How Your Valentine's Breakfast Can Enhance Your Romantic Evening
Some people starve themselves during the day to “save calories” for their special meal. You're more vulnerable to overeat at dinner if you come incredibly hungry and food deprived. Feeling uncomfortably full can sabotage the rest of your romantic evening with your sweetie. You may not know that the type of breakfast you eat can help you from overindulging in the evening. Summary: eating breakfast on Valentine’s Day will help your romantic night out!
Best Way to Ripen, Cut, & Preserve an Avocado
Either in guacamole, as a replacement for mayo on a sandwich, or just plain with a little bit of salt, avocados are delicious and nutritious! Full of fiber, potassium, folate, vitamins K, C, B6, E, and monounsaturated fat, avocados are great for blood pressure and blood sugar control, as well as for keeping belly fat down. Do you need any more reasons to indulge?
Fabulous Flax
It’s surprising that before now, I haven’t chosen flax seed as one of my monthly Healthy Challenge foods since I started my blog more than six years ago. It’s oozing with valuable nutrients that we have a difficult time getting in our diet, but that truly make a difference to our health.
Peanut Health Punch
Peanuts aren’t actually nuts, but they do have the heart benefits that nuts have, with some bonus value. Peanuts are most closely related to beans and lentils. They may even make you healthier, leaner, and smarter over a lifetime. Interestingly enough, it may be the peanut itself that prevents peanut allergies from developing.
Cottage Cheese: Secret Weapon
Cottage cheese is a secret weapon to increase protein and keep body fat down. For all the cottage cheese haters out there, I've got great news. You won't know it's even there! In fact, It makes recipes creamier and more delicious without you even recognizing its presence. So if you tolerate dairy, then take advantage of this protein-packed craving-stopper and muscle protector.
Powerful Papaya
I’m so glad that I’ve given papaya another chance. Not only can I enjoy its delicious taste, but now I can take full advantage of the wonderful health benefits. With 144% of daily value of vitamin C in one cup of papaya, along with a good dose of folate, vitamin A, magnesium, potassium, copper, vitamin E, and choline, papaya can boost our immune system to help us fight sickness.
Build a Bowl: Easy Grain Bowl Formula
Are you in a rice, pasta, or potato rut, and searching for delicious, simple ways to eat more whole grains? Grain bowls, the west coast's healthy obsession, are a perfect solution! These aren’t too unfamiliar, given that Chipotle’s best-selling item, their burrito bowl, is just a Mexican version of a grain bowl. These bowls are the ideal way to make a fast, tasty DIY meal using leftovers and ancient whole grains, any time of the day. Cooked whole grains like farro, barley, brown or black rice, or quinoa keep for about five days in the refrigerator, so you can prepare them in advance in a rice cooker or on the stove top and use them throughout the week as the base ingredient of this tasty new trend, in various combinations.It's so easy for quick, causal restaurants to put together a burrito bowl or a rice bowl right in front of you – you tell them what you like, and they throw it in a bowl. It's not much harder to do this at home, and it may just become your go-to weeknight staple. Make variations using one or a mixture of whole grains as a base, and then top it with ingredients that combine different textures and a balance of flavors between salty, sweet, and acidic. In other words, use my simple Grain Bowl Formula below to build the best bowl ever!
Red Grapefruit Strength
You were probably thinking chocolate for Valentine’s Day, but since red grapefruits are so amazing for you, maybe you could throw some in the festivities. After all, it is national grapefruit month, and they are pretty red inside! Their powerful nutrients boost the immune system, fight cancers with gusto, decrease the risk of heart disease, and even give us an edge in the battle to lose weight. Named by how they grow in clusters like grapes, this deliciously tart yet sweet fruit may be a much-needed health reprieve for your body after gorging on Superbowl and Valentine goodies.
Plant-Based Protein Boost: Hemp Seeds
This high-protein seed is commonly confused with marijuana, but it's actually from a different plant in the same family. Although it doesn't contain the psychoactive substance found in marijuana, it is loaded with impressive nutrients.
Oatmeal: Breakfast of Champions!
If you are looking for a great-tasting food that can help you begin your day with lasting energy, lose weight, fight disease, and stabilize your blood sugars, eat oatmeal! It's high in dietary fiber, quality protein, and vitamins and minerals, as well as phytonutrients. It is the breakfast of champions!
6 Tips for Spectacular Smoothies
When a sweet treat is called for, smoothies seem to fit the bill. They can be healthy, filling, refreshing and delicious all at the same time!