Earthly Eating

Tired of peanut butter? If so then spread one of its nutty competitors on your toast. They are not only tasty but also very nutritious.

• Almond Butter: It’s hefty dose of vitamin E boosts immunity. Try this butter on crackers of your choice. Try: MaraNatha Natural Creamy & Roasted Almond Butter ($6 for an 8-ounce jar)

• Cashew Butter: You get plenty of energizing copper from 2 tablespoons. Its mild flavor tastes great on a slice of bread. Try: 365 Everyday Value Smooth Cashew Butter ($5 for a 16-ounce jar)

• Macadamia Nut Butter: This sweet spread, the least likely to taste like peanut butter, has more good-for-you monounsaturated fat than the others. It’s great on whole-grain waffles. Try: MaraNatha Natural Creamy & Roasted Macadamia Butter ($5 for an 8-ounce jar)

• Soy Nut Butter: It’s technically not a nut, so those with allergies can dig in. Pair it worth jelly on while-wheat bread for a new lunchtime favorite. Try: Woodstock Farms Natural Soynut Butter. ($5 for a 15-ounce jar)

Here’s how to make a low-calorie cocktail so that you can enjoy happy hour without packing on the pounds:

• A Pimm’s Cup, using Pimm’s No. 1, club soda, slice of cucumber, lemon peel (71 calories)

• Campari mixed with club soda and a shot of grapefruit juice. (142 calories)

• Vodka mixed with grapefruit juice and a splash of club soda. (170 calories)

• Faux Long Island iced tea made with rum and unsweetened iced tea. (205 calories)

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Earthly Eating Daily Recipe

Tuna Casserole
Serves: 4

1 pkg. (7 1/4 oz.) Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
1 cup frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, and corn)
1 can (6 oz.) white tuna in water, drained and flaked with a fork
1 pkg. French-Fried onions
Prepare dinner in a large saucepan as directed on the package, adding vegetables to the boiling water for the last 2 minutes.

Add tune, and mix lightly with a fork.

Top with french-fried onions just before you serve the dinner.

Happy Eating!

The following preparations all yield delicious bowls of oatmeal. They are best served with any of the following: a pat of butter; sprinkle of sugar or stevia; dollop of honey or yogurt; drizzle of milk and/or a healthy sprinkle of chopped nuts. For extra nuttiness, first toast the pats in a dry skillet on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes.

1. Creamy rolled oatmeal: Combine 1 part oats, 3 parts water and a pinch of salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cooking uncovered another 5 minutes or so.

2. Chewy steel-cut oatmeal: Combine 1 part steel-cut oats, 4 parts water and a pinch of salt. Let stand for an hour. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 30 minutes, or until it reaches desired consistency.

3. Hearty groatmeal: Combine 1 part groats, 4 parts water and a pinch of salt. Let stand 1 to 2 hours, or overnight. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 45 minutes to an hour. (Source: MEN 2008)

Recipe to try: Chewy Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies
Makes 40 to 50 cookies

3/4 cup unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1/4 cup coarse raw sugar
2 tbs. molasses
1 tbs. apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tbs. pure vanilla extract
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 large egg
1/3 cup oat flour
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups dried cherries

Melt the butter over low heat. Add brown sugar, stirring constantly until the sugar just begins to caramelize (as soon as the mixture bubbles). Remove from heat, and let cool to room temperature. Mix in raw sugar, molasses, vinegar and vanilla. In a separate bowl, stir together baking soda and powder, salt and spices. Add to the wet ingredients, then beat in the egg. Mix in flours, then stir in oats, chocolate chips and cherries. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease and flour a baking sheet. Drop spoonfuls of cookie dough onto baking sheet, then chill the pan in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. Bake cookies for 8 to 12 minutes. Take them out of the oven when the center still looks a bit gooey, and leave them on the baking sheet for a few more minutes. Let baking sheet cool before starting another batch.
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Earthly Eating Daily Recipe

Sweet and Spicy Nuts
Makes: About 8 cups

1 cup sugar
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. ground red pepper (cayenne)
1 large egg white
6 cups unsalted nuts such as walnuts, pecans, natural almonds, and/or cashews

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease two 151/2″ by 101/2″ jelly-roll pans.

