Healthy Southern Comforts

The Lunch Bunch

healthysoutherncomforts — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 17:03:11 +0000

School is just around the corner and plenty of parents are struggling with the question of how to feed their children at lunch time. Should they allow their children to eat school lunches that are often saturated with fat and sugar instead of protein and carbohydrates? Last spring a school principal in Illinois banned homemade lunches because she said that often parents were sending their children to school with junk foods such as chips and sugary drinks.

Recently, another news story warned of the bacteria that can be found when the lunches are out of the ice box for too long. Most schools and daycares don’t offer refrigeration for lunches, which may sit out for hours before they are served. This could be a recipe for disaster if the lunches are loaded with meat or cheese because bacteria can grow, causing illness and sometimes even food poisoning.

My own five children always complain about lunches served at school and have called them “nasty”. More often than not, those lunches consist of pizzas and fried foods, not fruits and salads. I always tell them to make good food choices, like the sandwich above. This isn’t brain surgery. Children need mid day meals that are energy boosters and this doesn’t always mean meat.

They can sufficiently dine on sandwiches filled with sprouts, avocados, whole grained bread or just fruits, vegetables or granola bars. Young children especially like to dip foods like carrots or celery into dressings. The choice is theirs. One thing is certain. Children never go hungry by choice. In fact sometimes, I feel that we give them too many choices when we shouldn’t.

When I was a child, my parents insisted that we ate whatever they served us and we learned to appreciate good, wholesome food that was always fresh. My mother never shopped in supermarkets, but rather farmer’s markets and at the butcher who gave us the highest quality food. As often as I can, even though it’s more expensive, I do this for my own family.

So, engage your children in preparing their food from a young age, which will broaden their taste buds. Expose them to nutritious, healthy foods that cover the full spectrum. Most important, teach them the connection between eating well and feeling well. In doing this, you’ll help them to develop a healthy palate that can encourage a better quality of life for them when they become adults.

Making fruit bars at home

healthysoutherncomforts — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 19:20:11 +0000

The quickest way to cool off in the hot city when you don’t have access to swimming is to eat a fruit bar or a popsicle. But people who prefer natural products with less sugar will find that natural fruit bars can be very expensive. I’ve seen some that are twice as expensive as the regular ice pops in the supermarket. So here’s a suggestion – make your own. And get the children to help.

This time of year, you’ll find every type of fruit imaginable at its peak. The other day I bit into a nectarine that was simply heavenly. Next, a mango that was so sweet it made me want to eat 10 more.

Making ice pops is simple:

1. Get some popsicle molds.

2. Cut up some fruit.

3. Put fruit into the molds and pour in some juice.

4. Freeze.

And stay cool.

Change your mind, change your life

healthysoutherncomforts — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 18:16:03 +0000

I’m always really surprised when people tell me they skip breakfast because they just don’t have time to make their food in the morning. Women especially are the masters of making time and food for everyone else. However, many of us only find time to do our nails and hair and sometimes we exercise, but skip the most essential meal of the day - breakfast.

But missing breakfast is like driving without gas in your car. Many of us make breakfast for our husbands and children but only grab a cup of coffee for ourselves on the way out the door. Imagine trying to run your car with no fuel. Even though most cars have about a gallon of gasoline after the line hits E, you still shouldn’t ride around for too long without re-fueling. Our bodies are similar, and we should not expect that we’ll perform well if we don’t eat in the morning. Breakfast literally means breaking the fast. Your body has been digesting and distributing the nutrients from the last meal you ate overnight, so it’s most important to re-energize yourself in the morning. With summer just around the corner, we’re in a good time of the year to transition our diets and take advantage of the fruits in season, such as strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.

And that’s where the blender comes in handy. If you’re on the run like so many of us are, using the blender to make fruit smoothies is the perfect tool for making sure that you are nourished before you leave the house.

Add berries to orange juice, almond milk or unfiltered apple juice, along with yogurt, a little bit of ice and a banana for thickness and you’re good to go. If you want to get protein, folic acid or fiber into your morning meal, just add a tablespoon of wheat germ or spirulina.

