Cooking Fish, Poultry and Veggies En Papillote

Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  Google 'en papillote'.  This is a wonderful technique of cooking fish, poultry and vegetables in parchment paper and baking until done.  It's fast, easy and quite nutritious!  All you need are some great ingredients, fresh herbs, spices or anything else you like to season with, some parchment paper and you're done!  Placing each dinner guest's papillote on a plate and allowing them to cut through it with a knife to release the steam and wonderful fragrances of the dish will make you the success of the evening!

Apples Can Be More Than Boring

Apples are boring, unless you do something fabulous with them.  Here's a nice recipe for Whole Wheat Apple Muffins that isn't too bad on the calories; while being tasty and satisfying.

Whole Wheat Apple Muffins
1c all-purpose flour
1c whole wheat flour
1/4c sugar
2tsp baking powder
1/2tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground allspice
1c lowfat milk
1/4oil
1 egg beaten
1c chopped golden delicious apples
1/2 chopped nuts

Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, salt and allspice in a large bowl.  Add milk, oil and egg; stir only until ingredients are blended.   Fold in apples and nuts.  Preheat over to 440F.  Grease 12 muffin cups (or you can use PAM) and pour in batter until almost full.  Bake about 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Per Muffin:  157 calories, 4g protein, 6g fat (1g sat), 2g fiber, 24g carbs, 122mg sodium.
Special thanks to Energy Times Nov/Dec 2010

Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  If you're looking for something quick, easy, delicious and a bit different from the ordinary breakfast, whip up a dozen of these muffins and treat yourself to something yummy.  Wrap the remaining muffins tightly and individually in saran wrap and freeze for another day!

Farm Fresh is Best

Over the weekend, I visited a different farmer's market and what a truly pleasant surprise it was!  The Rock Hill Farmer's Market (Saturdays from 10am to 1pm) in Sullivan County, NY, is a grassroots, artisinal market, just like any small village in the South of France.  Fresh goat cheeses and yogurt, so creamy and fresh....it all tasted as if it were made the day before.  Home grown chickens ready for Saturday or Sunday lunch; and all the beautiful fruit and produce - colors bright and vibrant; the aromas of these just-gathered items bombarded all my senses.  The baker's breads and sweets were so fresh and lovely; I regretted that I wouldn't be home for another day or so to purchase a crusty just-baked farmer's bread.  The scene was painterly and I was welcomed by the organizers and thanked for participating at their communal market.  I left with a big bag of goodies to take home and very excited to take a photo to share with all my friends.  I couldn't stop talking about this little market to everyone I met over the weekend - unlike other farmer's markets, this one in particular, reminded me of a lovely little market me and my friends would attend each Sunday outside the village of Isle Sur Sorgue.  It brought fond memories of lazy, peaceful Sundays, delicious and fresh lunches and lazing around under the blue summer sun of Provence.

Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  I'm taking some time today to roast my vegetables, make a creamy cauliflower sage soup, and transform my lovely tomatoes into savory sauces to stash away for the long winter months when we craves the colors and scents of summer.  The nutritional value of just picked produce, fresh dairy, fish and meat products, and homemade products just can't be beat.  If you have a farmer's market near you, support the local little guy.  You might pay a few dollars more at the end of the day, but there's nothing like a mother's love and a homegrown just-picked tomato.  Your health will benefit, your meals will be tastier and you will have become a part of community and sharing.  You'll walk away from the market with a smile on your face and will have made some new friends...what could be healthier and happier than this?

The Freshness of Foods

Just back from holiday on the beautiful Southern California coast, I enjoyed the freshest fruits, vegetables and the freshest fish...all straight from the plants and ocean.  There's nothing that beats fresh food; what's the expression?   "there's nothing like a mother's love and a homegrown tomato"... 80 degrees, little or no humidity, cool ocean breeze and blue skies...I have to ask myself why I live in the grey, humid and monochromatic city of New York.  After being spoiled for a week with such wonderful fresh food, I trekked up to Eataly yesterday to do a little old-fashioned food marketing.  Fresh whole sea trout, seabeans, chanterelle mushrooms, fresh octopus, tomatoes that actually look, smell and taste like tomatoes, fresh herbs, greens and spring onions, real artisinal cheese, butter and the freshest bread....it was better than king's gold.  Preparing a wonderful meal with these ingredients took time to be sure, but it was all worth it.  A good bottle of wine to accompany the dinner, a long walk afterward....life is good.

Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  Everyday, pretend you are on holiday.   Do something special during your day.  For your evening meal, buy the freshest of ingredients.  You might pay a bit more, but you don't need to eat as much.  At the end of the day, your groceries will cost more or less the same, but the quality of your ingredients will give you so much more nutritional value, sensory satiety, and to share this with another person makes life more divine.

