Wondering about soy, cruciferous veggies, all the different types of thyroid hypers and hypos, why there’s a picture of a butterfly here, or just want some new cocktail party convo material? Check out this new post on KrisCarr.com. Thyroid Demystified!
2 Must-Drink Summer Power Smoothies
I’m on a new kick this summer — I’ve dropped the breakfast oatmeal and bran flakes and have become a blending maniac! EVERY morning, I throw a bunch of colorful plant matter plus some seeds and perhaps a yummy powder into my Vitamix, blend it, and go. If there are leftovers, I pour them into sealed glass jars and guzzle later in the morning. Here are my 2 favorite blendcoctions:
Daiquiri Power Tower
Chia Daiquiri
Makes 3 12-ounce portions
2 cups frozen organic strawberries
1 banana
Handful organic kale leaves (lacinato or dinosaur kale are my fave), spinach if the kale is too kale-ey
1/4 cup chia seeds (get them at Costco: $10 for a 2-lb. bag): Awesome source of LDL cholesterol-lowering soluble fiber and heart-healthy Omega-3’s
3 cups fortified non-dairy milk such as unsweetened coconut milk: Great source of calcium and vitamin D
1 scoop Vanilla Almondilla Vega One Energizing Smoothie powder: Superstar for protein, fiber, and sweetened with stevia so low-sugar too!
Blend, pour, and go!
Nutrition Info per 12-ounce serving: 246 calories, 12 g fat, 6 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 22 g carbohydrate, 14 g fiber, 10 g sugar, 11 g protein, 90% vitamin A, 141% vitamin C, 30% vitamin D, 25% calcium, 14% iron.
Brown Hippie
Makes 3 12-ounce portions
Not pictured, because you might not try it! It’s brown, people. Close your eyes and enjoy!
1 cup frozen organic blueberries
1 cup frozen mango chunks
1 banana
Handful organic spinach leaves
3 cups fortified non-dairy milk such as unsweetened soymilk: Great source of calcium and vitamin D
1 scoop vanilla hemp protein powder (such as the one from Trader Joe’): Super rich in protein, Omega-3’s, and insoluble fiber
1 frozen cube wheatgrass juice (optional): adds nature’s richest edible source of chlorophyll – a natural detoxifier and blood pressure reducer
Blend, pour, and go!
Nutrition Info per 12-ounce serving: 220 calories, 5 g fat, <1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 33 g carbohydrate, 8 g fiber, 19 g sugar, 12 g protein, 31% vitamin A, 37% vitamin C, 30% vitamin D, 32% calcium, 25% iron.
Ta da! 🙂
Cholesterol-Lowering Breakfast Cookies
Cookies for Breakfast
You’ve heard of breakfast for dinner, so why not cookies for breakfast? This life is worth LIVING, people!
Inspiration for this creation: 1) Everyone’s cholesterol is high, especially the LDL (“Lousy”) one, 2) No one has time for breakfast, and 3) People want to eat cookies constantly.
Happy to help! I’m a People too. Introducing the Cholesterol-Lowering* Breakfast Power Cookie. It’s got bran flakes!, chia seeds which are massively rich in cholesterol-lowering soluble fiber, and oats which are moderately rich in cholesterol-lowering soluble fiber.
If you need a refresher on the 5 easy tips for lowering your cholesterol, soluble fiber is harder to find in the diet — it’s only in oats, flax, chia seeds, beans, lentils, and berries. It works like this:
Soluble fiber reduces the amount of bile reabsorbed in the intestines. The liver (aka ‘bile maker’) freaks out and snatches LDL cholesterol out of the bloodstream to make more bile salts. Down goes your LDL cholesterol, and the party starts. Take home message: Eat more chia seeds, flax seeds, oats, beans, lentils, and berries and you may have much healthier arteries.
As a side note: You should also eat lots of INSOLUBLE fiber found in veggies and fruit skins because without it, your poops won’t be as plump and won’t be able to carpool out as much bile. Although I love both, a lot less bile fits in a mini-Cooper than a mini-van. Bile can get reabsorbed into your bloodstream through your intestines and there’ll be very little effect on your LDL cholesterol.
Cholesterol-Lowering* Breakfast Power Cookie
Don’t be turned off by the list of 15 ingredients. Most of them are in your pantry.
