December 29, 2011
Happy New Year to you! Thank you for reading and sharing my blog. I appreciate you, your comments, and look forward to this year together. I like the beginning of a New Year. For me, it’s a time to review and renew. I’m one of those who likes to take an up close and personal look at my life, where I’m going and what needs to be tweaked…and believe me…there’s always a lot of tweaking to be done.
I’m sure your schedule is like mine…pretty jammed every day. Well, I’m trying to take a little better care of my health, particularly the way I eat. I know, I’m a registered dietitian but I’m human too with a long list of things that need to be done everyday and never enough time. Sound familiar? So I’m looking at real world, everyday ways that I can eat better and improve my health and I want to share them with you.
Joining me on the podcast to discuss test kitchen tips for a healthy new you is Regina Ragone, registered dietitian and Food Director at Family Circle magazine. She was part of a food trend survey for Hunter PR and their results found that in 2012, 67% of Americans will make food-related resolutions. Do you agree? Do you plan to make food-related changes/tweaks?
Regina shared ways that the Family Circle test kitchens are working to produce healthier recipes:
Lowering the sodium in their recipes. Family Circle uses ingredients like no-salt or low-salt tomatoes and adds back in a little sea salt for more punch. Regina suggests making sure your dried spices are not old! I’m definitely more aware of sodium and grow fresh herbs in small pots outside my door including rosemary, oregano, chives, and sage. Once you start using herbs and spices it’s easy to cut the salt and not go back. Plus your taste buds adapt.
Check out this month’s recipe for Chicken, Sweet Potato and Cauliflower Vindaloo that includes quinoa.
Incorporating more whole grain products like quinoa and wheat berries to bulk things up without adding fat. There are really good blends/mixes available now. Newly popular whole grain products can be a little pricey so watch for sales and coupons. Use them in place of meat for a meatless Monday dish. I like the products by truRoots…they carry a wide variety of organic whole grains and lentils such as quinoa, green lentils and brown rice.
Add great condiments like good balsamic vinegar (Regina loves Lucini’s fig), mustards and honey… all help perk up the flavor of food.
Want more information? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
Listen to this week’s podcast
December 8, 2011
One of my most popular blog and podcast topics is gluten-free. Do you have questions too? I’m thrilled to have as my podcast guest this week registered dietitian and a leading international expert on celiac disease and the gluten-free diet, Shelley Case. She’s a member of the Medical Advisory Boards of the Celiac Disease Foundation, Gluten Intolerance Group and Canadian Celiac Association.
Her best selling book is Gluten-Free Diet: A Comprehensive Resource Guide. Shelley’s website offers a bevy of free helpful information and resources.
 Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder that attacks your small intestine and persists for a lifetime. Autoimmune basically means that your body turns on itself. Specifically your intestine is damaged by the protein you eat found in wheat, rye and barley…collectively this protein is referred to as gluten.
Any food item that contains gluten is like poison to your small intestine particularly to the little fingerlike projections called villi and makes it difficult to absorb the nutrients from food such as vitamins and minerals.
Gluten is so ubiquitous that becoming a label sleuth is a top diet strategy. The dangerous grains and their protein include barley, rye, wheat, spelt and kamut while the safe grains include rice, corn, potato, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, millet, chickpea flour and oats (have the oat discussion with your registered dietitian for your particular case).
Remember wheat free is NOT gluten free. Wheat free can contain barley, bulgur or other grains with gluten.
This is really important if you think you might have celiac disease. A gluten-free diet can interfere with obtaining an accurate diagnosis so never start on the diet until you’ve had the tests suggested by your doctor such as blood tests and a biopsy.
If you have celiac disease life is NOT over. Your diet, the gluten-free diet, can make you feel much better and it’s easier to follow than just a few years ago. Plus the really good news… when you live a gluten-free lifestyle, most of the complications associated with celiac disease can be prevented.
***Giveaway: Register to win a $20 variety pack of Lucy’s Cookies, which are gluten free and made without milk, eggs, peanuts or tree nuts making them worry-free snacks for anyone who suffers from any kind of food allergy.
