PICKY EATER

FOOD WASTE WATCH

2010-12-11T06:48:00.000-08:00

I am a big fan of The Frugal Girl blog, Kristen blogs almost every day and always includes nice images as well.

On Friday she shows the food that went to waste, to help her to reduce wasting food. I have posted about this before, yet Kristen's food waste images encouraged me to continue to keep an eye on it.
"Every week, I post a picture of the food that has gone bad over the last seven days. Why do I do this? Because in March of 2008, I finally got fed up with the amount of food I was wasting, and I thought that showing my waste to other people would motivate me to use up my food instead of wasting it."

This morning I checked my food waste for the week and I am happy with the result: a few slices of turkey and some tofu--I turned into a dessert but my daughter didn't like it--and it was too much for me to eat it all.

Some people have composters or animals that could eat the scraps. We have two dogs and 7 chickens, even our wasted food does not really go to waste! What I like about watching food waste is that you become an efficient meal planner (including better portions), more creative cook, and save some money in the process!

Here's a nice article about the amount of food we waste from The New York Times.

Homemade bread

2010-11-06T07:47:00.000-07:00

Last week I re-posted this blog posting by The Frugal Girl and received a warning...oops I never intended to do anything wrong! Actually I provided her name and included a link to her blog. Still think it is a great article so this time I'll just include a link

The conclusion is that home made bread is cheaper (only if you do not include labor) but the most important thing is that it is healthier because you have power over the ingredients.

I love fresh made bread, but I do not like the work, so I looked for a soda bread recipe that does not require kneading the dough ( a good exercize I admit)or raising time. This recipe is very easy and the result was awesome!

Spelt bread is not gluten free, but easier to digest than wheat and very good for low carb eaters. You can read more about spelt here

I made half of the recipe, just one loaf. The recipe has many great reviews and suggestions for adding things and improvements. I added a little honey as well as the molasses and a pinch more salt. Great with Winter soups!

GOT GREENS?

2010-09-17T09:59:00.000-07:00

The reason I started this blog is because I wish to help people eat healthier and become more aware of the relation between their health and the food they eat. Today I found the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and it re-assured me to continue this blog and my effort to help families with the daily challenge of preparing nutritious meals.

Maybe I should become a health coach myself I wondered while watching the videos on this site. Maybe one day I will! For now I would like to share some of the videos from this Institute.

One of the myths about healthy food is that it takes a lot of time to prepare it, NOT TRUE. Andrea Beaman will show you the tricks.

SHELF LIFE OR MY LIFE?

2010-08-23T13:31:00.000-07:00

I read a blog posting by Sue Schick and saw that we're making a little progress as far as the commitment by several food producers in our country is concerned. Since we decide where we'll spend our dollars the food producers better start making better food!

I found this wonderful whole grain cracker the other day, that would have been a great afternoon snack for my daughter but when I got home and read the ingredients label (didn't bring my glasses while shopping) I saw it contained partially hydrogenated oils and got sad, because again they did attempt to make something healthy (and a good job promoting it) but still used a silent killer in in.

Not only obesity is a problem in this country but heart related diseases are number 1 in this country! Partially Hydrogenated Oils have been banned from restaurants in several states, but are still "poisoning" most of our foods in the grocery stores and turning healthy peanut butter into heart attacks (for example).

When I shop there are a few things I look for (to avoid): the length of the ingredients list (too long is very suspicious), Monosodium glutamate (MSG), Partially Hydrogenated Oil (PHO), and High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). I want our food to come without these 3...that should be possible!

What is more important? Shelf life or my life?

WHAT'S YOUR WASTE?

2010-08-04T09:50:00.000-07:00

"There's more energy in wasted food than there is in the Gulf of Mexico." The title of an article I read this morning. Being an unemployed single mom (who ran out of benefits for the past 2 months), I really have to watch each dollar I spend and not waste any food. You'll become very creative and efficient in using your resources.

We are lucky to have been invited by a friend to live on her farm. So we have a veggie garden and chickens. Nothing goes to waste here! Scraps go either to compost or the chickens. We are also lucky to have access to local, fresh food via Farmer Girls and on-line farmers market and since the farmers only bring what the customers have ordered on-line there is no waste at the farmers end either!

You'll become a better planner/purchaser as well. Buy what is in season or on sale, if the quantity is too large, share it with a neighbor or friend. Prepare multi meal dishes and freeze smaller portions for later. Instead of nasty soda's or expensive store drinks I make lemonade myself (when the lemons are on sale) and use part of it to make my own popsicles. I make ice tea and use part of that as well for posicles (kids love fruity teas like peach and mango)

It has its positive sides to be on a tight budget: you waste less, eat healthier, and lose some weight as well! For example: when our tomatoes have blemished skins, I dip them in boiling water to remove the skin and freeze the skinless tomatoes for later use as a pasta sauce or soup. Even if you have a balcony you can grow a few things, see what grows well in your area and save yourself a few bucks in produce shopping.

Be well, Monique
Image: Some rights reserved by Flickr user Nutloaf

Herbes de Fauquier

2010-07-19T16:36:00.001-07:00

I’ll admit that I am addicted to lavender and had to be weaned off after the month of June (it bloomed early this year). As a young child I used to camp during the summer weeks at a lavender farm in the Northern part of the Provence. Tucked away in a pretty valley with grape vines, lavender and the river la Drôme.

This is where I learned to make Fusettes de Lavande (fusette means spindle). The lavender was growing right behind our tent and the scent of a fresh cut bouquet would relax us instantly. I feel so lucky to actually live on a lavender farm, Deborah Williamson invited me and my daughter to stay with her while job hunting in the region. Not sure if I want to leave though!

During the season I teach people how to make what we call here lavender wands. Some of my older wands were 15 to 20 years old and after a gentle squeeze the lavender scent would re-appear like it was made yesterday.

Now that the field is empty and our harvest is drying I had to come up with a new activity and it didn’t take long to figure out what else I could do with lavender: cooking! Yes, lavender is a wonderful aromatic herb, its works well in cookies and on the grill. Since we are growing many other herbs in our garden I decided to try to make my own Herbes de Provence mixture.

First I did some research and asked several French friends about the original ingredients and it seems like with curries, there are many different recipes. Back to the herbs I personally like I started to dry our marjoram, basil, sage, thyme and rosemary. In the mean time I found this little history I would like to share.

Aux Anysetiers Du Roy was first a restaurant located in the old Paris quarters, L'Ile Saint-Louis, near Notre Dame de Paris. The building is classified as the historic monuments in Paris and it dates from the 17th century. At one time it was a cabaret. The restaurant specialized in Provencal cooking, using olive oil, aromatic herbs, garlic, etc. It was the first restaurants to grilled meats seasoned with Provence Herbs, as the Lombard family originally came from Provence. It was a fashionable to frequent restaurant in the 60s, where you could meet celebrities who would often sign the crocks as souvenirs. At the end of his or her dinner, each customer received a small gift: the small Herbes of Provence crock, special blend prepared by Louis Lombard, who was the first to include lavender flowers in aromatic herbs. The crocks are made in a small village in the Drôme, near Valence (south of Lyon). Aux Anysetiers du Roy creates their own recipes such as special blends of aromatics herbs and spices. The crocks are filled up by hand. It is a craftsmanship production, original and exclusive. Today Anysetiers du Roy produces fine foods, mostly herbs and chocolate fondue, in their signature herb pots and these are made from their special secret recipes, perfected over the decades.

As my daughter watched me drying the herbs and crushing them in my new “for herbs only” coffee grinder, she decided to make her own mixture. She named it: “Marunca” and it contains fennel seeds, sage, mint, tarragon and bay leaves. We used it on a tomato cucumber salad the other night and it was delicious!

After I finished my first Herbes de Fauquier as I named my mixture I got inspired to make more and other mixes. It is so much fun making them and naming them! I have an Asian and Moroccan version in mind and can’t wait to try them! Another interesting way of incorporating herbs and spices is to combine them with either salt or sugar. Lavender sugar is awesome to add to a tea or sprinkle on your cookies. Add a favorite herb to a good quality course salt and grind it together for some punch to any dish!

I love it when I can engage my daughter in kitchen activities, she is so much more willing to try new foods and she learns a lot about ingredients and preparation techniques. We are blessed to be able to grow herbs ourselves and we order them from Farmer Girls as well. Farmer Girls usually carries 10 to 15 different types of fresh herbs. It is “thyme” to make your own mixture!

JUNK FOOD MOUNTAIN

2010-07-12T13:36:00.000-07:00

The astonishing amount of rubbish one child eats every year

Had to share this article and great images with you.

I hope my daughter will understand some day why I said nay!

GOT GRILLING?

2010-07-08T09:07:00.000-07:00

Summer means grilling to me. So when I saw this posting on the New York Times website I had to share it with you! Children love food that comes from the grill, it's an outdoors adventure for your taste buds!

101 Fast Recipes for Grilling
By MARK BITTMAN
Published: June 29, 2010

THERE, in all of their Fourth of July glory, are 101 grilling ideas begging to be tried. A vast majority take less time to prepare and grill than it takes to watch your coals turn white. (If you use gas, they’re still almost as fast as heating up the grill.) Some of them feature ingredients like corn, eggplant and tomatoes, which will be better a month from now, at least in the Northeast. But there are also suggestions for foods in season right now that not everybody thinks of putting on the grill. Please note that salt and pepper are (usually) understood.

Vegetables and Fruits

1. A winter dish, summer style: Brush thick slices of fennel bulbs with olive oil and grill over not-too-high heat. Cut oranges in half and grill, cut-side down. Put fennel on a bed of arugula or watercress, squeeze grilled oranges over top. Garnish with fennel fronds.

2. Best grilled artichokes: Cut artichokes in half, scoop out the choke, parboil until tender. Grill, cut-side down, until lightly browned; grill a couple of halved lemons, too. Combine the juice from the grilled lemons with melted butter and spoon over the artichokes. Finish with parsley.

3. Tahini tofu steaks. Thin tahini with lots of lemon juice and some minced garlic. Cut a brick of firm tofu into four slabs and brush with sesame oil. Grill over a moderate fire, turning a few times, until marked and crisp outside and custardy inside. On the last turn, baste with the tahini sauce. Serve on thick tomato slices with a drizzle of soy sauce and chopped basil, Thai if possible.

4. Spice-rubbed carrots: Roll peeled carrots in cumin, salt, pepper and brown sugar. Char, then move them away from direct heat and cover the grill until carrots are tender.

5. Grill bread; grind in a food processor to make coarse bread crumbs. (You can add garlic and/or parsley and/or Parmesan, or not.) Grill asparagus until tender. Top with bread crumbs and olive oil.

6. Brush slices of beet with olive oil and grill slowly until tender and lightly browned. Top each slice with a little goatcheese and some salad greens.

7. For perfectly ripe tomatoes only: Grill tomatoes, any size, until hot and lightly charred but not bursting. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and serve with fresh mozzarella (or, even better, burrata) and grilled bread.

8. Halve and grill radicchio (or Belgian endives); drizzle cut sides with honey or plain vinaigrette, pesto or parsley pesto. Or just brush with oil and finish with a little grilled prosciutto.

9. Grilled guacamole: Halve and pit avocados; lightly char them, then scoop out the flesh. Grill halved red onion, too. Chop, combine, add tomatoes, lime, garlic and spices if you like.

10. Grill corn. Serve with mayo with minced garlic, pimentón and parsley.

11. Grill more corn. Serve with curry-powder-laced yogurt and minced onion.

12. Grill corn again. Serve with coconut milk, cilantro and mint.

13. Root vegetable of your choice: Slice celeriac — or jicama, big potatoes, daikon or yams — and grill slowly, until very tender and browned. Drizzle with olive oil or melted butter and sprinkle with chopped rosemary or sage and olive oil.

14. Choose another root. Slice it, but this time char lightly and leave it crunchy. Chop and toss with chopped cilantro, a pinch of cayenne and juice of grilled lime.

15. Rub thick zucchini slices with a mixture of fresh or dried dill, yogurt, olive oil and lemon. (Or use pesto or parsley pesto.) Grill slowly.

16. More shopping than cooking: Grill an array of radishes on little skewers, four to six each. Serve with butter, salt and bread.

17. Halve Belgian endives. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and grill over moderate-to-low heat, turning once or twice, until soft and browned. Finish cut-side up and sprinkle with grated Parmesan; close the grill to melt cheese.

18. Lightly char whole or halved heads of baby bok choy; drizzle with soy sauce and top with chopped scallions.

19. Peel and thickly slice a not overly ripe mango. Brush very lightly with neutral oil and grill just until softened; sprinkle with cilantro and/or mint and lime juice (you might as well grill the lime first, too).

20. Grill pineapple (or anything, really, from pork to tofu to eggplant). Make a sauce of half-cup peanut butter, a tablespoon (or more) soy sauce, a dash (or more) sriracha chili sauce, a handful of basil or mint and enough warm water to thin. (I’m tempted to say, “Throw away the pineapple and eat the sauce,” but the combination is sensational.)

