Holiday Sides Start with Healthy Foods

I love Thanksgiving! Every year the family congregates at my house and celebrates being together for another year of feasting. There can’t be a more exalted occasion for a foodie. Some of our dishes could be in the archeological archives, they have been in the family so long. And with each addition to the family, must-have recipes are included, resulting in a groaning board of colors, aromas and gustatory excellence. I’m starting to salivate already!

Are the recipes “healthy”? This is where the angel and devil on the shoulders appear. My devil attitude towards Thanksgiving is that it should be enjoyed, in all of its excellence. My dietitian background however, reminds me that the two pounds of butter that was used in the mashed potatoes will clog the arteries of even the marathon runners at the table.

Lots of Vitamin A! Let’s look at some of our traditional Thanksgiving sides. The base ingredients of most of these dishes abound with healthy nutrients that are touted daily in the media for reducing the incidence of chronic diseases. Pumpkin and sweet potatoes are high in vitamin A (beta-carotene), a powerful antioxidant, linked to blocking carcinogens causing cancer of the gastric, breast, lung and colorectal systems. Vitamin A also boosts healthy eyesight and some claim, limits age related wrinkles. If you mix your sweet potatoes and pumpkin into a pie, you’ll add calcium rich milk and cinnamon, recently linked to assisting diabetics regulate blood sugar. These foods are starting to sound as healthy as low-fat granola!

Whole Grain? How about stuffing? The basic stuffing recipe with white bread cubes, lots of butter and seasoning is hard to defend as healthy, especially covered with turkey gravy. However, including whole grain bread cubes (cornbread counts), substituting low fat chicken broth for some of the butter and adding vegetables or nuts will lower the fat content. Diabetics need to decide which carbohydrate-rich sides they have to have. Thanksgiving sides like potatoes, rolls, stuffing, macaroni and cheese, root vegetables, cranberry sauce and pies will have your blood sugar scaling the Eiffel Tower in short time. Either choose small portions or pick your favorites and leave others to taste as leftovers in another meal.

Don't forget the cranberries. Inflammation is a hot topic in preventative care and berries are one of the components of the anti-inflammation diet, linked to improving cardiovascular risk, some cancers and Alzheimer’s disease. Cranberries have long been associated with decreased urinary infections because of their proanthocyanidins, a phytochemical that can prevent bacteria from adhering to the urinary tract wall. The whole berry version also contains fiber. Our family enjoys cranberry chutney which includes apples, raisins, nuts and orange juice – all healthy additions.

Even Brussel Sprouts!? Another traditional side that has healthy base foods are Brussels sprouts, a member of the cruciferous family, linked to decreased cancers and greens, high in beta carotene. Season these with oils, rather than animal fats like butter, cheese and bacon. Many families have traditional vegetable dishes that are only eaten at holidays. Exposure to these foods may encourage children to expand their variety of vegetable likes and dislikes. Even less popular vegetables, like parsnips might be a traditional side that children learn to eat.

Bon Aperitif! The devil on my shoulder is telling me that one meal isn’t worth worrying about a healthy makeover, but the angel says that even Thanksgiving foods can be updated to include ingredients that contain less fat, sodium and sugar. Enjoy your holiday – and enjoy the feast. Give thanks that you have another year with family and friends and hopefully, your good health due to healthy eating the rest of the year. Bon aperitif!

Stop Eating! Recycle Halloween Candy

As I sit here looking at the bowl of candy ready for trick or treating, trying to convince myself I will only eat “one”. I decide to take action by moving the candy so it is not wearing on my self control. By “Storing” (hiding) it in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight until ready to “use”. Most candy will easily keep four to six months. Check the best if used by dates on packaging to be sure. To take my mind off eating candy I have decided to share some creative ways to recycle Halloween candy. I sometimes even buy half price candy after Halloween for holiday baking. Many types of small individual candies such as M&M ® can replace chocolate chips or nuts in your favorite recipes that incorporate ingredient as mix-ins.

The traditional chocolate bar (dark or milk) is great for drizzle or icing on many different items such as ice cream, cakes, cookies, or fresh berries. Simply replace the chocolate chips with candy bars chopped into chuck size pieces. CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE 1/4 cup Chocolate Chips 1-1/2 teaspoons shortening (do not use spread or oil) 1. In small microwave-safe bowl microwave chocolate and butter at MEDIUM (50%) for 30 seconds; stir. 2. If necessary, microwave at MEDIUM an additional 10 seconds at a time, stirring after each heating, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth when stirred. Other candy bars with filling such as nugget, nuts, mint crème or caramel can all be used as filling or topping for different types of cookies. I have shared a new recipe my children love.

