Karen’s Class Schedule

One Pot Wonders, Sat. Feb. 12^th, 1-3PM. Senior Center Demo Kitchen, Everett (Pacific and Lombard) Learn how to create healthy and hearty one-pot meals using whole grains, beans and fresh veggies that virtually cook themselves. Best of all, one pot means faster cleanup and delicious leftovers for lunches or those hectic evenings when there’s no time to cook. All recipes adaptable to vegetarian or non-vegetarian.

Registration: 425-257-8300.

Healthy Eating-On the Run, Sat. Feb. 26th, noon-2PM. UW Campus. Are you too busy to cook, but want to enjoy healthy meals that don’t come from a fast food restaurant or out of a box? This fun class will show you how to prepare healthy meals with a gourmet taste in under 20 minutes. Several delicious recipes will be demonstrated. We will also discuss ways to make healthy eating convenient, how to stock your pantry, as well as offer timesaving cooking and shopping tips.

Registration: 206-68-LEARN

NOTE: This class is full, but a new section has been added on Sat. March 5^th, noon-2PM.

Lunchbox Makeovers, Thur. Feb. 24^th, Jennings Park Barn, Marysville. Packing a kid's lunchbox with nutritious, appealing foods is not easy.

If you’re strapped for time but want to give your kids the best and healthiest nutrition you can, this class will provide you with creative ideas on stocking your child’s lunchbox with healthy foods they will actually eat. We will also discuss smart snacks for after school.

Registration: 360-651-5085

One Pot Wonders, Mon. Feb. 28th, 1-3PM, Boys and Girls Club Community Room, Arlington. Learn how to create healthy and hearty one-pot meals using whole grains, beans and fresh veggies that virtually cook themselves. Best of all, one pot means faster cleanup and delicious leftovers for lunches or those hectic evenings when there’s no time to cook. All recipes adaptable to vegetarian or non-vegetarian.

Registration: 360-403-3448

Nutritional Counseling Services

I provide counseling in downtown Edmonds on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and in Arlington on Thursdays. I am a preferred provider for Regence, Blue Cross and Aetna Insurance. If you have one of these plans your insurance will pay for nutritional counseling visits. Call or email if you want to schedule an appointment or have questions.

Corporate Cooking Classes

In addition to customized in-home cooking classes that I mentioned in the last newsletter, I’m also branching out into the corporate world. If your company has a wellness program and offers health or nutrition-related classes, you might ask them about offering a healthy eating/cooking class. A kitchen facility is not a requirement – email or call me for details.

How to live longer: a Polymeal a day

Heart disease could be cut by 76% and men could expect to live more than six years longer if they simply ate the right meal once a day.

Recently doctors were advocating a "Polypill" - combining aspirin, folic acid and cholesterol-lowering and blood-pressure drugs - for everybody over 55. But a recent article in the British Medical Journal says a "Polymeal", containing fish, wine, dark chocolate, fruits and vegetables, garlic and almonds, would achieve roughly the same effect.

Men on the Polymeal would increase their life expectancy by 6.6 years and women by 4.8 years, say the authors, Oscar Franco and colleagues from the department of public health at Erasmus University in Rotterdam.

The doctors searched medical literature to find foods that have been proven to lower the risk of heart disease. Drinking a glass of wine a day cuts the risk by 32%, and fish consumed four times a week reduces it by 14%. A daily intake of dark chocolate and fruits and vegetables lower blood pressure, further cutting the risk of heart disease. Garlic and almonds both lower cholesterol levels.

The Polymeal has no serious side-effects, they say, in contrast to the Polypill. But they do note: "Fish consumed in larger amounts than recommended as part of the Polymeal has been related to raised blood mercury concentrations, especially with large fish such as shark and swordfish."

The Polymeal can be eaten as an entire meal – perhaps spinach salad with toasted almonds, grilled fillet of wild salmon with roasted winter root vegetables and garlic, a glass of Pinot Noir, followed by chocolate mousse. Healthy eating never tasted so good!

Source: The Guardian

The New U.S. Dietary Guidelines

Although the U.S. dietary guidelines are issued every five years, the 2005 recommendations are the most far-reaching ever. This is the sixth report issued since its inception in 1980.

