Roasted Broccoli

Posted by Esther on Jan 27, 2012 in Recipies | 0 comments

A delicious variation of your basic dinner vegetable!

You preheat the oven to 425.

Take 4 to 5 pounds of broccoli (I just got two large bunches), cut into florets (but relatively big ones.) Wash and dry them THOROUGHLY.

Now, it’s easy. Put the broccoli on a cookie sheet. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. About 5 Tbs olive oil, 1 1/2 tsps kosher salt, 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper – or just eyeballed it. Now add 4 garlic cloves that are peeled and sliced and toss them in too.

Roast in the oven 20 to 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned.

You can shake the pan around once or twice during the roasting.

When it’s done, take it out of the oven–and here’s where it gets really good–zest a lemon over the broccoli, squeeze the lemon juice over the broccoli, add 1.5 Tbs more olive oil, 3 Tbs toasted pine nuts, and 1/3 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

This delicious combination of crispy broccoli with garlic, lemon, and cheese will make this main dish worthy!

Whole Grain Waffles

Posted by Kristie on Jan 22, 2012 in Recipies | 0 comments

Ingredients:

• 2 cups kefir (or ½ yogurt & ½ milk, or use all buttermilk)
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1 1/3 cup whole grain flower mixture (spelt, barley, oat groat, kamut, quinoa, millit, brown rice, etc)
• 1/4 cup ground flax, cornmeal, or toasted wheat germ
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 large eggs lightly beaten
• 2 TBSP raw honey, agave, or maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp applesauce or oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Instructions:

Mix kefir, eggs, sweetener, applesauce (or oil), & vanilla in a medium bowl. Whisk flour, oats, flax, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients; mix with a rubber spatula just until moistened.  You can let this sit for as long as you’d like. You can even have it sit overnight in your fridge. Add the baking powder & baking soda just before you are ready to cook & mix well. Coat a waffle iron with coconut oil, butter, or cooking spray.

Food for Thought: Food and Diabetes

Posted by Emily on Jan 21, 2012 in Eating With Medical Conditions | 0 comments

When you have diabetes, it is critical that you know how to manage it. One of the easiest ways to keep your diabetes under control is through changing your diet to accommodate your health needs. That may sound daunting, but it ends up being much simpler than it sounds. If you take it step by step, you’ll be eating healthier in no time.

Having a good diet is important because it needs to  be designed to control your blood glucose levels so that you do not dip too low or spike too high. Dieting can also help you to keep track of your weight. Excesses of fats and such create dangerous and transient spikes in your blood sugar that can be damaging to your health by damaging various organs. Here are some examples of what you should do when you are creating your new eating plan.

1. Fiber filled foods. Fiber is a very good substance that can help increase your heart health while controlling blood sugar levels within your body. When I say that something controls your blood glucose levels, that means that it helps the level normalize and therefore you can avoid spikes and dips. Foods that have a high quantity of fiber include beans, peas, nuts, and anything with bran in it.
2. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. These are the fats contained within healthy foods such as avocados, olives, and nuts. Keep the consumption of these in moderation because they are high in calories and can contribute to weight gain. But, when ingested in the correct quantities, they can help lower your cholesterol levels and therefore help you stay healthier all around.
3. Carbohydrates. Sugars and starches are different kinds of carbohydrates and when you ingest them, they are broken up chemically and become glucose in your blood stream. The best kinds of carbohydrates come from fruits, low-fat dairy products, and whole grains.
4. Eat some more fish. Fish contain high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids and they help to keep your heart healthy while lowering the amount of fat in your blood. This helps you normalize your levels as well. Good fish to eat includes cod, halibut, tuna, salmon, and mackerel. Try to avoid fried fish and also fish such as swordfish and king mackerel because they contain unhealthy levels of mercury.

That may sound like a huge amount of information to ingest and remember. When creating recipes, it is difficult to remember what legumes (beans, peas, lentils, etc…) to include and what starches to cut. Once you get started, though, it becomes much easier. You will also find that your blood sugar levels change throughout the day between meals. When this happens, you will need to eat a small snack that can help boost your energy and glucose levels.

Some ideas for snacks include all-natural juice boxes, handful of nuts, and a couple hard candies. During the day, your blood sugar level tends to drop and therefore you need to eat something that will break down into sugars and enter the bloodstream as quickly as possible.

Quinoa Chili

Posted by Kristie on Jan 21, 2012 in Recipies | 0 comments

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dry beans, soaked and cooked (I like kidney or black)
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 zucchini, shredded
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
• 2/3 cup quinoa (ideally soaked overnight in 2/3 cup water + 3/4 tbsp. lemon juice or kefir)
• 1 can tomato sauce (8oz)
• 2 cups tomatoes, diced (or canned stewed tomatoes)
• 2 cups water

Instructions:

Sauté onions in olive oil until translucent. Add green peppers, garlic, and zucchini and sauté until tender. Add garlic, salt, and spices. Add quinoa, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and water. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add beans and simmer for 15 more minutes. Serve topped with cheese.

Recipe was adjusted from Feed your Family.

Veggie Topped Pasta

Posted by Kristie on Jan 19, 2012 in Recipies | 0 comments

Ingredients:

• 4 C. cooked whole grain pasta
• 3 C. Veggies of choice (broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, yellow squash, sweet peppers, snap peas etc).
• ½ large onion
• 2-3 cloves garlic – minced
• 2 tsp dill
• ½ tsp sea salt
• 1 tbsp coconut oil or olive oil

Instructions:

Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add all vegetables, spices, & salt. Stir to combine. Cover & let cook (stirring occasionally) until vegetables are as soft as you want them (we like ours pretty crunchy). Serve over pasta with parmesan cheese.

Black Bean Salad

Posted by Kristie on Jan 18, 2012 in Recipies | 0 comments

Ingredients:

• 1 pressed garlic clove
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 teaspoon chili powder (or cumin)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 3 cups black beans, cooked
• 1 cup corn
• ½ cup cooked quinoa (any color)
• 1 cup red bell pepper, finely diced
• ¼ cup red onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/3 cup cilantro, chopped (optional)
• 1 avocado, sliced (optional)

Instructions:

Whisk together garlic, vinegar, oil, honey and spices to form a dressing. Combine all other ingredients, pour dressing over and toss. Serve alone, in lettuce wraps, in tacos, or as a side dish.

Recipe adapted from Taste is Trump.

Weekly Shopping Trip

Posted by Kristie on Jan 18, 2012 in Meal Tips | 0 comments

Here is my dinner meal plan for the week, and the groceries I needed to buy to make them. I will post the recipes when we make the meals. I was pretty well stocked up on ingredients before I went to the store this week, so I didn’t need to buy a lot.

Dinner Plan:

• Veggie Topped Pasta
• Lettuce Wraps w/Raw Thai Nut Sauce from Raw Melissa
• Whole Grain Waffles w/Green Smoothies
• Black Bean Salad in Lettuce Wraps
• Quinoa Chili w/Whole Grain Corn Bread
• Leftovers
• Dinner @ Sisters House

 Shopping List

• Onion (1-2)
• Mushrooms (16oz)
• Zucchini (1-2)
• Sweet red bell pepper (1)
• Cilantro (1)
• Oranges (8-10)
• Broccoli (1-2)
• Strawberries (1-3lbs)
• Tomato sauce (8oz)
• Water chestnuts (1 – 8oz)
• Whole milk (for Kefir)
• Olives (3)
• Eggs