Welcome, Fellow Health Warriors! Today's show is packed with valuable information about inflammation. Our focus is on chronic inflammation, how it impacts our health, and how to prevent and reverse it through diet. You'll learn what chronic inflammation is and why it plays a major role in many diseases. Join us to learn about the anti-inflammatory diet and how you can follow it to better health! Ginger Hultin is a nationally-recognized registered dietitian and health writer. She owns the Seattle-based virtual nutrition practices Champagne Nutrition and Seattle Cancer Nutritionists, where she helps clients solve complex mysteries with an integrative approach. She specializes in vegetarian diets, oncology nutrition, supplements, and nutrigenomics (the scientific study of the interaction of genes in disease treatment and prevention). Ginger currently serves as adjunct clinical faculty at the Bastyr Center for Natural Health, where she teaches master's level nutrition students. She authored the Eat to Beat Disease Cookbook and the Anti-Inflammatory Diet Meal Prep book. 

Show Highlights:

• Ginger's life in Seattle and why she is passionate about clinical and integrative nutrition and solving complex health mysteries
• The nitty-gritty truth about chronic inflammation, its causes, and why it can make you feel tired and fatigued over time
• How to recognize chronic inflammation in your body
• Common causes of chronic inflammation: cigarette smoke exposure, lack of physical activity, lack of sleep, excess stress, etc.
• How the immune system can turn against you because of chronic inflammation
• Categories of foods that cause chronic inflammation: excessive consumption of alcohol, added sugar, saturated fats, trans fats, and highly-processed foods
• Anti-inflammatory food superstars: fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, plant-based proteins, whole grains, herbs, spices, tea, and cocoa (Aim to eat more of these!)
• Why meal prep can be a lifesaver for those with chronic inflammation
• Ginger's meal prep secrets: make a list, plan the week, and make use of grocery delivery/pickup as a timesaving tool
• How Ginger sets the record straight regarding gluten and dairy in an anti-inflammatory diet (Hint: Research shows that they have nutritional benefits and are anti-inflammatory.)
• Ginger's research-based opinions on controversial foods, like nightshade vegetables, coconut oil, and turmeric in the anti-inflammatory diet
• Why cinnamon, ginger, and garlic are superfoods in the inflammatory diet
• How Ginger's book is structured with information about inflammation and nutrition, meal prep tips and sample plans, and helpful recipes 
• How you can increase the nutritional benefit by making your own sauces, marinades, dressings, and vinaigrettes
• Ginger's favorite recipe in the book, Lasagna Roll-ups, which is vegetarian and plant-based
• Why the anti-inflammatory diet could help you live longer and enjoy a healthy life
• How Ginger is focusing on better sleep and stress management moving into her 40s
• Why focusing on familiar foods with a healthier twist is a good start to a better diet
• Where tofu, tempeh, and edamame fit into the anti-inflammatory diet
• Ginger's recipe for with Sheet Pan Tofu and Vegetables with Simple Ginger Teriyaki Sauce
• A few more of Ginger's favorite recipes from her book, like Flourless Banana Pancakes and Vegetable Fried Cauliflower Rice 
• Ginger's final tips on looking at science-based research and evidence about nutrition and the anti-inflammatory diet

Resources:

Ginger's website: Champagne Nutrition

Anti-Inflammatory Diet Meal Prep

Ginger on Instagram

Ginger on Facebook

Ginger on Twitter

Welcome, Health Warriors! Today's episode is dedicated to one of my favorite anti-aging ingredients: kale. Not to be forgotten are some other leafy greens that are good for us, like collards and bok choy. We will talk about the health benefits of kale, the different varieties available at the supermarket, all about kale chips, and a new recipe for Kale and Pine Nut Pesto that I created specifically for this show. Kale has been the "veggie of the moment" for a while now, and it's super nutritious and versatile. It can be added to soups, salads, and smoothies. Join me for a closer look at this superfood!  

Show Highlights:

 

• A little info about kale, a cruciferous vegetable related to cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, collard greens, arugula, bok choy, radishes, turnips, watercress, and wasabi
• The types of kale:
• • Curly kale can be added to salads, soups, and smoothies.
  • Dinosaur or Tuscan kale, Italian kale also called Lacinato kale, is distinguished by long, slender, blue-green leaves that are not curly but puckered like savoy cabbage.
  • Red Russian or Ragged Jack kale is an heirloom kale that looks like overgrown oak leaves and ranges in color from blue-green to purple-red; it has a sweeter flavor. 
  • Baby kale is the term for the young, immature leaves of the kale plant that are great for any use. 
• Superfood nutrition and antioxidants in kale: Kale is packed with vitamin K, C, beta carotene, calcium, folate, and fiber.
• Kale is packed with antioxidants like beta carotene, vitamin C, flavonoids, and polyphenols, which help to slow the aging process and help reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, and neurodegenerative disorders.
• How kale is one of the best sources of compounds that help protect our eyes against damage and degenerative diseases
• Facts: only one in ten people in the US eats the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables each day!
• Why we shouldn't pay too much attention to the recent Environmental Working Group's Dirty Dozen List of produce items with dangerous levels of pesticide residue (You would have to eat over 18,000 servings of kale daily to put your body at risk!)
• Ideas to add more kale to your everyday diet for dinner, breakfast, sides, and salads
• My favorite smoothie recipe includes orange juice, baby kale, Greek yogurt, fresh mint leaves, English cucumber, mango chunks, banana, and honey.
• The scoop on kale chips and my best tips for getting them not to be soggy
• My recipe for Kale and Pine Nut Pesto: baby kale leaves, toasted pine nuts, olive oil, mint leaves, Parmesan cheese, garlic, lemon juice, dijon mustard, honey, salt and pepper
• Check out the Recipe Roundup on the blog with recipes for Wild Rice and Kale Salad; Kale and Sausage Gnocchi Bake; Creamy Chicken, Kale, and Rice Mushroom Soup;  and Caesar Salad with Kale and Chicken

Resources:

 

Helpful links mentioned in this episode:

Cruciferous vegetables and cancer:      https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/diet/cruciferous-vegetables-fact-sheet#what-are-cruciferous-vegetables

 Don't be afraid of the Dirty Dozen: https://fruitsandveggies.org/expert-advice/should-i-be-afraid-of-the-dirty-dozen/

Safe Produce Calculator: https://www.safefruitsandveggies.com/calculate/

 

Liz's Links: 

My website: www.lizshealthytable.com  

My email: liz@lizshealthytable.com 

 

 

 

 

 

On this week's show, back by popular demand, is my guest from Show 88, Mona Dolgov. You'll be inspired for the upcoming holidays with great ideas from Mona. Join us to learn more!

Mona Dolgov is a nutritionist, cookbook author, and publisher with a lifelong passion for creating kitchen comfort and simple, healthy habits through her delicious recipes. Her new cookbook, Satisfy, is about to hit bookstores and your favorite online retailers, including Amazon, and she's here today to help us "health-ify" the holidays. We have a lot in store for you! You'll learn how to health-ify gravy, sweet potato casserole, appetizers, and a peanut butter sauce to die for. You'll definitely want to try her ideas for this Thanksgiving. We also have desserts: mini-cheesecakes and personal pumpkin pies. You'll learn how to make the best brussels sprouts ever in the air fryer.

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Updates in Mona's world: her new cookbook is out November 9, cooking classes are ongoing, and she's working on a new cookbook for next summer; Mona loves her city apartment life in the Boston seaport area
• Mona's philosophy to health-ify the holidays by lightening up dishes
• Mona's Butternut Squash Soup, made with roasted butternut squash and sauteed apples and onions; the mixture is blended with broth and spices that can be customized with different flavor profiles
• How Mona and LIz will team up for cooking classes on Nov. 16th and 18th on appetizers and side dishes
• Their favorite appetizers include Liz's Roasted Carrot Hummus, Mona's Peanut Sauce (made with peanut butter, coconut aminos, sesame oil, ginger, rice vinegar, and honey), Asparagus Wrapped in Turkey Bacon, and Cauliflower Wings
• How Mona's Peanut Sauce with fresh veggies leaves everyone wanting more
• Liz's funny story about "double-dipping"
• Mona's chapter in the cookbook called "Snack-ertaining," which features her Buffalo Cauliflower Wings
• How the air fryer has become Mona's best friend and a favorite time-saving tool for veggies and protein
• Check out the Phillips Premium XXL Airfryer giveaway in our Resources section, and use the 20% discount code "Mona20" to order yours!
• Liz's favorite side dishes: Sweet Potato Casserole with orange juice, zest, cinnamon, and ginger; Brussels Sprout Gratin
• Why Mona makes a "Mona Salad" for many gatherings; it's made with leafy dark greens, roasted squash and zucchini, cucumbers, pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate arils; her dressing is olive oil, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, maple syrup, canned pumpkin, and her spice blend of oregano, basil, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper
• How Mona uses the air fryer for the best brussels sprouts ever: after cutting them in half, she sprays them with olive oil and sprinkles with salt and pepper; after 12 minutes, she adds minced garlic and cooks for three more minutes; she adds apples, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and a balsamic glaze at the end
• Why the key to lighter desserts is to make them in bite-sizes
• Mona's crustless mini-cheesecakes: they are made with orange zest, sugar, and reduced-fat cream cheese and drizzled with melted dark chocolate and topped with an orange section
• Mona's upside-down individual pumpkin pies: they are made with pumpkin, eggs, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, and a pinch of salt; after being baked in ramekins, she tops them with a sprinkle of pumpkin seeds, pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon
• Final words from Mona: "Don't stress about the holidays. Have fun. Be mindful. Focus on the traditions and bring your family in to help."

 

Resources:

 

Sign up for our Health-ify the Holidays virtual cook-along. We'll be making appetizers on November 16th at 6 pm ET and sensational side dishes on November 18th at 6 pm ET. The cost for both classes is $69.00 (cost for single classes is $39). You can sign up on Mona's website. We hope to see you there. 

 

GIVEAWAY: We have the most epic giveaway EVER going on until Monday, November 22nd! One winner will receive a Philips Premium XXL Airfryer with Fat Removal Technology. (Retail value: $299.95). Our second winner will receive a copy of Mona's new cookbook, SATISFY: Delicious, Healthy, and Full-Filling Meals for 500 Calories or Less! To enter for a chance to win one of these two prizes, post a comment in the comments section below and tell us about your favorite holiday recipe and/or why you want to win the air fryer or Mona's cookbook. This is a U.S. giveaway only. Good luck!

 

Find Mona online:

Instagram

Website 

Cookbook on Amazon (official release date is Nov. 9th, but you can pre-order now)

Facebook

 

Find Liz Weiss:

Author, Color, Cook, Eat! coloring book series

Website: Liz's Healthy Table

Listen to my Podcast

Read my Blog

On average, parents serve up an estimated 28,000 meals and snacks during their child's lifetime. That's one BIG reason it's important to get this whole feeding thing right! My podcast guest this week is Jill Castle, MS, RDN an expert on feeding styles and child nutrition. While she says good nutrition is a key component to raising healthy kids, Jill believes the "how to" of mealtime is just as critical. Tune in to find out why the Authoritative style of family feeding is the gold standard.

Jill is the host of The Nourished Child, which you can find on iTunes and other popular podcast sites. She is the author of Eat Like a Champion and co-author of Fearless Feeding. Her four children are now teens and young adults, and like me (and many of your, I'm sure), she has faced plenty of mealtime challenges. Her own experiences fueled Jill's passion to teach parents about the do's and don'ts of feeding kids.

Tune in to hear about the four most common styles of feeding--Authoritarian, Permissive, Neglectful, Authoritative--identify your style, and discover best practices for feeding families. Are you a clean-your-plate parent? Is your kitchen open 24/7? Or do you practice a "love with limits" style? You won't want to miss this show because some styles can actual sabotage a child's health over time.  

More in this episode: 

• Jill's go-to family recipes -- homemade meatballs and spaghetti sauce; beef in a Crockpot; grilled meats.
• The importance of your family feeding style and why parents would be better served if they learned this skill before they had kids!
• Everything you need to know about the four feeding styles.
• Authoritarian feeding is the "old school" style where kids are told to clean their plates.
• The common pitfalls of the Permissive style where the kitchen is open 24/7 and kids can eat whatever they want and whenever they want.
• A Neglectful feeding style can lead to insecurity and overeating.
• Why an Authoritative style is the gold standard feeding style. Jill calls it "Love with Limits."
• Think about the child you have in front of you and make decisions based on their temperament.
• Balanced eating is always the key.
• Jill's favorite cookbooks and celebrity chefs.

Links and Resources 

Jill's blog post: What's your feeding style?

https://jillcastle.com/childhood-nutrition/whats-your-feeding-style/

What's Your Feeding Style? Click here for the free printable: 

file:///Users/lizweiss/Downloads/getPart%20(6).pdf

The Nourished Child Blog: www.jillcastle.com/blog

Podcast: www.jillcastle.com/podcast

Website: www.jillcastle.com

Books: Fearless Feeding and Eat Like a Champion both on Amazon

Several other ebooks on Jill's website here: https://jillcastle.com/books-authored-by-jill-castle/

Jill's TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFpHZQq0qDQ

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pediRD

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/i.am.pedird/

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/thenourishedchild/ 

 

If you're hungry for ways to stretch your food dollars at the supermarket, you're in luck. On today's podcast, you'll be eating well on just $4.00 a day. Why $4.00? That's the amount provided by SNAP, the USDA's food stamps program and the inspiration behind Good And Cheap, written by Leanne Brown. From large families and seniors to college students, people across the country face food insecurity every day. Whether you want to save pennies on your weekly grocery bill or cut your food budget in a big way, my guest, Leanne Brown, makes saving money at the grocery store doable, delicious, and nutritious.

Leanne is a big proponent of cooking from scratch using real, wholesome, unprocessed foods. She says eating on a budget doesn't mean you have to live on ramen noodles. The recipes in her book are inventive, creative, and mostly plant based, because meat is expensive. Good and Cheap is available for purchase, or you can head to Leanne's website and download a copy (English or Spanish) for free. And if you do purchase a copy, a second copy will be donated to someone in need.

Read on for Leanne's recipes for Brussels Sprouts Hash and Eggs and Cauliflower Cheese ... and to enter to win a copy of Good and Cheap. 

I'm giving away a copy of Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4/Day by Leanne Brown (Workman, 2015)

To enter to win a copy, leave a comment at the end of this post telling me about your family's favorite budget meal and/or your best tip for saving money at the supermarket. Or tell me why you'd love to win this book. (U.S. entries only, please). Giveaway ends December 27th at noon Eastern, and I'll pick the winner at random. 

Show Highlights:

• The whole story behind why Leanne decided to write Good and Cheap.
• The Good and Cheap Kickstarter story.
• How Leanne blends quality food with a strict food budget.
• Eat less meat, increase your vegetable consumption, and buy eggs.
• How you can repurpose wilted vegetables in recipes like crustless quiche.
• Ideas for using up leftover fish, including fish tacos or a seafood omelet.
• Leanne's recipe for Brussels Sprouts Hash and Eggs.
• Saving money by meal planning, getting organized, freezer cooking, and cooking from scratch.
• Download my 7-Day Meal Planner for FREE!
• Take advantage of oatmeal. It's only as boring as your imagination.
• Leann's recipe for Cauliflower Cheese.
• My recipe for Corny Salmon Cakes.
• Leanne's favorite recipe in the book: Chana Masala.
• Leanne's favorite cookbook that changed her life.

Resources

Get Your Copy of Good And Cheap: https://cookbooks.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf

7-Day Meal Planner:

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/7daymealplanner/

Tips For Saving at the Supermarket: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eatgoodandcheap/

Twitter: @leelb

Instagram: @leanneebrown

Leanne's Website

 

 

Today, on the Liz's Healthy Table podcast, we're talking about pulses–dry beans and peas, lentils and chickpeas, soybeans and peanuts. I know. I know. This is the show you've all been waiting for. Right? Right! Pulses are versatile and yes, they can also be pretty exotic. They're nutritious and KIDS LOVE THEM. At least that's been my experience and the experience of my guest, cookbook author and mom, Jenny Chandler.

Jenny Chandler is a mom, a cooking instructor, author of four cookbooks including The Better Bean Cook Book and Great Food for Kids, and my go-to expert on pulses. In 2016, she served as the International Year of Pulses Special Ambassador for Europe, which may sound  fancy, but Jenny is one of the most down-to-earth chefs I've ever met. She's from the UK, and we became fast friends last year when we met at a nutrition conference in Vienna. She was there to talk about, you guessed it, pulses.

On the show, we offer a primer on cooking with pulses, explain why they're sustainable and nutritious, and we share two recipes from Great Food for Kids for Super-Speedy Bean and Tuna Salad and Indian Lentil and Tomato Dal. Jenny also talks about getting your kids into the kitchen to cook with you and ultimately, on their own.

You can read the full show notes and access all the resources at www.lizshealthytable.com.

A few weeks ago, I traveled to Chicago for the Food & Nutrition Conference and Expo, fondly known as FNCE. In addition to attending scientific sessions and hearing from thought leaders like CNN's Sanjay Gupta, Kimbal Musk, co-founder of  The Kitchen, and Dayle Hayes, MS, RDN from School Meals that Rock, I wandered through the Expo hall tracking innovative new food products and exciting nutrition trends. On this week's show, trends tracker and fellow dietitian, Janet Helm, MS, RDN joins me to dish about her favorite food finds, my top picks, and mouthwatering innovations making their way to a supermarket near you.

