How To Treat Sun Poisoning

Do you think you might have sun poisoning, a severe form of sunburn? If so, you’ll want to know how to treat the condition now, prevent it in the future, and treat it in the long term, if necessary. Whether long term treatment is necessary or not will depend on whether you simply have severe sunburn or you have polymorphous light eruption (PMLE) or sun urticaria (sun allergy).

Your initial actions will be the same regardless. You’ll want to get yourself out of the sun and indoors, and then immediate cool yourself down and hydrate yourself. Drink some water right away, and keep drinking extra fluids over the coming few days since dehydration regularly results from sun poisoning. You can use cool compresses or take a cool shower or bath to cool your body off and hydrate your skin. After you’re done with your bath or shower, you will want to apply moisturizer to your skin. If you can get moisturizer which includes Aloe Vera, this will be most effective since aloe can quicken the healing of skin from trauma.

Most severe sunburn and PMLE will be able to clear up on their own within days if you take these steps (PMLE can take about a week and a half to clear up). While you are waiting to recover, cover yourself up when you go outdoors, and use a hat or umbrella. In the future you can prevent recurrences by using protection (hat, umbrella, sunscreen, extra clothing) and limiting your exposure.

In terms of long-term treatment, you won’t need to pursue any for severe sunburn; even PMLE can go away over time on its own and recurrences may cease without your intervention. In some cases low-dose antimalarials may help. If you have sun allergy, you may need to pursue desensitization or phototherapy to help reduce your symptoms or cure the condition. Sunscreen with UVB and UVA protection may help you in all cases, and topical corticosteroids can help some people as well.

In some cases, sun sensitivity may be the result of acne medications, heart drugs, birth control pills, antidepressents, diuretics, or antibiotics. Birth control pills, fragrances, antibacterials and antifungals are also sometimes culprits. You may need to discontinue what you’re using to end your photosensitivity—but in some cases that may not be an option, so consult with a physician to find out what you need to do. You may be able to substitute another medication, or you may just need to start avoiding intense sun exposure or taking extra steps to protect yourself when you’re outside. Whatever you do, don’t stop using a medication without talking to a doctor first or a more serious condition could get worse—which in most cases just wouldn’t be worth it.

Sun poisoning is inconvenient, but it’s rarely dangerous. In rare cases it can be, so if your symptoms are particularly severe or long-lasting, you should see a doctor immediately. In particular, the following symptoms are a signal to seek medical attention: swelling in the face, fever and chills, confusion, faintness or headache, severe dehydration, or upset stomach.
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All about Cider

Cider comes in a variety of tastes, from sweet to dry, although flavour differs enormously within these descriptions. The appearance of cider ranges from very dark, cloudy and sludgy through to very crisp, clean and golden yellow, and with the most processed, almost entirely clear. The varying colours and appearances are generally as a result of how much of the apple material is removed between pressing and fermentation. Sparkling cider is most common, but still version is also made.

Modern, mass-produced ciders are generally heavily processed and resemble sparkling wine in appearance. More traditional brands tend to be darker and cloudier, as less of the apple is filtered out. They are often stronger than processed varieties, tasting more strongly of apples.

White cider is made by processing cider after the traditional milling process is complete, resulting in a nearly colourless product. This processing allows the manufacturer to produce strong (typically 7-8% ABV) cider cheaply, quickly, and on an industrial scale. Brands of white cider include White Lightning, Three Hammers, Polaris and Frosty Jack.

Most cider is made industrially nowadays, although traditional methods still survive. In this picture the layers of pomace are wrapped in canvas.Apples grown for consumption are suitable for cider making, though some regional cider-makers prefer to use a mix of eating and cider apples (as in Kent, England), or exclusively cider apples (as in the West Country, England). There are many hundreds of varieties of cultivars developed specifically for cidermaking.

Once the apples are gathered from trees in orchards they are “scratted” (ground down) into what is called “pomace” or “pommage”. Historically this was done using pressing stones with circular troughs, or by a cider mill. Cider mills were traditionally driven by the hand, water-mill, or horse-power. In modern times they are likely to be powered by electricity. The pulp is then transferred to the cider “press”, where the pommage is pressed and formed by pressure into a kind of cake, which is called the “cheese”.

