The Healthy Revival

I Moved!

2012-01-03T17:02:00.000-06:00

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Resolution Ideas For the Eater In All of Us

2011-12-30T12:27:00.003-06:00

It's such a cliché, but where did the year go? It's been a big one. I graduated from college, started graduate school, moved to a new city and got to know my inner germ-a-phobe. Let's not forget about starting this blog. Epic. 2011 was good to me. I hope 2012 will be just as giving. While on Christmas holiday, I've settled into my childhood bedroom where I will stay for the next few weeks. This acclimation process was short and simple, however, a couple things have become glaringly obvious. I am way more mature than the 18-year-old hoodlum who used to live in my room. The fact that I have high school yearbooks still sitting on my bookshelf is an embarrassment. While my mother tries to convince me to gut the room, I continue to argue that I still need my Doc Martins, slap bracelets and a dusty one-eyed Furby. As we head into January, I will continue this battle, all the while listening to New Year's resolution babble from just about everyone.

New Year's resolutions are a bit of a joke these days. At least I think so. What makes January 1st so special? Do you really need a whole new year to turn over a leaf in your life? Nine times out of ten, most resolutions revolve around health. Shouldn't you want to lead a healthier life each day? Ugh enough. I am so above you, I cannot even write on this topic any longer. Instead, I thought I would give you a new way to look at these so-called resolutions. I don't personally do them, but if I did, I would do something along the 'more-is-less' line.

I find most people resolve to choose some form of restriction when it comes to leading a healthier life. I will loose weight, I will eat less, I won't eat dessert anymore, I will stop biting my nails, I will give up fried foods, etc. To me this sounds so exhausting, not to mention it's ultimately a set up for eventual failure. I am here to save you. You can use my name to bail you out of the tired commitment to deprivation. Replace that limited mindset with something you actually long for: surplus. No, I don't mean eat more sugar or drink more beer. Read on sweet child.

If I were to make a New Year's resolution I would want to pick up a healthy 'habit', not focus on eliminating an unhealthy one. Just some suggestions:

I will eat more fiber - shoot for the recommended 20-35 grams each day
I will eat more fruits - eating at least 3 servings a day
I will eat more vegetables - have one snack consisting of baby carrots, bell pepper strips or cucumber slices
I will increase dairy intake - drinking a glass of low fat milk with one meal a day or eating low fat cheese or yogurt
I will drink more water - shoot for five, 8 ounce glasses a day if the idea of downing 8 glasses makes your bladder hurt

It doesn't take a genius to figure out what I'm doing here. If you load up your day with more fruits, vegetables, and fiber you're going to wind up feeling full more often. Where will you fit in your 3pm Dorito snack time? Adopting one of these five suggestions may make it more difficult to indulge in some less-than-favorable behaviors. Maybe not. Is this little trick a cure all? Heck no. But it is a start and we all must learn to walk before we run. Some poor souls attempt dietary overhaul when January arrives. Personally, I think that is too much to handle for most sane individuals. It might last for a day, a week, a month, but it will come to a screeching halt the moment you get a) bored, b) tired, c) anxious, d) upset, e) constipated...you get the idea.

If it's weight loss you seek, this surplus approach may seem counter productive. It's not. Weight loss doesn't have to equal starvation. Your best ally is going to be capitalizing on satiety and always keeping your hunger in check. If I am driving home from work, riding the subway home from school or making dinner in my kitchen and find I am ravenous, I'm never above reaching for a piece of fruit or some vegetables. Eat a little low calorie, high volume nosh and take the edge off. It might be the difference between a third piece of pizza or a second scoop of chili. The goal is to fill you up without filling you out.

Lifestyle changes have their merits and if you are bold enough to try one then I support you one hundred percent, no matter how much I trash talk New Year's resolutions. God bless and good luck.

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On an unrelated note, I am about to get political on you. Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services determined that preventive services for obesity could only be furnished by primary care providers in the primary care setting. Meaning they are going to exclude Registered Dietitians in the prevention/treatment of obesity in terms of direct billing. This will seriously hinder patients' access to qualified individuals. Those of you, who think dietitians need to be directly involved in reversing the obesity epidemic, sign this petition! We're almost there and there is only one week left!

Gabby's Crazy Oats: Deliciousness Like You've Never Tasted Before

2011-12-12T13:32:00.001-06:00

I was going to make this the Product Placement of the Month for December, but I chose not to for two reasons. First, I think those posts cheapen the product. I like the Product Placements because they familiarize all of you with products I enjoy, but these posts sometimes feel like low quality work. Not to mention they also get less foot traffic. Second, Gabby (of Gabby's Crazy Oats) is a very dear friend of mine and I just couldn't do that to her culinary creation. Before I get the ball rolling on this one, let me just tell you she ships. So if you live outside of the St. Louis area, don't leave just yet!

Based on the post title and that opening paragraph, you may have deduced by now that Gabby's Crazy Oats are in fact oatmeal cookies made by Gabby herself. Let me tell you, this girl makes some serious cookies. I like to think of her as a Keebler elf who makes wicked good human-size confections. A few years back, she was making these delectable treats for family and friends. People quickly caught on to how unique these oversized cookies were so in 2009, she made it official and set up her own company at the encouragement of her loyal clientele. During that same year she partnered with Straub's Market, a gourmet grocer in St. Louis. Today, you can find her cookies in all four of their stores' bakery sections. What was once just a pipe dream has become this entrepreneur's reality. Did I mention she did all this while we were lowly nutrition undergrads at Saint Louis University? Needless to say, I was insanely jealous and super impressed. Now heading into the fourth year of business, Gabby's Crazy Oats are carving out their own niche in the gourmet baking world of St. Louis.

This picture doesn't do them justice.

Much to the delight of her customers, she has expanded the variety of oatmeal cookie flavors and sizes offered over the years. One thing that hasn't changed is her tried and true dedication to real, quality ingredients. I've said it on this blog numerous times, but an ingredient list can sometimes tell you more about a product than the nutrition facts label. If I can't pronounce it, I'm not eating it. Well, these cookies are no exception to that rule. Each one of Gabby's Crazy Oat cookies is made with the same basic dough recipe: rolled oats, flour, brown sugar, butter, eggs, pure vanilla, baking soda, spices and sea salt. That's the order they appear on the label. For those of you who may not know, all food labels list the ingredients in order of weight. The ingredient with the greatest amount of weight is listed first; the ingredient with the least amount is listed last. Notice the first ingredient in these cookies isn't sugar or butter; it's rolled oats. Those of us the nutrition world like to see this. But don't let this fool you, Gabby's Crazy Oats are still dessert and shouldn't be misconstrued for a breakfast item. However, should you want to eat one for breakfast, no judgment here.

What's more is these cookies are never frozen. Buy them in the store or have them shipped to you, they will never see the inside of a freezer. That's a guarantee. Aside from their quality and freshness, there is something I love even more about Gabby's Crazy Oats - they are incredibly unique. We've all had an oatmeal cookie before. But Gabby takes it to the big leagues with flavors like Chocolate Peanut Butter, Cranberry Orange Almond, Dark Chocolate Cherry Walnut, and Espresso Dark Chocolate. These aren't your grandmother's oatmeal raisin cookies, that I can promise you. Straub's Market describes the six-ounce cookies as 'honkin' big beauties' and they are exactly right. They are large, in charge and absolutely scrumptious.

Gabby's Crazy Oats are the perfect holiday treat. They have a wow-factor all their own and are sure to be a hit at any holiday party. They also make wonderful gifts for Christmas or New Years! Don't want to spend your weekends slaving away in the kitchen? Wrap these up and give them out, just be sure to keep them in their packaging to ensure freshness. With their homemade quality, your family and friends are sure to be impressed. Gabby's Crazy Oats tagline reads: "Everything you want in a cookie and more...". And let me tell you, it couldn't be more right.

Flavors Include:
Chocolate Chip, Raisin, Cranberry Orange Almond, Espresso Dark Chocolate, Sweet and Salty, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Dark Chocolate Cherry Walnut, M & M, White and Dark Chocolate Macadamia Nut

Cookie Sizes: *Priced per dozen
6oz. (the big ones)...$24.00
3oz. (typical cookie)...$12.50
1oz. (mini cookie)...$ 5.50

She asks for 3-5 days for local orders, so be sure to give her enough notice! You can also hop on over to your nearest Straub's and pick one up today. If you live outside the St. Louis area, contact her by email at berragm@gmail.com to place your order. You'll thank me later.

Sage Advice For Holiday Eating From Someone Who Knows Nothing

2011-12-06T19:36:00.010-06:00

It's that time of year again. When we head over to Aunt Sheryl's, load up those red plastic plates with horse ovaries (more commonly known as hors d'oeuvres), hunker down on a fireplace hearth and wait for the self-loathing and regret to kick in. Trust me. We've all been there. Why did I eat that ninth macaroon? Who poured me this fourth glass of eggnog? How did I get pieces of gingerbread down my bra? Sooner or later though, the holiday feasts reap what they sow and sweatpants suddenly seem like appropriate work options. Enter in New Year's resolutions.

Well, this year that will not happen. This year will be different. This year I will control myself - I will eat only half the ham, seven turtle cookies and limit myself to three hot toddies. Take that Saint Nick! I am not perfect, nor do I pretend to be. I believe the holidays are a time to enjoy the wonderful foods we, and the people we love, churn out. However, enjoyment does have to equate to perpetual gluttony. And so, to save you from yourself, I present to you...

Kimberly's Strategies for Surviving the Smörgåsbords

1. Don't Go To The Party Hungry

This is the kiss of death. You've been running around all day trying to find that Pokémon bean bag chair your eight-year old god son wants, you perform your Mariah-Carey-5-minute-costume-change at the house, grabbed your keys, your significant other and are out the door. Sure enough, as the car pulls out of your driveway you realize that snack bag of Bugles you ate for breakfast and lunch may not have been enough to power you through the day. Suddenly your stomach starts talking like Kimmy Gibler from Full House, you're light headed and you need sustenance...fast. Cut to you licking the crumbs off your fourth (stupidly small) appetizer plate as you walk it to the trash can. The presence of others is all that stops you from reaching into the garbage and polishing off that half-eaten piece of fruitcake sitting right there on the top.

I've been there. I am a firm believer of never getting overly hungry. Whenever I hit that point of blinding hunger, I end up reaching for foods I will a) regret and b) over-eat. It's for those reasons I never leave home without snacks. At any given time, my purse/book bag/satchel looks like a go-go-gadget of munchies.

Holiday parties are wonderful. You get to see half-drunk people you sort of like in dim lighting while you all stuff your faces with the hostess' provisions. This suggested 'rule' hardly implies showing up to a party puffer fish full. Just don't arrive to the front door seeing spots and drooling unconsciously. I find I make wiser food choices when I arrive any place where free food is in abundance free of that malnourished feeling. I will actually select the foods I really want to try and not simply reach for anything containing cheese whiz. Not only that, I won't suffer the all-too-common conundrum of overzealous food selection. This doesn't mean you can't go up for seconds, but arriving semi-full will allow you to be selective and therefore, more aware of how much you're eating.

2. Be The Change You Wish To See In The World

By this I mean, bring a more healthful dish. If I had a dime for every time I went to a party where the only vegetable served qualified as great Aunt Rebecca's bloomin' onion or the olive in my martini, I'd be a less poor woman. This does not mean you have to bring a vegetable tray. I curse those things. I am working towards becoming a dietitian and even I hate eating raw broccoli flowerets. Surely there must be some middle ground. Off the top my head - tomato bruschetta, edamame hummus, roasted potato wedges with sun-dried tomato pesto, Caprese on a stick (tomato, basil, mozzarella), kale chips, maple glazed Brussels sprouts. BAM! Vegetables don't have to be gross. And don't worry, just because you're bringing a 'healthy' dish doesn't mean everyone else is going to do the same. You will still get your true holiday fix in at the party, mark my words. You're dish will just lighten up the spread.

3. Mind What You're Swilling

God, to talk about calories here is just too boring. It's also been done a million times. What I can't stand is when some health nut writer tells me to avoid booze at holiday parties. Has she never been to one before? Sometimes a social lubricant is required for survival at these kinds of functions. Your ex-boyfriend is avoiding you like the bubonic plague, your girl friend is crying the bathroom because 'if one more person asks her when she plans to start having babies, she's going to adopt a Himalayan whistle kid by March', and your mom commented that your eye makeup made you look like an extra in an off-Broadway production of the Grinch as you walked out the door.

