MY LOVE FOR ORANGES, ORANGES FOR VALENTINES DAY!

    I grew up in a town that is known to be " the city of oranges" , if your oranges or orange juice says  from Brasil it probably came from my hometown. So, with that said I LOVE ORANGES. 

 Most of our dessert after lunch and dinner are oranges, now I am passing the tradition to my son, and so far he share the same love for them .

 Here some fun facts about oranges

  -They are a tropical to semitropical fruit  
  -Low in calories
  -No saturated fats or cholesterol 
  -Rich in dietary fiber
  -Excellent source of vitamin C ( a powerful antioxidant )
  -Contain some vitamin A and vitamin B
  -Good amount of minerals (potassium and calcium)
  -Easy to eat
  -Can storage at room temperature for around 1 week and the refrigerator for around 2 weeks.
  -There are many many types of oranges varying  from very sweet to bitter

 I personally think they are a very good gift (love when I get them at Christmas time) so how about as a  Valentines Day present ??? I am sure there are going to be plenty chocolate so let's go to the healthy side ...  how about ORANGES? 

                                                                                                                    By Pri Monroe

POWER TO THE AVOCADO!!!

Growing up in Brasil my family had a avocado tree. And as far back as I can remember the only way we would have them was on a smoothie !!! Yes, a smoothie . Put milk and avocado on a blender and voila... one nutritious smoothie . Since I moved to the USA I have not found one person that ever drank it like I did growing up. It is common here to put on salads , sandwiches, dips, guacamole , even in soups.
I am a big fan of this fruit. Yes..... it is a fruit .
Almost all year around we can find it to buy it. Off season is a bit more pricey but when they are in season.....lucky us!
It's easy to eat and full of essential vitamins and minerals, including fiber, vitamins C, B5, B6, K, magnesium , folate and potassium.
One of the great things avocado is ranked among the lowest for pesticide use.
A funny little story ... My sister used avocados as a facial cream and hair mask. There are believes that's good for your face and hair. But I believe that our dog had the most benefit cleaning up the mess she did making it and applying it.
So maybe let's just keep avocados on our plates or be adventurous and make a smoothie .:)

                                                                                                                                   by Pri.

         

WHY ARE PEOPLE GETTING FAT??

On a trip to the grocery store today got me thinking how simple is the saying " YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT" and we still have around 78 million obese Americans.

Every meal we have the chance to choose what to feed our bodies , and the sad reality is that most people in America and around the world (sadly too!) is choosing process over fresh. 

I do understand that with our lifestyle is getting harder and harder to cook a fresh meal, but there are plenty of choices out there to have a well balance e healthy diet.

 How hard it is to open a avocado and have as a snack instead of french fries? How about a banana over a bag of chips? An apple over a cake?

Exercising alone is not going to help, what you choose to eat is the key for a healthy life. Think twice before your meal and snack today. Good luck, I hope you choose the avocado :) because in the end....YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT.

                                                                                                   By Pri Monroe