(ARA) - As temperatures increase, so do the activities on your social calendar. From family reunions to graduations and weddings, warm weather means prime event season. If you're throwing a party of any kind, you likely need a few supplies. But you don't want to invest a lot of money in items you will only use once. So how do you host the party you envision without buying items you'll just have to store and maintain later?
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Commercial refrigerators to hanging racks: Upgrades for the serious home cook
Just as families get larger and eventually outgrow starter homes, burgeoning home chefs often get to the point where a standard home kitchen doesn't accommodate their needs anymore. Where buying a new house might be an option for an expanded family, you might be able to upgrade your current kitchen to accommodate your culinary needs.
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(ARA) - Ever wonder why your meticulously crafted, measured and rolled cookies are just slightly off - whether it's the way the texture feels in your mouth or the buttery taste that is yearning for a little something more. It could be that your desserts are rebelling against the ordinary ingredients you are using.
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How to get farm fresh eggs straight from your backyard
(ARA) - Fresh, healthy eggs. Natural fertilizer and pest control. A chance to teach your kids the value of growing their own food. These are just some of the reasons backyard chickens have moved from a novelty to a mainstream trend.
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Professional grilling tips for the perfect backyard barbecue
(ARA) - Grilling season has arrived. The unique flavors of sizzling meat on a hot grill are loved by Americans young and old. Whether you're an enthusiastic foodie or a simple family chef, it's time to get outside and perfect the art of the barbecue.
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Spring celebrations: Host a bite-sized brunch
(ARA) - Sweep away the gray days of winter and invite sunshine and friends inside. This year, open the door to spring with a bite-sized brunch. Whether entertaining a house full of guests or enjoying a casual meal with friends, put a fun, fresh twist on any celebration with a collection of easy, yet scrumptious, recipes. These recipes feature fresh eggs - a breakfast staple and a sure sign of spring.
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Don't let garden insects destroy the fruits of your labor
(ARA) - Gardeners are familiar with the joy of planting and nurturing flowers, fruits and vegetables to maturity and the bliss of harvesting nature's bounty. One of the few things that can make that bliss turn into annoyance is an infestation of bugs. While many insects are beneficial to the garden, others can be very destructive. Arm yourself with the facts for handling insects in your garden this growing season.
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Spring time is grilltime
As the evenings start to linger a little longer and winter's chill becomes a more distant memory each day, there's no better way to celebrate spring time than by getting out of the house and enjoying it.
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Celebrate the springtime stress free
(ARA) - Nothing helps celebrate springtime more than a gathering with loved ones. With the season's longer days and warmer weather, hosts and hostesses alike are looking for ways to increase the fun as family and friends get together and cut down on stress. You can do a variety of things in advance to make sure you're prepared for spring holidays, graduation parties and the start of barbecue season.
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Women: Life-changing tips for better health and energy
(ARA) - Moms, career women, singles enjoying life with close friends and family, and even women approaching their retirement years - women at every life stage can benefit from adding simple activities to improve their happiness and health. Activities can range from enjoying a delicious breakfast to incorporating a cardiovascular workout to limbering up and stretching those muscles.
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Buying from bulk bins saves cents, makes sense
(ARA) - Want to go green? If you're looking for ways to reduce the packaging your family sends to landfills, a great place to start is your grocery's bulk food aisle. If you've skipped this aisle because you think it's only for buying large quantities, think again. "Bulk" refers to how the store offers the product, not how much you have to buy. In fact, you can buy a pinch or a pound, saving yourself money while reducing packaging waste.
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Feed your fiesta with top 5 Cinco de Mayo food pairings
(ARA) - Cinco de Mayo is the unofficial start to the summer party season, and the perfect opportunity to get together with family and friends. Food is central to any great celebration, but you don't need to spend hours in the kitchen to create a unique and tasty menu. You simply need some great tips and easy tricks for pairing tasty food with refreshing drinks and party success will come naturally.
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Breakfast can be exciting: The proof is in the pudding
(ARA) - Pancake sandwiches, chicken and waffles, egg casseroles -- breakfast seems to be inspiring creativity and breaking barriers morning, noon and night. The only challenge the most important meal of the day has is its designated time slot.
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How food safety knowledge can affect your health
(ARA) - Whether you're feeding yourself or feeding your family, it's important to know that the food you're eating is safe and nutritious. But perceptions about finding a balance between those two essential factors have become muddled in recent years. While there is an increased effort to promote the consumption of healthy foods, particularly fruits and vegetables, there are also conflicting messages about their safety.
