Pasta with clam

This healthy variation of clam pasta is a delicious, quick, and easy way to have highly nutritious clams in your diet. It is lighter than some pasta recipes and the abundance of basil adds extra healthy benefits and flavor.

Prep and Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
¼ lb whole wheat spiral pasta
1 medium sized onion, minced
1 TBS + 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth
10 oz can whole clams with juice
1 TBS tomato paste
1 15oz can diced tomatoes
pinch red chili flakes
½ cup chopped fresh basil
6 medium cloves garlic, pressed
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
salt and black pepper to taste
*optional ½ cup shredded parmesan


Directions:

Bring water to a boil and cook pasta according to package instructions.
While water is coming to a boil and pasta is cooking, heat 1 TBS broth over medium heat in a 10-12 inch stainless steel skillet. Healthy Sauté onion in broth for about 4 minutes stirring frequently.
Add tomato paste and diced tomatoes. Cook for another 10 minutes on high heat to reduce and intensify sauce. Add clams and cook for another 2 minutes.
Add pressed garlic, chopped basil, olive oil, salt, pepper and chili flakes. Remove from heat immediately and toss with cooked, drained pasta.
Serves 4

Serving suggestions: Serve with

Great Antipasto Salad or
Creamy Romaine Salad
Healthy Cooking Tips:

Make sure your clams cook just long enough to heat through. If you purchase chopped clams they will take less time than whole. If they cook too long they will get tough and rubbery. Even though the recipe calls for reducing the sauce 10 minutes, temperature varies in stoves so test the sauce for flavor. If it still tastes a little weak, simmer a little longer before adding clams. Keep in mind the added garlic, olive oil and basil at the end will certainly increase the flavor. To keep the sauce from getting too salty, add at the end. Salt intensifies as it cooks. This way you can control the saltiness. Check pasta often while cooking to make sure it doesn't overcook. If it is done before the sauce, rinse it with very hot water and drain well to freshen it and keep it from sticking right before tossing with the sauce. This is a healthier method than tossing it with a lot of oil to keep it from sticking together.

Today's Flower #1

Execute the feelings of love, ignite love feelings, feelings of passion of love, emotional feelings through flowers.

Sweet tooth substitutes

Remember that the snack choices that you make for your kids tend to stay with them for life. If you familiarize them with healthier options while they are young, they’ll be more likely to stick to these choices and live longer, healthier lives.

It has been said that fruits like bananas and oranges are nature’s original snack—they come pre-wrapped and ready to eat. Get your kids used to fruits to sate their craving for sweets. Berries, in particular, are a powerhouse of nutrition—packed with vitamins and minerals, and also one of the best sources of antioxidants. You can freeze some strawberries or grapes overnight in a plastic bag, and they’ll be a perfect treat to send your kids off with in the morning.

Granola bars are a great alternative to a gooey candy bar. Sweet, crunchy granola bars have more fiber, and far less fat and sugar.

If your kids can’t do without a bar of chocolate, then go ahead and indulge them—not all chocolates are bad. Just make sure to avoid the super-sweet varieties that come with caramel or nougat. Choose dark chocolate—containing at least 70% cocoa solids—which is a good source of antioxidants, particularly flavonoids, the type found in green tea and red wine

Smart snacking

Choosing healthy snacks means shopping smart. Be cautious of the health claims on food packages. Here are some things to watch out for.

Just because something is "all natural" or "pure" doesn't necessarily mean that it's nutritious. For example, "all natural" juice drinks or sodas can be filled with sugar (which is, after all, a natural ingredient) but all that sugar means they'll be high in calories and give you little nutrition.

A granola bar is a good example of a snack that people think is healthy. Although granola bars can be a good source of certain vitamins and nutrients, many also contain a great deal of fat, including a particularly harmful type of fat called trans fat. On average, about 35% of the calories in a regular granola bar come from fat. And there can be a lot of sugar in granola cereals and bars. Check the Nutrition Facts label on the package to be sure.

Be skeptical of low-fat food claims, too. If the fat has been eliminated or cut back, the amount of sugar in the food may have increased to keep that food tasting good. Many low-fat foods have nearly as many calories as their full-fat versions.

