Παρασκευή 16 Μαρτίου 2012

Apple


The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family (Rosaceae). It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apples grow on small, deciduous trees. The tree originated in Western Asia, where its wild ancestor, Malus sieversii, is still found today. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe, and were brought to North America by European colonists. Apples have been present in the mythology and religions of many cultures, including Norse, Greek and Christian traditions. In 2010, the fruit's genome was decoded, leading to new understandings of disease control and selective breeding in apple production.
There are more than 7,500 known cultivars of apples, resulting in a range of desired characteristics. Different cultivars are bred for various tastes and uses, including in cooking, fresh eating and cider production. Domestic apples are generally propagated by grafting, although wild apples grow readily from seed. Trees are prone to a number of fungal, bacterial and pest problems, which can be controlled by a number of organic and non-organic means.
At least 55 million tonnes of apples were grown worldwide in 2005, with a value of about $10 billion. China produced about 35% of this total. The United States is the second-leading producer, with more than 7.5% of world production. Iran is third, followed by Turkey, Russia, Italy and India. Apples are often eaten raw, but can also be found in many foods (especially desserts) and drinks. Many beneficial health effects have been found from eating apples; however, the seeds are slightly poisonous and two forms of allergies are seen to various proteins found in the fruit.


Energy 218 kJ (52 kcal)
Carbohydrates 13.81 g
- Sugars 10.39 g
- Dietary fiber 2.4 g
Fat 0.17 g
Protein 0.26 g
Water 85.56 g
Vitamin A equiv. 3 μg (0%)
Thiamine (vit. B1) 0.017 mg (1%)
Riboflavin (vit. B2) 0.026 mg (2%)
Niacin (vit. B3) 0.091 mg (1%)
Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.061 mg (1%)
Vitamin B6 0.041 mg (3%)
Folate (vit. B9) 3 μg (1%)
Vitamin C 4.6 mg (6%)
Calcium 6 mg (1%)
Iron 0.12 mg (1%)
Magnesium 5 mg (1%)
Phosphorus 11 mg (2%)
Potassium 107 mg (2%)
Zinc 0.04 mg (0%)

Πέμπτη 15 Μαρτίου 2012

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Origami Crane

Orange (fruit)


An orange—specifically, the sweet orange—is the citrus Citrus × ​sinensis (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck) and its fruit.It is the most commonly grown tree fruit in the world.
The orange is a hybrid of ancient cultivated origin, possibly between pomelo (Citrus maxima) and mandarin (Citrus reticulata). It is an evergreen flowering tree generally growing to 9–10 m in height (although very old specimens have reached 15 m). The leaves are arranged alternately, are ovate in shape with crenulate margins and are 4–10 cm long. The orange fruit is a hesperidium, a type of berry.
Orange trees are widely cultivated in tropical and subtropical climates for the sweet fruit, which is peeled or cut (to avoid the bitter rind) and eaten whole, or processed to extract orange juice, and also for the fragrant peel. In 2008, 68.5 million tons of oranges were grown worldwide, primarily in Brazil and the US states California and Florida.
Oranges probably originated in Southeast Asia[8] and were cultivated in China by 2500 BC. The fruit of Citrus sinensis is called sweet orange to distinguish it from Citrus aurantium, the bitter orange. The name is thought to derive ultimately from the Sanskrit for the orange tree, with its final form developing after passing through numerous intermediate languages.
In a number of languages, it is known as a "Chinese apple", e.g., Dutch sinaasappel ("China's apple") or appelsien, or northern German Apfelsine. In English, however, "Chinese apple" generally refers to the pomegranate.

Energy 192 kJ (46 kcal)
Carbohydrates 11.54 g
- Sugars 9.14 g
- Dietary fiber 2.4 g
Fat 0.21 g
Protein 0.70 g
Thiamine (vit. B1) 0.100 mg (9%)
Riboflavin (vit. B2) 0.040 mg (3%)
Niacin (vit. B3) 0.400 mg (3%)
Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.250 mg (5%)
Vitamin B6 0.051 mg (4%)
Folate (vit. B9) 17 μg (4%)
Vitamin C 45 mg (54%)
Calcium 43 mg (4%)
Iron 0.09 mg (1%)
Magnesium 10 mg (3%)
Phosphorus 12 mg (2%)
Potassium 169 mg (4%)
Zinc 0.08 mg (1%)


Περί ντάκου


Από τους Αλεξανδρο Γιωτη, Νενα Ισμυρνογλου, Μυρσινη Λαμπρακη,Αλεξανδρο Παπανδρεου, Χριστοφορο Πεσκια και Νικη Χρυσανθιδου
Επιμέλεια - food styling: Τίνα Webb,Bοηθός food stylist: Αλεξάνδρα Τασουνίδου,Φωτογραφίες: Γιώργος Δρακόπουλος



•   Η κριθαροκουλούρα που χρησιμοποιείται στους ντάκους είναι είδος παξιμαδιού, δηλαδή ψωμιού που έχει ψηθεί δύο φορές.

•   Η σύσταση και το χρώμα. Παρόλο που το κρητικό παξιμάδι είναι προϊόν προστατευόμενης γεωγραφικής ένδειξης, δεν υπάρχουν συγκεκριμένες προδιαγραφές μεγέθους και σύστασης. Κάθε παραγωγός είναι ελεύθερος να ακολουθεί τη δική του συνταγή. Εξ ου και στην αγορά βρίσκουμε κριθαροκουλούρες με διάφορες αναλογίες αλεύρων - ολικής άλεσης ή κανονικές (συνήθως πρόσμειξη κρίθινου με σιτάλευρο ή και σικάλεως).

