Healthy Food Swaps

http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right

A typical container container of flavored yogurt can easily contain 24 to 30 grams of sugar, as much as the entire recommended daily allowance for most women. Buy it plain to cut down on sugar and cost.

Healthier swap: 
Flavor plain Greek yogurt, which has more protein than the regular kind, with honey, cinnamon and sliced bananas.


http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-now

Though fiber counts may look the same on nutrition labels, not all fiber is created equal. Getting fiber from packaged foods like yogurt and cookies probably won't offer the same health-boosting benefits as eating the unprocessed, intact kind found in whole grains, beans, and produce. That's because most processed fibers don't have the gummy texture or bulk that helps non-processed fiber slow digestion, lower cholesterol, and keep you regular.

Healthier swap: 
Sweet tooth - fiber packaged cookies made with whole grains. We like Kashi Oatmeal Raisin Flax Cookies, which boast 4 grams of fiber from natural ingredients such as raisins, sunflower seeds, cranberries, shredded coconut, and nuts.




Many fat-free chips are made with Olestra, an ingredient whose side effects include diarrhea — and that's no fun. Plus, chips are low in fiber, so one measly serving won't fill you up, and you'll be likely to reach for more or overeat later.

Healthier swap: For a crunchy snack, go for popcorn instead. One cup of the whole-grain clocks in at about 30 calories, less than 1 gram of fat, and is packed with filling fiber and disease-fighting antioxidants. Air-pop your own, and spritz the popped kernels with a little olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt or grated Parmesan cheese for flavor.



http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-now

One can of diet cola packs almost as much caffeine as a shot of espresso, so a few cans a day could leave you fluctuating between feeling revved up and crashing. Besides triggering major dips in energy, soda makes it tougher to fall asleep come bedtime, and its acidity can damage tooth enamel if sipped daily.

Healthier swap: Go for flavored seltzer water for a fizz sans caffeine and chemicals. Or try adding sliced cucumbers to give plain old water a kick.
Bonus: It will keep you hydrated to help ward off thirst-induced hunger binges later on.


http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-now


Those little packets of breakfast cereal cook so quickly because they're processed, meaning they have a high glycemic index so your body also digests them quickly. Translation: You'll be reaching for a mid-morning snack to tide you over in no time.

Healthier swap: Slow-cooked oats take longer to make, but they're also less processed, have a low glycemic index, and will keep you full until lunch. To save time, whip up a batch of steel-cut oats on the weekend, and then divide them into individual-portion Tupperware packs, which will make it easy to just grab the container and heat it in the microwave. Stir in sliced apples, cinnamon, and a drizzle of maple syrup for taste.


http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-

If you're eating egg-white omelets made with egg substitutes, you might want to think twice about ditching whole eggs with the yolks. Unlike the real stuff, egg beaters contain artificial ingredients such as “color” and maltodextrin, a sweetener also used in candy. Plus, the yolks hold about 40 percent of an egg's protein as well as lutein, which keeps eyes healthy. They're also one of the main sources of choline, a nutrient that boosts memory, keeps fat from building up in your liver, and makes up your cell membranes.

Healthier swap: For a filling, high-fiber breakfast, have a protein-rich egg made with a teaspoon of heart-healthy olive oil on a whole-wheat English muffin.



http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-

Flavoring your grilled chicken may make it more enjoyable, but that stuff you're slathering on it or marinating it in probably has unnecessary added sugars. High levels of the sweet stuff stoke appetite and have been linked to inflammation, and both barbecue sauce and Italian dressing, for example, could have 21 grams of sugar per 8 ounces — and the low-fat kind could have two times as much.

Healthier swap: Use a dry rub instead of sugar-heavy sauce to add flavor when grilling or broiling meat. You can make your own by mixing together 1 tbsp black pepper; 2 tsp chili powder; and 1/2 tsp each salt, cayenne and granulated garlic.



http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-now


Sorbitol, an artificial sweetener found in many sugar-free products, is difficult for your body to break down and can cause bloating and indigestion. Plus, sugar substitute-packed foods make your body expect calories, and when it doesn't get them, you end up hungrier later on.

Healthier swap: Choose bars naturally low in sugar and with less than five ingredients. A delicious option: The Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt KIND Bar, which tastes indulgent, but has only 5 grams of sugar. Plus, it's high in filling fiber and protein.


http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-now


An ounce — about six to 10 chips — is high in calories and fat, but has 2 grams of fiber or less, so it won't fill you up. It's all too easy to eat two or three servings without even realizing it.