21. Waldorf salad revisited, sort of: Grill cut apples until browned but not mushy; grill chunks of Napa or savoy cabbage, also left crisp; grill halved red onion. Chop or shred all together with blue cheese, walnuts and a little yogurt.

22. Cut a slit in as many ripe figs as you like; stuff with herbed goat cheese (or cream cheese mixed with chopped nuts) and grill slowly. Appetizer or dessert? Your call.

23. Grill red, orange and/or yellow peppers; toss with olives, capers, balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

24. Quick grilled pickle: Rapidly char thick slices of cucumber; toss with salt, vinegar and sugar; let sit for 15 minutes, then drain.

25. Charred salsa verde. Toss whole husked tomatillos, scallions and jalapeños in olive oil and grill until charred. Remove the blackened skin from the chilies and chop or blend everything with diced avocado, lime juice and cilantro. Eat with chips or top grilled chicken with it.

Meat

26. Mideast lamb chops: Shoulder cuts are the best and the cheapest; just don’t burn them. Marinate them briefly in yogurt, lemon, cardamom and mint. Serve with lemon and parsley.

27. Midwest pork chops: Again, shoulder; again, don’t burn. Marinate briefly in spicy mustard, chopped garlic and apple cider.

28. Six-minute steak (or maybe four): Salt skirt steak and grill it, quickly. Top with queso fresco, thinly sliced red onion (you could grill it first, if you like) and the juice of grilled lime.

29. Six-minute steak, plus a little marinating time: Soak skirt steak in a mixture of soy, lime juice, garlic, ginger and sugar (or mirin) before grilling. (The time it takes to heat the grill is long enough.)

30. Smear chicken leg quarters (or thighs) with a paste of garlic, chopped rosemary (thyme, too, if you like), olive oil and the juice of grilled lemon. Grill away from heat, covered; crisp briefly over high heat.

31. Steak au poivre: Sirloin strip is ideal. Press lots of cracked black pepper into both sides, sprinkle with salt and grill over fairly high heat, about three to four minutes on each side. Slice quarter-inch thick before serving.

32. Crisp (and better) duck à l’orange: Score the skin of duck breasts and press rosemary leaves, salt and pepper into both sides. Grill skin-side down over low-ish heat until crackly, then turn and grill briefly. Serve with grilled orange halves.

33. Smear hanger, skirt, flatiron or other steak with mustard. Grill and serve with grilled shallots.

34. Brush chicken thighs — boned or not — with basil, parsley or cilantro pesto. Boneless and skinless thighs can be grilled over direct heat; thighs with skin should be started away from heat.

35. Fast lamb leg: Use steaks cut from the leg, and rub them with a mix of warm spices: cumin, coriander, cinnamon and turmeric. Grill quickly, serve hot.

36. Spread flank steak or butterflied lamb leg with garlic, parsley and lemon zest. Roll and tie, or fold. (Or grill without further fuss, adding more paste occasionally.)

37. Moist grilled chicken breast? Yes: Pound chicken breast thin, top with chopped tomato, basil and Parmesan; roll and skewer and grill over not-high heat until just done.

38. Call it grilled chicken Parm: Pound breast thin, top one side with sliced tomato, mozzarella and Parmesan; fold in half, seal with a toothpick or skewer and grill for a few minutes on each side.

39. Pork (or veal) saltimbocca: Pound pork or veal cutlets thin; top with ham (prosciutto preferably) and cheese (maybe Gruyère). Roll, cook on skewers and serve with pickles.

40. Slice pork shoulder thin. Fry lots of sesame seeds, minced garlic, fresh minced chili in sesame oil; off heat, stir in some soy sauce. Grill the pork fast over high heat, smearing with the sesame paste right after flipping. Serve with lettuce leaves and cilantro, basil and/or mint for wrapping.

41. Bacon-wrapped hot dog. You know you want one.

Fish and Shellfish

42. Grill thick onion slices; purée in a blender with olive oil and lemon juice. Grill scallops for about four minutes; serve with the vinaigrette.

43. Salmon tartare with grilled stuff: Lightly grill radishes, scallions, lime halves and, if you like, plantain disks. Serve the plantains under, and the other things next to, chopped raw salmon (preferably wild) seasoned with salt and pepper.

44. Grill sardines or mackerel; serve with a squeeze of grilled lemon, grapefruit or both.

45. Stuff whole gutted trout with slices of lemon and chopped marjoram or oregano. Wrapping in bacon is optional. One per person is best.

46. Not so easy, but so impressive: Stuff squid bodies with chopped chorizo (optional), garlic-toasted bread crumbs, lemon zest and parsley. Close with toothpicks. Char quickly over a very hot fire.

47. Shrimp, Part 1: Rub with chili powder and salt, and grill quickly. Finish with cilantro and the juice of grilled lime halves.

48. Shrimp, Part 2: Rub with olive oil, salt and cumin. Finish with the juice of grilled lemon halves; garnish with chopped marjoram, if you have it, parsley if you don’t.

49. Shrimp, Part 3: Rub with curry powder. Drizzle with warm coconut milk and chopped mint, basil and/or cilantro.

50. Grilled tuna niçoise: Brush tuna with olive oil and grill; keep it rare. (You might grill some new potatoes while you’re at it.) Serve with more olive oil, lemon juice, cherry tomatoes, olives, grilled red onion and parsley. Green beans and hard-cooked eggs are optional.

51. Grilled clams on the half shell: Get them shucked (or cook in the microwave or on the grill until opened); top with bread crumbs, parsley, lemon, minced cooked bacon (optional). Grill until topping is hot.

52. You think you don’t like bluefish? Grill it, then drizzle with a mixture of chopped fennel fronds (or crushed fennel seeds), melted butter and the juice of grilled grapefruit or orange.

53. White fillets with spice: Mix salt, sugar, chili powder and paprika. Rub on sturdy white fish fillets (make sure the grill grates are clean and well oiled).

54. Buy shucked oysters. Top with juice of grilled lemon. Period. (You could grill shallots, mince and make a grilled mignonette, but this is better.)

55. Grill soft-shell crabs, brushing with melted butter and Tabasco. A little charring of the claw tips isn’t a bad thing.

56. Simmer octopus tentacles until tender (this may take a couple of hours); cool. Grill; cut into attractive little rounds and drizzle with lemon and olive oil.

57. Grill wild salmon (preferably king or sockeye) until not-well-done. Toss diced cucumbers with fresh dill, olive oil and lemon juice. Serve salmon hot, slaw cold.

Kebabs

58. Shrimp and chorizo. Serve with lemon or a little vinaigrette.

59. Lamb and carrots. In last few minutes, brush with miso thinned with a tiny bit of mirin (or sherry, wine or water).

60. Lamb and onions. Brush with a mixture of cumin and olive oil as they sizzle. You can add bell peppers, too, but somehow the stark minimalism of this is pleasing.

61. Odd, but good: Strawberries and cherry tomatoes, finished with basil-laced balsamic vinegar.

62. The New Yawk special: Italian sausage, peppers and onions.

63. The California special: Figs, with chunks of good bacon.

64. Kebab or hero? Your choice: Cut brussels sprouts in half; grill slowly on skewers, with chunks of sausage. Both slowly crisp as they cook.

65. Bread salad on a stick: Cubes of bread, black olives and cherry tomatoes. Don’t grill too long, and drizzle with basil or thyme or parsley vinaigrette.

66. Peaches, plums, strawberries and watermelon. Finish with a sprinkle of salt and perhaps a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

67. Cubes of mango and chunks of white fish; brush with a mixture of soy, fish sauce, sriracha chili sauce and chopped mint or cilantro. Serve with a mai tai.

68. Go Hawaiian or Italian: Wrap pineapple or melon in prosciutto. Grill briefly.

Salads

69. Grilled coleslaw: Lightly char wedges of green and red cabbage and carrots. Let cool, then shred and toss with a little mayo, vinegar, salt and sugar.

70. Grill halved new potatoes or fingerlings (microwave or parboil first for a few minutes to get a head start), red onions and scallions. Chop as necessary and toss with chopped celery, parsley, mustard and cider (or other) vinegar. I make this annually.

71. Toss grilled Lacinato kale leaves with a little Caesar salad dressing (or olive oil, lemon and Parmesan) and grilled croutons.

72. Char iceberg wedges and cherry tomatoes (skewer these first). Top with blue cheese dressing.

73. Lightly grill ripe figs; brush with balsamic. Chop and toss with arugula and blue cheese. Sprinkle with olive oil.

74. Steak salad with almost no steak: Halve endives or radicchio; brush with oil and grill. Sprinkle with bits of blue cheese and bits of charred steak.

75. Ratatouille: Grill chunks of zucchini, yellow squash, mushrooms, eggplant, onion and tomatoes (or use cherry tomatoes), all until lightly browned and perfectly tender. Toss with fresh marjoram or oregano, thyme, basil and olive oil.

Burgers

76. Greek salad burger: Ground lamb with grated feta, chopped calamatas and a little oregano. Top with tomato, red onion and cucumber.

77. The pickled onions make it: Soak sliced red onions in diluted vinegar and salt while you prepare everything else. Combine ground lamb with grated carrots and cumin; grill, then top with onions.

78. Asian burger: Grind pork, combine with grated daikon and a little soy sauce. Brush with hoisin or miso and top with sliced-and-salted cucumbers.

79. Grind beef, combine with crumbled blue cheese and chopped toasted walnuts. Top, if it doesn’t sound too effete, with sliced grilled pear.

80. A chicken or turkey burger worth eating: Cook and chop bacon; mix with ground chicken (or turkey) and grill.

81. Another: Grind turkey, combine with chopped basil, shove a cube of mozzarella into the center, grill until well done (the cheese will melt). Top with tomato and more basil.

82. Grind salmon (actually, it’s better if you grind half and chop half) and combine with chopped scallions and soy sauce. Grill medium-rare, top with mayo spiked with ginger, soy and/or lime.

83. Philly cheesesteak burger: Grind beef and grill with mushrooms and onions; top with aged provolone.

Sandwiches and Breads

84. Actual grilled cheese: Use good bread, good cheese, tomato slices and maybe a little mustard; brush with melted butter or olive oil and grill with a weight on top.

85. Glorified grilled cheese: Use grilled pineapple, grilled ham, cheese, pickles and mayo; grill with a weight on top.

86. Grill bell peppers until blackened and collapsed; cover, cool and peel. Grill eggplant planks, brushed with olive oil (or pesto if you have it), until very tender. Make a sandwich with balsamic vinegar, mozzarella and basil. This is also good with strip or skirt steak: grill meat until medium-rare, then slice and salt.

87. Grilled quesadilla (simple): Fill a flour tortilla with queso fresco, Monterey Jack or Cheddar; add chicken, shrimp and/or tomato. Fold and grill until cheese melts.

88. Grilled quesadilla (not as simple): Grill and strip corn from the cob; grill red-onion slices and chop them. Combine both with chili powder and bind with a tiny bit of mayo or yogurt. Put between two flour tortillas with cheese and grill. Serve with grilled lime wedges.

89. A different kind of Cuban sandwich: Grill pork steaks (best from the shoulder, about half-inch thick). Put on baguette spread with well-seasoned mashed black beans, queso fresco, chopped red onion (grilled or not), cilantro and lime juice.

90. Grill pork steaks as above; grill red onions. Slice the meat, chop the onions, toss with thinly sliced apples and roll in lavash bread or stuff in pita with yogurt-dill dressing. You can use the meat as an accent, or as the dominant ingredient.

91. Grill sweet Italian sausage and some figs. Combine on a toasted hot dog bun; mustard is optional.

92. Grill split kielbasa or chorizo (the Spanish type). Serve in buns, filled with chopped Manchego and mayo spiked with pimentón. Some chopped dried apricots would be good, too.

Desserts

93. An idea whose time has come: Halve and grill peaches, nectarines or apricots. Brush with barbecue sauce or, if you want to be sophisticated, a mixture of bourbon, sugar and mint, or simple syrup laced with basil.

94. An idea whose time will come in September: Halve and grill pears or apples. When they’re done, drizzle with yogurt, honey and a pinch of cardamom.

95. Grilled fruit salad, and why not? Toss grilled watermelon (really good), peaches, plums, pineapple and kiwi with honey, a little salt, lemon juice and tarragon (not much), chervil, basil or mint (or a combo).

96. Cut grapefruit in half. Sprinkle with brown sugar; grill, cut-side down. You might top this with chopped pistachios or a little honey.

97. Grilled shortbread or poundcake (store-bought is totally fine) topped with grilled fruit sauce, strawberries in sugar, yogurt, ice cream, whatever.

98. Grilled angel food cake or poundcake (again, store-bought is fine) topped with Nutella, chocolate sauce, sorbet, etc.

99. Grilled s’mores: Put graham crackers (or other good quality flat cookie) on foil, top with marshmallows and chocolate and another cracker. Grill until the chocolate and marshmallow begin to melt.

