Monday, October 30, 2006
Healthful Holiday Eating
1. Be realistic. The holiday season may be a good time to reconsider your weight loss targets. Maintaining your weight, rather than losing weight, may be a more reasonable goal during this high temptation time. Don't deprive yourself of favorite holiday foods, but do look for ways to eat smart and in moderation. After the holidays, you can switch back to weight loss mode.
2. Don't wait to eat. That is, don't save up for the big meal. Skipping breakfast or lunch to save room - and calories- for a festive dinner is unwise. If you start out hungry, chances are you will eat more than if you had a small meal or snack beforehand, like a high fiber cereal with low fat milk, low fat yogurt with wheat germ, fresh fruit or half a sandwich on whole grain bread.
3. Be discriminating. Eat small servings of the foods you really love and pass on foods that do not tempt your taste buds.
4. Police your plate. If your eyes are often bigger than your stomach, using a smaller plate will help to cut down on calories. At a party, size up the plates and pick up the smallest you can find.
5. Sneak in calorie savings. If you are the cook, choose calorie saving preparation methods and ingredients that will hardly be noticed by your guests. Some suggested culinary sleighs of hand:
Stuff the turkey for show. But also bake bread stuffing separately, which won't soak up turkey fat during roasting. Serve the out of bird stuffing topped with some of the "real stuff".
Use fat free evaporated milk instead of whole milk or cream when you make gravy and prepare pumpkin pie.
Mash potatoes with fat free milk and reduced fat margarine instead of whole milk and butter. Or try yogurt if you are feeling adventurous.
Chill soup or gravy overnight, then scoop off the hardened fat.
Use low fat dressings.
6. Spritz your drinks. Stretch your alcohol calories by mixing seltzer, juice or diet soda with your drinks. Have a wine spritzer made with half wine and half club soda.
7. Talk it up. Make family and friends, not food, the focus of the holidays. Spend your time socializing - away from the table.
8. Help the host - and yourself. Bring a lower calorie, homemade dish to your host's table, but don't feel obligated to announce that it is low calorie.
9. Give your guests options. If you are the host, offer healthful choices for guests. Consider crudites with yogurt dip, shrimp cocktail, whole grain crackers with reduced fat cheese, baked salmon, grilled veggies or fresh fruit cup.
10. Burn it off. If tempting foods are too hard to resist, rescue your waistline by burning off those extra calories. Double your walking time in the morning or make an extra trip to the gym for a few weeks.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Meal Makeover
What is new in the healthier frozen entree world? In most years - make that decades - not much.
Since frozen dinners first appeared in the 1950s we have seen the arrival of Stouffer's Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, and a few other slimmer, better for you meals. Then a few years ago, Lean Cuisine Spa Cuisine made a splash by replacing all of its refined grains with 100% whole grain pasta or brown rice.
Now Kashi is stirring up the frozen food aisle with its line of 6 new entrees. Three of them keep the sodium more or less in check - the Sweet & Sour Chicken (380mg), Black Bean Mango (430mg) and Chicken Pasta Pomodoro (470mg).
Each starts with either Kashi's signature 7 Whole Grains & Sesame Pilaf or a multi grain pasta, accompanied by a medley of veggies and either chicken or black beans.
All those intact whole grains - like oats, rye, buckwheat, and triticale - bump the fiber up to 6 or 7 grams while smoothing out the bumps in your blood sugar.
And you will hear nothing but applause from the tastebumps on your tongue, not to mention your bathroom scale (calories range from 250 to 350).
Whole grains - they are not just for breakfast any more.
Thursday, October 19, 2006
"Organic" Labels
The "organic" label is everywhere you look these days - plastered on cereal boxes, across produce sections and even on the shqamppos and soaps. But what is the difference between "certified organic" and "made with organic ingredients"? The US Dept of Agriculture (USDA) gives specific quidelines to help consumers decode organic labeling.
Organic meats, poultry, eggs and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.
Organic produce and grains are produced without the use of conventional pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, bioengineering or radiation. For food to be certified organic, a govenment approved agent must inspect the farm and all growing practices to ensure that the producer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards. Companies that process or handle organic foods must also be certified.