The best thing is that by having a morning meal even while on the run, you will find yourself feeling more energized for longer periods throughout the day.

Veggies delight

healthysoutherncomforts — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 19:38:14 +0000

I hate it when I see huge people in the summer with rolls of fat hanging off their bodies and wearing the most inappropriate clothing. Do they actually think they look good? Don’t they know better? Apparently not.

As Americans, we eat far too much fat-saturated food and way too much meat. If we switch our plates around and use vegetables as the centerpiece of our meals instead of meat, we’d feel and look much better.

With the exception of those who have glandular conditions, which could make it impossible for them to lose weight, obesity is a choice. It’s also a major health condition that can lead to diabetes, hypertension and heart disease, the leading causes of death in the African American community. And since it’s nearly summer and blazing hot, we should all be concerned about what we look like when we shed our clothes. So this summer, think about adding more vegetables to your diet and more clothes if your body is over-extended.

Here are some tips:

Instead of grilling and serving a large steak, consider slicing it up and putting it in a salad.

Make shish kabob with plenty of vegetables like zucchini, squash, grape tomatoes, mushrooms and peppers.

Grill salmon instead of burgers and beef.

Use very lean cuts of meat instead of meat that has a high fat content.

Substitute turkey burgers and hot dogs for beef and pork.

Drink plenty of spring water and cast those fattening sodas aside.

Get as much exercise as you can. Swimming, walking and tennis are great ways to burn up excess calories.

Think about portion control.

Serve sliders, the tiny burgers that are very satisfying. Often, a small slider and a huge salad or roasted corn on the cob will satisfy the craving for a hamburger. And by the time you eat your salad, you won’t even notice that your sandwich was so tiny.

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Leftover salad

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 19 May 2011 18:34:44 +0000

There was only enough steak for three people and six people were at my house, expecting dinner. My son’s friends had dropped in unexpectedly and I knew from him that everyone was starved.

Earlier that day, I had pulled out three 4-ounce sirloin steaks from the freezer to defrost by the time I got in from work, but I didn’t have anything else readily available to make for our guests on such short notice. I didn’t have any onions, broccoli or peppers, which would have been great to make a wok version of stir-fried steak over rice. I had two choices. I could either order pizza, which wasn’t in the budget.

I needed to somehow make a miracle and work with what I had.

So, I looked in the refrigerator to find what else was in there. I had plenty of baby spinach, a few leftover potatoes, a spring mix salad, grape tomatoes, a few scallions, two ears of corn on the cob and plenty of salad dressings. I also found some fresh pizza dough, which was also left over from the day before.

Bingo ! We’d have a huge dinner in one salad.

I cubed and sauteed the potatoes in olive oil, put the steaks under the broiler and tossed everything into one huge salad.

I rolled out the pizza dough, glazed it with olive oil, garlic powder and basil, and sliced it into bread sticks. Then, I glazed the sticks with spaghetti sauce, liberally sprinkled fresh grated Parmesan cheese and baked them to couple with the salad.

The entire spur-of- the moment dinner took less than 20 minutes. Best yet, everyone was delighted.

A ready-to-go breakfast of pancakes

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 12 May 2011 17:34:20 +0000

I was making pancakes for breakfast and thinking about how my children take way too long getting to the table to eat when I had what I believe to be a brilliant idea: Load their pancakes with fruit and then roll them so my children can walk out the door with a ready-to-go breakfast.

Now mind you, I hate for my children to eat on the run. I think it’s rude, crude and probably not too good for their digestive tracks. However, I’d much rather hand them food to walk with than to have them not eat at all. I also know that other people are already doing this.

So the next time I make pancakes, I will glaze them with a fresh fruit compote mixed with a little syrup and butter, and roll them tight. That way my children can still get a hot meal into their bellies before they begin their school day.

I’ll feel better as their mother, and they’ll be able to put on their thinking caps fueled by a full belly.

