Fresh from the Garden

Posted on June 11, 2012 by Kristie Finnan

Lettuce fresh picked from the garden!

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My Friend, The Potato

Posted on June 8, 2012 by Diva Dietitian

mr. potato head potatoes are healthy My Friend, The Potato When you think of potatoes, what do you think of?

  • Mr. Potato head?

  • Shamrocks & Irish Potatoes?

  • French Fries?

  • Carbs!

It seems that since the adaptation of the Atkins & South Beach low-carb diet trends, the potato has somehow gotten a bad rap.  Well, I’m here to tell you that my friend, Mr. Potato Head, can hold his head high and take of his mustache and big blue weird shoes.  But he may need a new disguise for fear you’ll eat him after reading about the Nutritional Value of Potatoes!

Potatoes are a healthy food and are loaded with vitamins, fiber and eating them can even increase your mood.  And who couldn’t use a little feel good in their life?

Here are some potato fun facts.  (Thank you to my friend Aidan at GoIreland.com for inspiring this article and providing the below image.)

  1. Ireland is NOT the biggest potato producing country- it’s CHINA (just when you thought only Rice grew there!)
  2. The Irish are NOT the biggest potato consumers- Balarus (next to Poland) has the largest potato consumption (in kg per capita)
  3. The Potato was first cultivated in Chili or Peru.
  4. In 1995, the potato was the first vegetable grown in space.
  5. Cows eat potatoes!  You’ve heard of Grass Fed vs. Grain Fed.  Well, what about Potato fed?  I met farmer, Dennis Byrne, last fall from the Herr Angus Beef farm and found out that Potato Scraps from potato chip production are used in their cattle feed.
  6. One potato can provide 30% of vitamin C (boosts your immunity & great for your skin!)
  7. One potato provides 16% of the recommended amount of fiber (needed for healthy digestion and reduces risk of Colon Cancer).
  8. One potato provides 39% of B6 (important for cell renewal and mood regulation.)

So next time someone tells you that potatoes are too high in carbs, give them a little potato education of your own.

This post was not sponsored by GoIreland.com.  I was also not compensated or given a free trip to Ireland (but how cool would that have been!?)

infographic potato My Friend, The Potato

 

Posted in Eat Right, Food, Ireland, Nutrition, potatoes, vegetables, Veggies On The Block, Vitamins, Weight Loss | Comments Off on My Friend, The Potato

Protein Dip

Posted on June 5, 2012 by Jennifer

I experimented on my family and friends with this protein packed dip.  I have used plain greek yogurt as a dip before, but the dips always became runny.  I saw a similar recipe that used cream cheese as well.  The greek yogurt and light cream cheese became a great combination.  I used a spice blend to add flavor from the Delicious Dietitian (see the side tool bar for their link).  The Delicious Dietitian spice blends are free of salt, MSG, Potassium, and Gluten.  The spice blends provide a great, strong flavor.  Enjoy with fresh veggies!

Thai Protein Dip
Print
Recipe type: Appetizer
Author: Jennifer Lynn-Pullman MA, RD, LDn
Prep time: 2 mins
Total time: 2 mins
Serves: 12
Greek yogurt makes this dip a great source of protein.
Ingredients
  • 5 Tb. Light Cream Cheese (1/3 less fat)
  • 3/4 cup Plain, Nonfat, Greek Yogurt
  • 1 tsp Delicious Dietitian Thai Spice Blend
Instructions
  1. In a bowl mix all ingredients together. Chill for 1-2 hours. Service with fresh vegetables or soy chips.
  2. Per Serving: 23 calories, 1.2 gm Fat, 0.7 gm Sat. Fat, 1 gm CHO, 1.9 gm Protein

 

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Posted in Bariatric Nutrition, Delicious Dietitian, Dip, Featured, Greek Yogurt, Headline, Protein, recipes, vegetables | Comments Off on Protein Dip

Locavore Adventure

Posted on June 2, 2012 by Diva Dietitian

What a lovely sunny cool and breezy morning.  I started my day with a fabulous Yoga class at Cornerstone with @Balance4Life followed by a locavore adventure to the Doylestown Farmers Market.

