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Celebrating New Ideas for Your Thanksgiving Feast

Ever wonder how all those food magazines continue to come up with new recipes for Thanksgiving each year? Do you ever find yourself searching for new ideas when the holiday rolls around?

Most years, I spend an entire day in the kitchen, preparing a feast that could feed and army. When I was still single, I used to serve my guests wine all day while I cooked – a great strategy which resulted in many wonderful compliments for the chef at dinner time. Whether single or married, however, it takes me the rest of the weekend to recover from my culinary efforts. Not to mention, I don’t even want to open the refrigerator door and look at leftovers by Saturday.

Last year, I decided to simplify the menu and add small twists to the usual butter-and-cream-and-sugar-laden Thanksgiving feast (thanks to Cuisine at Home). It included turkey basted with butter and wine (with nothing stuffed on the inside and it tasted absolutely no different), mashed potatoes with brown butter, sweet potatoes with a cranberry/orange sauce, sautéed Swiss chard with butternut squash and apples. Plus some cornbread and a home-made apple. Though the meal required some planning, given we travelled out of town for the holiday, it only took me a 2-3 hours to prepare. Everything was well-received except the Swiss chard; nonetheless, I was able to use the lovely chard as a centerpiece on our kitchen island and as a tactical maneuver to get my way the rest of the weekend (“Luke, if you don’t eat your PB&J, you have to eat the leftover plate of Swiss chard.”). I have since found a recipe that everyone enjoys, thanks to Dani Spies.

So I’ve begun my usual holiday search, and found a few interesting sites/recipes worth your consideration. Though I try to keep the meal as simple and healthy as possible, there are a few dishes which require a deep caloric splurge.

Most of the aforementioned recipes from last year’s Cuisine at Home can be found in this blog post from Columbus Foodie.

Food For My Family just posted an eBook of virtual Thanksgiving posts, including a mustard encrusted turkey that sounds delicious!

I found all sorts of stuff I might make in this blog post with 59 ideas that are cheap, healthy and good. I’m thinking seriously about the applesauce and roasted Brussel sprouts.

A  Couple Cooks offers an alternative to the usual plate of mash potatoes in this recipe for Harvest Wild Rice Salad.

Since it is the 55 year celebration of this dish, I thought I’d include a recipe for green bean casserole with a makeover. I don’t usually make this one myself, but I know lots of folks who do.

This sweet potato casserole from how2heroes may send your sugar level soaring, but it sure sounds good!

And my favorite dessert that’s super easy to make – bread pudding. Though there are many great recipes for bread pudding, my favorite is still the one from Heart & Soul Cookbook. After all, Southerners know how to make mouth watering desserts.

What’s your favorite holiday recipe? I’d love to add these to the mix!

Bread Pudding

¼ cup butter or margarine (I usually cut this back to a tablespoon or two)

½ of a 1 pound loaf of unsliced French bread, torn into 1-inch pieces (about 6 cups)

4 cups of milk (though you can substitute 2% for whole, I wouldn’t use skim)

4 beaten eggs

2 cups sugar

2 tablespoons vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350. Place butter or margarine in large, oblong baking dish. Place dish in oven until butter melts.

Add bread to melted butter in the baking dish. Pour milk over bread. In a medium bowl, stir together beaten eggs, sugar and vanilla. Pour egg mixture over bread-milk mixture in baking dish. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm with winter sauce.

Note: I often add blueberries to the mixture and reduce the amount of sugar I add.

Winter Sauce

¼ cup sugar

½ cup butter

½ cup bourbon

In a 1 quart saucepan, combine sugar, butter and bourbon. Cook and stir over medium heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Serve warm over bread pudding.

Photo courtesy of Food for My Family.

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Fun Facts for Healthy Eating

Those who know me well (or are aware I have a child who calls himself the “Nutrients Man”) also know that I am a pretty healthy eater. Most people guess that I’m a vegetarian, but I’m not. In fact, I have four basic principles that guide my own eating habits and those whose I closely influence. These are:

1)      Eat in moderation, unless it’s the week before a marathon

2)      Eat balanced meals (e.g., carbs, protein, fat)

3)      Buy and eat whole, seasonal foods, avoiding Dinonuggets for the little guy whenever humanly possible

4)      Eat in, not out, unless I’m travelling for work or desperately need to be waited upon

All this said, I have been doing research for Knocking Down Walls and upcoming workshops I will lead. I thought I would share some interesting anecdotes you might find helpful in planning and preparing healthy meals.