*Products labeled "100% Organic" must contain only organic ingredients. They may display the USDA seal.
*Products labeled "Organic" must contain at least 95% organic ingredients. The other 5% must be nonagricultural substances on an approved list, or non organically produced products that are not available commercially in organic form. These products also may display the USDA seal.
*Products labeled "Made with organic ingredients" are processed food products (cereals, pastas, breads, canned goods, etc.) that must contain at least 70% organic ingredients. These products may not use the USDA seal.
*Processed products that contain less than 70% organic ingredients can list those ingredients as organic but cannot be labeled "organic".
Remember, the "organic" label does not guarantee a product that is "healthy". Keep a discriminating eye on calorie counts and fat content!!!
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Good Cup Bad Cup
Like their fast food cousins, Starbucks and other coffee sellers put nutrition numbers on their Web sites, but not their menu boards. If Starbucks did, here is what you would see.
Latte:
A grande (16oz) nonfat Caffe Latte ( 2 shots of espresso with steamed milk) is a bargain when it comes to calories (160), sat fat (0) and calcium (450 mg). But you will add:
* 70 calories for flavored syrups
*100 calories for whole milk instead of nonfat
*50 calories for soy milk
If you are not careful, your bargain can balloon to a whole milk Vanilla Latte with 320 calories and 7 grams of sat fat. Get any grande nonfat latte iced and you will save about 50 calories.
Cappuccino:
the mix of steamed and foamed whole milk that is added to the espresso supplies a grande with just 150 calories, but who needs 5 grams of sat fat in their coffee? Stick with nonfat milk and you have got a 100 calorie drink with around 250 mg of calcium - 20 % of a day's worth.
Mocha:
A grande White Chocolate Mocha (espresso, steamed whole milk, white chocolate syrup and whipped cream) may look like a beverage, it is 510 calories and 17 grams of sat fat are more like a half pound of meat loaf.
Instead, order a nonfat, no whip White Chocolate Mocha (340 calories and 4 grams of sat fat). Better yet, swap the white chocolate syrup for mocha syrup and you have got a nonfat, no whip Caffe Mocha, with no sat fat and just 220 calories. A tall (12oz) brings the calories to 170.
Macchiato:
There is so little milk in this espresso plus foamed milk drink that a doppio (2oz) delivers just 20 calories and no sat fat even with whole milk. But a grande (16oz) Caramel Macchiato - espresso with steamed whole milk, vanilla, and caramel - is a different animal, at 310 calories and 7 grams of sat fat. The nonfat milk version knocks off 90 calories and nearly all the sat fat.
Frappuccino:
The original Coffee Frappuccino Blended Coffee - which comes from a mix (mostly sugar, coffee, and milk) blended with ice and sans whipped cream - has only 260 calories and 2 grams of sat fat in a grande. Not toooo shabby.
However, all the other flavors (Mocha, Caramel, Banana Coconut, Caffe Vanilla and Java Chip) which deliver 420 to 550 calories and about 10 grams of sat fat. The Java Chip packs 15 grams - as much as 2 pork chops.
Frappuccino Blended Cremes - which come from a coffee free mix - are in the same ballpark. Order a grande Double Chocolate Chip and you have just shelled out close to $4 for 580 calories and 2/3 of a day's sat fat (13 grams).
Frappuccino Lights slash the calories to 150 to 230 by replacing half the sugar with the safe artificial sweetener Splenda ( and dropping the whipped cream). Frappuccino Lights do not come in decaf.
Tea & Chai:
The trouble with Chai (spiced tea) is the company it keeps. The whole milk and honey in a grande (16oz) Chai Tea Latte supply 290 calories and 5 grams of sat fat. In contrast, milk free iced teas like Black, Green or Passion Tea have just 80 calories and no sat fat.
Hot Chocolate:
A grande Hot Chocolate with whole milk and whipped cream has the calories (450) and sat fat (14 grams) of 3 hot dogs. It is NOT a beverage. It is lunch!