2. In a small bowl, stir sugar, salt, cumin, cinnamon, black pepper, and red pepper. In a large bowl, with a wire whisk, beat egg white. Add sugar mixture; toss until nuts are thoroughly coasted.

3. Divide nut mixture between prepared jelly-roll pans, spreading evenly. Bake nuts 25 to 27 minutes or until golden brown and dry, stirring twice during baking. With slotted spoon, transfer nuts to waxed paper; spread in a single layer to cool. Store nuts in a tightly covered container at room temperature up to 1 month.

Happy Eating!

1. Walk 30 minutes a day every day, no matter what-and then call someone.

Walking a half-hour a day decreases the risk of having a heart attack by about 30 percent. Calling someone every day is crucial; that’s the real commitment. Find a person who’s supportive and will not nag but will call if you haven’t called her/him.

2. Know you blood pressure and do whatever it takes to get it down to 115/75.

You blood pressure number may be even more important than your cholesterol. And you can lower it yourself. The best way-getting a little exercise and loosing some belly fat. Why belly fat? The omentum is what hangs over the stomach. The fat that’s stores there feeds the kidney, liver and other vital organs. This fat pushes on the kidney and causes more blood pressure to drive blood through.

3. Eat an ounce of nuts a day.

Nuts raise HDL good cholesterol and decreases inflammation. But they have a heart benefit independent of those too. Nuts have healthy omega 3 fatty acids, healthy protein and some fiber. And this tip is easy to do. Nuts that are raw, fresh and unsalted have the most benefit.

4. Learn your HDL number and do what you can raise it to 50.

For women, some believe a high HDL is more important than a lower HDL. The higher the number, the better (50 is fine). Easy ways you ca increase it, exercise, have one drink a day at the most; eat healthy fats, such as olive oil and canola oil and nuts. Talk to your doctor about niacin, which raises HDL but can have side effects

5. Eat 10 tbs. of tomato sauce a week.

Tomato sauce is loaded with blood-pressure-lowering potassium.

6. Floss you teeth regularly.

Avoiding periodontal disease prevents inflammation in the arteries, which helps you head off hear disease. Most people don’t know that your oral health affects all your arterial health, and that includes blood flow to the heart and sexual organs, and maybe even wrinkles on your skin.

7. Eat no more than 20 grams of saturated fat a day and as little trans fat as possible.

Saturated fat and trans fats lead to inflammation in the arteries. A cinnamon roll may have 7 grams of saturated fat. A 4-ounce slice of roast pork tenderloin has about 4 grams. Trans fats (particularly hydrogenated oils, found in many processed and baked foods, are probably at least as bad as saturated fats, and maybe a little worse.

8. Read label and throw out all food that has sugar in the first five ingredients.

Don’t be fooled by foods that are low in fat but high in sugar. The sugar causes inflammation. And if you eat more sugar than you need, it gets morphed into omentum fat, that dangerous fat around the belly. For a while in the 1990s, many people used “low fat” salad dressings that turned out to be loaded with calorie-laden sugar. And those dressings didn’t contain any good fats like olive oil, which are beneficial. Healthy fats are better than empty sugar calories.

9. Have a glass of wine or beer today.

There may be an anti-inflammatory-effect. But it’s a consistent finding that teetotalers have a higher risk of heart disease than people who drink a little, and people who drink a lot have little heart disease but tend to die of cancer. Any type of alcohol in moderation is good for the arteries.

10. Eat 9 servings of colorful fruits and vegetables a day.

That comes with a lot of fiber, and you shouldn’t increase to that amount all at once. You will adjust and so will your body in 2 to 6 weeks. Make sure you wash fresh produce carefully and thoroughly. There are farmers’ markets all over the country now. If you try fresh locally grown veggies prepared well, you will be amazed at how goof they taste.
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Earthly Eating Recipe

Double Dark-Chocolate and Ginger Biscotti
Makes: 2 1/2 dozen

1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
3 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped (1/2 cup)
1/4 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt until well combined, set aside. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat egg, egg yolk, and sugar until light and fluffy; beat in vanilla and oil until well combined.

