Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream
My super sweet husband finds this place online and takes me and doesn't even tell me where we are going. All he says is it's the kind of place you like. Well that was a serious understatement this place was awesome. Yes it is a little more expensive than some ice cream places but it is well worth it. The ice cream is made locally right here in Ohio. All the ingredients are fresh and local. The ice cream is made from local Ohio cows that are grass fed with no hormones or antibiotics. This place is seriously a dream come true. They have some really awesome flavors you will not find anywhere else. I had the Salty Caramel and I'm normally a one scoop girl but you bet I got two scoops of this(of course I was sharing) My daughter got the Wildberry Lavendar, My son just got the Belgian milk chocolate and my husband got the Buckeye state. He loves chocolate and peanut butter and said this is the best he has ever had(I'm pretty sure he has been a buckeye at heart forever) This is what I'm talking about when I say you don't have to give up the food you like just watch how it's made. I personally am now a loyal Jeni's costumer and look forward to supporting this great local business with my future purchases. If you are in Columbus you should really check it out. If not great news you can order online
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Voting for real food
Did you know you have the power to make a change in the availability of healthy foods? You do every single time you go to the store or farmer's market and purchase food you make a vote. Are you voting for real, fresh, local, sustainable food or are you voting for processed chemicals pretending to be food. When you purchase this pretend food you are essentially saying this is ok this is what I want! When you leave this crap on the shelf and instead buy fresh local produce and meat that is raised without the use of antibiotics or hormones you are voting for real food! It's that simple!!!
Above image is grilled asparagus, baked sweet potatoes, and grilled quesadillas made on homemade tortillas.
So what are you voting for?
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Friday, April 16, 2010
Replacing that bad "food" day 5~dessert
Sorry this is a couple of days late!
So dessert it's what calls to us in the middle of the night! Especially when you decide not to have it at all! There is no point in depriving yourself from having dessert as long as you are not having it every day! Once at most twice a week should be sufficient.
Here's the thing about dessert those candy bars, candy, and baked goods at the store are packed with some crazy stuff. You really need to learn to make your own desserts and it's really not that hard. You can find easy recipes for everything from pudding to cake to pies and cookies. It does not take much to make your favorite desserts and you control what goes into them. You can cut the sugar down and you know there are no chemicals or junk in them.
Now if you are trying to cut back on dessert because you've been enjoying it too much I suggest keeping a stash of fruit(which you should have anyway) to help with some of these cravings. One good thing I like to do is either make crepes or even use tortillas spread with cream cheese top with strawberries and enjoy. Super delish and it feels like dessert without too much sugar!
Now sometimes you just have to have chocolate and I have a great recipe just for that it's chocolate snack cakes and they taste just like those little cupcakes with the cream inside and the squiggles on top you know what I'm talking about. The difference is these are not filled with cream(although I have topped them with homemade whipped cream before) and you know exactly what's in it!
I got this recipe out of my Betty Crocker cook book and it's one of the few that I have not changed much about it except I make it in cupcakes instead of a cake and the original recipe calls for vegetable oil which I don't use! Beware there is a lot of sugar in this you could cut it down but I don't with this one however this is not an invitation to have this every day this is a once a month at most recipe!
Chocolate Snack cake
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup cold water
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350
line muffin pan with liners or grease well and dust with cocoa
mix vinegar oil vanilla well
mix all dry ingredients together
add vinegar mixture and water to dry ingredients mix
pour into prepared muffin tin
bake 15-20 minutes or until toothpick(or cake tester) comes out clean
Enjoy these do not need to be topped with anything but they are great with cream cheese icing and strawberries yum!
Also see day 2~snacks for more ideas on how to deal with dessert
Remember you can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
So dessert it's what calls to us in the middle of the night! Especially when you decide not to have it at all! There is no point in depriving yourself from having dessert as long as you are not having it every day! Once at most twice a week should be sufficient.
Here's the thing about dessert those candy bars, candy, and baked goods at the store are packed with some crazy stuff. You really need to learn to make your own desserts and it's really not that hard. You can find easy recipes for everything from pudding to cake to pies and cookies. It does not take much to make your favorite desserts and you control what goes into them. You can cut the sugar down and you know there are no chemicals or junk in them.
Now if you are trying to cut back on dessert because you've been enjoying it too much I suggest keeping a stash of fruit(which you should have anyway) to help with some of these cravings. One good thing I like to do is either make crepes or even use tortillas spread with cream cheese top with strawberries and enjoy. Super delish and it feels like dessert without too much sugar!
Now sometimes you just have to have chocolate and I have a great recipe just for that it's chocolate snack cakes and they taste just like those little cupcakes with the cream inside and the squiggles on top you know what I'm talking about. The difference is these are not filled with cream(although I have topped them with homemade whipped cream before) and you know exactly what's in it!
I got this recipe out of my Betty Crocker cook book and it's one of the few that I have not changed much about it except I make it in cupcakes instead of a cake and the original recipe calls for vegetable oil which I don't use! Beware there is a lot of sugar in this you could cut it down but I don't with this one however this is not an invitation to have this every day this is a once a month at most recipe!
Chocolate Snack cake
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup cold water
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350
line muffin pan with liners or grease well and dust with cocoa
mix vinegar oil vanilla well
mix all dry ingredients together
add vinegar mixture and water to dry ingredients mix
pour into prepared muffin tin
bake 15-20 minutes or until toothpick(or cake tester) comes out clean
Enjoy these do not need to be topped with anything but they are great with cream cheese icing and strawberries yum!
Also see day 2~snacks for more ideas on how to deal with dessert
Remember you can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Replacing that bad "food" day 4~dinner
Now dinner is really hard for some if you work out of the home it can be really overwhelming to have dinner ready at a decent time and in comes fast food. It doesn't have to be this way.
One of the biggest helps on days you will not have much time is a crock pot if you do not have one I suggest you go purchase one as soon as you are finished reading this=) Seriously there are a lot of good recipes out there just for crock pots and once you get used to it you will learn what goes good together and be able to just throw some stuff in there, make a nice green salad and you can eat. Even less time than a drive through especially during rush hour!
Also if you are already cooking you might as well make a big batch of whatever it is and freeze half of it. That way next time you need an easy meal you can just lay it out to thaw and heat it up! Just as easy as any frozen dinner but with less sodium no chemicals and you control what is in it! I like to do this with my homemade manicotti it's a little labor intensive because I make crepes to use as shells and make the tomato sauce so it's not hard but takes a bit of time and effort.
If you do not have a good selection of spices this would be a very good thing to invest in. How many times have you seen a good recipe and wanted to try it but didn't know what Turmeric was much less have any? If you go to your local health food store most of them have a section of bulk spices so you can buy a very small amount to try it out!!! Whole foods here in Dublin has a fantastic selection of bulk spices! If you have been using seasoning packets I suggest you stop they are often full of sodium and chemicals. You can easily make your own spice mixes and store in a jar or container. My favorite is my Mexican spice mix which I also use for chili it's awesome and I almost always have some in the fridge except right now because we had taco salad last week and I haven't replenished it. Most things you would use a mix for really don't require that much I make my spaghetti sauce with very few spices and I can use it for pasta, pizza, and sandwiches.