Whatever claims a food's manufacturer writes on the front of the package, you can judge whether a food is healthy for you by reading the ingredients and the nutrition information on the food label.

Burning Calories

New research tells us that exercising after a meal ignites the food's thermic effect-the food's natural ability to boost metabolism and more calories.

When men take a twenty-minute walk following a meal their metabolic rate rises 29 percent. A brisk walk speeds up the calorie burning effect of the food and burns calories from the exercise also.

Just make sure that when you exercise after eating it's something not too strenuous. A nice brisk walk can actually speed up digestion, but anything more might actually interfere with digestion of your meal

Yogurt with fruit

This recipe is great for breakfast and as a dessert.

Prep and Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
1 apple, chopped
½ cup raisins
1 cup seedless grapes
2 bananas, sliced
1 cup berries, whatever is in season
2 cups plain or vanilla low-fat yogurt


Directions:

Mix all the fruit together. Either top with yogurt or mix yogurt and fruit together.

Tuna salad surprise

You will love this unique way of preparing a tuna salad with no mayonnaise. It's perfect for a light dinner or lunch and provides an excellent—106% of the daily value—for those hard to find omega-3 fatty acids. Enjoy!

Prep and Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
2 6 ½ oz cans of light tuna, drained
1/4 cup finely diced celery
3 TBS chopped walnuts
3 TBS chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup finely minced onion
salt and black pepper to taste
1 medium head romaine lettuce, chopped
1 small tomato, chopped, seeds and excess pulp removed

Dressing
3 medium cloves garlic, pressed
1 TBS prepared Dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
4 TBS fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
4 oz silken tofu
1/2 tsp dried Italian herbs
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
a little water to thin if necessary


Directions:
Mince onions and press garlic and let sit for 5-10 minutes to bring out their health-promoting benefits.
Blend dressing ingredients in blender adding oil a little at a time at end (to incorporate). Blend well to make sure sunflower seeds are ground.
Mix tuna, celery, walnuts, parsley, onion, salt, and pepper.
Mix desired amount of dressing with tuna mixture.
Serve on bed of chopped romaine lettuce with chopped tomato.
Serves 2

Healthy Cooking Tips:

Blend the dressing long enough to completely grind the sunflower seeds for a smooth texture.

Energizing Oatmeal

This is a delicious complete breakfast and a perfect way to start your day!Prep and Cook Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
2 cups water
sea salt to taste
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 sliced almonds
1 cup soymilk or skim milk
1 TBS blackstrap molasses
Directions:

Bring the water and salt to a boil in a saucepan, then turn the heat to low and add the oats.
Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring regularly so that the oatmeal will not clump together. Add cinnamon, raisins and almonds, stir, cover the pan and turn off heat. Let sit for 5 minutes. Serve with milk and sweetener.
Serves 2
Healthy Cooking Tips:

If you are using prepackaged oats, it is best to follow the directions on the package.

Vegetarian Stir Fry

I love recipes that use whatever I have available in my refrigerator and this one is great for that. So while we have recommended particular vegetables for this dish, you can feel free to use whatever you may have on hand. Stir-fry is a wonderful way to enjoy a wider variety of nutrients than usual (because of the variety of vegetables included) allowing for greater synergistic interaction of nutrients— the path towards optimal health.

Prep and Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
1 medium onion cut in half and sliced medium thick
1 TBS vegetable broth
4 medium cloves garlic, pressed
1 TBS minced fresh ginger
1 red bell pepper cut into ½ inch pieces
1 cup sliced fresh shiitake mushrooms, (remove stems)
2 cups sliced green cabbage
5 oz extra firm tofu cut into ½ inch cubes
2 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS rice vinegar
2 TBS chopped fresh cilantro
1 TBS sesame seeds
salt and white pepper to taste

Directions:

Slice onions and press garlic and let sit for 5 minutes to bring out their health-promoting properties.
Prepare rest of vegetables.
Heat 1 TBS broth in a stainless steel wok or 12 inch skillet. Healthy Stir-Fry onion for about 2 minutes in broth over medium high heat stirring constantly.
Add red pepper, mushrooms, and cabbage. Continue to stir-fry for another 2 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and continue to cook stirring for another 2-3 minutes.
Add rest of ingredients and cook for another 2 minutes. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Serves 4

Serving Suggestion: Serve with Seaweed Rice
Healthy Cooking Tips:

Make sure you slice cabbage thin, so you can cook it quickly. If over cooked it will release its water and dilute the flavor of your dish. By slicing it thin, you can cook it for just a couple of minutes so it doesn't taste raw without this happening.