All I will say is this: booze has calories; it's not a 'free food'. As we all learned in D.A.R.E., alcohol also impairs our judgment. Those repulsive deep-fried Oreos you first saw when you walked into the party might suddenly look downright appetizing after four glasses of mulled wine. So easy does it. Plus, the person who has raced to the end of the night by 8pm never goes home or wakes up a winner. I can sadly say this from experience. Lastly, if you plan to drive home, do not drink. It's a no brainer, but it would feel irresponsible to endorse moderate drinking at holiday parties to those who may go on to be designated drivers. But Kimberly, you told me it was okay! I have only you to blame for my poor decision-making. No! Not on my watch.

4. Back Away From The Food Table

Okay, I'll admit this one is easier said than done. The act of walking away from mountains of appetizers can, at times, require the Jaws of Life. Unless you have the will power of a much stronger man, standing near plates of copious amounts of food is like going to Mexico and never wearing sunscreen. You will burn yourself time and time again. After you've had your fill, thrown away your plate and utensils comes Act II of the night. It opens with the scene titled "Grazing" and concludes with you unbuttoning your pants on the car ride home. Don't act like you're better than it because you're not.

From personal experience, I've found that removing myself from the vicinity of all the foods that taunt me to have the greatest effect. After I've eaten and I am feeling full, I try to migrate to a different room. However, I do realize the kitchen is often a congregation location. So instead of wandering into the host's personal office or sitting alone with the cat watching reruns of the Match Game, put those Crescent dogs out of arms reach. At the heart of it, we're all lazy. Maybe all it takes is the required extra four steps to snatch the last smoked salmon quesadilla to deter you from overindulging.

5. Return to Normalcy

Hypothetically, let's say you decided to ignore strategies one through four and ate until it hurt. The next day you arise thinking, "Today I will eat less to make up for last night." Please, please, please don't do this. Food isn't about atonement and the holidays shouldn't be filled with self-induced regret. So what? Last night didn't go so well. You came home, popped the Pepto and woke up every two hours mumbling "never again". That's probably a little dramatic, but you get the idea. Nobody is perfect. So instead of skimping on calories following an epic holiday bender, just get back to normal. Wake up, eat some breakfast and go about your day as normal - eating when you're hungry and stopping when you're full. Besides, if you decide you're going to start a 'diet' on December 17th you, my friend, may just be dumber than first grader. Don't even get me started on diets. That's for another day. There's nothing quite like intentional self-denial while all those around you indulge in the very thing you've sworn off. Say hello to crying in the shower and aggressive journal entries.

Bottom line here: when we decide we're going to enter into Calorie Deficit Land in an effort to amend for last night's destruction, nine times our of ten we wind up hitting 3pm ravenous. And the cycle repeats. The biggest favor you can do yourself is to wake up and kick your metabolism in the pants with some breakfast.

Zucchini Banana Nut Muffins

2011-11-29T09:14:00.003-06:00

Welcome back. I hope you all survived the holiday with your dignity and jeans still intact. Mine was lovely, thank you for asking. I picked up a head cold but powered through. I think it probably had something to do with the 13 kids under the age of ten on my flight home. Upon landing on Missouri soil, I felt compelled to update my Facebook status to: "One airplane. 13 kids. 3 hours. For the price of one plane ticket, I bought 5 years of birth control." True story.

As promised, I am here to deliver my Zucchini Banana Nut Muffins. As many of you already know, I had a slight farmer's market mishap back in Boston before I left for break. It involved one vendor, three vegetables and a humbling experience on how pushovers never fully get what they really want. Luckily, my failure to rectify the situation lead to some tasty kitchen creations. First it was the roasted vegetable frittata and now I give to you a great breakfast option or on-the-go snack idea.

This recipe is a hybrid of about two or three I found online. I like 'healthy' muffins just as much as the next girl, but I am also a dirt-poor grad student so I demand normal ingredients from recipes I wish to try. No evaporated cane juice crystals, pomegranate molasses or arrowroot powder for this penny scraper. If you want to make these into a dessert, I would recommend folding chocolate chips in with the nuts. Yum.

Zucchini Banana Nut Muffins
Makes 12 muffins

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1 egg

¼ cup honey

1 1/2 cups grated zucchini

1/4 cup canola oil

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

¾ cup all purpose flour

¾ cup whole-wheat flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350F.

Grate zucchini (either by hand or using a food processor), then squeeze grated zucchini to remove some of the water. Measure 1 1/2 cups zucchini and mix with the mashed bananas.

In a medium-sized bowl, beat egg and honey. Stir in the grated zucchini-banana mixture, then the oil.

Into a separate bowl, sift together flours, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Add to the zucchini-banana mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in walnuts.

Spray individual muffin cups with non-stick spray, then divide batter evenly among cups to make 12 muffins. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T07:14:00.002-06:00

Thought I'd do a little post today in honor of my favorite holiday. There is a great Native American saying that goes - “Give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way.” Just something to think about on a day where we gather together the people we hold most dear and enjoy a labor of love.

Have a wonderful (overindulgent) Thanksgiving!

An Easy Weeknight Dinner: Part One

2011-11-22T08:15:00.003-06:00

With Thanksgiving break approaching and my return to the Midwest on the horizon, my food shopping for last week was scant. In an effort to reduce wasted food and the precious green paper in my wallet, I made a small grocery list and tried to survive the week. To say it was a week of leftovers would be an understatement. It was more like a week of scraping out my refrigerator and cupboards for bits of food I could compile into a meal. Was it enjoyable? Not really. Was it cost effective? Yes. Luckily, my super frugal mentality lead to this creation.

This dish is as easy as it gets and it tastes divine. All you need is some lettuce, one grain/vegetable based burger and one whole egg. It's also sure to impress should you want invite someone over to join. I picked up a quinoa cake from Whole Foods. You can find them in the pre-prepared section. I'm sure any grocer will have something similar. Black bean, brown rice, chickpea burger - you name it, it will work. Trust me. If you're a kitchen super star, here is a recipe for quinoa cakes. However, I haven't tried them so make at your own discretion.

On to the main event. Quinoa is a great grain to get familiar with. It's a complete protein, meaning it contains all nine essential amino acids. Virtually no plant food contains all nine. Animal proteins are always complete, but plant foods - not so much. I was actually pretty impressed with myself after assembling this little number. The quinoa cake was on sale and I needed to eat the cup or two of lettuce left in my refrigerator. Giving you an ingredient list on this one after reading the recipe title seems silly, but you can never be too safe.

Quinoa Cake, Poach Egg with Mixed Greens

Serves One

1 egg

1 quinoa cake

1-2 cups mixed greens

Pepper

Poach the egg in water. Place mixed greens on plate. Top with quinoa cake, followed by the poached egg. Crack some fresh black pepper on top and dig in!

A Farmer's Market Mistake Turns Into Stomach Gold

2011-11-14T18:30:00.002-06:00

My weekend routine is beyond predictable: wake up, do homework/study, run, food shop and relax. I love graduate school, but when this is what your schedule looks like Saturday, Sunday and Monday, it can take a lot to break out of the monotony. Being the rebel that I am, this past Saturday I threw caution to the wind and went to the farmers market bright and early. I like to think this act of revolt was purely motivated by spontaneity, but it was mostly due to a hang over. Trying to focus on schoolwork while your head pounds like a 1980's techno dance song is easier said than done.

In lieu of studying for my approaching nutrition epidemiology exam, I laced up my shoes, zipped up my coat and headed for the subway. If you've never been to Boston, Haymarket is an outdoor farmer's market located next to Faneuil Hall. It's by far the best market I've ever been to. I spent $5 and brought home 5 bananas, 4 honeycrisp apples, 3 zucchini, a pint of blueberries and a red bell pepper. Needless to say, my crisper drawer is full.

By now you must be thinking, what does a single girl need three zucchini for? She doesn't. One stand was selling three zucchini for a dollar. I asked for one zucchini and she bagged three mammoth size vegetables. I thought about correcting the situation, but they were only a dollar. Why bother? My produce mishap turned into my stomach's reward. I made this little frittata and it is delicious! I really just threw this one together, so my dried herbs, salt and pepper went unmeasured- use at your discretion. I also think it would be great with goat cheese. Enjoy!

Roasted Zucchini, Tomato and Ricotta Frittata

Serves: 4

2 zucchini, quartered, sliced

1-pint cherry tomatoes

½ cup part skim ricotta

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

4 eggs

2 egg whites

1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. parsley

1 tsp. minced onion

Salt pepper

2 tsp. olive oil

Toss zucchini in olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Roast at 400 until tender. Coat tomatoes in PAM, toss with salt and pepper. Roast at 400 until wrinkled/burst.

Beat eggs and egg whites. Add ricotta, ¼ cup Parmesan, zucchini, tomatoes, parsley, basil, minced onion and season with salt and pepper. Pour into 8x8 coated in cooking spray. Top with remaining 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes or until the edges are golden and eggs have set in center.

Cool for 10 minutes on rack.
Cut and serve.

Coming soon: Zucchini Banana Muffins (aka- what I did with the third zucchini)

Because I'm a Native St. Louisan

2011-10-30T15:24:00.000-05:00

Epic

Coming Soon: Fall Fun

Cheers :)

Shameless Product Placement of October

2011-10-18T21:28:00.001-05:00

Before we dive into this post, let me catch you up to speed. After all, it's been almost a month since you last heard from me.

I am going to be completely honest right now. I'm tired of studying and have had it up to here (makes motion to knees) learning and talking about nutrition. Don't worry Mom and Dad, I'm not dropping out of school or changing my major. I'm merely burning out. Not a big deal. It's only October so there's no need to be concerned. Furthermore, MLB playoffs are cutting into my sleep time and I've become addicted to online Scrabble. Thanks to Hasbro, I now have it on my phone and I am playing it EVERYWHERE. For instance, waiting in the check out line at Trader Joe's. I'm even to the point of asking random strangers on the T (Boston's subway) how to spell labyrinth. True story. My scrabble addiction shamelessly knows no bounds and it's actually inviting people into my life. Why?! How I am able to concentrate on a word game while riding the T is beyond me. Lately, my inner germaphobe has become quite ripe and freaks out about touching those hand poles. I'm beginning to feel like Monk. I mean, other people are noticing.

This Just In: "A girl was found on the T last night, selling her Trader Joe's groceries to anyone willing to lend her their pocket dictionary. Authorities are concerned online gaming could be a gateway activity for much more reckless hobbies like bocce ball, table tennis and charades. No word yet on whether she got a triple word score using plankton. And coming up, why she had twelve hand sanitizers in her backpack. Stay tuned."

This is honestly what my life feels like. I think this Scrabble frenzy is really just a vehicle for diversion. When you take five graduate level classes in a semester, I think screws slowly start to come out. You decide you have to start reclaiming your life by placing imaginary boundaries where they shouldn't be. I'm sure further posts will explore my (delusional) school rules surrounding not doing homework between the hours of three and five pm, mandated Wheat-Thins-eating while I do weekly biostatistics assignments and compulsive bathroom studying to avoid the constant distractors one finds in a 300 square foot apartment.

It is this very burnout you have to blame for my lack of posts. Time is an obvious finger-pointing factor for my blog's slow death. More so, it's my exhausted nutrition mindset that is entirely over reading, writing and talking about food. To help get my creative juices flowing, I actually looked up burnout in the dictionary...

"To be completely consumed and thus no longer aflame. To ruin one's health or become completely exhausted through overwork."

I am no longer aflame! This is serious. Graduate school is like a Bill Cosby sweater. You put it on, where it out and feel pretty great about it until that one person starts talking about JELLO and you realize you made a huge mistake. That simile made no sense at all. And on that note, I should probably get to the point of this post. So let's talk about, ugh, food. Shoot me.

Instead of discussing enzymes, glycogen, adipocyte formation or ketones, I'd like to make this post about a product I love. KIND Bars. In the tradition that is October, I thought I would post my version of a candy bar. Don't get me wrong; I can get down with a Snickers, Milky Way or 100 Grand any day of the week. But when I'm feeling calorie or ingredient conscience, this is what I reach for.

By now you can probably guess what I like most about KIND Bars. It's their short and simple ingredient lists. You can see everything in the bar that is on the label. No unpronounceable additives or hidden preservatives. They come in wonderful flavors like Apple Cinnamon Pecan, Fruit & Nut Delight, and Almond & Apricot.

You're inner sweet tooth junky is either a) screaming or b) crying right now. She said it was like a 'candy bar.' Anything that contains a fruit shouldn't fall into that category. You're ruining the one thing I love in an attempt to make it healthy! Settle down. My favorite of all the KIND bars is the Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew. It still has fruit, but you're going to have to get over that because the thing is coated in dark chocolate.

One (1.4oz) bar has 180 calories, 9 grams of fat and 14 grams sugar. For fun let's compare that to a Snickers. One (2oz) Snickers bar has 270 calories, 14 grams of fat and 28 grams of sugar. Truly though, there's no need to sell you on this point because no matter how much better the nutrition profile is on Kind Bars, they are downright delicious. I wouldn't go as far as to say they are nutritious, but when compared to a Snickers, they are less damaging.