Traditionally the method for squeezing the juice from the cheese involves placing clear, sweet straw or hair cloths between the layers of pomace. This will usually alternate with slatted ash-wood racks, until there is a pile of ten or twelve layers. It is important to minimise the time that the pomace is exposed to air in order to keep oxidation to a minimum. The cheese needs to be constructed evenly, or the whole pile slithers onto the floor.

This pile is then subjected to different degrees of pressure in succession, until all the ‘must’ or juice is squeezed from the pomage. This juice, after being strained in a coarse hair-sieve, is then put into either open vats or closed casks. The pressed pulp is given to farm animals as winter feed, composted or discarded, or used to make liqueurs

Fermentation is best effected at a temperature of 4 to 16 C (40 to 60 F). This is low for most kinds of fermentation, but works for cider as it leads to slower fermentation with less loss of delicate aromas.

Shortly before the fermentation consumes all the sugar, the liquor is “racked” into new vats. This leaves dead yeast cells and other undesirable material at the bottom of the old vat. At this point it becomes important to exclude airborne acetic bacteria, so care is taken to fill the vat completely, and the fermenting of the remaining available sugar generates a small amount of carbon dioxide that helps to prevent air seeping in. This also creates a certain amount of sparkle, and sometimes extra sugar, such as white cane sugar, is added at this stage for this purpose and also to raise the alcohol level. Racking is sometimes repeated if the liquor remains too cloudy.

Homebrewers can use elaborate 55 gallon plastic drums. More simply they use a 2 or 3 liter bottle of pasteurized store bought preservative free apple juice, add a touch of yeast, champagne ideally, and replace the cap after drilling a small snug hole for an airlock. For larger batches of hard cider, using a culligan water jug works with the addition of a rubber stopper, or even a garbage bag, to keep the system sealed. However, the use of a glass carboy is preferred, since the plastic jugs can affect the taste severely[citation needed]. The cider may then be racked by careful pouring and bottled with 3 tsp. of raw sugar into a 2 liter pop bottle to secondarily ferment for carbonation. Apple based juices with cranberry also make fine ciders; and many other fruit purees or flavorings can be used, such as grape, cherry, and raspberry.

The cider is ready to drink after a three month fermentation peroid, though more often it is matured in the vats for up to two or three years.


Conventional apple cider has a relatively high concentration of phenolics and antioxidants which may be helpful for preventing heart disease, cancer, and other ailments This is, in part, because apples themselves have a decent concentration of phenolics in them to begin with.

It can be very acidic and contain high sugar levels. Excessive consumption can therefore erode the tooth enamel rapidly.

A distilled spirit, apple brandy, is made from cider. Its best known forms are Calvados and applejack. Applejack is a strong alcoholic beverage made in North America by concentrating cider, either by the traditional method of “freeze distillation”, or by true evaporative distillation. In traditional freeze distillation, a barrel of cider is left outside during the winter. When the temperature is low enough, the water in the cider starts to freeze. If the ice is removed, the (now more concentrated) alcoholic solution is left behind in the barrel. If the process is repeated often enough, and the temperature is low enough, the alcohol concentration is raised to 3040% alcohol by volume. In freeze distillation, methanol and fusel oil, which are natural fermentation byproducts, may reach harmful concentrations. These toxins can be separated when regular heat distillation is performed. Home production of applejack is illegal in most countries.

A popular aperitif in Normandy is pommeaua drink produced by blending unfermented cider and apple brandy in the barrel (the high alcoholic content of the spirit stops the fermentation process of the cider and the blend takes on the character of the aged barrel).

Cocktails may include cider. Besides kir and snakebite, an example is Black Velvet in a version of which cider may replace champagne, usually referred to as a “Poor Man’s Black Velvet”.


Other fruits can be used to make cider-like drinks. The most popular is perry, known in France as poir and produced mostly in Normandy, which is made from fermented pear-juice. A branded sweet perry known as Babycham, marketed principally as a women’s drink and sold in miniature Champagne-style bottles, was once popular but has now become unfashionable. Another related drink is cyser (cider fermented with honey).

Another similar drink is plum jerkum, made from fermented plums, traditional of Warwickshire in the English Midlands. It is said that it “left the head clear while paralysing the legs”. The Warwickshire Drooper plum from which it is traditionally brewed is now uncommon, which explains the rarity of the drink.

Peach juice can be fermented into “peachy”.