Now if you are like me you probably have some stand bys you know are healthy are easy to fix and inexpensive. The problem is you get tired of having it everyday. Now is when it's time to shake things up. The seasonings we talked about before can change something completely. Try adding cinnamon to rice or quinoa and you'll see what I mean! There also is something to be said for just putting things together that sound good and seeing what the result is. Last night for dinner I made quinoa(pronounced keen-wah and if you haven't had it try it it's delish) added some chopped apples cranberries cinnamon(I love cinnamon) and chopped fresh Italian parsley(I do not like the curly kind the Italian has a better flavor in my opinion.) I didn't know how it would turn out I had never even made quinoa before but it was absolutely wonderful! I served it with a nice green salad with chopped tomatoes, calamata olives and homemade croutons! Then for dessert we had peach smoothies. It really was a very satisfying cooking experience that took less than twenty minutes. All because I was willing to take a chance and try something. I love to look up new recipes although I rarely use them as is when I think of something that sounds good I will look up all the recipes I can find for it to get the technique and then just go for it. Then I end up with a recipe I can use later that I made from a combination of all the others. This also works well if you think something would go good together but you are not quite sure if you can find a recipe for it where someone else has done it it will probably work try it. Depending on who you are how you were raised and your cooking experience cooking will be either a science or an art. If it's an art to you just go for it and try new things pick up new things at the store and take them home and see what you can do with it. It's very exciting and fulfilling to do this. Now if you haven't had much cooking experience or you are not one for flying by the seat of your pants you will need recipes to come up with ideas. I love going to the library to get cookbooks you just scan or copy the recipes you like and you stick it in a folder in your kitchen! I've been doing a lot of recipe searching online on vegetarian websites lately. Now if you need some meat to go with it most of the time you can just add some grilled chicken or just alter it to your taste. The thing is it seems vegetarians are very creative with there food choices and we could all use more fruits and veggies!
Speaking of fruits and veggies I would like to talk about what kind of fruits and veggies you are getting. Are you still getting canned veggies and fruits that are swimming in salt and other junk? If so you need to stop. When possible buy in season fresh produce. Of course a very good portion of my veggies come from the freezer as long as you are getting fruits and veggies with nothing added(check those labels for added salt and sugar) they are just as nutritious if not more so than fresh. Not to mention a great deal cheaper sometimes. If you have it on hand you will eat it. Try mixing veggies into your tomato sauce, your eggs, your soup, your pasta. You will be pleasantly surprised at the depth it brings to your dishes.
Also one complaint that I have heard is when you buy fresh it doesn't last as long. This is true because food does go bad(doesn't that make you think about the stuff on the shelf?) Get to know your produce and eat the stuff that's going to go bad more quickly(spinach, berries) at the beginning of the week saving the sturdier produce for later(carrots, apples.) If you follow a plan according to this you shouldn't have waste. If you have leftover vegetables from dinner save them and they can go into a soup or veggie omelet the next day. Or even freeze them for this use another time.
One big thing about dinner is most of the time you are not going to have the option to be flexible you need a plan. Sit down with your calendar once a week or less often if you wish and plan out at least dinner. Some of you will do well to plan out every single meal at least for a while until you kick the fast food habit! When I was keeping other children I had breakfast lunch dinner and snacks on the calendar so I knew exactly what to get at the store. However when you get to the store and strawberries are on sale but they are not on the plan change the plan!
If you are concerned about going organic here is the Dirty dozen list which shows the top twelve produce items to buy organic(strawberries is number six on that list) also the clean fifteen which is the fifteen produce items with the least amount of pesticides.
One more thing and then I'm done for the day! If you are picky about your vegetables or fruits I really want to challenge you to start trying some things. Even if you didn't like it before peoples taste changes and sometimes you just didn't have it fixed right! Try cooking things a different way I love roasted asparagus but I used to couldn't touch the stuff because all I'd ever had was canned. Try adding it to things you know you like or adding different spices. It's well worth it. For those of you with children you know they say to give them a bite of something several times before you give up. Why not do that with yourself especially if it's something that's really good for you. Don't give me that I'm an adult and I know what I like!!! How's that got you so far not very good probably so get over it and try it already!
Anyway I'm really proud of all of you that are really going at this and it's great that people are talking. I know I might not be reaching a huge audience but I feel privileged to have each one of you as readers. This really means a lot to me!!! I love you all!
Tomorrow is dessert watch out it might be brutal=)
Remember you can do this!!! You and your family are worth it.
One of the biggest helps on days you will not have much time is a crock pot if you do not have one I suggest you go purchase one as soon as you are finished reading this=) Seriously there are a lot of good recipes out there just for crock pots and once you get used to it you will learn what goes good together and be able to just throw some stuff in there, make a nice green salad and you can eat. Even less time than a drive through especially during rush hour!
Also if you are already cooking you might as well make a big batch of whatever it is and freeze half of it. That way next time you need an easy meal you can just lay it out to thaw and heat it up! Just as easy as any frozen dinner but with less sodium no chemicals and you control what is in it! I like to do this with my homemade manicotti it's a little labor intensive because I make crepes to use as shells and make the tomato sauce so it's not hard but takes a bit of time and effort.
If you do not have a good selection of spices this would be a very good thing to invest in. How many times have you seen a good recipe and wanted to try it but didn't know what Turmeric was much less have any? If you go to your local health food store most of them have a section of bulk spices so you can buy a very small amount to try it out!!! Whole foods here in Dublin has a fantastic selection of bulk spices! If you have been using seasoning packets I suggest you stop they are often full of sodium and chemicals. You can easily make your own spice mixes and store in a jar or container. My favorite is my Mexican spice mix which I also use for chili it's awesome and I almost always have some in the fridge except right now because we had taco salad last week and I haven't replenished it. Most things you would use a mix for really don't require that much I make my spaghetti sauce with very few spices and I can use it for pasta, pizza, and sandwiches.
Now if you are like me you probably have some stand bys you know are healthy are easy to fix and inexpensive. The problem is you get tired of having it everyday. Now is when it's time to shake things up. The seasonings we talked about before can change something completely. Try adding cinnamon to rice or quinoa and you'll see what I mean! There also is something to be said for just putting things together that sound good and seeing what the result is. Last night for dinner I made quinoa(pronounced keen-wah and if you haven't had it try it it's delish) added some chopped apples cranberries cinnamon(I love cinnamon) and chopped fresh Italian parsley(I do not like the curly kind the Italian has a better flavor in my opinion.) I didn't know how it would turn out I had never even made quinoa before but it was absolutely wonderful! I served it with a nice green salad with chopped tomatoes, calamata olives and homemade croutons! Then for dessert we had peach smoothies. It really was a very satisfying cooking experience that took less than twenty minutes. All because I was willing to take a chance and try something. I love to look up new recipes although I rarely use them as is when I think of something that sounds good I will look up all the recipes I can find for it to get the technique and then just go for it. Then I end up with a recipe I can use later that I made from a combination of all the others. This also works well if you think something would go good together but you are not quite sure if you can find a recipe for it where someone else has done it it will probably work try it. Depending on who you are how you were raised and your cooking experience cooking will be either a science or an art. If it's an art to you just go for it and try new things pick up new things at the store and take them home and see what you can do with it. It's very exciting and fulfilling to do this. Now if you haven't had much cooking experience or you are not one for flying by the seat of your pants you will need recipes to come up with ideas. I love going to the library to get cookbooks you just scan or copy the recipes you like and you stick it in a folder in your kitchen! I've been doing a lot of recipe searching online on vegetarian websites lately. Now if you need some meat to go with it most of the time you can just add some grilled chicken or just alter it to your taste. The thing is it seems vegetarians are very creative with there food choices and we could all use more fruits and veggies!
Speaking of fruits and veggies I would like to talk about what kind of fruits and veggies you are getting. Are you still getting canned veggies and fruits that are swimming in salt and other junk? If so you need to stop. When possible buy in season fresh produce. Of course a very good portion of my veggies come from the freezer as long as you are getting fruits and veggies with nothing added(check those labels for added salt and sugar) they are just as nutritious if not more so than fresh. Not to mention a great deal cheaper sometimes. If you have it on hand you will eat it. Try mixing veggies into your tomato sauce, your eggs, your soup, your pasta. You will be pleasantly surprised at the depth it brings to your dishes.
Also one complaint that I have heard is when you buy fresh it doesn't last as long. This is true because food does go bad(doesn't that make you think about the stuff on the shelf?) Get to know your produce and eat the stuff that's going to go bad more quickly(spinach, berries) at the beginning of the week saving the sturdier produce for later(carrots, apples.) If you follow a plan according to this you shouldn't have waste. If you have leftover vegetables from dinner save them and they can go into a soup or veggie omelet the next day. Or even freeze them for this use another time.