Healthier Lifestyle Green Tea

The phytonutrients found in green tea help combat free radicals and provide a wide variety of health protective benefits.

Prep and Cook Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:
green tea
1 tsp lemon juice

Healthy Cooking Tips:

Green tea is not only delicious but is renowned for its health-promoting properties. These have been linked to hits high concentration of catechin phytonutrients, which have a wide variety of protetive benefits, many related to their potent ability to fight free radicals. Adding 1 tsp lemon juice per cup of green tea not only gives it a refreshing taste but additional health benefits; it is both cleansing and energizing.

Research on the protective value of antioxidant catechins has found that less than 20% survive digestion. But by adding the lemon juice you can absorb 13 times more of the catechins due to the high concentration of vitamin C in the lemon juice. The catechins in ready-to-drink bottles of green tea have been found to be ineffective.

If you're senaitive to caffeine, you can drink decaffeinated green tea.

A Good Testament

Tests reveal that lowering your cholesterol level even as little as 15 percent will result in lowering your heart risk by 30 percent . The facts prove that if you take one step to improving your cholesterol level, the benefits will be double what you did. That's a big return on a small investment!

If you're overweight, losing weight can raise your HDLs by 5 to 6 point. Moderate regular exercise, at least three times a week, will raise HDLs. For post menopausal women, estrogen supplements can raise HDL 4 to 5 points.

Although it is the smallest seed of all, it becomes the largest plant in the garden. Begin today to plant the seed of God's Word into your heart. As you do, you will leap double returns on your efforts and eternal rewards for you soul. Allow His Word to work in you today!

Simple Ways

How many grams of fat do you need each day? Women need between 20 and 40 grams, and men need 30 to 60 grams. Most people, however, eat at least twice that much fat! How can you lower your fat intake? Here are a few simple ways.

Eliminate two of the main sources of fat calories in our diets, cheese and mayonnaise. This will also help reduce your cholesterol levels. Eliminate fast food items from your diet. These are loaded with fat. Eat simple, low-fat meals. Breakfast would include fruit, cereal, skim milk. A good lunch: water packed tuna and whole grain bread. Supper may consist of fish or some other than meat, such as turkey or chicken, vegetables, potato, rice, or pasta to establish new eating habits. That's the sign of a prudent person.

Pumping Jean

When you pump iron, your muscles grow with gratitude. But it may be your heart that really owes you a special thanks for lifting weights. New research says that strength training like lifting weights lower LDL cholesterol.

The researchers had one group of middle aged ladies lift weight for one hour, three times a week, for five months. Another group continued their exercise program but did not lift any weights. Cholesterol tests before and after the five-month period showed that the women who lifted weights had significant drops in both total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. the group that did not lift weights had much smaller declines in cholesterol readings.

Researchers think there is a potential for reducing heart disease risk through resistance training. The weightlifters lowered their body fat while boosting their fat free muscle. If you have access to a gym, include some weightlifting exercise in your workout. The repetitions will improve your cholesterol reading.

Encourage One Another

Part of abundant living involves associating with other people. In fact, social reinforcement is necessary, even crucial, to living. Dieting is not! When other people reinforce you, you feel better about yourself and are most likely to succeed in any endeavor you undertake, including losing weight. If you isolate yourself, there is no chance for reinforcement.

That's why you especially need the fellowship of others. You need their encouragement, and they need yours. Don't get out of the habit of going to church just because you are overweight or on a diet or feel you have nothing attractive to wear. Ask God to give you the courage to obey His Word and go to church. The blessings you receive and are able to give others will strengthen and encourage you to become the person God created you to be.