Week 3: Getting Real and Being Flexible

Well, last week was a challenge!  How about you?  Did you try any of the produce?  Any fun new recipes?  I can say for us that it turned out to be a much busier week than anticipated and we ate out one additional evening, skipping the stuffed peppers.  I also made some changes during implementation – I used the acorn squash and sweet potato to make soup early in the week, because I realized that I had extra stock that needed to be used up (“Crockpot Creation”).  I also didn’t harvest the turnips from the garden, because I didn’t have time.  I’ve included the recipe for the soup below.  Also, totally had a ton of sweets all week – cookies and chocolates, even a milkshake!  That’s the getting real part.  =)  

This week’s menu is simpler.  I have a couple of evenings out and want to keep it simpler than last week for my own benefit (yours too!).  I've also included some links to recipes that I like (please note, they are not my recipes and I don't have any affiliation with the companies or websites where they are housed).  Here’s the scoop: 

This week's grocery haul.

• Sunday night – okay, you already ate dinner, but I’m including in case you want to plug this in elsewhere – Grilled Chicken Drumsticks (marinated in Greek Dressing), Grilled Zucchini, Onion and Red Pepper with Avocado and Lime, and Steamed Greens with Garlic
• Monday – dinner with friends
• Tuesday – work event
• Wednesday – Grilled Salmon, Lemon Carrots, and Green Salad with Roasted Beets & Feta Cheese
• Thursday – Baked Penne Pasta with Broccoli and Soy Sausage (Gimme Lean brand, but I like to brown the sausage before cooking with the pasta, since it gives it a meatier texture), Green Salad
• Friday – date night out
• Saturday – Slow-Cooker Black Bean and Sweet Potato Chili with Cornbread and Green Salad

Flexibility is one of the keys to successfully managing anything, in my opinion.  So, as you think about making changes to your eating style, be flexible.  If you don’t like a vegetable I’ve suggested, substitute something you like (try to choose a similar food – ex. Spinach for turnips, but not corn for broccoli).  And if a meal’s going to take too much time one night, swap it for another night when you have more time for prep.  Whatever – remember, the goal is to have ½ your plate fruits and vegetables, no more than ¼ whole grains and ¼ lean protein.  Use the visual and then fill in the blanks.  Be forgiving too!  I got a bit off last week, but I’m starting again – no big deal.

Slow-Cooker Curried Acorn Squash and Sweet Potato Soup

• 1 medium acorn squash, peeled, seeded, and chopped (you could also substitute butternut squash)
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1” piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced or grated
• 1 Tablespoon Curry Powder
• 1 teaspoon Garam Masala
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• Fresh ground pepper
• 4-6 cups chicken stock

Toss everything in slow-cooker and add stock just to cover.  Cook on low 6-8 hours.  Puree Soup with immersion blender, or in regular blender (being careful to vent blender to prevent hot soup from splattering out).   Top with a spoonful of plain Greek yogurt and chopped cilantro.

Great served with some sauteed vegetables (and field roast like in the picture) or a green salad for a nice lite supper.

Stocking (Homemade) Supplies

Stock is something I use a lot.  I make soup about once every two weeks - more often now that it's colder, put it into veggies when I saute to add  flavor, and have used it in mashed potatoes to add flavor without a lot of added fat.  I hate to buy stock, however, because it's so easy to make and it's a bit of a rip off when you consider the actual cost!  Plus, I almost always have everything I need.  Here's how:

Everything goes into the slow cooker.

First, keep the carcass from that rotisserie chicken you bought last week (or that you will buy this week).  Put it in a freezer bag and save it until you're ready to make stock.  To the bag, you can add a second carcass (I like to use two), onion, carrot, bell pepper and celery trimmings.  You can also do this with that turkey carcass or ham bone from Thanksgiving or Christmas.  What, you say, ham stock?! Yes!  Imagine using it for 5-bean soup or split pea, just remember the ham bone will have a lot of residual salt, so no need to add additional salt to the broth.

When you're ready, here's the basic recipe:

• 2 chicken carcasses, most of the skin removed, plus whatever vegetable trimmings you saved
• 1 onion, quartered
• 2 carrots, scrubbed and chopped (no need to peel)
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 tsp whole peppercorns
• 1tsp salt (unless using ham bone)
• 2 dry bay leaves
• 4 sprigs fresh parsley
• 2-4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 sprig fresh sage



Add water and then simmer for 6-8 hours.