3. With the mixer on low, beat in dry ingredients until combined. Fold in walnuts, chocolate, and ginger with a rubber spatula (dough will be stiff).

4. With moistened hands shape the dough into 2 logs, each about 9 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide. Bake until set on top, about 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.

5. Transfer logs to a cutting board and, with a serrated knife, cut each log on the diagonal into 16 slices, each 1/2-inch thick. Bake until crisp, about 20 minutes, turning the biscotti over midway through. Cool 5 minutes on a baking sheet, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Happy Eating!

These ingredients hold the power to truly transform your body, not to mention lengthen your life. The secret is their magical “MUFA” (AKA: Good Fats!)

1. OILS: Canola oil, flaxseed oil, olive oil, peanut oil, pesto sauce, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, walnut oil.

Sir-fry with sesame, peanut or canola oil; pan-fry in walnut or olive oil; spread pesto on a sandwich, drizzle it over soups or grilled foods, or toss it withy rice or pasta; add walnut, sesame or olive oil to marinades; cook with safflower, soybean, or sunflower oil; use flaxseed oil in salad dressings (flaxseed oil cannot be used for cooking) (A serving equals: 1 tablespoon)

2. NUTS & SEEDS: Almond, almond butter, Brazil nuts, cashew butter, chunky natural peanut butter, dry-roasted cashews, dry-roasted peanuts, dry-roasted sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, roasted pumpkin seeds, smooth natural peanut butter, sunflower seeds, sunflower seed butter, tahini (sesame seed paste), walnuts.

Eat as a snack, sprinkle on a salad, crush and use as a crunchy topping for fish and chicken (dip fish or chicken in lightly beaten egg whites to help nuts adhere better); spread butters on crackers, bread, or fruits even. Stir nut butter into soups and sauces to add body and flavor. (A serving size equals: 2 tablespoons)

3. AVOCADO: Florida avocado; Hass Avocado.

Slice and serve with a salad or any entrée, mash with lime juice, salt, and pepper and serve with chips, chop and fold into store-bought salsa. (Serving size equals: 1/4 cup)

4. OLIVES: Black olives, black olive tapenade, green olives, green olive tapenade.

Serve olives as a snack, sprinkle olives on pizzas, salads, or pasta, spread tapenade on crackers or sandwiches; stuff tapenade into chicken breasts or fish fillets. (Serving size equals 10 large olives or 2 tablespoons or tapenade)

5. CHOCOLATE: Dark or semisweet chocolate chips, shavings, or chunks.

Any way you crave it is good for you and for your heart. (Serving size equals 1/4 cup)
(Source: RD 2008)
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Earthly Eating Recipe

Spiced Hot Chocolate
Servings: 4

1 quart soy milk
6 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 to 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
1/8 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp. coarse salt

In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients and whisk over medium-low heat until the chocolate has melted completely and the mixture is steaming hot, about 5 minutes. And serve.

Happy Eating!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

Brown rice has a lot of nutritiona value and can be a great alternative to white rice. If you know what the varieties are you can add brown rice to just about any dinner menu. It can add flavor, color and even texture to most any meal. Start your brown rice addition with any fiber-rich option. Below are some to ideas on varieties to start you out.

• Lundberg Family Farms Organic Black Japonica ($2.49): The richest. This blend of mahogany and black rices matches its dark color with a deep, musky flavor. It’s perfect for stir-fried, Asian-inspired stuffings.

• Lotus Foods Bhutanese Red Rice ($3): With its gorgeous russet hue, this Himalayan-grown rice is full and hearty yet tender and fine. Perfect for pilafs, risotto, salmon side dishes.

• Lundberg Family Farms Organic Wehani ($2.49): This mohogany rice has a subtle sweetness and an aroma not unlike that of buttered popcorn. Perfect for fruit and nut accented salads.

• Royal Blend Texmati Brown & Red ($6): Nutty and earthy, this aromatic blend boasts a satisfying chewy texture. Perfect for spicy rice pudding.

