Tips for Healthy Living

 

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FOODS THAT FREEZE WELL

  • Fresh meat and poultry. Separate and wrap individually using plastic wrap or coated freezer paper and then pack into plastic freezer bags. Ground beef and pork keeps 3-4 months; steaks and roasts 6-12. Pork chops and roasts keep 4-6 months. Whole chicken can be stored for 1 year; chicken parts 9 months.
  • Fish. Lean fish like cod, flounder and haddock keeps up to 6 months; fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, mackerel, perch and trout keeps 2-3 months.
  • Bread. Bread can be frozen for about 6 weeks.
  • Hard cheeses, such as cheddar, Edam, Gouda, Swiss, Romano and Parmesan do well in the freezer. Thaw 4-6 hours, though you can grate Romano and Parmesan while frozen. These cheeses keep up to 4 months.
  • Butter and margarine. Stock up when it's on sale. Store in original packaging and a plastic freezer bag. Keeps 4-6 months.
  • Nuts. Nuts that are unshelled keep for 1 year. Shelled nuts keep about 6 months.

Friendly reminder: mark the date the food needs to be pulled out of the freezer on each item.

If you would like more information go to The US Food and Drug Administration website at www.usda.org.

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HEALTHY RECIPES:

What all-American doesn’t love to fire up the barbecue? There is something primitive and tough about hot coals, fire, and cooking outdoors. Trade greasy, heart-attack-on-a-plate burgers for these juicy, delicious bison burgers. Visit your local butcher to select the best ground bison. Pair these burgers with whole-wheat or Ezekiel buns. Top the burgers with cut-up tomatoes, leafy greens, and hummus.

BISON BURGERS

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp olive or safflower oil
  • 3/4 cup finely chopped onion
  • 2 egg whites
  • 1/4 cup oat bran or oatmeal ground in a coffee grinder
  • 1/4 cup cooked, mashed sweet potato
  • 1 tbsp molasses
  • 1 tsp crumbled, dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground, black pepper
  • 1 lb ground bison

Preparation:

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a skillet. Cook the onion until soft and golden. Set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix together egg whites, oat bran or oatmeal, sweet potato, molasses, oregano, sea salt and pepper.

Stir in onions and bison. Mix the ingredients together with clean hands until just combined. This is real hands-on cooking. Take a handful of the meat and create a flat patty. You can get your family involved here too, so they can make patties that fit them. Just make sure they use clean hands.

If you would like to store the patties in the freezer to use later, wrap the patties individually in parchment paper. They can be stored for up to one month in the freezer.

Yield: 4 burgers

Nutrients per patty:

  • Calories: 143
  • Protein: 22 g
  • Carbs: 6 g
  • Dietary Fiber: 2.5 g
  • Fat: 2 g
  • Sat. Fat: 1 g
  • Sodium: 50 mg
  • Cholesterol: 80 mg

 

QUINOA PILAF

Ingredients:

  • 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
  • 2 cups red or white quinoa well rinsed and drained (quinoa has a bitter coating that must be rinsed off before you cook it)
  • 1 3/4 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable stock
  • 1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
  • 1 small yellow zucchini, diced
  • 2 tsp fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 2 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tsp fresh lime juice
  • sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 scallions, trimmed and chopped for garnish

Preparation:

Place olive oil in a large skillet, and heat over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent. Now add rinsed and drained quinoa and cook for 5 minutes. The grains should become lightly browned. Toasting the quinoa before cooking further develops the flavor of the grain. Add stock, lemon zest and zucchini. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let cook, covered, for 20 minutes until quinoa becomes translucent.

Remove pan from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and add cilantro, parsley and citrus juices. Season with sea salt and pepper. Serve immediately. Garnish each serving with chopped scallion.

Nutritional value per serving:

  • Calories: 186
  • Calories from fat: 28
  • Protein: 8g
  • Carbohydrates: 33g
  • Dietary Fiber: 4g
  • Sugars: 2g
  • Fat: 3g
  • Sodium: 86 g

 

PAPER-WRAPPED CHICKEN

Ingredients:

  • 4 12"x18" parchment sheets
  • 2 cups arugula, torn
  • 4 (4oz) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
  • 2 tsp fresh sage, chopped
  • 2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
  • 1 cup plum tomatoes, chopped
  • 3/4 tsp sea salt, divided
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, divided
  • 4 tsp olive oil, best quality
  • 4 tsp Kalamata olives, sliced and pitted (optional)
  • cooking spray

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 450 F. unfold parchment and coat lightly with cooking spray, leaving a two inch border.

Place 1/2 cup arugula on one side of the parchment so it touches the fold but not the ungreased border.

Place the chicken breast over arugula; sprinkle with 1/2 tsp sage and 1/2 tsp rosemary.

Top with 1/4 cup chopped plum tomato.

Sprinkle with one-fourth of the salt and black pepper, and drizzle with 1 tsp olive oil. Top with 1 tsp sliced olives if desired.

Fold paper; seal edges with narrow folds. Repeat with the remaining parchment paper, chicken and other ingredients.

Place the packets on baking sheets. Bake for 20 minutes or until puffy and lightly browned.

To serve, open packets and transfer arugula and chicken breast to plates. Pour juices over top. You can also serve right out of packets; carefully transfer to plates and pierce each to allow steam to escape.

Nutritional value per serving:

  • Calories: 185
  • Protein: 27g
  • Fat: 7g
  • Carbohydrates: 2g

 

HUMMUS

Ingredients:

  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 2 cups canned chick peas, rinsed and well drained
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1/3 cup tahini
  • Juice of 2 fresh lemons
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Preparation:

Place all ingredients in a food processor. Pulse for a few minutes until well combined but still coarse. Adjust seasonings.

Transfer to serving bowl and serve or cover with plastic wrap. Keeps well.

Nutritional value per 1-tbsp serving:

  • Calories: 35
  • Calories from fat: 15
  • Protein: 1g
  • Carbohydrates: 4g
  • Dietary Fiber: 0.7 g
  • Sugars: 0g
  • Fat: 1g
  • Sodium: 94mg