Another Reason Why The Mediterranean Diet is Just So Great

From Medscape News, January 13, 2011
Older adults who stick close to a traditional Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) experience slower rates of cognitive decline as they age, new research suggests.

"...adherence to a Mediterranean diet is not only a heart healthy diet plan but also one that fosters a healthier functioning brain,” Christine C. Tangney, of the Department of Clinical Nutrition, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois.  Their results were published online December 22, 2010, in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
The researchers used a modified version of the Harvard food-frequency questionnaire to assess level of adherence to 2 dietary patterns. One was the traditional MedDiet pattern, which is rich in olive oil, fish, nuts, fruits and vegetables, and moderate amounts of wine and is low in dairy foods and red meat. The other was the Healthy Eating Index 2005 (HEI-2005), which is based on recommendations from the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
The maximum score for the MedDiet, which would mean complete adherence, is 55, and participants' mean score was 28.2. The maximum score for the HEI-2005 is 100, and participants' mean score was 61.2.
Participants most likely to adhere to the MedDiet were white, nonsmokers, and multivitamin users, with higher educational levels and lower body mass index. Those with higher MedDiet scores had lower prevalence of stroke, hypertension, and depression and higher baseline global cognitive scores.
According to the investigators, a higher MedDiet score indicating closer adherence to this eating pattern was associated with slower rates of cognitive decline over time, after adjusting for age, sex, race, education, participation in cognitive activities, and energy.
"If we were comparing 2 persons with MedDiet scores or MedDiet wine scores that were 10 points apart, the person with the higher scores would appear to perform as if she or he were 3 years younger cognitively," the study authors note.
 
Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  You don't have to be a professional chef, nor do you need to be a good cook to adopt a delicious and nutritious Mediterranean diet.  All you need to do is do a little research, go to the grocer and produce stores, and not be lazy about your meals.  Modern medicine will have us all living a lot longer than we previously thought possible and I don't know about you, but I'd like to have my wits about me as I move along that timeline!  If anyone would like to share some recipes, please do post them and help out other folks who wouldn't normally create their own meals!

Daily Nutrition Numbers and YOU

Ok...Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  don't make me feel like I've wasted my time giving you the following information....it took quite a bit of time to type, so save it in your mobile unit, your computer and print out a copy.  Refer to the following information and see where you're at!

According to Cooking Light Magazine, the following is a daily nutritional numbers chart.  It's a pretty simple guideline to daily intake of certain important elements to good health.  Of course, individual health issues should be taken into consideration, such as pregnancy and lactating women.

Women ages 25-50
calories:  2,000
protein:  50g
fat:  65g or less
saturated fat:  20g or less
carbohydrates:  304g
fiber:  25g to 35g
cholesterol:  300mg or less
iron:  18mg
sodium:  2,300mg or less
calcium:  1,000mg

Women over 50
calories:  2,000 or less
protein  50g or less
fat:  65g or less
saturated fat:  20g or less
carohydrates:  304g
fiber:  25g to 35g
cholesterol:  300mg or less
iron:  8mg
sodium: 1,500mg or less
calcium:  1,000mg

Men over 24
calories:  2,700
protein:  63g
fat:  88g or less
saturated fat:  27g or less
carbohydrates:  410g
fiber:  25 to 35g
cholesterol:  300mg or less
iron:  8mg
sodium:  2,300mg or less
calcium:  1,000mg

The Seasons Are Changing, So Switch It Up!!

Wow!  It's 65 degrees this morning in Manhattan!  There's that certain crispness in the air that smells and feels like an indian summer could be on its way.  This time of year can make me sad as I say 'a bientot' to my favorite season, summer, and try to psyche myself into thinking positively about the freezing cold, drab, grey Manhattan winters....oh how I despise the absence of color, wearing heavy clothing, and the bitter cold!
Well, what's a doggie to do????  I've decided to make some good use of my freezer space and beginning this weekend, I'm going to buy lots of fruits, vegetables and herbs and begin freezing them.  There's nothing like lovely nectarine tarts in January, or warm peaches to sweeten your hot oatmeal or...how about peach pie in February!  Tomato-basil sauce can be quite nice on a cold December day.

Here's Your Healthy Tip of the Day:  There are lots of great goodies to be had at your local farmer's market.  Make good use of your basic kitchen tools and your freezer...learn how to store some fabulous and nutritious items in your freezer for a cold, dreary day!  If you aren't sure of how to freeze and store (or if you're ambitious...canning is an option) fruits, vegetables and herbs, log onto the foodchannel.com, cookingchannel.com or williamssonoma.com.  At these sites, you can read all about freezing, canning and conserving for free!!!!