Let me put it to you this way. If, due to my erratic behavior, ceaseless rambling and overall odd behavior, I were banished to a deserted island where I could no longer inflict myself upon others and I was allowed three things, a life time supply of KIND bars would be on that list. A girl needs reliable sustenance after all. No, but seriously, they're that good.

I'm still working on the other two items. I've been mulling this one over for a while and all I come up with are items in lifetime supply quantities. Can I do that? What a difficult question. I've heard people say they would bring a photo album of their friends and family and that makes me laugh right out loud. I mean if you want to survive, you're wasting your genie wishes on perishable nostalgia. Mark my words; those photos will be used as kindling within the first week. Plus I have this theory that if you were dumb enough to bring photos, the people would start disappearing from them. You know, like what happened to Marty McFly's family photo in Back to the Future. Items I've considered more seriously include toothpaste, tents, and duct tape - remember - in lifetime supply quantities! Not that toothpaste will save my life, but I've got a thing about dental hygiene so I view that one more as a psychological aid.

Kind Bars can be found in Whole Foods, REI and should be available in your neighborhood grocery store. Check them out! They are worth it. For more information about Kind Health Snacks check out their website here.

I Am Boosting the Economy One Frozen Dinner At A Time

2011-09-29T21:09:00.005-05:00

While trying to bend with a learning curve that comes with graduate school, I am discovering what it means to forsake oneself for something bigger. Although my nutrition knowledge pool may be on the rise, my diet has gone to the gutter. Amid hunting for my normal foods, learning to run errands by subway, bike or on foot and trying to tackle the mountain of homework that calls my name each and every night, my dietary world feels to be in shambles at the moment. Oh, and let's not forget my new Game of Thrones addiction. Say what you will about literary adaptations, but that show makes True Blood look like a tacky bargain bin romance novel meant for those without taste. Game of Thrones makes me want to put on a forty pound dress, learn how to ride a horse, shoot a bow and arrow and eat a turkey leg...simultaneously. Word to the wise - get HBO. If profanity, nudity or gore offends you - don't get HBO.

Long ago I found my freezer can be my greatest ally in the kitchen. Gone are my days of lounging, cooking, and baking. I am still batch cooking, just on a smaller scale. Thanks to my time and space constraints, my traditional food choices have been slightly compromised for the sake of my own sanity. Lucky for you, my total anguish and partial melt down has paved the way for your body's betterment. Rest assured, I receive no monetary compensation for this blog so the products spotlighted here are purely of my own opinion. There is no exchange of money for product endorsement. Just ask my depleted bank account.

Like so many people around our great nation, I am pressed for time. My coursework is demanding, homework is unrelenting and I live two blocks from Fenway Ballpark so you better believe I am getting used to living with noise. Perhaps my greatest Boston rival to date has been eating on a budget. Holy bagel sandwiches! Food is expensive out east. My conservative mid-west food spending days are over. When my plane flew over the Pennsylvania border, there was no turning back. My new home city is awesome but high-priced.

Frozen Dinners - often times these words next to one another makes the health conscience cringe. Understandable. For MANY years frozen entrees meant three things: high sodium, high fat and no vegetables. Over the last decade however, the food industry has made some pretty substantial improvements in these pre-made meals. Still, at times walking through the freezer section can feel like a bad movie preview you can't look away from because your intelligent inner self just wants to see if it can get any worse. Well that and those twenty milk duds you just ate make you think the lead actor looks like your gym teacher minus the unisex polyester gym shorts.

Enough schticking. There are two important things to remember when opening that freezer door:

Not all frozen meals are created equal.
Just because the word 'healthy' is on the cover doesn't necessarily make it your waist or heart's friend.

Below are three more favorable choices I find to be both nutritious and delicious. Because, let's be honest, no matter how nutrient packed a meal is, if it tastes like crap from a dumpster that been rotting in the sun for four days, I sure as heck ain't eating it.

PRODUCT #1
Amy's Light in Sodium Vegetable Lasagna

Yes, it's a vegetable lasagna. Get over it. With stacks of organic lasagna noodles layered with tomato sauce, roasted vegetables and low fat cheese, this one is unapologetically delicious. One serving has 290 calories and 8 grams of fat. The real thing about Amy's Vegetable Lasagna that gets my heart pumping (in a good way) is its sodium content. With 340mg per nine-ounce piece, Amy's makes Stouffer's like a bottle of soy sauce. Most traditional frozen lasagna pieces run around seven ounces, pack 350 calories, 12 grams of fat and carry between 600 to 800 mg of sodium. You're body and taste buds will thank you.

PRODUCT #2
Kashi Mushroom Trio and Spinach Pizza

With a whole grain and flax crust topped with a tomato Parmesan sauce, baby portobello, champignon and shiitake mushrooms, spinach, mozzarella and provolone cheeses you really can't go wrong. One serving (1/3 the pizza) has 250 calories and 9 grams of fat. The sodium content on this one isn't a bragging point, however, it does bring a sizable amount of dietary fiber (4 grams) and protein (2 ounces). Enjoy it for dinner and heat up the leftovers for lunch the next day. Yum, yum!

PRODUCT #3
Amy's Light & Lean Bean & Cheese Burrito

It's like a fiesta in your mouth. This burrito has a whole-wheat tortilla filled with pinto beans, Cheddar and Monterrey Jack cheese, brown rice and a tab of chili sauce. One serving contains 280 calories and 5 grams of fat, 8 grams of fiber and nearly 2 ounces of protein. Does the word burrito make you flatulent simply reading it? Well, take your Beno, drink some water and put the dog outside. No but really, for some, beans require practice. With practice will come tolerance. It may not be pleasantville, USA the first time around but it does get better with time.

Note: If you can't find the Light & Lean version, the traditional bean and cheese burrito is just as good and honestly, the nutrition profile is not greatly different.

One final frozen dinner tip. Add vegetables. Toss up a side salad. Roast or steam vegetables. The possibilities are endless. The frozen dinners can be on the smaller end and rightfully so for the sake of calorie, fat and sodium control. The trick to making sure they are both filling and nutrient dense is to add some color either directly into the dish or on the side.

Happy Heating!

Easy Eggplant Parmesan

2011-09-09T07:54:00.000-05:00

Where was I? If you've been keeping up with my blog or know me in any way, then you're aware I am now living in Boston. Allow me to apologize again for the month of August. There was no Shameless Product Placement and ONE measly post for the entire month. Talk about slacking. See the opening paragraph of the last blog post for further explanation. Bottom line: August, like that three year old I babysat when I was twelve, totally got away from me. At least I had hurricane Irene to welcome me to New England.

I am happy to report I am alive and well. Finally settled into my apartment, I've taken the subway, navigated the city streets on my bike and walked my mid-west butt all over the 2 mile radius that surrounds my overpriced, frat-house adjacent apartment. This new (terrifying) chapter in my life may have repercussions for this blog. I didn't move to Boston solely for the beautiful Fall foliage and 'wicked' clam bakes. Obtaining a MS in nutrition and completing my dietetic internship are all on the docket for the next sixteen months. Hello anxiety.

I'm not one of those people who pretends to have it all together while the pieces of her life crumble internally. I'm more the openly paranoid, borderline neurotic, caffeine dependent type. One finals week during my college career I actually attempted to sleep in a lecture auditorium to negate the time wasting activities of driving, eating, and bathing. It was going pretty well until the janitor showed up around mid-night and called the department of public safety on me. Armed with nothing but Twizzlers, notecards, and 4 one-liter bottles of Mountain Dew, the three officers set me free with a warning for loitering. To this day I wonder why three officers were corralled. The greatest danger I posed to anyone in the immediate area would have been a legendary sugar crash. Moving on, I'm afraid the days of weekly blog posts may be on strike for a bit. My obligation is to school and the Stafford Loans keeping me here. I am hoping to continue the blog so don't loose faith. I only ask for patience.

My relocation has already brought some new challenges in the area of, you guessed it, food. Don't get me wrong, Boston has some pretty amazing food to offer. But this girl is as single as it gets, not to mention on a budget, so you better believe I'm not wining and dining every night. Well, maybe a little wine. I have discovered that cultivating some of my familiar favorites isn't as easy as I thought it would be. Not only that, my apartment sqaure footage has been chopped in half and yet I'm paying more in rent. Location, location, location. Yeah, I know. Did I mention my kitchen is less than ten square feet? And with no dish washer, I am quickly adapting to what it means to be kitchen efficient.

Over the last five years I've perfected batch cooking. The whole idea is to give myself some options when it comes time for dinner. It goes a little something like this. I make recipes that typically feed six or eight, divide it up into single portions, stick them into tupperware and freeze. Cashew burgers, lasagna, homemade spaghetti sauce, chili, and chicken enchiladas are just a few of the various dishes I have on hand in my freezer at any one time. This eggplant parmesan is about the easiest thing in the world to make. It freezes, defrosts, and reheats without a glitch. Making it in my tiny kitchen was no easy feat so if I can do it, so can you.

Easy Eggplant Parmesan

Serves: 6-8

1 medium-large eggplant

1 egg beaten plus 2 TBS milk

Dried Italian bread crumbs (at least one cup, may need more)

8 ounces mozarella, sliced

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

4-5 cups of marinara sauce

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Slice eggplant into 1/2 inch slices. (NOTE: if you wish to peel the eggplant, do it before you start slicing) Dip each eggplant slice into eggwash, followed by breadcrumbs. Place onto cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until underside is golden brown. Flip slices over and repeat for another 15 minutes.

Remove eggplant from oven. In a 13x9 baking dish, cover bottom of pan in marinara. Next arrange eggplant slices in one layer (some overlapping may be necessary). Top each eggplant piece with a slice of mozarella, cover with marinara and top with parmesan cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Recipe Note: I used a combo of italian breadcrumbs and panko breadcrumbs and it turned out very good.

Happy Cooking

August's Nutrition Hot Topic: Weighing In On Food Scales

2011-08-15T08:41:00.001-05:00

First off, allow me to apologize for the lack of posts. This month has been a crazy one. Wrapping up my receptionist gig, moving back in with my parents, getting sick, and preparing to move to Boston are all things taking place during the turbulent month of August.

Now then, if I may say so myself, you are in good hands with me. I think I have been doing an all right job at this whole blogging thing, but on August fifth my suspicions were confirmed. The opening page on MSN.com was...

Booya. In the words of SportCenter's Kenny Mayne, "It must be a homer Simpson because the pitcher just went D'oh!"

I just want to say to my few, but dedicated readers, you are well informed...at least for now. The gluten conundrum was discussed right here on this very blog back on Cinco de Mayo. Cinco de Mayo people! Olay indeed. Let's not even address the decline in the stock market. That man's face says more than any of my Neanderthal rambling could ever convey. As for JWoww, Mr. Bean, and polar bear violence - more on that later.

While August gets on with itself, I am currently in the midst of my first week of summer vacation. It is a lot of lounging and Food Network watching. I hope it's not just me, but watching the Food Network actually makes me hungry. Either that or it makes me think I am hungry. I think it's more of the later if you want to know the truth. Much like Cheech and Chong, watching television while (over) eating are two things that go very well together. So as a reminder to all of us that portion control is important, it's time to discuss food scales.

Most of us are relatively familiar with volume measurement - maybe not visually, but rather conceptually. Weight is more of a black box area. During college I decided to purchase a food scale more out of curiosity than necessity. What does two ounces of pasta really look like? What about four ounces of chicken? Generally speaking, there are two kinds of people out there. People either over- or underestimate what a serving size actually is.

I've mentioned it here before perfection is overrated. For a while I obsessively measured every gosh-blessed thing I ate. Looking back, it was annoying. However, I did gain one skill from that brief period of lunacy. I am now much more comfortable measuring out foods and ball parking their quantities.

Health professionals try to come up with all kinds of tricks to help the average Joe deduce serving sizes.

Three ounces of meat = size of a deck of cards
1 medium apple or orange = size of a tennis ball
1/4 cup dried fruit = one small handful
2 tablespoons of peanut butter = size of a golf ball

What the what?! These guess-timations are not applicable for someone like me. I instantly start to perspire as I work to recall what a tennis ball even looks like. Here is where the food scale comes in. I never weighed my fruit or peanut butter, but dry pasta, natural cheese (goat or feta) and meat were all fair game. After so many times of weighing a given piece of food, you'll eventually come to realize you already know about how much is there. In the beginning, however, you may not be so confident or knowledgeable.

