Fun Snack with Mini Toasts

Fun snack (or meal idea) for children (ahem or adults like me!) They are bite sized and easy to hold for kids or easy to pop in for adults!

Ingredients:
*Mini toasts
*Natural peanut butter or other all natural nut butter (I prefer Smucker's but any peanut butter whose ingredients are only 'peanuts and salt' will work)
*Banana

Christmas Eve cheese tray

Baked Camebert done with fig jam and phyllo dough (bake at 400F for 15 min, put 2-3 thin slivers of butter on top or egg wash to help it brown)
Italian Monte Veronese (mild)
Raw walnuts
Craisins
Crackers and mini toasts

This was for 5 adults

Portobello Mushroom Cap Stacks

4 portobello mushroom caps (if the stems are still present, remove), wiped clean
2 red bell peppers, sliced in half, seeds/stem removed
1/2 of a 1 lb package of spinach leaves
4 large garlic cloves, minced
4 slices smoked gouda cheese (or fontina if you prefer a milder cheese)
salt and pepper
olive oil

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tin foil for easy cleanup.
2. Place mushrooms and pepper halves on the baking sheet. Drizzle them with olive oil and then sprinkle some salt and pepper over them. Cook 10 minutes. Remove mushrooms from pan and set aside, cook peppers about 10-15 minutes more or until they are soft.
3. In a saute pan, heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil over low-medium heat. Add garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook until fragrant then add the spinach leaves and cook until wilted, stirring often (will take about 3-5 minutes). Remove from heat.
4. When peppers are soft remove from oven. Make stacks out of your ingredients. Mushroom cap first, then some spinach, then lay a pepper half over the spinach with the skin side up, then put on a piece of cheese. Repeat until all mushroom caps have been covered.
5. Return to oven and cook until cheese is melted about 5-6 minutes.

ENJOY!

Salmon 'Bulgogi' with Bok Choy and Mushrooms

This was one of the top salmon recipes on Epicurios.com from Rozanne Gold in Bon Apetit June 2008. Patients are always asking what they can do with fish and so I thought this was a good recipe with an Asian (Korean really) influence to give you a little spice to your life! The bok choy could be substituted with regular cabbage, spinach or mustard greens and the shitakes with crimini (baby portobellas).

Ingredients:

2 large garlic cloves, peeled, divided

1/3 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry

1 3/4-inch cube peeled fresh ginger

2 teaspoons sugar

1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

3/4 teaspoon chili-garlic sauce*

4 6-ounce center-cut skinless salmon fillets

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large bok choy, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide strips (about 7 cups)

4 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, caps sliced

* Available in the Asian foods section of many supermarkets and at Asian markets.

Preparation

1.Preheat oven to 500°F. Blend 1 garlic clove and next 7 ingredients in mini processor. Arrange salmon in 11x7x2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon marinade over. Let marinate 5 minutes.

2.  Arrange fish, with some marinade still clinging, on rimmed baking sheet. Transfer any marinade in dish to small saucepan. Roast fish until just opaque in center, about 8 minutes. Bring marinade in saucepan to boil; set aside and reserve for glaze.

3. Meanwhile, heat oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add bok choy and mushrooms; using garlic press, press in 1 garlic clove. Stir-fry until mushrooms are tender and bok choy is wilted, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Divide vegetables among plates. Top with salmon. Brush fish with glaze.

ENJOY!!

Something to think about before you MAKE your kids finish their meal

Especially if you have boys at home (or are planning for children) and you have stead fast rules about finishing your plate you might want to read this. We discuss with patients all the time that infants (up to 2-3yrs) have an internal shut off when it comes to eating and as we grow we find ways to rationalize and stop listening to those signals it to eat more. This article confirms those behaviors. 

20-Oct-2014

Contact: Sandra Hutchinson
s3.hutchinson@qut.edu.au
61-731-389-449
Queensland University of Technology
@qut

Hungry or not, kids will eat treats

Even though they are not hungry, children as young as three will find high-energy treats too tempting to refuse, new QUT research has found.

In a study of three and four year olds, 100 per cent of children opted for a sweet or savory snack despite eating a filling healthy lunch only 15 minutes prior.

Nutrition researcher Holly Harris, from QUT's Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, said the results highlighted the health risks for children frequently confronted with an abundance of energy-dense, high-calorie foods.

Ms Harris's study, published in the journal Eating Behaviors, looked at young children's eating habits in the absence of being hungry and how parental feeding control impacted those behaviours in both girls and boys.

"Of the 37 children who took part in the study, all children displayed eating in the absence of hunger, even though more than 80 per cent reported being full or very full just 15 minutes earlier," Ms Harris said.

"An impaired ability to respond to signs of feeling full and being unable to self-control food intake in an environment where children are frequently faced with high-energy foods is likely to have undesirable ramifications on a child's energy balance and weight status."

Ms Harris said pressure by mothers to eat was also positively linked to higher levels of snack food intake in the absence of being hungry, but this was a result found only with boys.

"Mothers who reported that they typically pressured their boys to eat during meal times, had boys who also ate more snacks when they were no longer hungry," she said.

