You leave work, famished, wondering what you will eat for dinner.  You could make a meal, but you are so hungry you just want to eat NOW!  You end up going to a fast food restaurant and choosing meal deals for you and your family, but afterward you feel disgusting from all that grease and a little guilty.

Well, consider the “Quick and Healthy Recipes and Ideas” cookbook from Brenda Ponichtera, registered dietitian. This book gives healthy, quick recipes to make, and also lists meals you can put together, even with just one or two ingredients.

This book is divided into sections: the first section discusses healthy eating, and gives you a list of staples for your kitchen. It then goes through 20 weeks (about 5 months) of menus AND grocery lists! Two weeks of these menus are “summer menus” that require no cooking.

The recipes are then divided into sections (beverages, desserts, etc.) and there are many different types of recipes (from Thai chicken soup to Greek salad to spaghetti and meatballs to fruit pizzas) for many different palates. The recipes are interesting and my family enjoyed the sweet and sour chicken recipe. The book itself is spiral bound, so it’s easy to lay down on the counter while cooking. I would have liked to see easy tabs for each section, but otherwise, the format of the book is easy to use. You can make the tabs yourself using sticky notes.

This cookbook is a must-have for those who want healthy meals quickly. It’s great for the working individual or for the busy mom who wants to cook healthy meals for her family. It would also be a great gift for the new graduate. Near the front of the book is a list of all of the recipes contained in the book, serving sizes, and nutritional values per recipe for those who are on diet restrictions (e.g. diabetes, heart disease).

Oh, and I just saw also available is “Quick & Healthy Volume II: More Help for People Who Say They Don’t Have Time to Cook Healthy Meals“. If you get past the first 5 months of meal plans, then check out Volume II for even more!

Fruit to your door. Doesn’t that sound nice? Well that’s just what we got to experience recently with a special delivery from The FruitGuys when they asked us to try out a case of their East Coast Organic Fruit Mix. How could we say no to a complimentary box of high-quality fruit sent right to us?

FruitGuys’ Offerings

I mentioned that the FruitGuys sent us the Organic mix, but they have a few other options. Plus the fruit is different depending on your location. For example, while the East Coast currently gets green grapes and blood oranges, the Midwest gets red grapes and honey tangerines. Also, the selection changes weekly. It’s not quite a “fruit of the month” club, though. Instead, the fruit changes based on what’s available and seasonal in your section of the country.

Below is from the FruitGuys’ website:

Harvest Flyer

Our widest variety of seasonal fruit delivered in easy to display FruitGuys FruitTrays™ – apples, oranges, pears, peaches, grapes, kiwi, blood oranges, tangerines, grapefruit, bananas, apricots, plums, and tangerines. This box offers the best of what’s in season.

Organic

For those who support organic agriculture. This seasonal mix is similar to the Harvest Flyer, but all the fruit is certified organic. Content varies by season, plus our FruitTrays™ make it easy for you to display this wonderful fruit.

BN: this is the sampler we got and will review in this article.

Staples

Includes a delicious mix of bananas, oranges, and apples delivered in easy to display FruitGuys FruitTrays™. We keep it interesting by offering a few different varieties of apples and citrus every week. Occasionally throughout the year when apples and oranges are not in season or available at the level of quality the FruitGuys require, we will substitute a seasonal fruit instead.

Our Delivery

So, let’s get to the review of our organic fruit shipment. We got the $42 Organic Fruitcase (see all prices here), which contains 25 different pieces of fruit. I’ll write about the value further down.

While I failed to make a detailed list of each fruit, I can say we got multiples of some and only one of others:

• One kiwi
• One avocado
• One plum
• One bunch of bananas
• Multiple clementines
• A “pineapple orange”
• A red grapefruit
• A navel orange or two
• Red and green D’Anjou pears
• Fuji, Gala and Granny Smith apples
• A yellow peach

In all, it was definitely 25 pieces of fruit (the bunch of bananas counts as one), and we’re still chomping through them a week later!