Makes 13 cookies
1/2 cup chia seeds (or ground flax seed meal if you must)
1/3 cup unsweetened soymilk
2 Tbsp Earth Balance margarine, softened
1/4 cup coconut oil, or vegetable oil
1 Tbsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup bran flakes
1/4 cup sugar (optional, or use 1/4 cup of calorie-free sweetener)
2 Tbsp shredded unsweetened coconut (optional)
1/3 cup (40g) dried cranberries or raisins
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a small bowl, soak chia seeds in milk for 5 minutes. Add remaining wet ingredients and let sit until dry ingredients are mixed.
3. In a separate and larger bowl, combine dry ingredients minus the coconut (if using) and the dried cranberries.
4. Add wet to dry, stir to combine, and then stir in coconut and cranberries.
5. Form into 1 1/2-inch round patties, and place on a cookie sheet with about 1 inch between cookies. Press down slightly with a fork to flatten.
6. Bake for 15 minutes. Let cool completely before removing with a metal spatula.
Nutrition info per cookie including sugar and coconut (2 cookies recommended for a complete breakfast meal): 176 calories, 9.5 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 20 g carbohydrate (6 g sugar), 4.5 g fiber, 4 g protein, 6% calcium, 9% iron.
*Please don’t come find me if your cholesterol doesn’t go down after 3 months of eating these cookies. There’s no guarantee, but the research looks quite promising, and why not give them a shot?*
WAFFLE HOUSE in the House
First Belgian Waffle Experiment
I have fond and scary memories of that Belgian waffle maker in the Penn State dining hall… gooey batter dripping all over the floor, steamy eggness evaporating into the air, and then plates upon plates floating by with waffles buried beneath sugary frozen yogurt, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, sprinkles, and a cherry (fruit! fiber! health?). I knew then that I picked the right major. At that rate, I’d never be out of a job as a dietitian.
So only just today, after a hand-me-down waffle maker arrived chez moi, did I fully embrace the beauty and wonder that is the fresh, steamy, Belgian waffle. Of course I took a basic waffle recipe and removed the eggs, added flaxseed meal, used unsweetened soymilk, and topped them with frozen organic strawberries heated into a hot syrup. I mean, I bought jam made out of tomatoes last week for crying out loud! BUT. They were still REALLLY good! And basically good for you. Next time I’ll add chia seeds and perhaps some shredded zucchini and goji berries. But until then….
Belgian Waffles Gone Good-for-You
Makes 7 waffles
Materials: A fantastic mother-in-law who is done with her waffle maker
Sift these together:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
Stir these in a separate bowl, then add to sifted bowl:
1/4 cup vegetable oil (or any flavorless oil or melted margarine)
2 3/4 cup unsweetened soymilk (or other non-dairy milk)
1/4 cup flaxseed meal (optional, but gives a fiber punch and a cholesterol-lowering boost!)
1 Tbsp vanilla (optional)
Heat waffle maker according to package instructions. On the Sunbeam, it’s about 5 minutes plugged in until the light goes off.
Spray top and bottom with cooking oil, or if you don’t have a sprayer, pour one teaspoon on the bottom and wipe a little oil on the top with a paper towel.
Pour 1/2 cup batter into waffle maker and close, lifting only after at least 3 minutes, or when the steam emersion stops. (You’ll know.)
Top with heated strawberries, maple syrup, powdered sugar, or eat plain.
Nutrition Info Per Waffle (all 4 sections): 260 calories, 11 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 366 mg sodium, 34 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, <1 g sugar, 8 g protein, 4% vitamin A, 12% vitamin D, 13% calcium, 12% iron.
Raw Food 3-Day Recap
Well, I *just about* survived 3 days of raw. I had one minor, and very conscious slip-up on Day 2: a handful of multigrain pita chips.
All in all, it went well and I felt very light and energized. I get such a rise out of trying new things and challenging myself to leave my cozy zone. To be honest, my biggest worry with 3 days of raw, was how I was going to curtail my nightly PB & banana open-face sandwich habit. During Detox days, I have natural PB on a rice cake with banana slices, which is completely easy. Turns out, a sliced green apple with cinnamon and a cup of tea is a delicious substitute. But also turns out that a return to my PB & banana open-face sandwich on Day 4 was complete and total heaven. Sorry raw!
So, what I actually really learned is that I wasn’t properly prepared for 3 days of raw. I figured I could handle 3 days of raw fruits, veggies, dried fruit, raw nuts and seeds, and smoothies without doing any extra grocery shopping or fancy new food prep. But, by Day 2, I got tired of the limited raw fruits and veggies I had on hand, felt unsettled, and grabbed pita chips. I also found that I was eating a ton of extra calories by snacking on nuts, seeds, and dried fruit all the time. As a dietitian, you acquire an inner calorimeter, with alarms. Those alarms kept going off!
