home.health.love

A balanced and easy approach to healthy living.

Tag Archives: gluten free


by Leave a comment

For Passover: Healthy + Kid-friendly + Matzah-free Dishes

Those celebrating the holiday of Passover can rejoice: you’ve made it halfway through the holiday eating one food group–Matzah.

With a few days left, here are some snack and meal ideas to change it up.

Healthy 2-ingredient pancakes

Gosh I just love these pancakes, and I make them year-round. They are fluffy, sweet, yummy, and nutritious. Best of all, they’re made of two natural ingredients: bananas and eggs. There’s no reason to save these for breakfast: with protein, fiber, potassium, and other vitamins and minerals, these are great for lunch and dinner, too.

The recipe is simple: Mash 1 ripe banana and whisk two eggs. Mix eggs and banana together and fry away, just as you would any pancake. I sometimes add 1/4 tsp vanilla for flavor (and you can also add chocolate chips, or whatever you enjoy in your pancakes). Easy? Yes! By the way, they’re so sweet they don’t need a topping, but we enjoy adding honey and berries.

Fish (or eggs) in a boat

Again, a year-round favorite. This is basically a substitute for wraps and sandwiches. Wash a romaine leaf and fill it with tuna fish salad, egg salad, babaganoush, guacamole, or whatever your kids enjoy. That’s it. I usually cut off the leafier top part, because my kids enjoy the crunchiness from the bottom half of the leaf.

Cauliflower rice

These days, you can find riced cauliflower in a bag at Trader Joe’s or make it yourself using a food processor. Cauliflower rise is simply a cauliflower minced up into rice-sized morsels. A simple sauté in oil with onions, plus some salt and your favorite spices is all you need to make this yummy. Add herbs and a squeeze of lemon juice if you so choose. If you want a specific recipe, this one is simple and great.

Spaghetti squash

I totally convinced my kids that spaghetti squash was actually a form of spaghetti. This is yet another easy, healthy option. I cut a spaghetti squash in half, remove the seeds, drizzle on some oil, and roast at 425 degrees (flesh-side down) until tender (usually about 30-45 minutes). Remove from oven and scoop out the flesh, which will come out like spaghetti.

Then, all you gotta do is add tomato sauce like you would on pasta, spices to taste (I add garlic), and you can top with shredded mozzarella or Parmesan cheese (which you can melt for 30-60 seconds in the microwave. Done, nutritious, and yummy! If you want to get fancier and cheesier, here’s a riff on baked ziti using spaghetti squash!

Healthy chips

Healthy chips do exist. Don’t forget these year-round goodies. Kale chips (or try spinach chips–make them the same way you would kale chips) are awesome. Also, try to make chips with your favorite fruit, like these banana chips, which you can also do with strawberries or apples. The key with fruit chips is to keep the oven on a very low temperature, around 200 degrees, simulating a dehydrator. (Of course, if you have a dehydrator that is kosher for passover, use that instead!).


by Leave a comment

5 Ways to Eat More Greens Without Even Trying

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for a decade, you’re probably aware that study after study show that leafy greens are all-around the healthiest foods we can eat. Eating these “powerhouse” veggies on a daily basis prevents disease, slows aging, and improves just about every bodily function.  

Even just a couple of servings (about a 1/2 cup each) per day can make a big difference. For instance, a recent study found that people who ate one to two servings of greens per day–such as collards, kale, and spinach–for about five years had the cognitive abilities of someone 11 years younger.

But, let’s be honest–many of us don’t always have the time to make a salad, and, frankly, we’re not always in the mood to sit down in front of a plate of greens (pass the pasta, please!). Luckily, there are many easy ways to incorporate greens into your favorite dishes.  

To start, all you need is a fresh package of your favorite baby greens, preferably organic. They’re usually pre-washed and ready to eat. I recommend boxed organic baby spinach or baby kale because of their mild flavor. 

Tip 1: Serve Your Meal on a Bed of Greens

2016-02-09 13.04.40

My lunch recently: a bed of baby spinach topped with leftover roasted potatoes and onions, with chopped sardines.

