Filed under: Beans, Eggs, Fruits, Grains, Meat, Mushrooms, Vegetables | Tags: Recipes, vegetarian cooking
Ten-hour days. Tiny kitchens. And I didn’t go to college to major in home economics, now did I?
When I was in high school and college, I had zero interest in cooking. I was going to be a career woman, not a housewife. Preparing food was something done by women with no ambition. So forget it.
Luckily for me, I married a man who loves to cook, and is great at it. Trout baked in parchment paper with julienned vegetables, veal osso buco, and authentic Hungarian goulash are regular fare in my home. My contributions in the kitchen were generally limited to post-meal clean-up. Until I decided, after 15 years of working in media, I wanted to become a holistic nutrition counselor.
If part of my new job was going to be teaching other people how to prepare healthy, simple meals at home, then, I reasoned, I better learn how to do it myself, and quick. I do have some fear around preparing meat (How do you really know when the steak is a perfect medium-rare? Or when the fish is cooked but not overdone?), so I decided I would start trying to cook some vegetarian meals, and leave the beef to my man.
I’m really good at following rules and directions. So I soon discovered that cookbooks work for me. Just do what the recipe says, and wow, cooked food! And now, after preparing hundreds of dishes at home, many of them truly great, I must say, I am a New York woman who cooks.
And I’m finding that I actually love it. I find it relaxing and meditative. I enjoy hearing my husband and two daughters say “Mmm!” after trying their first bite. And it feels good to know that I’m helping to nourish myself and my family with real, wholesome foods, not some salty soup dumped out of a can or a frozen dinner loaded with chemicals.
Home-cooked food is the cornerstone of a healthy diet. My early rebellion against the kitchen left me with stomach problems and low-level depression for years–I was relying on pre-prepared foods that were not making me feel good. Oh what a difference some sauteed fresh food makes.
To see some of my favorite recipes, click here.
Click here to find out how to take part in “Prevention not Prescriptions.”
Filed under: Food/Health Blogs, Grains | Tags: AOL's ParentDish, brown rice, white rice
Rice is a staple food for many cultures around the world–cultures that don’t have the kind of obesity problem that we do here in the U.S. But many Americans have a bit of a rice fear, thinking that, as a carb, rice will make you fat. So should we be wary of rice? Or is it a perfectly good food to spoon onto your family’s plates come dinnertime? Read my latest column on AOL’s ParentDish to find out.
Filed under: Chronic Disease, Sweets, food politics, weight loss | Tags: New York soda tax, soda, soft drinks
On Friday, State Health Commissioner Richard F. Daines testified before a State Senate hearing that a tax on sugary drinks would cut New Yorkers’ consumption of these beverages by 15 percent.
The tax, with a proposed implementation date of September 1, 2010, would increase the price of non-diet soda, sweetened water, sports drinks, energy drinks, sweetened bottled tea or coffee, and juice drinks by about 17 percent. The $1 billion raised over one year would go toward funding health programs that would otherwise be slashed given New York’s dire financial situation.
While there are many causes of obesity, the skyrocketing consumption of sweetened beverages is of major concern to scientists and health professionals. Once sold in 6.5-ounce bottles, today many sodas are marketed in 20-ounce and even larger single-serving containers. Soft drinks are now the single biggest source of calories in the average American’s diet.
An estimated $7.6 billion is spent every year in New York treating health problems related to obesity, much of it paid by taxpayers. That cost is expected to quadruple in the next eight years.
“The obesity crisis in New York State is one of our greatest public health challenges, resulting in extensive ill health and high health care costs,” Daines said at the hearing. “Governor Paterson is advancing a strong Obesity Prevention Agenda based on a combination of education, price incentives, and health policy to help stop and reverse the obesity epidemic.”
Filed under: Chronic Disease, food politics | Tags: Mayor Mike Bloomberg, salt
Considering that he himself is known to have a heavy hand when it comes to the salt shaker, many are skeptical about New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s new initiative to trim New Yorkers’ salt intake by 25 percent. What is he, our mother?
But a new report in the New England Journal of Medicine, as reported in The New York Times, finds that reducing our salt intake, even by a small amount, can reduce cases of heart disease, stroke, and heart attacks as much as reductions in smoking, obesity and cholesterol levels.
Says the Times piece:
“If everyone consumed half a teaspoon less salt per day, there would be between 54,000 and 99,000 fewer heart attacks each year and between 44,000 and 92,000 fewer deaths, according to the study, which was conducted by scientists at University of California San Francisco, Stanford University Medical Center and Columbia University Medical Center.”
Only 10 percent of the salt in the American diet comes from our salt shakers–the other 90 percent is found in processed and restaurant foods. If the Bloomberg administration can mandate lower sodium content in the prepared foods we buy, it will absolutely improve the health of New Yorkers. And if, under any new regulations, you find that your new lower-salt fried chicken isn’t salty enough? Then put on your own salt after you buy it. But you’ll be doing yourself a big favor if you don’t.
Filed under: Chronic Disease, Sweets | Tags: blood sugar, Orange Crush, Snapple, sugar, type 2 diabetes, Vitamin Water
Last week I taught all the fourth grade science classes at P.S. 321 in Brooklyn about sugar. They already knew a lot about why sugar isn’t so good for us–in every class, someone raised their hand to say that their father/uncle/grandmother has diabetes and has to give themselves shots every day. One girl said her dad lost both his legs because of diabetes. The kids also talked about rotting teeth and feeling hyper from too much sugar.
