Feeding the Appetites of the Culinary, Epicurious and Nutrition Worlds-One Bite at a Time

Feeding the appetites of the culinary, epicurious and nutrition worlds-one bite a time. This is my new tag line. What do you think?

It's what I'm all about as a person and as a dietitian. Many dietitians are not food people....I am not one of them. Believe me, there are many dietitians who are not clinically focused. I am one of those for certain! I leave the science of dietetics and therapy of nutrition up to my esteemed colleagues. There are so many all over the country that I admire. Soon, you'll get to see some of their work-stay tuned to this blog post! If you need to find one in your area, go to www.eatright.org and select "Find a Nutrition Professional".

Regardless if you consider seeing a registered dietitian about sorting out the latest in fad diets, learning about safe and effective weight loss, managing Celiac disease, dealing with your picky eaters, finding out the best fuel for the marathon you are going to run, maneuvering through the grocery aisles for food allergies, eating organically, preventing heart disease or getting your diabetes under control, know that all of these issues start with actual food.

My current mission is to teach people about food. Actual tastes, senses, flavors, ingredients, cooking, recipes, food memories and the like. When talking about nutrition, food is the basis-the essence-of it all. We can all relate to food in some fashion-positive or negative-its something we all have in common. Some people forget to eat during the day. Some people are so passionate about food that all they can think of is what to create for dinner that night--and happily do so-without dread. We all have a relationship with food. Let's start with that. How is your relationship with food today?

I'm taking part in the Women's Health Blogfest today. This is a national initiative that a couple of really savvy dietitians created earlier in 2009. Check back here soon for links to posts from other Women's Health bloggers.

BLOGFEST LINKS:
Angela White at Blisstree's Breastfeeding 1-2-3 - Helpful Skills of Breastfeeding Counselors http://www.blisstree.com/breastfeeding123/helpful-skills-of-breastfeeding-counselors/
Angie Tillman, RD, LDN, CDE - You Are Beautiful Today
http://angiesappetite.wordpress.com/2009/07/14/you-are-beautiful-today/
Anthony J. Sepe- Women's Health and Migraines
http://fromadietitiansperspective.blogspot.com/2009/07/blog-fest-womens-health-migraines.html
Ashley Colpaart Women's health through women
http://usfoodpolicy.blogspot.com/2009/07/womens-health-through-women.html
Charisse McElwaine - Spending too much time on the "throne?"
http://fashionablyhealthy.wordpress.com/2009/07/14/spending-too-much-time-on-the-%e2%80%9cthrone%e2%80%9d/
Danielle Omar - Yoga, Mindful Eating and Food Confidence
http://danielleomar.blogspot.com/2009/07/yoga-mindful-eating-and-food-confidence.html
Diane Preves M.S.,R.D - Balance for Health
http://newlifeforhealth.blogspot.com/2009/07/balance-for-health.html
Joan Sather - A Woman's Healthy Choices Affect More Than Herself
http://nutritionknowhow.org/wordpress/?p=1177
Laura Wittke - Fibro Study Recruits Participants
http://laurawittke.wordpress.com/2009/07/12/fibro-study-recruits-participants/
Liz Marr, MS, RD - Reflecting on Family Food Ways and Women's Work
http://www.lizonfood.com/2009/07/reflecting-on-family-food-ways-and-womens-work.html
Marjorie Geiser, MBA, RD, NSCA-CPT - Healthy Women, Healthy Business: How Your Health Impacts a Powerful Business http://meg-enterprises.com/blog/2009/07/healthy-women/
Marsha Hudnall - Breakfast Protein Helps Light Eaters Feel Full
http://www.fitwoman.com/blog/2009/07/breakfast-protein-helps-light-eaters-feel-full.html
Michelle Loy, MPH, MS, RD - A Nutritionista's Super Foods for Super Skin http://nutritionandwellnessbytes.blogspot.com/2009/07/nutritionistas-super-foods-for-super.html
Monika Woolsey, MS, RD - To effectively work with PCOS is to understand a woman's health issues throughout her life http://incyst.blogspot.com/2009/07/to-effectively-work-with-pcos-is-to.html
Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog - How breastfeeding helps you, too
http://breastfeeding.blog.motherwear.com/2009/07/how-breastfeeding-supports-womens-physical-and-emotional-health.html
Rebecca Scritchfield, MA, RD, LD - Four Keys to Wellness, Just for Women http://rebeccascritchfield.wordpress.com/2009/07/15/four-keys-to-wellness-just-for-women/
Renata Mangrum, MPH, RD - The busy busy woman
http://nurturingnotes.blogspot.com/2009/07/busy-busy-woman.html
Sharon Solomon - Calories, longevity and do I care http://diaryofadietingdietitian.blogspot.com/2009/07/calories-longevity-and-do-i-care.html
Terri L Mozingo, RD, CDN & D. Milton Stokes, MPH, RD, CDN of One Source Nutrition, LLC - Crossing the Line: From Health to Hurt
http://miltonstokes.blogspot.com/2009/07/crossing-line-from-health-to-hurt.html
Wendy Jo Peterson, RD - Watch Your Garden Grow
http://ediblenutrition.blogspot.com/2009/07/blogfest.html