**Lynn Little wishes everyone a Happy Thanksgiving over at Wii Rally here at 451 Press. Happy Thanksgiving Lynn. Stop by and wish her the same by clicking here.**
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Earthly Eating Recipe:

Cranberry Bran Muffins
Serves: 12

1 1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 cup oat bran
1 cup soy or rice milk
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup molasses
2 eggs
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line muffin cups with muffin papers or grease with canola oil.

In a large bowl, combine dried fruit with bran, milk, honey, oil, molasses, and eggs. Let stand 10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix dry ingredients together. Add to wet ingredients and stir just until moistened. Don’t overmix. Batter will be somewhat lumpy.

Spoon batter into muffin cups. Bake for about 20 minutes until lightly browned and knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Happy Eating!

Thanksgiving is the day of the year when we eat so much that most of us afterward need a good long nap to feel better. Eating healthy and indluging don’t really go hand and hand on this day either. But, eating reasonably healthfully isn’t a loos cause on this day of thanks. Here’s how to keep in check and not go over-board with eating.

• FOWL: If the choice is between glazed nitrate-cured ham or traditional big bird, opt for the poultry. Although the dark meat has a higher fat content, it’s also richer in iron and zinc, two important minerals most Americans don’t get enough of. A smaller portion will take you farther nutrionally than an equal portion of white meat.

• SIDES: Most of your holiday sides are where the nutrition actions is, at least they’re done right. Winter squash, squash as butternut squash and pumpkin, is loaded with vitamin A as beta-carotene and other antioxidants to help prevent heart disease and cancer. They’re also a good source of potassium and brimming with fiber. Fiber helps prevent a number of cancers while acting as a probotic and feeding the helpful microorganisms in the digestive tract.

• YAMS/SWEET POTATOES: Like the other yellow, orange, and gold root veggies, they have the vitamin A, calcium, potassium, and fiber. But they also are one of the best sources of food energy. Boiled or steamed sweet potatoes and yams are one of the healthiest foods people can eat. The low-heat cooking helps them retain more nutrients and provide the type of carbohydrates most suited for weight management and blood-sugar control.

• THE COLOR RED: Red fruits and vegetables are some of the best sources of vitamins and antioxidants. Berries contain proanthocyanidins that can prevent the adhesion of various bacteria associated with urinary tract infections, gum disease, and stomach ulcers.

• DRIED FRUITS: Look to dried fruits such as dried plums, dried figs, raisins, and dried cherries, for more than iron, zinc and other minerals. They have plenty of calcium, too. And of course, they are loaded with fiber and potassium. You can make pies from most of them, add them to stuffing, sauces, and compotes, or eat them just they way they are with some nuts.

**Toys-R-Us makes a statement about the many recent toy recalls. Read the statement made by a Toys-R-Us spokesperson over at Reviewing Toys. While you are there Eliza Ferree has posted many reviews of other toys, so before you buy read some of her postings to see if the toy is a good buy or not.**
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Earthly Eating Recipe: Day 5 Of Low-Fat Eating

Guilt-Free, Low-Fat, Healthy Snacks For You And Your Family

• Just Vegetables: Dehydrated niblets of corn, carrots, peas, tomatoes, and bell peppers make eating veggies almost as satisfying as eating popcorn. There is nothing added, so all you get is phytochemicals, fiber, and vitamins A and C. Plus a mild, slightly sweet flavor. Find them at natural foods stores everywhere or click here for an online company distribution.

• Dried Fruits: Here is a snack that’s packed with potassium, antioxidants, and fiber. Granted, dried fruit is high in sugar, but that actually makes it a food choice when you need a little pick-me-up. You can munch a cup of dried blackberries and take in just 90 calories and a whopping 9 grams of fiber in them.

• Edamame: A traditional snack in Japan, edamame, or blanched soybeans in pids, are becoming increasingly available in the United States. The sweet, nutty-tasting beans are loaded with soy protein, which has been shown to help lower cholesterol. A half cup of chelled beans has 125 calories and 4 grams of fiber. Look for unsalted edamame in the frozen foods section.

• Sliced Raw Vegetables: Make you own mini-party platter with sweet red peppers, baby carrots, celery, and a bit of hummus. The fiber in the veggies and creamy bean dip will fill you up, withgout loading you down with calories.