Remember the bottom-line basics of the gluten-free diet for celiac disease and gluten sensitivity: The grain group is most affected and the specific grains we just mentioned.
- Dairy, fruits, vegetables and protein food groups have minimal changes especially in their most natural form
- Put your emphasis on whole foods versus processed foods or those modified in some way. Processed and modified foods are most likely to contain gluten.
- Remember there are many naturally gluten-free foods such as fruit and vegetables and many grains. Reach for whole grains such as brown rice over white rice.
Want more information on how to select fish in the grocery? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
Listen to this week’s podcast
November 27, 2011
Did you read the fake fish story? An article in Consumer Reports (December 2011) discusses the purchasing and testing of 190 pieces of seafood from retail stores and restaurants throughout New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Don’t miss this: more than one-fifth of the fish pieces were mislabeled as different species of fish, incompletely labeled or misidentified by employees. Has this ever happened to you?
Consumer Reports sent their fish samples to an outside lab for DNA testing. We’re talking fish forensics! Researchers take genetic material from the fish and compare it against standardized gene fragments similar to genetic fingerprints used in crime investigations.
Guess what they found out?
- Only four of the 14 fish types were identified correctly (sea bass, coho salmon, bluefin and ahi tuna).
- 18% of the fish samples didn’t match the names on menus, labels or placards. Fish were passed off for grouper, catfish, red snapper, yellow fin tuna and others.
- From a health standpoint, one fish sample labeled as grouper was really tilefish, which is on the Food and Drug Administration avoid list for children and women of childbearing age due to the mercury content.
Why does this matter to you? If you bought an expensive piece of fish and it was actually a cheaper species, your wallet was impacted. But what if you bought fish containing potentially health-harming mercury or PCBs? Then your health comes into play. Or, maybe you try to buy sustainable seafood and were given a species whose numbers are on the decline.
Besides better inspections, what can you do to reduce the chances that you pay for mystery fish?
1. Be an informed consumer. The more questions you ask at the fish counter or the server at your restaurant, the more serious companies become in their purchases and inspections. Restaurants and grocers know that consumers today have quick access to helpful information.
2. Check out the free FishPhone app from Blue Ocean Institute, a quick guide to help you make sustainable selections when you eat out or shop. I use this app and it’s so easy. Next to all the choices is a fish symbol varying in color from bright green for a safe choice to red for don’t even think about it. You can search for fish or check the A-Z listing. When you touch the fish name, a quick review pops up so that you can make a smart choice right then. The app even includes fish recipes and wine pairing suggestions. 3. Send a text while you stand in front of the fish counter and make sure the fish you plan to purchase is eco-friendly and without a health advisory. This very cool text tip is also from blueocean.org.
Text 30644 with the message FISH followed by the name of the fish you want to buy…for example, FISH scallops or FISH salmon. I sent a text for FISH grouper and received a text within seconds telling me all things grouper that I needed to know.
How do you know where your fish is coming from?
The Country of Origin Labeling called COOL, which was developed by the USDA, requires all large retailers (supermarkets and big box stores) to disclose the country of origin of fresh or frozen fish and whether it is farm-raised or wild-caught. Seafood standards are often higher in the United States than in other countries so when you purchase ‘locally’, you may reduce the likelihood of contamination from toxic substances that are illegal in the U.S.
Exemptions of COOL: The law does not require restaurants or small fish markets to disclose the country of origin on the label.
Want more? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
Listen to this week’s podcast
November 10, 2011
Can you believe it? The holiday season is about to begin. What’s on your holiday menu? Have you started thinking about it? What about those party foods you’ll need to prepare? This year, try adding a variety of spices to your recipes. A sprinkle of cinnamon, a pinch of cloves and nutmeg or a touch of sage, rosemary and thyme can make all the difference in flavor.
Spices help develop the flavor profile of your food. And did you know that many spices may have a health benefit? The emerging science is fascinating especially when you consider that spices have antioxidant and protective properties.