Janet's blog is called Nutrition Unplugged, and she's my go-to resource for food trend news. I always love hearing about her insights at FNCE, which is why I invited her to chat with me on today's show. Overall, these were the biggest themes we noticed at the show:

> What's Old is New Again: New food trends are fun to track, but sometimes those tried-and-true favorites make a comeback. Cottage cheese anyone?
> The Power of Probiotics: With so much buzz about the health benefits of good bacteria, it was no surprise probiotic foods were everywhere.
> Plant-based Milks: From almond and peanut milks to milks made with pea protein, non-dairy milks were a big hit at the Expo.
> Plant-based Diets: Beans and lentils are having a moment!
> Allergy-free Foods: Gluten-free was all the rage for the past few years, and now we're seeing lots of products free from the top 8 allergens.

Show Highlights:

• Janet shares her personal history and what she finds so interesting about food trends.
• Plant-based foods are the trend! Learn ways to eat less meat without giving up your favorite flavors.
• Everyone is nuts about nuts, even with the rise of allergies.
• Why natural food producers are now coming to FNCE.
• Our favorite healthy convenience foods and snacks.
• The pros and cons of home food delivery services.
• Probiotics are everywhere. Healthy guts rejoice!
• Bigger companies and mainstream food producers are responding to consumer demand for clean labels.
• Smaller brands are turning to Amazon to get their products to the world.
• Old-school foods are getting a new look and feel.
• Sorghum is on the rise, and quinoa is here to stay.
• Focus on the farmers, the inspired Ocean Spray cranberry bog, and technology that allows food to tell its story.

Ways to Connect with Janet Online

https://www.nutritionunplugged.com/

Janet Helm on Twitter: https://twitter.com/JanetHelm

Janet Helm on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nutritionunplugged/

Resources discussed: 

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: http://www.eatright.org/

FNCE: http://eatrightfnce.org/

Kimbal Musk: http://www.thekitchen.com/

The Kitchen Community: https://thekitchencommunity.org/

Muuna Cottage Cheese: http://muuna.com/

Campbell's Well Yes! Soups: https://www.campbells.com/well-yes/soups/

Farmhouse Culture: https://www.farmhouseculture.com/

Lifeway Kefir Cups: http://lifewaykefir.com/family/kefir-cups-cheese/

Nancy's Kefir: https://nancysyogurt.com/products/organic-kefir/

GoodBelly Probiotics: http://goodbelly.com/

Bolthouse Farms plant-based milks: https://www.bolthouse.com/

Veggemo: https://veggemo.com/whats-veggemo/

Cybele's: http://cybelesfreetoeat.com/

Cali'flour FOODS: https://www.califlourfoods.com/

Wondergrain: http://www.wondergrain.com/products/

NOW Foods Q Cups: https://www.nowfoods.com/q-cups

Biena Chickpea Snacks: https://bienafoods.com/

P-nuff Crunch: http://pnuff.com/

Yumbutter: http://yumbutter.com/

Elmhurst: http://www.elmhurst1925.com/

Bizzy Bee: https://onafoods.com/collections/all

Daily Harvest: https://www.daily-harvest.com/

Rachel Paul's Healthy Bars: https://www.rachelpaulsfood.com/

V8 Green Juice: https://www.campbells.com/v8/v8-veggie-blends/blends-healthy-greens/

Wasa Crackers: http://www.wasa-usa.com/

Quaker Oats: http://www.quakeroats.com/product/hot-cereals/Instant-Oatmeal-Cups.aspx

 

Adding good nutrition to your family's table starts with flavor. After all, if your food doesn't taste great, no matter how healthy it may be, no one will eat it. That's why I like to shake things up with my recipes by turning to interesting cuisines and countries from around the world, including Mexico. Avocados, beans, chicken, eggs, mangos, and chile peppers (some are surprisingly mild!) can be found front and center in Mexican kitchens, and each brings a world of possibilities to the table. Joining me on this week's show to demystify Mexican cooking and share some of her family's favorite recipes is Pati Jinich. She's a cookbook author, PBS cooking show host, and the mother of three boys. I hope you'll tune in for a taste and travel adventure Pati.

Pati Jinich is the host of Pati's Mexican Table on PBS. Each season she explores the culture and cuisine of a different region of Mexico and then turns those culinary experiences into recipes home cooks everywhere can make for their families. Here in the U.S., when we think about Mexican food, tacos and tortillas come to mind, but there is so much more to this diverse and beautiful cuisine as you'll learn after hearing Pati's story.

On the podcast, Pati and I talk about the foods from her childhood in Mexico and how her experiences shaped how she feeds her family today. She shares her favorite guacamole recipe, and we talk about two recipes that I made from newest cookbook, Mexican Today: Meatballs in Guajillo Sauce with Zucchini and Asparagus, Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Enchiladas with Pine Nut Mole Sauce. Did you know there are hundreds of ways to make mole sauce? Me neither!

Show Highlights:

• Pati shares how she balanced her Mexican heritage and foodways while raising her sons in the U.S.
• Tips for drawing your teens back to the table with delicious food.
• How I met Pati on Nantucket this past summer! She's such a delight.
• Defining the fascinating and wondrous cuisine of Mexican.
• Pat's recipe for Mexican mac and cheese and her family's favorite guacamole.
• How her TV show, Pati's Mexican Table, explores the rich history and cuisine from different regions in Mexico.
• Mixing European flavors from Patty's immigrant grandparents with the traditional spices and flavors of Mexico.
• How her family adds a Mexican twist to traditional matzo ball soup.
• Substitutes for cilantro (for all you cilantro haters out there).
• Pat's recipe for Asparagus and Mushroom-stuffed Enchiladas with Mole Sauce.
• How it's easier today to find the chiles and ingredients you need to make authentic Mexican food at home.
• Pati gives us an update on Mexico after the earthquakes.
• How Mexican food can be flavorful and healthy.

 

Links:

My email: liz@lizshealthytable.com

Connect with Pati:

Get Pati's Book: Mexican Today: New and Rediscovered Recipes for Contemporary Kitchens 

Pati on Twitter

Pati on Facebook

You can read the full show notes at www.lizshealthytable.com.

As you might know, I've been a little obsessed with Kombucha lately. Kombucha is a lightly fermented tea that's a little fruity, a little fizzy, and good for your gut to boot! The power comes from the biological process of fermentation. Fermented foods are often the unsung heroes of the culinary world. Practical and nutrient-rich foods like pickled vegetables, kombucha, and sauerkraut have a unique range of benefits all their own. Today, I'm talking with Sandor Katz, the King of Fermentation himself about why we should be excited about eating fermented food! 

 

It might be surprising to you to find out that the superpowers of fermented foods do not come from the foods themselves. Instead, the cultures of good bacteria and yeast are the heroes. These probiotic foods can lead the way to a healthier gut and more balanced nutrition. Would you like to know how to harness the power of fermentation to feed your family? Sandor and I talk about all the wonderful flavors and sensations that adding foods like pickles and yogurt can bring into your kitchen. Sandor will also share his favorite ways to enjoy fermented vegetables, and I decided to take the plunge and try my hand and making sauerkraut. I hope you enjoy this fascinating conversation about the microscopic heroes hiding in unexpected places. It only takes a little time and know-how for them to spring into action! Let's dive into fermentation today.  

 

More to learn in this episode: 

• Sandor shares his unlikely journey to become the King of Fermentation.
• What exactly happens during the pickling and fermenting process. 
• Your shopping list of fermented foods. 
• The health benefits of consuming Good Bacteria. 
• How much fermented food should you be eating? Sandor has the surprising answer! 
• The 101 on Kombucha. 
• Sandor shares his tried and true sauerkraut methods. 
• The fascinating history of fermented milk. 

You can read the full show notes and resources at www.lizsheatlhytable.com

Today, we are all about reinforcing your healthy diet with Omega-3 Fatty Acids. Typically, my show is more "apron" than "lab coat," but today we are going to dig into some of the incredible health benefits of a diet rich in Omega-3s. Scientists have been studying heart-healthy Omega-3s for a while now, so let's break down that research into easy, yummy ways to feed your flock. 

We know Omegas are good for your heart but did you know they are essential for just about every system in your body? Incredible, right! My guest today is Adam Ismail, director for GOED (the Global Organization for EPA and DHA,) a seafood enthusiast, talented chef, and devoted father. He is on a mission to ensure that consumers are educated on the miraculous benefits that a diet rich in Omega-3s can provide. Together, we will get to the bottom of why and how Omega-3s can transform the health of your family. 

    In this episode, I'll also share my delicious recipe for Teriyaki Salmon, Snow Pea, and Carrot Foil Packets. It is so easy and delicious and packed with the Omega-3 nutrients you need. Adam will share why it is essential for mothers to get enough DHA and EPA, and he'll also break down the trailblazing research being done on Omega-3 treatment for concussion patients. As always, we'll be sharing our favorite ways to eat and enjoy Omega-3 rich seafood, as well as giving you the inspiration you need to take the science of Fatty Acids right to your table. Confused about Omega supplements? Adam will clear that up for you! 

    Are you ready to give your heart and brain a boost? Then dig into today's podcast!

 

Today's show is all about tips and tricks for making family mealtime easy with freezer cooking. That's right! Your humble freezer is full of untapped potential. Freezing meals saves time and money, and it can easily expand your cooking skills as well as your family's appreciation for new foods and flavors. Are you ready for a freezer feast? How about a freezer party? This week's guest, Rachel Tiemeyer, takes us on a deep dive into our frosty freezers.

This week, Rachel and I will chat about how you can get started freezer cooking today. She will share how you can start your own freezer club and throw a freezer cooking party with all of your friends. Are you worried your thawed-out meals will taste mushy or stale? No worries there! Rachel will share her best practices for saving your food from freezer burn. We also discuss a few of the surprising ways your freezer can save your food longer, and so you can reduce food waste. 

Along the way, Rachel and I will both share our go-to freezer cooking recipes, like the Cheddar Chive Burgers filled with fresh herbs and full flavor. I'll also dish the details on my cooking experience with Rachel's Sheet-Pan Lemon Garlic Chicken and Veggies. It was a huge winner for me, and I know it will be for you. There are so many gems inside Rachel's book, and all of them use whole, healthy ingredients that your family will love.  

 

Breakfast! Is it really the most important meal of the day? What's all the buzz about getting more protein at breakfast? And does it matter if you eat breakfast the minute you wake up in the morning? If you're curious about breakfast or just looking for a few new and nutrient-rich recipes, I've got you covered on this week's Breakfast Benefits episode with guest, Lauren Harris Pincus.

 

Lauren's new cookbook, The Protein Packed Breakfast Club, is filled to the brim with delicious and balanced recipes to help you make the most of her breakfast. Today, I've asked Lauren to help me break down the science of breakfast into bite-sized pieces, perfect for changing your lifestyle one plate at a time. Together, we will share our mutual love of blueberries, dish about our best recipes like my Savory Oats with Shiitake Mushrooms and Spinach, and show you just how easy and delicious it can be to eat protein at breakfast. 

 

More in this protein-packed episode! 

 

• Childhood struggles with weight-gain influenced her views of food and nutrition. 
• You can understand the science of breakfast! 
• Breakfast jump-starts our body's metabolism. 
• The cognitive benefits of eating breakfast. 
• Timing your "breakfast" within two hours of waking up. 
• The most common breakfast issue? They don't know what to eat for breakfast!
• Lauren shares a favorite pancake recipe from her book. 
• What's the deal with protein powder? 
• Easy grab-and-go recipes for your teens as they rush to the bus!
• Pitfalls of the typical American diet. 
• Lauren's favorite cook book picks. 

 

Resources 

Check out Lauren Online

http://nutritionstarringyou.com/

 

Enter to Win a copy of The Protein Packed Breakfast Club! 

Follow Lauren on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest or Facebook. @LaurenPincusRD

 

Recipes

Savory Oats with Shiitake Mushrooms and Baby Spinach.  

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/2017/08/21/savory-oats-shitake-mushrooms-baby-spinach-eggs/

 

Maple Pumpkin Pancakes 

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/2015/10/23/pumpkin-maple-pancakes/

 

Welcome back to another fun and food-filled episode of Liz's Healthy table! School is back in session, or it will be soon, and it's time to start thinking about ways to fuel your family with healthy foods to get them through the school day. Today, I have my friend Rebecca Scritchfield on the show. We are going to discuss the ways that you can feed your family with healthy food that is simple and stunning. 

 

Rebecca is a dietician and a mom of two beautiful girls, ages 3 and 5. Rebecca knows that it can be a bit of a puzzle to eat well with your kiddo's picky pallets. Instead of food being a struggle, Rebecca wants you to find joy in the food you eat. Today, she is going to show you how to eat well using some of those beautiful Zespri Kiwifruits that sing of sunshine and sweetness. That's right—summer is not quite over yet! You'll want to check out all of the recipe links below to bring bright summer kiwi into your weekly meals. 

• Rebecca's secret weapon for meal planning and packing school lunches. 
• Life-saving snacks, even for the pickiest eaters. 
• The delicious differences between green kiwi and Zespri Sungold Kiwi. 
• Rebecca and I share our favorite sun-filled recipes to bring bright flavor to your table. 
• Create a snack with your kids! Grab your inspiration from Rebecca's Kiwi Boats, Buried Treasures, and Kiwi Sunflowers. 
• Exploring the versatile uses for the Sungold Kiwifruit. 
• Rebecca's trip to New Zealand to learn all about growing kiwis. 
• Storing and using kiwi fruit to get the best quality. 
• Rebecca's top cookbook pick: So Easy by Ellie Krieger. 

 

Sponsors 

Zespri Kiwifruit

http://www.zesprikiwi.com/

 

Bush's Beans 

 

My friends at Super Healthy Kids 

http://www.superhealthykids.com/

 

Find all of my recipes from this episode and more! 

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/

 

Leftover meals get a glamorous makeover in today's show. With super practical planning tips and creativity, my guest has the scoop on elevating your leftover game from boring to spectacular. Join us to learn more about a new way to meal-prep fantastic meals with her new cookbook, Cook Once Dinner Fix. 

Cassie Joy Garcia is a busy mom, meal planner, prepper extraordinaire, and healthy recipe guru. She joins me for new ways of turning tonight's dinner into tomorrow's feast. Whether you're cooking chicken, beef, pork, seafood, or vegetarian fare, Cassie has you covered with creative dinner inspiration. For example, her Harvest Squash can be Monday's dinner followed on Tuesday by Yellow Curry with Squash and Crispy Spiced Tofu. You can plan a dinner of Roasted Chicken and Potatoes with Fresh Arugula Salad on Friday, and turn these leftovers into Butter Chicken Bowls with White Rice for the next night. Cassie has pointers with every recipe in her cookbook to customize each one to your preferences and dietary needs. 

Show Highlights:

• Cassie's life in San Antonio, where she started her healthy living blog and became a holistic nutritionist; she makes her home with two young daughters (and a third due in a few months), her husband, and two large dogs
• How Cassie's Fed and Fit blog was birthed out of her personal journey of yoyo dieting and discovering the science of inflammatory foods
• How focusing on gut health gave Cassie a new lease on life
• Why Cassie's goal was to heal her gut, reintroduce foods, and eat as many different foods as possible
• An overview of Cook Once Dinner Fix, which gives the benefits of a prep day without having to have a prep day!
• An example using chicken that's cooked and shredded is Chicken Sloppy Joes with Ginger Carrot Slaw and White Chicken Enchilada Casserole with Tomato-Avocado Salad
• Cassie's goal is to lessen the burden of getting an efficient meal on the table
• How repurposing the meal's protein allows you to focus on side dishes to differentiate the meals
• How Cassie's system allows her to "plate dinner with a more joyful heart"
• An example of a beef recipe is Garlic Peppercorn Beef Roast, which is slow-roasted in the oven with carrots and served with a horseradish cream sauce; it's then used in Shredded Beef Ragout over Pappardelle Pasta with a rich tomato sauce
• How Cassie is building adventurous food kiddos in her young children by getting them involved in choosing meals and prepping
• Cassie's favorite seafood recipe from the book: Dill Aioli Salmon Bake, which is a salmon fillet with a lemon dill aioli mixture served with roasted potatoes; leftover salmon is made into Salmon Cakes, which Cassie serves with pan-seared green beans

 

Resources:

Cookbook Giveaway:

We're giving away a copy of Cook Once Dinner Fix: Quick and Exciting Ways to Transform Tonight's Dinner into Tomorrow's Feast (Simon & Schuster) to one lucky U.S. winner. Leave a comment in the comments section below telling me about your biggest dinnertime challenge or dilemma and/or why you want to win this book. I'll pick the winner at random on November 3rd at noon. (U.S. only giveaway, please.)

Link to Cassie's cookbook on Amazon:

Fed and Fit website: https://fedandfit.com/

Instagram: @fedandfit

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fedandfit/

Twitter: @fedandfit

When you and I make choices about the food we eat, it is easy to look at all the options and choose what is going to be healthy and beneficial for our bodies. But when was the last time you made a food choice based on what was healthy and beneficial to the environment? Sustainable eating is more than picking up local produce or reducing the amounts of harmful chemicals we use on our crops. Did you know what 40% of the food produced in the U.S. is wasted? When I found out, I was floored! What can we do as consumers to fill our bodies with healthy and delicious food, while also taking care of the environment. 

 

This week, I sit down with Chris Vogliano, a Registered Dietitian, and Ethical Food Warrior. He shared with me how we have the ability to reduce the amount of food we waste, choose foods with low carbon and water footprints, and still maintain a healthy lifestyle! Chris has an easy way to repurpose your leftovers and stop wasting food using the crockpot. I'll also show you how to use up beautiful cherry tomatoes before they go bad with my delicious Roasted Tomato and Cheese Omelet. Sustainable eating seems like a daunting task, but believe me—it's much easier than you think!

