TresSugar

When to Buy Organic

FitSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:58:47 -0800

I like to think most of us would like to buy local and organic foods 100 percent of the time, but it means paying extra, which a lot of us can't always do. A good compromise is choosing organic when it makes the most sense for our health.

Here's our recommendation on foods to buy organic whenever possible due to high pesticide contamination, as well as those foods you can opt for conventional to be kind to your pocket book. I would like to add that you should try to buy local produce too - it'll taste fresher and have traveled many fewer miles to reach you.

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Can You Scale the Food Pyramid?

FitSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 07:00:40 -0800

The old food pyramid you remember from grade school got an upgrade in 2005, but the basic sentiment remains the same. The government guidelines advise eaters to choose a variety of foods from the different food groups in order to eat a balanced diet. How much do you know about the food pyramid? Take my quiz and see how you measure up.

Take the quiz

Which Treats Would You Rather Give Up: Sweet or Salty?

FitSugar — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 04:30:30 -0800

There's a time and place for both salty snacks and sweet treats. I have cravings for both, but if I had to give one up, it'd have to be the salty ones. My sweet tooth is way to strong. What about you?

Campbell's Chicken Noodle BPA-Leaching Soup

FitSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:00:23 -0800

It's uncertain how risky bisphenol A (BPA) is to humans, but I figure better safe than sorry. I threw out my potentially risky water bottles and containers but now a new study from Consumer Reports says there's BPA in my canned goods, too. Metal cans are often lined with plastic that contains BPA to protect the food.

The magazine tested 19 canned food products, finding levels of BPA in each product, including cans labeled "BPA free." The biggest culprits were Progresso Vegetable Soup, Campbell's Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup, and Annie's Home Grown Organic Cheesy Ravioli. Though the FDA has said in the past that BPA is safe in food contact materials, it's now revisiting the issue to see if BPA exposure limits should be revised.

If you are concerned about the effects of BPA, try limiting or cutting out canned goods from your diet. Also, look for foods packaged in glass, paper, or freezer bags.

Elizabeth Hurley: Unlikely Organic Farmer

FitSugar — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:00:59 -0800

Off the top of my head I can't remember the last time I've seen British bombshell Elizabeth Hurley on screen, but for good reason - she's packed everything up Green Acres style. The former actress has left the high life of London to live on a 400-acre organic farm in Gloucestershire where she shares space with cattle, poultry, sheep, and pigs.

She's not stopping there either. This week Hurley launched an organic snacks line in conjunction with Harrods using ingredients straight from her farm. All the organic snacks are low-calorie (100 or less), low-fat and include beef jerky, oat bars, and fruit snacks.

The 44 year old married mother of one couldn't be happier trudging through the mud in a pair of Wellingtons and says that leaving London was the only way to give her son a healthy upbringing free from paparazzi "I would be bursting into tears and just be so angry. There is something about motherhood that makes you very protective of anyone coming too near your child, and the paparazzi did things like take pictures of him nude on the beach and put them online. It was disgusting, disgraceful."

Hurley says that the inspiration for her organic line came from her own experiences with fad diets. “It’s compulsory portion control. I’ve never been able to chop a Jaffa Cake in half and just eat one piece,” she said.

Make Your Own Cereal With MojaMix

FitSugar — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:00:56 -0800

Bored with Breakfast? MojaMix allows you to choose from an array of nutritious nibbles, so you can make your own personally customized cereal. It's really simple to do. Just choose your cereal base (granola, flakes, Os, etc.) that costs $4.99. Then choose as many dried fruits as you want including mango and goji berries, and you pay between $.40 and $1.30 for each, depending on what you choose. Then add nuts and seeds (they even have chia seeds), which cost between $.30 and $.90 for each. Then if you want, throw in some extras like raw cacao nibs. You get to name the cereal made especially by you, and when it arrives in the mail, it comes with the nutritional info on the bag.

See what my bowl of Good Morning Medley looks like when you read more.

Here's the cereal I made with these ingredients: Three Brothers (Wheat Flakes, Rye Flakes, Oat Flakes), Mango, Raisins, Almonds, Cashew Nuts, Cranberries, Blueberries, Cherries, Sunflower Seeds, and Walnuts. This hearty cereal is delicious with milk, yogurt, or heated up like oatmeal.