In retrospect, I probably picked the 3 toughest days to try anything new–they were super busy and full of deadlines and extra tasks. I made green smoothies in my son’s preschool class (which were raw, and fun!, but I had less time to focus on my rawness). I didn’t even have time to juice, let alone make my scrumptious Pulp Crax. My breakfasts were fruit and a Larabar every day, and that felt like cheating, especially all 3 days!
I *did* try a raw soup recipe the first day: blended raw hemp milk, mushrooms, kale, raw cashews, hemp milk, smoke seasoning, and water. It was AMAZING on Day 1, but simply did not last in flavor for Day 2. I trashed the rest and had trail mix and salad that day. Followed by the aforementioned pita chips — my excuse is that I was at work and didn’t have enough other raw gear on hand.
I also tried (but haven’t yet perfected) raw kale chips in my oven, although I learned that my oven only goes as low at 170 degrees, which is technically too hot. Why did I garage sell that food dehydrator that I insisted upon as a high school graduation present!?
On the complete upside, I discovered my new favorite non-chocolate dessert: Medjool dates, pit removed, and stuffed with raw almond butter. OH. MY!!!!
So, next time, I will plan better, and take more advice from this Raw Pantry Essentials list. I didn’t realize I could’ve eaten Nori sheets. I have a 25-pack in my pantry and could’ve totally gone to town on those!!
Raw Diet: I am not done with you!
Anyone else try/ succeed/ learn?
Raw Food 3-Day Starts Tomorrow!
Image by: Manitoba Harvest
A totally raw diet has been on my to-do list for a super long time. While I eat lots and lots of raw foods every day — sometimes 75% of what I eat is raw — I’ve never gone completely 100%. Actually, after looking at this raw meal plan, I know why I’ve waited so long! But, you can do anything for 3 days, right? This time around, I’m not going to do anything fancy or extreme. No sprouting or specialized products beyond hemp hearts for making raw hemp milk, and no specialized equipment beyond my juicer, Vitamix blender, and oven to act as a dehydrator running at 115 degrees. I *am* going to try and replicate those pricey kale chips that are coated with “cheesy” raw cashews. Keep an eye out for that final product. So, here goes: Starting tomorrow! With me?
Breakfast: I plan to start the day with herbal tea and a hearty Green Smoothie containing fruits (banana, berries), veggies (greens), raw almond butter (newly found at Trader Joe’s), and raw hemp milk (see recipe below). I’ll continue my philosophy that a healthy high-calorie breakfast will bring you nothing but glory throughout the day. Many raw foodists eat an entire watermelon and 15 bananas for breakfast. That sounds dreadful. Other ideas that sound way better (to me at least…):
- Larabar + Banana for on-the-go days
- Raw Breakfast Muesli
- Chia Pudding: omit cocoa and use raw hemp milk
- Raw Chocolate Banana Smoothie
- Instead of coffee, try this Raw Chai
- Raw nuts and Green juice (greens, celery, lemon, green apple). See video here.
Snacks: I plan to chow on raw nuts, fruit, veggies, and my Pulp Crax dipped in raw hummus or spread with mashed avocado. Perhaps some dried fruit or a Larabar.
Lunch: Large fresh veggie salad topped with raw seeds, cold-pressed olive oil (raw foodists like this brand, although I’ll probably stick with the cold-pressed one in my pantry for this 3-day experiment), a teeny tiny bit of apple cider vinegar (can’t find any other easy-to-find vinegars that are raw), and sea salt.
Dinner: Raw soup, warmed up with the spin of the Vitamix. Check out all these raw soup recipes. The Carrot Ginger and Cream of Mushroom look especially tasty. Or, I may go for Skinny Dish’s very own Gazpacho a la Shepherd Street using apple cider vinegar instead of red wine vinegar, omitting the croutons, and doubling up on the avocado. Plus, some raw almonds on the side or crumbled on top.
Dessert: 1 or 2 dates stuffed with raw almond butter. Divine! I tried this recipe for Raw Cookie Dough SHAPE Magazine a while back using raw agave instead of honey & maple syrup. It totally rocked!
Night-time Snack: I have one of these every night, and I can’t imagine that that urge is going to go away with the powers of a raw diet, although I’m totally open to being surprised. I will *plan* on having some fruit and a mini “trail mix” of dried fruit and raw nuts along with my herbal tea.