Swamp Halloween Punch Recipe

*Rotting Swamp Halloween Punch Recipe!*

This recipe is one of the most delicious, yet disgusting looking Halloween punches around. It’s suitable for both children and adult parties. (Liquor can easily be added to the recipe if one prefers an alcoholic beverage.) The punch resembles a gooey and foamy green swamp. When you first glance at the drink, it actually looks unsafe to drink. The great part is, it tastes fantastic. It is sure to trick any party guest. The punch has a lemon kick to it that keeps you wanting more.

The punch can be displayed in anything, and still look spooky and gross. The best things to display the recipe in are But, old bowls, creepy buckets or a witches cauldron. But, anything you have around the house would do the trick.

2 bottles (2 liters each) lemon-lime soda (Sprite or 7-Up)
2 quarts of lime sherbet
Optional -1 bottle (750 mL) rum


(Punch should be made not long before party guests arrive. That way the sherbet will not completely melt.)

1. In a large punch bowl, stir together the lemon and limeade concentrates. There is no need to stir the liquids together, they will blend together perfectly on their own. After incorporating the lemon and limeade, add the soda.

2. If making the punch alcoholic, Pour in the rum or other liquor of choice.

3. Once all the liquids are added together, take scoops of the sherbet out.  Float the scoops of lime sherbet on top of the punch. For an even grosser look, use rainbow sherbet. The colored sherbet will give the punch a grungy, dirty and dark look.

4. Drink and Enjoy!

What is your Favorite Beverage

For several years, I’ve virtually replaced my favorite beverage, Coca Cola, with a refreshing and healthier alternative, Lipton’s “Original” Iced Tea in frosty cold glass bottles, the flavor ‘Sweetened’ (No Lemon) being the hands-down favorite. Obviously in demand by many others besides myself, it is always the first flavor to empty off the shelves, be it the local grocer or the corner Quiki-Mart’.

It is an excellent iced tea, with the just the right amount of sugar to tea ratio, and, although expensive, at between $1.29 to $1.89 per bottle (or between $5.99 and $6.99 for a six-pack of glass bottles, in the supermarket aisle), I was hooked from day one and gladly plunked down the money that, in the past, would have purchased me TWELVE cans of cola, or an entire case during sale events!

Tea is good for the body. There’s enough caffeine to please those looking for a substitute to cola or coffee pick-me-ups, but less of the syrupy sweetness and zero carbonation, so those of us wanting a healthy beverage, but reluctant to give up sweets for substance entirely, finally seemed to have a new fix.

Of course, all can go well for several years without mishap. There WAS a tiny spike in alarm when Lipton seemed to be dropping the glass bottles in favor of plastic, sometime during 2004-2005, but mass protest mailings and phoned complaints from loyal customers, I’m sure, had a lot to do with nipping THAT tea-sacrilege in the bud! They still offer a plastic-bottled variety, but the glass-bottled individuals and six-packs returned, and became easier to find, as well.

The purists among us exhaled a collective sigh of relief and vindication.
Just don’t mess with that glass bottle.
Iced Tea just is NOT ‘iced tea in a glass’ without the GLASS!

It was as if there was a cult around this particular brand of ‘instant serve’ tea: in shopping lines, we customers would spot each other by the six packs in our carts, strike up conversations along the lines of ‘how long have you been drinking’, and sometimes we’d even have time in that long line at checkout to trade horror stories on not being able to locate the ‘sweetened-no-lemon’, and how far a person would have to drive until they found a new source… There was a camaraderie between us “Lipton “Original” Iced Tea, Sweetened – No Lemon” users that one just doesn’t see, anymore, between the major soda brands.
We were special. Lipton made us feel special. And we LOVED each other…

The honeymoon may be over.

Just a few weeks ago, as early as mid-March 2007, I discovered my local Wal-Mart had SOMETHING ELSE sitting in that spot between the Green and SuperSweet flavors, sporting the ‘Sweetened-no-lemon’ moniker, but on a label that was different in every other way:
“Lipton PureLeaf Iced Tea”.

“Oh, it’s the SAME tea,” the cashier assured me, when I asked, “It’s just another label design change.”

So I took it home, but warily.
As soon as I removed a bottle from the plastic six-pack wrapper, I knew something else was very different. I held it up to the light and was stunned. It was not the rich amber-red I had come to know so well. It now looked like APPLE JUICE, transparent and golden, like honey.
I opened the bottle, took a sip.

