The Colors in Caprese

This is not new earth shattering information that I love anything caprese. Tomatoes, basil, fresh mozzarella and balsamic are a few true loves of my food life. Not only do I want to share with you my latest crazy caprese creation, but I want to share with you the nutrition know how of how this combination is extremely healthy for you. 

This spectacular components of food carry an enormous nutrition punch. Let me take you back to basics of MyPlate. MyPlate is an easy way to create balance and portion control when it comes to meals and snacks. When you eat within these simple guidelines, you are creating harmony with your nutrients, both macro and micro.  When there is a balance of food groups and nutrients, your body performs at its peak, you fill content and fuller longer and you are able to maintain a healthier weight. The more color on your plate, the more nutrients available to distribute to your whole body. 

When planning meals, here are some easy guidelines using MyPlate:

1. Protein at every meal and snack as your most important food group.
2. Meals should have 3 of the 5 food groups (with 1 always being protein).
3. Snacks should have 2 of the 5 food groups (with 1 always being protein).
4. A portion size of any food group is generally the size of YOUR OWN fist. (sorry, you cannot borrow a friends fist that is bigger so you get more pasta on your plate).

These guidelines are simple, portable and able to be executed anywhere and everywhere, including restaurants, convenience stores, the ball park and anywhere you travel to.  Cue the caprese!

For my perfect MyPlate summer meal, caprese covers all the rules.

Protein:  Fresh Mozzarella
Vegetables:  Tomatoes and Basil
Grains:  Bread

You can find a wealth of information on MyPlate from calorie needs, meal planning, what foods fall in each food group and more here.  If you still have more questions or would like more individual help, I am your girl and you can contact me anytime!

Now it's time to drool and get hungry.....

For my sandwich, I chopped, seasoned and cooked down some fresh garden tomatoes. Feel free to use canned seasoned tomatoes or jarred pasta sauce. All forms of concentrated tomatoes are very healthy. Just be cautious of sodium and sugar. Many of your jarred pasta sauces have a lot of extra sugar, so I tend to use canned, lower sodium seasoned tomatoes. 

I warmed a pan over medium heat and sprayed my Italian bread with a little olive oil spray on both sides. Use a nice sturdy bread and always go for an whole grain option if it is available. Another favorite of mine is sourdough because it browns nicely and the sourdough flavor compliments the sweetness of the tomatoes and basil. Before adding the tomatoes to the bread, I let the bread warm up for about 2 minutes. 

After the tomatoes are added, generously place fresh basil leaves on top, sprinkle a little freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese to intensify the flavor and a pinch of cracked black pepper. Let the open face sandwich continue to warm for about 1 minute. 

While that is warming, slice room temperature fresh mozzarella in very thin slices. Room temperature and thin slices are very important because your bread is almost toasted perfectly and if your cheese is not room temperature and sliced thinly, it will not melt nicely. Combine the halves in the pan and finish cooking for about 2 more minute. If you tend to get a little crazy with your cheese, as I sometimes do, that is ok. You can always finish it off in a warm oven to melt the cheese a little more. 

My perfect summer meal would not be perfect without a side of cherries. I also dipped my summer sammie in a little balsamic vinegar and it was dreamy!  Who knew something that seemed so indulgent could be MyPlate perfect?

~Crazy

It's Posh to "Pop" for Your Next Party!

Summertime is the most adventurous season of the year. We pack our evenings and weekends with as many activities as possible to take advantage of the longer days and beautiful weather. In the midst of all the madness, our friends and family schedule events and gatherings to reconnect and spend quality time together. What will be the common denominator at all these exciting functions?  Food, of course!  Burgers, brats, hot dogs, potato chips, crackers, dips, pasta salads, brownies, cookies, cupcakes and countless other tempting, delicious and calorically dense eats. 

It the midst of all of ours summertime favorites, we forget about one of the most healthy and versatile snacks in the grocery store, popcorn. I have rediscovered my love for popcorn and have decided to make this my go-to summer snack for get togethers at my home and 

away from home. Almost everyone I know really loves popcorn too and I have come up with a few fun ways for you to add a little "pop" to your next party. 