100. Cut bananas into thick rounds (like scallops almost), char quickly and serve with caramel sauce, brown sugar, vanilla ice cream, Nutella ... whatever.

101. Actually, this is a drink: Skewer green olives, then char them a bit. These would be a good garnish for shrimp, chorizo or anything else. But instead, make yourself a fantastic dirty martini.

WHAT'S IN YOUR GARDEN?

2010-07-06T17:32:00.001-07:00

We recently moved to the country, a friend invited us to stay with her at her lavender farm in Catlett Virginia. It was a busy month of June, that's when the lavender blooms and the bees are buzzing.

We also have chickens and a vegetable and herb garden. We feel so healthy and blessed! I encourage you to grow what ever you can (carrots grow very well in a bucket if you don't have much space) because nothing tastes better than your own grown food!

Have a great Summer!

Happy Pigs

2010-04-02T15:57:00.000-07:00

As I was chatting at the drop off point with Farmer Girl Debbie who also happens to be my 'client' (I support them with Social Media services, Marketing insights, and lots of "rumor-around-the -brand") besides a very dear friend, a Farmer Girl customer arrived to pick up her groceries. I asked her if she had ordered some meat as well and she said: "No I am a vegetarian", I said me too! But not while I am eating...We all laughed and then my daughter said to her with a very serious face: "But then you need to make sure you eat enough protein!" The lady looked at me in amazement and confirmed with my 7 year old daughter she did her best to get enough protein. I showed her the very yummy looking bacon I had purchased and told her it was from a happy pig...

It became clear to me that teaching children about nutrition, where food comes from, how you grow certain foods and how you prepare them is such an important step towards a healthier population and a very urgent one as well. Watching the first episode of ABC's "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution," shows us how a lack of knowledge passed on from one generation to the next got us to where we are now: one in three American children is overweight or obese. Many children and parents do no longer know the simple difference between a tomato and potato and lost their ability to cook a simple, healthy, and tasty meal from scratch!

Please watch Jamie, get involved, go see what they serve your child at school, visit a farmers market, and cook something new together with your children!

Sign Jamie's petition to save cooking skills and improve school food. I support Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. America's kids need better food at school and better health prospects. We need to keep cooking skills alive.

Jamie would like to take his petition to the White House after the TV series airs, to show The President and First Lady how many people across the country really care about this and ask for their support.

I care, hope you care too!

Closing Quote by Trista Scheuerlein of the Rappahannock Farm-to-Table Program: “Our best crop: students who care about agriculture and nutrition.”

SPRING?

2010-03-16T14:52:00.000-07:00

Finally, the white stuff is gone and some green stuff is peeking above the ground. I can't wait to start my little veggie and herb garden this spring! Will work on a longer post this week, it has been too long! In the mean time you may check my "main" blog called 365 Muses.
A bientot! Monique

We want local, honest, fresh food! Is that too much to ask for?

2010-02-12T09:43:00.000-08:00

This morning I saw a posting of a BBC news cast on facebook I wanted to share with you. It is about the local food bus here in Virginia.

I am a big fan of local food and I have been supporting my Farmer Girls for a while now. Slow Food is another organization supporting Local, Organic, and Sustainable food.

I think our Nation is ready for Real Food and tired of what the regular food industry has produced so far (a lot of sick people). Even our First Lady Michelle Obama has launched a nationwide campaign to tackle child obesity and supports local, healthy food.

It's time to wake up and smell the real food!

Carl Sagan's Apple Pie Recipe

2010-01-21T06:48:00.000-08:00

Carl Sagan's Apple Pie Recipe
Posted by Adam Kuban, January 19, 2010 at 3:25 PM

"If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe." —Carl Sagan [via Reddit, where "horsey" says, "I think you're going to have to make the universe first, then preheat the oven."]

Going Green what does that mean?

2010-01-20T13:22:00.000-08:00

This morning I was reading a blog posting about the consternation that going green can cause in families and I had to admit that this is very familiar to me. Yet, thinking of what it means to go green, I just couldn't see why this should be so complicated while so many human beings (especially native) do that naturally on a daily basis.

Have we become a society of convenience? Are the two more steps (passed the trash can) in the direction of the recycle bin too far? It's not recycling only, it is also about being aware of packaging, bringing your own tote to the grocery store, eating from local farms etc. To me it's logical, tasty and just fun!

That's why I support my Farmer Girls who are doing a great job providing us here in Northern VA with great local foods. I just finished creating their facebook and Twitter page as I would like to contribute to a growing community of "green aware" people.

Update: As I was reading this post again last night I realized there is so much more to say and do about "Going Green", I could write a book about it, and many have already done so. There are Green movies and Green blogs, and one I've found this morning is so comprehensive and fun I had to share it with you! Please visit Green Muze and you'll become totally Green inspired!

WHAT'S YOUR SIZE?

2010-01-14T11:07:00.000-08:00

No I don't mean to be rude, but let's talk sizes for a moment, the size of our food portions not yours!
Portion Size, Then Vs. Now - Page 2 - DivineCaroline

Take a Good Look at Your Child's Weight

2009-12-29T16:25:00.000-08:00

By Becky Hand, Licensed & Registered Dietitian
"Only 25% of the parents with an overweight child recognized that the child had a weight problem"

2009-12-29T13:45:00.000-08:00

I've had a few moments when shopping or camping, not knowing where my daughter was, a feeling I never, ever want to have again. Even though the busstop is only 1 minute away, I am there to make sure she gets on the bus and home safely. It is a pitty that we have to live in such fear, but maybe this device can bring us some peace of mind? Please drop me a note if you've used one or if you have other thoughts about it.

HO HO HO COOKIES!

2009-12-23T08:45:00.000-08:00

Christmas time is so much fun, not only because of the presents, but mostly because of the cookies! The ones you see here are my Dutch cookies called: "Jan Hagel" a crispy cookie with pearl sugar (very happy I found this type of sugar at IKEA!).

Funny, we have a significant difference in cookie culture, When Dutch cookies are soft and chewy that means they are old...our cookies need to be crispy and crunchy! Here in the US a cookie needs to be chewy and soft. Since I need to please Santa, I make some soft cookies as well, this year the white chocolate chip and pumpkin cookies were deliscious!

My favorite is the Holiday Biscotti with cranberries and pistachios, and dipped in white chocolate. It is quite some work because they have to bake twice and the dipping is a tricky thing because the chocolate cools off fast.

The compliments I received from teachers, bus drivers, and friends are worth it! Love to hear from you and your family's favorite Christmas cookies.

DOS AND DONT'S

2009-11-04T11:16:00.001-08:00

Michael Pollan's Favorite Dietary Dos and Don'ts
Posted by: Dr. Mercola
November 03 2009 | 30,111 views

Earlier this year, Michael Pollan posted a request for reader’s rules about eating. Within days, he had received more than 2,500 responses. Here are some of Pollan’s 20 favorites:
1. Don’t eat egg salad from a vending machine.

2. Don’t eat anything that took more energy to ship than to grow.

3. If you are not hungry enough to eat an apple, then you’re not hungry.

4. Eat foods in inverse proportion to how much its lobby spends to push it.

5. Avoid snack foods with the “oh” sound in their names: Doritos, Cheetos, Tostitos, Ho Hos, etc.

6. No second helpings, no matter how scrumptious.

7. It’s better to pay the grocer than the doctor.

8. You may not leave the table until you finish your fruit.

9. You don’t get fat on food you pray over. (Meals prepared at home, served at the table and given thanks for are more appreciated and more healthful than food eaten on the run.)

10. Breakfast you should eat alone. Lunch you should share with a friend. Dinner, give to your enemy.

11. Never eat something that is pretending to be something else (artificial sweeteners, margarine, etc.)

12. Don’t yuck someone’s yum. There is someone out there who likes deep-fried sheep eyeballs and, well, more power to them.

13. Make and take your own lunch to work.

14. Eat until you are seven-tenths full and save the other three-tenths for hunger.

15. I am living in Japan and following these simple rules in preparing each meal: GO HO – incorporate five different cooking methods, GO SHIKI – incorporate five colors, GO MI – incorporate five flavors.

16. One of my top rules for eating comes from economics. The law of diminishing marginal utility reminds me that each additional bite is generally less satisfying than the previous bite. This helps me slow down, savor the first bites, stop eating sooner.

17. Don’t eat anything you aren’t willing to kill yourself.

18. When drinking tea, just drink tea. I find this Zen teaching useful, given my inclination toward information absorption in the morning, when I’m also trying to eat breakfast, get the dog out, start the fire and organize my day.

19. When you’re eating, don’t talk about other past meals, whether better or worse. Focus on what’s in front of you.

20. After spending some time working with people with eating disorders, I came up with this rule: Don’t create arbitrary rules for eating if their only purpose is to help you feel in control.

Sources:

New York Times October 11, 2009

SUGAR SHOCK!

2009-11-02T14:03:00.000-08:00

We all know that eating too much refined sugar is not good for us, but what do we really do to keep our intake at a healthy level? The average American consumes an astounding 2-3 pounds of sugar each week, which is not surprising considering that highly refined sugars in the forms of sucrose (table sugar), dextrose (corn sugar), and high-fructose corn syrup are being processed into so many foods such as bread, breakfast cereal, mayonnaise, peanut butter, ketchup, spaghetti sauce, and a plethora of microwave meals.

In the last 20 years, we have increased sugar consumption in the U.S. 26 pounds to 135 lbs. of sugar per person per year! Prior to the turn of this century (1887-1890), the average consumption was only 5 lbs. per person per year! Cardiovascular disease and cancer was virtually unknown in the early 1900's. There seems to be a direct relationship between the increase in consumption and an increase in many diseases.

What refined sugar can do to your health:

Suppress the immune system.
Upset the body's mineral balance.
Contribute to hyperactivity, anxiety, depression, concentration difficulties, and crankiness in children.
Produce a significant rise in triglycerides.
Cause drowsiness and decreased activity in children.
Reduce helpful high density cholesterol (HDLs).
Promote an elevation of harmful cholesterol (LDLs).
Cause hypoglycemia.
Contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.
Cause kidney damage.
Can increase the risk of coronary heart disease.
May lead to chromium deficiency.
Can cause copper deficiency.
Interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium.
Increase fasting levels of blood glucose.
Can promote tooth decay.
Can produce an acidic stomach.
Can raise adrenaline levels in children.
Can lead to periodontal disease.
Can speed the aging process, causing wrinkles and grey hair.
Can increase total cholesterol.
Can contribute to weight gain and obesity.
High intake of sugar increases the risk of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
Can contribute to diabetes.
Can contribute to osteoporosis.
Can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
Leads to decreased glucose tolerance.
Can cause cardiovascular disease.
Can increase systolic blood pressure.
Causes food allergies.
Can cause free radical formation in the bloodstream.
Can cause toxemia during pregnancy.
Can contribute to eczema in children.
Can overstress the pancreas, causing damage.
Can cause atherosclerosis.
Can compromise the lining of the capillaries.
Can cause liver cells to divide, increasing the size of the liver.
Can increase the amount of fat in the liver.
Can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
Can cause depression.
Can increase the body's fluid retention.
Can cause hormonal imbalance.
Can cause hypertension.
Can cause headaches, including migraines.
Can cause an increase in delta, alpha and theta brain waves, which can alter the mind's ability to think clearly.
Can increase blood platelet adhesiveness which increases risk of blood clots and strokes.
Can increase insulin responses in those consuming high-sugar diets compared to low sugar diets.
Sugar increases bacterial fermentation in the colon.

With the Swine flu, regular flu, and common colds in mind it is extra important to keep our bodies as strong and as healthy as possible. Know that when you eat sugar, your immune system is slowing down to a crawl. Same with processed foods...

There are a lot of sweet alternatives, like honey, maple syrup, and agave nectar, and rice syrup to name a few.
Set the example for your children, and you'll be rewarded with a REAL sweet child!

MO

SICK FOOD=SICK CONSUMER

2009-10-26T11:44:00.000-07:00

In case you were not aware of the tragedy that happens to our food, here it is just one example. The list is long and it involves all food grown by industrial agriculture, from dairy to potatoes.

Ignorance is bliss? Not for long...

This is not a fun movie to watch, Supermarket Secrets is something most people do not want to watch because being aware of things will force them to take action and make new choices, and become very picky!

Be well,

Mo

HALLOWEEN HURRY

2009-10-23T10:02:00.001-07:00

I know many small companies are struggling and St. Claire's is no exception. They are one of the few companies that make healthy candies, so I am doing all I can to help them grow and stay in business! St. Claire's doesn't have affiliates, but they do have great organic candy! Just in time for Halloween!

JUICY RECIPES

2009-10-20T10:49:00.000-07:00

During the cold and flu season watching your intake of nutrients that can fight them is critical. One way to get my daughter a significant amount of anti cold and flu ingredients is making juices. The trick is to start with their favorite fruit(s) and then add the secret boosters.