• Rice Cakes: Whole grains are the prixe here. Diets rich in whole grains ,ay reduce your risk of diabetes and some cancers. Unsalted rice cakes can be cardboardly; if you’re eating them unadorned, opt for ones with a littel salt. Quaker’s Lightly Salted rice cakse are satisfying crunchy and are made with only two ingredients, whole grain brown rice and salt. Two cakes, deliver 70 calories and a scant of 30 milligrams of sodium.
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Lime and Ginger Custards
Serves: 5

1 tsp. lime zest
1/3 cup fresh like juice
1/2 cup cup sugar
4 eggs
1/2 cup 2% milk
1 tsp finely grated ginger

1. Preheat oven to 325°F.

2. Whisk together all the ingredients in a large glass bowl.

3. Place five 4-ounce custard cups in a large baking dish. Fill cups 3/4 of the way from being full with the mixture.

4. Carefully pour hot water into the baking pan until it comes halfway up the sides of the custard cups.

5. Place baking pan in the oven and bake for 30 mintues, or until just about set. The centers should be slightly liquid.

6. Remove pan from the oven and let custard cool in the water bath.

7. Chill and serve.

Happy Eating!

• A small change: A small change can be a big one to your diet. If it’s the right one. If you replace th stnadard iceberg lettuce in hanburgers, tacos, and subd with fresh spinach, you add an awesome amount of vitmain A and C, folic acid, and other nutrients to meals. Honestly you can’t taste the lettuce or the spinach difference at all. So you can try this painless way to sneak more nutrition into your and your family’s favorite foods. Toss fresh spinach into anything. Salad mixes, sandwiches, pizzas and anything else you can think of. There is a restaurant in Arkansas, where I used to live, that served spinach topped pizza and let me tell you it was the best. It gave the cheese on the pizza a richer taste.

• Make a better oatmeal: For a morning calcium boost, cook instant oatmeal with skim (or soy) milk instead of water.

•De-ice your smoothies: Use frozen bananas instead of crushed ice for a nutritious twist to your favorite smoothie.

•Mix your cereals: If you are stuck on a sweet breakfast cerals, try belinging your favorite with a bett-for0you brand. For example: Mix Honey Nut Cheerious® with Grape-Nuts® or Cap’n Crunch® with some type of bran cereal.

•Modify your muffins: Mix high-fiber, nutrient-dense dried fruits like apricots into your batter, half the all-purpose flour with soy flour.

Here is another FYI in the cereal department: Eating more ceral fiber, the kind found in whole wheat breadm ceral, pasta, rice, and oats, may help you avoid one type of stomach cancer. If you consume cereal fiber you have over a 70% lower chance in developing certain types of cancers such as oral cancers, stomach cancer, throat cancers, and cancer of the esophagus.

** Think you are bypassing caffeine by drinking a citrus soda, you maybe getting just as much if not more than a regular cola. Over at Encouraging Health, Brick O’Neil shows a run down of some of the most popular citrus sodas compared to regular colas and shows their caffeine content. Read the whole story here.**
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Earthly Eating Recipe: Week Of Salmon Recipes, Day 3

Chili-Rubbed Salmon With Gazpacho-Black Bean Salso
Serves: 4

Ingredients for the Chili-Rubbed Salmon:
Olive oil cooking spray
2 tbs. fresh lemon juice
1 tbs. sugar
3 tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. finely ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
4 (5-ounce) salmon fillets

Gazpacho-Black Bean Salsa:
1 cup tomato juice
2 large tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded, and diced (optional)
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tbs. fresh lemon juice
2 tbs. chopped fresh parsley

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, and set aside.

3. In a shallow dish, combine lemon juice, sugar, chili powder, lemon zest, cumin, salt, and balck pepper. Mix with a fork, or whisk until blended. Add salmon fillets, and turn to coat. Transfer salmon to prepared baking shett, and roast 15 minutes until fork-tender.

4. Combine all salsa ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

5. Serve salmon with salsa on top and alongside.

Happy Eating!

