Book helps busy cooks plan healthier meals
Published 9:00 pm Tuesday, January 6, 2004
As we embark on this new year, I would predict that most parents in town are resolving to improve the family’s eating habits. It’s an ongoing battle we all face in these busy times: avoiding drive-through cuisine, yet hating the at-home alternatives that add another level of chaos in the kitchen.
And so, in the category of great timing, here’s a book you might find helpful and inspiring: "The Moms’ Guide to Meal Makeovers — Improving the Way Your Family Eats, One Meal at a Time!" by Janice Newell Bissex and Liz Weiss.
With a begging-your-pardon to all you cooking dads, these two cooking moms bring hefty credentials to the dinner table.
Both are registered dietitians. Bissex is a former dietitian for the U.S. Senate and nutrition consultant for restaurants and food companies. Weiss is an award-winning television journalist who has covered health and nutrition stories for PBS and CNN for more than a decade, and is a contributing editor for Health magazine.
Both of them are married with children and have had to deal with the same food issues we all have.
The "Moms’ Guide to Meal Makeovers" starts with a five-step plan to make healthy eating a natural and enjoyable part of everyday life — even in the midst of your chaotic schedule:
1. Start somewhere. Add one extra serving of fruit each day.
2. Market good nutrition to your kids. Tout carrots as yummy, not medicine.
3. Establish food rules. Make them specific, reasonable, and enforceable.
4. Streamline time in the kitchen. Maximize timesaving tools and tactics.
5. Eat together as a family. And turn off the TV during dinner.
Beyond that, this book offers friendly yet practical advice, lots of encouragement, and a winning repertoire of 120 kid-tested recipes. Based on the goal of getting kids to come to the table with a happy face, the authors took popular family favorites like spaghetti and meatballs, chili, fried chicken, mashed potatoes and chocolate chip cookies and gave them a nutrition makeover.
Their criteria were simple, said the authors: "Weave super nutrition into each recipe … making it healthier than the original, maintaining or improving the flavor, and speeding up the prep and cook time whenever possible."
An extra bonus in this book is the permission the authors give all cooks not to feel guilty when we must fall back on convenience and fast foods. In their "The Best of the Bunch" chapter, they offer a roundup of the best tasting and most nutritious convenience foods on the market (all kid-tested), plus quick fix tips for revving up the good nutrition with mix-ins, toppings, and side dishes.
There are also recommendations for restocking the pantry, refrigerator and freezer with the most healthful cooking oils, canned soups, peanut butter, ketchup, dry pasta, salsa, low-fat dairy products, eggs, cold cuts, frozen veggies, and more.
A sampling of things you’ll learn in "The Moms’ Guide To Meal Makeovers":
Now, about those chicken nuggets. In their "The Best of the Bunch" chapter, the authors observe that "when a chicken nugget leaves a puddle of grease on your baking sheet or when you bite into one and wonder what that spongelike substance between the layers of breading really is, it may be time to start shopping for a new nugget."
Bissex and Weiss found that many of the popular chicken nugget products on the market contain a surprisingly modest amount of protein, which, they say, is a shame since chicken meat is such an excellent source of high-quality protein.
They recommend several brands that stood up to their kid-sized taste-testers as well as their own nutrition goals. They are Health is Wealth Chicken Nuggets, Ian’s Chicken Nuggets, Bell &Evans Breaded Chicken Breast Nuggets (the closest they found to homemade though a bit pricey), Trader Joe’s Chicken Drumettes and Perdue Breaded Chicken Breast Nuggets.
In another section of "The Best of the Bunch" chapter, they cover Frozen Pocket Sandwiches and found that, based on the plethora of pockets hanging out in the frozen food aisle, these are an extremely popular item.