And it was, at once, foreign, undeniably WEAK, and almost too sweet in proportion to its weakness, It was as if somebody had re-brewed tea from old tea bags, realized their mistake, and ‘corrected’ themselves by simply adding a little less sugar – but not ENOUGH ‘less’.
There was no mistake: someone, somewhere, had CHANGED the formula or ingredients!
This was certainly NOT the same tea with a label design change’- it wasn’t even a comparable substitute!

For the following three or four weeks, I searched high and low, and even though I found there were still quantities of SuperSweet, Green, even Raspberry, flavors still available in their “Original” labels, the ‘sweetened-no-lemon’ had been cleaned off the shelves EVERYWHERE.
Now I was running into anxious others, like myself, and we openly wondered, in the checkout lanes and parking lots: “What was going on? If something was selling so well, why change it?”

Okay, so this is just about ICED TEA, not a world crisis.
I KNOW there are children going to bed without supper tonight, and I KNOW somebody somewhere is dying alone and in squalor… but this IS, after all, a SERIOUS change that affects a lot of people, loyal customers who don’t deserve being cuckolded by an IMPOSTOR…

I tried going back to my favorite Cola, but it just wasn’t the same.
I found myself waking at night, wondering if I’d checked that little mini-market in a small town half-an-hour’s drive away; after desperately acting on that impulse, I’d wind up driving back home with a can of Nestea in my cup holder (utterly NOT even close).
Every other morning would find me searching the internet, Googling ‘Lipton PureLeaf’ and finding NOTHING (except that 90% of the results were in CHINESE).
They could not SERIOUSLY be replacing the far-superior recipe (Original), that they’d won over millions of customers by, with the weak, insipidly sick-sweet, PureLeaf… could they?

It is said ‘Necessity is the mother of invention.’
Well, my DESPERATION had become the catalyst for ME…
I broke, one afternoon recently, and brought two bottles of the PureLeaf version home with me. I had an idea, and nothing to lose (EXCEPT the almost $4.00 they cost me).

I opened a bottle and set it on my kitchen counter as I rummaged in the cupboard, found what I was looking for: a tall glass bottle of “Lipton Instant Tea – unsweetened”.
I took a clean dry teaspoon of the freeze-dried stuff and leveled it off.
The I let it sprinkle from the spoon into the contents of the PureLeaf bottle.
I capped it, shook it up for a few seconds.
(Of course, as with any home brewed ‘cold’ tea, instant or bag, the shaking will cause some tea-foam. This settles after a bit. Some of us tea-vets actually enjoy the fine foam.)

Wow…at least now it LOOKED like it was ‘back’ to its familiar color!
Uncapping the bottle, I took a deep breath, then sipped…

EUREKA! I almost shrieked with joy. Wait, I DID shriek – and my son came running into the kitchen.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, worried.

“I did it!” I declared, and this time took a long, thirsty drink.
“I FIXED it,” I happily told my son, waving the bottle of tea in his face, “LOOK at the color -it’s right again! And the taste -“
He was staring at me quizzically.
“I put in ONE LEVEL TEASPOON of INSTANT TEA, shook it up, and now it TASTES LIKE IT DID! It’s “ORIGINAL” again!”
I offered him the bottle, and he took a sip, then nodded, “Wow, You’re right.”
He looked relieved then annoyed, “Great, Mom,” and he left me in the kitchen to rejoice in solitude.

I finished the first bottle off, and just to make sure it wasn’t a fluke, prepared the second bottle the same way.
It was HEAVEN. And I drank that one down to the bottom as well…

ANYONE, besides me (and I KNOW you’re out there), missing their “Original” sweetened-no-lemon Lipton Iced Tea, need only remember this TIP, in order to enjoy their favorite beverage again:

To one ice cold bottle of Lipton “PureLeaf” Sweetened (No Lemon) Iced Tea,
add one slightly less than a level teaspoon of Lipton Instant Tea
(the freeze-dried crystals most of us brewed-tea drinkers abhor),
dropped into the bottle of PureLeaf, then SHAKE WELL.

It appears this puts some of the missing TEA back into the drink, while cutting back some of the ‘over-sweetness’.
My solution added NO CALORIES. No Sugar, nothing harmful. Just a PINCH more TEA.