One big thing about dinner is most of the time you are not going to have the option to be flexible you need a plan. Sit down with your calendar once a week or less often if you wish and plan out at least dinner. Some of you will do well to plan out every single meal at least for a while until you kick the fast food habit! When I was keeping other children I had breakfast lunch dinner and snacks on the calendar so I knew exactly what to get at the store. However when you get to the store and strawberries are on sale but they are not on the plan change the plan!
If you are concerned about going organic here is the Dirty dozen list which shows the top twelve produce items to buy organic(strawberries is number six on that list) also the clean fifteen which is the fifteen produce items with the least amount of pesticides.
One more thing and then I'm done for the day! If you are picky about your vegetables or fruits I really want to challenge you to start trying some things. Even if you didn't like it before peoples taste changes and sometimes you just didn't have it fixed right! Try cooking things a different way I love roasted asparagus but I used to couldn't touch the stuff because all I'd ever had was canned. Try adding it to things you know you like or adding different spices. It's well worth it. For those of you with children you know they say to give them a bite of something several times before you give up. Why not do that with yourself especially if it's something that's really good for you. Don't give me that I'm an adult and I know what I like!!! How's that got you so far not very good probably so get over it and try it already!
Anyway I'm really proud of all of you that are really going at this and it's great that people are talking. I know I might not be reaching a huge audience but I feel privileged to have each one of you as readers. This really means a lot to me!!! I love you all!
Tomorrow is dessert watch out it might be brutal=)
Remember you can do this!!! You and your family are worth it.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Replacing that bad "food" day 3~Lunch
First of all there is something I would like to make clear. I am not a doctor/nutritionist/dietitian or anything of the like! I do not nor have I ever counted calories, fat, or anything else for that matter. I live and eat based on eating good nutritious whole foods with as much fruit and veggies as I can. My basic philosophy is to eat food as close to the way God originally made it as possible. I am not vegetarian I do eat meat although I do my best to eat good quality meat that I trust! With that said if any of the meals I post do not fall under a pattern of a protein two veggies and a starch or any other pattern it's because I don't follow one. I feel that if you are eating a variety of good healthful food you will probably be fine. If you have been advised by your doctor/ nutritionist to follow a pattern or count calories please do. This is a site dedicated to thinking about what goes in your body and not meant to be the final say.
Thanks just wanted to get that said=)
Now onto lunch!!!
Lunch might look different for you than it does for me. I stay home with the kids so I have a great deal of flexibility with lunch. If you work outside the home or go to school you will not have that flexibility as an option. Ideally if you do work outside the home your best option is going to be to bring a lunch with you. If you must go out I would suggest getting a salad or sides of veggies ask them to keep any dressing on the side so you can use very little of it. A lot of people think that they are doing good by eating a salad when really they could be eating more calories than if they got a burger! Use as little dressing as you can lemon juice is good as a dressing and using a vinaigrette is going to be better than ranch! The darker the lettuce the better. Iceberg is nothing it's nutritionally void Romaine is a much better option most restaurants have this and can use it for any salad. Spinach salads are a great way to get some great nutrients in for lunch!!! Just remember when going out to be conscience of portion and to only eat real food.
I am going to go out on a limb here and say if you send your kids to school you need to be sending them with lunch and a snack and making sure they have a good breakfast before they head out. You also need to be talking with them about the importance of how they treat their bodies. If they are older children and this is a new change apologize for the way you have been eating and talk to them about this new way of doing things and how it's better for everyone. You can not trust the schools to feed your children real food or to even teach them about it. This is your responsibility!!!
Now if you can take your lunch or you are eating at home the absolute best thing is leftovers! We love leftovers for lunch add a steamed veggie or a salad if you don't have enough and it's great.
If you do sandwiches make sure you are only using good ingredients check that bread label it should not have chemicals or HFCS in it and the first ingredient should be whole wheat just because it is dark in color does not mean anything. Some add coloring or molasses to get that dark color you want to see the word whole as the first word. Also you can look for the label that looks like a bail of hay standing up that says the wholegraincouncil Any peanut butter should just have peanuts and go for good quality jam and check the label for added sugar or chemicals(jelly is just sugar it doesn't use the whole fruit just the juice) Grilled veggies make nice sandwiches or lunch all by themselves. I like to use my panini press to grill the veggies right on it asparagus is delicious this way! If you like meat on your sandwich I suggest getting the meat and cooking it yourself vs buying deli meat. It is going to control the quality of your meat as well as being less expensive. Take the time to do this once a week or less and you can freeze it in individual bags to take out as you need it you could even make the sandwich ahead of time and freeze it but depending on the bread and filling it may get a bit soggy. This is a great technique for taking your lunch though because by lunch time it's thawed out but it kept well during the morning.
Sometimes one of the best lunches is just several kinds of raw fruits and veggies it's just so clean and can really be fun!
Beans make a great lunch make a huge pot at the beginning of the week and you can freeze this in batches as well just make sure they are fully thawed before warming or they can get kinda mushy=) serve them with a little cornbread muffin and you are good to go.
Eggs...they are not just for breakfast serve up some green eggs(scrambled eggs with frozen chopped spinach) or a veggie omelet yum!!!
Lunch can be fun but there are some things to stay away from such as those prepackaged lunches in the deli isle seriously walk away! Apple sauce that's filled with HFCS and other additives! Just remember lunch should be food to! Just because you need convenience does not mean you have to sacrifice quality!
Tomorrow is going to be dinner and I want to talk about taking foods you love to eat and turning them into real food so if you have a recipe that you love that's full of cream of chicken soup and butter crackers send it to me and I'll see what I can do!
Remember you can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
Thanks just wanted to get that said=)
Now onto lunch!!!
Lunch might look different for you than it does for me. I stay home with the kids so I have a great deal of flexibility with lunch. If you work outside the home or go to school you will not have that flexibility as an option. Ideally if you do work outside the home your best option is going to be to bring a lunch with you. If you must go out I would suggest getting a salad or sides of veggies ask them to keep any dressing on the side so you can use very little of it. A lot of people think that they are doing good by eating a salad when really they could be eating more calories than if they got a burger! Use as little dressing as you can lemon juice is good as a dressing and using a vinaigrette is going to be better than ranch! The darker the lettuce the better. Iceberg is nothing it's nutritionally void Romaine is a much better option most restaurants have this and can use it for any salad. Spinach salads are a great way to get some great nutrients in for lunch!!! Just remember when going out to be conscience of portion and to only eat real food.
I am going to go out on a limb here and say if you send your kids to school you need to be sending them with lunch and a snack and making sure they have a good breakfast before they head out. You also need to be talking with them about the importance of how they treat their bodies. If they are older children and this is a new change apologize for the way you have been eating and talk to them about this new way of doing things and how it's better for everyone. You can not trust the schools to feed your children real food or to even teach them about it. This is your responsibility!!!
Now if you can take your lunch or you are eating at home the absolute best thing is leftovers! We love leftovers for lunch add a steamed veggie or a salad if you don't have enough and it's great.
If you do sandwiches make sure you are only using good ingredients check that bread label it should not have chemicals or HFCS in it and the first ingredient should be whole wheat just because it is dark in color does not mean anything. Some add coloring or molasses to get that dark color you want to see the word whole as the first word. Also you can look for the label that looks like a bail of hay standing up that says the wholegraincouncil Any peanut butter should just have peanuts and go for good quality jam and check the label for added sugar or chemicals(jelly is just sugar it doesn't use the whole fruit just the juice) Grilled veggies make nice sandwiches or lunch all by themselves. I like to use my panini press to grill the veggies right on it asparagus is delicious this way! If you like meat on your sandwich I suggest getting the meat and cooking it yourself vs buying deli meat. It is going to control the quality of your meat as well as being less expensive. Take the time to do this once a week or less and you can freeze it in individual bags to take out as you need it you could even make the sandwich ahead of time and freeze it but depending on the bread and filling it may get a bit soggy. This is a great technique for taking your lunch though because by lunch time it's thawed out but it kept well during the morning.
Sometimes one of the best lunches is just several kinds of raw fruits and veggies it's just so clean and can really be fun!
