Hot out of the oven... Low sodium diet

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*Note:Please continue to read this blog article.

Living Better Cafe is bring you Fresh out of the oven news, that you're going to love. That no other blog source will ever take you close into the story. I say more good reasons to love L.B.C, not only are you revising original recipes. Your saving money while eating the way you want in a healthier way.
Welcome to Hot Out Of The Oven food news, I have yet another edition of food news coming straight from no other source but, Living Better Cafe of course. As you have read through many editions of (H.O.T.O), since I have started this food news addition. You have became more wiser about what you buy,and place into your mouth. While I am very happy to continue to keep "Hot of the oven" going as much as you keep enjoy reading it every Monday. In this second January edition I will be bring you the benefits of Low sodium diet.

Most people throughout the united states eat much more sodium (salt) than they need. Which this can lead to health problems like high blood pressure. Even people with normal blood pressure will have lower (and healthier) blood pressure if they lower how much salt they eat. Your doctor may tell you to eat no more than 2,300 mg a day when you have these conditions.Like for some people, 1,500 mg a day is an even better goal.

How do we go about lowing our sodium intake? Try by eating a balanced diet.

Start by buying fresh vegetables and fruits whenever possible. They are naturally low in salt. Canned foods often contain salt to preserve the color of the food and keep it looking fresh. For this reason, it is better to buy fresh foods. Also that includes buying:
fresh meats, chicken or turkey, and fish, plus fresh or; frozen vegetables and fruits.

How do we go about searching for these words on the label? We start by looking for these key words.

1. Low-sodium

2. sodium-free

3. No salt added

4. Sodium-reduced

5. Unsalted

Then we check all labels for how much salt foods contain per serving sizes.

As the ingredients are listed in order of the amount the food contains. Avoid foods that list salt near the top of the list of ingredients. A product with less than 100 mg of salt per serving sizes is good.

We want to stray away from foods that are always high in salt. For example:

1. Processed foods, such as cured or smoked meats, bacon, hot dogs, sausage, bologna, ham, and salami.

2. Anchovies, olives, pickles, and sauerkraut.

3. Soy and Worcestershire sauces, tomato and other vegetable juices, and most cheeses.

4. Plus many bottled salad dressings and salad dressing mixes.(Hint: you're best bet is to make you're own dressing)

5. Most snack foods, such as chips, crackers, and others.

Now when it comes to us cooking, replace Ms. Dash with other seasonings. Pepper, garlic, herbs, and lemon are good choices. Avoid packaged spice blends. They often contain salt.

You want to use garlic and onion powder, not garlic and onion salt. You want to be on the look out for foods containing monosodium glutamate (MSG), which you do not want to eat.

Feel like treating yourself to a night out, stick to steamed, grilled, baked, boiled, and broiled foods with no added salt, sauce, or cheese. If you have any concerns about the restaurant using monosodium glutamate (MSG), ask them not to add it inside your meal.

Now how do we go about adding the taste of salt without the salt? Simple just by, using oil and vinegar on salads. Add fresh or dried herbs. Eat fresh fruit or sorbet for dessert, If you have a salt shaker at your dinning room table. Replace it by, using salt-free seasoning.

Now if you have any medical conditions ask your doctor if a salt substitute is safe for you. Especially antacids and laxatives which contains little or no salt, if you need these medicines. Some have a lot of salt in them.
*Note:Please continue to read this blog article.

Living Better Cafe is bring you Fresh out of the oven news, that you're going to love. That no other blog source will ever take you close into the story. I say more good reasons to love L.B.C, not only are you revising original recipes. Your saving money while eating the way you want in a healthier way.
Welcome to Hot Out Of The Oven food news, I have yet another edition of food news coming straight from no other source but, Living Better Cafe of course. As you have read through many editions of (H.O.T.O), since I have started this food news addition. You have became more wiser about what you buy,and place into your mouth. While I am very happy to continue to keep "Hot of the oven" going as much as you keep enjoy reading it every Monday. In this second January edition I will be bring you the benefits of Low sodium diet.

Most people throughout the united states eat much more sodium (salt) than they need. Which this can lead to health problems like high blood pressure. Even people with normal blood pressure will have lower (and healthier) blood pressure if they lower how much salt they eat. Your doctor may tell you to eat no more than 2,300 mg a day when you have these conditions.Like for some people, 1,500 mg a day is an even better goal.

How do we go about lowing our sodium intake? Try by eating a balanced diet.

Start by buying fresh vegetables and fruits whenever possible. They are naturally low in salt. Canned foods often contain salt to preserve the color of the food and keep it looking fresh. For this reason, it is better to buy fresh foods. Also that includes buying:
fresh meats, chicken or turkey, and fish, plus fresh or; frozen vegetables and fruits.

How do we go about searching for these words on the label? We start by looking for these key words.

1. Low-sodium

2. sodium-free

3. No salt added

4. Sodium-reduced

5. Unsalted

Then we check all labels for how much salt foods contain per serving sizes.

As the ingredients are listed in order of the amount the food contains. Avoid foods that list salt near the top of the list of ingredients. A product with less than 100 mg of salt per serving sizes is good.

