When you eat out less then you truly can improve your day-to-day nutrition. The hard part is doing it. When you eat out less then you can concentrate and stay in control of eating nutritiously. Three great benefits of eating out less are that you will: eat a moderate amount of food; eat a less processed plate of food; and eat higher quality nutrition within your budget. Tips for How to Eat Out Less...and feel your best Here are 5 strategies to try: Take time to plan meals. Thirty minutes of 'up front time' will allow you to think about what to prepare for your upcoming meals. … [Read more...] about How to Eat Out Less for Better Nutrition
Cool Foods Make Summer Better and 5 Options to Try
One important food lesson I learned while living in Spain last year was that cool foods like soup can make a hot day much better. Cool Tomatoes In Spain, one of the universally favorite foods to enjoy during summer and early fall is soup and it's refreshingly cool. Being in Spain was wonderful (pre-novel corona virus) and taste testing cool tomato soup was even better. My favorite, cool tomato soup is called Salmorejo and it's a specialty of Cordoba in the southern part of Spain where the summer heat is basically unbearable. Guess what? Sipping cool tomato soup makes everything … [Read more...] about Cool Foods Make Summer Better and 5 Options to Try
Keep it Simple in the Kitchen for Better Nutrition
Trends come and go, yet what will always make sense for achieving better nutrition is to Keep it Simple in the Kitchen. As a registered dietitian, I meet many people who want to find and follow a path to better nutrition. Some people invest a little in their effort and others invest a lot of energy and resources. For some goals in life, a bigger cash investment leads to better success. Yet with nutrition, it isn't necessarily true. Let's take a look at a Keep it Simple Approach to Better Nutrition for everyday people who lead busy lives. The energy investment is reasonable as is the cash … [Read more...] about Keep it Simple in the Kitchen for Better Nutrition
Cooking in a New Kitchen
It takes determination and desire to break-in a new kitchen and the results are definitely worth it. My Cooking Mistakes While living in northwest Spain this fall, I'm finding out that cooking in a new kitchen is not so easy. I've already made a ton of mistakes like these: Letting the rice boil over and make a mess Burning part of the eggplant I was trying to sauté Measuring the salt incorrectly, without a proper measuring spoon Running out of eggs when I wanted to make a Spanish Tortilla Omelet Missing the spices I needed to make a chickpea burger … [Read more...] about Cooking in a New Kitchen
10 Tips for Using Spices and Herbs
Are you an herbs-and-spices kind of cook? With all the good news about how they boost the immune system and lower risk for chronic disease, you'll want to use herbs and spices in your kitchen everyday. But how? 10 Easy Tips for Using Spices and Herbs - Getting Started Get started for using more spices and herbs by tossing out your very old ones. If they've been in your pantry for >3 years, then out they go. Next, go to the grocery store and buy new ones, two per shopping trip. If you see a sale, then buy three. Little by little, you'll own an assortment of fresh and flavorful spices … [Read more...] about 10 Tips for Using Spices and Herbs
A Mediterranean Pantry Starts the Process to Healthier Eating for the Heart
A Mediterranean Pantry leads you to heart healthy foods on a day-to-day basis. A few weeks ago, one of my clients told me that she intended to transform her home pantry into one that features Mediterranean foods. She said it in a firm and proud voice. I was totally impressed. Anytime a home pantry is cleaned or re-arranged, it is usually also refreshed nutritionally. Think about your last 'spring cleaning' project. My last big pantry cleaning was due to some tiny bugs that got into all the wheat foods, like flour and crackers and pasta. What a job and yet when the pantry was finally clean … [Read more...] about A Mediterranean Pantry Starts the Process to Healthier Eating for the Heart