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April 28, 2010
In Season: Radishes
For a burst of flavor with very few calories, look no further than the radish. Radishes are root vegetables with a distinctive flavor that ranges from mild to sharp, depending on variety. One cup of sliced red radishes will give you 30% of your daily vitamin C requirement in less than 25 calories.
To choose the best, pick radishes that are deep in color with solid roots. This root vegetable is a flavorful addition to soups, condiments, and cooked dishes. You can also eat the green tops, which lends a peppery taste to salads.
Nectarine and Radish Salsa
Ingredients
* 2 1/4 cups (1/4-inch) diced nectarines
* 1 1/2 cups radishes, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
* 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
* 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
* 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
* 2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
* 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
Preparation
1. Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl; toss well. Let the salsa mixture stand 30 minutes.
Serving Size: 1/3 cup, makes 4 cups
Nutritional Information
Calories: 18
Fat: 0.1g (sat 0.0g,mono 0.0g,poly 0.1g)
Protein: 0.5g
Carbohydrate: 4.3g
Fiber: 0.8g
Cholesterol: 0.0mg
Iron: 0.1mg
Sodium: 55mg
Calcium: 7mg
Cooking Light June 2009
Posted by Lisa at 8:54 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 25, 2010
Chili-spiced Chicken Soup with Stoplight Peppers and Avocado Relish
Yield: 8 servings
Spice blend:
2 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Soup:
1 tablespoon canola oil, divided
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips
2 cups chopped sweet onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh corn kernels
1 (32-ounce) carton fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (28-ounce) can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Relish:
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1 teaspoon grated lime rind
3 ounces queso fresco, crumbled
1 diced peeled avocado
Cilantro sprigs (optional)
1. To prepare spice blend, combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl.
2. To prepare soup, heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick saucepan over medium-high heat. Add chicken; sprinkle 1 1/2 tablespoons spice blend over chicken. Sauté 8 minutes or until done; cool. Chop chicken; set aside.
3. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in pan over medium-high heat; add onion, bell peppers, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Sprinkle vegetable mixture with remaining spice blend; sauté 8 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in chicken, corn, broth, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 15 minutes. Add lime juice.
4. To prepare relish, combine chopped cilantro and next 4 ingredients (through avocado).
5. Ladle 1 1/4 cups soup into bowls; top with 1/4 cup relish. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.
CALORIES 285 ; FAT 9.6g (sat 2.1g,mono 4.7g,poly 1.8g); CHOLESTEROL 648mg; CALCIUM 99mg; CARBOHYDRATE 23.1g; SODIUM 773mg; PROTEIN 27.2g; FIBER 5.5g; IRON 3.1mg
Cooking Light, MARCH 2010
Posted by Lisa at 3:36 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 23, 2010
Someday Melissa
A Mother’s Loss, a Daughter’s Story
By ROBIN POGREBIN
ANDREW AVRIN sits on a beige couch in a nondescript room, a fruit still-life partly visible on the wall behind him, twisting his fingers while, off-camera, an unseen interviewer prompts him to talk about his sister, Melissa, who died last year at the age of 19 after a long battle with bulimia.
“There was no food in the house,” he says, looking off to the side as his eyes fill. “If I went out with friends, I could not bring leftovers home because they would be gone by the next morning.”
Once, he explains, in the middle of a bitterly cold night, he looked out the window and saw Melissa on the curb, going through the garbage. “I went outside and I yelled her name,” he recounts in the interview, his voice breaking. “Just the way she looked back at me — it was so empty, vacant. It was a deer in the headlights, but that doesn’t even explain it.”
It is a hard scene for anyone to watch, but even more so for the film’s producer — Judy Avrin, Melissa’s mother, who decided to make a documentary about her daughter’s life and, ultimately, her death.
People deal with grief in their own ways, and those who have been spared the loss of a daughter or a son can only imagine how they would choose to try to cope. For Ms. Avrin, coping meant confronting her anguish and trying to make something good come out of it.
The idea for a film didn’t occur to her immediately. In the weeks following Melissa’s death, Ms. Avrin mostly avoided her daughter’s bedroom, and tried to resume some semblance of normalcy, going back to work three days a week as the coordinator for a consortium of academic libraries in New Jersey. But one day she sat down to read Melissa’s leather-bound journal.
Someday ...
I’ll eat breakfast.
