Spring into Nutrition Action

March is a time for many of us when those New Year’s resolutions have become frustrations. Fortunately, the weather is beginning to warm, and spring fever can do wonders for physical activity efforts. It’s also National Nutrition Month, and the theme this year is: “Eat Right, Your Way, Every Day.” I love this theme, because I truly believe wellness comes when we tailor food and nutrition to our personal and family needs, and keep food in perspective with with the rest of our lives.

So in the spirit of the season and finding YOUR way to eat right for YOU, here are my tips to help you Spring into Nutrition Action:

1. Plan your meals, then your grocery list, and stick to it. Even with the best-laid plans, there will be diversions, many for good reasons. So you will need to shift your mindset, make the plan a priority, and allow only the most important diversions. You know what they are.
2. Eat with your family or friends as often as possible. Eating together helps everyone to eat more slowly and connect more fully with each other.
3. Engage family and friends in your health goals and take an interest in theirs. A support system increases your likelihood of success.
4. Focus on the good stuff. Join community supported agriculture (CSA) or visit a farmers market to get out of your food rut and celebrate the tastes of the season. Aim for 5 to 9 servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Choose healthy fats from vegetables oils, nuts, seeds, and avocado. Choose whole grains.
5. Respond to your hunger cues– both when they come and when they go! This means, eat when you are hungry, stop when you are full.

Happy National Nutrition Month and Happy Spring Fever!

Who’s Teaching My Kids to Make Healthy Choices?

My 10-year old looks over my shoulder as I type the title of this blog and then answers the question, “You. Duh!”

I attended a meeting at the National Academies of Science last week on the parent’s role in preventing childhood obesity. As always, I thought as much about my family and myself as a parent as I thought about how could help other parents to be empowered and effective in guiding their children’s health habits.

Before I had kids, I was clear that it is the parent’s responsibility to teach their children how to make healthy choices, about food, sleep, activity, brushing teeth, etc. Then I had kids. And I realized a few things.

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First, I have never been the sole caregiver for my children. My husband and I are both very involved, which means he has an opinion about what and how to teach our children– and we don’t always agree! My in-laws live close-by and are very involved in caring for my kids. The girls were in day care as babies because I worked full time, then preschool, and now grade school. There are their friends and their friends’ parents, other neighbors, the church pancake breakfasts and spaghetti dinners, sports coaches, and our extended family. I have sometimes had to champion healthier choices for them in these environments, but more often count my blessings for all of the wonderful people who help us raise them.

(The “n” is a scientific reference. In any research study you read or hear about, it’s important to know how many people were in a study (the “n”) to understand how those results apply to people who weren’t in the study (the rest of us). It’s unwise to look at what works for one person and apply it to everyone. On the other hand, I believe it is unwise to look at what works for the vast majority and assume it is the only thing that will work for each individual. What works for most people is an excellent starting point. Then, I as a dietitian and each of us for ourselves and our families have to do the work of understanding what works for the individual.)

As I was saying, each person is unique, so I figure out as I go how to apply science to our daily lives in a meaningful way, what to tweak, and what to ignore. And I rely as much on the community with which I am raising my children as I do the science.

The great thing about last week’s  meeting was that there was no finger-pointing. Instead, there were many present who work daily to help find solutions to the real challenges parents face in today’s society, through science, education, and access to food… and food “know-how.” There was a strong voice for the need to look out for families who live in neighborhoods where they are hard pressed to find frozen vegetables without freezer burn, much less fresh fruits and veggies. Although some may think the key to raising healthy kids is held only by the parents or only by the government or food producers or doctors, most seem to be embracing the need for all of us to do our part, work together, and hold each other accountable.

So when you plan your meals for the coming week, balance what you know about nutrition with what works for your family. Think of what we can do together to make it easier for our kids to live a healthy life, not only for their physical health, but also their mental and social health. We can do it together!

Soup du Jour: 3 Bean Soup

One of the things about blogging is you put all your intentions out there for the world to see, and when you don’t follow through it is painfully obvious. Clearly, I’m not keeping up with even a soup a week. I’m going to keep calling this series “Soup du Jour,” though, because it can be your soup of whatever day you choose!

I wanted a pot of chili for my daughter’s birthday party.  She rarely will even try soup, much less eat a whole bowl of it. But we had family coming over and I always plan something for everyone. In searching for recipes, I came across a couple with chocolate in them. I had just made for my daughter Hagrid’s famous birthday cake that he presented to Harry Potter on his 11th birthday, thanks to Diana Bucholz’s The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook. It called for a wee bit of coffee to enhance the chocolate flavors. Likewise, the chili blogs were touting chocolate for enhancing the everything flavors. And since I love chocolate, I became determined to try it. I was already making curry chicken salad (recipe from my dear friend, Melissa), so wanted a meatless chili.

I went with Vegetarian Chili with Chocolate by Between 3 Sisters. It was a hit! I have to say that it was less like chili and more like soup. I did cook it for 2 hours, so I don’t think cooking longer would have mattered. I definitely drained and rinsed the beans as the recipe called for (I’ve been known to mess that one up), and replaced one of the 14.5 ounce cans of diced tomatoes with a single fresh tomato. So I wonder if less broth would work better. My husband was the only lukewarm response- “It would be great with a little meat,” he joked. Actually, he wasn’t joking.