A new study from researchers at Penn State, which was published in the Journal of Nutrition, found that seasoning a high-fat meal with two tablespoons of an antioxidant-rich spice blend could enhance antioxidant defenses and reduce the body’s negative responses.
To be specific, the antioxidant-rich spice blend increased one measure of antioxidant activity in the blood by more than 13% and decreased the insulin response by about 20%.
Post-meal triglycerides also decreased by about 30 percent, compared to the meal without spices. Typically blood triglycerides (a type of fat in the blood) rise after a high-fat meal is consumed and research suggests if high-fat meals are eaten frequently, your risk for heart disease increases.
These researchers suggest that the beneficial changes from the spices are likely due to the naturally-occurring plant compounds (polyphenols) that are equivalent to the amount found in a glass of red wine or blueberry juice.
Are you curious as to which spices made up the blend? I was. The spice blend included black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, garlic powder, ginger, oregano, paprika, rosemary and turmeric.
Did you know that one teaspoon of cinnamon contains as many antioxidants as a full cup of pomegranate juice? Cinnamon contains polyphenols, which are antioxidants that may help regulate blood sugar levels. I sprinkle it on oatmeal and also toss in dried cherries or blueberries along with a few walnuts or pecans. This past weekend, I made buttermilk-oatmeal pancakes and added a pinch of cinnamon.
What do you like on a hot dog or hamburger? Did you say mustard? Do you buy the traditional bright yellow mustard? Guess what spice is in mustard? Turmeric. The golden yellow color in turmeric comes from curcumin, which is the naturally occurring phytonutrient. By the way, if you’re a curry power fan, turmeric is one of the spices in it.
Last week I made Chicken Paella with Sausage and Olives out of Ellie Krieger’s So Easy cookbook. The turmeric adds flavor and gives that slightly yellow color to the dish. Health wise, studies suggest that the curcumin in turmeric may help slow or stop the development of harmful brain plaque or amyloid plaque tied to Alzheimer’s disease.
What are your favorite ways to use spices? If you want more information and a selection of recipes that contain these super spices, check out spicesforhealth.com
Want more? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
Listen to this week’s podcast
September 22, 2011
Hi Everyone! It’s football time in Tennessee! To me, there’s nothing like SEC football. Who’s your favorite team? Recently, I was giving a talk on food trends and the popularity of beer and cheese pairings. What goes better with football than beer and cheese?
So, I thought you might enjoy reading about these pairings too. The simple fact is that cheese and beer are perfect partners. Think about the undertones or flavors of beer and cheese…earthy, yeasty, musty, fruity, toasty and floral.
They combine in a way that wine and cheese cannot:
1. Wheat beer with goat cheese: Wheat beers such as Boulevard Brewing Co. Unfiltered Wheat are full of high notes, like a fruity note, and are often light bodied so pair them with goat cheese that brings about balance. Wheat beer also pairs nicely with an earthy tomato basil cheese (Cabot has a good one). Add olive bread for a Mediterranean flair.
2. Pilsner (Lager) with short-aged Gouda: As opposed to ales, lager beers are traditionally aged longer. The American light beers we all know well (Budweiser, Miller, Shiner Bock) are descendants of the German pilsner. Pilsners are typically deep golden or yellow in color with a dry, somewhat bitter taste
For your cheese selection, choose one that has hint of fruit and sweetness to offset the dryness of the beer. You don’t want a cheese that is too strong, since it could overpower the beer’s more delicate flavor. Try a gouda cheese that has been aged less than four or five years and serve with honey wheat pretzels.
3. Stout with blue cheese: Stouts (such as Guinness or Maduro oatmeal brown ale out of Tampa) are dark brown to pitch-black Ales. Stouts which range in taste from very sweet to bone dry are enormously popular among US craft brewers and lovers/the drinkers of craft/artisan brews.
Pairing a stout with cheese can be tricky due to it’s bitter, cocoa like flavor, which can overwhelm even strong cheese. Go with creamy, pungent soft-ripened cheese such as blues or seriously sharp cheddar cheese and serve with a hearty whole wheat or rye bread.