• 1 hot pepper, split (optional)

Put everything into a large slow cooker - at least 2 quart size.  Cover with water.  Cook on high 6-8 hours.  Strain stock and store in freezer bags in portions you think you will use (I do this by putting the bag into a measuring cup, so it stays upright while I ladle the slightly cooled stock through the strainer into the bag).  I store in 3-4 cups by portioning into labeled freezer bags and then freezing them flat in a square baking pan so I can easily store them in the fridge.  The total yield on this will be about 8 cups of stock.  If your stock has a lot of fat, you can skim the fat off the top or pour the stock into one of those fancy separators - they are handy, but mine is packed in a box somewhere.

Here are some other options to try: Replace the fresh herbs with 1 tablespoon of herbs de Provence.  Add some zing with a lemon by cutting in half, squeezing juice in and tossing in the whole fruit. Give it a little Asian flavor by adding in 2 tablespoons fish sauce, 2 tablespoons soy sauce (omitting salt in the basic recipe), and a large handful of chopped lemongrass.  You can also use bell pepper, parsnips, mushrooms, or other veggies that are almost ready to toss out.  Just chop and toss in your freezer bag and use when you're ready to make stock.

I think this stock is as good as any I buy at the store and it's a heckuvalot cheaper.  I make this recipe about once a month or when I have time and I know it saves me money, plus I get to control the ingredients.  No preservatives, flavor enhancers, excess salt or other stuff.  Just the good stuff.  I put it on early on a Saturday or Sunday and let it cook away while I do chores, or go shopping, or hang out with dh.  Enjoy!

Week 1: Getting Started

Alright - this week is Thanksgiving...and I got a late start.  Everyone (including me) gets a break.  BUT, that's no reason to sit on our laurels.  We can still make some really nutritious choices.  Let's get to work. 

Saturday night's dinner

I do my food shopping (mostly) on Saturday or Sunday for the coming week.  I have sort of a standard list of things I buy weekly:

• Soy milk - usually the store brand or whatever is on sale
• Rotisserie Chicken - good for everything from eating as pieces, tossing in soup, or making a quick chicken panini
• Plain Greek yogurt - my favorite brand is Fage and this subs for sour cream, mix with cinnamon and maple syrup for sweet potatoes, and even spread on a sandwich instead of mayo
• Eggs - the kind that have not been given antibiotics
• Mixed Salad Greens - I like organic and I like a mix of lots of different types
• Fruit: Apples, Bananas and Citrus (lemons and limes, and usually oranges), Grapes, Kiwi, Pineapple, or Berries if they're on sale
• Double fiber bread
• Whole wheat tortillas, wraps or corn tortillas
• Kale - the kind in a big bag that are triple washed and ready to eat
• Onions - usually buy Vidalia and red
• Fresh garlic (if I'm out)
• Fresh herbs - usually parsley and cilantro

This week, I also bought some shredded 2% sharp cheddar cheese - sometimes I buy block cheese, but I felt lazy.  I try to keep some cheddar or mozzarella cheese and a block of parmesan all the time.  I usually add some fresh fruits and vegetables to the above staples based on what looks fresh and what's in season.  

Dinner on Sunday Night

 Tip: Fresh fruit and vegetables are far less expensive when purchased in season!  Buy only what you think you will eat in a week.  It's very perishable, which is why it's more expensive than frozen.  But it's worth it, so don't make it more expensive by buying produce that just rots in the crisper.

I bought some fresh beets, tomatoes (not in season, but looked good), jicama, bell pepper, pablano pepper, and winter squash - one small butternut and one acorn squash, zucchini, and a couple of pomegranates, because we went to an outdoor market and I couldn't resist all the fresh produce.  Usually, I also buy turkey bacon (Applegate Farms) and some frozen fish (usually salmon), but I didn't make it to Whole Foods. 

Some important things I keep in the pantry:

• Olive oil
• Peanut oil
• Grainy and dijon mustards
• White wine and apple cider vinegars
• Honey
• Maple Syrup
• Brown & white sugar
• Stevia
• Molasses
• Peanut Butter (particularly Dark Chocolate)
• Canned black, white and red beans
• Canned tomatoes without added salt
• Coconut Milk
• Pureed Pumpkin
• Whole wheat flour
• Peanuts and an assortment of tree nuts (whatever's been on sale, kept in the freezer)
• Quinoa
• Brown Rice
• Oatmeal - I like both rolled and steel cut, so I keep both
• Salsa (I like fresh, but we never finish it, so I buy jarred and keep in the pantry)
• Sea Salt
• Peppercorns
• Dry Herbs and Spices, especially cumin, cinnamon, chili powder, herbs de provence, turmeric

