Archive for January, 2012

Can Frozen Pasta Be Good For You?

Posted by Maggie Basiaga on January 29th, 2012 | No Comments »

Hi Guys,

One of my favorite grocery stores is Trader Joe’s. They sell fresh, healthy and organic foods that are delicious. They also have a variety of things AND they regularly bring in new products to keep you entertained. I often find myself buying “ready to go” foods there as they can be pretty healthy too! Of course, fresh food or made from scratch meals are the best ( no doubt about that!!!) but when you’re exhausted and don’t feel like cooking for 45 mins, you can definitely pick some things up that will fill you up, taste good and won’t raise your cholesterol too much ;)

Are you ready for my first ready to go pick?! I will be adding a bunch of “ready to go” foods as we go.

You can find this in the frozen section in Trader Joe’s, the aisle where they keep all the sweets too!

Introducing a quick ready to go Italian meal – Penne Arrabiata. You buy it frozen, in a bag. All you have to do is throw the bag contents into a pan and cook on medium heat until the sauce melts. Easy and it tastes great, a little spicy too.

At this point, you’re probably thinking, “yeahhhhhhh freaking right. What kind of a dietitian would recommend eating a bunch of pasta?” Hey, this is way better for you than fast food! and I encourage you to stick to just one serving size.  Here is the nutrition label if you’re wondering what the damage is:

So here is a little tip that I came up with. Want more protein from this meal? Add two hard boiled eggs into the mix.

Yup, cook your eggs up, slice them in halves and throw them into the pasta. I usually throw my eggs into boiling water and keep them in there for 8-10 mins. They taste really good with the spicy sauce. Heart conscious? Get rid of the yolks and add the whites only. That will bump up your protein amount by ~12 grams! Assuming you’re consuming 1 cup of the pasta, that’s almost 20 grams of protein in one meal. An average person requires about 0.8 of protein/kg of body weight.  Note that one serving of this pasta contains 470 mg of sodium (We only need 1500-2000 mg per day), however, I can assure you that this is a lot less than what you’d get when eating out.

What are some of your favorite ready to go foods?

Filed under You Are What You Eat


Vegan Lentil Soup

Posted by Maggie Basiaga on January 17th, 2012 | No Comments »

Are you a soup lover? You’re in the right place. I recently made up my own lentil soup recipe that turned out delicious. Why is it great? Because not only is it easy to make but it is also healthy. I wanted my soup to fill me up, hence, the lentils and barley! Why? Because both lentils and barley are high in protein and fiber which means that they will make you feel full as protein hangs around in your stomach a little longer than carbohydrates do.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 red onion, chopped
  • 1 tsp ginger, minced
  • 1 tbs garlic, minced
  • 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 bunch of a leafy green vegetables ( mustard greens or kale, whatever you feel like!)
  • 6 small yellow potatoes
  • 64 fl oz broth
  • 1 avocado
  • 3/4 – 1 cup of barley
  • water as needed

*this will make you a big pot of soup that you can refrigerate and eat all week long! Note – use more of the ingredients if you wish as using more makes the soup more dense and using less makes the soup more runny. This is an individual preference, play with it! There are no rules here. Have everything chopped up ready to go when you start cooking.

Preparation:

1. Using a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil on high heat

2. Throw the onions into the pot and heat for about 5 mins

3. Add ginger and garlic next and heat until slightly brown

4. Next add the broth and bring it to boil

5. Add potatoes, barley and green lentils, rinse them first (the lentils that is). Some people soak lentils for a few hours but these are so tiny and they will cook quickly with the rest of the ingredients

6. Keep on boiling until the potatoes, lentils and barley are edible/soft. This will take about 15-20 mins, could be quicker! Try it as you go to see if ingredients are cooked

7. You want to add the green leafy veggie last so that you don’t overcook it. You only want to cook it for about 1 minute to preserve the nutrients!

8. Let the soup sit in the pot for a bit so that you don’t burn your tongue. Once you pour it in a bowl, scoop up a little bit of an avocado and place into the soup. Avocado tastes amazing in soups!

Enjoy!

 

Filed under Food Moment's Recipes, Vegetarian Corner, You Are What You Eat


Tower Café Goodness

Posted by Maggie Basiaga on January 9th, 2012 | No Comments »

There are a lot of great places to eat in Sacramento, California. All you have to do is stroll into midtown and you will find a variety of unique cafes and restaurants. I am sure, however, that there is one place in there somewhere that you just really look forward to visiting over and over and you’re still satisfied when you do.

So if you think about the year of 2011, which place would you consider “your place?” For me, it was Tower Café.  My brother introduced me to Tower Café (International Restaurant and Bakery) in June of 2011 and I have been going there since then.

What’s to love:

  • Greatest patio ever where you stay warm in the winter time and cool in summer
  • Unique, international theme
  • Friendly staff
  • Quick service
  • Great food
  • Amazing Bloody Marys
  • Very affordable

The picture of the patio above was taken during a summer week day at about 2 pm. I walked right in, got a seat right away, and pretty much enjoyed the whole patio to myself. Didn’t get hot either as they have the little “mist sprays” or whatever you call them that keep things pretty cool. During the weekends the wait is about 20-30 minutes and the patio is packed but still very pleasant and enjoyable. During the winter, you can sit on the patio, they have heating lamps and you will stay warm and cozy.

The food tastes great and really, whatever you’re in the mood for, you will find something there! They have yummy salads, burgers, sandwiches and full entrées such as the Santa Fe Salmon or Guinness Irish Beef Stew.

The following are the salads that I tried and loved:

  • Brazilian Chicken (thanks to my brother!)
  • Tower Waldorf Salad

In addition to their salads, I also had their French Toast Special that I can safely say was the best toast I ever had! I had that on January 1st, 2012, New Year’s Day! They serve  lunch until 3 pm so if you wake up late on a weekend day and feel like eating something breakfast like, this is a place to head to.

I already mentioned this in one of my previous posts but Tower Cafe makes amazing Bloody Marys. They are truly delicious, have you tried one yet?

I’m not too familair with their desserts yet but I did try their chocolate mousse and I was quite happy with it. They do have a great dessert selection.

Someone did bring up a good point though. The inside of Tower Cafe is pretty busy, with stuff. All sort of things. You’d have to see it to know what I mean. Anyways, someone I know mentioned that when they sat inside, all they could think of was, “Do they ever dust this stuff off?!” That I don’t know. It’d be cool to ask them what they do with it.

Filed under Bloody Marys Everywhere, Dish Reviews


Maggie Basiaga

Registered Dietitian