RDTOD September Favorites

Welcome to RDtipoftheday's favorites September edition. This is my blog series that highlights some of the best things I've been watching, reading, listening to, cooking, and eating. These are a few of my favorite things this month.

Eating & Cooking

I found an herby pesto-like sauce that I'm loving. It's a combination of herbs, garlic, and olive oil. I plan to post a recipe soon. I love this green, delicious sauce so much that I bought the herbs to grow into my own little planter garden. I don't have a green thumb or a large garden, so this planter box is perfect. It's a great starter garden on garden for the city. Do you have a garden? Any tips for growing herbs?

I like taking cooking classes. Recently, I've completed a cake decorating class and practiced decorating cookies and cakes at home. When you decorate cakes, you usually use buttercream or fondant. When you decorate cookies, it is common to use royal icing. So, I researched what is the difference between buttercream and royal icing?

The picture above is of some moist chocolate cupcakes I made. You need to bake cupcakes to be able to practice frosting. P.s. Don't worry I shared the cupcakes with friends and family.

I have not experimented with coloring or decorating with fondant myself. So, here's a video about fondant basics.

image from grayduckbakeshop

I love pineapples and watermelon. I just started learning about cake decorating. So, this cake is my inspiration to keep practicing. #CakeGoals

Watching

How are you enjoying your Fall semester? I always loved back to school. New clothes/uniforms, school supplies, and making new friends. If back to school has you down, this video should cheer you up; it's lunchtime. 

Reading
I'm enjoying Shauna Neiquist's new book Present Over Perfect. It's a super challenging and encouraging at the same time. This is one of my favorite quotes: it reads: "And now that you don't have to be perfect, you can be good." by John Steinbeck. 

One of my friends is hosting a brunch and books get together. A group of us are reading Present Over Perfect. I'm excited! I love eating especially brunch, talking, and reading. So, I'm super excited to hang out with the girls and do some of my most favorite things!

Encouraging
Working in nutrition, I hear a lot of people wanting to be perfect - perfect diet, perfect look, perfect this, and perfect that. I don't think perfection is achievable. My goal for myself and my clients is to live a healthy, balanced life and do your best - not a life seeking an illusion of perfection. I think there is a balance of making healthy choices and living a balanced, healthy life. I'd love to hear your thoughts on how you live a healthy, balanced life. Feel free to comment below.

I hope you enjoyed these tips, recipes, and all of my favorites from this month. Let me know if this is a feature that you would like me to continue by commenting below. And, let me know if you have something you want to be featured. Thanks! Have a great weekend!

For more recipes, encouragement, and tips for healthy eating, follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. 

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RD's Top 5 Tips for Healthy Eating

RDtipoftheday Favorites August

Reader Favorites August

RDtipoftheday's Gift Guide Roundup

This month, I gave y'all some gift ideas. If you are doing some last minute shopping, here are all of the lists. There are great ideas from <$10 to $50. They are great gifts for anyone that enjoys cooking, baking, entertaining, and eating. And everyone likes to eat; right? Check them out!

RDtipoftheday's Gift Guides for Your Favorite Chef, Baker, and Foodie Friends

 Gift Ideas under $10

Gift Ideas under $30

Gift Ideas under $50

I hope these gift guides have sparked some thoughtful gifts for your family and friends; I hope I saved you time and maybe saved you from a little stress. Now that you have extra free time, you cancheck out my friend Brittany's Christmas posts on her blog Hint of Hess. She's walking through a little piece of the Christmas story every day for 10 days. They are quick reads, and she even gives tips on explaining the story to your little ones. The story is for everyone. Remember to make time for the real reason for the season and not hurry though the season stressed. Merry Christmas y'all!

If you liked this post, you might enjoy these posts:

 10 Gift Ideas Under $10

10 Gift Ideas Under $20

10 Gift Ideas Under $40

5 Gift Ideas Under $50

Healthy Snacks T.V. Segment Part 1

The last television appearance I did was on healthy snacking. I wanted to share some of the tips that I shared in the interview. And, there are some bonus tips for healthy eating as well!

What are some tips to eat healthfully

This is one of the most common questions that I get as an RD. So I use the acronym E.A.T. to help myself and my clients remember to eat healthfully.

• E is for ‘easy.’
• We want to make healthy eating easy, so have fresh fruits and vegetables easily accessible in your home or work place. 
• A is for ‘affordable.’
• One of the most common barriers that I see to healthy eating is the perception that healthy eating is expensive. I would encourage you to eat seasonal fruits and vegetables. If you eat seasonally, usually produce is more affordable.
• T is for ‘tasty.
• Healthy eating should be enjoyable. We enjoy eating because it is tasty. So, try new fruits and vegetables to see which ones you prefer. Or try preparing fruits and vegetables

I hope this will be helpful to you and encourage healthy snacks throughout the day. I hope you remember to E.A.T healthy year-round. And, I hope you remember to make healthy choices when you are busy and on-the-go.

For even more recipes, encouragement, and tips for healthy eating, follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

#HealthyRDChallenge Roundup

How did you do with the #HealthyRD Challenge? I hope you are did well and are maybe even thinking of continuing the challenge. Simply make at least 1 healthy choice per day. 

What is the Healthy RD Challenge?
This is my challenge for each of us to take one step a day on the road to being healthier . . . the healthy road or #HealthyRD if you will. If you participate in the #HealthyRD challenge, make sure you use the hashtag #HealthyRD. Tag me on Instagram and or tweet me, @RDtipoftheday, for a chance to be featured! I am sharing the five healthy choices I'm making each day this week.  

Here's a reminder of what I did for the Healthy RD Challenge of the last 2 weeks: 

Day 1 

Day 2 

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6 

Day 7

Day 8 

Day 9 

Day 10

Check out the links to get ideas on living a healthier lifestyle. And for even more recipes, encouragement, and tips for healthy eating, follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter .

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Favorite Recipes

National Nutrition Month Roundup