Commit to Health Series: Substitute Beans for Meat Once in a While

The last post in this series on committing to health this year is a really simple one, and one most of you are probably already doing on a regular basis, but it bears repeating. Substitute beans for meat in your meals once in a while. Not only are they cheaper and have a longer shelf life than meat, they have more fiber and water content than meat, as well as less fat. You'll feel fuller and eat less when you use beans in your cooking. Check out this article from WebMD to get more scientific info. You can use canned beans or dried beans in your recipes. However, using dried beans and soaking them and then cooking them slowly will allow them to soak up more of the flavor of whatever dish you're making. Canned beans really don't do that. But I can't deny the convenience and cheap availability of canned beans, either. They're great to throw on top of a salad or add to tacos. My dad and grandma would always make White Beans and Ham on Mondays while they did their jobs. I'll try to make some up soon and get some photos to go along with the recipe. It is cheap and easy and extra filling.

Here are three really easy recipes with beans that I've posted before:

Spinach Salad with Cannellini Beans and Tuna
Red Beans and RiceNachos LibreAnd if you're into really convenient cooking, I've noticed that Dennison's Chili and Hormel Chili are both gluten free, although Hormel is the only one to have added gluten free to their labels. Woot!Happy, healthy eating!

Commit to Health Series: Deep, Dark, and Delicious

Some things in life are just fine when they're pale: skin that's been out of the sun's harmful rays, paint on walls or white sheets on a bed. But when it comes to healthy food, deep and dark is better. Eating foods with a lot of color is one way to really up your vitamin intake. Let me clarify, by color I do not mean Fruity Pebbles. I'm talking dark red beets, deep leafy greens like chard and spinach, bright orange butternut squash, dark green broccoli, black beans, purple plums, cheery purple cranberries, and dark chocolate anything. I promise, that chocolate is good for you! It has polyphenols that help with heart health. Just don't eat a whole mega Hershey bar of it! And fruits can come in healthy colors, too. Try pineapple, mangoes, kiwis, oranges, strawberries and figs for some deep dark color.

Colorful foods contain more vitamins and things called flavonoids that keep you healthy and protect from chronic diseases. After recovering from damage done to our bodies by celiac disease, we celiacs need all the help we can get to boost our bodies' repair. Imagine trying to build a house with no bricks or wood. That's how our bodies feel when trying to heal intestinal damage without extra vitamins and nutrients from healthy food. Eating junk food is like building your house with mud. You could live in it, but it wouldn't be very nice.

Next time you buzz through the aisles of the produce department, stop and look at the lettuce you're buying. Is it pale white iceberg lettuce (with little or no nutritional value)? Or is it a darker romaine or leaf lettuce or even spinach or peppery arugula? One simple change can really give your body more efficient fuel. Look for deep dark vegetables and maybe they can make the list of your new foods to try this year. Start out easy with broccoli, sweet potatoes, and spinach, and work your way up to kale and acorn squash. Don't forget to buy some colorful fruit while you're there, too. Try a starfruit, or get a package of berries or some dried apricots. Switch to a dark chocolate baking cocoa (Hershey makes one) and try it in your dessert recipes.

One of my favorite snacks is a bowl of bright green edamame with coarse salt sprinkled over it. In case you haven't tried edamame, it's simply soybeans steamed either in or out of their pod. They sell the shelled ones in the freezer section and they steam up well in the microwave for a quick snack packed with equal amounts of protein and carbohydrates. And I love that bright green color.

As always, there is an exception to everything, and my one exception in this case is cauliflower. I love it. It's one of my favorite vegetables, cooked or raw, and it's a great source of Vitamin C. Buying it frozen is a really convenient way to get some into your diet. And if you don't like the taste, now they make them with flavors, like this garlic cauliflower I found today.

There's a great website by the Center for Disease Control called fruitsandveggiesmatter, and if you have more questions about vegetables and fruits and their benefits, check it out. Commit to some color! Eating healthier is just one smart choice away.

Happy eating!