Now, WHY, Lipton? WHY would you, in making something purportedly ‘healthier’, strip as little as a half or level teaspoon of TEA from your recipe? How does removal of a PINCH OF TEA make this product ‘healthier’? Did it save the company a few pennies per dozen bottles?

My ‘fix’ will allow MILLIONS to quickly have their favorite tea BACK, thank goodness.
But I am still BAFFLED as to why the Lipton Tea people felt even that smidgen of ingredient cut would go unnoticed – and why they felt it necessary to change by that much in the first place.

If enough Lipton “Original” lovers read this, try it for themselves, and are as overjoyed as I was to find this simple ‘step’ FIXES the PureLeaf problem, fine…
But don’t stop there.
Write and phone your questions, complaints and protests to Lipton… email them from their website, but just don’t stand there.
Companies need to be made aware when their brand tinkering goes too far.

They need to know that they’ve made a change that ultimately has made their product one that now comes off the shelf requiring a PATCH.
And even Bill Gates would agree, that’s just not good business…

How to Make a Tortilla Bowl

One of the best parts of going to a Mexican restaurant is getting a tortilla bowl for your salad.  While these bowls are not the healthiest food, they are one of the best parts of a taco salad.  Fortunately, it is easy to make your own tortilla bowls at home, and they are a lot healthier than the ones that you get in restaurants.

Start by buying pre-made flour or corn tortillas.  In general, larger tortillas are better, but it is possible to make bowls of any size.  If desired, whole grain tortillas can be used. 

Next, measure your tortillas (or read their size off the package) and subtract four inches.  Using tin foil, make a ball that is approximately this wide.  For example, if you are using eight inch tortillas, make a tin foil ball that is four inches wide.  If you’re making mini bowls, make one inch tin foil balls.  Make a ball for each tortilla bowl you want to make.

After making the balls, microwave your tortillas for about fifteen seconds.  This will make them more flexible.  Then, place a tortilla over each of the balls, and place each tortilla with its ball on a cookie sheet.  If you’re making more than one, make sure that the edges of the tortillas are not touching.  If desired, brush the bowls with a small amount of olive oil before baking.  This will turn the tortillas a golden brown and make them crispier.  Bake the tortillas for about ten minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

After pulling the tortillas out of the oven, turn each tortilla over and discard the tin foil balls.  Your result will be tortilla bowls.  Because they are baked and not fried like restaurant bowls, they are much healthier for you.  These baked tortilla bowls also will not have any trans fats like the bowls that are produced by many Mexican-style fast food chains. 

In addition to using your bowls for taco salads, think about how to use them for other recipes.  For example, you can sprinkle them with cinnamon and sugar before baking and use them as edible containers for desserts.  Fill the bowls with pudding, flan, or fruit.  Other possibilities include sprinkling garlic salt over corn tortillas for flavored bowls.  You can also bake two tortillas on top of each other to create a thick bowl that can be used to hold soup or stew. 

Ideal Charcoal Placement and Arrangement on the Grill

Spring is in full swing and the backyard grills are being fired up around the nation. Steaks, chicken, pork and veggies are being marinated, seasoned and cooked up for family and friends to enjoy. You will find, too, that there is no shortage of advice on what to cook, how to spice, how to grill it, how long to marinate it, etc..

You may even find that there are different theories as to how to arrange your charcoal briquettes in the grill. Many people will tell you that you need to arrange your charcoal into a pyramid, douse it with lighter fluid, set it ablaze and let it burn until the charcoal starts to turn white around the edges. They would then tell you at this point you need to spread your charcoal out evenly so that your meat gets cooked evenly. There is nothing wrong with this method, nothing at all. I’ve used it dozens of times, if not more.

But my preferred method of grilling varies slightly from the one just mentioned. I also arrange my charcoal into a pyramid, douse it with lighter fluid and then light it. After the charcoal starts to turn a little white around the edges I don’t spread them out evenly across the grill. Instead, I do something a little different-nothing! I leave the charcoal to burn in the form of a pyramid the entire time I am cooking.

This type of charcoal placement does require the outdoor chef to pay very close attention to what he/she is cooking, as the grill will remain hotter in the center. What are the advantages of cooking this way, you might ask? The first advantage of this type of charcoal placement is that your grill will remain hotter, longer. You will be able to cook more food for a longer amount of time, if you wish. But the reason that I grill using this method is that everyone in my home likes their meat cooked a little differently. My wife likes the outside of her steak, chicken and pork steaks to have a nice char on them, but still be juicy in the middle and not burned. My children like their meats just pretty well done and I like mine a little pinker in the middle, but with a nice char on the outside.