Food scales can be found just about anywhere these days. Your local grocery store, Target, Wal-Mart, and most kitchen supply stores such as William Sonoma carry food scales. They start around $4 and go up for there. The one I own was around $20 at the time of purchase. I'd go for a digital model if you can. The four-dollar variety is more of a manual scale. It involves zeroing the scale out and rotating the dial for each use. That's just too much physical labor for me. The digital models bring two buttons and that's it: On/Off and Tare/Mode. The answer is instantly given, no squinting-at-eye-level-to-read-the-dial required.

Most scales can read in ounces, grams or pounds and the average digital scale reads up to 11 pounds. Handy when you bring your newborn home from the hospital and want to track its growth. That right there just gave me away - its growth. They're not human. Oh brother. Reason number 743 why I should not look to conceive in the next five years.

Portion control, that's the whole reason to dive into the world of food scales. Should you start measuring everything you eat? No. Is it good to learn and become more familiar with portion sizes? Absolutely. Over-sized portions are an all-too-common culprit for weight gain.

Being more cognizant of the foods we put into our mouths is an important part of a healthy mind and body. It is not always fun, but it does help one become more aware of where their calories are coming from. Mindless eating is the devil's playground when it comes to your waistline. In 2004, a study done by Cornell University's Department of Nutrition and Psychology was published in the Journal of Nutrition. The study found that the more food young adults were served, the more they overate. The bottom line of weight gain is this: if you eat more calories than your body needs in a given day, you gain weight. It's just that cruel.

When people learn I am a nutrition major, the conversations take either one of two directions. Option A: they tell me about someone they know in the field. Option B (my favorite): they want to discuss the weight loss diet they are currently trying to follow. More times than not, B trumps A. So this means one thing to me - most of us want to loose some amount of weight. I will say this though - count your calories, measure out your food, eat your fruits and vegetables, work out - it is important to always have realistic expectations of yourself. More on tips for Mindful Eating to come...

In the meantime, I encourage you to venture into the painfully accurate world of food scales. Some days you'll love it; other days you'll hate it. Mark my words. But food is fuel and knowledge is power and if I could think of one more cliché here, I'd be really happy. None the less, as a true realist I'll give you one final alternative use for your beloved food scale should you purchase one, hate it, and not be able to refund your precious dinero. My mother also doubles hers as a scale for mail. Never again will the question, does it need more than one stamp, trip you up.

July's Nutrition Hot Topic: In Season Local Produce

2011-07-29T10:28:00.000-05:00

Summer is upon us. You know it has arrived when the smell of charcoal is misconstrued for food. I actually did that. It's not something I am proud of. It was only the fifth most embarrassing thing to happen to me. Numbers one through three I refuse to discuss. The fourth being the time I fell into the stingray tank at Sea World when I was nine. The tank was only a foot deep and there weren't technically any stingrays in it at the time, but they had to send a rescue team in after me. Something to do with my quote 'unwarranted fear and inability to move'. Well, that and I soiled myself while immersed in the tank. In my defense there is something unsettling about 20 tourists taking pictures of you with waterproof disposable cameras while four people wearing foam Shamu hats pull you out of what feels like a kiddie pool.

Moving on, as the summer scorcher settles in and my sweat glands make known their ardent disapproval, I am happy to report that these summer months bring some pretty amazing food. During our remaining weeks of this sweltering season, I encourage you to venture to your local farmer's markets and explore what wonderful foods your state has to offer.

This topic was inspired by a few things. First, local produce is going gang busters right now. Secondly, I'm feeling lazy. Thirdly, Ina Garten is my hero. Hero may be too strong of a word. If I could afford Tivo, it would be programmed out the gills with this woman. There is something about observing Ina in her Hampton house kitchen that makes me want to buy a house, gut the kitchen, install marble counter tops, purchase some Viking appliances, and stock the cabinetry with All-Clad pots and pans and a set of stainless steel mixing bowl. As a girl who recycles zip lock bags to save money, did I mention I intend to win the lottery? Getting back on tract, her show is straight up aesthetically pleasing. One of the countless things I like about watching this woman work is her avid use of local foods. Produce, meat, fish, cheese, bread - you name it, she's buying it. Sure it's staged, but I suppose it's the message that counts. Buy locally!

During various times of the year, towns across the country have different local produce to offer their citizenry. Pop on over the National Resources Defense Council's website to identify which fruits and vegetables are sprouting up in your area. The website even contains a link for locating farmer's markets near you! Good, good stuff.

I thought I would highlight three items on the massive list of in season produce found in my area for the month of July.

BLUEBERRIES

Ahh, my little blue friends. These things are wondrous. At 80 calories a cup, this fruit is focused on your health. Blueberries are one the most antioxidant rich foods out there. I've mentioned it here before, but antioxidants are crucial in optimizing health. They reduce free radicals and thus protect cells (and their DNA) from damage. What's more, one serving of blueberries contains roughly 30% of your daily vitamin C requirement. Support for the immune system, collagen formation, and aid in calcium absorption are all benefits of vitamin C. Lastly, one cannot ignore their dietary fiber. One serving of these bad boys gets you to 15% of your daily requirement with 4 grams per cup.

Eating Tip: On top of your cereal, in your yogurt, or simply by the handful.

BROCCOLI

This cruciferous vegetable is one to pick up weekly. I swear, I pick up a head or two of it every weekend. In my humble opinion, it's one of the simplest vegetables to prepare and eat. It also goes with just about anything. Burgers, chicken, fish - you name it, broccoli is a perfect side dish to just about any protein. As part of the cruciferous family, these vegetables are aptly categorized by their flower's petal shape. Cruciferae, New Latin for "cross bearing", refers to the pedal's - you guessed it -cross-like shape.

One cup of chopped broccoli delivers a healthy dose of vitamins K (116% of DV), C (135% DV) and A (11% of DV). Like blueberries, broccoli is also a decent source of dietary fiber with three grams per cup. What may come as a surprise to some is that broccoli is also a good source of calcium. With 43 mg per serving, this green vegetable can help you get a slight leg up on your calcium consumption.

Eating Tip: Steam it and top with olive oil, salt and pepper. Cut off stems, peal, cut into stalks and dip into hummus or Ranch dressing.

PEACHES

Last, but most certainly not least, the luxuriously sweet peach. If there is a fruit I identify most with summer, it would have to be the peach. Hands down. One large peach has about 70 calories and like broccoli wields about 3 grams of dietary fiber, vitamins A (11% of DV) and C (19%). Peaches are to summer what apples are to fall. Make crisp, bake them into pie, or eat this summer stone fruit right off the pit.

Eating tip: Peach Melba was something my Nana made each summer we went to visit. All you need is one cut up peach, some vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce and you're golden. It's the perfect summer dessert on those nights when the heat seems unrelenting.

There are numerous benefits to eating locally. Reducing the carbon foot print and supporting your local farmers are the two obvious benefits. But one advantage of eating locally that often goes unnoticed is the decrease in time it takes to get food(s) from the farm to the table. The less time a fruit or vegetable sits on a truck the better. Where produce is concerned, nutrient loss is a by-product of storage. The further your zucchini has to travel, the less vitamins and minerals it will deliver upon arrival. Just something to think about.

If you don't have a farmer's market nearby, look in your grocery store for local produce. Two grocery chains in my area have displays of local produce in their lobbies during various times of the year. One chain brags,

"All [produce] items are picked fresh from the stalk, vine or tree and delivered to Dierbergs stores within 24 hours – and in many cases, sooner than that."

In the midst of an obesity epidemic, noshing on low calorie, nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables is crucial in keeping the pounds off. Loaded with vitamins, minerals, and fiber - fruits and vegetables are just the weapons you need to protect your body and your health.

Shameless Product Placement of July

2011-07-19T19:38:00.000-05:00

This weekend marked the beginning of the end. I have officially commenced packing up my apartment in preparation for my move at the start of next month. I will be living like a slight nomad for 3 weeks. My apartment leases didn't align, so my parents will be taking me in for what's sure to be an interesting 21 days. Cue eye roll. I can't really run with this one because one of my future roommates is also my editor. But I will say this - deciding what to pack, what to take home, and what to throw away has been entertaining. Will I need twelve rolls of Scotch tape during my stay in my childhood habitat? What about my emergency Saturday Night Fever 'Staying Alive' flashlight? Needless to say, this past weekend felt like some weird marathon of Minute to Win It. Should it stay? Should it go? Decide now!

I'm still unsure what this month's Hot Topic will be. While dragging my feet on all things 'life', I thought I'd give you the Shameless Product Placement of July. . .

Amy's Quarter Pound Veggie Burger

I know what you're thinking - this granola loving, tree hugging, birdseed eating chick is trying to make me eat cardboard. I promise you, my feelings toward vegetable burgers were lukewarm at best before I discovered Amy's. If you're a devoted meat eater, these veggie burgers are not trying to resemble meat. Something about vegetable based products that attempt to resemble meat grosses me out. For instance, Tofurkey. Why? If I were so repulsed by the act of eating turkey, be it morally or biologically, why would I want to even touch a piece of tofu trying to pass itself off as the animal protein it's clearly not.

Although the burger's ingredient list is not exactly short, it is 100% readable. I don't have the time to develop and make a decent veggie burger that isn't loaded up with grain. One thing that erks me about homemade veggie burgers is they are often oat or rice based. Why bother? Being grain based, there's a clear lack of protein and I'm just going to put it on a bun! I'm not anti-carb, but come on. Putting a rice patty on a bun is like putting macaroni and cheese on top of pizza. At some point it's like okay, let's just eat a loaf of bread and be done with it.

So what makes Amy's so remarkable you ask?

One, 4-ounce burger brings a lot to the table. Let's start with protein. One burger is nearly three ounces of protein. Amy's does make other veggie burgers, but the Quarter Pound packs the most protein - hence the name. Trying to get in an adequate amount of protein is a common predicament I find myself in when trying to go vegetarian. Cottage cheese, eggs, nuts, and beans just don't cut it when they must be eaten on a daily basis. And one of these burgers gets me halfway to my daily protein allotment.

These burgers deliver in both the protein and fiber departments. With six grams of fiber per burger, they don't shy away from getting your bowels movin'. The average adult should aim for 25 grams of fiber a day. Most of us don't even come close to that number, so every little bit helps. I've mentioned it here before, fiber is an important part of our diet and should not be over looked. Return to The Shameless Product Placement of April for a fiber refresher.

Lastly, one of these burgers contains a mere 210 calories, 30 of which are from fat. Beside the all-too-common down fall of being grain based, many veggie burgers are often loaded with nuts and seeds. There is nothing wrong with fat, but sometimes a girl just wants to eat some protein and nothing more. These beautiful, delicious patties are 75% organic, kosher, diary-, lactose-, and cholesterol free. They're also vegan, but who cares.

The only aspect of these burgers that I don't care for is their sodium content: 600mg per burger is a wee bit steep. One burger is equivalent to two teaspoons of soy sauce. However, if I'm being totally honest, I was unaware of this small detail until I sat down to write this post. So reader, thank you so much for ruining this for me. Stupid nutrition facts labels.

Moving on, I like to put these burgers on either a whole wheat bun or one of those whole grain 100-calorie sandwich flats. Top them with hummus, spinach and tomato for the perfect lunch. I also enjoy them coated in barbecue sauce. Simply pop them in your microwave for a minute or two and they're ready to go. You can heat them in the oven or on the grill, but I don't have the patience for all that hoopla.

Hop on over to Amy's Website here. Take a look all the wonderful items this company has to offer. Amy's products can be found in most grocery stores or specialty health food stores (i.e. Whole Foods). Pot pies, soup, salsa, cake, or pie - this company is one to put stock in and I mean that figuratively.

Homemade Granola

2011-07-13T21:55:00.001-05:00

Last weekend was in-sane. Similar to most twenty-three year olds I know, my weekends are a spectacle. And by spectacle I mean my book club is getting out of control. You put too much paprika in the deviled eggs and the claws really come out. Not to mention the fact that on Saturday twelve, eighty-something year-olds received their disappointment of 2011 when I ruined the ending of this month's book. In my defense, I think we all knew how A Farewell to Arms was going to turn out. The unrest that followed grew intense, then disorganized, then confusing and ultimately ended with my dismissal. It was both aggressive and unanimous. When Hester left to go to the bathroom for the fifth time that hour, my one ally, much like her bladder control, was gone. The room managed to become so cold and damp that during the vote stalactites began to descend from the ceiling.

I should have seen this coming. The lipstick stained denture club, better known as Delores, Cecelia, and Ruth, have never been my biggest fans. After the Stephen Hawking/Stephen King debacle of January 2008, my forced departure was merely impending. All the old bags wanted to discuss was the Big Bang and I didn't read The Shining for nothing! Book jockey vigilantes. Looking back, it was a recipe for disaster. Then again, I've always been one of questionable judgment and taste. I like to think the Naked Gun films are O.J.'s greatest legacy and Ringo is my favorite Beatle. While keeping this in mind, I promise olive oil granola isn't as crazy or as gross as it sounds.

