.
4. Carefully place in the hot fat and cook for 8-10 minutes until golden and crispy. Remove from the pan, drain and sit on a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper. (This cod is already salted so I didn't use any salt extra).
5. Once the fish is cooked, return the chips to the fryer and cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden and crispy. Shake off any excess fat and season with salt (or seasoning) before serving with the crispy fish. If liked, you can serve with tinned boiled peas (as I did) for the authentic experience!

Converting to Metric

Viver noutro país tem me levado a re-aprender uma série de coisas... e o facto de alguém me dizer "este mês engordei um pound" confesso que me deixa simplesmente à toa. 

Cábulas e mais cábulas... partilho com quem quiser...

Cup to ml

1/4 cup = 60 ml
1/3 cup = 80 ml
1/2 cup = 125 ml
1 cup = 250 mI1/4 teaspoon = 1.25 ml

Spoon to ml

1/2 teaspoon = 2.5 ml
1 teaspoon = 5 ml
1 tablespoon = 20 ml

Liquids

Imperial	Metric	Metric
1 fl oz 2 fl oz 3 fl oz 4 fl oz 5 fl oz 6 fl oz 8 fl oz 10 fl oz 12 fl oz 14 fl oz 15 fl oz 16 fl oz 20 fl oz (1 pint)	- 1/4 cup - 1/2 cup - 3/4 cup 1 cup 1 1/4 cups 1 1/2 cups 1 3/4 cups - 2 cups 2 1/2 cups	30 ml 60 ml 100 ml 125 ml 150 ml 200 ml 250 ml 300 ml 375 ml 425 ml 475 ml 500 ml 600 ml

Massa (weight)

Imperial	Metric	Imperial	Metric
1/2 oz 1 oz 2 oz 3 oz 4 oz (1/4 lb) 5 oz 6 oz 7 oz 8 oz (1/2 lb) 9 oz	15 g 30 g 60 g 90 g 125 g 155 g 185 g 220 g 250 g 280 g	10 oz 11 oz 12 oz (3/4 lb) 13 oz 14 oz 15 oz 16 oz (1 lb) 24 oz (1 1/2 lb) 32 oz (2 lb) 48 oz (3 lb)	315 g 345 g 375 g 410 g 440 g 470 g 500 g (0. 5kg) 750 g 1000 g (1 kg) 1500 g (1.5kg)

Temperatures

Oven	Fahrenheit	Celsius
Very slow Slow Moderately slow Moderate Moderately hot Hot Very hot	250 275-300 325 350 375 400-450 475-500	120 140-150 160 180 190 200-230 250-260

The following information has been retrieved from Healthy Kids, an initiative of NSW Ministry of Health, NSW Department of Education and Communities and the Heart Foundation.  Retrieved fromhttp://www.healthykids.nsw.gov.au/recipes/conversion-chart.aspx.