I’ll keep a job for more than 3 weeks.
I’ll have a boyfriend for more than 10 days.
I’ll love someone.
I’ll travel wherever I want.
I’ll make my family proud.
I’ll make a movie that changes lives.
The film, called “Someday Melissa” and now in the editing stages, has become for Ms. Avrin salve, distraction and cause — a way to get the word out to other families grappling with eating disorders that they are not alone; to sound the alarm that eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness; to help make sense of the senseless event that was losing her teenage daughter.
“I kept saying, ‘This is an amazing way for me to channel my grief,’ ” Ms. Avrin said. “But it also allowed me to put off grieving.”
Ms. Avrin, 56, got the idea for the film from one of Melissa’s therapists, Danna Markson, who introduced her to Jeffrey Cobelli, 27, a filmmaker. Over the last several months of working on the project, Ms. Avrin has come to know more than she ever intended to about eating disorders — how their seriousness has been underestimated, their treatment underinsured, their deaths underreported.
The process hasn’t been easy, and some, like her ex-husband, initially questioned the impulse to do it at all. Melissa’s best friend since first grade, Nicole Kendrick, who also suffers from an eating disorder, said she was incredulous when she first learned that Ms. Avrin was making the film. “I thought she was crazy,” Ms. Kendrick said. “I guess I didn’t realize how deep a mother’s love can run.”
But Ms. Avrin said that making the film has been easier than doing nothing at all. “I’ve never once thought this was more than I could bear,” she said, in an interview at her home in Totowa, N.J. “If anything, the more I continue, the more I know it’s the right thing to do.”
The difficulty of reliving her daughter’s decline has been mitigated by the public response. “Sometimes I think: ‘I’m a suburban mom. Who am I to think I could make a difference in the world?’ ” Ms. Avrin said. “But then I read the messages that keep coming in from people I know and people I don’t know who say Melissa’s story has motivated them to fight one more day.”
On Melissa’s Facebook page and on the film’s Web site — somedaymelissa.com — Ms. Avrin continues to get feedback. “Thank you,” says one entry posted on the Web site’s guestbook page. “This could save one person’s life. That life may be mine.”
Ms. Avrin and Mr. Cobelli have interviewed Melissa’s family members, doctors and friends, along with prominent experts in the field, like Dr. Thomas R. Insel, the director of the National Institute of Mental Health; and Dr. B. Timothy Walsh, the founding director of the Eating Disorders Research Unit at the New York State Psychiatric Institute, and Dr. Evelyn Attia, the director of the Columbia Center for Eating Disorders, both at Columbia University Medical Center.
“I get a lot of requests, but there was something about this one I thought was particularly striking,” said Dr. Insel of the mental health institute. “I wanted to hear more of the story.”
“It was such an extraordinary expression of love,” he said, “a powerful way of honoring and remembering the daughter she lost.”
Although those closest to Melissa agreed to be interviewed for the film, participating wasn’t easy. William Avrin, Melissa’s father, said that he might have preferred to keep his experience to himself and that he was in no hurry to revisit his memories of Melissa. “I have a hole in my heart and it will be there forever,” he said in a telephone interview. “I don’t really try to describe what it’s like to lose a child.”
But he felt he had to do it for the film. “Clearly, Judy’s a champion of this project,” he said. “I’m a little bit more personal and inward. I’m still struggling with the whole thing. This is her way of dealing with it, and I respect that.”
In the documentary interview, filmed at his home in Hamburg, N.J., Mr. Avrin visibly struggles to describe what it was like to be thousands of miles away in Japan on business when he found out his daughter had died. At first he appears almost devoid of emotion, delivering his words in flat, deliberative sentences as he sits in a blue button-down shirt in front of his fireplace mantel. But then you can see tears trickling down into his salt-and-pepper mustache. “What was I thinking?” he says, repeating the question. “I was thinking my daughter is dead. That’s not supposed to happen. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t — didn’t know what to think. I was in shock.”
Upon returning from Japan, Mr. Avrin decided not to view his daughter’s body. “Judy thought it would be better if I didn’t,” he said, “that I’d remember her like the last time that I saw her.”
Melissa died on May 6, 2009. Cause of death: heart attack due to complications from an eating disorder. Just a few days before, Melissa learned she had been admitted to Emerson College. The official letter of acceptance arrived a week after she died and sits unopened.