The Healthiest Foods

In the article, A Recipe for Longevity, The North Carolina Research Campus, a group that consists of scientists from 8 different universities in the Piedmont area (even Duke), developed a list of foods that they deemed the healthiest in the world. I found the list interesting, and so did Luke. The list includes:

• Blueberries
• Red Bell Peppers
• Tomatoes
• Artichokes
• Pineapples
• Avocados
• Butternut squash
• Carrots
• Cherries
• Green Cabbage
• Kiwi
• Mushrooms
• Papayas
• Pomegranates
• Raspberries
• Sweet Potato
• Bananas
• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Apple
• Arugula
• Asparagus
• Blackberries
• Cantaloupe
• Cranberries
• Kale
• Mangoes
• Oranges
• Plums & prunes
• Pumpkins
• Strawberries
• Watermelons

Antioxidants

Ever wonder about all the fuss over antioxidants? Antioxidants are vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that protect and repair cells from damage caused by free radicals. In layman’s terms, this means that antioxidants may help prevent diseases like hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis), cancer and arthritis. According to WebMD, the following foods have the most antioxidants per serving.

Source: WebMD Public Information from the United States Department

And according to the experts at Livestrong, you can also get a healthy dose of antioxidants by eating dark chocolate (yippee!) as well as by spicing up your foods with cinnamon, rosemary, ginger, cloves and curry.

Fiber

Fiber appears to have a number of health benefits as well. In addition to helping the digestive tract function properly, according to the Mayo Clinic, a high-fiber diet may also help reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Fruits, vegetables, some whole-grain foods, beans and legumes are all good quality fiber-rich foods.

Macronutrients

To get the most out of a balanced diet, it’s nice to consume rich sources of the three macronutrients – carbohydrates, protein and fat.

Follows is a table that lists some of these:

Source: Performance Nutrition for Runners.

Happy eating!

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Nutrition to improve your running performance

I recently finished reading a book entitled Runner’s World Performance Nutrition for Runners, written by Matt Fitzgerald. The book offers practical advice on how to eat better, optimize your body composition and improve performance, among other nutrition and endurance running related. Though the book is definitely tailored to a competitive athlete, I think there are relevant considerations for a more causal runner.

Though this post is by no means and exhaustive report on the entire book, I thought I would highlight a few topics I found particularly interesting. Hopefully, you can improve your performance with a few of these tidbits. Or perhaps buy the book yourself if you wish to read more (Matt has not approached me for a book review, by the way!). Ironically, I received an article on the same topic from Runner’s World today, if you are interested in reading more about avoiding the marathon wall.

Balancing macronutrients

I am a big believer in balancing the intake of macronutrients – carbs, protein and fat. Fitzgerald suggests that there’s not a one-size-fits-all balance for runners, but recommends these guidelines:

He also points out a few problem areas in training and how they might be influenced/caused by a person’s diet:

Hydration and Sport Drinks

It is fairly common knowledge that proper hydration is important for long runs. In addition, Fitzgerald advocates integrating sports drinks as part of your daily training, not just for hydration, but for energy. Here are the five main benefits of sports drinks he identifies:

1) Better hydration. Sports drinks hydrate better than water because they are absorbed by the bloodstream faster, they contain sodium and other minerals that help regulate fluid balance in the body, and the sodium stimulates thirst.

2) More energy. Sports drinks provide a supply of glucose to the blood that muscles can draw upon for energy.

3) Less muscle damage. The carbohydrate in sports drinks slows the rate of glucose and glycogen depletion, sparing the muscle protein breakdown and tissue damage,

4) Lower perceived exertion level. By keeping blood glucose levels higher during prolonged running, the brain perceives less fatigue.

5) Less immune system suppression. By providing glucose and limiting cortisol release, sports drink reduces immune system suppression that naturally occurs during intense exercise.

6) Faster recovery.

7) A better workout tomorrow.

