My 4-year old son actually asked for cinnamon to put in his yogurt today.   It’s the small things in life that make me happy.  The fact that I know cinnamon is one of the highest ranking spices when it comes to antioxidants – you know, those compounds in food that keep your cells from damage, gives me a boost of extra confidence.  My motherly work is not for naught as I systematically dash herbs and spices wherever I can into my family’s food.  A little dash goes a long way (with vitually zero extra calories, too) – a half to one teaspoon is all you need to get the antioxidant benefits. Unbenownst to my kids and husband, I wave my spice spoon over oatmeal, soup, meatloaf, salad dressing, applesauce, pancakes, chocolate chip cookies, roasted veggies, hummus, and macaroni and cheese. 

Per a question from one of my cooking class attendees, “What are the best spices to use in your cooking?”  Here are my top three:

1 – Cinnamon – it’s versatile for savory and sweet foods, like roasted squash, sweet potatoes and string beans or oatmeal, yogurt, coffee and even pb & j sandwiches – great on toast!

2 -  Curry powder – this is a cannot-live-without spice in my house.  It’s delish in brown rice, couscous, egg and chicken salad, corn, mashed potatoes, and roasted eggplant.

3 -  Oregano - yes, it’s green, but my toddlers don’t mind it sprinkled into tomato sauce, homemade pizza, chili, soups and cheesy scrambled eggs. 

So, especially this month, revolutionize your cooking and your family’s taste buds with spices.  And pretty soon your kids will be asking for them, too.

Drop me a line with your spice faves.  I’d love to know….

-VSR

As March rings in National Nutrition Month, it’s another opportunity to make changes to your plate, habits and lifestyle.  Since eating plays such an integral role in overall health, what better time than NOW to foster eating changes in your life?!   Whether you have a plan for the month or not, here are a three simple nutrition changes that deserve consideration:

1) Monitor your salt intake.  The average American eats well above the daily recommended intake of 2,300 mg per day.  Note: 2,300 mg = 1 tsp of salt.  Check labels for sodium and shoot for nothing over 480 – 500 mg of sodium per serving.  When you add salt to home-cooked meals or at restaurants, taste the food first – it may not need salt, after all.

2) Drink fewer calories.    Liquid calories account for a big part of the average Americans caloric intake.  Not only does it contribute to overweight and obesity, but displaces other nutritional calories.  Here are some ways to make lower-calorie beverage choices:  choose skim/low-fat soy lattes versus full-fat frappaccinos and mochas with whipped cream.  Drink mineral water with a twist of lemon, lime or orange instead of regular or diet sodas.   Incorporate tea into your daily regimen – as it’s a great low-calorie, nutritious way to begin and end to the day (as long as you don’t add a lot of cream and sugar!)     

3) Eat less meat and more plants.  Not only will you be helping to save our planet by eating more plants, but people that eat more vegetables typically get more fiber, potassium and anti-oxidants in their diets when they forgo animal products.  Designate meatless days each week, experiment with roasting different vegetables (asparagus, leeks, Brussels sprouts, string beans and squash), and capture the benefits of local foods by supporting farmers markets. 

So, enjoy National Nutrition Month in a health-rewarding way!    Remember, spring is almost here …:-

Please let me know what changes you plan to make this month….I’d love to hear.

-VSR

Ok, last night I got excited about roasting butternut squash with minced shallots and garlic topped with a drizzle of olive oil.  My kids, on the other hand, were not so thrilled.  It goes without saying that my gourmet flights of fancy go unnoticed, especially with my two toddlers around.  Their food repetiore has wittled significantly since they became free-thinking human beings.  They don’t like this or will not try that…eating has become a constant negotiation.  Although, I refuse to beg them to eat their brocolli, peas or asparagus, I have thought about dessert bribery, but I know that’s a no-no!  So, what if I am a mom with a mission: to get my kids to eat (and enjoy) healthful food?!   Is that so bad?  Well, not if the outcome is me offering string cheese at the end of an uneaten, rejected meal.   

I will continue to try….that’s all I can do.  What’s your secret strategy to the never-ending family food wars?  I’d love to know…

I must admit that I love the symbolism behind Fat Tuesday (or “Shrove Tuesday”).  It’s Mardi Gras, too  – a day to eat, celebrate and enjoy fatty foods before the big Lenten fast begins the following day.  Isn’t it just like the human condition to overdo it with rich, decadent, calorie-laden foods before a forced lifestyle change (aka dietary change) is thrust upon us?!  Most people think of Fat Tuesday as a chance to celebrate with a couple of humungous Hurricane drinks and plate of decadently filled crepes.