 

Also in this episode:

 

• 3 things we can do today to eat more sustainably. 
• What does it mean to have a farm to fork mindset? 
• Chris's definition of eating sustainably. 
• Eat more plant proteins! Hear a few tips and tricks for eating more plants and less meat. 
• What's the beef with beef? Can a blended burger be the solution?
• Chris and I share our go-to recipes with lentils and beans.
• Utilize your freezer for eliminating fruit food waste. 
• Tips for shopping your refrigerator, including your boring leftovers!
• Taking stock of what you throw away. 
• Sell by dates show quality, not safety! 
• My tips for using up that pint of cherry tomatoes with my slow-roasted tomato omelets. 
• Choosing bio-diverse foods can promote bio-diverse agriculture. 
• 1 big thing you can do today to become a sustainable food warrior. 
• Check out The Waste Free Kitchen Handbook by Dana Gunders. 

Links

8 Ways to reduce your Food Waste Food Print 

https://chrisvogliano.com/new-blog/weighing-in-on-wasted-food

 

Demystify the Sell-by dates here!

http://www.stilltasty.com/

 

To join the Podcast Posse and follow me on Social Media! 

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/

My friends at Super Healthy Kids 

http://www.superhealthykids.com/

 

I think it's safe to say we all carry around a little anxiety when it comes to our little ones and food allergies, particularly to peanuts. Many schools have banned peanuts, and more and more moms have delayed introducing their little ones to the nut for fear of developing a peanut allergy. However, peanuts are delicious, nutritious, and allergies are not quite as prevalent as you might think. Here to ease some of your worries and give us the facts is my guest this week, Sherry Coleman Collins A.K.A Ms. Peanut RD. 

Sherry is a Registered Dietician who shares her love of all things peanut with her husband, furry pup, and her little "peanut" of her own. Sherry has been working with the National Peanut Board for years now building on her experience with Pediatrics and School Nutrition. She is on a mission to encourage parents to do their homework, and introduce their little ones to peanut protein earlier than they might think—as early as 4 months for some! Surprised? Confused? Don't be! Tune in to find out everything you want to know and more about the powerful peanut. Make sure you hang around for my easy and healthy soft serve "ice cream" recipe, plus all the resources you could ever need for the early introduction of peanut protein. 

 

Also in this episode:

• Sherry's always fed kids with her work with Pediatrics in nutrition and School Nutrition.
• What is the deal with peanut allergies and the prevalence here in the US? 
• Dispelling some of the myths and uncovering the mysteries of food allergies. 
• The curious case of Israeli Bamba peanut puffs. 
• How to introduce peanuts to children based on their risk. 
• Sherry's favorite ways to cook with peanuts. 
• Nutritional benefits of peanuts.
• Sherry's favorite cook book (out of so many!)

 

Sponsors 

Zespri Kiwifruit

Bush's Beans

 

Links

http://nationalpeanutboard.org/

http://peanutallergyfacts.org/

 

 

Follow Sherry on Instagram and Twitter

@peanutRD

 

To join the Podcast Posse and follow me on Social Media! 

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/

My friends at Super Healthy Kids 

http://www.superhealthykids.com/

 

For busy parents and caregivers, it can sometimes feel like an added struggle to get our kiddos eating healthfully and adventurously. As tempting as we make our meals, and as cleverly as we hide those veggies, it can be exhausting trying to get our kids engaged with the food they eat. Well, what if I told you there was an elegant end to the Dinner Wars? Why don't you pass the mixing bowl or cutting board over to your little one? 

My guest this week is my dear friend Diana Rice. She runs the show at The Baby Steps Dietician blog, and is also involved in Kids Cook Monday. Diana is extremely passionate about getting kids involved in the cooking process. Now, I know what you might be thinking. It's messy! I'd never trust my toddler with a cutting knife! What's great about Diana's approach is that she has easy and (mostly) mess free methods that will engage your children without sacrificing your kitchen. Yes, there might be a Blueberry Smoothie Incident or two (listen for more details,) but the rewards are great. Inspire your children to seek out new flavors and foods with Diana's simple tips and tricks. Stay tuned for two great recipes: Cheesy Zucchini Black Bean Skillet, and my Hearty Barley Salad with Cucumber, Tomato, and Arugula. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Diana shares how her passion for cooking with children has grown. 
• The documented beneficial effects of cooking with children. 
• Build a more nutritious diet later in life by developing cooking skills. 
• An application for real world math and science in the kitchen. 
• What are the ages and stages for cooking with your children? Diana gives you all the culinary milestones. 
• Empowering our children by encouraging them to participate in something the entire family can enjoy. 
• Important tips for knife safety—use the bear claw method! 
• Embrace the kids cooking war stories, and share a few! 
• How to get Kids Cook Mondays in your child's school.
• Diana shares her favorite cookbooks for parents and caregivers. 
• Clever ideas for adapting recipes to your children's taste. 

 

Links

Diana's Website

http://dianakrice.com/

Kids Cook Monday

http://www.thekidscookmonday.org/

Family Dinner Date Newsletter

http://www.thekidscookmonday.org/family-dinner-date-newsletter/

Join the Podcast Posse

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/podcast/

 

There's been a good bit of buzz in the Modern Mom circle of the blogosphere about this thing called "Baby-Led Weaning" or "Baby-Led Feeding." It sounds interesting, but what exactly is it, and why is it the latest movement in nutrition for our little ones? My guest this week is a Baby Feeding expert, Katie Ferraro, and boy does she have the chops to teach us all about Baby-Led Weaning!

 

Katie is a mother to five children, her oldest daughter and a set of quadruplets. Yes, you heard me, quadruplets. After struggling to feed her older daughter, Katie knew something was going to have to change for her four new babies. As a nutrition expert herself, Katie started to do some digging, and what she discovered was the brave new world of Baby-Led Weaning. Gone are the days of mushed peas and rice cereal spoonful-by-spoonful. This is a process of introducing your child to a whole world of foods by the little fistful. Katie has a wealth of knowledge and experience times four to share, and it was a pleasure to learn from her. 

 

Listen for all the information you could ever need about Baby-Led Weaning, and stay for my healthy Avocado and Ricotta Pancake recipe, perfect for Mamas ready to take up the practice! 

 

• Hear Katie's journey to Baby-Led Weaning, and what it takes to master it. 
• What to expect when you begin Baby-Led Weaning: stick with it!
• Build up proficient eaters by introducing solid foods at 6 months. 
• Katie explains why size matters when preparing food for your baby. 
• Hear how to get a list of the 100 foods your baby should try…before they turn one!
• Katie explains the nutritional benefits to Baby-Led Weaning
• Is there a financial benefit to Baby-Led Weaning? 
• 50 Bananas a week? See how Katie learned the importance of snacking to meet her quadruplets nutritional needs. 
• Explore the ways avocados really are a nutrient super food. 
• Get my recipe for Avocado Ricotta Pancakes. 
• Katie and I discuss some unconventional baby foods. 
• Katie dispels the gagging myths causing fear for Baby-Led Weaning. 

 

Katie Recommends 

Inventing Baby Food by Amy Bentley

 

Katie's Website

https://www.fortifiedfam.com/

 

Katie's Online Course for Baby-Led Weaning

http://selffeedingbaby.com/

 

The First 100 Foods Your Baby Should Eat

http://100babyfoods.com/

 

Baby-Led Weaning Facebook Group 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/babyledweaningrecipes/?source_id=318793378486514

 

Visit the Healthy Table Website- full of resources and recipes! 

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/

 

California Avocado Recipes

https://www.californiaavocado.com/recipes

 

Sharon Palmer is my guest for today's show. She is a registered dietician, cookbook author, and mom of two sons. Her books are The Plant Powered Diet and Plant Powered for Life. They are packed full of wonderful recipes that I'm having fun trying, and I know you will, too. Visit my blog to find out about the book giveaway!

The topic for today is one that is of interest to many listeners. I've heard your questions about how to "go meatless" more often. So, how do we prepare more meatless meals for our families? Is it something you've needed some practical tips about trying? Sharon has the answers and she's sharing them right here. Join us!

What you'll hear in this episode:

• The differences in terminology: vegan, vegetarian, plant-powered omnivore, etc.
• All the options within the plant world, like grains, legumes, soy, fruits, vegetables, herbs, seeds, chocolate, and coffee!
• The "SAD" (standard American diet), which lacks a wide variety of plants
• The health benefits of a plant-based diet: reduced risk of chronic disease, healthy weight, and reduced carbon footprint
• In Sharon's 2nd book, a 52-week plan that makes plant-based eating easy and simple
• Simple steps to implement more plant power: more whole grains, nuts, and seeds
• What to do if the whole family doesn't embrace plant-based eating:
• • Try "meatless Monday" (and get creative!)
  • Offer a variety of flavorful plant-based items with a small portion of poultry or fish
  • Adapt favorite recipes, like lasagna
  • Use meat as a seasoning and not the main course
• "Blue zones"—what are they and where are they found?
• Why the controversy around soy and tofu?
• How to "jazz up" tofu with flavorful sauces, casseroles, and stir-fry
• Sharon's recipes that I recently tried: Tofu Cobb Salad and Red Lentil Soup with Root Vegetables and Sage
• How to deal with nutrition shortfalls in a plant-based diet
• Cooking with dried beans and lentils
• The growing market and availability of vegan cheeses
• The versatility of cashews
• How to deal with a bumper crop of home-grown vegetables
• Sharon's favorite recipes: Tortilla Soup and Pho—because they are customizable!
• Sharon's favorite cookbook authors: Deborah Madison, Rich Landau, and Alex Caspero
• Sharon's favorite chefs: Tal Ronnen and Matthew Kenney

Resources:

www.lizshealthytable.com

Email: liz@lizshealthytable.com

www.sharonpalmer.com

www.superhealthykids.com 

Check out my closed Facebook group: Liz's Podcast Posse

Why are kids picky? Is it possible to turn finicky eaters into adventurous eaters? You'll be surprised, the answer is YES! Listen in to lots of veggie talk today, because I'm going to be talking about picky eating and I'm going to be sharing two recipes from Chop Chop. One of them is for a delicious, Raw Brussels Sprout Salad and the other is for a Carrot Salad, with mint, honey, lime juice and peanuts (only if you like them).

Sally Sampson will be joining me on the show, today. She is the founder of Chop Chop Kids, which is the non-profit publisher of Chop Chop, the fun Cooking Magazine for Families.  This was named The Publication Of The Year by the James Beard Foundation, back in 2013. Sally has written twenty-three cookbooks, so she knows a thing or two about cooking! She's a mom of two and she's written a book called The Picky Eater Project, Six Weeks To Happier, Healthier Family Mealtimes.  

Whether you have picky eaters or not, I still think you're going to love this episode, because we have so many ideas for making vegetables more appealing and even including your kids in the cooking process. Listen in now to find out more!

 

Today, Sally talks to Liz about:

 

• A life and career changing event that happened in her family.
• More about Chop Chop Magazine, which is distributed in Pediatrician's offices all over the country.
• Her book, The Picky Eater Project and how it all started.
• Her rules, which are neither mean-spirited, nor rigid- they involve treating children with respect.
• What she's noticed about kids at her photo shoots.
• The negative messages that parents tend to give their kids.
• Dealing with issues about texture.
• 90% of kids will eat food that they've cooked themselves.
• Making the dreaded green vegetable more appealing.
• Setting up taste tests for your kids as a fun game.
• The best way to cook broccoli florets.
• Tips for roasting vegetables.
• The thing about lettuce cups...
• The ingredients that go into the Raw Brussels Sprout Salad and why kids love it.
• A lazy tip to make the Raw Brussels Sprout Salad easier.
• Getting your child to do a Recipe Review.
• Letting kids learn about what they like.
• Sally's favorite Cookbook-The Chop Chop Cookbook.
• Sally's Online Cooking Club for Kids.

 

 

Links: 

 

Sally's website: www.chopchopmag.org 

 

Sally's Free Online Cooking Club for Kids: www.chopchopcookingclub.org 

 

 

For a Free Giveaway: Head on over to my website: www.lizshealthytable.com. On my blog I'm going to share the Carrot Salad Recipe and also the information about the free giveaway, to win a one-year subscription to Chop Chop. (US only, please.)

 

To be part of the Podcast Posse, go to the podcast page on www.lizshealthytable.com and there's a little button in the sidebar that says "Join the Podcast Posse".

 

Do you love eating pasta, but you don't think that it makes a healthy meal? Then you're really going to enjoy today's show, as Alexandra Caspero and I, dig into pasta, with a modern, Italian twist and share some easy and nutritious recipes that I'm sure you're going to want to make for your family. Listen in to find out why you really can eat pasta! And yes, you can eat pasta and be gluten free!

Today's guest, Alex, is a vegetarian, who is based in St Louis. She is a registered dietician and she's the voice behind the beautiful food blog, Delish Knowledge. She's also the author of the new cookbook Fresh Italian Cooking For The New Generation. Listen in to today's show and discover more about healthy eating, the Italian way.

Today, Alex and I talk about:

 

•Two of the recipes from Alex's book - Roasted Vegetable Ziti and Pasta E Fagioli.

•Alex's book- Fresh Italian Cooking for the New Generation.

•Making meat-free meals really enjoyable.

•Alex's meat-free, delicious Mushroom Lasagna.

•The story behind Alex's recipe for her Grandmother's recipe for Pasta E Fagioli.

•Why kids will really enjoy Alex's Pasta E Fagioli.

•The magical properties of pasta water.

•Herbs - they can really take a dish from ho-hum to delish!

•That Italian cooking is meant to be designed as you go, so improvise till your heart's content.

•The difference between whole-wheat pasta and white flour pasta and substituting gluten free pasta if necessary.

•Making your own pasta- great to get your kids involved!

•Alex's favorite recipe in her book – Fresh Corn and Zucchini Gnocchi.

•The different choices that are available for you in Alex's cookbook.

•Alex's favorite foodie- Ina Garten of the Food Network.

•The cookbooks that Alex thinks everybody should have on their bookshelf.

Links:

 

Alex's website: www.delishknowledge.com

 

Liz's website: www.lizshealthytable.com – Go to the blog for recipes and for the free giveaway of Alex's book.

 

Liz's email: liz@lizshealthytable.com

 

Resources:

 

Books: Everyday Pasta by Giada De Laurentiis

           The Flavor Bible and The Vegetarian Flavour Bible by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

 

Your host, Liz Weiss, is a dietician, cookbook author, food blogger and the mom of two grown boys, who have eaten her out of house and home, for the past two decades. Liz used to co-host a show called Cooking With Moms and also an online platform called Meal Makeover Moms, from 2008 to 2016 with Janice Bissex. The time, however, came to move on and so came the birth of Liz's Healthy Table.

On today's show, Liz tells you about her journey in the world of nutrition, as a mom and a foodie. She also talks about what you can expect to hear on the show, moving forward, as she's done a survey, to find out what you, the listener, would like as topics. Her guest for today, is her husband, Tim, who is a pescatarian. Listen in to find out what Tim has to say and also what's in store for you on Liz's new podcast.

 

On today's show, you'll hear:

 

• About Liz's closed Facebook Group, Podcast Posse- how you can join it and what you can expect to find there.
• Some upcoming guests and topics for future shows.
• What it's like for Liz's husband Tim to be married to a registered dietician.
• Why Tim calls Liz a bully, when they go out to dinner.
• What it was like for Tim at the dinner table, when their boys, Josh and Simon were still toddlers.
• Tim's favorite meal, that Liz cooks for the family.
• What Tim used to eat when he was a bachelor.
• About how Liz loves to camp out and cook over an open fire.
• The cool things you can do when you visit www.lizshealthytable.com
• How growing up was a big, fun, food adventure, with a mom who was a Home Ec. teacher and a really great cook.
• That when kids learn how to cook, they are more likely to embrace eating a variety of healthy foods.
• All about Liz's education.
• The nutritional work that Liz did at CNN.
• Liz's Healthy Lunch Task Force, to advocate for radical and healthy changes in the elementary school's cafeteria.

 

Links:

 

Liz's website: www.lizshealthytable.com

 

Liz's email: liz@lizshealthytable.com

 

Resources: 

Books by Yotam Ottolenghi- Plenty and Jerusalem

 

 

Many parents fight a losing battle to get more fruits and vegetables into their kids' diets, but there are simple ways to give kids more empowerment and control. Teaching them to enjoy cooking and eat more sustainably gives them more flexibility and a chance to explore. Join us as we dive into practical ways to get your kids involved in preparing and enjoying healthier meals.  

Jenny Chandler is a cooking instructor and cookbook author who lives in Bristol, England. Her latest cookbook, Green Kids Cook, encourages kids to cook and eat food that's good for their bodies and good for the planet. The book is aimed at ages 7-14 but is suitable for people of all ages with its recipes, crafts, how-tos, tips for reducing food waste, and so much more. On today's show, Jenny and I share some of her plant-forward recipes from the book, including Green Pea and Coconut Soup, Seeded Oat Bread, and we'll wrap up with dessert. Of course, we'll share tips for getting kids to cook, appreciate, love, and eat more fruits and vegetables. Jenny has been on the show before to talk about pulses like lentils, beans, and chickpeas and to talk about one of her other cookbooks, Great Food for Kids. Her goal is to help you, your children, and grandchildren get more plants on the plate. 

