M.I.S.S. Healthy Bites: Get Your Grill On

Now that we’ve equipped you with the M.I.S.S. Summer BBQ Playlist, you’ve got to come correct.  If you’re lucky enough to have a 3 day weekend, try to spend today on the healthy tip….in front of the BBQ. While hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, and soda usually define the typical barbeque cuisine, don’t limit yourself to quick and easy unhealthy choices. With a little determination, you can get your grill on with fresh vegetables and perfectly marinated meat. Just don’t be scared to handle the flame!

For the carnivores, the key to a delicious BBQ is to get your marinade right. There are so many concoctions out there that it may be difficult to select just one to fit your palette. From soy sauce to honey to soda and even beer, most marinades originate from creativity. My suggestion is to raid your fridge and your pantry to mix up your own secret recipe. Soak your favorite cuts of meat overnight if possible for maximum flavor, but if you’re crunched for time, a few hours will be enough to make your BBQ finger lickin’ good.

To have a balanced meal, you can’t forget about the vegetables. Grilling vegetables take healthy eating to a whole new level. The smoky flavors from the flame usually enhance the sweetness of different vegetables, which is why so many restaurants use grilled veggies in their popular dishes. It’s a taste of it’s own! You can use your favorite marinade recipe, but usually, the best seasoning for grilled vegetables is something simple. Brush on a flavorful oil, like olive or sesame, and sprinkle with sea salt and pepper. You can even add a splash of lemon or a blend of your favorite spices for more kick. Those simple ingredients will boost the flavor, allowing you to get a full taste of the vegetable.

Which veggies go great on the grill? Try:

• Corn
• Peppers
• Onions
• Zucchini
• Asparagus
• Portabellos
• Squash
• Tomatoes

After you marinate, how will you grill it?

• On skewers?
• Wrapped in foil?
• In a grill basket?
• Straight on the grill (which leaves those oh-so-attractive grill marks)?

How you present your food for your folks is almost important as how it tastes, so make sure your meat is well done (or medium, if you prefer) and done well. And…if you care about your peoples, you should remind them that the delicious meat that you made is full of protein to build muscles and strengthen hair and nails. Don’t forget to mention that the fresh-grilled vegetables contain fiber to clean the digestive system, and are loaded with an assortment of different vitamins and antioxidants. Sharing is caring so pass the plate and educate.

Chow!

If you’ve got an itch to eat healthier but don’t know what to buy at the market, get with the box- the CSA box. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture, and it’s kind of like a weekly subscription to farm-fresh fruits and vegetables. You basically pre-pay for a share of the farmer’s harvest during a season, and each week, you’ll get hooked up with a variety of local produce and seasonal goods. Sometimes, you won’t know what will be in the box, and that element of surprise makes the CSA even more fun (remember the grab bags from the Hello Kitty store? Yea…like that). And because you’re paying for it ahead of time, you’ll be more inclined to eat it all and skip the take-out! Nothing’s better than getting those nutrients in your body.

Supporting CSA also helps to build up your cooking repertoire. You might open your box and come across something that you don’t even know how it looks outside of a can. Then, you’ll find yourself doing research on how to make the best kohlrabi slaw or beet greens sauté. This week, my CSA box included carrots, strawberries, radishes, Swiss chard, cilantro, Romaine lettuce, beets, and the best strawberries I’ve ever had- and they’re all organic! Since getting it, I’ve made an assortment of yummy things, including salad with strawberries and beets, smoothies, salsa, pasta, and even pickled carrots and radishes. And the best part is knowing that I have more coming next week.

Sound like something you can commit to? Visit your local farmer’s market and ask around to see how you can get involved. Farms operate their CSAs in different ways, so make sure you get the details of what you’re getting into. Some offer delivery service, while others require pick-up. Some have a standard box, while others will offer you choices. Either way you come about it, CSA is a win-win situation for the farmers and for you!

M.I.S.S. Healthy Bites: Eatin’ the Blues

In nature, blue is not as popular as the other colors of the spectrum, especially in fruits and vegetables. Such a rarity could only mean that foods with blue have special qualities to them.  Just as orange foods help the eyes, blue foods offer benefits that others colors do not. Blueberries are, of course, the most recognizable blue food, but no need to sing the blues if you’re wanting more of a variety, because there are plenty of blues to eat that will keep your body (and mind) happy.

