Mushrooms are amazing, neither plant nor animal they belong to a kingdom of life all their own.

They come in a wide variety of textures, colours and flavours, from the tough and meaty to the subtle and innocuous and can be used to flavour a dish or simply to add substance and texture to it.

These days you can easily buy a whole range of dried or fresh mushrooms in your local store, but an experienced forager can source an almost year-round supply in their own back yard.

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I happened to be up way past my bedtime recently after drinking too much coffee and came across CNBC’s American Made broadcast on Starbucks…again.

I say again because I have seen the show probably twenty times and I can’t tell you how passionate Howard Schultz comes off during the interview. The most powerful aspect of the interview is the concept of the “3rd Place”, or the place you go and hang out between home and work. Now this truly is a terrific marketing concept. But it has to be a focus; it has to be part of the organization’s character because it would come off shallow and self serving if not executed properly.

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Most people have a general idea how many calories they consume when it comes to solid foods, although it is quite common to forget that when we drink, we are still consuming calories. Alcohol drinkers, especially wine drinkers, may be surprised at the calorie intake associate with wine. So how many calories are in wine?

The answer depends on your discernment. Most wines come in under the 100 calorie mark per glass. This is assuming that you are using the appropriate wine glasses. There are fewer calories in wine than most other alcoholic beverages. White Zinfandel and Sauvignon blanc come in at 80 calories per serving. Considering that one glass of wine per evening is good for cardiovascular health, this can be a reasonable compliment to an evening meal.

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You may have been drinking green tea your whole life, but have you ever wondered about the possible health benefits it offers? Green tea can be found almost everywhere: in tea bags all over drug stores, in convenience stores, it is offered in most restaurants and lately, the green tea has even found its way into cosmetic products and other beauty and skin care products such as lotions and body creams. If one is to equate the proliferation of green tea products to its benefits, one can only surmise that health enthusiasts and green tea experts are discovering more and more benefits and even more reasons for drinking green tea.

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I’m not a wine connoisseur. I don’t even own a decanter. (Some of my married friends own several.)

But I like wine, especially trying different kinds. There are tons of resources out there to help you learn about wine. But I don’t have time to read them. Instead, I choose to learn by doing, or . . . by drinking. My only problem is knowing which bottle to pick.

If you put me in a wine store with over a thousand bottles, I either need a sommelier or a psychiatrist.

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