"This adds weight to the argument that boys' and girls' eating behaviours may be influenced or expressed in different ways.

"For example, in boys it may be that controlled feeding practices such as encouraging boys to finish everything on their plate may compromise their ability to determine their own hunger.

"Therefore they may be more likely to eat and overeat in the presences of highly palatable snacks.

"So forcing boys to eat their breakfast, lunch of dinner may impact their ability to self-regulate their snack food intake as well."

She said when mothers pressured their girls to eat it did not have the same impact on their child's snack consumption.

Ms Harris said people were born with a capacity to self-regulate their food intake.

"Infants will not consume energy in excess of what their body requires. Internal hunger and satiety signals are relayed to the brain and tell infants when to stop and start eating," she said.

"But as we grow older, we become increasingly aware of the abundance and rewarding value of food and in turn our ability to respond appropriately to our appetite may diminish.

"In a society which constantly promotes over-consumption from convenient, energy-dense foods a susceptibility to respond to environmental food cues over appetite cues may lead to an imbalance in energy and food intake and undesirable weight gain.

"Preserving this ability to self-regulate energy intake early in life may be the key to resisting environmental stimuli to eat, later in life."

###

The paper available here is co-authored by Dr Kimberley Mallan, Dr Smita Nambiar-Mann and Professor Lynne Daniels.

Media contact:

Sandra Hutchinson, QUT Media (Tue, Wed), 07 3138 9449 or media@qut.edu.au

After hours, Rose Trapnell, 0407 585 901

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-10/quot-hon102014.php

Roast Chicken

Roast chicken is one of those items that can be very scary for people to make for fear of drying it out or the skin not being perfectly crisp. There aren't a lot of steps involved in making one your great grandmother would be proud of, and once you put it in the oven you set the timer and forget about it. I always use a free-range, antibiotic free chicken because they usually come in the right size (without having to comb through the cases of whole chickens) and the flavor is far richer then a 'run of the mill' chicken. Bell and Evans has chickens like this, usually the grocer also has a store brand that fits the parameters, for those of you Whole Foods Market lovers (GASP!) they have a variety from Amish raised chickens to family farm chickens from Alabama. Although the weight of the chicken may seem small, I assure you that it is enough chicken for 4 people (be they all adults or a mix of ages) and remember, you should NOT be eating more then 6oz meat at a time anyway ;p

*1 - 3.5-4lbs free range, antibiotic free chicken (if you get one larger then 4lbs it won't cook right at this temp and time allotment, the closer to 3.5lbs you can find the better)
*kosher or sea salt and fresh ground pepper

1. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Cover a roasting pan with tin foil to decrease clean up. Then place a roasting rack in the pan.
2. Rinse the chicken inside and out - if there was a bag inside the chicken of organs remove that.
3. Dry the chicken with paper towels inside and  out.
4. Liberally salt and pepper the inside and outside of the chicken.
5. Cross the legs of the chicken and secure to help evenly cook the chicken. To do this, decide which flap of skin between the drumstick and the large hole to the inside of the chicken is bigger. Cut a slit in that piece of skin about 1/2" long. Take the drumstick on the same side as the slit skin and pull it towards the other drumstick. Then take the opposing drumstick and cross it over the top of the other one, pushing the end of the drumstick through the slit you created, this will hold the legs in a sort of 'Indian style' place so that the breast the of the chicken cooks evenly.
6. Place chicken on the roasting rack and place pan in the oven. Set timer for 55 minutes. LEAVE THE CHICKEN ALONE, don't baste it, don't rotate it, don't even open the door! When the timer dings it is all done. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before carving, if you want to baste it with the juice in the pan, now is the time to do it.

***Make sure your vent or fan is running when you take the chicken out there will be a lot of heat and some smoke rushing out of the oven and you don't want it to fill your house!

`Remember to fully wash down your sink with antibacterial soap after washing the chicken to decrease the risk of illness.

ENJOY!!

Cocotein - Protein Drink

A patient brought me in this protein drink to try that she is totally in love with. It is a nice alternative to all the 'dessert' flavors that protein drinks tend to come in, which cause a sweetness overload to the pallet. Coconut is not my most favorite flavor in the world and so I found this tolerable when diluted by 50% with water, otherwise the coconut completely  overwhelmed me, so for a coconut lover this is for you! I found the consistency also a little thick and almost sticky. If you are a looking for a refreshing beverage this is not it. (It should be noted, that I also find the texture of coconut water to be slightly 'sticky' as well, so if you like that you are looking at the same type of texture but just slightly thicker).

It is made with whey protein isolate, which is almost 100% available to your body for absorption and it is lactose free, gluten free and aspartame free (it is sweetened with sucralose or Splenda).

Cocotein can be found at the following places for the following approx prices:
Amazon: varies
Vitamin Shop: case of 12-16oz bottles $41
BodyBuilding.com: case of 12-16oz bottles $35
Luckyvitamin.com: 1 bottle $3
Vitamin Shoppe: 1 bottle $4.30

CHEERS!!