Doesn’t sound too bad, right? Raw diets claim to give you more energy, better clarity, greater euphoria, better sleep, and even better sex.
For today, happy green foods and St. Patrick’s Day! I’ll see you tomorrow for more green and more raw 🙂
Raw Hemp Milk
1 cup raw hemp hearts
4 cups chilled water
Blend for 30-60 second until milky white and smooth. Store in fridge for up to 7 days. Makes 4 cups.
50 Sweet and Salty 100-Calorie Snacks
Need something but don’t want to totally blow it? Here are 50 sweet and salty snack ideas adapted from and added to a list on Greatist.com. These little minis just might take the edge off until the next meal.
SWEET ACTION
- Larabar or Pure Energy Organic bar of choice: Half the bar, or 1 Larabar mini-bar
- Grapes: 1 cup, fresh or frozen. Freezing makes you eat them more slowly
- Chocolate Banana: 1/2 frozen banana dipped in 1 square melted dark chocolate
- Latte Love: 8 ounces steamed vanilla almond milk with 1 shot espresso
- PB Apple: 1 small organic gala apple, sliced and dipped in 2 teaspoons peanut butter
- Shredded Frosted Mini Wheats: 20 of ’em
- Barbara’s Cinnamon Puffins cereal: 50 (a little less than 1 cup)
- Mini PB&F: One fig newton with 1 teaspoon peanut butter
- Spiced Orange: One orange— about the size of a tennis ball— sprinkled with cinnamon
- Grilled Pineapple: 2 ¼-inch thick pineapple rounds (about 1 cup), grilled (or sautéed) for two minutes or until golden
- Berries n’ Cream: 1 cup blueberries with 2 tablespoons non-dairy whipped topping
- Oats n’ Berries: ⅓ cup rolled oats (cooked with water), topped with cinnamon and ¼ cup fresh berries
- Dark Chocolate: One block, or three squares
- Chocolate Chia Pudding: 1/2 serving
- Nut-Stuffed Date: One Medjool Date filled with one teaspoon natural unsalted almond butter
- Cinnamon Applesauce: 1 cup unsweetened
- Grapefruit: 1 large, sprinkled with Truvia if needed
- Milk n’ Cookies: 6 animal crackers with ½ cup vanilla almond milk
- Shamrock Smoothie: 1 cup
- Jelly Beans: 25 of ‘em! Although reserved only for the worst sugar-craving moments
- Apple Chips: ¾ cup
- PB Graham: 1 large graham cracker smeared with 1 teaspoon peanut butter
- Just Mango: 1 oz dried mango snack bag from Just Tomatoes, etc!
- Clementines: THREE!
- Strawberries: 25 medium ones, sliced & sprinkled with Truvia for extra sweetness
SALTY DOG
- Trader Joe’s Mesquite Smoked Seasoned Almonds: 15
- Carrots n’ Hummus: About 10 baby carrots with 2 tablespoons hummus.
- Pistachios: A couple handfuls— about 25
- “Cheesy” Breaded Tomatoes: 3 roasted plum tomatoes sliced and topped with 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs and a sprinkle of nutritional yeast.
- Curried Sweet Potato: One medium sweet potato cooked for 6 minutes in the microwave, mashed with 1 teaspoon curry powder, & a sprinkle of salt and pepper
- “Cheesy” Popcorn: 2 cups air-popped popcorn with 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast— tastes like real cheese!
- Soy Edamame: 1/2 cup boiled Edamame with 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- Dijon Pretzels: 2 ½ pretzel rods with 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- Kale Chips: 1 cup raw kale— stems removed— baked with 1 teaspoon olive oil at 400° until crisp
- Sweet Potato Fries: 1 medium sweet potato sliced, sprinkled with 1 tsp olive oil, & baked at 400° for 10 minutes
- Cucumber Sandwich: ½ English muffin with 2 tablespoons olive hummus & three slices of cucumber
- Mixed Olives: About 8
- Toasted Pumpkin Seeds: 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds, sprayed with oil (just a spritz!) & baked at for 400° for 15 minutes or until brown. Sprinkle with kosher salt
- Balsamic Veggies: 3 cups raw peppers (any color!) dipped in 2 tablespoons low-fat balsamic vinaigrette
- Cucumber Salad: One large cucumber (sliced) with 2 tablespoons chopped red onion and 2 tablespoons apple-cider vinegar
- Crunchy Raw Kale Salad: 1 cup kale leaves chopped with 2 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette
- TJ’s Roasted Seaweed Snack: 1 1/2 packages!