Beans make a great lunch make a huge pot at the beginning of the week and you can freeze this in batches as well just make sure they are fully thawed before warming or they can get kinda mushy=) serve them with a little cornbread muffin and you are good to go.
Eggs...they are not just for breakfast serve up some green eggs(scrambled eggs with frozen chopped spinach) or a veggie omelet yum!!!
Lunch can be fun but there are some things to stay away from such as those prepackaged lunches in the deli isle seriously walk away! Apple sauce that's filled with HFCS and other additives! Just remember lunch should be food to! Just because you need convenience does not mean you have to sacrifice quality!
Tomorrow is going to be dinner and I want to talk about taking foods you love to eat and turning them into real food so if you have a recipe that you love that's full of cream of chicken soup and butter crackers send it to me and I'll see what I can do!
Remember you can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Replacing the bad "food" day 2~ snacks
This should be the easiest but is where most of us drop the ball. First off if you have candy, chips, and snack cakes in the house you will eat them. If you do not have healthy options in your house to take with you you will buy candy, chips and snack cakes while out and about or you will stop off at your favorite local fast food place.
So this starts with preparation and eventually becomes habit. Snacks should be real food and should just be snacks. These are to keep you from starving so you don't overeat at meals and to give you a pick me up.
Also I would like to say that even if it is all natural and organic if it's junk food it's still junk food. Chocolate cookies with cream filling have no part in your regular diet. If you must have these as a occasional treat that is fine and by all means get the organic ones instead of the high fructose corn syrup in cookies clothes! These products have a place and I use them myself there are some good crackers and granola bars out there but these should not be for everyday use. Another common snack is fruit snacks. For the most part these have lots of stuff you don't want your kids eating even if it does say made with real fruit right on the front of the package. If you want your kids to have real fruit give them real fruit!!! There are some products out there though that are suitable occasionally. You can find fruit leather and fruit strips that are made with fruit and fruit juice and that's it. These still need to be occasional though as it's a lot of sugar and the real fruit will always be better!
Everyday snacks should be easy, tasty, and healthy.
Good examples of snacks are
almonds(or other nuts of choice)
Fresh fruit(frozen is great for hot days)
Small smoothie
Plain yogurt with a little fruit
Ants on a log (banana or celery with natural peanut butter and raisins on top)
Yogurt popsicles(easy to make just blend plain yogurt with fruit pop into popsicle tray and freeze)
Homemade popcorn(many methods paper bag in microwave, hot air popper or like we do old fashioned coconut oil in pan on the oven) we like to add dried cranberries and chopped almonds for something different
Veggies(think baby carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers etc my kids actually love frozen peas still frozen)
Homemade granola or granola bars
Brown rice cake with natural peanut butter(check those labels rice cake should only have whole grain brown rice and maybe salt if you need salted ones and peanut butter should say peanuts and that's it!)
There are so many options and a lot of them are portable if you have a small cooler and ice pack your options for taking things with you are almost limitless string cheese is always good and portable if you tolerate dairy, hummus and crackers, bananas were made to be portable, granola is easy to separate into individual bags, homemade pita chips, grapes. There really is no excuse for snacking on non food.
If there are things you just really love you do not have to give them up but some things you are better off saying goodbye to. Chocolate does not have to be a complete no but a snickers bar should be! Better option hand full of plain peanuts and a piece of good dark chocolate. Cake does not have to be a no but a whole box of little debbies should be! Instead bake your own cupcakes(not from a mix) and freeze them so you can portion it out and you'll find you don't even really have to have icing all the time but hey if it's your birthday have at it. Ice cream does not have to be a no but strawberry flavored ice cream product should be. Check those labels there should be very few ingredients on that list and this should be a special treat! I like Breyers myself!
I do not think you should deprive yourself that will not help you. I just want you to really think about how what you are eating is made and if it's not made in a manner that is honoring to your body ditch it and find a suitable alternative!
Also make sure you are drinking water and lots of it. I do not allow any other beverage in between meals except for water. Sometimes you feel hungry but you are really just thirsty! So drink up and happy snacking!
Remember you can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
So this starts with preparation and eventually becomes habit. Snacks should be real food and should just be snacks. These are to keep you from starving so you don't overeat at meals and to give you a pick me up.
Also I would like to say that even if it is all natural and organic if it's junk food it's still junk food. Chocolate cookies with cream filling have no part in your regular diet. If you must have these as a occasional treat that is fine and by all means get the organic ones instead of the high fructose corn syrup in cookies clothes! These products have a place and I use them myself there are some good crackers and granola bars out there but these should not be for everyday use. Another common snack is fruit snacks. For the most part these have lots of stuff you don't want your kids eating even if it does say made with real fruit right on the front of the package. If you want your kids to have real fruit give them real fruit!!! There are some products out there though that are suitable occasionally. You can find fruit leather and fruit strips that are made with fruit and fruit juice and that's it. These still need to be occasional though as it's a lot of sugar and the real fruit will always be better!
Everyday snacks should be easy, tasty, and healthy.
Good examples of snacks are
almonds(or other nuts of choice)
Fresh fruit(frozen is great for hot days)
Small smoothie
Plain yogurt with a little fruit
Ants on a log (banana or celery with natural peanut butter and raisins on top)
Yogurt popsicles(easy to make just blend plain yogurt with fruit pop into popsicle tray and freeze)
Homemade popcorn(many methods paper bag in microwave, hot air popper or like we do old fashioned coconut oil in pan on the oven) we like to add dried cranberries and chopped almonds for something different
Veggies(think baby carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers etc my kids actually love frozen peas still frozen)
Homemade granola or granola bars
Brown rice cake with natural peanut butter(check those labels rice cake should only have whole grain brown rice and maybe salt if you need salted ones and peanut butter should say peanuts and that's it!)
There are so many options and a lot of them are portable if you have a small cooler and ice pack your options for taking things with you are almost limitless string cheese is always good and portable if you tolerate dairy, hummus and crackers, bananas were made to be portable, granola is easy to separate into individual bags, homemade pita chips, grapes. There really is no excuse for snacking on non food.
If there are things you just really love you do not have to give them up but some things you are better off saying goodbye to. Chocolate does not have to be a complete no but a snickers bar should be! Better option hand full of plain peanuts and a piece of good dark chocolate. Cake does not have to be a no but a whole box of little debbies should be! Instead bake your own cupcakes(not from a mix) and freeze them so you can portion it out and you'll find you don't even really have to have icing all the time but hey if it's your birthday have at it. Ice cream does not have to be a no but strawberry flavored ice cream product should be. Check those labels there should be very few ingredients on that list and this should be a special treat! I like Breyers myself!
I do not think you should deprive yourself that will not help you. I just want you to really think about how what you are eating is made and if it's not made in a manner that is honoring to your body ditch it and find a suitable alternative!
Also make sure you are drinking water and lots of it. I do not allow any other beverage in between meals except for water. Sometimes you feel hungry but you are really just thirsty! So drink up and happy snacking!
Remember you can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Replacing that bad "food" Day 1~breakfast
So last week we talked about label reading and hopefully you have also been doing some research of your own and you now know what not to eat. Now that we have that out of the way let's talk about what to replace all that chemical laden junk with. We want to be putting things in our bodies that will actually help them to function properly not just make you feel full a few minutes or taste good when you eat it. Eating the right kinds of foods can taste good will make you feel full longer than junk food and fuel your body.
