Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Better Nutrition With Homemade Soup By Gretchen Scalpi, Rd, Cde

Many of my clients tell me how much they like having soup for lunch in the colder months, but most of the time, they name off various brands of soups bought at the store. Don't get me wrong: many commercial soups are great options for the calorie conscious. The problem with canned soups, of course, is the sodium content. Some products have an excess of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. To my way of thinking, this is far too much salt for one simple food item. So while it's easy to turn to grocery store shelves for your lunchtime soup, consider making your own soup.

The beauty of homemade soup is that you can literally take any basic soup recipe and modify it based on ingredients you have on hand. You can make adjustments and get the sodium content reduced without foregoing good taste. Most soups start with a stock, broth, or a vegetable base. You can make your own stock if you have the time, but starting with a ready made broth can cut down on preparation time. If you buy ready made soup broth, I recommend that you read the labels carefully. Regular broth will make your homemade version of soup just as high in sodium as canned soup. The low sodium versions of broth have sodium too! I found that most of the "low sodium" brands of broth had close to 500 mg. sodium per serving. This is still too much if you are sodium conscious. I found several organic low sodium stocks with just 140 mg. per serving, so it pays to look around.

If you want to try making homemade soup for your lunches, here's an idea: make one batch pot of a different soup every week. Keep enough of the soup on hand for one or two meals, and then freeze the rest in smaller containers, preferably 1-2 portion containers. If you make a different kind of soup each week, you will soon have a "selection"of different soups in your freezer that you can choose from for a quick lunch or dinner meal. Take a single serving of frozen soup to work and you'll have a nice healthful meal ready to heat up.

Here is my favorite vegetable soup recipe:

Vegetable Barley Soup

2 Tb. olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup diced carrots

12 oz. fresh mushrooms chopped

1/2 cup barley (use pearl or hulless barley)

6 cups low sodium beef, chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 tsp coarse salt

2-3 cups chopped spinach, kale or Swiss chard

Heat oil in large pot and saut? onions and carrots until tender. Add mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes. Add barley, low sodium broth and salt. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer until barley is done. (Pearl barley takes about 40 minutes; hulless barley takes about 60 minutes to cook). Add chopped greens and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serves 6.

? 2013 Gretchen Scalpi. All rights reserved. You are free to reprint/republish this article as long as the article and byline are kept intact and all links are made live.

Rotisseries - the Good, the Better, the Best By Sheonty Sultan

If you want a hunk of poultry or leg of lamb that is firm to the touch, yet, tender and oozing juices, an investment in the best rotisserie is non-negotiable. Using a rotisserie ensures even cooking as well as better health because the fat drips away. It is not some complex procedure, contrary to popular belief. Peruse these reviews and you will find the rotisserie that best suits your culinary requirements.

Centro Electric Rotisserie

This has a moderate rating from customers. It might work well but it does not go with the Centro BBQ which it is supposed to fit perfectly. So that defeats the purpose. You don?t want to have to buy something and then use a hack saw to get it down to size as was suggested by one buyer. The upside is it produces great results. Another disadvantage is that it is not sturdy enough, so one better beware while cooking heavier portions of meat. Available at Canadian Tire and priced at around $60?you get what you pay for, we suppose!

Verdict: Buyer Beware!

Cuisinart Stainless Steel Vertical Rotisserie CVR 1000

This rotisserie got rave reviews. Customers seem to love it for its being easy to use and clean, and for its ability to produce excellent end results. It is better to buy an already set up rotisserie versus the previous one we discussed. The idea is to make life easier, not harder! This is available at Costco and priced at around $200. Look out for discounts. It is a good-looking piece with its stainless steel finish which will be easy to incorporate into any kitchen d?cor. These are other features that make it so popular:

? 5 preset temperature settings

? roasting rack and poultry tower

? easy to clean with dishwasher safe accessories

? up to 8 lbs can be roasted

? non-stick interior

? 3 year warranty

Verdict: Buy

Ronco Showtime Platinum Rotisserie and Barbecue Oven

The Ronco is often called the best rotisserie. You will have to find that out for yourself. It surely is an impressive addition to your counter-top. These are its salient features:
? horizontal rotisserie

? unique platinum silver interior

? digital timer

? 6-month warranty

? all attachments are dishwasher safe

? can cook a 15-lb bird

? 3-way rotisserie settings

If you want a "set it and forget it" piece, this would be it.

Verdict: Strong Buy

All the rotisseries have some features in common, that is, they help you cut fat with ease and make your food tastier. They are supposed to be convenient to use and make cooking stress-free: then it seems the choice is between the Cuisinart and the Ronco. There are other brands out there but these are our favourites. These are also very affordable, effective, and easy to use and clean which is what you want to look for in a rotisserie.

Now that you are armed with all this knowledge about rotisseries, surely you know exactly what you want and what will best suit your particular needs. All you have to do is go out and get it: happy cooking!