Healthy Cooking by design

I came across a link on facebook today called “Cup O’ Joe for a Joe” and couldn’t resist checking it out and passing it along to other coffee lovers.  Not only because I love a good cup of coffee, but I love to support our troops.

The creator of this campaign is the Green Beans Coffee Company.  They got their start with, and have a unique dedication to, the troops of the United States military. Their company mission is “Honor First, Coffee Second”, and they donate a portion of every sale to charities that support military families and their children.

You can go to their site and pay two bucks for a cup of coffee to be delivered to a soldier who has signed up, along with a note from you if you like.  They can even send a note of thanks back telling you how much that little gesture from home meant to them.  On facebook, you can read some of the thank you notes soldiers sent back to others - I dare you to not cry!

I know money is tight for many of us right now.  But who says we should give out of our abundance?  I could choose to skip my cup of coffee (or other indulgence) once a week or even once a month to send it to someone who will appreciate it a lot more than me.  I mean, they are skipping EVERY COMFORT OF THEIR LIFE right now for me.  The least I can do is send them a cup of coffee with a thank you note from home.  Thanks Green Beans for a great idea!

I am having fun making my famous “Salmon Orzo with Grilled Veggies” and delivering it to peoples homes or offices in exchange for a donation for my daughter’s upcoming mission trip.  It is an upscale pasta salad. I use orzo, which is a type of small pasta. I grill some salmon and chopped veggies like onion, zucchini, red bell peppers, and mushrooms that have been tossed with olive oil, lemon juice and some seasonings. I crumble the salmon and toss it all together in a light sauce and top it with shredded parmesan cheese. It is great served hot or cold.  It’s probably my most requested dish.

So instead of eating out this week or next, invest that money instead in a worthwhile cause and enjoy a one-of-a-kind pasta dish brought to you.  Think of all that driving, parking, and waiting you won’t have to do!

I was thinking about how to make Mother’s Day special when it occurred to me, “Hey, wait a minute… I’m a mother, so what would make it special for me?”  I took that thought one step farther and thought, “What would make it special for my mother?”  As I carried those thoughts even farther I realized that I can step outside of the traditional box and have, eat, do, and wear whatever I want to make that day special for me.

I really enjoy eating breakfast any time of the day (and so does my mother), so breakfast is now the menu for my Mother’s Day dinner.  Feeling empowered, I decided that I really do enjoy shrimp.  So, shrimp and grits will be on the table along with some fruit, eggs, red potatoes, and whatever else strikes my fancy.

I realized that there really are no “Official Mother’s Day Dinner Rules”.  If I want to eat on disposable plates, I can.  And if I want to serve it all from my grandmother’s china, I can do that too.  I might do both!  I may even find something “breakfasty” to grill so some of us can be outside on the deck.

The days of me stressing out over having the perfect menu, eaten in the perfectly clean house, while wearing that once-a-year outfit are over.  So, if you’re looking for me this Mother’s Day, you’ll find me enjoying a great-tasting healthy meal, laughing and talking with my family, all while wearing my comfy pink piggy slippers.  I hope you’ll be doing the same.  Happy Mother’s Day!

I was pondering the scripture that says “If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off…” and how it might relate to food.  Now I promise, this is not a Bible speech, just a concept I was thinking might apply to healthy eating.

When I talk to our teenagers about “how far” to go on a date, I remind them that decision is not made while on the date but long before it.  I believe you should never put yourself in a position where you are likely to lose.  That is why you should not take your entire paycheck into a casino and then decide how much to spend or leave a chocolate cake sitting on the table if you’re trying to avoid excess calories.  I mention sex, money, and food because I think the strategies for sticking to your principles are similar.

I see value in making tough choices if it sets me up to succeed.  But how far are we willing to go to avoid putting ourselves in a losing position?  Consider some of the ways to fill in this sentence -  “If I (blank) , maybe I should (blank) .

eat half the cake once its baked…….not buy a cake mix at the grocery

have trouble not buying a cake mix at the store……..ask a friend to go shopping with me for support

have junk food in the house….throw it away (and think about how many calories you saved yourself)

just have to stop at McDonald’s on the way home…..choose a different route home

don’t want to eat fast food………pack a lunch and snacks and leave all money/debit cards at home

I’m NOT suggesting that there is some quick and easy answer to rid yourself of all food temptations.  Nor am I making light of struggling with food choices.  I’m merely considering what amazing results we could have by taking some drastic steps to avoid being in a losing position.  It’s like when my hubby and I watch football.  To win the game, not only does our team have to do their best to win, they have to avoid making mistakes that “give the game away”.

So figure out what your “cryptonite” is and avoid it - even if it means making a tough choice.  Find the mistakes you make that “give the game away” and find creative solutions to avoid them.  Making those tough choices will not only make lots of small choices easier, it will reduce the number of decisions you even need to make.

I decided that when I am in the grocery store, I should regularly buy a healthy product I haven’t used before and try it.  It is easy for me to keep using the same products I have already tested, and potentially miss out on newer healthy treats and foods.  One I recently tried was Chobani Greek Yogurt.  I chose Blueberry Nonfat, but they also had strawberry, peach, honey, vanilla, and plain.