As for delivery, The FruitGuys overnighted the shipment to us. It arrived without any extra cooling packs, but it was definitely cold enough outside to preserve the fruit until we arrived home. The box was an ordinary brown box, but the special “fruitguys”-branded box was tucked inside. The fruit was separated into sections as shown in the various photos in this article, and some sections had 2 pieces of fruit inside. I would assume the 50-serving box is just two of these crates stacked in a single brown cardboard box.

I’ll admit that this was the first time eating many of these fruits in organic form. Stacie has tried, and loved, organic Granny Smith apples, but was ho-hum on organic red grapes. As I found out from talking with friends, the one down-side of organic fruit is that, without the extra preservatives found in ordinary fruit, it tends to ripen and, of course, go bad more quickly. Knowing this, though, I just put most of the fruit in the fridge, except for the bananas and apples (and the fruit I ate right after I opened the box).

Taste Test

Again, this was the first time we’ve eaten organic versions of many of these fruits, so this taste review will also be a comparison to regular fruit options.

I (Mike) tried the bananas, oranges, clementines, avocado and grapefruit, while Stacie munched on the apples, pears, and plum. I’ll just do a quick review of some of the fruits:

• Clementines: I think these were on the top of both our lists in terms of taste and texture. The skins peeled away with ease, leaving a juicy yet firm meat with an unbelievable flavor. Equally tart and sweet, the clementines were the best of fruits, but that’s just our preference (I’m a citrus guy).
• Bananas: The bananas were a couple inches longer, and straighter, than their supermarket cousins. They arrived with just a hint of green left, which is when Stacie likes them. I let them age a few days since I like them more ripened. I found that they went soft a day or two faster than non-organic bananas, but still kept good flavor and had just a few mushy spots inside. I did notice they weren’t as grainy-tasting as non-organic bananas.
• Avocado: This was my first time with a whole avocado in the house. Normally I just eat it in guacamole or in sushi rolls. Since I was hungry, I just peeled it and bit right into it. I ate the whole thing…and, not surprisingly, it tasted nothing like guacamole. I’ll guess that it tasted like any other raw avocado, neither good nor bad. Next time I’ll make something with it.
• Grapefruit: Luckily enough, I had red grapefruits from Sam’s Club in the fridge at the same time, so I had a direct comparison at hand. While the organic fruit was smaller, it packed a lot more taste in each bite. Also, the pulp was more dense and firm than the non-organic grapefruit.
• Apples: Stacie prefers Granny Smith apples and mentioned that they were pretty tasty (she likes them very tart). She’s not big on red apples, and I’m allergic to apples (long story), so I utilized my coworkers as tasters. Their response was that they preferred the organic apples to non-organic, mainly due to the taste and juiciness.
• Oranges: I’m not sure which one the pineapple orange was, versus the Florida orange, so I’ll just group them together and say they were more tasty than the Sam’s Club and Safeway variety. They weren’t shockingly bright orange and flawless like you see in the store, but that’s the deal with organic fruit (no pesticides or preservatives). The pulp was firm, juicy and tasty, as expected, but the skin seemed to be attached more firmly than I expected when comparing to the clementines. It took a bit more work to peel the orange (I like them peeled, not sliced), but eventually I got it undressed.

Those are just some highlights. We still have some of the pears to try out (the red ones). I gave my boss the kiwi (another fruit I’m allergic to), but didn’t hear back on what she thought. It’s really hard to get a kiwi wrong though, so I expect the quality to be on par with the other fruits in the bunch.

The only problem we had was with the peach. I believe it got bruised during shipping, and once a peach is bruised it’s on the fast track to the compost pile. We didn’t notice the bruising until the next day. Therefore, we didn’t try the peach, but it looked and smelled delicious when we unpacked it!

Value of FruitGuys Deliveries

The FruitGuys are in business to supply fruit mostly to offices as a replacement for vending machines, but they’ll certainly ship to your home or as a gift. Since I’m not an office manager, I can’t quite comment on the value of $42 for 25 pieces of fruit except as a personal consumer. Of course $1.68 per unit is a very steep price and you’re much better off buying from the local organic store, if available. Chain supermarkets even have organic sections now.

But I’m not quite the target demographic, so keep that in mind when deciding if it’s worth it. They also have the “Staples Fruitcase” for $32 if you want the non-organic option.

