How to Make Low Fat Nachos

Everyone loves nachos. They are a great snack when you want to watch the big game, or just enjoy a movie. Nachos that people usually make contain a lot of fat due to the cheese, avocado, and even sour cream in some cases. Today I am going to show you how to make great tasting nachos that are both healthy and delicious.

Ingredients

Half of an 8oz bag of low-fat cheese (2% milk preferably)

1/4th cup of sour cream

1 small tomato

half of a green or red pepper (whichever you like, or both!)

hot salsa

half of a small onion (optional)

half of a can of black olives (optional)

1 fresh jalapeño pepper (optional)

1 bag of blue corn chips, or low-fat tortilla chips

1 large baking sheet covered completely in foil

Once your baking sheet is covered in foil completely put as many chips as you can that cover the baking sheet so that no foil is exposed. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Now is the time to cut up the onion, tomato, olives, and jalapeño into little pieces. Place them evenly over all of the chips. Now cover all of the chips with your low-fat cheese. Make sure on this step you are using low-fat cheese I have found that the no fat cheese comes out a little stringy, and they aren't as tasty. Add as much cheese as you like, just don't add the whole bag, remember we are using low-fat so using the whole bag defeats the purpose. Now that your oven is preheated its time to add your nachos into your oven. They should cook very fast (about 5 minutes) and what your looking for is that the cheese will get gooey. If the cheese looks like it is real dry, or your chips are turning brown, take them out quick, because this is a sign that you are cooking them too long. All ovens are different. Once your nachos have been the oven for 5 minutes and the cheese looks nice and gooey your nachos are ready! Remove the nachos from the oven and make sure you let them sit out for a few minutes so you don't burn yourself. Now you can add your sour cream on top of the nachos, and they are ready to eat. If you want you can move the nachos to a plate or a platter before adding the sour cream. Just use the foil to move the nachos from the baking sheet to a platter or large plate. Enjoy your fat free nachos! This is a great snack, that isn't as bad for you as regular nachos and you and your children can have fun making them too. Remember get creative with the ingredients, just because I like olives doesn't mean everyone does, substitute it for something else you do like on your nachos. Try to keep away from  the avocados, they are very high in fat.

How To Make Grilled Vegetables in Foil

Ingredients

3 medium onions peeled and quartered

1 bunch of broccoli flowerets

2 small yellow squash in 1" slices

1 green pepper in 1/2" strips

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

1 1/2 tablespoon of salt

3 tablespoons of butter

olive oil to drizzle over vegetables (not too much just drizzle)

Grilled vegetables are a great healthy addition to any outside grilling event. They are so easy to do and you can get really creative with what you add to the vegetables. You don't have to add exactly what vegetables are on the ingredients list, you can get creative here also and add whatever you like instead. This is very easy to prepare. First you will need to blanch the onions in a sauce pan with boiling water for about 3 minutes. Next get a piece of heavy duty foil and make sure its big enough to completely wrap around all of the vegetables so that you can enclose them totally in the foil, don't worry about breathing holes, the goal here is to steam the vegetables using the grill. Add the vegetables inside the foil, along with all of the ingredients above. Don't forget to drizzle a little bit of olive oil over all of your vegetables. This helps them really cook well. Now completely seal the foil over all of the ingredients and throw it on top of the grill. Grill the vegetables for about 30 minutes while flipping occasionally so that it cooks evenly. Whatever you do though, don't rip a hole in the foil while flipping. Depending on how hot your grill is you may want to cook longer. Don't be afraid to experiment. This is perfect for people that don't like to eat meat, and want a healthy alternative while having a family cookout. Have fun and be creative. Happy Grilling!

Whiten Your Teeth With Hydrogen Peroxide and Baking Soda

Many products have become available to whiten your teeth, and most of them are really expensive. You can even schedule a teeth whitening appointment with your dentist to get it done, but this too can cost a pretty penny. There have been a number of sites around the Internet selling the cost effective method of whitening your teeth with hydrogen peroxide and baking soda. I will show you how to do it on this post at no cost to you. This will help you and your family save big bucks, and keep everyone's teeth white! Here is how you do it step by step...

1. The first step is to make sure you brush your teeth with your favorite tooth paste and make sure you rinse really good.
2. Get a disposable cup, a box of baking soda, and a bottle of hydrogen peroxide.
3. Spoon in 2 tablespoons of baking soda. Next add 1 tablespoon of hydrogen peroxide. Keep adding baking soda, or hydrogen peroxide until it turns into a white pasty consistency similar to toothpaste.
4. If you want you can add a drop of your favorite toothpaste so that it has a better flavor. It doesn't taste the greatest, but the results are phenomenal.
5. Brush your teeth with the paste like you would any other tooth paste with your tooth brush. Make sure you scrub good on the teeth that need to be the whitest.
6. Rinse your mouth out thoroughly so that you have no paste left in your mouth.
7. Repeat these steps once a week.

This will keep you and your family's teeth white for years to come. Hydrogen peroxide and baking soda is very cheap, and I recommend anyone that has yellow teeth to give it a shot. The results will surprise you! Please leave comments if I have left anything out!

Oral Piercings and Dental Health

Oral piercings have become quite common. In my San Francisco dental practice, I have seen patients with barbells and hoops, in their lips, tongues, cheeks and even frenum. Because of the unique features of the oral environment, these locations require special attention. Unlike other body piercings, oral piercings are under continual stress from bacteria in the mouth, contamination from food and drinks, irritation from chewing and hitting against teeth.

Piercings are made from a wide selection of materials, including gold, stainless steel, titanium, plastics, and nickel. Titanium and plastics are the most body friendly, while nickel may cause allergic reactions and steel may damage teeth.

Complications from oral piercings include injury and recession of gums, chipping and cracking of teeth and restorations (such as crowns and veneers), as well as infections from food impaction in the piercing site. A tongue piercing can act as a ‘wrecking ball’ and fracture teeth, particularly the front incisors.

Caring for oral piercings includes using antiseptic, alcohol-free mouthwash in additional to regular brushing and flossing of teeth.

For additional questions please contact Dr. Josh Berd at joshberd@gmail.com
Learn more about Dr. Berd at www.JoshTheDentist.com