Inside the Fridge Welcomes Dana Palmer-A Mom of 2 Who Makes Dinner Happen in 30 Minutes or Less

Welcome to the Premier Posting of
Inside the Fridge

Fridge Aficionado: Dana Palmer, 34. Wife and Mom of 3 year old twins from Dallas talks turkey about what its like to feed her family healthy, quick and affordable meals. Photo at right is Dana's actual fridge!





ITF: Where do you shop for food?
DP: Target, Costco and Kroger primarily with some Central Market

ITF: Do you love food shopping or dread it?
DP: Both-I enjoy looking at all of the possibilities but hate that I never end up buying anything different from week to week

ITF: What is the single most important thing on your mind when you are shopping for food?
DP: Quality for a reasonable price

ITF: How often do you shop?
DP: Minimum of once per week usually twice

ITF: How many do you shop for? Ages?
DP: 4: 2 adults (34 and 39) and 2, 3 year olds

ITF: What is your weekly food budget?
DP: Approximately $150-$200

ITF: How many times a week do you eat out? (based on 21 meals/week)
DP: At least 8 per week

ITF: How do you plan your weekly meals? Create a spreadsheet of fly by the seat of your pants?
DP: Usually make the same several meals each week

ITF: What is the most coveted food in the fridge right now for each member of the household? Why?
DP: Me: Myoplex Lite (daily breakfast) Husband: hummus from Costco (daily snack before dinner) Kids: Horizon organic chocolate milk and Yo Baby yogurt

ITF: What is the oldest item in the fridge right now?
DP: Fage yogurt that expired some time last week (it could be worse but we have someone who acts as a fridge monitor for us weekly)

ITF: Do you believe in leftovers?
DP: I personally do not care for leftovers but my husband lives for them so I save more than I prefer to save

ITF: What convenience product can you not live without?
DP: Egg whites in a carton! And hard-boiled eggs already de-shelled from Eggland's Best

ITF: What brands do you swear by? Why?
DP: Boar's Head deli meats because they are the only deli meats that are always pure, no gross parts, fillers, etc.

ITF: What cooking utensil/piece of equipment/appliance do you live for?
DP: Speed Bake feature on our GE Trivection oven-can cook a whole chicken in under 30 minutes!

ITF: When you hear the word "homemade" what is the first thing that comes to mind?
DP: Baked goods that are high quality and yummy

ITF: What food/s are important when recalling food memories?
DP: For me, always sweets

ITF: How have your cooking/shopping habits changed over the last 10 years?
DP: Now I have to buy for my children so I am much more sensitive to how processed certain food are but overall, my habits are pretty much the same for myself and my husband. I do feel that there is a wider variety of places to buy good food without spending a fortune now than ever before

ITF: What are your go-to food/nutrition/culinary/cooking website/s, book or cookbook?
DP: I love Weight Watchers recipes, cookbooks, etc. but I also like the Food Network's website, Allcooks.com and sometimes Cooking Light's website