Nonetheless, it was a delicious soup. The chocolate (I used Ghiradelli bittersweet chocolate chips) gave the broth a rich mouthfeel. The lightness of a vegetarian chili is also appealing to me when I think about sick-day soups, which is where this soup journey began.

I served it to 6 adults and had enough left over to freeze a meal for two for a later date and give the same amount to a friend. Which got me to thinking about the Stone Soup idea and how much I now look forward to sharing my soup discoveries with my friends and family.

Next up: Maybe chili with meat for Super Bowl Sunday? Maybe gumbo for Mardi gras. Either way, laissez bon temps rouler!

Soup “du Jour”- Butternut Goodness

I am so excited to embark on a soup “du jour” journey. After suffering with the flu and having no soup on hand, nor the energy to cook, I am determined to never again be without a soup in my freezer. Realistically, I won’t really make a new soup every day, so “du jour” is a stretch– bear with me.

Soup is so good on so many levels. Soups are easy to eat when you aren’t feeling well. They deliver fluids when you are tired of water. And when you throw in the vegetables, soups are packed with healing nutrients.

But don’t wait until you are sick to brew a pot! The right soups can help to keep you healthy. It’s easy to pack soups full of vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and lean meat. Most of us need more vegetables and legumes, in particular, so finding new and tasty ways to ramp up those foods in your life is a good thing! The nutrients and bioactives they bring to your bowl will strengthen your resistance to infection, and reduce your risk of chronic diseases.

A good deal of research in recent years has shown that starting a meal with a small serving of soup reduces the amount of food people eat for the meal, overall. Why? It’s simple. Incorporating fluids (and fiber) into foods makes them more satiating- that means your hunger is satisfied sooner.

I started my soup du jour journey on Saturday with Butternut Squash Bisque. This recipe comes from Cooking Healthy Across America, published by the Food and Culinary Professionals practice group of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. These recipes are family favorites and regional classics, submitted by registered dietitians from around the country.

I noticed the recipe called for ginger, which I happened to have around. I never have fresh ginger, but had bought it to make a Christmas dessert and got so busy I never made it. So i was excited to use it in this unique way. It really gives the soup a kick.

It’s super easy to make. The vegetables don’t have to be finely chopped, because they’ll be puréed anyway. And there aren’t many ingredients overall. I’m slow with a knife, yet I still prepared this recipe in just over half an hour.

This is a low-calorie yet satisfying soup. Puréed veggies, along with healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats from canola oil, and just a little skim milk mean each spoonful is more substantive, more tasty.

It’s a little light on calories and protein to make a complete meal, so include it as a meal starter. Although the bisque alone was just right for my husband, the final flu victim in our house, he did note that under healthier circumstances, he wouldn’t mind a crumbled bacon garnish. Just a tiny garnish!

In closing, I want to thank all of my Facebook friends who suggested more great recipes for this journey. Which one will I try next??? Which one will YOU try next?

Soup Au Pistou

Italian Wedding Soup

Vegetable Stew for Kwanzaa

Pasta e Fagioli

Healing Cabbage Soup

Healing Foods: Lessons from the Flu

Healing foods are on my mind- I’ve been down with the flu the last few days. I was really bummed out by this illness, because I had just taken a week off from work, was enjoying ample sleep (except Christmas Eve),  was eating well, and was feeling relatively less stressed out (it’s the holidays, it’s all relative). I returned home from a short road trip, ready to embrace the new year.

I even blogged that it was time to embrace my vulnerability so that I would be free to “dare greatly.” This is not what I had in mind.

This illness really did force me to slow down, though, and focus on the basics of caring for myself. As the years pass, I am increasingly aware that the basics are where it’s at. While there was nothing I could eat that would cure the flu, I was reminded of the basic healing properties of food, which helped me to feel better in the moment. And these same things are on “the menu” for wellness and the prevention of heart disease and cancer.

So here are a few tips from my recent personal crash course:

• Flood the germs! When I’m sick I always get this image of drinking so much water that the germs just can’t hang on. It’s not exactly accurate, but a sick body does need more water, for example, to regulate your body temperature (whether you drink it cold or hot). When a fever climbs, drinking plain water is a must, but it may not be enough. Tea, soups, and fruits will help close the gap.
• Simmer down with a cup of tea. Tea will not only give you flavor variety as you down all those fluids, but will also help fight inflammation. Black, green, or white, drink up!
• Behold, a hot cup of soup, a beautiful thing. In addition to the fluids, the tender grains and vegetables in soups are both soothing and strengthening. Collards, Swiss chard, kale, carrots, turnips, potatoes, peas, legumes, fennel, and tomato are just a few ideas to get you going. Onion and garlic have powerful anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties-  a quick sauté in vegetable oil before adding broth will amp up the flavor (even though you may not be able to taste) and the healing power of your soup. The same can be said of many herbs and spices, such as rosemary, thyme, cilantro, cayenne pepper, and paprika. A helpful tip is to make a pot and freeze it BEFORE you get sick!
• Sip on an immune-boosting fruit smoothie. Fruits are so important for not only vitamin C, but also immune boosting phytonutrients. Seek out blueberries, raspberries, tart cherries, mango, oranges, and pineapple, whether fresh, frozen, or canned. If the acidity of fruit irritates your mouth, throw them into a blender with yogurt to make a smoothie.
• Slow down and listen to your body. With an upset stomach, it’s OK and actually important to cut back on fiber, spices, or acidic fruits if they bother you. Sometimes sleep is more important than eating, but keep a water bottle by your bed and keep sipping. When you are already sick, it’s too late to make a pot of soup from scratch- open a can and heat! In other words, don’t let the perfect get in the way of the good (I need to find out who originally said this, because I’ve heard it a lot lately and it really hits home for me).