So tell me what beer and cheese pairings you try at your next get together. It’s going to be a fun football season.
Want more? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
Listen to this week’s podcast
September 8, 2011
When I was in school, we referred to the unknown meat items on our lunch tray as mystery meat. Did you? What other names do you recall? Remember when ketchup was considered a vegetable? School lunches have been blasted routinely over the years…sometimes fairly and sometimes not.
No wonder many of you Moms and Dads doubt if your child can get a decent, nutritious lunch at school. But times, they are changing and for the better when it comes to our school cafeterias.
Joining me this week on my podcast is Regina Ragone, registered dietitian and Food Director at Family Circle magazine. Many of you may not know that Regina is a former school lunch manager. She recently attended the Healthy Flavors, Healthy Kids Leadership Summit at the Culinary Institute of America in San Antonia and feels that we all need to be part of the solution when it comes to school lunches. Regina shared various specific ways that you can easily get involved:
1. Educate yourself about your school’s food-service program by checking the district’s or school’s website. For details about the federal National School Lunch Program, click on the Program Fact Sheet.
2. Visit healthykids.ciachef.edu/ for resources, interactive tools and doable advice for assisting your school in implementing positive changes in the lunchroom.
3. Emphasize activity along with food choices. Fuel Up to Play 60, fueluptoplay60.com, an in-school program sponsored by the National Dairy Council, encourages a one-two punch of good nutrition and at least 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Thanks to student ambassadors helping spread the word, this program reaches two-thirds of the schools in the U.S.
Each month Family Circle shares a recipe from their kitchen. Be sure and try this month’s recipe: Rainbow Chard and White Bean Casserole
*** Don’t forget: register to win a BBQ Roll-Up Tool Set ***
Want more? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
Listen to this week’s podcast
July 21, 2011
July 20, 2011
It’s so hot here in Florida that I want to use my herbs before the summer heat bakes them. I have a bumper crop of basil so decided to make fresh pesto to use on pizza instead of traditional tomato sauce.
Martha Stewart has a simple recipe that I like and have adapted in different ways based on the nuts and cheeses that I have on hand. Typically I also use more basil and less olive oil.
Basically pesto is a finely blended combination of pine nuts, fresh basil leaves, Parmesan and/or Romano cheeses, garlic and good quality olive oil. The word pesto means ‘pounded’ or ‘crushed’.
All of the ingredients except the olive oil go into the food processor, which you process until finely chopped. The oil is then slowly poured thru the food tube with the processor running to blend the oil with the other ingredients. That’s it.
I have used walnuts and pistachios or a mixture of both in place of pine nuts, which produces a robust and flavorful pesto.
Toast your nuts of choice for more intense flavor. This is easy to do. Just place them in a skillet on the stove over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn and be sure to stir or toss a few times. If you want to toast nuts in the micro or the oven, check out these tips from The University of Nebraska.
Basil is one of the easy-to-grow herbs and production overflows in the summer. Give basil morning sun, afternoon shade, and don’t let it dry out. I grow basil in a pot so it’s easy to move around to shady spots.
If you don’t want to grow your own, look for fresh cut basil at farmers’ markets and in the grocery most of the year. The leaves should be bright green and not wilting. Place the stems in water and top with a plastic bag or wrap basil in paper towel and put in a plastic bag. Either way, keep basil in the fridge and it will last about a week.
Once you make fresh pesto, it keeps for about 4-5 days so plan to use it in several ways. You can press plastic wrap on the top of the pesto to help retain the beautiful green color and then store it in the fridge.
Use the basil pesto as the base for your pizza…it’s fabulous. But also toss it with pasta and roasted veggies. I roast purple onion, yellow squash and grape tomatoes while I cook whole grain pasta and then toss both with the basil pesto. Delicious and so easy! What’s your favorite way to use pesto?
Want more on pesto? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
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July 13, 2011
July 13, 2011
So you’re trying to eat more fresh foods that are less processed. You’re preparing some meals ahead or making meals that do double duty. But on some days even make-ahead meals never happen. What to do?