Healthier swap: You'll get much more value for your nutritional buck if you spread salsa or guacamole on lower-calorie, higher-fiber crispbreads such as Finn Crisps. Another good bet are flatbreads such as Doctor Kracker's.

http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/photos/9-processed-foods-ditch-right-now Article & Photo Credits.

Slim Down Drink

Feel Free to share

Dr. Oz's Swimsuit Slimdown Drink-

1 cup grapefruit or orange or pineapple juice,
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp honey

Drink before each meal ... breaks down fat cells faster than anything else.

BLOGGER WONDERS IF I  POUR IT ON MY   THIGHS WILL THEY MELT??????

Fruit Ice Cubes

Clean the fruit. Place fruit in ice trays  with water.
Colorful ice cubes for summer!

Raspberry Mango Smoothie

 



Ingredients

1 cup Frozen raspberries
1 cup Frozen mango
1 1/2 cups Milk or milk alternative ( I used vanilla soy)
1 1/2 cups Orange juice
 
Instructions

Blend the frozen raspberries and milk in a blender pour into the two glasses filling them halfway.
Rinse out the blender and then blend the mango and orange juice.
Pour the mango mixture on top of the raspberry mixing a little bit at a time so that the pink and orange blend together.
Preparation time: 5 minute(s)

Cucumber Salad

 
Source: http://pinterest.com/pin/262123640784539995/

 Cucumber Salad 

Great side dish for only 50 calories!

INGREDIENTS

1 large cucumber 
2 tsp. coarse sea salt 
1 Tbsp. light sour cream *  I used Greek yogurt not sour cream*
1 tsp. finely chopped onion 
1 tsp. fresh dill, chopped 
1 tsp. vinegar 
1 tsp. sugar
Mix well & I chilled to eat.

Fruit Salad With Honey-Lime Dressing

Fruit Salad With Honey-Lime Dressing -
http://ohyoucook.blogspot.com/2011/09/fruit-salad-with-honey-lime-dressing.html

Ingredients
1 pt. container strawberries
1 pt. container blueberries
1 bunch (about 1 1/2 lbs.) seedless grapes (green, red or a mixture of both)
1/4 cup honey
juice from 2 limes (about 2-3 tablespoons)

Directions
Rinse strawberries, blueberries and grapes.

Gently pat dry the fruit. Hull strawberries, then cut each in half; if large, cut into quarters.

Remove stems from blueberries, if any.

Remove grapes from stems.

Gently combine all three in a large bowl or aluminum tray. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together honey and lime juice. Pour over fruit.

Vinegar Infused Summer Veggies In Frig

This is a great yummy summer salad and can stay in your fridge up to 2 months.


4 thinly sliced cucumbers
1-large sliced red onions
1-large sliced green bell peppers
1-tbsp salt
2-cup white vinegar
1 1/2-cups sugar
1-tsp celery flakes
1-tsp red pepper flakes


Mix cucumbers, onions, peppers and salt; set a side.

Put vinegar, sugar, celery flakes and pepper flakes in a pot and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add 2 handfuls of ice until melted.


Place all veggies in large mouth canning jars (2 quarts or 1 half gallon jar)

Pour mixture over cucumbers, store in refrigerator.
Will keep up to 2 months

Makes 2 quart jars

Chewy Nut Brittle

Ingredients:

1 Cup Almonds
1 Cup Cashews
3/4 Cup Pumpkin Seeds
2/3 Cup Dried Cranberries
2 and 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar 
1/2 Cup Honey
1 Cup Water
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Butter

Heat the sugar, honey, water and salt in a large pot over a low-medium flame. Use a pot that is larger than you would think necessary because when the mixture begins to boil it will foam up and increase in size. Stir every five minutes or so. Using a candy thermometer, continue to heat the mixture until it reaches a temperature of 310 degrees Fahrenheit. This is very important because this is the temperature at which sugar hardens into a rock-like state after it cools. It can take up to an hour for the mixture to reach that high of a temperature, so don't get too worried if 15 minutes go by and the thermometer is still at 175.

While the sugar mixture is boiling, place a sheet of parchment paper on top of a shallow pan, about 9 x 13 inches in width and length, and grease the parchment paper. Set aside. After the sugar mixture reaches 310 degrees turn off the heat and allow to cool to 302 degrees, then immediately stir in the butter, cashews, almonds, pumpkin seeds and dried cranberries until they're coated in the mixture.

