What I Ate Wednesday

October 29, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Some mornings I like to start out with hot water and lemon. I woke up with a bit of a scratchy throat so this felt nice on this cold morning.

Then I had a weird craving for something salty so I had some leftover potato soup. Not every breakfast has to be conventional, you know?

I took my smoothie with me to work. We had a training this morning and I would be lying if I said I didn’t get some strange looks when I pulled this out of my bag. Oh well, no shame in being healthy.

Honeycrisp apple snack – it’s been a great apple season!

Next snack – trail mix on my drive home. I needed to stop at the grocery store and I do not do well when shopping hungry. Can you say hanger and impulse buys??

For lunch I had a salad with roasted squash and wild rice. Random pairing but it worked. I also had a leftover piece of grilled pizza. Someone stole a rather large bite but I’ll let it slide…this time.

Dinner was roasted pork tenderloin, sweet potatoes, and more salad with random toppings (hard boiled eggs, bell pepper, and pecans).

Dessert was a piece of dark chocolate. Salted almond is a delicious combo.

Finally I finished the night with a cup of my new favorite tea. It is called Orange Cream and I picked it up at a local tea shop Tudor House Tea & Spice. It tastes just like a creamsicle!

Healthy Travel Snacks

October 23, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Packing snacks for a trip is non-negotiable with me. I always travel with food! You never know when you are going to be stuck on a plane or in a terminal for who knows how long. This weekend I’m going on a short trip and the flight is pretty short. If I was going on a longer trip or flight with multiple connections I would pack A LOT more.

Here’s what I’m taking for this trip.

This trail mix will come in handy on flights and also when in the hotel room. It has almonds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, raisins, coconut, and of course just a few dark chocolate bits.

My other go-to travel snacks are Justin’s almond butter individual packs, granola bars, apples, crackers (I’ll put these in a Tupperware or baggy), ginger chews to help with motion sickness, and tea bags. It is usually pretty easy to find hot water in a food court or you can ask the flight attendant. I might bring my own thermos if I have room. I also always bring a refillable water bottle to fill once I’m through security.

I will pack about half of these snacks in my suitcase so I’ll have some food for the trip home.

Happy Travels!

Pomegranate – How to Deseed and Eat

October 21, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Pomegranates are one of those fruits that I was initially intimidated by. I had never eaten them growing up and I had no idea how to deal with getting the seeds out. Well, I am so glad evenutally picked one up at the store a few years ago. The arils (aka seeds) aren’t too hard to remove and are so tasty. Right now, pomegranates are reasonably priced (I think they were 4/$5 at our grocery store this week) and really delicious!

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Every time I cut into one I am amazed by all the jewels that were hidden in this not so attractive fruit. I can only imagine how surprised someone was the first time they discovered pomegranates. They are to be believed to date back to ancient times and some believe that the forbidden fruit might have been a pomengranate instead of an apple.

Pomengranates are deemed a superfood and have many health benefits. Tons of antioxidants, Vitamin C, fiber, and potassium abound in these juicy morsels.

I find the best way to remove the arils is to take chunks and just pull off the seeds. They usually fall out pretty easily. I have also used the water trick. This contains the messiness a little bit better. Take chunks and pull off the arils under water. The arils will sink and the white fiber will float to the top.

Whichever method you use, it doesn’t take too long before you have a bowl full of juicy tart arils.

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Today I sprinkled them over yogurt along with walnuts and dark chocolate – I highly recommend this combination. It was delicious!

Other recipe ideas:

-In a salad such as this mixed green and pecan salad or this citrus chicken recipe. I also like to just eat them plain as a snack.

Butternut Squash Soup

October 15, 2014 by Leave a Comment

It’s squash season! I have a deep love for anything with butternut squash especially this soup. I got this recipe from a friend of a friend 4 or 5 years ago and I have no idea where they got it from but it’s definitely a keeper. It’s a little sweet, a little spicy and so comforting on a damp fall day. I would call this a thai inspired recipe due to the lemongrass and Sriracha. I pretty much follow the recipe except I typically halve the mirin just to cut down on the sweetness. (FYI Mirin is similar to rice wine but much sweeter. It can be found in the Asian section of most grocery stores.)

I took pictures of the cooking process but unfortunately forgot to use a memory card so I just have a few pictures of the finished product.

