Heart Helping Foods to Include

Despite the terrible figures around COVID-19, heart disease is still the number one cause of death among men and women around the globe. February is heart health month and the perfect time to focus on adding in heart helping foods to your eating routine! Try these ideas!

Olive Oil (Image source: iStock)

OLIVE OIL

In cooking, limit the amount of butter that you use and instead, move in olive oil. This is important to help your heart health! Butter is primarily saturated fat, for example: 1 tablespoon of butter has 12 grams of fat and 7 grams saturated fat. Compared to olive oil which per tablespoon has 14 grams of fat and ONLY 2 grams of saturated fat.

This doesn’t mean that you can never use butter again! But when possible, move in olive oil instead!

Quick tip: If the taste of olive oil is too strong for certain dishes, pick-up a bottle of “light” olive oil, which is light in flavor because it has been pressed more than extra virgin olive oil, which is from the first press of the olives.

Heart Health (Image source: iStock)

BEANS

Beans are so great for heart health because they are rich in fiber! This is important because fiber is linked to improving blood pressure and cholesterol levels. One cup of beans has between 8 and 17 grams of fiber! For example: one cup of lentils has 8 grams of fiber and one cup of chickpeas has 17 grams of fiber.

There are plenty of ways to add-in beans from soups, chili, stews, or even dips. Here are links to a couple of my favorites: bean dip, white chicken chili, and roasted beet hummus.

Biena Snacks

Also simple ways to add-in beans like roasted chickpeas from Biena Snacks that come in a wide variety of flavors and some treat-like flavors too (e.g. milk chocolate!). Each serving is about 130 calories plus it delivers 6 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein. Click here to buy some from their website or check your local stores like Target or Wegmans for them as well!

BadaBeanBadaBoom

Or BadaBeanBadaBoom are so crunchy and delicious! These have 100 calories and 5 grams of fiber per pack! They come in a wide variety of flavors too! My personal favorite flavor is Sweet Sirarcha.

Click here to buy some from their website or check local grocery stores like Wegmans.

Hummus and Veggies

VEGGIES

While I’m sure you know that you need to eat vegetables, most people still aren’t eating enough vegetables routinely. Vegetables are important for heart health because like beans, they deliver fiber! Plus all of the color from vegetables brings along important antioxidants and plant compounds that are linked to helping health in many ways - including heart health.

Here are some ways to boost your veggie intake!

• For a snack, appetizer, or side dish at dinner serve cup sliced veggies with hummus or your other favorite dips!

• Have two different veggies at meals - Quick tip: stock up on frozen veggies to make adding extra vegetables a breeze

• Make vegetable based soups, like Creamy Tomato Soup or Fall Squash Soup

• Go plant-based at least one day per week - try dishes like Creamy Pasta Primavera

• Snack on celery filled with light cream cheese or creamy peanut butter

General Tso Veggies

If you like grabbing Chinese food for a quick meal, you can make these General Tso veggies-based and protein-rich dinner quickly! Also there are instructions on how to make General Tso Chicken in the Instant Pot.

General Tso Veggies

General Tso Veggies

Serves 4

Ingredients:

3 - 4 cups broccoli florets
1 cup sweet peppers, chopped
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 zucchini, sliced
8 ounces baked tofu, cubed
2 cups edamame, shelled
1 teaspoon sesame oil
6 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/4 cup Hoisin sauce
6 tablespoons light soy sauce
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ginger, minced

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

2. On a large sheet pan arrange the vegetables, tofu, and edamame.

3. In a small mixing bowl whisk together the remaining ingredients for the sauce. Optional: add 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes.

4. Pour the sauce over the vegetable mixture and bake for 20 - 25 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Stirring occasionally throughout cooking.

Serving suggestion - Serve over brown rice, farro, or soba noodles - pictured above, is with soba (buckwheat) noodles.

Note: This sauce works great with chicken in the Instant Pot too! Here’s a quick how-to: Cube chicken into 1-inch cubes. Saute the chicken in the Instant Pot, in 1 teaspoon sesame oil, until the chicken is lightly browned. Make the sauce as above and pour the prepared sauce (make a double batch of sauce if you are doing veggies and the chicken) to the chicken. Cook under pressure for 10 minutes. Carefully quick release the steam. Then whisk in 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to thicken the sauce. Serve the chicken with brown rice, veggies, or soba noodles.

Recipe adapted from: https://www.adventuresofanurse.com/better-take-instant-pot-general-tsos-chicken/

Product Picks

I'm on a constant quest to try new foods, and products! Here are a couple of recent options that were a hit. 

Cotton Candy Grapes from the Grapery

UNIQUE + DELICIOUS CANDY GRAPES

These Cotton Candy grapes from the Grapery are full of flavor and delicious. They are super sweet and definitely have a cotton candy-like taste. 

