Every Thanksgiving celebration seems to be complete with way too many leftovers, usually the turkey, pies, and dinner rolls. And really, how many leftover turkey sandwiches can you eat!? This holiday season, mix things up with some new recipes using your dinner leftovers and extra ingredients. But...

Often a day of candy, treats, and sugar, a healthy Halloween might be an oxymoron. By focusing more on getting dressed up and the fun of playing games and tricks, you can focus less on food and celebrate the festivities with healthier options. Giving Out (Tricks or) Treats If you are...

September is Healthy Aging Month, and a great time to highlight nutrition needs of older adults. With advancing age, nutrient requirements change. Primarily, older adults need fewer calories but actually need more of many nutrients. Read on for a "Top 5" list of nutrition topics older adults need...

Summertime equals vacation time, and we want to enjoy it! But enjoying your vacation does not mean you have to forget about your health. Whether traveling by car or eating for days at the beach's hotel restaurant, try these tips to keep your health on track. Tips for Travel (car...

One tiny berry packs a nutritious and versatile punch as we celebrate the blueberry during National Blueberry Month. Starting in June and throughout the summer, look for subtly sweet blueberries growing locally in Illinois. Nutritionally, blueberries are like many fruits: low in calories,...

It's that time of year where fresh garden produce is more readily available. Whether from your own garden or the farmer's market down the street, that garden fresh taste is hard to beat. Unfortunately, most produce we find in the grocery store is harvested before it is ripe and transported many...

School is ending for the year and kids everywhere are excited to start their summers. Whatever the kids are doing, make sure they eat healthy lunches this summer. For kids who will be staying home alone or with siblings, will they need to make their own lunches? If so, be sure to stock kitchens...

Whenever I teach on food groups – to youth and adults – there are always a few foods I mention that overlap into two food groups. Not that we cannot put them into just one, but because foods have a lot of different nutrients, they might fit into more than one group. The current guide describing...

This March, Nutrition & Wellness Extension Educators across Illinois are excited to celebrate the start of the "Illinois Nutrition Edition" blog. We write this collaborative blog to be your source for information on issues and trends related to food, nutrition, and health. Nutrition is an ever...

Images courtesy of Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. Illinois official spring hunting season is here. No, I am not talking about wild turkey

Spinach artichoke dip sounds healthy, but does it live up to the name? Not so much. Sure, spinach and artichokes are on the ingredient list, but the dip is really more about the creamy, gooey cheese than veggies. My philosophy is that if you're going to indulge, why not get some extra nutrition? I'...

What do kale, dark chocolate, red wine, pumpkin, salmon, flax, walnuts, broccoli all have in common? They regularly appear grouped together as "superfoods." The term is one of the latest and greatest buzzwords and is even defined by the online Oxford Dictionary as "a nutrient-rich...

Everyone back on a normal sleep schedule? Check. New shoes broken in? Check. Backpacks fully loaded? Check. Frozen pizza for dinner? Wait a minute. Life is hectic, and maybe even more so around the change of seasons when the kids head back to school. Yes, frozen dinners and takeout meals are easy....

Fudgy or cakey, who doesn't love a good brownie? But they can pack hundreds of calories in just one small square. Here's a healthier version with 50% less fat and only 150 calories, with the added deliciousness of a cream cheese swirl. Yum! (Scroll to the bottom of the post for a...

This is my third post now touting the health benefits of sprouts, and inspired by a recent study published in the Journal of Cancer Prevention Research. 291...

Mothers tend to take better care of others than they do of themselves in some cases, but there is one way to help all mothers this M

Each year, the summer season signals the arrival of juicy, sweet peaches. In the United States, most peaches are grown in California, Georgia, and South Carolina. Unfortunately, our cold temperatures in Illinois are not typically suited for abundantly growing this wonderful fruit tree....

Pita chips are the perfect vehicle for all sorts of dips. They're super easy to make at home, so why not?Start with 6" whole grain pitas. Using kitchen shears, cut them into pieces and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet prepped with nonstick spray.Brush the tops...