•   Το βρέξιμο. Δεν είναι όλες οι κριθαροκουλούρες το ίδιο σκληρές και δεν χρειάζονται όλες την ίδια ποσότητα νερού για να μαλακώσουν. Καλό είναι να βάζουμε νερό σε ένα βαθύ πιάτο και να τις βάζουμε εκεί μία-μία για μερικά δευτερόλεπτα, μέχρι να μαλακώσουν τόσο όσο να τρώγονται άνετα, αλλά να είναι τραγανές. Αν οι κριθαροκουλούρες δεν είναι πολύ σκληρές, μπορεί να αρκούν τα υγρά της ντομάτας για να μαλακώσουν λίγο.

•   Η κλασική συνταγή για ντάκο περιλαμβάνει ντομάτες τριμμένες ή κομμένες κονκασέ, φέτα, ρίγανη και ελαιόλαδο. Μπορούμε να προσθέσουμε και ελιές ψιλοκομμένες ή κάππαρη. Αντί για φέτα βάζουμε και ξινομυζήθρα ή κοπανιστή, όπως συνηθίζεται στη μυκονιάτικη εκδοχή του ντάκου, τη μόστρα. Αντί για στρογγυλή κριθαροκουλούρα, μπορούμε να χρησιμοποιήσουμε άλλα μεγάλα παξιμάδια. Ανάλογα με την όρεξή μας, υπολογίζουμε 1 - 2 ντάκους ανά μερίδα.

Origami letter

Origami slipper

Origami

Origami (折り紙?, from ori meaning "folding", and kami meaning "paper"; kami changes to gami due to rendaku) is the traditional Japanese art of paper folding, which started in the 17th century AD at the latest and was popularized outside of Japan in the mid-1900s. It has since then evolved into a modern art form. The goal of this art is to transform a flat sheet of material into a finished sculpture through folding and sculpting techniques, and as such the use of cuts or glue are not considered to be origami. Paper cutting and gluing is usually considered kirigami.

The number of basic origami folds is small, but they can be combined in a variety of ways to make intricate designs. The best known origami model is probably the Japanese paper crane. In general, these designs begin with a square sheet of paper whose sides may be different colors or prints. Traditional Japanese origami, which has been practiced since the Edo era (1603–1867), has often been less strict about these conventions, sometimes cutting the paper or using nonsquare shapes to start with.
The principles of origami are also being used in stents, packaging and other engineering structures.



History of origami

Swan by Akira Yoshizawa, the father of modern origami techniques.

Japanese school children dedicate their contribution of Thousand origami cranes at the Sadako Sasaki memorial in Hiroshima.
There is much speculation about the origin of Origami. While Japan seems to have had the most extensive tradition, there is evidence of an independent tradition of paperfolding in China, as well as in Germany, Italy and Spain among other places. However, because of the problems associated with preserving origami, there is very little direct evidence of its age or origins, aside from references in published material.
In China, traditional funerals include burning folded paper, most often representations of gold nuggets (yuanbao). It is not known when this practice started, but it seems to have become popular during the Sung Dynasty (905–1125 CE). The paper folding has typically been of objects like dishes, hats or boats rather than animals or flowers.
The earliest evidence of paperfolding in Europe is a picture of a small paper boat in Tractatus de sphaera mundi from 1490. There is also evidence of a cut and folded paper box from 1440. It is probable paperfolding in the west originated with the Moors much earlier, it is not known if it was independently discovered or knowledge of origami came along the silk route.
In Japan, the earliest unambiguous reference to a paper model is in a short poem by Ihara Saikaku in 1680 which describes paper butterflies in a dream. Origami butterflies were used during the celebration of Shinto weddings to represent the bride and groom, so paperfolding had already become a significant aspect of Japanese ceremony by the Heian period (794–1185) of Japanese history, enough that the reference in this poem would be recognized. Samurai warriors would exchange gifts adorned with noshi, a sort of good luck token made of folded strips of paper.
In the early 1900s, Akira Yoshizawa, Kosho Uchiyama, and others began creating and recording original origami works. Akira Yoshizawa in particular was responsible for a number of innovations, such as wet-folding and the Yoshizawa–Randlett diagramming system, and his work inspired a renaissance of the art form.During the 1980s a number of folders started systematically studying the mathematical properties of folded forms, which led to a steady increase in the complexity of origami models, which continued well into the 1990s, after which some designers started returning to simpler forms.


Τρίτη 13 Μαρτίου 2012

Lemon

The lemon is both a small evergreen tree (Citrus × limon, often given as C. limon) native to Asia, and the tree's ellipsoidal yellow fruit. The fruit is used for culinary and non-culinary purposes throughout the world – primarily for its juice, though the pulp and rind (zest) are also used, mainly in cooking and baking. Lemon juice is about 5% to 6% (approximately 0.3 M) citric acid, which gives lemons a sour taste, and a pH of 2–3. Many lemon flavored drinks and foods are available, including lemonade and sherbet lemons, as well as lemon and seasoning salt as a snack. The distinctive sour taste of lemon juice makes it a key ingredient in many dishes across the world.
Lemon, raw, without peel
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy 121 kJ (29 kcal)  
Carbohydrates 9.32 g
Sugars 2.50 g
Dietary fiber 2.8 g
Fat 0.30 g
Protein 1.10 g
Thiamine (vit. B1) 0.040 mg (3%) 
Riboflavin (vit. B2) 0.020 mg (2%) 
Niacin (vit. B3) 0.100 mg (1%) 
Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.190 mg 
(4%) Vitamin B6 0.080 mg (6%) 
Folate (vit. B9) 11 μg (3%)
Vitamin C 53.0 mg (64%) 
Calcium 26 mg (3%) 
Iron 0.60 mg (5%) 
Magnesium 8 mg (2%)
Phosphorus 16 mg (2%)
Potassium 138 mg (3%)
Zinc 0.06 mg (1%)