Healthy Meal On a Budget

Many factors influence what you eat with flavor being the most important consideration in choosing the food. Flavor is an attribute of a food that includes its taste, smell, texture, temperature and even the sounds made when it is chewed. Flavor is a combination of all five senses: taste, smell, touch, sight, and sound. 

This healthy meal on a budget pictured here: Carrot curls and broccoli salad, Tex-Mex chicken, orzo pasta side and caramelized apple slices with ginger makes a sensational meal. It's flavorful, healthy, budget friendly and simply all-around delicious! 

Healthy Meal On a Budget

Pictured: Tex-Mex Chicken, Caramelized Apple slices with ginger, Carrot Curls and Broccoli Salad and Orzo Pasta Side.

A Healthier Pound Cake

The olive oil instead of butter makes this pound cake every bit as delicious and the good fat in it makes it a much better option!!

Best ever pound cake! Easy to make, delicious and better for you!

Pound Cake with Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Makes: 8-10 servings per loaf                    baking time: about 50 minutes

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 cups sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

1-cup extra virgin olive oil

1-teaspoon pure vanilla extract

5 cold large eggs

1-cup milk

Pans: two 8-by-4 inch loaf pans or 10 to 12 cup tube or Bundt pan can be used,  

Directions

            1.     Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottom and sides of the loaf pans with                   parchment paper or grease and flour the pans, shake off excess flour. 

2.    Sift the flour and baking powder together. Set aside.  Beat the sugar, salt, oil, and vanilla in a large dry bowl until well blended. Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition, then continue to beat until the mixture is thick an pale, 3 to 5 minutes. Add one-third of the flour mixture and beat at low speed just until blended. Add half of the milk and beat just until blended. Repeat with another third of the flour, the remaining milk, and then the remaining flour.

3.     Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) divide evenly if using two loaf pans. Bake for about 50 minutes or  until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pans on rack for about15 minutes.

Glaze: if desired, mix 1-cup confectionary sugar and 1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon

What Made You Buy and Eat That

This homemade chicken, broccoli ziti dish seasoned with olive oil is  much lower lower in fat and calories than one with an Alfredo type sauce.

Few people want to put on extra pounds  or boost their risk of heart disease, diabetes, or cancer. So why can't we just turn away?

"We have a shockingly limited capacity to make thoughtful, mindful decisions about what we eat," says Deborah Cohen, senior researcher at the RAND Corporation. " Instead, eating happens without our full awareness."

Modifying your eating habits may be more sustainable than trying to change them completely. Adding lower calorie foods such as plain fruits and vegetables can make limiting higher calorie foods easier  to limit.

Better Your Beverage!

Make water your beverage of choice!

 What's your beverage of choice?

 To maintain a healthy weight, what you drink is as important as what you eat.  Drink water instead of sugary drinks when you’re thirsty. Regular soda, energy or sports drinks, and other sweet drinks usually contain a lot of added sugar, which provides more calories than needed. Adults and children take in about 400 calories per day as beverages.

Maintain a healthy weight, sip water or other drinks with few or no calories. Manage your calories.  

Drink water with and between your meals—drinking water can help you manage your calories. Make water an easy option in your home. When water alone just won’t do try sparkling water, mineral water, club soda or seltzer water. Kick it up a notch with a  splash of cranberry juice cocktail or other juice.    

How much water is enough?   Let your thirst be your guide. Water is an important nutrient for the body, but everyone’s needs are different. Most of us get enough water from the foods we eat and the beverages we drink. A healthy body can balance water needs throughout the day. Drink plenty of water if you are very active, live or work in hot conditions, or are an older adult.    

When a sweeter beverage is a "must have" —enjoy your choice, but just cut back. Remember to check the serving size and the number of servings in the can, bottle, or container to stay within calorie needs. Select smaller cans, cups, or glasses instead of large or supersized options. check the facts   Use the Nutrition Facts label to choose beverages at the grocery store. The label contains information about total sugars, fats, and calories to help you make better choices. 

Managing health issues during the holiday...

Managing health issues such as pre-diabetes or type-2 diabetes during the holidays can be especially difficult. Sticking to the following habits can be helpful:

1. Choose foods with fiber, such as whole-grains

2. Limit cocktails, especially mixed drinks. Stick with a glass of wine or shot of unsweetened hard liquor

3. Choose magnesium rich foods such as nuts, beans and spinach

During these holidays stick with your healthy eating as much as possible. Keep the special treats to a small serving or taste. As health issues do not take a holiday!

Healthy Lifestyle

A healthy lifestyle

To ensure a healthy lifestyle, World Health Organization (WHO) recommends eating lots of fruits and vegetables, reducing fat, sugar and salt intake and exercising. Based on height and weight, people can check their body mass index (BMI) to see if they are overweight. WHO provides a series of publications to promote and support healthy lifestyles.

