 | I love quick and easy one pot meals. I have a few that my family enjoys and that I typically have the ingredients for. That way, when things come up and we need a quick meal, I am prepared. 1 inch piece Ginger, minced 4 cloves Garlic, minced 1/2 Tbsp Red Curry Paste 5 cups Vegetable Broth 1 can Coconut milk 1 Tbsp Lemon juice 1/2 cup Peanut Butter 3 Tbsp Braggs 1 package Rice Noodles 1 package Tofu 1 Carrot, peeled into ribbons 1 Bell Pepper, strips 1 cup Broccoli, chopped Cilantro and chopped peanuts to serve 1. Fry tofu, then set aside. 2. Fry garlic and ginger in some oil. 3. Add in vegetables and cook for 2 minutes. Add curry paste and stir for 30 seconds. 4. Add in broth, braggs, lemon juice, peanut butter, stir to combine and bring to a boil. 5. Reduce heat, and add in coconut milk. 6. Break rice noodles slightly and add into pot, stirring until covered with the liquid and until starting to soften. 7. Stir in tofu and let sit until noodles are softened. 8. Add cilantro and peanuts to serve (optional). Looking for more quick and easy recipe ideas? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future's Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com |
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 I like this flour mix because it works well with everything I have tried so far. It's easy to mix and for gluten free I find it light and fluffy with a texture that has been pleasing to everyone who has taste-tested it so far.
4 cups Brown Rice flour 2 cups Sorghum flour * 1 cup Potato starch 1/2 cup Arrowroot starch 1 cup Tapioca starch 1/2 cup Corn starch 5 tsp Xanthan gum 1. Mix everything together and store in a sealed container. *I have subbed this with gluten free oat flour and it still worked well. Looking for ideas of how to change your recipes to suit the dietary needs of your family? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future's Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com  I can’t imagine not sharing my meals with family and friends. It hasn’t always been the case for me, but since making it a priority over the years, I wouldn’t want it any other way. It can definitely be challenging when you’re busy, but it’s well worth it. I If you want to start making meal time a family event, be sure to set reasonable, small goals. Going from 0 family meals in a week to daily just won’t happen. Start small, make a plan, and enjoy!
The other key part of the potential of food to bring us together is to be sure to give your attention to food. Put the phone down! Turn that TV off. Make eye contact and enjoy the company you have at the table. Meals are a great time to connect with your kids. There are so many benefits for kids when you eat together as a family.
Overcome the challenge- get creative!
References: https://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/Articles/Menu-Planning/Your-guide-to-setting-healthy-living-goals Ipsos Reid 2017 study conducted for Dietitians of Canada https://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/Articles/Adolescents-teenagers/Family-Meals-with-no-TV.aspx 34 Adapted from the Dietitians of Canada’s Nutrition Month campaign materials. Find more information about Nutrition Month at www.NutritionMonth2018.  A large part of what I do is helping kids learn how to be involved in shopping, regardless of their age. I explain what balanced meals are and also how to cook and be involved in the cooking. These life skills seem more and more important in light of all the unhealthy food and beverage ads our children are exposed to everyday. Most people rely on processed/packaged foods, fast food and take out foods and as a culture we are moving away from home- cooked meals. I love empowering kids by touring them around grocery stores and doing hands-on teaching.
I know what it’s like to be busy and still have to prep a meal after school and in between activities. On top of that getting your kids involved can be really tough. You may start out with the best of intentions to be patient and find that really you just need to get food on the table- now. According to a 2017 study by Ipsos Reid, 16% of Canadians say they never let their kids help in the kitchen (1). As Canadians cook less and less and instead look to packaged and convenience foods, it not only impacts health, but also robs our future generations of a chance to learn the important life skills of cooking and food prep. Kids who are online are exposed to over 25 million food and beverage ads- most of which (90%) promote foods that are high in sugar, salt and fat (2). The good news is that involving our kids and thus improving their food skills can result in healthier eating – eating more fruit, vegetables, and fibre, and a decrease in convenience and take out food and sweetened beverages (3). Another bonus of getting kids involved is that it can help with picky eaters too! (4) Involve your kids in every step of the process- gardening, shopping, meal prep, meal planning, etc. It can help to let your kids be involved when there isn’t such a time crunch and can end up being a really enjoyable, bonding activity- with yummy results! Read more about involving your kids here, here, here and here. Remember as a parent, we are role models when it comes to our kids eating (5). Help your kids gain the potential to discover! Want more ideas of how to involved your kids. Contact Jill, Nurture The Future’s Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com References: 1- Ipsos Reid 2017 study conducted for Dietitians of Canada 2- Heart and Stroke Foundation. http://www.heartandstroke.ca/-/media/pdf-files/canada/2017-heart-month/heartandstrokereportonhealth2017.ashx 3- http://www.pennutrition.com/KnowledgePathway.aspx?kpid=22933&trid=23008&trcatid=42 4- Eat Right Ontario https://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/Articles/Child-Toddler-Nutrition/Help!-My-kids-won-t-eat-enough-vegetables-andfruits.aspx 5- https://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/Articles/Adolescents-teenagers/Parent-and-Caregivers-Influence-on-Children%E2%80%99sEating-Habits.aspx Adapted from the Dietitians of Canada’s Nutrition Month campaign materials. Find more information about Nutrition Month at www.NutritionMonth2018.  Being a parent, I know what it’s like to be busy! Being busy means that eating in balance can be challenging. When you are busy, you need to stay fueled. Many people find they end up skipping meals and going long hours between eating, which can then lead to grazing on snacks during the day.