Sporting events should ditch nutritional supps and sports drinks sponsorship

22-Sep-2014

Contact: Emma Dickinson
edickinson@bmj.com
44-020-738-36529
BMJ-British Medical Journal
@bmj_latest

Potentially misleading public about health benefits of these products which remain unproven

Such sponsorship could mislead the public into thinking these products work well and/or are good for health—for which there is no strong scientific evidence—suggest Simon Outram and Bob Stewart of the Institute of Sport, Exercise, and Active Living, in Melbourne, Australia.

Two years ago, research published in BMJ Open reached similar conclusions.*

Outram and Stewart accept that nutritional supplements and rehydration drinks don't compare with the unhealthiness of fast food, tobacco, or alcohol, all of which have been associated with major sporting events.

But the very fact that these products are marketed as beneficial or essential for sporting prowess and/or general health, when the evidence has so far failed to substantiate these claims or justify their cost, is likely to make it harder for the public to judge the value of these products objectively, they suggest.

"Successful sponsorship campaigns remove or minimise any scepticism about the product (a common reaction to advertising)," they write. "A form of seamless or hidden product association is created whereby such products come to be seen as integral to sport—the sports supplement or sports drink," they say, adding that celebrity endorsement helps to promote that idea.

"It is for good reason that nutritional supplement and sports drinks companies invest heavily in sports sponsorship," they write. "Such sponsorship—together with associated product endorsements and advertising—conveys the message that their products are integral to sporting engagement and achievement."

But they warn: "Sport may have found itself lending unwarranted credibility to products which would otherwise not necessarily be seen as beneficial for participation in sports and exercise or as inherently healthy products."

The issue has already prompted some degree of disquiet among sporting authorities about the perception that they might be seen to be endorsing nutritional supplements and sports drinks, suggest the authors.

The Australian Institute of Sports has voiced concerns about this, while the American Dietetic Association, Dieticians of Canada, and the American College of Sports Medicine have issued a joint statement, which among other things, questions the manufacturers' claims for the effectiveness of these products.

And the World Anti-Doping Agency has highlighted the potential inclusion of undeclared and banned substances in these products as a result of global differences in labelling and manufacture.

"If sport authorities, teams, and sports personalities distanced themselves from supplement and drinks company sponsorship, ways would have to be found to cover the financial gap created," admit the authors.

But they add: "Lessons can be learnt from the history of tobacco sponsorship and its gradual restriction, which did not lead to the wholesale collapse of sport."

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-09/bmj-ses091814.php

Ja-mak-in me crazy : Fun fact of the day

Fun fact of the day: chocolate milk was invented in Jamaica in the 1400s, it wasn't introduced to the Europeans until it was brought back in the 1700s by explorers.

Food for Thought - Pregnancy

25-Aug-2014

Contact: Sonia Caprio
sonia.caprio@yale.edu
203-785-5692
Diabetologia

Ever growing number of women with gestational diabetes suggests future will be filled with children with early diabetes

New research published in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes) shows that children exposed to gestational diabetes in the wombs of their mothers are themselves around six times more likely to develop diabetes or prediabetes than children not exposed. 

The research is by Dr Sonia Caprio, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA, and colleagues.

With the increase in gestational diabetes (GDM), there is a growing need to understand the effects of glucose exposure on the newborn in the womb, at birth and later in life. The risk of developing impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) (prediabetes) in individuals exposed to diabetes in the womb has not, say the authors, been adequately investigated. Thus in this new study, the authors examined the risk in obese youths of developing IGT after exposure to GDM in the womb. The authors say: "We hypothesised that prenatal exposure to GDM in obese children with normal glucose tolerance (NGT) would be associated with development of altered glucose metabolism over time, driven by an impairment of beta cell secretion relative to the insulin sensitivity."

255 obese adolescents with a normal glucose tolerance were selected for the study. All of them were investigated for in utero exposure to GDM and underwent an OGTT, which was repeated after approximately 3 years. The authors found that 210 (82%) participants were not exposed to GDM (called the NGDM group), and 45 (18%) were exposed to GDM (the EGDM group). In the NGDM group, only 9% (n=18) developed either IGT or type 2 diabetes compared with 31% (n=14) of the EGDM group who developed either IGT or type 2 diabetes, with both results statistically significant.. "Exposure to GDM was the most significant predictor of developing IGT or type 2 diabetes, with an increased risk of almost six times for those children exposed to GDM in the womb," say the authors.

At baseline, the EGDM group showed a reduction in beta cell function (the cells that produce insulin), and, at follow-up, they also displayed a reduction in insulin sensitivity compared with the NGDM group.

"Our study demonstrates that obese normal glucose-tolerant children of GDM mothers have pre-existing defects in beta cell function," say the authors. "This is in turn a strong risk factor for these children to develop prediabetes or diabetes."

They add: "The ever growing number of women with gestational diabetes (18%) suggests that the future will be filled with children with early diabetes at a rate that far exceeds the current prevalence."