Fresh Fruit Compote Stuffed Pancakes

Use whatever pancake mix you like or make the pancakes from scratch.

For the compote, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over a low flame.

When it’s completely liquid, add your favorite berries – blueberries, strawberries or blackberries – plus 1 tablespoon of sugar, and simmer together until the fruit opens.

Turn off heat and cover.

Make a large pancake, put the compote in the middle and roll tightly.

A brunch for me and Mom on Mother’s Day

healthysoutherncomforts — Sun, 08 May 2011 14:49:02 +0000

It’s just Mom and me this year celebrating Mother’s Day together. My children are all off in their own worlds, which is just fine with me. One by one they called me on the phone, and now, I am making brunch for my mom.

I am thrilled to be getting her all to myself. After all, since she has two other daughters and 13 grandchildren to worry about, it’s an honor to be able to get her full attention. Mom, who’s ever practical and knows that I’m on a strict budget, instructs me to make a simple meal. Even a vegetarian one will be fine, she says.

What should it be ? Quiche, soup or a wonderful salad? I wanted the meal to be comforting and something she can also freeze for later.

Still not sure what to make, I needed some fresh vegetables and fast. I knew I would base my menu around what I found on the stands of an organic market. On my way to a live remote radio broadcast of my radio program – The Real Deal on WURD 900 AM - I came across an organic farmer’s market, and bought some wonderful tomatoes and fresh basil. I already had organic ground turkey (so we”ll compromise on the vegetarian part) and plenty of black beans, carrots and pot herbs. So I’m making chili.

Be sure to tune in to my show on Monday, May 9 from 10-11 a.m. and catch We Are Black Women owner Sherry Howard in a live stream as she talks about the WABW Tech Camp coming up on May 21.

Sunshine Chili

Ingredients

1 pound ground turkey

1 large onion

1/2 pound mushrooms

5 pounds ripe tomatoes

2 large can black beans

1 bag baby carrots

1/4 cup virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons sea salt

1/4 cup fresh chopped basil

1 tablespoon pot herbs

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon fresh oregano

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon spicy mustard

Directions

Bring two gallons of water to a rapid boil in a very large pot. Add tomatoes and cover.

Remove tomatoes from pot when skin splits and allow to cool before skinning. Empty all but two cups of water.

Saute ground turkey in half of the olive oil and set aside covered in a separate container.

In the same pan, saute onions and mushrooms, lower heat and cover.

Once tomatoes have been skinned, remove the core and put them back in the pot with water and mash with a fork.

Add all of the ingredients to this pot and simmer on low for 45 minute, stirring occasionally. Serve over rice.

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Spring cleaning

healthysoutherncomforts — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 19:22:16 +0000

It’s that time of year again. Spring cleaning, a time when our mothers and grandmothers used to have us scrubbing the house from top to bottom. I also distinctly remember my mother using that time of year to change the bedspreads and curtains from heavy winter ones to light airy ones that were better in the warmer months because they helped the house to breath and circulate air.

But deep house cleaning in the spring isn’t the only thing we should be concerned about. Our bodies, just like our homes, need a change of pace and food. During the winter, we needed to consume heavier foods to help fuel our bodies and insulate us against the cold bitter days. Now that it’s warmer, we should be thinking about eating lighter foods that are easier to digest in the heat.

Spring is a great season for foods like strawberries, peas, baby asparagus and all types of salads. I was also very surprised to learn that my favorite fish, wild alaskan salmon, wouldn’t be available until next month or even early summer through the fall. So unfortunately, I had to purchase farm-raised salmon.

Meanwhile, I’m headed to the co-op to find some fresh berries.

But I also love, love, love avocados.

And I like them so much that I can eat them whole with a spoon. But if you’d like to make them into some awesome guacamole, just cut them into tiny cubes, and add a few drops of fresh lime juice, salt, pepper, fresh garlic (finely minced) and a small red onion (finely diced). Put this on a plate full of your favorite kind of lettuce and tomatoes, and you have an entire meal.

