Food

Agave nectar was originally given a lot of positive hype because it has a low glycemic index. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term, this is a good thing! Think of it like time-released energy; instead of flooding your bloodstream with sugar that will eventually lead to a crash, foods with a low glycemic index keep you energized for longer.

Organic grape farmers feel they are getting the short end of the stick when it comes to the current labeling of organic wines. By Brooke Rewa, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Organic shopping can be confusing. Organic wine shopping, even more so. Many of us don't have time to stop and read every ingredient on the products we are looking to purchase at the grocery store. This is why we look for known "stamps of approval." The biggest stamp we look for when shopping organic is that of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA sets very high standards for what can be labeled certified organic; which is why we as consumers trust them. They have taken these standards to new levels in the wine industry and it could be doing more harm than good for the world of organics. When perusing your local grocer for an organic wine you will find two different labels; one clearly labeled certified organic and one labeled "made with organic grapes". This is where things get confusing and where organic grape farmers get upset. In order to be labeled certified organic by the USDA wine must be made from 100% organic grapes and contain no added sulfites. Sulfites occur naturally when grapes are fermented to make wine, it is impossible for any wine to be completely sulfite-free. Wine makers have been adding sulfites for centuries. Sulfur protects wine from oxidizing, allows for a longer shelf life and prevents unwanted organisms from growing in th

By F.R.E.E. Will, LuxEco Editorial Assistant, Author of In The Spice Cabinet series The purpose of this article and the series as a whole is to examine the ingredients that go into some of your favorite dishes, particularly the benefits some of the more familiar (and some not so familiar) herbs and spices contain.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World One of my favorite Mexican dishes is  Chiles Rellenos or chiles...

By Grace Robertson, LuxEco Advocate Keeping Austin Weird With…South Congress Trailers! Austin is a great place to live because of its’ fun people, great music, and uniqueness. Its’ motto is Keep Austin Weird, which is a perfect name for this individualistic place. In my opinion, walking in downtown Austin is a whole different experience from walking in any other city.

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Oslo Norway, The Chuda's  for LuxEcoLiving What could be better. Two nights at...

Shopping and eating seasonally from your local farmers market tastes better, has higher nutritional values, promotes healthy eating habits, reduces environmental damage from shipping foods, and can even be kinder on your wallet. Farmers Market Eating Habits Seasonal SpringBy Hannah Canvasser, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Shopping at your neighborhood grocery store, many don’t realize that most of the abundant supply of produce comes from thousands of miles away, and is picked before ripeness to give consumers what they demand. Who would have thought that we could have peaches in October and butternut squash in June! Although off-season and premature picked produce will color and soften on the way to market, taste and nutritional value will be lost. Understanding what produce is available during certain seasons, and shopping at local farmers markets can change these eating habits. Here are a few reasons to stay local and seasonal with your eating habits: Farmers Market Eating Habits Seasonal SpringTaste and Nutritional Value: There are many products available at local farmers markets that will not only be rich in flavor, but high in nutritional value due to ripeness when picked and seasonality. Artichokes, asparagus, avocados, broccoli, mushrooms, spinach, corn, red pepper, green beans, peas, and beets are all great spring vegetable additions to your kitchen. Try a spinach artichoke dip as an appetizer or some tasty grilled portabella mushroom sliders to entertain with friends. Mango, pineapple, grapefruit, kumquats, lemons, oranges, tangerines, strawberries, cherries, nectarines, peaches, plums, melons, and lavender are very popular throughout spring and will enhance your eating habits. With your pantry now stocked, relax with a refreshing strawberry basil lemonade and fresh avocado grapefruit salad, or indulge with some lavender bread pudding.

By: Molly Cimikoski, Editorial Assistant What if products that are marketed to assist in living a healthier lifestyle, are actually the ones making us sick?...

It's no surprise! Country music starlet Kellie Pickler and Heroes' star Milo Ventimiglia are pretty sexy. Both were named Sexiest Vegetarians ...

By Sahar Ghaffari, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant Several years ago when I decided to stop having dairy I thought I would never again be able to savor the velvety smooth sweetness of delicious ice cream. That was until I started exploring the world of vegan ice cream.

By Nancy Chuda Co-founder of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World There is nothing more satisfying then the taste of a handmade ravioli. Stuffed with fresh ricotta cheese and spinach, or goat cheese smothered in a fresh sauce made from homegrown, roma or prized heirloom tomatoes. Pasta is one of the world’s most popular foods and comes in hundreds of different shapes, varieties and with dozens of different ingredients. [Virgensia Dioreo] Nancy Chuda, Fouder of LuxEcoLiving.com and Vicenzia DiIorio The tradition of making pasta is timeless throughout the world. Almost every country has identified a noodle in part of their customary culinary cuisine . But the Italians, hands down have the most varieties. Spaghetti (coming from the Italian, spago which means cord) is the most popular variety ... and is long thin noodles that come in a variety of thickness and goes well with all traditional sauces. Capellini or angel hair pasta is the thinnest pasta of all and takes barely one to two minutes to cook; goes well with very light sauces or the classic basil, olive oil and crush fresh tomatoes.

Fight cancer, anemia and high blood pressure with this delicious hummus recipe. By Brooke Rewa, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Add beets to your farmer's market list this week and pull out your food processor, we're making beet hummus. Not only is this hummus recipe simple and flavorful, it's packed with all the benefits of typical hummus plus the added punch of nutrient loaded beets.

