{"id":52274,"date":"2013-12-12T13:00:31","date_gmt":"2013-12-12T18:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=52274"},"modified":"2013-12-11T21:05:50","modified_gmt":"2013-12-12T02:05:50","slug":"nutrition-spotlight-healthy-gift-basket-ideas-for-the-holidays","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=52274","title":{"rendered":"Nutrition Spotlight: Healthy Gift Basket Ideas for the Holidays"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Dina<\/a>By Dina Lawson, Registered Dietitian<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Get the Gift of Good Health and Good Taste with Healthy Gift Baskets<\/p>\n

(Madison County, NY \u2013 Dec. 2013)The holidays are approaching and family and friends may be asking you what you want for presents. Besides clothes, household items and candy, why not ask for Holiday Gift Baskets filled with Healthy Foods?\u00a0 Healthy snacks can be low in fat and calories but full of delicious flavors.\u00a0 Food baskets usually come beautifully decorated and can put you in the holiday spirit. Many times, they include gourmet snacks and treats that you might never buy otherwise.\u00a0 It\u2019s a great time to try new foods.<\/p>\n

Healthy gift baskets can also include non food items such as kitchen towels, scented soaps, hand lotions and socks. Some items complement foods such as a cheese board and knife with assorted gourmet cheeses and flavored seltzer water.\u00a0 Fancy water glasses make a nice addition.\u00a0 And gift baskets can be special ordered or family members can add a personal touch by making their own. The possibilities are unlimited. Make one yourself as a gift to someone.<\/p>\n

Here are a few healthy food ideas; Nuts such as Walnuts, Almonds, Peanuts, Dried Cranberries and Mangos, Stone Ground Wheat Crackers, Multigrain Chips, Honey Wheat Pretzels, Edamame (Baby Soybeans), Blueberry Jam, Gourmet Teas and Coffees. Apple Chips, Dried Veggies Stixs, Granola and Fiber Bars, Salsa.<\/p>\n

Do you want something plain and simple?\u00a0 How about Portion cups of Mandarin Oranges or Peaches.\u00a0 Or packs of Fruited Gelatin, Strawberry Applesauce or Mango Applesauce. Choose from regular or no sugar added.<\/p>\n

Various kitchen tools help you peel and cut up fruits and vegetables.<\/p>\n

Try a Basket Theme: There are Breakfast Gift Baskets of Pancake Mix, Maple Syrup, Jellies and Spreads. Gluten Free Gift Baskets of Breads and Snacks are great for those with celiac disease.<\/p>\n

Other Ideas: \u00a0Yogurt Basket; Key Lime Fat Free Yogurt that you can dip Graham Crackers or Salt Free Pretzels Inn. Or Vanilla yogurt with granola, raisins and fruit that you can make your own yogurt parfaits or smoothies.\u00a0 Be creative. Enjoy the Holidays.<\/p>\n

Add this Recipe & Ingredients to your Gift Basket:\u00a0 Mulled Cranberry Apple Cider<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Serves 8<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

4 Cups Cranberry Juice Blend<\/p>\n

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6 Cups Apple Cider<\/p>\n

Peel of 1 Orange Cut in Wide Strips<\/p>\n

2-inch Pieces of Ginger, Peeled & Sliced<\/p>\n

3 Cinnamon Sticks<\/p>\n

\u00bd tsp Whole Cloves<\/p>\n

Garnish: Cinnamon Sticks, Orange Sticks, Fresh Cranberries<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Combine all ingredients in a crock pot and heat on low for 4-6 hours, covered<\/p>\n

Source: http:\/\/blog.redstamp.com\/fall-cider\/recipe<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Dina Lawson is a registered dietitian for the Madison County Office for the Aging.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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By Dina Lawson, Registered Dietitian Get the Gift of Good Health and Good Taste with Healthy Gift Baskets (Madison County, NY \u2013 Dec. 2013)The holidays are approaching and family and friends may be asking you what you want for presents. Besides clothes, household items and candy, why not ask for Holiday Gift Baskets filled with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52274","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p43meu-dB8","jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52274","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=52274"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52274\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=52274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=52274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=52274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}