Many times I’ve walked the produce section of the supermarket and seen these large, round and yellow squash called Spaghetti Squash, but having never eating it, I always overlooked it. I love all kinds of squash, so why not this one ? Well this past week Katie and I picked up a spaghetti squash and yesterday we finally made it. I must say, it was pretty good. I sauteed the spaghetti squash in some butter and fresh herbs and it was quite nice. Next time I want to try it with tomato sauce. Seems like a great way to get kids to eat veggies.

1 spaghetti squash
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Use a sharp knife and carefully cut the squash in half lengthwise. Place the cut side down, in a baking dish. Add enough water to cover 1/2-inch up the sides, cover with aluminum foil. Bake for about 45 minutes. Turn squash over and cover again and cook for another 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven.
Use a spoon to remove the seeds. Using a fork, carefully pull the strands of squash away from the peel and place into a bowl.
Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Add the butter, spaghetti squash, basil, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper and toss to heat and combine. Serve immediately.

I’ve had a surplus of fresh veggies in my refrigerator, so I decided to use them all today in my fried rice recipe. Of course you can use frozen vegetables, but nothing compares to the taste of fresh ingredients. I didn’t use any egg in this fried rice recipe, so it is perfect for you vegetarians out there.

3 cups white rice (cooked)
3 tablespoons sesame oil
3/4 cup carrots, chopped
3/4 cup green beans, chopped
1 medium yellow squash, chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 small red chili pepper, chopped
½ cup low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Cook your rice ahead of time according to the package directions and set aside. In a wok heat sesame oil. Add carrots, onions, chili pepper and garlic and stir fry for about 3-4 minutes or until the carrots begin to become tender. Add in the green beans and squash and stir fry for another 2-3 minutes. Lower the heat and add the rice and soy sauce and stir fry for another minute or until heated thoroughly.

Serves 4-6

I have too many blueberries! I froze a bunch of them, but decided to make a blueberry pie with the rest since it wasn’t uncomfortably hot out today.

1 9-inch frozen pie crust
4 cups blueberries
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup water

Place half of the blueberries in the pie crust. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the remaining blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, salt and water. Cook until thickened. Remove from heat and add butter. Pour over the berries in the pie crust. Let cool and then serve with whipped cream.

Today I have a guest post from Laura Soderberg at Find Nutrition Supplements.

IBS Background Check

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional bowel disorder that mainly affects people with bad eating habits. There’s no certain cause of IBS but a person is diagnosed with IBS due to acute gastrointestinal infection that occasionally occurs in a bad case of food poisoning. Symptoms include chronic diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain that is relieved by a quick bowel movement and a bloated stomach. Basically, a person affected by IBS will not feel normal and will make more than needed trips to the bathroom.

Types of IBS Patients

* Diarrhea-predominant (IBS-D)
* Constipation-predominant (IBS-C)
* IBS with a regular stool pattern (IBS-A or pain-predominant)

The Fight against IBS

In a research conducted by the health organization, it has been found that IBS affects more women than men. The fight against IBS is often harder for a woman especially during her menstrual periods. IBS is basically the silent enemy attacking us when we least expect it. If not properly taken care of, IB patients may find themselves with a permanent back pain and other health problems.

For now, there’s no permanent cure for IBS but in cases where patients have no control over this disease, they are prescribed several medications by doctors such as stool softeners and laxatives to help reduce IBS symptoms. But medications alone won’t solve the problem. The problem can only be overcome with a good and healthy diet.

Healthy IBS Diet

Since there’s no cure for IBS, patients are advised to keep a healthy diet so as not to trigger the symptoms. Several IBS sufferers may find it hard to stick to the diet but there’s no other initiative to take when it comes to this. A healthy diet is the only option to keep IBS patients healthy, period! When observing a healthy IBS diet, patients of irritable bowel syndrome will be able to let the walls of their intestines grow stronger again. IBS patients are advised to note down their food intake in a diary so that they will be able to track down and know what food triggered their symptoms. Though the diet might go on for a long period of time, IBS patients will come to realize that it was a worthy sacrifice when they are able to live normal again.

Don’ts in an IBS Healthy Diet

It’s not possible to list down what are the foods that trigger the IBS symptoms as the reactions experienced from the IBS patients differ when it comes to consuming these foods. This is where the IBS food diary comes in hand.

Nevertheless, here are a few important instructions to follow for IBS patients on the road to a healthy diet. It is not necessary for every IBS patient to have the same reaction to the following foods.

Avoid

* Gassy Foods

It is important to avoid eating too much of food that will cause intestinal gas. The following forms part of the gassy food criteria:

* Vegetables (broccoli, artichokes, beans, cauliflower, green peppers, lentils, etc)
* Fruits (oranges, apples, raisins, prunes, bananas, etc)
* Milk Products (milk, cheese and anything containing milk)
* Whole Grains (barley, oat bran and wheat)
* Snack Foods (candies and gums with sorbitol, nuts and seeds)
* Caffeinated Drinks (coffee and sodas with caffeine)
* Carbonated Drinks (sodas)
* Fruit Juices (fructose, sucrose and sorbitol)

The foods mentioned here do not mean that IBS patients can’t take them but they should be able to know based on their experience on what they can or cannot take. If they are able to consume certain foods, they should do so moderately but if their system is not strong enough to take some of them then they should eliminate the intake of these foods in their diet until they are fit and strong enough to consume them.

Important Reminder

In order for a healthy diet to be effective on an IBS patient, certain daily habits such as chewing gum, smoking and heavy intake of alcohol should no longer be continued. Other than that, if a person affected by IBS is not confident of creating his/her own diet then he/she should consult a registered dietician for a proper suggestion.

Find Nutrition Supplements: http://www.findnutritionsupplements.com/

4 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1 zucchini, sliced thin
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 green pepper, chopped
1 cup fresh corn (or frozen)
1 medium tomato, sliced thin
1 frozen pie crust
olive oil

Saute the onion, garlic and peppers in a little olive until the onions and peppers are tender. In a bowl, whisk the eggs, then slowly add the milk. Add the salt and pepper to the egg mixture.
Spoon 3/4 of the onion-pepper mixture onto the bottom of the pie crust. Layer slices of zucchini on top. Add a layer of tomato slices on top. Sprinkle half of the cheese and corn on top of the tomato. Add another layer of zucchini slices. Top with the rest of the onion-pepper mixture and corn. Sprinkle the rest of the
cheese on top of that. Pour the egg mixture over everything.
Bake at 375 degrees F for about 45 minutes uncovered.

Serves 4-6

1 large eggplant
3 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
3 eggs + 1/2 cup water
3-4 cups tomato sauce
2 cups ricotta cheese
3-4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
oil, for frying

Peel the eggplant and then slice it thin. Beat together the eggs and water in a shallow dish. Dip the eggplant slices in the egg and then into the breadcrumbs and coat evenly. Heat the oil over medium heat in a heavy pan. Fry the eggplant slices until lightly browned. Coat the bottom of a baking dish with some of the tomato sauce. Make a layer of eggplant over the sauce. Spread some of the Ricotta cheese over the layer of eggplant. Top with some more sauce. Repeat these layers until you use all of the eggplant. Spread the mozzarella cheese over the top. Bake in a 350 degrees F oven for about 30 minutes.

Serves 6-8