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stuffed pasta shells recipe

A Fun Twist on Two Favorite Dishes!

This month is all about Spend Smart. Eat Smart. recipe mashups: we hope it encourages you to try something new! As a busy mom, I surprisingly enjoy meal planning because it gives me a sense of control for those extra busy weeks. Even though I enjoy it, every so often I find myself in a recipe rut.

Slow Cooker Pork Roast

Recipe Mashup – Slow Cooker Pork Roast on a Sandwich

This month we are sharing food mashups. These are ideas for using foods or recipes in unexpected ways. You will hear about a mashup from each of the Spend Smart. Eat Smart. bloggers through the month of June! Have you tried our delicious Slow Cooker Pork Roast? This is one of my favorite recipes on our website. It is rich and tasty and has bright citrus flavors that are somewhat unexpected in a pork recipe.

farmers market produce

Double Up Food Bucks

One of the best things about summer in Iowa is the wonderful fruits and vegetables that come into season. Sweet corn, summer tomatoes, and fresh green beans are high on my list. In Iowa, we are lucky to have a program that helps Iowans who participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eat more fruits and vegetables while sticking to their grocery budget.

bowl of yogurt with granola

Protein Needs at Different Stages of Life

In last week’s blog, Justine shared all about protein, including why we need it, how to determine how much we need, and what foods contain protein. Today I’m sharing a sample one-day meal plan for a 15-year-old male, a 40-year-old female, and a 65-year-old female who all get 30-60 minutes a day of physical activity. This meal plan is an outline of the protein and some of the other food groups people may need in a day.

high protein snacks and meals

How Much Protein Do I Need?

I hear and read a lot about eating protein foods, but I often end up confused. Am I not eating enough protein? Am I eating too much? This week and next week on the blog, Jody and I are digging deeper into protein needs to help us all better understand this topic.

getting ready to plant tomatoes in the garden

Free Garden Seeds

Have you noticed the displays with garden seeds going up in the stores in your community? Those displays are a sign to me that it is time to start thinking about our garden for the summer. We do not plant our garden until after the middle of May to avoid freezing, but it is fun to start planning what we want to plant. For us, the garden is a family project that gives us tasty fresh vegetables, but it can feel like a risk. What if the seeds do not grow? What if an animal eats the plants? What if we do not like what we grow?