Posted by Willow Jarosh on Thu, Oct 22, 2009
Brussels sprouts have gotten a bad reputation–in movies and on TV shows, parents are always forcing or bribing their kids to eat the veggie. Many blame their dislike of the veggie on their sulfuric smell and taste, but this only happens when you overcook them. If you cook them right, you're in for a treat. In fact, I always gladly finish my Brussels sprouts—and even go back for seconds! Not just because they're so cute (Brussels sprouts resemble tiny cabbages, and are indeed in the cabbage family), but because they are delicious, loaded with nutrients, easy to prepare, and quite versatile.
My favorite way to make them is by roasting them with a little olive oil cooking spray and a crackle of fresh black pepper. To prepare them, simply rinse, remove any loose leaves, trim the thicker bottom portion, and they’re ready to go. (I prefer to slice my sprouts in half—they cook quicker and get a bit crispier on the outside.) Spray with cooking spray, sprinkle with pepper, and bake at 400 for 30 to 40 minutes, turning once. If I'm making a small batch, I stick them in the toaster oven; larger batches go in the regular oven.
Eat your roasted Brussels sprouts as is, add them to your salad, or create my favorite side dish by tossing them with balsamic vinegar and freshly grated Parmesan. One cup provides two servings of veggies and packs in fiber, more than 100 percent of your daily needs of vitamin C, and special phytonutrients that may help ward off certain types of cancer. You (and your kids) may want to think twice before bypassing Brussels sprouts!
For more tasty ways to prepare veggies, check out TheBestLife.com.
Posted by Sidra Forman on Thu, Oct 01, 2009
Yesterday I went to pick up my share at the CSA (Community Sustainable Agriculture, a way for people to buy local, seasonal produce directly from a farmer) that I belong to, and I got about 10 heads of garlic. Other people were complaining that it was too much—but I was excited! I use a lot of garlic in my cooking, most of it roasted because I find that roasted garlic enhances a variety of foods without overwhelming the natural flavor like raw garlic can. Roasted garlic, if cleaned properly, is also easier to digest than raw.
This time of year especially, I add raw garlic to seasonal vegetables, such as wilted fall greens, roasted tomatoes and cooked squashes. Raw garlic pureed with a little water and seasoned with salt and pepper also makes a great sauce for meat and poultry. Check out the recipe below for instructions on roasting garlic and then use it to spice up your favorite dishes.
Roasted Garlic
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS
Garlic broken into cloves with papery skin left on
Vegetable oil cooking spray
DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Place cloves on a sheet pan, coat with cooking spray and place in oven.
3. Cook garlic until soft to the touch.
4. Once garlic is cool enough to touch, remove the papery skin. Split cloves in half lengthwise and look for a small stem that may run down the middle of the clove. If the stem is there, remove and discard. Some young garlic has little to no stem; older garlic has a larger stem that is easy to remove.
For more healthy cooking tips, check out TheBestLife.com.
Posted by Beth Sumrell-Ehrensberger on Thu, Sep 24, 2009
Although fish is a great source of lean protein, and some swimmers, such as albacore tuna* and salmon, are brimming with heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, many people pass right by the fish section and fill their cart with beef, chicken, or turkey instead. Maybe you pass on fish because you don't like the flavor or texture—or maybe you like it, but only when it's fried.
If you need an introduction (or reintroduction) to mouth-watering, nutritious fish dishes, you're in luck. Making tasty fish at home is easier than you may think. The real secret to succulent fish lies in selecting the catch. If you're wary of fish, go for fresh instead of frozen; there's less guesswork about safe thawing and you'll be less likely to encounter that stinky seafood smell. Do some research and find a reputable fish dealer where there's great selection, knowledgeable staff, and high product turnover, which often means they offer fresher products. An experienced fishmonger can help you choose the fish that's just right for your taste. For example, if it's the fish flavor that bothers you, he can help you select a mild fish, like Chilean sea bass or tilapia. Or if you prefer a meaty texture, your fishmonger can recommend a firm fish, like tuna. Once you make your selection, give it a sniff—fresh fish should shouldn't smelly fishy at all, rather, it should have a slight marine scent.
Then once you get home, try these five ideas, which will make even the biggest fish phobe a fish fanatic:
Sauce it
Whether you decide to bake, grill or broil your fish, a tasty topper can add appeal. A fresh mango salsa adds great zip to a grilled grouper* fillet starring in a Mexican-themed meal. Or if you like cool and creamy, finish wild salmon with a dollop of fat-free sour cream mixed with a little fresh dill and a pinch of salt.
