75 Ways to Start Your Summer Off Light
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Healthy Tips for Summer
Beat the heat with our first summer tip: Give Ice Pops a Grown-Up Spin.
A grown-up ice pop, just in time for summer: It’s made from fresh melon, chile, and lime—both juice and rind. A bit of pectin helps keep all the ingredients incorporated evenly; without it, they tend to separate.
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Add Zing to Your Guacamole
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Pack a Cooler
For general cooler packing, here are a few tips. Pack raw meats, fish, and produce sealed in plastic bags on the bottom. Next layer in produce, dairy, eggs, and perishable condiments. Save space by packing just what you think you’ll need. And remember to fill the cooler all the way up; the ice will melt faster if it’s full of room-temperature air.
If you store your cooler in a hot garage, bring it inside the night before so you can start with a cooled-off vessel. Use solid ice or reusable gel-filled ice packs on the bottom, pack food, then fill in the gaps with bags of cubed ice. Once it’s packed and ready, stow in the trunk, away from light, and put a blanket or sleeping bag around it for extra insulation.
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Get the Kids in the Kitchen with Matisse
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Fix a Gorgeous Salad
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Obtain Water from Pasta and Grains
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Oil Up
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Stay Hydrated
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Celebrate Summer's Bounty
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Get Smoother Skin
Peel 1 cucumber and mash; place in a strainer to drain water. Add 1 tablespoon of sugar and mix well. Apply on your face and leave for 10 minutes, then wash with cold water.
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Don’t Turn into a Tomato, Eat One
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Drink Your Fruits
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Nix the FroYo Mix
Instead, stick with one flavor and get a variety of flavor and textures from our Monkey Business topping combination.
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Learn How to Properly Grill Chicken
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Keep Salads Simple
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Go Nutty for Supple Skin
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Have Kid-Friendly Snacks On Hand
Between meals, most kids get hungry as wolves, and snacking is an important energy bridge. Snacking ought to be healthy, but it still needs to have the crunch, chew, and bright flavors of a real treat. Homemade snacks are great. But sometimes packaged snacks trump everything. We taste-tested our way to the best Kid-Friendly Snacks.
- Best String Cheese Winner: Stringsters Reduced-Fat Mozzarella String Cheese
- Best Cheese Cracker Winner: Cheez-It Baked Snack Crackers Made with Whole Grain
- Best Fruit Puree Winner: Peter Rabbit Organics Pear and Apple Pure Fruit Snack
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Get Peachy
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Go Bananas for Berries
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Order Your Salad Chopped with Tomatoes
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Revitalize with Romaine
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Follow the Rules of Safe Picnic Packing
Transport on ice. Food should be chilled and packed in a cooler with ice or ice packs to keep them cold while they travel.
Heat just before taking. If you're bringing a baked dish, it can be cooked the day before. Reheat just before heading out; wrap the hot container in a towel, and tote carefully to the picnic.
Serve—then stow. Once folks have gone through the line and served themselves, put chilled dishes back in the cooler to keep them cold. Anyone who wants seconds can dig back into the cooler.
Use the two-hour/one-hour rule. Don’t let food sit out for more than two hours (or one hour if it’s a hot day over 90 degrees).
Toss the leftovers. The food will have been handled a lot, and possibly will have been sitting out for a while.
For tasty picnic ideas, see our Portable 4th of July Menu.
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Don't Forget to Count Meat, Poultry, Fish
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Consume Fluid-Rich Foods
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Stock up on Strawberries
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Have a Drink with Each Meal
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Add More Fruits and Vegetables
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Team Up with Mother Nature
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Grill Your Veggies
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Do the Math in Margaritaville
Happy Hour Frozen Margarita vs. our Classic, on the Rocks
A regular happy hour frozen margarita is around 12 ounces and weighs in at 410 calories (56% coming from sugar). Our lightened version is 130 calories for a 6-ounce portion with just 14% coming from sugar.
The Cooking Light Margarita:
1 ounce premium or silver tequila, 1/2 ounce Cointreau or other orange-flavored liqueur, 1.5 ounces fresh-squeezed lime juice. Shake with 3/4 cup ice; garnish with lime.
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Instead of Tomato Salsa, Opt for Watermelon Salsa
Mix ¼ cup lime juice, 1 tablespoon honey, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, and ⅛ teaspoon salt in a bowl. Add 3 cups diced seeded melon (use any ripe melon or combination of melons you like), 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, and 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced. Toss gently to combine; cover and chill until ready to serve.
