Fiber

 When I was at the doctor's a few weeks ago, I picked up a booklet that I found very interesting.  It was about fiber and how unless you actively strive to reaching your daily requirements, it won't happen.

The National Cancer Society recommends you consume 25-35 grams of fiber every day.  You know preventing cancer was a big motivation for me when I first started drinking green smoothies.

There was a whole page on how much fiber is in each food item.  I really liked studying this list, and I am now going to copy it for you.

Whole Wheat Bread    1 slice     2.11 grams

                Rye Bread  1 slice    1.72 grams

       White Bread    1 slice     .50 gram

            Oat Bran    1 oz.       4.06 grams

Shredded Wheat    1 oz.      2.64 grams  

   Corn Flakes      1 oz.         .45 grams  

Brown Rice   1/2 cup   5.27 grams

White Rice    1/2 cup    1.42 grams

  Spaghetti    2 oz.       2.56 grams

         Broccoli     1/2 cup    2.58 grams

Brussels Sprouts    1/2 cup   2.00 grams

               Corn    1/2 cup   3.03 grams

       Eggplant    1/2 cup   .96 grams

      Green Peas   1/2 cup   3.36 grams

          Lettuce    1/2 cup    .24 grams

          Potato    1/2 cup   2.97 grams

        Spinach    1/2 cup   2.07 grams

          Squash   1/2 cup    2.87 grams

         Tomato   1/2 cup   1.17 grams

       Zucchini    1/2 cup    1.26 grams

Green (canned)   1/2 cup    1.89 grams

          Kidney     1/2 cup    5.48 grams

             Lima     1/2 cup     4.25 grams

            Pinto      1/2 cup     5.93 grams

Apple (w/ peel)     1 med.    2.76 grams

          Apricots     1 cup       3.13 grams

             Banana     1 med.     2.19 grams

   Blackberries     1 cup      7.20 grams

Boysenberries     1 cup      7.20 grams

        Grapefruit     1 med.    3.61 grams

           Grapes    1 cup     1.12 grams

          Oranges    1 med.    3.14 grams

 Pear (w/ peel)   1 med.    4.32 grams

Prunes (canned)   1 cup    13.76 grams

   Raspberries     1 cup     7.50 grams

 Strawberries     1 cup     3.87 grams

  Watermelon    1 slice    1.93 grams

Are you brave enough to eat prunes?  The second place winner is the berries.

Try adding some to your morning breakfast. 

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

I found this picture along with the recipe on abeautifulmess.com (which by the way is a great website for ideas on beauty, recipes, crafts and more.)  As soon as I saw this picture I couldn't help myself.  I had to make them.

My mom used to make chocolate whoopie pies when I was little.  She'd make lots of them and freeze them. I've been tempted but never actually made them as a grown up because I didn't know what to do about the filling.  I don't use shortening in my kitchen.

Emma's recipe suggests marshmallow creme or your favorite frosting.  Well, my favorite is cream cheese frosting!  I doubled the recipe, so I tripled the frosting thinking about how much frosting it would take to make my whoopie pies as picturesque as these.  In the end, Henry said it was too much so I have some extra frosting in my refrigerator. 

Apple Salad

'Tis the season for apples!  Of course they are around all year, but I am most passionate about eating apples in the fall when they have just come off the tree.

I have recently found a recipe for a salad dressing that I love and goes amazing well with apples.

2/3 cup vinegar
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons chopped onion
1 teaspoon mustard
2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

Mix in blender.  Pour into a jar and refrigerate.  Keeps for 3 weeks.

Apple salads are so easy and so delicious.  Lettuce, apple, cheese of your choice and nuts or sunflower seeds, along with this dressing.

This recipe came from The Essential Mormon Cookbook by Julie Badger Jensen.   I have reduced the sugar by a third for you and me.  It's still plenty and has a great tang.

 I'll tell you another recipe from this book I really like, the Cornbread.  It's moist and sweet, and was so delicious the other night with my Tortilla Soup.