Immediately pour the mixture onto the parchment paper and spread it out into a large rectangle using a rubber spatula. Try to keep the surface relatively even and about 1 inch in height. Place the pan in the refrigerator and allow the brittle to cool for one hour. Once it has finished cooling, remove the sheet of brittle from the parchment paper and break the brittle into pieces using a meat tenderizer or clean hammer. Arrange the pieces on a serving platter and serve. Store excess brittle in a cool dry place.

http://www.adventures-in-cooking.com/2010/03/autumn-brittle.html

Migraine Reliever All NATURAL

For more natural tip's, motivation, recipes and more natural living updates daily join our support group https://www.facebook.com/groups/592144854136650/

Cleaning Your Kidneys Beverage

CLEAN YOUR KIDNEYS 

Years pass by and our kidneys are filtering the blood by removing salt, poison and any unwanted entering our body. With time, the salt accumulates and this needs to undergo cleaning treatments and how are we going to overcome this?

First take a bunch of parsley or Cilantro ( Coriander Leaves ) and wash it clean

Then cut it in small pieces and put it in a pot and pour clean water and boil it for ten minutes and let it cool down and then filter it and pour in a clean bottle and keep it inside refrigerator to cool.

Drink one glass daily and you will notice all salt and other accumulated poison coming out of your kidney by urination also you will be able to notice the difference which you never felt before.

Parsley (Cilantro) is known as best cleaning treatment for kidneys and it is natural!

'SHARE' it for Good Health & Prosperity.

Better Health

Kale Smoothie From Vitamix

VITAMIX  recipe

For my juice, I used the following:

• 1/2 of a large cucumber
• 4 large stalks spinach
• 3 large stalks kale
• 1 large handful of parsley
• 1/2 lemon, peel cut off
• 1 inch ginger
• 1/2 large navel orange, peel cut off
• 1 pear, seeds removed
• 
  
• www.vitamix.com

I gave them all a whirl in the Vitamix (a minute or two on high), till the mixture was totally blended. I used about 2/3 of a cup of water to get it all blending (I could have used less—1/2 cup would have done it). As Elizabeth noted, this would probably be anathema to juicing purists, but my juice still tasted potent and flavorful in the end.

I then affixed my nut milk bag over the mouth of a 1 quart mason jar, using a rubber band, like so:

Beautiful color!

A few thoughts on the process:

1. I could certainly have used less water than I did to get the juice blending. Even in spite of 2/3 of a cup, though, my juice tasted great, and I didn't feel that it was dilute.
2. The process, overall, was so much faster than regular juicing. The only part that slowed me down was waiting for the juice to strain, so I do recommend going ahead and squeezing the nut milk bag to expedite. Careful not to be too forceful, though— I've broken some bags!
3. Though this experiment did absolutely persuade me that Vitamix green juice is possible and tasty, my blended mixture was also really delicious pre-straining. So I think I’d gladly drink without straining on very busy days, if I was just as game for a smoothie as I was for a juice.
4. Would a regular blender work for this process? Depends on the blender. My old blender, pre-Vitamix, wasn't powerful enough to blend greens well, so I imagine that it wouldn't have made a very good juice. That said, many blenders that are not high-speed are nevertheless powerful enough to blend greens well. Give it a shot, and see how it goes with your blender at home!

The whole process also inspired a few more green drink experiments, which I will be sharing in the upcoming weeks/days. Green drinks are so incredibly helpful for maximizing fruit and vegetable intake when one is stressed and doesn't have time in the kitchen (which I haven’t lately). Juice, smoothie, blender juice—it’s all good. If you don’t have either a Vitamix or a juicer, using a low cost blender and choosing spinach as your green (it blends easily and tastes mild) in a green smoothie is also wonderful. Just be sure to find a way to make more room for greens in your life!

Smoothie Hawaiian

Hawaiian Smoothie

From EatingWell:  Summer 2003

2 servings

Active Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

** notes changes made by HOMEMADE IS EASY BLOGGER**

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
• 1/2 cup chopped peeled papaya
• 1/4 cup guava nectar, (see Ingredient Note)
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon grenadine, (see Ingredient Note)
• 1/2 cup ice **you can omit if you freeze the fruit**
• ** 1 TBS flax-seed

TIPS & NOTES

• Ingredient Notes: Grenadine is a red syrup (originally flavored with pomegranate juice) used to color and flavor drinks. Look for it in the bar-mix section of your supermarket.
• Guava nectar is available in most markets, with the juices or in the Latin American section.

