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Archive for Uncategorized

Talkin’ About Tacos {Plus: Contest Alert!}

Posted on October 4, 2017
by Elana Natker, MS, RD

Few food holidays get me more excited than National Taco Day, which is today! Tacos are perhaps the one meal my little family can all agree on, and one that my kids will eat without (too much) complaint. That’s because tacos are the ultimate finger food, are endlessly customizable, and can be served up in a variety of ways. Follow these basics to make taco night new and interesting each time you serve it up!

  1. Figure out the Foundation. There are several choices to make when it comes to the foundation of a taco, beyond just soft or hard shell. There are flour or corn tortillas (and then white, yellow corn or even blue corn?). Or, go carb-free and wrap in a piece of butter lettuce or place your taco fillings atop a salad.
  2. Pick your Protein. The protein component of a taco is usually its defining feature: are you having steak, chicken or fish tacos? Don’t limit yourself to the standard ground beef: there are so many protein options. Even mix and match, with ground meat and beans.
  3. Add Volume with Veggies. Tacos are a good way to pack in at least a couple servings of vegetables, either within the taco itself (hint: beans are a protein AND a veggie!) or as a topping. A family favorite is to make homemade salsa fresca with just tomatoes, red onion, cilantro, some salt and lime juice. In-season veggies are often fresh and abundant, but you can also throw in anything that’s starting to show its age and would otherwise be destined soon for the trash heap (waste not!!). Broccolini, sautéed spinach, baby bella mushrooms and roasted sweet potatoes are all yummy options.
  4. Top it Off with a Light Touch.  A well-built taco needs just a few enhancements to top it off – no need to go overboard. Salsa, fresh avocado or guacamole are great veggie toppers that supply a lot of nutrients. Cheese can give a salty-savory dimension, but just a little can go a long way. Strong flavors such as sharp cheddar or queso blanco require just a few bits without overpowering each bite. I’m not a fan of sour cream, but if that’s your jam then go for it. Just a little dab’ll do ya, though!

The fillings, toppings, and combinations are endless with this extremely versatile food! There’s no right or wrong way to build a taco. And for your little ones, you can make them as kid-friendly as you’d like! Here’s one of my new favorites from my friend and fellow dietitian, Sara Haas. I use a combo of ground turkey and pinto beans for my recipe.

Adiós amigos and enjoy your tacos!

 

P.S. I just found out about a great contest from Uncle Ben’s. The Uncle Ben’s® Ben’s Beginners™ Cooking Contest inspires families to cook together. Enter online before midnight Monday, October 9, 2017 for a chance to win $15,000 for your family and $30,000 for a school cafeteria makeover. I have no affiliation with this contest nor am I being paid to promote it, but how could I not let you know about this amazing chance to win some serious cash not just for you, but for your school??? Five winners will be chosen.

 

Uncategorized

I scream, you scream – for National Ice Cream Cone Day

Posted on September 22, 2017
by SageAdmin

{Today’s post was written by the Sage Leaf Communications intern. This is the first of hopefully many posts by her.}

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A balanced diet is an ice cream cone in each hand

If there’s one food I could never resist that would be ice cream. It may be one of my biggest weaknesses. But an even bigger weakness? Ice cream in a cone. I’m pretty sure that my first true love in life was an ice cream cone. It’s such a nice treat, especially on a hot summer day or, on a day like today – which happens to be National Ice Cream Cone Day.

Partly what makes an ice cream cone such a treat is how rarely I eat one. Or, if you’re like Elana, you eat ice cream nearly every single day. We’re not the food police, but we can offer some tips to enjoy that delicious cone:

  • If ice cream is a sometimes food for you (like me): Go nuts! No, really, top that ice cream with chopped, unflavored nuts for some added protein and nutrients. But seriously, even if nuts aren’t you’re thing – go ahead and enjoy your cone. If this is truly a treat for you, enjoy it completely and guilt-free. Savor the full-fattedness and the candy crunch, or whatever may appeal to you. Just keep it in the context of an overall healthy diet.
  • If you need that one sweet treat per day (like Elana): Size matters! A single scoop on a cake cone may be enough to satisfy a sweet tooth, or put a tasty cap on a long day. It’s been said that nothing tastes as good as the first bite, so keep it small. Again, one small cone within a day of healthy choices is called balance.
  • If you find yourself having a hard time with self-control (hey, it happens to the best of us), choose pre-portioned ice cream cones. SkinnyCow has a few flavors that satisfy a sweet tooth but with only 170 calories per cone. Or try one of the lower-calorie, higher-protein pints such as Halo Top or Breyers delights.
  • If you love waffle cones but can’t stomach the amount of ice cream it takes to fill one, try this fun trick: ask for a small cup with the cone on the side and crumble waffle cone pieces as a topper. I’ll bet you don’t even need to use the whole cone! All the taste with less ice cream and no mess.

Either way, enjoy that cone, and happy National Ice Cream Cone Day! Just be sure to eat your vegetables tomorrow.