What is a Lovavore?

A locavore is someone who is committed to eating food that is grown or produced within their local community or region.

While I am not a locavore 100% of the time,  I make a HUGE effort to buy and eat foods grown locally and to support restaurants that get their foods from local growers (i.e. Jules Thin Crust)  I am also growing my own garden, participate in a CSA and try to buy most of my foods from local growers and farmers in Bucks County.  It’s just an amazing feeling to know where your food comes from and to even meet the farmers that grow our local food with love.

My favorite find of the day at the Doylestown Farmers Market was the 100% whole grain flour from the Castle Valley Mill here in Doylestown, PA- Bucks County.

photo 1024x764 Locavore Adventure

The Castle Valley Mill stone grinds the grains slwowly which keeps the flour cool and keeps all of the flavor, nutrition and texture in the product.

I just made some sweet muffins with the whole wheat flour and they were delicious.  Here is the recipe that Castle Valley Mill gave me this morning with the addition of flax-seed from me.
The kids are eating them right now for lunch icon smile Locavore Adventure

Print
Stone Ground- Whole Wheat Sweet Muffins

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 12

Serving Size: 1

Delicious Whole Grain Sweet muffins- recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cup Stone Ground Whole Wheat Flour
  • 1 Tablespoon of Ground Flax Seed
  • 1/2 cup organic sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees
  2. Grease bottoms of muffin cups (or line with muffin liners)
  3. Beat egg, stir in milk and oil in small bowl
  4. Mix dry ingredients in Large Bowl.
  5. Make a hole in center of dry ingredients with a spoon.
  6. Put wet mixture in the hole and mix with the dry ingredients until the flour is just moistented.
  7. Batter should be lumpy- do not over mix.
  8. Fill muffind cups 2/3 full.
  9. Bake 20 minutess until golden brown,
  10. Remove muffins from pan immediately.
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http://divadietitian.com/locavore-adventure/

Other items in my bag from the farmers market were:

Giant Fava Beans
Rainbow Chard
Strawberries
Asparagus
Tunesian Olive Oil
Corn Meal &
Homemade Pickles

I can’t wait for dinner tonight…

photo1 Locavore Adventure

Posted in Bucks County, Diva, Doylestown, Eat Local, Eat Right, Ecofriendly, farmer's market, Food, fun stuff, Garden Glamour, Headline, Ooh La La- Organic!, Places, Reviews, Veggies On The Block | Comments Off on Locavore Adventure

Seafood Market in Warrington

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Jennifer

 

If you live in the Warrington PA area and are looking for a great place to purchase fresh seafood, stop by Heller’s Seafood Market, http://hellersseafood.com/.  Heller’s is located at Rt. 611 and Bristol Road.  They have a great selection of fresh seafood, frozen seafood and soups, salads, and take out entrees.  I picked up lump crab meat for the Crab and Corn Chowder I am making this weekend and I could not resist their shrimp salad.  I paired the shrimp salad with chopped tomato.  It  was delicious!

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Posted in Bariatric Nutrition, Headline, Heller's, nutrition bucks county, nutrition counseling, shrimp, warrington nutrition | Comments Off on Seafood Market in Warrington

