Transformer leftovers…

Remember those roasted vegetables I made on Sunday? Ok… so many of you have asked me about how to cook for one or two and how to make meals go further. Here’s a quick example…

So I just got home and have two hours to work before another appointment this afternoon and in a pinch I have my lunch ready in 15 minutes (while I’m writing this!)

Boil water and add one cup of whole wheat/ high fiber pasta* (I like Bionature brand) and warm up the roasted veggies left over from the other night with a little sauteed spinach and pesto sauce (no pesto? try tossing with a little olive oil and parmesan cheese or marinara sauce).

Instant lunch using “leftovers”… and for those of you who appreciate variety (like me!) it’s leftovers in a whole new dish. Let’s call them transformer leftovers.

*For those of you sensitive to gluten – try a rice or quinoa based pasta.

Mood-boosting and energy enhancing late summer dinner (or lunch)

Real quick here’s a simple dinner idea:

Buy a pile of assorted veggies from your local farmer’s market or grocery store.   My dish included: zucchini, red and green bell peppers, and baby Italian eggplant.  I chopped them into bite-sized pieces and arranged them on a baking sheet with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of dried herbs (thyme, rosemary, basil, and tarragon).  I roasted them in the oven at 400 degrees for about 10-15 mins.  (Other veggies that would roast well – onions, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, artichoke hearts… experiment with various veggies and  combinations!)

Serve with whatever you have on hand for lean/ clean protein like wild salmon, chicken, shrimp or a turkey burger.  I purchased a pre-made wild coho salmon burger (from Whole Foods) and heated it for 15 minutes .

Eat this/ Not that – Yogurt focus

Yogurt is a perfect example of a food that could be a healthy source of protein and good-for-your-gut probiotics, however, if it’s loaded with sugar the benefits are outweighed!  Some yogurt brands have up to 29+ grams of sugar per serving.  Also, “fat-free” does not equal healthy.  Much of the time if you see fat-free on the label additional sugar has been added to make up for the missing flavor the fat would provide.  Many yogurts are also sweetened with artificial sweeteners which are not health promoting!

Here are my top picks…

TRY:

Fage Greek yogurt – it is very high in protein (17g per serving) and low in sugar.  To flavor it up add your own fresh chopped fruit and/or slivered almonds, walnuts or sunflower seeds.  Greek yogurt is thicker than regular yogurt because they strain it differently by capturing the casein milk protein and removing the whey.  It is also lower in lactose than regular yogurt which may make it more easily digestible.

Other Greek yogurt brands (Oikos, Chobani, Trader Joe’s brand)

If you prefer the texture of regular yogurt try buying the plain varieties and adding your own fresh fruit instead of the fruit on the bottom or artifically flavored stuff.   You won’t get the high protein that Greek yogurt provides but you will avoid the excess sugar.  My favorite brands are Stonyfield and Brown Cow.

Road Trip Bites

I’ve been out of town for a conference this week and thought I’d share what I packed in my cooler to keep myself energized, hydrated and healthy on the road.  Driving through Virginia and North Carolina there aren’t too many options for healthy bites (sorry Waffle House) so I made sure to plan ahead and pack some road food.

Lots of hydrating fruit:

Pineapple spears, watermelon chunks, grapes and apples

A few portable veggies:

Baby carrots and sugar snap peas

Easy protein:

Honey Greek yogurt (Trader Joe’s brand), almond butter, hummus and raw food bars ( my favorite brands are Greens + Energy bars, Pure, and Lara bars)

And for some crunch I bought  trail mix (my forever staple) and Trader Joe’s  Savory Thin Mini Edamame crackers – great for the hummus… and for those of you keeping the gluten low in your diet they’re made out of rice – so gluten free!

… and some Ezekial raisin bread for some delicious almond butter and apple sandwiches.

Full of Flavor AND Fat

Anyone out there think that healthy means low-calorie, low-fat, low-fun?  That definition of health makes me want to run far, far away.  How about Healthy = Full on Flavor, Zest, and yes… Full on satiating Fat!  

How’s this for an energizing lunch option?  You could also make this into a light dinner as well!  I made a tasty arugula salad along with chicken/avocado roll-ups for lunch in about 10 minutes?  

What you’ll need:

Fresh bunch of arugula (or if you can’t find the boxed baby kind will suffice)

Grape tomatoes

Pine nuts*

Lemon

Olive oil 

Sea Salt 

Avocado

Free range/ organic chicken deli slices (found in your natural foods store deli, I like Applegate farms sold at Whole Foods)

Sprouts (any kind will do- I used alfalfa and dill sprouts this time around)

Wash your arugula really well – best way I’ve found is to use a salad spinner.  (If you don’t have one it is a great and inexpensive accessory to have in your kitchen).  Slice grape tomatoes lengthwise and toss over salad along with a handful of pinenuts.*  Whisk 2 wedges of lemon, a pinch of sea salt along with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and pour over salad.  Next, slice avocado and wrap it up with the sliced deli chicken and a bunch of sprouts.  I was so happy with this lunch.  To add a little crunch I ate my lunch along with some sesame rice crackers.  You could also add 2 slices of whole wheat sourdough bread or sprouted grain bread (try Ezekial brand) and create a sandwich instead of a roll-up.  Whatever you prefer!

You’ll notice just by glancing through and certainly by eating, that the fat (Heart healthy olive oil and avocado along with pinenuts) in this recipe adds the yummy dimension of flavor that I’m always looking for in my meals.  *A quick note on pinenuts – they are typically used in Mediterranean cooking and have the surprising feature of containing more protein than any other nut!  They are also high in Vitamin A and the B-Complex vitamins (these are the vitamins that get depleted from our hectic, busy, stressful lifestyles… oh, sugar also depletes your B vitamins.)

