NNMC Increase Produce: Make Soup

Making soup is an easy way to get more veggies in your life that can be tailored to fit any taste. With a great recipe or a little creativity of your own, you can whip up something that can be satisfying as a meal, a side/starter, or even a snack. One of the best parts about soups is there are no rules. You can add in whatever ingredients you have on hand or use up food that you don't think you'll be able to eat before it spoils.If you make a big batch, you can freeze the leftovers and have your delicious soup whenever you want a no-fuss lunch or didn't make it to the store and have nothing to cook for dinner. This is also a great place to use any homemade stock. So go make some soup and enjoy the yummy results!

NNMC Increase Produce: Try Roasting

As I've mentioned before, one of my favorite, go-to methods for cooking any vegetable is roasting. It's simple and, once you know the basic recipe, the possibilities are endless. In general, you toss whatever vegetable(s) you've chosen with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and any other spices or herbs you like. Then you spread them out in one layer on a baking sheet and roast in a 400 °F oven for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally. The cooking time will depend on the vegetable(s) you're using and how big or small you cut the pieces.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Broccoli

Ingredients

1.25 lbs butternut squash, 1-inch cubes

3/4 lb broccoli florets

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

Pepper to taste

Directions

1.  Preheat over to 400 °F.

2. Toss squash and broccoli with olive oil, salt and pepper.

3. Spread mixture in a single layer on a baking sheet. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

NNMC Increase Produce: Make a Snack

Slipping in more fruits and vegetables at snack time is a great way to up your produce intake. Instead of turning to options like granola bars, crackers, chips, or other vending machine fare, come over to the fresher side of things. You can go as simple or get as creative as you like. The point is to find something that you like and that fits in with your lifestyle so you can keep it up, rather than struggling and feeling like it's a chore. Honestly, this can be just as convenient as those pre-packaged snacks, with a little planning. Cut up veggies over the weekend and divide into snack sized portions so you can grab them right out of the fridge. Mix up a fruit salad that can easily be spooned into a container for later or served up after school. Here are some ideas to get your started.

Snack Ideas

• Veggies with hummus for dipping
• Fruit salad
• Beans and chopped veggies mixed with lemon juice or vinegar, oil, and your favorite spices (make a big batch and keep it in the refrigerator)
• Plain yogurt topped with fresh fruit
• Banana with peanut butter
• Celery with peanut butter
• Smoothie made with plain yogurt, berries, and spinach
• Cup of vegetable soup
• Sliced fruit (apples, pears, orange, peaches, etc.) with plain yogurt for dipping
• Lettuce roll-ups
• Fruit and/or veggie skewers

What's your favorite way to snack on fruits and veggies?

NNMC Increase Produce: Stuff Your Omelet

Breakfast is one meal where most people don't get in a ton a veggies, if any at all. An easy way to remedy this is to make an omelet that is chock full of your favorites. You can put whatever you like in yours, but here is the recipe for my typical omelet.

Vegetable Stuffed Omelet

serves 1

Ingredients

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup onion, diced

1/3  cup white button mushrooms (about 3), chopped

1.5 cup spinach, chopped

2 eggs, beaten

1 tablespoon grated parmigiano reggiano cheese

Pinch of salt

Pepper to taste

Salsa and/or hot sauce

1/4 avocado, chopped

Directions

1. Heat oil in a small pan on medium heat. Add onion to pan and cooked until soft and slightly browned, about 2 minutes.

2. Add mushrooms to pan and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Then, add spinach to pan and whilt, about 2 minutes more. Spread vegetables to cover bottom on pan.

3. Mix cheese into eggs. Poor mixture into pan over vegetables. Cook until eggs begin to set up, then add salt and pepper. Once eggs are no longer runny, fold omelet or (if you're like me) flip to cook other side.