This granola is my favorite (to date). It's simple, but delicious. The thing about most homemade granola is it often comes coated in butter and sugar. Instead, I've made one that is both heart healthy and tasty to boot. So I present to you Kimberly's Olive Oil Granola. Bowl, spoon and milk - enjoy this stuff the traditional way as the perfect breakfast or evening nosh. Use it to top your yogurt or ricotta cheese and add some fresh berries for a great afternoon snack. Stir into ice cream for a little extra crunch. Add pretzel pieces and dark chocolate chips for the best trail mix EVER. The possibilities are endless. You are so very welcome.

Kimberly's Olive Oil Granola

Dry:
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Wet:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1 frothy egg white

Add Ins:
1/2 cup raisins, dried cranberries and/or apricot pieces

In a large bowl combine oats, pumpkin seeds, almonds, walnuts, shredded coconut and cinnamon. In a smaller bowl mix oil, maple syrup, honey, and salt together. Add wet mixture to larger oats bowl. Stir to combine. Fold in frothy egg white. Spread onto cookie sheet with a lip that has been lined with parchment paper.

Bake at 300F for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Allow to cool. Add raisins and store in airtight container(s).

Shameless Product Placement of June

2011-06-30T08:05:00.001-05:00

Holy freaking moly. How is it already the last day of June. When I got home from work Monday night, I sat down to ponder what my next blog post would be. After taking a few moments to review my monster list of topic ideas, the date hit me like a brick in the face. I quickly realized a shameless product placement was in order. They're not always the most informative pieces, but they are easy. Much like CSPAN, these posts are nearly effortless and run the risk of putting you to sleep. You're welcome.

I cannot continue without first acknowledging this Blagojevich situation. How could he have possibly thought he could sell Obama's Senate seat and not get caught in the process? We're talking about a man whose dismissal from The Apprentice was reportedly due to his technological inadequacies. He literally could not use a computer or text for that matter. On Monday he was found guilty on 17 counts of wire fraud, attempted extortion, soliciting bribes, conspiracy to commit extortion and conspiracy to solicit and accept bribes. I would think that in order to even attempt getting away with any of this, some knowledge of how to operate an iPhone would be necessary. This isn't Hogan's Heroes.

Now then, the Shameless Product Placement of June is....

Natural Peanut Butter

I was a kid raised on Jiff. It was (and still is) delicious awesomeness. From the artery clogging sensation it induced to the way it cements to plates in the dishwasher, I genuinely loved everything about it. It sufficed for the first twenty or so years of my life. But the honeymoon had to eventually come to an end. A of couple years back, a cardiovascular surgeon was a guest at the after school program where I volunteered to help teach inner-city middle schoolers how to cook healthfully. He brought in real human hearts, each one having a greater degree of cardiovascular disease. They were interestingly disgusting. Being the strong stomached girl that I am, I fainted only four times, wet myself twice and threw up once. You'd think after one of those episodes, someone would have asked me to leave the room.

The demonstration continued on with a miniature Eat This Not That lesson: chicken over red meat, fruit over candy, olive oil over butter, blah blah blah. One topic discussed was trans fats. Thanks to the butter vs. margarine post from Monday, you've been well informed on trans fats. The thing about a lot of peanut butter products out there is they contain hydrogenated oil(s). That probably means nothing to most of you, so I encourage you to keep reading. There's a prize at the end.

To put hydrogenation into laymen's terms, the word simply means to treat with hydrogen. By chemically introducing hydrogen to oils, it turns them into solid fats. It's a process done to extend a food's shelf life. You'll recall from butter vs. margarine that NYC health code prevents food service operations from using artificial trans fats. Hydrogenated oils are one such example.

There is a slight catch when it comes to fat labeling. A product can claim to be 'trans fat free' and list zero grams of trans fat on the nutrition label if there is less than 0.5g per serving. Okay, that's fine. However, that food doesn't necessarily remain trans fat free if you eat three servings of it. Enough about the mundane details of labeling, let's get to the good stuff.

Similar to all other products I've chosen to spotlight on this blog, the theme they all seem to carry is simplicity. All of them (all two of them) have contained a limited number of easy-to-read ingredients. This one is no exception.

Most natural peanut butters typically have one, maybe two, ingredients: peanuts and salt. Yes, this is the kind you have to stir and store in your refrigerator. Over the last three years I've tried numerous brands and various nut versions - think almond and cashew. As a former Jiff devotee, the best one I've found is Smucker's Natural Peanut Butter. It's sweet and has a normal peanut butter consistency, not that gritty texture other natural nut butters often bring to the table. Best of all, Smucker's has somehow discovered a way to make a natural peanut butter than requires little to no stirring.

Other than the traditional pb & j, I thought I'd give you some other unique ideas for ways to eat peanut butter.

Spread onto a frozen waffle for an easy on-the-go breakfast or snack
Stir it into your oatmeal as it finishes cooking and top with banana or apple slices
Spread onto apple slices and top with granola
Put into a smoothie
Spread onto pretzels, graham crackers, or squares of dark chocolate

That list got increasingly decadent. For a while I boycotted peanut butter due it's fat content. Was I insane? Yes. Here's the thing about fat. Like the infamous carbohydrate, fat should not be feared. Of the macro-nutrients, fat is the most complex one to digest and therefore, keeps you feeling full longer. If you disagree that capitalizing on satiety is not a fundamental part of weight loss and/or weight maintenance, meet me outside. But peanut butter isn't just a good source of fat, it also packs some protein. Two tablespoons equals one ounce of protein.

Check this scrumptious stuff out! No need to go to a health food store either. Smucker's Natural Peanut Butter can be found in your normal grocery store. It's available in Creamy, Chunky, Honey, or No Salt Added. Come back next week for I don't know what, but it's sure to be fantastic.

The Great Debate: Butter or Margarine

2011-06-27T07:50:00.002-05:00

Will someone please take Tim Pawlenty out of the running for the 2012 Republican Party Presidential Candidacy? Watching him during interviews makes me so uncomfortable I actually feel compelled to mute my television, the audio equivalent of looking away from the screen during a horror or Omnimax film. It's a compulsion propelled by either fear or queasiness. Between CNN's New Hampshire GOP debate where he back peddled unmercifully about "Obamnie" Care and his agonizing references to Lady Gaga, Charlie Sheen, and Justin Bieber during the Iowa Caucus, his public appearances have become cringe worthy at times. Exhibit A:

"If this were a Lady Gaga song, the relationship between the youth vote and Barack Obama would be 'Bad Romance.'"

I still like to think of myself as a youth, and even I think he should consider a new speechwriter. Honestly Tim, love him or hate him, Obama has the youth vote. Please stop straining yourself. You know who Tim Pawlenty loves more than a bad awkward pop culture reference? Paula Deen*. You know what Paula Deen loves? Butter.

*Not a factual statement

Are we there yet? Yes. I decided I would treat my avid followers with a topic I get confronted with anytime baked goods are discussed. Which is better, butter or margarine? I hate this question. When asked, my response is never as simple as the thoughts that formulate in my brain. And like that subscription to People magazine your sister-in-law gave you three years ago for your birthday, it's a gift that keeps on giving. One answer leads to another question and before you know it, you're discussing UNICEF at a Starbucks over two stale muffins and a bad cup of herbal tea.

So before we begin this 'which is better' debacle, I'm going to let you in on a little secret. You're asking the wrong question. Neither one is exactly "healthy". The more accurate question to pose is which is less harmful?

Below is the pertinent data you need to compare the two:

One Tablespoon of Land O Lakes Unsalted Butter

Calories: 100

Cholesterol: 30 mg

Total Fat: 11 grams

Saturated Fat: 7grams

Trans Fat: 0 grams

One Tablespoon of Land O Lakes Margarine

Calories: 100

Cholesterol: 0 mg

Total Fat: 11 grams

Saturate Fat: 2 grams

Trans Fat: 2.5 grams

Both butter and margarine match each other calorie for calorie. It's the cholesterol content and the distribution of fat that differs between the two. Let's talk cholesterol first. If you read my post on eggs, you'll know that only animal based products contain cholesterol, which is why margarine has no cholesterol. Don't let the packaging fool you; it's made from soybean oil. Margarine boasting its cholesterol free-ness is like a bottle of Aquafina proclaiming there's water inside without tire pieces.

Now then, when it comes to total fat both counterparts contain 11 grams. Total fat intake for an adult over the age of 19 should be between 20-35% of total calories. If you consume 2,000 calories a day your fat intake should fall between 400-700 calories or 45-78 grams. As you can see 11 grams wouldn't ruin your WHOLE day.

What's more important to address when playing the 'which is worse' game, is to look at how the fat breaks down. While butter contains more saturated fat, margarine contains more trans fat. If you're wondering which is worse for you, I'm here to tell you trans fat trumps saturated fat any day of the week.

Saturated fat does raise LDL cholesterol (the bad stuff). While that's not ideal, trans fat not only raises LDL cholesterol it also lowers your HDL cholesterol (the good stuff). Trans fat is the karate chop of fat sources. For this reason, the new 2010 Dietary Guidelines recommend to limit saturated fat intake to less than 10% of total calories and trans fat consumption as much as possible, meaning don't eat any if you can avoid it. It's for this very reason that as of 2006, food labels had to start including trans fat information and the New York City Health Code required all restaurants and food service operations no longer use artificial trans fats.

Enough technical talk, it's now time for my opinion. When it comes to dessert/baked goods, are you really eating them to be healthy? I'm not saying there isn't a time a place for a healthful dessert, but really? And at the end of the day, how much of the spread are you actually consuming. If I had to guess, I'd say it's not an entire stick everyday.

For the sake of application let's look at an average chocolate chip cookie recipe yielding 60 cookies and calling for 2 sticks of butter. You'd have to eat almost four cookies to consume one tablespoon of butter. Consuming four cookies in one sitting isn't impossible, but are you doing it on a daily basis? Probably not.

I recently had this butter vs. margarine debate and what I tell people time and time again is that if I'm eating dessert give me the butter. I'm not eating this cranberry orange scone as a favor to my waistline or because it's 'healthy'. I'm eating it because I want something delicious and decadent. A nutrition student is choosing butter over margarine? What kind of a world are we living in? What's the catch? The catch is moderation. No, I'm not sitting on a high horse. It's actually a very large pony. Thank you for noticing. They breed them in China now. But seriously, I'm not perfect. And if I'm not perfect, I don't expect it from others. Besides, perfection is overrated and almost as frustrating as staring into the eyes of the 44th Governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee. Please revisit my Sloth comment here.

When it comes to which fat to avoid more, it's trans fat hands down. There is some good news out there. Trans fat free margarine does exist! The key is to look for non-hydrogenated margarine. Brands like Benecol, Blue Bonnet Soft Spread, and Smart Balance all contain zero grams of trans fat. While these substitutes might work for spreading onto toast or a baked potato, they really churn out some foul baked goods. If you're so inclined to experiment and you think they're good, you're a liar. Either that or you've never tasted real food before.

So there you have it. You probably wanted a more direct answer, but that's the best I can give you. Having somewhat endorsed butter as my go-to fat source for baking allow me to say this: If you have or are at risk for cardiovascular disease I encourage you to meet with your doctor or an RD before going hog wild on all things butter.

I'd like to close with two thoughts. (1) I've mentioned before that I like consuming products where I can read all the ingredients and the list itself is short. Most imitation margarine products are the opposite of this ideology. Bearing this in mind, most butters tend to have two ingredients at most: sweet cream and salt. (2) Personally, at the end of the day, I'd rather have one real dessert than seven fake ones.

Disturbing Literature & The Snickers Bar in Your Blood Stream

2011-06-20T07:22:00.001-05:00

A few years ago I picked up Dr. Gillian McKeith's, You Are What You Eat. To say I instantly regretted it would be an over statement. To say I slept for two days straight after reading it would also be a derivative of the truth. Looking back, I'm not sure why I even purchased the bloody thing and now, with four years of nutrition education under my belt, I find it rather funny that I did. But first let me say kudos to her for having the moxie to write and publish a book. I have anxiety over this blog, a portal for my thoughts for which I receive absolutely no compensation.

Let's start out by doing due diligence. Dr. Gillian McKeith is a Scottish nutritionist with the teeth to prove it. She's also a UK television presenter and writer. She has a degree in linguistics from the University of Edinburgh and a Masters from the University of Pennsylvania in international relations. She received a Masters and a Ph D in holistic nutrition via a distance-learning program from the non-accredited American Holistic College of Nutrition, later the Clayton College of Natural Health in Birmingham, Alabama which has since closed.