With traditional charcoal placement you could still have a char on the outside, but it would mean that the middle of the piece of meat would probably be pretty well done. With all of the charcoal remaining in the middle of the grill, the outside edges of the grill are quite a bit cooler (but still warm enough to cook smaller pieces of chicken and hot dogs thoroughly.) Here’s how I do it: I first wait until I can hold my hand about 6″ from the center of the grill for about 4 seconds without it burning. I then place the larger pieces of meat into a circle or ring around the outer edges of the grill, with all pieces pointed towards the center. The portion of each piece that is pointing towards the center will cook faster as it is getting the brunt of the heat. After a short while, I flip all pieces end over end and side to side as space permits. It’s just that simple.

As you’re cooking, the charcoal pyramid will get smaller and smaller but will still retain a good amount of heat. If your meat needs more cook time, you just move each piece closer and closer to the center. As mentioned earlier, this method of charcoal placement does require a little more supervision than others, as the portions of the meat that are pointed towards the center will burn quickly if not monitored closely. But, if done correctly, you will be left with very juicy, thoroughly cooked meat that has a beautiful char on it that can be tailored to your guests desire.

Authentic German Strudel

Strudel is a delicious dessert made from high gluten flour, stretched thin over a filling.  Many people associate strudel with western European companies like Germany and Austria where it has been enjoyed for hundreds of years but strudel was born from traditional Turkish baklava when it was introduced into Austria during the mid 15th century. 

Attempting to make strudel for the first time can be a bit overwhelming.  But if you are an adventurous baker there are several tips to keep in mind if you want to try to make homemade strudel on your own.  There are several steps to making strudel that makes strudel what it is.  Without these steps strudel wouldn’t be strudel. 

The first thing that a baker needs to know before buying ingredients to make strudel is to look for high gluten flour.  Gluten is needed to give strudel dough its elasticity.  Strudel dough is stretched so thin over filling; sometimes so thin it may appear translucent.  Not just any type of flour will give you this elasticity. 

The second thing a baker needs to know in order to make authentic strudel is that kneading the dough is the key to giving gluten flour its elasticity.  When you make strudel for the first time you may feel as if you just worked out on a punching bag.  In order to make thin dough you may need to punch and knead dough for up to 20 minutes. 

Recipe for Authentic Strudel Dough

1 1/3 C high gluten flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

¼ C water

2 T canola oil

1 t vanilla


 In a large stand mixer mix flour and salt. 

 Mix water, oil and vanilla in a separate bowl.  Add to flour mixture.

 Mix in stand mixer until a soft dough forms.  You may add more water if necessary.  Once a soft dough is formed change beaters to dough hooks and mix on medium speed until a dough ball forms and the sides of the bowl are clean. 

Remove dough ball from mixer and rotate punching and kneading the dough ball for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes of kneading place dough ball in a bowl, cover and set aside while you prepare your filling. 

Once filling is prepared your dough needs to be worked with to stretch it.  Take your dough ball out of its bowl and knead it for another 5 to 10 minutes.  Then you want to place it on a lightly floured surface and roll it as thin as you can possibly get it.  Rolling strudel dough works best if you have a large area such as a table or a kitchen island where you can roll out the dough. 

Your strudel dough needs to be rolled until it is just millimeters thick.  Try to roll it into a square if you can.  A dough square 2 feet by 2 feet is a good goal.  If your dough still isn’t thin enough roll until it is almost transparent. 

Your dough is now ready to be filled and baked.

Here is a traditional recipe for authentic apple strudel (Apfelstrudel):

 ¼ C golden raisins

1/2 T cinnamon

1 t nutmeg

1 stick of melted butter

½ C brown sugar

½ C walnuts or slivered almonds

2 lbs tart apples (baking apples), cored, peeled and diced

strudel dough prepared (see recipe above) 


Mix raisins, apples, nutmeg and cinnamon together and set aside.

Using a pastry brush coat your strudel dough with melted butter.

Cover strudel dough with nuts.

Cover nuts with apple mixture. 

Starting at the left roll your strudel dough into a roll. 

Trim the ends.