They conclude: " Offspring of GDM mothers ought to be screened for IGT and/or impaired fasting glucose (another form of prediabetes), and preventive and therapeutic strategies should be considered before the development of full clinical manifestation of diabetes. While we cannot use this analysis for development of definitive screening guidelines, we strongly suggest that, among obese children and adolescents exposed to GDM, specifically if additional risk factors are present—such as severe obesity or being of ethnicity minorities at higher risk—oral glucose tolerance tests should be performed at baseline (specifically in mid-pubertal adolescents) and potentially repeated based on clinical judgement. Furthermore, the need for studies aimed at unravelling the role of genetic or epigenetic factors and environmental postnatal factors that might be causing functional defects in the beta cell has never been more urgent."

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-08/d-egn082114.php

Maui-ish Quinoa Salad

This dish is going to be a great source of protein from the bariatric friendly, Quinoa, but the produce part of this dish is about 50%, which gives an appropriate amount of carbohydrates for energy along side the protein for muscle sparing.

1 cup dry, quinoa - which ever color you prefer
1 cup fresh snow peapods, sliced
1/2 cup cucumber, peeled and diced
1/4 cup carrots, diced
1-8oz can diced pineapples in juice (not syrup!), strained
1 cup mango cubes (frozen are fine, but let them thaw before using)
1/2 cup fat free, plain yogurt (could also use 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil and 1/4 cup rice vinegar instead)
1 tablespoon fresh chives, washed and chopped
salt and pepper

1. Cook quinoa to package directions (likely 2 cups water to 1 cup dry quinoa), once water is boiling will take about 10 minutes.
2. Mix all other ingredients together in a bowl. When quinoa is finished, stir it into the mixture. Serve immediately or chill and serve later.

ENJOY!

Caprese Salad Twist

I do love me a caprese salad with fresh tomatoes still warm from the sunshine, basil right off the plant and some soft, creamy mozzarella cheese, but I like to give it a little more muscle too. Add some mashed avocado that has been mixed with lemon juice, salt and pepper, and some fresh sugar snap pea pods (which you could use to dip into the avocado if you don't want to plaster it over your tomatoes and cheese). Drizzle the whole thing with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic and you have got yourself a slightly more exciting version of a summer staple!

Vitamin D Deficiency

Every day we see patients in the clinic who are vitamin D deficient. It is a multifaceted issue but aside from a medical condition (usually liver or kidney problems) that would cause the vitamin D deficiency, there are plenty of environmental issues that could be culprits. People with dark skin complexions (Africans, Islanders) are more protected from the sun then someone with a light skin complexion and thus the darker skin individuals do not reap the same benefits of short stints in the sun (as far as vitamin D absorption and synthesis is concerned) as their Irish counterparts might. If you are diligent with your sunscreen, you also will not get any vitamin D from the sun, as the sunscreen repels the UV light that is necessary for synthesis. If you live in the northern latitudes, and we're not talking about Siberia here people - we are talking about pretty much any place above the Florida-Georgia line (break into song if you like), the angle of the sun is only strong enough to help us between Memorial Day and Labor Day. If you are lucky enough to have an indoor job though - here comes the trifecta - you don't see the sun anyway! Soooooo how do we work on improving a vitamin D deficiency? Supplements are always helpful as there is very limited vitamin D in foods (see below).

3.5oz cooked salmon = 360 IU Vitamin D
3.5oz tuna in oil = 235 IU
8oz milk = 100 IU
1 whole egg = 40 IU
3.5oz cooked beef liver = 15 IU
3.5oz raw portabello mushrooms = 10 IU
3.5oz raw portabello mushrooms exposed to UV light = 446 IU

It is recommended that adults get approx 2000 IU of vitamin D each day, and with very few foods containing vitamin D, it is definitely beneficial to take at least 1000 IU/day as a supplement, with 2000 IU supplemented being better, then you could eat some foods with vitamin D in them, but that would be more like the icing on the cake! And while you're at it, and there are still 4 weeks left of prime rays, get outside and check out the sun (all you need is 10 minutes of exposure without sunscreen on to reap the benefits - then lather up!)

GMO special

Tonight on Chronicle at 7:30 (Boston and surrounding areas including metro west will be able to see it on channel 5) is doing a special on the food supply and the presence of GMO food plants. Be sure to check it out!!

In Season at Tangerini's CSA, Millis Ma

Ice Cream - You Scream

SURPRISE!!! It's National Ice Cream day!! Not gelato day or frozen yogurt day or frozen custard day - but ICE CREAM DAY!! It's a good thing it is right in the middle of the summer (although that was probably planned) and it's a beautiful day - so be sure to get out and get your lick-fix and support a local creamery or ice cream shop that makes their own frozen treats right in your community!

CHEERS!

Morning After Egg Bake

Summer parties are in full swing and if that means you have a full house the morning after the party and minimal energy to make breakfast, try an egg bake with some of your leftovers. We had a BBQ and so I threw together some of our leftovers in the AM and put it in the oven, once all the guests were showered and ready to start their day the egg bake was done! Everything was extra from the night before except for the eggs!

