Category: Healthy Eating is Easy

Broccoli Crosses Party Lines: Bill Clinton Goes Tofu

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Photo by: World Economic Forum

While George HW Bush may have been anti-broccoli, George W was a floret lover. And now Bill Clinton is declaring his love for green veggies and their ability to reverse heart disease.

Bill may not have made the best lifestyle choices last millenium, including his decision to continue downing donuts and fries after Hillary enlisted heart disease reversal doc Dean Ornish in 1993 to overhaul the White House menu–this move landed him in the OR for a quadruple bypass in 2004. But, after that surgery and then having 2 stents implanted last year, he decided to get drastic and Go Totally Tofu. Now, he’s dropped 20 lbs and has never felt better. Check out his CNN interview or the NPR recap 1 year after his decision to eat a totally plant-based diet (except for a bite of turkey on Thanksgiving….).

If Bill can do it, so can you! Recipes here.

The Cheapest Healthiest Food on the Planet

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Photo by: llsimon53

When times are tight, the quality of our food is often what suffers most, and then our cellulite follows right behind (on our behinds). UnWelcome back, fat pants and blood pressure machine! As a health conscious, frugal google, but realist when it comes to the sacredness of time and quality of life, I’ve always purchased canned beans and felt like they were cheap enough, tasty, and a great item under the circumstances. $0.69 for a 15-oz can is nothing (sale price), right?

Well, you might say I’ve had a change of ‘beans’ recently. When you take into account the dirt cheapness of dried beans, the fact that you can do a ‘Quick Soak’ (see below) rather than starting the process 8 years before the meal, and cook a mass quantity and freeze them in 1-cup portions, the cost of dried beans is astronomically cheaper than canned.

Canned beans (on sale) cost about 20 cents per 1/2-cup serving (which provides 7 grams of protein and 7 grams of fiber).

Dried beans (not on sale) cost about 6 cents per 1/2-cup serving (also providing 7 grams protein and 7 grams fiber).

So if you eat beans once a year, no biggie. But wait, if you only eat beans once a year, you’re spending too much on unhealthy food and need to get your grocery list’s act together! Beans will save you!! Even Dr. “God” Oz touted beans this week on his show saying they’re a healthier source of protein than meat, and they contain soluble fiber that helps lower cholesterol. More here and here. And if you want to make them less farty, check here.

The challenge is on. This week, fire up some dried beans. They’re probably already in your pantry. I generally cook 3 cups dried at a time (makes about 6 cups cooked). Refridge what you’ll use over the next week, and freeze the rest in 1 or 2-cup portions. Incorporate them into any of these 30 concoctions. Or see if one of the 60 recipes here jump out at you. Nothing? How about the “I Don’t Do Beans” Beans or the Gooey Louie Bean Brownies? Just start somewhere!

For further cost-saving, healthy-eating tips, check out Healthy Eating on the Cheap, and this hot-off-the-press hotcake book by Ellen Jaffe Jones called Eat Vegan on $4.00 a Day.

What are some other cheap, life-extending foods?

*Quick Soak Instructions: Cover beans with water and bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for an hour. Drain water. Add new water. Bring to a boil again, then reduce heat to simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 1 more hour. Two hours is a whole lot better than 2 days, especially when you can pretty much do anything you want during that 2-hour period. 

Love Straws? Love the word Awesome? Introducing Strawesome!

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If you’re looking for a fun way to down a green Popeye Smoothie, kale apple juice, or just get better hydrated, you have GOT to check out these rad straws! Strawesome was started by Michigan mom and architect Daedra Surowiec, and is a family-owned business that creates healthy, environmentally friendly, unique, reusable glass drinking straws. Just when you thought you had everything!

Other fun ways to get wholesome goodness into your bod?

Purple Grapes Lower Heart Disease Risk

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Photo by: Noel Zia Lee

If you didn’t hear it during your morning commute this AM, a cup a day of purple grapes may lower your heart disease risk. Finally, something to eat MORE of to help your super muscle! Even more details on the hows & whys here.

What else do you do to take care of your heart?

Garam Masala: Making Beans UnBoring for 800 Years!

