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Food Review: Cascadian Farm Fiber Right Bars

FitSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:00:02 -0800

Women need between 25 and 30 grams of fiber a day, and sometimes meals alone won't bring you to your daily quota. I'm always looking for quick snacks that are high in fiber, and when I came across these new Cascadian Farm Fiber Right Bars ($4) at the store, they looked like a tasty way to help me reach my goal.

To find out how these Almond Butter Crunchy Granola Bars taste and see how many calories are in one serving continue reading

Thanksgiving Side Dish: Apple Squash

FitSugar — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 03:47:08 -0800

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because I love all the warm, savory dishes. This one has been in my family for years and it's sweet, creamy, and has a crunchy topping that reminds me of homemade mac and cheese. It's easy to prepare ahead of time, and is a great alternative to mashed potatoes or stuffing.

To see the recipe and find out how many calories are in one serving read more.

Recipe for Apple Squash
a family recipe

Ingredients

Bottom layer:
4 Cortland apples, peeled and sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons Smart Balance margarine

Middle layer:
8 cups butternut squash (about two whole), peeled, de-seeded, and diced
2 tablespoons Smart Balance margarine
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Top layer:
2 cups fruit juice sweetened corn flakes, crushed
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 teaspoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons Smart Balance margarine, melted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Heat two tablespoons of Smart Balance in a skillet and add the sliced apples. Cover and simmer for five minutes. Spread in bottom of a casserole dish.
Boil the butternut squash for 15 minutes.
Mash the squash with two tablespoons Smart Balance, two teaspoons brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Spread it on top of the apples.
Mix the two tablespoons of melted Smart Balance with the crushed corn flakes, two teaspoons brown sugar, and chopped pecans. Sprinkle on top of the squash.
Bake uncovered for 15 minutes. Serve warm and enjoy.

Makes 10 servings.

Print recipe with images | without images

Here's the nutritional info for this Thanksgiving apple squash.

Serving Size	1/10 of the dish
Calories	159.6
Total Fat	5.9 g
Saturated Fat	.6 g
Cholesterol	0 mg
Sodium	182.1 mg
Carbs	28.2 g
Fiber	3.9 g
Sugars	10.7 g
Protein	2.2 g

If you have a healthy recipe to share, please post it in the Healthy Recipe community group.

Posh's Size 28 Pants

PopSugar — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 11:56:48 -0700

Posh is looking like she borrowed her man's pants, but other than that she looks adorable. I bet even though the pants look huge on her they are probably just a size 28. The girl is known for her 23 inch waist. She is swimming in these pants so maybe it's laundry day or something. Victoria is definitely making improvements in her outfits but she is still always a little off. Right now we are really digging her casual look. The short hair, the cute hat, and the fabulous breasts (Tara, take note, this is how fake is done right). And look, we're even getting a shot of some teeth. We can't wait for the day when we get a real genuine smile, but for now we'll enjoy this cute smirk.

Lots more cute pics of Posh swimming in those pants so read more

View 8 Photos ›

Source

eBay Find of the Week

FabSugar — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 04:00:22 -0700

Diane Kruger recently took Balenciaga's Swiss dot tights - the ones Jennifer Connelly wore in the Fall '09 ads - and introduced them to the mainstream. Brava, Diane! I set out on a hunt to find a cheaper pair for you and me: these Black Sheer Dot Print Tights, one-size. If you're feeling whimsical, throw them on with a dress or mini skirt. And don't be afraid to combine patterns; mixmasters rock.

Buy it now for $6.87. The auction ends on Wednesday, October 28. If it gets sold, fret not, there are more.

Why We Overeat: Lack of Sleep

FitSugar — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 03:47:24 -0700

We know that healthy portion sizes are the way to go if we're trying to slim down or maintain a healthy weight. So why is it that we're so quick to overdo it when it comes to eating? Health magazine suggests one reason may be that you're not getting enough Zs. When our bodies don't get the proper amount of sleep, two weight-related hormones are affected - leptin and ghrelin. These hormones are responsible for controlling your appetite and making you feel full. In a recent study, participants who slept for only fours hours had an 18 percent decrease in leptin, the hormone that tells the brain you've had enough food. On the other hand, ghrelin, the hormone that triggers hunger, showed a 28 percent increase. That means if you're not getting enough sleep at night, chances are your appetite will be increased when you're awake, so you'll end up eating more than you would if you were well-rested. The problem is sleep-deprived people tend to reach for sugary, high-carb foods for quick energy and comfort, which translates to weight gain.