There are numerous portions of her book that made me do a double take. Herbal and nutritional supplements to suppress appetite, aromatherapy vein massage, a healthy teeth program involving horsetail and oat straw supplements (yes, you read that right), and a stress self check questionnaire (if I don't know I'm stressed, I probably shouldn't be reading this book) are just a few. Oh and lastly, I cannot ignore the section titled "Cleaning Out the Dirty Sink" in which she recommends an enema or colonic on the day of a cleanse. Ouch. Also, I'm not super fond of thinking of my colon as a dirty sink, but okay.

Moving On. In Chapter 5 titled, Top 5 Bummers, she discusses the regulation of insulin and glucose in the body. Allow me to catch you up to speed. A more relatable word for glucose (in reference to our blood) is blood sugar. Insulin is the hormone that drives glucose into cells when our blood sugar levels rise. This innate process is crucial for clearing sugar out of our bloodstream. And we're back. She provides the reader with the following "Glucose Tolerance Self-Check" quiz to allow you to identify if you may have a problem with regulating your insulin and/or glucose levels. Thanks?

Difficulty concentrating
Excessive consumption of caffeine, chocolate or cigarettes
Excessive sweating
Excessive thirst
Extreme difficulty in getting out of bed
Falling asleep in the middle of the day/feeling really drowsy
Inability to get going without caffeine/nicotine fix
Irritability without frequent meals
Need for more than eight hours' of sleep a night

Umm...crap. Let me tell you folks, I do not have any issues regulating glucose at this time and I am literally nine for nine on that questionnaire. Most days, I've experienced all nine by 3pm. My life gets very real when I've gone more than four hours without eating and if you've ever witnessed me on less than eight hours of sleep, you know my demeanor resembles that of Attila the Hun. It's like witnessing a punk rock band actively contract sun poising in front of your eyes. I'm truly a delight under the right circumstances.

What is it about most nutrition related literature that can really freak a reader out? Sometimes it seems most of these authors corner the market on scare tactics and drastic recommendations (*see horsetail). Honestly though, one scary nutrition book can lead you to find the most normal things in your life to be a medical emergency. It reminds me of when I was taking Medical Terminology. We had just covered the urology chapter and without being too graphic I had eaten red beets for dinner and in the morning I awoke to a toilet bowl full of temporary terror.

In all seriousness though, insulin resistance can lead to some pretty heavy complications. For example, it can be a precursor for Type II diabetes and cardiovascular disease. So although I'm scoffing this little questionnaire, You Are What You Eat has sold over 2 million copies worldwide, so you better believe people are reading it.

Having said this I feel it's important to arm you with some knowledge because calling out your caffeine fix for a medical condition just isn't fair. Common symptoms of insulin resistance (or glucose intolerance) can include excessive thirst, frequent urination, weight loss, and polyphagia (excessive hunger/eating). Hyperglycemia or high blood sugar can be further evidenced by fatigue, headache or blurred vision. As you can see, some of the items on McKeith's list are right on track with these symptoms. Here's what I'd say. If you have a family history of insulin resistance or diabetes, you're probably already aware of the signs. If you experience any of them on a daily basis, do more than take a self-assessment questionnaire. Please go see your doctor.

If you're interested in this book, by all means check it out. The book does have some merits. She pushes healthy eating 101: fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, whole grains, etc. However, there is a lot of information to keep track of and a smattering of some rather odd practices. Personally, I don't think food needs to be this hard. The plan she designs is rather complicated and time consuming for us mere mortals to follow on a daily basis. Nevertheless, who doesn't want to read a book where the author states on the cover, "Slimmer, healthier, and happier...that's my promise to you". If only there was a chapter on techniques for paying off student loans.

June's Nutrition Hot Topic: Plate Vs Pyramid

2011-06-09T07:12:00.000-05:00

This topic is fresh off the press. It cannot get any hotter than this. I've literally singed off my fingerprints by merely writing about this one. Last week the USDA unveiled the newest version of the Food Guide Pyramid, except it's no longer a pyramid. The newest model for healthy eating has adopted the shape of a plate. This seems practical enough. While I've heard mixed reviews about the new plate, I have to say no matter what the USDA designs, I think it's impossible to please everyone 100% of the time. I do not envy the task force whose job it was to design this thing. Pyramid, plate, or poodle - conveying the message of healthy eating in one clear, concise image is never as simple as it sounds. There are countless sources out there feeding us information on what healthy eating really is. It's vegetarian, vegan, Atkins, South Beach, Zone, Weight Watchers and the list goes on and on. So for now, I simply want to discuss a few of the older Food Guide Pyramids and address the new Food Plate.

I think most of us are familiar with the 1992 version of the Food Guide Pyramid. I know it's the one I grew up with and it tends to be the most recognized version. This pyramid is uncomplicated; the largest group being grains, then fruits and vegetables, followed by dairy and various protein sources and finally concluded with fats, oils and sweets. Attached to each group are serving suggestions.

But Kimberly, aren't carbohydrates the enemy? Should everyone consume 11 servings of grain in a day? No. That is why ranges are given. While hunting around online for articles on our various Food Guide Pyramids, a common response readers supplied was that our grains group should not be the base of our food models. I find myself saying this all the time, but carbohydrates are not your enemy. On average, one serving of grain is about 15 grams of carbohydrate or 100 calories. If you consume the minimum recommended amout (6 servings according to the 1992 model) that equates to 600 calories a day. If you think that sounds like a lot of calories, I encourage you to seek professional help.

Honestly, I kind of like the 1992 Food Guide Pyramid. It's simple and straightforward. There's no color-coding or guess work required. All it needs is a little tweaking. Throw in something about whole grains, specify diary sources should be low fat, emphasize lean protein, and give examples of what makes up a serving size in each category and like that chick with the braces you took to Prom, this thing is ready to go.

Maybe it's not that simple, but I think the 1992 version of the Food Guide Pyramid was a boat load better than the 2005 train wreck the USDA designed. It's like the Department of Agriculture got Gremlins wet, gave them some computer software and locked them in a room for 48 hours. The final product turned out to be more confusing than the LOST series finale. I myself didn't understand it. I try to use the word "hate" sparingly in my vocabulary. But this 2005 version is about as pointless as putting lifejackets in a casino. To say I loved this pyramid would be as idiotic as U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner's inability to identify whether or not that lewd photo was of himself. Which to me begs three questions: (1) Are you really THAT unfamiliar with the lower half of your body? (2) Are there so many indecent photos of you running around, you simply cannot keep track of them all? (3) Really?!

Moving on. The only thing they got right on this version was the direct shout-out to physical activity. That stick figure knows the importance of getting your heart rate up. Other than that, this bewildering depiction of a properly balanced diet is about as understandable as a five year old explaining their favorite part about naptime.

The widths of each category are supposed to indicate the intended portion of the diet each group should make up. Instead it's like an optical illusion. Is the dairy band bigger than the vegetable band?! There is zero indication of portion size. The fats portion of the pyramid looks like it was hastily added at the end, not unlike you're decision to use the restroom at the movie theatre three minutes before the show starts. The only example of fat provided in the menagerie of images is canola oil. Helpful. If you want to know anything about the number of servings allotted per day or what makes up a serving size you must log on to mypryamid.gov and root around until you find the answer. This is super applicable to the general population who has vast amounts of time on their hands. Ugh. I cannot discuss this thing any further.

Which brings us to the new Food Plate. I think it may be slightly better than the 2005 Food Guide Pyramid. While I don't hate it, I also don't love it. Returning to simplicity is something I find myself stating and restating. We make food too difficult. It doesn't have to be so complicated. Yes, this is true. It seems like the USDA was reading my blog and designed this plate with my verbiage in mind.

Bam! Above is the new food model for the United States population. A plate half filled with fruits and vegetables, a grains portion equal to that of the vegetables and a small source of protein. All this coupled with a glass/bowl of dairy. Got it? Thank you all for reading. Good night.

Below are purely my opinions. Take them. Leave them. Pass them off as your own. I don't care.

First let's discuss what they got right.
1. Visualization
For starters a plate is much more relatable than a pyramid. We eat the majority of our meals off them, so to reinvent our food guide model onto this shape was somewhat genius (boy, does that feel like the wrong word). One common complaint I hear from old and young people alike is that they don't know how to eat. That may sound ridiculous, but it's not. By depicting what the average meal should resemble, this model helps us imagine what a properly balanced diet looks like. And this is a step in the right direction. Essentially, the USDA is saying mimic this design, and you're on the right track.

2. Plate Portions
If there is one thing you should have noticed about this plate, it's that half of it is covered in stuff many of us don't get enough of: fruits and vegetables. It's pretty optimistic to get half your plate filled with both of these groups. So maybe start small. Perhaps it's filling a quarter of your plate with these items. Regardless, bulking up on fruits and vegetables can be a great way to fill your belly and still retain a low calorie meal. And that right there can be a recipe for weight loss.

3. Re-labeled Protein
The most notable change in this food model, other than its shape, is the protein portion. It is no longer labeled meat and beans (see the 2005 version). The plainer "protein" title indicates, to me anyway, that there are other protein sources out there besides meat. Beans, legumes, and nuts are just a few of the lesser-known protein sources.

Now for the mistakes.
1. Grains
I've spoken to a handful of people about it and there is one unanimous observation constantly brought up. What makes up grains? You mean the orange pie wedge didn't provide you with enough information? Oy! There's also no mention of whole grains. If you read my post on whole grains you'll recall the new USDA dietary guidelines recommend half our grain consumption to be whole grains.

2. Missing Foods
Where are the healthy fats and sweets? I understand we're in the middle of an obesity crisis, but to completely take them off the table, so to speak, seems rather glaring. We've gone from sparingly to obsolete in less than 10 years time.

First Lady, Michelle Obama, has attached her name to the cause of healthier eating. Her Let's Move! Campaign is aimed to solve the childhood obesity epidemic within a generation. This is an optimistic goal I hope occurs during my lifetime. But is healthy eating really about deprivation? Simply not including healthy fats and sweets doesn't mean people will stop consuming them. In fact by not addressing them at all, it may do the exact opposite.

3. Over Simplification
This last point encompasses the plate in its entirety. Is the plate so rudimentary that is doesn't provide any information at all? Yes it's basic and straight forward, but there's so much ambiguity to it. What qualifies as grains? When/where does dessert fit into the picture? Where are the serving suggestions? Dairy isn't just the apparent glass of milk. Other sources include cheese, yogurt, ice cream, etc. and all should be low fat or fat free.

This plate poses a substantial amount of questions. What those who designed it will tell you is that you can go to choosemyplate.gov for more information. Here is where you can get your questions answered. That's great. But I thought a food model should answer questions, not create more of them.

Lastly, I'd like to discuss the Mediterranean's Food Guide Pyramid. I've mentioned it on this blog before and now is as good a time as any to bring it out. The Mediterranean diet has been touted for many years for its emphasis on healthy oils, fish, and use of fresh produce.

As you can see, the pyramid is based on physical activity. Daily-consumed groups include grains, fruits, vegetables, beans, legumes, nuts, olive oil, cheese and yogurt. Fish, poultry, eggs, and sweets should be consumed a couple times a week and meat on a monthly basis. Lastly, the pyramid recommends 6 glasses of water a day and wine in moderation. I love how our new Food Plate didn't even include healthy fats or sweets, yet somehow the Mediterraneans got both plus booze on theirs! What are we doing?!

In closing, the new Food Plate is not prefect. It's missing important pieces of information, but its design does make it more relevant. Visualizing what a proper meal should look like can come in handy to the average American wanting to make dietary adjustments. However, does this new Food Plate provide you with enough information? Although it may be a step in the right direction, is there really enough there to guide or influence the way you eat?

Last week an article ran on the Huffington Post's website, introducing the new Food Plate. The article was short and sweet. What I found interesting were the viewer comments. Gnomechomsky wrote:

"The USDA's food plate chart doesn't really make me want to eat healthier; it just makes me want to play Trivial Pursuit."

I think we can all agree to that.

Blueberry Muffins

2011-06-02T07:07:00.000-05:00

As a graduation gift to myself, I purchased a bike over the weekend. Part of me thought, Humph! Shouldn't my parents be getting me this as a congratulatory gesture? But I quickly recalled the fact they have been generously putting me through not four, but five years of college. Waves of nausea were quickly followed by feeling as though I was the one responsible for shooting Bambie's mother. I blame my own transient narcissism on my generation's ego-centric mentality. When JK Rowling hands you the Harry Potter series as kids and then Mark Zuckerberg invents Facebook for your teen and early adult years, the generation is bound to grow up solely thinking about themselves. Our sense of self worth has only trended in an upward moving direction, never being deterred by frivolous matters like the economy, bioterrorism threats, or the resignation of Jim Tressel. We just expect awesomeness to fall into our laps. When it doesn't naturally happen, we tend to wind up jaded and little bit pissed. Man we're abominable.

