Healthy Eating on a Budget

The biggest complaint I hear from people about eating healthy is how expensive it is.  And yes, when you’re buying the same product in organic, it’s typically more expensive.  At my house, there are things we always buy organic and things we’re ok buying conventional.  Check out the dirty dozen list at http://www.organic.org/articles/showarticle/article-214.  But there are some really healthy foods that are really cheap. 

I recently bought this bag of organic quinoa at Costco for $7.99.  It came out to $0.20 per serving.  It’s been a long time since I’ve eaten fast food, but I think this might beat a drive-thru burger.  But, you do have to actually cook it yourself.  Luckily, it only needs about 15-20 minutes to cook and there’s no pre-soaking like you are supposed to do with rice.  So quinoa is fast food at my house!  Another bonus is that you can make a big batch and use it all week.  Quinoa is called a “super grain” because it is a great source of protein. It contains all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein. Quinoa is a good source of manganese, magnesium (which may help people who suffer from migraines), iron, copper and phosphorus. It has antioxidant properties, is high in fiber, and has a host of other health benefits.

Another thing that you get a great nutritional bang for your buck is dried beans and lentils.  You can typically buy these in bulk or bagged.  They are cheaper than canned this way, but there is some prep work here.  You have to either soak them overnight, which really doesn’t take any time at all it’s just a matter of thinking ahead, or you can do a “quick soak” which usually means boiling them for 2 minutes, then letting them soak for about 2 hours.  Again, it’s not much of your time, just planning ahead.  Then you have to cook them before using, usually somewhere around 45 minutes. When I’m planning on using beans for a dinner, I’ll try to “quick soak” and cook them in the morning or throughout the day whenever I’m home, then they’re ready to go by dinner time.  For example, I like to use garbanzo beans to make hummus and black or pinto beans for bean dips, so a few minutes in the blender or food processor with some seasoning and a little liquid, and then it’s in the fridge until we’re ready to use it.  Beans are high in protein and fiber, along with other vitamins and minerals that make it a superfood.

So if you’re saving money on healthy grains and dried beans (and maybe avoiding the snack aisle) you can make room in your budget for fresh fruits and vegetables.  It really does take some planning and dedication to cooking from scratch, but you can eat healthy on a budget.  Try making this quinoa salad on Sunday and eating it for lunch for the next few days.

Black-Eyed Quinoa Salad

2 cups cooked black-eyed peas, or 1 15-ounce can black-eyed peas, drained
2 cups cooked quinoa (1/2 cup dry quinoa to 1 cup water)

3 cups chopped fresh spinach
¹/₂ cup finely sliced leek (or green onions)
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)
1 tomato, diced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
¹/₄ cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
¹/₄ teaspoon salt
1 - 2 garlic cloves, crushed

Combine black-eyed peas, quinoa, spinach, leek, celery, tomato, and parsley in a mixing bowl. In a small bowl, mix together lemon juice, oil, salt, and garlic and pour over the salad. Toss gently. Chill 1 to 2 hours if time permits. (Note: black-eyed peas are actually a bean)

I also enjoy eating quinoa for breakfast, similar to oatmeal or porridge.  If you’ve cooked a batch of plain quinoa for the week, it takes only a few minutes to prepare in the morning.  It’s a nice change, especially with the cool weather rolling in.

Breakfast Quinoa

1 cup cooked quinoa

heat with milk of choice

then add:  raisins, cinnamon, fruit and maybe a little honey or maple syrup.  

6 Ways to Feed Your Child Right

1.       Be the best example for your children.  If you’re not eating the broccoli, good luck getting the little ones to.  As parents, sometimes it’s easier to do something for our kids than for ourselves.  So here’s your reason to eat your vegetables – so your kids will get the nutrients that are vital to their growth and health.

2.       Offer fruit and vegetables at every meal.  Every meal.  At breakfast you can stick to fruit, although a smoothie with some spinach in it tastes just as good as a smoothie without the green.  At lunch and dinner there should be a vegetable on every plate.  If you have picky eaters, keep putting that one piece of broccoli or two carrots on their plate.  They will eventually try it, especially if everyone else is enjoying it.  Don’t force it if you’ve never made them eat it before, but the more they see it the more familiar it will be.  It could take 15 times for a kid to see a food on her plate for her to accept it as a normal food. 

3.       Offer a variety of foods.  Kids might not eat a perfectly balanced meal every time they sit down, but over the course of a week or two they will choose a balanced diet.  So don’t stress if he didn’t eat as much protein one day or wouldn’t even look at an apple slice.  Too often parents will give up on a food after a few turn-downs.  Always have fresh fruits and vegetables for snacking, along with healthy proteins like nuts, seeds, bean dip or hummus.  If you offer to make mac and cheese every day for lunch, your kids will want mac and cheese every day for lunch.  If you have goldfish crackers out, they will eat them.  Give them more whole food options and they will choose a balanced diet.

4.       Include your children in preparing meals and snacks.  Kids love to stir and mix and squish and touch things.  Give them the opportunity to be involved and they will be more willing to eat what they made themselves.  Maybe one night a week, instead of frozen or delivery pizza, make your own at home.  Pizza dough is super easy to make and everyone can put what they want on theirs.  Or ask them to “wash the tomatoes really well so they taste really good.”  Have kids set the table and let them choose where everyone will sit for the night.  Little ones love having a job and being a part of the process – they feel important.

5.       Feed your children (and yourself) real food, with real ingredients.  This means cooking from scratch.  Look for foods with 5 or fewer ingredients and ones that you actually know what they are and can picture where they came from.  Fresh fruits, vegetables (I know I sound like a broken record, but that’s because this is what is missing the most from everyone’s diet), whole grains, local and organic meat, eggs and dairy, beans, lentils and legumes.  This is real food.  Anything that is “hydrolyzed” or “modified” or you can’t pronounce is probably not real food.  Look for foods without added sugar, artificial sweeteners or added colors.  This is a big step and can be very difficult, so start by adding in the whole foods and slowly you’ll notice you’re not buying as much of the other “food.”

6.       Give thanks for the food you eat.  Teach your kids to be thankful for what you’re eating.  Whether or not your family says prayers, it is important for kids to learn not to take things for granted.  Someone prepared the meal, so at the very least acknowledge and thank the person who put the effort in.  If it was a family effort, even better, everyone gets a little praise!

 

As always, I love feedback.  You can reach me at:

Kate@KateShamrell.com

www.KateShamrell.com

https://www.facebook.com/KateShamrellHealth?ref=hl

 

Health Coaching

When I tell people that I’m a Health Coach I get a lot of questions about what exactly I do. There’s no hard and fast answer, as I tailor the program to the individual client. 

The Institute for Integrative Nutrition says “Health Coaches are knowledgeable advisors who provide ongoing support and guidance as you set goals and make sustainable changes that improve your health and happiness.”

As a client of my health coaching program, you will…
• set and accomplish goals in a way that is empowering and exciting
• work to achieve and maintain your ideal weight
• understand and reduce your cravings
• increase your energy levels
• feel great in your body
• learn about new foods and how you can easily incorporate them
• improve your personal relationships
• discover the confidence to create the life you want

Your program includes...
• two 50-minute sessions per month
• e-mail support between sessions
• recipes that are healthy and simple to prepare
• coaching and support to help you make the dietary and lifestyle changes you want
• simple but informative handouts that will increase your nutrition knowledge
• my personal commitment to your health and success

To decide if health coaching is right for you, I invite you to schedule a free initial consultation with me. During this session, we will discuss your health and lifestyle to determine how I can best support you in achieving your goals.

www.kateshamrell.com
kate@kateshamrell.com
www.facebook.com/KateShamrellHealth

Thyme and Again Chicken Soup

Despite the beautiful weather we’ve been having I found myself with the sniffles today. Nothing to slow me down any, in fact I did get some exercise running for a tissue more than once. Getting up at night to nurse the baby is definitely worth missing out on some sleep, but I guess it’s not as restorative and immune system boosting as a solid 8 hours. Not to mention that there might be a little stress from having a contractor do some work on the house, which we are putting on the market in five days (yikes!), and all the little things I need to do to have the house worthy to show to potential buyers, on top of the normal day to day activity that comes with a 3 year old and an 8 month old. Oh, did I mention that my husband has been out of the country and won’t be back until the day the house goes on the market? Yep, I can always count on the Marine Corps for the best timing.

Nevertheless, I woke up in a good mood and we baked some homemade wheat bread (which is delicious and so soft and really needs its own post one day) and then baked some butternut squash to use the next few days. So when 4 o’clock rolled around, I was seriously debated taking the girls to go grab something quick to eat. By then I had realized that my startling sneezes (yes, I made both girls jump with my sneezes) were more than just allergies. Then I decided that a little chicken soup might make me feel much better. So I pulled out a package of chicken breast from the freezer and surveyed the fridge to see what we had. Not much. Especially since I put off grocery shopping for another day. I swear I’m going tomorrow. But I like to keep things simple anyways, so I pulled together just a few ingredients, and, I’m not kidding you, this was the best chicken soup I’ve ever made. And it was easy, which is a must if I’m even entertaining the idea of cooking. I will be making this time and time again. Which is why I got cute and named it Thyme and Again Chicken Soup. I think I’m clever; you may call it something else.

I encourage you to keep this simple. The ingredients I have here are a great base, the seasoning was perfect. Add in whatever vegetables you have on hand. I really wanted to throw in some kale but I was out. This is definitely not a recipe to try to stick exactly to my measurements (to be honest I didn’t exactly measure everything out). The thyme is what gives this soup such great flavor; you won’t need more than a little salt and pepper in it. Now I’m sure I’ll be feeling so much better tomorrow because I ate two bowls of this. And maybe I’ll get some sleep. Or maybe not.

Thyme and Again Chicken Soup

32 ounces chicken broth
2 chicken breasts
1 onion
4 whole cloves garlic
2 cups carrots
1 tablespoon Thyme (more or less to taste)
Salt and pepper to taste

Pour the broth into a large pot, bring to a boil and add chicken breast. Mine was still frozen, so I plopped it in whole. I peeled off the outer layer of the onion, cut it into four pieces and threw that in. No need to chop it up into little pieces, it cooked down so much that it wasn’t overpowering to get a large piece in a bite. Add the whole garlic cloves…again, you don’t need to waste time cutting and chopping when the flavor will come through just as well.

It’s all about saving time when you’ve got two little ones! Chop the carrots into large chunks and add to boiling pot. Add the seasoning and cover. When the chicken is fully cooked, take it out and cut into chunks if you haven’t already. Return to pot, turn heat to low and recover.

Let simmer for about 30 minutes and you’re ready to eat. So simple, so easy.

And I bet you’ll make this thyme and again. ;)

Pineapple Date Balls

I couldn’t decide what to call these and I’m not sure what category of “treat” they would fall under. But they are really easy to make, you don’t have to bake them, and they’re delicious. They’re also vegan, raw, gluten free, dairy free, with no added sugar and made with whole foods. Did I mention it’ll only take you about ten minutes to make? And while if you eat five servings of these the calories will add up, they are a healthy alternative to cookies, candy and granola bars. They do travel well, so if you‘re packing lunch or snacks to go these are easy to bring along. And I promise they taste better than they look!

Now, I have been known to try new healthy recipes to replace “normal” not so healthy things, and sometimes they turn out great (like these) and sometimes they don’t. At all. And sometimes I like them and nobody else does. So I need to test my creations on people who eat “normal” food. My husband is a really good sport about tasting what I make and will give me an honest, but nice, review. He says these are “addicting” so I’ll take that as a compliment. I also brought some to a friend who also has a 3 year old (they eat “normal” food). They both really liked them and she’s been bugging me for the recipe. So, add this to the fact that Joy and I were eating them as we were making them, I think I found a winner.

Pineapple Date Balls

Ingredients:
1 ¾ cups almonds
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups dried pineapple, chopped
2 cups pitted dates
1/3 cup and ¼ cup shredded coconut (you can buy unsweetened coconut at health food stores if you can't find it at your local grocery store)

Directions:
In a food processor, blend almonds and salt until it’s a fine powder. Slowly add the chopped pineapple and dates and blend until it's really well processed. It will start to get sticky as you process it.

Place it in a large bowl and mix in the vanilla and 1/3 cup of the coconut. Use a spoon and roll the “dough” into balls. Then roll in ¼ cup coconut. Place on parchment paper.

They’ll last over a week in the fridge (although they were so good they only lasted about a day and a half in our fridge!).

For 24 servings, Per serving: 131 calories, 6g protein, 21g carbohydrates, 5g fat, 15g sugar, and 11% of your dietary fiber

This recipe is from Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen by Ani Phyo. In it, the recipe is called “Dreaming About Donut Holes” but they don’t taste like donuts to me, so I went with Pineapple Date Balls. Not sure if it’s appetizing, but I felt it’s more accurate!

Apple Nachos

Last night was the Super bowl. Many football fans were ordering takeout pizza, making nachos and drinking a lot of beer…or some variation of this. And then we all sat on the couch all afternoon and evening. Not great for those New Year’s resolutions we made a month ago. So instead of making traditional nachos, I made apple nachos. I’m thinking this could be a great snack for playdates or kids birthday parties. I used Honeycrisp apples sliced really thin. You can be really creative with what toppings you add to your “nachos” or even have a make-your-own station so kids can add what they like. I added just a small handful of chocolate chips so that Joy thought it was a treat, but she really only had about three total. Here’s what I did, but use what you have on hand and try something new.

2 Honeycrisp apples, thinly sliced
¼ cup organic smooth peanut butter
2 Tbsp chopped walnuts
1 Tbsp finely ground coconut
1 Tbsp chocolate chips

Directions:

Melt the peanut butter so that it is very soft and runny. Spread half the apple slices on a plate and drizzle with peanut butter. You might be able to just use a spoon, but I put it into a little plastic bag and cut the corner so I didn’t just glob it all over.

Use half the nuts and coconut and spread over the apples and peanut butter. Then do a second layer, with the remaining apple, peanut butter, nuts and coconut. Then top with a few chocolate chips. You can serve immediately or chill in the fridge for an hour (or longer) so the peanut butter isn’t so messy.

Now, as much fun as this can be for the little ones, I will admit that I enjoyed it as much as anyone. I can honestly say that I will be making this again and again.

This is apparently a pretty common idea, but I originally found the recipe at http://www.manifestvegan.com/2011/10/apple-nachos/?utm_source=feedburner.

Lentil Artichoke Stew

Recently, I’ve been looking for dishes with lentils and beans, since that is one area I tend to lack in. This is a great stew to warm up from the cold weather we’ve been having. I also baked some Irish Soda Bread (Bob’s Red Mill) and cut up some fresh vegetables. This is one we’ll be making again!

Makes 6 servings

1/4 cup vegetable broth
1 onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, pressed or minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 cup dry (uncooked) red lentils (3 cups cooked)
1 bay leaf
2 cups water
juice of 1 lemon
2 24-ounce cans chopped tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted), undrained, or 6 cups freshly chopped tomatoes plus 1 cup tomato juice
1 1/2 cups quartered artichoke hearts (1 9-ounce frozen package or 1 15-ounce can)
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

Heat broth in a large saucepan. Add onion and sauté on medium heat for about 5 minutes, until golden. Add garlic, cumin, and coriander and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add dried lentils, bay leaf, and water to pan and bring to a boil. Lower heat and add lemon juice, tomatoes and their liquid, artichokes, and crushed red pepper (if using). Simmer for about 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Add salt and black pepper, or to taste.
Nutrition Information

Per serving (1/6 of recipe): 176 calories, 1 g fat, 0.1 g saturated fat , 4.9% calories from fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 11.7 g protein, 34.3 g, carbohydrate 7.5 g sugar, 10 g fiber, 560 mg sodium, 123 mg calcium, 6.3 mg iron, 28.6 mg vitamin C, 238 mcg beta-carotene, 1.8 mg vitamin E

This recipe is a preview from the upcoming NEW EDITION of The Survivor's Handbook: Eating Right for Cancer Survival. I found it in the meal planner for the 21 Day Vegan Kickstart from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM). Here are the links
http://www.pcrm.org/kickstartHome/
http://support.cancerproject.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=3121.0