On Fat Tuesday when I was growing up, my family indulged in homemade thin pancakes for dinner filled with jam, rich nutella, a nut/sugar mixture, or prune preserves called Lekvar.   Of course, they were topped with a dusting of confectioner’s suger and sometimes maple syrup - so it wasn’t only Fat Tuesday, but Sweet Tuesday, also! 

My inclination now that I have my own family is to do that same.   Yet I still err on the side of substituting some of the not-so-healthy ingredients for some-better-for-you ones.  Instead of  using all white flour, I cut part of it with whole wheat flour, toss in a tablespoon of ground flax seed, fill them with fresh berries and top with a drizzle of agave nectar.  Ok, so my toddlers won’t know the difference, but how about my husband?  I could offer savory crepes filled with part-skim ricotta, sauteed spinach and mushrooms with a pinch of nutmeg.  That works for me! Does that mean I still need to have bacon on the side or greasy hash browns?  Well, there’s always soy bacon…

In my pursuit of calorie control and health-enhancing foods, I can’t forget that one indulgence does not spell disaster, but signifies life…

What are you making on Fat Tuesday — I’d love to know.

I just finished taping a segment for my local TV station on health eats for Super Bowl Sunday. Just because Game Day is one of the biggest eating days of the year (behind Thanksgiving), doesn’t mean we can’t indulge, yet incorporate some nutrient-dense foods into our party table.   Get your family and friends eating fruits, vegetables and healthful nuts and dark chocolate sweet treats along with some bites of what I call the “other” stuff (fried, cheesy and batter-dipped foods).  Deprivation is not the key on a festive day, but making the right choices is…

So choose:

-  Avocado-based dips with baked chips 

-  Colorful and crunchy veggie and fruit kabobs 

-  Healthful nuts like pistachios – in the shell they are a great portion-controlled treat (there’s 49 in a serving and the shells are a great reminder of when you’ve had enough!)

- Handmade chocolate-dipped dried plums, apricots and apples.  Great way to indulge a sweet tooth in a healthy way!

So enjoy Super Bowl Sunday and remember, of the 1,200 calories that most people consume in snacks alone, according to data from the Calorie Control Council, make the majority of your calories count with nutrient-rich veggies, fruits, whole grains and good fats.  And you’ll be on the winning team, for sure!

The brain is powerful thing, especially when it comes to eating.  Faced with food choices all day long, the power to forego needless calorie foods takes practice.  In fact, research published last year in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found from brain scans of successful weight loss maintainers (kept 30 + pounds off for at least three years) that their brains are more “in control” when it comes to inhibiting implusive eating behaviors, whereas obese participants were more likely to act (eat) when food is put in front of them. 

What an exciting revelation to think that healthy, low-calorie eating doesn’t happen overnight.  It takes practice to master overeating.  Like Malcolm Blackwell talks about in his book, Outliers, mastery of anything takes at least 10,000 hours of practice.  With 365  24-hour days in a year, that’s  8,760 hours in a year (however, the time is cut in half when you consider that we are only awake half of those hours).  So that’s more than a year of steady practice.  So it’s no wonder that these brief  on-again, off-again diets don’t work.  The consistent practice of balancing calories in with calories out and eating whole, unprocessed foods for snacks and meals is never truly mastered, if you don’t put in the practice (and train your brain) to eat well. 

Practice eating well today – it’s a brain-altering step in the right direction…

My dearest friend in the world is having a special birthday next week — yes, she’ll be 4-0.  What that means for me  is that I am not far behind with a mere 3 months of 30-somethingness left!  Not that 40 is a big deal (my kids can’t even fathom what year I am), but it is a magical age in that it ushers in midlife.  It makes me think about eating, of course.  Midlife brings metabolic changes  as hormones begin to communicate in a new way, metabolism slows down and fat can begin to accumulate in places that it never had before.   In other words, we have to eat less to maintain weight and fit into our favorite jeans.  

In order to avoid what I call the “Midlife Metabolic Crisis”, in which you turn around and your waist is up 2 inches, clothes are too tight and elastic waistbands become the norm,  there are some key things to do before it hits:  

1) Eat what you love, but LESS of it.  By not denying yourself, but just taking less you won’t notice the difference (that much!) and you won’t be eating as many calories.  Split portions in half and save the rest for later or the next day.   