Sub it
If you like chicken and veggie kebabs, try substituting a firm fish like mahi mahi instead. Luckily, fish and poultry recipes often use the same seasonings, so it's especially easy to swap fish for chicken. And be sure to include your standby side dishes in the meal, too—it's less intimidating to try a new food when an old favorite is on the same plate.
Encrust it
If it's the texture of fish that you don't like (or you're missing fried fish), try adding a crisp and flavorful coating. A mild fish fillet, like catfish, gains delicious crunch when it's dipped in egg white, dredged in whole-wheat bread crumbs, herbs and a tablespoon of ground pine nuts, and baked. Also, lightly rubbing a thin fish fillet with a purchased seafood seasoning and then "frying" it in a non-stick pan spritzed with cooking spray creates delicious texture, too.
Mix it
If a whole fillet of fish seems like a big step, start small. Try chunks of seasoned, grilled fish, like rockfish, added to your favorite mix of salad greens. Fish can also make a great addition to a pasta salad. Channel a Mediterranean getaway with a Greek-themed pasta salad; it's as easy as tossing whole-wheat pasta, roasted red peppers, onion, cucumber and oregano with a little olive oil, feta and freshly grilled swordfish*.
Marinate it
Perhaps the easiest way to add flavor to fish is by using a simple marinade—either store-bought or homemade. Your options are limitless. Italian, lemon-pepper, and ginger teriyaki, just to name a few, are the perfect blends to quickly and easily jazz up your fish before sending it to the grill or broiler.
With so many fish in the sea, you can experiment until you find your best catch!
* Some fish, including grouper, swordfish and some tuna, are high in mercury. The FDA advises avoiding them if you are pregnant or trying to become pregnant. Instead, make a substitution for a lower mercury fish, such as mahi mahi, sole or flounder.
For more healthy-eating and meal ideas, check out TheBestLife.com.
Posted by Sidra Forman on Wed, Sep 23, 2009
Although it's officially fall, many of the summer crops I planted in my garden continue to produce. Right now, I'm getting more tomatoes than I got in the middle of the summer. (In most parts of the country local tomatoes are available until the first frost of the season.) Mid-summer, I usually eat tomatoes raw in a salad, on their own, chopped with onions and herbs as a condiment, and mixed in with whole grains and beans. But as the season changes, I find the idea of cooked tomatoes much more appealing.
There are a variety of ways to cook them, but these are a couple of my favorites. You can then serve them as a side dish to meat, fish, poultry and other veggies or on their own. If you have any herbs in your garden, try adding those as well. Basil, oregano, Italian parsley, sage and rosemary all taste delicious with both of these preparations.
Roasted: Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cut tomatoes in half and slice onions. Coat both with vegetable oil cooking spray and season with salt and pepper. Place tomatoes cut-side down on a baking sheet and cook for 20 minutes. (Green tomatoes are delicious prepared exactly the same way, especially if you add a few cloves of garlic.)
Stewed: Place quartered and cored tomatoes, chopped onion, diced garlic and chopped rosemary in a pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until tomatoes become soft, about 15 minutes.
Posted by Sidra Forman on Thu, Sep 03, 2009
Although I've always been a fan of okra (the green pod that's the main ingredient in gumbo), this is the first year I've ever grown it in my garden. Not only have I been rewarded with a plentiful crop of fresh okra, but the flower that blooms before you actually get the edible pod is beautiful. I planted my okra from seed in early June, and started getting okra about a week ago. It will now be an every-year garden crop for us.
As you would expect from a green vegetable, okra is full of vitamins and minerals, and it also happens to be a great source of fiber. Plus, it's very tasty (it has a mild, green flavor). In fact, last night I served it and a few people came to me after the meal to tell me how delicious it was—even though they typically don't eat it.
I think there were two things that differentiated this okra from what they may have tried before: One, it was incredibly fresh. (You don't have to grow your own to get fresh okra; this time of year, just-picked okra is available at farmers markets and grocery stores with good produce sections.) The other thing that was unique about this okra was that I roasted it. Okra that is boiled has a sticky consistency that some people don't like. Roasted okra is not at all sticky and has a fresher brighter taste.
To roast okra, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut it in half lengthwise, lightly coat it with vegetable oil cooking spray and season it with salt and pepper. Roast until slightly browned, about 15 minutes. I like to roast my okra with a finely chopped onion. Then, you can serve it on its own, added to stewed tomatoes or served chilled in a salad.
For more healthy-cooking tips, join TheBestLife.com.
