What's on your kitchen counter?

As a mother of a teen and pre-teen, our house is often filled with friends and neighbors after school.  So what stackable items do I keep on my kitchen counter?  A fruit bowl and a bowl of pistachios.

I was never a huge nut lover as a kid, but I've grown to enjoy peanuts, almonds and pistachios.  And isn't there just something fun about pistachios?  Maybe it's the satisfying way their shells break apart, or that wonderful combination of sweet and savory.  Whatever it is, it works - and almost everyone gravitates to our pistachio bowl.  That's one way I serve up nutrition in my home.  Here's some of the health benefits you'll find in pistachios:

http://americanpistachios.org/

How to Steer Clear of the Drive-thru

The average American eats fast food 3 times per week.  That can add up to as much as 190,000 calories per year (which equates to 54 pounds of weight gain if not worked off in physical activity). 
Wow!  The average American's 159 trips to the drive-thru can really add up in more ways than one. 
Here are some strategies to help you drive past the drive thru.

1. Discuss the changes you want to make as a family.  If everyone is accustomed to hitting the drive thru after soccer, dance and karate practice each week, they might be a little surprised or a little mutinous if you drive straight home without any explanation.  Healthy nutrition should be a family affair and everyone deserves to know the reasons behind the healthy changes.  
2. Emphasize the monetary as well as the health benefits.  Money and time are the big motivators in our society.  So use that to your advantage.  Calculate the money you can save by avoiding the drive-thru.  You may even want to make plans for a fun family activity or "stay-cation" with the drive-thru funds you save.
3. Have a planned menu in place.  More often than not, the siren-song of the drive-thru is extra tempting when we don't have dinner planned.  Take a few minutes each week to write down that week's menu.  Again - family input here is key if you want them on board.  
4. Plan B.  There will inevitably be times when you find yourself out longer running errands than you expected, or you forgot to get dinner into the crockpot that morning.  Instead of hitting the drive-thru, hit the grocery store instead.  Have everyone choose their favorite sandwich item, grab some whole grain bread and some fruit, and Viola! you have a quick, healthy dinner to enjoy when you get home. 
5. Emergency car food.  As for the times when you are far from home, stuck in traffic, or dying of hunger with no grocery store in sight, keep a few things tucked away in the glove compartment of your car.  Dried fruit, nuts, individual nut butter packets, pretzels or whole grain crackers and water bottles are great ways to stave off the crave and keep you out of the drive-thru line.

Not only will you save money and calories, but you'll be teaching your children that eating out (whether in a sit-down restaurant, or from a drive-thru) is an occasional, once-in-a-while thing. . . not a routine occurrence.  That - more than anything - is reason enough to steer clear.  

Tax Season Taxing Your Health? Eat Wisely to Reduce Stress

Life's hectic pace seems to intensify this time of year with tax season and a change of season bringing all their extra work and worry.  But whether or not this is an unusually stressful time of year for you, chances are that your stress is taking it's toll on your health.  Most, if not all of us, have higher than optimal levels of stress hormones circulating in our systems.  While these chemicals serve the purpose of instigating the fight or flight response, they aren't meant to chronically circulate even in moderate levels in our bloodstream.  Heart disease, high blood pressure, inflammation and even obesity can trace some of their roots back to the stress hormones our bodies produce. So in addition to regular physical exertion, relaxation and balancing your time priorities, keep in mind that what and how you eat can help your body reduce it's stress load.

• Water.  Drink plenty and frequently.  Keeping well hydrated allows your body to metabolize and utilize nutrients optimally.  Also proper hydration can help stave off stressful health problems such as fatigue, headaches and urinary tract infections.

  

• Fruits and veggies.  These foods are loaded with antioxidants that not only improve our immune response, but also help lower blood pressure and reduce inflammation.  The fiber and water content also help keep your digestion regular (which, when not regular, can be a real source of stress).
  
• Nuts and avocados.  Heathy fats are helpful with reducing inflammation and the body's stress response.  Plus, these foods are also loaded with vitamins and minerals that, for most Americans, fall into the inadequate category.  Nuts are great at providing protein as well as fiber so they make a healthy, convenient snack that can keep your hunger at bay better than most snack foods.

   

• Turn to the dark side . . . of chocolate that is.  Dark chocolate has its fair share of antioxidant qualities and has been proven to improve mood.  So if chocolate appeals to you - go to the dark side. 

