Filed under: Drugs, Food/Health Blogs, Meat, Restaurants, weight loss | Tags: AOL's ParentDish, Cheesecake Factory, chicken, factory farming, KFC, McDonald's, Safe or Scary
We’ve been hearing for years that we should cut down on the amount of red meat we eat. Since these exhortations began, Americans have largely been plunging their forks into chicken instead — to the tune of 8 billion birds a year — because it’s healthier, right? Well, that depends. Read my latest column on AOL’s ParentDish to find out.
Filed under: Food/Health Blogs, weight loss | Tags: Christmas, Dr. Andrew Weil, holiday weight gain, Thanksgiving
Halloween is over, and the fear has officially begun. We’re moving into the season of overstuffing ourselves.
Dr. Andrew Weil offers some sensible tips on approaching the upcoming gorgefest. Read them here.
Do you hate exercise? Then go out for a walk. Walking is one of the best forms of exercise, it’s free, and easy.
I for one am not a big fan of exercise. There. I said it. I do like yoga, but I don’t go to class multiple times a week, largely because of the expense. I keep active between classes by walking as much as I can. You just want to make sure you walk briskly–no window shopping for shoes.
This is a fun recipe to make, and if you have kids, they’ll enjoy getting their hands in the bowl of oil and rubbing the leaves.
1-2 bunches of kale
Olive oil
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Remove kale from stalk, leaving the greens in large pieces. Place a little olive oil in a bowl, dip your fingers and rub a very light coat of oil over the kale. Put kale on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes or until it starts to turn a bit brown. Keep an eye on it as it can burn quickly. Turn the kale over and bake with the other side up. Remove and serve. For added flavor, sprinkle with a little salt or spice, such as curry or cumin, after rubbing on the olive oil.
(Recipe courtesy of “Integrative Nutrition: Feed Your Hunger for Health & Happiness” by Joshua Rosenthal)
Filed under: Chronic Disease | Tags: bone health, osteoporosis, walking shoes
Worried about osteoporosis? Then go get yourself a pair of thin-soled walking shoes. Walking in shoes that don’t have lots of cushioning allows for a firm heelstrike on the ground, which helps strengthen your bones. Me? I like the $5 cloth Maryjane-style shoes from New York’s Chinatown for this purpose (men can get the more masculine version, which Bruce Lee wore in “Enter the Dragon”).
Click here to find out how to take part in “Prevention not Prescriptions.”
Filed under: Chronic Disease, Food/Health Blogs | Tags: AOL's ParentDish, high blood pressure, iodized salt, salt, sea salt
The latest nutritional bogeyman is partially hydrogenated oil, also called trans-fat. Hello, increased risk of heart disease!
But what about salt, that evildoer of yesteryear that seems to have disappeared from our list of worries? Have we been lulled into a false sense of security when it comes to the white stuff? Or is salt — whether regular, iodized or sea salt — actually a perfectly safe flavor-enhancer? Read my latest column on AOL’s ParentDish to find out.
Filed under: Eggs, Recipes, Vegetables | Tags: recipe, souffle, vegetalbe gratin souffle, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
Souffles, despite their reputation, aren’t actually hard to make. Try this one.
Butter for the dish
3 cups vegetables (you can use anything; I use broccoli, carrots, potatoes)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup milk
1/2 small onion or 2 large shallots, finely diced
1/2 cup grated gruyere cheese
2 eggs, separated
Salt to taste
Pinch grated nutmeg
Lightly butter an 8×10 inch gratin dish. Steam or parboil the veggies until barely tender when pierced with a knife. Drain, rinse under cold water, then finely chop them.
Lightly brown the bread crumbs in 2 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan, then stir in the milk. When it’s hot to the touch, turn off the heat. Meanwhile, cook the onion in the remaining butter in a small skillet over medium heat until translucent, about 3 minutes. Combine the onion, vegetables, and bread crumb mixture in a bowl, then stir in the cheese and egg yolks. Season with salt and pepper to taste and the nutmeg. Beat the egg whites until stiff, then fold them into the mixture. Pour into the prepared dish.
Bake at 375 degrees until puffed and browned, about 25 minutes. Serve immediately. Serves 4.
(Recipe from “Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone” by Deborah Madison)
There’s pretty much nothing easier to make for dinner than a roast chicken. Rinse it. Put in in a roasting pan. Brush it with a mixture of melted butter, a few tablespoons of lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon of any dried herb you like. Put it in a 375 degree oven for about 90 minutes. Done.
If you don’t have time when you get home from work to wait the 90 minutes, then cook the chicken the night before, during your TV-watching time after dinner. You can then simply reheat it or enjoy it cold the next night.
When wholesome, home-cooked food is this easy to prepare, there’s no reason to constantly rely on takeout, now, is there? Plus, you’ll save a ton of money over the long run. And a ton of calories.
Filed under: Food/Health Blogs, Sweets | Tags: agave nectar, AOL's ParentDish, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, maple syrup, natural sweeteners, Safe or Scary, sugar
What is going on with sugar? We’re suddenly being inundated with ads for soft drinks and other products touting that they use “real sugar!” Is sugar not so bad then, at least when compared to the near-ubiquitous food additive high-fructose corn syrup? And what about honey, pure maple syrup, and agave nectar — are these natural sweeteners (“natural” because they all contain some form of real sugar) a healthier option for you and your kids? Read my latest column on AOL’s ParentDish to find out.