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
This is for Shelby
Saffron
Saffron, the world's most expensive spice, is the hand harvested stigma of a variety of crocus. Buy red saffron threads that are devoid of yellow and orange. Saffron can also be purchased powdered, but because ground saffron is often mixed with other ingredients, it should be bought from a reputable source. While Spanish saffron is often considered superior, most cooks prefer the flavor of domestic saffron produced in Pennsylvania.
To release flavor, crush saffron threads with your fingers before adding them to a dish. Use sparingly: too much will impart a metallic taste.
Russ is Right
Because of its high moisture level and lack of preservatives, maple syrup is a perishable food product that is susceptible to the growth of yeasts, molds, and bacteria. Refrigeration not only helps maple syrup retain its flavor but prevents microorganisms from growing as well. Unopened, maple syrup will last several years stored in a cool, dark place. Once opened, it will keep 6 months to a year in the refrigerator.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Poultry Pointers
Americans are eating more chicken than ever - 86 pounds per person in 2005. Convenience chicken products in particular have grown by leaps and bounds ever since Norma Young of Arkansas won the National Chicken Council grand prize for her Dippers Nuggets Chicken recipe in 1971. Who knew her nuggets would eventually become such a pervasive part of the American grab and go lifestyle?
Sliced, diced or carved, patties, burgers, nuggets or strips, the super market selection of cooked convenience chicken products has outpaced that of many other foods. But can you get heat and eat chicken convenience and good nutrition?
In its unadulterated state, chicken is a low fat, high protein food. Three oz of a cooked, skinless, boneless breast provides about 27 grams of protein for just 142 calories, three grams of fat, less than one gram of sat fat and 64 mg of sodium. A nutrition bargain. But chicken is not always so healthful. The price you pay for convenience typically translates into more fat and sodium than you bargained for. Still some choices are decidedly better than others. Here is a few pointers:
Note portion sizes when comparing the nutrition of various products; they very widely.
Look for products that are skinless and contain 100% breast meat or predominantly breast meat (first ingredient listed) to get the least amount of fat.
Buy a product with significant protein - at least 12 grams per serving.
Avoid small breaded products. the smaller the piece, the greater the surface area, which generally means more breading and thus more fat and calories, ie popcorn chicken and mini drumsticks.
Beware a high sodium content in breaded products.
Use carved chicken breast for a low calorie protein boost in salads.
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Catching Oil Drips
To prevent unsightly oil stains on pantry shelves wrap a clean sweatband around the middle of your bottle of oil to catch drips. When the band gets too dirty throw in the washing machine.
Or
A band of folded paper towels can be fastened around the bottle with a rubber band and simply throw away when dirty.
Speedy Dough Rising
To speed up dough rising when making bread use a microwavable neck wrap, the kind normally used to relieve stress. When wrapped around a bowl of dough, it provides just enough extra heat to gently nudge the dough into rising in about half the time.
New Crisco
The JM Smucker Company, maker of Crisco, has released its new product, Zero Grams Trans Fat Crisco. The new product is made from nonhydrogenated sunflower and soybean oils and from cottonseed oil that has been through a processs of complete hydrogenation. When an oil is completely, or fullly, hydrogenated, it becomes a saturated fat - considered better for you than trans fat but not as healthy as unsaturated fat.
I have tried a couple of recipes with the new Crisco and I can not tell any difference in taste or texture. I would not hesitate to try the new Crisco in any recipe that calls for vegetable shortening.
Friday, October 06, 2006
Whole Grain Hunting
You have had a long day. You would like to have whole grains with your dinner, but you don't have the energy to do much more than boil water. That is when seasoned pasta and rice mixes start to look good.
They have come a long way since Rice A Roni first hit the shelves in 1958. These days, it is easier to find mixes that meet criteria for whole grain (100%) and sat or trans fat. Mixes have little or no trans. But dodging the salt is nearly impossible. Most brands have 700 to 900 mg of sodium per cup. Here are some I like:
You do not get much portobello mushroom in Success Portobello Mushroom Whole Grain Brown Rice Mix. It is mostly brown and wild rice with "portobello seasoning". But you do get a meaty, fried rice flavor and only 520 mg of sodium per cup. The package recommends stirring in chopped roasted red peppers or diced cooked chicken. Add more veggies and those 520 mg of sodium will go further.