4. Plate omelet and cover with your favorite hot sauce and/or salsa. Top with chopped avocado and enjoy!

National Nutrition Month Challenge: Increase Produce

Moving into our next week of the challenge, our focus will be on increasing the fruits and vegetables in our diets. Improving your diet is so often about what you can't have, but this week is all about adding things in. When you add more produce to your diet, you will increase the water, fiber, vitamin, and mineral content. Also, eating more fruits and veggies can help with weight maintenance and weight loss as it will fill you up and help you feel satisfied, pushing out higher calorie options. This week, we will approach this goal from two different directions: adding more produce dishes to your diet as well as incorporating it into foods you may already enjoy. By doing both of these, it will be that much easier to amp up the amount of fruits and vegetables you eat every day. If you're not a produce fan, do not fear. Remember that the way you prepare a food can make all a difference. Don't think you like broccoli? Try steaming, sauteing, roasting, serving with a tomato sauce, or blending it into a soup. Also, it can take several exposures before you can really determine if you like a food or not and, because your tastes change as you get older, foods you may have despised as a child might taste delicious to you now. You don't have to like everything, but the more you try and experiment, you might be surprised to discover your new favorite vegetable.

NNMC Toss the Junk: Buy Ingredients, Not Products

As we close out this week of the challenge, we reach my last tip for getting rid of the junk food : buy ingredients, not products. This is a general rule that I follow and is a good thing to have in mind when doing your grocery shopping. When you're buying ingredients, you're most likely going to be buying whole foods. Now why this isn't always true (some would consider Crisco an ingredient, but I would call it a processed vat of trans fats), it should get you moving more in the right direction. This is important because when you are buying and cooking with whole foods, you're eating the same things our bodies have been consuming since the beginning of time, rather than something that was made in a lab a few weeks ago. Giving your body the fuel it was designed to use will result in you feeling better in your every day life and better health overall. So try a new recipe, switch up your routine, and get back in touch with the food you're eating! With love,

Sarah

NNMC Toss the Junk: Quit Fast Food

This one shouldn't be much of a surprise to anyone. Fast food is high in calories and often deep fried or loaded with sugar. Plus, the nature of its delivery method is designed for on the go, mindless eating with little reverence for the actual food. In addition to all of these things, I would argue that fast food isn't really food at all. It's highly processed and based on a broken food system. The beef in the hamburgers comes from cows that were raised on GMO corn (not the grass they are designed to eat) in crowded feed lots up to their ankles in their own excrement (appetizing huh?). Then they are pumped with hormones to increase their growth and antibiotics to fight the bacterial infections that result from these unnatural, inhumane practices. That's just one ingredient. When you add in the buns made from refined grains, french fries, and a sugary drink to wash it all down, you're in trouble. To drive home my point, I'm sure many of you have seen pictures of fast food meals that have been allowed to sit out for months or even years, but show no signs of rotting. Think of those lone french fries you find under the seat when you clean your car. This stuff should not be going in your body. Instead, come up with fast snack and meal options at home. Whether than means making a big batch of soup and freezing the leftovers in individual portions, doing your dinner prep work for the week on Sunday, or simply having a bowl of fruit in full sight on your counter, do what you need to do to make it work.

What tips do you have for a quick homemade dinner or grab-and-go snack?

NNMC Toss the Junk: No Artificial Sweeteners

Many people turn to artificial sweeteners as a way to get healthier or lose weight, but I think this is a huge mistake. For one, it goes against my philosophy of eating whole foods as close to their natural state as possible and avoiding chemical, man-made ingredients, fillers, and add-ins. In addition, no matter what you think about the safety of artificial sweeteners, they send the wrong message about the way we should eat. What I mean by that is, when you turn to an artificial sweetener to "save calories" what you're really doing is continuing to operate within the same frame of mind as before, rather than changing it. You're perpetuating a diet that emphasizes sweet. What really needs to happen is to change your diet to contain less sugar and allow your taste buds to adjust. This does take some time (a couple weeks), but the result is a wholesome diet without being tied down by a sugar obsession. One area I used to be dependent on artificial sweeteners was my yogurt. I always bought the low-calorie, artificially sweetened brands. Giving them up was a struggle because I just didn't see how I could eat yogurt without them. However, once I really got serious and dedicated, I was able to make the switch and I haven't looked back since. Now, I buy bulk tubs of plain yogurt instead. It's much cheaper than individual containers and I can flavor it however I like. Frozen berries and other fruits are a great option, but when I want to make my yogurt my whole breakfast, I use the recipe below.