This adventure all started with a little trip to my kitchen and I was only going to make my popping good creations from what I already had in my house. This is the best thing about popcorn, you can make creations of any combination your taste buds love:  from sweet to spicy, savory to sour. Popcorn compliments a wide variety of flavors and can be a lot of fun to eat. 

I always have microwave popcorn in my pantry and one of my favorites is Iowa-grown Jolly Time Pop Corn. Jolly Time has a registered dietitian approved line of healthy options:  Healthy Pop Butter and Kettle Corn, in large bags and mini bags, Healthy Pop Low Sodium, Crispy White and Caramel Apple.  All of these tasty flavors are only 20 calories per cup popped and are a good source of energy boosting whole grains and fiber. Since they are so low in calories, it leaves a little wiggle room to add a few indulgent ingredients of your own. Shall we start with one of my favorite creations out of my kitchen?

I am a HUGE fan of chocolate and I pretty much always have dark chocolate chips on hand to curb my "occasional" sweet cravings. I knew this would pair perfectly with the sweet and rich flavor of coconut. 

I like the pairing of dark chocolate with toasted coconut. So I measured out 1/2 cup of coconut and placed it in a pain heated to medium. Watch the coconut closely while constantly stirring to prevent it from burning. Once it is lightly brown, remove from heat. 

I recommend dividing your freshly popped popcorn into 4 bowls and equally divide the toasted coconut flakes, sprinkling on top. Divide 1/4 cup of dark chocolate chips between the 4 bowls. Melt 1/4 cup of the dark chocolate chips, melt and drizzle the chocolate over the 4 bowls. 

Yummmmmm!

The next surprise from the kitchen is a simple one, but involves my most favorite dried fruit:  golden raisins. All you need is 1/4 cup shelled pistachios, roughly chopped and 1/4 cup of golden raisins. Divide your freshly popped corn into 4 bowls and equally distribute the pistachios and golden raisins. Enjoy!

Drum roll please.........For the grand finally of my pantry popcorn party, this is hands down my favorite. Summer would not be summer without basil and tomatoes in mouth-watering caprese fashion.

Popcorn does not need to be limited to shelf stable add-ins, fresh and full of flavor toppings can really compliment the crunch of popcorn. All you need is 1/2 cup freshly shredded Parmesan, 1/2 cup of ribboned fresh basil leaves, 1/3 cup roughly chopped sun-dried tomatoes and 1 teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper. 

For this creation, I like to place the 1/2 the freshly popped popcorn on a large plate for sharing. The first layer I top with half of all the toppings. Then I top that with the rest of the popcorn and repeat. I recommend making sure the popcorn is nice and warm so the cheese melts, and the heat warms the basil and tomatoes to intensify the flavor. 

Your welcome!

At your next get-together, consider forgoing the potato chips, brownies and cupcakes.  Take a "shopping" trip around your kitchen and see what flavorful, healthy, satisfying and 

posh treats you can create for your guests with my longtime favorite summertime snack:  popcorn. 

~Crazy

Crazy Cool Chow Down and Low Down: Review of Enlightened Ice Cream and Novelties

Crazy's Comments:

With the summer months quickly approaching us, ice cream is one of those food essentials on our grocery lists.  Well at least mine anyway. I am always in search of a healthier option and I stumbled upon the Enlightened line of ice cream and bars.

What caught my dietitian eye was the lower calories and fat, higher fiber and protein and an ingredient list containing words like milk and cream. For all flavors, there is less than 100 calories per serving, 4-6 grams of sugar, 6-7 grams of protein and around 4 grams of fiber.


With quite a few flavors to choose from in the ice cream, Enlightened also has varieties of novelties including bars and sandwiches. We each chose the flavors most appealing to our palates:  Sea Salt Caramel, Mint Chocolate Chip, Frozen Hot Chocolate, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Caramel Oatmeal Cookie Crunch (all pints) and Frozen Hot Chocolate and Mint Fudge Swirl bars.


