Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

I walked in the door to the sweetest sight tonight. A fire, flowers, wine, Reese’s Egg(s), and Ben, my dear sweet Ben, preparing dinner for the two of us. Swoon!

I’ve been sent to the living room to relax by the fire while he finishes up, so I thought I’d share a light lunch I’ve been obsessing over recently in the meantime.

Cantaloupe, Prosciutto & Cashews

This combo is SO freaking unbelievable and best of all it takes, like, 4 seconds to put together after you’ve scooped out the cantaloupe.

I got the idea from Mowielicious who combined cantaloupe, avocado, cashews and parsley for the most gorgeous and refreshing looking salad I think I’ve ever seen. Not having an innate love of whole parsley leaves and, well, forgetting to put avocado in the first time, I came up with this combo instead.

The salty, whisper-thin slices of prosciutto melt with the juicy cantaloupe, while cashews provide a unique crunch and buttery finish. I ate it 3 times for lunch last week. Obsessed much?!

If I didn’t have Ben, it would for sure be my Valentine.

That, or the cutest penguin nephew in the entire world. I can’t even handle this!

In other news…

$500 Nourish What Counts Donation + Giveaway

Did you know more women die of heart disease than all forms of cancer combined, yet less than 10% perceive it as their greatest health threat? (Sorry for the terrible segue!)

As a woman with naturally high levels of bad cholesterol, (thanks, genetics) which increases the risk of heart disease, this fact really hits home for me.

To celebrate healthy hearts and American Heart Month, Quaker Oats has teamed up with the American Heart Association to encourage women to “Nourish What Counts” by taking just 5 minutes to do something good for their hearts.

To help spread the message, Quaker will donate $500 to my local American Heart Association chapter, $250 on behalf of me and $250 on behalf of you, dear IGE readers, if we can generate 100 comments on this post with how we’ll take 5 minutes to Nourish What Counts.

Need some ideas? Take 5 minutes to…

1. Replace some of the refined grains you eat, like white bread and rice, with whole grains.
2. Talk to your kids about healthy eating and exercise habits.
3. Tack an 5 additional minutes onto your normal workout.
4. Add a fresh fruit or serving of vegetables to your dinner plate.
5. Learn how to create a healthier heart by reading articles like 8 Steps to a Healthy Heart.

I’m going to Nourish What Counts by parking further away at the grocery store, mall, etc. for the additional heart-pumping exercise. Visit Quaker.com/NourishWhatCounts for some more ideas!

As an additional incentive to leave a comment, Quaker will give away a box of their newest heart-healthy cereal Whole Hearts to 5 commenters. Please take a few minutes to tell me how you’re going to Nourish What Counts, so we can secure this $500 donation! The deadline for leaving a comment to enter to win a box of Whole Hearts is Wednesday, February 15 at 5pm.

Thank you all, and here’s to healthy hearts (which we can use to love even harder on Valentine’s Day!) Have a LOVEly night!