Mazola Pin It to Win It Giveaway In Honor of National Cholesterol Education Month

September Is National Cholesterol Education Month

Heart disease is the disorder of blood vessels in and around the heart that often leads to heart attacks.¹  It is the leading cause of death in the United States.²   Heart Disease used to be thought of as a disease that affected mostly men, but this simply isn’t true.  More than 40% of women who suffer from heart attacks will die within the first year compared to 24% of men.^³   Although heart disease can’t be cured it can be managed with a healthy diet which includes foods like fruits, veggies, lean protein, whole grains and  Mazola Corn Oil.

Make simple changes to your lifestyle to prevent heart disease before it starts!  High cholesterol is one of the major risk factors leading to heart disease, heart attack and stroke.  September is National Cholesterol Education Month and the perfect time to take a look at the way you eat.  The good news is you can still cook the foods you enjoy while being kind to your heart.

When using cooking oil, be sure to opt for corn oil. Corn oil contains the highest amount of naturally occurring plant sterols per serving. Corn oil contains four times as many sterols as olive oil and 40 percent more than canola oil. Research shows plant sterols, like the ones in Mazola Corn Oil, can significantly reduce the body’s cholesterol absorption.  In fact, plant sterols are one of the most effective nutrients at naturally lowering cholesterol. The FDA recognizes diets rich in plant sterols reduce the risk of heart disease.*

To get you started, Registered Dietitian Rebecca Scritchfield created some cholesterol-friendly recipes for Mazola, adding a twist on old favorites!  I’ve included two here but be sure to checkout mazola.com for more!

Zesty Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes

Everyone loves sloppy joes. This heart-healthy recipe kicks it up a notch by providing a full serving of vegetables, black beans and lean ground turkey. With just the right amount of mild seasoning, kids and adults will enjoy this meal.
Yield: Twelve ½ cup servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 4-8 hours or overnight
Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons Mazola® Corn Oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup shredded OR chopped carrots
• 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 2 cans (15 ounces each) no salt added tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons no added salt tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon Spice Islands® Ground Cumin
• 1 teaspoon Spice Islands® Ground Mustard
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• To taste, Spice Islands® Medium Grind Black Pepper
• ½ to 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (use ½ for mild or 1 for spicy), optional
• 1 pound 98% lean ground turkey breast
• 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 12 whole wheat hamburger buns

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, bell pepper, carrots, mushrooms and corn. Sauté for 5 minutes until vegetables are slightly tender and onions are translucent. Remove from heat and set aside.
2. Stir together tomato sauce, tomato paste, cumin, mustard, vinegar, molasses, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper and chipotle if desired, in a large bowl.
3. Add ground turkey to slow cooker, breaking up into smaller pieces with a large spoon or spatula. Add sautéed vegetables, tomato mixture and black beans; stir to combine.
4. Cover and cook 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.
5. To serve, scoop a ½ cup portion on to a sliced bun

Zesty Sloppy Joes nutritional information per serving: 162 Calories, 5g Fat, 0g Saturated Fat, 22mg Cholesterol, 67mg Sodium, 17g Carbohydrates, 4g Fiber, 8g Sugar, 13g Protein and 29 mg Calcium.

Baked Parmesan Zucchini Fries with Creamy Yogurt Dip

These baked zucchini “fries” have flavor and crunch the whole family will enjoy. Serve them as an appetizer at your next party or side dish at meals.
Yield: 4 servings, about 14 zucchini fries each and ¼ cup yogurt dip
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20-25 minutes
Ingredients
Creamy Yogurt Dip

• ¾ cup plain, fat free Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup English cucumber, grated and peeled
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
• ¼  teaspoon Spice Islands® Garlic Powder

Baked Parmesan Zucchini Fries

• 2 medium zucchini squash
• 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ¼ teaspoon Spice Islands® Garlic Powder
• ¼ teaspoon Spice Islands® Oregano
• 1/8  teaspoon Spice Islands® Cayenne Pepper
• 1/8  teaspoon Spice Islands® Cayenne