As I was getting my spoon ready to dig into my first pint of Mint Chocolate Chip, I quickly realized this ice cream was FROZEN solid. This was true of each of the pints. We quickly determined it is best to let the pint sit out for about 15-20 minutes to eat and to appreciate it's creaminess. Once it was thawed, the Mint Chocolate Chip did not disappoint. It had a great mint flavor and crunchy chips of chocolate.


The next one I tried was the Sea Salt Caramel bar. I also recommend this to be thawed for about 5 minutes prior to eating. This was delicious!  There was a perfect swirl of caramel throughout the whole bar, which is a really nice and satisfying size. No skimpy bars in this line.


I moved onto the Mint Fudge Swirl bar and enjoyed it even more than the Mint Chocolate Ice Cream. Again, perfectly swirled fudge throughout the whole bar.


Hands down, these two bars were my favorites. I would pick the bars over the ice cream first and foremost for better portion control. I am much more disciplined when I have a portion to eat instead of an open pint container.


The other ice cream flavors were ok. The Frozen Hot Chocolate Ice Cream was better than the bar because the Marshmallow swirl was more plentiful in the ice cream. In the novelty, it made the bar fall apart while eating it. The cookie flavors were nice and I enjoyed the chunks of cookies in both, but there could have been more (there can always be more when it comes to chunks of sweet treats in ice cream, but that's just me).


I would recommend purchasing this product as a dietitian and as a human being who enjoys ice cream. I felt really satisfied with this healthier alternative!
 

Cool's Comments:

So I took this product review very seriously and tried each ice cream a couple different times just to make sure I was being an equal opportunity taste tester.  My children and I love ice cream and at least 4 times a week we go on "ice cream walks."  It's just a walk after dinner in the nice weather and we enjoy ice cream cones or novelties and we talk about the day, run, and enjoy being outside.  They love it and look forward to them and in turn it makes me happy.  The problem is that when I am trying to eat healthier ice cream isn't really in the "healthy diet" plan.  I have tried anything from not eating ice cream on our walks and dodging questions from the kids "... But mom why aren't you having any? You love ice cream."  I've also tried just not buying the kinds I like and so that works out pretty well except I've never been very good at eliminating a specific food just because it wasn't healthy.  Lately I have been just having a small baby cone with the kiddos and this has seemed to work well.  When I saw this Enlightened ice cream and novelties I was excited that maybe I could have an adult portion of ice cream without having the guilt and calories.

When I tried the ice cream I was taken back on how hard they were.  We then found the set out to achieve maximum creaminess label on the packaging and that made a world of difference. 

The Salted caramel ice cream bars: YUMMO! This was my favorite, hands down.  It was nice and creamy and had some delicious smooth caramelness running throughout the bar.  It wasn't overly "salty" but very nice and subtle.  I recommend this one as a good one to try  if you are going to try this product. They have the ice cream or bars in this kind and both are delicious.  I like the bars for portion control but again I love ice cream cones so I'm sure I will be buying both the ice cream and bars on a regular basis.

We also tried the Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream and bars and this was my second favorite kind.  It wasn't overly minty, and had chunks of chocolate chips that were delicious.  

The frozen hot chocolate was one that I didn't like at first but lucky for you I tried it 2 more times to make sure I was giving it a far chance.  The description sounded delicious but when I tried it it just tastes like an alright chocolate ice cream with chocolate chips.  Well the description said that it had marshmallow cream running throughout it and I wanted to find it.  I thawed out the pint of ice cream for about 30 minutes and then inspected the container.  I found the white marshmallow  ribbon in the bottom so I flipped that ice cream out and tried the bottom of it.  Oh man was that a whole new delightful experience?  Could it be that that just made the ice cream unbelievable?  I think it could of!  So my opinion was changed about this particular kind and I like it a lot as long as you have some of that magical marshmallow goodness in every bite!  

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and Caramel Oatmeal Cookie Crunch were also consumed and they were alright I just don't know if I would buy them again.  