Melissa’s brother, Andrew, who is completing his Master of Science degree in engineering, said he believes the documentary has become essential to his mother’s emotional resilience. “It’s the only way she knows how to move forward,” he said.
At the same time, Andrew said he worried that the documentary would ultimately prove to be just a Band-Aid, postponing the heartbreak that is bound to rear its head when the film is completed. “The trick becomes moving forward with life but not letting everything this project is fill the void completely,” he said, “so the second this project finishes, you don’t crash.”
To be sure, Ms. Avrin doesn’t always hold it together. She did not conduct the interviews with her ex-husband or with her son (her collaborator, Mr. Cobelli, did). “We would have just sat there and cried,” she said.
In the interviews she did do, there have been times when she has broken down during or afterward. In concluding her discussion with Dr. Leslie Sanders, one of Melissa’s doctors, for example, Ms. Avrin starts to cry, and the cameras keep rolling. “I still remember being in your office and — I think her potassium was off — and you said, ‘I’ll be your quarterback,’ ” Ms. Avrin tells Dr. Sanders. “I didn’t know who to turn to next and I felt like I was in such good hands with you.”
Dr. Sanders responds: “I think what I remember about that first visit is just being struck at how little her life had become — I think at that point she was barely in school — and how much she was struggling, not just physically, I think physically was the least of it, but just emotionally and how we needed to do something intensive, and quickly, to get her life back.”
BORN Dec. 21, 1989, Melissa seemed in her early years to be a happy little girl. Her family lived in Wayne, N.J., and then in Pine Brook, N.J., spending two years in Coral Gables, Fla., in between, where Mr. Avrin was transferred for his work with a specialty chemical company. Melissa did well in school — producing A’s and short stories.
But at age 13, thing started to change. Melissa’s mood darkened; she didn’t want to go to school or do extracurricular activities. She developed stomach problems and constipation. Ms. Avrin took her to a pediatric gastroenterologist who said Melissa probably had an eating disorder. “I reacted the way most parents do: ‘That’s not possible,’ ” Ms. Avrin said. “We didn’t go back to him.”
In the early stages, the Avrins did not really see what was going on, in part because Melissa wasn’t visibly underweight, in part because they didn’t want to. But clues started to show up that were too stark to ignore — logs of cookie dough that disappeared from the freezer along with whole boxes of cookies from the cabinet. Empty pizza boxes. “I found containers with chewed and spit-out food and I’d never heard of that before,” Ms. Avrin tells Dr. Sanders during their filmed interview. “Is that very common?”
Ms. Avrin wrapped the fridge in locks and chains, hid her purse and made sure never to leave money lying around. “It didn’t have to be good junk food — if she wanted to go on a binge, it could be a dozen eggs,” Ms. Avrin said of Melissa. “Anything that wasn’t nailed down, she would eat.”
Ms. Kendrick, in her own interview for the film, alternates between smiling recollections of her childhood friend and sad eyes as she recalls Melissa’s downward spiral. “People who knew her in the last two years never really saw who she really was,” she says. “She was so energetic and funny and just ridiculous but not, like, in an obnoxious way. And then, as she started to worry about what other people thought, that’s when it started to be in more of an attention-getting way. When things got really bad, that kind of all just slowly disappeared and it just became very monotone — down. And we didn’t really see that energetic, fun Melissa anymore.”
Eventually, Melissa was sent away for professional help against her will and thus began a series of programs over the next few years that had varying degrees of success. It wasn’t until Melissa’s third round of in-patient treatment — when she and other young women testified about their eating disorders in front of their families — that her father began to fully understand. “I really said, ‘Wow this is almost like heroin addiction,’ ” he says in his film interview. “They need to purge because it makes them feel high and it’s something they need to do. I never appreciated that.”
In the course of making the film, Ms. Avrin has become something of a public service announcement on eating disorders. She was a featured speaker last October at the first walk to raise money for the National Eating Disorders Association. At its benefit dinner in March in New York, the evening opened with a clip from Ms. Avrin’s film. She is due to be in Washington in late April to lobby Congress as part of an Eating Disorders Coalition.
She said she is happy to play the role of advocate, to help try to remove the stigma that still cloaks eating disorders and keeps people from acknowledging the disease as the cause of death in obituaries. “I want it to come out of the shadows,” Ms. Avrin said. “I want people to talk about it, for people to get treatment faster, to reach doctors on the front lines. I want parents to open their eyes and not be swayed by being glad that their kid fits into size 4 jeans — to stop focusing on looks.”