- Chick Pea Salad: 1/3 cup chickpeas (garbanzo beans) with 1 tablespoon sliced scallions, a squeeze of lemon juice, and ¼ cup diced tomatoes
- Grilled Garlic Corn on the Cob: One small-sized ear brushed with 1 teaspoon sautéed minced garlic & 1 teaspoon olive oil, grilled until tender
- Chips n’ Salsa: 10 baked tortilla chips with ¼ cup salsa
- PB & Celery: 1 medium celery stalk with 1 tablespoon peanut butter
- Rice Cake & Almond Butter: 1 lightly salted rice cake with 2 teaspoons almond butter
- Old Bay Beans: 1/3 cup chick peas baked for 10 minutes at 350° with Old Bay Seasoning
- Goddess Veggies: Countless raw veggies dipped in 2 tablespoons Goddess Dressing
- Popchips: 1 snack-size bag of the plain potato variety
Cheers until the next feeding!
HeartBeet Cookies for Your Valentine
HeartBeet Cookies
How can you not love love LOVE Valentine’s Day? It’s a day when you can eat countless chocolates and make cookies without a second thought!
Here are some cookies I thought of on my way home from work TODAY (Valentine’s Day), so I swung by the store to get the ingredients on the way home. There’s still time left for you, too!
HeartBeet Cookies
Makes 22 heart-shaped cookies
4 small, cooked baby beets (such as the ones in the fridge section of Trader Joe’s)
2/3 cup melted Earth Balance
1 Tablespoon ground flax seeds (flaxseed meal)
1 package dry sugar cookie mix
flour for rolling
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Blend beets and melted Earth Balance until smooth. Add beet mixture to flaxseed meal and sugar cookie mix in a bowl. Stir to combine.
Form dough into a ball and roll out onto a floured surface. Using heart-shaped cookie cutters, cut, and bake on a non-stick cookie sheet for 10 minutes, until pinkish brown.
Each cookie has 145 calories and 23 grams of carbs (for my carb-counting, diabetic friends!)
Edible love!!
Superbowl Pant Survival
Of course YOU will survive the Superbowl, but what about your pants? Will they have to take a temporary hiatus in the back of the closet after tonight? To the snackinizer! Here are consumptionaries that will keep your lower half in it’s post-holiday / pre-Superbowl position:
1. Polenta Stuffed Mini Peppers (gluten-free)
2. Guacamame (gluten-free)
3. Fiery Cashew Dip (gluten-free)
4. Veggie Pupusas (gluten-free)
5. Any of these Meatless Meats, given high marks by meat lovers
6. No Fant Pants Nachos (gluten-free)
10. Creamy Spinach Dip (video)
Happy chowing!
Detox Day 7: More Superfoods
Can you believe it’s the last day FINALLY? What a super journey this has been! Now that you’ve graduated from inhaling so many of nature’s powerfoods (berries, quinoa, broccoli, kale, spinach, beans, lentils…), I thought this would be a good opportunity to introduce the next class of the not-so-common ones so you can consider taking your newly found health one step further. What you’re already eating/not eating is HUGE, and these extras might just help you be even MORE superpowered!
Blue Green Algae: Superstar immune-booster. Basically flavorless and comes in powders, flakes, or frozen. Can be tossed into smoothies without changing the flavor. The TJ’s Very Green Dietary Supplement contains spirulina, a popular blue green algae. But, lots of folks swear by E3 Live.
Chia Seeds: Loaded with antioxidants, essential fatty acids (more than salmon), protein, and fiber, these little guys help keep you energized and help reduce unhealthy cravings. They are easy to digest and don’t need to be ground like flax seeds. Add them to breakfast cereals, muffins, cookies, smoothies, pancakes, anything really! Find my recipes for Chia Blondies and a Chia Colada here.
Maca Root Powder: Helps to balance hormones and battle stress by strengthening the adrenal gland. Has proven helpful in treating fertility, poor libido, and menopause. Can be added to oatmeal, smoothies, or rice dishes.
Raw Cacao: Helps elevate mind and mood, and is skyhigh in antioxidants. It contains theobromine which promotes alertness without the side-effects of caffeine. Add it to smoothies, or use it in baking or for puddings. Find it at your local health food store or check it out online as seen here.
Congrats on all you’ve learned, changed, and become this week. Cheers to energizing food and living life to its fullest! I’d love to hear how you benefited from these 7 days–please share! XOXO
Delish & Healthy-ish With Jen Reilly, RD 