Commit to Health Series: Try Something New

I'm not sure how this next topic really relates to health in a scientific sense. But somehow, it works. Being flexible and open minded when it comes to food really seems to help me divorce myself from the fact that I want to eat it all the time. I think gluten free eaters are a little bit better than most at "sticking to a diet," but that doesn't mean that we necessarily eat the best foods for us, even if they're gluten free. For example, when I was first diagnosed with celiac disease and I cut gluten out of my diet, I thought I might starve to death. I happened to have a giant Hershey bar (I mean, the mega-giant size) someone had given my daughter sitting out in the kitchen. When I passed by I would eat two or three squares of it because, and I quote myself, it was the ONLY thing I could eat. By the end of the day the entire mega bar was gone, and my daughter hadn't eaten a bite. Do you have any idea how many calories are in a giant Hershey bar? Way more than 400 I tell you. WAY MORE. So, gluten free eaters of the world: think outside of the food box!

Here are some new foods that I tried this year that I am totally glad I did:

smoked mozzarella...so good with baked pasta
sushi...there's gluten free kinds and it's actually pretty yummy
a quinoa and veggie salad that I am still going to try to replicate (or improve upon)
hummus...who knew?
ivernia cheese...a sharp Irish cheddar, and I mean sharp
coconut gelato at the Draper Harmon's...and not because of that Julia Roberts movie!

I feel like trying a new food allows me to think about what I'm tasting, and make a judgement, and view the food for what it is: food. Not love, not friendship, and definitely not comfort. (Although I can't say I don't love to feel full and satisfied, but you know what I mean.) If you are in a food rut and you don't like to try new things, start out small and try something inexpensive but different, like shallots. They're like mild garlic-flavored onions, and if you don't like the strong onion flavor you might like the easygoing shallot in your recipes. Or try some Nutella in a crepe or on toast for kicks. It says hazelnut but really it's the most delicious chocolate spread around. Stop by your local deli or cheese monger and try a sample of a new kind of cheese and then buy $5.oo worth of it and try it in a recipe. image from Martha Stewart.com

Try a new grain, like millet, quinoa, teff, or buckwheat and try putting some of it into a soup or even cooked like oatmeal in the morning. It's not on their website yet, but in the January 2011 issue of Martha Stewart Living on pages 136-140 they have a great little guide for eating cooked grains and flavor combinations that sound really yummy. (Note: only the quinoa, millet, and steel-cut oats are gluten free.)

You could also try capers in a salad or on pasta. They are little small salty, lemony...balls of flavor. I don't even know what kind of food they are but they are delicious. Or get a new vegetable that you've always walked by at the grocery store and read up on how to cook it. It's all about being willing to try new things. And buying a different kind of salad dressing or a different flavor of ice cream does not count! We're talking whole, healthy, fresh foods that are good for you. A varied diet also helps you get more of the vitamins and minerals your body needs, and if you're trying out something new, chances are you're going to pay more attention to the entire meal and make sure it's going to taste good together. No one wants to waste $10 worth of Gruyere, and I mean no one. Adding more types of vegetables to your diet will help you get more fiber, which is also good for you.

My foods that I'm going to try to work into my diet this year are Tilapia, (yes, I am the only person on the planet who hasn't eaten Tilapia yet. I really don't love fish, so there.) and cremini mushrooms, because I love mushrooms and they're supposed to be super mushroomy, and in the vegetable category I'd really like to try broccoli rabe, parsnips, eggplant and endive. What's on your list? Leave me a comment and let me know what food you'd like to try this year, be it a cheese, a vegetable, or a type of protein.

Happy eating!

Commit to Health Series: Water, Water, Water

I went to a workshop on healthy eating in the summer and I will never forget it. There I was, sitting in the audience with my Camelbak thermos of water, taking a big swig and thinking I was so noble and full of hubris because I had just quit drinking soda the week before and I didn't even miss it. In fact I was noticing at that moment how thirsty I always must have been before because instead of drinking water I had been drinking soda so I never felt un-thirsty. It just doesn't quench your thirst. I had started to crave water instead of soda because it really, truly made me not thirsty. And then, in my grand moment of triumph, the lecturer said this: "Just drink water. Just tell yourself when you want a drink it's going to be water and then only drink water. Water, water water. That's what you drink." What a great line. I repeat it to myself often throughout the day when I feel either hungry or thirsty I hear it in my head, "Water, water water."Ha. I actually figured something healthy out on my own and was validated by an expert!

