Wednesday, April 3, 2013

April 3rd: Let's Toast to Whole Grains!

 Forgive me, but I'm skipping another Wedding Wednesday post this week to bring to you instead another important "W" - Whole Grains!

Last week, I entered a giveaway on one of my favorite blogs, Delicious Dishings, and low and behold, I won! I was shocked. I don't often win things. :) And within two days of learning that I won the giveaway, an amazing package full of whole grain goodies was at my doorstep!


This giveaway was sponsored by Oldways and the Whole Grains Council, and it's in celebration of Whole Grain Sampling Day, which is today, April 3rd!

I couldn't believe all the amazing goodies that were in this box! 


I do make an effort to eat whole grains, but I'll admit that I don't eat them as frequently as I should. This package should help me eat more of them, for sure! :)


I mean, look at all these goodies!


Crackers, chips, cereal, muesli...


brown rice, pasta, cookies, cookie mixes, etc. etc. etc...

Here are some of the brand names that were in the generous package:


Mike and I have already been enjoying the Bob's Red Mill gluten free muesli over greek yogurt. Delicious!


I am especially excited to try these sweet potato tortilla chips too!


This whole grain wheat pasta can easily be made into a nice meal...


And of course, I am psyched to try these cookie mixes, being a huge baker and all. :)


And fitness bread? I didn't even know such a thing existed! Neato.


Last night I made this delicious Frontier Soups wheat berry chili for our dinner, and it was fantastic! Until now, I've never actually cooked wheat berries (!!). I was so glad to have the chance to try them, and I can definitely see them becoming a staple item in our pantry!


And the chili was delicious. We only needed to add ground turkey, broth, and canned tomatoes to the mix. It came together easily and was very flavorful and filling. I'd definitely recommend it! And with the chili, I tried the Engine 2 Crispbread that came in the package - also tasty!!


If you're wondering how to know which products are whole grain, it's easy; just look for the whole grain stamp! And if you don't see the stamp, check the ingredient list on foods for common whole grains like: hulled barley, brown rice, buckwheat, whole corn (including popcorn :)), oats and oatmeal, whole rye, whole wheat, wild rice, amaranth, buckwheat, millet, and quinoa.

And I'm sure many of you already know, but whole grains provide some excellent benefits to your health. Three or more servings of whole grain a day are recommended, and they provide you with great antioxidants, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. And they also help lower your risk of chronic diseases such as stroke, diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

Enough said. I think you're picking up what I'm putting down.
We all need to eat more whole grains. :)

Who's with me??! I hope you will make an effort to eat some whole grains today, and I hope you will make them a regular occurrence in your diet in the future as well. And if you have any favorite whole grain products or recipes, I'd love to hear about them in the comments!

Thanks again to Megan from Delicious Dishings and the generous folks at Oldways and the Whole Grains Council for this awesome package of goodies. Cheers to Whole Grains!!

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