Tags: veggies

Mediterranean Power Bowl

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SPOOK-tacular Halloween Treats!

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Boo!
I hope I didn’t scare you too badly! But let me tell you, the leaves are changing color, the air is getting cooler and it’s giving me the chills! Where did summer go? As we know, the cooler weather is inevitable, but fall isn’t so bad, especially when we have Halloween to look forward to! 

As a dietitian, I would love to say that handing out a healthy apple instead of candy is a perfect way to make the holiday a little more nutritious… but I would be lying. Truth be told, that was my least favorite trick or treat goodie. Of course, that’s not to say we can’t make Halloween healthy – c’mon, I’m a Dietitian!

So, how do we make the season healthy? By getting the kids involved and making it fun! I’ve gathered some of my favorite Halloween ideas that will be fun for the kids and also provide some good nutrition!

Fruits and vegetables are all you need to make this adorable Halloween scene! This is great for the little ones in your family, because they can help peel the bananas and oranges and they can add the face to their ghost! I personally like to use raisins for the ghost, but I’m sure the kids won’t argue if you use chocolate chips instead.

Everyone loves pizza! Start by taking your favorite whole wheat pizza crust and add-on a lower sodium pizza sauce. When topping with cheese, do a light layer of  reduced fat cheddar cheese and then add-on slices of reduced fat mozzarella. The cheddar will add a bright orange color, while the sliced mozzarella will be perfect for your ghosts! Use black olives to make spiders and small faces for your spooky little ghosts. Tip: We have numerous whole wheat pizza crust options at the store! Check in both center store as well as near the deli for some great options. Be sure the first ingredient reads: whole wheat flour. This is a simple trick you can use to find whole grain products throughout the store!

We all know avocado toast is trending, but let’s switch it up a bit and make these fun little Frankensteins at breakfast. Avocados are one of the only fruits that provide healthy monounsaturated fat, which will also keep you fuller longer! Be sure to use whole wheat toast as well. You can use olives, red peppers and the egg whites from hard-boiled eggs to make your Frankenstein as friendly or as scary as you’d like!

These adorable little monster mouths are easy and so fun to make with apples, nut butter, and macadamia nuts! Tip: When choosing a nut butter, look for an option with lower sodium and sugar. Did you know, we have some nut butters where the only ingredients is “peanuts?!”

You’ve heard our dietitian team loving up on veggie spaghetti, but how cool is this meal!? You can heat up the veggie spaghetti with some pesto in a skillet for a few minutes until cooked through. Then, add-on slices of cooked egg yolks, black olives, and some red peppers to make a perfect meal for Halloween!

Happy & healthy eating,
Emily

Spring Into Summer With Smoothie Bowls

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Spring Into Summer with Smoothie Bowls

Like to eat? Me too! While smoothies are a quick and easy way to get in great nutrition, I’ve always had one personal problem with them – I’d rather eat my food than drink it. Then entered the smoothie bowl. Tasty, nutritious and Instagram worthy? Hellooooo #BowlGoals. While making a smoothie bowl is quite straight forward, I am sharing my top 5 tips for getting the most nutrition (and taste) out of your next creation.

  1. Start with a nutritious (and tasty) base

    • When making a balanced smoothie bowl (or any meal or snack for that matter), it is important to include a protein, carbohydrate and healthy fat.
    • For this tip, let’s focus on protein. While there are many ways to incorporate protein into a smoothie bowl, one of the best ways I recommend is to use a protein-rich base like:
      • Kefir
      • Milk or lactose-free milk
      • Soy milk
      • Greek yogurt
      • Skyr-style yogurt
    • Not only do these options provide protein, they also contain other nutrients like calcium, vitamin D and probiotics!

  2. All the fruits and veggies

    • Next up, let’s chat about carbohydrates. Carbohydrates, especially fruits and veggies, are an important part of what we eat.
    • According to the CDC, 76% of Americans are not consuming the recommended 1.5-2 cups of fruit per day and 87% are not meeting the 2-3 cups of veggies recommended per day.1 This means there is plenty of room in our smoothie bowls for fruits and veggies!
    • Fruits
      • One of my favorite tips is to add frozen fruit! This allows for a thicker and creamier texture – perfect for eating by the spoonful.
      • Frozen, fresh and canned fruit (in 100% fruit juice) are great ways to add flavor, color and variety.
      • My personal favorites are using in-season fresh fruit (bananas are always a great option), frozen berries or cherries and canned pineapple!
    • Veggies
      • Long gone are the days where you must have a brown smoothie bowl in order to get your veggies!
      • Although greens (like spinach and kale) are great additions to smoothies, milder tasting veggies such as cooked cauliflower or sweet potato can add variety in texture and nutrition.
      • Don’t forget about no-salt added canned beans! White northern beans and chickpeas also add great variety and are an inexpensive addition to your smoothie bowl.