Directions
To make Creamy Yogurt Dip:

1. Combine all dip ingredients bowl.   Refrigerate until ready to serve.

To make Fries:

2. Preheat oven to 425°F.  Line a baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on top of foil.
3. Slice the ends off the zucchini and peel.  Cut each zucchini into “fries” that are approximately ½-inch in diameter and about 2 to 3 inches in length. Layer between paper towels; blot and set aside.
4. Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, oregano and cayenne pepper in a pie plate or shallow bowl.
5. Pour oil into a small shallow dish.
6. Brush batches of zucchini (about 5 at a time) with oil until lightly coated.  Transfer the zucchini to the pie plate and, using your hands, press into the seasoned breadcrumb mixture.  Gently toss between your hands to allow extra breadcrumbs to fall away.
7. Place breaded zucchini on the wire rack.  Repeat until all zucchini is coated.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.  Serve immediately, with Creamy Yogurt Dip. These are also delicious served with ¼ cup marinara sauce as a dip.

Baked zucchini “fries” nutritional information per serving:  134 Calories, 10g Fat, 2g Saturated Fat, 2mg Cholesterol, 63mg Sodium, 10g Carbs, 2g Fiber, 2.5g Sugar, 3g Protein, 48mg Calcium.

In Honor of National Cholesterol Month Leslie Loves Veggies is hosting a Giveaway for a really super prize package courtesy of my friends at Mazola.  This Giveaway is a bit different from my others so please read and follow the directions carefully!
Prize Package Includes

• One bottle of Mazola Corn Oil
• One $100 gift card
• One autographed copy of Best-Loved Mexican Cooking by Chef LaLa

In conjunction with the giveaway I’ve created a “Cut Cholesterol” Pinterest Board which contains some great information, recipes and tips!  Please click on the link to learn more!

How to enter the Mazola Cut Cholesterol Pin it to Win it Giveaway

1. Follow Leslie M. on Pinterest
2. Create a new Pinterest board called “Cut Cholesterol”
3. Please include at least (2) two recipes from the  Lower Cholesterol section of the Mazola website.
4. Include both hashtags #mazola and #cutcholesterol in the comment section of each pin.  Once your Pinterest Board is complete pin the image of this Giveaway (the one you see on the right) as your board cover and leave the URL into the  the comment section of Rafflecopter Widget.  This is YOUR MANDATORY ENTRY INTO THIS GIVEAWAY!
5. See the Rafflecopter Widget for bonus entries which may be completed only after #1, 2, 3 and 4 have been completed!

CONNECT WITH Mazola ON THESE SOCIAL MEDIA
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The generous folks at Mazola are going to Bless ONE Leslie Loves Veggies Reader with a Mazola Prize Package which includes: a bottle of Mazola Corn Oil, a $100 Gift Card and an autographed copy of Best-Loved Mexican Cooking by Chef LaLa. {$120 Value} Thank you so much!

HERE’S HOW TO WIN…
Please use Rafflecopter form for ALL entries. Blog comments unfortunately will not be counted.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Easy Peasy Right! For full list of rules please click HERE. Giveaway will end on Tuesday 9/25 at Midnight. Giveaway open to U.S. entries only. Winners are contacted by email and posted HERE. Winners have 48 hours to confirm before a new Winner is chosen.

No Purchase Necessary. Void where prohibited by law. Many thanks to Mazola who provided a product or sample for this Review & Giveaway. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” This Giveaway is brought to you by Mazola and is not sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. Good Luck!

¹ http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/educational/hearttruth/lower-risk/what-is-heart-disease.htm
² Miniño AM, Murphy SL, Xu J, Kochanek KD. Deaths: Final data for 2008. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 59 no 10. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2011
³ http://www.womensheart.org/content/HeartDisease/heart_disease_facts.asp
* FDA 2000, FDA 2010