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Ham: The perfect choice for the summer barbecue
(ARA) - Summer is upon us, and so is the aroma of delicious home-cooked meals prepared for family and friends out on the grill. To keep dishes interesting and to serve something to please a crowd, you'll need just the right recipe and ingredients. Ham is a versatile protein that can be ideal for many meal occasions.
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Top tasty food trends that can benefit your family's health
(ARA) - A visit to your local grocer provides thousands of food options, and it's likely you've recently noticed an increase in the number of healthier choices, including organic offerings and expanded produce selections. But what are the next big things when it comes to healthy food?
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Healthy children's options are now appearing on restaurant menus
(ARA) - Today's youth might be the first generation of American children to be less healthy than their parents, with childhood obesity more than tripling in the past 30 years. What's encouraging, however, is that this is a time of increased national focus on healthy eating - and it is going to take all stakeholders to make a true and sustained difference. With physical activity initiatives popping up in communities across the country and recently announced new U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines on school lunches, there are more opportunities for children to thrive.
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Weeknight meals made easy
(ARA) - For most busy Americans, cooking weeknight dinners can be challenging. Hectic schedules and weariness from the day's activities often prompt many to reach for the takeout menu instead of opting for quick and convenient meal solutions prepared right in their own kitchen.
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All-weather barbecuing: A guide to getting great smokehouse flavor
(ARA) - It's barbecue season, and no one's ever going to complain about a delicious cut of meat cooked over a hot flame, no matter how you slice it. But do you want to merely satisfy your guests' hunger, or have them talking for the rest of the season about that perfectly juicy and tender smoked pork they had at your house - and secretly wondering how to replicate it?
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Set the scene - and the table - for a perfect summer party
(ARA) - Simply put, summer is entertaining season. Patio parties come together at the last minute and long-planned events fill up the calendar months in advance. But no matter whether you're having an impromptu gathering or an invitation-only celebration, focusing on the flavors and sensory delights of summer will make your party a success, without demanding too much of your time.
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Up in smoke: Don't let a grilling mishap ruin your cookout
(ARA) - What starts out as a fun summer evening with a few friends can quickly become a reminder that not paying attention while grilling can be dangerous.
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Unscrambling the myths behind eggs and cholesterol
(ARA) - When it comes to eggs, dietary cholesterol and heart health, what you think you know may be a bit scrambled. Concerns over dietary cholesterol and its impact on heart disease keeps many people from eating eggs, despite their nutritional benefits. However, more than 40 years of research shows healthy adults can enjoy an egg every day without significantly impacting their risk of heart disease.
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What you need to cook like a pro at home
With the proliferation of shows like "Top Chef" where viewers get a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to create restaurant-quality food, more and more people are becoming interested in raising their own skill level in the kitchen. Cooking better at home has many benefits, including saving money that you would otherwise spend dining out and the satisfaction you can take in creating a delicious meal of your own.
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Add a dash of creativity in the kitchen
(ARA) - Teaching kids how to find their way around the kitchen is a good way to encourage them to think creatively and get excited about eating well. In addition to imparting practical culinary knowledge to children - including math skills by teaching them about measurements - parents can help foster creativity by letting them "mix it up" a bit.
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Add tasty edible plants to your landscape
(ARA) - Window boxes overflowing with blooms, decorative pots lining the driveway with striking colors, and even a flowering vine climbing up the mailbox - the growing season have arrived, and it is time to decorate the landscape.
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Comfort foods plus good health? Yes
Comfort foods remind us of home, warmth and family; they are often simple, everyday foods we had as children.
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Pairing 101: Why care about the pair?
(ARA) - Food experts know that the right wine or spirit can enhance the enjoyment of any dish. The perfect marriage of the right wine and a flavorful meal creates a combination that celebrates and enhances the experience of both.
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Say 'opa' to a better you with a Mediterranean-flavored lifestyle
(ARA) - The Mediterranean lifestyle of eating healthy foods and getting good exercise has won accolades for improving the heart health of millions of Americans, according to the Mayo Clinic.
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Where can you find the best barbecue this Memorial Day?
(ARA) - Memorial Day marks the first long weekend of summer, and it is the perfect opportunity to kick off the season with a trip. Weekend getaways and barbecue are practically synonymous with summer, so why not combine the two? Here are some of the best areas around the country to discover whether you like your barbecue pulled, sliced, shredded, wet or dry.
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School lunch fuels success for spring sports
(ARA) - Springtime packs a punch for students. Between tests, papers, school trips, extracurricular performances and jobs, finding the energy for spring's after-school sports is often a challenge. Time and energy are at a premium. Eating well can help ease the crush.
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