Make Meatless Mondays a Snap!
Did You Know?
Beans are a fantastic source of
fiber, plant protein, iron, zinc,
folate, and potassium.
MyPlate considers beans part
of the vegetable and the protein food groups.
Pinto beans were first cultivated over 5,000 years ago!
Vegetarian Quesadillas
Serves: 3 | Serving Size: 1 quesadilla
Spray olive oil
6 small low-fat whole wheat tortillas
1 can black beans (no added salt), drained
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Heat the beans in a covered bowl in the microwave. Heat
a nonstick pan over medium heat OR heat a panini maker
or quesadilla maker. Lightly spray the pan with oil.
Place one tortilla on the pan. Top with 1/2 cup beans and
1/3 of the cheddar cheese.
Place a second tortilla over the beans and cheese. Lower
the press for the panini or quesadilla maker, or just cook
the quesadilla in the nonstick pan.
Cook the first side until it is brown, about 3 minutes. Flip
the quesadilla and cook for 3 more minutes.
Chef's Tips:
We served the quesadillas with slaw, mango salsa and
pico de gallo. They look especially nice when they are
cut into quarters and stacked on the plate, as pictured
above.
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Beans don’t have to literally be
dry in order to be called “dry
beans.” Dry beans are simply
the name for the group of mature beans harvested from seed
pods. This group includes
black beans, pinto beans, lima
beans, etc.
Celebrate Your Farmersʼ Market
grill. Top with fresh baby spinach leaves. Grill until the meat
is opaque and cooked through.
For the bruschetta: Combine
tomatoes, chives, 1 teaspoon
olive oil, and basil. Add black
pepper and garlic powder to
taste and mix gently.
Turnips and Greens:
Farmers’ Market Meal
3 potatoes, sliced thin (but leave the skin on)
Foil oiled with canola spray
1/2 onion, chopped
2 tsp olive oil, divided
3 cups baby turnips and greens
1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 cup of freshly rinsed spinach leaves
2 chicken filets, halved horizontally
1 bunch asparagus spears
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons garden chives
1 tsp olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
Garlic powder, black pepper, and paprika to taste
For asparagus and potatoes: Place potato rounds on
lightly oiled foil on the grill. Arrange asparagus spears on
the outer edges or the foil. Flip halfway through cooking.
For the turnips: Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a nonstick
skillet. Add the onions, stir, cover, & cook for about 8
minutes. Add the greens, broth, and seasonings. Cover
and cook until the turnips are tender, about 8 minutes.
For the chicken and greens: Place the chicken on the
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Grilled Meal:
Ups and Downs of the Paleo Diet
Should we eat like our cave-dwelling ancestors? Proponents of the paleo diet seem to
think so. We decided to take a closer look at
this popular diet in order to determine
whether or not it is actually good for your
health.
To eat a paleo diet, you stick to fruits, nonstarchy vegetables, and meats -- mainly wild
ones like bison, ostrich, and fish. That's it.
While this approach might work for weight
loss because starchy grains and full-fat dairy
products are cut out, it may not have good
long-term ramifications for health. Think about
what you are missing by restricting entire
food groups in order to lose weight.
The pros of the paleo diet are that it eliminates refined carbs and processed foods
made with sweeteners. This exclusion means
that the empty calories from candy, cakes,
cookies, and soda go right out the window.
Thatʼs great news, especially because Americans eat a lot of sugar. In fact, according to
government estimates, sugar consumption in
the U.S. ranges from 80-100 pounds per
year! If the paleo diet teaches people how to
read food labels and weed out excess sugar,
thatʼs a bonus.
The paleo diet is not all sunshine and
roses, however. A red flag goes up with the
subtraction of nutrient-rich whole grain pasta,
brown rice, red lentils, and yogurt. More meat
consumption also means increased saturated
fat intake. Unless you have a diagnosed condition like celiac disease, gluten sensitivity, or
lactose intolerance, whole grains and low-fat
dairy products are healthful foods and should
not be eliminated from your diet. Now think
about people with fructose intolerance or car-
diovascular disease? Is just eating fruit and
fatty meats going to work for them? No. What
about athletes who require a steady stream of
carbohydrates to fuel muscles for prolonged
activity and peak performance? Itʼs tough to
stay healthy if you canʼt have low-glycemic
whole grain carbs in the diet mix.
Although you can get calcium from leafy
greens and nuts, vitamin D -- which is critical
to the absorption of calcium -- is not generally
in those foods. Milk, some yogurts, and certain cheeses all contain a significant supply of
vitamin D3, which helps get calcium into your
bones. Plus, fermented dairy products like
yogurt contain gut-friendly probiotics.
The best bet is to eat from all five food groups
and think about the quality of whatʼs on your
plate. Remember that avoiding processed
foods leaves more room for the nutrientdense bounty that Americans are fortunate to
have in this day and age!
By Victoria Shanta Retelny, RD, LDN, author
of The Essential Guide to Healthy Healing
Foods.
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3
Alcohol: Is Wine Really the Best? (Part One)
Wine — especially red wine — is often touted
as the heart-healthy beverage. After all, the
French drink a lot of it, eat a diet high in saturated fat, and still have lower rates of heart
disease, while the heart-healthy Mediterranean diet includes red wine in moderation.
That said, news reports about wine, alcohol,
and your health can be confusing! Letʼs take
a closer look at wine and its benefits.
