Thanks to everyone who came to the Wellness Meeting on the 30th of September. We had some great snacks and relaxing time away from our desks! Lots of folks wanted references and recipes so here is coverage of what we had at the meeting. For those who didn't make it or who are in Spanish Fork or Mona, these are some great suggestions on a couple of new foods to try and some great healthy snacking ideas.


Kashi TLC Crackers
In a few different flavors, the Kashi Crackers are multi-grain snacking with amazing flavor. They come in Original 7-Grain, Fire Roasted Vegetable, Honey Sesame and Country Cheddar. Why eat this over a Wheat Thin?

• TLC Original 7 Grain has half the fat of a Wheat Thin
  
• TLC has no saturated fat (present in Wheat Thins)
  
• 15 TLC crackers have the same calories as 9 Wheat Thins
• TLC has twice the fiber present in Wheat Thins
• TLC is made from whole wheat flour and 6 other whole grains (while Wheat Thins are from enriched bleached flour, which is vastly nutritionally inferior)

And for my money, the TLC crackers taste MUCH better. Wheat Thins taste okay, but ever notice that greasy feeling inside your mouth when you eat them? Those people who tried the TLC Crackers at the meeting would agree that they taste great, so try the different flavors and find one you love. They are available at most grocery stores, costing around $2.50 a box at Walmart.

We also tried some cereals.
First sample was a granola from Good Earth, right on main street in American Fork. It is from the bulk food section and is called "Strawberry Vanilla Hempseed." No processed sugars or marshmallows shaped like rainbows, this cereal is so good that my kids will sit around munching it all day if I leave it where they can reach it. Once you put milk on it, the dried strawberries plump right up. Great for breakfast or snacking!

We also sampled a few Kashi cereals, the Strawberry Fields and the Cnnamon Harvest.

The Strawberry Fields is a nice 7 grain cereal with the same freeze-dried strawberries in the granola I just mentioned. Light flakes, great in milk, super tasty. This cereal is readily available at most local grocers and all the big chains.



The Cinnamon Harvest reminds of old-school Shredded Wheat, but with lots more natural sweetness. This is another cereal you will find yourself snacking on, right out of the box. I adore cinnamon so this on is a favorite of mine as well. Also available at most grocers.

I also introduced a lot of folks to a grain they weren't familiar with, called Quinoa (say KEEN-wah).


This is available at the bulk section of health food places and is a very cost-effective way to eat well. It cooks up like rice, and texture-wise it is somewhere in between rice and cous cous. Quinoa is the only grain that has a complete protein, meaning you don't have to combine it with other foods (think beans and rice, which only meet the complete protein requirement if they are together). You can use it in soups, served hot with stir fry, with warm apples and cinnamon for breakfast, and any other way you can think. It's extremely nutritious and a near-essential food for any vegetarian. Meat eaters will find it's subtle flavor a great way to get non-animal protein into their diet. When you buy this, be sure and soak it in water or rinse it 2-3 times before you cook it, until the water runs clear. One of the great things about quinoa is that it has its own natural pesticide, which is a bitter coating called saponin. Birds and insects won't eat it, so no need to pollute the earth with chemicals! You need simply rinse it a few times before you cook it and the saponin is gone, releasing that subtle nutty flavor and goodness.

We served some almonds. Raw, unsalted, and available in the bulk food section of the health food store (or, for a little more money, in regular grocers baking isle).

Almonds can help lower your cholesterol and are a great source of good fats in your diet. The recommendation is for 23 almonds a day, which would cover a single post-it note (the standard square ones). Be cautious and look for the raw variety, unsalted if your cholesterol is high.



I also shared a green dip made from edamame, or soy beans. Just take some raw garlic, peeled, and shred it good in your food processor (maybe a clove or two). Add some sun dried tomatoes (I prefer the ones packed in olive oil) and pulse a time or two, taking into account that the tomatoes bring a lot of sweetness (go slow adding them). Then add the soybeans/edamame, pulse until its chunky, then drizzle some of the olive oil from the tomatoes into the mix. Grind coarse sea salt over the top and serve! Works great with the Kashi crackers above.

So get out and try some of these great new foods. A few subtle changes in your eating can yield big results in terms of your health. You'll feel better, look better, and have more energy.