Show Highlights:

• Get to know Jenny's life with her teenage daughter, a husband who makes wildlife films, and city life in Bristol that's only a short walk to the countryside
• Why Jenny is passionate about writing and teaching people to eat more healthily and sustainably for regard for animal welfare
• What it means to eat sustainably
• Jenny's mission: to teach, inspire, and engage kids in cooking skills, so they become more adventurous eaters, especially with fruits and vegetables
• How Jenny incorporated "theme nights" with her husband and daughter on Fridays during the COVID lockdown
• How Green Kids Cook teaches kids to have fun in the kitchen, explore more fruits and vegetables, and learn more about where foods come from
• How the book covers snacks and desserts but focuses on skills for cooking simple meals
• Jenny's recipe for Green Pea and Coconut Soup, made with sauteed green onions, garlic, ginger, cilantro, frozen peas, and vegetable stock; after pureeing the mixture, add coconut milk and lime juice. (Good served cold or hot--and it's ready in 15 minutes!)
• How to balance plant-forward meals for those who love meat
• Jenny's tips for reducing food waste at home:
• • Have a "use me now" shelf in the fridge.
  • Incorporate recipes that can handle odd scraps of vegetables, like minestrone soup.
  • Have a "clean sweep" every 3-4 days.
  • Shop locally and more often, making it a family activity for everyone. 
• Jenny's recipe for Seeded Oat Bread, made with rolled oats, yogurt, baking soda, various seeds, and molasses
• A family favorite dessert recipe for Galette, made with fresh seasonal fruit and a simple pastry

Resources:

Cookbook Giveaway:

We're giving away a copy of Green Kids Cook: Simple, Delicious Recipes & Top Tips to one lucky U.S. winner. Leave a comment below telling me about the recipe your kids/grandkids love to make most and/or why you'd love to win a copy. I'll pick the winner at random on October 20th at noon. (U.S. giveaway, only.)

 

Link to Jenny's latest book: 

https://www.amazon.com/Green-Kids-Cook-Delicious-Recipes/dp/1911663585/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=green+kids+cook+jenny+chandler&qid=1633018328&sr=8-1)

 

Jenny's website: http://www.jennychandler.co.uk/

 

Jenny on Instagram @jennychandlerUK

Jenny on Facebook

Jenny on Twitter @jennychandlerUK 

 

Liz's Links:

Author, Color, Cook, Eat! coloring book series

Website: Liz's Healthy Table

Listen to my Podcast

Read my Blog

September is National Fruit and Veggies Month, and if that wasn't enough, the UN General Assembly designated 2021 as the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables. There's no excuse not to elevate your fruit and veggie game! Who's with me?

On today's show, we're talking about fresh new ways to add more fresh, frozen, canned, and dried fruits and veggies to your family's table every season and all year long. My guest is Andrea Mathis, MS, RDN from Beautiful Eats and Things, and together, we're turning our passion for produce into real-world recipes for you and your family.

Andrea Mathis is an Alabama-based registered dietitian/nutritionist and the owner of two blogs: Beautiful Eats and Things and Little Eats and Things. She's the mom of two little boys and the author of The Complete Book of Smoothies, which is filled with gorgeous and nutritious recipes that bring fruits and veggies to the center of the plate in easy and delicious ways. We are sharing delicious seasonal recipes and cooking techniques that will inspire you with great ideas. Most people don't eat enough fruits and veggies, so we plan to change that with today's show!

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Andrea's life in Birmingham, Alabama, with two little boys, two blogs, and a lifelong love of cooking
• Andrea's cookbook, The Complete Book of Smoothies: 115 Healthy Recipes to Nourish, Heal, and Energize
• Andrea's #1 tip to get picky eaters to try new fruits and veggies: pair the new food with something already familiar
• Why people need to know that all forms of fruits and veggies count, such as canned, dried, and frozen
• How Andrea uses "smoothie packs," prepped fruits and veggies frozen in serving size freezer bags for smoothies
• Andrea and Liz share seasonal fruit and veggie faves:
• • Winter
  • • Brussels sprouts, roasted or sliced thin in salads or casseroles
    • Winter squash, baked as a bowl to be filled or roasted with cinnamon and brown sugar
  • Spring
  • • Asparagus, roasted or blanched and sliced in salads or dredged in egg and flour to be air-fried as "fries"
    • Radishes, roasted or sauteed with onion and garlic
  • Summer
  • • Corn on the cob, eaten whole or added as kernels to other dishes or buttered and spiced with flavorful seasonings and wrapped in foil to be baked in the oven
    • Peaches, sliced thin on BBQ chicken pizzas or grilled and spiced
  • Fall
  • • Kale, in a salad or added to smoothies
    • Pumpkin, canned pumpkin to be added in muffins, breads, pancakes, smoothies, chili, enchiladas, etc. or roasted and stuffed mini-pumpkins

 

Resources:

 

Andrea's cookbook The Complete Book of Smoothies: 115 Healthy Recipes to Nourish, Heal, and Energize

 

Where to find Andrea: 

Beautiful Eats & Things: https://www.beautifuleatsandthings.com/

FB:  https://www.facebook.com/beautifuleatsandthings/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/beautifuleatsandthings/

Twitter (BeautifulEandT): https://twitter.com/BeautifulEandT

Pinterest (BEandThings): https://www.pinterest.com/BEandThings/

TikTok (@beautifuleatsandthings): https://vm.tiktok.com/Jd728bJ/    https://www.tiktok.com/@beautifuleatsandthings/

On today's show, I'm joined by olive oil expert extraordinaire, David Garcia-Aguirre from Corto Olive Company with a primer on extra virgin olive oil, which he says is "the ingredient that farm-to-table forgot." Discover how olives are grown, harvested and pressed, how to choose the freshest EVOO at the market, how to cook with it, and get recipes galore ... and hear why David wants us all to think of EVOO as the "fresh-pressed juice of olives."

David Garci-Aguirre is the Vice President of Operations and Master Miller at Corto Olive Company in Lodi, CA. With a focus on serving independent restaurants throughout the US, Corto uniquely harvests and produces fresh, premium-quality, award-winning Extra Virgin olive oils that enhance the flavor of foods. David is an olive oil guru who is dedicated to the advancement of high-quality olive oil production, research, and education. He's educating us today about what to look for at the market to know you're buying the freshest oil, how to store it at home to keep it fresh, and why heat, light, and air are the three biggest enemies of your bottle of olive oil. He teaches us about the latest innovations in packaging, how to use Extra Virgin olive oil to elevate everyday cooking, and why it's a nutritious addition to your meals. David will bust some myths about olive oil and take us behind-the-scenes at Corto to highlight their gorgeous olive groves and their harvesting, milling, storing, and packing processes. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• David's life and work in Lodi, CA
• Why olive oil is the ingredient that "farm to table" forgot
• How olive oil is different from all other edible oils in that it's fresh-pressed juice that retains the flavors and nutrients
• Why all olive oils are NOT created equal--and most olive oil in your supermarket is already rancid before you even get it home!
• How Corto focuses on a new technology called "vineyard-style" planting that allows mechanized fall harvests of the fruit when it's perfectly ripe
• How most olive oil is produced with olives harvested by the old-style "tree-shaking" method that yields poor quality fruit not at the optimal ripeness
• How to tell if your olive oil is fresh by its smell and taste (Hint: it SHOULD have a taste!)
• David's overview of the milling process: The fruit is crushed into a paste that's mixed together and then separated with a centrifuge to obtain the oil at cold temperatures; the oil goes straight into stainless steel casks where oxygen can't get to it.
• How the "Extra Virgin" olive oil designation is reserved for a natural, unrefined product (CA has the tightest legal standard for EVOO in the world!)
• Tips for buying olive oil: buy local, if possible, from a reputable company; make sure the oil is in dark glass, stainless steel, or a bag-in-box package, and always check the harvest date
• How flavor-lock (bag in box) packaging preserves the oil from light and air
• David busts the most popular myth regarding olive oil, which is that you should never saute or use high heat cooking with it
• Because of the many healthy compounds unique to olives, olive oil is the #1 food item studied for nutritional health in medical journals
• Easy salad dressing ideas using olive oil: 
• • David keeps it simple with salt, citrus, and an oil variety that pairs with his food
  • Liz relies on the standard go-to of olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, dijon mustard, honey, shallot or garlic, and salt and pepper
• Unusual ways to use olive oil: drizzled on ice cream, as a dip for dark chocolate truffles, poured on popcorn, and homemade mayonnaise
• How uses olive oil in her rendition of Ina Garten's recipe for gazpacho; it's made with cucumber, bell pepper, tomato, red onion, red wine vinegar, garlic, fresh herbs, and fresh corn kernels
• How to introduce kids to the wonders of olive oil with creative thinking
• David's final words: "Rethink how you think about olive oil. Think of it as a fresh-pressed juice." 

 

Resources:

Giveaway: We are giving away a 3-liter Truly 100% Extra Virgin Olive Oil, California Grown, Flavor-Lock Box from Corto. I don't know about you, but I go through a lot of EVOO in my house, so I can attest that this oil rocks. I use it every day ... all day. To enter for a chance to win, post a comment telling me how you use olive oil in your everyday cooking or why you want to win this bag-in-a-box from Corto. (PS: US only giveaway.) (PSS: If you have an awesome recipe for olive oil lemon cake, please share it with me!)

Website:  www.corto-olive.com   

IG: @Corto_Olive

FB: @CortoOlive

On today's show, we'll be talking about how to raise a healthy eater, one nourishing bite and sip at a time.

This episode is sponsored by Fresh Avocados – Love One Today®, a leading source of the healthiest reasons and tastiest ways to enjoy fresh avocados. A science-based resource, it provides recipes and articles to help make it easy for consumers and health professionals to learn more about the nutritional benefits of fresh avocados and ways to include them in everyday menus.

As a mom of two grown boys, I've been in the family food and nutrition trenches for quite some time now, and so it's no surprise that I'm often asked by listeners about the how-tos of raising a healthy eater especially when families are busy, kids are finicky, and unhealthy snack foods are a constant temptation. Well, on today's show I'll be giving you my top tips for raising healthy eaters including strategies on how to stock your kitchen as children progress from starting solids to school age and how to reduce the amount of added sugar in your family's diet. I'm a firm believer that when families make the healthy choice the easy choice, they set a good example and help to build a foundation for life-long healthy eating.

On the show, I also share a new, no-sugar-added recipe for Chewy Avocado, Apple, Banana and Oatmeal Cookie. This recipe is ideal for toddlers and kids, and it does double duty as a snack or dessert.

But wait, there's more. On the show, I'll also tell you about this Avocado and Mango Smoothie. And yes, you guessed it: No added sugar.

Show Highlights:

• Get my top 7 tips for raising your kids or your grandkids to be healthy eaters
  • Set the tone for yourself and family from Day One
  • Take a strategic/thoughtful approach to transitioning infants to solid foods
  • Focus on fresh fruits and vegetables
  • Rethink your drink
  • Get Creative
  • Eat and prepare meals together as a family
  • And don't deny dessert … but do pay attention to making them "better for you" and lower in added sugar
• CDC research shows that about a third of all US children are overweight… and that diseases with risk factors linked to poor nutrition like diabetes that were once unique to adults are now impacting our kids
• More research featured on LoveOneToday.com about the role of avocados in maternal diets that suggests eating avocados may support breastfeeding by supporting the production of nutritious breastmilk. So even before the baby arrives, whether you are the mom, the dad or grandparent, you can help set the family up for success by stocking the pantry with healthy, fresh foods like avocados.
• Make mealtime easier with the following free resources:
  • 7-Day Meal Planner
  • Supermarket Shopping List
• 9 out of 10 Americans don't eat the recommended number of fruit and vegetables servings each day. If you could only make one change to your family's diet, I'd steer you in the direction of eating more fresh fruits and veggies.
• Learn about my Fruit First strategy at breakfast.
  • Serve fruit before things like cereal or waffles are presented. Kids will gobble it up, because they'll be hungry. Plus, fruit is naturally sweet and kids love it
  • Make my pumpkin pancakes
  • Whip up a fruit smoothie
  • Smash avocado on whole grain toast
• Get strategies for reducing added sugar from your family's diet
• NEW recipe for No sugar added Soft and Chewy Avocado, Apple, Banana and Oatmeal Cookie
• Thirsty for a new smoothie recipe? Try this one from Love One Today for Avocado and Mango Kick-Starter Smoothie
• Tips for how to freeze fresh avocados (so you can use them up later!)
• A family dinner recipe for Avocado Shrimp Tacos
• The latest guidance from the USDA on nutrition: Resource: 2020 – 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans

 

The Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest diets on the planet. It's rich in fruits and vegetables, olive oil, seafood, nuts, and beans, and it makes good nutrition a pleasure to eat. But what about bread and pasta? Are they AOK to eat as well? Join me on today's show with guest, Michelle Dudash, RDN as we tackle questions about carbs, kids, and how to enjoy a Mediterranean-style diet with the carbs you love … but fewer of them.

Michelle Dudash is an award-winning registered dietitian nutritionist, Cordon Bleu certified chef, a TV personality, and the founder of Dash Dinners Spice Kits. She's the author of the top-selling Clean Eating for Busy Families, which was featured back in Episode 53. Michelle shares the benefits of a low-carb Mediterranean diet with recipes and tips from her newest cookbook, The Low-Carb Mediterranean Cookbook: Quick and Easy High-Protein, Low-Sugar, Healthy-Fat Recipes for Lifelong Health. We are discussing a few recipes from the book, including Simmered Tahini Chicken and an unbelievably decadent dessert recipe that is low in carbs. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Michelle's life in Indiana as the mom of two daughters and a regular on local and national TV ; she spends her time in recipe development, cookbook writing, and designing her spice kit dinners 
• How Michelle's Lebanese heritage gave her a love for a varied diet of Mediterranean foods that explores different cultures and new foods
• Why kibbeh was a childhood favorite for Michelle; it's a traditional dish made with ground meat, seasonings, and bulgur wheat
• How carbs fuel our bodies with energy
• Why kids need carbs and parents want options
• Michelle's new book: a mix of recipes of different types with readily available ingredients
• Michelle's favorite recipe in the book: Grilled Chicken Gyro Lettuce Wraps, which are made with chicken thighs marinated in lemon juice, olive oil, cumin, garlic, thyme, oregano, and salt and pepper--then served with a tahini sauce or cucumber yogurt sauce
• From the book: Simmered Tahini Chicken-- made with chicken tenders sauteed in olive oil and combined with onion, garlic, chicken broth, tahini, lemon juice, and soy sauce; to serve, top them with Greek yogurt and freshly chopped herbs
• Michelle's daughters' favorites from the new book are Fruit Tarts and Mini Molten Chocolate Cakes
• Michelle's Berry Tart with Almond Flour Crust is made with butter, honey, cinnamon, salt, dark chocolate, mascarpone cheese, and topped with fresh berries
• Healthy salads in the book include a Lebanese classic made with iceberg or Bibb lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and a dressing made with lemon juice, mint, olive oil, and salt; the other salad is made with kale, blueberries, feta cheese, walnuts, and a basic vinaigrette
• Michelle's experience in Croatia with a delicious adult beverage made from sparkling rosé with fresh herbs, elderflower liqueur, orange zest, and grapefruit-flavored sparkling water
• Michelle's advice for one change you can make for better health: "Plan a family meal and sit down to enjoy it together."

 

Resources:

 

 

We're giving away a copy of The Low-Carb Mediterranean Cookbook: Quick and Easy High-Protein, Low-Sugar, Healthy-Fat Recipes for Lifelong Health. Leave a comment below telling me about your favorite Mediterranean recipe, a Mediterranean recipe you'd love to have lightened up, and/or why you'd love to win a copy. I'll pick one lucky winner at noon on August 11th.

 

Michelle on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michelledudash/

Michelle on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MichelleDudashRD/

 

Michelle's website: https://www.michelledudash.com/

On today's show, I'm joined by Sadé Meeks, MS, RD to discuss the evolution of African American cuisine in the U.S.; the foods that define this creative cuisine; the vegetables and staple crops that have been an integral part of the African American table (hint: okra, sweet potatoes, kale, and corn.); how nutrition professionals can honor the traditional foodways of African Americans while emphasizing nutrition; and how African American cuisine continues to evolve.

My guest is Sadé Meeks, MS, RD, a food activist and registered dietitian who was born and raised in Mississippi. She is the founder of GRITS (Growing Resilience in the South) with the mission to improve the health and well-being of communities through increased awareness of nutrition, food history, and culture.

On the show, Sadé shares the history of African American cooking, traditional foods of the enslaved and how many of those foodways continue today, and she explains how to make small changes to traditional recipes to honor ingredients and flavors while reducing saturated fat and sodium. Together, we also talk about a few recipes you'll definitely want to try including Smoky Collards and Shrimp and Grits.

Show Highlights:

• Get to know Sadé, her big Mississippi family, and why she pursued degrees in dietetics and food science
• How GRITS helps bridge the gap between nutrition and culture
• The need for cultural competence in nutrition and food science
• Highlights of African-American cuisine as the slaves brought their food habits to America
• How slaves' diets differed according to the regions they inhabited
• How true African-American cuisine relies on plant-based meals, one-pot meals, and the pairing of a starch, sauce, and protein, like Shrimp and Grits
• How the history of fried foods and pork developed in the African-American community as a matter of necessity
• The story of soul food as an affirmation of the resourcefulness of African-Americans and their meager rations
• How Sadé learned about cooking as she grew up
• The importance of small changes in eating a healthier diet, especially in seasonings and cooking methods
• Sadé's Smoky Collards, made with onion, garlic, vegetable stock, smoked paprika, seasoned salt, cayenne pepper, and a touch of brown sugar
• Shrimp and Grits: how the grits are cooked in chicken stock and milk with added salt, pepper, butter, and cheddar cheese; the shrimp is seasoned with Cajun seasoning and paprika, and baby spinach is added at the end
• How Sadé combines her favorite cheesecake with Red Velvet Cake for a delectable dessert

 

Resources:

www.gritsinc.org  

Grow with the Flow podcast

Find Sadé on Instagram: @SadeMeeks

For today's 100th episode of Liz's Healthy Table, I chose a topic that's near and dear to my heart: Healthy Aging: From Your Head to Your Toes. The Fountain of Youth does not exist, but as you'll learn on this week's show, by placing certain foods at the center of our tables and living an active and vibrant life, we can help to set ourselves up for aging gracefully with a spring in our step and a twinkle in our eye.

