Woohoo…it is giveaway time! I’m so excited to announce this fabulous contest which will have 3 LUCKY WINNERS! First, in case you don’t know, I wrote a “7 Super Spices” blog post about all the benefits of eating these spices. I received tons of retweets of my blog post via my Twitter account. I have also launched a daily “Why Spice” tip which has been retweeted and retweeted! So, America’s Nutrition Expert decided it is time for her followers to win some fantastic spices!

The great news is that McCormick has donated THREE sets of the 7 spices (cinnamon, ginger, oregano, red pepper, rosemary, thyme and yellow curry) for my giveaway!!! Wow!!

There are 3 ways to enter your name and you can enter more than once!
1. Retweet any or all of my “Why Spice” tweets. Just go to my twitter account and find my daily “Why Spice” tweet.

2. Tweet your own favorite way/ways to use one of the 7 spices to @nutritionexpert

3. Retweet the 7 Spices Blog Post

Also, everyone who has already retweeted my posted is entered into the drawing.

Contest ends Midnight PT on Friday, April 30.

What are you waiting for? Get to tweeting! Thanks so much for participating in this fun contest and thanks to McCormick!

Spices are very well-known for adding vibrant colors and kicks in our food. They take ordinary foods…and make themextraordinary just with one pinch, dash, shake or teaspoonful. But wait…there’s fantastic news. They’re a lot more than that…

Spices are packed with natural antioxidants, that’s right, the same stuff that you would find in fruits and vegetables. Why are antioxidants good for your health? Here are a few reasons:

• boost immune system
• reduce inflammation (prevent heart disease, cancer, diabetes and other chronic diseases)
• curb your appetite
• boost your metabolism

McCormick® has done an exceptional job explaining the health benefits of spices and providing consumers with an array of information (See “Spices for Health”). They have put together a list of “7 Super Spices” (cinnamon, ginger, oregano, red pepper, rosemary, thyme and yellow curry) complete with how you can use them. Here are a three of my faves:

1. Keep a shaker of Ground Cinnamon handy to sprinkle over everything from hot cocoa to smoothies, oatmeal and fruit salad.
2. Add a hint of Ground Ginger to hot or iced tea. Sweeten 1 cup tea with 3/4 teaspoon sugar mixed with 1/4 teaspoon Ground Ginger.
3. Wake up tast buds with Herbed Scrambled Eggs. Beat 1/8 teaspoon Thyme or Oregano Leaves into 2 eggs before scrambling.

McCormick® also encourages consumers to Take the 30 Day Challenge: 30 Ways to Power Up Your Plate complete with a Super Swaps calendar! How sweet/spicy/tangy is that?!

What do you do to add a little bit of spice in your life? What are some of your favorite spice secrets?

Follow me on Twitter @NutritionExpert for my “Why Spice?” Tweets!

Assistance provided by Monica Lobo.