EASY CANDY BAR COOKIES Dough Base 1 cup Granulated Sugar ¾ cup Butter 1 tsp vanilla 1 egg 2 cups all purpose flour 1. Heat oven to 350⁰F. Spray sides and bottom of 9x13x1 inch pan with baking spay. 2. In large bowl, combine sugar and butter beat until light and fluffy. 3. Add vanilla and egg; blend well. 4. Add flour mix well. Spread half dough in bottom of pan and ½ inch up the sides. 5. Cut unwrapped candy in half lengthwise then arrange single layer candy on top of dough in bottom of pan. 6. Roll out remainder of dough and cover candy making sure candy is sealed inside dough. 7. Place pan on baking sheet in oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown. 8. Cool cut into bars. Gummy candy works well for decorating gingerbread houses or, making sand or dirt cup desserts. Stained glass cookies are a great creative way to use hard candy many recipes are readily available online. That leaves us with one of my favorites Tootsie® rolls. Pastry chefs refer to this product as molding chocolate with its main ingredients consisting of heavy corn syrup and melted chocolate. These ingredients enable this product to be molded and shaped with your hands to use as decorations on cakes, gingerbread houses or individual shaped candies think hearts. I saved you this time from eating all the Halloween candy, so you have time to either build up your will power or give the joy away to others as gifts. Enjoy.

Keep Salmonella Out of Your Easter Basket or Passover Seder

Are you dyeing hard boiled eggs this weekend for Easter? Did you just celebrate Passover and include a hard boiled egg (Beitzah) on a plate? Eggs have been symbols of life, rebirth and renewal of life since ancient cultures and some include legends that the universe hatched from an egg. Hard boiled eggs are a wonderful fast food and incredibly healthy. At only 75 calories for a large egg, they provide good quality protein, a natural source of vitamin A, C, D and E and many other vitamins and minerals. If hard boiled eggs are refrigerated within two hours of cooking, they can be kept in the refrigerator for a week. Egg cartons today contain packing or sell by dates. It is best to use eggs within 45 days of these dates. If you are planning to hard boil your eggs, eggs that are a few weeks old will be preferable. As eggs age, they lose some of the moisture within the shell and when cooked, the shell will detach from the egg more easily. There’s nothing worse than a hard boiled egg that can’t be peeled! Hard boiled eggs spoil more quickly than fresh eggs, even when refrigerated. This is because fresh eggs have a protective coating, created by the hen’s body. When the eggs are boiled, the protective coating is washed away, leaving bare the pores in the shell for bacteria to enter and contaminate it. Fresh eggs are washed at the factory and sanitized using special detergent that retains this coating. Salmonella is a bacteria that grows in poultry and eggs. According to the Egg Nutrition Center, salmonella is only found in one of every 20,000 eggs but it can cause serious illness, especially in young children, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems. Some precautions would include washing hands before and after handling raw eggs, cooking eggs until the whites and yolks are firm and keeping egg mixtures cold until ready to cook. Dyeing Easter eggs does not affect the storage time. If you use eggs for an egg hunt, don’t plan to eat them, unless they were only at room temperature for 2 hours or less. Enjoy your holiday weekend. In my family, dyeing Easter eggs is a tradition that continues, even though my children are old enough to be parents themselves. The eggs get a little more creative and colorful each year. And if we don’t eat them all, that’s OK. After a week of hard boiled eggs, egg salad, and other egg creations, I’m ready to clean out the refrigerator and move on. For more information on eggs go to: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/Focus-on-Shell-Eggs/index.asp

Make Your Holiday Food Sparkle!

We’ve all heard the expression that we eat with our eyes. Attractive food sets up an expectation that the food will taste wonderful. In this season of entertaining, there are many opportunities to make our holiday food sparkle. It is not difficult to add that final garnish that sets your food apart from the others in the holiday pot luck. Here are a few suggestions. Think colors. Christmas colors of red and green are commonly found amongst fruits and vegetables. Adding colorful vegetables to a dish is a healthy practice,often including additional vitamins. Dark green vegetables are high in vitamin A. Many red vegetables contain vitamins A and C. Red fruits and vegetables that make attractive garnishes are red bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, Delicious apples, red cabbage, beets, red pears, pomegranate seeds and cranberries. Dice the colorful additions to add lots of contrast or top your dish with a few pieces, placed in an interesting pattern. Even a sprinkling of herbs, sundried tomatoes or colorful peppercorns can contribute some holiday colors. Add shapes. It may seem like more effort than you can take on right now but having small cookie cutters on hand can elevate your dish gourmet status without changing the ingredients. Cut stars from bread and toast for a dip garnish. Cut hard vegetables like turnips, beets, jicama or carrots with a small cookie cutter or knife into a holiday shape. Just a few will bring raves from your guests. Children will really appreciate a snowflake or Santa garnishing a side dish. Use what’s on hand. Do you have doilies from past projects that would add interest to a cookie tray or even under a salad dish? Any red or green dishes can be called into play. How about plaid dish towels, napkins, scarves or even colorful washcloths? Layer them in a basket to cushion your dish-to-go or add interest to buffet entrees. I have a flower pot with a plastic liner that I use for rolls. Antique silverware, trays, old dishes and even glasses can be combined in interesting ways. Look outside. Evergreens, winter berries, rose hips, hardy herbs, nuts, Osage orange balls, pine cones and even bare branches can make wonderful centerpieces. Add a few sparkly ornaments and your company will be complimenting your creativity. As you do your final shopping for the big day, include some colorful garnish materials and put the family to work preparing the garnishes while you get the food on the table. They'll enjoy taking part in making the holiday food sparkle. And that is what holidays are all about - sharing good times (and special food)with those we love. Happy Holidays!