Now if you are a non-morning person like me who can't seem to get up even with the kids jumping on me then you know how hard it can be to feed the family something nutritious. Even though I know better I still fall back on cereals and breakfast bars more than I should. If you need to fall back on these things please at least carefully read those labels and go for a good quality brand such as cascadian farms. My kids love toaster pastries so I will get them occasionally but I get the Nature's Path when I do. The trick is to not buy these things often and then you won't eat them often. It sounds relatively simple but if I buy them to put up for a day when I don't feel well or something they always get eaten soon so I only buy them very occasionally. Now breakfast should be easy. There are so many options and I would like to cover some of my favorites. Oatmeal talk about options you can do so much with oatmeal. I buy old fashioned rolled oats so I can do many things with it. The instant packages often have added stuff you don't really need anyway. It takes very little time to make and you can add vanilla, Cinnamon and some fruit(fresh, frozen, or dried) and it is so good. Try not to add sugar to it as the fruit should sweeten it enough. If you have to add sugar make sure to use a natural sugar or honey and gradually lessen the amount you use! I also like to make granola bars and my favorite thing to do with oats is making granola. Now this stuff at the store can be pricey but takes very little time to make and is super easy(just watch it does burn.) We also really like smoothies around here and keep plenty of frozen fruit in the freezer just for this. Whenever we have bananas start to get too ripe I just peel it and throw it in a freezer bag and tada bananas for smoothies. Plain yogurt is also a staple here and goes right into the smoothies. Of course if your mornings are super hectic one of the best things is muffins(not the mix from the bag.) You can make them anytime and eat on them or even freeze them and take them out the night before to eat in the morning! This also works great with pancakes and waffles. Just pop them in the toaster in the morning and you just fed your family something easy, tasty,inexpensive and nutritious! My kids favorites are pumpkin apple, and blueberry banana!
There are so many options for breakfast but it's hard to get out of the cereal rut. Just try a few things and you will see it doesn't take as much effort as you think!
Some other great breakfast options... veggie omelets and yogurt parfaits with your homemade granola plain yogurt and fresh or frozen fruit.Add some protein mix to that smoothie but remember to watch those labels.
Don't forget as many whole one ingredient foods as possible for every meal and snack.
There is no reason to give up the things you love to eat just change the way you eat them and the way they are made!!!
If you have a good quick bread recipe you can make that into muffins so you have individual sizes which is good for portion control and normally takes less bake time!
I promised some recipes this week so here is what I use for granola it's a combination of recipes I've used to come up with what I think works best for us. Feel free to play with this one and try lots of things with it=)
Homemade granola mix
4 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup of flour of your choice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup melted butter
1/2 cup honey
3 tablespoons sugar
2-2 1/2 cups mix ins of choice
heat oven to 325
spray cookie sheet with a lip
melt butter and honey together over medium low heat
mix all dry ingredients together and then add in butter honey mixture and vanilla
stir together well until all coated
bake approximately 15 minutes until your house smells really good and the granola looks nice and toasty let cool on oven
If it gets a little to dark for you take it out before it gets to the color you want as it does crisp up some on the pan after cooking=)
You can put so many things in this dried fruit, nuts, coconut, peanut butter any kind of granola you like to buy you can recreate at home. I would stay away from the candy unless it's just an occasional treat.
For those of you really trying out there I am so proud of you.
You can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
Now if you are a non-morning person like me who can't seem to get up even with the kids jumping on me then you know how hard it can be to feed the family something nutritious. Even though I know better I still fall back on cereals and breakfast bars more than I should. If you need to fall back on these things please at least carefully read those labels and go for a good quality brand such as cascadian farms. My kids love toaster pastries so I will get them occasionally but I get the Nature's Path when I do. The trick is to not buy these things often and then you won't eat them often. It sounds relatively simple but if I buy them to put up for a day when I don't feel well or something they always get eaten soon so I only buy them very occasionally. Now breakfast should be easy. There are so many options and I would like to cover some of my favorites. Oatmeal talk about options you can do so much with oatmeal. I buy old fashioned rolled oats so I can do many things with it. The instant packages often have added stuff you don't really need anyway. It takes very little time to make and you can add vanilla, Cinnamon and some fruit(fresh, frozen, or dried) and it is so good. Try not to add sugar to it as the fruit should sweeten it enough. If you have to add sugar make sure to use a natural sugar or honey and gradually lessen the amount you use! I also like to make granola bars and my favorite thing to do with oats is making granola. Now this stuff at the store can be pricey but takes very little time to make and is super easy(just watch it does burn.) We also really like smoothies around here and keep plenty of frozen fruit in the freezer just for this. Whenever we have bananas start to get too ripe I just peel it and throw it in a freezer bag and tada bananas for smoothies. Plain yogurt is also a staple here and goes right into the smoothies. Of course if your mornings are super hectic one of the best things is muffins(not the mix from the bag.) You can make them anytime and eat on them or even freeze them and take them out the night before to eat in the morning! This also works great with pancakes and waffles. Just pop them in the toaster in the morning and you just fed your family something easy, tasty,inexpensive and nutritious! My kids favorites are pumpkin apple, and blueberry banana!
There are so many options for breakfast but it's hard to get out of the cereal rut. Just try a few things and you will see it doesn't take as much effort as you think!
Some other great breakfast options... veggie omelets and yogurt parfaits with your homemade granola plain yogurt and fresh or frozen fruit.Add some protein mix to that smoothie but remember to watch those labels.
Don't forget as many whole one ingredient foods as possible for every meal and snack.
There is no reason to give up the things you love to eat just change the way you eat them and the way they are made!!!
If you have a good quick bread recipe you can make that into muffins so you have individual sizes which is good for portion control and normally takes less bake time!
I promised some recipes this week so here is what I use for granola it's a combination of recipes I've used to come up with what I think works best for us. Feel free to play with this one and try lots of things with it=)
Homemade granola mix
4 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup of flour of your choice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup melted butter
1/2 cup honey
3 tablespoons sugar
2-2 1/2 cups mix ins of choice
heat oven to 325
spray cookie sheet with a lip
melt butter and honey together over medium low heat
mix all dry ingredients together and then add in butter honey mixture and vanilla
stir together well until all coated
bake approximately 15 minutes until your house smells really good and the granola looks nice and toasty let cool on oven
If it gets a little to dark for you take it out before it gets to the color you want as it does crisp up some on the pan after cooking=)
You can put so many things in this dried fruit, nuts, coconut, peanut butter any kind of granola you like to buy you can recreate at home. I would stay away from the candy unless it's just an occasional treat.
For those of you really trying out there I am so proud of you.
You can do this! You and your family are worth it!!!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Weekend challenge
I have decided to forgo an official weekend challenge due to the label reading. The challenge this week is just to keep looking at those labels. If you have not gone through your kitchen yet then the challenge is to get that done this weekend.
Have a great weekend everyone I'll "see" you Monday!
Have a great weekend everyone I'll "see" you Monday!
Label reading wrap up
So I know I have given you a lot of information to process in the past few days and I hope by breaking it up you have been able to digest it(pun intended lol.)
I would like to end this with a word of encouragement. I know when you first realize how bad all the stuff you have been eating has been for you and your family you can have a wide range of emotions. You many feel guilty with yourself, angry at the food manufacturers or your family. You may even feel like it is hopeless. It is not hopeless and there is no point in trying to blame someone even yourself. It is counter productive and will not help you to become healthy. Next week I am going to talk about how to find alternatives to what you have been eating and tips for making things yourself. There might even be some recipes=)
For now keep reading ALL of your labels. I am going to take a couple of days off from blogging as I have my MIL coming in for my youngest first birthday. I made cupcakes today for her and I cut the sugar in the recipe in half. I always cut the sugar down in recipes because I feel we have let our taste get used to way more sugar than is necessary but I've never done it with cake. I was really worried but they turned out great I let me DH try one and he likes them too so success! I can't wait to see her try them. I also found some non soy organic shortening this week so I was able to make tortillas for her because she has never been able to have them before she loved them! I made quesadillas out of them and then used the leftovers for sandwiches. It's been a big food week for her.
If anyone has any questions about alternatives to what you have been eating that you would like me to address please email me!
Remember you can do this! You and your children are worth it!
I would like to end this with a word of encouragement. I know when you first realize how bad all the stuff you have been eating has been for you and your family you can have a wide range of emotions. You many feel guilty with yourself, angry at the food manufacturers or your family. You may even feel like it is hopeless. It is not hopeless and there is no point in trying to blame someone even yourself. It is counter productive and will not help you to become healthy. Next week I am going to talk about how to find alternatives to what you have been eating and tips for making things yourself. There might even be some recipes=)
For now keep reading ALL of your labels. I am going to take a couple of days off from blogging as I have my MIL coming in for my youngest first birthday. I made cupcakes today for her and I cut the sugar in the recipe in half. I always cut the sugar down in recipes because I feel we have let our taste get used to way more sugar than is necessary but I've never done it with cake. I was really worried but they turned out great I let me DH try one and he likes them too so success! I can't wait to see her try them. I also found some non soy organic shortening this week so I was able to make tortillas for her because she has never been able to have them before she loved them! I made quesadillas out of them and then used the leftovers for sandwiches. It's been a big food week for her.