About two months later I realized I had lost 10 pounds after I quit drinking soda. What? 10 pounds? I never thought that a small can of soda a day would really do much damage. I know there's like 800 teaspoons of sugar in it and the carbonation can't really be good for your body, but the FDA wouldn't let people sell it if it was actually going to do you any harm, right? Well, I'm not a food scientist, but here's what I believe from my limited and biased research:

*It's not necessarily the caffeine in the soda that is so bad for you, although it's not good for you either. It's the chemicals. They irritate your stomach, ruin enamel on your teeth, and mess up the whole calcium thing in your blood. It can also increase acid reflux if it makes you burp a lot.

* Sodas also contain a lot of sugar, which is harmful because it's calories without nutrition attached. And our whole goal here is to be nutritionally better this year, not worse.

*Diet drinks are not good for the body because the "fake" sugars and sweeteners used in them mess up your body chemistry and can make you feel like eating more sweets. Ouch. I like the way this article from the Eat This, Not That guy, David Zinczenko, explains it.

You can find evidence on both sides of the coin saying that soda is fine to drink and that soda is the devil incarnate. Just Google "why are carbonated drinks bad for you?" and see what comes up! It's a personal choice and I don't hold it against anyone if they drink soda. However, I personally feel better drinking water almost every time I drink and saving soda for an occasional indulgence. I actually say every time I drink one that I'll never drink it again for two reasons: 1) I am so full when I drink it that I never want to eat my healthy and usually expensive dinner, and 2) they feel like a dessert to me because of all the sugar and I get a sugar coma afterwards. I'm serious. And if you're trying to drop some poundage, soda can only be another hurdle you have to overcome every time you drink it. You create a calorie abundance instead of a deficit, whether or not you believe the chemicals inside the drink are safe or harmful. And if you're drinking zero-calorie drinks you may subconsciously be letting yourself eat more high-calorie foods to compensate.

So, my point is this: if you don't agree with me or don't believe a word I've written here (and that's all fine and good, I'll love you just the same), take a challenge and switch to just drinking water for three weeks. Let me know how you feel when it's all over. If you feel worse and you've gained weight and you have terrible problems with hydration, come back and leave me a comment! I'd love to hear the story. But I think you'll actually feel better and wonder why you never quit soda years ago.

I read a really great post today from the No Gluten, No Problem peeps, namely Peter Bronski, about 10 tips for healthy living as a gluten free eater. Check it out for a little more healthy inspiration.

Happy eating!

Commit to Health Series: Meal Planning Will Save Your Bacon

I am a list maker. I have raised a couple of little listmakers here at my house, and I can't say I'm disappointed. No, I believe in the power of a good list. And, yesterday I realized that I've not only eaten too much and spent too much the last few weeks, but that I've been lazy too much and therefore eaten out too much. It's time to get back to list-making.Lucky for me I've surrounded myself with some good resources and I remembered the other day in the midst of eating my second piece of cheesecake that I really do like to live a healthy lifestyle. When you eat gluten free you tend to find yourself thinking an awful lot about what goes into your body. And, as most of America does at the beginning of every new calendar year, I've recommitted myself to my health. There are a few simple things I like to do that help me remember that I always feel better when I eat better. So this week I'll be sharing a few little tips on how to commit to health not only in January, but for a lifetime. First of all, if you want a healthy lifestyle and to feel energized throughout the day, it's important to eat right. And, eating right means making a plan. And I don't mean just any plan, I'm talking a weekly meal plan. For those of you who have mastered the art of making things to eat that are healthy and affordable and wheat free without one, you have my respect. But me, I just can't do it without a plan. I'm pretty easygoing with my meal plans. I write down the seven days of the week and plug in some recipes that go along with the time constraints and mostly what I have in my pantry. Then I make my grocery list from that. It usually looks something like this:

Monday: Chicken Tacos
Tuesday: Beef Stroganoff with Rice
Wednesday: Ham and Funeral Potatoes
Thursday: Chicken and Fettucini Alfredo
Friday: Waffles and Eggs
Saturday: Ham and Chicken Divan (use leftovers from Wednesday)
Sunday: Pot Roast with Mashed Potatoes

I try to mix up the protein, like not having chicken four nights in a row, and I also find myself inadvertently having "theme nights," and I'm not sure where it came from. Like Mexican food on Monday, breakfast on Friday, pasta on Thursday, stuff like that. But it's not set in stone. I learned a few years ago to be flexible and give myself the option to switch nights or have oatmeal instead if things go south, but for the most part it's worked for me. I also try to add in date night or if someone is coming to visit sometimes we plan to eat out, so I never forget to add in my nights off. This is a simple system, I know. A piece of scratch paper and a quick flip through the recipe book are all it takes. But if you need a little more inspiration, here are a few things I like as well:

*Meck Mom always has great organizational printouts like this one, which not only has a space for dinner plans but also has a spot for cleaning and exercising every day. I know, she's thought of it all.

