By Jenna Weber

This week’s menu is all about keeping your heart healthy! Salmon, tofu and legumes make up the protein sources in these easy, delicious meals and provide vitamins and minerals to keep you feeling and looking your best! Explore new flavors with the fire pot soup, which is the perfect warming meal on a cold winter evening. On your busiest day, try my sweet and spicy glazed salmon sandwich—it’s ready in twenty minutes and combines zesty flavors and heart healthy fats. Enjoy! Read More

By Caroline Murray

Skip the morning OJ and try this nutritious, good-for-your-belly juice instead. Packed with exotic fruity flavors, this 50-calorie shot is a good substitute for a daily multivitamin.

The product: GoodBelly Plus probiotic juice drink ($3.99 per pack; Available at Whole Foods Market, Safeway, and specialty stores nationwide)

The taste factor: The juice comes in four flavors: Blueberry acai (our favorite), mango, strawberry, and pomegranate blackberry. Although it contains 17 vitamins and minerals, we couldn’t taste a thing but juicy goodness.

The health factor: Probiotics, or “good bugs,” promote healthy digestion and can help with icky tummy troubles like gas, bloating, and constipation. GoodBelly—which contains a patented probiotic strain—is organic, dairy-free, soy-free, and 100% vegan.

Editor’s pick: Take this shot with your breakfast in the morning or use as a midday pick-me-up. GoodBelly promises that after 12 days you’ll notice an improvement in your digestive health or the product is free.

Why we love it: One little 2.7 oz shot will satisfy your juice craving and make you feel like you’re doing something good for your body—an excellent addition to our healthy living goals for 2012!

By Caitlyn Elf

This time of the year, comfort food seems to call our name at every meal. The only problem: while it’s warming our souls, it may also be adding unwanted pounds to our bodies. However, that doesn’t have to be the case. It is possible to have a hearty, wholesome meal that will fill you up and satisfy your cravings while also adding nutrition to your diet.

For this week’s Recipe Makeover I tackled a classic comfort food dish—The Dijon Croque Monsieur. Using this recipe, I made just two easy substitutions to increase the fiber and reduce the sodium for a healthy mid-day meal.

• 8 (1-ounce) slices Italian bread (For this I substituted 8, 1-ounce, slices of whole grain bread for added fiber)
• 6 ounces thinly sliced ham (To cut down on the typically high sodium level, I used low-sodium ham)

This sandwich came out perfect! The heartiness from the whole grain bread only added to the comfort of the dish and the extra sodium in the ham was certainly not missed! A healthy lunch to serve for the whole family or savor for yourself.

By Jenna Weber

Get creative with your protein sources this week and try these three tasty meals with beef, chicken, and tofu! Make the beef dish on Sunday because it takes the longest to cook. Then, all week long enjoy the leftovers while making quick and easy cajun chicken pasta and Vietnamese tofu sandwiches (Banh Mi). If possible, buy local, organic meat and non-GMO tofu. Read More

By Caitlyn Elf

With the start of the New Year, there is always a lot of talk about diets, losing weight, and cutting calories. Eating healthy is not about deprivation, however, so I decided to feature a cookie recipe for this week’s Recipe Makeover!

Using this classic Mississippi Mud Cookie recipe, I made a few simple swaps resulting in an easy, guilt-free indulgence that is sure to fit any healthy-eating routine! Filled with antioxidants, including dark chocolate and fiber from whole-grain flour, these cookies can make a great afternoon snack—perfect for satisfying that sweet tooth while also filling you up!

Follow the below substitutions for an ooey, gooey treat that won’t leave you feeling weighed down:

• 1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels (I replaced the semisweet morsels with 1 cup dark chocolate—at least 70% cacao—to increase the antioxidants.)
• 1/2 cup butter, softened (To cut down on cholesterol but keep the moisture, I halved the amount of butter, using only 1/4 cup and adding 1/4 cup of 0% plain Greek yogurt for the rest.)
• 1 cup sugar (For a natural sweetness that won’t cause a blood-sugar spike, I replaced the 1 cup of sugar with 2/3 cup Agave nectar.)
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (To increase the fiber in this recipe I used 1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill, in place of the all-purpose. Whole-grain flour helps keep you fuller longer and is a great source of iron.)

The substitutions yielded a great cookie! Dense and hearty from the whole-grain flour with a great fudge taste from the dark chocolate morsels. Certainly an indulgence worth having!