Feed your soul!

Celebrate Black History Month by feeding your soul with faith, family, friends, and food, of course!  Soul food, a delectable cuisine that mixes roots from Africa, the Caribbean, and the South, has a deep history that can only make each morsel taste even better.  With nutritious staple ingredients like collard greens, yams, and beans, it’s one cuisine that can truly nourish your body, mind, and soul, and taste so good you’ll want seconds.  These recipes have been simmering for hundreds of years, passed down in an oral tradition, which leaves much room for adaptations over time.

As the melting pot of the country has added processed and fatty foods in place of wholesome healthy ingredients, many of the cultural dishes have also used these substitutions, including soul food.  What’s sad is that the more conveniences we have, the less time we have for slow, home-cooked, nutritious comfort food.  Fortunately, you can probably still find some healthy soul food spots that will fill up your stomach and not your waistline, whether they are a family-owned joint or a family friend’s kitchen.  But if you’re trying to keep the tradition alive by spending some time in the kitchen, try these healthy tips to keep this food at a comfort level, without having to grab your sweat pants!

• Gotta get the greens.  Collards, chard, spinach, kale….yum!  Slow-cooked greens can give your body a good dose of Vitamin A and calcium.  Sure, hickory-smoked bacon can make the greens taste even better, but try substituting the meat with something more on the lean side, like smoked turkey.
• Let the sweets shine.  Sweet potatoes and yams have such a good flavor, you only need a little bit of seasoning to make it taste even better.  Skip the sugar, and even the marshmallows, and try using just cinnamon and apple juice. Remember, the deep orange colors also can be a good dose of Vitamin A for healthy vision.
• Substitute the sugars.  Use a ‘lil bit of honey, 100% maple syrup, or even molasses anytime you need to sweeten anything up, whether it be your greens, beans, or sweet potato pie.
• Baked, not fried.  This tip might be the most difficult to appreciate, but after you learn to love it, your body will love you even more!  Try using a cereal-based breading, like cornflakes, and place the chicken or the catfish in the oven, not in a pot of hot oil.  It will feel less heavy and still have that crunchy texture that makes fried foods so comforting.
• Keep the fats healthy.  No grease.  No trans fat.  No partially hydrogenated oils.  Use olive oil when you can, and if you need to use some real butter, use it sparingly.  The bad fats can lead to clogged arteries, which is not good for a healthy heart.
• Load up the mac.  I have a weakness for mac ‘n cheese and while it’s not the healthiest dish to enjoy, you can load it up with vegetables like spinach, broccoli, or even carrots to make it more nutritious for you.  You won’t feel as guilty when you go for seconds.

Just remember to eat in moderation.  Seconds can be a good way to show a chef that you love what you’re eating, but thirds?  Too much of a good thing can be enough!

M.I.S.S. Healthy Bites: Pro Nails

Whether you get them did, do it yourself, or rock them natural, your nails need care that can’t be polished on.  Kid Sister’s song, Pro Nails, might not focus on a healthy diet, but keep her song as a reminder of what to eat to keep your digits lookin’ fly: PRO-TEIN.  Protein, which you can get from meat, dairy, eggs, nuts, legumes, and whole grains, is not only good for healthy hair, skin, and muscles.  Pack the protein on your plate and your nails will also benefit from it.  After all, nails are made of keratin, the same type of protein found in your hair and skin.  Protein deficiency could lead to fragile nails, and nothing can ruin your day like a broken nail.  Vegetarian?  Read the post on protein to get some ideas of how to get it without meat.

Aside from protein, consuming calcium will promote nail growth.  Nails grow at a rate of about 0.1 millimeter a day, so get your calcium on the daily.  No need to chug glasses of milk, because dark leafy greens contain calcium as well.  Try spinach, chard, kale, and even broccoli to get the mineral that not only strengthens nails, but also bones and teeth.

From just looking at your nails, you can get a gauge on how healthy you are.  Nails that are strong and smooth usually determine that you’re getting the nutrients that you need, but nails that are dry, brittle, or even discolored could indicate that you need to make some changes in your diet.  For instance, if you find little white specs on your nails, it could mean that you’re not getting enough zinc.  A glass of milk or hard boiled egg will help balance that out, as well as give you protein and calcium.  Eating healthy does so much for your body.

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M.I.S.S. Healthy Bites: Go Green

You’ve read that eating a rainbow can support and strengthen different functions of the body. This week, let’s go green.

The two words that have become a catchphrase for the eco-movement should be a new mantra for your diet.  Eating fresh, local, organic greens can indeed help the environment, but the real benefit is how dark leafy greens can help your body.  After all, it’ll be tough to save the world if you’re unhealthy!

One of the benefits of green fruits and vegetables is strengthening bones and teeth. Sound similar to milk? That’s because greens, particularly dark leafy greens, contain calcium just like your favorite dairy products. Many believe that the only ways to get calcium is to drink milk or take a supplement, and while those are great sources to build your bones, a yummy plate of boiled collard greens can contain just as much calcium as a glass of milk. In the U.S., milk has its own category in the food pyramid, but some don’t consume dairy for cultural reasons, health reasons, or personal beliefs (ie. a vegan diet). Whether you consume dairy or not, go green to provide enough calcium for your body!

Read the rest for more info on calcium and going green in your diet.

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