FAB up the flab
Monday, September 5, 2011
Water...WATER!!
Monday, August 15, 2011
I've been...a little busy
Friday, March 18, 2011
Lettuce Wraps...amaZING!
2 tsp olive oil
2- 4oz skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into thin strips
2 tbsp grated peeled fresh ginger
2 tbsp teriyaki sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp honey
½ to 1 tsp crushed red pepper
½ tsp cornstarch
1 ½ cups grated carrots
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
1 cup snow peas, trimmed and cut lengthwise into thin strips
½ cup sliced green onions
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 cup mushrooms
Bibb lettuce leaves
Directions: Heat oil in a wok or large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and ginger; saute five minutes or until chicken is done (Best if marinate chicken in ginger, teriyaki sauce, vinegar and honey). Combine teriyaki sauce, rice vinegar, honey, red pepper and cornstarch in a small bowl, stir with whisk. Add teriyaki mixture to chicken mixture in wok, stir in carrot, bean sprouts, snow peas and onions (as well as any other vegetable desired). Cook three minutes or until sauce thickens slightly, stirring often. Stir in almonds. Spoon 1/4 cup chicken mixture onto each lettuce leaf; roll up. Recipe makes four servings; three wraps each (130 calories per serving)
**I like to use pepper infused oil instead of the crushed red pepper (if using the pepper infused oil don’t use the olive oil as well). Also I like to saute the chicken with the ginger, teriyaki, vinegar, honey and pepper mix overnight and then cook it up separately. Set aside and then cook the vegetables and then add together. Best if you use a wok.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
20 Ways to Enjoy More Fruits, Vegetables, Whole Grains and Dairy
- Variety abounds when using vegetables as pizza topping. Try broccoli, spinach, green peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms and zucchini.
- Get saucy with fruit: Puree berries, apples, peaches or pears for a thick, sweet sauce on grilled or broiled seafood or poultry, or on pancakes, french toast or waffles.
- Mix up a breakfast smoothie made with lowf-fat milk, frozen strawberries and a banana
- Heat leftover whole-grain rice with chopped apple, nuts and cinnamon
- Make a veggie wrap with roasted vegetables and low-fat cheese rolled in a whole-wheat tortilla.
- Try crunchy vegetables intead of chips with your favorite dip or low-fat salad dressing.
- Grill colorful vegetable kabobs packed with tomatoes, green and red peppers, mushrooms and onions.
- Banana split: Top a sliced banana with a scoop of low-fat frozen yogurt. Sprinkle with a tablespoon of chopped nuts.
- Add color to salads with baby carrots, grape tomatoes, spinach leaves or mandarin oranges.
- Prepare instant oatmeal with low-fat or fat-free milk in place of water. Top with dried cranberries and almonds.
- Stuff an omelet with vegetables.
- "Sandwich" in fruit and vegetables. Add pizzazz to sandwiches with sliced pineapple, apple, peppers, cucumbers and tomato fillings.
- Wake up to fruit. Make a habit of adding fruit to your morning oatmeal, ready to eat cereal, yogurt or toaster waffle.
- Stock up: Fill your fridge with raw vegetables and fruit. If it helps cut everything up prior to putting it in the fridge so it's ready to go.
- Top a baked potato with beans and salsa or broccoli and low-fat cheese
- Microwave a cup of tomato or vegetable soup for a quick afternoon snack.
- "Grate complement": Add grated, shredded or chopped vegetables to lasagna, meat loaf, mashed potatoes, pasta sauce and rice dishes.
- Stuff a whole grain pita with ricotta cheese and Granny Smith Apple slices. Add a dash of cinnamon
- Make your main dish a salad of dark, leafy greens and other colorful vegetables. Add chickpeas or edamame (fresh soybeans). top with a low-fat dressing
- Try a new fruit or vegetable that you've never tried before.
Leave a comment and let us know how you get fruits and vegetables into your diet everyday. Remember to color your plate throughout the day. Coming up on friday: recipe for lettuce wraps, Yummy!!!!
(Ideas taken from the American Dietetic Association)
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
National Nutrition Month-Eat Right with Color
Monday, March 7, 2011
The Chocolate Milk Diet??!!
Secret #1: The Calcium Effect
A series of studies have shown that calcium can actually impede your body’s ability to absorb fat.
Secret #2: The Vitamin D Factor
All the calcium in the world isn’t going to help you if you don’t get a good dose of vitamin D to go with it. Your body makes vitamin D naturally when you expose your skin to sunlight, but most people spend too much time indoors to benefit. And intentionally spending more time in the sun could put you at risk for skin cancer. The solution? Drink up. Chocolate milk, like most milk, is fortified with vitamin D.
One caveat here: Drink 1% chocolate milk. Vitamin D won't work without a little fat to help break it down. You want to skip the whole milk, too, as it has too many calories to make it a regular habit.
Secret #3: The Endurance Boost
If you want to lose the gut, you’ve got to exercise—no surprise there. Drinking chocolate milk can improve your gains. In a study published in The International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, subjects given chocolate milk before hopping on the stationary bikes were able to ride 49 percent longer than subjects given a generic carbohydrate-replacement beverage. And on top of that, they pedaled even harder.
Secret #4: The Protein-Body-Weight Connection
Want to know the secret to staying thin? You need more muscle. That’s because muscle burns more calories than fat, so for every new muscle fiber you create, your resting metabolism receives another surge of fat-torching energy. And chocolate milk can help you do that. Researchers have determined that the ideal protein load for building muscle is 10 to 20 grams, half before and half after your workout. How much protein will you find in low-fat chocolate milk? Eight grams per cup. (That means one serving before your workout and one serving after will give you a total of 16 grams of highly effective whey protein—a perfect serving.) Add that to the extra cup you drank first thing in the morning and you’re looking at a turbocharged metabolism that keeps you burning calories all day long.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Beat Hunger with...Bananas?!
Ever grab a snack but then feel hungry again 20 minutes later? Next time, reach for a banana. It’s loaded with Resistant Starch (RS), a healthy carb that fills you up and helps to boost your metabolism. Slightly underripe medium-sized bananas have 12.5 grams of RS—more than most other foods. Ripe bananas give you 4.7 grams of RS, still enough to keep hunger pangs away. Check out these tasty ways to work in this wonder food.
Banana "Ice Cream"
Peel, slice, and freeze 1 small banana. Place frozen banana pieces in a blender with 3 tablespoons 1% low-fat milk; blend until thick. Top with 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts.
Banana Salsa
Make a quick salsa with 2 diced peeled bananas, 2 tablespoons minced red onion, 1 tablespoon minced cilantro, 1 teaspoon minced serrano or jalepeno pepper, juice of 1 lime, and brown sugar and salt to taste. Use it to top fish or pork tacos, jerk chicken, or jerk pork.
Broiled Bananas
Slice 1 peeled banana in half lengthwise. Put banana pieces, cut sides up, on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle the banana pieces with 1 teaspoon brown sugar, and broil on high until the sugar bubbles and the bananas brown (about 2–3 minutes). After broiling, sprinkle with cinnamon—or drizzle with 1 teaspoon rum for an extra-special treat.
Coffee and Banana Smoothie
Place 1 sliced peeled banana, 1 cup 1% low-fat milk, 1/2 cup cold black coffee, 2 teaspoons sugar, and 1/2 cup ice in a blender. Blend until smooth—and enjoy.
Tropical Fruit Salad
Make a fruit salad with 1 sliced peeled banana, 1 sliced peeled kiwi, and 1/2 diced peeled ripe mango. Squirt juice of 1/4 lime over the salad, and serve.
by Health.com