Cornbread
Mushrooms, sliced
Tomatoes, diced
Red Onions, diced
Dried Basil
Dried Sage
Eggs
Shredded mozzarella
Olive oil

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees, then heat some olive oil in a pan to saute the onions. Once they are soft, add mushrooms and herbs let cook another 3-4 minutes and then add tomatoes. Cook until liquid is evaporated.
2. Meanwhile, grease a baking dish (or spray with PAM). Then crumble leftover cornbread over the bottom of the pan.
3. Crack eggs into a bowl and whisk (think 2 eggs per person).
4. When vegetables are done, spoon over top of cornbread. Then pour eggs over the whole thing. Sprinkle cheese over the top and bake. The top may brown because of the cheese but make sure the center is not liquid. Depending on the depth of the pan that could be 30-60 minutes (our pan was 3.5" deep and took 60 minutes but most baking dishes are only around 2" deep)

Enjoy!!

Zucchini Season

Zucchini season (and all summer squashes for that matter) is upon us! Check out your local farmers' market or grocery store for fresh product! I like to slice them in half, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and grill them best but there are lots of things you can do with them including making a salsa type dip!

2# zucchini, cut into small cubes, and roasted
1/2 cup chopped, fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon chopped, fresh  oregano
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 tablespoon chopped, fresh chives

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil. Toss cubes zucchini with salt, pepper and olive oil. Spread out on baking sheet and then place in oven about 6-8 minutes, until al dente. (The smaller they are the faster they cook, think that you want your cubes to be the size of midget dice - that way they cook quickly and nicely fit onto a pita chip).
2. Remove zucchini from oven and add all remaining ingredients, stir to combine. Serve warm like this or let sit and chill up to 4 hours in ice box.

Serve with pita chips.

ENJOY!!

Mango-Pomegranate Salsa

Trying to think of something to bring to the 4th of July-rain day party tomorrow? Try this new spin on salsa!

1 cup diced mango
1 cup pomegranate seeds
1 small shallot, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
1/8 teaspoon dried mint, ground up (can use a mortar and pestle)
3 tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice
1/2 teaspoon chilies minced (optional)
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Mix it all together and let sit at least 30 minutes. Serve at room temperature.

ENJOY!!

Breakfast sandwiches of champions - or at least of amateur spartan racers

These breakfast sandwiches were a big hit in the morning before the girls and I hit the Tri-State Spartan Race course. They are a near perfect blend of carbs, protein and fat for muscle strength and endurance-cardio for that 5 mile long run with military grade obstacles. A more bariatric friendly version might be to use a tortilla or whole wheat pita pocket.

Hope it powers you through a big day too!




Makes 3 sandwiches:
3 whole wheat English muffins
5 eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup chopped basil
6 slices Brie cheese
1 avocado, mashed
Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper
Tin foil

1. Whisk eggs in a bowl. Heat oil in a sauté pan. Toast English muffins.
2. Pour eggs into pan and cook them like you will be making an omelette ( if it is easier you can cook them like you would if making scrambled eggs ) - season with salt and pepper
3. Divide avocado between three halves of the English muffins, place two slices cheese on the opposing half. Spread some mustard over the cheese and sprinkle some basil over the avocado. When the eggs are done divided them between the three sandwiches - close the sandwiches and wrap in foil to help the cheese melt (should take about 3-5 minutes)

Enjoy!!!!

Reading Material

People often ask what books I like in regards to nutrition or food. Here is a short list of some good ones. Some of them I actually find quite funny, but perhaps that is because I have a dry sense of humor or I find the cynicism in them to be quite remarkable!

My favorite:
Marion Nestle: What to Eat - An aisle by aisle guide to savvy food choices/good eating and where your food ACTUALLY comes from








Michael Pollan books: While I find him to be quite a pompous individual he does spend a remarkable amount of time and effort researching material for his books so you have to give him credit for that. Be sure to have an old fashion dictionary on hand as he uses many words you need might need a PhD to decipher.
Omnivore's Dilemma
In Defense of Food
Food Rules
The Botany of Desire
Cooked

Mireille Guiliano: French Women Don't Get Fat - a cultural look at food, cooking, human consumption and the role food plays in our lives from the eyes of a French exchange student to the USA

McDonald's Happy Meals get 'Happy,' new yogurt option

From the Chicago Tribune:

CAPTIONS

@mumbly_joe

By Mary Ellen Pomdmolik Tribune reporter

2:44 p.m. CDT, May 19, 2014

McDonald’s is expanding the mom-friendly choices in its Happy Meals line, announcing Monday that it will offer Go-Gurt as option.
 Beginning July 4, Go-Gurt low-fat strawberry yogurt will be available in Happy Meals and Mighty Kids Meals as an alternative to French fries or to the apple slices that have been part of kids’ meals since March 2012.
 It is the company’s latest effort to win over parents concerned about their children making nutritional choices early in life that will later lead to balanced diets. McDonald's is under continual pressure from critics, who point to the company's food offerings as a contributing factor to the nation's obesity crisis.

