The New Year has many of us searching for ways to lose weight, but for Missouri seniors with chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart failure, excess weight and obesity are especially serious concerns.

Experiencing Mardi Gras in Louisiana not an option this year? No worries, St. Louis has plenty of good times and food to keep the good times rolling.

It’s not too late to celebrate the New Year, that’s Chinese New Year. January 23 marks the Year of the Dragon. So brush off those resolutions and celebrate with a family dinner.

It’s turkey season. Beyond the seasonal sales on frozen turkeys, it’s wild Missouri turkey season and hunters are out in force in hopes of bagging a Thanksgiving bird. “Any place where there’s woods you can find wild turkeys,” said Dan Zarlenga, Missouri Department of Conservation’s Media Specialist. “Throughout Missouri the numbers of wild turkeys have been increasing over, the years so it’s no surprise you’ll see them along the roadside or even in your own backyard.”

Dear Savvy Senior, My 62-year-old husband was just diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. As the cook in the family, I’m interested in finding out the best diabetic foods that he should now be eating, and where I can put my hands on some good diabetic cookbooks. What can you tell me? Diabetic Caretaker

Whether you travel to Ann Arbor’s famed Kerrytown Farm Market or to the St. Louis’ own Soulard Market – making a trip to enjoy the harvest season promises to provide delicious memories. Farm markets offer more than fresh produce – they’re destinations. Places where you can enjoy sidewalk musicians to cooking demonstrations, to one of the best tourist activities of them all - people watching, which often results in the opportunity of meeting a new friend and learning they’re market story. Ann Arbor’s Kerrytown Farmer’s Market is such a place.

Summer’s been a sizzler this year, making AC bills spike. With budgets getting tighter, it's time to take cost cutting measures. Start with economizing on the grill. Less expensive meats make the backyard barbecue bash affordable. I’m talking beyond hot dogs and brats. Instead consider cheaper cuts of beef and pork. Granted, these are usually lower fat cuts that are less tender and require a little extra care. One such traditionally cheaper cut is ribs.

Modesto’s creator Brendan Marsden could have been compared to a windmill chasing Don Quixote when he decided to open a non-Italian restaurant in the middle of The Hill.

The dog days of summer need not be comprised of hot dogs alone. Home grill masters increasingly are spicing up a great American tradition by adding the flavors of the world to their summer meals. The results are both healthful and delicious. “You can turn your backyard fare into something extra special with a little flavor punch,” says grilling expert Sharon Fernandes, founder of Stonehouse 27, a line of exotic all-natural Indian sauces with a Portuguese and British influence.