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk

Cream butter, sugar and eggs.  In a separate bowl blend all dry ingredients.  Combine creamed mixture, dry mixture and milk.  Blend.  Bake in a 8" square or round pan at 375 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.

Here I have cut the sugar by a fourth and changed some of the flour to whole wheat.  It has a nice texture.

I like cornbread, one - because its yummy, two - because it's filling for when I'm feeding a crowd, and three, because its easy.  I don't have to worry about any yeast rising.  Another advantage is if you have any leftovers, you can make cornbread croutons the next day.

Let the bread dry out by keeping it uncovered over night.  Cut into cubes and throw into a frying pan with olive oil and salt.  Gently toss until golden brown, then serve in your next salad!

Two Peas & Their Pod

My friend Tracy told me about a recipe she found on a website called twopeasandtheirpod.com so I went to check it out.

You know what its like when you go to a new restaurant and look at the menu for the first time?....when the restaurant offers fresh food in fun combinations?  Do you get giddy like I do?  That's how you're going to feel when you search through these recipes!

                                               So far I have tried Avacado Mac and Cheese

                                                        Chocolate Zucchini Brownies

                                                             Blueberry Corn Salad  

                                                Next I want to try the  Quinoa Cookies
I think they have a great variety of vegetarian meals and desserts.  See what you think.

Carne Asada

Our friends Ryan and Connie worked extremely hard to make our Lake Powell dinners delicious.

 One night we barbecued Carne Asada. Ryan had picked up the marinated beef at his local Mexican grocery market, I think it's flank steak. Once it has been cooked, I learned you have to be sure to slice the meat against the grain to insure a soft bite.  We served it with corn tortillas, beans, cheese, salsa, shredded cabbage and limes. Yum!

 Daniel liked it so much he decided to copy that same menu for his birthday celebration last week. When he went to get the meat at a similar shop in Provo, he discovered  fresh salsa, tortillas, and beans available! That made my job really simple.  You should consider this next time your entertaining.

Food coloring

In honor of my sister Kylee's birthday, I want to share something that is important to her.

 Kylee has taught me to check the ingredients of all food purchases, looking for partially hydrogenated  oil and high fructose corn syrup. I couldn't believe all the places these ingredients were lurking. Next Kylee is teaching me to think about food coloring. Again I surprised where I am finding them. Why avoid them?  They are chemicals, and natural is always better.

Here is a link that teaches you how to make your own food coloring, useful for when you are making frosting.  And if you would rather buy it, here is the Amazon page for India Tree Natural Decorating Colors.

Here is a link for when you want to shop for candy that has no artificial flavors, sweeteners, colors or preservatives.





If you are buying candy at the grocery store, consider Mamba.
They are colored with tumeric and paprika.      Or Hi-Chew, colored with grape seed.          

I know its a year away, but I am also going to include directions of how to naturally dye Easter eggs.  It's pretty impressive what Mother Nature is capable of.

Fresh Apple Cake

For my first years of marriage, I often went to the library to check out cookbooks.  I would search for recipes I thought sounded yummy and then make photocopies.  If I found myself making lots of copies in one book, then I realized it was a good one to buy for my collection.

One such book is called The Basic Gourmet Entertains by Kathleen and Dan Taggart.   This book contains a great variety of menus for different types of occasions.  Each menu has precise instructions giving the ideal timeline to insure a successful dinner party.

One recipe I find myself relying on over and over again is their Fresh Apple Cake.  It's "simply delicious, looks elegant at a sit down dinner and feels comfortable at a backyard barbecue".  I have made it with pears, peaches, apples of course and even strawberries.  It's thick, with a nice crust on the outside and moist inside, and you don't need frosting, you could even serve it without whipped cream.  What I am saying is, it's a cake you don't have to stress about.