Ms. Avrin is aiming to finish her documentary project by June, in time for summer film festival deadlines, and she said she is determined to get theatrical distribution. It would seem the ultimate act of acceptance. Yet in her film interview with Dr. Sanders, Ms. Avrin sounds like a mother still wrestling with remnants of denial.
“I’ve always been the glass half-full — I’ve always been an optimist,” she says, reaching under her eyeglasses to wipe away tears. “I always believed that she really would be somebody who could recover, even though, looking back, I realized the odds were stacked against her because of the level of her illness.”
“But I never lost hope and, you know,” she adds, “I still believe that she could have beaten it.”
Posted by Lisa at 9:44 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 20, 2010
Celebrate Earth Day!
Spring has arrived! One of the best things about this time of year is the anticipation of fresh, local vegetables and fruits. The current April Showers are helping produce deliciously nutritious fresh produce right here in West Michigan. The local farmer’s markets, CoOp’s and CSA’s are finally starting to have some spring vegetables. Will you be welcoming these veggies into your kitchen in the coming weeks?
The energetic hustle and bustle of a farmer’s market, CoOp or CSA is incredibly exciting! Not too mention, you are directly immersed with many other health-minded individuals who may have helpful tips from their own experience. Visiting one of these places will certainly be worth your time!
The mere words on this page are unable to truly depict the rainbow of color and fresh scents of produce as you enter your local harvest venue. This is certainly a welcome event after enduring a long winter of scentless out-of-season fruits and vegetables. Go ahead and pick up fresh melon, pear, herbs, or potato for that matter, the aroma can be quite enticing.
Surely you will be introduced to new and nutritious fruits and vegetables and the excitement may even inspire you to experiment with these new flavors in your own kitchen. Have you ever seen a purple carrot? How about kohlrabi or parsnips? While these veggies may seem foreign, they are truly worth a try. Purple carrots are a dazzling addition to a fresh salad as the slices consist of an orange core with a fun purple ring! Kohlrabi is delicious roasted or diced into a fresh take on coleslaw. If parsnips are piquing your interest, try this tasty tuber mashed in with your potatoes or as a new flavor in your savory stew. There are plenty of new options for you to taste, even out of those grown right here in Michigan!
By purchasing local food directly from the farm, we are given the opportunity to feel a greater connection to our food. A chance to actually understand where our food comes from, something that truly seems to have escaped our current food relationship. When a young child is asked where potatoes come from, the answer is all too commonly McDonald's. Once we understand where our food comes from and truly listen to the farmer depicting the trials and tribulations endured to provide us with their harvest, each bite we take may begin to mean a bit more. When we vote with our fork, we are choosing to keep our hard-earned dollars right here in our own struggling community. This connection is quite unique in comparison with simply picking up the flawless produce at the supermarket.
You can look for farmer markets, CoOps, or CSAs near you by visiting Local Harvest, Eat Well Guide, or if the CSA is what you are interested in, simply ask the farmers at your farmer’s market. Though if you are unable to find the opportunity to venture out for local produce, inspiration may still be found in your supermarket where a diverse array of options awaits.
Looking for another way to celebrate Earth Day? How about trying an energy-efficient showerhead!! Go to www.oxygenics.com to find out more!
Posted by Lisa at 5:29 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 19, 2010
Easy Granola
Makes 6 cups
Hands-On Time: 05m
Total Time: 35m
Ingredients
* 4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)
* 1 cup sliced almonds
* 1/2 cup shredded coconut (preferably unsweetened)
* 1/4 cup unsalted pepitas (hulled pumpkin seeds) or shelled sunflower seeds
* 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
* 2 tablespoons canola oil
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 cup dried fruit (such as cherries, cranberries, raisins, or currants)
Directions
1. Heat oven to 350° F. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the oats, almonds, coconut, and pepitas with the maple syrup, oil, and salt.
2. Bake, tossing once, until golden and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes.
3. Add the dried fruit and toss to combine. Let cool.
Nutritional Information
* Per Serving
* Calories 141
* Fat 6g
* Sat Fat 1g
* Cholesterol 0mg
* Sodium 41mg
* Protein 4g
* Carbohydrate 19g
* Sugar 9g
* Fiber 2g
* Iron 1mg
* Calcium 22mg
Posted by Lisa at 3:06 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 16, 2010
Cholesterol and Diet
The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute estimates more than 65 million Americans have high cholesterol. People with high cholesterol may need medications to help lower cholesterol levels. But sometimes cholesterol levels can be controlled by diet (or a combination of diet, exercise and medications).
