A serving of muesli in a bowl

Muesli by any other name is cold oatmeal – and it rocks

Whenever I travel to Europe, especially when on a cruise, one of the things I look forward to is the Muesli. When we see in Muesli the stores here it is a cold ready to eat cereal like granola. While this is technically muesli, the kind I crave is very different. It is a cold […]

Spinach and a poached egg on spaghetti sauce

What To Do With Leftover Spaghetti Sauce

I love making homemade spaghetti sauce…that is until I had Giovanni Rana’s Marinara. I cannot make it any better and the addition of carrots in their recipe means it is low in added sugar. You can find it in the refrigerator section with the fresh pasta in many grocery stores. When I saw it in […]

How to Cook Steel Cut Oats in an Instant Pot

A warm bowl of oats topped with fresh fruits and/or nuts is the perfect breakfast for cold winter mornings. Steel cut oats are the least processed as compared to other types of oats and may provide longer satiety making them a great choice for breakfast. However, they take longer to cook as compared to other […]

New Year, New Start: Goal Setting Tips

The new year is here! We often find ourselves starting the new year by making resolutions hoping that the new habit sticks with us every day for as long as possible. But unfortunately, most of these resolutions are forgotten within a month or two. Do you remember seeing a packed gym in January or February […]

Barbecue Rather Than Bake or Fry Your Turkey

If you enjoy Eastern North Carolina barbecue, you will love this recipe. It is delicious, healthier than pork barbecue, and a great way to enjoy turkey with a twist. Take a turkey. Split it in half, you can remove the backbone if you like but it is not mandatory. Cook on the grill (medium heat) […]

how to cook

5 Essential Rules of Cooking

Now that we have our new Dinah E. Gore Teaching and Research Kitchens on NC State Campus, I have been doing more culinary training including our Eat Smart, Move More, Prevent Diabetes Cooking School. Working to help others be better cooks always makes me a better cook and helps me analyze what is important in […]

Travel Hack: Healthy Oatmeal on the Go

Eating healthy while traveling can be tough. Whether it’s for one night or one week, being away from home can mean more eating out at restaurants – sometimes for every meal! To eliminate eating out for every meal, I have started bringing my own breakfast every time we travel. It has been a simple change […]

Quick Weeknight Dinner – Mexican Quesadillas

Mexican Quesadillas with Vegetables and Black Beans Serves 8 Ingredients: 1 tbsp olive oil 1 zucchini, diced into small pieces 1 yellow squash, diced into small pieces 1 red bell pepper, diced into small pieces 1 medium carrot, diced into small pieces 1 small broccoli head, chopped 1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained and […]

Is there anything to eat on the highway that is healthy?

Traveling and eating healthy is not always a winning combination. How can you stick to your healthy goals and still travel to see friends and family? When you are driving to your destination, it is a bit easier as you can pack a cooler or bag lunch for your trip. Bring along yogurt, peanut butter […]

Cook More, Waste Less

Last summer, I challenged myself and my husband to add more fruits and vegetables to ALL our meals, not just dinner. This summer I challenged myself and my husband to try to not waste any of the vegetables or fruit we bought. This came after finding a particularly slimy cucumber in the back of our […]