Weekly Food Challenge (2/1 – 2/7) – Turmeric!

Sorry to get this up so late today, but I had a lot to say about my new SCBR plan. 🙂

Click here to learn more about the weekly food challenge and how you can play along. But, basically, you just make something during the challenge week with the weekly challenge food item and add your link to this post (leave a comment with your URL and I'll add it). See, simple!

This Week's Challenge Item (2/1 – 2/7) – Turmeric:
According to Parker-Pope, from her article "The 11 Best Foods You Aren't Eating", "The “superstar of spices,” it may have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. How to eat: Mix with scrambled eggs or in any vegetable dish."

But wait…there's more! The main reason I selected this item is because it's supposed to help with joints, and my wrist often bothers me because of all the jewelry making. According to Johnny Bowden in The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth , turmeric has been used to help with arthritis, muscle pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, and liver ailments and has shown to reduce numbers/size of tumors in animals in some studies. Bowden also points out that "While no one is claiming that turmeric cures cancer, there is plenty of reason to believe that it is a really useful adjunct to the diet of everyone concerned with staying healthy."

Oddly enough, Turmeric was also mentioned in one of the magazines I just got – Whole Living – Body + Soul in an article by Charlyne Mattox. According to her article, Power Foods: Tumeric, "Both beneficial and intensely flavorful, this ancient Indian seasoning is a must-have for every kitchen spice cabinet."

Have I convinced you to try this yet?

If you're thinking that you're scared to try adding this spice to your food because you don't know what to do with it, check out the next section.

Recipe Ideas:
According to Mattox, turmeric can stain easily, so cook with caution!

• Bowden suggests adding turmeric to scrambled eggs and omelettes.
• Mattox suggests adding turmeric to "legumes and vegetables, such as lentils and cauliflower, and meats like chicken and lamb. Saute the spice in a little oil before adding to other ingredients."
• Oven Roasted Cauliflower with Turmeric and Ginger – Bobby Flay
• Saffron Spaghetti alla Carbonara – Rachael Ray
• Tandoori Chicken with Mashed Chick Peas and Pepper and Onion Salad – Rachael Ray
• Taj Mahlolla! Chicken – Guy Fieri
• Indian Curry Lamb Skewers with Mint-Grilled Nectarine Chutney with Pita Recipe – Bobby Flay
• Easy Chicken Burritos with Mojo – Tyler Florence
• Sweet and Spicy Brussels Sprouts – Rachael Ray
• Sauteed Shrimp Cocktail – Giada DeLaurentiis
• Better Than Grannie's Creamed Corn – Alton Brown
• Chicken Enchiladas with Roasted Tomatillo Chile Salsa – Tyler Florence (this one had a ton of reviews – 269 reviews – and 5 stars!)
• Cuban Spiced Pork Tenderloin and Soffrito Rice – Rachael Ray
• Curried Couscous – Ina Garten

How to Play:
Any one can play along for fun, but if you want to go for the prize (since there is one this week – yay!), you have to do the following:

• Cook/prepare something during the challenge week (2/1-2/7) with turmeric
• Do a blog post about what you made – each post will count as one entry, but you can't enter 2 posts about the same challenge dish
• Add the Challenge banner (the muffin photo – available here – click) to your blog post
• Leave me a comment to let me know you did your post so I can add you link to the list

The Prize:
Up for grabs is this fabulous pair of earrings, which I will make with my two little hands just for you

Just Chipper

Happy cooking!

The Players:

1. Maggie – Snappy Vietnamese Vegetable Soup
2. Amy – Mac-n-Cheese with Broccoli and Tomatoes
3. BumbleVee – Peanutty Chicken
4. Betherann – Indian Eggs

Thank you ladies for the wonderful tumeric-dishes!  I'll post the winner via a separate post.  Winner will be chosen by random number generator.  Good luck!