I hope you guys try out these new ice cream and bars.  I recommend them and hope the product stays around for awhile.

Hot Dogs! My Decade Indulgence

I cannot tell you the last time I ate a hot dog. They are not my favorite food, I never buy them and they probably do not make any dietitian's "Top 10 Food" list. But I get it. Hot dogs = summer. Today is National Hot Dog Day. And this summer, I had my first hot dog I have had in probably more than a decade.  To preface, I did consume a lot of water with this salty treat and I was a little nervous to dig in.

I was with a group of new friends that told me I had to partake in this summer tradition. Outside of this adorable establishment, you could watch the hot dog magic happen. 

Chili, hot dogs, cheese and more chili to top off this dining experience. 

The place was full of jovial hot dog lovers!

I was kind of feeding off the energy there and did get a little excited to dig in. And then it arrived...

First bite...good. 2nd bite....oooo yum.  Add a few fries and it became one of my favorite moments...and food of the summer. 

I was so glad I let down my dietitian guard and enjoy this summer favorite.  I am not sure when it will happen again, but when it does, it will be enjoyed in the summer, with good friends and a whole lot of laughter. This summer, I started a new "Top 10" list of foods, maybe not the most healthy foods but foods that made healthy memories with amazing people.

~Crazy

Melanoma Monday: A Dietitian Fighting Skin Cancer with Food

May is National Melanoma and Skin Cancer awareness month, with May 4 being Melanoma Monday.  Right now, that might not mean anything to you. Up until 4 months ago, it did not mean anything to me either. Last December, I noticed a very dark mole, about the size of a sesame seed on my right thigh.

It was not bleeding, it was not an odd shape, it was just really dark.  I decided to see my favorite dermatologist and had it removed. About 3 weeks later, I received a call from my doctor. That small mole, that itty bitty mole, was malignant melanoma. Never in my wildest dreams did I think skin cancer, let along malignant melanoma, would happen to me. This is just not any kind of skin cancer; malignant melanoma is the type of skin cancer that can travel to many other parts of your body and cause other types of cancer.

 

According to the National Skin Cancer Foundation http://www.skincancer.org/ , Skin cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal skin cells. It occurs when unrepaired DNA damage to skin cells (most often caused by ultraviolet radiation from sunshine or tanning beds) triggers mutations, or genetic defects, that lead the skin cells to multiply rapidly and form malignant tumors.”

Did you know skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States with more two million people are diagnosed annually?  That translates to 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer in their life. Each year, there are more new cases of skin cancer than the combined incidence of cancers of the breast, prostate, lung and colon.  Melanoma is one of the most aggressive and deadliest forms of skin cancer, resulting in over 75% of all skin cancer deaths.

During the summer, you probably stock up on sunscreen, sunglasses, hats and cover-ups to protect your skin from the sun. But did you know another way to battle the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays can be found right in the produce aisle of your supermarket?

As it turns out, watermelon as well as ruby red grapefruit and cooked tomatoes are all rich in lycopene. This powerful antioxidant found in reddish-colored fruits tends to act as a natural sunscreen of an SPF of 3 or 4 from the inside-out. It actually protects skin cells from the sun’s burning rays which can lead to premature aging and even skin cancer, and lycopene replenishes skin cells as well. In addition, lycopene helps your skin act as a natural filter, allowing enough sunlight through for your body to produce vitamin D.

Besides helping to prevent sunburns, lycopene can also help prevent wrinkles, by strengthening the elasticity of skin tissues while keeping them from losing their tension.

To increase lycopene absorption from food, I always recommend serving it with a bit of oil such as salad dressing or olive oil. My other favorite picks for lycopene include cooked tomato products, such as tomato soup, tomato juice, spaghetti sauce and canned tomato sauce.  With any canned or jarred product, aim for 5% of the daily value (DV) or less for sodium content per serving or choose a no-sodium-added option. 