Serves 12

2 sticks unsalted butter
2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Grated zest of 1 medium to large lemon
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 large, tart firm apple (about 1 pound),
peeled, cored, and cut into1/2-inch dice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter a 10-inch springform pan.  In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Add vanilla and grated lemon zest, and mix well.  Add 1 1/2 cups of the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Mix until just incorporated.  Add buttermilk, and stir well.  Add the remaining 1 1/2 cups flour and stir to blend.  Add diced apples and stir until blended.  Pour batter into prepared pan, spread it to sides of pan with a rubber spatula.  Batter will be thick.
Bake until cake is golden brown and toothpick or cake tester inserted in middle of cake comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes.  Let cool.
When cool, remove sides from pan.  Transfer cake to a serving platter.  Cake holds well, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap, for 3 days at room temperature.  it can be frozen, well wrapped, for up to 3 weeks.  Thaw completely at room temperature before serving.

The Weight of the Nation

"If you go with the flow in America, you will end up overweight or obese."  That's a quote from HBO's documentary The Weight of the Nation.  I know I am five pounds heavier now than I was before my last pregnancy, and that was seven pounds heavier than my target weight.   I have been stuck here for the last six months and I have found myself thinking "I look pretty good, maybe its okay if I don't lose any more."  But I know that is a slippery slope.

This documentary is fascinating.  I have posted Part Four: Challenges, but I also really liked Part Three:  Children in Crisis.  You can find it on youtube.  One of the experts interviewed brought up the point that most people who quit smoking or drinking, quit cold turkey.  You can't quit eating!  Because we have to make difficult decisions over and over every day, we desperately need support from each other.  

  

Fruit Pizza

We were invited to a BBQ for Memorial Monday, and I offered to bring dessert.  I haven't made fruit pizza in years, but once I thought of doing it, I was sure it would be a winner in my boys' book.  I make it with sugar cookie dough, bake in a pizza pan and cover with cream cheese frosting and fresh fruit.  But like I said, my boys weren't familiar with this treat, so when I mentioned it, they imagined the dessert pizzas at Malawi Pizza in the Provo Riverwoods.  Then I thought, okay I'll give it a try.  We'll have a fruit pizza taste testing night.

I found a sweet dough recipe that kneaded 4 teaspoons of cinnamon and 2 tablespoons of sugar into the basic pizza dough recipe.  Next, I used frozen berries and mixed with sugar, cornstarch, and water, just as if I was making a filling for a strawberry tart.  The dough recipe made enough for two pizzas, so the experiment continued further.  One would be baked an empty shell, the filling topped on after the oven.  The other was baked with the filling and came out looking like a pie.   I had a little left over cream cheese frosting and placed a dollop right in the center on top of the berries.

What were the results?  The cookie pizza was too pretty to resist, it was devoured in  half an hour.  The other two pizzas sat there feeling rejected.  But I made sure I tasted both, just for verification purposes.  I much preferred the baked berry pizza, and made the boys try it the next morning for breakfast.  Two out of three said they preferred the baked berry over the cookie, while the one pleaded his case stating he had gone back for several slices of the cookie.  

Next time, my only change will be to add an extra cinnamon/sugar mixture to the crust edges - for taste and for more attractiveness.  Also the frosting was a great addition, so I'd use more.

Gwyneth's Cookbook

I have always been a big fan of Gwyneth Paltrow's, way back when she was dating Brad Pitt, and she's just getting better with age.  Of course beautiful people are fun to study, their hair, their fashion; but she can sing, she has children, she likes cooking!  Needless to say, I was very excited to receive her cookbook as one of my Christmas presents last year. 

I took the book up with me on a snowy weekend to Bear Lake in January, and devoured it while the rest of my family learned how to ski.  As I read the opening pages I found myself asking, "Am I really going to pull out a pen and highlight a cookbook?  Yes!  This is good stuff.  Philosophy to live by."

Before I share a few quotes, let me just say I feel that this book, My Father's Daughter, is an amazing way for Gwyneth to record her history.  How sweet and precious - to write while her memories are still vivid for herself, and preserve them for her posterity, in combination with significant recipes.  For as is it written in her introduction by Mario Batali "family's historic events, major celebrations and even simple holidays have always been punctuated not only by food but by specific dishes."