What really shocked them, though, was how much sugar is in so many of the foods they like. I measured out 30 teaspoons of sugar and put it into a cup, showing them that this is the amount of sugar that the average American eats every day. They couldn’t believe it, and shouted out things like, “I don’t eat that much sugar!” But then the science teacher and I had them measure out the amount of sugar in a bottle of Vitamin Water, a bottle of Snapple, and a bottle of Orange Crush soda. The kids’ eyes widened with surprise as they saw the hills of sugar in front of them–eight teaspoons of sugar in the supposedly healthy Vitamin Water, 13 teaspoons in the Snapple, and 21 teaspoons in the Orange Crush. Suddenly they saw just how easy it is to consume even more than 30 teaspoons of sugar a day, just from their drinks.
Many of the kids seemed to be grossed out by what they discovered. Here’s to hoping they remember that feeling next time they’re choosing a drink with their lunch.
Filed under: Meat, Recipes, Vegetables, weight loss | Tags: dairy, Meat, Recipes, vegetarian cooking
I like this post from Dr. Andrew Weil about how to go about eating less meat. Like me, he doesn’t necessarily advocate going fully vegetarian, but eating meat/dairy less often is good for all of us–it helps you lose weight and lower your cholesterol and cancer risk, among other benefits.
I think many of us eat meat every day simply out of habit–we grew up with some kind of meat as the center of our dinner plate, and so we continue eating that way now. Getting out of that habit is simply a matter of trying things a new way. Once you see how satisfying a good vegetarian meal is, it’s easy to cut down on meat. Take it from a serious steak and burger fan like myself.
Click here to see some of my favorite vegetarian recipes.
Filed under: Food/Health Blogs, food politics, weight loss | Tags: Men's Health, The New American Diet, weight loss
There’s a great piece on Menshealth.com, called “The New American Diet,” about how all the hormones, additives, and pesticides in our food are actually making us fat. Compelling stuff, and another good reminder of why it’s best to try to buy organic as often as possible. Isn’t the grass-fed beef or organic peaches worth the extra money if you know buying these foods will help you ward off unwanted pounds?
Filed under: Food/Health Blogs, Meat, Restaurants, weight loss | Tags: AOL's ParentDish, cold cuts, deli meat, Jared Fogle, Subway
Deli meats are not only a staple in most kids’ lunchboxes, they’re also now thought of as “diet food” by many, thanks to the Subway ads touting the weight Jared Fogle lost while eating the chain’s sandwiches. Is there something magical about cold cuts that will lead to weight loss?
Absolutely not — Jared simply reduced his caloric intake to drop the weight, and chose to do it by eating no breakfast, and then a sandwich for lunch and dinner. But are deli meats like bologna, salami, roast beef, and turkey good for you and your kids? Read my latest column on AOL’s ParentDish to find out.
Filed under: Food/Health Blogs, Sweets | Tags: ADHD, AOL's ParentDish, food coloring, food dye
Yoplait Trix Wildberry Blue Yogurt is colored with Blue 1 and Red 40. Kraft’s Macaroni & Cheese contains Yellow 5 and Yellow 6. Pepsi and Coke use caramel color. If you and your kids are consuming prepackaged and processed food, chances are you’re eating and drinking food coloring, be it natural (pigments derived from plants or animals) or artificial (synthesized in a lab). Any food dye that is used in the U.S. has had to pass muster with the FDA, but some of our approved dyes have been outright banned in Europe. So are these added colorings truly safe? Read my latest column on AOL’s ParentDish to find out.
Filed under: Beans, Recipes, Vegetables | Tags: Moosewood Cookbook, Navajo stew, recipe
This dish is no joke. My friend Barbara first cooked it for me, and I just made it myself for the first time. I served it over quinoa, and used the plain 0% Fage Greek yogurt with it. A warning: the chipotles in adobo sauce are crazy hot. I took one chili out of the can and cut it in half, added just a touch of the adobo sauce, and that was plenty to give the dish a kick but not make it too spicy for my kids.
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 red or green bell peppers
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 (15 oz.) can of tomatoes
1 Tbsp. canned chipotles in adobo sauce
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 (15 oz.) can of butter beans of black beans, drained
flatbread (tortillas, lavash, or pita)
plain yogurt, sour cream, or Cilantro Yogurt Sauce
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into 1-inch cubes. Stem and seed the peppers and cut into 1-inch pieces. Peel the onion and cut it stem end to root end into thin wedges. In a bowl, toss the vegetables with the garlic, oil, cumin, salt, and pepper. Spread on the prepared baking sheet and roast in the oven for about 10 minutes. Stir and continue to roast for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are tender but not mushy.
While the vegetables roast, puree the tomatoes, chipotles, and cilantro in a blender until smooth. Set aside. When the vegetables are tender, put them into a 2- to 3-quart baking dish, stir in the tomato-cilantro sauce and the beans, and return to the oven until hot, about 10 minutes.
A few minutes before serving, warm the bread in the oven. Serve the stew in bowls topped with yogurt or sour cream, with warm flatbread on the side.
(Recipe courtesy of “The Moosewood Cookbook” by Mollie Katzen)