The best known cold and flu fighters are:

Lemon, Ginger and Honey
The anti-viral properties in lemon fight infections and halt the progress of a cold. Ginger’s warming action is excellent for treating a cold or flu. Honey adds an anti-bacterial property to help hasten the healing of an infection.
You can also prepare an excellent warm drink with these!

Cabbage, Carrot and Celery
Cabbage and carrots stimulate the immune system and the production of anti-bodies that make good remedy in fighting off bacterial and viral infections. The addition of celery makes the recipe more tasty and provides the vitamins and minerals to support the immune system.

Garlic
When you feel a sore throat or a cold coming, eat raw garlic. Garlic has very potent anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties. It is also effective to prevent recurrent infections, frequent yeast infections and other infections.

I know this last one is hard to "cover up" but can easily be added to the tomato sauce on a spaghetti. Onion, especially the sweet ones can replace garlic and has similar properties.

BE WELL, MO

TRICK OR TEETH

2009-10-14T09:44:00.001-07:00

Image Source: Microsoft Image.
Getting closer to Halloween is a scary thing for several reasons. In the first place because of the fact that our children are roaming the neighborhoods, in the dark, by themselves. At a certain age they will balk at the parental presence, even if you keep your distance or cloak yourself in Halloween camouflage. One solution for this scare is to operate in troops of at least 4 children and include a mean looking dressed up dog. If that is not enough peace of mind for you, there is this new GPS device you can check out at the electronics stores, that allows you to track your child remotely.

Another approach to this chilling challenge is to find a local Halloween event you can visit with your family. Several shopping centers and churches host such events. Examples range from the Annual Zoo Boo at the Alexandria Mall (from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday), to the National Museum of Crime & Punishment that has a Halloween program set among real historic criminal artifacts, to name a few.

The second horror of this spooky feast is the massive amounts of candies that find their way to your kitchen table. It is hard to think outside the (candy) box, if you really don't want to hand out candy. Dentists advice that chocolates are the least damaging candies because they dissolve quickly and don’t stick to teeth as much as all the other High Fructose Corn Syrup creations do.

High Fructose Corn Syrup is not the only frightening ingredient, as many parents have to worry about peanut butter, lactose and many other allergies as they comb through the sweet harvest of the night. Home made treats are impossible for obvious reasons, and stickers and plastic party store stuff just adds to our already huge Halloween trash pile... Apples? They don't come wrapped, so that's a NO. How about toothbrushes? Now that’s a great treat! Or will the children feel tricked?

GOT D?

2009-09-28T05:46:00.000-07:00

It’s thought that 85 percent of the American public is deficient in vitamin D and over 95 percent of African American or deeply pigmented individuals. And, in the United States, the late winter average vitamin D is only about 15-18 ng/ml, which is considered a VERY SERIOUS deficiency state.

Some of the deficiency has been caused by the scare of sun exposure in the past years. Yes, too much sun (burn) is not good, but not enough is just as dangerous! We also spend less time outdoors, just look at yourself and see how much time you spend outside every day? Children hardly play outside anymore and spend vast amounts of time in front of computer and TV screens.

By John Cannell, MD, The Vitamin D Council
"Here is an example, according to Dr. William Grant -- one of the top vitamin D researchers in the world – the cancer rate in Iceland is 90 per 100,000 people per year. Those in the tropics, meanwhile, have rates of 25 per 100,000!

In 1994, Dr. Rehman gave 60,000 units of vitamin D a week to 27 children (ages 3-12) with frequent childhood infections and compared them to controls. The children also had elevated alkaline phosphatase (like many American children), which usually indicates vitamin D deficiency. He gave the kids vitamin D for six weeks along with calcium. He didn't say if he used real vitamin D (cholecalciferol) or if he used ergocalciferol. Anyway, he gave them 60,000 units a week for six weeks, about 9,000 units a day.

Within a few weeks, "infections were fully controlled and no recurrences were reported for six months." The kids just stopped getting sick! An ignored study, ignored facts, not repeated, not remembered. The author didn't measure vitamin D levels, but 9,000 units a day of vitamin D for six weeks should bring most vitamin-D-deficient children to 50 ng/ml, probably higher.

I'm skeptical by nature. So I decided to experiment on myself. Physicians experimenting on themselves are one of the great traditions in medicine. I bought some 50,000-unit capsules of real vitamin D from Bio-Tech. The next time I got the crud, I took a single capsule (50,000 units) of cholecalciferol, which is perfectly safe for adults.

In Europe, they give 10 times that amount as "stoss therapy" all the time. I was amazed how much better I felt the next day. If you decide to experiment on yourself, do it once or twice. Don't keep taking 50,000 units every day or you will get toxic. Also, keep close tabs on your vitamin D level.

Children don't need the 60,000 units a week to improve their immune system, although Dr. Rehman found that amount safe for six weeks -- 60,000 units per week for a young child is a pharmacological dose, not a physiological dose."

Vitamin D is not only good for your bones but also your number one defense against the flu! "Just one example of an important gene that vitamin D up-regulates is your ability to fight infections. It produces over 200 anti microbial peptides, the most important of which is cathelicidin, a naturally occurring broad-spectrum antibiotic. And, when you consider the fact that you only have 30,000 genes in your body, and vitamin D has been shown to influence more than 2,000 of them, the bigger picture of its true impact on your health can be easily understood. It may, in fact, have literally thousands of health benefits! So it’s likely we’re just beginning to scratch the surface of its true potential for reversing the modern disease state."

More from the Mercola website:
"Vitamin D deficiency has been clearly linked with Syndrome X. (21) Syndrome X refers specifically to a group of health problems that can include insulin resistance (the inability to properly deal with dietary carbohydrates and sugars), abnormal blood fats (such as elevated cholesterol and triglycerides), overweight, and high blood pressure."

There are several sources for vitamin D, the sun, foods with added D (like milk and margarine) and foods with naturally rich in D.

Now is the time to get your extra D and if you have health concerns have your levels of D checked. "You can find out what your levels are by asking your doctor for a blood test called a 25(OH)D, also called 25-hydroxyvitamin D. (Please note, there are two types of vitamin D tests, and this one is the one you want.) There are also two primary labs in the U.S. and you ONLY want to use Lab Corp."

Sources: Dr. Mercola

NutritionData

Be well, MO

MY FARMER GIRLS SAID: YES WE CAN!

2009-09-25T11:12:00.000-07:00

My good friend Deborah from the Seven Oaks Lavender Farm and farmer Deanna have started the Farmers Online Market named Farmer Girls.

From many local farmers they sell local vegetables, meats, eggs, cheeses, flowers etc. via their website. Clients order on-line and pick up at the distribution point once a week. I like this concept very much because it provides you with fresh, great tasting local foods of your own choice (not a package with "things" you don't know how to prepare or too much of one kind, or just too much for your size family.

They started in Fauquier county but hopefully they grow as fast as there products and expand into our neighborhoods!
Update: Soon there will be a drop off in Burke (Fairfax County)

Thank you Deb and Deanna for this healthy and tasty initiative!

XOMO

WHAT'S IN YOUR LUNCH BOX?

2009-09-11T12:49:00.000-07:00

Luckily my daughter figured out after a few cafeteria lunches that she prefers me to make her lunch. And I have to say that her school does a pretty good job with providing as much nutritional value as possible. They serve salads and fruits and promote healthy eating habits. Yet there is still a lot of refined, processed stuff going over the counter.

The book lunch lessons is addressing that issue as well, and I hope I'll get the opportunity this year to do a presentation at her school and make more parents aware of what we can change and how we can improve the way we feed our children.

I know we all have busy schedules, but we all need to eat and we all need to feed ourselves with nutrition that fuels and sustains our busy lives. We are marinated in marketing adagio that prepared foods take less time, yet we all know that a good meal can be prepared in the same amount of time!

You can make things ahead in the weekend, like a home made chicken soup for example or a rice dish. I try to include: protein, complex carbs (whole wheat products, brown rice), veggies, fruit and dairy. It's not complicated, you can discuss it with your child and together you can create new options.

I also try to reduce trash, so sandwiches are now in a flat box and other items in small boxes we can re-use. The Japanese are masters of the lunchboxes (called bento box) and they include complete meals and get very creative sometimes :-)

So my daughter is a happy "bringer" as she calls herself and I am the happy buyer!

Cheers, Mo

YOU SAY BANANA

2009-08-18T08:54:00.000-07:00

If you do not have time to prepare a healthy breakfast in the morning, eat a banana! It is that simple. 5 reasons why bananas are super food:

1. Bananas are an excellent source of potassium and vitamin B6. One small banana supplies about 1/3 of the recommended daily allowance of Vitamin B-6. They are a good source of vitamin C, riboflavin, magnesium, biotin and carbohydrates. Banana is rich in iron that can be very helpful in cases of anemia.

2.Banana is also an energy booster. It also contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin. Serotonin is a hormone that is known to make you feel happy and improve your mood.

3.Banana is good for people who have high blood pressure because it is low in salt. It is also high in potassium, an element important in the regulation of blood pressure.

4. Banana is an effective treatment for diarrhea, and in a study involving infants with persistent diarrhea, green banana and pectin improved small intestinal permeability and reduced fluid loss. Bananas are well known amongst travelers to third world countries for their anti-diarrhea properties.

5. Bananas have also been found to help eliminate bacteria in the stomach that cause stomach ulcers. It also has a natural antacid and high fiber.

Carbohydrate counters fear not! There are about 35 grams of carbohydrate per large banana, but we’re talking about complex carbs, not factory made simple carbs joined with processed sugars. Everyone needs carbs, period, and everyone should have the type of carbs that come in quality fruits like bananas.

Let's sum it up again:

- The banana is a good source of folate, Vitamin B6 & C & magnesium.
- The banana is naturally low in sodium & fat.
- The banana contains about 2 grams of fiber per serving.
- The Vitamin C content in bananas helps combat infection.
- The potassium content in bananas combat high blood pressure.
- This super food promotes good digestive health and has the capability to combat both diarrhea & constipation much like the power of bran.

And because of the nifty package provided by Mother Nature herself, the banana is perfect for on-the-go events, such as picnics, snack time away from home, and both school & work lunch boxes.

So, now you know all about that incredible fruit, freeze them for an hour and you have a nice cold afternoon summer snack, or bake a banana bread with walnuts and you have a great breakfast.

Cheers, MO

MEET EGGY

2009-08-15T07:42:00.000-07:00

It was one of these hot and humid days when my daughter and I decided to check out a local farmers market. Sarah begged for a little "pet" plant as she called it, inspired by a story I was reading to her about a pet plant who ate dirty socks. In this story the parents want to get rid of the plants because of all the socks they have to buy, but when the two boys give the two plants a name and call them their pets, the situation changes drastically, boosted by local media coverage.

After tasting some pineapple tomatillos, creamy yogurt, and handmade cookies Sarah's eye caught a funny shaped egg plant and when we picked "him" up he clearly looked like a penguin eggplant. We had to buy him and bring this new pet home.

Sarah made a bed for him and played for hours with her new friend. Eggy made it through the week but started to soften and today we had to "use" him in another way. "As long as you're gentle with him mom" said Sarah as I started to cut him up and sauté his pieces in a pan with olive oil and Italian herbs. She tasted him but didn't like it, I am not sure if it's because it was her friend, or just a very old egg plant.

VEGGIE TALES

2009-07-30T06:50:00.000-07:00

A week ago I had the privilege to attend a workshop with Bill Brooks, "Cooking with vegetables". I grew up with daily, freshly, from scratch, prepared foods including salads almost every day of the year. My mom is a salad genius, during winter time she would use what ever vegetables were available to make a more "sturdy" winter salads, with rice and beans for example.

I really wanted to improve on my vegetable cooking, a trade of it's own. Now that my tiny garden patch is producing an abundance of veggies it's time to learn to make kid friendly vegetables. One important thing I learned lately is that when children are involved in the preparation they are more likely to try it and like it!

The recipe below is not only very healthy but also pretty. Bill watches all items that provide for a good looking and nutritional meal: tastes, colors, and textures. In the simple dish below you have the wonderful flavors of the berries, lemon balm, and nuts, the combination of purple and yellow pleases the eyes and the crunch of the pecans gives it a bite and includes a healthy mono unsaturated fat.

The joy of growing and cooking your own produce is a very rewarding and tasty experience. The recipes that Bill provided are simple, healthy, and elegant.

SUMMER SQUASH with PECANS and BLUEBERRIES

INGREDIENTS

4 cups yellow summer squash, cubed
1-2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp sugar
½ cup pecans, coarsely chopped
¼ cup lemon balm, chopped (lemon thyme may be substituted)
1 cup blueberries

PREPARATION

Steam squash until tender but still firm, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool quickly in ice water to stop cooking. Pat squash dry.

Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add squash sprinkling with sugar; stir and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add pecans and sauté for 2-3 minutes until squash begins to brown. Add lemon balm and stir to coat squash. Add blueberries and sauté until blueberries soft but not bursting. Serve immediately.

