Nutritious choices made simple®
Of course, most of us could stand to get more vegetables into our diets. Using purees is just one additional way to benefit from all the nutritional goodness in vegetables, such as vitamins, minerals, and health-promoting phytonutrients, but also fiber! Even though you’re making a puree out of the veggies and the texture may be smooth, the fiber is retained (unlike with juicing, for example).
It’s easy to get caught up in the old brown rice and kale rut when it comes to getting your daily intake of whole grains and dark leafy greens, but there is a world of flavor and texture to explore! Mustard greens are a little spicy and a little bitter, making them a sophisticated choice, perfect for braising. Bulgur is a quick-cooking grain option with a nice little bite to it, and it will soak up whatever flavor your throw at it.
In my retail dietitian role, I often run into folks who are trying to move from packaged breads and boxed baking mixes toward developing their own breads and baked goods. As someone who considers herself a decent cook, but not a baker, I always admire the commitment to food science that these individuals are embracing in their home kitchens.
Whole grains are an awesome way to start your day. They boost your energy and keep it steady. And getting your day started off on the right foot with green, leafy veg is an obvious win. This smoothie gives you both, while making you feel like you’re drinking a peanut butter milkshake. If you like a thicker smoothie, try adding some frozen berries or using frozen greens.
The purpose of National Nutrition Month is to increase the public’s awareness of the importance of good nutrition and position registered dietitians as the authorities in nutrition. While the majority of dietitians work in the treatment and prevention of disease at hospitals, private practices, or other healthcare facilities, a growing number are working for grocery retailers. In fact, there are more RDs working at supermarkets now than ever before.
Although here at Guiding Stars we usually focus our blog posts on topics that relate to selecting and cooking food at home, we realize that most everyone dines out sometimes. But eating out each week—even just once a week—is known to add up to increased weight over time. So, here is a post to help with one of the most common issues that consumers have when eating at restaurants: eating too much! I know—it’s all so tasty and you want to get your money’s worth—I don’t blame you. However, there are a few techniques you can use when eating out that will allow you to enjoy the experience, stretch your dollar, and keep portions in control for good health, too.
Building a great salad is about balancing the nutrition to give you a well-rounded set of nutrients and about keeping the texture interesting. This salad uses quinoa to add an important serving of whole grains to your days and to add a little crunch to your salad.
People often tell me that they’re “watching what they eat” and “trying not to over do it,” but they aren’t necessarily sure how to quantify just what that means for a given meal or day. These individuals don’t realize it, but the reason they can’t quantify what a serving should be is because they don’t know what it it’s supposed to be. Most of us were never taught what a proper serving is. Therefore, each of us needs to learn serving guidelines and how many of those servings should be enjoyed in a day.