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An Apple a Day
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Grab a Glass of Green Tea
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Spice Up Corn on the Cob
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Rev Up your Morning with Water
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Open the Refrigerator, Close the Freezer
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Grow Radishes
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Prep Kid-Friendly Food in a Flash
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Grill Potatoes for Potato Salad
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Take Two: Strawberry Sorbet vs. Strawberry Frozen Yogurt
Strawberry Sorbet (1/2 cup)
121 calories
0 milligrams calcium
0 grams protein
Strawberry Nonfat Frozen Yogurt (1/2 cup)
117 calories
150 milligrams calcium
4 grams protein
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Instead of OJ, Reach for an Orange
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Make Your FroYo a Tropical Treat
2 tablespoons pineapple + 2 tablespoons mango + 1 tablespoon shredded coconut; 50 calories
See more Healthy Frozen Yogurt Toppings.
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Grab a Slice
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Keep Kids’ Snacks Portable
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Make the Farmers Market Fun for the Family
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Keep the Kitchen Cool
All start with smart supermarket choices—precooked eggs, canned or jarred tuna, rotisserie chickens, and steamed lump crabmeat. All these meals are also ideal for people who live in dorm rooms or other small spaces without full kitchens. For cool ideas see our lineup of No-Cook Meals.
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Fear Not the Fire
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Stock Up on Healthy Road Trip Snacks
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Give Your Burger a Sun-Dried Summer
2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes + 1/4 cup fresh spinach + 1 ounce goat cheese
Don't run out of ways to top your summer burgers. Check out more 100-Calorie Burger Toppings.
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Be Portion Aware
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Route Your Flight to a Healthy Hub
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Make Your Own Ice Cream
Sweet lemon verbena is a calling card of the summer season, making our recipe for Lemon Verbena Ice Cream a surefire hit.
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Give Your Quinoa a Summer Spin
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Instead of a Flour Tortilla, Reach for Corn Tortillas
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Take Two: Frozen Coffee Drink vs. Ice Cream
If ice cream's fat content gives you cold feet, choose a light version; the fat tally drops to four grams and the calories to 125. If the coffee drink is your preferred choice, try it with skim milk to knock off 30 calories and all the fat.
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Cut Back on Hidden Sodium
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Freeze a Classic Cocktail
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Boost Your Salad
A salad in a supporting role is always a safe choice, but what about when you want a plate of greens to take center stage? To that we say, double the greens and dressing, pick your favorite 100-Calorie Salad Booster, then add extra protein (see bulleted list below) for a super salad supper that clocks in under 400 calories.
- Flank steak (3 ounces broiled): 375 calories
- Chicken breast (3 ounces roasted): 360 calories
- Shrimp (¼ pound grilled): 345 calories
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Keep Your Scoops Light
Our scoop stats per ½ cup: 150 calories; 5 grams fat (3 grams saturated) and no partially hydrogenated oils; less than 4 teaspoons (17g) sugar
Check out the Best Light Scoops of Summer.
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Color Your Palate
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Soothe Sensitive Skin
Take 2 tablespoons oatmeal and 1 tablespoon baking soda and add water to make paste. Apply to face and all over the skin; rub gently and rinse.
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Cook the Kids' Meal at Home
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Grow an Herb Garden
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Stock Up on the Season's Best Fruits and Veggies
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Keep Your Energy Up
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Quench Dry Skin
Mash half of a ripe banana; combine banana with ½ cup of plain yogurt and 1 tablespoon of honey. Apply this pack on face and neck and leave for 10 minutes; rinse thoroughly. This natural pairing helps moisturize dry skin.
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Fight Fat with Eggs
New research found that dieters who eat more protein earlier in the day lost more weight, were less hungry, and were more satisfied with their diet. In another study, dieters who ate an egg breakfast instead of a bagel meal lost 65% more weight and belly fat. Try loading morning eggs with veggies like our Eggs Poached in Tomato Sauce with Onions and Peppers.
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Try the Flavors of the Season, Frozen
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Go Greek
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Grab a Peach
This seasonal fruit shines, no matter how you prepare it. But, if you’re looking to quench your thirst at a summertime happy hour, our Sparkling Peach Sangria can’t be beat.