Great Food Articles

I get a newsletter from HealthyEats.com and they often have some great articles! This time I thought I would share some of them....

Cocunut Oil: Good or Bad?
With the great demise of trans fats in the fast food industry the rise of coconut and palm oil has gone back up---that's right back up...they used to be the oils du'jour in the 80's (or so I'm told :) ). So the big question is...is coconut oil good or bad? Well, this article does a great job at displaying both sides of the argument. Bottom line? Well cocunut (and palm for that matter) oil is one of the very few plant based products that is a natural source of saturated fat and like the article explains "there’s strong evidence that suggests the various fatty acids found in coconut oil, including lauric, palmitic and myristic acid (all medium-chained triglycerides), raise both LDL (bad) and HDL (good) cholesterol and total cholesterol." That's right, it means that coconut oil is considered a medium-chained triglyceride...that's one of the feared words by those of us that suffer of high cholesterol. So that means that for those of us with heart issues, high cholesterol, or just have a healthy respect for high fat, high cholesterol foods coconut oil is a no-no.
What's that? You say that you like to eat out once in a while? Well then there's no avoiding high fat, high cholesterol, high sodium, high everything you shouldn't be eating foods but like my Dr. always says, there's no harm done in doing things you're not supposed to do in moderation...moderation, now THAT'S the challenge! ;D


Top 5 Herbs for Healthy Cooking

Top 5 Spices for Healthy Cooking

Herbs and Spices are the lifeline of a heart-conscious foodie! So naturally I was curious as to what Heatlhy Eats considered their top 5. And these articles certainly did not disapoint! They not only give an excellent explanation of the herbs and spices but also links to great recipes! So definitely take a look!

My favorite herbs and spice? Well, it's funny you ask...here they are!

Herbs
1. Cilandro (hey I'm Mexican, what do expect ;D )
2. Italian Parsley
3. Dill
4. Basil
5. Chives

Sure my fav aren't all necessarily practical for every kitchen but I use them like they are going out of style!

Spices
1. Paprika
2. Cinnamon (my oatmeal would not be the same without it!)
3. Cumin
4. New Mexico Chile
5. Nutmeg

So what's your top herbs and spices? Leave me a comment!