We want to stray away from foods that are always high in salt. For example:

1. Processed foods, such as cured or smoked meats, bacon, hot dogs, sausage, bologna, ham, and salami.

2. Anchovies, olives, pickles, and sauerkraut.

3. Soy and Worcestershire sauces, tomato and other vegetable juices, and most cheeses.

4. Plus many bottled salad dressings and salad dressing mixes.(Hint: you're best bet is to make you're own dressing)

5. Most snack foods, such as chips, crackers, and others.

Now when it comes to us cooking, replace Ms. Dash with other seasonings. Pepper, garlic, herbs, and lemon are good choices. Avoid packaged spice blends. They often contain salt.

You want to use garlic and onion powder, not garlic and onion salt. You want to be on the look out for foods containing monosodium glutamate (MSG), which you do not want to eat.

Feel like treating yourself to a night out, stick to steamed, grilled, baked, boiled, and broiled foods with no added salt, sauce, or cheese. If you have any concerns about the restaurant using monosodium glutamate (MSG), ask them not to add it inside your meal.

Now how do we go about adding the taste of salt without the salt? Simple just by, using oil and vinegar on salads. Add fresh or dried herbs. Eat fresh fruit or sorbet for dessert, If you have a salt shaker at your dinning room table. Replace it by, using salt-free seasoning.

Now if you have any medical conditions ask your doctor if a salt substitute is safe for you. Especially antacids and laxatives which contains little or no salt, if you need these medicines. Some have a lot of salt in them.

Breakfast lasagna

Adapted from: http://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/breakfast-lasagna/45f932a9-98e0-4cb4-bfb0-3489b1a83de6

Serves: 8

1 lb. lasagna noodles
8 eggs
1 c. mozzarella
1 c. cheddar
1 c. crumbled blue cheese
1 c. ricotta

Sauce Builder:

3 Tbsp. margarine
3 Tbsp. flour
3 Tbsp. Crushed red pepper flakes
2 c. milk
1 lb. ground breakfast sausage
1 onion
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes

Directions:

1. Brown the ground sausage and remove from the skillet. In the same skillet pan, cook the onions to lightly brown. Add in the margarine and flour and stir well, cooking for about 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat and add the sausage back into skillet. Strain the diced tomatoes and stir into the sauce.

2. Cook the noodles in a pot of salt boiling water until tender.

3. In a small glass bowl, crack and whisk two eggs. Prepare a frying pan to cook the eggs that is the same size as your round baking dishes.

4. In a glass baking dish, start with a thin layer of sauce, following by the first layer of noodles, then some more sauce and all three cheeses. Cook the first egg round for only a few minutes without flipping until it has just barely set on top. Transfer the egg to the top of the noodles then repeat with another layer of everything.

5. Top with a final pasta layer and a little more cheese and sauce and bake at 400°F for about 15 minutes.

Moon Pies

Adapted from: http://www.forkandbeans.com/2014/03/07/gluten-free-vegan-moon-pies/


Serves: 8

1/4 c. vegan butter
1/4 c. coconut sugar
1 Tbsp. molasses
1 Tbsp. flax seed meal + 2 Tbsp. warm water, thickened for 5 minutes

Dry ingredients:

1 c. All-Purpose Blend (see ingredients blow)
1/4 c. teff flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Building the marshmallow filling:

2 c. vegan marshmallows
2 Tbsp. vegan butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cacao coating:

1 c. cacao nibs
1 Tbsp. Vegetable oil

Directions:

Building the cookies:

1. In a large sized glass mixing bowl, beat margarine with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for about 30 seconds or till softened. Add sugar, molasses, and flax seed "egg" until well-combined.

2. In a medium sized glass mixing bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together. Slowly add in the flour into the wet ingredients mix and stir with a wooden spoon until a nice dough forms. It shouldn't be sticky at this point. If so, add more flour by the tablespoon.

3. Divide the dough into 2 balls.

4. Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheet with a silicone baking mat.

5. Roll one ball dough into 1/4"-in /3-mm thickness between 2 pieces of parchment paper. If the dough starts to become difficult this means it the dough is too warm. place into the freezer for about 10 minutes.

6. Using a 2 5/8"-in /68-mm biscuit cutter, cut dough into circles.
Place on the baking sheet and bake for about 5 to 7 minutes or till edges are firm. Cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute. Transferring cookies to a cooling rack.

Building the marshmallow filling:

1. In a saucepan over low-medium heat, stir the vegan butter and marshmallows until almost completely melted. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.

2. Allow to cool down and harden up just briefly for a couple of minutes, then by the spoonful scoop onto one cookie and sandwich between the other. Add in a little more onto the top of the cookie and sandwich with another cookies. Allow to set. You can also even places into the freezer.

Building the cacao coating:

Once after the cookie sandwiches have set, melt the Cacao nibs and add vegetable oil for a shine. Dip each cookie sandwich into the bowl of melted cacao until it is completely covered. Allow to set on a piece of parchment paper. You can freeze them for a faster setting time or leave them out on the counter, which will take more time.

