As a busy mom, I know how hard it is to prepare healthy meals and snacks when time is limited. It's not easy to cook with fresh ingredients when you barely have time to run to the supermarket (I do keep frozen organic veggies like peas, corn, spinach, and edamame on hand, though). Fortunately, my children love apples, raspberries, strawberries, watermelon, red peppers, and baby carrots so much, and it's easy to keep these on hand. I was pleasantly surprised to find organic versions of most of these items at Whole Foods this winter (organic foods will be a topic for a future post). As long as my children see that it's important to eat a colorful assortment of fruits and vegetables on a regular basis, and they see me making informed choices at the supermarket, I'm providing valuable health education for when they step out on their own.
This week, I came across two amazingly healthy, delicious, and easy to make recipes. I couldn't resist sharing them, because they are ones that I will use often. I am what I would call a part-time vegetarian, and occasionally I even eat vegan (no animal products at all) recipes. It's a way for me to not only save money, but to also help the environment, and to consume more fruits and vegetables.
Sometimes I watch Rachael Ray while I'm exercising on my treadmill . This week, she prepared a recipe that I couldn't wait to try. It ended up being as delicious as it looked on television. It just so happens that it's a vegetarian recipe, but it has a slight sausage flavor from the fennel seeds and the red pepper flakes. Three different kinds of peppers, and of course, onions, give this dish a wonderful flavor. It's called "Fennel-Pepper Spaghetti". Please keep in mind that someone forgot to put 1/4c to 1/2 c of Parmesan cheese on the ingredient list. If your children tend to be picky eaters, it's easy enough to keep some pasta separate, and you can add plain tomato sauce or olive oil and peas. Rachael Ray also has child friendly recipes on her site. In general, though, your children should at least try what you make. They might surprise you with what they like, especially if you involve them in the shopping and the cooking.
If you like chocolate, this next recipe will delight and amaze you. These are the most healthy,
delicious "Guilt-free Chocolate Muffins" that anyone in my family has ever tasted. The recipe calls for oat flour, instead of all-purpose flour, and can even be a vegan recipe if you choose not to use real chocolate chips (I use mini semi-sweet real chocolate morsels). But believe me, even though this recipe is free of wheat, dairy, and eggs, these muffins taste like the real unhealthy deal. Seriously, when they're fresh out of the oven, they taste like my favorite deep chocolate souffle from a local French restaurant. I'm not kidding. My husband likes these so much (better than any other cake or brownie), that he asked me to turn them into a cake for his birthday! Imagine a healthy birthday cake. I found this recipe in the March issue of Health magazine, but Bethenny Frankel formulated this delicious recipe for the magazine. She is a celebrity natural food chef, and has many wonderful recipes on her site. She also provided a valuable tip in the magazine, that oat flour is a delicious and healthy alternative to all-purpose flour in any recipe. If you can't find it in a conventional supermarket, Bethenny suggests that you grind it out of oatmeal in your food processor. I like Arrowhead Mills Organic Oat Flour, which I found at Whole Foods. I like to double this recipe to make 12 to 16 cupcakes, or 6 cupcakes and one 8" square cake. When making cupcakes, a healthy, green option is to use unbleached baking cups (I use If You Care brand). Enjoy!
It's important to model healthy cooking and eating for your children. You can do this by involving them in the grocery shopping and food preparation. It's actually a good thing to be a picky eater these days. Show your children how to make informed choices, by making sure you're eating whole grains and a lot of fruits and vegetables, and by taking time out to read food labels before you buy products. If you don't understand what's on the label, don't buy it. That way, manufacturers will receive a strong message that potentially harmful substances should not be used in their products. Mothers have strong consumer power, and need to exercise it. We all shop, so let's make a statement when we do!
Do you have any healthy recipes or product tips? Please feel free to share.