Parmigiano Reggiano in the Kitchen

Italy's Parmigiano Reggiano (Parmesan Cheese) is the world's most-loved hard cheese. If you're looking for the true made in Italy tradition at the table, you've found it. The entire production of Parmigiano PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) is totally Italian - from collecting the milk to the aging of the cheese. Parmigiano is 100% genuine: it contains no GMOs or other chemically modified substances. Just milk, rennet, salt and a completely natural aging process. In Italy, Parmesan Cheese is a celebrity at the table and in the kitchen. You can sliver it or slice it into petals. You can eat it just as it is, as a simple snack, or you can use it as an ingredient in many delicious dishes.

Appetizers and aperitifs
As you may already know, there are many types of Parmesan. The minimal aging period is 12 months, but it's easy to find different varieties on the market, from 20 months to 36 months - and even older. For your appetizers, we recommend a young Parmigiano, aged from 18-22 months. Slice it into slivers and serve it with a cocktail or - even better - with a dry white wine. For a more refined pairing, choose the 22 month aged Parmesan, the best choice to accompany flute of champagne.
For a tasty Summer appetizer, try Parmigiano with fresh fruit: it's always delicious with strawberries. Otherwise, you can choose pears, apples or white grapes. And why not nuts? Parmesan aged from 20 to 22 months is excellent with prunes, figs, walnuts and hazelnuts.

10 Surprising 100 Calorie Snacks for Dieting Between Meals

When it comes to dieting one of the main issues and headaches is finding out how many calories a product has.

Often they're written in the ingredients chart that can be minuscule to read and even then confusing when labeled per serving.

Below however you will find 10 different snacks which all hover around the 100 calorie mark, giving you a few ideas of what you can eat if you're trying to minimize your daily calorie intake which for women is approximately 1400 and 2000 for men.

Indian Food 101

Just as India is an eclectic and diverse country, so is its food. India supports a massive population with many linguistic and cultural nuances, and you can see this variety in the many different foods that make up Indian cuisine. And while there are many distinctions between regional tastes in India, there is a commonality: spices. Most Indian dishes feature a unique and interesting spice blend that delivers a rich flavour and aroma.

Food for Indian people is a very serious matter. Preparing delicious meals is elevated to an art, and family recipes are passed from generation to generation. Like in many parts of the world, meal times serve as an opportunity for the family to get together and bond. An Indian dinner would include several courses from basic rice and bread to entrée like dishes that may include meat and vegetables, and finally dessert. One of the most impressive aspects of Indian food is that it caters to every diet including vegetarians, vegans, and meat lovers.

Some religious beliefs guide meal choices for the people. There is a sizeable Buddhist population that would be strictly meat free, and Hindus avoid beef as cows are considered holy. There is also a large contingent of Islamic Indians who would not eat pork. As such, the food you would eat throughout the country will vary significantly on the region you are visiting.

How to make the perfect Chapatti in minutes

The chapatti is one of the most popular food items to people living in India and East Africa. It has also been exported to many parts of the world, thanks to human migration around the globe. No meal is complete without it; two hefty discs and a mug of steaming tea or coffee are usually all one needs for breakfast. Come lunchtime or supper, you can enjoy it with fried beans, beef or chicken stew, green grams or milk.

For the legions of chapatti fans all over the world, the greatest challenge to making the perfect chapatti lies in the preparation of the dough. The following technique has been tried and tested by diehard chapatti aficionados, and found to work perfectly, especially in outdoor cooking.

What you need; One kilo of fine sifted all-purpose wheat flour, a quarter kilo of solid fat or margarine, a tablespoonful of salt, two tablespoonfuls of sugar, one egg, a pinch of baking powder and yeast (only a little, unless you want make mandazi).