Coffee Talk...episode 3

www.livingbettercafe.blogspot.com/coffeetelevision

On today episode I will be discussing the  factors of "Cacao" and "Chocolate".

7 up cookies

Adapted from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/10188/root-beer-cookies/

If you love 7 up cake then you will love theses cookies.

Serves: 18

1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. Margarine
1 egg
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. Pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. Course Himalayan salt

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Combined together the brown sugar, 1/2 c. margarine, egg, buttermilk and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
3. Add flour, baking soda and salt and incorporate well.
4. Drop about a teaspoon sized pieces of dough 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheets. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes.

Buffalo style French fries

Adapted from: http://tidymom.net/2013/buffalo-fries/

Do you enjoy the taste of buffalo wings? Why not try these buffalo style French fries.

Serves: 4-6

1 1/2 bags frozen french fries
1-2 Tbsp. Vegetable oil
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. cayenne powder
ground pepper to taste
1 c. buffalo wing sauce
1-2 Tbsp. margarine
1 1/2 c. sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 c. blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 c. Pepper jack cheese
3 green onions, sliced
1 Tbsp. chopped chives
1 Tbsp. Crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 450, Spray a large baking sheet with non stick cooking spray. Using a large bowl, add french fries and drizzle with oil. Add garlic salt, cayenne powder and pepper. Use a wooden spoon to stir fries until well coated with oil and seasonings.

2. Place seasoned fries in a single layer on baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes on middle rack, turning fries half way thru. While fries are baking, use a small saucepan heat buffalo sauce and margarine over low heat until warm and margarine is liquefied.

3. Remove fries when crispy, turn oven to high broil and make sure you have a rack in the highest position. Leaving potatoes on the pan, drizzle with buffalo sauce then sprinkle with cheddar cheese and blue cheese, pepper jack evenly over the top.

4. Place pan of potatoes under broiler and watch closely until cheese is melted and bubbly , should only take about 2-3 minutes.

5. Remove, let cool for about 2 minutes, then sprinkle with onions and chives.
Serve with crushed red pepper flakes and ranch dressing, and Live Happy!

Money Saving Tip Tuesday....Growing you're own produces

Welcome to another edition of Money Saving tips.
In this edition I will be sharing some cool tips that won't break your bank, and will keep you smiling from ear to ear all the time.
Once again thank you for sticking around, for this Second edition of Money saving tips for this January edition. I will be bring you different Money saving tip's daily on saving cash in your wallet, every Tuesday. This week on Money saving tip's Living Better Cafe wants to, help you save more cash in your wallet than ever before. This week I will be giving you tip's on how you can grow you're produces, right in you're own space. Yes, You heard me correctly and it's inexpensive to. All it take's is a few containers on your patio or a space in your backyard. So, let's begin by grabbing out you're garden gloves or better yet, it's alright to get your hands down in the dirt.

Natural lighting:

1. Why of course when it comes to planting you are going to need some sort of lighting, and that is called "Sunlight".

Space,Space,Space:

2. We have already covered the lighting aspect of where you're produce will gain light. So, now you need the proper space to grown you're produces. I will give you a few suggestions here, and then you can go off and experiment with those.

For starters

* Cartons

* Coffee can

* Flower pot

* Tupperware container


Inexpensive seeds:

3. Some may say fruit and other's may call them vegetable, but either way it's still something edible.

* Bell Pepper seeds

Instead of discarding those seeds, place them onto a paper towel and allow them to dry. (Note: Dry all wet seeds on a glass or ceramic plate. Spread the seeds evenly over the surface of the plate and stir twice daily to ensure even drying and to keep them from clumping together.)

* Onion

Fill a glass with water, and place the whole onion with the root side down inside the water. And place on windowsill where it can get the most lighting possible. Note: Do remember to change the water periodical. once you begin to see green approaching out of the onion, then you can begin to start planting it into a pot.

* Jalapeno Peppers

Same as bell peppers, but when removing these seeds you will need to wear gloves. (For the notes for these seed "Read" Bell Pepper.)

* cucumber

If you have use the cucumbers for pickling then the seeds are no longer useful. Cut the ripe cucumber in half and scrape the seeds into a bowl. To remove the seeds' coating, rub them gently around the inside of a sieve while washing them or soak them in water for two days. Rinse and dry. (Note: Make sure the cucumbers you use for seed are disease-free; plus pesticide free because some diseases can be carried on seed. And could affect your future crop.)

Selecting soil:

4. Now that you have the lighting down packed and you have sorted out your space, and collected your seeds now it's time to grown your green thumb. Not every plant can handle the same soil another plant can handle so, that where you will need to call your nearest nursery for information. Or even better yet, to save on time and money you can go to your local Library and search for gardening books.



Thank You for sticking around for another edition of Money saving Tuesday. As I am always glad to keep you in the know of fun ways you can save more money, and Live Healthy at the same time. Please consider "Sharing" and remember that you can also check out "Living Better Cafe" at https://www.facebook.com/livingbettercafe and do not forget to join Living Better Cafe community page on Google plus.




Until next time Happy Journeys to living better!


Katrina Smith,(Creator/ Administrator)