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Probiotics, those essential microorganisms we’ve heard so much about lately, because they boost your immune system and restore digestive balance, are everywhere in the dairy aisle. Yogurt, we’ve always believed, is the vital carrier for these essential live cultures. Whether you want to eat it with a spoon, drink it or slurp it, there’s no shortage of yogurt-based drinks with labels touting those Latin names – everything from bifidobacteria to Lactic acid bacteria.

Chocolate, it turns out, is a much better carrier for these microorganisms. Chocolate — no kidding.

A study done at the University of Ghent in Belgium found that 80 percent of chocolate-based probiotics pass safety through the stomach vs. 20 percent of milk/yogurt drink-based probiotics. The cocoa butter in the chocolate protects the probiotics, eliminating the need for refrigeration, for up to one year – No need for refrigeration.

Joseph Maroon, MD and author of The Longevity Factor: How Resveratrol and Red Wine Activate Genes for a Longer and Healthier Life, worked with Maramor Chocolates to create an entire line of chocolates fortified with essential probiotics. These chocolate bars are individual wrapped (just one per day) and are packed with microencapsulated probiotics. A single bar of dark chocolate is 80 calories; 70 calories for milk chocolate.

Maramor sent me two box samples of both the milk and dark chocolate probiotic bars. Once I read the fact sheet about how healthy the chocolate was, I expected to taste cardboard.

I was wrong; and I was surprised. The taste of this chocolate is very good; addictively good; and my kids are sneaking chocolate bars out of the box when they think I’m not looking.

I don’t mind the the security of knowing that at least they’re eating something healthy, which just happens to taste delicious.

Tags: book, cooking, health, products by SusieJ
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I know he’s only trying to help, but sometimes when my husband is at the store to pick up the Milk and Eggs, he buys more milk than we need. There’s always a valid reason, “It was on sale!.” But rarely, is milk ever that good of a deal. Unfazed, he takes the carton of milk to our deep freezer that we keep in the basement so that the milk will get good and solid. And preserved. This is really not a good idea. Here’s what usually happens…

• A frozen container of milk takes FOREVER to thaw.
• The cream always get separated, and you have a mixture of of slush on the top and goop on the bottom.
• Sometimes, realizing that the gallon of milk is not thawing as quickly as we need, he’ll set the milk on the counter at room temperature to speed things up. This usually results in sour milk.
• Just when you think the milk is completely thawed, you pour it on the kiddies cereal only to find Ice chunks falling out of the carton and into the morning cereal.
• The expiration date is completely out of whack, as we usually pull it out of the freezer way past the date printed on the carton. This causes great confusion among the children in the household.

The grocery store is less than five minutes away; we could have easily had some nice fresh milk, flowing freely out of the container. Still, I love it when my husband goes to the grocery store.

The Parent Bloggers Network teamed up with Ore Ida to promote their new Steam n’ Mash potatoes. If you haven’t tried them yet, they are a pre-washed and scrubbed, peeled bag of cubed potatoes that you steam in the bag in your microwave. You simply add butter and milk and mash. Instant mashed potatoes — but they’re real! This is one shortcut that’s hard to mess up.

Tags: cooking, products by SusieJ
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While his big brothers are away at school, the boy, who believes brown eggs are chocolate, and I spend our mornings together cooking ourselves a feast. Because Eggs Are So Incredible and Edible, we began by mastering the poached egg. It’s our specialty: The Circle Egg Sandwich. (Recipe follows.)

Yes, this was his first try at poaching, and he ate all three eggs.

In honor of World Egg Day, Friday, October 10, and the inspiration of the Parent Bloggers Network, find a friend and share a circle egg sandwich. Because,

if you give a boy an egg, you’ve fed him for a day; teach him how to crack an egg, and he’s fed for life.

How To Make A Circle Egg Sandwich

You will need:.

• Egg Poacher
• Water
• Eggs
• Salt
• Bread
• Glass for cutting the bread
• Butter

1. Fill the bottom part of the sauce pan with 3 inches of water. Add some salt and vinegar and bring the water to boil.
2. Carefully crack the eggs, and drop them into the egg poaching inserts. You can add a pinch of salt to the eggs.
3. Once the water starts to boil, turn down the heat so that the water is simmering.
   Carefully put the poaching insert on top of the sauce pan of boiling water. Put the lid on so the eggs will cook.
4. We like a firm yolk, so the egg will cook for about four minutes.
5. Meanwhile, use a glass to cut your bread into the shape of a circle.
6. After toasting your circles, you can butter your bread. (Always nice to let the butter pop across the table as you do this.)
7. Lift the cover of the egg poacher, and check to see if the yolk is the way you like it.
8. Use a spoon to gently lift the egg out of the poacher, and slide onto your circle egg toast.
9. Top with the other piece of circle toast and enjoy.

Tags: cooking, kids, products by SusieJ
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