If anyone has any questions about alternatives to what you have been eating that you would like me to address please email me!
Remember you can do this! You and your children are worth it!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Label reading Day 3~ allergies
I almost hesitate to even address this issue because it is really sensitive. If you feel you might have allergies or know you do please talk to your doctor/allergist/nutritionist before implementing any dietary changes!!!
There are two things I would like to address though first of all people think of allergic reactions as not being able to breath or getting severe rashes and being rushed off to the hospital. This is not always the case. Sometimes the reactions might not even be thought of as an allergic reaction. Some people just feel sluggish after ingesting something they are allergic to. Two of my children have gotten diaper rash from things they were allergic two. With my youngest I had a glass of soy milk the next day she screamed all day got a terrible diaper rash and then got really bad diarrhea. Many people with seasonal allergies and asthma find that if they cut out dairy particularly cows milk their symptoms are greatly reduced and sometimes even go away. I had a recent experience where I was having terrible dizzy spells where sometimes I would have to lie down in the floor and wait for it to pass. I was also extremely tired and could barely do anything and was getting headaches that were almost unbearable. I went to the doctor to rule out any problems and nothing came up so I started to really watch when it was happening tried to figure out what was different. I have always been sensitive to caffeine and decided to try and see if that might be causing these problems. Sure enough within a week of cutting out caffeine completely the symptoms all went away and haven't returned!
Now to understand partially about allergies there are differences in food allergies and food intolerances. If you want to know more google it or talk to your allergist as I'm not a nutritionist or an allergist so I don't want to butcher the info=)
On to the part about label reading. This can be very difficult for people who have allergies particularly wheat and corn. If you have a corn allergy you also can not have anything with corn, high fructose corn syrup, confectioners sugar(powdered sugar), baking powder, sometimes caramel, dextrin, maltodextrin,dextrose, fructose,malt, malt syrup, malt extractmono- and di-glycerides, MSG, anything that just says vegetable without you knowing what vegetable among many many other things if you need to be corn free please take some time to either research or get the information from your doctor to find out everything you should be avoiding this is particularly difficult with eating out no fast food and if you go to a restaurant only go to one you really trust to tell you everything they use!
Now wheat can be very difficult as well there are so many things that have wheat that you would never even know. Do not rely on there being a label saying contains wheat ingredients etc. It is not always there and with many other allergens it's not there at all. I have seen labels with contains wheat, dairy but it didn't say contains soy(when it did). Never trust those warnings always read the ingredient list for yourself. This is a good place for information on reading labels for wheat allergies As a matter of fact it has a lot of other good information on kids with food allergies in general.
Some people with allergies to things like garlic or other seasonings also have a unique issue with the fact that seasonings do not have to be individually listed. If you have one of these such allergies stay away from anything labeled seasoning, flavoring, spices, or anything of the nature. This also means meat has to be checked I know I have gotten ground turkey before that had seasoning on the label.
If you are allergic to MSG or just trying to stay away from it because it's bad stuff you should also know that they it is supposed to be labeled as monosodium glutamate on the label however The USDA website states
" Yes. MSG is the sodium salt of glutamic acid. Glutamic acid is an amino acid, one of the building blocks of protein. It is found in virtually all food and, in abundance, in food that is high in protein, including meat, poultry, cheeses, and fish.Hydrolyzed proteins, used by the food industry to enhance flavor, are simply proteins that have been chemically broken apart into amino acids. The chemical breakdown of proteins may result in the formation of free glutamate that joins with free sodium to form MSG. In this case, the presence of MSG does not need to be disclosed on labeling. Labeling is required when MSG is added as a direct ingredient"
So only if it is a direct ingredient does it have to be labeled at all!
Does anyone else see why eating whole foods that you know where they came from is so important. This stuff was never meant to be put together in such a fashion and look at what it is doing to us! This is especially important to do if you have food allergies and if they are life threatening it is going to be much easier to make your food all the time buy the fruit, veggies, grains, and meat and make your food yourself you can do it. Even if you don't think you have time just think about how long it takes to get ready go to the drive through and then get home. I like to make extra meals, snacks and breads and keep my freezer stocked. Last week I had homemade manicotti straight from my freezer and it wasn't anymore difficult than a frozen meal!!!
I know some of you probably think all this is way too expensive and when you go to a health food store the prices are higher. I will not argue with you on that it is! However if you are buying single ingredient foods and making your own meals instead of buying the prepackaged, pre-made meals from these places you will not be spending much if any more. Remember real food will fill you up much better than processed food so you eat less of it. This is good for your wallet and your waistline!
You can do this!!! You and your children are worth it!!!
I would love to hear about what you have found in your kitchen this week!!
There are two things I would like to address though first of all people think of allergic reactions as not being able to breath or getting severe rashes and being rushed off to the hospital. This is not always the case. Sometimes the reactions might not even be thought of as an allergic reaction. Some people just feel sluggish after ingesting something they are allergic to. Two of my children have gotten diaper rash from things they were allergic two. With my youngest I had a glass of soy milk the next day she screamed all day got a terrible diaper rash and then got really bad diarrhea. Many people with seasonal allergies and asthma find that if they cut out dairy particularly cows milk their symptoms are greatly reduced and sometimes even go away. I had a recent experience where I was having terrible dizzy spells where sometimes I would have to lie down in the floor and wait for it to pass. I was also extremely tired and could barely do anything and was getting headaches that were almost unbearable. I went to the doctor to rule out any problems and nothing came up so I started to really watch when it was happening tried to figure out what was different. I have always been sensitive to caffeine and decided to try and see if that might be causing these problems. Sure enough within a week of cutting out caffeine completely the symptoms all went away and haven't returned!
Now to understand partially about allergies there are differences in food allergies and food intolerances. If you want to know more google it or talk to your allergist as I'm not a nutritionist or an allergist so I don't want to butcher the info=)
On to the part about label reading. This can be very difficult for people who have allergies particularly wheat and corn. If you have a corn allergy you also can not have anything with corn, high fructose corn syrup, confectioners sugar(powdered sugar), baking powder, sometimes caramel, dextrin, maltodextrin,dextrose, fructose,malt, malt syrup, malt extractmono- and di-glycerides, MSG, anything that just says vegetable without you knowing what vegetable among many many other things if you need to be corn free please take some time to either research or get the information from your doctor to find out everything you should be avoiding this is particularly difficult with eating out no fast food and if you go to a restaurant only go to one you really trust to tell you everything they use!
Now wheat can be very difficult as well there are so many things that have wheat that you would never even know. Do not rely on there being a label saying contains wheat ingredients etc. It is not always there and with many other allergens it's not there at all. I have seen labels with contains wheat, dairy but it didn't say contains soy(when it did). Never trust those warnings always read the ingredient list for yourself. This is a good place for information on reading labels for wheat allergies As a matter of fact it has a lot of other good information on kids with food allergies in general.
Some people with allergies to things like garlic or other seasonings also have a unique issue with the fact that seasonings do not have to be individually listed. If you have one of these such allergies stay away from anything labeled seasoning, flavoring, spices, or anything of the nature. This also means meat has to be checked I know I have gotten ground turkey before that had seasoning on the label.
If you are allergic to MSG or just trying to stay away from it because it's bad stuff you should also know that they it is supposed to be labeled as monosodium glutamate on the label however The USDA website states
" Yes. MSG is the sodium salt of glutamic acid. Glutamic acid is an amino acid, one of the building blocks of protein. It is found in virtually all food and, in abundance, in food that is high in protein, including meat, poultry, cheeses, and fish.Hydrolyzed proteins, used by the food industry to enhance flavor, are simply proteins that have been chemically broken apart into amino acids. The chemical breakdown of proteins may result in the formation of free glutamate that joins with free sodium to form MSG. In this case, the presence of MSG does not need to be disclosed on labeling. Labeling is required when MSG is added as a direct ingredient"
So only if it is a direct ingredient does it have to be labeled at all!