I've decided to make the post of the week a recipe. While recovering from a three-day weekend filled with biking, running, baseball, and dart throwing I thought I'd make it easy on myself. I mentioned my Nana's blueberry muffins in the last post. These things aren't so much muffins, as they are cupcakes without frosting. Don't get me wrong they are delicious. I don't know where exactly she got the recipe from, but whoever it was, they loved their sugar. These are the kind of muffins that just sit in a lump in your chest for about 20 minutes post consumption. While you don't have to twist my arm to get me to eat one, I have recently put my own spin on the recipe. I am a dietetics major after all. So here is my revamped blueberry muffin recipe.

Blueberry Muffins
Yield: 12 muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
Coarse white sparking sugar for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line muffin tin with papers or grease each cup.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, then set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with a hand-held or stand mixer, until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition
Add vanilla and yogurt and mix until incorporated.
Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed just until the batter is smooth. It will be thick.
Fold in berries by hand, using a wooden spoon or spatula.
Scoop batter into prepared muffin tins and top with coarse white sugar, if desired.
Bake for 18-24 minutes. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes, then remove muffins and allow muffins to finish cooling.

I took this picture!!!

I do have a few helpful tips for these muffins. One, if using frozen berries, do not allow them to thaw. Incorporating them into the batter frozen helps prevent the berries from bleeding into the batter. This may add 5 minutes of bake time to your muffins.

Secondly, your freezer is often times your best ally in the kitchen. This cavernous, frigid box seems to go forgotten by many. It's not just there to store your coffee grounds and ice cream novelties. I have now lived on my own (as in sans roommates) for the last two years, and without my freezer I think I would have gone insane. For people living in a large household, freezing leftovers or baked goods seems idiotic. If you're one of those people, you're right. However, there are some of us out there who want to enjoy the lasagnas, muffins, bagels, and soups but don't want to feel obligated to eat them every day of the week in order to prevent the guilt that follows wasting food. This is where your freezer comes in. I do a lot of batch cooking where I'll divide up the final product and then freeze it in single servings. This concept applies to these muffins. Even if there are a lot of mouths to feed I recommend freezing them. One, it protects their freshness much longer than if you'd let them sit out on the counter. Two, when they're out of sight, they're out of mind.

Bearing this tip in mind, once your muffins have completely cooled, place them in a one-gallon freezer bag and let your freezer act as a preservative. I hope you enjoy!

Shameless Product Placement of May

2011-05-27T07:43:00.002-05:00

Because the world didn't come to an end last weekend, I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief that Friday is finally upon us. It feels good to be alive. Although, I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed. Harold Camping, the preacher who predicted our impending, all be it false, doom has made one hell of a shocking announcement this week. He did his math wrong. I like a man who can openly admit he is wrong when the general public is unaware of his misstep. It takes a large set of cahones to publically admit you're wrong, especially after you make the entire world acknowledge what you believe to be their death sentence. He formally apologized about this on Monday, saying he did not have the dates "worked out as accurately as I could have." Wowsa. Note to self: Always do your homework. Lucky for us, he has recalculated the date the world will end and now we have until the end of October to get our affairs in order. Thank God. I was worried. Having your will drawn up when all you own is a few pair of jeans and an ipod is STRESSFUL. And who does one leaves things to when the world ends? Probably no one, but I like having back up plans for my back up plans. Agh, I have so many unanswered questions.

Although we all only have a few short months left, I think we can all still enjoy the wonderful perks of food. Having said this, the Shameless Product Placement for the month of May is...

Greek Yogurt

I know what you're thinking. Kimberly, yogurt is for chicks. Kimberly, yogurt is disgusting. Kimberly, I hate how my toenails grow in various pointing directions. It's okay. It took me a while to get accustomed to Greek yogurt. I've always loved yogurt, but that may be due to the fact that most of the flavored brands are loaded with sugar. Greek yogurt is thicker than traditional yogurt and has a slight tanginess to it. Regardless, it's the bee's knees.

The difference between traditional yogurt and Greek yogurt simply lies in processing. Obviously, both forms are made from milk. Regular yogurt is formed by introducing bacteria (probiotics) into the milk. This mixture then ferments to form its signature consistency. Greek yogurt is made in a near similar fashion. After the bacteria have been introduced to the milk, the mixture is then strained through cheese cloth and the extra liquid whey is drained out.

I've chosen to plug Greek yogurt this month for numerous reasons. One reason does not include the fact that the Yahoo! News Business page ran an article on the stuff this week entitled "Greek Yogurt: Weight Loss Secret for the Summer". Bologna. I love articles like this. She writes sarcastically. Below I've provided you with the opening two sentences:

Need to lose weight you gained over the winter? Clinical research proves that a reduced-calorie diet that includes yogurt can encourage fat loss.

This is ground breaking. A reduced-calorie diet encourages weight loss? Ugh I love when people claim the obvious to be something revolutionary. In addition to this, you could substitute almost any other "healthy" food for yogurt in that last sentence and the statement would still ring true: Carrots, beets, grapes, mangoes, etc.. I also found it interesting that this article was in the Yahoo! New Business section and not the Health section until I scrolled down to the bottom of the article where I learn it was written by Emily Neukircher from Sun Valley Dairy. Bingo. I've included this slightly obnoxious paragraph to encourage us all to be active readers when it comes to health related material. Being aware of where your writers are coming from can help you distinguish facts from advertisements.

Back to Greek yogurt. For the sake of simplicity, I'm going to pick a brand to discuss. Oikos. One 5.3 ounce container contains 0% fat and only 80 calories. The true claim to fame of Greek yogurt is the protein content. This small little container packs about 15 grams (2 ounces) of protein, making it a crazy good breakfast item or mid-afternoon snack.

Like I mentioned before, eating Greek yogurt can take some getting used to. So to ease into all the deliciousness, my suggestion is simply dilution. This was how I first starting eating it. Half a cup of plain Greek Yogurt mixed with your favorite traditional yogurt. Feel free to add in berries, nuts, or granola. After a while, the pain of mixing your yogurt will win out and you'll realize Greek yogurt is actually pretty good by itself. I regularly eat it in the morning with some kind of juicy fruit (mango, berries, or orange slices) and top it with some sliced almonds. For a while I also used honey or agave nectar to sweeten it up a bit.

Lastly, for all you bakers out there, Greek yogurt can easily be used in place of sour cream. Cutting the fat and boosting the protein content of any given baked good is truly a health nut's delight. I substitute plain Greek yogurt for sour cream in my Nana's blueberry muffins and my Mother's chicken enchiladas. And I got to tell you, we can't tell the difference.

Look for Greek yogurt in your grocer's refrigerated dairy section. Other brands of Greek yogurt include Fage, Chobani, and Trader Joes. Greek yogurt can also be found in a wide variety of flavors if the plain isn't your cup of tea. Blueberry, strawberry, peach, lemon, honey, raspberry, pomegranate, vanilla and mango are just a few of the numerous flavors of Greek yogurt that are out there. So check it out and enjoy!

Holy Whole Grains

2011-05-24T06:51:00.004-05:00

Well, I'm officially a working girl (minus Sigourney Weaver's bone structure and 1980's hair). I have quit my part time job as a dietary clerk at a local hospital and opted for a friendlier paying receptionist gig. For my first day on the job I played nothing but Dolly Parton's "Nine to Five", stuffed my bra with pieces of a Nerf football and drank nothing but caffeinated beverages. To say my coworkers were slightly alarmed is like saying Dennis Rodman would make a good husband. That's not 100% true but it would have been a great icebreaker, no? Sidebar: how did Dolly convince them to let her work nine to five? Was she not taking her lunch break? I have to admit it sounds nice. I genuinely need my beauty sleep, after one forty-hour workweek I looked like Scrooge from any one of the Christmas Carol adaptations. When I asked for this nine to five schedule, my superiors adopted a look that screamed loud and clear, "Drug test this girl on the spot!"

Let's hope this shift in employment doesn't affect my blog work. Although, it most likely will because my editor has already noted her lack of volunteer workload. Staying tried and true to my one to two weekly posts, today we're going to discuss glorious whole grains!

I'm not really one to shove my opinions down other people's throats, which in some ways makes this blog completely ironic. I mean this entire thing is devoted to nothing but my thoughts. I'm finding self-induced egotism suits me quite well. Never the less, whole grains are something I am somewhat passionate about. My mother raised both my brother and myself on whole wheat products. Back in elementary school I cursed her for this. I faced rejection on a daily basis when my classmates refused to trade lunch items with me. Sandwiches on whole wheat bread, whole grain chips or crackers, grapes, and peanuts were all that armed me on the lunchroom battleground. Ahh Danielle Howard, how I coveted your Lunchables. It all paid off though. Today I am thankful for being force fed whole grain products as a child. There was never a need to shift the way I ate grain-based products. Today, most of us know whole grain products are touted over refined white carbs, but why?

What are whole grains? The official definition is as follows:

"Whole grains, or foods made from them, contain all the essential parts and naturally-occurring nutrients of the entire grain seed."

Before we continue, that definition sounds like we should be eating wheat right off the stalk. It's important to note that if the grain has been processed (e.g., cracked, crushed, rolled, extruded, and/or cooked), the food product should deliver approximately the same rich balance of nutrients that are found in the original grain seed. Okay, that sounds way more reasonable. For visual purposes, below is a diagram of an average grain kernel (think wheat).

The Benefits of Whole Grains:
When grains are refined, the bran and germ are removed. The bran is the mother ship of nutrition. This external casing houses dietary fiber, omega fatty acids, protein, vitamins and minerals. The germ is the reproductive part of the plant or the embryo of the seed if you will. It contains vitamins and minerals such as vitamin E, thiamin, zinc, magnesium, and phosphorous.

Phytochemicals and antioxidants are disease-fighting components people commonly associate with fruits and vegetables. What you may not know is that both of these are found in whole grains. Many of us are familiar with antioxidants; these little compounds protect us from free radical damage both internally and externally. Incorporating antioxidants into food products has become very popular. Just yesterday I found a dog food that claims to contain antioxidants in the form of pomegranate extract. You know something is popular when animal food companies are jumping on the bandwagon. It's like those Fancy Feast cat food commercials. I could literally see myself trying one of those things simply because of how appealing their advertisements look. Call me crazy, but who wouldn't want to try one of those gourmet wet cat foods?

Moving on. Phytochemicals are simple chemical compounds in plants that are important to promote healthful reactions in the body but are not classified as nutrients required for life and growth. Regardless, I think they sound fantastic. So much so that I will probably name my first born after one of them. Commonly referred to phytochemicals include lutein, lycopene, beta glucan, and carotenoids. Potential health benefits of phytochemicals include reduced risk for cardiovascular disease, raising HDL levels, reduced risk of prostate and cervical cancers, and blocking cancer growth. These things appear to be the Wonder Woman of disease prevention.

The Evidence:
Numerous studies have been done over the years specifically looking at the health benefits of whole grains. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the Current Atherosclerosis Report, the Journal of Nutrition, the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Disease, and the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition are just a few publications which have published studies in this area of research. What a substantial amount of medical evidence has shown is this. Whole grains reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and obesity. Don't believe me? Just go here.

Application:
So how can you get your grubby little hands on some sweet whole grains? Quite easily. In fact, you may already be consuming whole grains without even knowing it. As we've already learned, whole grans contain the bran, the germ and the endosperm. Examples of whole grains include brown rice, whole wheat flour products (bread, pasta crackers, etc.), oatmeal, bulgur (cracker wheat), quinoa, and whole corn meal just to name a few.

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend adults consume at least half of their grains as whole grains (three to five servings of whole grains per day). So what's one serving? Your friends over at mypyramid.gov have your back. They have put together a picture-by-picture food gallery for grain serving sizes. To the right is an example of one such image.

Honestly, I think these example pictures are rather complicated, however they do give you good basic information. Half a cup of cooked brown rice or oatmeal, one slice of whole-wheat bread, five whole wheat crackers, three cups of popcorn, one cup whole wheat cereal flakes are just some examples of what makes up one serving of whole grains.

Having said all this, it's not just bland whole-wheat products that make up this category. Honey Nut Cheerios, Kashi Go Lean Crunch, Chex, Eggo Waffles, and Old del Paso Taco Shells are just a few whole grain products that people don't tend to conventionally think of. It gets better. The good people over at the Whole Grain Council have a special stamp on products that contain whole grains. They have taken the guesswork out for you! I encourage you to shop for whole grain products this week. They pack a powerful punch of protein, vitamins and minerals that refined carbohydrates cannot match. This is one area of the diet we all can improve upon simply for the health of it.