Makes 8 servings.

Namaste (The light within me honors the light within you)
MO

THAT STUFF

2009-07-09T11:38:00.000-07:00

Blue berry peach pie from a local farmer after being attacked by our family.

"I grew up on that stuff" is a statement I hear rather often, unfortunately it is no longer valid since the ingredients and production of "that stuff" is completely different than what we grew up with...sad but true and therefore a good idea to get the most natural stuff possible.

I usually hear this when discussing food items that are not so healthy for you, like certain cereals, pop-tarts, and most other processed food and snacks. When we grew up they used regular oils or just plain butter, now we are dealing with the VERY dangerous "partially hydrogenated oils" in the top ten of causes of death and this STUFF is in about anything you buy at the grocery store...if you don't pay attention...

They used to use sugar, now they use High Fructose Corn syrup a sweet chemical concoction that has turned obesity into a major epidemic since it's introduction in the early 80's.

Add to this MSG (monosodium glutamate) a neurotoxic flavor enhancer and you have the opposite of that "stuff you grew up with"!

Just eat how mother nature presents you her nutrition and you'll grow up a healthy person!

Cheers, MO

BAD MOM-MAD MOM?

2009-05-28T17:21:00.000-07:00

I still can’t believe my eyes! Twice this week I encountered children at my daughters school eating the worst breakfasts you can imagine. Are there still parents out there who believe a donut or pop tart is a healthy and nutritional breakfast?

Just look at the numbers for a moment and you’ll see that you’re almost poisoning your child instead of feeding it. If your child would ask you to have a stick of butter and a cup of sugar for breakfast would you say yes??? There's not much else to find in a pop tart believe me.

There is no nutritional value in these items! You think your car is going to drive if you put water in it instead of gasoline?
Is it too much work to put some fresh fruit in a Tupperware, grab a cup of low fat/sugar yogurt, make a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter (the one that only contains peanuts please), or boil an egg ?

Geez, please wake up and start informing yourself and start feeding your child something that contributes to his/her health and brain function before it is too late…

What you see is what you get, what you eat as well.

MO

MY FAVOR-ITE

2009-04-14T18:48:00.000-07:00

Birth day parties are stressful times, there is so much to arrange and keep track of. First the invitations, this year I decided to go green and used evite to send a nice e-mail invitation. I bought a pretty illustration of Sarah’s theme TadPoles and Pollywocks and designed a custom evite. Evite is very handy to keep track of who’s coming and sending reminders. It even includes a map function. 3 months in advance I called our local Nature Center and made a reservation for a Saturday afternoon, the park rangers will show some animals and take the children on a small nature walk and do some netting at the forest pond.

Then it comes to the food and favor planning, my favorites of course! Our party was in the mid afternoon, so some healthy snacks and THE cake were enough, no pizza required. Even though the veggie and fruit trays seem convenient, you get a lot more for your buck when you buy it separately and it is so much fresher as well. I got celery, carrots, grape tomatoes and (European) cucumber. For fruits I gathered a huge box of strawberries, black berries and a nice honey dew melon.

To balance the healthy and sweet I bought healthy (no partially hydrogenated oils) cheese puffs, pretzels and crackers, some cheeses and a big jar of Tuscan hummus at Trader Joe. For drinks I thought it would be better to reduce the trash by buying big bottles instead of boxes and small bottles, so we had (no high fructose) fruit punch, grape juice and water. Since part of this party was about being green I really did my best to buy biodegradable items like paper plates and cups and paper table covers (that was the hardest one!). Luckily there are more and more options available.

Sarah is not a big cake lover, but she loves ice cream, so we got her a big bad (to balance the good and bad LOL) ice cream cake at Baskins and Robins, Spongebob and his friends were too tempting!

My favorite part of the party are the favor bags. It is often the last thing and too much to deal with and so it ends up to be that plastic baggie with plastic toys and more plastic wrapped candies. I just could not do it that way and I found out I am not the only one! Green moms unite! I bought for each child a vegetable and flower seed packet, 2 small biodegradeable plant pots and found a nice alternative for the sweet tooth: Annie's snackpacks come in Cheddar Bunnies and Chocolate (chip).

WATCH WHAT YOU DEW!

2009-02-22T14:33:00.001-08:00

A severe example (although I've found worse pictures) of compounded acid destruction of tooth enamel and individual tooth structures due to over consumption of heavily sweetened, caffeinated, carbonated soft drinks... along with bad oral health care and hygiene habits.

Sorry to bother you with such a distasteful picture, but the truth is it's a very common threat these days. Some parents try to limit the amount of carbonated and sugar drinks, others don't care that much since it seems such an accepted thing to drink.

After discussing this with my dentist he said it is not only Mountain Dew, but also many other soda's like Cola and drinks like Gatorade that form a tremendous threat to our teeth. Dentists all over the country are seeing an alarming increase in horribly decayed teeth and eroded enamel in the mouths of teen-agers and young adults. It is the combination of the 3 main ingredients: sugar-acid-caffeine that just slowly dissolves your teeth.

Sad thing is that these teeth can not be saved and will need to be extracted or replaced by crowns, or covered with veneers, a are very costly and sometimes painful process.

Parents play a big role in a) giving a good example and not consume an excessive amount of these drinks themselves and b) not buy them for their children.

Sarah grew up without juices, lemonades, and sodas, and even when she has the opportunity to drink one at a party for example she decides after 2 sips she rather wants water.

"Water is the only drink for a wise man."
Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

Be well, MO

EAT THIS NOT THAT

2009-01-14T16:03:00.000-08:00

I know it's kind of a challenge to push your cart, read your shopping list, hold on to your coupons while trying to keep your child entertained and choose the best food possible. Well this guide might be your best shopping assistant. I bought Eat this Not That including the version for children and my 5 year old (oops 5.5 year old) started to "read" it right away and assists me now during shopping telling me we should not buy this cereal because it was on the bad list. I am sure that the cereal makers will be competing to get on the green list of next years edition.

Its handy, but I do have a concern. See, these are just suggestions for when you want to buy a certain food or drink, yet in many cases it would be even better to indicate: WORST-BETTER-BEST. for example fruit drinks...my daughter rather drinks water, tea or milk (items in the BEST category) and it would be great if this book would suggest an even better alternative. It is helpful guide and a positive step in a healthy direction.

Some examples:
Fruit Loops are better for you than Apple Cinnamon Cheerios.
Regular Cheerios is a better choice than Smart Start.
Regular Quick 1 minute Quaker Oats is healthier than Quaker's Simple Harvest Multigrain hot cereal.
Dole pineapple cups are more nutritious than Dole mixed fruit cups.
Del Monte pear halves beat Del Monte sliced pears.

Your choice! ;-)

XOMO

HEALTHY TOYS?

2008-12-08T15:18:00.000-08:00

I hope this message will reach you in time for the Holiday shopping! Yes there are toys with Lead, Bromine, Cadmine, Chlorine, Arsenic and Mercury in it. Take a look at this site and you can even find the toys that you already have on this site.

www.healthytoys.org

Have a healthy Holiday!

Monique

SUPER SNACKS

2008-10-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

The first thing my daughter asks after she buckled herself in her booster seat when I pick her up after school is: “what snack do you have mom?”
Her days are long and energetic, longer than my early school days, as my mom was a stay at home mom who would welcome me home with a cup of tea or glass of juice with crackers or biscuits.

Now that Sarah is in kindergarten and with my full time job she’ll attend the “before” and “after” school programs, so I’ll pack some nice snacks for her. The challenge is that they need to stay fresh without significant cooling. There are a few things I keep in mind when shopping for snacks, not too salty and not too sweet, I don’t want to ruin her dinner appetite and I want the snacks to have some nutritional value.

If she eats one big carrot for example (not the small baby siz)) I don’t have to push so much for a vegetable during dinner, same with fresh endamame beans (Japanese snack), cherry tomatoes and cucumber. Fruits provide nutrition and help a sweet craving. So I often combine 3 items: a veggie, a fruit and a candy or cookie, the holy trinity so to say ;-) Even de candy and cookie can be made healthy, a natural fruit rollup or fruit bar, cookies with whole wheat, oatmeal and nuts are very much appreciated. Never do I let my daughter eat out of a bag, she is too young to control portions and I think it is a bad habit, creating mindless stuffing oneself.

Snacks that my daughter likes:
Nature’s path foods: Envirokidz Organic Crispy rice bar
Trader Joe's Organic brown Rice marshmallow Treats
Nabisco Garden Harvest, toasted chips, whole grain apple & vegetable medley
Baby biscuits banana
Pringle pizza sticks
Graham sticks
Archer Farms fruit bars and fruit strips (organic), no added sugars and 100% natural.
Fruitabu organic fruit roll ups
Quakes rice snacks

Other ideas:
When you want something sweet, try…
Home made or natural fruit smoothies, Peanut Butter Banana Sandwich, Yogurt Parfait with granola

When you want something salty, try…
Nachos topped with low fat cheese, Nut Butter Dip: Combine 1/4 cup of your favorite nut butter (such as peanut butter, almond butter or cashew butter) with 1/4 cup water. Whip with a fork until smooth. Cut up carrots, celery, cucumbers, apples, bananas or other fresh product into spears and dip into the nut butter. peppers or onions, olives, broccoli or sliced tomatoes.

If you don’t have the time to make any of the recipes above but still want to snack healthy, there are some great packaged snacks available. Take a cruise down the natural-food aisle the next time you’re at the supermarket. There are plenty of low-fat, healthy and natural versions of your kids' favorites. Healthy snacks that don't need any prep work include:
Low-fat yogurt
Trail mix
Mixed nuts
Dried fruit
Fruit leather
Granola bars
Protein or energy bars
Fresh fruit
Low-fat string cheese
Whole grain cereal with low-fat milk
Whole grain crackers with sliced low-fat cheese
Cottage cheese
Baby carrots with hummus
Air-popped popcorn
Whole wheat pita with black bean dip
Celery sticks with peanut butter
Canned tuna salad kits

It's good for kids and teens to snack, especially if they’re eating the right foods. Providing their growing bodies with a steady supply of nutrients is the key to staying healthy and energized. So snack on!

HALLOWEEN CANDY RECALLED

2008-10-28T17:36:00.000-07:00

You can verify this on snopes.

There is a new warning put out by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency....

Sherwood brand Pirate's Gold Milk Chocolate coins are being recalled due to the fact that they contain Melamine, the ingredient in milk product that has caused many infant (and dog) deaths in China. These candies are sold at Costco, as well as many bulk and dollar stores. please make sure to check your children's Halloween candy and DO NOT LET THEM EAT THE PIRATE COINS (you know the ones wrapped in the shiny gold foil) and please let other parents know about this!

Better safe than....

XOMO

HEALTHY SNACKS 1

2008-10-06T17:50:00.000-07:00

I know I promised a list with healthy snacks a while ago...and then I just got very busy with...life! LOL
I found some good and even nutritional snacks without HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) and other not so kosher ingredients like red-40 (many children diagnosed with ADHD actually have a food sensitivity for red-40 and sugars).
I just need to gather my data and write it here on my blog! I can no longer work on my blog during my lunches because blogs are considered unsafe at my work :(
I'll also get some Halloween ideas!

Back ASAP!

SEPTEMBER???

2008-09-11T16:29:00.000-07:00

With the first week back to school behind us, I finally have some time to catch up with my blogs.
We had a wonderful summer here in Virginia, not too hot and/or humid. We camped at Cunningham Falls State park in Maryland in July and during the Labor Day weekend and Sarah now loves camping, even my partner who did not grew up as a camper and had one really bad camping experience made the reservation for a next trip.

I grew up camping, since in Europe a summer vacation trip is usually 3 weeks, and who can afford to stay at a resort for 3 weeks? My mom was a great camping chef; she magically produced gourmet meals on a 2 burner stove. One of the simple dishes she made for lunch was a combination of sautéed tomatoes with onions; this shortly simmered mix goes very well with omelets and some fresh country bread.

During our last two trips we made some pretty nice dishes; (besides a daily serving of smores) a salad of roasted corn and tomatoes, Maryland crab, and minestrone soup. It is so much fun to camp with some friends and combine all our foods and have improvised meals. Our pancakes with blueberry syrup from Trader Joe have made the whole camp quiet. Our next trip will lead us to West Virginia, Seneca Rocks during the Columbus weekend. It’ll be much colder, so we’ll adjust our meals accordingly, with more hearty ingredients, stews, ratatouilles and such.