Does anyone else see why eating whole foods that you know where they came from is so important. This stuff was never meant to be put together in such a fashion and look at what it is doing to us! This is especially important to do if you have food allergies and if they are life threatening it is going to be much easier to make your food all the time buy the fruit, veggies, grains, and meat and make your food yourself you can do it. Even if you don't think you have time just think about how long it takes to get ready go to the drive through and then get home. I like to make extra meals, snacks and breads and keep my freezer stocked. Last week I had homemade manicotti straight from my freezer and it wasn't anymore difficult than a frozen meal!!!
I know some of you probably think all this is way too expensive and when you go to a health food store the prices are higher. I will not argue with you on that it is! However if you are buying single ingredient foods and making your own meals instead of buying the prepackaged, pre-made meals from these places you will not be spending much if any more. Remember real food will fill you up much better than processed food so you eat less of it. This is good for your wallet and your waistline!
You can do this!!! You and your children are worth it!!!
I would love to hear about what you have found in your kitchen this week!!
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Label reading day two~ counting calories
Ok so you are trying to loose weight or you need to watch your sodium intake or you need to make sure your kids aren't living off sugar. You think you can do that easily with processed foods because they have all of that clearly labeled right? Wrong! These figures can be wrong and the calorie counts at the restaurants can be way off. This stuff is different every time it's fixed. Now at the restaurant it's going to be worse because from cook to cook day to day the way it's fixed ie how much butter/oil it's fixed in can vary. Relying on an online source or iphone app can also steer you wrong. This information changes companies change their formulas and brands can vary considerably! Take into account a medium apple has around 80 calories and 15 grams of sugar. Now how big exactly is a medium apple and it varies with the skin on or off and what kind. They can't possibly get it exactly right every time. A recent study showed that restaurants were off by as much as 18% and frozen foods off by 8%. To see an article on it go here. If you need to watch your calories keep a food journal(everything you put in your mouth counts) and watch those portions on the box!!! Measure it out a couple of times if you need to. The best way to keep it in check is still to eat as many whole foods, fruits and veggies as possible.
If you are watching your kids sugar intake the easiest way to do this is not necessarily checking the sugar amount on the box but by checking the ingredient list if it has corn syrup, sugar, honey and dextrose all listed it has too much sugar you don't even have to waste your time looking at how many grams. Fruit has sugar yes but it is digested differently by your body. You are looking for food that doesn't have added sugar in it ie plain yogurt not strawberry not even vanilla. You get plain yogurt and add real fruit to it so you are also getting the full benefits of the fruit. Sugar goes by many names and you have to watch for them check out this article I found of Fifty names of sugar Once again if you are watching this stay away from the processed foods it makes it so much easier. Real fruit is a much better way to get nutrients and you don't have to worry about what is in it! Also real whole fruit with the peel will always be better than fruit juice if you or your children must have juice limit it greatly and check those labels. Grape juice should have grapes and maybe water. Even if it says 100% juice on the front still check because if it is a low enough percentage it can still have preservatives in it and say 100% juice.
One thing you really need to understand is the food manufacturers are not out to help you be healthy! They are out to make money. Cheap food makes more money. If they feel healthy food is a trend they will do their best to market it as healthy even if it's not. Just because they have added fiber or vitamins doesn't mean the sodium and sugar it's swimming in is good. DO NOT TRUST THE CLAIMS ON THE COMMERCIALS OR THE FRONT OF THE BOX!!!!! Even some of those diet bars are terrible for you. CHECK EVERYTHING AND TRUST NO FOOD COMPANY until they prove they are providing a good solid product.
Now the amount of calories and fat and sodium a person needs greatly varies. It depends on your age, your size, what you are trying to do, family history etc. Please talk to a doctor or nutritionist that you can really talk to about this and find out where you need to be. Then when you are armed with this information and a little know how about label reading you can move forward on this journey to health.
You can do this!!! You are worth it and your children are worth it!!!
If you are watching your kids sugar intake the easiest way to do this is not necessarily checking the sugar amount on the box but by checking the ingredient list if it has corn syrup, sugar, honey and dextrose all listed it has too much sugar you don't even have to waste your time looking at how many grams. Fruit has sugar yes but it is digested differently by your body. You are looking for food that doesn't have added sugar in it ie plain yogurt not strawberry not even vanilla. You get plain yogurt and add real fruit to it so you are also getting the full benefits of the fruit. Sugar goes by many names and you have to watch for them check out this article I found of Fifty names of sugar Once again if you are watching this stay away from the processed foods it makes it so much easier. Real fruit is a much better way to get nutrients and you don't have to worry about what is in it! Also real whole fruit with the peel will always be better than fruit juice if you or your children must have juice limit it greatly and check those labels. Grape juice should have grapes and maybe water. Even if it says 100% juice on the front still check because if it is a low enough percentage it can still have preservatives in it and say 100% juice.
One thing you really need to understand is the food manufacturers are not out to help you be healthy! They are out to make money. Cheap food makes more money. If they feel healthy food is a trend they will do their best to market it as healthy even if it's not. Just because they have added fiber or vitamins doesn't mean the sodium and sugar it's swimming in is good. DO NOT TRUST THE CLAIMS ON THE COMMERCIALS OR THE FRONT OF THE BOX!!!!! Even some of those diet bars are terrible for you. CHECK EVERYTHING AND TRUST NO FOOD COMPANY until they prove they are providing a good solid product.
Now the amount of calories and fat and sodium a person needs greatly varies. It depends on your age, your size, what you are trying to do, family history etc. Please talk to a doctor or nutritionist that you can really talk to about this and find out where you need to be. Then when you are armed with this information and a little know how about label reading you can move forward on this journey to health.
You can do this!!! You are worth it and your children are worth it!!!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Label Reading Day 1~Familiarize yourself
So you are in the store the kids want twenty things you don't want to get them one kid is half asleep and you forgot to eat lunch. You know the kitchen at home has nothing in it and you have company coming this weekend. This is not the time to start trying to read labels! You will get confused, frustrated and look like a crazy person.
One of the easiest ways to acquaint yourself with what information is on the label, serving sizes, and ingredients is at home. Go to your kitchen with a pen and two pieces of paper. On one write DO NOT BUY AGAIN on the other side of that paper write ACCEPTABLE TO PURCHASE. On the other paper write WHAT IS THIS ANYWAY? This second piece of paper is very important if you have allergies or dietary restrictions. If you are on a specific diet ie trying to loose weight or have health problems I want you to have a third piece of paper that says TALK TO DOCTOR/NUTRITIONIST. This will mostly be about calorie intake, sodium intake etc.
Now I want you to look at every single thing in your kitchen/ pantry. I mean everything, if it is going in you or your family's mouth you need to look at it. Is the food as good as you thought it was? Is it full of things that you can't pronounce or artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. If it has these things in it write this down on the DO NOT BUY AGAIN list. If you hit the jack pot and find that your tomato paste only has tomatoes in it write that down on your ACCEPTABLE TO PURCHASE list. This is very important to be specific with brands as things can vary. This will be your list you take with you to the store to help you get started on label reading and making decisions on what to purchase for your family.
Now is also a good time to write down all those things that you don't know what they are especially if you have food allergies many things have wheat, corn etc in it but they go by a different name. You could be eating the very things you are allergic to and not even know it! When you are done making your list take it to the computer and look up all that stuff you don't know what is it will give you a new outlook and help you understand how you are feeding your body.
Now I said check everything and I want to make sure you really get me. Check your freezer some of those frozen veggies you thought you were doing good to buy have added salt and sugar. Your beans, peas, and corn do not need extra salt and sugar check it. If it has it you know what list it goes on. Check your baking supplies check everything!!! Also those of you that love peanut butter check it there should be one ingredient on that list peanuts if there is anything else you know what to do.