Sports drinks contain carbohydrates and electrolytes, and sometimes amino acids and protein, too. Any other “added” ingredients (e.g., ribose, creatine, ginseng and CoQ10) don’t provide “added” benefits for improving performance, at least none that have been proven. Research has shown carbohydrate is absorbed fastest when its concentration in a fluid is in the range of 6 to 8 percent, so it’s helpful to look at the label of drinks to be sure there’s not more or less than you need or can use. (Runners typically burn 100-200 grams of carbohydrate per hour and absorb only 60-80 grams of ingested carbohydrate per hour). Only a few sports drinks contain amino acids and protein – such as Accelerade – and there is still much to be learned about the benefits to runners in consuming proteins before and during runs. Some studies, however, have shown that this formula increases endurance and reduces muscle damage.

Gels are essentially sports drink without the water. Some contain electrolytes and others do not. If they lack electrolytes, you need to consume them some other way during a long run. To be absorbed quickly, gels must be consumed with water. When should you drink sports drink and when should you drink water? It’s really about personal preference and what you like best. Sometimes gels are simply more convenient to carry. One strategy Fitzgerald recommends is to drink water for 20-30 minutes after consuming a gel, then switch to a sports drink after the gel has been digested.

The actual drinking guidelines he recommends are as follows:

• Drink during any runs lasting longer than an hour and in all high-intensity workouts (e.g., track intervals).
• Drink small amounts frequently. Try to drink every 10 minutes during workouts. In a run 2 hours+, try to drink as close as possible to your actual sweat rate.
• Begin drinking before you start running. Start by drinking a small amount before you run, then gradually build this amount over time as your stomach adjusts to the fluids. (I learned this the hard way yesterday when I gulped a big glass of Gatorade before I ran, resulting in a bad stomach ache the entire time!).
• Simulate race conditions. Try to train with whatever is served in your race to make sure it agrees with your tummy (you can generally check the race drink to see what they’ll offer to runners during the race). Drink similar quantities and actually try to drink at race pace (the faster you run, the harder it is to swallow the drink!).

Pre-race Nutrition

This book shattered my long-held belief that eating a big spaghetti dinner the night before a marathon was carbo-loading. The reality is that a single pasta dinner the night before a marathon will not have a significant carbo-loading effect or affect your performance the next day either. Wow! And after all this time!

So what is carbo-loading? In the late 60’s, a Swedish physiologist found that there was a positive relationship between the amount of the glycogen in the body and endurance performance. This is accomplished by consuming high levels of carbohydrates preceded by severe glycogen depletion. He then developed a sophisticated carbo-loading protocol that most average runners would completely avoid. It looked like this:

1)      Perform an exhaustive workout 1 week before a long race (90 minutes plus).

2)      Consume a very low-carb diet (10%) for the next 3 – 4 days while training lightly.

3)      Consume a very high-carb diet (90%) the next 3 – 5 days while continuing to train lightly.

Later, research showed that you can increase glycogen storage significantly without first depleting it. The method more commonly used by runners today goes something like this:

1)      Perform a long workout (but not an exhaustive one) 1 week before race day.

2)      Eat normally (55-60% carbohydrate) until 3 days before a longer race.

3)      Eat a high-carb diet (70%) the final 3 days before racing while training very lightly.

This method is much easier to carry out and is still thought to improve performance. The book goes into exactly how many grams of carbohydrates are optimal per kilogram of lean body mass, but I think the highly level overview gets the point across.

In regards to the ideal pre-race meal, he advocates timing as the most important consideration. The ideal time for a pre-race meal is 4 hours beforehand, but since it’s not ideal to get up at 3 a.m. for a 7 a.m. start, eating 2 hours prior is a comfortable alternative. The size of the meal, he suggests, depends on the duration of the race, your size and timing of the meal. Some of the foods he suggests eating include bagels, bananas, energy bars, oatmeal and meal replacement shakes. For the latter, and especially if you’re travelling out of town to run a race, brands such as Boost an Ensure have a nice nutrition profile.

The finishing touch is to sip sports drink or electrolyte-fortified water at regular intervals up until an hour before the race. Then take a break until 10 minutes before the horn to drink a bit more (as much as your stomach will allow you to comfortably handle).

Post-race nutrition

Last but certainly not least, the author delves deeply into the importance of replenishing your body’s depleted energy supply after a long run or race. The five goals of recovery nutrition, as he defines it, are:

• rehydration
• replenishing muscle glycogen
• reducing secondary muscle damage and preventing illness
• rebuilding muscle proteins
• replenishing muscle fat stores

Without going into grave detail on each of these, he advocates eating and drinking as soon as possible after your race (or long run). “The most important recovery nutrients are carbohydrate and protein, and it equally crucial that these nutrients be consumed as soon as possible after training.”The sooner you start to eat and drink, the sooner your body starts to recover.  Not to mention, proper nutrition recovery helps preserve or possibly increase lean muscle mass.