In my next writing I’ll talk a little more about the challenge of packing non perishable snacks for school, and how to guide my little one in making healthy lunch choices…

test

2008-09-10T16:38:00.000-07:00

SUMMER FOOD AND SUCH

2008-06-26T09:34:00.000-07:00

Let me first update you on my Deceptive Delicious experiences. After the green cupcakes disaster I tried a more girlish look and use more attractive colors. Our current favorites pancakes with beets, carrots or sweet potatoes. Sarah loves the colors and is now reacting disappointed when presented a "regular" pancake. Pink pancakes are THE thing to eat. I use whole wheat, rolled oats, ground flax seed, ground almonds, and wheat germ to make this breakfast last a few hours LOL. I usually add a hint of maple syrup and vanilla to the batter and I bake about 7 and then freeze them separately.

I see it happen every day now...chicken (usually made with less than 1% bird content) nuggets, hamburgers and hot dogs, followed by candies and ice cream, the usual lunch or dinner at the pool. It doesn't have to be that way! I pack fresh veggies and fruits, a Caprese salad (mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and basil), whole wheat sandwiches with omelet, or just plain good old fashioned peanut butter sandwiches. It so easy to take a few slices of a good bread and turn them into a colorful, great tasting, fun looking, nutritious meal! Bring some home made lemonade or ice tea and you're good to go! Another great and easy solution: cold pasta salads and cold soups (gazpacho).

Stay cool!

XOMO

FAMILY EFFORT

2008-06-12T09:58:00.001-07:00

"You'll always fail on a diet but you cannot fail on a life style change" (Amy Hendel)

From Lissa Coffey http://www.familyeveryday.com
About 25 million children are overweight or obese in the United States. It’s common knowledge that poor eating choices lead to weight issues, but what’s not often discussed is how how unhealthy behaviors are usually (and unwittingly) passed on to children by their well-intentioned parents. Weight management – for children and adolescents – is not an individual issue, but rather one that a family should acknowledge. Until now, family eating habits have rarely been addressed, but now there’s a book that can help families fight against obesity, one meal at a time.

In “Fat Families, Thin Families: How to Save Your Family from the Obesity Trap”, family health expert Amy Hendel teaches families how to identify unhealthy eating habits and create meals that are healthy and enjoyable. She guides families step-by-step through daily planning, preparation and portioning of food, and she also provides tips on how to get the proper amount of exercise. It’s a sensible program designed by someone who understands what it’s like to be a busy parent. Her program includes a unique “rescue plan” for parents who are too tired to cook and too busy to work out. She also has some foolproof family teamwork tips, and a real world approach to making healthy food choices. There are more than 30 no-fuss recipes, smart tips for teens, and special advice for couples.

Here are just a few of her “kid tips”:
-Identify whether your child is a grazer, a mini-meal eater, or a square-mealer and go with it.
-Keep exposing kids to foods even if it takes awhile to get them interested or willing to taste.
-Add pureed fruit, ground-up veggies to recipes whenever possible.
-Keep “grab foods” in the fridge and pantry.
-Cut foods into shapes, kids love it!

This looks like an interesting read! Now that the pool in our neighborhood is open I see how different families cope with the challenges of combining healthy food with a busy daily schedule. Our Sugar Shack provides only unhealthy snacks, meaning High Fructose Corn Syrup and Transfat, or a combination of both. They could sell fruits and veggies as well, but it seems that healthy is still the underdog in the form of a hotdog...

I'll get back to you with some pool snacks and car trip foods soon!

Cheers, MO

MO FOOD FOR THOUGHT

2008-05-19T09:21:00.000-07:00

My apologies for not posting for some time, my daughter and I visited my family in the Netherlands and it took me some time to get over my jet lag and catch up with work and household chores. We had a great trip and I'll blog more about my food and health findings in Europe.

Yesterday I had the privilege to talk at a church "green group" meeting and I am happy to see that more and more people are becoming aware of the importance of providing our bodies with healthy and nutritional foods. Below follows additional info on brain foods.

From increasebrainpower.com:
"Brain foods" are those foods which improve brain function. A diet heavy in omega-3 fatty acids, for example can help keep the blood vessels of the brain clear of blockages and allow nerve cells to function at a high level. So you may want to eat your fish twice a week (A major source of omega-3s) or take a supplement.

It is equally important, however, to recognize the foods that diminish brain power. Alcohol and some other drugs just kill brain cells directly, but there are many less obvious brain-attacking foods. Artery clogging foods can lead to restricted blood flow to the brain, and high-glycemic-index (processed) foods can cause terrible blood-sugar swings that make both your body and your mind irritable and sluggish.

Good Brain Foods
Avocados
Bananas
Beef, lean
Brewer's yeast
Broccoli
Brown rice
Brussels sprouts
Cantaloupe
Cheese
Chicken
Collard greens
Eggs
Flax seed oil
Legumes
Milk
Oatmeal
Oranges
Peanut butter
Peas
Potatoes
Romaine lettuce
Salmon
Soybeans
Spinach
Tuna
Turkey
Wheat germ
Yogurt

Bad Brain Foods
Alcohol
Artificial food colorings
Artificial sweeteners
Colas
Corn syrup
Frostings
High-sugar "drinks"
Hydrogenated fats
Junk sugars
Nicotine
Overeating
White bread

Final note on brain foods from this incredible website:
In studies, children scored higher on tests when on a regimen of daily vitamin supplements. "Experts" will tell you that if you eat a balanced diet, you don't need supplements, which, given the culture here, is really just a sales pitch for vitamins here, isn't it? Who eats a perfectly balanced diet?

A final, final note. Putting the right food in helps, but it's important to get it out too. That's why I nominate fiber as the unsung brain food hero. I don't know how many times I've heard or read about somebody's mind clearing up once their system was cleaned out.

Be well, MO

KING CORN

2008-04-15T09:51:00.000-07:00

“For the first time in American history, our generation was at risk of having a shorter lifespan than our parents. And it was because of what we ate.”
—Curt Ellis, KING CORN filmmaker

Behind America’s dollar hamburgers and 72-ounce sodas is a key ingredient that quietly fuels our fast-food nation: corn. In KING CORN, recent college graduates Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis leave the east coast for rural Iowa, where they decide to grow an acre of the nation’s most powerful crop.

Corn is everywhere—in everything from apples to antifreeze, body lotion to batteries, margarine to magazines.

The story of corn’s ubiquity is a long one: a complex tale that begins more than 6,000 years ago in the dry valleys of Mesoamerica and continues on today in grocery store aisles—and the halls of Congress.

Grown on every continent except Antarctica, planted on 93 million acres of United States land, and finding its way into nearly everything on the dinner table, the humble corn plant may just be the most influential crop that society has ever seen.

“If you’re standing in a field in Iowa, there’s an immense amount of food being grown, none of it edible. The commodity corn, nobody can eat. It must be processed before we can eat it. It’s a raw material—it’s a feedstock for all these other processes. And the irony is that an Iowa farmer can no longer feed himself.”
—Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma

April 15, 10 pm on PBS

YOXOMO

GOING NUTS

2008-03-30T17:50:00.001-07:00

I promised more info about brain foods, so today we'll look closer at peanuts. I once heard a scientist recommend to eat a handful of peanuts before an exam to enhance the performance of your neuron cells. The peanut has many more promising qualties than being a great brainfood, as I discovered during my research about this nut that's not a nut ;-)

Peanuts originated in South America where they have existed for thousands of years. They played an important role in the diet of the Aztecs and other Native Indians in South America and Mexico. The Spanish and Portuguese explorers who found peanuts growing in the New World brought them on their voyages to Africa. They flourished in many African countries and were incorporated into local traditional food cultures. Since they were revered as a sacred food, they were placed aboard African boats traveling to North America during the beginning of the slave trade, which is how they were first introduced into this region.

In the 19Th century, peanuts experienced a great gain in popularity in the U.S. thanks to the efforts of two specific people. The first was George Washington Carver, who not only suggested that farmers plant peanuts to replace their cotton fields that were destroyed by the boll weevil following the Civil War, but also invented more than 300 uses for this legume.

At the end of the 19Th century, a physician practicing in St. Louis, Missouri, created a ground up paste made from peanuts and prescribed this nutritious high protein, low carbohydrate food to his patients. While he may not have actually "invented" peanut butter since peanut paste had probably used by many cultures for centuries, his new discovery quickly caught on and became, and still remains, a very popular food. Synonymous with baseball games, circus elephants, cocktail snacks and, of course, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, peanuts are ever popular in the American culture. Raw, roasted, shelled or unshelled in all forms are available throughout the year.

Contrary to what their name implies, peanuts are not true nuts but a member of a family of legumes related to peas, lentils, chickpeas and other beans. Peanuts start growing as a ground flower that due to its heavy weight bends towards the ground and eventually burrows underground where the peanut actually matures. The veined brown shell or pod of the peanut contains two or three peanut kernels. Each oval-shaped kernel or seed is comprised of two off-white lobes that are covered by a brownish-red skin.

In addition to being every kid's (and many grownup kid's) favorite sandwich filling, peanuts pack a serious nutritional punch and offer a variety of health benefits.
Besides your brain,your heart will go nuts for peanuts as well. At least five major studies confirm that eating peanuts can lower risk for coronary heart disease.

Peanuts are a very good source of monounsaturated fats, the type of fat that is emphasized in the heart-healthy Mediterranean diet. Studies of diets with a special emphasis on peanuts have shown that this little legume is a big ally for a healthy heart. In one such randomized, double-blind, cross-over study involving 22 subjects, a high monounsaturated diet that emphasized peanuts and peanut butter decreased cardiovascular disease risk by an estimated 21% compared to the average American diet.

In addition to their monounsaturated fat content, peanuts feature an array of other nutrients that, in numerous studies, have been shown to promote heart health. Peanuts are good sources of vitamin E, niacin, folate, protein and manganese. In addition, peanuts provide resveratrol, the phenolic antioxidant also found in red grapes and red wine that is thought to be responsible for the French paradox: the fact that in France, people consume a diet that is not low in fat, but have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease compared to the U.S. With all of the important nutrients provided by nuts like peanuts, it is no wonder that numerous research studies, including the Nurses' Health Study that involved over 86,000 women, have found that frequent nut consumption is related to reduced risk of cardiovascular disease.

Peanuts Rival Fruit as a Source of Antioxidants.
Not only do peanuts contain oleic acid, the healthful fat found in olive oil, but new research shows these tasty legumes are also as rich in antioxidants as many fruits. While unable to boast an antioxidant content that can compare with the fruits highest in antioxidants, such as pomegranate, roasted peanuts do rival the antioxidant content of blackberries and strawberries, and are far richer in antioxidants than apples, carrots or beets. Research conducted by a team of University of Florida scientists, published in the journal Food Chemistry, shows that peanuts contain high concentrations of antioxidant polyphenols, primarily a compound called p-coumaric acid, and that roasting can increase peanuts' p-coumaric acid levels, boosting their overall antioxidant content by as much as 22%.

Nuts' high antioxidant content helps explain results seen in the Iowa Women's Health Study in which risk of death from cardiovascular and coronary heart diseases showed strong and consistent reductions with increasing nut/peanut butter consumption. Total death rates decreased 11% and 19% for nut/peanut butter intake once per week and 1-4 times per week, respectively.

Even more impressive were the results of a review study of the evidence linking nuts and lower risk of coronary heart disease, also published in the British Journal of Nutrition. (Kelly JH, Sabate J.) In this study, researchers looked at four large prospective epidemiological studies-the Adventist Health Study, Iowa Women's Study, Nurses' Health Study and the Physician's Health Study. When evidence from all four studies was combined, subjects consuming nuts at least 4 times a week showed a 37% reduced risk of coronary heart disease compared to those who never or seldom ate nuts. Each additional serving of nuts per week was associated with an average 8.3% reduced risk of coronary heart disease.

Practical Tip: To lower your risk of cardiovascular and coronary heart disease, enjoy a handful of peanuts or other nuts, or a tablespoon of nut butter, at least 4 times a week.

Potentially Reduced Risk of Stroke Based on Preliminary Animal Studies.
Resveratrol is a flavonoid first studied in red grapes and red wine, but now also found to be present in peanuts. In animal studies on resveratrol itself (the purified nutrient given in intravenous form, not the food form), this phytonutrient has been determined to improve blood flow in the brain by as much as 30%, thus greatly reducing the risk of stroke, according to the results of a laboratory animal study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Lead researcher Kwok Tung Lu hypothesized that resveratrol exerted this very beneficial effect by stimulating the production and/or release of nitric oxide (NO), a molecule made in the lining of blood vessels (the endothelium) that signals the surrounding muscle to relax, dilating the blood vessel and increasing blood flow. In the animals that received resveratrol, the concentration of nitric oxide (NO) in the affected part of the brain was 25% higher than that seen not only in the ischemia-only group, but even in the control animals.

The jury is still out on peanuts however, since they contain far less resveratrol than the amounts used in the above study, and also less than the amount provided by red wine. An ounce of red wine can provide as much as 1,000 micrograms of resveratrol, and it almost always provides over 75 micrograms. The same ounce of peanut butter can only provide about 50 micrograms of resveratrol. Still, routine consumption of peanuts or peanut butter might turn out to be significant in terms of the resveratrol provided by this food.