An apple a day

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 18:24:19 +0000

Look outside of any big urban school and chances are you’ll find candy wrappers, empty bags of chips and soda cans littering the schoolyard. Many children buy these snacks on their way to school because no one is making them meals at home.

Some mothers are even relieved when they don’t have to pack school lunches every day because their children qualify for free, federally funded meals, which by the way are usually horrible.

The other day I interviewed a young rapper who’s about to graduate from college on my radio show “The Real Deal With Fatimah Ali,” which is heard on 900 AM WURD in Philadelphia. He told me that he often eats jelly beans for breakfast. Although this young man loves to cook, eating junk food on the run has become a habit for him and he says he’d rather eat candy than nothing. Unfortunately, like so many young people, he grew up with two working parents who fed him but didn’t always have the time to make good, nourishing food. And we are seeing this trend more and more.

Still, I was shocked as well as outraged to read a recent news story about a Chicago school forbidding children from bringing their own lunches from home. According to the principal, the school’s lunches were much healthier than the foods kids were bringing in. Although I seriously understand the reasons for taking these drastic measures, I also felt strongly that this was a missed opportunity to educate children and their parents about making positive lifestyle decisions.

Most of us remember the saying “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

When I was growing up in the ’60 and ’70s that apple was a symbol of good health, along with the cartoon character Popeye’s can of spinach, which appeared on billboards all over town. Along with having good manners, eating good food with lots of fruit and vegetables was the standard for every meal. In my parents’ house, as in most of my friends’ homes, we weren’t allowed to have dessert until our plates were clean. And there was no discussion about it. We ate whatever our mother put in front of us and her food was always delicious as well as healthy.

I’ve said this kazillion times: Children actually welcome the opportunity to eat healthy food, particularly when you educate them from a very young age about the need for good nutrition to build strong bodies. So if you have children or grandchildren who are toddlers, start educating them today about the correlation between good food, healthy minds and strong bodies.

You’ll be amazed at how interested they are in eating well and participating in their own growth and development.

Quick and easy lunch rules

Kids love to dip, so invest in tiny plastic containers and/or ziplock bags.

Put their favorite salad dressing and some leftover plain pasta in a plastic container

Chop up broccoli, carrots, celery, apples and any other snack-like foods that they like and pack it in ziplocks

Find a good vegetable chip or make popcorn seasoned with garlic powder and olive oil for snacks

Allow children to help pack their own lunches and choose what they pack

Remember, the more they help, the better they’ll love the food. And next thing you know, their friends will want them to bring healthy lunches for them as well.

Feeding your children well

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 02:53:16 +0000

It certainly doesn’t take a brain surgeon to see that the typical American diet is fat-infused, laced with chemicals and not conducive to developing strong minds and bodies. I’ve penned quite a few thoughts about my picky youngest child, who eats practically nothing and is so rail thin that I’m always afraid she’ll blow away.

The other day she learned a hard lesson about her foolish food choices, which often consist of snack foods at school because she hates the school lunches.

Her stomach hurt so badly that she was doubled over in pain. I called the doctor who was worried that it could be appendicitis. She didn’t have a fever, one tell-tale sign when combined with a severe stomachache. Eventually, her symptons subsided but it certainly was a wake-up call for her. She is now fully aware that she must fully participate in her own well-being.

A public school food worker had warned me about school lunches years ago, but unfortunately I really didn’t really heed her warning.

The Food Trust here in Philadelphia is trying to address the nutritional issue by getting healthy food into poor neighborhoods. The nonprofit also has a team that goes out to teach school children about the benefits of eating healthily.

These days, I’m focused on getting our children to eat healthy meals and snacks at home, and to pack their own lunches. Children who participate in meal preparation are more likely to enjoy them. So these days when I cook dinner, I get the kids to help plan our meals and shopping so that leftovers can be used for their next day’s lunch.

What I’ve discovered is that they like these lunches far more and their friends are envious. And sometimes we even pack enough for them to share.