Recovery drinks are a nice alterative to natural foods if you’re not hungry immediately after a run (which frequently happens). Moreover, you can hydrate and nourish at the same time. Recovery drinks are absorbed faster than solid meals, too. Some examples of recovery drinks include Endurox R4, Ultragen and Countdown.

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Kids and Junk Food: New Research Suggests Strong Correlation

Today, ABC reported that  junk food is about half a kids’ caloric intake:

“Researchers from the National Cancer Institute found that nearly 40 percent of calories consumed by children ages 2 to 18 were empty calories, the unhealthiest kind of calories.”

Half of these calories came from the following six foods:

• Soda
• Sugary fruit drinks
• Grain desserts, such as cake, cookies and donuts
• Dairy desserts such as ice cream
• Pizza
• Whole milk

The big debate, as posed in the ABC article, is where the blame lies.  Is it the manufacturers fault for making “bad” food taste good? Or are parents to blame in making poor food choices for their little ones? Education, or lack thereof, may also play a role.

My  personal belief is that at some point in time, the buck stops here. I see commercials for McDonald’s every day of my life, but that doesn’t mean I have to race out to the big arches and pick up a happy meal for my little boy, Luke. In fact, I am trying to avoid this predicament for as long as humanly possible.

I’m doing what I can to teach Luke about ingredients lists on packages, what’s healthy and not, and why he should eat his veggies at dinner. Perhaps this is why he’s the self-proclaimed “nutrients man!” Though we laugh at him when he suggests that chocolate chip cookies “contain lots of nutrients,” at least conceptually understands what I’m trying to teach him. And he’s a pretty darn adventurous and healthy eater as a result.

What do you think? Where does the blame lie?

I am a big believer that cooking healthy, whole foods at home is one HUGE way we can positively influence our children’s eating habits – as well as our own!!. As such, I would be most appreciative if  you could take 2-3 minutes to fill out the questionnaire below about your cooking habits/obstacles. You need not be married with kids to provide valuable input!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/7CYPL79

Thanks so much!

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Why Buyers Should Beware of Food Marketing Claims

If you are watching your weight, which cereal do you think best help you achieve your goal?

Kellogg’s Special K

Or

Kellogg’s Corn Flakes

This question came up recently when my mom was in town visiting. She is on a weight loss diet and said, “I eat Corn Flakes for breakfast but I try to eat Special K whenever I can.”

And my response was: “Why? One is not different than the other.”

And even my husband piped in to say, “Of course there is a difference. Special K is better,” a comment to which my Mom wholeheartedly agreed.

So if I asked you the same question, what would your answer be?

If you have seen the myriad of Special K TV commercials, you would assume this cereal has some magic weight loss formula. In fact, this commercial challenges you to drop jean size in two weeks:

Now that’s a marketing claim if I ever heard one!

But buyers beware. Marketing can be louder than pounds at times.

So back to the original question:

Special K has 120 calories in one cup of cereal. The same amount of Corn Flakes, on the other hand, has 100 calories. Both have less than 1 gram of dietary fiber, so there’s little chance you’ll poop your way to weight loss (sorry, but we use that word a lot in our household).

Special K does have more added nutrients, though.  Check out the nutrition labels below:

So which is “better?” Guess that depends on how you define better. I don’t really think one will help you lose more weight than the other, especially since breakfast is only one meal during a person’s day. But buyers should beware that  marketing claims are subject to interpretation.

Here are some marketing slogans/claims from top selling cereals:

Cheerios is a superfood for your heart (by helping remove some bad cholesterol from your body).

Frosted Mini Wheats have 8 layers of whole grain fiber to keep kids full and focused.

Life Cereal promotes healthy hearts and is an excellent source of B-vitamins to convert food into energy.

Kashi GOLEAN – A bowl has as much protein as an egg.

Moral to the story: Read nutrition labels and ingredients’ lists. What you see on TV may not always be as promising as it sounds. And don’t forget that a healthy diet – rich with nutrients and heart healthy – requires more than just a bowl of cereal.

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