• Choose whole grains. Look for breads, cereals and other products made with whole grains. This is one of the easiest ways to lower cholesterol because it involves simple substitution (like a bran muffin instead of a blueberry muffin or whole grain bread for white bread).
• Increase fiber. Fiber comes from plant-based foods. There are two types of fiber. Insoluble fiber is the undigestible part of plant foods. Soluble fiber forms a gel-like substance that keeps fats from being absorbed into the intestines, keeping the fats out of the bloodstream. Some examples for foods with high levels of soluble fiber include: citrus fruits, apples, broccoli and Brussels sprouts.
• Cook with healthy fats. Saturated fats, mostly from animal-based foods, tend to raise cholesterol levels and should be eaten only in limited amounts. Instead, look for unsaturated fats, mostly vegetable oils, like canola oil and olive oil. Avoid trans fat, a processed fat made with hydrogenated oils and found in shortening and many kinds of solid margarine. Trans fats pack a double punch – they lower HDL levels and raise LDL levels.
• Eat more fish. The American Heart Association recommends eating at least two servings of fish every week. The best fish picks are those that contain omega-3 fatty acid, a type of polyunsaturated fatty acid. The highest sources of omega-3s are the fatty fish, like mackerel, salmon, lake trout, albacore tuna (fresh or canned), herring and sardines. Other sources of omega-3 fatty acid are walnuts, flaxseed, soybeans, soybean oil and canola oil.
• Consider using plant sterols or stanols. Sterols and stanols are substances in certain foods that block absorption of cholesterol. Sterols and stanols are added to some orange juices, margarines and other foods. Although the products have no effect on HDL, they can help lower LDL. Research suggests these fortified foods can lower LDL levels by as much as 15 percent when used appropriately.
Posted by Lisa at 2:32 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 12, 2010
No More "Picky Eaters"!
Children learn their habits, attitudes and beliefs from their parents and other caregivers, and that includes their willingness to try new and healthy foods. The American Dietetic Association encourages parents to be good role models and teach their children how to appreciate nutrition and enjoy healthful eating.
Here is what sometimes happens: A parent introduces applesauce to baby. Baby likes it and eats the entire serving.
The next week the parent offers pears. Baby tastes it, spits it out and makes a face. The parent does not force it and thinks, "Okay, baby does not like it, so I won't offer it again." So baby is only eating the applesauce.
It is true that it often takes multiple tastes of a new food before a child accepts it -- of course some foods require more offerings than others, and some foods are never accepted. The most important thing you can do is offer your children as many new foods as possible, as early in life as possible. It takes much longer to accept new foods when you are older, as you may already know. I meet 10-year-old children who have never tried a fresh pear or red pepper. I am also discouraged by the statistic showing that the number one vegetable consumed by toddlers is the fried potato.
Let's commit to changing that statistic! These tips will get you started:
* When infants are at the stage of trying new foods, offer new foods every few days to see if there are any reactions or allergies. By the time baby is one year old, hopefully, baby has a varied diet of fruits, vegetables, grains and protein foods, including beans, tofu, soft meats and yogurt.
* When toddlerhood (and independent eating) arrives, stick with meal times and avoid filling the child up on cheese crackers and milk, or juice before mealtime.
* Let your child see you try new foods. Children are copycats, so if you model an interest in trying new things, there's a stronger chance that your child will too.
* It is very important that kids are hungry at mealtime in order for them to want to try a new food. Halt snacking at least 1 to 2 hours beforehand and even longer for older children.
* If children are labeled as "picky eaters," guess what? They will be! Let's stop the labeling and eat with our children the most nutritious meals we can provide.
Posted by Lisa at 1:40 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 10, 2010
Eat More Plants
Three in 100 American adults call themselves vegetarians. Lower in saturated fat and cholesterol and higher in fiber, vitamins and minerals, plant-based diets are linked to a number of health benefits including a lower body weight, lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels and a reduced risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. According to the American Dietetic Association, appropriately planned vegetarian diets can be healthful and nutritionally adequate.