This is also a good time to check those serving sizes have you been eating way more than you thought? If you are trying to loose weight this is a good thing to talk to your doctor about.
When you are finished with all of your list put the ones you are taking to the store with your bags, in your purse wherever that you will take it with you.
If you are like me you will purchase things you didn't really mean to without realizing it. This takes time and retraining yourself to shop. When you come home from the store and are putting things away check your purchases. If you happened to purchase something with chemicals and junk in it pull that list back out and add it on there. If it is something you can take back put it aside with the reciept and then you can look for a reasonable alternative.
I am not suggesting you throw out everything in your kitchen I do think that would be wastfull and cost you a lot of money. Simply don't buy it again if you see that it is not a healthful choice. Now if you have a stock pile of little debbies I would say toss them some things are not worth eating at all for anyone!
If I can do this I know you can it really is a lot of work but it is all worth it!!!
Please email me if you have any questions about today's article or have a question you would like me to address on label reading.
You can also find Columbus Food Revolution on facebook!!
One of the easiest ways to acquaint yourself with what information is on the label, serving sizes, and ingredients is at home. Go to your kitchen with a pen and two pieces of paper. On one write DO NOT BUY AGAIN on the other side of that paper write ACCEPTABLE TO PURCHASE. On the other paper write WHAT IS THIS ANYWAY? This second piece of paper is very important if you have allergies or dietary restrictions. If you are on a specific diet ie trying to loose weight or have health problems I want you to have a third piece of paper that says TALK TO DOCTOR/NUTRITIONIST. This will mostly be about calorie intake, sodium intake etc.
Now I want you to look at every single thing in your kitchen/ pantry. I mean everything, if it is going in you or your family's mouth you need to look at it. Is the food as good as you thought it was? Is it full of things that you can't pronounce or artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. If it has these things in it write this down on the DO NOT BUY AGAIN list. If you hit the jack pot and find that your tomato paste only has tomatoes in it write that down on your ACCEPTABLE TO PURCHASE list. This is very important to be specific with brands as things can vary. This will be your list you take with you to the store to help you get started on label reading and making decisions on what to purchase for your family.
Now is also a good time to write down all those things that you don't know what they are especially if you have food allergies many things have wheat, corn etc in it but they go by a different name. You could be eating the very things you are allergic to and not even know it! When you are done making your list take it to the computer and look up all that stuff you don't know what is it will give you a new outlook and help you understand how you are feeding your body.
Now I said check everything and I want to make sure you really get me. Check your freezer some of those frozen veggies you thought you were doing good to buy have added salt and sugar. Your beans, peas, and corn do not need extra salt and sugar check it. If it has it you know what list it goes on. Check your baking supplies check everything!!! Also those of you that love peanut butter check it there should be one ingredient on that list peanuts if there is anything else you know what to do.
This is also a good time to check those serving sizes have you been eating way more than you thought? If you are trying to loose weight this is a good thing to talk to your doctor about.
When you are finished with all of your list put the ones you are taking to the store with your bags, in your purse wherever that you will take it with you.
If you are like me you will purchase things you didn't really mean to without realizing it. This takes time and retraining yourself to shop. When you come home from the store and are putting things away check your purchases. If you happened to purchase something with chemicals and junk in it pull that list back out and add it on there. If it is something you can take back put it aside with the reciept and then you can look for a reasonable alternative.
I am not suggesting you throw out everything in your kitchen I do think that would be wastfull and cost you a lot of money. Simply don't buy it again if you see that it is not a healthful choice. Now if you have a stock pile of little debbies I would say toss them some things are not worth eating at all for anyone!
If I can do this I know you can it really is a lot of work but it is all worth it!!!
Please email me if you have any questions about today's article or have a question you would like me to address on label reading.
You can also find Columbus Food Revolution on facebook!!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Weekend Challange
So sorry this is a day later than I meant for it to be but I had a serious headache last night and typing was the last thing on my mind.
Did anyone do the soda challange last week? If you did I would love to hear about it. Sodas are a major source of empty calories in the US and even those diet sodas are doing nothing but harming you. Did you know that both HFCS and artificial sweeteners can keep you from feeling full. This is why you drink more of it and eat more when you are eating junk food. If you could just cut one thing out this would be the thing to cut out!!!!
This weekends challange is about bread. If you are like me when the weather starts to get nice it means picnics and grilling out. Now I'm not going to sit here and tell you no carbs and all that. If that is what your doctor has said please do it though and of course if you are gluten free this doesn't apply. For the rest of us check those labels. Lots and lots of bread products out there have HFCS in it along with partially hydrogenated oils and a list of other chemicals pretending to be food. Yes the stuff that doesn't have that in it is more expensive so eat less of it if you will. Since we have some allergy issues in our family I actually had to pay $3 something for hamburger buns. It hurt me to do so but I trusted the product and would have it no other way. Also I make a great deal of my own bread and most of it is super easy, cheap, and taste better than anything you will find on the shelf. If you have questions about bread making I would be glad to answer them.
I want you to remember your health and your children's health is worth it!!! It is worth spending a little more time, money, and preperation. I really think you can do it without spending any more than you normally do by making your own food and the things you don't make stocking up when they are on sale.The bottom line is you can pay for it now or you can pay the doctors and pharmacy companies later, your choice!
Did anyone do the soda challange last week? If you did I would love to hear about it. Sodas are a major source of empty calories in the US and even those diet sodas are doing nothing but harming you. Did you know that both HFCS and artificial sweeteners can keep you from feeling full. This is why you drink more of it and eat more when you are eating junk food. If you could just cut one thing out this would be the thing to cut out!!!!
This weekends challange is about bread. If you are like me when the weather starts to get nice it means picnics and grilling out. Now I'm not going to sit here and tell you no carbs and all that. If that is what your doctor has said please do it though and of course if you are gluten free this doesn't apply. For the rest of us check those labels. Lots and lots of bread products out there have HFCS in it along with partially hydrogenated oils and a list of other chemicals pretending to be food. Yes the stuff that doesn't have that in it is more expensive so eat less of it if you will. Since we have some allergy issues in our family I actually had to pay $3 something for hamburger buns. It hurt me to do so but I trusted the product and would have it no other way. Also I make a great deal of my own bread and most of it is super easy, cheap, and taste better than anything you will find on the shelf. If you have questions about bread making I would be glad to answer them.
I want you to remember your health and your children's health is worth it!!! It is worth spending a little more time, money, and preperation. I really think you can do it without spending any more than you normally do by making your own food and the things you don't make stocking up when they are on sale.The bottom line is you can pay for it now or you can pay the doctors and pharmacy companies later, your choice!
McDonald's experiment
So I have made the decision to continue the McDonald's experiment in a couple of weeks and this time be more careful about the dog=) Fortunately he never got sick.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Day Six McDonald's challange
Where to begin with tonight? Well first off if you noticed that the McDonald's burger is not in the pictures that's because I got them out looked them over made my observations and when I went to take a picture could not get the camera to work. I took the camera upstairs to show to my DH and when I came down the dog was standing at the table and the burger was gone!!! He is now in the basement as I'm just waiting for him to get sick =( Fortunately I at least made my observations and I still have the control which is my burger so I can get another and compare to the previously acquired information with this control without having to do another.The McDonald's burger before it was eaten looked just like it has the whole time with the exception of the cheese was starting to harden a bit. The bun was still exactly the same and the meat has only slightly changed in color the entire time.
The big news is the fries now have mold now I'm sure that if I had kept them out they would not have acquired said mold so quickly but I'm not trying to keep them from molding or rotting I'm simply trying to compare them with what I know for a fact to be real food. McDonald's fries can in fact mold. However the rate at which this mold took to grow does say something about what they must be doing.
The food I made is disgusting and the fries are all but mush and mold at this point. The bread is not showing serious signs of mold yet. The cheese has mold but the meat has not been significantly changed with the exception of the smell which could be those potatoes. Perhaps if I do this again I will keep them seperate.
I'm not sure where I will be going from here but I will continue to observe what I still have until I make a decision.
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