Recipe Thursday - at least this week ;)

TAH had a hard day yesterday.  She has only gotten about 6 hours of sleep in the last two days, thanks to her classes.  Nevertheless, she managed to eat pretty well yesterday!  She got in her veggies and fruit as well as the majority of her water.  Random helpful hint for when you are tired: an apple is better at waking you up than a cup of coffee.  So, instead of running to the dehydrating drink, eat an apple! 

SJM is STILL raving about how good she is feeling from eating loads of veggies and drinking more water.  She told me today at lunch that every day she wakes up and immediately notices a difference in how she feels.  Her face is continuing to heal, and it almost looks like new, thanks to the antioxidants!  Today for our lunch I made turkey burgers.  It was the first time I made them; they were DELICIOUS, EASY & CHEAP!!!  Try to find a recipe that doesn't use mayo!  If you would like the recipe I used, let me know!  I combined a few.  On the turkey burger, I placed sliced tomatoes, romaine lettuce, sliced avocado, sliced red onion, and provolone cheese.  I served the turkey burger on a whole wheat bun with roasted asparagus on the side.

Helpful Hint of the Day:   Make eating healthy easy!  Prepare to-go containers of vegetables and fruit for when you are craving a snack.  Keep unhealthy food out of the house! 

Recipe(s) of the day: Judith asked about a recipe for sauteed vegetables.  I found two of them.  One of them is more basic and the other is Asian-inspired.  Hopefully these help!

Basic Sauteed Vegetables: feel free to substitute whatever vegetables you want!

Ingredients:

• 7 asparagus spears, cut 1 inch long
• 2 carrots, cut 1/2 inch long
• 1 medium onion, quartered
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cut 1 inch squares
• 1/2 cup cauliflower, in bite size pieces
• 1 stalk celery, cut 1/2 inch long
• 1 medium yellow squash, cut to equal size as celery
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
• 2-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper (powder)
• 2 tablespoons basil
• 2 tablespoons white wine
• Pam cooking spray  

Directions:

1.  Spay Pam in large heavy skillet add vegetables then add spices.
2.  Cook over medium high heat about 4 minutes stirring often.
3.  Add wine and cover for 3 minutes more, stir once every minute.
4.  Remove from heat to stop cooking and serve on warmed plate.
5.  Don't cook too long covered as this will create to much steam thus releasing the water soluble vitamins into the air instead of into your body.

Adapted from: http://www.food.com/recipe/great-sauteed-vegetables-17537

Asian-inspired Sauteed Vegetables: You can also substitute vegetables on this recipe!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoon hoisin sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce, reduced-sodium
• 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 whole pepper(s), jalapeno, minced
• 1 pounds asparagus
• 3 cup(s) peas, sugar snap, trimmed
• 1 1/2 cup(s) pepper(s), red, bell, strips
• 3 whole onion(s), green, chopped 1 cup
• 2 teaspoon oil, dark sesame
• 2 teaspoon ginger, fresh peeled and minced
• 3 clove(s) garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup(s) cilantro, fresh, chopped

Preparation

1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a small bowl; set aside. Snap off tough ends of asparagus; cut into 3-inch pieces, and place in a large bowl. Add peas, bell pepper, and onions; set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ginger and garlic; stir-fry 30 seconds. Add vegetable mixture; stir-fry 3 minutes.
3. Add hoisin sauce mixture; stir-fry 1 to 2 minutes or until thick and vegetables are crisp-tender. Remove from heat, and stir in cilantro.

Adapted from: http://www.everydayhealth.com/health-recipe/asian-vegetable-stirfry.aspx

Tuesday's Pretty Pictures & The Perils of High-Protein, Low-Carb Diets

TAH had a little trouble yesterday, because of a large amount of school work that kept her up until 6AM!
I am waiting to hear back about her day.  I do have a picture of her yummy lunch:

Yesterday went very well for SJM.  She has been maintaining a high water intake despite the fact that she lost her main water bottle.  Way to persevere! She bought a full cart of groceries for the first time in a LONG time.  See below:

So, last night she made a large plate of sauteed veggies that looked extremely tasty from the pictures!  Here is the timeline of photos...

Take 1.

Take 2.