Smoothie Melon-Ginger

Melon-Ginger Smoothie

From EatingWell:  Summer 2003

2 servings, 1 cup each

Active Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

** notes changes made by HOMEMADE IS EASY BLOGGER**

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup chopped honeydew melon ** sliced then frozen**
• 1/3 cup chopped peeled kiwi, (1 large) ** sliced then frozen**
• 1/2 ripe banana, sliced **sliced then frozen**
• 1/4 cup white grape juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger juice, (see Ingredient Note for garlic press)
• 2 teaspoons lime juice
• 1/3 cup lemon sorbet (frozen do not thaw)**
• 1/2 cup ice  ** I use less ice due to frozen fruit**

PREPARATION

1. Place ingredients in the order listed in VITAMIX or  blender. Pulse three times to chop the fruit, then blend until smooth. Serve immediately.

TIPS & NOTES

• Ingredient Note: Bottled ginger juice is available in most health-food stores and gourmet markets—or make your own by squeezing chopped fresh ginger through a garlic press or piece of cheesecloth.

Smoothie Berry Fun

Thermos-Ready Smoothie

From EatingWell:  October/November 2005

1 serving

Active Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

** notes changes made to recipe by HOMEMADE IS EASY BLOGGER.**

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup frozen mixed berries
• 1/2 banana  (sliced & frozen**)
• 1/2 cup apple juice (seeded - clean skin or remove if sprayed w/ pesticide in grove**)
• 1/4 cup silken tofu
• ** 1 TBS  wheat germ or flax-seed

ADD it all to your VITAMIX or blender, mix well, serve.

Smoothie Raspberry-Avacoado

Raspberry-Avocado Smoothie

From EatingWell:  April/May 2006

2 servings

Active Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

* notes changes made to this recipe by HOMEMADE IS EASY BLOGGER.*

INGREDIENTS

• 1 avocado, peeled and pitted
• 3/4 cup orange juice ( frozen * )
• 3/4 cup raspberry juice  (slushy or frozen * )
• 1/2 cup frozen raspberries, (not thawed)
• * 1 TBS wheat germ or flax-seed

Toss everything into VITAMIX or blender (do not thaw ingredients). Blend well. Serve.

***I drink smoothies year round to help with my weight control & health.

Almond Soy Smoothie

Banana-Cocoa Almond* Soy Smoothie

From EatingWell:

1 serving

Active Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour (includes freezing time) MAYBE*

* denotes changes made by HOMEMADE IS EASY BLOGGER

INGREDIENTS

• 1 banana (frozen*)
• 1/2 cup silken tofu (frozen*)
• 1/2 cup soymilk (Almond)
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon honey

PREPARATION

Slice banana and freeze until firm. 

Slice tofu and freeze

Blend until smooth in VITAMIX or blender. Serve.

Smoothie Wake-Up

Wake-Up Smoothie

From EatingWell:

3 servings, 1 cup each

Active Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/4 cups orange juice, preferably calcium-fortified
• 1 banana
• 1 1/4 cups frozen berries, such as raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and/or strawberries
• 1/2 cup low-fat silken tofu, or low-fat plain yogurt
• 1 tablespoon sugar, or Splenda Granular (optional)
• 
  

Add ingredients into VITAMIX or blender, mix well, then serve.

Berry Citrus Smoothie

Citrus Berry Smoothie

From EatingWell:  July/August 2008

1 smoothie, about 2 cups

Active Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/4 cups fresh berries
• 3/4 cup low-fat plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 2 tablespoons nonfat dry milk
• 1 tablespoon toasted wheat germ
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

PLACE INGREDIENTS IN VITAMIX or blender and mix well.

Kidney Cleanser Juice

ULTIMATE KIDNEY CLEANSER JUICE

Here are two great kidney cleanse recipes. Just throw it all together in the juicer, then drink! You can also use a blender if you want it to be more like a smoothie.

Recipe 1
4 Stalks Celery
3 Sprigs Parsley/Cilantro
1 Cucumber
Half a lemon
Water

Recipe 2
2 Apples
4-6 slices Watermelon
Water

KIDNEY CLEANSING TEA

A variety of teas are available that can help with a Kidney Cleanse. Watermelon seed tea and Celery seed tea are both powerful diuretics that increase your water intake and flush water more quickly through the kidneys.

Source: http://www.justcleansing.com/kidneycleansing.htm