Apple-Granola Yogurt

Ingredients

1 cup organic plain yogurt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 apple, chopped

1/4 cup homemade granola or your favorite whole grain cereal

Directions

1. Measure yogurt and mix with cinnamon in bowl.

2. Mix in chopped apple.

3. Add homemade granola on top.

NNMC: Toss the Junk: Skip Soda

Quitting soda is one of the quickest ways to improve your diet and your health. First off, they are basically sugar-water with a few chemicals thrown in and have no redeeming qualities at all. Second, your body doesn't register liquid calories as well as food calories, so it's not going to fill you up the way an equivalent amount of food would. Third, they push out other healthful beverages in your diet like water and tea. To add insult to injury, they are most often sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup which is highly processed and made from GMO corn.  Also, while diet sodas may be calorie-free, they still are in no way healthy and, in my opinion, are just as dangerous as their full-calorie counterparts. Bottom line: the soda has got to go.

However, getting rid of soda is easier said than done. Many people find themselves gripped by these beverages, especially the caffeinated ones. At one time, I myself was hooked on Diet Coke. It's lack of calories was seductive and it kept me awake at a time in my life when I was getting far too little sleep. I know how it feels, but I want to tell you that you can do it. And, trust me, once you make it to the other side, you'll be so glad you did.

Here is a quick recipe for you that may help if you're trying to get off soda, but are craving something a little more interesting than water. The key is to make sure you get 100% cranberry juice, not cranberry juice cocktail. Pure cranberry juice is low in sugar and calories but just a little bit really packs a tart punch.

Guilt-Free Cranberry Drink

Ingredients

2 tablespoons 100% cranberry juice

8 oz water

Lemon slices

Directions

1. Mix cranberry juice and water in a glass.

2. Add lemon slices to taste.

NNMC Toss the Junk: Lose Refined Grains

When I say refined grains what I'm really talking about is white flour. When grains are refined, they are stripped of the bran and germ, which contain most of the protein, fatty acids, fiber, iron and B vitamins, and only the starchy endosperm is left behind. This makes refined grains nutritionally inferior to their whole grain counterparts as well as related to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. However, avoiding refined grains isn't as easy as it may seem. It comes down to knowing the intricacies of food packing and labels. First, we need to look at the front of the box where so many seductive claims often reside. Understanding the phrases you see here will keep you from getting sucked in by seemingly healthy terminology.

Multigrain

This means that several different kinds of grains are present in the product, but it doesn't speak to whether these are whole or refined grains.

Made with Whole Grain

This means just what it says: the product was made with whole grains. However, refined grains are likely included as well. It's like labeling a cookie that has orange zest in the batter "made with oranges."

Whole Grain

This sounds like just what we want, until you find out that in order to be labeled this way a product only needs to be made with 51% whole grains. In my book, that doesn't cut it.

100% Whole Grain

This is exactly what we want. When you see this, all of the grains in the product are whole grains. However, this doesn't get you off the hook from reading the ingredients list.

Now that we understand these front-of-the-box phrases, it's time to move on to the ingredients list on the back. Here is another place they can trip you up. This is what you need to know.

Wheat Flour

Many people think this is whole wheat flour, but it's not. The standard flour we use in cooking is all made from wheat. The only difference is the level of refinement. This is simply white flour in disguise.

Unbleached Wheat Flour

This is the same thing as "wheat flour" except they try to make it sound even better by adding the word "unbleached." While this is better than bleached flour, it's still white flour and that is not what we want.

