When I’m doing my grocery shopping for the week, I typically find myself going back to the same sites, doing the same searches, and of course…finding the same recipes. I was intrigued when I heard about FoodieView.com, which aggregates recipes and makes it easy to discover new meal ideas. Naturally, this week you might be interested in some new recipes for a romantic Valentine’s Day meal with your lover. How about… Valentine Heart Breadsticks Linzer Valentine Hearts Valentine Pizza Valentine Meatballs Valentine’s Day Parfaits Valentine’s Day Pretzels Valentine’s Day Belgian Waffles with Cherry Sauce Not your typical Valentine’s Day choices! You can search by ingredient, keyword, dish name, cuisine, chef, dietary... [Read more]

If you’re not already taking advantage of the fantastically tasty, easy to use legumes otherwise known as chickpeas (or garbanzo beans), you’re missing out. Not only are they hearty, but chickpeas are extremely nutritious and high in protein. But what do you do with a can or bag of chickpeas? Below are some healthy ideas for incorporating chickpeas into your next meal. 1. Make hummus. 2. Toss them in a fresh salad. 3. Eat them out of the can (this one was from a friend – I personally find the idea repellent!). 4. Mix them with tabouleh. 5. Make falafel. 6. Include them in a bean salad. 7. Add them to soup. 8. Roast them with chicken. 9. Incorporate them into a pasta dish. 10. Make chickpea marsala. Image: sxc.hu [Read more]

Enjoy this Valentine’s Day with your lover and some quintessential romantic treats – chocolate covered strawberries. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite as adorable as these “Tuxedo Berries”, designed by Driscoll’s Berries for their remarkable long stem strawberries. Covered in two layers of rich chocolate and lots of imagination, they may not be easy or quick to prepare, but you can be assured your Valentine will appreciate the effort…in addition to the aphrodisiac effect of the chocolate. Driscoll’s Tuxedo Chocolate Dipped Strawberries Prep Time: 30 minutes Hands on Time: 1 ¼ hours Makes: 30-40 Strawberries Ingredients 2 Quarts of firm Driscoll’s Premium Long Stem Strawberries 2 12 ounce bags of milk chocolate... [Read more]

Salads don’t have to be boring – there’s no reason at all you should stick with plain old lettuce and carrots to create a light meal. Here are two delicious recipes perfect for making the most of fresh seafood and other healthy ‘good for you’ ingredients. Developed by Chef Owen Tilley. Executive Chef and Director of Culinary, at Nova Scotia’s High Liner Foods, each recipe incorporates seafood into the salad for a fresh taste that will fill you up and of course…tastes fantastic. Seared Scallop and Quinoa Salad Ingredients 12 large sea scallops 3 cups cooked Quinoa ½ garlic clove, minced 1 medium cucumber, peeled, diced 1 medium tomato, diced 2 tbs red onion, diced 2 tbs fresh basil, chopped 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil Juice of... [Read more]

What if all your new years resolution dieting efforts actually had a bigger goal behind it? Not just about fitting into your skinny jeans or finally dropping that “chubby cheeks” nickname…but did something for people in need all across the United States? Well I don’t know about you, but those are some pretty compelling motivating factors. General Mills, NBC’s The Biggest Loser and Feeding America have partnered up to launch the Pound for Pound Challenge – an initiative that encourages Americans to lose weight and feed the hungry. For every pound dieters pledge to lose this new year, a pound of groceries will be delivered to a local food bank. Here is a scary statistic…While 130 million people are overweight in the United States,... [Read more]