“Moderation”
Defined:
So, what exactly
does “drinking in
moderation”
mean? Well,
thereʼs actually a
number you can
assign to moderate drinking,
though that
number is different for women
and men...
Potential Health Benefits:
Moderate intake of wine, as well as beer and
liquor, increases overall life expectancy by
decreasing your risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, and some
types of cancer. It may also help prevent Alzheimerʼs disease, improve brain function in
the elderly, and help prevent gallstones.
• For women,
drinking moderately means one drink
per day.
• For men, drinking moderately means
two drinks per day.
How Much:
Health professionals are wary about telling
people to drink up. Remember, the key here
is moderation. That means an average of one
drink/day for women and two drinks/day for
men.
One drink equals:
• 5 ounces of wine
• 12 ounces of beer
• 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor
Note:
The health benefits of moderate drinking
can be cancelled out if the extra calories
lead to obesity. Choose wisely.
Calorie Counts of Popular Drinks:
• Wine, 5 oz, 90-95 calories
• Light beer, 12 oz, 110 calories
• Beer, 12 oz, 150 calories
• Hard liquor, 1.5 oz, 100 calories or
more
• Cosmopolitan, 4 oz, 213 calories
• Pina colada, 9 oz, 460 calories
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Alcohol: Is Wine Really the Best? (Part Two)
high risk for heart failure, stroke, high blood
pressure, liver disease, dementia, obesity
and breast cancer. They also suffer from
more violence, drowning, falls, suicide, car
crashes, and work-related accidents. Too
much alcohol decreases life expectancy.
How it Works:
Wine, beer and liquor contain polyphenols,
antioxidants that could protect the heart. Another antioxidant, resveratrol, is abundant in
red wine, but not in beer and liquor. These
phytochemicals get a lot of press, but the
stronger evidence points to the alcohol (or
ethanol) content as the reason for wineʼs
health benefits, making it equal to beer and
liquor in fighting certain diseases, when consumed in moderation. Ethanol has been
shown to increase “good” HDL cholesterol,
decrease “bad” LDL cholesterol and reduce
blood clots.
Risks from Heavy Drinking:
Excessive alcohol consumption and binge
drinking is dangerous. Heavy drinkers are at
Final Warning:
If you drink, do so only in moderation. If you
do not currently drink, alcoholʼs health benefits should not be a reason to start. Of course,
some people should not consume alcohol at
all:
• Women who are pregnant or nursing, or
taking estrogen
• People with certain medical conditions,
such as liver disease, heart failure and
pancreatitis.
• People taking certain medications and
supplements (check labels and talk to
your pharmacist).
• Those with a family history of alcoholism.
By Hollis Bass, MEd, RD, LD
Did you know?
• Histamines in red wine may trigger migraines.
• Moderate intake of beer and liquor (but not wine) increases the risk of developing gout.
• Beer consumption is linked to a lower risk of kidney stones in men, compared to other alcoholic beverages.
• Itʼs possible that red and purple grape juice provide the antioxidant benefits of red wine without the alcohol, but the research is not conclusive.
• Resveratrol supplements are not completely absorbed by the body, and they have no proven
effect on disease prevention.
• Peanuts, blueberries and cranberries also contain resveratrol, but the amounts vary.
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5
Inexpensive Diabetes-Friendly Snacks
Having diabetes does not mean that you
need to purchase “special” food! Snacks for
people with diabetes are foods that can work
for the entire family. While watching quantity
and portion size is important for people with
diabetes, it doesnʼt mean that what you eat
has to taste bad. Here are some simple, inexpensive snacks for people with diabetes.
Apple and Cheddar Cheese
Skip the expensive apples that are sold by
weight and buy a whole bag of apples instead. The apples in these bags are generally
smaller and cost much less than the other
apples. Plus, theyʼll last for a while when
stored in a cool place. Itʼs helpful if you include some protein with your carbohydrates,
in order to keep your blood sugar stable. Try
pairing a slice of cheddar cheese with that
apple. One small apple can be cut into 4
wedges. Cut one ½ inch slice of cheese from
a bar of low-fat cheese (bars are less expensive than cheese slices and will last a long
time in your refrigerator), and add it to the
apple. Each wedge with cheese is about 30
calories, with around 5 carbs per snack.
Assorted Vegetables
Carrots and celery are inexpensive and keep
well in the refrigerator. Paired with a little
peanut butter, which also stores well, theyʼre
a healthful snack that fills you up! If you have
room for a garden, try growing your own carrots and celery. Not only does it save even
more money, but it provides you with the
added bonus of exercise when planting,
weeding, and harvesting. Plus, the end results are delicious, inexpensive vegetables
that you grew yourself! These vegetables are
basically carbohydrate-free. Peanut butter
has approximately 100 calories per tablespoon and 8 grams of carbohydrate. A little
peanut butter goes a long way when vegetables are dipped in it instead of spread with it.
Sugar-Free Gelatin
Sugar-free gelatin is inexpensive and stores
well. You can basically eat as much as you
like (within reason) since there are no calories or carbohydrates in this food.
Frozen Grapes
Yes, frozen! Wash red, seedless grapes and
place them on a cookie sheet. Put the sheet
in the freezer until the grapes are frozen, then
take the grapes off the sheet and store them
in a sealed freezer bag. Theyʼll keep for
months in the freezer. Roughly 20 averagesized grapes have 70 calories and 18 grams
of carbohydrate.
By Karla Logston, RN, BS, CDE
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