Before serving your meal, whatever it is, grab a fistful of your leafy greens, layer them on your plate, and then top them with the food you’re planning to eat–an omelette, pasta, chicken salad, baked salmon, eggplant parmesan, whatever. You’ve just added one or two servings of greens to your diet within seconds. The flavors of your dish will transfer to your greens. If you want to so step up the flavor, you can always drizzle some salad dressing onto the greens before topping them with your food. (By the way, my favorite healthy dressing these days is Bragg’s Organic Vinaigrette Salad Dressing)

Tip 2: Add Greens to a Smoothie

Little boy drinking a green smoothie

 

If you stick to greens with a mild flavor–like baby kale or baby spinach–you can add a handful (or two) to your favorite smoothie without even tasting them. The easiest recipe for a smoothie is combining one banana, a large handful of frozen organic berries, a handful of greens, and liquid of your choice (water, almond milk, coconut water, etc.). Then blend. There you go, instant serving of greens. Play around with different fruits and different proportions to identify your favorite recipe. You’ll find tons of easy smoothie recipes online like this one. Bonus: This strategy is super kid-friendly, because you can’t taste the greens!

3. Make Pesto…Out of Kale (or Spinach)  

pasta al pesto di rucola su piatto

Seriously, you can make pesto with almost any kind of leafy green. And lord knows, pesto is good with EVERYTHING–chicken, fish, pasta, sandwiches, wraps, pizza, eggs. I found this awesome Kale Pesto recipe in O Magazine, and here’s another recipe for Spinach Pesto. You can make a big batch and freeze leftovers in an ice cube tray–just defrost when you’re ready to eat it.

4. Use Leaves Instead of Bread or Wraps

Collard Rolls

Photo source: Whole Foods Market

Instead of your typical sandwich, substitute a crunchy romaine leaf for bread. I like to cut of the droopier tops of the romaine leaf and fill the crunchier bottom half with tuna fish or salmon salad, egg salad, babaganoush, pesto, hummus, or any other dip I enjoy. You can also use hearty collard green leaves to make a wrap. The inside can be whatever you normally like inside a burrito, or try this collard wrap recipe. I love how avocado, sprouts, tomatoes, and creamy dressing taste when they’re wrapped up in a collard leaf. 

5. Garnish with Greens or Herbs

Dollarphotoclub_81131748.jpg

Top an almost-ready soup, pasta, omelette, quinoa or other saucy dish with a handful of baby spinach, kale, or your favorite herbs. They will wilt but will stay fresh and bright green–full of live nutrients.

With these tips, you can start adding some of the healthiest foods to your diet with minimal pressure. 


by Leave a comment

Why You and Your Kids Should Eat Less Rice

riso bianco chicco lungo

Back in 2013, I wrote a post on the relatively high levels of arsenic found in rice. Consumer Reports had just published a study that found “worrisome levels” of this carcinogenic toxin in rice products, including many baby foods. I was shocked to learn that many foods contain a higher quantity of arsenic than is legally permitted in drinking water. Children are disproportionately vulnerable to exposure–because of their low body weight, a particular quantity of arsenic impacts them much more than it would an adult. Gluten-avoiders, too, are at risk, since so many gluten-free products contain rice.

Though state and federal agencies regulate the amount of arsenic in water, there are no set limits for foods. According to Consumer Reports, the FDA claims that an “ongoing assessment of arsenic in rice remains a priority for the agency.”

Consumer Reports has now issued an updated report based on data (provided by the FDA) concerning the inorganic arsenic content of 656 processed rice-containing products. The great thing about this new report: it contains a point system that can help you determine how many servings of rice and rice products are safe to consume on a weekly basis. Even better, the recommendations are made separately for children and adults.

Below are the “New Rice Rules,” which assign a point value to different rice-based foods. Consumer Reports recommends no more than 7 points per week, and the “risk analysis is based on weight, so a serving of any food will give children more points than adults.” I highly recommend reading the entire updated report here, and watching their brief video summarizing the issues.

In addition to following these guidelines, there are a few ways to further minimize your exposure to arsenic when eating rice:

  • Wash and cook rice in lots of water! Wash and pre-soak rice in water, use extra water when cooking (Consumer Reports recommends 6 cups water per one cup rice), and drain excess water at the end. Unfortunately, this process washes out some of the nutrients from the rice, but it reduces about 30% of the arsenic.
  • Origin matters; Organic does not. Rice grown in CA has the least arsenic; rice from Texas has the most. Try buying imported jasmine and basmati rice from India and Pakistan, as these tend to have lower levels or arsenic. The 2012 Consumer Reports study listed the origins of the rice samples it tested, so you can use this table as a guide when purchasing rice.
  • White rice, thought not as healthy, tends to have less arsenic than brown or wild because arsenic accumulates in the outer layers. These layers are removed when making white rice.

Given these findings, its best to limit rice intake as much as reasonably possible. In my next post, I’ll provide lots of great alternatives to rice and rice products. These are especially relevant for gluten avoiders, since most gluten-free products contain rice.

Stay tuned!