Don’t get me wrong- eating snacks can be a very healthy and important aspect of eating. But when 20% of Canadians are saying that several times a day, between meal snacks prevents them from eating meals more regularly (Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner), this shows us that snacks don’t necessarily always work for us. (1) I often suggest snacks to kids and adults alike. I don’t know about you, but having a snack in between my meals can help me make it through without that awful crash from low blood sugar. If I don’t give my kids a snack after school there is no way we would get through until dinner. One of the key aspects to snacking is to make sure you are choosing a balanced snack. The whole idea is that it is going to help you get through until the next time you eat (your next meal). When you choose a snack, be sure to include 2 of the 4 food groups. Including a fruit and vegetable with another food group is the perfect way to increase the amount of fruit and vegetables that you eat. The idea of a snack is that it doesn’t have to be a large amount of food. With some of my pregnant or breastfeeding clients I find that snacking is the prefect way to fill in the gap and meet their nutrition needs during these high nutritionally demanding times. Keeping mindful eating in mind, its very important that you listen to your bodies’ hunger and fullness cues when you are eating. Be sure you are eating because you need some fuel, not because you are bored, stressed, angry, tired, etc. Make sure that, even when you are eating a snack, you give the proper attention to your food. You want to make sure that you are not distracted while you are eating by TV, your phone, etc. Another struggle that can happen around snacks is getting the word snack confused with treat. What is the difference? A snack is something that is eaten between meals and used to help you meet your nutritional needs. It often looks like a mini-meal. A treat is something that you eat once in a while and that are not making a big impact on your diet nutritionally (but they do taste delicious!) Some snack ideas:
By planning snacks throughout the day (you won’t need more than 3), it can be a great way to use the potential of food to stay energized throughout the day. Looking for more snack ideas for you and your family? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future’s Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com References: 1 Charlebois, Sylvain et al. PowerPoint Presentation – May 2017. Disintegration of Food Habits Adapted from the Dietitians of Canada’s Nutrition Month campaign materials. Find more information about Nutrition Month at www.NutritionMonth2018.  I have been enjoying chai tea lately. I had also been wanting to work on a granola that was sweetened with dates. When I came across a Chai spice granola recipe I got excited and decided that I wanted to have a granola that included nuts for added protein without only having whole nuts in it. This is what I came up with. I hope you enjoy.
This recipe is slightly adapted from Emilie Eats- Chai spice Granola Ingredients 2 cups Oats (large flakes, gluten free if necessary) 11/2 cups Nuts (I use walnut and pecan) 1/2 cup Sliced almonds 2 Tbsp Hemp seeds 1/4 cup Coconut (shredded, unsweetened) 1/2 Tbsp Cinnamon 1 tsp Cardamom 1 tsp Ginger 1 tsp Allspice 1/2 tsp Cloves 1/2 tsp Nutmeg 1/4 tsp Salt 1/2 cup Dates 1/2 cup Water 3 Tbsp Almond butter 1. Preheat oven to 325F 2. Process nuts in a food processor until finely chopped but not powder. 3. Mix oats, spices, salt, sliced almonds, coconut and hemp seeds. Add processed nuts. 4. Blend dates in a food processor (soak in warm water if your dates are dry and use that as your water later). Add in almond butter and water (unless previously added) and blend until smooth. 5. Mix into oat mixture and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. 6. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Looking for more breakfast ideas? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future's Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com  It’s nutrition month, 2018. Once again I will be posting a series of blog posts based on the nutrition month theme. This year, the theme is unlocking the potential of food.
It’s true that food is nourishment, but it’s also a lot more than that! As a dietitian I believe in food’s ability not only to improve health, but also to enhance lives. Over the course of March (nutrition month) look for more blog posts on: the potential to fuel, the potential to discover, the potential to prevent, the potential to heal and the potential to bring us together. So to start things off, here is something to inspire you. Microgreens! Anyone can grow them, and it can be lots of fun to do this together with your kids. Microgreens have been shown to be a way to empower individuals to grow and consume a dense source of minerals that can be grown with a small ecological footprint and at the same time diversify food production systems (2). Microgreens are nutrient rich and can be easily produced and consumed by individuals (2). Microgreens are high in Vitamins A, B, C, E and K and contain calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, and carotene (3). Right now you are able to find seeds popping up in the stores. All you need is a microgreen seeds package, a shallow dish (with drainage holes), some good quality seed starting mix, and a spray bottle that has never been used for anything else that you can fill with water. It will take about 10 minutes to prepare and sow these seeds. They love to be on a sunny windowsill. I water mine every day, using a spray bottle; the idea is to keep them moist but not wet.