So break the cycle and be sure to get at least seven hours of sleep a night. If you're feeling tired during the day, reach for a food that contains high-fiber carbs, such as oatmeal, whole-grain bread, and whole-wheat pasta. Eat it with protein to feel full longer and have sustained energy.

Come Party With Me: My Birthday Party - Invite

partysugar — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 12:50:55 -0700

Well folks, it's time for me to plan my favorite event of the year - my birthday party! Since I threw a blow-out bash at a bar for 27 and a big picnic at an oyster farm for 27.5, I've decided that, for 28, things should be more subdued. Thus, I'm hosting an intimate dinner party for me and my 20 closest friends. The dinner will be served in my grandfather's gorgeous backyard, but before I can think about the menu, I have to send invitations. To learn how I made the ones seen here, read more.

I wanted an invite that looks clean, fun, and is representative of my personality. After searching several paper stores in San Francisco, I decided on a navy, cream, and turquoise theme. I purchased the majority of my supplies at Paper Source. Here's what I used:

Dark blue cardstock
Decorative paper
Glittery paper
Satin ribbon
Single hole punch
Sequins
Glue
Cream printer paper
computer
printer

Here's how I made the invite:

First, I decided on the long rectangular shape (4 1/8x9 1/2 inch) of the envelope. Next I cut the navy cardstock down to 4-x-9 inches. This would be the base of the invite.
I created a stencil of the word party by opening a blank workbook sized at 4-x-9 inches in Photoshop. I made the font as large as it could be (to fit in the space) and printed on regular paper. Using a pencil, I carefully connected the letters and cut out the word. I traced it onto a thick piece of cardstock and cut out again to create a stencil.
I traced the stencil onto the glittery paper and cut out 20.

Next I focused on the text. I opened another blank workbook, this time sized at 3-x-8 inches. Then I wrote the following message:

Your presence is requested at a birthday dinner to honor PartySugar

Saturday, September 19, 2009
Cocktails begin at 6:45

Al Hogan's House
Alamo, California 94507

Dress your best!
Regrets only: 415.444.4444

I printed this out and had FabSugar check for spelling and grammatical errors. When I was satisfied with the text, I printed it with a thin border on 23 sheets of nice paper. I cut these down to size.

To create a border for the back of the invite, I cut the decorative paper into 1-inch strips.
Next I cut the satin ribbon down to 3-4 inch pieces. I needed 4 ribbons for each invite, in total 80 ribbons.

Once I had all of the elements ready, it was time to assemble. I punched a whole in the glittery word Party and the base navy cardstock in four places: at the bottom and top of the P and the bottom and top of the Y. I used the ribbon to tie the glittery party stencil to the navy-blue cardstock, and repeated until all the invites were complete.

Then I turned the invite over and glued the decorative paper strips onto the edge of the navy cardstock to create a border. I trimmed off the excess and used this to fill in the remaining sides, repeating until each invite back had a border.

I glued the text to the middle of the back of the invite and repeated until all the invite backs were finished.

To give the invites some sparkle, I glued several sequins to the front (the side with the word party) of each invite. Then I set all of the invites aside to dry for several hours.

I slide the completed invites into the envelopes, addressed them with a nice navy pen, and sent!

View 29 Photos ›

Sale Alert: Midsummer Markdowns at Jonathan Adler

CasaSugar — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 05:30:00 -0700

Everybody loves a good scandal. Especially when it's the "scandalously priced markdowns" at Jonathan Adler. The always happy-chic shop has reduced a selection of accessories including dinnerware, bathware, porcelain frames, table linens, and rugs by 20 to 50 percent. I'm loving this equestrian prepster Chain Rug ($1,000 for the six-by-nine-foot size, reduced from $1,250). But it's more likely that I'll pony up for this cheerful blue melamine Acapulco Tray ($19.60, reduced from $28), which I featured back in April. Need any gifts? There are plenty of goodies on sale.

Food Review: thinkGreen Peanut Butter Chocolate Bar

FitSugar — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 05:50:40 -0700

When it comes to meeting my daily nutritional requirements, I like to eat my vitamins and minerals in whole foods. Occasionally, I fall short on this. I also often need a quick, easily digestible pre-workout snack. I thought I would attempt to satisfy these two needs with the thinkGreen bar, since the label reads "over one tablespoon of power greens."

The ingredient list contains some very green things: spirulina (green algae), spinach and broccoli powder, green tea powder, as well as powders from other veggies and fruits like beets, carrots, and apples.

