From Katie’s Healthy Bites: Don’t Skip The Bulk Aisle:
“We get a lot of whole grains and whole-grain flours from the bulk bins. They can go bad faster than their germ-stripped counterparts, making it valuable to be able to buy exactly the small amount you’ll need. Who needs an extra cup of spelt flour sitting around? We also buy nuts and oats from the bulk section — again to get the amount we want for snacking or baking. And we started getting this awesome 31-bean soup mix. I can get exactly one cup, enough for nine cups of soup, without buying a bunch of bags of beans to mix up. I love the bulk bins!” –Julie

From The Veggie Table: Kale For St. Patty’s Day:
“I love to add crushed red pepper to my kale chips. It gives them a bit of a kick!” –Julo

From In Season: Kumquats:
“I eat lemon, orange and lime rinds all the time. After a good wash, grate off some of zest for cooking, juice the fruit, and then thinly slice what is left. Mix with some sugar, spread on a baking sheet, and put in 250 degree oven for two to three hours, stirring gently about every half hour. Remove from the oven and and put in a bowl; let it sit a couple of weeks stirring gently a couple of times a day. Do not cover — let the strips air dry so they don’t mold. Use in tea, drinks and recipes, or nibble as a candy. Some people jar this up and give as gifts.” –Lois Ann

More comments from our Facebook wall:
“I like quick-cooking steel cut oatmeal with unsweetened almond milk sprinkled with cinnamon and nutmeg. I soak it overnight in the refrigerator and heat it up in the morning — a little trick I learned from a co-worker.” –Elizabeth

“Wonderful smoothie: berries, apples, oranges, yogurt and spinach with a touch of honey.” –Margarita

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From Budget-Friendly Foods: Top 5 Picks:
“My kids love when I make them what I call pizza eggs for breakfast. I chop one small tomato and a large handful of spinach. I sprinkle them both with a little salt, pepper and dried oregano. I use a nonstick skillet on medium heat sprayed with cooking spray or small amount of olive oil. After the pan is warmed up, I add the chopped tomato and cook until softened, then add the spinach until it’s softened. Then I add 3 or 4 eggs (however many you want) that I whipped up in a bowl to the tomato and spinach mixture. Sprinkle with a little grated parmesan, and using a spatula, stir all the ingredients around in the heated pan until you have your pizza scrambled eggs. It makes me feel good that my kids are starting their school day with protein and veggies.” –Kelly

“I frequently make a “scramble” with any assortment of leftover or fresh cooked potatoes, veggies and meat and often even add in leftover tortillas, and then add in the eggs last. Always delicious.” –Patty

“We eat oatcakes almost every morning. Mix 1 cup dry oats in a bowl with a tablespoon or two of hot water to make a pasty but firm ball of oatmeal. Then put it between 2 pieces of plastic wrap, and roll it out thinly with a rolling pin — the plastic wrap will keep it from sticking. After rolling thin, take it out of the plastic wrap, put in a nonstick pan, and brown. They are delicious plain or with some dried cranberries or nuts mixed in the dough before rolling out; they’re also good with cheese on top — try it, a great alternative to a soggy bowl of oatmeal. Smile. Enjoy.” –Darlene

“Take some of those oats with some raisins and nuts and a little honey, bake for about 15-20 minutes in low heat, and enjoy your granola.” –Judie

From Budget-Friendly Foods: 4 Must-Haves for the Pantry:
“Pinto beans are great cooked with a few sprigs of cilantro, one onion quartered, salt and pepper. When they are tender, take out the cilantro and onion, and enjoy!!” –Diana

From Potato Soup: Lightened Up:
“I’ve also found pureed roasted cauliflower is a good substitute for cream in some soup recipes, like tomato soup. It gives a nice creamy texture and light flavor without overpowering the main ingredients. I think I need to try roasting some cauliflower and potatoes together and making a chowdery soup soon!” –Julo

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From Make Your Own Condiments:
How can the ketchup recipe be adapted if you are allergic to red tomatoes?” –Denise
Dana’s reply: The flavor will be a bit different, but roasted red peppers in place of the tomatoes and tomato paste would be delicious.