2) Grow UP your eating.  In Hal Edward Runkel’s book, ScreamFree Parenting, he talks about ‘growing yourself up’ to parent more effectively and essentially more calmly.   I equate his concept with what we need to do once we hit 40, grow up when it comes to what you choose to eat.  Try to refine your tastes to include less processed food, less animal-based protein and fat and MORE (what I call Grown Up fare) plants including fruits, vegetables, beans, legumes, whole grains and vegetable oils.  It’s time to grow up…

3) Savor what you eat.  Take the time to eat mindfully by eating more slowly and really tasting your food.  After 40 years most of us have mastered the act of eating, but the art of eating requires a lot of work and practice.  By paying attention to how you feel when you are eating without judgement, you can become objective to your eating. Pretty soon, you’ll learn to choose food for quality and understand what your body really needs. 

4) Keep the metabolism up with movement.  Activity helps in so many ways; there is research to show that cells benefit, especially in midlife.  The mitochondria or powerhouse of our cells are better powered when we use our muscles regularly.  It makes me want to bike, hike, swim and plain old walk more - maybe that’s one of my ”40 Club” resolutions.

The bottom line is we all get older and that’s not the big deal to me.  What’s on my mind is the growing up that I need to do at this point in my life….:-

In what ways, can you grow up your eating?

In thinking about my 2010 resolutions, a big one is creating more meatless opportunities – it’s not only healthier for us, but the planet, too.  After seeing the movie, Food Inc. over the holidays I am surprised I have not swarn off meat altogether!  Why not start off the first weekday of the week devoid of meat – including turkey, chicken, fish, pork, beef, quail, ostrich and bison (and any other meat product available).    

Of course, I could live on beans, legumes and nuts alone, but my family is a different story.  Last night’s chickpea salad, which I savored and devoured, was barely touched by my toddler son and daughter.  My husband gets a few more fiber points than them, but not many.  Do I have to hide the beans in hummus, dips and soups?  Maybe. 

For a simple Chick Pea Salad, just toss a rinsed and drained can of chick peas (aka garbanzo beans) with a tablespoon of olive oil and one of balsamic vinegar.  Dice up a small juicy red plum tomato and a handful of fresh cilantro and add it to the dressed chick pea mixture.   Add a dash of salt and pepper to your taste.  

Yum….meatless Mondays here we come!  Want to join us?

It’s that time again, to welcome in another year in our lives — ofcourse we want to be happy, healthy and productive. But what does that mean?  Is it a smaller waistline, a healthier heart, an arsenal of easy, healthy and satisfiying recipes at your fingertips or the opportunity to make a difference in yours and others lives?  Happiness comes in many shapes and sizes; unwrapped and wrapped; it’s a compilation of many things that come together in your life.  For me and my life’s work, I want to help people figure out how to make their health goals a reality.  Here is some food for thought as we enter 2010:

- Become your biggest health advocate – think about what you really want and GO for it!

- Write out your goals and enforce them with your signature on the page (somewhere….anywhere!) It becomes more contractual (aka harder to break) if you put it on paper and sign it.

- Shoot for small changes to what, how and when you are eating.  Since we have to eat to live (or live to eat as some of us do!)  It’s important to choose a food-related goal toward health because I know there’s always another serving of veggies that we can get in our day (yes, that includes me!)

As I write this at 12:06 am on the second day into another year – I think about the possibilities for change, growth and adventure in the coming 12 months.  It’s exciting!  As a wise person once told me, “Listen to your life…”  We can all learn a lot about where we are (and want) to go, if we pay attention to where we’ve been.

Happy & Healthy 2010!  I look forward to listening with you…

What is it about gourmet grocery stores that makes my foodie hairs stand up on the back of my neck?  With the excitement of new culinary discoveries while approaching the doorway to exotic, tasty and nutritious eats, my heart begins to pitter patter and my gastic juices flow in anticipation.  There is something about neat, clean and well-organized rows of vegetable oils from avocado to sunflower to extra-virgin olive; bottles of vinegar with delicate hues ranging from deep black to red t0 orangey-brown to clear; buckets of large, small and stuffed olives from different regions of the world wait to be scooped out and taken home for a fabulous heart healthy accompaniment to your next meal. 

Food is a universal passion for patrons of gourmet markets.  As I was admiring the wall of marvelously stinky cheeses and vats of olives at this fabulous urban gourmet grocer, I chatted it up with a food-loving, locavore couple with a similar passion for fresh, local and delicious tasting food for their family and community.  It is amazing how an appetite for good food and the search for new tastes and flavors brings people together - even if for a brief moment.  We are all part of this gastronomic human condition that appreciates the smell of freshly baked artisan breads, the sight of colorful fruit-filled tarts and flavor-infused chocolates and the possibility of creating culinary combinations that both nourish and sustain our well-being.  In our world of abundance sometimes tasting isn’t even necessary – imagination is the only thing required, especially when you are immersed in a fabulous food environment. 

Does where you buy your food make a difference to you? I’d love to know….