Happy planting! Looking for more ways to unlock the potential of food for you and your family? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future’s Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com References: 1 Adapted from the Dietitians of Canada’s Nutrition Month campaign materials. Find more information about Nutrition Month at www.nutritionmonth2018.ca. 2 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5362588/ 3 West Coast Seeds- Kale Microgreens 4 Indoor Edible Garden by Zia Allaway 2017.  The New Year is a time when people often choose to refocus on health. This makes it a good time to think about recipes that have health benefits like fibre, protein and other nutritional requirements that, as a Dietitian, I like to see in more foods, including snacks. With that in mind, for this blog post, I decided to bring on the cookies!
One of the ingredients may seem an unlikely candidate – what my family calls dried plums, or what many others call prunes. My kids enjoy these as a snack. With their versatility and natural sweetness, we find them a great addition to many recipes. For this post I have collaborated with @cadriedplumboard to create a recipe that gives you a new, interesting way to incorporate dried plums, I used California Prunes in this recipe. These cookies can be a great after-school snack with some fruit or vegetables on the side. Most people have heard of the digestive benefits of prunes – yes, they make you poop! But, now prunes are beginning to be seen as the “whole package.” Kids and adults alike love the naturally sweet taste, and they are a great way to add some fibre to the day. A recent study, done with a grant from the California Dried Plum Board, showed that eating 50g (or about 5-6 prunes) can be helpful in preventing bone loss in older, osteopenic, postmenopausal women (1). This is exciting research, and I would like to see more investigation of this topic. Plum Nutties This recipe is inspired and adapted from the Oh She Glows Turtle Cookie recipe. Ingredients: 1 cup Walnuts ¾ cup Pecans 2 cups Rolled oats, gluten free if necessary ¾ cup Gluten free all purpose flour (I used Cloud 9) ½ cup Brown sugar 1 tsp Baking soda 1 tsp Cinnamon ½ tsp Ginger 2 Tbsp Carob powder ½ tsp Salt ½ cup Maple syrup 4 Tbsp Coconut oil 12 Prunes (dried plums), blended into a paste with about 5 Tbsp water
*Be sure to check ingredients if you need a gluten free recipe. For a link to the study go here: http://bit.ly/CaliforniaPrunes DISCLAIMER: This post was sponsored by the California Dried Plum Board. All opinions are genuine. Nurture The Future wishes you all the best for a happy and healthy New Year. Looking for more recipe ideas? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future’s Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com References:  I had been wanting to create a bite recipe that included lentils. I love lentils. I think they are a great food and I like putting them into things you wouldn't expect. These bites are great for popping into school lunches. You can change out the peanut butter for another nut or seed butter as necessary.
1 3/4 cup Oats, ground into flour 1/8 tsp Cinnamon 1/4 tsp Salt 1/4 cup Maple Syrup 1/4 cup Cooked red lentil puree * 3 Tbsp Nut/Seed butter (peanut, almond, sunflower, etc.) 1 Tbsp Coconut oil 2 Tbsp Chocolate chips 1. Use a food processor to grind the oats into a flour. 2. Mix nut/seed butter, coconut oil and maple syrup together. 3. Add in pureed lentils. 4. Mix in salt, cinnamon and oat flour. 5. Stir in chocolate chips. 6. Roll into balls with wet hands. Put in freezer for 10 minutes to set. 7. Store in airtight container in the freezer and grab as necessary. * Rinse red split lentils. Cook and blend with a hand blender to form a puree. Looking for other ways to use lentils? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future's Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com  I love recipes that I can throw into my slow cooker and turn it on! This is a favourite around my house, and because it is nut free it is a great school friendly lunch. This recipe is vegan and can be gluten free (check the ingredients in the curry paste, tamari, etc). Feel free to add whatever vegetables you like to this soup: squash, yam, peppers, mushrooms...the possibilities are endless.
1 Onion, diced 4 cloves Garlic, diced 1 inch piece Ginger, diced 6 cups Vegetable broth 2 Tbsp Red Curry paste 1 Carrot, diced 1/2 cup Broccoli, small florets 1/2 cup Cauliflower, small florets 3 Potatoes, diced 1 can Chickpeas 1 stalk Celery, diced 1/2 cup Green Beans, chopped 1/2 cup Cabbage, diced 2 Tbsp Tamari 1 can Coconut milk 1 cup Frozen peas 3 leaves Swiss Chard, shredded 1 Tbsp Lemon juice 1. Add everything into the slow cooker up to the Tamari. Cook on low for 4 hours. 2. After 4 hours add frozen peas, chard, lemon juice and coconut milk. Let sit for a few minutes before serving. Looking for more weeknight meals? Contact Jill, Nurture The Future’s Registered Dietitian at nf.nutrition@gmail.com |
Jill Wallace, RD, CHMom, Registered Dietitian and Chartered Herbalist writing about nutrition. Have a topic you want to read about? I would love to hear your idea. Email nf.nutrition@gmail.com Archives
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