*This is a really pretty one from Elegant Musings if you need to look at something pretty to get going.

*If you are new to gluten free eating and are having a hard time coming up with meals to make, this is a really great basic two-page list of not only ideas for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but a list of products to avoid and a sample shopping list.

*Everyday Food magazine has a weekly menu planner complete with shopping list to go with the recipes in the magazine. Granted, it's only one a month, but if you look through a few months you can make up a great little weekly plan. Or, if you go to Martha Stewart online and click on Food they have all kinds of tabs on the side to help plan menus, find recipes, and cook with what's in season. Not all of the recipes are gluten free, but they can spark some inspiration when you need it.

*Real Simple magazine's February 2011 issue is titled, "How to Eat This Year" which is sure to be interesting. I also noticed in the January 2011 issue they have a "Get it Together Handbook" and it has a section on Dinner Made Easier complete with a copy of a weekly meal planner split into categories.

*If you're into checklists, check out this ginormous grocery shopping list from grocerylists.org.

*Keep and Share has an impressive article on gluten free grocery shopping and also a pre-printed gluten free grocery list, which is useful if you usually buy the same things every week.

Commit to meal planning. I promise you that you'll not only eat healthier, you'll make time to eat at home with your family and spend less at the grocery store.

Happy eating!

5 Steps to Loving the Kitchen You're In: Step 5: Divide and Conquer

From the title of this post, you'd think that I'm talking about division of labor. Sorry, but that's just a clever way to get you to jump on in and read all about it. No, I'm talking about organization. And there's no better time to be talking about this very subject. Every year, when I get my brand new calendar, I try to savor that moment when it's completely empty and fresh, nothing written on it. I am literally turning over a new leaf when I break that calendar out. So, while many of us are thinking about the changes and weaknesses we want to work on during the year, let's tackle one that sometimes goes under the radar: Kitchen Organization.I am by no means an expert on organization, but I am pretty dang good at it. I have had to be, with so many children and a compulsion to never say no to pretty much everything anyone asks me to do, I've had to be streamlined in my scheduling and also in my cupboards. You see, I am what is known as a slave driver around these parts. I have older children that I make do dishes and I have younger children that I make sweep floors and put groceries away, and they are all expected to get their own dishes if they're hungry or thirsty, so that means that things have to be find-able and logically grouped so that if you came across something you didn't know where it went, you should be able to find it based on what kind of item it is. I've divided the stuff so I can conquer the chaos. I kind of like that last bit. What a great tagline...

This concept is not new. Check out this book by Julie Morgenstern at your local library if you want a more in-depth explanation, but in it she talks about the concept of organizing by zones. This means that all the things you need to do a certain task should be kept in the place where you would normally do that task. It's like when you keep the flashlight in the garage but the batteries are in the drawer in the kitchen. That's when you not only waste time but you get frustrated that things take so long to do. So, in the kitchen specifically, I have a cooking zone. All pots, pans, strainers, bakeware, utensils and spices are located right next to the stove and microwave. I have a dishes zone. All the dishes and glasses, cups and spoons are housed right by my dishwasher, so that when my slaves, er children, do their dishes they can easily put them away. I have an appliance zone, which I am very lucky to have, where I house all of my plug-in items. There's an outlet in there, so some of them can stay plugged in all the time. I also have my measuring cups and baking needs there, since I usually only measure teaspoons or tablespoons when I'm using the mixer. I have a central command zone. This is where the bills, stamps, phone books, phone, medicines, back issues of Everyday Food, and cookbooks are. All the miscellaneous crap that you definitely need but don't want to trip over while you're cooking is housed here. I have a pantry zone. Now, I know, this pantry is over the top. But it's my one claim to fame here in this house. I have a cracked countertop but a huge pantry. It's a trade-off I'm willing to make. I also group foods by zone in a simplified way in the pantry. I have my spaghetti stuff all by each other, my gluten free stuff has its own shelf, all the cereals and chips are together, canned goods are right there in the middle, and I have a box on the bottom shelf for my kids that has "kid food" like fruit snacks, granola bars, and individually packaged fruits and applesauce, so they can get food for themselves if they're hungry. Shelley from House of Smith's has a super cute pantry project, check it out if you need a little inspiration.