Uncategorized

Rebirth

Posted on October 15, 2014
by Elana Natker, MS, RD

itsablog

Wow…I didn’t mean to take such a hiatus from my blog, but…gosh, where did the past 2 years go?? I can tell you one thing – I didn’t age one bit! Nuh, uh…no way!

Well, I’m glad to be back and to breathe some new life into this blog. I have a few fun features in mind to spice up Sprinkle of Sage, and don’t be surprised if we have a new look and feel coming soon! In the meantime, this is what I’ve been cooking up over the past two years:

  • My little preschooler has become a bona-fide grade-schooler! Her kindergarten year was a learning experience for both of us. She learned how to read and do math, and I learned that school lunch is so much different than what it was when I was a kid. It’s actually really good, and she was buying lunch more than she was bringing (which is a relief to me when my creativity wore thin!)
  • My newborn is now a preschooler! And so far, he is sailing through the so-called “food neophobic” stage (ages 2-5 typically) with little to no signs of the telltale picky eating that comes along with it. He still won’t eat eggs, but most other foods are fair game to this hearty eater.
  • I’m training for a marathon! This will be my fifth, but the first as a fundraiser. The past few years have brought with them many friends and family members – young, old and in between – being diagnosed with or affected by cancer. Somewhere along the way, I felt myself getting angry. A useless emotion, especially when it comes to cancer – so better to put that energy to good use and raise money so that we can find a cure, right?!? That’s why I’ll be running the Marine Corps Marathon on October 26, 2014 with Team AICR – the American Institute for Cancer Research. Every little bit counts, so please consider supporting me: http://preventcancer.aicr.org/site/TR/Marathons/teamraiser?px=8194364&pg=personal&fr_id=1490

As for this blog, you can expect more regular posts (no more 2-year gaps!) and a re-emergence of regular features, such as:

  • Digesting the News: as major nutrition-related issues come up in the news – like the proposed new Nutrition Facts label or changes to Dietary Guidelines for Americans – I will provide an overview and key takeaways that you need to know.
  • Sprinkles of Sage: inspirational quotes or articles to lift you up.
  • Dietitian Dine-Around: a feature in which I’ll profile more healthful options at the more popular restaurants.
  • Spotlight On…: I’ll highlight a favorite food or new product that’s come to my attention (I have to like it to review it!).

But first, I’m gearing up to attend the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo in Atlanta. Keep your eyes open for a post on fun food finds, trends from the expo hall, and hot topics from the sessions.

In the meantime, if you have issues you want to see discussed in this blog, or have products or restaurants to review, please feel free to comment or email me directly. I’m excited to be back!

Uncategorized

Making Meals Into Learning Opportunities

Posted on May 18, 2011
by Elana Natker, MS, RD

daysofweekI could spend hours (and, actually, I have) writing about the importance of eating together as a family, what it teaches our kids, etc. etc., but I stumbled upon something else today about regarding the rituals of mealtime and other learning opportunities that a meal can offer.

You see, today my husband and I had our semi-annual parent-teacher conference at my daughter’s daycare. Yes, she’s only 3 years old, but it’s important to know if she’s progressing along with her peers in areas such as crayon-holding, ball-kicking, sentence-speaking and so on. Among the list of things in her developmental profile is how well she can recite the days of the week. Like most kids her age, she knows the different days but doesn’t always know them in order. However, the teacher told us that, like all the kids in her class, our daughter knows when it’s Wednesday.

Why is that? Well, that’s because every week features “Waffle Wednesday.” Like most school menus, her daycare’s foodservice provider publishes a monthly menu in which the same meals are rotated every two weeks for a period of weeks. (Most foodservice operations do this because weekly meals must meet certain nutrition guidelines, so using the same weekly menu, alternating weeks, makes menu planning easy.) The one thing that does not vary are those waffles on Wednesday mornings.

We could get into a whole discussion about waffles and whether they should be on the menu in the first place – but that’s not really my concern (though I would like to see some healthier options, such as yogurt or eggs). I’m not about to take up a battle with the daycare’s foodservice provider, but I am willing to adapt this teaching tool into my own meal strategy.

As I have mentioned before in a previous post, we do dinners together as a family and write out the weekly menu prior to the weekend grocery shop. Like the foodservice provider, we tend to rotate among the same typical dishes, though not as systematically as they do. Perhaps, to help my daughter learn her days of the week in order, we do certain themes for dinner. Here are my initial thoughts:

  • Meatball Monday (OK, I know “Meatless Mondays” are popular right now, but it’s harder to teach her what isn’t on her plate vs. what is)
  • Turkey Taco Tuesday
  • Watermelon Wednesday
  • Thai Thursday
  • Fish Friday
  • Steak Saturday
  • Pizza Sunday (OK, so I know that doesn’t match, but we almost always do pizza on Sundays!)

Any other ideas? I could use some help!

healthy habits, kids and toddlers, Uncategorized
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