ITF: What was the last meal you cooked from scratch?
DP: I made meatloaf last week on the night before we went out of town

ITF: What was the last meal you cooked from convenience products?
DP: Rotisserie chicken from Costco with a salad

ITF: If one person could cook for you tonight, who would it be?
DP: Not that picky-as long as it's not me cooking, it sounds good

ITF: What words of wisdom or advice do you have for other folks who are doing their best every day to fill the fridge?
DP: It doesn't have to be fancy or complicated, it just has to be something that interests you and your family, and hopefully its healthy

ITF: What are you working on these days that you'd like to tell us about?
DP: My goal these days is to find some new staple-type meals to add to my weekly menu so that our meals will be a little more varied

ITF: Anything else?
DP: A theme that is very important in our rather busy house is to prepare a meal that can be ready in less than 30 minutes with less than 10 ingredients total. We try to use as few packaged products as possible

Fridge Feature Debuts HERE on July 13

Inside the Fridge, this blog's first featured section, makes its debut July 13th!


Look for fridge photos from favorite chefs, foodies, dietitians, Moms, producers, growers, media types and the like. Probing questions, self shot photos and a look into the deepest recesses of the coveted fridge will be exposed.

Think you'd be interested in being a featured Fridge? Drop me a line..we'll talk!

Why You Might Want to Consider Washing Your Bagged and Ready to Eat Lettuce: A Photo Montage

As I was preparing a salad tonight, the lettuce just looked...dirty. Normally, I don't wash the triple washed lettuce that one finds in any local grocery store nowadays. For some reason, tonight was different though and I embarked on a little experiment. See below for my horrifying results. This just may be the thing that prompts you to get the salad spinner out of the cupboard and put your kid to work spinning lettuce.




The lettuce in question



















The OXO Salad Spinner that was used in the demonstration


















The lettuce after 3 times in the spinner


















The water in the bowl after the 3rd washing. Yes, the 3rd washing. Imagine what it looked like after the first. This should convince you to start washing. Don't let a breakout of E. Coli be the one thing that does convince you.

Honoring Michael Jackson with his Sweet Potato Pie

News of Michael Jackson's death yesterday has the world still reeling. In times of grief and sorrow, many turn to food for comfort. What better way to honor the pop icon than by creating what he loved most: Sweet Potato Pie.

As the story goes, Jackson, the seventh of nine children, had a penchant for sweet potato pie. Difficult to check the facts of this and while there is no way to confirm that this is his recipe, its the thought that counts on a day like today.

This one is from CDKitchen.com. If I were making the recipe, I'd have the Thriller CD playing in the background.







Michael Jackson's Sweet Potato Pie

Ingredients:
3 Eggs
1/2 cup White sugar
1/4 cup Butter; melted
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/3 cup Milk (about)
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon Ground nutmeg
2 1/2 cups Sweet potatoes (fresh or canned; heaping cups)
2 tablespoons Fresh lemon or orange juice
1 Pie shell (9-inch); unbaked
1/2 cup Pecan halves, optional

Directions:

Beat eggs and sugar. Add melted butter, salt, milk, vanilla, and spice. Blend egg mixture with mashed sweet potatoes and lemon or orange juice.

Pour into unbaked pie shell or greased 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Garnish with pecan halves if desired.

Bake in preheated 400-degree oven 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees; bake 40 minutes longer or until golden.

Serves 8

If You Grow it, (Corn) They Will Come...and a Recipe

Growing up in the Midwest, seeing field upon field upon field of corn was not unusual. In fact, not only was it the norm, but many of my friends has their first jobs in the corn fields. They shucked. And shucked. And shucked. Working conditions included minimum wage, early hours and hot summer days. Payoff? All the fresh Illinois corn they could eat.

While one can argue that corn and corn derivatives are found in nearly every processed, partially processed, semi processed food and food item on the market, nothing but goodness can be said about the fresh ear itself.

Chances are, you've had fresh corn in the last 5-7 days. It's exciting-those first ears of the season-grilled, boiled, steamed or microwaved to enhance the sweet perfection that is, in fact, summer corn. Butter, salt, pepper, cayenne and the like. Me? I like it bare naked. That's right. Nothing on it at all. Doesn't need it. Don't believe me? Try tasting the corn-au natural-BEFORE salting, buttering and seasoning it. Just try it. And let me know.