• Related
• Video: Yogurt option to be added to Happy Meals
• San Francisco Votes To Ban McDonalds Happy Meals

The Go-Gurt recipe formulated for the Oak Brook-based restaurant giant will have 50 calories and 6 grams of sugar per 2.25 ounces, according to the company.

McDonald's said in a statement that it is responding to customers who want "variety and wholesome options for kids to enjoy in their Happy Meals."
 The fast-food chain also will introduce a new animated character, Happy, later this week as part of an effort to encourage healthy eating habits among children. The character made its debut in McDonald’s marketing efforts in France in 2009 and is also used in other parts of Europe and Latin America.
The company's annual meeting is scheduled for later this week.

Granola - A Kimba's Kitchen Specialty

Homemade granola for the speakers of at the 2014 Rhode Island Obesity Symposium!

4 cups rolled oats

4 cuts assorted raw nuts and/or pumpkin seeds (I use almonds, walnuts, pecans and pumpkin seeds)

1 stick butter

1/2 cup 100% pure maple syrup

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tin foil and spray with PAM.

2. Melt butter in saucepan. Then remove from heat and mix in maple syrup. Pour over oat and nut mixture. Stir until everything is covered/wet with the butter (this takes multiple turns as it is a lot of mix for a little fluid).

3. Pour onto baking sheet and evenly cover the entire sheet with the granola.

4. Bake for 25 minutes, then rotate the sheet 180 degrees and bake another 10-20 minutes more (the time depends on how brown you like your granola).

5. Remove sheet from oven and place on wire rack. Let cool completely, before storing in containers. Put containers in the cupboard not in the ice box. Enjoy with yogurt, as cereal or even a top a frozen treat like ice cream!

Pocket book pain

Sushi lovers beware - the price of your beloved roll at the sushi bar is on it's way up. Drought in California has cut the production of medium grain rice - aka sushi rice - in at least half. California is one of the largest producers of medium grain rice in the country and also the world,  and it's a deficit that other USA growers in Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana will not be able to make up. Hence, the price of sushi will be on the rise if you have not already witnessed the price increase.

Asparagus Season!

Yes!! That great time of year is fast approaching (even though winter doesn't seem to be receding), the growing season! When we get fabulous fresh fruits and vegetables from our own yards or farmers' markets. One of the first things to appear in the spring is asparagus and so you should be seeing a lot of more it in stores and on restaurant menus for the next few weeks. Look for thin stalks with little white at the bottom, that don't look (or worse yet - feel) dried out. I like to steam or grill them, but if they are thin enough you could just eat them raw like I did last night, when I caught a glimpse of these little guys popping their heads up in our garden : )

High Protein Power Lunch (or Dinner)

I came up with this last night (mostly due to lack of groceries), but I realized that this was super high protein, high on taste and soft enough for the soft foods' folks post-op.

**please note - serving size will be slightly different for the post-op patient

2 eggs, soft poached
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon homemade pesto sauce (see recipe on blog under 'Sauces' link)
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Akmak Armenian cracker bread (or other whole wheat cracker)

1. Bring a small pot of water to a boil - add 1 tablespoon vinegar (any kind BUT balsamic) or lemon juice, then crack eggs right into water. The vinegar will help the whites of the egg to curl up around the yolk and form a tight ball instead of having pieces of the white floating all over the pan. Let cook one to two minutes - I like for the yolk to be runny, but you could cook longer if you do not.
2. On a plate spread down the ricotta and then top with pesto sauce.
3. Remove eggs from water with a slotted spoon or mesh spoon. Place over the top of ricotta/pesto.
4. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, place pieces of cracker bread on the side for scooping.

ENJOY!!

Total protein in this is about 20 grams

Our pesto sauce is not oily, that is why I added the extra teaspoon of olive oil, to give it some of that rich flavor but you could abstain from using it if you wish.

Fun Fact of the Day

Today's fun fact doesn't have anything (really) to do with food but some of the items on the list still need to be 'cooked'.

You thought gas was expensive check out what some of the most valuable/expensive substances in the world will cost you:

Saffron $11.13/gram ($5,040/pound)
Gold $56.73/gram
Methamphetamine $100/gram
Heroin $131/gram (losing market share to meth thanks to Breaking Bad)
Cocaine $215/gram (for the richie rich folks)
LSD $3000/gram (apparently now the even richier rich are slumming it with cocaine they demand LSD instead)
Plutonium $4,000/gram
Diamonds $55,000/gram (making gold look cheap these days!)

"Freedom Salad"

I had this so called 'Freedom' salad at a pub over the weekend, and while everyone else had burgers or fried foods, this salad was delightfully satisfying and left me feeling ready for an action-packed afternoon without feeling weighed down. Try to mix it up for yourself!!  (this will make enough for 2-3 people)

1 cup Mixed greens
1/4 cup cooked green (French) lentils
1/4 cup Israeli couscous (that is the larger sized couscous - could substitute quinoa if you prefer)
1/4 cup carrots
1/4 cup chick peas
1/4 cup bell peppers
1/4 cup red onion
1/4 cup edamame
2 tablespoons raw pumpkin seeds (can be purchased at a store like Trader Joes/Whole Foods/Dave's Market)
2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds
fresh chopped mint leaves (5-6 leaves otherwise flavor is to strong)
balsamic dressing

Enjoy!!