So why would they send it to a non-office manager to review? Well, other than just getting their name out on the web, there is a value to personal consumers. You can send a case as a gift! My wife commented that the case of fruit costs about as much as a bunch of shipped flowers. While not as romantic, you can eat the fruit, but you might feel a little ill if you nibble on the flowers. It’s a great gift for your friend across the country when you want to give them something healthy, and may not want to give the wrong impression by sending flowers.

Oh, and I just noticed that they have a separate site where you can send smaller packages of fruit to your child in college (or to anyone for that matter): DormSnack.com. And if you live in the San Francisco area, you can try out local, organic produce (including veggies) by ordering their “HealthCase“.

By Mike

I always think of myself as a pessimist. However, I often find myself telling my friends or coworkers the brighter side of the situation. For example, at work, my coworkers complain about our boss’ management style (as do I sometimes). But then I counter with some positive ways of looking at the situation. While our boss likes to take all the fun and exciting work for herself, it frees up our time to work on new initiatives on our contract.

While I was in one of my pessimistic moods recently, I realized something that questions why our world was set up the way it is. Before I begin, though, please be sure to read through the entire piece as you’ll miss my point if you only read the next section…

The World is Out to Get You!

If you step back and look at the big picture around you, you’ll begin to realize that there doesn’t seem to be anything you can do right. To clarify, it seems that regardless of what you do to live a long, healthy life, there’s a downside to your action that could actually harm you. Take the following examples:

• Eating eggs is good because of the protein they provide. But eating eggs is bad because of the cholesterol.
• Running is an excellent, low cost method of weight loss and fitness. But running deteriorates your joints and could compress your spine from so much pounding.
• Drinking milk provides essential calcium and other nutrients to help our bodies grow healthy and strong. But many claim that drinking milk from cows isn’t natural (well, it isn’t I guess) and the hormones are wreaking havoc with our bodies.
• Relaxing by watching TV or reading a book is great for refreshing your mind and body. But too much relaxing leads to muscle atrophy and bed sores (ok, that was a stretch).
• Taking vitamins is essential to replace the nutrients you aren’t getting in your regular diet. But taking the wrong vitamins could lead to a toxic reaction (e.g. too much iron).
• Basically when you try to avoid one thing, you find out the alternative is just as bad for you, or worse.

So it seems that we have to be super-cautious about working out, eating, and just keeping/getting healthy or else risk harming our bodies more than we’re helping. Why is life so difficult?!?

Should we all just give up?

Ok, so that’s a pretty depressing statement, but many people that try to get healthy end up thinking the same thing. They give up trying. But even as a self-proclaimed pessimist, I won’t accept the excuse that the world is out to get us and nothing we can do will improve our lives.

Having a wife who is a registered dietitian doesn’t mean that I have some special insight into how to be healthy. I’m still an overweight, out-of-shape husband who eats buffets and Ramen noodles and watches TV instead of going to the gym. That’s because:

• every person’s body is different, thus are the types of food that work best for it (or against it). Just being close to a dietitian or personal trainer doesn’t automatically suck the fat away (believe me, I’ve wished for it).
• it’s up to the individual to have the motivation to work out, eat better or eat appropriate portions. No one can force me to change; I have to do it myself.

If I don’t get up off my butt and exercise, and eat the right mix of foods (and right amounts) for my body, then I probably have a very slim chance at staying, much less getting, healthy. And how do I find out what and how much I should be eating? By seeing a registered dietition! How do I get into better physical shape? By going to the gym, walking, running, climbing stairs, etc.!

But we still can’t escape the problem that whatever we do has both positive and negative results. However, I can still try. I’ll avoid fad diets and “miracle cures”, knowing that nothing will be a fast-fix to my health problems. I’ll be careful not to over-exert myself when working out, and minimize the impact on my joints. That means using the elliptical trainer and walking until I lose enough weight where running is less detrimental than it is beneficial. It means eating proper portions (aka “portion control”) and not overindulging at buffets or over-snacking.

