If you google “crockpot recipes” you will find yourself overwhelmed with choices of hundreds if not thousands of recipes. Chili and meatballs and pot roast also are great crock pot items. Give it a try.

Side dishes are always fun to play around with. Here is an easy one. Take zucchini, squash, butternut squash, acorn squash, red peppers, sweet potatoes, vidalia onion, dried cranberries and maybe some nuts. Pick your favorite. I like pine nuts or almonds. Dice the veggies in chunks about 3/4 of an inch. Toss in the cranberries and the nuts. Toss them all together in a large bowl then coat them with a little olive oil, add a few spoonfuls of brown sugar. Then take some melted pareve margarine and pour over and toss. Just enough to coat the mixture. Then spread the whole thing out on a greased roasting pan. Pam spray is fine to use. Try to get it so it is one even layer across the whole pan. Roast at 400 for about 35 minutes. Check to see that veggies are tender. If not then rotate pan and cook for a few more minutes until veggies are tender. It makes a nice colorful and tasty side dish that is so easy to prepare.

Have a safe and happy holiday.

Simply stated, a trans fat, also known as trans fatty acid, is a specific type of fat formed when liquid oils are made into solid fats (i.e. shortening). Small amounts of trans fat are also found naturally in some animal-based foods. A long time ago (when I was a kid) these were known as partially hydrogenated oils. Trans fats are created by a chemical process designed to increase the shelf life and flavor stability of foods.

Trans Fats are bad because the raise the low density lipoprotein (LDL or bad cholestorol) and reduce the high density lipoprotein (HDL or good cholestorol) This lethal combination increases the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke. It also increases the risks of developing type 2 diabetes. Kind of a compelling reason to heed the warnings and limit trans fats in our diets.

So if you limit foods that typically contain shortenings such as cookies, crackers, candies, some margarines and as much fried food as you can you can drastically reduce your trans fat intake. Many fryer oil companies are jumping on the bandwagon and creating “Trans Fat Free” deep frying oil so not all french fries are trans fat bad. In keeping with this health trend, all of our fryer oil is Trans Fat Free and always has been.

Start with some whole grain pasta and cook it according to the directions on the box. I think penne is best but any type will do. Separately saute some grape or sliced plum tomatoes, and asparagus cut into 1 inch pieces with some olive oil and fresh minced garlic. Add some fresh basil then toss with the pasta. For protein add some grilled chicken, tofu or chic peas. This can be eaten hot or at room temperature. What is nice about this type of dish is that you can pretty much add almost any type of vegetable, meat or fish to this and have it be different and tasty every time. Fresh baby spinach is a particularly nice enhancement.

Check back throughout the summer for more easy, simple, delicious and healthy recipes.

Thanks for coming out.

Good food and good causes go a long way.