Healthy Eating at the Jersey Shore

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Jennifer

Over the Memorial Day weekend my family spent time with my parents at their condo in Ocean City NJ.  I have spent most of my summers on this island since I was one year of age, so I am pretty familiar with the food availability in Ocean City.  Diets often get ruined when folks head down to the shore.  Every few feet there is a pizza shop, ice cream shop, fudge/candy store, plus cotton candy, funnel cake, burgers, and cheesesteaks are numerous as well.  In Ocean City, however between 9th and 10th streets on the boardwalk, tucked back on Colony Walk is a an eatery serving food for the health conscious.  The Bashful Banana, http://www.bashfulbananacafe.com/, serves meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  Many of their entrees are low fat, vegan, or dairy free.  Their baked goods are also low fat and often dairy free or vegan.  Fruit smoothies made with real fruit and fruit juices are on the menu as well.  The most famous creation is pictured in this post.  Banana Whip, a great alternative to ice cream or frozen custard, contains about 180 calories and is made from simply frozen banana’s pushed through a juicer.  Other frozen fruits are available to mix in such as strawberry, blueberry, and mango.  Toppings are also available.  I went with granola, peanut butter chips, and chocolate chips.  Hey, I had to indulge a bit!

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Posted in Banana whip, Bariatric Nutrition, Headline, nutrition doylestown, nutrition philadelphia, nutrition warrington, Ocean City NJ | Comments Off on Healthy Eating at the Jersey Shore

SoMeBizLife Conference- Doylestown, Pa

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Kristie Finnan

Finally, a conference with an annual meeting in Doylestown, Pa- SoMeBizLife (Social Media Business Life.) I’m currently at the second annual SoMeBizLife meeting at Delaware Valley College listening to a great friend and a local hero, Jamie Haddon, talk about his experiences in the non-profit world with social media.

Jamie is a busy Dad of three and has had a long career in Emergency Services. Recently, he became the CEO of the United Way of Bucks County and has adopted social media into his marketing efforts.
As a busy Tweeter @JamieHaddon and @UWBucks he says, “I retweet things in Bucks County because it’s Interesting!” “For me a Blog was a quick story that the paper could pick up.”

Whether you are a business owner, non-profit organization or a Registered Dietitian or Healthcare provider in private practice- Social Media is a proven tool that can help you network with others and market your business.

The SoMeBizLife conference, founded by @ChuckHall is geared to all levels of social media experience from just starting out, fine tuning your expertise in this world to making social media consulting or blogging your business.  Go to http://SoMeBizLife.com to find out about more current events on networking opportunities in the horizon.

So why was I at the SoMeBizLife conference?  In addition to having my own private practice, KLF Nutrition Consulting, I also work with other Registered Dietitians to help them brand and market their businesses on and offline.  Some of these services include website and logo design and social media education & strategies.  Contact me for more information.  I am also the Founder of  www.DoylestownNutriton.com- The Registered Dietitians of Bucks County.

Posted in Business, inspiration, Kristie, marketing, Registered Dietitian, social media | Comments Off on SoMeBizLife Conference- Doylestown, Pa

Buns for Everyone- Udi’s Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls

Posted on May 28, 2012 by Diva Dietitian

photo11 1024x764 Buns for Everyone Udis Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls

Happy Memorial Day!  It’s the official kick off of the barbecue season.  Last week, I was sent some gluten free hamburger and hot-dog buns from a company called Udi ‘s and YUM- some gluten free snicker-doodle cookies.  You won’t see a picture of the cookies because my family of five scarfed them right down the minute they were opened.  Do I need to say more?  They really were delicious and you could not tell they were gluten free at all.

For those who have celiac disease or a gluten in-tolerance- backyard barbecues and eating away from home can be a challenge.

Celiac disease is an autoimmune digestive disease that damages the villi of the small intestine and can interfere with absorption of nutrients from food.  Every-time a  person with celiac disease consumes products made from gluten containing foods (such as wheat, barley or rye)  their body is attacks itself.  It is estimated that 1% of the population has celiac disease and another 10% have a gluten sensitivity or in-tolerance.  For that 10%, they may still have symptoms, such as headaches or fatigue, but they do not have digestive tract damage like those with celiac.

So what is gluten and what food have them-Click HERE.    Not only Consuming bread and pasta products, the mainstay of many American diets, can be tricky BUT also products like salad dressings, ketchup, marinades and soups can contain gluten from flour or other gluten containing foods used as thickeners.  Gluten is also used as a concentrated protein source in the vegan diet.