I also keep these in the freezer:

• Soy Crumbles
• Fish fillets
• Chicken bones (from the rotisserie chickens) to make stock
• Whole Chicken
• Chicken breast
• Chicken thighs
• Corn
• Peas
• Berries - quick frozen blueberries and strawberries, sometimes raspberries
• Bananas - when they get too brown, they get peeled and frozen for smoothies
• Flax Seeds & Meal
• Nuts
• Wheat Rolls

So - that's what things look like around here...approximately. Man, for two people we have a lot of food!

Here's what I've cooked/eaten so far this week:
Saturday dinner: Corn & pablano pepper soup that was a take on a recipe from the Vegan Slow Cooker Cookbook (1/2 package of frozen corn, 1/2 pablano pepper, 1/2 onion, 1/2 red bell pepper, 1 tsp jalapeno, 3 cups of chicken stock, 4 sprigs of thyme, salt and pepper cooked in the crockpot all day and then half-way pureed); jicama salad with carrots and red onions and this lime dressing, and veggies and cheese in corn tortilla with salsa and Greek yogurt

Tip: Take some time on Saturday or Sunday to wash and pre-prep your veggies- 15 minutes now will save you so much more later.  I cut carrots and celery sticks for snacks, chopped onion, celery and carrots to be used for soup later in the week, sliced red and pablano peppers for sautee or stir-fry later, and rinsed and stored the fresh herbs (mostly dry in a zip top bag with a damp paper-towel on the cut stem end).

Sunday:

Monday Night Dinner (leftovers, hmmm)

Breakfast: old fashioned oats with chopped apple, cranberries and nuts with cinnamon, followed by second breakfast of a scrambled egg with cheese and mushrooms in a small whole wheat tortilla with plain Greek yogurt and salsa
Lunch - out
Dinner: grilled salmon with dressing/marinade made from garlic, cilantro and lime, roasted beets with olive oil and fresh thyme (garden), and sauteed kale with lots of garlic
Monday 
Breakfast: leftover oats plus a scoop of peanut butter
Lunch: leftovers from dinner, plus fresh pineapple
Snacks: Carrot and celery sticks, 1/2 oz peanuts, sliced apple, scoop of chocolate peanut butter
Dinner: Leftover Corn and pablano soup plus chopped chicken from rotisserie, green salad with quick dressing (grainy mustard, honey, plus white wine vinegar, salt and pepper), and a tortilla with cheese
Sweet something - toasted marshmallow

Here's the plan for the rest of the week:
Tuesday - breakfast - oatmeal with scrambled egg mixed in (sounds gross, tastes great - actually you hardly taste the egg) and a banana; lunch - office potluck (I have NO idea what I'm bringing); dinner - chicken panini made with rotisserie chicken, sliced apples and cheddar cheese, green salad, grilled zucchini & peppers with a squeeze of lemon & zest, and fresh pineapple
Wednesday - breakfast - scrambled egg whites with mushrooms (leftover from last week's shopping), peppers and onions; lunch - chopped salad w/greens, sliced carrots, celery, apples, garbanzo beans, and a chopped egg; dinner - veggie pizza out (pre-race meal!)
Thursday (HAPPY THANKSGIVING) - I'll post on this day by Wednesday and share some tips for managing the day
Friday - breakfast - French Toast (My FAVORITE breakfast) with bananas and maple syrup Greek yogurt; lunch - packing sandwiches for the road! dinner - Friday night is usually date night, but we will have done that on Wednesday, so we will see.

Eat Like a Dietitian: An Invtation to Health

Hello!  Today, I'm writing to you with an invitation to health.  I've decided to undertake a 6-week experiment to track and share my ideal eating plan and my attempt at being more active - and I want you to join me.  Sound fun?  Just wait...here's what it is not: This is not a diet.  I don't diet.  And I don't advocate dieting.  Dieting is useless, because it doesn't last and it makes people grouchy and miserable.  Who needs that?  That's not an invitation to health.

To yourself and others, remember these things.
Good health is not only physical, it is mental and spiritual too.

What it is...for some of you, it is going to be extreme. We're going to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables (tbh, we already do!).  You might learn to pronounce some strange new grains.  I promise to include some treats and some meats.  Lol!!  But...It is not for the weak of heart or stomach or for those who don't want to feel and look fabulous...but that's not any of you, right?  I <3 b="b" fabulous.="fabulous." feeling="feeling">   If you do this, I know you will feel better in just 6-weeks - and so will I.