“Full-fat Greek yogurt can be a great condiment, too! Spread it over bread and empty a can of tuna in there–yum!” –Evan, via Facebook

From Spotlight Recipe: Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins:
“These muffins are wooondddeerrful. I just made them tonight, and they are very moist and so easy to make! I used Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Butter in place of the apple butter, and they turned out soo great — wonderful for a little winter flavor and very subtle.” –Jess

Homemade Apple Butter is easy if you use your slow cooker — I’ve made it several times:
3-4 pounds of apples, peeled, cored and chunked. Use a good cooking apple (Granny Smith, Jonathon)
2 cups brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. cloves
Dash of salt
3/4 c. water
Place everything in the slow cooker (you can also add applesauce, if you have some to be used) and cook on low heat for 8 – 12 hours (I usually do this overnight). Mash using a potato masher or puree with an immersion blender. –MizWazy

From Dining Out: Movie Theater Concession Stands:
I pack my own snack too! One day I brought apple slices. Last time we went I brought dark chocolate – yum! –Casey

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Hungry for more great comments? Check out our Facebook and Twitter pages.

From Spotlight Recipe: Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins:
“These look delicious. However, I don’t have any apple butter on hand–do you have a suggestion for a good substitute? ” –Casey
Dana’s response: “Applesauce works well too — try to use unsweetened if possible.”

From Shrimp 5 Ways:
“Just pour a little olive oil over the shrimp, with a little salt and pepper, and roast in the oven at 400 degrees until orange. Fantastic by itself, or makes a very tasty shrimp salad with the leftovers! Has a lot more flavor than just using boiled shrimp.” –Heidi

From Taste Test: Whole Grain Pastas:
Pastariso is the absolute best tasting RICE flour pasta. It is not gummy and tastes exactly like regular pasta. So much better than a few you did mention.” –Donna

“I swear, the Barilla Plus doesn’t taste at all like whole wheat. And it’s the same color as the real thing. Just put marinara on it and your husband will never know!” –Allison, via Facebook

Some yummy answers to our query of “What’s on your plate?”:
“I cook my salmon wrapped with aluminum foil: Brush the fish with olive oil with a bath of dry white wine and chopped onions, roma tomatoes and chopped green peppers. Cook at 350 in the oven for 20 minutes — divine.” –Julie, via Facebook

“I do a quick salmon wrap with salmon fillets on the Foreman grill with rice and teriyaki sauce in a flavored tortilla wrap. I’ve been very busy lately so it works out well–healthy and quick.” –Cheryl, via Facebook

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From Healthy Aphrodisiac Foods:
“Try drizzling asparagus with extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of course sea salt, then either pan fry or broil until desired tenderness is achieved.” –Gina

“Asparagus is also great sauteed with mushrooms or sliced almonds.” –Kay

In In Season: Avocados we asked your favorite way to eat them:
“As a substitute for mayo on sandwiches. That way I can still use them when they start to turn brown.” –Sonya, via Facebook

“Cut up with red onion, Roma tomato and feta cheese with an Italian vinaigrette drizzle. They’re also wonderful sliced onto BLTs!” –Brian, via Facebook

“I love avocado on toast with a sprinkle of garlic salt!” –Tracey, via Facebook

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Check out this week’s list of reader comments for ways to avoid penalties for overdoing it during the big game. And because Super Bowl snacks can turn into quite a spread, read up on strategies for staying healthy when hitting a buffet.

From Chicken Wings, Lightened Up:
“I make mine with chicken legs rather than the wings…more meat, less “skin” and more filling. I grill or broil, baste with the sauce during the last 20 minutes or so of cooking, and they are so much better than wings. And chicken legs are about half the cost of wings or less if they go on sale.” –Michelle

“They sound great! I’ll probably just use the red hot buffalo wing sauce…we love it. Try baking them and putting celery seed on them…YUMMY!” –Kristina, via Facebook

“I love them baked, then add BBQ sauce and grill until crispy.” –Lisa, via Facebook

“Here’s the trick: Dredge wings in a mixture of flour seasoned with adobo and chile powder. Place wings on a lightly greased cookie sheet in single layer and bake at 425 degrees for a half-hour. Flip wings and bake for another half-hour. Remove from oven and toss them in a large bowl with Frank’s Red Hot and chipotle-flavored Tabasco. TASTY!” –Beth

From Dining Out: All-You-Can-Eat Buffets:
“I walk around and look at all the food before getting a plate. Then I decide exactly what I want and don’t eat anything that doesn’t look wonderful. Rather than thinking of a buffet as an opportunity to ‘get my money’s worth,’ I look at it as a way to display many choices and then just choose a couple.” –Teri, via Facebook

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From Make Your Own Pudding:
“I have to make my own pudding because the boxed mixes and pre-made ones contain milk powder. The great thing about recipes like these that use cornstarch is they’re very forgiving no matter what type of liquid you use: even light soy milk turns into something decadent. It’s also more reliable than using eggs.” –Tamara

