Taco salad can be one of the most unhealthy dishes around when it comes to the fat content alone.

In the past, I avoided taco salads for that very reason. I have enough problems controlling my weight. Like most of the women in my family as soon as I hit the age of 25 my metabolism began slowing down and I began putting on weight. That coupled with a job that required me to park myself at a desk all day didn't help either.

It seemed like one of the only ways I could control my weight was to control what I put in my mouth. But I hated giving up my favorite foods, taco salad being one of those favorite foods. And we all know it's a fact that if we deny ourselves for too long what we truly desire eating, sooner or later we're going to binge.

So, I began learning how to take recipes that were not healthy and turning them into healthy ones, that way I didn't have to give up my favorite foods.

Here are some tips for turning your taco salad recipe healthy...

There are many reasons why consumers should consider buying locally-grown produce:

For one, when you buy locally grown produce you are investing in your own community.

You are also helping small family farms compete.

Locally-grown produce is also eco-friendly.

The produce you buy at the supermarket is shipped an average of 1500 miles before it ends up on the shelf.

Food that travels so many miles cannot be called sustainable.

Plus, the taste of freshly grown local produce is impossible to beat!

Luckily, vast numbers of Americans are already getting turned on to the benefits of buying local produce.

But what do you do when the harvest is over, winter arrives, and local farms go into hibernation until spring?

With a little old fashioned ingenuity and a few free hours to kill, you can continue to enjoy the benefits of local produce all year long.

What makes this possible is a process known as home canning.

As you know, I've been following Rachel Ray on The Food Network lately.

And I tend to agree with much of what she says... and lots of the ways she does things... including the whole "garbage bowl" concept.

Well, to an extent...

I think one of the things that Rachel Ray does (for all of the non-cooking aficionados like me) is she makes cooking FUN.

Not only does she use fun & catchy phrases to describe everyday cooking terms, but she really doesn't give a hoot about being precisely accurate or doing things "by the book" when she's cooking. For me, that takes a lot of the stuffiness associated with the act of cooking like a pro.

For me, what it all comes down to is this:
Recipes are meant to be tried, experimented with, and enjoyed... the way you like 'em!

I have to say... I am thoroughly enjoying my latest stint as a "cook". (Of course, I'm using that word loosely.)

This go-around, I've been taking tips from the "pros". Experimenting with lots of fun new easy recipes. And organizing recipes (including photos) in a recipe program I've had for years, but never fully utilized until now.

So far so good. Everything's been edible. And Jim seems to be enjoying this process, as well.

My biggest motivating factor has been The Food Network. For the past few weeks, I've been addicted to the Food channel on TV ...which before now, simply made me hungry. Now, it makes me want to try new things.

While performing a deep-clean on our kitchen this week, I found an old list of "all the best cooking tips" I compiled some time ago.

This list has followed me from kitchen to kitchen with every move we've made through the years.

Geesh, where have I been?

I cannot believe that I was never told this is how you should peel potatoes!

Seriously...