Creative Living: Easy Asian-style recipes, cupcakes on new shows

Information on decorating cupcakes, choosing pet food and preparing healthy school lunches and snacks will be the featured topics on “Creative Living” 9:30 p.m. Tuesday and noon.

Nancy Siler represents Wilton Brands, and she’s going to show how to create a collection of delicious, colorful cupcakes — good for any occasion. She says to let your imagination inspire the finishing touches. Siler is from Woodridge, Ill.

Will Post says that most people don’t give a lot of thought to the pet food they buy, often making purchases based on advertising or price. He is going to talk about five things we need to know before buying pet food. His company is Hound & Gatos Pet Food Corp. in Atlanta, Ga.

Pat Baird of Country Crock will talk about healthy school lunches and snacks and look at quick and easy ways to make nutritious lunches and snacks at home. She lives in Greenwich, Conn.

Information on Asian-inspired dinner recipes and carving stamps for card making or scrapbooking will be the featured topics on “Creative Living” noon Tuesday, and 2 p.m. Saturday.

Food consultant Kathy Moore of Williams Foods, Inc. will share easy dinner ideas that are inspired by popular Asian flavors and that use convenience foods for seasoning. She’s from Lenexa, Kan.

Author and artist Margaret Peot will show how to carve a textural stamp and a pattern stamp to use in making handmade cards or for scrap booking and journaling. Her latest book is titled “Make Your Mark.” She lives in New York, N.Y.

Five things to know about pet food

It is estimated that across the country we have some 70 million dogs and 86 million cats. That pet population supports a massive pet food industry. However, most people don’t give a lot of thought to the pet food they buy, often making purchases based on advertising or price. The consequence of doing this can be dire for pets. The more one knows about pet food, the better off they will be in keeping their animals healthy.

There are numerous problems with the pet food industry, including that liver is not being properly labeled so that buyers know which source it originates from. Therefore, pets may be allergic to chicken or beef and will end up getting it in their food without their own knowledge. Other things you need to know:

• FDA regulated. The pet food industry is regulated by the FDA, which is the same government body that watches over the human food supply in this country.
• Lots of recalls. Even though the FDA regulates the industry, plenty of recalls still occur. One big issue that may lead to a pet food recall is the threat of salmonella.
• Big industry. The pet food industry is a massive industry, with Americans spending over $21 billion annually to buy food for their pets. Walk the aisle of any grocery or pet store, and it is easy to see that there are many choices available to the consumer.
• Beware of ingredients. Many pet food brands put out food that is filled with ingredients that people should steer clear of because they can cause digestive and health problems for their pets. These include things like meat by-products, corn, soy, rendered animal fats, wheat, sugar and artificial anything.
• These are ingredients that cats and dogs would not eat in nature, and they will prevent pets from thriving. There is something better. Everyone with a pet should become a label reader, avoiding those foods that include the above-listed ingredients. They should opt for foods that contain high-quality sources of protein for optimal health.

“Creative Living" is produced and hosted by Sheryl Borden. The show is carried by more than 118 PBS stations in the United States, Canada, Guam and Puerto Rico and is distributed by Westlink, Albuquerque.