4 Sleep-Friendly Snacks To Help You Fall Asleep

Winding down from a long day is not so easy for some of us. Our bodies may be worn out, but our brains are still running 100 miles an hour. Then there are those night-time hunger pains that we try to ignore but just can't. So there we are tossing, turning, and hungry.

The good news is that there are actually some sleep-friendly snacks that may help us get a better night's sleep.

Snacks containing ingredients such as tryptophan, whole grain carbs, calcium, magnesium and certain herbs can relax our busy minds. So if falling asleep is a problem, try eating one of these light snacks about an hour before bedtime to help get a better night's sleep.

Bananas and Almonds.  Munch on these to get a nice mix of tryptophan, healthy carbs and calming magnesium.

Cherries. This fruit is a natural source of melatonin - a relaxing brain chemical.

Whole Wheat Toast and Peanut Butter. Another yummy snack that will provide you with the relaxing combo of tryptophan and complex carbs.

Enjoy a Bowl of Whole-Grain Cereal with Milk. The tryptophan, calcium, and magnesium in milk combined with the cereal’s carbs and magnesium can help make you feel sleepy. Be sure to stay away from sugary cereals.

And the favorite bedtime snack, a cup of herbal tea with a spoonful of honey (another source of tryptophan.)

You can find more sleep-friendly snack ideas at sleep.org.

The Art of Healthy Snacking

Healthy snacking ideas for kids and busy grown-ups as well!)

The art of healthy snacking is a delicate thing, and one we must cultivate carefully.

The best way I have found to stay on track when it comes to snacking wisely is to have lots of healthy snacks in my kitchen at all times.

Which leads me to the next very sad, however, obvious rule to follow. Remove all forbidden snacks from cabinets, pantries, and refrigerators pronto. And yes, that includes any errant munchies stashed under the bed.

Make it easy to grab a healthy snack by having them prepared ahead of time. It is downright near impossible to follow the art of healthy eating when one's stomach is in the throes of hunger pains. So it is imperative to have safe snacks ready to grab at all times in one's kitchen.

 15 awesome foods to have ready before you are hungry

1. Hard-boiled eggs
2. Pretzels
3. Salad - washed and mixed with your favorite salad fixings. Just add oil&vinegar.
4. Turkey Jerky
5. Cut Watermelon
6. Carrot sticks
7. Homemade Baked Zucchini Strips. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Cut a zucchini into thin slices, then drizzle olive oil, sea salt, and pepper on them. Sprinkle with paprika and bake for about 30 minutes.
8. Cottage Cheese
9. Canned salmon (or cook salmon and have it cut up in the refrigerator) - Use in a salad, or put salmon on crackers for a tasty treat.
10. Crackers
11. Pickles. Lots of pickles.
12. Black beans and salsa. (yum.)
13. Lean turkey slices, veggie burgers, or lean chicken cut up. Eat with a scoop of cottage cheese, or make a wrap with lettuce.
14. Peanut Butter (delicious with sliced apples)
15. Low-fat Popcorn

Finally, we must remember that healthy snacking also requires munching in moderation. Snacking on crackers does not mean eating half the box at one time.

And as much as we may like to, we cannot smear oodles of peanut butter on a couple of bagels or bread with jelly.

The good news? Pickles have no limits.

These Foods Are Good For Your Mood

Getting ready to start a new year may not be something we look forward to necessarily. I have found myself getting into a rather funky mood as this year comes to a close and another is about to start. If this sounds like you too, maybe now is a good time to remember that certain foods are good for your mood, especially when that mood is a bit down in the dumps. Maybe we can all try to improve our snacking choices this year, especially those of us who could use more positive energy.

It is well known that eating chocolate makes us happy. According to a recent study done at the Nestlé Research Center in Switzerland, eating dark chocolate (1.4 ounces of it, to be exact) every day for two weeks reduced stress hormones in people who were highly stressed. Too bad we can't just sit and much on chocolate all day.

There are other foods that we can add to our shopping lists this year that nutritionists say will boost our moods naturally. So before you head out to the grocery store for your first shopping trip of 2016, check out the list below of foods that are good for your mood. Just a reminder for those of us who feel a bit droopy today!

1. Fatty fish like salmon and tuna. The fatty acids found in these fish not only have brain-boosting properties to fight depression, but  improve circulation and reduce inflammation and your overall risk of heart disease.

2. Walnuts. The Omega-3 in walnuts is great for our brain health.

3. Dark-green leafy vegetables like spinach, asparagus and Brussels sprouts. These veggies have lots of Folate - a B vitamin which studies have shown can help with depression.

