I went grocery shopping yesterday and bought tons of fresh vegetables, but I still had some random veggies left over from the week before, so I made a vegetable stock with them before they went bad.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion
2 stalks celery, including some leaves
2 large carrots
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch of asparagus stems
8 cloves garlic, chopped
8 sprigs fresh parsley
6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 quarts water
Directions:

Chop washed vegetables into 1-inch chunks.
Heat olive oil in a large pot. Add all the vegetables and spices. Cook over high heat for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add water and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Strain. Discard vegetables.
Keep refrigerated and use in a week or freeze it for later use.

It’s all we’re being told to do nowadays – watch what you eat for you are what you eat. So if you eat junk food, your body becomes nothing less than a junkyard that is subject to disease and illness; if you eat fatty food, you become overweight and even obese; and if you eat healthy food, you’re blessed with a healthy body and mind. The problem however is not that we don’t know what to do; it’s that we don’t know how to do it because we think it’s hard to eat healthy. I’ll let you in on a secret folks – it’s easy to eat healthy if you go about it the right way. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Never skip breakfast – it’s as simple as that. If you like a cooked breakfast, go ahead and eat up, just limit your portions and the fat content. Cooked or uncooked, breakfast is a must. It is the most important meal of the day because it boosts your metabolism and helps you lose weight faster. Also, it provides you with enough energy to last through the day and prevents you from gorging on snacks as you get hungry sometime before lunch. If your mornings are rushed and you’re in the habit of skipping breakfast, change your routine by waking up 10 minutes earlier and eating a bowl of cereal and some fruit before you leave home.

2. Don’t allow temptation to get the better of you – I love snacking on chips and every other salty and sugary snack that was invented. Every time I read or watch TV, I automatically head for the kitchen and come back with a bag of goodies that don’t turn out to be so good for my health and weight. When my weight started ballooning up in spite of all the exercising I was doing, I decided to remove temptation from the way. So the next time I shopped, I did not buy a single snack. The craving did call when I took out my book, but because there was no snack at hand, I had to go without. It was difficult at first, but in a matter of days, abstinence became a habit that replaced unhealthy snacking.

3. Allow yourself the occasional treat – The reason it’s easy for me to stick to my diet is that I’m always looking forward to the one day I allow myself to eat anything I like. And even though this day comes once a fortnight, I still manage to stay true to my healthy eating habits because I know I can have that ice cream I desire and the cake I crave two Sundays from now. If you think this is a bad idea because you’re going to eat up all the calories you’ve lost in the past two weeks in one day, don’t worry – your instincts automatically prevent you from pigging out and you limit yourself to small portions of your favorite food. And even if you do binge once, the following weeks become easier to control.

So there you have it, a few easy ways to eat healthy and become a healthier and fitter person.

This guest post is contributed by Shannon Wills, she writes on the topic of physical therapy assistant . She welcomes your comments at her email id: shannonwills23@gmail.com.

3 cups fresh Blackberries
2 cups Water
1 package Powdered fruit pectin
5 cups Sugar

Crush fruit thoroughly. Add water and fruit pectin. Stir until pectin is dissolved. Bring to a boil. Boil 5-10 minutes. Add sugar. Stir until dissolved. Boil 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently, or until thick. Let cool.

1 whole chicken
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup ketchup
2/3 cup chili sauce
4 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons prepared mustard
2 teaspoons celery seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 thin slices of lemon

In a saucepan melt the butter. Add garlic. Cook for 1 minute.
Add ketchup, chili sauce, brown sugar, onion, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, celery seed and salt. Bring to a boil. Place chicken in a baking dish. Pour sauce over it. Top chicken with lemon slices. Bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour, while basting with the sauce.

Serves 6

Serves 6

Filling
4 teaspoons grated lime zest
1/2 cup lime juice from 3 to 4 limes (or use bottled Key Lime Juice)
4 large egg yolks
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Graham Cracker Crust
11 graham crackers , chopped into fine crumbs (1 1/4 cups)
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted

Whipped Cream Topping
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

To prepare the Filling: Whisk together the lime zest and yolks in a medium bowl for about 2 minutes. Beat in milk, then lime juice; set aside at room temperature and let thicken.

To prepare the crust: Place oven rack in the center position and preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Mix graham cracker crumbs and sugar in medium bowl. Add butter; combine with fork until well blended. Press mixture into 9-inch pie pan to form an even crust. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Transfer pan to wire rack; cool to room temperature, about 20 minutes.

Once cooled, pour lime filling into crust; bake until center is set, about 15 minutes. Return pie to wire rack; cool to room temperature. Refrigerate at least 3 hours.

Prepare the Whipped Cream: Whip the cream in a medium bowl to very soft peaks. Adding confectioners’ sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, continue whipping until peaks are just-stiff. Spread evenly over the filling with a rubber spatula. Serve immediately.

I prepared this dish last night and the fresh flavors were out of this world. Each bite packed so many great flavors and it was pretty easy to prepare. Yellow squash would work great in this recipe as well.

10 oz. Linguine
4 medium zucchini
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
1/2 to 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
juice from 1 lemon
5 tablespoons light cream
4 tablespoons Pecorino Romano cheese
salt, to taste
fresh cracked black pepper, to taste

Cook the Linguine according to the package instructions. Meanwhile, slice the zucchini into thin ribbons using a vegetable peeler. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and cook for 20-30 seconds. Lower the heat and add the zucchini. Stir frequently for about 5 minutes. Stir in the basil, red pepper flakes, lemon juice, cream, cheese, salt and black pepper.
To serve, place some of the pasta on your serving dish and then pile some of zucchini on top.

Serves 4