 Place your roll on a parchment lined baking sheet.  You may choose to leave it in a log, make a horseshoe shape or make a circle. 

 Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until your strudel is golden brown and bubbling in the center.  Serve warm. 

Today many bakers choose to substitute traditional strudel dough with phyllo dough or premade pie crust.  This may be because strudel dough can be difficult to prepare but keep in mind if your goal is to make authentic strudel using a substitute  is nothing like the real thing.  Thin, transparent dough is what makes strudel.

Apple strudel is the most popular kind of strudel.  Many other types of fruits are also enjoyed in strudel as well but authentic recipes may include different kinds of nuts and seeds, dates, and figs.  Savory strudels may be enjoyed as a dinner meal.  Vegetables and meats may be baked in a strudel.  In Germany and other western European countries blood sausage is often baked into strudel. 

If you are the type of baker who learns by example you may want to check around your local community.  Many communities in the United States have German settlements (over 51 million people in the United States can claim German ancestry) and within these settlements annual festivals and heritage days are often held. Introduce yourself at a local festival and you may just make a German friend who has a recipe that has been handed down through the generations. 

The Amazing Delicious Drink Called Goyin

Everyday, I drink a scientific wonderful health drink called Goyin.

Call me crazy, but what can I say, I am a Goyin drinking machine. And, you know what else, I love it.

Well, what is the reason I like it so much? There are wonderful characteristics of this drink that make it awesome.

#1 – The Ingredients. GoYin Juice is a blend of 7 fruits: Cili , Longan, Gac, Hawthorn Berry, Lycium berry, Mangosteen and Seabuckthorn berry and 7 herbs: Astragalus, Coriolus versicolor, Jujube date, Ginger, Rhodiola rosea, Schisandra]berries and Tangerine peel.

These ingredients have proven scientific qualities that allow great longevity and vitality of life. The FDA does not allow certain words to be used to describe a drink, otherwise it can be listed as a drug. Ask Kevin Trudeau… he’ll tell you all about it. However, all you have to do is look under the natural healing processes and anti-oxidant powers of the above ingredients to know that you are providing a wonderful source of energy to your body with Goyin. Natural healthy energy is always more beneficial than artificial sources.

Those ingredients alone are wonderful natural substances that make my body HEALTHY and WHOLE. I’ve been consuming Goyin for the past 6 weeks, and without question, I can feel the wonderful aspects of this consumption in my physical energy and health.

#2 – The energy I have from drinking Goyin is vastly improved from drinking other drinks. I do not have the same “up and down” effect as I would from other drinks like Red Bull, Rockstar and others. Goyin has proved beneficial to my overall well-being.

Xangosteen is an amazing superfruit that provides strong benefits for my body. Cili, Longan, Hawthorne Berry… has anyone ever even heard of those ingredients? I hadn’t either, until now, and they have been wonderful. You can learn more about Goyin at

I’m not a big believer in “miracle cures” and all the alternative medicine stuff that’s out there. I never have been. I don’t have any desire to put fast food and other unnatural foods and drinks into my body though. There’s a challenge out there that talks about Goyin. IF you desire to feel stronger, leaner, more vivacious, and energetic, I would suggest this wonderful concoction!

The best way to Share a Restaurant Bill with others

The easiest way to split a restaurant bill when you are eating with a group is to split it evenly, so that everyone pays the same thing.  If everyone agrees, then you’ll be in great shape,  and the meal will end on a happy stress-free note.

Sometimes, though, at least one person will object.  Some people like to figure out their shares exactly down to the penny.  Some feel, reasonably, that it would be unfair to split the bill evenly if they ordered food that was significantly less expensive, or if other people ordered drinks and they didn’t.  If you end up having to figure out everyone’s bill individually, the larger the group, the more difficult it will be.

If you anticipate that people will not want to split the bill evenly, then you can try, at the beginning of the meal, to request separate checks.  Some restaurants will be glad to do that, while others won’t, especially if the group is large.

If you can’t get separate checks, and if everyone does not agree to split the tab evenly, then you’re just going to have to bring out the pencils, calculators, and cell-phone calculators and figure it all out.

Even if some people in your party insist on figuring out individual shares, you might still be able to save some trouble if you can convince them to let you (or whoever is in charge of figuring out the bill) round off and approximate the bills.  Some people, though, will insist on figuring everything down to the penny.