In my opinion they are worth putting on your shopping list and can even double as a dessert. 

The Grapery website explains more about the way that these grapes get their unique flavor, its really interesting and worth a read, click here! And don't wait, they are only available for a short period of time, according to their website now through September 20. 

Pressed By KIND Bars

ON-THE-GO FRUIT

Sometimes schedules call for on-the-go options and Pressed by KIND bars are a perfect way to add in fruit on busy days or in lunch boxes! Plus the bars have a simple ingredient list and each has 2 servings of fruit per bar.

For example, the Cherry, Apple, Chia bar ingredient list is literally - cherry, apple, and chia. There is not any added sugar or sweeteners, which is great! Each bar has 130 calories and delivers 3 grams of fiber. 

They are also available in additional flavors including: Mango Apple Chia, Dark Chocolate Strawberry, Dark Chocolate Banana, Strawberry Apple Cherry Chia, and Pineapple Banana Kale Spinach. You can order Pressed by KIND bars direct from KIND Snacks website or look for them in grocery stores, Target, and more.  

Green Giant Riced Veggies 

INNOVATIVE VEGGIES

One of the newest ways to enjoy veggies is 'riced' veggies. The texture of veggies when they are chopped fine is so interesting and especially cauliflower, takes on the texture of almost being rice-like. 

You can make your own riced veggies but these frozen bags are super convenient! Plus they come in great flavor combinations like pictured here, Cauliflower with Lemon and Garlic. 

Once cup of riced veggies has only 30 calories and is a perfect side dish! Or try plain riced cauliflower as a stand-in for rice with stir-fry or even made into a fried 'rice' dish. Look for riced veggies in the freezer section of the grocery store. Click here for more information on Riced Veggies from Green Giant. 

Note: These product picks are not an advertisement, just products that Creative Nutrition Solutions owner and registered dietitian, Molly Morgan loves! 

Grocery Shopping with Kids

I actually love grocery shopping and although it can take a little extra patience, I enjoy grocery shopping with our kids. Although I may wind up spending a few extra dollars when the boys grocery shop with me, I think in the long run, it is actually a good thing and helps them to actually eat the food we serve at the dinner table. 

The boys at the Wegmans check out with veggie balloons that a produce department worker gave them because he observed them being such great helpers picking out fruits and veggies while we shopped. 

Not that I have it perfect, but here are some tips to grocery shop with your kids!

1. Have a plan AND a list - Talk with your kids about food for the week (breakfast, lunches, snacks, dinner). Of course, you can't say yes to all their ideas or requests - for example, our youngest would opt for pancakes or waffles for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if we let him - having their input can help helpful. Then build your grocery list because especially when kids are with you...  without a list it would be nearly impossible to leave the store with everything you need.

2. Give them mini jobs at the grocery store - While the 'job' may vary slightly based on their age, giving them little things to do while you are shopping can help keep them focused on the list and a little less likely to get distracted by things you do not need.

Examples:
Grab a bag and pick two bunches of broccoli. 
Pick which lettuce pack you think looks the best for salads this week.
Get 5 of the (tell them specifically which brand or color package) yogurts with the green label.
Pick two boxes of the little bunny crackers. 
Pick any bag of frozen veggies. 

3. Pick and choose somethings to say yes  - Our boys will ask for many things that we don't need in a shopping trip. I find if I tell them yes, to some things that are healthier choices, like a new flavor of KIND Snacks Bar, a different fruit than what was on the list, etc. It makes all the times I say no to the stuff that is sugary, too pricey, or that we just don't need. 

Happy grocery shopping! 

Quick & Simple Recipe!

Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

This recipe is quick and tasty! Some comments I have seen online is that these can be a replacement for wings, although for meat-eaters... I'm not sure about that? But what I do know is that they are VERY yummy and if you're like me and choose to eat vegetarian, they are definitely a delicious replacement for wings. 

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower, chopped into florets

1 cup of white wheat flour (or gluten-free variety)

1 cup of water

1/4 cup butter, melted

Hot sauce, to taste

1. Prepare a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine the water and flour until the mixture is combine (will be sticky). 

3. Then take the cauliflower florets and dredge them in the flour mixture until coated and place on baking sheet. Continue until all the cauliflower pieces are dredged and transferred to the baking sheet.

4. Bake for 10 minutes and the flip each of the pieces. Continue cooking another 10 - 15 minutes, until the cauliflower is tender and the pieces are lightly browned.

5. Combine the butter and hot sauce (I add about 1 - 2 teaspoons). Then toss the sauce with the cauliflower bites and serve. 

Serving suggestion: Serve with blue cheese dip and carrot sticks!