Get Out of the Kitchen and Socialize During the Holidays!

I enjoyed (more like survived) another holiday! For all those designated cooks you may know exactly what I mean. Were you missing an ingredient when you were ready to start cooking? Did you forget to serve something you had planned? Or there is that often asked question. "How do I time my dishes to have everything ready to serve at once?" Hopefully my four steps will reduce your stress and gain you time to socialize. # 1 Don't procrastinate!!!

# 2 Plan Think about all the family functions and parties you will be attending over the holiday, write it down either on a calendar, datebook, or a post a visible note. Include start time, location, departure time and directions if needed. If you are hosting, plan your menus! Make sure to include items that can be made ahead and limit items that need to be made last minute.

# 3 Make a List I know some people can go through life without the need of a list, but for others it is the only saving grace from total disaster. Make a grocery shopping list made from menu items and recipes you plan to use. Consider making a list for each function include: all the food items, serving utensils, and any miscellaneous items you plan to take.

# 4 Prepare Ahead Once menus are planned review and add preparation/cooking times. Make items that can be prepared ahead. Many casseroles can be prepared a week or more ahead then frozen. Several days before the function make a time line of preparation/baking times for all menu items. This will help reduce stress and make sure nothing is forgotten and everything is done when dinner is scheduled to be served.

Having family members help with holiday preparations is also an effective way to save time in the kitchen. If you have found some sure fire ways to save time in the kitchen please comment and share your secrets. So we all can enjoy the holidays with less stress and more free time to visit with friends and family. ENJOY!!

Mindless Eating Over the Holidays

The last thing that anyone wants to be reminded of two days before Thanksgiving is that they should watch how much they eat. However, Thanksgiving kicks off a month of holiday events that usually involve (great!!) food. I participated in a webinar last week that included a presentation by Dr. Brian Wansink, Professor of Marketing and Nutritional Science at Cornell University and author of Mindless Eating – Why We Eat More Than We Think. Included in his book were some studies he had conducted with his students and colleagues that I found very interesting. In one study, he invited students to a Superbowl event in two rooms, one where the popcorn was served in 1) three 4 liter bowls and 2) six 2-liter bowls. His results showed that 45% more popcorn was eaten from the room with the larger bowls. Some of the popcorn in larger bowls was even stale and in this room, participants still ate 34% more than the smaller bowlroom. Consequent studies with children showed that eating from larger cereal bowls encouraged them to eat larger portions. Did you know that plates have increased in size 30% since 1960? Could this be one reason why we eat more? Is the clean plate club encouraging greater portions? How many of you have a copy of Joy of Cooking on your recipe shelf? Wansink and Payne, (2009) looked at the 8 editions that have been published from 1937 – 2006. All but one comparable recipe in all editions had increased in calories or serving size. Should we be cooking from our great grandmother’s cookbooks? His most recent study (Wansink and Smith, 2010) looked at calorie trends for classic Thanksgiving Recipes 1900 to 2000. Good news! Because the Thanksgiving dinner classics haven’t changed much over the years, the calories/ounce are very similar over the century. However,are our serving sizes the same? Do we share the food with the same size families? And finally, Wansink mentioned that people eat more when expectations are high – which is true for most holiday meals. Even mediocre tasting food is consumed with gusto when Grandma is known to be a good cook or restaurants title their entrees with savory descriptions. Good company can also extend the eating period into second, third and fourth servings. This article’s purpose is not to dampen the wonderful holiday this week. However, after you stuff yourself with all the turkey and trimmings on Thursday, don’t be a mindless eater in the month to come. Most of us have a lot to thankful for but obesity isn't one of them. Enjoy the holiday season!

Slowing Down the Holidays

Holiday decorations are already filling the stores and many parents feel their blood pressure rise with just the thought of the stresses and expectations that the “joyous” season brings. This year try to take a step back and think about what memories you are creating for your children. Will they recall Thanksgiving and other holidays as a warm fun time surrounded by family, friends or neighbors? Or will their recollection be a horror story of how mom or dad “exploded” when the turkey burned?

Think about your own childhood holiday memories. Is it the perfect place settings or the number of casseroles that you recall? More likely it was the games you played with cousins or the hike the family took after dinner or some other simple pleasure that comes to mind. Maybe you can recreate these fun times for your kids and focus a little less on achieving perfection with your dinner or decorations. You might find that you are all a little happier as a result.

Think of ways you can involve your children in the preparations for the holidays. Can they make place cards for everyone, create table decorations, and help make the pumpkin pie or set the table? Perfection is not necessary – keep in mind the pride they will have when they tell others that they helped. The same is true if you are expecting a crowd for the holidays – leave them some tasks to do so they feel part of the event. I have used a “job jar” before and let my family members draw slips of paper that assigned them responsibilities for Thanksgiving dinner. The suspense of the “luck of the draw” made it fun for everyone. What creative ideas have you used to de-stress the holiday season?