For Preschool: (Ages 3 to 4)

Water or Milk: Don’t serve sugary juice drinks.

Turkey and Cheese roll-ups with organic string cheese: Try Applegate Farm’s.

Kashi TLC Crackers: Or other whole-grain crackers.

Newman-O’s: It’s similar to the classic Oreo® but packed with a lot more wholesome and organic qualities.

Kiwi and Red Pepper slices:Packed with vitamin C. If you child doesn’t like like red peppers, tuck in cherry tomatoes or red or green grapes instead.
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For Elementary School: (Ages 5 to 10)

Sandwich:Organic peanut and cinnamon rasin swirl butter, and sliced bananas on whole grain bread. It gives protein, potassium, and fiber.

Reduced Fat Milk:Try Horizon’s single-serving boxes of milk. It gives calcium.

Crisy Cheddars: Try Back To Nature.

Lemon Iced Cookies:Try My Family Farm. It has no artificial ingredients.

Organic peeles mini carrots with dip:Prewrapped sets like ones from Earthbound Farm com with ranch dressing.
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For Junior High School: (Ages 11 to 13)

Stoneyfield Squeezers: These tubes of yogurt are quick in kids lunches. And they give calcium too.

Sparkling Tangerine Juice:Try Santa Cruz Organics soda. It has organic cane juice in place of high fructose corn syrup.

An Apple: It’s good to have hand-held fruit so children can handle it better. It also gives fiber.

Noodles with chicken and broccoli: Try eggnoodles with roasted chicken and steamed vegetables. Make sure to use nonfried ramen, panfried noodles may have trans-fats. Top the dish off with sesame seeds.
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For High School: (Ages 14 to 18)

Hummus with Whole Grain Pita bread:Whole gran pita gives vitamin B and fiber.

Dried Fruits and Nuts:Try Peeled Snacks’ Shockolate packs.

Jones Organics Red Tea Tropical: This beerage is caffine-free and has a cooling effect.

Spinach salad:It give iron, vitamin C, and Beta-carotene (an antioxidant). And Feta cheese is lower in fat then most cheeses.
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For The Office: (Adults)

Lentil Soup:Gives protein and fiber is filling and low-calories as well. Try Moosewood Kitchens’ vegetarian versions.

Mozzarella and Prosciutto Panini Half Sandwich:If you make it wil arugula and roasted peppers it adds fiber and vitamins C and A.

Lesser Evil Kettle Corn:It’s a natural snack and free of the sweetness of corn syrup.

Teany Herbal Citrus Cooler: It’s caffeine-free and keeps you lifted with energy through the afternoon.

**There may be a new sequel to Perfect Dark for Nintendo 64. Read about it more here.**

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Earthly Eating Recipe:

Loaded “Baked Potato” Soup:
Serves 4

2 medium baking potatoes, unpeeled
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup milk
3 slices bacon, cooked, crumbled and divided
3/4 cup shredded chaddar cheese, crumbled and divided
2 tbs. sliced green onions, divided
1/4 cup sour cream

Pierce potatoes; microwave on high 5 minutes, turning over after 2 1/2 minutes. Cut potatoes into chunks. Combine potatoes, broth and milk in a large microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high 6 minutes, stirring after 3 minutes. Slightly crush potatoes with a potato masher .

Reserve 2 tbs. each of the bacon and cheese and 1 tbs. of the onions for topping; set aside. Add remaining bacon, cheese and onions to soup.

Serve topped with reserved bacon, cheese, onions and sour cream.

Happy Eating!

1. Dry-roasted nuts have fewer calories than oilk-roasted: Technically, they do, but the difference is tiny (seven calories for a one-ounce serving). What does make a difference: Eating too may nuts of any type. Limit your daily nibbles to one ounce and perferably to one of the heart-healthy choices like almonds or walnuts.

2. Frozen vegetables are less nutritious than fresh ones: Only if you live on a farm,. Just-picked veggies do have more vitamins and minerals, but nutrient levels drop during shipping and storage. And they sink even further if you add on the days that the produce lingers in your crisper. Frozen veggies, on the other hand, are usually picked ripe and immediately flash frozen, so they retain most of their nutrients.

