Sometimes Cooked Veggies are Better for You!

Cooked vegetables have been getting a bad rap lately. The raw food movement has made some of us fear that perhaps the only way to get all the nutrients out of our vegetables is to eat them o'natural... But let's face it, certain vegetables just taste better cooked, and cooked a certain way. For example beets, first of all, you have to cook them, and they are MUCH better roasted than boiled. And, it's a shame to think that we couldn't enjoy that delicious spinach in garlic side dish because it no longer has any nutritional value... OR DOES IT???

Check this article out: http://www.ift.org/cms/?pid=1001999

Turns out cooking doesn't always ruin nutrient content, in fact, in some cases it actually increases nutritional value. Here's the recap of the article and what you need to know:

• The highest antioxidant loss was observed in cauliflower after boiling and microwaving, peas after boiling, and zucchini after boiling and frying.
• Green beans, beets, and garlic were found to keep their antioxidant levels after most cooking treatments.
• The vegetables that increased their antioxidant levels after all cooking methods were green beans (except green beans after boiling), celery and carrots.
• Artichoke was the only vegetable that kept its high antioxidant level during all the cooking methods.

This was enlightening and exciting!! Looks like we can all enjoy our spinach side dishes and beet and goat cheese salad.

But all that said, when it comes down to it, if your family (especially the kids) like to eat their vegetables a certain way, listen to them, at least they'll eat um...

Vegetarian Times Magazine needs your vote for Peas of Mind!!

We've been nominated for ANOTHER award! Please visit the link below and vote for Peas of Mind in the "Most Fun Kids Food" category. It's question #2 on the survey. Thanks so much for your support!

http://www.vegetariantimes.com/2009foodieawards

Fun with Oranges

I came across a fun recipe on FamilyFun.com "Gelatine Oranges." This had a lot of potential for a healthy snack for kids. http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50510&cmp=NLC-NL_Recipe_042009_gelatin

The original recipe was simple:
Ingredients:
Oranges
Water
Orange Gelatin (or Jello)

1. Cut the oranges in half from top to bottom and spoon the fruit from each half, leaving the peel intact. Prepare the gelatin according to the package directions, then pour it into the peel halves, adding fruit pieces if desired.

2. Set the halves into ramekins or a muffin tin to keep them from tipping and carefully place them in the refrigerator. Let the gelatin set according to the package directions.

3. Once they're ready, remove the orange halves from the refrigerator, cut them into wedges, and serve. But here's the problem, maybe you and your kids are vegan? You can't eat regular gelatin. AND why waste the actual orange, why not use it and make a natural, vegan gelatin. I did a little research, here's how you can adjust your recipe.

Ingredients:

4 Tbl agar agar (a natural, vegan gelatin made from seaweed)
1 Qt fruit juice (use the juice from the orange and add a little water)

1. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 5 mins.

2. Fill your orange halves as you would have above and chill.

Pizza Cravings???

We just made a yummy pizza bread here at the Peas of Mind head quarters. It's a healthy option for when you're craving that ewwy gooey deliciousness of a regular pizza! You'll see the post sometime next week, stay tuned for the "RECIPEA!"
http://www.peasofmind.com/recipes/recipes.htm

You can also get new "recipeas" each month if you sign up for our newsletter. Every month we come up with healthy kid friendly recipes that are great for the whole family.

Use the "Contact Us" page to be added to our newsletter list :)
http://www.peasofmind.com/contact/contact.htm

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Candied Lemon Peels!

Peas of Mind is based out of San Francisco, California. Although, there are times we miss the seasons of the Midwest and East Coast, there is one thing that we never get sick of-amazing fresh produce!

We are very lucky to have some of the best fruits, vegetables and nuts growing, literally, in our own backyard. Last week a friend of ours was kind enough to deliver hand picked lemons from one of her trees, and of course we accepted with open arms.

We had so many lemons; we made lemon bars, lemonade, and our favorite was candied lemon peels. They are super easy, high in Vitamin C, and satisfies the sweet tooth without the artificial flavors and yucky high fructose corn syrup found in store bought candy.

• 3 Lemons
• 1 cup sugar (add a little extra for sprinkling)
• 1 cup water

Using a vegetable peeler, peel the rind off each lemon in strips (from stem to bottom of lemon). Avoid the white part of the rind, called the pith, because this will make the candy bitter.

In a small saucepan, boil lemon rinds in water. Boil until the rinds are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove rinds, submerge in cold water for 2 minutes and pat dry with a towel.

While your lemon rinds are boiling, begin your candy mixture. Mix together 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water in a non-stick saucepan. Bring this mixture to a boil then add lemon rinds. Leave rinds in the mixture until they are translucent, about 10-15 minutes. Carefully remove rinds with tongs and set them on a plate to cool. Sprinkle a little raw sugar on top for texture, and allow the lemon peels to cool for about 2 hours. these little gems are fantastic on top of frozen yogurt, which of course, is sitting on top of a piping hot Banana Puffet!

Coupon Almost Expired!

Hurry hurry, the Peas of Mind coupon on Facebook is almost expired. We wanted to do something special for all of our Facebook fans and decided to post a coupon that will expire on 4/30/2009! So if you're reading this, and want to get $1.00 off Peas of Mind, become our fan on Facebook TODAY! Click here to see our Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/business/dashboard/#/pages/Peas-of-Mind/24658975178

Peas of Mind - YUMMY Healthy Food for Kids with Organic Ingredients!!

Just had to Share!

We saw this while reading Tablehopper by, Marcia Gagliardi!

Vote for Peas of Mind!

Peas of Mind has just been nominated for Best R&D Team by Food Processing Magazine. This magazine is very well respected in the food industry and we're so proud to have this opportunity!

Now, we need your help to win win win!!

We're up against a major player, Mattson, but we're confident that our innovative and healthy food for kids will pull through! Click on this link http://www.foodprocessing.com/articles/2009/nominateRD.html to vote today.

Thank you for your continued support and we'll keep you posted on the results...fingers crossed!

Peas Visitor of the Week!

We've been lucky enough to have a wonderful little gem with us for the week. She's been keeping us smiling and our laps warm. It's amazing what a little puppy love can do to warm things up a bit. Here's little Yum Yum, turns out she's a fan of healthy food for kids too :) Thanks for letting us keep her for a bit Mercer!

FDA Food Recalls--Stay ontop of the Craziness!

We have bets in the office. We're wondering which nut will be recalled next!?

Food recalls are nothing new, and when you're in the business of producing healthy food for kids, you've got to stay on top of food recalls constantly. After noticing so many shocking recalls, we decided that there should be a super easy way for everyone to keep up to date on FDA food recalls.

That's why we developed the Peas of Mind food recall widget. You can download the widget for free and post it to your blogs, websites, and social network pages like Facebook and Myspace. See the widget on the right side bar, and simply click on "Share."

We hope that you find it as useful as we do and would love to hear your comments on the FDA food recall widget!

Peas Out!