Not all is lost, even if you are a pessimist. At the beginning of this article I said there always seems to be a negative to the positive. Well, conversely there’s a positive to every negative. Yes, eggs might raise your cholesterol, but you can just eat egg whites. Yes, exercising can deteriorate our bones, but you can do low-impact workouts. There’s always a good with any bad.

So stop moping around, feeling sorry for yourself that you’ll never get healthy. And stop fussing over all the new diet fads or health alerts. Otherwise, you’ll get overwhelmed and just give up. Take it one step at a time. Introduce exercise into your daily regimen. Then cut down on the amount of food you eat (assuming you overeat) or see a registered dietitian to create a nutrition plan that works for you.

Take enough small steps and you’ll be surprised at how far you’ve gone!

_{Photo by Abdullah AL-Naser}

“The Eat Well Guide is a free online directory of over 12,000 farms, grocery stores, restaurants and other outlets that offer local, fresh and sustainable food in the United States and Canada. Visitors simply enter a zip or postal code to search for food that is free of antibiotics and added hormones, and produced by healthy and humane methods that include organic, pasture-raised and heritage.”

What you can do:
1. Put in your zip code to discover farmer’s markets, restaurants, and stores in your area that offer local food.
2. If you are going on vacation or travel a lot, put in the zip code or city/state of the place you will be visiting. You can also download a PDF file of this information once you register to their site.

Being in a suburb of a big city, I was surprised to find few restaurants in the area that use local foods. I am not sure if these restaurants have not registered with the site, or if there really are THAT few restaurants in the area! But as word gets out, hopefully more restaurants that do use local and/organic foods will sign up.

_{This was NOT a paid or sponsored post}

Part of being a dietitian, and a dietitian’s husband, is trying new products so that we know what’s available, and palatable, for readers and patients. Well, thanks to French Meadow Bakery for sending us a sampler pack of some of their new products to try out and review here at Building Nutrition.

Who is French Meadow Bakery?

The French Meadow Bakery first opened its doors in 1985, and applies “old world bread-baking techniques, ancient healthy grains and seeds and cutting edge foods research to create baked goods the world loves.” According to their website, they avoid genetically-modified ingredients in their foods and produce foods in a variety of categories (not all foods have all of these characteristics):

• Gluten-free (for those who have celiac disease)
• Casein-free (i.e., milk protein free)
• Fiber rich
• Lactose free
• Low Glycemic
• Omega Rich
• Vegan
• Yeast free

Where do you buy French Meadow Products?

Healthy Hemp™ Bread

So let’s get to the wheat, er meat, of this review: the French Meadow Bakery’s Healthy Hemp™ Bread. First, I’ll let Stacie discuss the nutritional aspects of the product, and then we’ll both record our opinions of the product, but first I want to ease your fears about the “Hemp” part of this bread. No, it’s not going to get you high, nor will it affect any drug tests. Hemp flour is not the same as “weed”.

Nutritional Value of Healthy Hemp™ Bread

Both Hemp Sprouted Bread and most regular wheat bread servings are 2 slices. (How to read a food label)

• Calories: 190, which is slightly more calories than traditional bread, but the added fat and protein account for the increase in calories.
• Sodium: 195 mg, which is less sodium than traditional bread.
• Total fat: 4 grams, which is slightly higher than traditional bread, but it does contain healthy fatty acids (omega-3s), so that is a plus!
• Dietary fiber: 10 grams. Wow! two slices will give you 40% of your daily fiber needs! Make sure that you drink lots of fluids when you eat this bread, or it may cause you to have bloating or gas if you are not used to eating a high fiber diet.
• Protein: 14 grams. This is equal to 2 eggs, 2 cups of milk, or 2 ounces of meat. Great if you don’t eat a lot of protein-rich sources and you need to get protein from other sources.

Who should NOT try this bread?

• People who have celiac disease (this product contains wheat gluten)
• People who currently have a flare-up of crohn’s disease/inflammatory bowel disease/ulcerative colitis or anyone who needs to eat a low fiber diet
• People with renal disease or those on a low potassium or protein controlled diet (although this product could fit into their diet plan–speak with your registered dietitian before trying this product.)