As for me, I luckily found my malignant melanoma early enough to be treated with surgery. This last picture is what my excision looks like now, 3 months after my surgery.  Along with skin checks every six months, I have promised myself to take better care of my skin by wearing at least 30 SPF sunscreen at all times, staying out of the tanning bed and increasing my consumption of lycopene-rich foods to help keep my skin cells plump and happy. I hope you do too.

~Crazy

Make Monday Marvelous with a Cherry Float

Hi all!  We wanted to share one of our first blog posts that is perfect for this beautiful week ahead. This is a must try for your family and friends, courtesy of Cool. Enjoy!!!!!!

It's "What the What?" Wednesday and that means it's hump day! It's the middle of the week and everyone could use a simple "cool" and sweet recipe that makes the week go by a little faster. The type of recipe that is a great "go to" recipe when you want to impress your friends and family and trick them into thinking you have been in the kitchen for hours! The type of recipe that others offer to do the dishes if you make it. The type of recipe that is so good that people might say "What the what? Why is this so good?"

You should be happy you're reading this because I have just that recipe for you. It is such a sweet treat. It was the official start of summer Saturday so what better recipe for this week than one that had frozen yogurt in it. I know most people think of ice cream but at our house yogurt wins by a landslide. It is one easy recipe that will make your summer a little brighter and make you smile a little bigger.

I feel like I am not a brand specific person usually but lately I find myself finding small differences in competing brands that make me more brand specific, and make me spend the extra money because it's worth it. I will tell you that the Kemp's vanilla bean frozen yogurt is delicious, it is so light, creamy, and full of vanilla flavor.

With that being said.... the ingredients and set up!

What the what? Is that all? Only 3 ingredients and one appliance? You betcha, that's all! A cold bottle of cream soda, frozen sweet cherries, and Kemp's vanilla bean frozen yogurt is all you need!

I will also let you know that if you enjoy blueberries, you can substitute them out for the cherries and it is also amazing! Yes you can use fresh fruit, but just remember that if you use fresh cherries you have to pit them which makes the frozen cherries so much easier and with being Wednesday we all deserve a simple easy treat for making it this far in the week!

All three ingredients in the blender waiting to be all mixed up and made into something REAL special!

Aaaahhhhhhhh, can't you just taste it? So good! So delicious and so refreshing!

I hope you try this recipe out for your friends and family and let me know what you think!


-Cool


Cherry Float Shake

All you need:

1 (12oz) bottle cream soda

2 cups frozen sweet cherries

5 scoops of Kemp's vanilla bean frozen yogurt

All you do:

Place the ingredients in the blender in the way they are listed and blend on high. Serves 3-4 people.

From the Kitchen Friday: Summer in Iowa

I don't know about you but this weather is really messing up my psyche!  It's July in Iowa which means it's supposed to be 90 degrees and super humid by 8:00am.  Instead we are having highs in the high 60's and low 70's and I am wearing sweatshirts in July!  I know a lot of people that just love this weather, but I for one am not.  Okay I know it makes me sound old and super uncool to be talking about the weather but I have my reasons. 

I love everything about summer in Iowa.  I love the hot temperatures, all the fun activities that come in the summer season (swimming, baseball games, bike rides, and picnics), and of course the wonderful fresh fruits and vegetables that are available.  I also have to admit something to you guys that I haven't told many people before but I AM...... a seasonal eater.  Whew!  That's feels better to get off my chest.  Now it's out in the open!  So when we have unseasonable weather my stomach gets confused and sends signals to my brains that starts craving foods that don't go with the season.  To explain further, because now you might think I'm the "crazy" one, this week for dinners we have had oven roasted chicken wings, thanksgiving turkey dinner with mashed potatoes, and green bean casserole, and meatball subs.  Not my typical summer menu, yet you could find it in my kitchen during the fall time when I'm thinking of warming up and eating more hearty meals.  I mean I should be eating salad, and grilling every meal or even eating corn on the cob because it is so delicious right now but my stomach is so confused it's not even craving that. 

