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College of Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences Illinois Extension

Simply Nutritious, Quick and Delicious

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pyramid

Mediterranean Diet Ranked Best Overall

U.S. News and World Report gathered a panel of nationally recognized experts where they compared 41 different diets and ranked them based on how easy it is to follow, its ability to produce short-term and long-term weight loss, its nutritional completeness, its safety and its potential for...
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Salad

How to Spot a Good (or a Bad) Diet

Dieting is nothing new to the U.S., but various diets fly in and fade away. Atkins, South Beach, and the Zone are just a few of the fad diets that have come and gone. So what makes a diet stick around, and more importantly, how do you know if a diet is safe and effective? With a new diet or weight...
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Cold lunch

Raise Your Hand if You’re Having Cold Lunch

It’s back to school time, which means the kids are either excited or groaning. Either way, it’s back to packing lunches for the days that school lunch just won’t do. The only problem: those cute little unicorn and super-hero themed lunch bags are often filled with empty calorie foods. Individual...
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Homemade Bread

Choose the Right Flour for the Job

It’s easy to feel a bit of anxiety when faced with the many varieties of flours in the baking aisle of the grocery store. All-purpose, bleached, unbleached, self-rising, and a whole lot more line the shelves. Let’s explore the differences. The most common flour, all-purpose, is a wheat flour that...
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ginger

The Many Benefits of Ginger

Fresh ginger is one of the most common spices used in the world. It’s believed that Indians and Chinese were the first to produce ginger root where it was primarily used to treat many ailments. While not really a root, ginger is in the same family as turmeric, both of which are grown for their...
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lime

A Squeeze of Lime

Give your dish, drink or dessert a squeeze of fresh lime for an added sense of freshness and a pop of tartness. Limes grow on trees in warm climates. Similar to lemons, limes are a citrus fruit with a low pH; this means limes are very acidic, making them an influential cooking ingredient. There...
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Cool Down to a Cold Bowl of Gazpacho

A hot summer day is the perfect time to enjoy a refreshing bowl of gazpacho. This classic Spanish soup is one of the few soups that is served chilled. There are many variations to this ancient dish, but the modern version usually consists of tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, garlic, cucumbers and...
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What to do with that Garden Produce

While your plants in the garden are coming to fruition, it's time to start thinking about harvest. When the bounty is ready, there's not much time to waste. Loads of produce can come ready all at once, and without a plan in place, they sadly could go to waste. Giving it away is one approach to...
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What to do with Summer Squash

Most grocery stores keep one variety of yellow squash and one variety of zucchini on their produce shelves year round. However, the farmers market is a probable summer spot to find a bigger variety of summer squash, varying in different shapes, sizes and colors. Zucchini can come in the...
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How to Cut a Pineapple

While pineapple is delicious canned, many people agree that fresh pineapple takes the prize in flavor. This tropical fruit is generally available year round in the United States, with the majority imported from Costa Rica. Its scales on the thick outer skin are actually the fruit's flowers. One...
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College of Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences Illinois Extension

101 Mumford Hall (MC-710)

1301 W. Gregory Dr.

Urbana, IL 61801

Email: extension@illinois.edu

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