SYHO Heart Healthy Recipe

As many of you know (especially needleworkers), I have been involved in the Stitch Your Heart Out (SYHO) campaign. The SYHO Campaign was created to excite stitchers with a new & fun project, create an interest in stitching for non-stitchers, and introduce stitching to the next generation while promoting heart health. Since the month of April features my design ("Established with Love", seen below) in the designer encyclopedia, I thought I would share with you my heart healthy recipe.

I absolutely love fresh vegetables...especially spinach...I seriously could eat a spinach salad every day and be happy...and I pretty much do! I am already anticipating the first farmers market of the season later this week....
Here is my heart healthy recipe for spinach salad:

In a large bowl toss salad ingredients:
Fresh spinach (torn)
Fresh mushrooms (sliced)
Green onion (chopped)
Grape Tomatoes (whole or cut in half)
Fresh Red and Yellow Peppers (chopped)
Feta Cheese (crumbled)

These are my personal favorites - but I have been known to add hot peppers and/or seasonal vegetables and/or nuts and/or black beans to "spruce it up" - use your favorite salad ingredients or whatever you have on hand!

Raspberry Salad Dressing:
· 1 cup fresh or thawed/drained frozen raspberries
· 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
· 4 teaspoons olive oil
· 1 pinch ground black pepper or cayenne pepper (I like things spicy!)

Press the raspberries through a fine sieve into a bowl to remove the seeds. In a sealable jar mix the raspberry puree and remaining ingredients - shake to combine. Add the dressing to your tossed salad.

You can learn more about the SYHO campaign by visiting the official blog...and be sure to read this month's SYHO newsletter (where you can read five little known facts about me). Plus, you can find "Established with Love" at your favorite needlework shop!

Stitch Your Heart Out

You may have recently read (or heard) about the Stitch Your Heart Out (SYHO) campaign starting in February 2010. I am thrilled to announce I am one of the twelve designers participating in the SYHO Designer Encyclopedia. Each month for 12 months (starting in February 2010) a fun, new design will be released by a different designer...there will be interviews, interactive games, fun LNS stitch nights, prizes, heart healthy recipes and much much more! My design will be number three in the series, arriving in needlework shops in April 2010. Once you have stitched all 12 designs, you will receive free instructions on how to assemble the 12 designs into a stitched "designer encyclopedia". For more information and to see how you can get involved...plus see a list of all twelve participating designers visit: http://stitchyourheartout-lts.blogspot.com/

This campaign is going to be a fun way to interact with others in the needlework community/industry and promote heart health. Designers will be donating a portion of sales from their special to design to CAROL for Heart, a regional non-profit organization that educates and empowers women to take charge of their heart health. I hope you will look for these special designs each month, starting in February 2010!