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Live Well. Eat Well. 2014

Chemical not a bad word; natural means nothing

Water; sugars (glucose, fructose, sucrose, maltose), starch, fiber , amino acids (glutamic acid, aspartic acid, his-tidine, leucine, lysine, phenylalanine, arginine, valine, alanine, serine, glycine, threonine, isoleucine, proline, tryptophan, cysteine, tyrosine, methionine), fatty acids: palmitic...
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8 Reasons to Include Smoothies

Let's face it, eating healthy is tough. It can be expensive, time consuming, and it doesn't taste as good as eating junk food. There is no magical food that will help in this task, but smoothies might be the ticket to helping you with your healthy habits. Here are 8 reasons why you should add...
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Recipe Rescue: Chocolate Pudding

I want to let you all in on a little secret: dietitians do not eat perfectly! I really do enjoy fresh, wholesome, colorful foods, but I also include a little bit of "junk." I have a huge sweet tooth-total chocolate addict! All shapes and forms! One being chocolate pudding! A super comfort food...
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Recipe Rescue: Sweet Potato Casserole

Would your Thanksgiving table be complete without sweet potato casserole? I know mine wouldn't! My grandma always made hers with canned sweet potatoes, loads of butter and sugar, plus a to-die-for topping of sugary spiced pecans. The taste is over-the-top, and so are the nutritional stats! I've...
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Healthy How-To: Tortilla Chips

Tortilla chips are a mainstay in Mexican restaurants and home kitchens alike! They're the perfect vehicle for all kinds of dips - salsa, guacamole, French onion, spinach artichoke, the list goes on and on. Problem is, tortilla chips are usually fried and salted, making them high in fat, sodium, and...
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Recipe Rescue: Pancakes

Pancakes are usually just a vehicle for butter and syrup, which can end up slowing you down mid- morning. Try these protein-packed pancakes instead, with lots of room for creativity. (Scroll to the bottom of the post for a printable PDF version of the recipe!) ...
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Gear Up for a Safe and Productive Canning Season

Here in the Midwest, home canning has been a way of life for many since before they could even remember. But home canning has enjoyed a surge in popularity in the past few years, thanks to Americans' increased interest in the local food movement and desire to be economical in the wake of our...
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Getting Back to your Roots

Today's post was written by: Whitney Ajie, MS, is an Extension Educator for the Illinois Nutrition Education Programs serving Sangamon, Logan and Menard Counties. She specializes in nutrition and physical activity education for low-income audiences, shopping and eating healthy on a budget,...
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Nuts for Novermber!

Who out there (besides me) loves peanut butter? I mean, could eat it every day, would die without it type of love it? And yes, as a Dietitian I admit, covering it in chocolate just takes it to whole now level of love. Did you know there is an entire month devoted to people like you and me? That...
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The Dish on Fish

My fondest memories of my childhood summers center around our family vacations. Every year, in early August we would spend a week at my grandparents condo in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri. It is here I learned all my open water know how-skiing, how to drive a boat, and most importantly, how to...
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Recipe Rescue: Green Bean Casserole

Green bean casserole is a Thanksgiving classic that few American tables go without. The dish made of canned green beans, condensed mushroom soup, milk, and French fried onions can pack in over 700 milligrams of sodium and 7 grams of fat in just ½ cup. Luckily, it just takes a few tweaks to slash...
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Recipe Rescue: Pumpkin Cheesecake

Autumn means pumpkin-flavored everything and cheesecake is no exception! Sure, the pumpkin adds a bit of nutrition, but traditional recipes typically include a combination of full-fat cream cheese, heavy cream and/or sour cream -- plus sugar, eggs, and a buttery graham cracker crust. Try our...
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Save the Taste of Summer

Its summer time and we all know what that means... It means spending time outdoors as much as possible, and catching some good ole sunshine! With all of that outdoor fun it gets hot, which leads you to crave something cold and refreshing, right? So reach for something that's refreshing, delicious,...
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Recipe Rescue: Stuffed French Toast Casserole

Here's a recipe you can serve to mom this Mother's Day without the guilt! A friend shared a Stuffed French Toast Casserole recipe with me a few years ago. The original had a pound of regular cream cheese, a quart of half and half, and eight eggs. Amazingly indulgent, but more like a dessert than...
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Recipe Rescue: Pumpkin Spice Latte

Hello fall and hello pumpkin spice lattes! Do you love fall flavors in your morning cup o' joe but hate spending the money?? Well, you're in the right place because there's no need to say goodbye to your hard earned cash. Instead of driving to the coffee shop, waiting in line, and...
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DIY: Make Your Own Nut Butter

Ever since I saw the grind your own nut butter machines at Fresh Market, I wanted to make my own peanut butter. It's simple in its truest form. What are the ingredients? Peanuts. That's it. No hydrogenated vegetable oil, no sugar, no molasses, no mono and diglycerides and no salt. Making your own...
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Enjoy the Geat Outdoors-safely!

Ah, the smell of a campfire. Roasted marshmallows, hot dogs, fruit cobbler, foil packets of hobo stew…. there is nothing as good as simple food cooked over an open fire. I can almost taste it now! Whether it's a day at the park or a weekend camping trip, preparing and eating food outdoors takes...
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Recipe Rescue: Pumpkin Pie

Last but not least in Recipe Rescue: Thanksgiving Edition... pumpkin pie! Pumpkin pie is actually one of the healthier pie choices, relatively speaking. We've made some tweaks here and there, but the major change is simple portion control. Rather than serve smaller slices, amp up the fun factor...
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