And here is a fun fact….Gluten is also found in the substance used to seal envelopes.  Remember the Seinfeld episode when George Costanza’s new bride to be died from licking all of those invitation envelopes?  Hmm…was it a severe gluten allergy?

photo10 150x150 Buns for Everyone Udis Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls photo11 150x150 Buns for Everyone Udis Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls photo12 150x150 Buns for Everyone Udis Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls photo13 150x150 Buns for Everyone Udis Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls Whole Grain Hamburger Buns Udi’s 1 Buns for Everyone Udis Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls

If you are not gluten in-tolerant and have not tried gluten free foods, especially bread products, they usually do have a bit of a different taste and texture.  I will happily report though that when I toasted a Udi whole grain hamburger bun, I could barely tell the difference from a traditional whole wheat bun.  I made a sandwich with a little leftover Filet Mignon and Cheddar cheese- a perfect lunch paired with some local strawberries and a salad.  With 7 grams of fiber per serving, these buns can be enjoyed by everyone.  I will also report that Udi products are a favorite of one of my good friends who has celiac disease.

I was not compensated for this Udi review, but was sent a fun box of rolls and some yummy cookies to test out.

Posted in celiac disease, gluten free, gluten free buns, Headline, udi | Comments Off on Buns for Everyone- Udi’s Gluten Free Hamburger Rolls

Gorgeous Roses

Posted on May 20, 2012 by Kristie Finnan

These gorgeous roses came from the center piece of my cousin’s wedding last night. I’m happy to make them a new home on my kitchen counter.

Aren’t they amazing?!

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Strawberries!

Posted on May 19, 2012 by Jennifer

Today our family visited one of our favorite garden centers, the Market at Delaware Valley College in Doylestown (http://themarketatdelval.com/).  This weekend and next the Market is celebrating Strawberry Fest.  In addition to pick-your-own strawberries there is a wagon ride, moon bounce, and crafts for the kids.  Strawberry picking is a great activity to show children where the fruit comes from.  The strawberries smell wonderful as you pick them right from the plant.

Strawberries are a marvelous fruit.  They grow from the flower of the plant.  The strawberry plant is a small plant that sends out shoots to create new plants.  Strawberries can grow just about anywhere in the world and can be grown in the ground as well as pots.  I have several plants in our garden that I planted last spring.  Strawberries often ripen in June in our area.

Strawberries are packed full of essential nutrients.  They are a great source of fiber, potassium, vitamin C, folate, and phytonutrients.  Fiber is important in bowel health and heart health.  High fiber diets have been shown to lower risk of heart disease and cancers of the colon.  Potassium is a mineral that plays a key role in muscle contraction and control of blood pressure.  Vitamin C is an antioxidant that ward off many chronic diseases.  Just about 8 strawberries provides as much vitamin C as an orange.  Folate is an important nutrient in preventing certain birth defects and has been shown to lower risk of heart disease.  Finally strawberries are a good source of phytonutrients.  What is a phytonutrient?  Phytonutrients are non-nutritive substances found in foods, mainly plants, that provide a health benefit beyond what is provided by the nutrients found in the food.  Strawberries contain a phenolic compound called flavonoids and ellagic acid, which have been shown to have antioxidant properties.

Strawberries are mainly consumed fresh, however they can be frozen, dried, or made into preserves.  It is best to not wash strawberries until right before you plan to eat them.  Washing too early will cause the berries to soften too soon.  Strawberries are delicious additions to yogurts, cereal, salads, smoothies, and desserts.

1 cup of strawberries contains: 43 kcal, 10 gm CHO, 3.3 gm Fiber, 240 mg Potassium, 82 mg Vitamin C.

 

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Posted in antioxidant, Bariatric Nutrition, Headline, phytonutrient, strawberry | Comments Off on Strawberries!