Here’s a picture to entice you!

 

Arugula salad with Avocado Chicken Roll-ups

Bored with Oatmeal?

July in Washington DC has been uncharacteristically without intense humidity for this time of year.  Normally, during the hot and humid summer months I opt for breakfasts with lots of cooler/ lighter foods: fresh fruit, yogurt (sprinkled with almonds, walnuts or sunflower seeds), or protein rich smoothies (recipe ideas to come) and while I have been eating lots of these foods over the last couple of months I thought this morning I would warm up some leftover quinoa and enjoy a warmer, high energy, yet light breakfast.  

Quinoa is a whole grain with a myriad of health benefits including: a high protein content (great for athletes and vegetarian types), high in B vitamins as well as iron, zinc, potassium, calcium and vitamin E… and it’s a gluten free grain that is easy to digest and gives you lots of energy!  I think quinoa is the perfect summer grain to eat for breakfast  (instead of oatmeal).  It’s lighter than oatmeal and it leaves you feeling nourished and satisfied without that stick- to-your-insides heavier feeling you get after eating oatmeal (which may be a better feeling to have in the colder months!)

Here’s my summer morning quinoa breakfast recipe:

Approximately 3/4 cup of cooked quinoa*

4-6 oz. of almond milk

Handful of raisins 

2-3  T. of chopped walnuts

1/2 apple (chopped)

Totally optional ingredient:  2 tsp. kuzu (a natural sauce thickener)

Combine the quinoa and almond milk  in a small sauce pan over medium to low heat.  Stir for about a minute until mixture begins to warm and add kuzu.  Continue stirring until kuzu completely dissolves (about one minute) and add raisins stirring for about another minute or two.  Remove from heat and pour into bowl and top with apples and walnuts.  I find that the raisins add enough sweetness that additional sweetener isn’t necessary.  If you like a little extra sweetness you can sprinkle with cinnamon or drizzle a little agave nectar.  All ingredient quantities are estimated and enough for 1 serving.  Feel free to adjust recipe to your needs and you can totally omit the kuzu ingredient.  I thought it would be fun to throw some in there and include in my recipe to you.  Kuzu is actually a Japanese food that comes from the kuzu root – it acts like cornstarch yet it has health giving properties like soothing the stomach and strengthening the digestive system.  You can find it in the ethnic section of your natural food store.

*Here are some basic cooking instructions for quinoa as it may be new to many of you.  It is very, very easy to prepare – easier than rice.  The most important step in preparing quinoa is the rinsing part as it has a naturally occurring dust that will give the quinoa a bitter taste if not rinsed away.  I like to soak my quinoa for about an hour although this is not necessary.  If you’re pressed for time rinsing is just fine.  After rinsing your quinoa add it to a pot of boiling water.  Add 1 cup of quinoa to 2 cups boiling water.  I typically buy quinoa in bulk from Whole Foods or the health food store but you can also find it boxed in the rice/ grain section of your supermarket.

Sickeningly Sweet – 145 lbs of sugar per year?

Yes.  The average American is eating 145 lbs. of sugar in a year (give or take).  This estimate is mind-boggling.  Where is the sugar showing up in your diet? Cookies, crackers, candy, soda, alcohol, white bread, ketchup, sauces, salad dressings, sweetened teas, juices, slurpees, ice cream, yogurt, cereals, bagels, the office candy bowl?

I plan to spend more time talking about sugar and its effects on your health in future posts but let’s start with the solution… finding ways to crowd this white stuff out of your diet.  Here are a few ideas:

1.  Weave more naturally sweet whole foods into your diet like the following sweet vegetables: red bell peppers, corn, carrots, and sweet potatoes.   Eating these types of vegetables helps to reduce sweet cravings.

2.  Eat more of your favorite fruits like cherries, plums, strawberries, blueberries, pears, pineapples, grapefruits, oranges, and watermelon – add a handful of almonds or walnuts for some healthy fat and protein and you have a perfect summer snack.

3.  Try a natural sweetener.  My personal favorite is agave nectar which comes from the agave plant – it is much sweeter than regular table sugar so a little goes a long way.  I love pouring a little nectar in my tea or drizzling it over plain greek yogurt with sliced fruit and nuts.

Purple Corn

What do ceviche, quinoa, sweet potato and purple corn iced tea all have in common? They’re all part of traditional Peruvian cuisine which I had the pleasure of experiencing tonight. A friend of mine is home visiting family in Virginia and his Peruvian mother prepared a delicious spread of healthy home cooked food for a house full of family and friends. Have you ever tried Peruvian food? What are some of your favorite ethnic foods? I for one am looking forward to experimenting with preparing some tangy ceviche. I’ll let you know when I find a good recipe!

Top 2 favorite June foods

My week is no longer complete without a Sunday morning trip to the Dupont Circle farmer’s market for a couple of my favorite foods… fresh cucumbers and strawberries.  The first June cucumbers I bought were small enough that no knife was needed – I just rinsed them off and bit right into their delicious crispiness.  Cucumbers are part of the melon family of vegetables and are cooling, refreshing AND potent kidney cleansers.     

Sliced juicy ripe strawberries have tasted amazing with a couple of spoonfuls of greek yogurt and a drizzle of agave nectar.  Buy a bunch from your local market and use within 2 days or freeze to make smoothies in the coming weeks.  

I’m off to the market…