  1. Add in your healthy fats

    • Healthy fats are often forgotten when blending up a smoothie bowl, however, they can add in key nutrients such as fiber, healthy monounsaturated fats and omega-3s!
    • Try adding one of these the next time you create your own concoction:
      • Avocado
      • Nut or seed butter
      • Flax oil
      • Avocado oil
      • Hemp seed
      • Chia seed
      • Ground flax seed

  1. Blend it up

    • This may sound like a simple step, but I wanted to include this tip with a few helpful hints.
    • If using greens, blend the base and greens first before adding in other ingredients. This will ensure that greens are well blended. Although I said I like to ‘eat’ my food, I’m not a fan of leaves of spinach sticking out of my smoothie bowl.
    • If you are not going to eat your smoothie bowl right away (aka meal prepping), be warned that you shouldn’t mix dairy and pineapple together. Pineapple naturally contains the enzyme bromelain, which when mixed with dairy and left to sit, the dairy will curdle.

  2. Don’t forget the toppings

    • After you have your tasty, nutritious and blended creation, the fun part starts.
    • Pour your smoothie mix into your favorite bowl and top with tasty toppings!
    • You can choose toppings based on flavor or design, but either way, have fun with it! Here are some of my favorite suggestions:
      • Nuts and seeds
      • Hemp, chia, and flax seeds
      • Nut and seed butters
      • Fruit slices
      • Edible flowers
      • 100% dried fruit
      • Cacao nibs
      • Granola

To help start you off right, try one of my personal favorite smoothie bowl recipes – Blueberry, Avocado, and Banana Smoothie Bowl!

Healthy and Happy Eating,
Emily Parent, RD, LD

 

  1. (2015, July 10). Adults meeting fruit and vegetable intake recommendations — United States, 2013. Retrieved from www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6426a1.htm

 

Happy & Healthy in the New Year

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Getting a Happy and Healthy Start to the New Year

We may have just found the key to happiness—a daily dose of fruits and veggies. We are all well-aware that fruit and veggie consumption has been linked to various health benefits such as lowered risk for heart disease, cancer, and high blood pressure, but did you know that science has found that people who eat more fruits and veggies are actually happier, have increased life satisfaction, and better mental well-being?1

Researchers from the University of Warwick analyzed dietary habits of 80,000 British women and men.1 Over a 24-month period, it was found that extra servings of fruits and veggies led to increased happiness levels and that consumption of 7-8 servings per day led to the happiest people. Just how much happier are these individuals? According to the study, if an individual went from eating no produce to eating eight servings per day over the 24-month period, they experienced a 0.24 increase on average in their happiness score (scored 1-10). Although that may not sound like a large boost, the increase can be compared to the feeling of going from unemployed to employed.1

With just 1 in 10 adults meeting the recommendations for fruit and veggie consumption, researchers (and dietitians alike) hope this added benefit of fruit and veggie intake, increases people’s motivation to consume more.2

With health-related New Year’s Resolutions in full-gear, this is the perfect time to add more fruits and veggies to your diet. Look for creative ways to boost your consumption, such as adding seasonal produce to classic Midwest dishes. Try one of our team’s favorite easy breakfast recipes: Apple Cranberry Oatmeal Bake.

Looking for more ways to boost your fruit and veggie intake for you and your family? Check out these kid-friendly recipes 

or head on over to our Dietitian’s Corner for all of our latest recipes, articles and resources!

Happy and Healthy Eating,
Emily, RD, LD

 

1News & Events. Retrieved December 29, 2017, from https://warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressreleases/7-a-day_for_happiness/

2CDC Newsroom. (2017, November 16). Retrieved December 29, 2017, from https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2017/p1116-fruit-vegetable-consumption.html