Healthy Tips from all angles

Weekly Health Tips Archive from Miriam Hospital's Center for Bariatric Surgery Newsletter

Balsamic Tofu, Cranberry, and Apple Stir Fry

This is wonderful recipe by Marni Sumbal over at the vegetarian nutrition group. To make it bariatric friendly - substitute quinoa for the long grain rice, the quinoa will be easier to digest and sit lighter in your stomach. Tofu tastes like whatever you put on it, so in this case it will absorb the balsamic and any juice released from the apples. Purchase extra firm tofu as it will hold its shape better during cooking and remember to open the package over the sink as tofu is packed in water!

Enjoy!!

Balsamic Tofu, Cranberry and Apple Stir Fry

Herbalife in the (not so good) news

Another reason to becareful of who you support financially and emotionally. http://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2014/03/12/herbalife-facing-ftc-inquiry-shares-plunge

Toasted Garlic-Cheese Grits

For you southern cookin lovers! (This would also be appropriate for puree stage post-op)

1/2 teaspoon butter (don't worry your fat content won't be to high!)
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves
2 cups water
1/2 cup stone ground grits
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
shredded cheddar cheese (to sprinkle/melt on top)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 1.5 quart casserole dish (look on the bottom of the dish it will say how big it is).
2. Melt butter in saucepan over low-medium heat, add olive oil. Chop garlic on cutting board, then top chopped garlic with salt. Take your knife and hold at a 45 degree angle to the cutting board with the blade facing parallel to your body (not pointing away from the body as if you were going to chop something). Use the blade on this angle to scrape the salt and garlic into the board as if you are spackaling a wall. Only scrape in one direction (pull towards the body with the top of the blade leading and the edge of the blade trailing behind), continue this spackaling motion until you have created a paste. Add this paste to the pan with the melted butter. Saute about 5-7 minutes.
3. Add water, grits, pepper, bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer the mix and cook until thick and creamy, 20-30 minutes.
4. Beat egg with milk. Mix well into the grits (added protein!!). Cook another 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese (bonus protein!) and serve.

ENJOY!!

adapted from a recipe by Nancy Vienneau

This is how I Steak & Cheese...

The steak and cheese sandwich is one that is pretty popular with meat eaters and it can be a drag if your MD tells you to cut back on your fat intake. I was rummaging through the grocery store the other day and came up with this idea for a steak and cheese - sauteed mushrooms and onions atop a goat cheese-stuffed bison burger. My photos don't really do it justice, b/c photography isn't my specialty! But bison is much lower in fat then beef and has a slightly different taste to it as well so it can be a welcome addition to a bored palette.

Ingredients:
*12-16oz ground bison (depends on the brand your store sells)
*2oz fresh goat cheese (I used Vermont Creamery to keep it localish)
*1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary (ground up)
*1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
*1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
*fresh cracked black pepper
*2 tablespoons olive oil
*sea salt
*1 pint mushroom blend or crimini ('baby bellas'), washed and sliced
*1 large white onion, sliced
*1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
*'sandwich vehicle' of your choice: lavash, pita pocket, flax roll

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line the lower level of a meatloaf pan (this looks like a bread loaf pan but it has an insert with holes in it to allow fat to drip through) with tin foil and then replace the insert.
2. Put bison in a bowl, add herbs and some fresh ground black pepper.
3. Make two 1oz each balls of goat cheese. Divide the meat in half and place one goat cheese ball on either half. Form the meat around the cheese, trying not to press to hard - you want the burgers to resemble balls instead of patties. Try to make sure there are no seems in the ball.
4. Put the burgers on the top part of the lined pan and cook in oven for 45 minutes (I like mine rare to med-rare if you want them more done cook 55 minutes tops - but be careful b/c bison's fat content is so low you can dry them out easily).
5. Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, and season with salt and pepper. Turn heat down when you start to hear sizzling to low-medium - remember to stir. Let onions sweat for about 10 minutes, then add mushrooms. Let cook about 5 minutes more. Add balsamic. Turn heat up to medium to let it boil off. When mushrooms are soft, turn heat off and wait for burgers to finish.
6. Heat/toast bun.
7. Make sandwich (put the 2nd helping in a container and reheat within 4 days) and enjoy! (One sandwich is a lot of food, so you might want to split one with someone and have a side salad)

Cheesey Review: January's cheese of month club

I was anticipating the Mirabo Walnut to be my favorite, because I generally like a brie textured cheese with a rind that has something added to it, whether it is nuts or dried fruit or a ribbon of wine. But in fact, I liked the Five Territories best, because it was the most unfamiliar to me. There were five different types British of cheeses (listed from the bottom layer in the photo towards the top): Double Gloucester, Red Leicester, Cheshire, Derby, Cheddar - pressed in layers to form to form the wheel this wedge came from. The layers easily broke apart so you could taste the cheeses individually or all together. The Cheshire layer was my favorite. It was creamier then the others, and had a distinctive flavor that I had not experienced before. Ironically, Cheshire is believed to be Britain's oldest named cheese first being mentioned in the Domesday Book written at the end of the 11th century.