Today's episode is sponsored by Fresh Avocados – Love One Today®, a leading source of the healthiest reasons and tastiest ways to enjoy fresh avocados. A science-based resource, it provides recipes and articles to help make it easy for consumers and health professionals to learn more about the nutritional benefits of fresh avocados and ways to include them in everyday menus.

Show Highlights: 

• A discussion on nutrient density (a food that provides substantial amounts of vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, and other nutrients with relatively few calories.)
• Avocados are nutrient dense. One serving (1/3 of a medium avocado) has 80 calories and contributes nearly 20 vitamins and minerals.
• Avocados contain 6 grams naturally good unsaturated fats per serving, and that fat acts as a nutrient booster in the body helping to increase the absorption of fat-soluble nutrients like vitamins A, D, K, and E.
• An explanation of cognitive health and how diet and physical activity can play a role.
• Why the antioxidant, lutein, may play a role in cognition and eye health, plus food sources (kale, spinach, eggs, avocados).
• A 2019 study of 40 healthy, older adults that looked at how consuming one avocado a day for 6 months impacted cognition.
• How following certain lifestyle habits, including the MIND Diet, can influence health.
• Two recipes shared: Avocado and Tuna Niçoise Salad (hyperlink to be added when available) and Avocado Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies.
• The best way to pick, ripen, and store fresh avocados.
• How I've been adding more physical activity into my daily life… and why!

In today's show, we're exploring the blue zones, rare longevity hotspots worldwide where people are thriving into their 100s. Where are these hot spots, and who are these people who have discovered the secrets to living longer, better lives?

Nick Buettner is an explorer, National Geographic Fellow, award-winning journalist and producer, and NYT bestselling author. He has spent the past 20 years leading expeditions across six continents around the world, with three of these trips being to the world's "blue zones." These are places with longer-than-normal life expectancy and where more people reach age 100 than anywhere else in the world. Nick worked with his brother, Dan, National Geographic, and a team of longevity researchers to identify and explore these pockets of the world where people are living longer lives. In his current role as the VP of Product for The Blue Zones Project, Nick is responsible for taking the Blue Zone longevity lessons to communities across the US. The Project supports well-being initiatives that apply lessons from the Blue Zones to entire communities by focusing on changes to the local environment, public policy, and social networks. The Blue Zone Project uses evidence-informed, sustainable transformations with people, places, and policies to make the healthy choice the easy choice. To date, the Blue Zone Project has empowered over 5 million people to live longer, better lives. 

Show Highlights:

• Get to know world-traveler Nick, who is from Minnesota but has traveled to 45 countries and 48 states in the US
• The Blue Zones: What are they? 
• How Nick and his brother, Dan, became interested in finding and identifying these places where mortality rates and disease rates are down, and longevity rates are higher
• The five demographically confirmed Blue Zones: Okinawa, Japan; Icaria, Greece; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica; and Loma Linda, California
• Common denominators in the Blue Zones that boost longevity and help people age healthfully:
• • Daily movement and activity in natural ways
  • Simple stress-reducing techniques, like prayer, naps, ancestor veneration, and gathering with friends and family
  • A strong sense of purpose throughout all of life
  • Wine, in moderation, as part of celebrations and family gatherings
  • Mostly plant-based diets with smaller portion sizes
  • Lower caloric intake
  • A focus on family and love throughout life
  • A strong sense of faith
  • Healthy friends who support healthy behaviors
• How Nick is bringing Blue Zone living to US communities with policy change, purpose, accessible and affordable healthy food systems, policies to reduce tobacco use, lower obesity rates, engagement among citizens to eliminate isolation, and healthier places to live, work, pray, and play
• How Nick collects data, does research, formulates policies and outcomes, and rallies people in forming committees to achieve common goals
• How we can eat a more Blue Zone-like diet by reducing meat portions, adding more vegetables, and using beans consistently for protein
• Nick's favorite recipe in The Blue Zones Kitchen: Sardinia Minestrone--and the amazing family story behind this recipe
• Why people in the Blue Zones have a different perspective on eating carbohydrates
• How Nick has learned the importance of gardening from his time in the Blue Zones
• How exercise and movement, social engagement, and healthy foods have contributed to lower rates of dementia in the Blue Zones, along with a special tea made with dandelion, oregano, and thyme
• Five things we can do to live a "Blue Zone life":
• • Set up your environment to make the healthy choice easier
  • Be a dependable, supportive, and attentive friend
  • Have intentionality around your sleep habits
  • De-convenience your life so that you take extra steps throughout the day
  • Volunteer to use your skills and passions to give back to your community
• How kids in Blue Zones eat with their families and eat the same foods as the adults--and are healthier than kids in the US
• Nick's advice for eating like you live in a Blue Zone: "Eat food that's good for you, tastes good, is easy to prepare, and is affordable." 

Resources:

https://www.bluezones.com

Have you ever wondered how much impact beer, wine, and spirits have on your health and longevity? The US Dietary Guidelines recommend limiting the number of alcoholic beverages we consume, but that can be pretty confusing. How do we even know how much alcohol is considered moderate and how much is too much? Or if we're offered a cocktail at a party, how do we know how much alcohol is in it? My friend, and fellow dietician, Kathleen Zelman is joining us today to answer all those questions and tell us how moderate alcohol consumption can affect our health. She will also explain how alcohol can sabotage our well-being and longevity. Kathleen Zelman is a food, nutrition, and media communications consultant, co-host of the new podcast, True Health Revealed, and owner of No Nonsense Nutrition. Kathleen helped launch WebMD and spent seventeen years as their Director of Nutrition. Kathleen has received many awards throughout her career, including the prestigious Lenna Frances Cooper Memorial Award from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in recognition of her distinguished career and remarkable contributions to the dietetics profession.  Kathleen is also a consultant for the Distilled Spirits Council (DISCUS), so she is savvy on the subject of alcohol. She is here to give us the scoop on alcohol and talk about a new online calculator designed to help us figure out how much alcohol we are drinking. We will also share some snazzy ideas for cocktails and mocktails!

Show highlights:

• Kathleen is excited about her new podcast that launched in January! She and her co-host, Dr. Tom Rifai, are doing it on behalf of the True Health Initiative, a non-profit organization that wants to ensure that they get information to consumers, translate science, and give consumers evidence-based facts. 
• Dr. Eric Rimm, a Harvard professor and true expert on alcohol, was on Kathleen's podcast. He said it's okay to have a glass of wine now and then. 
• What does moderation mean for men and women, and how does that translate into beer, wine, and spirits?
• To find out what up to one drink per day looks like, go to www.standarddrinks.org to find a calculator. One standard drink is one and a half ounces of 80-proof spirits, a 12-ounce bottle of regular 5% alcohol beer, or five ounces of 12% volume wine.
• An exercise to do at home is to measure five ounces of wine and pour it into different glasses to see what a standard drink looks like.
• Become aware of what you are drinking and what the alcohol content is. Most wines have 12% alcohol, but some have much higher alcohol content- 15 or 16%.
• Most ready-to-drink canned cocktails are 12 ounces and have 5% alcohol content. However, some brands could contain up to 8 or 10% alcohol, so make sure you know how concentrated they are before drinking them. The information is on the label.
• Get to know how much you are drinking using the standard drinks calculator. Kathleen explains how it works.
• Having too many drinks in a row or drinking too quickly is considered binge drinking. It is always best to moderate your drinking or have your drinks with food.
• Why does one type of alcohol impact some people more than another? 
• If your face becomes flushed after drinking, it is your body telling you to slow down. It means you are not tolerating the alcohol.
• Kathleen discusses the potential health benefits of drinking in moderation, whether or not there is any truth to the French paradox, and how drinking too much alcohol can sabotage your health.
• Kathleen lists the people who should not consume alcohol at all. 
• Some tips to help you enjoy alcohol, reap the health benefits and make your drink last longer. 
• A standard drink contains roughly 150 calories. Calories add up, so try to use low-calorie mixers, like club soda, and DON'T drink with a straw!
• Kathleen enjoys a tall vodka soda with a splash of cranberry and a wedge of lime. Her latest favorite is the Aperol Spritz- a serving of prosecco over lots of ice with a splash of Aperol and a wedge of lime. 
• Kathleen and I share some recipes for mocktails. They are a good option for a "dry January" or taking a break from alcohol.
• Blue zones are hot spots in various places in the world where people live particularly long and healthy lives. One of the common denominators in all the blue zones is moderate alcohol consumption.
• Kathleen talks about the Distilled Spirits Council of the US (DISCUS) and explains what you will find on the DISCUS website.  

Resources:

The standard drinks calculator 

The Distilled Spirits Council (DISCUS) website is called Standard Drinks.Org

 

Liz's Links: 

My website: www.lizshealthytable.com  

My email: liz@lizshealthytable.com 

 

Mocktail Recipe:

Pomegranate Winter Spiced Mocktail (Serves 2)

Place a cup of 100% pomegranate juice, a cup of 100% orange juice, some cloves, star anise, and a cinnamon stick in a small saucepan. Let it simmer for about 15 minutes, and then allow it to cool. 

Pour it into a tall glass filled with ice, and garnish it with some orange slices or a wedge of orange. You can also add a sprig of mint. Or stretch it by adding some sparkling water.

On this week's show, we're talking about raising resilient kids and nurturing families during the pandemic and beyond. We can accomplish this with help from good nutrition, healthy eating habits, regular mealtime routines, and help from today's guest. 

Ekua Walker is a pediatric child development nurse and CEO (chief encouragement officer) who lives and practices in the San Francisco Bay area. Ekua works with families of young children and teens with a range of challenges, including ADHD, communication delays, and disabilities that impact learning. She is board-certified in primary care pediatrics; she also hosts the phenomenal podcast, Moms Changing the World, where moms of all kinds from all over the world find encouragement, tools, and inspiration to raise world-changers, one child at a time, one day at a time. In today's show, we'll discuss the importance of established routines, helping kids stay focused, and re-establishing social skills, along with how good nutrition and routines can help with anxiety. Let's learn more about how we can change the world with good nutrition and strong families. 

 

Show Highlights:

• Ekua's life in the Bay area, where she works in a large specialty pediatrics practice, partnering with parents for the treatment and management of many problems for kids; she's the mom to two girls, ages 7 and 10, hosts her podcast, and loves Zumba
• What's come out of the disruption of routines due to the pandemic
• The mental health impact of the pandemic for children and young people
• How we can use coping strategies like mindfulness and awareness and making space for the feelings
• How parents can be the calming influence when a kid's stress level is escalating
• Why children need their parents to "just be there" above all else, even in the middle of stressful situations
• Why downtime and rest are necessities for kids and adults
• One habit that helps promote attention and focus is single-tasking instead of multitasking
• What family meals look like at Ekua's house
• Ekua's family background as immigrants from Ghana; her culture has carried over into her cooking
• The importance of sleep for focus; manage light and screens and use natural sources of melatonin
• How cooking together with kids can be a powerful teaching tool and help develop their social skills
• Anxiety: what it is, how it's common to people of all ages, and foods that can help
• Ekua's podcast, in which she talks to moms who are changing the world in interesting ways

 

Resources:

www.momschangingtheworld.org

Moms Changing the World - Podcast

https://www.momschangingtheworld.org/episodes

Moms Changing the World (private group on Facebook -- anyone can join)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/320775455777462

On this week's show, we are adding flexibility and joy to the meals you feed yourself and your family. Join us to learn how to balance your plate with foods that still allow fun and freedom instead of leaving you burdened and oppressed by dietary restrictions. 

Dawn Jackson (DJ) Blatner is a fellow registered dietitian and author of The Flexitarian Diet: 100 Quick and Delicious Recipes and The Superfood Swap: The 4-Week Program to Eat What You Crave Without the C.R.A.P. DJ is a certified specialist in sports dietetics and on the advisory board of Shape magazine. She's also a celebrity diet consultant for People magazine and a trusted expert who appears regularly on local and national media outlets such as Good Morning America. DJ starred in and won the primetime, weight-loss reality ABC TV show, My Diet is Better Than Yours. She owns a nutrition consulting and communications business with a focus on real food, more fun, and no BS. DJ is a proud Chicagoan who admits to a healthy obsession with jumping rope. In today's show, you'll learn why a flexitarian diet is the eating style you may want to adopt, and we'll share a bunch of recipes to curb your cravings for sugar and bring super nutrition to your table. Join us!

Show Highlights:

• Getting to know DJ, who has been married for 17 years and is stepmom to Christian; she loves her hometown of Chicago
• How the pandemic spurred DJ to jump rope, which she loves
• DJ's Nutrition WOW (Words of Wisdom) that come through an email every Monday
• How brand work gets DJ's creative juices flowing
• Why DJ believes that fun and joy are critical elements of success in life
• How to balance your plate with your "wild child" and your "health nut" in mind every time you eat
• "Flexitarian"--a plant-based, vegetarian-ish eating style that doesn't cut anything out, where meat becomes a condiment-sized part of the meal that can be swapped out for a plant protein
• One of DJ's favorite recipes: Nutty Brown Rice, which is made with chopped nuts, green onion, and an egg
• DJ's Chickpea Flatbread with Tahini Sauce, which is made with chickpea flour, water, and olive oil; cook it like a pancake
• How tahini (made with ground sesame seeds) pairs great with yogurt and lemon to make great sauces
• DJ's BBQ Chicken Bowl, which is made with canned beans cooked in a skillet with BBQ sauce (but it can be made without the chicken!)
• How to use beans and themes in swapping out meat for plant protein by adding taco seasoning, pesto, or lemon juice and herbs
• DJ's tips for adding fun to meals and reducing stress in meal planning
• How to break up with sugar but "own it like a boss" when you decide to enjoy a treat; DJ says it's all about the situation and the energy with which we eat it
• DJ's tips for dealing with picky eaters: Use the calendar to allow each person to pick the family meal and respectfully try to enjoy everyone's choices. Also, have a snack list on the refrigerator of what's in stock
• What's next for DJ?
• Final words from DJ: "Wake up and show up. Do the work in front of you with joyful enthusiasm, and stay open to all possibilities."

 

Resources:

 

Website:

djblatner.com

IG: @djblatner

 

Liz Weiss

Author, Color, Cook, Eat! coloring book series

Website: Liz's Healthy Table

Listen to my Podcast

Read my Blog

We've been living with the pandemic for over a year. How in the world have we survived? There has been much confusion about doing simple things like going to the grocery store and eating out. My guest, Dr. Ben Chapman, is here with the latest on food safety and COVID. He's answering our most pressing questions about the virus and teaching us the basics that we need to know. I hope today's show will help you feel more comfortable and better prepared for that next grocery shopping trip or an excursion to get takeout food. 

Dr. Ben Chapman is a professor and Food Safety Extension Specialist at NC State University. He studies pathogens and public health with the goal of less foodborne illness. He has a BS in Molecular Biology and Genetics and a Master's and Ph.D. in Plant Agriculture. Ben's team at NC State is involved in a cool project called FoodCoVNET, which provides evidence-based information designed to alleviate all of our fears about the food supply and community spread of the virus. 

Show Highlights:

• Get to know Ben, his work, and his family: Originally from Toronto, Ben has been at NC State University for 13 years; he lives in Raleigh, NC, with his two kids and his wife, who works in home design
• Ben's research and work on how people prepare food in the interest of food safety
• Ben's podcasts, Food Safety Talk and Risky or Not
• The website, FoodCoVNET, which is a one-stop-shop for information and answers to our questions about food and COVID
• The basics of mucous, spit, virus transmission, and the dangers of inhaling "shared air"
• How noroviruses and salmonella differ from COVID in the ways they are transmitted and contracted
• Why respiratory viruses like the common cold, influenza, and others don't usually cause infection through food consumption
• If you can catch the common cold by touching a germy shopping cart, why can't you catch COVID by touching something?
• Are we over-sanitizing?
• If a waitress or kitchen staff coughs on your plate and food and then hands it to you, can you get sick?
• Do we need to wipe down our groceries before we bring them into our home?
• Does COVID-19 behave like salmonella and other food pathogens?
• Is our continual sanitizing just "hygiene theater," or will the sanitizing of public spaces continue?
• How much of a risk is it to have food made by others at a group gathering?
• Are the new mutations able to spread more easily by contact instead of air? Will the new variants make it safe to get takeout?
• Is there any difference between eating outdoors and indoors when dining out? Once we're all vaccinated, will it be safer to eat indoors again?
• Should we call restaurants and ask what their practices are to prevent the spread of COVID?
• What is happening in the meat industry that we can feel good about how and where our food is produced?
• Final words on food safety and COVID: "The biggest risk in this pandemic is being around other people and shared air. These are the things that we know lead to illnesses and problems around the world. The normal everyday food safety guidelines like cleaning and sanitizing after food handling and keeping our hands clean and sanitized will go a long way in reducing our risk even further."

 

Resources:

www.foodcov.net

https://foodsafety.ces.ncsu.edu

 

Ben's Podcasts:

http://foodsafetytalk.com

https://www.riskyornot.co

 

facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/SafePlatesFSIC/

 

Ben on Social Media:

Twitter

@benjaminchapman

@foodcovnet

@safeplatesFSIC

 

Instagram

@barfblogben

@foodcovnet

@safeplatesfsic

 

Blog:

Barfblog.com

COVID may be restricting our travel, but you can join me today on a food adventure to Cuba, a beautiful and exciting place that I've always wanted to visit. We are talking about all things Cuban cooking, so join us to learn more!

