Batch cooking at it's best!

Sunday funday is also a great day for batch cooking healthy meals for the week.  With a hungry husband and a even more hungry son batch cooking is a must or else I would spend endless hours in the kitchen during the week which is nearly impossible.  It is so important to have veggies and protein at each meal and I know if I did not prepare them in advance the family would grab easy snacks like cereal and crackers, etc. 

My batch cooking today focused on breakfast and lunch for the week.  Dinner seems to be simple these days we bake, grill or broil some meat, chicken or fish and roast or steam veggies on the side.  Lunch is where we have issues, if it is not brought from home it tends to be higher in salt and processed ingredients.  Breakfast has to be quick, high school starts too early and there is not time to actually "cook" breakfast in the morning.  I am fine with a meal replacement shake, but that is not an option for Ben or Ben Jr. in the morning because Lily is still asleep when they leave the house and running the blender would wake her.

Breakfast in bulk:

Egg Muffins...not the processed kind on the white flour buns!

Ingredients:
1-3 dozen free range eggs
1-2 c chopped veggies of your choice
1/2 c organic shredded cheese
1-2 lbs nitrate free bacon or sausage

Directions:
Brown the bacon or sausage in skillet or in oven
Chop veggies of choice (my guys like Jalapenos, but I personally love mushrooms and spinach)
Crack Free range eggs into a large pitcher with a spout (we do 1/2 whole eggs and 1/2 egg whites)
For a dozen muffins (6 whole eggs and 10 whites)
Whisk eggs until there is a froth
Pour into muffin non-stick tin
Drop cooked bacon, sausage and/or veggies into egg mixture
Top with a sprinkle of organic cheese
Bake on 350 for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

Chili for lunch
In honor of Superbowl Sunday we made chili and per Ben's request I made extra for lunch the next day for both him and Lily, this little 18 month old loves some chili too!

Lily patiently sipping on her rice milk waiting for her chili to be done..."cheese"

Ingredients:
1-2 lbs grass fed beef
2 cans of organic chili beans (undrained)
2 cans of organic rotel
1 small can of organic tomato sauce
1 chopped onion
3-5 tbs. chili powder (to taste)
1-2 tbs of garlic powder
1-2 tbs cumin
1 tsp. Cayenne red pepper

Directions:
Brown grass fed beef
Add onion and cook until onion is clear
After beef is cooked through add beans, rotel and tomato sauce and stir
Add spices and stir through

Simmer for 2-4 hours, the longer the better

I love to serve with homemade guacamole, avocado slices and/or organic corn chips! 


Enjoy, happy Superbowl Sunday!

~Dana

Why don't we cook more? I think it boils down to the fact that we are over commited and lack of planning.

Lets face it fast food is a billion dollar industry for a reason... it is fast, easy, addicting and you can get it at almost all hours of the day.  You do not even have to get out of your car! The cons of fast food are obvious, it is unhealthy, it makes you fat, and most of the meals are juiced up with processed ingredients of poor quality that will send you to the doctor if you consume it too often. Unfortunately people like to ignore the reality and they feed their greasy salty habits. 

What if it were cheaper and quicker to cook a meal at home?  Not to mention you could lose weight, improve lipid, glucose, insulin, and blood pressure values.  It is simple, plan out your week of meals. Take some time, typically on Sunday or Saturday and think about what you want to cook for the week, make a menu and grocery list and stick to it.  Here is a easy week worth of meals. 

Monday - Crock pot turkey breast or roast.  Turkey breast or roast goes into the crock pot with carrots, onions, celery, herbs, spices and some organic broth and let the crock pot  do the rest of the work.  Serve beside quinoa, and a dark leafy green salad. 

Tuesday- Fish tacos (if you are not into fish you can use turkey or sirloin) - pan fry tilapia, add a little paprika, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne pepper with chopped onion and bell peppers.  Cook until fish is done and serve over small corn tortillas with salsa, plain Greek yogurt (instead of sour cream), and shredded organic cheese.  If you are watching the starches serve the fish blend over cabbage cups or Boston lettuce cups. 

Wednesday- steak and potatoes... well not really, how about grilled steak and mashed cauliflower? Steam cauliflower till soft, blend in food processor, add a tab of organic butter, garlic, plain Greek yogurt, milk (I use coconut), sea salt, and chives.  If you like green as much as I do, roast some brussel sprouts in evoo with black pepper, minced garlic and a tiny dash of sea salt. The sprouts go in 350 for 20-30 minutes. 

Thursday- Shrimp stir fry.  Saute shrimp and stir fry veggie of your choice in lite soy sauce, organic broth, evoo, small tab of organic butter, spices, include, ginger, Cayenne pepper, minced garlic, etc.  Can serve over a grain like brown rice or quinoa, if you are watching your starches double veggies and skip the grains.