Enriched Wheat Flour

White flour again, but here they add "enriched" hoping to give an air of health. However, all white flour is enriched by law because of the way refinement removes nearly all of the nutrients. Also, this comes nowhere close to the nutrient content of the original whole grain.

Whole Wheat Flour

Jackpot! When you see this in the ingredients it means that the flour is whole wheat.

So, when you're doing your shopping, look for only whole wheat or whole grain flour in the ingredient list and no white flour. It's also important to note that just because a product has whole grains doesn't make it healthy. For example, many cereals are marketed as having whole grain, but then the second ingredient is sugar. You have to consider the whole product in its entirety to determine whether or not it is a good buy.

NNMC Toss the Junk: Beware Bars

If you go into any grocery store you'll see an extensive selection of bars. From granola to protein, they come in every shape, size, and flavor. It's important to realize that not all bars are created equal. In fact, some of them are more like a candy bar than anything. The key here, as always, is to read your ingredients list and the nutrition facts panel. Something loaded with sugar and trans fats is definitely not a health food. In addition, even if your do find a good bar or decide to make your own, these should not be the corner-stone of your diet. I see lots of people (and I've been guilty of it myself) who use bars as meal replacements daily or snack on them constantly. When you do this, you're pushing out things like fruits, veggies, and other whole foods that are much more nutritious and filling. Instead, use bars as an emergency snack like when you go to a sporting event and aren't allowed to bring in food (I'm the queen of sneaking in food. Yes, I often hide carrot sticks in my purse). In addition, make your own when you can. That way you can control the ingredients and can enjoy your own bars a little more often since they won't have any weird additives.

NNMC Toss the Junk: Ditch Trans Fat

You've likely heard about the danger of trans fats on the news or seen products that proudly display "0 grams of trans fat per serving" on their packaging. But what are trans fats and how bad are they really? First, we need to start with a little chemistry. Fatty acids can either be saturated or unsaturated. These terms refer to the carbon-hydrogen bonds in the fatty acid chain. When a fatty acid is saturated, each carbon in the chain has the maximum number of bonds (4) while unsaturated means that there are less than 4 bonds, resulting in double bonds. So, saturated fats are holding all of the hydrogen they can and unsaturated fats are not. These differences impact the structure of the fat and, therefore, the way it is processed in the body. Trans fats occur when the hydrogens in an unsaturated fat are across from each other rather than next to each other. While this does occur naturally in minimal amounts, the man-made kinds are the ones that have been found to be harmful. In fact, research published in the New England Journal of Medicine has shown that a 2% increase in calories from trans fat increases your risk of heart disease by 23%!

Man-made trans fats are created though a process known as hydrogenation. Oils are pumped with hydrogen to create solid fats, resulting in the production of trans fat. This is beneficial to food companies because trans fats are much more stable than other fats. This means that a product can last on the shelf for a longer period of time, reducing waste and saving money. This is, however, at the detriment to our own health.

So how do we avoid these unhealthy fats? Obviously, if you're eating whole foods this shouldn't be much of an issue. However, packaged foods are a whole different story. This is due to labeling regulations that can really mess you up. If a product has less the 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving, it can be listed on the label as having 0 grams of trans fat. So, if you eat 2 or 3 servings of one of these foods or eat several different foods throughout the day that fall into this category, you could be getting a significant amount of trans fat in your diet. Scary right? The way to avoid this is reading the ingredients list. This is where the true identity of a product always comes through. If you see the words "hydrogenated" or "partially hydrogenated" this is your sign that trans fats are present and you need to just step away.

Whipped topping that is "cool" and comes in a tub (you know what I'm talking about) is one product that contains trans fat. This is most frustrating because it is often marketed as healthy choice due to it's low calorie content. This is a perfect example of where is is important to remember that calories aren't everything when it comes to health and ingredient reading is important. Instead of using this product, I recommend making your own homemade whipped cream. Yes, it is high in calories, but if you use it as an occasional treat and don't go overboard, you should be fine. Plus, it will fill you up pretty quick due to the high fat content.