3. Pork is fattening: It’s true that sausage and ribs are loaded with calories, but three ounces of cooked pork tenderloin has only 140 calories-exactly wath you would find in three ounces skinless chicken breast.

4. Fat-free salad dressing is your best choice: Salad veggies are filled with terrific nutrients like lycopene and beta-carotene. But your body can’t absorb these without a little help from fat. This doesn’t mean you should drown your greens in a rich ranch or blue cheese dressing: A small amount of olive oil will be sufficient. Or you can add low-fat cheese, nuts, seeds, or avocado.

5. Foods sweetened with fruit juice are more nutritious: Nope. You body can’t tell the difference between regular sugar and the highly processed fruit juice concentrate that’s used to sweeten many so-called health foods. Nor does juice sweetner offer a significant nutritional advantage. The “extra” vitamins are negligiable, but the extra cost for these products may be substantial.

6. You should drink eight glasses of water a day: Water is a terrific thirst quencher (and the price is right), but milk and juice-even coffee, tea, and soft drinks-contibute to your water requirements. How much you need varies from person to person (and season to season?), but the best guide is your own thirst.

7. Fish contains a lot of sodium: Yes, if the fish is canned, smoked, or pickles. But fresh fish, whether saltwater or freshwater, is naturally low in sodium-a three-ounce serving of Atlantic cod has only 66 milligrams, for example.

8. Foods with added vitamins and minerals are always better: It depends. Calcium-fortified orange juice and milk fortified with vitmain D, for instance, are great choices. But tucking some vitmains and minerals into a candy bar or a sugar-loaded drink will not turn these snacks into nutritious foods.
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Earthly Eating Recipe:

Sweet Italian Sausage Tortelloni With Carmelized Vegetables
Serves 4

1 tbs. olive oil
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced onions
1 each small red and yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 tsp. finely chopped garlic
1 package sweet Italian sausage tortelloni
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Prepare tortelloni according to package directions. Heat oil in a medium, nonstick saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions, and the bell peppers. Cook, stirring frquently, for about 20 minutes or until tender and lightly browned. Add garlic; cook for 3 minutes. Add prepared pasta, basial, salt and pepper; cook for another 5 minutes or until pasta is seasoned. Serve.

Happy Eating!

Gourmet Garden Herbs & Spices. Add some zip to your next meal with fresh seasoning, without the hassle of rinsing, chopping, and storing a gardenful of herbs. These four-ounce squeezable tubes of chopped fresh herbs and spices have no added flavor or colorings and keep in your fridge for three months.

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Earthly Eating Recipe:

Banana Carb Crunch
Serves 1

1 bowl of organic granola cereal
Mix in organic Greek Yogurt
Slice banana, and layer on top or mix in with yogurt (whichever is more aesthetically pleasing to you).

Happy Eating!

No matter if you live to eat or eat to live, good eating only gets better when you incorporate different ingredients and get creative with your cooking.

Almonds are a nice addition to any dish or cooking entree. From snacking on them to cooking with them to sprinkling them on your favorite foods, almonds always enhance a healthy appetite for life.

Five good things to do with delicious & nutritious almonds:

• Pan-roasting them with a touch of olive oil and your favorite spices.

• Lightly sauté and them into steamed basmati rice or couscous.

• Toss them on a classic steakhouse salad of iceberg lettuce and blue cheese dressing.

• Add them over simple popped popcorn for an extra crunchy, move-time treat.

For more ides check out Almonds are In.
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Earthy Eating Recipe:
Eggless Egg Salad

1 pkg. Tofu (original or lite)
3 tbsp. light mayonnaise
1/4 tsp. honey
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1/8 tsp. dry mustard
2 tbsp. sweet pickle relish
2 tbsp. minced scallions
2 tbsp. minced celery
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Drian tofu and pat dry with paper towels. Crumble or cube tofu into medium bowl. In another small bowl, mix mayonnaise, honey, salt, turmeric, and mustard. Add tofu. Mix in remaining ingredients. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Serves 3.(137 calories, 8.5g protein, 7g fat, 9g carbs., 249mg sodium, 3.6mg cholesterol)