August Edition of the Buzz, Body, and Bites Newsletter for Teens

Food insecurity is a pervasive issue in communities throughout the United States, impacting the health and well-being of many households. This publication highlights food insecurity, specifically in Southwest Virginia, which has particularly high food insecurity rates, and brings attention to initiatives and organizations striving to reduce its effects.

Whether sharing a recipe with family and friends or using it in a classroom setting or professional publication, knowing how to write a clear, concise, easy-to-follow recipe is an important skill. It takes creativity and practice to develop a delicious and wholesome dish. Writing a recipe so others can duplicate your results successfully, time after time, requires adhering to specific guidelines and a set of rules.

This publication provides practical nutrition, food safety, storage, and preparation information about plums as part of the “Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets” series. It highlights the health benefits of plums, including their vitamin C, vitamin K, carotenoid, and flavonoid content, and offers guidance on selecting, ripening, storing, and safely handling fresh fruit. The publication also includes easy serving ideas, family-friendly nutrition tips, and a simple roasted fruit recipe featuring plums, peaches, and nectarines. Designed for consumers, families, and farmers market shoppers, this resource promotes healthy eating habits, increased fruit consumption, and safe food preparation practices while supporting nutrition education and seasonal produce awareness.

This fact sheet provides nutrition, selection, storage, and food safety information for cucumbers, highlighting their vitamin K content and potential health benefits. It offers practical tips for adding cucumbers to meals and includes two easy, healthy recipes, Cucumber Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips and Cucumber Salad, with preparation instructions and nutrition information to support healthy eating and seasonal produce use.

This fact sheet highlights the nutritional benefits, selection, storage, handling, and preparation of black-eyed peas. It emphasizes food safety practices, explains the health value of black-eyed peas as a source of folate, fiber, iron, magnesium, copper, and thiamin, and provides practical cooking guidance for both fresh and dried peas. The publication also includes two healthy recipes, Black-Eyed Pea and Corn and Black-Eyed Pea Salsa, designed to encourage nutritious eating and increased consumption of locally available produce through farmers markets.

Learn how to select, store, and safely prepare fresh blackberries while enjoying their nutritional benefits, including vitamins C and K, fiber, carotenoids, and flavonoids. This educational publication from the Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets series provides practical food safety guidance, storage recommendations, healthy serving ideas, and two family-friendly recipes: Blackberry Breakfast Bars and Blackberry Muffins. Designed to support healthy eating and increased fruit consumption, the resource offers nutrition information, preparation tips, and easy ways to incorporate blackberries into meals and snacks.

Blueberries are a nutrient-dense fruit. This fact sheet provides guidance on selecting, storing, and safely handling fresh blueberries, along with practical healthy eating tips for individuals and families. The publication includes two easy, budget-friendly recipes, Blueberry Blend Pudding and French Toast with Fruit Sauce, featuring ingredient lists, preparation instructions, serving sizes, and nutrition information. Designed to support healthy food choices, meal planning, and fruit consumption, this resource promotes the health benefits of blueberries and offers simple ways to incorporate them into everyday meals and snacks.

This fact sheet provides nutrition, selection, storage, handling, and preparation information for cantaloupe, emphasizing its vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium, and carotenoid content. It includes practical food safety guidance, tips for serving cantaloupe in family-friendly ways, and two healthy recipes: Melon Salsa and Blueberry-Melon Summer Salad. Designed for consumer nutrition education and farmers market outreach, the resource promotes healthy eating, fresh produce consumption, and simple meal preparation using seasonal fruits.

This factsheet provides practical information on selecting, storing, cleaning, preparing, and enjoying pumpkins as part of a healthy diet. Readers learn about pumpkin's nutritional benefits, including vitamin A and carotenoids, along with food safety recommendations for handling fresh produce. The publication encourages creative uses for pumpkins beyond carving and features easy, nutritious recipes for homemade pumpkin puree, Honey of a Pumpkin Bar, and Crustless Pumpkin Pie, helping consumers make the most of seasonal produce from farmers markets and local food sources.