Friday - bun less burger and sweet potato fries.  this one is simple, grill the burgers serve over lettuce with all of the fixins, you can buy the organic sweet potato fries pre-cut in the bag or slice them yourself and toss with evoo and I bake them till crispy. For the green serve beside a leafy green salad, roasted brussel sprouts or grill asparagus or green beans while you are grilling the burgers. 



Saturday- we go out :-) 

Sunday - since it has been football season I have been making homemade chili so the boys can eat during football. Ground sirloin, onion, beans, rotel and cumin and chili powder.   I serve mine with homemade quac, plain Greek yogurt, dash of cheese and green onions!  Organic corn chips are okay in moderation, don't got crazy!

There you have it, a weeks worth of healthy meals!  I will be honest most of these meals take less then 30 minutes to prepare.  Train to multi-task... while something is roasting, grilling or baking chop something else or set the table, etc.  It's not complicated, it just takes a little planning!

Top Lily Pics of 2011

Wow has our little angel changed over the last 12 months.  I was looking through all of our albums and decided to post my favorites of 2011.  xoxo- Dana

Happy New Year - here's to an even better 2012!

What does a Dietitian give her loved ones for Christmas?

Healthy gift baskets!  I used to bake with my mom and grandma during the holidays and I loved the idea of making gifts for family and friends.  This year I wanted it to be 100% healthy so I decided to channel my creative energy into another Christmas project...healthy gift baskets!  (These could double as New Year gifts too)

I went down to the Dekalb Farmer's market and loaded up on items that people typically do not have on their grocery list.  The farmer's market is a great place to buy in bulk without breaking the bank.  Here is what I picked up....

• California organic almond flour- can be used in low carb pancakes, muffins, bread, etc. It is a great source of healthy fats
• Philippines organic coconut flour- can also be used in low carb baked goods. Coconut has numerous health benefits including high potassium levels.
• Organic whole wheat pastry flour - great high fiber alternative to the low nutrient enriched bleached flour, but be careful because this does contain gluten. 
• Raw pumpkin seeds- can be thrown into granola or Greek yogurt for heart healthy fats
• Australian Chia seeds- add to smoothies for heart healthy omegas
• Aluminium free baking powder (in case you did not know that most mainstream baking powders contain toxic aluminum)
• Stevia drops- all natural, non-calorie sweetener great for baking and replacing sugar in most recipes
• Blackstrap molasses- great for baking and avoid processed sweeteners

Then some of my favorite supplements that I threw into the baskets in addition to the above....

• DaVinchi Spectra Reds and Greens- great source of antioxidants- can be added to water or smoothies
• Relora-plex, natural herb shown to reduce cortisol levels and belly fat (Douglas Labs)

Finished the baskets off with my favorite hand written recipes containing all of the healthy goods! 

There is nothing like giving a loved one the gift of health :-)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Dana

Ben's graduation GSU 2011

Graduating from college is one of the life milestones I just expected to do growing up, my husband definitely did not have it as easy as I did. This explains the tears in my eyes and my parent's eyes as he moved his tassel to the other side of his cap.  His college journey was definitely not as easy as mine!  I was fortunate enough to graduate from high school and head right off to college (University of North Florida) after high school.  I had support both emotionally and financially from my family and looking back I definitely took that for granted.  My husband, Ben served our country for 7 years in the military right out of high school and he had the boys during that time too.  He always knew that he wanted to go back to school but with a family and financial obligations he knew it was going to be a huge struggle.  As soon as I finished my internship at Emory and was established in my career it was Ben's turn and he went back to school to obtain his college education.  It was not easy, he worked full time and went to school full time, during some of our major life moments including the birth of Lily last year and our wedding!  

To my husband and hero,  I am so proud of you babe!

Love,
Dana

Post Thanksgiving "Thanks"

Thanksgiving was fantastic.  Nothing beats quality time with family and good food. 

 Nana and Pops are here - yey!

 I love my new toy from nana and pops!

 We are in Augusta and Great Aunt Liz's house, so excited

 knock knock

 tickle time!

 Her favorite thing to do at GAL's house

 This was taken the morning after Thanksgiving dinner, haha

 Dancing while she was getting the paper in, my little diva will dance anytime and any place!

 Walk after mom and nana's Thanksgiving run :-0

 I'm too cute and I know it!

 Practicing for summer!

 watching cartoons

 mommy and Lily

 slept through the official Thanksgiving dinner - good thing we had leftovers

 Grandpa and Aunt Liz

 My love

 Slim pops and Lily

 shy little eater, no one can watch her!

 priceless

hehehe