This is not necessarily a suggestion to cut out all meat cold-turkey, but rather to eat more plant foods and try going meat-free one or two days a week. This will provide ample nutrition benefits without forgoing all fish, poultry and beef.
It’s easy to sneak more fruits and vegetables into your favorite meat-based recipes to create vegetarian entrées. Instead of meat, build meals around protein-rich plant foods that are naturally low in fat like beans, grains and a variety of vegetables. Try pasta primavera, bean tacos, veggie pizza, mushroom burgers, vegetable lasagna or even a tofu-vegetable stir-fry. These changes will boost vegetable intake and cut saturated fat and cholesterol.
So take the opportunity to try some new dishes and develop new favorites for your family’s table. Here’s a super simple, no-fail recipe that will surely please even the most avid meat-lovers, not to mention save on your grocery bill.
Barbecue Portobello Quesadillas
1/2 cup prepared barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, minced, or 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons canola oil, divided
5 medium portobello mushroom caps, gills removed, diced
1 medium onion, finely diced
4 8- to 10-inch whole-wheat tortillas
3/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Directions:
Combine barbecue sauce, tomato paste, vinegar and chipotle in a medium bowl.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add onion and cook, stirring, until the onion and mushrooms are beginning to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to the bowl with the barbecue sauce; stir to combine.
Spread 3 tablespoons cheese on half of each tortilla and top with about 1/2 cup of the filling.
Heat 1 teaspoon oil in the pan over medium heat. Add 2 quesadillas and cook, turning once, until golden on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes total. Repeat with the quesadillas. Cut each quesadilla into wedges and serve.
Per serving: 311 calories; 13 g fat (5 g sat, 6 g mono); 19 mg cholesterol; 43 g carbohydrates; 11 g protein; 5 g fiber; 710 mg sodium; 771 mg potassium.
Recipe courtesy of EatingWell.com
Posted by Lisa at 9:30 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 5, 2010
Subtle Changes Can Go a Long Way
You don't have to go on a restrictive diet to lose weight. Try making a few subtle changes to your eating habits.
1. Lighten up your sandwich order.
Many of us turn to sandwiches for a quick lunch, but that sandwich can be loaded with calories. Pay attention to the type of bread: rather than going for a sub roll or bagel, opt for 100 percent whole grain bread, a wrap, or pita.
Choose mustard over mayo; leave off the cheese, bacon, and ranch dressing and go for avocado- the good fat.
You should also watch the sides. Instead of reaching for the creamy soup, or a pile of fries or chips, choose grilled veggies or a side green salad.
Fill your sandwich with lean protein too! This can save you between 600-800 calories, the equivalent of an extra meal and possibly a snack as well.
2. Compromise. Make room for splurges.
If you want to have a roll from the bread basket go for it, but at your main meal, focus on lean protein and veggies. If you crave dessert, split it or have a small brownie and go light on the starches at your meal.
3. Go vegetarian!
Incorporate a plant-based dinner for your beef burger once a week. If you do this for a full year, you can save 10,000 calories, which is the equivalent of a 3-pound weight loss! Great plant-based meal substitutions include a portabella mushroom burger, tofu, beans or lentils.
4. Watch your drink order.
Carry a water bottle with you throughout the day. This will keep you hydrated, especially during our hot summer months, and it will also give you an alternative to soda to reach for when you get thirsty.
5. Downsize your plate and spoon!
As the size of our dinner plates expand, so does the average waistline in America.
Go for the teaspoon size spoon rather than the tablespoon when dipping into honey, salad dressings or perhaps your favorite dish of ice cream. Less is more here.
Posted by Lisa at 3:49 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 2, 2010
Mini Heart Meatloafs for Two
Valentine's Day may be long gone, but it's never too late to add a little "love" to your dinners! Spice these up as little or much as you'd like.
1 egg white
3 Tbsp salsa
1 handful tortilla chips, crushed
8 oz ground turkey or lean ground beef
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients together.
3. Line pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil
4. Place 3-4 inch heart shaped cookie cutter on pan. Press mixture into the cookie cutter. Lift off and repeat with remaining meat mixture.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes until firm.
Serve with black bean salad: mix black beans, corn, chopped onion, tomato, bell pepper, jalapeno pepper and minced garlic. Add a little lime juice, spritz with olive oil and sprinkle with cilantro.
Posted by Lisa at 3:10 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack