Make Lunchtime Interesting Again! Healthy And Delicious Ideas To Take To Work

I don’t know about you, but I always get stuck in a routine for work. I make the same old lunches, week in, week out. And I think it’s the same for a lot of people. After all, it can be a challenge to think of new ideas that will rock your world. And at the same time, will keep you healthy and full until dinner. Therefore, here are some healthy and delicious ideas to make lunchtime enjoyable again.

Go for a berry and chicken salad

A salad is often a healthy choice if you are looking for something tasty for your lunch. But a plain chicken salad can get boring after a few days. To make it more interesting, you should add some type of fruit. Some juicy berries will tickle your taste buds and give the salad some extra flavor. And as well as this, it helps you achieve your five-a-day which is always a bonus! You can find some great recipes for berry and chicken salad on http://www.womenshealthmag.com/food/lunch-ideas/slide/3. And remember it can be any berry you like; strawberries are a top choice as they make it tastier and are full of antioxidants!

Make a sweet potato and orange soup

A lot of people stick to boring tomato or chicken noodle soup for work. After all, it’s easy to make, and it’s warming during the colder months. But after a few weeks of tomato or chicken noodle soup, it can be rather dull. Not only this, but you are missing out on a chance to have more nutrients during the day. After all, you can add plenty of fruit and vegetables to soup. Therefore, it’s time to be more adventurous with your soup. You should consider going for something a lot more exciting such as a sweet potato and orange combination. Not only will it taste amazing, but they are such healthy essentials you should add to your day. In fact, sweet potato is a superfood which can help us to live longer! If you struggle to chop it up, you might want to look into getting a santoku knife. That way, you can quickly prepare the ingredients ready for the soup! You can find them on sites similar to http://www.cutitfine.com/santoku-knife-reviews/. And remember to get plenty of containers out when you are making the soup. After all, you can freeze them and then just take them out when you need to!

Kitchen Essentials for the Healthiest Foodies

Healthy living usually involves a healthy diet full of fresh fruit and vegetables. That doesn’t mean you have to cut out everything else. That wouldn’t be healthy at all. But it does sometimes prevent you from enjoying those delicious indulgences we like to have when we’re out. To take control of the foods you put inside, you might prefer to make everything at home yourself. This can ensure maximum nutritional value, as well as complete calorie control too. But is it boring?

Foodies can relax. There are so many great recipes available now for healthier versions of all your favorite indulgences. Foodies love flavor, texture, and that satisfaction that can come from the eating experience. Diets shouldn’t hinder that or inhibit the kinds of things you eat. After all, if you follow some sensible advice and good recipes, you can still bake yourself a delicious cake (maybe share it though).

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So what are the essentials that make up a great kitchen? If you are partial to cakes, then invest in some good cake tins. Baking with fewer fats and more vegetables can make a wetter consistency. Silicon muffin cups can be ideal if you’re baking with courgette or beetroot as a moistener. Of course, if you like to bake whole cakes, a two part tin is essential. Pick ones that can easy clean in the dishwasher.

The Honest Dietitian's 2016 Commuter Food Favorites

Featuring My Favorite Commuter Foods

I drive a lot. I made the choice to go for my PhD and since I am a parent and had no intentions of moving my kids away from their friends and schools, this means I have a 3 hour round-trip commute to school between 1-4 days per week (depending on the semester). Couple that in with a full-time job as a clinical nutrition manager for three of those years...I have been busy. There is no doubt that a crazy schedule like this can sure make a person Hangry if they are not careful. And, since a lot of my commute is on the beautiful I-40, there have been many a times when I have been stuck in traffic for hours due to car accidents, fires, and so on. The worst was when I was leaving campus in time to make it home for my husband's delicious Fodmap friendly taco dip when I hit a standstill on I-40 with no possible way to exit to an alternative route. It was over 90 degrees outside and I had no water (I always carry a refillable bottle but it was empty), no food...and almost two hours later when we started to move, I had a raging migraine. That was the last time I have ever traveled without an emergency snack. Sometimes my schedule has been so packed that the only real "free" time I have had in a day has been the time I am in my car driving to the next scheduled event. I have found that I need to have 3 different types of foods to make my days and commutes the best they can be. I am also making this list with the very true assumption (for me) that there is not going to be appropriate access to a microwave to heat up any food. Here they are:

• Commuter Food Number One: Foods that will get me through my scheduled meal times when I do not have a lunchbox with an ice pack. This is the good 'ole "I'm running so behind that I am going to throw a bunch of food into a plastic bag" situation. Even as a mostly Type A personality, I can't plan for everything to go smoothly so this does happen more often than I like.

GoMacro Thrive Bars & Protein Bars.
I love these bars. My favorite flavors are the Caramel Coconut Thrive Bar & the Protein Pleasure Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bar. GoMacro makes really great products. I just noticed they have a sampler pack, so if you haven' tried these before- I highly recommend them. 


Barney Butters Almond Butter Snack Packs.
These butters are perfect to have on hand and with the large variety of choices, you are definitely going to find a flavor that you love. My favorite flavors are the Vanilla Espresso, Honey Flax, Cocoa Coconut, and the Bare Smooth Almond Butter. I literally have one of these snack packs in my purse at all time. Buy them here.

You will love these almond butters!

Artisans Organics Single Serving Squeeze Packs.
To be honest, I might be in love with the cashew nut butter. It is so incredibly creamy and delicious, I just love it so much. They also make squeeze packs for pecan butter, walnut butter, coconut butter, and so on. You will see me using their coconut butter & unbelievable cocoa spreads in some future recipes. Get your squeeze packs here.

Glutino Crackers.
You have to have something to put all of those delicious butters on! I like the original, cheddar, and sea salt crackers by Glutino. They are gluten-free but have a great consistency and are strong crackers to take on the road. The original crackers with the cashew nut butter and an orange, washed down with some chocolate coconut water is my pre-workout snack on my busy driving days. Give Glutino crackers a try!

Make Healthy Asian Food A Diet Staple With These Cooking Tips

Since the western world has been introduced to eastern cuisine, it seems we simply can't get enough of it. Curries, broths, noodles, you name it - we serve it. Of course, it barely compares to the authentic cuisine made by the professionals themselves. But, it is becoming a more and more common fixture in the everyday person's home due to the exciting, spicy flavours and interesting ingredients. The problem is that not many people know how to cook this kind of food in a healthy way. So many of us rely on canned sauces for our Indian curries or Chinese stir fries - many of which are full of chemicals and additives. We also skip many of the traditional vegetables that are used in these dishes, preferring to use ones that are familiar to us. There's nothing wrong with this, of course, but we could be missing out on not only amazing flavors but heaps of brilliant nutrients too. My entire relationship with food was changed once I started shopping at the local Asian grocery store. It has been amazing and exciting. If you think that Asian food is unhealthy and should only be had as a treat, then get ready to think again with these healthy cooking tips.

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Authentic Indian curries

Curry is one of the most popular dishes in the whole world is curry. Although not known by that term in its homeland of India, there are still hundreds of different varieties that we westerners would all class as 'curry'. They differ so greatly depending on the region they come from. For example, the creamy Kerala cuisine varies greatly from the spicier Punjabi cuisine. In order to cook traditional, authentic Indian food, you must have authentic ingredients. Where we use oil or butter, Indian cuisine typically uses ghee. This is a kind of clarified butter high in vitamins A and E. If you are still concerned about the health factor of some of your Indian dishes, why not try simply cutting down on rice and naan? Many authentic Indian recipes are actually vegetarian, so bulk out your curries with chickpeas and lentils to save on carbs. Tandoori grilling is also a healthier way to cook your Indian cuisine and it tastes good too.

Breast Cancer Nutrition Awareness featuring GoMacro

October is breast cancer awareness month and I'd like to introduce you to Go Macro. GoMacro is a family-owned vegan food company that was started by a mother-daughter duo on their organic family farm. They have two different lines of products- MacroBars and Thrive. In honor of their co-founders breast cancer recovery, they have released a special “give-back bar” that donates 10% its proceeds to the Keep a Breast Foundation. I love this bar because it touches on some important nutritional concepts (antioxidants, fiber, plant-based). Learn more about the awesome Keep a Breast Foundation here. Let us get brought up to speed on some breast cancer stats:

According to Breastcancer.org, here are some recent statistics on breast cancer in the United States (source here): 

• In 2016, there are more than 2.8 million women with a history of breast cancer in the U.S. This includes women currently being treated and women who have finished treatment.
• About 85% of breast cancers occur in women who have no family history of breast cancer. These occur due to genetic mutations that happen as a result of the aging process and life in general, rather than inherited mutations.
• Besides skin cancer, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among American women. In 2016, it's estimated that just under 30% of newly diagnosed cancers in women will be breast cancers.
• About 1 in 8 U.S. women (about 12%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime.

Amelia, Breast Cancer Survivor & her daughter: Co-founders of GoMacro

Here’s the thing, no matter what illness or disease a person may become afflicted with in life, they can fight it better if they have been following a healthy lifestyle beforehand. Being an overweight woman is a risk factor for developing breast cancer, possibly because the more the fat cells grow, the more estrogen is produced from the fat cells. That production of excess estrogen can signal breast cell growth, which in turn increases the risk of developing breast cancer.

What can you do from a nutritional point of view?

A Vegan & Gluten-Free food that tastes good? Absolutely Yes!

One of the greatest things that I have learned about following a low-Fodmap lifestyle is the incredible amount of gluten-free foods that actually taste good because I have tried many GF foods that initially turned me off from the idea of even trying to follow a low-Fodmap plan but luckily, I have been able to try quite a few GF foods that seriously impressed my taste buds. I reached out to 88 Acres because I was searching for something that I could keep on hand when I am commuting around, shuffling the kids from one place to another, or simply to satisfy my cravings without the panic of reading every food label in the convenience stores. I was able to sample the Triple Berry, Apple & Ginger, and my personal favorite…the chocolate and sea salt bars.

Here is the deal with these: These are handcrafted by people who have first hand experience with the dangers of food allergens. Their bakery is free of peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, soy, dairy, sesame, eggs, fish, and shellfish. These are vegan, gluten-free, and non-GMO project verified. And, I also was impressed that they mention that their bakery is latex-free. Many of you reading might look at the list of things that are not included in their foods and think “that sounds way too healthy, it must not be that good.” FALSE! Not only are the bars really good, but also how many times have you been able to look at food you have purchased and identify the ingredients listed on the label while you are actually eating it? I took the picture of my chocolate and sea salt bar and did not use a filter so you can see that these are the real deal.

No Filter. Look at the goodness!

Raisin French Toast Protein Breakfast Bakes

I had never heard of a french toast flavored protein powder until I had the opportunity to try some of the Primera French Toast Protein Powder and I am sure glad I did! First of all, this line of protein powder is different because it is a hydrolyzed protein powder which uses an egg white & whey blend (hydrolyzed: this means it is fast digesting). Secondly, I am around a lot of researchers who are doing work with egg protein and its amazing impact on satiation (feeling full) which could be a great strategy for weight management, but I have also learned that the whey & egg protein blend is also looking very promising in the research world- in respect to fat tissue breakdown and muscle protein synthesis. Lastly, but certainly not least, was the joyful smell of these baking in the oven. It was unbelievably delightful. My husband ate these this morning for breakfast and loved them.

Budget-friendly Tips for Smart & Healthy Meal Planning

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I really think that one of the best ways to keep your menu in check with your health goals is to make a shopping list before you head to the grocery store. Usually on Sunday mornings, my husband and I will sit down together (and solicit input from the kids) to plan our meals for the week before we buy our groceries. We know that on a couple of the evenings, time is hectic due to soccer practice and other activities and these are the nights when we plan to utilize the crockpot, have a freezer meal thawed and ready to be cooked, or we plan to grab a meal out. This really saves us time figuring out what to make for dinner at the last minute and gives us the opportunity to budget our meals based on what is on sale in the ad at our preferred grocery store.  Planning ahead really does reduce a lot of stress associated with last-minute meal decisions (which can often end up in a drive-thru line that costs more and is less nutritious than what could have been planned in advance).

Here are some budget-friendly tips for smart & healthy meal planning:

Health is Wealth Toolkit- Tracking Your Intake

One of the most useful tools for someone who is looking at making improvements to their current diet is to keep an accurate record of what they are actually eating. I can’t tell you how many times I have been tracking my diet and found that I was not getting enough Calcium, Vitamin A, and especially Potassium in my diet. I value variety in my diet and am always trying new recipes and dishes, but not everyone is like me. When working with clients who want to lose weight, 99.9% of the time they have already tried some type of calorie-restricting diet that has major deficiencies in important vitamins and minerals. There really is no reason for this! Granted, there are many, many factors that play into a person’s ability to lose weight but there are many nutrient-dense foods that one can incorporate into their diet that promote more than healthy weight loss. Nutrient-dense foods can prevent and treat many nutrition-related chronic diseases such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and so on. (Not familiar with the term nutrient-dense foods? Nutrient-dense foods are foods that have a lot of nutrients such as vitamins and minerals, but not a lot of calories. Think of fruits, vegetables, or complex carbohydrates like quinoa, oatmeal, and beans/lentils)

Easy Egg & Spinach Breakfast Bakes

When life starts getting really busy, I find that these egg & spinach bakes are a great way to kick off each morning with a delicious and nutritious boost to help me conquer the day. The GREATEST part about this recipe is that it cooks up in a batch so you can have them readily available to heat up for the rest of the week. And they're inexpensive to make!  Here are the INGREDIENTS:

Minestrone de la HonestRD

This is a delicious, low-calorie soup to make in your Crock Pot!  It makes 8-10 servings and is super tasty with a little garnish of shredded Romano cheese!  One cup of Minestrone de la HonestRD (without cheese) is 118 calories, 5.5 grams of protein, 18 grams of carbohydrate, 4 grams of fiber, and 3 grams of fat.  The perfect side dish to warm you up and accompany a nice salad or sandwich!

• 1 cup of diced red potatoes
• 1 cup of chopped carrots
• 32 ounces of beef broth
• 2 cans of diced tomatoes, undrained (14 1/2 ounces each)
• 1 cup of chopped cabbage
• 1 cup of sliced zucchini
• 1 cup of chopped onion
• 3/4 cup of fresh green beans
• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup of chopped celery
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 can of cannellini beans, rinsed & drained (15 ounces)

1.  Combine all of the ingredients, except for the cannellini beans, in the Crock Pot & mix well.  Cover and cook on LOW for 5 to 6 hours.
2.  Add the cannellini beans.  Cover & cook on LOW for 1 additional hour.
3.  Remove and discard the Bay Leaf.  Serve the soup with the shredded Romano cheese, if desired.

Honey Wafer Baking Company

Have you ever tried the honey wafers from the Honey Wafer Baking Company?  If not, then you are truly missing out on one delicious treat.  These treats are two very thin wafers that are sandwiched with a honey filling.  They are only 90 calories (and a pretty perfect serving for that 90 calories!) and are 100% natural, Kosher certified, and made in the United States of America since 1925.  The original wafers were also named "The Official Honey Wafer of the Chicago Cubs" in 2001, which in Chicago...says a whole lot about the taste and quality.  They are sooooo good!  I know they are an instant household favorite when my kids ask for them specifically for snack time.  They also come in a chocolate wafer, which is tasty too.  Right now, you can get free holiday shipping & I would suggest them as an excellent addition to any holiday party or event you are hosting or attending.  Besides being flavorful all by themselves, the wafers can also be used in recipes.  We liked them as an addition to a small bowl of ice cream, but they can also be used in a variety of other recipes: taffy apple wafers, Polish wafer cake, and caramel apple pizzas to name a few.  You can find Honey Wafer Baking Company on Facebook for updates and additional information.  Thank you Honey Wafer Baking Company for allowing me to try your tasty treats at no-cost.  All opinions are 100% my own & 100% positive!

Go Green Lunch Box Review & Giveaway

I have never been excited to show off a lunch box before I received my "Prepster" lunch box from Go Green Lunch Box !  It is the Burberry of lunchboxes!  These lunchboxes come with a 5-compartment container that, after several shakes, does not leak.  This container allows for adequate portion control, which is essential for optimal nutrition.  It also contains a stainless steel water bottle & the lunch box is BPA-free.

 

 There are so many amazing options available for patterns!  I had so many compliments on the "Prepster" pattern.  It is a true fit for a lady who enjoys fashion.

The lunchboxes come with a Stainless Steel water bottle, but as you can see, other options can fit in the lunchbox as well!

 

 

The lunchboxes also come with a white dry-erase board, so you can leave messages for your kids, other loved ones, or for yourself.

This lunchbox is Eco-friendly & is a true money saver.  Making a lunch is a lot less expensive than eating out and it also enables you to ensure the choices are good for you & your loved ones.  Thank you so much to Go Green Lunch Box for allowing me to review your trendy & environmentally friendly lunchbox at no cost.  All opinions are 100% my own & thankfully, YOU have a chance to win one of these for yourself!!

Honest Portion Control

I often catch my husband encouraging my 10-year-old daughter to order off of the adult menu if we go out to eat.  I know his intentions are good; he wants her to have more options and to eat what she wants when we do decide to splurge on a meal out, but the whole kids menu vs. adult meal situation irritates me.  Not only does it cost more to eat an adult meal, but the portions are usually 2-3 or even 4 times the amount of food that one person should be eating at a meal.  And when you are watching your pennies or if you were raised in a "clean your plate" environment, it can be a very emotional experience to change your perspective and habits when dining out.

Let me put this into perspective for you.  A McDonald's Happy Meal with a cheeseburger, fries, and Sprite is:  640 calories, 24 grams of fat, 940 mg of salt, and 90 grams of carbohydrates.  An adult Double Quarter Pounder with cheese, medium fries, and medium Coke:  1, 330 calories, 61 grams of fat, 1, 665 mg of salt, and 146 grams of carbohydrate.  http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/ The Happy Meal provides more than enough calories, salt, fat, and carbohydrates in a meal that there is no, I mean NO reason why anyone needs to order off of the adult meal at McDonald's.

This portion distortion does not just apply to fast foods and restaurant foods.  Fruits and vegetables are being manufactured to be a "beautiful, perfect product" (noo!).  In return, we are often provided options in grocery stores that give us twice the serving as well. 

Now, while you might argue the benefits of having more fruit for your dollar, I will honestly say that if you are not aware of the actual portion/serving sizes of the foods you are eating then you could easily be overeating, calculating your carbohydrates incorrectly (for diabetic patients), or over-buying at the grocery store as well.  Here is a good link for Small Steps, including some tips on Portion Control:  http://www.smallstep.gov/