To see how all these powders mix with chocolate and peanut butter and nutritional details for the bar, read more.

Here is the list of ingredients: Date paste, coating (evaporated cane juice, cocoa butter, chocolate liquor, whole milk powder, soy lecithin, pure natural vanilla), brown rice syrup, peanut butter chips (evaporated cane juice, palm kernel oil, whey powder, partially defatted peanut flour, peanut butter, whole milk solids, soya lecithin, salt), raisins, thinkgreen Superfood (apple pectin, lecithin, organic alfalfa grass juice powder, organic spirulina, chlorella (cracked cell), brown rice germ, spinach leaf powder, broccoli powder, carrot powder, acerola berry juice powder, beet juice powder, green tea extract, grape seed and skin extract, parsley leaf powder, pea powder), raisin paste, peanuts, soy protein isolate, ground peanuts, cocoa soy crisps (soy protein isolate, calcium carbonate, cocoa powder), peanut flour, cocoa powder, honey, chocolate liquor, natural flavors. Contains soy, peanuts and milk.

Serving Size	One bar (50 g)
Calories	200
Total Fat	8 g
Saturated Fat	3 g
Cholesterol	0 mg
Sodium	65 mg
Carbs	28 g
Fiber	2 g
Sugar	21 g
Protein	6 g
Potassium	170 mg
Calcium	10% RDI

The list of ingredients is super long, but similar to the simple Larabar, the base of the thinkGreen Bar is dates. The bar certainly tasted of chocolate and peanut butter, but it was very dry. I definitely needed water to get it down. The dryness factor would keep me from taking this bar on a long bike ride. I ate the bar in the late afternoon while carpooling children about town, and then ran an hour later. The thinkGreen bar kept me energized for a 50-minute pre-dinner run. In the end though, I think I will continue to work on eating my greens, actual spinach and broccoli rather than powdered versions of them. This bar will not become my mainstay energy bar, but I certainly won't avoid it either.

Have you tried this?

Add a Little Shimmer To Your Summertime Shimmy

BellaSugarUK — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 07:30:00 -0700

I was never a big endorser of body bronzers in year's past, but with the launch of this over-sized, dazzling and just the right amount of sparkly Shimmer Brick For Body from Bobbi Brown (£50), I'm totally addicted.

You apply it with the biggest, fluffiest brush that you can find and go to town on your legs, abs, face, decolletage and shoulders. It gives you a gorgeous tinge of tan, with a generous amount of radiance and no traces of orange or glitter whatsoever. It's sublte, sexy and the ultimate body must-have product for Summer.

I'm also a fan of Model Co's Airbrush Illuminiser (£28) because it provides a touch of twinkle with an easy and fun to use mess-free mist applicator. Below are a few other body illumisers that I also think you'll enjoy. Shop away and don't forget to leave a comment letting all of us beauty junkies what your preferred shimmer-enhancing body product is!

Plus-Size Version of The Bachelor: Cool or Not?

FitSugar — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Television networks can get away with a lot during the Summer when most shows are in rerun mode. We've grown to expect reality programming up the wazoo, and this season the lineup includes a new Mike Fleiss (executive producer of The Bachelor) creation called More to Love.

Premiering July 28, the dating show will feature "a single and eligible man with a big waist and an even bigger heart as he romances several confident and secure plus-size women." As with Fleiss's original unscripted dating shows, the leading single guy will whittle the group of 20 women down to a final two. Plus-size supermodel Emme has signed on to host the show.

The idea of More to Love drew criticism when it was announced earlier this year; there's a sense that the show's contestants will be mocked and exploited. There's something that makes me uncomfortable about suggesting people of a certain size can only love and be loved by someone of similar proportions. At the same time, when's the last time you turned on the TV and saw overweight people featured in a show without a weight-loss focus?

What do you think of the show's concept, is it cool or not?

Source

L'Occitane Cherry Blossom Shimmering Body Lotion - £17.25	Too Faced Tanning Bed in a Tube - £15.66
ModelCo Shimmer - Airbrush Illuminiser - £28.00	Nars Sparkling Loose Powder - £27.00
Kitten Classic - £19.50	Playboy Velvet Body Balm Shell - £5.00
Rich Plum Shimmer Lotion - £3.00	Givenchy Poudre du Soir caressing loose powder - £37.00
Nefertiti Honey Shimmering Body Milk 200ml - £6.19	Ruby & Millie Face & Body Metal - £11.00