This publication highlights the nutritional benefits, selection, storage, handling, and preparation of bell peppers as part of healthy eating at farmers' markets. The resource provides practical food safety guidance, information on vitamin C and carotenoid content, and easy ways to incorporate peppers into everyday meals and snacks. Featured recipes include Stuffed Bell Peppers and Fresh Tomato Salsa, complete with ingredients, directions, serving sizes, and nutrition facts. Designed to support healthy food choices, nutrition education, and increased fruit and vegetable consumption, this educational handout helps consumers make informed decisions when purchasing and preparing fresh produce from local farmers' markets.

This fact sheet from the Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets series provides nutrition education and food preparation guidance focused on potatoes. The publication highlights the nutritional benefits of potatoes, including vitamin C, potassium, vitamin B6, and fiber, along with recommendations for selecting, handling, storing, and safely preparing fresh potatoes. It features practical cooking tips and two healthy recipes, Green Bean, New Potato and Ham Salad and Roasted New Potatoes, complete with ingredients, directions, serving sizes, and nutrition information. Designed to support healthy eating habits, food safety practices, and increased fruit and vegetable consumption, this resource is intended for consumers, educators, farmers market participants, and community nutrition programs seeking practical, research-based dietary guidance.

This educational fact sheet highlights the nutritional benefits, selection, storage, handling, and preparation of turnips as part of healthy eating and local food consumption. Developed through the Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets program, the publication provides practical guidance on choosing fresh turnips, safe food handling practices, and incorporating turnips into everyday meals. It includes two healthy, budget-friendly recipes, Roasted Root Vegetables and Turnips and Potatoes, complete with ingredients, directions, serving sizes, and nutrition information. The resource promotes vegetable consumption, family nutrition education, farmers market produce utilization, and healthy cooking skills, making it valuable for consumers, nutrition educators, Extension professionals, and community food assistance programs.

This Virginia Cooperative Extension educational publication provides practical nutrition information, food safety guidance, storage recommendations, and healthy recipe ideas featuring tomatoes. Readers learn about the nutritional benefits of tomatoes, including their contributions of vitamin C, potassium, vitamin B6, and dietary fiber, along with proper handling and washing practices to promote food safety. The publication includes simple, budget-friendly recipes such as Marinated Tomatoes and Balsamic Tomatoes and Onion Salad, complete with ingredients, preparation instructions, serving sizes, and nutrition facts. Designed to support healthy eating and increased fruit and vegetable consumption, this resource is part of the Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets educational series and serves consumers, families, educators, and community nutrition programs seeking easy ways to incorporate fresh tomatoes into balanced meals.

This fact sheet provides practical nutrition education about sweet potatoes, highlighting their nutritional benefits as a rich source of vitamins A and C, fiber, potassium, and vitamin B6. The resource offers guidance on selecting, storing, cleaning, and preparing sweet potatoes safely, along with easy, family-friendly recipes including Sweet Potatoes and Apples and Sweet Potato Salad. Designed to support healthy eating habits, food safety awareness, and increased fruit and vegetable consumption, this publication helps consumers incorporate nutritious, affordable, and versatile produce into everyday meals. It is a valuable resource for nutrition educators, community health programs, farmers market outreach, and individuals seeking healthy recipe ideas and food preparation tips.

This fact sheet provides practical nutrition, food safety, storage, and preparation information about fresh green peas, highlighting their nutritional benefits as a source of vitamins C and K, vitamin A, folate, fiber, and health-supporting carotenoids. Developed as part of the Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets educational series, the publication offers guidance for selecting, storing, handling, and incorporating peas into healthy meals. It also includes two easy, budget-friendly recipes, Layered Lettuce Salad and Italian Peas, complete with ingredients, directions, serving sizes, and nutrition information. This resource supports healthy eating, farmers market nutrition education, food preparation skills, and increased fruit and vegetable consumption for individuals and families.