Aside from tasting great and coloring your plate, naturally blue foods contain antioxidants that can prevent cancer and other diseases. Many other fruits and veggies are also great sources of antioxidants, so what is it exactly that makes blue foods so unique?

Research shows that blue fruits and vegetables can improve memory function and help with aging. Studying for a test? Eat blue. Trying to reminisce about back in the days? Eat blue. Want to look and feel 20 when you’re 60, without having to wear miniskirts? Eat blue.

Read the rest for more on blue foods. Read the full story

M.I.S.S. Healthy Bites: Manic for Organic

Eating is like fashion – you can mix styles up, vintage with streetwear, swapped with copped, DIY with off-the-rack, designer with- dare I say it?- knockoff!   You can also mix up your meals- frozen with fresh, fast food with home-cooked.  But no matter what, you should always make sure to include what looks good and feels good, and usually, the healthiest foods are what your body likes. You wouldn’t be caught dead putting some things ON my body, and the same goes for what you put IN your body. But as fashion trends change, so do eating trends. One trend that has received much shine is organic foods.  It’s wonderful that more and more consumers, restaurants, manufacturers, and farmers are seeing the benefits that come with going organic. However, this movement should be regarded as more than just a trend, and unfortunately, like fashion, some things just can’t fit in our budget, no matter how appealing they are.

There has been much research put into studying foods and their pesticide levels, and most of those studies correlate higher levels of pesticides with increased risk of harm to our bodies, increase of carcinogens, disease and disorders, and environmental problems.  Because of that, try to go organic as much as possible. If you can’t, there are recommended crops to always buy organic, dubbed the “Dirty Dozen.” These 12 crops have the highest levels of pesticides, and if any money should be put towards organic, choose those! On the contrary, there is also the “Clean 15” list of fruits and vegetables that have the lowest levels of pesticides, meaning if you want to save a little dough, buying these non-organic won’t be as harmful.

Read the rest to get the Dirty Dozen and the Clean 15 lists, plus a free shopper’s guide!

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Healthy Bites

When I first got my drivers license, I thought I had perfect vision … until I had to drive at night.  Squinting to read street signs indicated that it was time to pay a visit to the optometrist.   After I put on my first pair of prescription lenses and hit the road, I saw the world in a new light.   But I didn’t want to wear glasses all of the time, only when I needed sharp vision, so the doctor repeated something that my mama always said:  “Eat your carrots.”

It’s widely known that carrots help your eyes, but why?

Carrots contain beta carotene, the nutrient responsible for giving carrots, and other orange fresh foods, their vibrant color.  When you eat carrots, your body converts the beta carotene into Vitamin A, a vitamin important for eyesight, especially night vision. Yes, eyeglasses have been more stylish than ever, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep your eyes healthy. Incorporate orange foods into your diet and your eyes will be stronger than ever.

Like many other colors of the produce rainbow, orange foods have more than one benefit for the body. Read the rest for more info on orange fruits and vegetables and how else they can get your body in good shape.

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March is a special time of year because not only is it Women’s History Month, it also marks National Nutrition Month. These series of weekly posts will offer nutrition tips to help you make healthier choices, but please ask your doctor or nutritionist for the proper advice that fits your lifestyle.

Nutrition Facts: Eat a Rainbow
No, I’m not talking about Skittles, I’m talking about fruits and vegetables. Colorful foods are not just appealing to the eye, because eating a variety of fruits and veggies will diversify the taste buds AND provide your body with an assortment of essential nutrients.

Incorporating different colors into your diet can be easy.  For breakfast, add blueberries and bananas to your cereal.  For lunch, make a salad with red leaf lettuce and carrots.  For dinner, cook up a stir-fry with bell peppers and bok choy.  And for dessert, build a yogurt parfait with strawberries and oranges.  If cooking is an art, think of your plate like a canvas and mix those colors up!

Read the rest of the story to find out how eating a rainbow everyday can hook you up!
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