Here are the details:

Evidence of a recent shopping trip -
notice there are healthier packaged foods!

• Supplies: Each week on Saturday or Sunday I'll share my grocery list with you for the upcoming week.  Just the food.  You can assume we have paper towels, toilet paper and soap...and cleaning products, you get the picture. One major shopping rule - buy as little as possible in cans, boxes, or jars.  We're going to be cooking!
  
• Planning and Implementing: I'll send you an estimation of what I plan to make for meals during the week.  If I have them, I'll include recipes.  If not, I'll try to remember to include links to helpful recipe websites to give you inspiration, but you can be creative too.  Remember that to goal is great nutrition, so no choosing Paula Deen's fried butter or the Neely's BBQ ribs - that doesn't work here.  What I make is subject to change.  I change my mind a lot.  If I do change my mind, I'll share what I actually cooked/ate.  (Here's where you creative people can really get crazy!)

• 

  Lots of fruits and veggies!!

  Let's Get Physical: I'll find a way to squeeze in some type of intentional physical activity at least 4 times each week.  This could be a quick 20-minute jaunt around my building at lunch, an actual visit to the gym (horror!), or yoga w/my office mates.  Heck, it might even mean power-walking the neighborhood in an effort to meet the way-too-early sunset!
• Accountability: Every day, I'll share my progress on my Twitter feed @DietitianSherry, my Facebook page, and/or here on my blog.

Your assignment - should you choose to accept it - is to do it all along with me!  Buy the food, cook the food, take the walk, and share your success.  Doesn't this sound like fun?!  Come on...it'll be good for you.  ;)  So...if you're interested in joining me, ping me back and I'll add you to the list to get my emails about this experiment.

Physical activity is best with a partner - hiking,
walking, biking, swimming, cleaning the house, yard
work...they all count!

Now, you might be saying, but it's the holiday season!  I don't want to miss out on the good stuff.  You don't have to.  =)  The goal is to help you (and me) be more conscious about making the healthy choice the first choice.  And why wait?  If you begin now making the right choices most of the time, you will be way ahead of the people who make new year's resolutions and never keep them (I've been there!).  Oh, and for the record, I'm not the food police.  I'm not going to come to your house and grade you, checking your pantry for contraband, or scold you when I see you in the grocery store with a giant bag of M&Ms in the cart.  So, let me know what you think!  Are you in? 

I'll post my plan for this week tonight - I meant to get this out yesterday.  Sorry!  See - perfection's not the goal.  ;)

A Taste of Fall

A Taste of Fall

I love to bake.  But I don't love what it does to my thighs.  So I don't bake often.  When I do, I really try to make it a nutritious bread, muffin or cake.  What?!  A nutritious cake?  Sure.  It's just a matter of ingredients...and a name perspective.

The weather in Atlanta this weekend was just hinting of Fall and I was reminded of this cake that I never got around to posting.  At the time, I was craving something sweet.  Yet, I wanted to be sure that it also fit into the healthy goals that I have for myself.  You know, eat more vegetables, choose whole foods, watch my sugar, etc.  So was born this Seedy Cranberry Pumpkin Oat Cake.

Made with Pumpkin, high in vitamin A, fiber and deliciousness - oh yea, that's a nutrient in my book - it was something I could feel good about.  Add to that cranberries, also high in anthocyanins, flax seeds for omega-3 fatty acids, pumpkin seeds for protein (and because I like them), and a whole grain base (whole wheat flour and oats) and you've got a cake that's chock full of nutrition! 

And zero guilt.  Even the fat and sugar aren't off limits, since I used olive oil and honey.  Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.

It's not too sweet and the crumb is really a cross between bread and cake, but I'm going to call it cake.

 Seedy Cranberry Pumpkin Oat Cake

• 1 can pumpkin puree
• 2 whole eggs
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup whole rolled oats, plus more for topping
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup chopped fresh/frozen cranberry
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, plus more for topping
• 2 Tablespoons flax seeds, plus more for topping
• 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon 

Mix together pumpkin through honey in a small bowl.  In a larger bowl, mix flour with oats, baking powder and salt.  Add wet ingredients to the dry and fold until about 1/2 way mixed.  Then add all of the additional ingredients and fold together, being careful not to over-mix.