Taste Review of Healthy Hemp™ Bread

Stacie’s Review: This bread sounds great on paper! I looked at the bread, at the nutrition profile, and thought, “Great! I can get my fiber, protein, and omega-3′s in one serving!”. I popped it in the toaster, smelled the great aroma (smelled like traditional bread cooking), and once it came out of the toaster, put trans-fat free margarine on it. However, the taste was not what I was expecting. It tasted “sprouty” and “sour”. I am sorry to the company, but I did not like it!

Mike’s Review: Ok, I have mixed feelings on this bread. First, I’m not used to such “organic” breads, so it’s a bit of a jump from my normal wheat or white breads to such a fibrous, dense bread. Like Stacie, I did notice a bitter, almost fishy aftertaste, especially when toasted, but I decided to follow up with French Meadow themselves on this issue. They were very receptive to my opinions and offered suggestions like trying the bread with peanut butter (which I did). The bread was better with PB than without, but it still didn’t mask the somewhat bitter aftertaste.

Overall opinions

Stacie: I am concerned about some of the claims made on their products. For instance, the claim that “yeast free for improved digestibility and good nutrient absorption” makes it sound like yeast itself impairs digestibility and nutrient absorption, which I do not know to be true. (Remember to do your research when you read a claim and see if it’s scientifically sound.) The fact that it contains hemp concerned me at first (everyone I talked with had the same initial reaction to the “hemp”–”will I get high if I try it? Can I eat if if I may need a random drug test at work?”), but after doing some research, hemp flour is not the same as the traditional “hemp”.

However, if you are trying to eat healthfully and want a great bread that will keep you satisfied until your next meal, this bread might be for you. High in fiber, protein, and omega-3 fatty acids, it can be part of a healthy diet, as long as you like the taste.

By Mike

Just like 90% of all college students (and even pre-college), I thrived on ramen noodles (aka “oodles of noodles”) due to their cheap price (5-10 cents per pack) and tummy-filling goodness. These aren’t those high quality bowls of ramen that you’d find in a Japanese restaurant. No, these are sodium- and MSG-packed bricks of dehydrated noodles that spring to life with a bit of boiling water and a pack of pure, flavored salt.

While my wife is a dietitian, she also recognizes that many Americans don’t eat healthfully, nor will they ever give up their favorite snacks, just like I still enjoy a couple packs of Ramen noodles here and there. So in that vein, I’ve concocted my own ways to reduce your sodium (salt) intake when dining on that juicy brick of joy:

Fixing a “Healthy” Bowl from Ramen Packs

First, I’ll talk about those plastic-sheathed packs of Ramen that you generally make in a pot of boiling water at home. These aren’t the portable “Cup-O-Noodles”, which I’ll talk about next.

First, what is the nutritional value of a brick of Ramen? For the beef flavor (all flavors differ), a serving size is “half a block”. Well, I’m surprised as I usually eat two blocks in a sitting! Oops!

Moving on, assuming you’re eating a full block, or two servings, you’re taking in about 380 calories, 14 grams of fat (7g of saturated fat), and 10g of protein. But the worst thing about these noodles is the salt content: You’re taking in about 1600mg of sodium, or 66% of the daily value! I can only assume that this counts the seasoning pack that comes with every block of Ramen.

And that’s what I’m here to talk about: reducing the salt in your Ramen.

I’ve found it is easier to keep the sodium down in the blocks of Ramen than the cups, simply because you can control how much salt you add with the seasoning pack. But I don’t stop with the salt pack:

1. Boil a pot of water. Add the Ramen block. Let the noodles get almost done (still slightly firm).
2. Drain all of the water out of the pot and add in the appropriate amount of fresh water for which you normally eat your Ramen. Personally, I just like the noodles, so I drain out all the water. But if you like it as soup instead, add in more water. The reason I drain is to remove the sodium and other additives that have leaked out during boiling. Plus, the noodles get a fresher flavoring.
3. Reheat the noodles, but you probably don’t need to bring them back to the boiling point as they were almost done. Be careful not to overcook the noodles or they’ll be mushy (unless you like mushy noodles).
4. Add less than the full pack of seasoning. For me, since I don’t have much broth, I use half a pack of seasoning. Since there is so little water to dissipate the taste, I don’t need the full brunt of the beef flavoring. I could put in even less than a full pack, and I do sometimes, but half is a good starting point.
5. Enjoy

Honestly, comparing when I was a fatty in high school eating 3 packs of ramen at a time, with all 3 flavor packs added, I can’t tell the difference with my new method of preparation.

