It's been awhile

I have not posted anything since Sept. But after seeing Julie and Julia this weekend (wonderful wonderful movie) I am energized to start up again. Thanksgiving was wonderful, my side of the family joined us this year; Mom, brother, sister-in-laws, niece, nephews, sister-in-law's sister and niece. The only one missing was Courtland whom we miss terribly, when he gets back from Japan, I am going cook up a storm. Dinner was great, we started dinner with butternut squash and apple soup, of course we had turkey, sweet potato casserole, collard greens, mashed turnips, pickled beets and stuffing. I introduced my extended family to cippolini onions in champagne which they absolutely loved and my niece Kristin tried to hurt herself on the homemade cranberry sauce. I loved cooking everything except the crazy ham my mother purchased when she got here 10pm Wednesday evening. She had ordered a spiral cut honey ham to be delivered on Wednesday, but when it did not show up she canceled the order and tried to purchase one at Walmart, of course nothing was left and she came back with a hickory smoked turkey loaf (what in the world can you do with that)? I put it in the oven with three big slices of fresh pineapple on top (it's still in the refrigerator, we are feeding it to the dogs slowly).
Tonight is Greek Salad and bread, we are kind of fooded out and need to go light, for all of you late night eaters out there, bon appetit!

Plan or Pay!

I did not remember my lunch today. I decided to pick something up while running errands. It looks like one of my favorite cafes has taken a hit due to the recession, this is the third time that I have gone by there to eat and they were closed. What to do?

I could go to a fast food restaurant but I try to avoid them, as a nutritionist I try to live up to what I preach. I decided to try a little experiment, just how hard is it to get something to eat, that is healthy, tasty and doesn't cost a fortune. I mean this is what people are expected to do right? We are not supposed to eat fast food all of the time, we are to use it as a treat, at least that is what I tell people during my lessons. Here is what I purchased and what it cost me:

6 Triscuits + .36
1 4oz. yogurt + .67
1 oz. sliced turkey + 1.16
carrot pack with dip + 1.00
1 large apple + 1.00
= 4.19

Now this lunch met the criteria for healthy although it was a little high in sodium to me, I generally don't eat luncheon meat for a variety of reasons, sodium is just one of them. The sliced turkey had 410mg sodium, the Triscuits 180mg, the yogurt 65mg, the carrots & dip 180mg (I didn't eat much of the dip, I hate ranch so the total sodium is probably a little lower)and there is practically no sodium in the apple. Total sodium added up to 835mg which is a little over a third of the 2300mg maximum you should shoot to stay under each day.

As far as tasty goes it was all right, maybe a little bland.

Now the $4.19 is the cost of what I ate for lunch, not bad. I had to put out a little over $15.00 to purchase everything up front, but I still have 9 servings of triscuits left, 5 servings of yogurt, 2 servings of turkey and two servings of carrots and dip.

The lesson is this is planning. I could have had these items on hand and brought them for my lunch (it would have saved me some time), I could have even jazzed it up a bit to make it more interesting. I came so close to just grabbing something quick (fast food) because I was hungry and if you are hungry enough you don't care what you eat and that costs you in nutrition and/or money.

Eat Your Fruit and Veggies!

Gen 1:29 God said "I give you every seed bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. These will be yours for food."

Salmon is a good buy!

I was really surprised to find out that Salmon was less expensive than hot dogs (see post below). Now we're talking Hebrew National here not Carolina Packers (for those who know what they are). For someone who is a little picky about food this is good to know, not because I will even eat a hot dog, but I have friends who do and this is a really good way to take away one of their excuses for eating them. It's one thing when you eat them because you like them, it is another thing entirely when you are eating them and telling yourself it's because healthier food is too expensive.

Salmon is less expensive than hot dogs

Salmon is less expensive than hot dogs

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Lentils Anyone?

There is an account in the Bible that tells of Esau selling his birthright to Jacob for a stew of lentils, Gen 25:28-34. That must have been a really delicious bowl of lentils and Esau must have been really hungry. There is lesson in this account for us, don't let your appetite get the best of you. You might make decisions that you later regret but are unable to change the outcome.

Lentils are a great nutritional choice. I don't know if these lentils are as good as the ones that Jacob made, but it is a simple recipe and it tastes really good.

Lentil Stew

1 large shallot
1 leek
1clove of garlic
4 carrots
1/4 of a jalapeno (add more if you like it really spicy)
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1 quart of chicken or vegetable broth
1 16 oz. bag of lentils rinsed and checked for grit and pebbles.

Chop the shallot, clean the leek (use all of the white and a little of the lightest green part just above the white) and then chop, mince the garlic, scrape the carrot and cut into 1 inch pieces, mince the jalepeno (be careful handling the jalepeno, it always burns my fingers if I touch it too much, wear gloves or handle it as little as possible when mincing and then wash your hands immediately afterward).

Heat the oil in an enameled cast iron pot or another really heavy pot. Add the vegetables and saute them about 4 - 5 minutes. Add the chicken or vegetable stock and the lentils and bring to boil. Turn heat down to low and cover. Cook for 1hour and 15 minutes. Enjoy!

Lettuce Wrap "Tacos"

A great way to get your in your 5+ A Day Fruit & Veggies

Romain Lettuce leaves
Brown Rice
Black Beans
Frozen Onion/Bell Pepper Mix
Coconut Oil
1 tsp. Cumin
1 tsp. Chili Powder
Salsa
Olives
Shredded Cheddar Cheese (We like the Cabot's Extra Sharp White Cheddar).
Sour Cream (or Kefir Cream if you make your own).

Make Rice.
Saute onions and bell peppers in coconut oil and then season with cumin and chili powder, use more if you really like the flavor. Add the black beans and heat through.
We used about a tbs each of Rice, Beans, Salsa and Cheese for each Taco, added a couple of olives and 1 tsp of sour cream. Enjoy!