Homemade Whipped Cream

Ingredients

1 cup organic heavy whipping cream

3 tablespoons powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Add cold whipping cream to a bowl.

2. Whip cream with electric beaters (or by hand if you want a workout!) until it starts to thicken.

3. Add sugar and vanilla extract and beat until stiff peaks form.

National Nutrition Month Challenge: Toss the Junk

As we really get into the swing of things, this week of the challenge is all about clearing out the junk to make room for the healthy foods you'll be adding in. I find this is the best place to start, because it helps you start to shift your thinking and perspective when it comes to food. My general rule when it comes to the difference between junk and food is its origin. I have a strong belief in purchasing and eating foods that are as close to their natural form as possible. This means I'd rather have butter from grass-fed cows than a tub of "buttery spread" made from a mixture of oils and stabilizers. It's about learning to eat real food with limits on the more indulgent items rather than replacing those indulgent items with man-made products. Otherwise, you're not changing your preferences or the way you approach food. You are enabling yourself to operate within the same framework.

This stage of diet change can often times be the most difficult. It's not too hard to try a new food or switch up your lunch, but cutting out something that can be so integral to your daily routine or the way you think about food can be a little trickier. The tips for this upcoming week may be a real challenge for some, so I want to reiterate that if you need more time to adjust to a change, feel free to take your time with it. You might find that just one of the tips could be a month long challenge for you. It's all about committing to the process and understanding that it is just that: a process. Your path might not always be a straight line, but if you keep pushing in the right direction, you'll get where you want be.

NNMC Getting Started: The Right Attitude

As the "Getting Started" portion of this challenge comes to a close, I wanted to send us off into the rest of the month with a little something about getting in the right mindset for the changes ahead. Whether you're following along to fine tune your habits or are looking to make a 180 degree turn around, remember that you may encounter barriers or struggles along the way. What makes all the difference is how you approach these obstacles. Rather than becoming discouraged, see these times as opportunities for growth. This is a marathon, not a sprint. The spirit of this challenge is to give you a kick-start in making healthy changes. So remember, no matter what happens, go forward with the big picture in mind. It's not the tough moments that define you, it's how you deal with them. With love,

Sarah

NNMC Getting Started: Stock Your Pantry

One of the best strategies to improving your diet is to have a well stocked pantry. With the essentials on hand, you can whip up a quick, healthy meal in no time and will be better prepared when trying a new recipe. A long ingredient list seems much less daunting when you realize that you already have many of the items on hand. He's my list to give you a start, but you can obviously add and subtract things to fit your personal preferences and cooking style.

Oils and Vinegars

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

Apple Cider Vinegar

Red Wine Vinegar

White Wine Vinegar

Sherry Vinegar

Rice Vinegar

Condiments

Mustard

Ketchup

Hot sauce

Hummus

Nut butters

Fruit spreads

Sweet Stuff

Honey

Maple Syrup (the real deal)

Molasses

Brown Sugar

Granulated Sugar

*Nuts, Seeds, and Dried Fruits

Almonds

Pecans

Walnuts

Cashews

Pumpkin Seeds (Pepitas)

Sunflower seeds

Raisins

Cherries

Prunes

*make sure nuts and seeds are raw, unsalted

Grains

Whole-wheat flour

Whole-wheat pastry flour

Steel cut oats

Regular/Old fashioned oats (not "quick cooking")

Cornmeal

Whole grain pasta (assorted shapes)

Brown Rice

Bulgur

Wheat berries

Whole-wheat couscous

Quinoa

Popcorn

Whole-wheat bread

Spice Rack

Baking powder

Baking soda

Cayenne pepper

Chili powder

Cinnamon

Coriander

Crushed red pepper flakes

Cumin

Curry powder

Dried basil

Dried oregano

Dried rosemary

Dried thyme

Nutmeg

Paprika

Salt

Vanilla extract

Other

Frozen shrimp

Canned/jarred tomatoes

Tomato paste

Garlic

Onions

Yogurt (pastured)