Unfortunately, when the authors set out to evaluate sandwich pockets, they found slim pickings in the "healthy options" category. But the following selections at least tasted great, and were made with all-natural ingredients as well as real cheese: Amy’s Broccoli &Cheese in a Pocket Sandwich, Amy’s Cheese Pizza in a Pocket Sandwich, and Applegate Farms Cheese Pepperoni Pizza Hand Held Stuffed Sandwich.
Other healthy options in favorite food categories are listed below.
Macaroni and cheese: Annie’s Homegrown Shells &White Cheddar; Trader Joe’s Macaroni &White Cheddar.
Frozen pizza: Amy’s Veggie Combo; Bravissimo Spinach, Mushroom and Tomatoes; Stouffer’s Grilled Vegetable French Bread Pizza.
Burritos: Cedarlane; Amy’s; Trader Joe’s.
Frozen french fries: Ian’s Alphatots; Cascadian Farm French Fries; Alexia Trio Fries
Frozen Fish Sticks: Natural Sea Fish Sticks; Trader Joe’s Cod Sticks; Ian’s Lightly Breaded Fish Sticks.
Check out the authors’ Web site, www.mealmakeovermoms.com, where all kinds of additional support, inspiration, and recipes are presented.
My bottom-line take on this book is that it’s sincerely and well-written, filled with fabulous amounts of advice presented in an easy-to-understand format, and well-worth the price of purchase. Happy New Year and Healthy Eating.
Fast-as-boxed macaroni &cheese
In 1936, Kraft Macaroni &Cheese was first introduced to U.S. consumers. Now, an astonishing 1 million boxes are sold each day. Mac &cheese from a box is an easy, kid-pleasing meal when you’re in a pinch, but did you know it’s just as fast (give or take a few minutes) to make it from scratch?
Our homemade version may not have the same bright orange color as the stuff from a box, but kids love it, and so will you … especially when you learn it has more calcium per serving than a glass of milk.
Moms make it over by …
Using low-fat milk and reduced-fat cheese to increase the bone-building calcium and eliminating the butter to reduce the saturated fat and calories.
8ounces dried small elbow macaroni (about 2 cups)
1 1/2cups 1 percent low-fat milk
2tablespoons all-purpose flour
1teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2cups shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
2tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
Return the saucepan to the stove (do not place over heat just yet). Add the milk, flour, mustard and garlic powder and whisk until well blended.
Place over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat and continue to simmer and stir gently until the mixture thickens slightly, about 2 minutes.
Add the Cheddar cheese and Parmesan cheese and stir until the cheese melts. Stir in the pasta, heat through, and serve.
Makes 4 servings.
Moms’ kitchen notes: Add a 10-ounce package of your child’s favorite frozen vegetable to the dish for a more complete meal. Just toss the veggies in with the pasta for the last 5 minutes of cooking.
No-nonsense <
BR>nuggets
Chicken nuggets are perfect when you’re in a pinch, but a lot of the frozen brands out there are made with processed chicken and a thick layer of greasy breading. With these nuggets, you know exactly what you’re getting.
Moms make it over by:
Using skinless, boneless chicken breast to lower the saturated fat and increase the protein.
Baking instead of frying.
3cups corn flakes
1/3cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2teaspoon salt
1/4teaspoon onion powder
1/4teaspoon garlic powder
Pinch of pepper
1pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into nugget-size pieces
1/4cup all-purpose flour
2large eggs, beaten
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Lightly oil or coat a large baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
Place the corn flakes in a resealable plastic bag and crush to a fine texture using a rolling pin or the bottom of a small saucepan, or place in a food processor and pulse several turns until finely crushed. Combine with the Parmesan cheese, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and pepper in a medium bowl.
To bread the chicken, coat in flour, shaking off excess. Dip in the egg, then coat well in the corn flake mixture.
Arrange the chicken on the prepared baking sheet and cook until golden brown, about 12 minutes.
Jan Roberts-Dominguez is a Corvallis, Ore., food writer, cookbook author and artist. Readers can contract her by email at janrd@proaxis.com.