Oh, a couple more notes: I used one can of full-fat coconut milk and one can low-fat. I’ve made it with all low-fat and it still tastes great. I have never used creme fraiche – I just use sour cream, greek yogurt, or whatever creamy ingredient I have on hand.

Butternut Squash Soup

1 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp minced lemongrass {about 1/2 stalk}

1 tbsp minced ginger

1 tbsp minced garlic

2 tbsp minced onion {white}

1 tbsp Sriracha chile sauce {or another chile sauce that’s garlic-based}

1 cup mirin

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

2, 14 oz. cans coconut milk

1 large butternut squash: peeled, seeds removed, and cut into 2-inch pieces

2 tbsp soy sauce

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

Juice of 1 lime

Salt

Garnish:

2 tsp yellow curry powder

1/4 cup creme fraiche

1 lime, peeled, cut into segments

Toasted pumpkin seeds {also known as pepitas}

1. Make the soup: In a large pot, over medium heat, heat the oil and add the lemongrass, ginger, garlic and onion. Sweat the vegetables, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Add the Sriracha and stir to incorporate, then add the mirin, rice wine vinegar, coconut milk, butternut squash, soy sauce and cilantro. Stir, bring to a simmer and cook, covered, until the squash is tender, about 30-45 minutes.

2. In batches in a blender, puree the soup until smooth. {For greater consistency, pass through a fine mesh strainer}. Return the soup to the pot and whisk in the lime juice and salt to taste.

3. Garnish the soup: whisk the curry into the creme fraiche until incorporated. Pour the soup into bowls, garnish each with a spoonful of curried creme fraiche, lime segments and toasted pumpkin seeds.

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Enjoy!

Added Sugar Lowdown

September 24, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Sugar is the new smoking. Have you heard that yet? The American diet is overflowing with sugar. Back in the 80-90’s when the low-fat craze hit, food manufacturers compensated with the lack of fat in processed foods with adding more sugar. It is very hard to find processed food nowadays without added sugar. It takes time and very careful label reading to eat a low sugar diet.

Our body does not know the difference between added sugars and natural sugars such as those found in fruit and milk. But typically along with those natural sugars, you are also ingesting vitamins, mineral, fiber and other beneficial nutritients that are not always found with foods with added sugars. So basically I do not worry about natural sugars too much. The trick is to look at the ingredient list to find out if there are added sugars. Added sugars can be hiding under a multitude of names. Here are some of the most common names:

It is hard to find clear and concise guidelines about sugar intake. The USDA does not recognize sugar as an essential nutrient so there is not a recommended daily intake. The Dietary Guidelines state :

“For most people, no more than about 5 to 15 percent of calories from solid fats and added sugars can be reasonably accommodated in the USDA Food Patterns, which are designed to meet nutrient needs
within calorie limits. “

This basically means for the average diet (2000 calories) no more than 100-300 calories should come from added sugars and solid fats. This is higher than the WHO recommendations. Earlier this year the World Health Organization dropped it’s sugar recommendation from 10 % to 5 % of daily calorie intake. The Dietary Guidelines will be revised in 2015, it will be interesting to see how they address sugar.

So back to the basic question: how much sugar should we be eating? Well, in my opinion the less the better. The 5% recommendation comes out to about 6 tsp a day or 24 grams of added sugar. If you have ever added up the sugar in common ingested foods, it would be very hard to hit that guideline.

I took a look at our own pantry just to see where the sugars were hiding. Take a look at what I found.

Dried fruit is typically a sugar bomb. I think it is very hard or near impossible to find cranberries without added sugar. Even the ‘natural’ no sugar added varieties typically are sweetened with some sort of fruit juice concentrated.

These are the reduced sugar variety but they still contain 13g per 1/3 cup. That’s about 3 tsp or half the recommendation.

Tomato products seem to be the worse offenders. It is hard to find pizza sauce, ketchup, or pasta sauce without added sugar. This FAT FREE pizza sauce has 3g in just a 1/4 cup.

5 grams in a 1/2 cup! I probably use more than a 1/2 cup on one serving of pasta. So it’s like taking over a teaspoon of sugar and sprinkling it on my pasta. I think we need to start making our own pasta sauce more often!

Why is there sugar in bread crumbs??? Which also raises the question what are all those other ingredients?!? Note: will also be making homemade bread crumbs in the future.

This was a real bummer. This delicious ‘all natural’ almond butter has evaporated cane juice.