This week on my podcast, Regina Ragone, registered dietitian and Food Director at Family Circle magazine joins me as we share some of our favorite quick-fix items that don’t sacrifice on taste or nutrition. We’re not spokespersons for these products, we just like them.
And… don’t forget you can now find our podcasts at familycircle.com, keyword ‘podcast’.
1. Rustic Crust’s Great Grain Pizza Crust ($3) and Old World Pizza Sauce (3 packs/$4), you can get dinner on the table in less than half an hour (often faster than pizza delivery!).
Regina suggests topping the pizza with your favorite low-fat cheese blend and then piling on plenty of veggies. Make an extra pizza for leftovers…it’s good hot or cold.
2. Brush some ColavitaBalsamic Glaze ($7.50) on chicken breasts or pork chops during the last minute of cooking for a sweet, caramelized coating. Or step up steamed vegetables with a light drizzle of Lucini’s Robust Garlic-Infused Extra-Virgin Olive Oil ($16).
Also toss the garlic infused oil with potatoes. I use a lemon-infused on my salads regularly along with balsamic vinegar.
3. Enjoy one of the newest better-for-you frozen microwave dinners. Regina says that time and again their staff turns to Kashi’s Frozen Entrees ($4). Their current top three are Lemongrass Coconut Chicken, Mayan Harvest Bake and Chicken Florentine. Each meal boasts Kashi’s famous 7 whole-grain pilaf plus fresh vegetables, for a great-tasting, high-fiber, low-fat meal.
Watch for sales and put a few extra in your freezer. When you’re schedule changes at the last minute, which often happens, you’re prepared.
4. Having an ice cream craving? Try Arctic Zero a frozen treat made from whey protein that’s like eating a frozen protein shake with only 150 calorie per pint…yes, I said pint. ($4.49-4.99)
This is the perfect option if you have family members or friends who are diabetic, follow a gluten-free diet or you just want a frozen ice cream-like treat that’s creamy but without all the fat and calories. My current favorites are Maple Vanilla and Cookie & Cream.
5. Looking for meatless options? Dr. Praeger’s burgers contain no fillers or egg products—just fresh vegetables. Regina loves the California, Bombay, Tex Mex and Italian Veggie Burgers (4/$5), stacked high with lettuce and tomatoes on a whole-wheat Arnold reduced-sodium Sandwich Thin.
Add a Dr. Praeger Sweet Potato or Spinach Pancake (6/$4) and you’ve hit your veggie requirement for the day.
Be sure and try the recipe for Burrito Casserole. You can make the assemble up to 2 days in advance and refrigerate. Leave out on counter for 15 minutes before putting in oven.
It takes on 15 minutes to put this casserole together. Depending on the size of your family, you may have leftovers for lunch the next day.
Want more details? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
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June 29, 2011
Agave nectar, also called agave syrup, is a sweetener from the agave plant, which is a Mexican succulent like a cactus. Agave juice is collected from the plant and then filtered and processed to break down the carbohydrates into sugars. The result is the popular syrup.
So agave is a processed sweetener, less processed than some and more processed than others, but still processed as most sweeteners are. Some companies process agave using organic standards.
Agave contains inulin, a more complex form of fructose thus making fructose the main sweetener. Sugar and agave have approximately the same number of calories….about 16 per teaspoon. Agave is sweeter than sugar so you could save a few calories by the amount you use.
Popular for its delicate taste, agave is used in desserts as well as to sweeten teas and health drinks. Plus, it’s a trendy sugar alternative frequently used in cocktails. The darker agave syrup is good on pancakes or waffles.
Agave is one more caloric sweetener choice in the ‘added sugars’ category that already includes honey, maple syrup, sugar, raw sugar, and high fructose corn syrup. The word ‘sugars’ refers to all of them.
Here’s an interesting bit of trivia. Previously I’ve mentioned the antioxidant content of spices such as cinnamon and ginger. Well, a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association looked at the antioxidant content of various sweeteners and found that sugar, high fructose corn syrup and agave have minimal antioxidant activity while dark and blackstrap molasses had the highest antioxidant activity with maples syrup, brown sugar and honey coming in somewhere in the middle.