You can also look for Uncle Ben's saltier and somewhat less interesting Muchroom Recipe Whole Grain & Wild Rice, which clocks in at 590 mg per cup.
Near East Whole Grain Blends bring sodium levels into the less outrageous mid 500s. Roasted Pecan & Garlic, which is 53% whole grain (brown rice). The rest is pearled (that means refined) red and durum wheat. Garlic lovers might also like the Roasted Garlic, which is 57% whole grain (brown rice and bulgur).
Annie's Organic Whole Wheat Shells & Cheddar is 100% whole grain, and while the cheese sauce is a tad thinner than some mac & cheeses, it is plenty flavorful. Kids may also go for Annie's DW Whole Wheat Pasta & Alfredo. DW is a popular character in the "Arthur" cartoon series.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Grandmother
Becoming a grandmother is wonderful. One moment you are just a mother. The next you are all-wise and prehistoric.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Quicker Cutting Grandma
For all my Grandma friends: During breakfast, when grandchildren are waiting impatiently for their French toast, pancakes, or waffles - use a pizza cutter to cut them neatly and QUICKLY into bit size pieces.
Truth Isn't
"Truth is, 29 cuts of beef are now considered lean by USDA standards, and 95% lean ground beef is one of them," says the ad from America's Beef Producers.
Whoa.
Sounds like you would have to hunt for hours to find a cut of beef that is not lean. In fact:
Most ground beef is not lean. One popular type is what the industry loves to call "85% lean". It is really 15% fat . . . and it is not lean.
Lean beef is not healthy. The USDA allows a "lean" claim on meat that has up to 4.5 grams of sat fat - about a quarter of a day's worth - in a 3 oz serving. 3 ozs may be reasonable for a burger ( it is a Quarter Pounder after cooking) but a 3 oz steak???
The industry measures fat content after scalpel-wielding lab technicians dissect the meat and remove the fat from the outside and inside. That is how it can say that "lean beef has about one more gram of sat fat than a skinless chicken breast.
But a composite of all beef cuts - weighted to reflect how much people buy of each cut and carefully but more realistically trimmed so that there is no fat around the outside - has about 6 grams of sat fat in a 3 oz serving. A 3 oz skinless chicken breast has about 1 gram.
The whole truth? Or the trugh full of holes?
Choose wisely . . . live well.
Laboratory Made
"The Vitamin C antioxidant power of 8 oranges in 1 Nature Made tablet," says the ad. "If you are like most people, it is just not easy to get all the vitamin C antioxidants you want from food alone," it warns.
The vitamin C antioxidants you want? That is different than the vitamin C you NEED. If you eat 5 - 10 servings of fruits and veggies a day, you should easily get the recommended levels of vit. C
If you dont' eat fruits and veggies, taking a 500 mg vit. C pill will not replace them. An orange, has not just vit C, but a least 5% of a day's calcium, potassium, vit. B-1, and vit. A and 10% of a day's folate, not to mention 3 grams of fiber and all sorts of phytochemicals that Nature Made has not figured out how to squeeze into a pill.
Eat . . . enjoy . . . real food.
With Real Vegetable Specks
"Introducing Roasted Vegetable Ritz, with real vegetables roasted in for a delicious twist on a classic taste," says the ad.
The vegetables may be real ( as opposed to what?) but Nabisco adds only around one gram - about 1/30 of an oz - of them to each 5 cracker (1/2oz) serving. It should be closer to 10 crackers, but Ritz skimps on the serving size. The crackers have more white flour, soybean oil, sugar, and partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil than the " dehydrated vegetable blend" that Nabisco makes such a fuss over.
Nabsico Wheat Thins Toasted Veggie Chips are no better. They have got more cornstarch than vegetables.
What is next? Roasted Vegetable Chips Ahoy? Oreos? Nabisco could probably supply enough veggies for both lines with a vegetable patch in the CEO's parking spot.
Choose wisely . . . live well.
