Top Rated Diets

U.S. News evaluated and ranked 35 diets with input from a panel of health experts. To be top-rated, a diet had to be relatively easy to follow, nutritious, safe, effective for losing those pounds and protective against diabetes and heart disease.

The Best Recipes of 2014

From classics like carrot cake to new favorites like quinoa salad, here are the most popular recipes of 2014.

100 Hot Holiday Dishes

Get inspired with 100 of our most good-looking holiday recipes.

Easy Holiday and Christmas Cookies

These foolproof cookie recipes will be a hit at your Christmas celebration or holiday party. Want more ideas? Get 50 more holiday cookies.

50 Best Christmas Cakes

Impress your holiday guests with a show-stopping cake that tastes as great as it looks on the dessert table. Here are 50 festive cake recipes.

The 50 Best Christmas Cookie Recipes This Season

There are many reasons to love the holidays, but Christmas cookies are definitely on the top of that list. With that in mind, we gathered together all the important Christmas cookie recipes you need to get through this season -- and some great twists on classics too (like mocha coconut crinkles!). Because it isn't really the holidays unless you bake some cookies, whether you're a baker or not.

7 Ingenious Hacks to Make Hot Chocolate Even Better

What’s better than a steaming mug of thick, creamy hot chocolate on a chilly day? Not much—except maybe a mug scented with cardamom, cinnamon and other chai spices, or a grown-up version spiked with amaretto and sea salt. Can’t decide? You don't have to. Take a look at our rich and chocolatey master recipe—plus a few of our favorite hot chocolate “hacks”—all of which are as easy to make as they are indulgent.

9 Vegan Recipes That Will Leave You Satisfied

If you think eating vegan cuisine means chomping on raw carrot sticks, think again. These 9 inventive entrees prove that dinners without meat or cheese can be just as flavorful — and filling.

FDA Unveils National Calorie-Labeling Rules So You Can Now Feel Super Guilty About That Second Margarita

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released new guidelines on Tuesday that will require a sweeping array of establishments and services to provide clearly labeled calorie counts on food and beverages.

Thanksgiving Recipes for Every Dietary Restriction

You can almost guarantee it will happen: you invite a few friends or family members over for Thanksgiving, and one will inevitably tell you that they're on some new diet this year, and you've got to figure out how to cater to their needs because you're a nice person.

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7 Make-Ahead Appetizers for Thanksgiving

Give yourself less to do on the big day with these no-fail recipes.

This Is What You're Paying For When You Buy Organic

More and more of us are willing to fork over cash for foods labeled "organic," but strikingly few of us actually know what organic means, reports Fast Company.

A recent survey from BFG, a brand consultancy, asked 300 people (most of whom were under the age of 35) about their food-shopping habits. Their results showed that about 70% of the respondents were buying something with an "organic" label, but only 20% felt confident they could define the word.

And, we can't really blame them: The world of food labels and their regulation is pretty murky. But, the USDA does have fairly straightforward standards for how these items should be stickered, and strict regulations regarding the required certification process brands need to go through for the privilege of being labeled "organic." In general, organic crops, livestock, and other foods must be able to demonstrate that they're "protecting natural resources, conserving biodiversity, and using only approved substances." That usually includes not using prohibited pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, GMOs, antibiotics, or growth hormones.

However, the different levels of organic labeling in the U.S. do complicate the issue. For instance, "100% organic" is different from just "organic," which is different from "made with organic" and so on. And, while the use of the term "organic" can be regulated to a degree, something like the word "natural" really can't. The FDA says it doesn't have a hard regulatory definition of "natural" when used as a food label, but the term could conceivably be used to denote a product that's free of artificial coloring or flavors.

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The Best Food Documentaries to Have On Your Netflix Queue

Interest in what we put into our bodies has hit a fever pitch, which can in part explain the explosion of food-related documentaries in recent years.

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Eat your vegetables

When mama told you to eat your vegetables, she didn't mean you should stop once you grew up and left home. But a survey by the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that fewer than a third of Americans are getting the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

Fruits and vegetables are lower in calories, so they can help keep people trim. And they have fiber that will help stave off colon cancer and other intestinal diseases. And, the more people eat the good stuff, the less room they have for the bad stuff.

Listen to your mama.

It's Green, It's Seriously Delicious, And It May Disappear From Our Lives Far Too Soon

26 Fat-Blasting Foods

Apples to quinoa, these power foods are great for your waistline and heart.

Burger King looks to cut price of double cheeseburger

A Burger King franchisee confirmed Wednesday that the company has asked franchisees to consider temporarily dropping the price of their double cheeseburger to $1, a move likely aimed at igniting a burger battle with McDonald's Corp.

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No joke: Cheeseburger in a can

Yes, folks, there is indeed a cheeseburger in a can being sold somewhere out there.

Ribs on a regular grill?

With a cheap aluminum foil bread pan, you can turn that kettle into an honest-to-goodness smoker, make some authentic slow-smoked barbecue ribs and have yourself a mini-vacation in your yard.

 

15 Ways to Eat More Local Food

Tips from Kitchen Gardeners International members