Is agave better for you than any other sweetener such as sugar, maple syrup or honey? Agave is promoted as a low glycemic alterative for diabetics. Is it? If you’re diabetic or have friends or family members who are, you don’t want to miss this. Sugar is technically called sucrose, which is composed of 50% fructose and 50% glucose when it is broken down in the body.
Agave varies in its fructose content with a range from 55% up to 90% or more. It all depends on the agave vendor and processing method used that can affect the fructose content. Agave nectar with 55% fructose is about the same as high fructose corn syrup so don’t miss this…there would be no benefit in agave with 55% fructose over sugar, high fructose corn syrup, brown sugar or honey from the standpoint of composition and utilization by the body, only taste and personal preference.
The reason you hear agave nectar touted as safer for diabetics is that a higher fructose composition typically doesn’t cause dangerous spikes in blood glucose. Currently, we don’t have clinical studies as it regards agave’s safety in diabetes. Unless there is a label stating the exact percentage of fructose in the agave nectar, it can range as we just talked about from 55% up. So if you are diabetic, your blood glucose may or may not be spiked…all depending on how much fructose is in the particular agave product consumed and your particular case of diabetes.
Want more? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
Listen to this week’s podcast
June 8, 2011
June 8, 2011
The Food Guide Pyramid has gone the way of fat free cookies and MyPlate has taken its place.
Have you heard? The Food Guide Pyramid is out and Myplate is in. Most people would agree that the Food Guide Pyramid was tough to understand and follow. Hopefully MyPlate will be a change agent. After all, a plate is a universal symbol for food. Kids can easily grasp the concept of MyPlate that ties in with First Lady Michelle Obama’s quest to improve the eating habits and obesity rates of children in this country.
So what’s different about MyPlate?
The plate is divided into four clear sections: fruit, vegetables, grains and protein with diary riding sidesaddle in the drink position. Did you notice the term protein instead of meat? Fruit, vegetables and grains are food groups but protein is a nutrient.
If you think about sources of protein, yes, meat of all types comes to mind but so do peanut butter, beans and peas, seafood, tofu and eggs. The term protein is meant to include all of these sources.
Fruits and veggies should take up half of the plate with a slightly bigger focus on veggies than fruit. This is a huge change in the way that Americans eat but spot on when it comes to the research and health benefits of a diet loaded with all types of fruit and veggies.
Grains take up a quarter of the plate and should include as many whole grains as possible. Grains and protein sources often tag along together in many items such as rice and black beans or a cheese enchilada and are side by side.
It’s not meant to be complicated this time around. With less emphasis on the number of servings, the focus is on increasing the consumption of fruits and veggies along with moderating overall portions.
So, think about your plate size too. Many of us women don’t need a full or overflowing dinner plate of food nor do most young children. Instead use a smaller plate, such as a salad plate. You’ve easily reduced portions and thus calories without giving up a certain food. This entire concept of MyPlate is built around enjoyment of your food (a first for the government) with attention to how much you eat.
Dairy rides sidesaddle in the usual drink position. This dairy icon includes low fat or fat free milk but also yogurt, cheese, fortified soy milk, frozen yogurt and ice cream. You get the idea. It’s similar to the protein sources.
One other big push, which is new, is to drink more water instead of sugary drinks…an easy way to reduce calories.
So check out MyPlate for yourself. Go to choosemyplate.gov and you’ll see the plate icon where you can click on each section to see what’s included and find out other simple tips to easily tweak the way you eat to make it a bit more healthful.
Photo credit: USDA http://www.choosemyplate.gov/
Want more? Listen to this week’s podcast below.
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back in a little sea salt for more punch. Regina suggests making sure your dried spices are not old! I’m definitely more aware of sodium and grow fresh herbs in small pots outside my door including rosemary, oregano, chives, and sage. Once you start using herbs and spices it’s easy to cut the salt and not go back. Plus your taste buds adapt.
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