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Photo by: FotoosVanRobin

I finally realized why my kitchen-made Indian food was tiers below the smooth grub at Bombay Gaylord: the absence of Garam Masala. It didn’t matter if I used gallons of coconut milk or bags of curry powder, without the hard-to-find GM spice mix, you might as well forget it. Garam Masala has 5 A’s!, and is a blend of cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cardamom, black pepper, and sometimes nutmeg. It’s been used since the 13th century in North Indian cuisine. The mix includes spices that help boost brain function and decrease inflammation (cinnamon), control blood sugars (cinnamon & coriander), fight cancer and ease digestion (cumin), and lower cholesterol (coriander). And it makes beans and other less appealing veggies taste exotic and exquisite.

I had a touch of trouble finding Garam Masala, but finally had success at my local food co-op (because eventhough you can make it from scratch, I wasn’t about to sacrifice a bike ride or a shower to do so), and had a chance to put it to the test.

We had just walked in the door from vacation and were in desperate need of groceries. Do you have the energy to zoom to the grocery store after stepping off an airplane? Me either. So I scrounged through the cupboards, freezer, and fridge, and salvaged portions of our garden produce that hadn’t been tasted by the squirrels, and ended up with a total hit of a dinner:

No-Food-in-the-House Curry
Serves 6

2 tsp olive oil
1 on-the-verge onion, shady spots removed, remainder diced
2 tsp crushed garlic (in the squeeze tube)
1 tsp curry powder
3 tsp garam masala
1 tsp sea salt
2 cups dried red lentils (could be any color lentil)
3 cups filtered water
4 ripe tomatoes (actually used the untouched portions of 6)
7 stalks organic celery (who says organic goes bad fast in the fridge?)
1 cup frozen organic chopped spinach
1/2 can (about 7 oz) light coconut milk
4 cups cooked brown rice (cooked while veggies & lentils cooked)

In a large pot, sauté onion, garlic, spices, and salt in olive oil until onion starts to brown, about 3 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients (minus the rice) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, cover, and cook until lentils and veggies are tender, about 20 minutes.

Serve over brown rice.

What the critics said:
Bitchin’ Dietitian: “Hot Damn!!”
Bitchin’ Husband: “Wow. There’s a hot kick, and I think this is the best thing you’ve ever made.”
5-Year-Old: “I love it. Especially the rice.”
3-Year-Old: “I’m eating it, aren’t I? But now my tummy’s full.”
1-Year-Old: “…..” (Silence as he scarfed down an entire bowl.)

A healthy hit!! Your best “No-Food-in-the-House” meals?

1-Minute Gazpacho

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Just walked in the door from a 95-degree hot frisbee game and needed some refreshing veggies FAST. Poof! Gazpacho to the rescue in less than a minute.

1-Minute Gazpacho
Makes 5 (1-cup) servings

4 ripe tomatoes
1 large cucumber, peeled if not organic
¼ red onion
1 green bell pepper (preferably organic)
4 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
¼ tsp black pepper
½ tsp salt
Hot sauce to taste (optional)

Blend all ingredients (except hot sauce) until smooth or desired consistency. Serve immediately (because you can’t wait), or chill in the fridge for an hour to let flavors marry.

Per cup: 89 calories, 5.5 g total fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 243 mg sodium, 9.5 g carbohydrates, 2.5 g fiber, 1.5 g sugar, 1.5 g protein, 26.5% vitamin A, 58.5% vitamin C, 2% calcium, 4% iron

10 Essential Ingredients for Quick and Healthy Meals

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Photo credit: happyworker

No more excuses! Healthy eating and ditching all the crud that’s gumming up your energy and soul are totally painless activities once you make them a priority. Here are 10 essential ingredients that will maximize your chances of success. Stop loading your body with processed garbage, take a fast field-trip to your local grocer, and start cloud surfing your way to health euphoria. Always have on hand:

1. Bagged Salad Greens. Salad doesn’t have to take hours of prep or your life savings to enjoy. Get a bunch of tasty, dark, salad greens, and enjoy them daily with low-fat dressing. (Have you had Trader Joe’s Wasabi Arugula? OH MY!!!)

2. Low-Fat Salad Dressing, or Olive Oil + Brown Rice Vinegar in a 2:1 ratio. Even the cutest of tushes need salad dressing on their greens. If I wasn’t already married, I’d consider a union with Trader Joe’s Light Champagne Vinaigrette. But when it’s out of stock in my fridge, a dash of olive oil, brown rice vinegar, and sea salt are perfect for dolling up the lettuce mountain.