This fact sheet provides practical nutrition, food safety, and healthy eating information about peaches, highlighting their vitamin C content, beneficial carotenoids and flavonoids, selection and storage guidance, safe produce handling practices, and family-friendly preparation tips. The publication includes easy, nutritious recipes for Peach Spinach Salad and Peach Cobbler, complete with ingredient lists, preparation instructions, serving sizes, and nutrition facts. Developed as part of the Eat Smart, Move More at Farmers Markets educational series from Virginia Cooperative Extension, this resource supports healthy food choices, fruit consumption, home meal preparation, and nutrition education for individuals, families, community health programs, and farmers market outreach initiatives.

This fact sheet highlights the nutritional benefits, selection, storage, and safe handling of nectarines while encouraging healthy eating through seasonal produce. It includes practical tips for incorporating nectarines into meals and provides two easy, nutritious recipes, Nectarine Salsa and Summer Fruit Salad, complete with preparation instructions and nutrition information.

Do you find it difficult making time for exercise in your busy week? Taking care of your family and working can make regular physical activity seem unrealistic. Here are some ideas to help fit exercise into your busy schedule.

Tips for family-friendly ways shift to eating more whole grains everyone will love.

Carol, mom of four, makes small changes to lower sodium in her family's meals.

It is easy to make simple shifts in your normal meals to lower the amount of saturated fat while keeping the food delicious.

Interested in ways to add protein into your diet while reducing cost and fat? Then look beyond just meat!

Cooking with oils is a great heart-healthy alternative to solid fats like butter and margarine.

Mom makes the healthy choice to switch to low-fat dairy, and her family doesn't even notice the difference.

A young mother describes three ways to incorporate fruits in different forms into her family's daily routine while including her children in the preparation process.

You might be surprised to find out just how much sugar is hidden in the foods we love. Learn what to look for when reading nutrition labels and simple ways to eat smart by limiting added sugar.

Do you have a hard time getting your kids away from the TV and moving more every day? Try these strategies for teaching children to enjoy being active as a family.

Greens are a wonderful, nutritious, economic vegetable broadly available in our home gardens, farmer's markets and grocery stores. High in vitamins A, K and folic acid, greens are also a great source of fiber. Try this delicious recipe as part of a meal anytime of the year.

This is a recipe that is simple to make, and delicious to eat. Filled with fiber, vitamins, and minerals, this is a healthy sweet bread choice.

This delicious cornbread recipe has also been modified to make it lower in fat. You get the best of both worlds with this, "Good For You Cornbread".

This food demonstration video, Peach Cobbler, is part of the From Our Home to Yours food demonstration video series, where professionals from Cooperative Extension show you how to make health promoting recipes that they love.

If you love pork chops, you will love this healthier recipe. Breaded and baked in the oven, these pork chops are delicious and lower in fat than the traditional fried pork chop.

This issue of Buzz, Body, & Bites provides information on fall prevention for actively aging adults.

Learn about the history of the turkey as part of the traditional Thanksgiving meal in this issue of the Buzz, Body, & Bites Newslette. Get a chuckle out of our Thanksgiving jokes and check out the delicious Holiday Root Vegetable Roast recipe.

This issue of the Buzz, Body, & Bites newsletter provides practical guidance on financial management. It also includes a great soup recipe, and recommendations for how to get physical activity.

This issue of Buzz, Body, & Bites aligns with the National Nutrition Month theme of "Fueling ourselves for the Future". The issue discusses ways to consume healthy foods in a sustainable way.

This issue of the Buzz, Body, & Bites newsletter provides information about gardening, and the benefits to health and quality of life. It also includes a recipe for parmesan asparagus, which is an early vegetable.

This issue of the Buzz, Body, & Bites newsletter discusses how to eat more locally grown foods, and the benefits to your community.