Recipes - Hidden Valley Monthly Veggies

Hidden Valley has a great campaign, Love Your Veggies that focuses on educating parents and schools to incorporate more vegetables into children's diets - but as an adult I find it useful as well. You can check it out here: Hidden Valley

There's a great Vegepedia with full color pictures of different vegetables. If you click on one, it will open a new page dedicate to that vegetable complete with an overview, growing tips, pick/store/prep tips, recipes and even a quiz.

List of vegetables in the Vegepedia:
• Artichokes
• Asparagus
• Beets
• Bell Peppers
• Broccoli
• Carrots
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Corn
• Cucumber
• Lettuce
• Mushrooms
• Peas
• Potatoes
• Radishes
• Spinach
• Sugar Snap Peas
• Summer Squash
• Sweet Potatoes
• Tomatoes
• Winter Squash
• Zucchini

There's another section called Parent Wisdom with additional tips and recipes.

Recipes - The Costco Connection

Costco is a warehouse-retailer that sells high-quality bulk items and speciality items. They have an excellent produce section (with organic too).

What is really great is their online magazine, The Costco Connection are all the recipes and the recipe booklets!

One booklet, Simply Delicious, contains recipes such as Baked Orange French Toast, Breakfast Yogurt Bowls, Chicken Salad with Fruit and Nuts, Island Kabobs with Tropical Fruit Salsa, and a bunch more

Another booklet, Smart Cooking contains recipes such as Good Morning Apple Cake, Apple Crab Salad, Grilled Chicken Breasts under Bricks, Crab Hushpuppies, and more. Also includes tips on Storing Your Produce

Recipes - Whole Foods Market - Budget Friendly Recipes

Whole Foods Market is a health-oriented grocery store that has a lot of organic and locally grown foods and even some interesting imported foods from a variety of ethnic groups. I love the variety this store offers and they often have sales and coupons (see the website) so you're not overwhelmed by the higher prices. And you can't beat the hot food and salad buffets they offer at lunchtime.

But, the one area on the website I really enjoy are the Budget-Friendly Recipes so you can get ideas on what to cook in a healthy way with organic products (from any store, really).

A Sample of their recipes includes:
• Double-Stuffed Deviled Eggs with Ham
• Irish Cheddar Potato Soup with Asparagus
• Honey Mustard Mucho Mango Dip
• Health Starts Here® Raspberry Nice Cream
• Carrot and Horseradish Roasted Cod with Red Potatoes and Lemons

Food - FREE 21 Day Vegan Kickstart Program

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) has a 21 day Vegan kickstart program that you can register for which will email you tips and recipes and the benefits of a vegan diet. Vegan diets differ from vegetarian diets in that vegans eliminate animal-based foods such as eggs snd milk. (A nice comparison can be found at this site: Vegan vs Vegetarian.

Join the kickstart program here: 21 Day Vegan Kickstart

Recipes - Rutabaga

A great way to incorporate more vegetables into your diet is to try new recipes by trying new foods. Rutabagas are an interesting, different root vegetable (known in some places as turnips) that can be used in a variety of ways - roasted, baked, broiled, boiled, stewed, etc. In Scotland, they are known as "neeps" and made in a dish called "neeps and tatties" where tatties are potatoes.

Here are a few recipes to try:
Rutabaga Hash With Onions and Crisp Bacon

Roasted Rutabaga

Rutabaga Oven Fries

Scandinavian Rutabaga Ham (Griljerad Kålrot)

Food - 20 High Fiber Foods by Huffington Post

Fiber has many health and diet benefits - it keeps you feeling full, it can lower cholesterol and blood sugar, it can keep your colon clear and avoid hemorrhoids. Huffington Post has a nice slide show of 20 high fiber foods. CLICK HERE to view it.