Pour into a greased 9" square pan (or the pan of your choice), top with toppings, and bake at 350 degrees until done, which for me was about 40 minutes.  The cake will be dense.  If you prefer a sweeter cake, consider substituting fresh blueberries, strawberries or even grapes instead of cranberries - or you could add a bit more honey or some molasses for a richer sweetness.  Enjoy!

Mindfulness On My Mind

There seems to be a lot of momentum behind the concept of mindfulness these days.  Is it a trend? I hope not, because I'm totally loving it.  In my life, I call it living "one day at a time" and sometimes that translates into one moment at a time.  It applies to so many areas of life, but the whole concept is wrapped up in the idea of experiencing the here and now...being present.  I want to be present.  I want to be in my life, experiencing every moment, not living as a bystander watching my life happen.

 I want to watch the sun rise and set...the light move across the things around me.

I want to notice beauty in nature.

I want to enjoy the smile of people I love...and of strangers. (And I want to be silly.)

I want to taste and experience the food that I eat.

I want my life to be a  joyful experience.  I want to notice it now, not half remember it later.  I want my mind to be where my feet are, where my taste-buds are, where my heart is.  I get to do all of this, anytime I choose.  By incorporating mindfulness into every aspect of my life, I am connected to myself and others.  In what areas of your life do you (or could you) practice mindfulness?

Are you a member of the clean plate club?

Do you feel like you have to eat everything on your plate - or else you feel guilty?  Are starving children in Africa or a nagging fear that you won't get dessert keeping you in front of the plate until every bite is gone?  Stop right there.  Listen.  There is no rule that says you have to eat every bite of food on your plate.  In fact, you may be hurting yourself and others by doing so.  Clean-plate thinking represents an unnecessary connection between the food on your plate and false guilt.  Replace those old messages with better ones...with truthful ones.  Try this, "I'm going to take care of myself by paying attention to how I feel at this moment instead of eating." Or how about, "By not overeating, I'm going to take better care of myself so that I have more to give others."  Or "I'm going to stop eating because I feel satisfied." 

On the practical side, try putting a little less food on your plate than you think you want to eat - a good rule is 80% - and then see how you feel.  If you're really still hungry after 15-20 minutes, have a little more.  If you're a road warrior (like me these days) and find yourself eating out often,  you may not always have control of the portions on your plate, however you still have control over the portion you eat.  Remember that you don't have to eat it and make up your mind to leave some on the plate.  Here's a real world example for you...

This fried oyster po boy was huge!  But I love fried oysters and since I was in a place known for good seafood, I splurged.  Not to overdo it, I skipped the tarter sauce and asked for steamed veggie in place of french fries for a savings of hundreds of calories.  =)  I could have also chosen to have a salad with broiled shrimp or fish or a sandwich with one of the other, but this is my dietary confession for the day.

I ate all of my veggies and the fried oysters, but left 1/2 of the (very large) baguette for an additional savings of more than 100 calories. The meal was still calorie dense, because the oysters were fried, but it was a treat!

To help compensate for some of those calories, I took a stroll after dinner.  Walking after a meal like that does three things: (1) helps burn off some of those extra indulgent calories, (2) helps promote digestion, and (3) helps me relax.  Going to straight to bed after a meal like that makes me feel heavy and uncomfortable (if your one of millions with gastric reflux, it could make you feel even worse).

What do you think? Can you reprogram those messages and get out of the clean plate club?  I know you can do it!  Just replace them with better messages...like, "I'm worth it."  'Cause you are.

Green Goodness

With one quick day home between business trips, I arrive to discover that my garden is bursting with goodness!  The radishes continue to grow beautifully and the turnips are finally starting to get bigger.  Of my six asparagus crowns, five have sprouted and are looking great (of course I can't eat them for 2 more years, but they're still pretty to look at).  My sage and rosemary are filling in, and I'm ready to plant some tomatoes and peppers.  Yum!

Since I had some beautiful radishes ready to eat, I plucked them from the earth and giving them a good rinse, I chopped the greens and quartered the bulbs to make a salad.

I added some fresh parsley, jicama, chickpeas, and red onions.   Stirring together the olive oil, lime juice, a sprinkle of salt and some fresh ground pepper, I created a quick dressing for the veg.

Fantastic.  Fresh and delicious, the crunch of the radishes and the slightly spicy greens, with the creamy chickpeas and tangy lime dressing was the perfect spring snack.  Next time, I'll add a little fresh mint, but it wasn't quite ready for eating.  What are you eating from your garden?