Stay Cool in a Smart Way: Frozen Treats

 Dog-days of summer cry out for frozen treats such as slushes, ice-cream, and popsicles.  But are some choices better than others when it comes to cooling off with something frozen? Here are some things to look for when choosing frozen treats from the store.

•   Serving size: one-kid-hand rule – if a child can hold it with one hand, then chances are the serving size is reasonable.  (Monstrously large slushes in huge cups – not so much).  If you have a package with a nutrition label – 100 calories or less is a good target to shoot for with creamy treats and closer to 50 calories for fruity frozen treats. 

•   Ingredient list: the shorter the better and something other than sugar as the first or second ingredient.

Freeze your own: 

•   Save out some smoothie, freeze it in a cup and enjoy it frozen another time.

•   Involve your kids – let them choose what fruit combinations to blend and freeze. Freezing in cups is simpler doesn't require fancy popsicle molds, is dripless and forces you to slow down.  Slower eating means more enjoyment, more relaxation and better nutrition.  

•   Bypass the blender and enjoy the whole fruit frozen: grapes and berries make great bite-sized frozen snacks, put a stick in a spear of pineapple, mango, melon or banana for the most wholesome and simple frozen treat. 

Chocolate-dipped pineapple - affectionately called choco-pina in Guatemala made me fall in love with this delicious treat. Super simple to make.

Being intentional in your choice of cool-down treats can help you stay hydrated and boost your nutrition at the same time. 

Choco-pina Recipe:

1. Put popsicle sticks partway into spears of fresh pineapple.  Freeze (I put them on wax-paper-lined baking sheets)
2. Melt a small amount of dark chocolate mixed with a little coconut oil.  (I know this sounds vague, but it depends on how much pineapple you are doing.)  I usually melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips and 1-2 tablespoons of coconut oil.
3. Dip frozen pineapple into melted chocolate mixure.  Place back on wax paper and freeze.  
4. When frozen, wrap in plastic wrap or put in zip-top bags.  Keep in Freezer.
5. Enjoy!

Great Grilling: Bump Up the Nutrition at Your Next BBQ

6 nutrition-boosting tips 

Tip 1: Start with a Clean Your Grill 

Scrubbing keeps the buildup of carcinogens left on the grill grates to a minimum and makes your food taste so much better.

Tip 2: Marinate Your Meat 

Marinating meat helps to reduce carcinogens. Multiple studies show up to 1/3 less carcinogens are formed when the meat is marinated before grilling.

Tip 3: Use a better oil 

You want to avoid burning and grilling is considered "high heat".  Some oils are better than others for this.  Maintaining healthy cholesterol levels is important to heart health, and when it comes to impact on cholesterol, not all cooking oils are created equal. In fact, the Journal of Clinical Lipidology has published a study that found that corn oil, like Mazola, can help lower cholesterol more than extra virgin olive oil. Corn Oil has more cholesterol-blocking plant sterols than other cooking oils – four times more than olive oil and 40 percent more than canola oil. and it is these plant sterols that reduce absorption of cholesterol in the gut.  Choose your oil wisely.

Chipotle-lime marinated flank steak - recipe to follow

Tip 4: Watch for Flares - choose lean meats 

When you cook a fatty piece of meat, the fat that drips onto the flames creates smoke which may contain the much talked about carcinogens. If you grill lean meats, poultry, and fish, you'll have less fat = better.

Tip 5: Beware Bacteria 

To kill the common E.coli bacteria, the USDA recommends cooking ground beef to 160 degrees. Don’t add foodborne illness to the menu.

Tip 6: Think outside the grill. 

Often we focus on the grilled entrée and don’t plan much in the way of sides.  So when it comes to the chips and dips that often make an appearance at the BBQ buffet, here’s my take on keeping your nutrition high.  When it comes to the chip, choosing something with a short ingredient list is key.  Ruffles has three simple ingredients – potatoes, oil and salt – that’s it. For dinner guests with celiac or gluten intolerance, they are gluten-free.  And to keep that nutrition high, chips should be a vehicle for a nutritious dip – an edible utensil.  We’ve got a zucchini dip made with greek yogurt that really ups the  nutrition. 

Recipes:

Zippy Zucchini Dip

Ingredients:

1 zucchini, shredded

1 cup nonfat, plain Greek yogurt

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

Salt to taste

Directions:

Mix zucchini, yogurt and garlic together in a small bowl. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Serve with Ruffles potato chips.

Chipotle Lime Marinade

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Marinate Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

4 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, finely minced

1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

2 Tbsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. kosher or sea salt

1/4 cup lime juice

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup Mazola® corn oil.

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in a large resealable plastic bag.  Add 1-2 pounds meat or poultry (flank steak is pictured).  Marinate in refrigerator for 30 minutes.  Remove from marinade, and grill, discarding remaining marinade.  Cook to desired doneness.

Summer Produce Hacks

Bump up your nutrition with a few summer produce hacks:

•   Berries - look for color & smell.  Color should be vibrant and especially with strawberries, they should smell very strawberry-ish.  Loaded with Vitamin C, anthocyanin and other antioxidants, they are a boon to your health in so many ways.  Think outside the cereal bowl by making: 

Berry Grilled Cheese Sandwich - Spread one piece of whole grain bread with apricot preserves, layer on some raspberries and slices of havarti cheese then top with the other slice and grill.  Makes a great breakfast sandwich. 

•   Stone fruits - Store at room temperature until ripe, then keep in the fridge. Refrigerate cherries right away separately so they don’t absorb other flavors. Stone fruits contain phenolic compounds that protect against inflammation, diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease.  Let them play a starring role by making:

Stone Fruit Stack Caprese Salad – layer nectarines, fresh mozzarella & basil then drizzle with balsamic vinegar & honey.

•   Corn on the Cob - Go with look and feel. It should feel firm when squeezed, have glossy silk, the tight husk should be grass-green in color.  Fresh corn is best within 24 hours, but you can keep it up to 3 days in the fridge.  Corn is good source of fiber and contains copounds that promote healthy vision.  It has the same amount of calories as an apple with less than ¼ of the sugar.  With the leftover cobs, cut off the kernels and make:

Corn& tomato pizza. 

•   Mangoes - I LOVE the easy drinking-glass-peel method for mango prep. Mangoes are great source of fiber, vitamin C and vitamin A.  It's nutrition helps maintain healthy skin and it’s relatively low glycemic index is helpful in maintaining blood sugar. For a healthful and delicious snack on a hot day try:

Frozen Yogurt-Dipped Mango Pops - freeze mango slices, then dip in vanilla yogurt and return to the freezer for 30 minutes.  Wonderfully healthy popsicles are just that easy.