The National Salt Reduction Initiative will be seeking to have us reduce salt intake by 20%. Too much sodium in your diet can increase blood pressure, which can lead to stroke and heart disease. Even if you’re 20 years old and not thinking about stoke and heart disease, the bad eating habits you develop now are the ones you’ll have to struggle to give up in another 20 years. g. As I’m sure you know,. This can also be of interest for February’s Heart Health Month.

Mrs. Dash Seasoning Blend, an all-natural blend of 14 natural herbs and spices that has been a lifesaver to people who need to cut down on salt but still want flavor (also available as sodium-free grilling spices and marinades), offers these tips for reducing sodium intake:

To Cut Down On Salt

Sea salts have lovely flavor, but they have
just as much sodium as regular table salt.
Photo by Dhanraj Emanuel | THE NIBBLE.

How much salt should you consume a day? According to the Mayo Clinic, healthy younger adults should keep sodium consumption between 1,500 and 2,300 mg of sodium a day (only a few hundred mg/day are actually needed to maintain healthy body function). People with high blood pressure and anyone middle-aged or older should aim for the low end of the range.

Is sea salt better than table salt? It has the same amount of sodium as table salt, but is pure (no chemicals are used in the refining) and has better flavor and texture.

• Find lots of salt-free, flavorful recipes at Mrs.Dash.com.

Use ‘em up—don’t let those oils grow old and
over-the-hill. Photo of Lucero California
Olive Oil by Evan Dempsey | THE NIBBLE.

Also check your salad and cooking oils: They go rancid. If they don’t pass the sniff test, toss them. Oil that has turned smells musty and old. If you don’t trust your nose, take a small taste.

When you replace the oils, use a wine preservative spray to prolong the life of the ones you use less frequently. Even better, don’t buy more oil than you can reasonably use within 6 months.

Vinegar, on the other hand, has an almost indefinite shelf life. Because of its acid nature, vinegar is self-preserving and does not need refrigeration. Except for distilled vinegar, some changes can be observed over time, such as color changes or the development of a haze or sediment. According to the Vinegar Institute, this is only an aesthetic change. The product can still be enjoyed with confidence.

Be sure to check your spices! If they don’t have an expiration date, you know they’re over-the-hill (because they were made before dating became an industry practice). And keep oil and spices away from light and heat, which help them deteriorate more quickly.

• See instructions on how to check your herbs and spices for freshness and know when they’re over the hill.

If your goal is to see more of your friends and family this year, why not start a monthly tea party tradition?

Tea is healthy entertaining—we’ve provided you with low-calorie options instead of all the pastries. But of course, have the scones and clotted cream ready for those who aren’t counting calories!

For each month of the year, we’ve provided two different seasonal concepts for a tea party: one from THE NIBBLE editors and one from the Fitzpatrick Hotel Group, an Irish-owned collection of hotels, where there’s a deep appreciation for the enjoyment of afternoon tea.

• Read our tea party article to see who invented the tradition of tea, why elegant people attend “afternoon tea” and not “high tea.”
• Discover more about tea in our Gourmet Tea Section.

Afternoon tea is a time to relax with a hot cup
of tea and a delectable snack. Photo by Kristian Septimius Krogh | IST

Nigori (cloudy) saké looks milky, but it’s
strictly for adults. Photo by Luigi Anzivino
| Wikimedia Commons.

Nigori saké has a fuller taste and a sweeter finish. It’s a great palate cleanser in preparation for the next roll or piece of sushi; it goes especially well with rich or spicy maki. You can opt for a saketini made from nigori saké and vodka, with a cucumber garnish.

Saké is brewed from polished rice. Nigori saké is classic antique-style saké. Nigori means ”roughly filtered” or ”loosely filtered.” The saké is filtered through a rough weave filtration system, which is how saké was made prior to modern technology.

With this rough process, tiny rice particles filter through and settle on the bottom of the bottle like white sediment. The bottle is shaken prior to serving, which suspends the particles and creates the cloudy (or milky) look.

While many people prefer the crystal-clear saké made possible by modern multiple filtering techniques, others prefer the old-style nigori saké, which retains more flavor and has more natural sweetness. (The subtle sweetness also lets nigori saké pair well with spicy cuisines, fried foods and desserts).

Prefer beer to saké? Lighter beers pair better with sushi—don’t lay a heavy craft beer against the delicate fish flavors.

• Learn more about pairing saké with food.
• Check out our Saké Glossary for all the terms you need to know.

The company’s newest organic chocolate bar is a full-bodied 37% milk chocolate that enrobes crisp, caramelized peanuts. There’s a touch of sea salt for that wonderful sweet-and-salty flavor.

For portion control, the 3.5-ounce chocolate bar is scored into squares. If you’re calorie counting, just break off two or three a day.

• To help you go nuts over its new addition, Green & Black’s is offering a $1 off downloadable coupon at GreenAndBlacks.com, that can be used at select retailers, including Target.

• Find more of our favorite chocolate bars in our Gourmet Chocolate section.

Go nuts for caramelized peanuts and sea
salt enrobed in 37% cacao milk chocolate.
Photo courtesy Green & Black’s.