Posted by Sidra Forman on Thu, Aug 13, 2009
There's one food I use in virtually all of my recipes: Greens. In fact, it has become almost a habit now. I can honestly say that I don't even think about it—I just automatically
include a form of greens in almost every dish, to the point where a
pizza isn't a meal without a salad. I simply feel that a main course is not complete unless there are greens built-in on some level. For example, a black bean burrito will have spinach incorporated, a curry may have cabbage and chicken will be paired with collard greens.
Greens are the perfect example of how dietary needs and simple pleasures are intertwined. Greens, which are rich in vitamins, antioxidants and fiber, add a unique flavor to almost any dish. If you can learn to incorporate greens into your cooking, you'll not only be a healthy chef, but a healthy eater, too.
For more healthy-cooking ideas, join TheBestLife.com.
Posted by Janis Jibrin on Fri, Aug 07, 2009
My hometown, Washington, D.C., is a true melting pot. The area attracts
more foreigners than most other American cities. We have immigrants
from El Salvador, Guatemala and other Central and South American
countries. We have a large Ethiopian community as well as people from
other parts of Africa. Then there's the diplomatic and World Bank
community—well-to-do foreigners who are either here for a few years or
who have settled in D.C. And, of course, there are all the tourists who
come to visit from every possible country.
Whenever I get to
chatting with any of these people, they all seem to express the same
thought: "Why is it that I've gained weight since I moved to this
country?" or "I never used to eat junk food until I came here." No
matter where the person is from—Lebanon, France, Brazil or Japan—this
is a common refrain. So, I wasn't surprised when I read about a study
that linked moving to the States with poorer dietary habits.
The study
analyzed blood levels of three sets of Americans: Those who were born
here, those who were born in Mexico and those born in another country.
The researchers compared levels of carotenoids, antioxidants
found in produce, which are an indication of how many fruits and
vegetables a person eats. The result: The longer a person lived in the
U.S., the lower their levels of carotenoids. This
isn't the first study to show that being an all-American eater is bad
for your health. Previous research suggests that moving to the U.S.
increases the risk of obesity, heart disease, cancer and other
diseases. So, stop eating like an American and take a cue from other
cultures by adopting these healthier habits:
• Eat fruit for dessert.
Of course, this is easy to do when you live where fruit is locally
grown, top-quality, seasonal, ripe and bursting with flavor. But
farmers markets are loaded with delicious and fresh options for most of
the year, so grab a basket and enjoy the season's bounty.
• Get cooking.
You don't have to spend hours in the kitchen. For a meal you can make
in minutes, sauté some greens (five minutes) or make a salad (10
minutes if you use pre-washed greens, wash and cut some tomatoes and
scallions, and toss them with olive oil and vinegar). Then, you can add
rotisserie chicken or some broiled fish (five to 10 minutes) to round
out the meal.
• Don't be a penny-pincher. Europeans
spend about twice as much on food as Americans—and they're thinner. You
might find that when you buy higher quality staples, you'll be more
satisfied with your meals, and you might spend less money—and
calories—on junk food. For instance, if you spring for the more
expensive but wonderfully flavorful fruit, you might not need ice cream
or cookies. A salad of interesting mixed greens with an avocado and a
first-rate dressing is a much more satisfying experience than iceberg
lettuce topped with a mediocre dressing. And dinner starring
wild-caught salmon, with its less fishy, more delicate flavor, wins
hands-down over the canned version.
• Don't miss meals.
Meal-skipping is a mostly American phenomenon. The trend of bypassing
breakfast or doing away with dinner will simply set you up for
overeating. Be sure to eat three real meals and a snack (as long as
you're actually hungry and the next meal is still an hour or more
away).
For more healthy-eating tips, check out TheBestLife.com.
Posted by Sidra Forman on Thu, Jul 23, 2009
After choosing the healthiest, freshest picks at your grocery store and taking the time to prepare and cook them, the last thing you want to do is slap on any old condiment. This summer, try your hand at making your own ketchup, and you'll be rewarded with a healthier, tastier version that contains significantly less salt and sodium.
Summer is the perfect time to whip up your own ketchup because tomatoes are abundant right now. (I was horrified recently when a child responded to my homemade ketchup by saying, 'I didn't know ketchup was made with tomatoes!') Plus, grilled foods (like turkey burgers and roasted veggies) are great topped with ketchup.
Try this easy recipe before your next big barbecue. You can also use this recipe to create a spicy barbecue sauce for chicken—simply add a little little hot sauce (about 1/2 tablespoon) and molasses (about 1/4 teaspoon).