Gwyneth speaks of discovering a balance in the food she eats and serves, striving to offer her children the purest foods, yet recognizing all her favorite food memories with her Dad were about "fun and deliciousness and togetherness".   She also shares her realization that in this busy world, she can't take advantage of every opportunity in life, and "my family will always be where I strive most for success.  Making a home, cooking with love, and bringing everyone together are my tangible ways of achieving that kind of success."

Did you know?

I try to make my own ranch dressing and dips when I can because I want to avoid feeding my family MSG. But I just discovered that when I am in a hurry, Litehouse Dressing is a great option. Located in the refrigerated section of the produce department, this is the only ranch I have found without the nasty chemical added in.

In the Kitchen

Over the holidays I tried some new recipes. A Triple Chocolate Trifle which included a layer of white chocolate peppermint mousse for Christmas Eve, and an Eggnog Cheesecake for New Year's Eve! Both were found in my archive of magazine clippings. After a magazine has been enjoyed, I rip it apart. I have one accordion file folder for recipes and another for home decorating, gardening, crafts, etc.

I have, with some sadness, decided to let all my magazine subscriptions run out. The idea is I will finally have time to search my own collection for ideas, because usually all I have time to do is organize the new additions before another issue comes along.

I am looking forward to trying two new recipes for this coming Sunday dinner. Sesame Root Beer Braised Short Ribs served with sweet potatoes and my trusty Chinese Coleslaw. The other I just found in Martha Stewart's most recent February issue, Ile Flottante, which is described as a floating island, similar to meringues. I am hopeful.

A kid in a candy shop

I have recently ventured into my local health food store, looking for flax oil. I never went in before because the smell of herbs & such seemed so strange. But going in with a shopping list helped me get over my discomfort and realize there are fun things to discover there!

I love the bulk foods section. Each time I go now the boys pick out something new they want to try...wild rice, quinoa, granola, special flours...

Last time we went shopping the boys discovered a machine. You pull the level and peanuts turn into peanut butter. It was so exciting!

Lemons & Limes

I have been throwing a fourth of a lemon into the blender for each on my green smoothies. It fights skin cancer! But Sarah asked me if limes have the same benefit, so I did some research. Apparently lemons and limes are amazing! And we should find ways to add them to our every day lives.

Lemons are an anti-bacterial. They fight infection, prevent colds, reduce fever, and aide digestion. Lemons calm anxieties, relieve asthma symptoms; they are useful in maintaining healthy teeth and bones, and strengthen blood vessels, therefore useful for high blood pressure. Pretty impressive.

The benefits of limes are quite similar because both are high in Vitamin C and potassium. I did read that limes help burn fat. One website suggested drinking one glass of warm water with one lime's juice. They said after one week on drinking two glasses a day you should see some results. Limes also reduce cholesterol and fight cancer of the mouth, skin, stomach, colon, lung and breast. So the answer is "yes."

Good for the Earth

I have recently discovered Bear River Valley Cereals at my grocery store. A Utah company producing breakfast with natural sugars and 75% less packaging than the regular cereal box. I am excited to support this company in their efforts to make the world a healthier, cleaner place.

The Green Smoothie Girl

I recently read about a woman named Robyn Openshaw, who religiously drinks a quart of green smoothies every day. The health benefits are so phenomenal for her and her family, that she has made it her mission to educate as many people as she can about this easy way of packing in your daily quota of fruit and vegetables.

I have since visited her website greensmoothiegirl.com, as well as purchased her book from Borders. I am now in the process of devouring the contents.

I have always considered myself one who makes healthy food choices, yet I am still often far from consuming the ideal. Not to mention all the cooked vegetables have lost their digestive enzymes and all the raw vegetables are smothered in dressings or dip. This smoothie idea is ingenious and I am so excited about getting started.

I am making my shopping list of ingredients right now.