Zones. What a great concept. Divide the stuff so you can conquer some chaos. Some of these cupboards need this example applied more than others. For example, the bakeware is always a mess because I have way too much of it and it's not a great place to put things away. But I took 10 minutes to purge and reorganize this one cabinet and made it work. And this used to be the tupperware cupboard which was a disaster until I realized I really needed to move the tupperware down where I could see the lids to match them up. I think I threw about half of it away because I never use it. It's all in the fridge! Ha ha ha. Purge, purge, purge. You can never do too much purging in the cupboards. Keep what you love and use, chuck the rest. And, most importantly, don't go buy more! Unless it's from LeCreuset or All-Clad...that's totally acceptable.

I hope something in these last few posts has helped you come to terms with the place you cook, and helped you turn it into a family kitchen...because that's where the magic happens.

Happy New Year!

5 Steps to Loving the Kitchen You're In: Step 4: Surround Yourself With Beauty

I hope you're enjoying my little tangential trip into kitchen-keeping. I'm having such a great time talking about all the things I love about kitchens, it's going to be hard to stop myself when it's over. The tip for today is: understand what things, sounds, textures, smells, and objects make you happy, and surround yourself with them. This will be personal and different for everyone, as we all have a different set of ideals for beauty. For example, my friend Teresa loves modern art. She has a Kandinsky in the kitchen and Munch's "The Scream" hanging in her bathroom, on tangerine orange and lime green walls, respectively. She has bold-printed curtains with huge patterns in flashy colors. I would never ever paint my walls tangerine and I appreciate modern art but would never ever hang it up because it clashes with all my stuff. But when I go to Teresa's house, I see the way she has designed her space to work with the art she loves, and it makes me love that modern art every time I see it. My tastes aren't as vibrant, in fact they're boring in comparison, but it's what I like so I go with it. Here's a glimpse into what I keep that's beautiful to me:

I just love blue dishes. I can't explain why, but everytime I see them I am giddy. I have an entire collection of antique ones from my grandmother and I've bought more from ebay and The Old Dutch Store. I like them so much I decided to buy an entire set to use as my everyday dishes. I take care when I wash them because I like to look at them.

Music can really set the tone in my house. With so many children and so many jobs, sometimes I need a little pick-me-up or a little calmer-downer, and music does it every time. I've had my husband add one of these in every kitchen we've owned. For Christmas I got an iPod dock so I can be up with the times. Hey! You could do a whole kitchen playlist...the wheels are really turning now.I like nature and seeing the seasons change. I never ever lower the blinds in any of my kitchen windows and I try to keep them clean because I want to see the view outside. And with a mountain like that in your backyard, it's easy to love it.

In October the Nester had a series called "31 Days to a Less Messy Nest" and I remember she talked about having cute soap out to use. I found this wire thing at WalMart by the canning stuff for $4 and thought that it would be a cute soap holder in the kitchen. I have two sizes of spouted oil bottles (also available at WalMart) and one holds hand soap and one has dish soap in it. I think they're so cute sitting there on the counter together in my cheap wire container.

I almost always burn a Scentsy or a Salt City candle in my kitchen for two reasons. One, I don't like my house to smell like food unless I'm actually cooking it. And two, I like the seasonal scents that make me feel excited about whatever season I'm in. My favorite smells are Sunflower, Peppermint, and the one that smells like Clean Laundry.

There's almost always seasonal candy or items of some sort in my little jars on the windowsill. We're heading into winter's bleak stretch now, so I like to put white marshmallows and blue candy in my jars. At Christmas, it was sour candies and peppermints. Autumn is candy corn and pretzels, back to school time was crayons and pencils, Fourth of July I did cinnamon bears and those little flags, Valentine's day is usually conversation hearts and cinnamon hot lips, and Halloween was purple, orange and green gumballs and black spider rings. I have fun with it. Anything cheap and abundant that reminds me of the flavors or colors of the season will eventually end up in one of my jars. I love the seasons and that little reminder of where I am in the year makes me feel happy.

So there you have it. Find your favorite things and bring them into the kitchen with you, be it a color, a sound, a smell, anything that gives you joy to see. We spend so much time in there already that it only makes sense that surrounding yourself with beauty will make you love being there that much more.

Happy eating!