Eggs (pastured)

Milk (pastured)

Butter (pastured)

NNMC Getting Started: Take Small Steps

When it comes to changing one's diet, it can often be overwhelming. You may feel like there is so much information and so many changes to make, you just can't get a handle on it. Today's tip, and the overarching theme of this challenge, is to take small steps, because, no matter how cliché it may sound, they really can add up to big results. It's not about the shake up where you change everything at once. When you tackle one issue at a time, you can master it and integrate the change into your lifestyle. Before you know it, you'll have made great strides. Throughout this challenge, I encourage you to take things at your own pace. If something has really got you stuck, take the extra time to iron out any problems and get the hang of it.

To illustrate this point, I want to share my own food journey with you. Four years ago, I was quite health conscious, but my idea of what was healthy to eat was very different from my philosophy today. Calories were my main concern so anything that cut calories was great in my book. My typical diet consisted of artificially sweetened yogurt and gum (5-10 sticks a day), processed meats, low-calorie canned soups, sugar-free Fudgesicles, frozen dinners, Flaming Hot Cheetos,  Diet Coke, and Fat-Free dressings. Now, I did still eat my fair share of fruits and veggies, but I was always focused on calories. Since then, my diet has changed dramatically. I don't eat any artificial sweeteners, I can't remember the last time I had a soda, and processed foods are not an option. I'm not saying I don't ever have a treat (say hello to the homemade chocolate trifle in my refrigerator), but I'm now focused on wholesome, real ingredients rather than a low-calorie product created in the lab. The point of all this is, I didn't make this change over night. It started with one small step: cutting out artificial sweeteners. Next, I switched to organic dairy. This went on and on until, four years later, I eat a whole foods diet that is a world away from my old style of eating.

I understand how daunting this may seem. Food and our eating habits are such an integral part of our lives. When I started tinkering with the idea of quitting artificial sweeteners I just couldn't imagine how I could live without them. But, by taking that first step and pushing myself, I began a journey that has truly changed my life. So join me in simply putting one foot in front of the other until, before we know it, we'll be miles away from where we started.

National Nutrition Month Challenge: Getting Started

Sometimes, just getting started can be the hardest part of any change. This week (3 days), we will focus on strategies to help set you up for success. When you have the understanding, tools, and skills needed to accomplish any task, it's all that much easier. And, while this isn't necessarily going to be easy, anything you can do to push you in the right direction will help. If you're still on the fence about committing to the challenge, I encourage you to leave all your fears and ideas about yourself behind and see this as an opportunity for growth. Embarking on something new can be scary. All kinds of questions may come up. Can I do this? What if I fail? What if I succeed? Just remember that those times when you step out of your idea of who you are and stretch yourself a little (or a lot) can be the ones you look back on as the most rewarding. Don't be afraid to shake things up and get a little uncomfortable. Trust me, you can do anything you set your mind to.

National Nutrition Month Challenge

As you may or may not know, March is National Nutrition Month. This year's theme is "Get Your Plate In Shape." To celebrate, I am putting forth a challenge to you, my readers, to join me in a month of nutrition tips and goals. For each week of March, I've selected a goal for us all to work towards. The Saturday before each week begins, I will post a summary of that goal, what it means, and why it is important. Then, each day, I will post a tip and/or recipe to help you reach that week's goal. I've also created a calendar that you can print out or save on your computer to follow along. Each week's goal is prominently displayed and each day includes the title of the mini-post to keep you on track. Also, the days where new, original recipes will be posted have a little gold star in the upper-right corner. In addition, I'll be tweeting about what I'm doing to reach each goal so follow me on Twitter (@SarahBethMarsh) to get those updates as well. I can't wait to go on this journey with you all and see what we can learn together. If you have any questions feel free to post them here. Check back tomorrow for my post about our first week (3 days). To join the National Nutrition Month Challenge (NNMC), download the calendar, click here: National Nutrition Month Challenge Calendar