What does this all even mean?  It means that I'm super excited that Mother Nature bounced back from her fall vacation and is giving summer back to Iowa.  Bring on the hot weather and all that is wonderful about summer in Iowa.  I'm even going to celebrate by making the best seasonal salad with the freshest tomatoes, cucumbers, and green peppers that I can find.  I might even pair it with a grilled chicken breast and have an amazing dinner?  So long turkey and green bean casserole, I'll see you in November!

Let's get this summer party started right!

So we have the ingredients together for the salad so let's get cutting!

So start with your red onions and cut off the ends and take the outside layer off.  You will be only using half of the onion for the recipe unless you are doubling it, so set the other half aside

Cut the half into half giving you fourths. 

Now slice as thin as possible.  

Now this is a little trick that I do for most salad that use fresh onions.  I am not a huge fan of raw onions because I feel like they have a strong taste.  If you are like me, add your raw onions to an ice bath for about 10 minutes after they have been sliced.  This will take the "bite" out of the onion.

While the onions are hanging out in the bath, start cutting the cherry tomatoes in half.

and throw them into the bowl

Next we cut the green peppers in thin slices that will be small enough to fit in our mouth, but big enough to still get the crunch.  Cut the top and bottom off the green pepper, open it up, cutting the seeds out.  We are using only half of the green pepper so set the other aside.

  When you are done cutting the peppers, add to the bowl of tomatoes.

 Now we are on to the cucumber.  You are more than welcome to just take the seeds out of the cucumber and keep the skins on if you would like.  I prefer to remove most of the skin, since it can be waxy.  It's your call, it's your food, your salad.

  Cutting the top and bottom off the cucumber to create a nice flat surface to cut the skin off.  You can use a vegetable peeler as well.  I just don't like to dirty a lot of dishes if I don't need to.  My knife's already out and it's convenient.

Cut open the cucumber and get ready to remove the seeds.  Again you can keep them in there but I feel like it adds too much moisture to the dressing when it sits so I remove them.  

All you need is a spoon to scrap the seeds out.

Now just cut the cucumbers into thin slices and add them to the party.

After the 10 minutes are when I'm done cutting all the vegetables, I add the onions that have been soaking in the cold water bath.

Add your Kalamata olives and set aside to make your dressing.  Don't worry you are almost done.

Gather your dressing ingredients.

 

First we add the olive oil to a medium bowl.  

Next we add the lemon juice.  I use a half of a lemon and it usually give me 2-3 tbsp. of liquid.  I just use a fine mesh sieve place over the olive oil bowl and juice it right over.  The sieve will catch the seeds.

As you can see I just use the same technique as with limes and use a fork to assist me in getting all the liquid out. After the 

After the lemon juice, add the red wine vinegar.  Now we take one clove of garlic and smash it, then mince it.  Getting ready to pound it out to release all the delicious flavor and aroma that garlic is good for.

Take a pinch of the dried oregano and rub them between your fingers when adding to the bowl of dressing.  This is break up the herbs into smaller pieces, exposing more of the herb making it more fragrant and flavorful. 

Finally add a little kosher salt and fresh ground pepper and start whisking it, just a little bit.

I said whisking it, just a little bit.

Look what you made, a delicious dressing to add to a wonderful salad. 

Pour that dressing over the fresh vegetables and mix it up.

 Look how colorful this salad is.  How could this not make you feel better and get back into the summer  feeling?

Top if off with a little crumbled feta cheese and now it looks like summer on a plate!  

Fresh, light, and delicious!

Maybe add a little protein to this salad and you have yourself one meal that will keep you full and busy doing what you love to do in summer.

Greek Vegetable Salad

1 pkg of cherry tomatoes, cut in 1/2
1 cucumber, peeled sliced and deseeded
1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 green pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 c. Kalamata olives, pitted
1/4 c. olive oil
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
Crumbled feta cheese, to garnish

In a large bowl add the tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, pepper, and olives.  In a smaller bowl add the olive oil, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper and mix until all incorporated.    Pour the dressing over the fresh vegetables and mix until all incorporated.  Best to refrigerate 1 hour before serving.  Before serving garnish with feta cheese.

-Cool