3. Canned Beans: Garbanzo beans are especially great because they don’t usually require rinsing. Just drain and toss them on a salad, into a stir-fry, burrito, or stirred into soup. Or blend any can of drained beans with 1 cup salsa for a fast bean dip or sandwich spread.

4. Quinoa: (“keen-wah”). When you’re rushed for dinner, brown rice–or even white rice for that matter–takes way too long to cook. Quinoa is not only a great rice substitute rich in fiber and protein (and a gluten-free food), but it only takes 15 minutes to cook. Get pre-rinsed quinoa if you can, or rinse the seeds vigorously in water before cooking to remove the saponins. Quinoa is a seed that’s eaten like a whole grain, and can even be mixed with fruit, nuts, cinnamon, and non-dairy milk for a fast breakfast the next morning.

5. Berries: Fresh or frozen. Raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries are so full of life-extending compounds while also being rich in fiber and low in calories, that you’re better off opting FOR these sweet little miracle makers at meal or snack time. Toss them into breakfast cereals or smoothies, atop salads, or eat them by the handful. Sure feels better than the sugar crash of a Snicker’s!

6. Non-Dairy Milk: Fortified almond, coconut, hemp, oat, or soy milk have all the calcium & vitamin D of dairy milk, less sugar, better taste, fewer calories, and don’t cause mucous production, inflammation, and weight gain the way dairy milk does. Enjoy unsweetened almond milk with 45 calories & 0 grams of sugar per cup or original coconut milk beverage–include it in smoothies, pour into onto a bowl of high-fiber breakfast cereal, or add it to coffee or tea. Mmm!

7. Broccoli: The florets are so full of antioxidants, cancer-fighters, and hormone regulators, and they’re not a particular threat to pests. So, conventionally grown broccoli isn’t riddled with pesticides (Read: you don’t have to buy organic broccoli). Steam, roast, stir-fry, curry them (cook with curry powder and light coconut milk, see below), or dip them in bean dip for a satisfying snack.

8. Canned Light Coconut Milk: Light coconut milk (1/2 cup or more) and curry powder (2 tsp) can turn any veggie or veggie combo into a gourmet curry dish. Add beans for protein and serve over quinoa.

9. Kale: Rich in blood pressure busting chlorophyll, immune-boosting antioxidants, and calcium that’s absorbed twice as well as dairy calcium, kale is a true powerhouse. Toss it into smoothies, stir-fries, or bake it at 350 degrees for 30 minutes with a touch of olive oil and salt (stir after 15 minutes and return to the oven) for a crunchy veggie side dish even kids will crave.

10: Dark Chocolate: A few squares powerfully satisfy your sweet tooth and are loaded with antioxidants. Work from a large bar each week so you aren’t resorting to the Oreos in the cupboard to satisfy your post-meal sweet craving.

For more ways to incorporate these butt-busting powerfoods, snag a copy of my TJ’s Skinny Dish! book this fall! Other grocery essentials that make healthy eating easy breezy?

Vegetarian Times: Veg Boot Camp!

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 Check out the June issue of Vegetarian Times, and Veg Boot Camp article on page 58. Time-saving tips from your resident Bitchin’ Dietitian!

Gas and Bloating be Gone!

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Photo by: Eneas

Whether you’ve upped your bean and veggie intake (Gold star), eat too fast, or just have a sensitive digesteruski system, here are some ways to keep the life-extending farty foods in your diet and even maintain your 80-mile-an-hour chow-down pace while still keeping your friends and pants fully buttoned:

1. Ditch Dairy and Wheat for 3 days. Dairy products (milk, cheese, sour cream, yogurt, ice cream, creamy dressings, etc.), and wheat-containing foods (bread, pasta, flour tortillas, etc.) are often hard for our systems to break down, causing toots, bloating, and inflammation. Replace them with almond milk (Almond Breeze is now in most grocery stores nationwide and even the sweetest vanilla variety has 20 fewer calories than skim milk), gluten-free breads and cereals (Rice Chex), corn tortillas, brown rice, and quinoa. Relief? Keep them out for good.

2. Skip fried foods, processed foods, and refined sugars. While tasty, these guys cause a great deal of indigestion. If you’re opening food packages several times a day, or notice grease on your napkin at the end of a meal, it’s time for a fart redirect.

3. Renew your love for Ginger Rogers. Enjoy hot ginger tea before and after meals, or a teaspoon of fresh grated ginger before meals. Ginger is a big-time gas reliever, digestion easer, and nausea and motion sickness remedy. No wonder Ginger succeeded on the Love Boat!