The Amish Blue from Wisconsin (go badgers!) was quite nice also. Blue is not necessarily the first cheese I would reach for if given multiple options, but this blue was creamy and coated your mouth. It tasted fresh (well as fresh as moldy cheese can taste I guess!), so it did not have that tangy or overpowering taste that poor quality blue cheeses can have from 'bad' mold. This would for sure be a winner on a cheese plate, even in a sophisticated crowd at a party, or atop a bison burger!

The Mirabo Walnut was not what I was expecting. It is a Bavarian cheese that came from Heising, a town which free-range grazes their cows in the Bavarian alps. The flesh of the cheese was creamy and smooth but did not have much flavor to it. The walnuts provided texture but no additional flavor. However, the rind was quite interesting. It provided a 'toasted' flavor to the cheese which was actually quite nice. Many people peel of the rind of a brie type cheese, but in this instance you would be missing out on the most complex part. The rind also really brought to life the flavor and texture of the cheese after a sip of Tempranillo (red Spanish blended wine). This cheese changed more then the other two, with the addition of a sip of wine.

I am excited to try to them again and see how I feel about the flavors now that I have given a once over.

Looking for a new planner?

Because you're tired of having to charge your phone all the time to keep track of your life? Try this Wellness Planner from Moleskine. It's old fashion, so don't forget to buy a pen too!

Wellness Planner

Having trouble staying away from the cookies?

Try the 'Kitchen Safe'. A friend just sent this link over and I found it practical and amusing at the same time. Decide for yourself!

Kitchen Safe Website

Interesting take-aways

Some interesting take-aways from the American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting 2013 as printed in SCAN - Sports, Cardiovascular and Wellness Nutrition, Winter 2014.

"Bariatric patients need to be educated to both exercise more and sit less. Among 34 post-bariatric surgery patients, only 12% walked more then 10,000 steps/day and on average spent about 10 hours a day sitting."

"Well trained cyclists who took a supplement of freeze-dried fruit-vegetable juice powder for 17 days saw no anti-inflammatory benefits. Exercise itself was more beneficial for immune function then the supplement. These findings make a case for spending less money on antioxidant pills and more money on health club memberships."

"Having arthritis should not be a reason to stop exercising. Exercise actually helps reduce pain and fatigue associated with osteoarthritis and improves one's ability to sit/stand and walk."

"Are commercial recovery drinks better then homemade ones? That's doubtful. A study comparing a fruit smoothie (made with milk, banana and berries) and a commercial product showed similar outcomes for subjects who endured a muscle damaging exercise test. Both recovery drinks were similar in terms of calories, protein and carbohydrate."

Armenian 'fast food'

I make as many journeys as I can to the Armenian food market in Belmont Massachusetts. Today I happened to ask them if I could buy one lamejun which is an Armenian form of pizza. Normally you have to buy these Armenian pizzas in boxes of 12 but they never seem to withstand the freezer very well so I only wanted one that I would eat for dinner tonight. The young Armenian fella behind the counter hemmed and hawed and then he went to the back and said 'let me see what I can do for you'. His disappearance into the back of the store created a long line of people wanting to check out behind me but I sat patiently and waited for him. Finally he reappeared with one lamejun in a piece of waxed paper and placed it on the counter, saying 'be careful it's warm'. What was going to be my dinner quickly turned into excitement to have it for lunch and I proclaimed to him 'yeah I can't wait to eat this in the car!'

Lamejun is a very thin piece of lavash bread that has been covered with spiced ground lamb, peppers and some tomato. It is baked in the oven until the lamb is cooked and the edges of the lavash are slightly crispy. This particular market, named Eastern Lamejun, makes their own Lamejuns daily,  and having arrived at the store just about noon I was still able to get a fresh one from this morning. So in my car I opened up the Bulgarian feta that I had bought and I sprinkled some on top of the lamejun, And then I folded it in half and I enjoyed, remembering meals from childhood  of lamejuns with my father, brother and grandparents.

**i put the business card in the photo so you could get a rough idea of the size of a lamejun

Eastern Lamejun Bakers
145 Belmont St
Belmont, Ma

Add some spice to your life

A patient gave us this recipe at support group yesterday - it was such an interesting idea! Great for a mid afternoon snack!

1 mango
juice from 1/2 a lemon
2-3 Tablespoons raw pumpkin seeds, shelled (can be purchased at Trader Joes)
Cayenne pepper

1. Peel mango and cut into wedges or dice
2. Squeeze juice from half a lemon over mango pieces.
3. In a saute pan over medium heat (or in the toaster oven) toast the pumpkin seeds until just lightly browned.
4. Put pumpkin seeds in a coffee grinder to grind up or you can use a mortar and pestle to grind them up.
5. Sprinkle ground pumpkin seeds over mango. Sprinkle a tiny bit of cayenne pepper over it.
6. Mix and enjoy!