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World " Sitting in front of the mountain that gave birth to Paul...

By Nancy and James Chuda founders LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Santa Ynez California, twilight time It's a marriage of two of the most celebrated...

  "New York is the quintessential city for every imaginable pleasure " Step inside the chic Hotel Plaza Athenee and your first impression is a perfunctory,...

For the best boutique cruise Wind Surf Spanish Symphony 2020

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Granted, there is an abundance of vegetation that only thrives during the rainy season or in mild warmth....

By Hannah Canvasser LuxEco Editorial Assistant This recipe can be as simple or complex as you would like. Whether you are looking to show off your spring honed barbecue skills and house make your ingredients, or pick up already-made items from your local market, these sliders will leave omnivores confused about their eating-orientation, vegetarians thrilled to be dining at your place, and the neighbors wanting an invite.

Kit Kemp's masterfully designed Knightsbridge London is one of a kind. She pays extra attention to detail in bringing joy to every experience.

By Bethany Colson, Managing Editor of LuxEcoLiving.com America today is seeing more people being isolated into a world of junk food and unhealthy foods. The U.S is rapidly turning into an unhealthy America with something called a "food desert". What's a food desert? According to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, a food desert is a “place where there is not easy access, affordable access, reasonable access to fresh fruits and vegetables — to a grocery store.” It could be an inner city or a rural town but what they both have in common, besides the low income economy, is their lack of access to fresh produce and to healthy food alternatives. Instead, convenience stores and fast foods with their highly processed foods, packed with refined sugars, trans fats and preservatives are ubiquitous and commonplace. As a result, families are left with few options to serving nutritious foods and their children suffer the consequences. With new generations being fed these types of foods, it is only a matter of time before this growing unhealthy America can see any change whatsoever.

The historic passage of last night's health care reform bill will positively effect millions of American's with immediate benefits as outlined in the House...

New USDA regulations for organic milk have just been adopted earlier this month on February 12, 2010. Family farmers, animal rights activists and organic...

By Kerin Van Hoosear, LuxEco Editorial Assistant and author of Seasonal Cooking with Kerin Did you know that most kids’ meals in restaurants have twice as many calories as the meal you’d serve them at home? Not only are the majority of these meals laden with saturated fat and salt, but some even reach a whopping 1,000 calories! Such a meal is high in calories for an adult, and for a child that’s just ridiculous.

By: Molly Cimikoski, Editorial Assistant With the latest Kellogg recall virtually banning several of the sugary cereals that children (and the young at heart) have...

Photography: Lara Kastner for Metropolis In each of our lives, we are given a unique set of gifts, challenges and even obstacles. ...

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Saying goodbye to a feathered friend We lost her yesterday. It...

If you had to choose a favorite company in which to use your bucket wish list ...this would be the one! Travel and Leisure has voted Red Carnation Hotel properties into thirteen different categories, including three No. 1 placements. And I can share why.

By Nancy Chuda, co-founder of LuxEco Living.com and Healthy Child Healthy World Here in Nancy's Organic Kitchen at The Green Green Home Under The H, I am challenged daily by the special dietary needs of my LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child/Healthy World friends and colleagues. There are so many variables when it comes to defining your plat du jour. At LuxEco, health is the main objective, so I’ve decided to help you figure out where you should look among the various choices within the food chain.

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World I was craving cheese. Not just that typical stinky cheese you find...

By Hannah Canvasser LuxEco Editorial Assistant Vegetarians can receive the proper proteins and nutrients they need with many health benefits. The trick? Eating meat, occasionally. Obesity is a current main health topic because it is unfortunately a growing one. With obesity rates rising in America many studies have aimed their focus to find the root of the problem, narrowing in on eating trends in the United States. It was typical of my grandparent’s generation to sit down to red meat three times a day. Maybe some sausage and eggs for breakfast, a beef casserole for lunch, and meatloaf and french bread for dinner; sound a little excessive on the arteries? In 1971, Vegetarians and Vegans became popular with Frances Moore Lappé's publication of Diet for a Small Planet- revealing the waste build up behind grain-fed meat production, and arguing that a plant diet is best for one’s body and the earth. Though Lappe was one of the first to come out with valid arguments against grain-fed meat production, being a Vegetarian does have its set-backs, and receiving proper proteins and nutrients wasn’t as easy as it seemed.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Grown in the sun and kissed by a babies breath I live...

By Jessica Borges, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Imagine walking into a fast-food restaurant with a menu sans greasy cheeseburgers, replaced by roasted chicken wraps and pork-and-sweet potato...

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Santa Ynez California breakfast at The Baker's Table 3563 Numancia Street COME HUNGRY! You...

It's a jewel of a hideaway in the confines of one of the wealthiest locations in all the world...   Palm Beach Florida. What The...

Text By: Kammie Daniels; Video By: Marcus Inglizian, Basil Vernon and Kammie Daniels Sitting in the lively O!Burger, looking out over the bright space filled with, among others, neighborhood hipsters, middle-aged men direct from the gym, and couples in close conversation-all customers greeted by a genuinely friendly staff- Basil and I said to one another, “I like this place already.” The food, we’re happy to report, is equally appealing. From the french fries and condiments to the burgers and fresh buns, everything is organic at O!Burger, the first burger joint in Los Angeles serving exclusively 100% certified organic food.