4. Oranges and Papaya are fruits high in Vitamin B6 and Folic Acid, shown to help improve moods as well.

5. Healthy Carbs. Whole grains, brown rice, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and whole wheat pasta are foods good for your mood as they help the body release serotonin - a 'feel good' brain chemical.

Spiced Apples: Easy Recipe Perfect For Fall

There is probably no better aroma than spiced apples cooking in the kitchen! Even the words sound yummy! This is a super easy recipe I stumbled upon, but it is sooo good and smells heavenly. And it can be delicious alone, fantastic on oatmeal (which I am trying to eat everyday now - more on that later,) and too darn good with some vanilla ice cream!

The only things I did different on this recipe is switched out Splenda for some brown sugar and the light butter spread for real butter. I did not use too much sugar either - probably less than 1/4 cup (my kids gobbled it all up, so I guess I used enough anyway!)

10 Gala apples, peeled and cut into 1-in slices
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
6 tsp Splenda  (I used brown sugar here.)
2 tbsp light buttery spread (I used regular butter.)

Put all spices into small bowl and stir, set aside.
Melt the butter in a medium size saucepan, add apple slices.
Spoon spice mixture over apples, stirring to cover completely. Cover and cook on medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring frequently.

((Can't you just smell these spice apples already??)

Sweet Strawberry Rollups

From the Editors of Your Family Today




Ooh la la! This recipe takes after the French crepe -- no batter required! It uses whole-wheat flour tortillas instead, topped with antioxidant-rich strawberries and a sprinkling of brown sugar.


Makes 1 serving


Ingredients 8-inch whole-wheat flour tortilla 2 teaspoons light, trans fat-free margarine 2 teaspoons brown sugar 1/2 cup finely chopped strawberries


Directions

Spread tortilla with light margarine.

Sprinkle with brown sugar and microwave for 10 to 20 seconds, or until margarine is melted.

Top with strawberries and roll up into a wrap.

This recipe was written by Kim Galeaz, a registered dietitian and culinary-nutritional consultant as well as owner of Galeaz Food & Nutrition Communications, located in Indianapolis and Jacksonville, Fla.

Steamed Broccoli Recipe

Here is a recipe for steamed broccoli that is pretty simple and will keep the healthy benefits of broccoli intact!

1 small bunch broccoli (about 3/4 pound)
1 garlic clove
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice


Discard tough lower third of broccoli stem. Peel remaining stem and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Cut broccoli into 2-inch florets. In a steamer set over boiling water steam broccoli, covered, until crisp-tender, 4 to 5 minutes.

While broccoli is steaming, finely chop garlic and in a small skillet combine with oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Heat garlic mixture over moderate heat until garlic is fragrant. In a bowl toss broccoli with garlic mixture.

Try tossing the steamed broccoli over pasta and sprinkling with Parmesan Cheese to make it a bit more kid-friendly. And if that doesn't work well, try bribing with an after dinner ice cream sundae! After all, it more important than ever to get kids to eat their broccoli--so bring on the desserts, I say!

Recipe comes from epicurus.com. 

Rosarita Salsa: A Most Delicious Review!

Oh my goodness, do I love salsa! LOVE IT. Can Never get enough of it!! One of my most favorite ways to enjoy salsa is mixed in with my scrambled eggs in the morning (yes, I am Irish....but do not mess with my salsa, ok??)

So when I was asked to review the new line of Rosarita Salsas...well, try to imagine how fast I was clicking away on my keyboard as I replied back "Yes!!" LOL.

The delicious Rosarita salsas come in three ranges of mild to hot- Mild Salsa Mexicana, Medium Salsa Verde and Hot Salsa Taquera. When eating salsa straight with chips, I go for the mild usually, or a mix of mild and medium. But when using salsa in cooking, I go straight for the hot stuff! So I was delighted that we received all three salsas to try out!

A super easy yet delicious recipe is boneless chicken breast combined with Salsa Verde in the crock-pot. You can pretty much combine ingredients as you like, but here is a recipe as well that I happily recommend:

• 2 cups of canned Rosarita refried beans
• Rosarita Salsa
• 2 packages tostadas (6-inch diameter)
• 3 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 4 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
• 1 cup Queso Fresco (fresh Mexican cheese)
• 1 large, firm ripe avocado, pared, pitted, sliced
• ½ cup sour cream

Directions

• Heat refried beans
• Spread onto tostadas
• Apply thin layer of shredded chicken
• Top with thin layer of lettuce
• Top with salsa
• Sprinkle cheese/garnish with cream and avocados if desired. We skip the avocado here, and substitute vegetarian-style chicken for the real chicken as well. But it is fantastic and oh so easy!