Gadgets to Inspire Healthy Eating

FitSugar — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:50:56 -0800

Healthy eating is the foundation of healthy living. If you don't fuel your body with nutritious foods, everyday activities and exercise can both feel like a challenge. Here are some gadgets to make eating the good stuff easier and more exciting.

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How Pink Can My Pork Be?

FitSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:24:04 -0800

Last night my hubby cooked a pork loin roast - I love when he cooks me dinner. The recipe said to cook the meat until the internal temperature registers 140 to 145°F, and while the meat rests the temperature will rise another five to 10 degrees. He did this, and the pork was pink running with pink juices. We were both alarmed that it seemed quite underdone, but it seems that attitudes about pork have changed.

The Center For Disease Control still recommends cooking pork to at least 170°F and until the juices run clear to avoid trichinosis, a parasitic infection caused by undercooked meat. This conflicts with the USDA recommendation of cooking pork to 160°F. While trichinosis was once common, only an average of 12 cases are reported annually, which is considerably smaller than the 40,000 cases of salmonella reported every year to the CDC. Trichinosis has declined since feeding raw meat to hogs was outlawed; the trichina worms that cause the food-borne illness make their home in raw meat and if ingested through undercooked meat they can make their home in your gut. With the significant decrease in infection, pork should at least be cooked to a temperature that will kill E. coli, which is 160°F. Along with being safer, pork meat is now leaner, so it dries out when cooked at higher temps. Some chefs say 145°F is high enough for cuts of pork. What about you? How do you cook your pork?

Healthy Recipe: Apple Pear Oatmeal Crisp

FitSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:50:44 -0800

It's harvest time for apples and pears, and nothing says Autumn like warm crisp featuring both Fall fruits. Here is a variation of a recipe from RecipeZaar. I substituted a few things like Sucanat for brown sugar, whole wheat flour for all-purpose flour, and Earth Balance margarine in place of butter. The soft, cinnamony fruit and crunchy oat topping are a perfect combination, and it was so delicious that my family polished off the entire crisp within a day.

This would make a great dessert for Thanksgiving, because it's a cinch to whip up. To see the recipe read more.

Healthy Recipe: Apple Pear Oatmeal Crisp
Adapted from RecipeZaar

Ingredients

2 apples, sliced
3 firm pears, sliced
2 tablespoons Sucanat
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice
2/3 cup water

Topping

1 cup oats
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup Sucanat
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons of Earth Balance, melted

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F.
Remove the cores and slice the unpeeled fruit. Place slices in the bottom of a greased nine-inch dish. Drizzle with lemon juice.
Sprinkle two tablespoons of Sucanat, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, and water on the fruit.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add melted Earth Balance and mix until crumbly.
Spread the crumb mixture evenly on top of the fruit.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, so the top is lightly brown and the fruit is bubbly.
Serve warm or cold with vanilla ice cream, vanilla yogurt, or enjoy by itself.

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Here's the nutritional info for this Apple Pear Oatmeal Crisp. RecipeZaar suggests that a serving size is one-sixth of the crisp, but I found one-eighth of the crisp to be a more appropriate portion.

Serving Size	1/8 of the crisp
Calories	330
Total Fat	5.3 g
Saturated Fat	1.5 g
Cholesterol	0 mg
Sodium	165 mg
Carbs	51.7 g
Fiber	4.5 g
Sugar	30.6 g
Protein	4.2 g

If you have a healthy recipe to share, please post it in the Healthy Recipe group.

Are You a Carb Queen?

FitSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:47:55 -0800

I'm not going to lie to you. I love carbs. Warm bread with olive oil, real macaroni and cheese, and pumpkin chocolate chip scones are a few of my faves. The big problem is that those foods tend to be high in calories, and if I eat too many, my jeans let me know. I don't live without them, though; I just keep my carb intake in check by eating mostly whole grains and eat them with plenty of lean protein, veggies, and fruits. What about you? Do you find carbs hard to resist?