I choose it because I had heard several people raving about Greek style yogurt being extra thick, so I was thinking it might make a good snack or dessert.  One container had 140 calories (a little higher than I usually go for a snack, but not too bad) and its ingredients are nonfat milk, blueberries, sugar, natural flavor and 5 live cultures.  I like that - short, sweet, and to the point.

The texture and flavor did not disappoint - very thick and creamy.  In fact, it reminded me very much of a thick vanilla ice cream or maybe a fat slice of cheesecake.  And there were whole blueberries in the bottom with a little sugary syrup that I stirred in.  Very creamy and very delicious.  So I will add them to my very short list of favorite yogurts - Dannon All Natural, Lowfat Vanilla , Stoneyfield Farms Vanilla or Coffee flavor, and now Chobani Greek Yogurt.

Basically, what I am looking for in a healthy yogurt is a low fat milk to start, natural sugar, and live cultures (the more the better).  If it doesn’t come with fruit, I have no problem adding my own fresh or frozen fruit.  In fact, I prefer a good vanilla yogurt and my own fruit.  I regularly make a bowl of fruit and use just a spoonful or two of yogurt.  And if fiber and regularity are what you are looking for, just add a spoonful or two of ground flaxseeds or whole oats.  In my opinion, that is just as effective and healthier than some of the new products with those claims.

So the next time you’re in the grocery, read a label or two and pick a healthy product to try and let me know about it!

I was pondering earlier what I don’t want for Valentine’s Day.  At the top of my list were:

• Fresh flowers.  They can be expensive but disappear too quickly.
• Dinner out.  A long wait for expensive food that usually doesn’t “wow” me.
• The typical two-pound box of chocolates.  Because although the chocolates disappear quickly, the 3000 calories don’t.

Which made me think, “What could we get for Valentine’s Day that we could feel good about?”

• You could ask your sweetie for the Whitman’s 4 piece Sampler Box and enjoy every one of the 240 calories.
• If you get a large box of chocolates, pick your favorite 6 and eat them 2 pieces each day.  Two pieces gives you around 150 calories (unless they’re truffles which are 170 each piece) which you can burn in a 42 minute walk.  I never can decide if we should take the rest of the candy to work to let others struggle with overeating it, or throw it away but waste the money.  Whatever you do, get it out of your house.
• You could check out Weight Watchers chocolates by Whitman’s which have between 30 and 50 calories each piece with only 3 grams of fat.
• You could ask for a box of Cocoa Via chocolate covered almonds.  They use good dark chocolate to coat plain almonds for 140 calories per pack.  A pack could easily be your afternoon snack.
• You could try Sweet Riot’s chocolate-covered cocoa nibs from Whole Foods.  They look like chocolate covered raisins but are little pieces of the cocoa bean straight off the tree.  These little crunchy bitter bits of chocolate coated in chocolate pack tons of health benefits.  I will definitely be giving these a try.
• You could go for a fresh fruit bouquet (fruit on sticks).  Delicious cold fruit you don’t have to prepare at all. Eat all you want, guilt free - Yum.
• You could think of something meaningful to YOU for Valentine’s, and ask for that.  (Instead of letting society tell you that you want flowers and candy.)

My favorite Valentine’s Day gift has nothing to do with flowers, dinner, or chocolate.  My hubby takes me out and we buy some cute “Valentinesy-kind-of-mug” and go have coffee at Starbucks or Panera.  We talk and laugh and enjoy some time without the kids.  Then, each time I use that mug I remember the fun time out and that my hubby has learned to ask me what I really want, and then give it to me.  Now that’s a gift!

I had a sad experience today when I discovered that an undetected leak had ruined everything on the top three shelves in a bathroom closet.  The very sad part was many of the ruined items were set aside in that closet “because they were special”.  Among the fatalities was a bag of little shaped soaps, a monogrammed bar of soap, grandmother’s dainty hand towels trimmed in lace, and a beautiful metal box now rusted shut.  Everything was covered in mildew.

How does this relate to healthy cooking?  Well, it caused me to re-examine the things I “save because they are special”.  Not only things like Grandma’s china, beautiful serving bowls, and fine silver; but jars of pine nuts, capers, asparagus, exotic broths, tabouli, and the list from my pantry and freezer could go on and on.

So, I’m making a December resolution.  If I’ve got it, I’m going to use it.  That beautiful jar of artichoke hearts I’ve been saving is going on the menu next week.  The fig balsamic vinegar with the wax sealed lid is getting opened and tried on a salad.  That special mix of coffee beans is getting ground and enjoyed even if I just make one cup.

Maybe I’ll look each day for what special ingredient I could use and which special dish I can put it in.  Maybe I’ll think of a fun memory I can tell the kids while using a dish from one of their grandmothers or great-grandmothers.  I don’t want to carry the idea too far, but I think their grandmothers would be pleased if we decide that today is special enough to enjoy some good food on some old dishes while making some new memories.