Rosarita has a great well-known line of products, especially their number one selling refried beans, and I am delighted with their new salsas now. But take note--Their new salsa is only available in four cities — LA, Dallas, Phoenix, and Denver — at select Walmart and grocery stores currently. If you do not live in those cities, I am so sorry but I cannot send you any of mine (remember, hands off my salsa!!) LOL.

“I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Rosarita and received a sample to facilitate my candid review. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

Wormy Halloween Jello Treat

Make a fun Halloween treat using a couple packages of Jello and some gummy worms.

Make one package of jello (use Halloween colors like green or orange)and let it set.

Toss some gummy worms on the jello and let some worms dangle over the bowl(use a clear bowl for best effect!)

Mix another flavor/color jello, and pour the mixture over the set jello and gummy worms. Put the bowl back in the refrigerator and let the jello set.

Easy-Peasy!

Shrimp Scampi With Linguine

Shrimp is an excellent low fat source of Omega-3 and Vitamins B-12 and D. Shrimp is often thought to be high in cholesterol, however, recent studies have revealed that cholesterol levels in shrimp are significantly lower than previously thought. An average 3 ½ ounce (100 gram) shrimp portion contains about 150 milligrams of cholesterol, or about half the cholesterol found in one chicken egg.

There are two types of cholesterol. LDL is known as "bad cholesterol" because it may promote production of artery-building plaques that can result in a heart attack. HDL is called "good cholesterol" because it returns cholesterol back to the liver for reprocessing, which reduces cholesterol in the blood stream. A serving of a dozen large shrimp contains about 130 mg of cholesterol. This is not a health concern because shrimp is low fat with a rich content of highly unsaturated fatty acids which lead to the formation of high density lipids known as good cholesterol. Consuming shrimp may actually lower blood cholesterol levels.


Shrimp Scampi with Linguine

Ingredients
# 1 lb linguine
# 4 tablespoons butter
# 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more
# extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
# 1 large shallot, finely diced
# 5 garlic cloves, sliced
# 1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
# 20 large shrimp, about 1 pound, peeled and deveined, tail on
# kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
# 1/2 cup dry white wine
# 1 lemon, juice of
# 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
Directions

Prepare pasta according to package directions.

Drain the pasta reserving 1 cup of water.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter in 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat.

Saute the shallots, garlic, and red pepper flakes (if using) until the shallots are translucent, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Season the shrimp with salt and pepper; add them to the pan and cook until they have turned pink, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove the shrimp from the pan; set aside and keep warm.


Add wine and lemon juice and bring to a boil.


Add 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons oil.


When the butter has melted, return the shrimp to the pan along with the parsley and cooked pasta and reserved pasta water.

Stir well and season with salt and pepper.

Drizzle over a bit more olive oil and serve immediately.

Yummy Healthy Balsmic Glazed Chicken and Peppers Sandwich

Balsamic-Glazed Chicken and Bell Pepper Sandwiches
From Cooking Light magazine

The only condiment to grace this sandwich is healthy balsmic vinegar....so eat up and enjoy this healthy sandwich. Try it as a panini...extra yum!

4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 1/4 pounds chicken breast tenders
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar, divided
2 cups red bell pepper strips (about 2 medium)
2 cups vertically sliced onion (about 1 large)
2 (8-ounce) loaves focaccia bread, cut in half horizontally
4 ounces provolone cheese, thinly sliced
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon salt over chicken. Add chicken to pan; cook 1 minute on each side or until lightly browned.
3. Add 1/4 cup vinegar; cook 2 minutes or until chicken is done and vinegar is syrupy.
4. Remove chicken mixture from the pan; cover and keep warm. Wipe pan clean with a paper towel.
5. Return pan to medium-high heat; add remaining 2 teaspoons oil. Add bell pepper and onion; sauté 7 minutes or until tender. Stir in remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/4 cup vinegar; cook 1 minute or until vinegar is syrupy.
6. Arrange chicken mixture evenly over bottom halves of bread; top with bell pepper mixture. Arrange cheese over pepper mixture, and sprinkle with black pepper. Top with top halves of bread.
7. Place a cast-iron or heavy skillet on top of sandwiches; let stand 5 minutes.
8. Cut each sandwich into 6 wedges.

Serves 6.

NUTRITION PER SERVING CALORIES 433(24% from fat); FAT 11.4g (sat 4.2g,mono 5.4g,poly 1g); PROTEIN 34g; CHOLESTEROL 68mg; CALCIUM 170mg; SODIUM 709mg; FIBER 1.9g; IRON 3.6mg; CARBOHYDRATE 49g