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JenOni

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Nutrition – Healthy Eating Resources in the New Year

Nutrition – Healthy Eating in the New Year

Good nutrition is necessary to fuel the body.   I  worked with a registered dietician, Dawn Jackson Blatner,  three years ago for an article in All You magazine.  We altered our eating habits for 2 weeks and journaled our daily intake.   My kids were not on board initially but we made it through 2 weeks with some likes and dislikes.    After my doctor’s visit last month, I reached out to Dawn for some tips on revamping my eating habits for the new year.

Dawn shared some great tips directly from her website and the link to her new book.   I know first hand as a full-time working mom, eating right wavers from week to week.    I am sharing some of the infographics below Dawn shared with me and the best tip from Dawn  “Don’t get overwhelmed, just have fun trying new things”.

My biggest struggle is my sweet tooth, I tried 2 of these recipes over the weekend.   The oatmeal banana cookies and the hot apple crisp.   A little sugar goes a long way to satisfy a sugar craving.

Nutrition Desserts

infographic credit: Dawn Jackson Blatner

If you’re at a loss for creating brown bag lunch ideas, check these out and add to your next shopping list!

nutrition lunch bowls

infographic credit: Dawn Jackson Blatner

Cooking and Baking By Me: Not Yo Mama’s Banana Pudding

NotYoMamasBananaPudding

I discovered this recipe after watching Paula Deen on Food Network, the recipe makes a lot and fits into a 13×9 casserole. I reduced the recipe to fit into a trifle. This is my go to banana pudding recipe, I will never use vanilla wafers. The chessman cookies add sweetness and crispy texture and not soggy. The filling is rich with the right amount of sweetness.
I sprinkle the bananas with fresh lemon to reduce the browning effect.

Here’s the recipe:

2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed, or equal amount sweetened whipped cream
Directions
Line the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top.

In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Read more at: Food Network

Rewind: Nutrition 2 Week Makeover Week 2

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Before                                                                                             After

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

photo credit: bing.com/images                                                       photo credit: bing.com/images

This is week 2 of our 2 week makeover and we are surviving.   One thing I will say is that we are eating more fruits and vegetables.  My grocery bill for the first week was about $140.  Now this is more than a typical weekly shopping trip however it included less sugary snacks and more fruit(apples, oranges, bananas), unsweetened applesauce (less sugar than the standard), pistachios, plain low fat yogurt, 100 calorie cookies.   I was able to buy ingredients to do a make ahead meal.  On Saturday,  I made beef tacos  which we had leftovers and then I prepped all the  lasagna ingredients  for Sunday dinner.    Week 2 I spent over $100 for groceries but it  included a crockpot and groceries for a make ahead pulled pork recipe in the crockpot and items for lunch for the week.

I bought whole wheat flour for whole wheat chocolate chip pancakes and banana whole wheat muffins.    My issues with whole wheat flour is the  dense texture of the baked good so I am not a fan of whole wheat flour.   The kids loved the whole wheat pancakes.    I will stick to my usual from scratch buttermilk pancakes.   I did freeze the muffins and they were good for a quick breakfast.    It took this makeover for me to realize how much sugar was packed in  the kid’s lunches each week with no nutritional value.     I did a makeover with lunch and  my DD insisted on bringing baby carrots with ranch dressing for dipping.   My teen loves the Smucker’s Uncrustables.   The snacks are now yogurt covered raisins, unsweetened applesauce, pretzels, tortilla chips, string cheese, 100 calorie cookies and gluten free popcorn.

The first dessert we tried was the strawberry shake, which was a nice chilled shake but no sugar or sweetness was an issue for me.   This weekend my teen tried my frittata with spinach, low fat cheese and tomatoes.   He enjoyed two slices.   This was a win for me because my teen never eats vegetables.   My DD only wanted scrambled eggs so she did not try the frittata.  Dawn provided additional dessert recipes for us to try and one that was a winner with the kids was the chocolate brownie in coffee mug.

Frittata with sauteed spinach with garlic, reduced fat mild cheddar cheese, tomato

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Dessert-Coffee Mug Brownie 

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Mug Cake: Chocolate Brownie

In a coffee mug, mix together:
2 T flour
2 T sugar
1 T unsweetened cocoa powder
1 T chopped walnuts
1/8 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
pinch of cinnamon
Stir in:
2 T hot water
1 T milk
1/2 tsp canola oil
Microwave for 2 minutes.  Let cool & enjoy. Top with raspberries or strawberries.

The makeover had me invest in buying a crockpot.  These are great for make ahead meals as they conserve energy and save lots of time.    I used my crock pot to prepare a pulled pork recipe which was very good.  Side dishes were cole slaw and corn.

 

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Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Recipe

It is a true saying that old habits are hard to break but in our case we adjusted pretty well.  For two weeks we were able to make healthier choices and I made a conscious effort to read labels.    I am committed to maintaining a workout regime, selecting healthier snacks, eating more fruits and vegetables as well as meal planning to save valuable time on the weekend.

Thanks so much to Dawn and All You magazine for allowing us to participate in the 2 week makeover.