The next hurdle is figuring out the tip.  If some people in your group are generous tippers, and some are – let’s say, not so generous – that can cause a great deal of conflict, and even lasting anger and hurt feelings.  It  may be best if you can agree on a single percentage, and have everyone pay the same percent of their bills.

 Because, with some groups, splitting the bill can cause so much stress, you might want to try to find ways to bypass the problem altogether.  Perhaps you can go to a restaurant that serves prix fixe meals, where everybody is charged the same thing.  Or you could try a buffet, where each person pays individually at a cash register.  Otherwise, the best you yourself can do, if conflict breaks out in your group, is to be as flexible as possible.  Someone has to try to keep the peace, and it might as well be you.

My Favorite Energy Drink

Before a water polo game, Brett Johnson and his teammates like to prepare themselves mentally and physically with a jolt from their favorite drug in liquid form.
“It’s like crack; it’s addicting,” he says of his favorite energy drink, Monster.
Caffeine is the most widely used drug in the world and it is infamous for its energy boost and mild addictive properties. Energy drinks that contain high doses of caffeine are quickly gaining popularity with the younger generation.
Last year alone, $2.3 billion was spent on energy drinks and one in five college students had consumed energy drinks in the past year.
Charleen Essling, a nutritionist, is very concerned with the possible lasting effects of consuming energy drinks.
“Kids have never had access to so much caffeine in soda form before, when it’s mixed with all that sugar and carbonation. It’s just not healthy,” Essling said. “This generation is going to be the guinea pigs.”
Conversely, Dr. Aurora Saulo of the University of Hawaii believes that there are no adverse effects to caffeine, as long as it is in moderation, about 300 milligrams per day, which is what the Food and Drug Administration says is safe.
“Even the World Health Organization says consumption of caffeine in moderation is okay,” Dr. Saulo said. “Common sense tells you that if you go over moderation, you are taking a risk.”
Dr. Saulo, who often advises food manufacturers, admits that there is some controversy over caffeine.
“Caffeine is a food safety issue. It is one of the hotter topics,” she says.
According to CNN, a Colorado high school banned the energy drink Spike Shooter after several students reported feeling sick after consuming it. One student drank four cans before beginning to feel sick, ultimately being sent to the hospital.
A store near the school had been promoting Spike Shooter, giving away free beverages. The cans warned “Begin use with one-half can to determine tolerance.”
Most of the time, the caffeine content of a beverage isn’t even labeled on the can so there is almost no way of knowing how much caffeine you are putting in your body.
An excess of caffeine in the system can cause heart palpitations, jitters, shortness of breath, and nausea.
The Food and Drug Administration recommends, but does not regulate, the maximum caffeine content in a beverage to be 65 milligrams for 12 ounces.
An 8.4-ounce can of Spike Shooter has 300 milligrams of caffeine. In comparison, a cup of coffee has around 100 milligrams of caffeine and a can of Coke has around 35 milligrams of caffeine.
The caffeine kick from energy drinks is “like soda, cubed!” Johnson says.
Another popular energy drink, Red Bull, contains a measly 67 milligrams for 8.3 ounces compared to SoBe NoFear, which contains 141 milligrams for 16 ounces.
Sometimes coffee in the morning just isn’t enough. Sleepy teens are very attracted to the promised jolt from energy drinks. More and more, teens are getting well below the recommended nine hours of sleep per night.
Audrey Knuth, an Iolani senior (a high school in Oahu, Hawaii), only drinks energy drinks after she has had a late night and needs the extra caffeine to stay awake throughout the day.
“After a late night, it’s a great boost that makes me concentrate more,” she says. “It is like liquid speed.”
Many people like to mix energy drinks with alcohol in order to amplify the experience. There is no proof that incorporating energy drinks will lessen or increase your alcohol tolerance.
Many energy drinks incorporate extra ingredients to make the beverages more exotic and appealing. Taurine, an amino acid naturally produced by the body, is often added; taurine helps regulate heartbeat, muscle contraction, and energy levels.
Guarana, a South American plant, is dense in caffeine and adds extra caffeine to the drink. Ginseng is an herb known to increase energy and L-Carnitine is an amino acid that increases your metabolism and energy levels.
Of course, most energy drinks contain a lot of sugar. Sugar, or glucose, is fuel for the body, as it is a carbohydrate but many people experience a sugar high and low. They will receive a rush of energy from the sugar and crash soon after.