Homemade Ketchup
Makes 2 1/2 cups
Prep time: 5 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes
INGREDIENTS
4 large tomatoes, chopped
3 tablespoons brown sugar
Dash of cinnamon
Small pinch of cloves
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
DIRECTIONS
1. Place all ingredients in a medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Cook until ketchup gets thick; this will vary depending on the amount of water in the tomatoes but should take from 15 to 30 minutes.
2. Place the mixture in a food processor and process until smooth, about 1 minute. Chill and use.
Nutritional Information
1 serving (2 tablespoons)
Calories: 22
Protein: 0.5 g
Carbohydrate: 5 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.8 g
Sugars: 2 g
Total Fat: 0 g
Saturated Fat: 0 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Calcium: 10 mg
Sodium: 4 mg
Posted by Willow Jarosh on Mon, Jul 20, 2009
I cooked arugula for the first time last week and it was surprisingly delicious. I love the crisp, peppery flavor that this green adds to salad, but I was skeptical that the delicate leaves could stand up to cooking. All I could envision were sad, wilted leaves plopped on my plate! Instead, I ended up with a meal that I will surely make again (and again).
I sautéed the arugula with tomatoes, onions, and garbanzo beans. Then I let this mixture simmer in a good dose of balsamic vinegar until it reduced and became tender and fragrant. I tossed the arugula mixture with whole-wheat pasta and used it as a side dish to some grilled salmon. It was delicious! The arugula kept its peppery flavor, which paired well with the tomatoes, and it became tender without getting mushy. This experience motivated me to not only try new foods, but to try new cooking methods with old stand-by foods!
For more creative cooking ideas, check out TheBestLife.com.
Posted by Bob Greene on Fri, Jun 19, 2009
Do you ever think that eating healthfully and working out would be easy
if it weren't for your spouse or kids? I hear different versions of the
same problem all the time: My husband is a meat-and-potatoes guy, so I
have to cook two separate meals, and I just don't have the time for it.
Or, my kids won't eat fruit or veggies; I have to keep cookies in the
house for them. Or, I have a young child and have no time to work out.
But there are ways to have a family
and be healthy! Check out these tips on how you can make your diet and exercise routine work with your busy life.
Level with yourself.
It's possible that if your husband or kids didn't give you a reason to
skip the gym or break from your healthy-eating plan, someone or
something else would—the holidays, your schedule, or your job, for
example. Why we undermine our own efforts can be a complex issue, so I
recommend that you try to understand yourself a little better. In other
words, know your motivations and how badly you really want to lose the
weight. Ask yourself a few questions, like are there other reasons
(such as stress or emotions) that cause you to go off your healthy
program? Do you have a need to please other people at your own expense?
Sometimes the answers to these and other self-analytic questions can
tell you if you really want to do what is necessary to permanently lose
the weight.
Be patient.
In the beginning, your family may have a hard time giving up some of
their "unhealthy" favorites, but slowly, you can expose them to
healthier versions of these foods, and they should start to come
around. Your taste buds have to be re-trained, in a sense, and that takes a
little time.
Trick them. Sneak healthy,
low-calorie foods into your family's favorite meals. For example, if
your children like omelets, try using egg whites, such as AllWhites, or cutting back on
the number of yolks you use, and toss in a bunch of veggies, like
tomatoes, red peppers, even broccoli. Or, try making a batch of sweet
potato fries instead of regular fries. That way you get what you
need and they get what they like.
Enlist their help.
Often, getting the kids or your spouse involved in food prep or cooking
can help them take more interest in your efforts to eat more
healthfully. Ask them to go shopping with you, to help cook, or even
let them pick that night's meal. The Best Life Diet Cookbook is loaded with family-friendly meals.
Get an early start.
Exercise first thing in the morning. This will remove many of the
excuses that can come up during the day, like your son's soccer
practice that ran late or your daughter missing the school bus.
Choose child-friendly workouts.
Select an exercise that you know you'll perform regularly. Obviously,
if you have young children, it should be one that allows you to watch
them while working out. For example, walk or jog with your child in a
stroller or baby jogger. Or try aerobic dancing or a fitness DVD. You can
do this at home, and still keep an eye on the little ones.
Schedule family workouts. If your
children are older, or it's just you and your spouse, it should be a
little easier to squeeze in workouts. In fact, you can combine exercise
with some family bonding by setting aside an hour or two each week for
a family activity. Any activity is fair game, from a family bike ride to a trip to
the farm to go apple-picking to a simple game of tag in the yard.
Don't make excuses.
Make healthy-eating and regular exercise non-negotiable. Not only will
this help you stay on track, but it also sets a good example for your
children. They'll learn that taking care of your health is a priority.