In summary, the report advises that:

Exercise is essential, with moderate to vigorous physical activity of thirty to sixty minutes per day, and sixty to ninety minutes for weight loss.

Increase intake of fruits and vegetables to 9 servings a day for those eating 2,000 calories a day. (A serving is one-half cup.)

Opt for variety in your foods: citrus fruits and melons; berries and other fruits; dark green leafy vegetables; bright orange vegetables; legumes, and even starchy vegetables are recommended. Because of their high vitamin and mineral content and fiber, fruits and vegetables are the number one food choice.

Eat at least three servings of whole grains per day. Sources are quinoa, popcorn, bulgur; brown rice rather than white, whole wheat or whole grain bread rather than white, and oatmeal. When in doubt, remember that brown is best, white is not whether it's flour, breads and rolls, or other baked goods.

Eat fish twice a week. The heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids appear naturally in fresh seafood. Wild fish versus farm-raised is suggested because of concern over environmental pollutants in our seafood supply.

Limit salt intake to avoid hypertension; recommendations are 1 tsp (2300 mg) of salt or less per day. When you consider that an average can of soup has between 500 and 1200 mg, fresh foods should always be a priority. When in doubt about sodium content, opt for fresh foods over packaged ones.

Although 70% of the world is lactose-intolerant, the report still recommends three servings or more of dairy per day, although they suggest low or non-fat sources of milk, cheese, yogurt, and other dairy foods.

So how do you get 9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day? Here’s some tips:

Add a handful of frozen blueberries, strawberries, or blackberries to your cereal.

Eat a high-fiber, whole grain cereal. Choose a cereal with at least 6 grams of fiber per serving, and low in added sugars. Old-fashioned oats are also a good choice.

Stuff your favorite omelet with reduced-fat shredded cheese, tomatoes, and fresh spinach; garnish your plate with fresh fruit, such as strawberries or peaches if they are in season.

Choose whole grain, high fiber breads. Choose bread with at least 3 grams of fiber per serving.

Keep little 6 oz cans of low-sodium vegetable juice handy for a quick serving of vegetables.

Snack on baby carrots and hummus; you get both vegetables and legumes (beans) with this snack.

Eat low-sodium bean, tomato or lentil soup for lunch; it's quick and convenient and it counts as a serving of beans/vegetables.

Regularly use canned beans; for example, rinse beans well and sprinkle them on salad to add protein and fiber to your meal.

Use whole wheat pasta instead of plain, white pasta. One good-tasting brand to try is Trader Joe’s.

Stuff your favorite potato with phytonutrient rich toppings such as stewed tomatoes, green and red peppers, onions, broccoli, and low-fat cheese. Try a sweet potato instead of a white potato and you get even more nutrition value.

Get acquainted with green leafies: try adding a few leaves of kale, chard, mustard greens, collard greens, dandelion greens, or any other green leafy food to your regular salad, or add to soups.

Try to have three-quarters of your plate covered by fruit, vegetables, whole grains and legumes. It is ok to have one-fourth of your plate covered by chicken, meat, or fish. Choose fish, especially wild salmon, more often - it is a healthier choice than other meats.

What’s in Season

In a departure from featuring seasonal produce in this section, in honor of Valentine’s Day I am highlighting – you guessed it – chocolate! And though we all know how great it tastes, chocolate – if it’s dark – also has some health benefits! But remember moderation – chocolate has both fat and calories.

Health Benefits: Contains beneficial antioxidants called flavonoids that may help lower blood pressure and heart disease risk. Milk chocolate does not have the same benefits.

Recipe of the Month

This is very good, and pretty healthy. Don’t be put off by the tofu, you won’t know it’s there. Be sure to use silken tofu and good quality dark chocolate. You can also add flavor extracts such as almond or mint for example.

Chocolate Tofu Mousse

Ingredients

1 package of Mori Nu silken tofu (12.3 oz)

10 oz good quality dark chocolate

3 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla

fruit (strawberries, raspberries, etc...)

Directions:

Blend tofu and maple syrup in food processor (or blender) just until smooth. Melt chocolate over double boiler. Add vanilla to melted chocolate and combine. Put chocolate blend into processor or blender and mix with tofu until creamy. Optional: put into a graham cracker crust. Chill. Top with fruit.

Serves: 6