“I used 2 cups whole milk plus 2 tablespoons cornstarch; 2 tablespoons cocoa (unsweetened) and 4 tablespoons sugar — no butter or water in my recipe. As the milk warmed up, I used several tablespoons of the warm milk to create the paste of cornstarch-sugar-cocoa, and then added it to the milk that was being heated. Mix until bubbles show from the thick pudding, then lower the flame as the temperature rises, otherwise the bottom of the pot will form a crust, which is difficult to clean. Mix more vigorously toward the end to avoid higher temperatures at the bottom of the pot.” –Henry (Toby’s Dad)

From Dining Out: Buffets:
The same method I utilize for big family dinners: I only give myself one trip, so I have to plan and make sure I get a little of everything I want on my plate. Fill half the plate with veggies (only if it’s a small plate, otherwise half a small plate worth), salad or otherwise, and then take a little bit of everything else I want, staying away from the all out unhealthy stuff.” –Julie, via Facebook

“I like to go to the salad bar first, that way I will not be so hungry for the unhealthy stuff.” –Tracy, via Facebook

From Lightened Up: Good Eats Roast Turkey:
“I am a big fan of Alton’s brine, both for turkey and whole chicken. I typically do a half-cup kosher salt and a half-cup white sugar for a five-pound chicken, and double that for a turkey. But I would really like to know: what does a brine like this do to the overall sodium and sugar content of the finished product?” –Charlotte

Dana’s reply: “Great question! When using a brine, a percentage of the salt and sugar does permeate the meat which is why it helps tenderize, add flavor and keep the meat moist. Exactly how much depends on the particular recipe. For this roasted turkey, it only totals a few tablespoons of salt and teaspoons of sugar, which adds virtually no calories and a moderate amount of sodium per serving. ”

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From Taste Test: Snack Bars:
“Try making your own granola. It is very easy. Heat brown sugar, a little honey, salt, vanilla and water until melted. Toss with oats and nuts, and bake until crisp — about 40 minute — then toss with dried fruit. Very simple and lasts for a while.” –Jennifer, via Facebook

“I have recently been looking for bars that are snack appropriate and not full of sugar. The Kashi bars are always a good but I have also found the KIND bars and the Clif Mojo bars to be good picks!” –Katie

From Mushrooms 5 Ways:
“I like sauteing mushrooms with some onion, then storing the mix in the fridge. That way, I can grab it quickly to add some fast veggies to mini pizzas, omelets, pasta, etc. If it’s already cooked, I have no excuse for not adding fast flavor and nutrients to any meal – even when I can barely peel my eyes open in the morning.” –Julie

From 10 Foods That Are Healthier Than You Think:
“Have you tried sweet potato fries? My son has a restaurant, and I buy them from his supplier. I bake them in the oven on a mesh wire pizza rack, and they get crisp on the bottom and the top. You could make your own using sweet potatoes; just slice them like you are making french fries. You will have to bake them longer is all.” –Betty

“I try to incorporate chicken thighs (sprinkle with seasoning salt and bake for 45 minutes on 350 – perfection!) and avocado (in wraps, chopped in salad, sliced on grilled chicken burgers) in my family’s diet. They are easy to prepare, taste great and are good for you! Doesn’t get better than that.” –Nicole

From The Veggie Table: Simple Snacks That Satisfy:
“That blended frozen bananas thing is genius! I got up immediately after reading that and made some. (I always keep frozen bananas around for smoothies.) I added a splash of milk to make it little creamier, and it’s SO good! A dessert that is legitimately healthy.” –Shanna

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From Katie’s Healthy Bites: Ways To Love Winter Lettuce:
“I like to use endive as scoopers for hummus, or combine radicchio and endive in a salad with a dijon vinaigrette. Yum!” –Melissa

From Bagels: Good or Bad?:
“We eat Thomas brand English muffins and know that Thomas is sneaky about labeling! They have some “wheat” ones, “hearty grain” ones, etc. It’s very hard to tell from the label which one actually is whole grain wheat and which just has some grains tossed in. Read Thomas’ label very carefully and pick the one that uses “whole wheat flour” as the first ingredient. Then, you’ll always know which label to grab and won’t be tricked by the promises of grains and whatnot.” –Julie

From Diet 101: Weight Watchers:
“Right now there is no sign-up fee when you sign up for 3 months. And if you know the calories, fat and fiber, you key that in and they give you a points value. [Web site] Dottie’s Weight Loss Zone is great for restaurants – if you can’t find it there, do a web search on the food at the restaurant you ate at. As long as it’s a chain you can usually find what you’re looking for. Plus, in addition to your daily points, you get a certain number of flex points each week in case you want to splurge.” –Casey

“Weight Watchers works! I have before and after shots posted on their Facebook page. I find it to be easy with amazing results. Compared to what I was spending on soda weekly, that is now my dues so it is money well spent.” –Wayne