I have found that I feel much better when I am not eating a lot of added sugars. When I do indulge, I have felt lethargic, headachy, and definitely crave more sugar later in the day. It’s proven to be addicting and I believe it.

So bottom line: make sure to read the label to check if there are added sugars in your grocery favorites. Tip: ingredients are listed by weight so if sugar is one of the first ingredients that’s a red flag.

Check your pantry and let me know what hidden sugars you have found.

Have a great day!

One Apple = Two Snacks

September 23, 2014 by Leave a Comment

It’s the first day of autumn and that means it’s apple season! Not many fruits can beat apples in their versatility and convenience. An apple makes the perfect on the go snack but also can be used in countless sweet and savory recipes. Last weekend we went apple picking and got a variety of delicious local Michigan apples. I believe the picture below is of the Golden Supreme variety but I can’t be sure (the trees weren’t labeled).

Today I’m sharing two ways to use up just one apple. It’s a two for one bargain and I love bargains!

First up: Apple Grilled Cheese

Thinly sliced cheese and apple slices on whole grain bread takes a regular grilled cheese up a notch.

Tip: Cover the pan with a lid to speed up cheese melting!

There is something about the apple and cheese combo that I love. I used cheddar cheese but any type would work.

Next Up: Apple Nachos

This a great ‘healthy’ dessert. Melt a little peanut butter and chocolate together in the microwave. ( I usually stop about every 20 seconds to stop and the stir the mixture.) Top sliced apple with melted chocolate and chopped pecans. Oh my, I devoured this plate in about two minutes! It was so good and a little too easy!

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Happy Fall! Have a great day!

Homemade S’mores

September 22, 2014 by Leave a Comment

S’mores are probably one of my top 5 favorite foods. I love how they taste, what feelings/memories they evoke (bonfires, summer, beaches), and how easy they are to make! Three ingredients and a flame is all you need.

This past weekend a s’mores craving hit! This time I decided to experiment with some homemade ingredients. I had made graham crackers before and they were surprisingly easy. This was my first time making marshmallows. The s’more that resulted was pretty much the best thing I’ve eaten all year! Homemade foods for the win!

Making marshmallows is a little involved mainly because you have to watch the temperature. The basic steps are boil sugar and corn syrup and then whip until fluffy. This Kitchn post has great step by step pics and instructions. I halved the recipe and it made about 20 marshmallows. One thing I didn’t realize before starting the process was that marshmallows have to cure which usually takes a few hours. So our s’mores had more of a marshmallow cream element which was fine by me.

It took about 10 minutes for the mixture to turn fluffy and white.

I cut them up the next day after they had firmed up a bit. I only used a tiny portion of the powdered sugar/cornstarch mixture that was in the recipe.

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Now on to the graham crackers! I love this recipe from Kitchen Simplicity. It doesn’t call for graham flour and I always have all the ingredients on hand. The dough comes together really easily and rolling it out wasn’t bad at all. I always dread rolling things out because of the dough sticking to everything but using the parchment paper prevented any dough stickage.

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Derek had the idea to put the chocolate on the graham right as they were coming out of the oven since we weren’t going to be roasting the mallows. It melted the chocolate perfectly! That man is a genius. I’m going to be dreaming about this s’more for years to come.

Have a great day!

Pinterest in Real Life

September 17, 2014 by Leave a Comment

I love Pinterest. I have been a fan since the way beginning when you had to make a request to join or did you have to get a referral? I don’t remember exactly but it wasn’t easy as it is now. Pinterest is looking a lot different these days but I still enjoy it. I know how easy it is to just pin things right and left with good intentions but how often do I really try that new recipe or make the ‘best’ homemade laundry detergent. Well, I’ve decided to take some of my pins and try them in real life! (Hopefully they turn out better than these Pinterest fails!) Here’s what happened:

1. Homemade Ranch Dressing

Homemade ranch dressing so much better than bottled!

(Pinned 2 years ago)

Original Source

Verdict: My version does not look like the picture but it tasted really good. I followed the recipe but substituted sour cream with greek yogurt. I would use this recipe again!

2.

moto jacket + stripes + leopard flats

Original Source (link goes to the website, not sure where actual picture is on that website)

Verdict: I had fun recreating this outfit. Luckily I had all the items already in my closet so it was pretty easy to pull together. I need to work on my modeling skills but I like how the outfit looked.