   

• Obey your hunger signals and eat regularly.  Often in the midst of stress, we delay or put off eating so that we can get through the report that is due, or the work that's piled up.  But when we ignore our body's natural signals to eat, we end up working less and less effectively.  Brain function and overall energy levels drop off when you go too long between meals.  So keep some healthy snacks (like fruit, nuts, high fiber cereals) on hand and don't skip lunch.  Taking those needed breaks will allow your body to perform better at work and at play.

     

• Enjoy your food.  A delicious meal that is savored and enjoyed can bring a lot of pleasure and do a lot to reduce some of that damaging stress-response.  Take time to actually taste the food, enjoy the company, and savor the experience of nourishing your body with delicious, healthful food.  Think about it - if you made it a goal to slow down and mindfully enjoy three meals a day - you'd have three built-in opportunities to relax during the day.  Sit down, slow down, take some deep breaths, stretch and then enjoy the flavors that await.  

Green Smoothie Muffins

Green Smoothie Muffins

For those of you who have lots of green smoothie ingredients on hand but are craving something to actually chew, try this fun twist on a traditional breakfast item.  Pair it with some fruit and a glass of milk and you've got a great start to your day!

Ingredients:

• 4 cups fresh spinach 
• 1/2 cup pineapple 
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup low-fat milk
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt 
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 ∘F
2. In a blender, blend the first 8 ingredients (spinach through milk) until smooth.
3. In large mixing bowl, mix together the remaining 6 dry ingredients (sugar through whole wheat flour).
4. Add liquid ingredients to dry, and mix just until fully moistened and well combined. 
5. Coat muffin pans with cooking spray (recipe should fill 14-16 muffins depending on the size of the tin) Or grease small, clean terra cotta pots for a more festive, spring-like muffin presentation.
6. Fill muffin tins (or pots) 2/3 full.  
7. Bake at 400 ∘F for 15-18 minutes or until muffins spring back when lightly pressed.

Nutritional Info:
Serving size: 1 muffin
Yield: 16 muffins
Calories: 145
Total Fat: 4 g
Cholesterol: 12 mg
Sodium: 230 mg
Potassium: 118 mg
Total Carbohydrates: 18g
Dietary Fiber: 2 g
Sugars: 11 g
Protein: 3 g
Provides: 28% Vitamin A; 12% Folate; 15% Manganese; 9% Vitamin C

Nutrition on a Budget

 

With a few tweaks to your shopping, cooking and eating routine, you can not only improve your nutrition, but save money as well!

Choosing Cereal: Rule of 5s

Breakfast cereal is convenient part many a busy morning.  And in many cases, cold cereal provides some great nutrition.  However, not all cereal is created equal.  Many breakfast cereals are full of added sugar, leaving out the whole grains for which this food is named.  So how does one successfully navigate the cereal aisle?  Try using this rule of 5s for optimal cereal nutrition, or for those trying to baby step their way towards better nutrition, you can start with the rule of 9&3.

Rule of 5s

Look at the nutrition label and choose a cereal with:

1. 5 or less grams of sugar per serving
2. 5 or more grams of fiber per serving

My kids tend to want to revolt if all they find in the pantry is "rule of 5" cereals.  So I have created a slightly more relaxed rule to keep them from raiding their friends pantry in search of greater cereal variety.  


Rule of 9&3

Look at the nutrition label and choose a cereal with:

1. 9 or less grams of sugar per serving
2. 3 or more grams of fiber per serving

 We usually end up eating a combination of both of the above cereals.  So choose wisely, and enjoy all the benefits that whole grains adds to your diet with cold cereal.  Whether sogging up in a bowl of milk, or dry as a quick snack, cereal can provide serious nutrition.

 

Enjoying the Taste of Eating Right: the Key to Life-long Heatlh

March is National Nutrition Month®, and this year's theme is "Enjoy the Taste of Eating Right".  Here are a few reasons I love this idea of enjoying food:

• The more real satisfaction we find in "real" or "right" food, the less likely we are to munch our way through other snacks.
• Food is designed to nourish our bodies and our souls.  In other words, food not only should make us healthy, but happy as well.
• Eating right provides so many more flavors, textures and eye-appeal than eating pre-packaged, convenience, or fast-food.
• A large part of America's nutrition woes come from fear, deprivation, and guilt associated with food.  Enjoying food and ridding ourselves of all the psychological, and emotional baggage of dieting opens up a whole new world of health.

I love food and my main mantra for healthy eating is: make half of what you eat plants (fruits and veggies).  So here's a glance at how I as a dietitian enjoy the taste of eating right.  I'll be posting more details throughout the month on my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/NutritiousIntent