A number of studies have shown that nutrients found in peanuts, including folic acid, phytosterols, phytic acid (inositol hexaphosphate) and resveratrol, may have anti-cancer effects. Colorectal cancer is the second most fatal malignancy in developed countries and the third most frequent cancer worldwide. Taiwanese researchers decided to examine peanuts' anti-colon cancer potential and conducted a 10-year study involving 12,026 men and 11,917 women to see if eating peanuts might affect risk of colon cancer. Risk of colon cancer was found to be highly correlated with both peanuts, which greatly lessened risk, and pickled foods, which greatly increased risk, particularly in women. Eating peanuts just 2 or more times each week was associated with a 58% lowered risk of colon cancer in women and a 27% lowered risk in men.

Help Prevent Gallstones
Twenty years of dietary data collected on over 80,000 women from the Nurses' Health Study shows that women who eat least 1 ounce of nuts, peanuts or peanut butter each week have a 25% lower risk of developing gallstones.

Protect against Alzheimer's and Age-related Cognitive Decline
Research published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry indicates regular consumption of niacin-rich foods like peanuts provides protection against Alzheimer's disease and age-related cognitive decline. Researchers from the Chicago Health and Aging Project interviewed over 3,000 Chicago residents aged 65 or older about their diet, then tested their cognitive abilities over the following six years. Those getting the most niacin from foods (22 mg per day) were 70% less likely to have developed Alzheimer's disease than those consuming the least (about 13 mg daily), and their rate of age-related cognitive decline was significantly less. One easy way to boost your niacin intake is to snack on a handful of peanuts-just a quarter cup provides about a quarter of the daily recommended intake for niacin (16 mg per day for men and 14 for women).

Eating Nuts Lowers Risk of Weight Gain
Although nuts are known to provide a variety of cardio-protective benefits, many avoid them for fear of weight gain. A prospective study published in the journal Obesity shows such fears are groundless. In fact, people who eat nuts at least twice a week are much less likely to gain weight than those who almost never eat nuts. The 28-month study involving 8,865 adult men and women in Spain, found that participants who ate nuts at least two times per week were 31% less likely to gain weight than were participants who never or almost never ate nuts. And, among the study participants who gained weight, those who never or almost never ate nuts gained more (an average of 424 g more) than those who ate nuts at least twice weekly.

In addition to that old stand-by, the PB&J sandwich, try some of the following:
Spread peanut butter on your morning waffle, whole grain toast or mid-morning crackers.
Add a tablespoon of peanut butter to your morning smoothie.
Enjoy a handful of dry roasted peanuts with a glass of tomato juice as an afternoon snack.
Combine peanut butter, coconut milk, and ready-to-use Thai red or green curry paste for a quick, delicious sauce. Pour over healthy sautéed vegetables. Use as a cooking sauce for tofu or salmon.
Toss cooked brown rice with sesame oil, chopped peanuts, scallions, sweet red pepper, parsley and currants.
Fill a celery stick with nut butter for an afternoon pick-me-up.
Sprinkle a handful of nuts over your morning cereal, lunchtime salad, dinner's steamed vegetables.
Or just enjoy a handful of lightly roasted nuts as a healthy snack.

When purchasing peanut butter, be sure to read the label. Hydrogenated(trans-) fats and sugar are often added to peanut butter. Buy organic and choose brands that contain peanuts, salt-and nothing else!

YOXOMO

EASTER EGGS

2008-03-19T12:45:00.001-07:00

Today I was lucky to find this gem of a website as I was browsing for Easter egg info. http://www.nutritiondata.com/?mbid=house
This incredible informative site features a nutrition search widget (more about that later) that includes information like the anti-inflammatory factor of food!

Have a look and become a healthy expert yourself!

YOXOMO

BRAIN FOOD

2008-03-01T18:22:00.000-08:00

The link between your brain function and the food you eat is paramount, however most people are not aware of that (maybe because of what they feed their brain? ;-)
Currently I am investigating this link and it is amazing how important certain foods are for your brain.

The foods that tend to optimize brain performance are for instance, egg yolks, soybeans, cabbage, peanuts and cauliflower, fish, eggs and poultry. Magnesium-rich foods, such as wheat bran, nuts, whole grains, leafy green vegetables, milk, meat, beans and bananas are a fine place to start your meal planning.

The website, newscientist.com, suggests several foods that may improve brain function: whole-wheat toast with a bean spread for breakfast, a choline-rich lunch such as an omelet. Choline is known to improve memory because it assists in neurotransmitter function. Choline is found in beef, eggs, Navy beans, tofu, almonds and peanuts. Yogurt, which contains tyrosine (also essential for neurotransmitter function), also improves alertness and memory. Of course, fish is indisputably the best brain food, replete with Omega-3 fatty acids which are essential fats and the best ones for the brain.

Color is essential too. Nutritionist Carolyn O’Neil, M.S., R.D. and co-author of the book, “The Dish on Eating Healthy and Being Fabulous,” suggests that “the best sources for brain nutrients include deeply colored produce from blueberries to butternut squash. But, don’t underestimate the nutrient content of white vegetables such as cauliflower and parsnips—they are packed with phyto-nutrients, too.” And for added thought she advises, “Another thing to consider: being dehydrated affects mental function. Feeling a bit foggy or forgetful? Maybe you need to drink some water. Dehydration can cause headaches, irritability and loss of focus.”

The food on your plate should have lots of color, berries (especially strawberries and/or blueberries) and melons are a great source of ‘brain food,’ as are green, orange and red vegetables. O’Neil recommends that when you crave a snack, reach for a handful of peanuts or almonds, an apple, orange, banana, grapes or even a few squares of dark chocolate.”

An Intelligent Diet
Boost your brainpower by feeding your brain 'brain foods'. Here are 4 tips for an intelligent diet from the thinkingbusiness website:

1. Balance your glucose - it provides fuel for your brain. Try to eat carbohydrate foods in the evening as it promotes relaxation and sleep.

2. Eat essential fats - ensure your diet is rich in omega-3 fats found in oily fish.

3. Include plenty of protein rich foods in your diet. Proteins are essential to make neurotransmitters which are vital for the thinking process. Try to eat a protein based lunch to optimise your mental performance and alertness throughout the day.

4. Eat foods rich in vitamins and minerals to 'fine tune' your mind.

5. Drink 1.5 to 2 liters of water a day to keep your brain well hydrated.

6. Oxygenate your brain by exercising and eating little and often. Eat your main meal before 7pm.

In my next posts we'll have a closer look at the other brainfoods like peanuts, eggs and avocados, and the key ingredients for a healthy brain: protein, carbohydrates, fats and vitamins and minerals.

DECEPTIVE CUPCAKES - UPDATE 1

2008-02-11T17:34:00.002-08:00

I promised to keep you in the loop with my try-outs from Seinfeld's cookbook.
Last weekend I made the blueberry/spinach cupcakes with squash/cream cheese filling.
My filling turned out too liquid, be sure to measure well and maybe mix the squash and cream cheese mixture little by little.

As soon as I added the spinach puree everything turned VERY green. They result looked good, but again very green. I told Sarah these were dinosaur cupcakes. Didn't work, her firm YUK was the first and final comment. I must say that the spinach smell disappeared after they cooled completely.

Maybe I started with a difficult one, I'll keep trying and add small amounts of purees to her favorite dishes

Cheers, MO

DECEPTIVELY DELICIOUS

2008-02-07T09:19:00.000-08:00

Ever had a cupcake with beet and squash? Or how about a blueberry cheesecake cupcake with spinach? I am going to bake it this weekend and will give you a detailed review, as well as my 4 year old daughters comments.

"Deceptive Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating good Food." is a new cookbook from Jessica Seinfeld. Her recipes incorporate vegetable and fruit purees in order to sneak in nutritional value and making sure your children will get their daily recommended intake of important fibers, vitamins, and anti-oxidants.

I am blessed with a child who does eat veggies and fruits, but making treats healthier is an appealing idea to me. I eat a broad array of vegetables and fruits myself and still explore unknown ones, while scouting Asian and Latin grocery stores and farmer's markets. Sarah loves these food trips!

I often decorate Sarah's plate with slices of tomato, raw mushrooms, bell peppers avocado etc. to add some "extra" and make it colorful and attractive. I am very curious to see how she'll react to pureed cauliflower in her macaroni and cheese. The recipes are easy, and fast, turning any meal and treat into a paramount health contribution to your family!

HOW NATURAL IS YOUR FOOD?

2008-01-29T10:22:00.000-08:00

As I keep informing myself about food and how they 'maintain' my body I continue to be amazed how uninformed most people are. Especially (more often) men seem not want to be bothered by what they put in their mouth. The other day I served a nice light dinner of stir fried vegetables with shrimp and brown rice. The perfect combination of lean protein and complex carbohydrates, this combination stimulates your body to burn calories, while nourishing it with great nutritional value.

My husband only put some of the stir fry on his plate, and when I asked him why he didn't take some rice he answered: oh I want to avoid carbs. 5 minutes later he grabbed a lean pocked from the freezer stating that his dinner didn't fill him up enough. I was flabbergasted! He traded an incredible nutritious, filling, calorie burning food for a fattening, single carbohydrate factory creation with NO nutritional value! I didn't know if I wanted to laugh or cry!

I guess most people think that anything you can buy at the grocery store it is OK to eat. Far from the truth...

The first thing I observed when I moved to the US from Europe is the incredible long shelf life of food. Even fresh foods like milk and bread seem to have lost the ability to rot. How is that possible? Look at the ingredients and if you don't know what all these funny sounding chemicals are that means you should stay away from it!

It is so easy: Eat the food that God gave us, not the "food" that humans created in laboratories! Pounds will fall off your body, you'll look and feel 10 years younger and have the energy of a young bull!

Cheers,

MO

FIBER FOOD

2008-01-08T16:07:00.000-08:00

A few days ago, my daughter didn't look and act like her self. She whispered in my ear: "mom can you give me some medicine so I can poop?" Aha! I was impressed that she figured out what was wrong with her and I immediately gave her some mineral oil, two hours later she was able to go and happy as a camper. I explained to her that what she eats and drinks is important and connected to being able to go easily.

When I checked for more information on-line I found one group who states that it is caused by a lack of fiber and another group who says constipation is absolutely not due to a lack of fiber. "So called 'health-freaks', consuming lots of grains and vegetables, often are bothered by constipation and gasses."

Foods that can cause constipation:
- prepared proteinous food (cooked- / baked- / fried- / steamed- / canned-, or heated in any other way- -fish, -meat, -beans, -grains and soy-products)
- dairy products (milk, cheese, yogurt, quark etc. from whatever animal)
- wheat products (bread, pasta, cookies, pastries etc.)
- somehow, supplementary iron can also cause constipation.
- supplementary calcium because muscles can only contract if they can deport calcium from the cells. If calcium level is elevated, functioning of the colon-muscles is inhibited.

Looking at this list and what she ate the past week, I realized that we were maybe eating too much pasta, whole grains and dairy (she loves yogurt and cheese). Still, I think that moderation and variation are the key towards a healthy functioning body.

EATING TOGETHER

2007-12-27T15:28:00.000-08:00

During these festive days we suddenly realize how nice it is to sit down together for a nice meal and I feel privileged to have enjoyed our meals as a family not only during holidays but pretty much each day!

From: Lissa Coffey, author for www.Schoolmenu.com and www.familyeveryday.com

"Families are busy, but fortunately we're not too busy to spend time eating meals together. A new study from the University of Minnesota shows that teens who have meals with their families on a regular basis have better grades and are less likely to be depressed. A study from Harvard University reports that kids are 15% less likely to be overweight if they eat with their families. And Emory University researchers have found that preteens who eat dinner and share stories with their families have higher self-esteem and better peer relationships during adolescence. Now that's reason enough to gather around the table!"

Cheers, Monique

Kids and Calcium

2007-12-04T18:09:00.000-08:00

Bone affected by Osteoporosis

Calcium Deficiency
Health experts are seeing the disturbing signs, increased bone fractures is just one of them. Children and teens consume more junk food, processed food and soft drinks than ever before. This pulls the calcium out of their bodies. Fewer than one in 10 girls and only one in four boys (aged 9-13) are getting enough calcium (National Institues of Health).

Years of research have proven that bone health is intimately related to how the body absorbs calcium. When the body does not get a sufficient intake of calcium, the bones suffer most. The first noticeable sign of calcium deficiency is bones that become soft and brittle. With a continued calcium deficiency, osteoporosis, a condition in which the bones begin to deteriorate, often develops, especially in women during and after menopause.

Children who do not consume sufficient quantities of calcium generally will experience growth-related problems including bone deformation. Children also can develop Rickets, a condition that had at one time virtually been eliminated. Decaying teeth, depression and spasms in the legs and arms are other noticeable symptoms of a calcium deficiency.

Drinking milk is definitely one habit that's worth starting and worth continuing throughout life. Doing so helps the skeletal system develop fully and helps keep teeth and bones strong.

The required daily allowances for calcium vary depending on age. Infants and toddlers should get 400 and 600 mg respectively. Children should increase their intake of calcium to 800 and increase to 1200 mg/day as they near puberty. Teenagers need a lot of calcium because a significant amount of bone mass is being added during this stage of life. Adolescents and even young adults should strive to get 1200 mg/day. Pregnant women should try to get between 1200 and 1500 mg/day of calcium. Men need 1000 mg/day but those age 65 and above need to increase their daily intake of calcium to 1500 mg/day.

Time to bone up on calcium!

XOMO

PICKY PEOPLE

2007-10-30T08:40:00.001-07:00

We all have several foods that just don't fit our taste buts. The other day my husband prepared some Brussels sprouts and just the smell already turns my stomach around. Yet I wanted my daughter to have a fair chance at trying them, so I put some on my plate and even managed to eat 2 (with a smile on my face!). She was still in the Halloween sphere and called them "skeleton brains", and she liked them!

Excerpts from eDiets:

Soon after birth, babies begin to reject intensely sour or bitter flavors. During the first few months, they also learn to appreciate fatty foods and recognize salty tastes. "Their taste world is organized into liking sweet, learning to like fat, and rejecting -- spitting out -- bitter taste," says Adam Drewnowski, director of the Center for Public Health Nutrition at the University of Washington in Seattle. Bitterness, by contrast, is a pleasure of wizened adulthood. During youth--and during pregnancy, as any mother could tell you--we can't stand bitter flavors. That's probably because bitterness is often a sign of toxicity, and it's especially important to avoid toxic compounds during these sensitive periods of growth and development. Taste researchers have theorized that 3- and 4-year-olds become picky as a survival instinct. At this age, kids are old enough to find food on their own; they just aren't old enough to judge what's safe to eat and what's not. An ingrained fear of new foods protects a child from poisoning.

If pregnant women drank carrot juice daily during late pregnancy, Mennella found, their babies at 6 months seemed to like carrot-flavored cereal much more than other 6-month-olds. She and her colleagues at Monell have also shown that nursing babies seem to detect flavors like garlic, ethanol (from alcoholic drinks) and vanilla in their mothers' milk. A baby who has never tasted garlic will suckle longer the first time his or her mother eats it, presumably gathering extra information about this peculiar new flavor. "[Mother's milk] is one of the first ways babies learn," she says. Breast-fed babies whose mothers eat a wide range of foods are more likely to embrace new foods later on, her research has shown, and infants fed on harsh-tasting formulas remain more tolerant of bitter and sour at age 4 or 5.

Some foods just get to us. Whether it's texture, color or smell, everyone has their reasons, however weird or silly, for their picky eating. For example I refuse to eat soft (some call it chewy) cookies or over cooked vegetables, I prefer most of my food crispy and crunchy. Others refuse to eat "chunks" like blue cheese, feta cheese, anything chunky. A recent anthropological analysis found that more than a third of us reject slippery food like oysters and okra.

In the first comprehensive survey of food pickiness among adults, anthropologist Jane Kauer interviewed nearly 500 adult Americans about their attitudes toward foods, food variety and eating habits. Kauer, found that mild pickiness is quite widespread -- about one-third of her volunteers described themselves as "unusually picky eaters."

It may not be surprising to learn that 60 percent of us like to leave our plates clean or that close to half of us eat just about the same thing for breakfast nearly every day. But stranger habits are also common. Many people refuse to drink while they eat (which is better!). Others won't eat food that is lumpy or has a filling, like raviolis or egg rolls. Nearly 20 percent of us are repelled by raw tomatoes (something about the gooeyness inside the firmness), and about the same fraction of us simply don't like trying new foods.

In the course of her survey, Kauer found a few extremely picky people. One woman she interviewed, for example, ate little more than canned brains, undercooked French fries and fried eggs. Kauer thinks this intensely fastidious eating is probably related to obsessive-compulsive behavior. Questioning the pickiest third further, Kauer identified a master list of foods that are almost universally accepted: fried chicken, French fries, chocolate chip cookies, and above all else, macaroni and cheese. Obviously, these are all classic comfort foods, but more important for the picky person, they are unlikely to have weird or surprising ingredients. "We all know what's in fried chicken, for example, even if we get it from some place we've never been before," she says.

Attitudes toward eating in general are strongly cultural, and the legendary food psychologist Paul Rozin of the University of Pennsylvania has shown that Americans have a particularly bad attitude toward food. While the French relish their meals and gobble down cheese, sausage and other high-fat delicacies, Americans are consumed with worry and anxiety, fearing fried eggs as death-in-a-skillet and obsessing over fat-free treats. Compared to the Japanese, the French and the Belgians, Rozin found, Americans worry most about food but are least likely to call themselves "healthy eaters." He hypothesizes that losing touch with the hardwired pleasure of eating may itself be bad for our health. In the United States, "one of the most pleasant of human activities has become drenched in worry," he argues.

Other researchers have shown that forcing a kid to choke down spinach before being allowed to eat cake simply makes kids hate vegetables and like dessert more.
Although many young children tend to reject healthy foods at first, Birch's work has shown that 5 to 10 experiences with a new food is often enough for a kid to learn to love it. We should be more tolerant, Kauer says. Food habits are a deep part of identity, closer to religion than to biology. The omnivore who devours durian fruit and fried locusts is just as proud of his neophilia as the choosy eater is of his selectivity. "We don't talk about it, but all of us have very strong feelings about what we eat and don't eat," she says. Kauer theorizes that fastidious eaters have lost touch with the social context of food.

I have a strong feeling for eating a scoop of Hawaiian Lehua honey & sweet cream (Häagen-Dazs) now...

P.S. You guessed it: Sarah loves Zuchinni

SCARY TREATS

2007-10-30T08:36:00.000-07:00

Candy that haunts you for weeks after Halloween is not an option for me. The most horrific scene I ever saw was a family who left a huge pile of Halloween candy sitting on the kitchen counter for weeks! The treats I am handing out myself are of the natural kind; raisin boxes and pretzel bags mixed together with mini fun toys.

Once we get back from our candy hunt, my daughter and I put her harvest on the kitchen table and she can pick a few to eat as we are sorting through the pile to divide it in two sections: the OK candies and the not OK candies. Last year when I asked her to pick a few candies, she choose 2! Now I am anticipating that this year she'll probably multiply that by 10, so we'll make a candy bag for a week use (one or 2 a day after eating a good dinner). All other candy will go to "the poor children" (her own idea) meaning my colleagues at work ;-)

Below some links to other suggestions on Halloween candy, my favorite one is from Dr. Abby, she really has some great ideas!

http://www.ediets.com/news/article.cfm?code=24426&cmi=2430102
http://www.ediets.com/news/article.cfm?code=29127&cmi=2412538
http://www.ediets.com/news/article.cfm?code=29128&cmi=1498031

Happy Halloween!

MOMO

MORE MOTHER MO

2007-10-24T18:25:00.000-07:00

Let me introduce myself a little more. I was born in 1965 and grew up in the Netherlands, in a suburb of a city called Rotterdam, one hour South of Amsterdam. I consider myself lucky with two devoted, loving parents; a handy and loyal dad and an inspiring, great cook as my mom. My mom went back to school to get her Bachelor degree at age 42, while working at the same time.

My dad would always make our lunches, healthy whole wheat sandwiches (they did not have full serving cafeteria's in high schools then), and my mom would make dinner from scratch and fresh products. Both my brother and I had one bottle of soda per week, and limited access to candies and snacks. My mom likes to experiment with all kinds of cuisines from Asian, Italian to vegetarian. When I was in my early twenties we took a year long macrobiotic cooking class together. I learned a lot about food then, but this way of eating made me a little too skinny :-)

In 2000 I moved to the US and within one year I gained almost 10 pounds. In Holland I would bike to work and walk to the grocery store, I had to make it an effort to gain weight! Now I had to go to a fitness club and loose weight! All food portions were so big in my eyes, as if giants had to be fed. Even chains like McDonald's had bigger sizes here than in Holland. What also puzzled me was that bread and milk for example would stay OK for weeks, while in Holland milk becomes sour in a week and bread becomes dry. So I started to wonder more and more about additives and preservatives. I changed my diet and got more groceries at stores like Wholefoods and the farmers markets.

Now that I am a mother of a 4 year old witty girl I am even more concerned with the food I buy and prepare. I am scared to see what they serve in schools, because I know there is a direct connection to brain development, brain performance and food. I get upset when I encounter parents who give up and/or give in. I know this 8 year old boy who is constantly ill with colds and such, guess what he eats: processed spaghetti from a can and chicken nuggets, nothing else! His parents are the most devoted parents I've ever seen, yet they worry that he'll starve himself if they would make him eat other things, since he refuses to eat anything else.

Children only have their parents as an example and as their guide...I am not a saint, don't get me wrong (3 years ago I was still a smoker!), just trying to do my best as most parents do. I hope I can contribute a tiny bit to a healthier America and inspire people to inform themselves, and explore together with their children.

I asked myself, how come my daughter never asks for chicken nuggets or that stuff from a can? Because it is not in my pantry! Why does my girl eat raw mushrooms, endamame beans, asparagus, avocado, tomatoes, most fruits, plain yogurt (with a little honey)? Because I eat them and/or I presented them to her several times. She has her tweaks and turns and difficult eating moments, I just don't make a big thing of it and I keep explaining things to her in a way that suits her age. She prefers to drink water and milk, sometimes some orange juice or juice I make myself. No soda's (other than the ones dad drinks) or Gatorades in our fridge.

Until she starts to make more decisions by herself I'll try to feed her as healthy as I can and make her conscious about food in relation with a healthy body and mind. I want my daughter to be a picky eater in the sense that she chooses only the best.

Be well,

Monique

CODEX ALIMENTARIUS - YOUR HEALTH FREEDOM

2007-10-24T17:12:00.000-07:00

A good friend from Holland forwarded me this video and I was speechless. But also glad I have the power to take action!

In case freedom, food and health are things you do care about, you might want to see this video and check this website.

Codex Alimentarius

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2944803407975749033&hl=nl

http://www.healthfreedom.org/

Be well,

Monique

HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP

2007-10-23T16:34:00.000-07:00

As I was talking to a mom while we were at our neighborhood pool, she stated kind of giggly: "my children grew up on that stuff." Just Google it and you'll loose your giggle. I've been aware of sugar addiction for a long time, but when I read about high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) I really got alarmed! Research showed that the livers of rats on a high fructose diet looked like the livers of alcoholics, plugged with fat and cirrhotic.

HIGH CHOLESTEROL - MORE FAT PRODUCTION - DECREASE OF IMMUNE SYSTEM FUNCTION
"Pure fructose contains no enzymes, vitamins or minerals and robs the body of its micro nutrient treasures in order to assimilate itself for physiological use. While naturally occurring sugars, as well as sucrose, contain fructose bound to other sugars, high fructose corn syrup contains a good deal of "free" or unbound fructose. Research indicates that this free fructose interferes with the heart’s use of key minerals like magnesium, copper and chromium. Among other consequences, HFCS has been implicated in elevated blood cholesterol levels and the creation of blood clots. It has been found to inhibit the action of white blood cells so that they are unable to defend the body against harmful foreign invaders...Because it is metabolized by the liver, fructose does not cause the pancreas to release insulin the way it normally does. Fructose converts to fat more than any other sugar. This may be one of the reasons Americans continue to get fatter. Fructose raises serum triglycerides significantly."

"Not only does fructose have more damaging effects in the presence of copper deficiency, fructose also inhibits copper metabolism--another example of the sweeteners double-whammy effect. A deficiency in copper leads to bone fragility, anemia, defects of the connective tissue, arteries, and bone, infertility, heart arrhythmias, high cholesterol levels, heart attacks, and an inability to control blood sugar levels."

From an article by Linda Joyce Forristal: "HFCS contains more fructose than sugar and this fructose is more immediately available because it is not bound up in sucrose. Since the effects of fructose are most severe in the growing organism, we need to think carefully about what kind of sweeteners we give to our children."
http://www.westonaprice.org/motherlinda/cornsyrup.html

It is in almost any American food! (In Europe this type of sweetener is hardly used). I checked everything in my pantry and trashed anything that contains HFCS, instead I use natural cane sugar, honey and maple syrup.

Satisfying a sweet tooth can be done in a harmless and natural way and the little things I can do to contribute to the health of my child can have a BIG positive impact on the rest of her life; I do it with love!

DID YOU KNOW?

2007-10-23T16:28:00.001-07:00

Almost 80 percent of what we eat today has been genetically modified at some point?

JOY

2007-10-23T05:53:00.000-07:00

"If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder… he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in."

-Rachel Carson, 1965

Food Finds

2007-10-21T11:32:00.000-07:00

First day of my new Blog!
This blog will be devoted to picky eaters and all other food and children related items. This place will provide the latest info and news and advise to ensure a healthy diet for children.

Back soon!

Mommy MO