Coral Calcium: Properties and Health Benefits of the Calcium Dietary Supplement

Coral calcium is a dietary supplement harvested from coral in Okinawa, Japan, and is said to be extremely rich in calcium and other trace minerals.

Can Coral Calcium Really Help to Prevent a Large Assortment of Diseases?

Health food stores and pharmacies all stock a bevy of calcium supplements, each one offering varying degrees of effectiveness. As calcium is an important nutrient for your overall health, it is vital that you receive the daily recommended value of this mineral, either through food or through a supplement. One calcium supplement in particular that has been garnering much attention in the health community for some time is coral calcium.

Coral calcium is a dietary supplement harvested from coral in Okinawa, Japan, and is said to be extremely rich in calcium and other trace minerals, and is much more effective than other calcium dietary supplements on the market today. Read more about the health benefits of coral calcium...

Which is Better for You: Tea of Coffee?

America has primarily been a coffee drinking nation. In the beginning, it was just plain coffee, black or with milk and sugar. But now, we've graduated from the traditional coffee flavor to a multitude of gourmet blends and fanciful sweeteners. We've made coffee a major industry, partly because of our desire for a rich, satisfying cup of steaming coffee, but also because our bodies rely on that caffeine-laden pick-me-up in the morning and often throughout the day.

But it has been argued that too much coffee can ultimately be bad for you. Much of this assumption is based in part on myth and conjecture. Recent studies have revealed that coffee actually possesses a surprising amount of health benefits.

However, many consumers have already made the switch to drinking tea in favor of coffee, as we've grown more conscious of our health and the healthful qualities inherent in tea, particularly green tea and black tea, as well as many herbal teas.

So which is actually better for you, tea or coffee? Read more...

Common Natural Sweeteners and Their Health Benefits

Using Natural Sweeteners Found Int He Home in Place of Refined Sugar

Our craving for sweets is usually appeased by delving into an assortment of chocolates, a slice of cake, a generous scoop of ice cream, or other such decadent fare. The key ingredient in all of these items and essentially most of the sweets available on the market is sugar. Aside from the added sugars already inherent in candy, juice, soda, and more, we often add sugar to other items we consume, such as tea and coffee or on top of cereal.

Too much sugar is of course a major contribution to our caloric intake and weight gain, but it seems hard to avoid or resist. Artificial sweeteners abound in the marketplace, but there is a lot of speculation as to the long-term negative health aspects of such products. Natural sweeteners like stevia are available in health food stores, but there is a host of natural sweeteners that have been quite common in supermarkets for a very long time, and are likely sitting on your shelf in your pantry at this very moment. Read more...

The Best Gluten-Free Cookbooks: Hundreds of Gluten-Free Recipes at Your Fingertips

Try These Gluten-free Cookbooks for Classic and Unique Gluten-free Recipes

Celiac disease is a malady that disrupts the digestive process and impedes the absorption of healthy nutrients into the body. Similarly, some individuals are simply sensitive to wheat or gluten, also unable to healthily digest foods that contain gluten. As gluten is often found in wheat, flour, oats and barley, among other products, many desserts and baked goods often need to be avoided in a gluten-free diet. A basic search of the internet will yield a large assortment of gluten-free recipes, but a gluten-free cookbook will place a vast amount of gluten-free recipes at your fingertips for easy perusal at any time.

There are plenty of gluten-free cookbooks available in bookstores, and these are some of the best.

Aptly named, The Best Gluten-Free Family Cookbook by Donna Washburn and Heather Butt is full of delicious recipes as well as useful cooking tips and techniques. From basic gluten-free bread recipes to unique and tasty desserts, The Best Gluten-Free Family Cookbook is sure to provide an ample supply of gluten-free recipes for you or your family. Read more about the cookbooks...

Vegetarian Stuffing Recipes and Gluten-Free Stuffing Recipes for the Thanksgiving Holiday

One thing that is always certain at Thanksgiving dinner is that there never seems to be enough stuffing to go around. People love stuffing on Thanksgiving, helping themselves to extra portions and fighting over the last remaining spoonful. Who can blame them? Stuffing is always delicious and a rare treat, and if its a family recipe, then it is even more prized than traditional store-bought stuffings.

But if you're a vegetarian or you possess a gluten intolerance, and you're going to be enjoying the holiday dinner at family or friends who do not share the same food restrictions, then you may have be unable to partake and enjoy of the wonderful stuffing that the other guests all consume greedily. They may express false sympathy for you, but inside, they are secretly happy, because it means more for them.

But there just happens to be a number of vegetarian stuffing recipes and gluten-free stuffingrecipes available on the internet, making this holiday treat accessible to everyone. If you are preparing the Thanksgiving feast yourself, you can easily prepare one of these alternative stuffing recipes for your family and guests to enjoy, or you can bring it to the home of the hosting party as an additional side dish.

For the list of great websites where you can find a large assortment of vegetarian and gluten-free stuffing recipes for Thanksgiving, please click this link

3 Easy Apple Cider Recipes

Apple cider is a popular beverage once fall arrives, and it is enjoyed through much of the harvest calendar months. But there is much more you can do to enjoy the refreshing tartness of fresh apple cider. Recipes for mulled cider, apple cider stews, apple butter and more can be found all over the internet. I myself have tried several recipes using apple cider as one of the main ingredients, and with a few modifications and some experimentation, I've found some that I and my family have greatly enjoyed and now insist upon making every fall.

