Time for some (healthy) comfort food…

When life’s stresses become overwhelming, take solace in the simple pleasures of life—family, friends and delicious heart healthy food. And do your body a favor-be sure to release the pressures of life in a healthful manner (and not internalize them): with daily stress-busting exercise!

Recipe: OATMEAL, WALNUT AND FLAXSEED PANCAKES

Serve warm, sprinkled with fresh berries, a touch of powdered sugar and fat-free whipped topping for a real Sunday morning treat (for you and your arteries!).

INGREDIENTS:

1  cup 100% whole wheat flour

½  cup old-fashioned oat flakes, ground

¼  cup ground flaxseeds

¼ cup finely chopped walnuts

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 ¼ cups light soy milk

¼ cup pure maple syrup

1 large egg white

Powdered sugar, optional

Pancake syrup, optional

DIRECTIONS:

Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl to blend.

Separately combine soy milk maple syrup, and egg white in another medium bowl.

Add soymilk mixture to dry ingredients and whisk just until incorporated.

Coat a large fry pan with non-stick cooking spray. Heat pan over medium heat. Spoon in four circular pancakes about ¼ cup each. Cook until batter bubbles then flip with a spatula. Use more cooking spray when necessary. Remove from pan when golden brown in color. Sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar; add whipped topping to taste, garnish with fresh berries.

Serves 6

NUTRITION

Per serving (2 pancakes):

 Food weight: 2.5

Calories: 234

Fat: 16 g (0 g EPA, 0 g DHA, 1 g ALA)

Saturated Fat: 0 g

Cholesterol: 0 mg

Sodium: 440 mg

Carbohydrate: 35 g

Dietary Fiber: 7 g

Sugars: 11 g

Protein: 9 g

How GREEN is your valley (or springtime dinner plate)?

It’s SPRINGTIME! That means time to tap into Mother Nature’s bounty of gorgeous vegetables that have finally come into season. Asparagus is one of my favorite spring veggies (March through May). The long green shoots contain a unique array of healthful plant chemicals as well as a nice amount of fiber and the vitamins K, B, A and C. At just  43 calories a cup—be sure to pile the asparagus onto your dinner plate! Cooking tips: choose firm spears, not the wrinkled ones; simply break the ends off the entire stalk where it is easiest—with two hands. Asparagus is easy to overcook so watch cooking time. Cook asparagus by simply grilling or broiling -- a great low-calorie way to let the natural flavors peek through.

Recipe: SIMPLE GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Light, nutritious and delicious!

INGREDIENTS:

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: ¼ of recipe, 118 grams or ~ 4 ounces)

·         1 pound fresh asparagus

·         1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

·         1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

·         Salt and white pepper to taste, optional

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat grill or broiler (medium high heat). Trim and discard tough ends from the bottom of the asparagus spears. Lightly coat asparagus spears with oil. Grill over high heat for approximately five minutes until done (turn often to prevent charring). Drizzle vinegar over spears and salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.

Nutritional Information Per Serving (approximately 4 ounces):
Food weight: 0.5, Calories: 63, Fat: 4 g, Cholesterol: 0 mg, Sodium: 73 mg,
Carbohydrate: 5 g, Dietary Fiber: 2 g, Sugars: 3 g, Protein: 2 g

POP! POP! POPCORN! The Ultimate Heart-Smart Snack.

Who knew? Popcorn is a 100% whole grain! Not only is it a whole grain but it’s packed with tons of fiber and natural nutrients that come packaged in with unprocessed whole grains such as magnesium and zinc ---and all this for a mere 31 calories per cup.  What’s more, the crunchy hull is rich in polyphenols — antioxidants that prevent damage to cells and have disease-fighting properties. Just remember to nix the movie theater/microwave types (loaded with bad fats and sodium) and pop up your own kernels (I use a microwave-safe popcorn popper and pop the kernels in the microwave on the “popcorn” setting). Season the popcorn yourself and you have the PERFECT snack for good health and weight control!

Recipe: CINNAMON STICK POPCORN

Sweet, crunchy and delicious!

INGREDIENTS:

·         6 tablespoons popcorn kernels

·         ¼ cup light tub margarine (I prefer the spreads with added phytosterols such as BENECOL^® Light Spread)

·         3 tablespoons SPLENDA^® Brown Sugar Blend

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 300° F. Measure out 6 tablespoons of popcorn kernels and pop in a hot air popcorn popper or a microwave safe popcorn maker. Place popped corn into a large bowl. In the meantime, place the margarine and Splenda into a glass measuring cup. Microwave for 1 minute then remove from microwave and stir until blended. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Pour margarine mixture over popcorn and toss to coat. Spread popcorn on baking pan and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.

Yield: 6 cups

Nutrition Facts (per 3 cup serving):

Food weight: 2.5

Calories: 250

Fat: 11 g

Cholesterol: 0 g

Sodium: 180 mg

Carbohydrates: 34 g

 Fiber: 5 g

Sugars: 10 g

Protein: 4 g

Ode to CHOCOLATE, "food of the gods!"

It is well known that Giacomo Casanova was the most insatiable womanizer of all time. It is said that he called chocolate his “elixir of love,” drank it religiously before every love making tryst and used it in his seductions—the  first love pro to tap into the timeless attraction between women and chocolate. Love and chocolate go even further back in time. Both the Maya and Aztec offered cocoa as a gift of love to the gods, prompting Carl Linneaus, the Swedish botanist and father of modern taxonomy to name the cacao tree Theobroma cacao, literally, “food of the gods.”

Dark chocolate — with a high content of nonfat cocoa solids — is now the new guilt-free super food! The scientific evidence is stacking up linking daily consumption of deep, dark chocolate with phenomenal health benefits. When it comes to choosing chocolate for health, the chocolate must be the flavonoid-rich dark variety. This is because dark chocolate has a much higher percentage of cocoa than milk chocolate and it’s the cocoa that contains most of the flavonoids—plant substances which provide your body with a host of health benefits. Natural cocoa powders (ground cocoa solids, aka the words natural cocoa powder unsweetened on the product label) had the highest level of flavonoids followed by unsweetened baking chocolates, dark chocolates, and semisweet chocolate baking chips. Milk chocolate and chocolate syrup had the least amount. Do your heart good—choose your chocolate wisely and opt for making your own sweet treats from cocoa powder.

Recipe: DARK CHOCOLATE ALMOND BARK

A rich and satisfying dark chocolate treat. Perfect paired with a glass of red wine or a cup of green tea.

INGREDIENTS:

12 ounces (12 squares) Baker’s unsweetened baking chocolate squares

6 tablespoons SPLENDA^® Sugar Blend for baking

1 cup unsalted, dry roasted almonds

DIRECTIONS:

 Serves 16

Nutrition per 1/16^th of almond bark:

Food weight: 2.0

Calories: 180 kcal

Sodium: 0 mg

Potassium: 65 mg

Magnesium: 25 mg

Calcium: 23 mg

Fat: 15 g (EPA0 g, DHA 0g, ALA 0g) 

Saturated Fat: 7 g

Cholesterol: 0 mg

Carbohydrate: 12 g

Dietary fiber: 4 g

Sugars: 5 g

Protein: 5 g