12 steps to healthy eating

1. Eat a nutritious diet based on a variety of foods originating mainly from plants, rather than animals.
2. Eat bread, whole grains, pasta, rice or potatoes several times per day.
3. Eat a variety of vegetables and fruits, preferably fresh and local, several times per day (at least 400g per day).
4. Maintain body weight between the recommended limits (a BMI of 18.5–25) by taking moderate to vigorous levels of physical activity, preferably daily. Click to read more

Create Delicious Meals!

Enjoy foods from many cultures.

Combinations of herbs and spices often remind us of dishes from our own heritage or our favorite ethnic food. Add flavor to meals with herbs and spices, such as chili, garlic, ginger, basil, oregano, curry, cilantro or turmeric.

Recipes with a cultural influence:

• Arroz Con Pollo
• Lucky Lettuce Cups

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Dill Coated Salmon Mini Cakes

This easy Salmon dish is perfect for bringing to a party or if hosting the party. They are delicious and quick to make. 

Dill Coated Salmon Mini Cakes

Makes about 15mini cakes

1 lb. salmon

1 garlic clove, minced

½ small onion finely chopped

 ½ cup breadcrumbs, Italian flavored, separated

1 tsp. ground ginger

1 tsp. dried mint

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 egg

½ cup dill

2-3 tbsp.  olive oil

Salt & white pepper

Steam salmon for 10-12 minutes. Sauté onion and garlic for 2 minutes and cool slightly. Transfer steamed salmon to a bowl remove skin and flake with the aid of a fork. Add sautéed onion and garlic, ginger, mint, 1/3 of breadcrumbs, lemon juice, egg and salt and pepper and mix well. Make walnut size balls and pat with hands. Spread the dill and remaining breadcrumbs on a plate and roll the salmon mini cakes to coat.

Heatoil in a sauté pan and sauté the salmon cakes about 2 minutes per sideuntil light golden brown.  Remove from heat and serve with the yogurt-mayonnaise sauce.

Yogurt Mayonnaise sauce

1 cup yogurt

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

1 dill pickle finely chopped

1 tsp. oil

Combine all ingredients and mix to a smooth consistency. 

More news on salt and sugar!

Salt:

A new study just released found that the lower the blood pressure the better for heart health! Salt is a significant contributor in blood pressure management. Keep your intake to less than one teaspoon or less of added salt per day. That is the salt in all foods not just that used during cooking. 

Sugar:

Just released the new food nutrition facts on food packaging will show the Daily Values of added sugar!

Also, the American Heart Association recommends that women consume not more than 6 teaspoon of salt per day and men consume not more than 9 teaspoons of sugar per day. 

More to come! Join the conversation!!!

Anna

Eat Your Rainbow

All fruits and vegetables contain more or less of some amount of nutrients. To ensure that we get enough of all  nutrients  its important to eat a variety of them. With a little planning eating a variety of fruits and vegetables becomes a cinch!

To do list:

1. Buy at least one fruit or vegetable of each color:
   • Red: apple, red grapes, red/pink grapefruit, papaya, raspberries, strawberries, watermelon; tomato, low-sodium tomato juice, beets, red pepper
   • Orange: apricot, cantaloupe, mango, orange, peach, pumpkin, tangerine; carrots, acorn squash, butternut squash, sweet potato
   • Yellow: banana, figs, pear, pineapple; cauliflower, corn, garlic, onion, spaghetti squash, summer squash, yellow potatoes
   • Green: green grapes, kiwi, olives, pear; asparagus, avocado, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, collards, edamame, green beans, kale, lettuce, snow peas, zucchini
   • Blue: blueberries, concord grapes
   • Purple: blackberries, purple grapes, plums, prunes, raisins; cabbage, eggplant
   • White: fennel, garlic, jicama, mushrooms, onion, parsnips

Exercise inspiration!

Ease into moving more by doing activities you enjoy and can easily fit in your day. Jogging, playing team sports, and biking are just a few examples of how you can get moving. Start small and work up to 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week if you are not already physically active.  Moderate-intensity is the equivalent of walking at a 3-4 miles per hour pace.  

Moving more and eating healthier are both part of a healthier and happier lifestyle!

Good Health  Great LIfe!

WEEK ONE: MyPlate Principle Meal

http://www.choosemyplate.gov/

Challenge: Follow the MYPLATE Principle  

One meal a day this week will consist of: whole grain, lean protein, vegetables and fruit.

NOTE: Eating breakfast and overall healthier eating are key to weight loss and maintenance. Try some of the delicious recipes included in your weekly Delicious Simplicity Lifestyle Plan Emails.