Some high fiber foods you need:
• Corn
• Beans (White, black, garbanzo, kidney, etc)
• Avocado
• Whole Wheat Pasta and Bread
• Brown Rice
• Edamame
• Lentils
• Pear
• Artichoke
• Oats and Oatmeal
• Raspberries
• Peas
• Broccoli
• Apples
• Almonds
• Barley

Exercise - Beginner Workout from Calorie Count

The Calorie Count website has a really nice introduction to working out for beginners with a series of articles. The website also offers calorie counts for foods and recipes (click on the Food menu tab). There is also a great community/forum with all sorts of topics.
CLICK HERE to explore calorie count's beginners corner

Some Articles available:
• Cardiovascular Exercise
• Strength Training
• Flexibility
• Setting Up a Complete Program
• Proper Nutrition
• Staying Motivated
• Beginner Ball Workout
• Total Body for Beginners
• Total Body for Seniors
• Strength Training for Obese People
• Interval Training for Beginners
• Beginner Cardio - Walking and Cycling
• Running for Beginners

Food - Feel Full Quick Tips from Health Magazine

One of the biggest setbacks on dieting is the lack of satiety (feeling full). After you eat your super-healthy rice cake, your stomach is craving more food which often prompts people to eat junk food.
Health Magazine has a nice slideshow of tips to feel full not just by what you eat but also how you eat. CLICK HERE to read the article.

Tips Include:
• Drink more water before you eat
• Use vinegar and/or cinnamon as flavoring
• Eat more green or orange vegetables
• Try belly-filling potatoes
• Learn to love fish
• Pop some nuts
• Add in more oats
• Try a new bean today
• Eggs are good hunger busters
• Fill up on fiber

Recipes - Healthy Recipes from Baylor Health Care Systems

Baylor Health Care System has some healthier recipes posted on their website, HERE.

Some recipes include:
• Roasted Winter Squash Soup
• Garlic Whipped Potatoes
• Lighter Green Bean Casserole
• Pumpkin Almond Cheesecake
• Peanut Butter & Dark Chocolate Fudge

Food - 7 Food Swaps That Will Make You Skinny

Rodale News has a great article, Seven Healthy Food Swaps That Will Make You Skinny that has a slideshow with some really easy changes you can make to start saving calories and eating healthier today. Each slide also includes the benefit of the swap as well as healthy perk or tip.

Swaps include:
• Cabbage or Collard Greens Instead of Bread
• Summer Squash Instead of Hash Browns
• Spaghetti Squash Instead of Pasta
• Cauliflower Instead of Potatoes
• Lettuce Instead of Hot Dog Buns
• Oatmeal Pancakes Instead of Flour Pancakes
• Portobello Instead of Pizza Crust

Food - 5 Healthy Breakfast Ideas

Women's Health Magazine has lots of great recipes and workout tips - that both men and women can use. Don't be intimidated that it's main appeal is to women...

This particular nugget I found shows some yummy breakfast recipes that are quick and healthy. We like quick.

Click here to see 5 Healthy Breakfast Ideas article.

Recipes Featured:
• Breakfast Burritos - these will keep you feeling full through the morning
• Strawberry Parfaits - you can easily throw in your favorite fruit(s)
• Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon, Asparagus, and Goat Cheese
• Orient Express Oatmeal
• Multigrain Blueberry Waffles

Book Review - The Biggest Loser Quick and Easy Cookbook

The Biggest Loser: Quick and Easy Cookbook - What I really like about this book are the real-life tips and stories from the contestants who participated in the Biggest Loser show. It's really encouraging to read what others have gone through to lose weight and get health. The beginning starts off with tips on eating better, focusing on the food pyramid, keeping track of what you eat in a food log and some other food suggestions. The next section contains simple workout suggestions - starting with very basic moves and working up to more complex moves. These moves are more for building strength. For real weight loss, you will need to incorporate cardio as well. The final third of the book contains recipes such as Easy-Breezy BBQ Pot Roast Dinner and Chocolate Raspberry Dreamers.

Free - Bon Appetit Weekly Healthy Recipe Newsletter

Looking for healthy recipe ideas? Sign up for Bon Appetit's Healthy Recipe weekly newsletter - and it's FREE! Sign Up Here

Recipes - Grilling Chicken

On the road to nutrition means cutting carbs/sugar by focusing more on protein. One easy way to get protein in your diet this summer is by dragging out the ol' grill and firing it up! But, wait! Before you toss that hunk of chicken on the metal, read this quick little article so that you can prepare it better and not end up with a chunk of dried-out bland chicken. You want good, cooked, juicy chicken. And if you make enough, you can use it for several days - in stews, soups, sandwiches, etc. Read it here: 7 Common Mistakes with Grilled Chicken