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Making soup from butternut squash is one of our go-to moves during the fall. Fortunately for you, it could not be easier. ROAST THE SQUASH... The only downside of cooking with butternut squash is that it takes kinda forever. But once you take a bite of the sweet squash you remember why it's SO worth it. Roasting it before you make the soup is key to getting that caramelized, deeply sweet flavor in the squash that we all love.  WITH POTATOES—OR NOT We love adding a couple potatoes onto the sheet tray with the squash to give the soup an extra creamy texture and more body. But if you'd rather stay away from potatoes, that's totally fine. This soup will work without them! You simply roast the squash with a couple diced potatoes until tender. (You can totally skip the potatoes but we love the starchy creaminess that they give the texture.) While those are roasting, you can start sautéing aromatics: onion, celery, and carrot. Then add your squash and potatoes and

What is ghee? A nutritionist weighs in on this trendy butter alternative Ghee is a versatile ingredient that can be used instead of butter for baking, cooking and more. By Frances Largeman-Roth, RDN Sometimes it takes a while for even the most popular of foods to reach cult status. And by a while, we mean thousands of years. That's been the case with both quinoa, a gluten-free, grain-like seed that's high in protein; and turmeric, which has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for centuries and is now being celebrated for its anti-inflammatory properties. With the rise in popularity of higher-fat diets, the use of ghee is gaining in popularity as well. Long used in India as a shelf-stable cooking fat, this so-called liquid gold is now finding its place in many American homes. WHAT IS GHEE? Simply put, ghee is a type of clarified butter that's typically made from cow's milk. Since ghee is made from simmering butter gently, the resulting flavor is much m

by  Casey Chan What's the biggest difference between food back in the 1950's and today? Portion size. According to the CDC, meals are four times bigger now compared to what they once were and as a result, people are 26 pounds heavier. Yeesh! No wonder we're all so fat. If you eat more than you need, you gain more weight than you want. Simple enough, right? Blame our obesity problem on the restaurants! Alternatively, for those impossibly beautiful people who stay skinny even in our fattened up food era, you guys are getting a significantly better deal!  Courtesy  of GIZMODO personal chefs and event catering Miami + Miami Beach + Fort Lauderdale + Palm Beach info@yadachef.com | 954-367-YADA (9232) www.yadachef.com

This is a quick version of the French Classic. If using a more tender cut such as filet or sirloin tip, you can cut the cooking time in half. Remember the tougher cuts will give your soups and stews more flavour. Serves 4 2 - 2 1/2 pounds/900-1350g beef chuck, cut into 1 inch/2.5cm pieces 1 tablespoon 15ml olive oil 4 pieces thick cut bacon cut into 1/4 inch/6mm pieces (substitute turkey bacon) 1/2 cup/118ml cornstarch 1/2 teaspoon/2ml salt 1/2 teaspoon/2ml pepper 1 pound/450g carrots, sliced on the diagonal in 1 inch/2.5cm pieces 2 yellow onions cut into 1 inch/2/5cm pieces or 8 ounce/225g pearl onions 1 pound/450g button mushrooms or baby bellas 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 cup/125ml cognac or brandy 1 1/2 cups/375ml dry red wine 1 cup/250ml beef stock 1 tablespoon/15ml tomato paste 1/2 teaspoon/2ml dry thyme or 1 teaspoon/5ml fresh 2-4 tablespoons/30-60ml unsalted butter 2-4 tablespoons/30-60ml potato flour Heat olive oil in heavy bott

Restaurants frequently serve oversized meals, not only in the United States but also in many other countries, according to a study conducted by an international team of researchers and supported by FAPESP -- São Paulo Research Foundation. Published in the  British Medical Journal , the study weighed and measured the energy content of meals served by restaurants in Brazil, China, Finland, Ghana and India. The results showed that 94% of the most popular main dishes served in sit-down restaurants and 72% of those purchased over the counter from fast food outlets contained more than 600 kilocalories (kcal), the benchmark recently recommended by the United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS) to help reduce the global obesity epidemic. The researchers found a significant correlation between meal weight and energy content. They concluded that some popular meals were both far larger and more caloric than necessary. Examples include Brazil's traditional rice, beans,

Olives are staples of the Mediterranean diet, which has been linked to a reduced incidence of cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease and other conditions. However, freshly picked olives are very bitter and require curing or processing to make them palatable, using lots of water and, sometimes, harsh chemicals. Now, researchers have found a more environmentally friendly way to remove bitter phenolic compounds from olives. They report their results in ACS'  Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry . The bitter taste of phenolic compounds such as oleuropein and ligstroside may help protect olives from herbivores and pathogens. To make olives edible, commercial processors typically destroy these compounds by soaking the fruit in a dilute lye solution, followed by washing several times. However, this process consumes large amounts of water and produces toxic wastewater. Alyson Mitchell and Rebecca Johnson wanted to develop a more environmentally sustainable method

ABC "Colossal Creations" author Wendy Kou shares her recipes on "Good Morning America." Chocolate chip stuffed Nutella + peanut butter stripes Yield: 2 colossal cookies. Ingredients: 16 oz (454 g) refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough  1/4 cup (60 ml) Nutella 1/4 cup (60 ml) peanut butter 1/2 cup chocolate chips (Use Ghirardelli Chocolate Chips 60% Cacao Baking Chips because the chocolate chips are larger.)  6 tablespoons Valentine’s sprinkles ABC "Colossal Creations" author Wendy Kou shares her recipes on "Good Morning America." Directions: Allow the cookie dough to come to room temperature, so it is easier to work with. To assemble the cookie dough, line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper and use this as your work area for the assembly. Split the chocolate chip cookie dough into four equal parts and roll each part into a ball. Then, use the palms of your hands to flatten each one into a circle 5½ inches (14