Fixing a “Healthy” Cup of Noodles

First, I need to say that a serving of a half block of Ramen is 42 grams, while a serving of the Cup of Noodles is 64 grams, so I can’t quite do an exact comparison of servings.

I will say, though, that the Cup of Noodles is less healthy than the block of noodles, based on the product label. The numbers in the previous section were based on 2 servings, or a whole block, of ramen, which is 84 grams. While that block has 14 grams of fat, a lesser amount (64g) of the cup also has 14g of fat. While the cup has about 90 fewer calories than the full block of ramen, it has over 1,400mg of sodium, or just shy of the block’s 1,600mg.

So, those 99 cent cups that you probably eat during your lunch hour at work are horrible for your figure. Utterly horrible. And how many of you just eat the cup for lunch? Do you also tack on a sandwich? A bag of chips? Shame, shame

So here are my tips for reducing the salt content in Cup of Noodles. As a note, the package says to heat water separately, then add to the container. My steps are just heating the water directly with the noodles. Both methods are bad for you since you get all the unsavory chemicals leeching out of the styrofoam from the hot water. You should probably just heat it in a microwave-safe ceramic bowl:

1. Open the paper lid halfway. Dump out the junk on top. While this means you’re probably tossing out what little vegetables and minuscule bits of meat came with the cup, you’re also tossing out the top coating of salt. But don’t stop there…
2. Fill the cup with water and dump it out a few times. Once the water become pretty clear, then fill the water up to the inside line (the “fill line”) and heat the noodles until almost done.
3. Dump out the water again (be careful not to lose the noodles!) and fill it up one more time. I fill mine up only halfway as I don’t like the broth (or I know it’s where most of the salt is).
4. Heat a little longer to get it up to your preferred temp.
5. Enjoy!

While I don’t know the new nutritional value after these two methods, I’m positive I’ve reduced the sodium content by half or lower. By using less of the “flavor pack” and dumping the scummy water and rinsing the noodles, you’ll have a healthier, and still cheap, meal. Granted, the Ramen still isn’t very healthy compared to freshly-made dishes with real veggies, etc., but if you’re on the run, or on a very, very tight budget, I guess Ramen is OK once in a while

The NY Times “Well” Blog has a list of 11 nutritious foods you aren’t eating, with some good information about each. I’d like to give my own take on each:

1. Beets: While you’re babies might be eating pureed beets out of a jar, most Americans are probably more familiar with beets in their pickled form (at least I am). While not as healthy as plain, boiled beets, I can attest to their tasty vinegary flavor, especially with some added salt (but only a little for taste). On the other hand, Stacie loves beets fresh from her father’s garden, boiled and sliced. Personally, I think they taste and smell like dirt, so I’ll stick with the pickled variety.
2. Cabbage: I must say that I love cabbage, but it does wreak a little havoc on the GI system. I enjoy the flavor, whether raw, boiled, fried (in Halushki), as cole slaw, or in most Asian recipes. Stacie will agree it’s one of our favorite veggies.
3. Swiss chard: I’ve never heard of it, hence why we don’t eat it. We’ll have to check it out, but perhaps they should just change the name as “chard” doesn’t sound very appetizing.
4. Cinnamon: Not sure why this made this list, unless the author means that people don’t choose cinnamon as a flavor enhancer over sugar more often. Cinnamon has a bite if you use too much, so you probably need to experiment first to see what your tastebuds can handle.
5. Pomegranate juice: To me (an uneducated lay-person), this sounds like the next big fad. I won’t discredit the value of fruits, but many companies are placing pomegranates at lofty levels of near-miraculous benefits. However, Pomegranate-flavored Smirnoff Ice (alcohol) isn’t too bad (although definitely NOT healthy).
6. Dried plums/prunes: I can see why people dislike prunes, but I was on a little prune kick a few months back. Eating a serving of prunes (about 5-6) each day left me feeling more full than normal, but I will admit that you need to get a fresh bag where the prunes are moist. Dried-up prunes just aren’t very appetizing.
7. Pumpkin seeds: I admit that as a child, my parents would bake pumpkin seeds in the oven, and I would gag from the smell. And I know that the insane amounts of salt people put on these seeds probably negates most health benefits, so if you like pumpkin seeds, try eating them plain or with a minimum of seasoning.
8. Sardines: I’ll eat basically anything, but even I avoid sardines mostly because they’re not cleaned well. I hate biting into some strange bone (that beady string thing) or internal organ. If the factory would take the time to clean these little fishies more, and not add so much sodium and other preservatives to the can, then I think more people would eat them.
9. Turmeric: See “Pomegranate juice” above. Since no one has truly nailed down the cause of cancer, I can’t see how anyone can say that something is good at preventing cancer. And as with cinnamon, you need to test out the usage of this spice or else you could get a shock when biting into your food.
10. Frozen blueberries: I’ll admit I dislike eating foods that pop, like peas, grapes and blueberries. Perhaps I had a bad experience when I was young and something undesirable resided inside the fruit and now I’m afraid of what might pop out. Either way, I can’t deny the healthy qualities of blueberries. And you’ll find that frozen blueberries are much cheaper than fresh ones (although they won’t ever thaw back into a regular fresh blueberry. It’ll be less “full”).
11. Canned pumpkin: I think people are put off by the texture of canned pumpkin (at least Stacie and I are), but if you can get past the pastiness of it and like the strong flavor, then have at it!

_{Photos by lukekb, Roland, and Lisa Norwood,}

As you know, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Starting your day with a good breakfast can help energize you and provide you with a lot of key nutrients. With that in mind, I like to test products to determine which ones measure up in the morning.

Product Tested:

Curves Cereal Whole Grain Crunch

Nutrition Comparison

Calories: 100 cal per 3/4 cup are comparable to many other “run of the mill” cereals.

Sodium: It has 180 mg of sodium, but only 2 grams of fiber. It is a good source of many nutrients though, which is a good thing!

Initial Thoughts

It was crunchy! It tasted like a mix between Total Cereal and Special K. I expected to be hungry an hour after I ate it, but it kept me satiated for about 3 hours.

Overall Rating

On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being “gross, take it off the market” to 10 being “yum! Can I get stock in this company?”), I would give the cereal a rating of 7 for being better than cardboard, but still needing some more oomph to make the flavor pop. Also, it could use more fiber to make it a more filling and healthy breakfast.

Our farmer’s market is open on Saturdays from May through October each year; based on your location and the types of produce available in that area, your farmer’s market may be open during different months/seasons than ours. Check out your city council’s website or your local newspaper for more information.

A great website to peruse is Local Harvest, which is a website to help you find organic and local food. Once you enter in your location (city/state, zip), you can find several great resources in your area:

• Farmer’s Markets
• Eco-friendly restaurants (restaurants using locally grown produce)
• Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs), in which you can buy a “share” in a farm, and then receive a bag of produce from that farm weekly during the produce season
• Farms
• Grocery stores with locally grown produce
• Online store (if you would like produce shipped to you)

Take some time this summer to buy local produce and support your local farmers! It’s a great way to get your fruits and vegetables!!!

When cooking, how often do you substitute an ingredient because you realize that you don’t have it? I typically make sure I have all of the ingredients before I cook a meal or bake a dessert, and if I don’t have an ingredient, I don’t make the item!

Let’s take an example: Jane is making a low-fat cheesecake recipe that she found. However, she realizes that she picked up regular cream cheese instead of low-fat, so she uses that instead. She also decides to use regular sour cream instead of low-fat. Before you know it, Jane substitutes regular fat products instead of low-fat–and her recipe is no longer low in fat. Although this might sound silly–and you may think “I’d never do that!”, be cautious when you are cooking and try not to substitute high fat for those low-fat items.

_{Comic by Nick}