Lourdes Castro is a fellow dietitian and cookbook author, and the co-author of a brand new cookbook, Cuba Cooks. She shares insights to traditional Cuban cuisine and what you might find if you travel across this island in the Caribbean. We'll discuss delicious recipes that you will want to try, like Cuban Rice and Beans, Citrus Marinated Chicken, Seared Romaine Hearts, and Quick Pickled Onions. 

Show Highlights:

• Get to know Lourdes and learn about her life growing up in Miami and her work in Brooklyn as the Director of the NYU Food Lab, where she teaches food science and nutrition
• How COVID has given Lourdes a richer toolbox with which to teach students via Zoom
• How Cuban family meals revolve around beans, rice, tropical fruits, and fish, but are very "benign" in many ways and not as varied as we might assume
• How traditional Cuban foods are full of sweet, sour, and tangy flavors from a combination of Spanish, African, and Chinese influences
• How Cuban food is MUCH more than rice and beans and Cuban sandwiches
• How Cuban pizza became popular in the 1970s
• How Lourdes' parents reacted to her visit to their Cuban homeland with her mother
• Lourdes' recipe for Cuban Rice and Beans starts with garlic, olive oil, onion, and green peppers. Cumin, oregano, and rice are added and sauteed. Canned black beans with their liquid are added with water, and the dish cooks for 45 minutes. For full flavor and color, let the dish sit for about an hour before serving. (Use medium or long-grain rice, and other beans can be substituted.)
• Lourdes' recipe for Citrus Marinated Chicken starts with a Mojo-like blend of olive oil, garlic, orange juice, lime juice, oregano, cumin, and salt and pepper. Puree in a blender and marinate for 30 minutes or overnight in the refrigerator. Cook the chicken quickly in a skillet for a beautiful caramelization.
• With Citrus Marinated Chicken, Lourdes serves Seared Romaine Hearts sprinkled with seared lime juice and Pickled Onion, which is simply thinly sliced red onion marinated in red wine vinegar.

 

Resources:

 

Giveaway: Cuba Cooks by Lourdes Castro and Guillermo Pernot

Post a comment below and tell me about your favorite Cuban recipe or the best Cuban restaurant you've been to, or tell me why you'd like to win a copy of this cookbook.

 

Website: http://lourdescastro.net/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lourdes.castro.rdn/

 

Culinary Nutrition Collaborative (how Liz and Lourdes met): https://www.culinarynutritioncollaborative.com/ 

What is the secret to eating well, feeling great, and staying vibrant through midlife and beyond? Don't we all want to know? Join us for kitchen inspiration to boost your wellness!

Amanda Haas is a bestselling cookbook author, instructor, and mom to two teenage sons. She's the voice behind the website and blog, Amanda Haas Cooks. She's a past test kitchen manager at Williams-Sonoma and the author of several cookbooks, including her latest, The Vibrant Life.

Amanda's motto is: "I make food that tastes so good, you don't even realize it's good for you." She's a foodie after my own heart! You'll hear all kinds of inspiration for delicious meals and a healthy life, including Amanda's recipe for Fall Quinoa Salad and Coconut Ginger Sea Bass in Parchment. Join us!

 

Show Highlights:

• Amanda's life in northern CA with two teenage boys, who are BIG eaters
• What family dinner looks like in Amanda's house
• Amanda's career journey from cooking school, writing cookbooks and being the culinary director at Williams-Sonoma
• Amanda's go-to chimichurri sauce made with cilantro, parsley, basil, mint, olive oil, garlic, shallots, lime/lemon juice, and dijon mustard
• Why Amanda's book includes self-care practices for midlife and beyond, along with many other helpful topics to raise awareness about feeling great
• Why Amanda went gluten-free because of chronic health issues and increasing pain
• Amanda's advice: "Educate yourself and realize that there's not a one-size-fits-all approach."
• Amanda's Fall Quinoa Salad made with a lemon vinaigrette, arugula, roasted butternut squash, toasted pepitas, golden raisins, and tarragon
• How tarragon is underused and underappreciated
• Why herbs are a great way to get kids used to "eating green"
• Amanda's Coconut Ginger Sea Bass in Parchment made with sesame oil, tamari, coconut milk, lime, ginger, garlic, honey, mushrooms, bok choy, green onion, and sesame seeds (You can substitute salmon, halibut, or other firm fish.)
• Amanda's favorite dessert recipe for Panna Cotta with coconut milk, matcha, berries, and sesame seeds
• What's next for Amanda?

Giveaway:

We are giving away one copy of The Vibrant Life to a lucky U.S. winner. For a chance to enter to win, post a comment in the Comments section at the end of this post, and tell me about why you want to win the book or the recipe you turn to time and time again that makes you feel good and gives you a sense of vitality. I'll pick the winner on April 21st. For extra entries, head to my Instagram page. 

Find Amanda:

YouTube

Instagram

Facebook

Visit her website:  www.amandahaascooks.com  

If you're like me, a recent empty-nester, or perhaps newly married or cooking for just yourself and a partner, you may be frustrated with the task of cooking for two. If you've been accustomed to cooking for several people, you might be horrified at the food waste when it's just the two of you. Today's guest has all the bases covered with helpful tips and kitchen inspiration for cooking for two. 

Jenna Braddock is a registered dietitian and certified Sports Dietetics specialist who lives in Florida with her husband and two kids. She hosts the blog, Make Healthy Easy, and her new cookbook is Easy Cooking for Two: 75 Perfectly Portioned Recipes. In today's show, you'll hear Jenna's advice for stocking a pantry for cooking for two and not a crowd. Do you wonder how to keep herbs fresh when you buy a big bunch but only need a handful? Jenna has the answer! We will discuss the benefits of cooking for two regarding less food waste and delicious recipes from Jenna's book, like Adobo Turkey Tacos, Warm Quinoa Salad, and Mango Salsa Pork Chops. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Get to know Jenna and her life in St. Augustine with her football coach husband and two young sons; it's a football-filled life!
• Tips for group gatherings for teenagers (think about salads and fresh fruit)
• What dinner looks like at Jenna's house
• Why Jenna started her blog, Make Healthy Easy, which is food-focused with do-able and delicious recipes
• How Jenna's cookbook provides the perfect solution for those who don't want to cook large meals
• How cooking for two helps eliminate food waste
• The benefits of cooking for two include experimenting with different ingredients and recipes and avoiding the "condiment graveyard" in your refrigerator and pantry
• How Jenna's cookbook is structured with vegetarian/vegan recipes, lighter fare, seafood, poultry, pork, and beef
• Tips on how to make fresh herbs last longer so they don't end up in the trash
• One of Jenna's kids' favorite recipes: Taco Bowl with refried beans, beef, cheese, tortillas, and toppings
• How we can rethink grocery shopping to accommodate cooking for two
• Jenna's Adobo Turkey Nachos, which are made with diced onions, broccoli slaw, ground turkey, and adobo seasoning
• How using key spice blends keep you from needing a ton of in
• Jenna's recipe for Warm Quinoa Salad, which is made with quinoa, wilted and chopped spinach, frozen edamame, red wine vinegar, and dried cherries
• How Jenna's Sheet Pan Shrimp Bowls use frozen rice as an ingredient
• Why freezer section fruits, veggies, and grains are perfect for easy and nutritious recipes for two
• Jenna's recipe for Mango Salsa Pork Chops uses boneless pork loin chops and a salsa made with chopped mango, jalapeno, red onion, and lime juice
• Jenna's husband's favorite recipe is Chile Lime Pork Chops, which are seasoned with chipotle chile powder, lime juice, and salt
• Jenna's favorite family go-to recipe is Apricot Chicken with Spinach Rice; she uses two boneless, skinless thighs from a frozen bag of chicken thighs and makes a pan sauce of apricot preserves and balsamic vinegar

 

 

Resources:

 

Giveaway: 

We are giving away a copy of Easy Cooking for Two: 75 Perfectly Portioned Recipes to one lucky U.S. winner. For a chance to enter to win, post a comment in the Comments section at the end of this post and tell me about why you want to win the book or your favorite recipe for two. I'll pick the winner on April 7th.

 

Find Jenna on the web:

https://jennabraddock.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/make.healthy.easy/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MakeHealthyEasy/

 

Easy Cooking for Two on Amazon

 

 

Today we are taking a journey to the sunny state of California. My friend and fellow dietitian, Sharon Palmer, aka The Plant-Powered Dietitian, will share news about her brand new cookbook, California Vegan. 

Sharon Palmer is one of the country's top experts on plant-based nutrition and sustainability. California's plant-based vibe stems from the colorful and incredible variety of produce available year-round, the infusion of global culinary influences from around the world, a Mediterranean climate, and a fresh and innovative attitude about food. You'll hear about plant-forward and vegan eating, Sharon's favorite vegan recipes from her book, including the Mediterranean Tofu in Parchment recipe that I made for dinner last night. We'll give helpful vegan cooking techniques, and Sharon has the answers for your vegan cooking dilemmas. We'll discuss how you can embrace a vegan diet whether you live in California, Boston, or anywhere in-between. You'll also find out what Sharon is growing in her diverse and ever-changing fruit and vegetable garden.

 

Show Highlights:

 

• The backstory of Sharon's life in California as a wife and mother of two who (amazingly) blogs every day
• How Sharon defines plant-based eating
• How Sharon describes Ojai, CA, as a paradise known for small farms, citrus fruit, and avocados
• What's growing in Sharon's garden and orchard right now
• What to expect in Sharon's new book, California Vegan
• How plant-based eating originated in the US in California, thanks to the hippie and health nut influences
• Sharon's family history of growing up in a vegetarian household
• Reasons why a plant-based diet is a healthier way to eat to lower the risk of many diseases and disorders, besides lowering the environmental footprint
• Sharon's favorite recipe from her book: Pomegranate Faro Bowl, made with pomegranate seeds, faro, mandarin oranges, cucumbers, and an herbed almond yogurt dressing
• Sharon's trick for getting seeds out of the pomegranate
• Sharon's recipe for Tofu in Parchment, made with cherry tomatoes, garlic, herbs, and capers
• How to adapt plant-based recipes for just one or two people by using versatile ingredients
• How to incorporate more protein into healthy vegan meals
• Why soy milk is Sharon's choice for superior nutrition in a plant-based milk
• How to get your family on board with eating less meat
• Vegan cooking techniques regarding egg replacements and aquafaba (also an egg replacement)
• Sharon's favorite veggie burger recipes in the cookbook: Sweet Potato Sorghum Burgers and Chipotle Black Bean Burgers
• Sharon's best vegan meals in California and around the world
• Why plant-based eating can fit into everyone's budget
• Why beans are the least expensive protein source and the most versatile ingredient of plant-based meals

 

Resources:

 

GIVEAWAY NEWS: We are giving away a copy of California Vegan to one lucky U.S. winner. Post a comment in the comments section below, and tell us about your favorite vegan recipes. I'll pick the lucky winner on March 24th. 

 

California Vegan: Learn more on Sharon's website  

How to Make Aquafaba

Natural plant-based egg replacements

Sweet Potato Sorghum Veggie Burger

SharonPalmer.com

Twitter: @SharonPalmerRD

Instagram: @SharonPalmerRD

Facebook: @SharonPalmerThePlantPoweredDietitian

A fews weeks ago, I sent a survey to my readers and listeners asking all sorts of questions including: What's your biggest food or nutrition challenge, question, or concern? The comments came flooding in, and on today's podcast, I answer and address them. With help from my Boston University intern, Jordan Ball, this episode covers everything from meal planning and confusion over carbs to tips for getting quick and healthy meals on the table and strategies for cutting added sugar from the diet. . This show is action packed!

I'm joined by my trusty sidekick, Jordan Ball, a Boston University nutrition grad student who is my intern. Jordan recently helped me create a reader survey where people shared their biggest food challenges and questions. Jordan has organized the questions, so she will ask them, and I'll answer, but we will be sure to get her opinion, too. We will address everything from meal-planning tips to questions about carbs, along with ways to get your teens excited about eating vegetables and healthy family dinner ideas when you're pressed for time.

Show Highlights:

• Get to know Jordan better: she's in the second year of a three-year program and wants to combine clinical work with a private practice as a dietitian; she currently tries out her cooking skills on her fiance
• How do I manage to include fruits and vegetables in a busy life?
• • Buy pre-sliced produce, use canned or frozen incorporated into everyday meals, and consider batch prepping fresh vegetables to use in quick dishes.
• Is it advised to hide vegetables in recipes rather than be honest with a picky eater?
• • Rather than hide them, incorporate vegetables into pancakes, smoothies, sauces, etc., and get the kids involved in meal planning and cooking.
• If you have a picky eater who only eats fruit, is that cause for concern?
• • Aim for a variety of fruits, and try "food chaining" techniques.
• Is it bad to sneak veggies into family meals--when they just want pizza?
• • Get the family involved in shopping for vegetables and preparing meals; try dips with familiar foods and vegetables, and try smoothies and pizza with veggies.
• What is the healthiest way to prepare vegetables? Are they better for you raw?
• • Any way is fine because each vegetable counts; remember that fats help with the absorption of nutrients from vegetables.
• What are new, healthy, fast, tasty weeknight dinner ideas, along with interesting and quick lunch ideas?
• • Utilize leftovers for easy lunches the next day; try "build-your-own" power bowls with assorted items.
• How can I prep my weekly meals on the weekend when I have more time?
• • Use meal planning and prepping for a couple hours on Sunday; slice and dice produce and pre-package them in the refrigerator for later in the week.
• Do you have suggestions for nutritious after-school snacks or post-workout small dinners?
• • Smoothies (use almond or dairy milk, nut butter, banana, protein powder or Greek yogurt, blueberries, and cocoa powder), quesadillas (cheese, black beans, leftover veggies, and salsa), peanut butter sandwich with sliced banana or apple, or sliced veggies with various Greek yogurt or hummus dips.
• What are some quick, nutritional meal ideas?
• • Pasta with meatballs and sauce, pre-made salad, roasted broccoli, tuna/salmon cakes, and veggie burgers.
• Are meal delivery services worth the money?
• • They are pricey and contain a lot of wasteful packaging, but they are an easy option to get kids involved in planning meals and cooking.
• How does batch cooking work?
• • It's easy to do with friends (in non-COVID times) and allows you to put meals in the freezer for later days; most recipes are easy to double and freeze for later.
• What can I throw together when I'm tired and haven't planned ahead?
• • One idea is frozen butternut squash cubes cooked in a saucepan, then blended with shredded cheese to make a sauce for baked potatoes, nachos, pasta, and roasted broccoli.
• How do I plan meals with variety that everyone will eat?
• • Try "build-your-own" nights with tacos, chili, and pizza with assorted toppings.
• What are tips for cooking for someone with a sensitive stomach?
• • Try the Low FODMAP diet foods. (See Resources)
• How do I get off sugar?
• • Cut down on sugar amounts in recipes; use raisins, dates, and apricots in recipes; and always read the labels for added sugar. 
• How do I get my family to eat less meat?
• • Use leaner cuts of meat, but make vegetables and whole grains the stars of the meal; don't be afraid to try meat substitutes.
• How do I cut carbs and use less sugar?
• • Watch out for refined carbs; you can also pair grains with dried fruits, nuts, roasted vegetables, and fresh herbs, and mix riced cauliflower or broccoli with regular rice.
• What can I do if I want to try new and interesting vegetables that aren't nightshades?
• • Try bok choy, roasted brussels sprouts or cauliflower, asparagus and snap peas, green beans, and sliced cucumbers and carrots with dips.
• What are some healthy fats that make good snacks?
• • Try pumpkin, chia, and hemp seeds; other options are olives, tahini, salmon, eggs, and nut butters.
• How much meat is OK to eat, and which varieties are best?
• • Go for variety, and remember that the recommendation is 5.5-6.0 ounces per day for the average adult. 
• What is the difference between probiotics and prebiotics?
• • Probiotics are the good bacteria in your gut that have a healthy benefit; prebiotics are foods that feed probiotics; fiber is the best prebiotic, so go for fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and seeds.
• What are some healthy smoothie recipes?
• • Liz's favorite green smoothie recipe: ¾ to 1 c. 100% orange juice, ½ c. plain or vanilla Greek yogurt, 1 c. baby spinach, 3-4 mint leaves, a 2-in. Piece of English cucumber, ½ c. frozen mango or pineapple, and ½ banana. You can drizzle honey or agave if you want, and kiwi and fresh ginger are optional add-ins. 
• What are some unique ways to incorporate fiber into each meal?
• • Try adding avocado, raspberries, beans, nuts, seeds, whole grain cereals, apples, and pears. 
• Why are people so into organics and non-GMO foods? Are they worth it?
• • If it's a food you eat a lot of, then you might want to pay more for the organic variety; remember that non-GMO and GMO foods have the same nutritional value.
• What is the very best hard-boiled egg method?
• • Liz's version: Bring one inch of water to boil in a saucepan and place your eggs in a steamer basket into the water. Lower the heat and simmer for 14-15 minutes. Remove from heat and run cold water over the pot in the sink. Let cool for 5 minutes and then peel under cool running water. Perfect eggs every time!

 

Resources:

Podcast episodes on 

- IBS and the Low FODMAP Diet

- Meal Planning

- Meal Prepping

- Freezer Cooking

- Smoothies 

 

Blog post: 12 Ways to Get Your Teens to Eat Vegetables Happily

Today's show is all about one of my favorite comfort foods: potatoes. They are versatile, affordable, nutritious, and delicious. In fact, my new passion this winter is Hasselback Potatoes. Join us!

Joining me for "all things spuds" is fellow culinary dietitian Amy Myrdal Miller, a farmer's daughter, public speaker, author, and president of Farmer's Daughter Consulting. Together, we will tell you all about potato nutrition, give you potato recipes galore, and explain why potatoes are the perfect gateway for getting other vegetables into your diet. For example, how about a potato bar with crispy Brussels sprouts or crispy shallots? The sky's the limit when it comes to potatoes!

