Recipe of kimchi

Kimchi also spelled kimchee or gimchi, is a traditional fermented Korean side dish made of vegetables with a variety of seasonings. In traditional preparation Kimchi was often allowed to ferment underground in jars for months at a time It is Korea's national dish, and there are hundreds of varieties made with a main vegetable ingredient such as napa cabbage, radish, scallion, or cucumber. Kimchi is also a main ingredient for many Korean dishes such as kimchi stew ( kimchi jjigae), kimchi pancake ( kimchijeon), kimchi soup (kimchiguk), and kimchi fried rice ( kimchi bokkeumbap).

Ingredients

Makes about 1 1/2 Quarts.

• 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 medium carrot, cut into 1/4x1/4x2 inch like french fries
• 6 cups water
• 2 lbs. Chinese (Napa) cabbage, cut into 2-inch squares
• 6 scallions, cut into 2-inch lengths, then slivered
• 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
• 1 cup of minced garlic
• 3 tablespoons of brine shrimp sauce or anchovy fish sauce(available Korean specialty stores). This can be missed out if you would like a vegetarian Kimchi.
• 1/4 cup of Korean ground dried hot pepper (or other mildly hot ground red pepper)
• 1 cup of shredded Korean radish (moo in Korean)
• 1 teaspoon sugar

Step 1 :Dissolve the 3 tablespoons salt in the water.

Step 2:Put the cabbage into a large bowl, a crock, or a nonreactive pot, and pour the brine over it.
Step 3:Weigh the cabbage down with a plate.( Let the cabbage stand for 12 hours)
Step 4:Drain the cabbage, reserving the brine. Mix the cabbage with the remaining ingredients, including the 1 teaspoon salt. Pack the mixture into a 2-quart jar. Pour enough of the reserved brine over the cabbage to cover it. Push a freezer bag into the mouth of the jar, and pour the remaining brine into the bag. Seal the bag. Let the kimchi ferment in a cool place, at a temperature no higher than 68° F, for 3 to 6 days,until the kimchi is as sour as you like.
Step 5:Remove the brine bag, and cap the jar tightly. Store the kimchi in the refrigerator, where it will keep for months.
Step 6:Finished.




 

Food Scarcity

Food scarcity is a bigger problem than ever as human population numbers continue to swell, putting additional stress on already fragile food production and distribution systems. And it's not just happening in far away places: A recent report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that the number of U.S. homes "lacking food security" rose from 4.7 million to 6.7 million in just the last five years.

Meanwhile, the United Nations' World Food Program reports that a billion people around the world-one in seven of us-don't have enough to eat. And projections of food prices doubling by 2080 turned out to be gross understatements: Some key crops have doubled in price in just the last decade. Food scarcity leading to hunger kills more people today than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined.

"World population growth is outpacing food production, particularly with the four crops that provide the bulk of the world's nutrition: wheat, rice, corn and soybeans," reported Robert Roy Britt in a June 2011 article on the LiveScience website. "As studies have shown previously, there's little land left to convert to farming, water supplies are drying up, and global warming is wreaking havoc on the growing seasons and contributing to weather extremes that destroy crops."

There are many drivers of food scarcity around the world, but drought exacerbated by climate change is perhaps the biggest today. "Scientists have been predicting for years that a warmer planet coupled with increasing water demands could cause food shortages," says Britt. Meanwhile, increasing demand for fresh water is drying out aquifers faster than nature can replenish them, making water scarcer for farmers.

"With food scarcity driven by falling water tables, eroding soils and rising temperatures, control of arable land and water resources is moving to center stage in the global struggle for food security," reports Lester Brown of the U.S.-based Earth Policy Institute. "In this era of tightening world food supplies, the ability to grow food is fast becoming a new form of geopolitical leverage. Food is the new oil."

Another big contributor is waste: A 2011 United Nations study found that 1.3 billion tons of food, about one-third of global food production, is lost during production or wasted after being partially consumed.

According to Oxfam, the world's poor spend three-quarters of their income on food. A survey by Save the Children found that 24 percent of families in India, 27 percent in Nigeria and 14 percent in Peru now have foodless days. "By 2050, there will be 9 billion people on the planet and demand for food will have increased by 70 percent," says Robert Bailey, Oxfam's senior climate adviser.

Food scarcity is a tough nut to crack. Greenhouse gas emissions need to be substantially cut back, as does meat consumption, which exploits land better used directly to grow crops for human consumption. Family planning can play a key role in curbing population growth. And policies such as in the U.S., where in 2011 30 percent of the grain harvest was used to distill ethanol to fuel cars, only make matters worse.

Recipe of chocolate cake

 

Ingredients

• 200g good quality dark chocolate, about 60% cocoa solids
• 200g butter
• 1 tbsp instant coffee granules
• 85g self-raising flour
• 85g plain flour
• ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 200g light muscovado sugar
• 200g golden caster sugar
• 25g cocoa powder
• 3 medium eggs
• 75ml buttermilk (5 tbsp)
• grated chocolate or curls, to decorate

For the ganache

• 200g good quality dark chocolate, as above
• 284ml carton double cream (pouring type)
• 2 tbsp golden caster sugar

Method

1. Butter a 20cm round cake tin (7.5cm deep) and line the base. Preheat the oven to fan 140C/conventional 160C/ gas 3. Break 200g good quality dark chocolate in pieces into a medium, heavy-based pan. Cut 200g butter into pieces and tip in with the chocolate, then mix 1 tbsp instant coffee granules into 125ml cold water and pour into the pan. Warm through over a low heat just until everything is melted – don’t overheat. Or melt in the microwave on Medium for about 5 minutes, stirring half way through.
2. While the chocolate is melting, mix 85g self-raising flour, 85g plain flour, ¼ bicarbonate of soda, 200g light muscovado sugar, 200g golden caster sugar and 25g cocoa powder in a big bowl, mixing with your hands. Beat 3 medium eggs in a bowl and stir in 75ml (5 tbsp) buttermilk.
3. Now pour the melted chocolate mixture and the egg mixture into the flour mixture, stirring just until everything is well blended and you have a smooth, quite runny consistency. Pour this into the tin and bake for 1 hour 25- 1 hour 30 minutes – if you push a skewer in the centre it should come out clean and the top should feel firm (don’t worry if it cracks a bit). Leave to cool in the tin (don’t worry if it dips slightly), then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. When the cake is cold, cut it horizontally into three. Make the ganache: chop 200g good quality dark chocolate into small pieces and tip into a bowl. Pour a 284ml carton of double cream into a pan, add 2 tbsp golden caster sugar, and heat until it is about to boil. Take off the heat and pour it over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.
5. Sandwich the layers together with just a little of the ganache. Pour the rest over the cake letting it fall down the sides and smoothing to cover with a palette knife. Decorate with grated chocolate or a pile of chocolate curls. The cake keeps moist and gooey for 3-4 days.