Now, come July, or maybe even August, I get a hankering for something other than the old cob. Still love the corn, of course, its just that one can only eat so many on the cob. Many will will argue that, I know. Good news is that there are endless recipes using corn...and now is the time to start building the repertoire. When the main ingredient is just pennies per serving, its time to stock up-put those 6 or 8 ears for 1.00 to good use now or freeze them for later.

Here's one of my favorites..can be used as a side dish, a dip or a main entree. I like to add a handful of shrimp to make it a meal.


Robin's Corn Salsa with Shrimp (or not)

Kernels of 4-5 fresh ears of corn ***
1 T canola oil
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 T of cumin
2 heaping T of jarred salsa
1/2-3/4 lb cooked shrimp (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, add oil and saute onions on medium high heat until translucent. Add garlic and stir. Add corn kernels. Saute for 2-3 minutes. Add salsa and cumin and stir until warmed through. If adding shrimp, do so now and continue to heat through. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve cold, warm or at room temperature if used as a side dish or dip.
Serves 3-4 as a side dish (depending on the size of the cobs) or 2-3 as a main entree.


**** To remove kernels safely and easily, remove kernels from cob by cutting 1/2 inches off the top and bottom of the cob. Stand cob on one end in a bowl with a flat bottom to provide stability and remove kernels using the back of a knife. Be sure to capture the "milk" that comes from the cob, too.
*** to make dish thicker, add 1 small can of creamed corn just before adding salsa to recipe

I Just Ate 1/4 of a Watermelon....By Myself. Is That So Wrong?

The answer is no, that's not wrong at all! In fact, it's RIGHT! According to www.watermelon.org, Americans consume about 16 pounds of watermelon per person per year. I'm just doing my part to help the watermelon industry. You should too.

Here's why:

1. It's Oh So Versatile
From wedges, chunks and balls to watermelon spiked drinks, gorgeous watermelon, feta and basil salads (see photo-compliments of Chef Mynetta Cockrell, Milestone Culinary Arts Center www.milestoneculinary.com) to fabulous watermelon and tomato gazpacho (thanks to Chef Tyler Florence for tweeting me this recipe at www.tylerflorence.com), the possibilities are endless. In fact, a RD colleague of mine actually wrote that he was grilling watermelon today-thanks Dave Grotto, RD! (www.101foodsthatcouldsaveyourlife.com)




2. It's Like Taking a Vitamin! (almost)

Not only does our friend the watermelon contain high levels of lycopene-the stuff that may act as antioxidants-protectors of cells, but Vitamin A-great for the eyes and boosting immunity, just to name a few- and Vitamin B6-now who doesn't need a few brain chemicals boosted-are both present and accounted for in watermelon. Also in the line up is Vitamin C, a terrific immune builder. It also helps our bodies utilize iron better! 2 cups worth of the red stuff also gives us potassium, a mineral needed to keep the water balanced in our system.

3. It's called WATERmelon. Get it-WATERmelon?

1 cup of the good stuff is about 92% water. Here in Dallas, it hit 100 degrees today. This is an automatic signal to me that hydration needs to be on the brain. (it needs to be on the brain everyday, but when it hits 100, its REALLY on the brain) Sometimes water and other fluids aren't just enough. Heading to the fridge for the watermelon can help get the fluid you need to maintain the massive amount of water that is found floating around in the body!

4. There are Festivals Created around this Cherished Fruit!
Check out the www.watermelon.org and click on festivals. You'll be amazed at the amount of festivals going on around the country that celebrate the melon.

5. It Just Makes Us Happy
Really, who doesn't love watermelon? It's a sign of the summer, a time for easier days and fun nights, lazy weekends and good times with friends and families. Riding bikes, unlocked doors, flipflops and swimsuits til bedtime, and watermelon. Watermelon is one of those food memory foods that many of us build upon and look back upon with fondness. It is for me, anyway. What about you?