And of course, sleep, sleep, sleep. I haven’t had a cup of coffee in 5 days- who needs it after 10 hours of sleep a night!

Embracing vulnerability in 2013- I’m all in!

I would say my greatest challenge in life is fear. Why, then, would I resolve to embrace vulnerability? That’s right. 2013 is my year to embrace my own and others’ vulnerability.

My first act of vulnerability is to share the beginning of this journey with you. I took a week off for Christmas and New Year’s, something I haven’t done since launching my consulting business in January 2007. I’ve taken months off from this blog, and I have missed you! But I needed the time for introspection.

Today, I stumbled upon this blog post at goop.com. The idea that it is important to be vulnerable in order to live life to its fullest struck me. I’ve heard it before, but Dr. Brown pulls it together profoundly. To be vulnerable, she says, is to dare greatly, to be “all in.” I like it!

My fear of failure defies all logic. I know all of the positive self-talk, I know what I should do, that I should believe in myself. I am even blessed in my life today with a husband, children, extended family, and friends who praise and encourage me day after day. I have professional colleagues, clients, and former bosses and staff who have praised my work, my dedication, and my ethics. As a Catholic Christian woman, I have even participated in the rite of Reconciliation, in which I have confessed my sins, and asked for and received God’s forgiveness. Yet, this fervent grip on fear- fear that I am not good enough, not deserving- I have continued to hold. Until now.

I think the first step is to forgive myself for being fearful. We all feel fear at times. Enough said.

Second, I recognize that I am vulnerable, imperfect, unable to do it all, and unable to do some things at all.

Third, whether I think I can or not, I will dare to be great at whatever I desire, whatever I imagine is for me to do. I may be wrong. I may fail the first or thousandth time. I may come to know that  it is not for me to do. It is through daring to be great that I will risk failure, as well as success.

Finally, I said that I would embrace not only my own but others’ vulnerability. By doing so,  I will remember to be gentle and caring towards others, never placing my success above the good of others.

Whew! It’s a little scary, thinking of all that the coming years may hold. I expect to be challenged beyond measure. In fact, I am feeling somewhat vulnerable… What do you know? Success!

Nourishing Color

Deep green, softly scalloped leaves.  Rich red, yellow, orange, and purple veins. Swiss chard is among the most beautiful of the leafy green vegetables. The rainbow Swiss chard, well, you can’t help but grab a bunch, bring it home, and then… then what?

You may struggle with HOW to eat more leafy green vegetables, even if you earnestly want to work these nutreint powerhouses into your daily menu. Swiss chard, after all, is a good source of riboflavin, vitamin B6, and calcium. Although it provides only a fraction of the calcium you get from a glass of milk, it brings you a hefty dose of magnesium and vitamin K, also critical for building healthy bones. Swiss chard is an excellent source of iron. And as the seasons change, who doesn’t need the immune-protecting qualities of vitamins C, A, and E? That’s right, beauty is more than skin deep with this veggie.

But again, HOW do you cook it! As some of my friends and family recently commented on Facebook, this is one green that can be enjoyed “naked.” Unlike some of the more bitter greens, Swiss chard is complemented nicely with just a little vegetable oil (different oils for flavor variety), a pinch of salt, a dash of spice. Steaming or stir-frying are a great way to preserve flavor and texture, as well as nutritional value, in cooking. It’s an easy add to soups, as well.

I recently threw this one together for a one-dish meal that includes grains, legumes, nuts, leafy greens, and healthy fats (fat also helps absorption of the veggie vitamins!). Hope you enjoy! 

1. Cook Gemelli or any pasta according to directions, drain, and set aside.
2. While pasta cooks, wash and roughly chop the Swiss chard, then set aside.
3. Drain and rinse a can of black beans and set aside.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
5. Saute 1 tsp minced garlic and a handful of pine nuts until very lightly browned, sprinkle in a dash of salt, then immediately add the Swiss chard to the skillet. Using tongs, turn the chard in the pan until it is slighly wilted.
6. Add black beans and pasta to Swiss chard mixture and turn mixture with tongs untill well-heated.
7. If you like, serve with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese and/or black pepper. 

What is your favorite green leafy vegetable recipe?