Come back Friday for the Shameless Product Placement of the Month!

May's Nutrition Hot Topic: Will Someone Please Tell Me What the Deal Is With High Fructose Corn Syrup Already?! (Part II)

2011-05-18T06:55:00.003-05:00

Where were we?

High Fructose Corn Syrup is just sucrose (sugar) with greater amounts of fructose (sugar found in fruit). I closed out part one of this post with what the American Dietetic Association has said, "Once absorbed into the bloodstream, the two sweeteners [sugar and HFCS] are indistinguishable." The FDA reaffirmed it's safety in our food supply in 1996. Lastly, the American Medical Association has stated HFCS is so similar to sucrose it appears unlikely that it contributes more to obesity and other conditions than sucrose.

My Opinions:

Here's the rub. Sugar is sugar at the end of the day, whether its sucrose, fructose, glucose, etc. At this time it appears HFCS is not a mortal enemy because we don't have any definitive evidence to indicate otherwise. Regardless, HFCS is still sugar. It's not made of un-namable chemicals. It doesn't include ingredients like tire rubber, Pinesol, or Styrofoam. Let's all just take a deep breath, count to ten and calm down! Gosh, this is like that time I witnessed Santa remove his beard after the night shift at a Macy's Department Store. Feelings of horror, followed by disappointment were practically palpable. I can recall it so clearly, which may be due to the fact that it was only four short months ago.

It seems like anytime people want a product viewed negatively they link it to cancer and wash their hands. So I went to the American Cancer Society website where I found their Seven Steps to Reduce Your Cancer Risk.

"Researchers say if we stopped using tobacco, grew thinner, exercised regularly, avoided diets rich in red meat, and ate diets rich in fruits and vegetables, we would prevent two-thirds of all cancers."

Not one of these Seven Steps specify staying away from HFCS. However, one of the Seven Steps recommends eating more fruits and vegetables and less red meat. In conjunction with this recommendation, they state to limit intake of refined carbohydrates, such as pastries, sweetened cereals, and other high-sugar foods. I hope by now you've gather that HFCS is just sugar.

We as a population, consume way too many refined carbohydrates in a day. These foods aren't doing us any favors. On top of that, they may be replacing other nutrient dense sources (e.g. fruits and vegetables). Lastly, I promise, diets that tend to be high in fat, sugar and salt lead to weight gain and increased risk of obesity. As every freaking health professional out there who has ever written any book, magazine, journal, or been on any television or radio program will tell you, carrying excess weight increases one's risk for heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, infertility and the list goes on. Phew! Are we there yet?

So how much sugar am I allowed!?! Well, no dietary guidelines have defined the amount of fructose you're allotted in a given day. However, your friends over at the American Heart Association have recommendations on added sugar consumption. Women get no more than 100 calories of added sugar (about 6 teaspoons), men its no more than 150 calories (roughly 9 teaspoons).

To put it in applicable units, I used the Original NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe. I'm ball-parking here, but based on the AMA recommendation women get almost four cookies while men can have closer to five and a half. That doesn't sound so bad right? Well, that's just the cookies. You eat added sugar in other items throughout the day. Remember that yogurt you had for breakfast? Added sugar. What about the Pepsi you drank at lunch? Added sugar. I'm not trying to sound like the food police, I just want you to know what it means when they say added sugar. I eat cookies too!

Interestingly, the commercial states that "[HFCS], like sugar, is fine in moderation". Yes it's true, it's fine in moderation. However, high fructose corn syrup is EVERYWHERE - 100 calorie packs, salad dressing, cereals, bread, granola bars, flavored yogurt, condiments, canned vegetables, soda, fast food and the list goes on. What if 90% of the foods we consume in any given day contain high fructose corn syrup? Sadly, I think that falls out of the "moderation" category and into the "over-consumption" category.

From a Business Perspective:

Remember your father or grandfather telling you, "if it ain't broke don't fix it". Well, now it seems numerous food companies in America have buried that ideal and adopted the consumer-friendly notion that "if it doesn't earn the largest possible profit, fix it". I'm not about to get on my soapbox on how the food system runs in this country. That is for another day. Having said this, the use of HFCS is all about saving money and creating a larger profit margin.

HFCS is great for manufacturers who want to sweeten their products, while using less ingredient(s) to do so. As mentioned before, fructose is much sweeter than sucrose and HFCS is just regular corn syrup with a greater amount of fructose. By using HFCS manufacturers are able to use less sweetening agent and still yield equally sweet products by the end of the process. How sweet a combination it is to come in under budget while making more money!

Corn's Infiltration

Food Inc. is a documentary on our nation's food supply. In this 94 minute eye opener, Troy Roush, the Vice President of the American Corn Growers Association says, "In the United States today 30% of our land base is being planted to corn. That's largely driven by government policy...policy that allows us to produce corn below the cost of production. The truth of the matter is, we're paid to over produce and it's caused by these large multi-national interests." As I mentioned in the first post, The Corn Refiners Association put out these HFCS ads, so you better believe they have an interest in keeping this stuff in a favorable light.

Products that include corn-based ingredients include ketchup, cheese, Twinkies, batteries, peanut butter, cheez-its, salad dressing, coke, jelly, sweet and low, syrup, juice, Kool-aid, charcoal, diapers, Motrin, meat, fast food, not to mention animal feed.

****

"It's made from corn, it's natural.." says the mother pouring the sugar water beverage. I ask you this. Does "because it's made from corn" make it "natural". The word natural is thrown around a lot in our food supply because it's use, specifically in regard to labeling, is unregulated by the FDA. If there is one thing you should have noticed in the first post, it's that in order to make high fructose corn syrup, sucrose must undergo man induced enzymatic reaction. I don't know about you, but when I think of something as being natural I tend to (foolishly?) believe it can be found in nature. Last time I checked there weren't any high fructose corn syrup plants lying around. Maybe I'm mistaken. Someone get me Ken Jennings number, stat!

At the end of the day the issue isn't any one ingredient, it's simply the over consumption of highly processed and refined foods, many of which just so happen to contain high fructose corn syrup.

Sources:

Seven steps to reduce your cancer risk. Retrieved from: http://www.cancer.org

Sugars and carbohydrates. (2010, October 12). Retrieved from http://www.heart.org

Kenner, Robert (Producer). (2008). Fod, Inc. [Theater].
Nelson, J.k<. (2010, October 23). What are the health concerns about high-fructose corn syrup?. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.com

American Dietetic Association. Use of nutritive and nonnutritve sweeteners. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2004. 104:225-275

American Medical Association. Report 3 of the Council on Science and Public Health. The health effects of high fructose corn syrup. July 23, 2009.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl9vZYj-aJ4
McWilliams, M. (2008). Foods: experimental perspectives . Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Eggs: Rectified!

2011-05-13T14:38:00.005-05:00

What a legendary weekend. While battling through a substantial amount of head congestion I chose to address all 80+ of my graduation announcements. There is nothing quite like formally addressing piles of crisp ivory envelopes to really make a twenty something single girl pathetically assess where she is in her life. I was discussing my 'woman on the verge' moment with an older female adult, explaining I need a textbook for the next chapter of my life. She looked me dead in the eye and replied, "Kimberly, there is one." Thinking she is about reference a Chicken Noodle Soup book, I smiled politely and replied "Oh?" "Well, the Twilight books of course!" was her disturbing response. Really? That's my life's textbook. An angst ridden teen romance novel revolving around a human, a vampire, and a werewolf? Is the Wizard of Oz my retirement plan? If so, those Munchkins need to have one hell of a 401K, because I am not picking up a second job after 65.

In an effort to distract myself from this obnoxiously classic distress, I had breakfast with an old friend from high school. As we sat in our laminated booth, I skimmed the menu in hopes of finding some killer oatmeal. While I glanced over the egg dishes, I noticed there was not one but three egg white breakfast entrees. She asked me what I planned to order and upon informing her, she responded, "Oh, you mean you're not getting the egg white omelet?" Some days I really curse my major. When people assume you're the food police, they also expect you to abide by the law. When did egg whites become the gold standard of breakfast eating?

In a (nut) shell eggs are high quality protein with a minimal price tag. As a student of nutrition, it's discouraging to see such a wonderful food wrongfully framed as "unhealthy". I don't like putting foods into the dreaded off limits category. I tend to believe it sets one up for failure. A day is going to come when I want that deep fried Oreo at the State Fair and God as my witness, I will not be denied.

Years ago, numerous health experts preached that eggs should be avoided. Now, many seem stuck on the notion that eggs are bad for us. They're even being used as a weapon on that boy with the hair. All he's trying to do is put on a good show, cut the prepubescent kid some slack. But I digress. For those of you who believe eggs are "unhealthy", I'm here to tell you that label is a misnomer. Eggs are an excellent source of vitamin A, riboflavin and iron. They are also a complete protein (contain all 9 essential amino acids). One egg or two egg whites are equal to one ounce of protein.

What I believe is responsible for eggs' bad image, is the cholesterol containing yolk. Ahhh she said the word cholesterol! Honey, get me my box of Cheerios, ASAP! Cholesterol is not a dietary essential. We do not need to eat it because our bodies are perfectly capable of making their own cholesterol. It's recommended that in order to decrease the risk of heart disease, we need to limit our daily cholesterol consumption to 300mg. One egg contains 213mg. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that after one egg, you're almost to your limit of cholesterol for the day.

If I eat an egg yolk in the morning (or at lunch or dinner, I am a college student after all), you better believe I'm not going to track and compute my cholesterol consumption for the rest of the day. I have way better things to do with my time and brainpower. However, I am also aware of the other cholesterol containing foods I shovel into my mouth. Only animal products contain cholesterol (milk, cheese, fish, butter, beef, lamb, etc.). This is the reason I laugh when I see a jar of peanut butter labeled cholesterol free. Like the manufacturers have performed this big feat in removing cholesterol from their plant-based product.

The National Cancer Institute has a list of the top food sources of cholesterol the US population consumes (2005-2006). I was first going to put this in as a table, but it was way too imposing. The top 5 are as follows:

Eggs and egg mixed dishes
Chicken and chicken mixed dishes
Beef and beef mixed dishes
Burgers
Regular cheese

Oof. Specific. Honestly, the entire list was rather vague, but I think you get the idea of where your dietary cholesterol is coming from. At the end of the day, should you consume whole eggs on a daily basis? Probably not. But eating one whole egg once or twice a week is perfectly fine! I tend to saddle up to the Mediterraneans way of thinking when it comes to eggs. In my personal opinion, they have the best food guide pyramid out there. Hands down. I'm sure this will be revisited later, but I could not help but mention it in this post.

The Mediterranean pyramid divides up food groups among daily, weekly, monthly consumption categories. Whole eggs fall into the weekly category. Notice, I did not say egg whites. I love egg whites just as much as the next health conscious freak, but I'll tell you a secret; I rarely eat egg whites plain. Quite frankly, they're boring and tasteless. Instead, I often scramble three egg whites and one whole egg together. I usually eat this once or twice a week. I recommend adding garlic, onion, dry mustard, spinach or feta cheese.

Egg Buying Basics for the Average Consumer:

The diet of the chickens can be altered to manipulate the components of the egg. This is why you see omega-3 eggs (usually achieved by feeding the hens flax seed).
Cage-free eggs are laid by hens raised on the floor of a building instead of in cages.
Free-range eggs are laid by hens that are raised outside during the day, but in a barn at night.

My Simple Tips on Eggs:

1. Do not be fooled by the color of the egg

Grocers like to charge higher prices for the brown eggs. I'm here to tell you, white and brown eggs are EXACTLY the same except for the color of their shells. The color of the shell simply indicates the breed of the bird. Nothing more. Chickens with white earlobes lay white eggs, while chickens with brown earlobes lay brown eggs. So just buy the cheaper white eggs. There is no point in paying for an aesthetic you are just going to crack and throw away.

2. Keep the eggs in the carton

That carton is specifically designed to prevent the eggs from absorbing orders or flavors from other foods found in your refrigerator.

3. Don't wash your eggs

Eggs have a natural protective layer on the shell's surface. By washing them, you remove that barrier and make the egg more susceptible to flavors, odors, and bacteria.

3. Keep track of the age of your eggs

The USDA recommends using your eggs within 3-5 weeks of purchasing them. I try to use mine within one week of the sell by date. Interested in determining the age of your eggs? There is a three-digit code (001-365) on the side of every egg carton. These three numbers indicate on which day of the year it was packed (Dec. 31 would be 365). There is the old wives tale that if you put an egg in a glass of water and it floats it's bad (which makes sense because the older an egg is, the more air it contains). I tend to just trust the sell by date and my nose.

Image courtesy of Curb Stone Valley Farm

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