Show Highlights:

• Get to know Amy and her life in CA, running her consulting business and living with her husband and naughty kittens
• Why Amy, the farm girl from North Dakota, became a dietitian after her childhood diabetes diagnosis
• How potatoes fit into world cuisine, with possible origins in South America
• Most common potato varieties include Idaho, Yukon Gold, Fingerling, and Red Bliss (there are over 200 varieties in the US alone!)
• A few varieties that are well-suited for specific cooking techniques are Colomba, Sifra, Mozart, Mulberry Beauty, and Rickey Russet
• Dispelling the myth of "potato shame," potatoes are rich in nutrients like vitamin C, potassium (more than a banana!), and fiber and antioxidants (in the skin)
• How to use potatoes with other veggies as diverse toppings
• Why many families are turning to potatoes as a staple during the pandemic
• Amy's favorite mashed potatoes are a Yukon Gold-type with milk steeped with fresh rosemary; she also likes a preparation with extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, and pepper, or perhaps milk, sour cream, and cheese
• How nutrition-packed potatoes compare to rice and pasta as a dinner side dish
• Liz and Amy compete in a recipe smackdown to name different potato dishes and applications--with over 20 ideas in 60 seconds!
• Amy's favorite potato recipe is a childhood favorite: boiled and buttered baby potatoes with fresh dill
• Liz's easy prep for Potato Latkes made with pre-baked potatoes
• How silver linings during the pandemic have shown up with more family cooking and family connections
• How efficiency in water requirements, growing conditions, and space requirements have made potatoes the 4th most popular crop grown around the world

Resources:

A Genius Method for Making Latkes (by Joan Nathan): https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/04/dining/hanukkah-latke-recipe.html

Potato Wonder: https://www.potatowonder.com/ 

Potato varieties and breeding: HZPC 

https://www.hzpc.com/ 

Potato Goodness (a great resource for potato nutrition, storage, preparation): https://www.potatogoodness.com/

Potato recipe roundup (TBD ... Liz to add)

Liz's Podcast Posse. Join the closed Facebook group!

 

Hasselback potato slicer on Amazon

Today's show covers many different aspects of food nutrition. We are honing in on a new vision for healthy eating in 2021. Join us!

Maya Feller is a registered dietitian and nutritionist from www.mayafellernutrition.com. She is a nationally recognized nutrition expert and author of The Southern Comfort Food Diabetes Cookbook, which features over 100 healthy and delicious recipes. As if her life isn't busy enough, Maya also works as an adjunct professor at NYU. She joins me today with approachable nutrition solutions and a new perspective on how all of us can eat a healthy diet during the pandemic and beyond.

What you won't hear today are diet prescriptions, strict rules, and weight loss advice. Instead, we're looking at nutrition through a slightly different lens. We will discuss how systemic racism drives inequities in healthcare, access to healthy foods, and healthy outcomes, along with what we can do to right those wrongs and improve the health of all communities. Get ready to be empowered! Maya also explains why there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach to healthy eating, and why a new emphasis on embracing and celebrating your cultural food ways can lead to better eating and better health. If your family is like a lot of families out there, where everyone has a different food preference and different food priority, Maya explains how you can still get one meal on the table that everyone will happily eat. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Maya's life in Brooklyn with her husband, two children, and pets; she's busy working from home and managing the kids' remote schoolwork
• Why Maya's work and website focus on helping people reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases and helping those who have them (diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, etc.)
• Why the representatives we elect into office and existing laws impact our access to healthy food; people cannot eat a healthy diet without access to safe, healthy, and affordable foods in their neighborhoods
• How systemic racism drives inequities in healthcare and health outcomes
• Why we should advocate for the collective and not just for individual needs
• Why there is no "one-size-fits-all" solution when it comes to nutrition and how cultural food ways are taken into consideration when defining a "healthy" diet
• Why your weight on the scale doesn't necessarily predict metabolic health
• How the foods that show up regularly in your house can fit into a healthy eating style
• How a family of four with different eating styles can eat the same foods (hint: start with plant-based meals with added flavor from herbs and spices)
• How Maya uses plenty of herbs and spices to add flavor to family meals
• What Maya would do to create something delicious from a can of collard greens: add sweet onion, garlic, pepper, paprika, cumin, and hot pepper or red pepper flakes
• Why eating mindfully and intuitively is a trend for 2021
• Small changes we can make for healthier families and communities in 2021 include the following: go outside and get fresh air daily; find your food style and modify it to be nourishing and health-promoting 
• Maya's hopeful messages: "I hope to see systemic shifts in which marginalized and disenfranchised communities will receive the help they need. I also hope to see expansion in the dietitian field to be more inclusive of all people."
• Maya's newest cookbook that's in the works right now

 

 

Resources:

 

 Maya Feller Nutrition - Website

Instagram: MayaFellerRD

Twitter: MayaFellerRD

Facebook: Maya Feller Nutrition

 

Maya's cookbook: The Southern Comfort Food Diabetes Cookbook

 

Liz's Podcast Posse on Facebook

In today's Longevity Kitchen episode, we are highlighting one of my very favorite foods in the whole world: dark chocolate. Chocolate is universally adored and appreciated by people everywhere as the world's favorite sweet treat. Beyond the fact that it's delicious and versatile, dark chocolate has specific and proven health benefits. Don't feel guilty; grab a piece of dark chocolate and savor the flavor.

Chocolate comes from cacao, which is found in the seeds of football-shaped pods that grow on the cacao tree. So yes, there IS such a thing as a chocolate forest! I've never been in one, but I'm SO ready to go! Today I'm telling you why dark chocolate is good for us, along with a brief history of chocolate, the differences in types of chocolate, and I'm sharing some delicious recipes. I created a new recipe for Dark Chocolate, Pecan, and Dried Cherry Clusters; they are crunchy and yummy and very easy to make. I'll also highlight a few favorites from my Recipe Roundup, which includes 40 recipes from some fellow dietitians who also love dark chocolate. Join me for this delicious adventure!

 

Show Highlights:

• The basics to know about dark chocolate:
• • Cacao is high in magnesium and antioxidants.
  • Dark chocolate has higher amounts of cacao and less sugar than milk chocolate.
  • The health benefits are greater with dark chocolate than other varieties because of the phytonutrients, which may play a role in cancer prevention and heart health.
• Other health benefits of dark chocolate include reduced inflammation, lower blood pressure, better cholesterol levels, improved cognition, better mood, better gut health, and improved blood sugar levels. There is some evidence of dark chocolate preventing memory loss and lowering the risk of Type-2 diabetes. 
• The facts: dark chocolate has more antioxidants than green tea or red wine (The darker the chocolate, the more antioxidants.)
• How dark and how much? Choose a cacao content of 70% or higher, and eat about an ounce each day for maximum health benefits.
• We go WAY back for a brief history of chocolate, spanning the Olmec tribes of present-day Mexico in 1500 BC, the Mayans, Aztecs, and Spaniards. (It was in the early 1800s when chocolate became available to the masses, and aren't we thankful?!)
• Important nutrients in dark chocolate include iron, fiber, magnesium, copper, manganese, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, and selenium.
• Chocolate isn't just for desserts; there are great savory recipes for Triple Chocolate Beef and Bean Chili and Eggplant Caponata. (I will be trying these!)
• My new recipe for Dark Chocolate, Pecan, and Dried Cherry Crunchy Clusters–they are made with dark chocolate chips, flaked cereal, chopped pecans, and dried unsweetened tart cherries.
• From the Dark Chocolate Recipe Roundup:
• From Laura @lauramali.com: Dark Chocolate Orange Mousse is made with dark chocolate, silken tofu, orange zest, agave syrup, kosher salt, orange-flavored liquor, and sliced strawberries.
• From Jackie @jackienewgent.com: Double Chocolate Banana Dessert Bread is made with whole wheat pastry flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, ripe bananas, chopped pistachios, vanilla and almond extracts, bittersweet chocolate chips, sugar, butter, and eggs. 
• From Kelly @kellyjonesnutrition.com: Vegan Turtles are made with dates, salt, walnuts or pecans, dark chocolate chips, and cayenne pepper.
• The differences in types of chocolate, like cocoa powder, dark chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, semisweet chocolate, unsweetened chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate (which isn't really chocolate at all!)

 

Resources

History of Chocolate: 

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/archaeology-chocolate-180954243/

Video of Cacao Bean Processing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_JuQCiKWUc

 

Savory recipes with dark chocolate:

Triple Chocolate Beef and Bean Chili:  https://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Triple-Chocolate-Beef-Bean-Chili/ 

Eggplant Caponata: https://www.saveur.com/gallery/Savory-Chocolate-Recipes/

 

Dark Chocolate Orange Mousse: 

https://www.lauramali.com/easy-dark-chocolate-orange-mousse/

Vegan Turtles: 

https://kellyjonesnutrition.com/vegan-turtles/ 

Double chocolate banana dessert bread: https://jackienewgent.com/dessert-bread/ 

 

Liz's Links: 

My website: www.lizshealthytable.com  

My email: liz@lizshealthytable.com  

 

Happy New Year! We made it through 2020! I hope you're looking forward to more fun in 2021 and more fun in the kitchen as you cook up recipes your family will love!

Mona Dolgov is the author of Satisfy, a brand-new cookbook packed with 120 easy and delicious, gluten-free recipes made with real ingredients, real portions, and lots of vegetables. Every recipe is nutrient-dense, clocks in at 500 calories or less, and will leave you feeling full and satisfied. On today's show, you'll learn about Mona's career in nutrition and food, along with her unique brand of recipe inspiration. You'll hear about Chocolate Avocado Cookies, Pecan-Crusted Chicken, and Salmon Scampi Salad. Mona also has a delicious hummus recipe that has half the calories of the usual version. We're also discussing simple ways to cut added sugar from your family's diet and why Mona believes 65% of your plate should be filled with fruits and vegetables. Mona also tells us how to join her cooking classes on Zoom and Facebook. Join us to learn more about adding new inspiration to your family dinner fare!

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Get to know Mona: she lives in the Boston area with her husband, loves when her two children make it home for a visit, and wants to make a difference in people's lives with food and nutrition
• Why Mona identifies portion control as an important element of the healthy and delicious recipes in Satisfy
• The value of "plant-forward" meals that are 65% vegetables
• Some of Mona's favorite recipes in her book are Chicken Marsala, Egg Roll in a Bowl, and Smoked Salmon Salsa
• The secret to Mona's Peanut Sauce, made with peanut butter (or almond butter or sunflower seed butter), fresh ginger, coconut aminos, honey, crushed red pepper, rice vinegar, and sesame oil
• Why gluten-free alternatives bring SO many choices to the table
• Mona's Grilled Salmon Scampi Salad is a pleasing combination of warm and cool food; it's assembled with grilled fresh veggies, grilled salmon, and a light sauce of extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic-- then placed atop a bed of fresh greens and tomatoes
• How Satisfy is divided into chapters and categories
• How Mona's hummus recipe checks in with half the calories of the usual version because it doesn't include olive oil
• Mona's tips for reducing the added sugar in the typical American diet:
• • Make desserts in pieces and small portions
  • Use pie alternatives without a heavy crust
  • Watch out for hidden sugar in processed sauces and foods
  • Use flavor enhancers like vanilla and cinnamon
• Mona's delicious Chocolate Avocado Cookies are made in the food processor with an egg, avocado, unsweetened cocoa powder, sugar (only ¼ cup!), baking soda, dark chocolate chips, and a pinch of salt (it's a dairy-free and gluten-free recipe!)
• Mona's Pecan-Crusted Chicken with Butternut Squash is a delicious sheet pan meal made with gluten-free bread crumbs, chopped pecans, dijon mustard, and honey; the key is to pound your chicken breasts to a uniform thickness and uniformly cube the butternut squash and brussels sprouts
• Mona's community, which includes Facebook, Instagram, and weekly Zoom cooking classes

 

Resources:

 

Giveaway:

Enter for a chance to win SATISFY: Real Ingredients; Real Portions; Real Simple. Post a comment in the Comments section below and tell me what you and your family are doing to eat a healthier diet in 2021. What changes are you planning to make to your everyday diets, and/or are there any new habits you're planning to adopt in the new year? I'll pick one lucky U.S. winner on January 20th.

 

Mona's website:

www.monadolgov.com 

 

Instagram @MonaDolgov

Facebook

 

Buy the cookbook: 

https://www.monadolgov.com/satisfy-cookbook

 

SATISFY Zoom cooking classes: https://www.monadolgov.com/january-event

 

Liz's regular links:

Liz Weiss, MS, RDN

Food & Nutrition Blogger, Podcast Host, Author, Speaker, Spokesperson

Author, Color, Cook, Eat! coloring book series

Website: Liz's Healthy Table

Listen to my Podcast

Read my Blog

Media Excellence Award winner - Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics 

2020 was a doozy of a year, and I don't need to say why! On this week's show, I look back at my favorite episodes from 2020, the changing food and eating trends we saw during the pandemic, a new killer recipe for Chocolate, Orange & Almond Sparkle Cookies, and the silver linings that sprung from nearly a year of quarantine. Of course, we all had big hopes and dreams for the year, and I even talked about them on episode 67 during my Celebrate 2020 episode. But like so many people out there, I nixed a year of food adventure and travel for an at-home lifestyle that included working (initially) from my dining room table and cooking a heck of a lot more for my immediate family. What were YOUR silver linings? Share a comment below and tell me about the good things that emerged from your COVID life.

Today's show is about silver linings as I want to explore all the good things that came with the difficulties of the pandemic. We'll wrap up the show with one of my new favorite cookie recipes, Chocolate Orange Almond Sparkle Cookies. It's a yummy treat for the holidays--or any day! Join me as we take a look back at 2020's Silver Linings and look ahead to 2021 and new adventures!

Show Highlights:

• How I transitioned to my new stand-up desk and saw immediate improvement in my physical health
• How I discovered yoga classes at home; my new favorite teacher is Jordan at Burning Wheel
• How I've had great fun discovering new parts of Nantucket with my new eBike
• How I've enjoyed some really good TV shows, like Emily in Paris, The Queen's Gambit, and The Mandalorian
• How I've been cooking a LOT! Like many of you, I've enjoyed the return to family mealtimes
• How I've discovered Master Classes; I'm currently taking a class on Modern Middle Eastern Cooking with my favorite chef, Yotam Ottolenghi
• How I've loved working with my awesome intern from Shanghai who currently lives in Boston; check out Resources for her delicious family recipe for Ketchup Shrimp with Vegetables
• How I've learned to do Zooms, webinars, and TV segments--all from my home kitchen, with the help of some basic lighting and recording equipment 
• Some of my favorite Liz's Healthy Table episodes from 2020: my visit with Joe Yonan, the author of Cool Beans and food editor of the Washington Post; my visit with Annie Fenn, the doctor and chef whose blog is Brain Health Kitchen; and the relevant shows we did on quarantine cooking, immunity, and food safety
• Some favorite 2020 Silver Linings shared by listeners
• My plans for this winter include moving into our new Boston condo, enjoying city life, and waiting for the COVID vaccine
• As promised, my recipe for Chocolate Orange Almond Sparkle cookies; they are made with gluten-free baking flour, almond flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, eggs, sugar, canola oil, vanilla extract, orange zest, and sparkly sprinkles
• Glimpses into upcoming shows for 2021; I hope you'll join us in 2021!

 

Resources:

Master Class - Modern Middle Eastern Cooking with Yotam Ottolengi

Learn more about Liz Weiss, MS, RDN, Food & Nutrition Blogger, Podcast Host, Author, Speaker, Spokesperson

Author, Color, Cook, Eat! coloring book series

Website: Liz's Healthy Table

Listen to my Podcast

Read my Blog

Media Excellence Award winner - Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics 

On this week's show, we're making smoothies--but not just any smoothies. The blended drinks we're making today are designed to support your family's gut health and heart health and to deliver benefits like glowing skin, strong muscles, and calming chronic inflammation, which can wreak havoc on your health. Join us as today's guest explains why delicious smoothies aren't just a summertime treat. 

Frances Largeman-Roth is a registered dietitian, mom of three, avid runner, and author of Smoothies & Juices: 100 Delicious Recipes for Optimal Wellness. (See our Resources section below to learn how you can enter the giveaway for this amazing cookbook.) Frances is the founder of FrancesLargemanRoth.com, where you will find delicious recipes for the whole family and many free healthy eating guides. She's a cookbook author and contributor to Today.com, Parents, and Parade. She has appeared on TV shows like Good Morning America and the Rachael Ray Show. Frances is a whiz when it comes to making smoothies!

On today's show, we'll share recipes made with unexpected ingredients like fresh and frozen peaches and oats. We'll blend up one of my favorite recipes from the book for a Ginger Mango Orange Smoothie. Frances shares inside information about what to stock in your gut-healthy smoothie pantry. You'll also get the scoop on protein powder and collagen and learn why you may want to add these to your smoothies. It's time to break out your blenders again and make smoothies!