Take 3. Now THAT looks good :-D

Helpful Hint of the day:  I need to take a detour from simple hints.  I want to tell you how important veggies combined with a high water intake are to a healthy, trim figure.  High protein, low carb diets are NOT healthy, especially for women, for a number of reasons: 

*First and foremost, they are nearly impossible to maintain.   Yes, the weight will come off initially, but there are not many people who can or should maintain this diet for a long period of time.  Therefore, what is the point of losing the weight, just to gain it back again?  I see no point. 

*Second, it is very harmful for the body.  When a person consumes 30-50% of their daily food from protein, the body goes into "ketosis."  Ketosis causes the body to feel less hungry by burning fat stored in the body, because it no longer has sufficient carbohydrates to burn for energy.  It all sounds good so far, right?  The problem is that ketosis leads to health problems, like kidney failure.

*Kidney failure is very likely from a high protein diet, because protein tends to be harder for the body to digest.  It puts a lot of strain on the body to break down a large amount of proteins, especially animal proteins (which is typically eaten by those dieting with this plan).

*High protein diets, especially those that contain a large proportion of animal proteins, are likely to cause high cholesterol.  High cholesterol has been linked to a higher risk of heart attack & stroke.

*High protein diets can also lead to osteoporosis.  Having a large proportion of protein in the diet has been known to cause excess calcium excretion in the urine.  Losing this essential calcium leads to osteoporosis.

*The risk of cancer is much higher for those who consume a high protein diet.  High protein diets miss out on the dietary benefits of fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains, which are key to carcinogen elimination & a healthy body.  It is well-known that the risk of cancer can be dramatically decreased by getting 80% of your daily food intake from fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains.  So much for that high protein, low carb diet!

Information derived from: http://women.webmd.com/guide/high-protein-low-carbohydrate-diets

Veggie Recipe of the Day:

Delicious Spaghetti Squash

Total time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

3 tablespoons sliced black olives (optional)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.
2. Place spaghetti squash cut sides down on the prepared baking sheet, and bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a sharp knife can be inserted with only a little resistance. Remove squash from oven, and set aside to cool enough to be easily handled.
3. Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute onion in oil until tender. Add garlic, and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook only until tomatoes are warm.
4. Use a large spoon to scoop the stringy pulp from the squash, and place in a medium bowl. Toss with the sauteed vegetables, feta cheese, olives, and basil. Serve warm.

Adapted from: http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/spaghetti-squash-i/Detail.aspx

Monday Madness

 Yesterday, SJM managed to eat a LOT of veggies & drink her body weight in ounces of water, depite having a VERY jam-packed day!  Way to go!   Keep up the good work!

TAH ate very well, and drank almost all of her alotted water (3.5/4 liters).  She's going to go for it again today!

Helpful Hint of the Day: When you are having a hard time staying healthy, focus on your goal.  Do you really want to be healthy & get trim & fit?  If you do, that should motivate you to keep it up!  Find some sort of constant motivation that will propel you through the hard times.

Veggie Recipe:

Adapted from: http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/cheese_spinach_stuffed_portobellos.html

Cheese & Spinach-Stuffed Portobellos

Ingredients

• 4 large portobello mushroom caps
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided
• 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 cup finely chopped fresh spinach
• 1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning (without salt)
• 3/4 cup prepared marinara sauce (no sugar-added if possible)

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Coat a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Place mushroom caps, gill-side up, on the prepared pan. Sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Roast until tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, mash ricotta, spinach, 1/4 cup Parmesan, olives, Italian seasoning and the remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Place marinara sauce in a small bowl, cover and microwave on High until hot, 30 seconds to 1 1/2 minutes.
4. When the mushrooms are tender, carefully pour out any liquid accumulated in the caps. Return the caps to the pan gill-side up. Spread 1 tablespoon marinara into each cap; cover the remaining sauce to keep warm. Mound a generous 1/3 cup ricotta filling into each cap and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan. Bake until hot, about 10 minutes. Serve with the remaining marinara sauce.

After the Grand Turkey Meal

Sorry about the long break!  It was hard to do work over a much needed holiday!

Good news on two accounts:
1.  SJM is still on track!  More to come on that....
2.  I have a new project!  Miss TAH! 