4. Chow down on Parsley, Fennel, Caraway Seeds, Dill, and Anise. Realistically, this one’s probably not going to happen. But, all these natural compounds are great tummy tuckers and breath fresheners. For extra credit, add them to cooking and enjoy less of the post-meal bloat.

5. Enjoy hot Peppermint tea. Before and after meals, go for herbal tea bags or add a drop of peppermint oil to hot water. Sip, and calm the inner storm.

6. Get yourself some Probiotics. Everyone’s doing it, now’s your turn. Probiotics help restore good bacteria and ease digestion. Foods that are naturally high in probiotics include pineapple, tempeh, kimchi, natto, sauerkraut, and miso. If those don’t sound good, I love Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics Plus Supplement.

7. Go for the Garlic. Which is worse, garlicky breath, or stinky, loosened pants? Fresh garlic stimulates digestion. Order extra.

8. Delve into the Dills. One dill pickle or a teaspoon of pickle juice calms digestion just like gripe water does for babies. There’s a reason restaurants serve pickles alongside greasy burgers and fries.

9. Wheel out trapped gas. When you’re alone, lay on the floor, legs up in the air and move them in a bicycle motion.

10. Cleanse your colon. If all else fails, consider a good colon cleansing. The act of colon cleansing is far from good, but the results are amazing.

Other ideas? Eating less beans or veggies not an option!

Stitchin’ Dietitian: When Cookbook-Writing Attacks!

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Hello Healthies! Posts have been sporadic lately because I’ve been busily writing my top-secret Trader Joe’s “skinny” cookbook. It’s going to be amazing… the answers to all your nutrition and meal-planning needs! In order to get it to Amazon by the 2011 holiday season, I’m writing, testing, eating, and photographing 1-2 new recipes each day (while also galavanting around with the 3 kids, working part-time, and looking together all the while). Manuscript due date: May 1st.

Until, a minor hiccup…

I was “skinnifying” an old Better Homes & Gardens recipe for Pumpkin Drop Cookies, following each old-school step to a T, including “creaming” the margarine & brown sugar together. But when I went to get the stuck margarine out of the immersion blender… well… we’ll leave it there.

So, the following day, I revisited the recipe–this time omitting the margarine-creaming step, which I realized is far too dangerous for healthy people. And guess what? Turns out that step is totally unnecessary! And without it, you can even make it one-handed! Here’s the less risky result (and a sneak peek at the book):

Squash Drop Cookies
Makes 30 cookies
Prep Time: 12 minutes (barring any side trips to the ER)
Hands-Off Cooking Time: 10 minutes

My neighbor, Sara Duke, modified the old Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook version of Pumpkin Drop Cookies by replacing the raisins with chocolate chips to guarantee getting more veggies into her kids. This version is an even skinnier one using whole wheat flour, flaxmeal instead of eggs, less sugar, and squash instead of canned pumpkin, which can be hard to find in winter, spring, or summer. Squash, Drop, and Inhale!

1 Tbsp flaxmeal such as Bob’s Red Mill Whole Ground Flaxseed Meal, soaked in 3 Tbsp warm filtered water for 10 minutes
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp cinnamon
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1/3 cup Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread or similar margarine, softened to room temp
¾ cup packed brown sugar or ½ cup granulated sugar plus ¼ cup agave nectar
1 ½ cups cooked and mashed squash*, or canned pumpkin (about 1 15-oz can)
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (or raisins)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Soak flaxmeal in warm water for 10 minutes until it forms a gel.

Meanwhile, stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, soda and nutmeg in a medium-sized mixing bowl.

Combine margarine, brown sugar or granulated sugar plus agave, squash, vanilla, and flaxmeal water mixture in a separate, large mixing bowl.

Add dry ingredients to wet mixture, and stir until well combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop from a tablespoon 1 inch apart onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Best when eaten warm–not hot–fresh from oven.

Store extras in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Nutrition Information Per Cookie: 113 calories, 4.5 g total fat, 2 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 64 mg sodium, 19 g carbohydrates, 1.5 g fiber, 12 g sugar, 1.5 g protein, 6% vitamin A, 2% vitamin C, 2% calcium, 2.5% iron

*Tip: Use a frozen 12-oz pkg of cooked squash–thawed–to save time & energy.

Kitchen mishap stories? They were worth it, right?!