 

Show Highlights:

• The scoop on Frances' country life after 12 years in Brooklyn as she raises her kids, 11, 9, and 6--and prepares to add a new puppy to the mix
• Frances' work for food magazines, writing cookbooks, and her website/newsletter
• What mealtime looks like in Frances' busy household
• Frances' cookbooks: Feed the Belly (a guide for pregnant moms who want to eat a healthy diet), The Carb Lovers Diet, and Eating in Color (prompted by her picky daughter)
• Her latest cookbook, Smoothies & Juices, focuses on the nutrients packed into smoothies made with quality ingredients
• What you need to start your smoothie adventure: a blender, measuring cups, and freezer bags
• The ideal smoothie for gut health includes prebiotic fiber (good sources are bananas, oats, apples, kiwi, chia seeds, flax seeds, honey, and maple syrup) and probiotics (good sources are kefir and yogurt)
• Frances' Gut Health Smoothie is made with kefir, kale, almond butter, banana, and kiwi
• Why you should add oats to your smoothies for body and texture
• Other surprising smoothie ingredients include avocado, chia seeds, and flax seeds
• Try Frances' Ginger Mango Orange Cream Smoothie that's made with carrots, ginger, mango, orange carrot juice, and vanilla yogurt
• Frances' helpful tips:
• • Add juice to your blender before other ingredients
  • Add baby spinach for iron, fiber, and a mild sweetness
  • Clean your blender by adding two drops of liquid soap and water; blend it and it will clean itself!
• How smoothies and their powerful nutrients can boost immunity
• How smoothies can help improve your skin if you add collagen and beta carotene
• To reduce inflammation:
• • Reduce added sugars, refined carbs, and saturated and trans fats
  • Use grapes, cherries, turmeric, ginger, chia seeds, and blueberries
• In smoothies, avoid added sugar, but don't shy away from the natural sugars in fruits and dairy ingredients because they provide energy and added nutrition
• Should I add protein powder to smoothies? Which ones are best? Check out Frances' book for all the information you need
• Frances' family favorite smoothies:
• • Strawberry Avocado Refresher: strawberries, avocado, frozen banana, lime juice, and ice
  • Banana Avocado Zinger: banana, avocado, baby spinach, coconut water, frozen pineapple chunks, chopped fresh parsley, and lime juice (jalapeno is optional)

 

Resources:

Giveaway: We're giving away a copy of Smoothies & Juices to one lucky U.S. winner. For a chance to win, post a comment in the comments section below and tell me about your favorite smoothie recipe and/or your favorite go-to smoothie ingredient. I'll pick one winner at random on December 16th at noon ET. Good luck!

Find Francis on the web:

Instagram and Twitter:

@FrancesLRothRD 

Get my FREE monthly FLR VIP newsletter with recipes and discounts

www.franceslargemanroth.com

Smoothies & Juices: Prevention Healing Kitchen

Author of Eating in Color and Feed the Belly

Contributor At Today.com and Parents magazine

Host of The Milk & Honey Kitchen with Frances on YouTube

Like me on Facebook!

Frances' recommendation: Collagen -- unflavored collagen from Vital Proteins and the vanilla multi collage from Ancient Nutrition. Frances uses it in her coffee daily and also enjoys adding it to smoothies. 

 

We're all busy making plans for the holidays, starting with Thanksgiving. How are you celebrating this year? Are you making your typical sweet potato side dish, or are you preparing the entire meal from scratch, like me? How are you keeping your stress meter out of the red? My guest today has simple advice for adding ease, flavor, and a dash of good health to your Thanksgiving Day dinner--and beyond.

Jenna Helwig is the food director at Real Simple magazine and the author of four cookbooks; her fifth is coming out next year. She's also the founder of a NYC-based personal chef services company called Rosaberry. When it comes to simplicity in the kitchen, Jenna's got us covered. Today's show brings lots of recipe inspiration, like Maple Sweet Potatoes with Spicy Pecan Praline and a Vanilla Sweet Potato Cheesecake dessert that I'm planning to make for Thanksgiving. Jenna has advice for staying grounded and grateful during the holidays, along with tips for streamlining your holiday dinner to-do list. If you love mashed potatoes, don't miss Jenna's easy hacks for adding fun, new flavors to your old favorites. Thanksgiving may look a little different this year, but Jenna is here to help us cope and cook delicious meals with confidence. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Get to know Jenna, her life in Brooklyn as she raises a teenager, loves cookbooks, and indulges in her passion for New York Yankees baseball
• Jenna's books, blog, and her work at Real Simple and Rosaberry
• A glimpse at an average day in Jenna's life
• Plans for Thanksgiving at Jenna's house
• Maple Sweet Potatoes with Spicy Pecan Praline features roasted sweet potatoes and shallots topped with candied pecans and lime zest
• Jenna demystifies the under-appreciated shallot
• Vanilla Sweet Potato Cheesecake, which is made with cream cheese, eggs, vanilla, sweet potato, and a pie crust
• Five ways to add better nutrition and flavor to mashed potatoes: swirl in chimichurri or pesto, drizzle with pumpkin seed oil and top with pepitas, add Greek yogurt, blend with cauliflower, add roasted garlic
• Jenna's tips for streamlining Thanksgiving: "Realize that not every dish has to be over the top, and make dishes ahead when possible."
• Why pumpkin pie is Jenna's go-to Thanksgiving dessert
• Tips for pursuing positivity during the holidays: practice password therapy and list thankfulness in threes
• How Jenna balances holiday indulgences with healthy hacks
• How we can take opportunities to be more intentional in the ways we celebrate holidays

Resources:

Mash Notes: Recipes from Real Simple featuring potatoes  

https://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/maple-sweet-potatoes-recipe

Hear from Jenna's non-binary teenager. An essay about Rosen's gender journey can be found here:  https://www.parents.com/parenting/better-parenting/teenagers/teen-talk/im-a-teen-who-is-nonbinary-heres-what-i-wish-parents-would-know-about-gender/

 

Jenna's website: https://www.jennahelwig.com/

Follow Jenna: 

Instagram: @jennahelwig and @realbabyfood

Twitter: @JennaRosaberry

Jenna's books: The Multi-Cooker Baby Food Cookbook, Baby-Led Feeding, Real Baby Food, and Smoothie-licious

 

This week's show is all about authentic and healthy Indian cooking. Indian food has always been a bit of a mystery to me, but my guest today explains the diverse and delicious cuisine of India in an easy and understandable way. If the extent of your Indian cooking knowledge revolves around the word "curry," then you don't want to miss today's show!

 

Madhu Gadia is a leading authority on Indian cooking and the author of The Indian Vegan Kitchen. Madhu is the mother of two grown children, grandmother, and a fellow registered dietitian. She's also the voice behind the must-visit website, Cuisine of India.com. Hope over to Madhu's website to see her delightful cooking videos, blog posts, and recipes. Think of it as your one-stop-shop for all things Indian cooking. On today's show, you'll hear about her life as a child around the kitchen table in India, her favorite family recipes (hint: you're going to need some chickpeas!), and how you can set up a nourishing Indian pantry in no time, including the six spices you'll need to make traditional Indian dishes. We'll also talk about the exciting recipes in Madhu's latest book. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Madhu's life in Ames, Iowa, her work, and her family
• How Madhu feels comfortable in both Indian and American culture
• The biggest differences in the regions of northern India and southern India are the staple grains; wheat is prevalent in the north and west, and rice is used mainly in the south and east
• Misconceptions about "curry" in Indian cuisine: Is it a spice or a dish?
• Madhu's Creamy Mushroom Curry, a side dish with no cream, is made with onions, ginger, garlic, green chiles, almonds, cashews, mushrooms, turmeric, salt, and cayenne pepper
• Starter spices for Indian cooking include turmeric, cumin seeds, ground coriander, cayenne pepper, garam masala, and black mustard seeds
• What is garam masala? A flavorful spice blend of cloves, ginger, cumin seeds, and cardamom; it's "heating" to the body and good for health and digestion
• Other basics for the Indian pantry include onions, ginger, garlic, green chiles, beans, whole wheat flour, lentils, chickpeas, and basmati rice
• Madhu's first cookbook, Light and Luscious Cuisine of India, was published in 1997; it was later republished and renamed New Indian Home Cooking
• Why Indian cooks add asafoetida (a spice) to most bean dishes 
• Madhu's favorite Indian recipe: Quick Chickpea Curry, which brings all the flavors of India with canned chickpeas, onions, cumin seeds, ginger, chopped tomatoes, turmeric, ground coriander, cayenne pepper, salt, garam masala, and lemon juice; it's ready in 15 minutes and goes well with rice for a quick meal
• "Masala"--a general Indian term for a dry spice blend
• "Dal"--a general Indian term for a dish with beans
• Madhu's life as a young girl growing up in India
• The prevalence of vegetarianism among Indian people
• Madhu's Pea and Tofu Curry made with tofu, frozen peas, onions, ginger, garlic, green chiles, tomato sauce, cumin seeds, almond meal, white poppy seeds, turmeric, coriander seeds, garam masala, and cilantro
• Madhu's favorite Indian desserts: Jalebi (a dessert similar to funnel cake) and Almond Halwa, which is made with roasted almond meal and a syrup of sugar, water, and cardamom
• Kid-friendly, starter recipes to try in Madhu's book: Potato Flatbread and Veggie Noodles

 

 

Resources:

 

Cuisine of India: Madhu's website

Madhu's Quick Chickpea Curry

Madu's YouTube cooking channel

Madhu on Instagram

Today's show is all about the DASH diet, which stands for "Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension." It's a diet filled with fruits, vegetables,  low-fat dairy and fiber and low in sodium and saturated fat. It's how I love to eat, and it's a healthy way of eating whether you have high blood pressure or not. My guest today is Rosanne Rust, MS, RDN, author of the new cookbook, DASH Diet for Two.

Rosanne Rust is a dietitian, friend, and the author of The DASH Diet for Two: 125 Heart-Healthy Recipes to Lower Your Blood Pressure Together. Rosanne is an internationally recognized nutrition expert who has a passion for facts. She created her blog, Chew the Facts, to help consumers decipher nutritional facts from myths. She's also the author of DASH Diet for Dummies, Glycemic Index Cookbook for Dummies, and Calorie Counter Journal for Dummies. In today's show, we talk about Rosanne's decision to become a dietitian, and why preventing and treating high blood pressure through a healthy lifestyle is near and dear to Rosanne's heart. You'll also get some great recipes, including Noodles with Mushrooms and Cabbage and Grilled Shrimp Stuffed Poppers, an appetizer that will blow your mind. 

 

Show Highlights:

• The scoop on Rosanne and her story
• How Rosanne's blog and website, Chew the Facts, give the facts to combat the misinformation about nutrition
• Rosanne's path to becoming a dietitian after battling food intolerances and digestive issues for years
• Rosanne's book about the DASH diet
• Why high blood pressure is more common than you think, with nearly ½ of all US adults having it and 1 in 3 of the world's population
• How high blood pressure is often misdiagnosed, even though it contributes to millions of deaths each year
• How certain populations are affected by high blood pressure at greater risk, like Africans-Americans
• Rosanne's personal high blood pressure story, which includes a strong family history and low dose medicine
• DASH diet basics: "Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension"
• • Not for weight loss, but a lifestyle
  • Based on clinical research, trials, and dietary patterns
• The pattern for all-around healthy eating includes low sodium, 8-10 daily servings of fruits and vegetables, 2-3 daily servings of low-fat dairy, low saturated fat and sugar, and high fiber
• The lifestyle components of the DASH diet: stay active and manage stress and weight
• The importance of adding important nutrients in a "food first" health plan
• An overview of Rosanne's cookbook and chapters (it's packed with 125 delicious recipes!)
• DASH-style Cobb Salad: uses roasted sunflower seeds instead of bacon, fewer blue cheese crumbles, amped-up veggies, and a lighter dressing
• Grilled Shrimp Stuffed Poppers: uses low-fat cream cheese
• How eggs and shrimp have gotten a bad rap on most diets, but are allowed on the DASH diet
• Tips on cutting sodium without sacrificing flavor
• Noodles with Mushrooms and Cabbage: a Hungarian-inspired recipe with onions, butter, egg noodles, cayenne pepper, mushrooms, and cabbage
• Baked Apples: a reduced-sugar dessert with heart-healthy nuts
• Rosanne's next book is DASH Diet for Dummies, 2nd edition; it's a reference book on nutrition with 45 recipes

 

Resources:

 

DASH Diet for Two: 125 Heart-Healthy Recipes to Lower Your Blood Pressure Together

 

Rust Nutrition and Chew the Facts blog: https://rustnutrition.com/

 

Rosanne on:

Twitter

Instagram

Facebook

Today's show is relevant to every woman because, if we haven't gone through it already, we all will face menopause one day. You may not realize that there are steps we can take regarding diet and exercise to prepare our bodies ahead of time. Join us for a closer look at natural ways to manage hormones, health, and happiness. 

Elizabeth Ward and Hillary Wright are the authors of the new book, The Menopause Diet Plan. The book explores the physiology of menopause symptoms that many women experience and outlines important diet strategies to manage those symptoms. We'll also talk about eating according to your body clock, why plant-forward diets can be your best friend, and why many of us should cut back on carbs. 

 

Liz Ward is an award-winning nutrition coordinator and writer who lives in the Boston area. She's the author of several books including Expect the Best: Your Guide to Healthy Eating Before, During, and After Pregnancy.

 

Hillary Wright has over 30 years' experience as a nutrition educator with expertise in women's health. She's the author of two previous books, The PCOS Diet Plan and The Prediabetes Diet Plan. She is also the senior nutritionist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and she's a founding member of the nutrition technology company, Good Measures. 

 

Show Highlights:

 

• Get to know Liz, the mother of three girls, and Hillary, the mother of three boys (and no, none of the children of these lifelong friends ever matched up together as their mothers wished)
• Menopause and perimenopause defined
• Common menopause symptoms include the following: hot flashes, night sweats, trouble sleeping, irregular periods, mood swings, dry skin, and weight gain
• Why perimenopause and menopause symptoms vary from woman to woman
• Other symptoms can include bone loss and a greater risk of heart disease from lack of estrogen
• Is there a magic bullet for hot flashes? Sadly, the answer is no.
• Things that may help with symptoms include hormone replacement therapy, soy foods, exercise, proper sleep, acupuncture, cognitive behavioral therapy, and relaxation techniques
• Use caution with supplements that have an estrogen-like effect
• Why Liz and Hillary wrote their book about menopause
• From the book, the core principles of menopause nutrition:
• • Eat according to your body clock
  • Focus on plant-based foods
  • Focus on eating lower carb/higher protein diet
  • Get regular physical activity
• Why Liz and Hillary's menopause diet plan doesn't exclude any food 
• The benefits of curbing refined carbs and eating fewer refined grains while eating high-quality carbs and more protein
• The supplements that might be helpful are calcium, vitamin D, and Omega-3 fatty acids
• What it means to eat a "plant-based" diet
• Liz and Hillary's recipe for walnut pesto; it's made with yogurt and walnuts and tastes great on fish and chicken
• How the recipes in the book are delicious, easy, flexible, and family-friendly
• How many recipes in the book can be modified to fit your tastes, like Stir-Fry, Your Way
• From the book, a recipe for Chicken Italiano that includes lots of vegetables
• The biggest take-home message about menopause today: "Women need to start paying attention to preparing for menopause long before their period ends."
• Why belly weight gain happens in menopause

 

 

Resources:

 

The Menopause Diet Plan on Amazon

 

Find Elizabeth Ward on the web at: Better is the New Perfect

Find Hillary Wright on the web at: Hillary Wright

 

Elizabeth Ward on IG: @ewardmsrd

Elizabeth Ward on Twitter: @ewardrd

Elizabeth Ward on Facebook

 

Hillary Wright on IG: @Hwrightrd

Hillary Wright on Twitter: @pcosdiet

 

Menopause Diet Plan on Facebook

Today's show is a celebration in honor of National Family Meals Month and National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month. For dietitians, it doesn't get much more exciting than that! Join us to learn more!

Elise Compston and Stephen Compston are joining me with tips for gathering your family around the table more often. They also have clever ways to increase your fruit and veggie consumption. This husband and wife dietitian duo are the parents of two young kids, and they run the blog, Straight Outta Compston Kitchen. Their blog is loaded with healthy recipes and mealtime inspiration galore, and there are lots of freebies in the resources for today's show, so check it out!

 

Show Highlights:

 

• More about Elise and Stephen, their family, and their work
• Elise's passion is recipe development, while Stephens' specialty is working with diabetes sufferers
• How their business, Straight Outta Compston Kitchen, exists to develop healthy, simple, family-friendly meals
• Why Elise, Stephen, and Liz all serve as Fruit and Vegetable Ambassadors in Action for the Have A Plant Program of the Produce for Better Health Foundation
• The benefits of family meals include cooking at home, trying new things, eating meals together, and helping kids develop palates for healthy foods
• From Elise and Stephen: Top tips for family meals at the table include cook together with your kids, and start simple if you think you can't cook
• What family mealtime was like for Elise and Stephen as they grew up
• The best tips for fulfilling the pledge to eat one more fruit or vegetable every day
• The Family Meal Mystery Basket ingredients: rotisserie chicken, carrots, apple, parsley, and honey
• • Elise and Stephen created a Harvest Chicken Waldorf Pita Pocket
  • Liz created Chicken and Carrot Shawarma Salad Bowls
• The Pantry Survival Guide, Top Ten Staples:
• • From Elise and Stephen: frozen fruits and vegetables, canned vegetables, broth, salsa, eggs, canned tuna, canned pumpkin, ground flaxseed, nuts and seeds, and herbs and spices
  • From Liz: corn tortillas, shredded cheese, canned salmon, frozen fruits and vegetables, eggs, nut butter, canned beans, pasta, and pasta sauce
• Go-to favorites for Elise and Stephen: Turkey Jerky and Pesto Chickpea Salad
• What's next for the Compston family--maybe a cookbook in the future?

Resources:

Straight Outta Compston Kitchen website and blog

The Compstons on Instagram

 

Harvest Waldorf Pita Pockets

Chicken and Carrot Shawarma Salad Bowls 

National Family Meals Month

National Fruits & Veggies Month

 

Freebies discussed on the podcast:

Liz's Top 10 Pantry Essentials

Fridge/Pantry Checklist from the Compstons