As far as SJM is concerned she has continued to drink at least her body weight in ounces everyday and is still pounding the vegetables!  (By the way, she is SO diligent that she takes to-go containers of vegetables with her, so that she makes sure to get her veggies in for the day.  Last Monday night she was distraught; she had gone out with a friend for fried chicken and could not locate veggies on the menu.  Using her exquisitely keen common sense, she opted for a small order of chicken fingers and then ate a ton of green beans (cooked with fresh garlic & crushed red pepper flakes) and drank an extra 64 ounces of water when she got home!  Great job SJ!  Way to make your healthy eating fit into your lifestyle!  I am attaching some pictures that she has taken of her meals: 

The above was SJM's dinner last Monday night!  It was salmon with a veggie quinoa & more veggies on the side!  Green beans, mushrooms, red pepper & more.  Now that is a good looking meal!

This is a to-go cup of veggies that SJM took around last week!  I saw her on Tuesday with a tupperware container full of green beans!  Today she had red and orange bell peppers for a snack!  YUM!

For breakfast she has been having either a veggie omelet with one egg yolk and the rest egg whites (as shown above) or greek yogurt with fruit!

Last week SJM made this delicious looking veggie pasta for dinner!  A great way to eat what you love and still get healthy & trim!
--She says that she is feeling more energized and that other people are noticing her weight loss and brightened face!

#2 - Tara(TAH) wants to look hott in a bathing suit for her sweet Caribbean cruise over Christmas!  She asked me to help hold her accountable to the plan that I create for her...now for Tara's plan....this is going to take more thought, because she eats pretty healthy already, and is conscientious about portion sizes.  I will have to talk these over with her tonight and see which ones she is willing to adhere to:
-Max of a small dessert coffee 3 days a week.  (She has an addiction to the frozen coffee drinks with a shot of chai at Common Grounds!)
-Watch sugar intake.
-Cut salt.
-Drink at least 4 liters of water a day.
-More veggies. (Let's get creative!)
-Yoga or other exercise at least 4x week for muscle definition!
SO - we will see what she says....I will probably need her to food diary for the first few days, so that I can more easily see her bad diet culprits!

Veggie Recipe of the Day:
Cheap, Healthy, Tasty Carrots
Serves 4:
1 lb bulk carrots
1 T 100% maple syrup
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp salt
1 T unsalted butter
Directions:  Peel carrots and cut into 1/2 inch matchsticks.  Place in skillet with enough water to cover the bottom of the pan.  Place lid on and turn to med-high heat.  After a few minutes add honey and maple syrup.  Cook to desired tenderness.  Drain and add remaining ingredients.  Serve.  Can also be refrigerated and served the next day after reheating.

Tip of the day:  STRETCH!  Our bodies need to be stretched out.  Stretching decreasing tension and stress in the body which leads to a number of health benefits including a better mood, brighter skin, and increased ability to focus.  Try to make a habit of stretching every day!

More to come-  Let me know if you have any questions!

SJM: Day 1 & Day 2

This weekend, SJM asked me to be her personal health consultant!  What fun!  Soooo - my project is to make her healthy and trim. I will keep you updated with the progress!

SJM's Week 1 goals: drink her body weight in ounces every day & eat more veggies!

SJM Day 1 - drank more water and ate a veggie dish for dinner rather than a meat dish. (By the way - she thought it was just as tasty as a meat dish!  She also only had ONE glass of wine!)  She has discovered that she is more thirsty than ever before!

SJM Day 2 - She drank her body weight in ounces!! Also, she checked in after eating vegetables with breakfast, lunch, and dinner!!! She had a veggie omelet for breakfast, a veggie smoothie with lunch, and vegetable pasta for dinner!  She has already realized the joys of fiber! ;)  I think her body is already feeling healthier!

Each day I will try to post her status, and she can comment on her individual thoughts on the process and progress (and challenges that she faces).  I will also add a helpful hint and a veggie recipe!

Helpful Hint: Be careful of mindless eating.  Think about everything that you put in your mouth.  Does it taste as good as you thought it was going to?  Is is really as good as you cracked it up to be?  Maybe, but maybe not.  Praying before meals will help you to be more thoughtful about the food you eat.  Further, attempting to taste all of the flavors in a dish will aid contentment and bring attention to the act of eating.

Veggie Recipe of the Day:

Roasted Kale

Makes 2 servings.
Adapted from: http://www.suite101.com/content/roasted-kale-a25130

• 4 cups firmly-packed kale
• 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 375 degre F. Wash and trim the kale: Peel off the tough stems by folding the kale leaves in half like a book and stripping the stems off. Toss with extra virgin olive oil. Roast for five minutes. Turn kale over. Roast another 7 to 10 minutes until kale turns brown and becomes paper thin and brittle. Remove from oven and sprinkle with salt. Serve immediately.