March 2014
March is Nutrition Month!
It’s time to celebrate National Nutrition Month and Spring! I decided that the color green represents both of these nicely so I hope it’s your favorite color. When I think of green food, I think fresh, crunchy, vitamin-rich, fiber and fun. The fun part might be a ‘Shrek Smoothie’ where you add some spinach to a healthy mix of fruits and yogurt and it turns green. Or, it might be my childhood favorite breakfast of ‘Green Eggs and Ham’. Whatever fun green food you choose, make it a month of excellent nutrition!
3 Green Food Tips!
- Try stir-frying fresh, green snow peas with just a few drops of sesame oil as your lunch side.
- Put lightly sautéed kale or Swiss chard with minced garlic on your dinner menu.
- Sweeten-up your green Bell pepper by seeding it, cutting it into chunks and roasting it with a little olive oil – 425 degrees F. for 25 minutes.
A Grocery Shopping List of Green
Is it time to try something new? Spinach, broccoli, kale, green beans, bok choy, Brussels sprouts, green cabbage, Romaine lettuce, parsley, green leaf lettuce, cucumber, fennel, collard greens, arugula, sugar snap peas, snow peas, green Bell pepper, fresh soybeans.
Easy Solutions
A Blog about Green
This go-to dinner is called Green Peppers and Lean Beef. It goes perfectly with the Baked Green Parsley Potatoes recipe just below and, you guessed it, a Green Side Salad of Romaine lettuce, cucumbers, green olives and avocado.
For a look at other blogs I’ve written, please click here. Our new search feature allows you to look for healthy recipes, grocery shopping tips or anything that inspires your good nutrition goals.
Recipe For Everyone
Baked Parsley Potatoes – Serves 4
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb red potatoes, cut in half
1 Tbsp onion, minced
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, minced
1/8 tsp salt
Pinch black pepper
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Melt the butter and mix it with the olive oil. Add both to a 9 x 9 baking dish.
- Add the cut potatoes and minced onions to the baking dish and, with tongs, turn potatoes over in the butter/oil to coat them.
- Bake potatoes 35-40 minutes, until they are tender when poked with a fork.
- Sprinkle potatoes with parsley, salt and pepper.
Kitchen Resource
Our Tasty Side Recipes E-Book can turn your ho-hum meal into a nutritious & balanced meal!
- 15 Tasty Recipes with Easy Instructions
- Each Recipe shows Nutrition Facts
- Each Recipe has How Kids Can Help instructions
Nutrition Inspiration!
Where do you get inspiration to eat nutritiously? Green is one way to get inspired. Breakfast is healthier with green spinach wilted into your omelet; lunch is healthier with spears of fresh cucumber or a big handful of sweet and crunchy sugar snap peas; dinner is healthier with a hearty serving of steamed green beans. Think about what color inspires you to choose healthy food and then make it your inspiration – every day!
Take Action Now!
Please note that I am an in-network provider of nutritional counseling for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina*. I am accepting new clients and will be delighted to help you achieve your health and nutrition goals. Contact Cindy to find out more or to set up your first appointment!
*Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.
Wishing you a Happy Nutrition Month!
Cindy
Cindy Silver, MS, RDN, LDN
Registered Dietitian
Winston-Salem, NC