This was a fun experience! I look forward to pinning and recreating more in the future!

Have a great day!

End of Summer Tabbouleh

September 10, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Summer may be winding down but it doesn’t mean we can’t squeeze in a few more summery recipes. Our basil is kaput but the parsley in our garden is still going strong. It was just calling out to be made into a tabbouleh salad. I believe authentic tabbouleh has a few more ingredients but I worked with what I had on hand. I perused a couple of recipes and then got to work. Bulgur wheat, mint, tomatoes, garlic and lemon were all invited to play along with parsley at this party. I only had curly leaf parsley but it seems like flat leaf or Italian parsley is typically used. Curly worked just fine.

This was my first time cooking bulgur. Bulgur is popular grain used in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine. Bulgur is a whole wheat grain that has been cooked, dried and then ground into pieces. Like most whole grains it is very high in fiber and minerals such as magnesium and manganese. It also clocks in with 6 grams of protein per cup of cooked bulgur. Interesting fact: bulgur in Turkish translates to ‘bruised grain’ which makes perfect sense!

I found a quick cooking version that was done in about 10 minutes. The texture reminds me of a cross between quinoa and cous cous. It a little bit chewy with a very mild flavor.

This salad comes together pretty easily. Tomatoes and cucumbers are chopped. Herbs, olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic go in the mini food processor. Bulgur gets cooked. Put it all together and you have yourself a tasty salad!

I think this would pair well with chicken or fish or could be added to a pita sandwich. Or just eaten out of the bowl straight from the fridge which I think happened with the majority of this salad at our house.

End of Summer Tabbouleh

2 Roma tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cucumber, peeled and chopped

1 cup parsley, chopped

1/4 cup mint, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

1 lemon, juice squeezed

3 Tablespoons of olive oil

Salt to taste

1 cup bulgur wheat, cooked

Mix herbs, oil, lemon juice, and garlic in a mini food processor. (Or chop by hand if you desire.) Mix herb mixture, tomatoes, cucumber, and bulgur. Enjoy!

Homemade Oprah Chai Tea Latte

September 8, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Oprah really got it right with her Teavana Oprah Chai Tea line that is sold at Starbucks. I am not a coffee drinker but occasionally I find myself at Starbucks and I had to give the Oprah Chai Tea Latte a try. It is a cinnamony, spicy, delicious chai tea blend that could be addictive if I let it. However, I cannot stand forking out the cash for a drink that I gulp down in less than five minutes so I decided to try my hand at making it at home. And I think I was pretty successful! Plus there is no processed flavored syrup in sight.

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I think the difference between regular chai and the Oprah chai tea is the intense cinnamon flavor. I thought about just adding a bunch of regular cinnamon but then figured a cinnamon tea would probably taste much better. I have a somewhat ridiculous stash of tea which luckily included the Harney & Sons Hot Cinnamon Sunset. A tea described as a black tea with cinnamon, orange, and sweet cloves. But I think any cinnamon tea would work. I mixed the cinnamon tea with regular chai tea and the result is shockingly similar to the Oprah chai. I still want to do a blind taste test to see just how close they are.

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I have been making a large jar of this mixture and then drinking it iced with a splash of coconut milk creamer or homemade almond milk. I prefer it iced right now since it is still pretty warm and sunny outside but this winter I’m sure I’ll be drinking it warm with maybe some whipped cream on top.

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Homemade Oprah Chai Tea Latte

A equal number of chai tea and cinnamon tea bags (I used two each for a large mason jar)

2 ounces of creamer or milk of your choice

Brew tea as usual. I try to only let the tea bags steep for about 5 minutes or I find the tea can taste a little bitter. If drinking warm, add creamer. If drinking iced, chill tea in refrigerator and mix in creamer in before drinking. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Enjoy!

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Happy Healthy RD

Living a happy healthy life

What I Ate Wednesday

Healthy Travel Snacks

Pomegranate – How to Deseed and Eat

Butternut Squash Soup

Added Sugar Lowdown

One Apple = Two Snacks

First up: Apple Grilled Cheese

Next Up: Apple Nachos

Homemade S’mores

Pinterest in Real Life

1. Homemade Ranch Dressing

2.

moto jacket + stripes + leopard flats

End of Summer Tabbouleh

Homemade Oprah Chai Tea Latte