Mulled Cider Recipe
To start off simply, mulled cider is quick and easy to make, and is especially heartwarming and deliciously refreshing on chilly fall days and nights. Mulled cider is essentially apple cider simmered with various spices, usually, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg, but there are many variations that also use orange zest, cardamom, allspice, and others.

The mulled cider I have come to rely on starts with a 1/2 gallon of apple cider. Simply pour the apple cider into a large saucepan and allow it to heat up. While the cider is being heated, prepare 3-5 sticks of cinnamon (or 2-3 tablespoons of ground cinnamon), 2 tablespoons of whole cloves (or 2 teaspoons of ground cloves), and a teaspoon of nutmeg. Add the spices to the apple cider in the saucepan and cover until simmering. Then remove the cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes more.

For some variations, I sometimes will add a small handful of blackberries, crushing them against the sides of the saucepan once they have been simmering for about 15 minutes. You can also add orange zest, cardamom, or brown sugar if you desire. Adults can add a cup of rum or a 1/2 cup of brandy to the pot as well if they so desire.

After simmering, drain the mulled cider through a fine mesh sieve and serve with a cinnamon stick for garnish, or a tiny sprinkle of nutmeg.

Continue to the other two recipes...

The Rules of Office Kitchen Etiquette

Common Sense & Courtesy Goes a Long Way in the Office Kitchen

If you've ever worked in an office, you've probably seen quite a lack of office kitchen etiquette. You know what I mean: Dirty dishes in the sink, crumbs or other leftover food particles all over the kitchen counter or the table, about two spoonfuls of coffee left in the coffee pot, filling the office kitchen with the heavenly scent of rapidly burning coffee.

Many office workers simply forget or choose to ignore the rules of office kitchen etiquette, and depending upon the size of your office kitchen, they can be many indeed. However, most of the rules are simply common sense and an ounce of courtesy, so there really is no excuse.

Follow this link to see the list of rules pertaining to office kitchen etiquette that should cover most office kitchens quite nicely.

Sumac Spice - Uses in Middle Eastern Cuisine and Health Benefits

The Spice of the Sumac Berries Can Be Used in Many Different Dishes

Not to be confused with the poison sumac plant that flourishes in North America (although it is a close relation), sumac spice comes from berries harvested from a bush that can be found in the wild all across the Mediterranean. Sumac spice figures heavily in Arabic cuisine, as well as many other Middle Eastern countries such as Turkey, Greece, and Lebanon. It is often substituted for lemon or vinegar in many dishes due to a more favorable tart and tangy flavor.

If you have no experience with Arabic or Lebanese food, than you probably have not heard of sumac spice, but it worth seeking out in ethnic markets as it can be employed for many culinary uses, and contains a few health benefits as well.

To make sumac spice, the small berries are first harvested, dried and then crushed, but can also be used fresh, mashing them to use the resulting sumac juice to flavor various dishes and sauces.

Often utilized in Arabic, Indian, and Lebanese cuisine as a rub on meats and kebabs, it can also be added to marinades, soups and stews, rice dishes, casseroles, salad dressings, dips, and many other dishes for additional elements of flavor. It can also simply be used on the table as a condiment to replace salt and pepper.

Read more about the Health Benefits of Sumac Spice

Health Benefits of the Apricot, an Excellent Fruit for Your Diet

Apricots Are Very Healthy and Are an Excellent Choice for Dieters

The apricot is often overlooked in favor of other common fruits such as the apple, pear, orange or banana. But the apricot is just as healthy as those other fruits, in some cases even healthier. Aside from the many health benefits of the apricot, it is also a wonderful diet food, providing a large amount of healthful nutrition to the body as well as keeping down caloric intake, as they are very low in calories as compared to other fruits (only about 50 calories for three apricots)!

Like apples or oranges, there are several different varieties of apricot, but you will typically find only one or two types to choose from in your local supermarket or fruit stand, depending upon your location. Appearing as small, golden-orange fruits, they all share the same particular health benefits, so its really just a matter of taste as to which type of apricot you would favor. Read more...

What is Saffron and Why is it the Most Expensive Spice in the World?

So what exactly makes saffron the world's most expensive spice? It's not necessarily its flavor or any health benefits associated with the reddish-yellow spice, although it does lend a distinct, wonderful flavor to all manner of dishes. Rather, its the cultivation process.

It has been estimated that approximately one acre of purple crocuses, the flower from which saffron threads are harvested, will yield only one pound of saffron. This is because each crocus flower only produces 3 threads of saffron. About 14,000 threads (actually the dried stigmas of the crocus flower) equals one ounce of saffron, so that should give you an idea of the labor intensive process that goes into harvesting saffron threads. Saffron is harvested in Spain, Greece, India, Turkey, and a few other countries. It can be sold as saffron threads, or as a ground saffron powder, but culinary experts prefer the threads, as the flavor is typically stronger. Read more about Saffron...