Bacon and Chicken Roll

Ingredients

3 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breasts

6 slices of bacon, optional

1, 8 ounce package of low-fat cream cheese

2 cups fresh spinach, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1.      Place individual chicken filets on a large piece of saran wrap.  Fold wrap over chicken and pound chicken with meat mallet to flatten and enlarge chicken breast.  Repeat this for each chicken breast.

2.      Place cream cheese in medium size bowl and soften with fork.

3.      Mix chopped spinach and garlic into cream cheese.

4.      Carefully stuff each chicken filet with cream cheese and spinach mixture, roll up chicken and secure with toothpicks.

5.      Once chicken is rolled up with cream cheese and spinach stuffing, wrap with 1 or 2 pieces of bacon and secure with toothpicks.

6.      Bake at 400 degrees F, in a baking dish for 20 minutes, or until chicken reaches 165 degrees F.

7.      Allow to cool for about 10 minutes.  Then slice and arrange on plate.

8.      Enjoy!

Yummy Breakfast Biscuits

Happy Memorial Day Everyone, especially the Veterans and their families.

My brother introduced me to a good breakfast biscuit and I wanted to share the brand.

Belvita nutritious sustained energy breakfast biscuits, by Nabisco.  A package contains 4 biscuits, and you can eat all four biscuits for 230 calories, less than 30% fat, 4 g protein,, 36 g carbohydrates, 13 g sugar, 3 g of fiber and 18 g of whole grains.

Add a glass of chocolate milk, and you have a quick breakfast on the go!

Enjoy the day :-)

Power Pancakes

My sons love these pancakes and left overs will keep in the refridgerator for up to 2 days. 

This recipe yields about 6-8 pancakes depending on the size.

For step by step video view: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-qxhGgFKwQ&feature=player_detailpage

Ingredients

1 cup AP Flour

2 Tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 Tablespoons butter

1 egg, separated

1 cup milk (choose your percent fat, I use 2%)

Directions

1.      Measure all dry ingredients and place in a bowl, blend dry ingredients with a whisk

2.      In a small frying pan melt 1 Tablespoon butter over low heat, remove from heat and blend in 1 egg yolk.

3.      Mix egg white in 1 cup skim milk.

4.      Add butter/egg yolk mix in the milk/egg white mix, blend well

5.      Pour milk/egg mix into dry ingredients; blend until dry ingredients are blended well.

6.      Pour ¼ cup pancake batter (yields a 4” pancake) into a cast iron frying pan, lightly coated with oil and cook.

7.      You know it’s time to turn the pancake when there are bubbles on the top side, this will allow you to turn the pancake without the batter running everywhere.

8.      Serve with maple syrup or sprinkle with sugar

Gazpacho-Eat or Drink Your Vegetables!

This is a delicious cold soup.  I found the recipe on a Williams-Sonoma recipe card.  The Balakian orange strawberry tomatoes are an heirloom tomato and can be purchased online or at a Williams-Sonoma store.  You could also use 2, 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes as a substitute.

2 jars (each 16 oz/454g) Balakian orange strawberry tomatoes
1 cup (185g ) finely diced red onion
1 English (hothouse) cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbs. red wine vinegar
2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 serrano chili, seeded and finely chopped
1/3 cup (15 g) chopped fresh cilantro
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a blender combine the tomatoes, half of the onions, cucumbers, and bell pepper, all of the garlic, vinegar and olive oil.  Blend until smooth.

In a large bowl combine the blended ingredients with the remaining diced onion, cucumbers and bell peppers, chili and cilantro.

Chill for and hour.  Serves 4 bowls or you can serve the soup in smaller cups.

Enjoy!

Homemade Energy Gel

Homemade Energy Gel (created by Brandon McDearis, recipe published in Endurance May 2012)

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons chia seeds

2 tablespoons honey or agave

1 tablespoon brown rice or maple syrup

2-3 tablespoons of salted water with sea salt

¼ teaspoon finely ground coffee

½ teaspoon cocoa

1, 3 oz travel shampoo bottle

Preparation:

1.       Take the 2 tablespoons of chia seeds and mix them with the salted water.  Let them hydrate for a few minutes until they puff up a bit and feel like they could almost be formed into a ball.

2.       Once the seeds are hydrated, mix together the rest of the ingredients. (Note: One of the tablespoons of water can be a tablespoon of already mixed coffee that gets absorbed into the chia seeds.  This adds a more consistent coffee flavor throughout, however, the stronger hints of the ground coffee within the gel are pleasant as well) 

3.       The recipe yields about 3-4 ounces, enough to fill one 3-ounce travel shampoo bottle with a little bit left over.  Use a funnel to transfer mix from bowl to bottle.  Left over gel mix can be stored in 1 – 2 oz. zip lock bags.

4.       Recipe yields 3-4 servings, (1 oz. servings) with 1/3 or ¼ of the bottle being a good shot of energy needed during times of exertion

Nutrition Info: calories: 90, fat: 3g, saturated fat: .5g, carbohydrates: 16g, fiber: 4g, protein 1.5g

 

Chia seeds are rich in calcium, more than milk, contain more omega-3’s than any other plant and they do not have to be ground before consumption, like flaxseeds.  So they are a great source of fiber.

Cocoa and coffee contain antioxidants (helps fight off disease and aging in our cells), and researchers at Cornell University have found cocoa  contains 2x the antioxidant properties of red wine and as much as 3x that of green tea.

Give this recipe a try, I know I will!

Don't forget to check out Hockey Mom RD on facebook for more nutrition tips.  www.facebook.com/hockeymomrd

Boost Your Skin's Collagen Production

Simply put, you can keep your skin looking young and help your skin heal by including vitamin C and iron rich foods in your diet every day.  Both of these essential nutritients are needed to help in the formation of collagen.  Collagen helps to keep our skin elastic. Elastic skin means fewer wrinkles. Collagen is found thoughout the body in skin, arteries, tendons, bones, teeth, and cartilage. Collagen helps in the formation of scar tissue and keeps our arteries and capillaries strong and flexible to help resist cardiovascular disease.



Iron rich foods include: meat, fish, poultry and eggs are great animal sources.  Nuts, seeds, spinach, broccoli, carrots, potatoes, pinto beans, oatmeal, corn tortillas, and enriched while and wheat breads and cereals.

Children aged: 1-3 yrs need: 7 mg
                         4-8 yrs need: 10 mg
                         9-13 yrs need: 8 mg
                         14-18 yrs need: male: 11 mg, females: 15 mg (vegetarian 26 mg)

Females  19 -50 yrs: need 18 mgs (vegetarians need 23 mg)
Males     19 - 50 yrs: need 8 (vegetarians need 14 mg)
  
Adults 51 yrs and older males and females: 8 (vegetarians need 14 mg)

__________________________________________________________________________
     

Vitamin C rich foods include: apples, oranges, avocados, strawberries, spinach, broccoli, carrots, green beans and potatoes.

Children aged 1-3 yrs need 15 mg a day
                       4-8 yrs need 25 mg a day
                       9-13 yrs need 45 mg a day
                       14-18 yrs need 75 mg a day

For  adults 19 yrs and older males need 90 mg a day, females need 75 mg a day.

Smokers need more: males: 125 mg a day, females: 110 mg a day.

Now that you know, go stock your fridge and freezer with foods that make you look great and heal your cuts :-)

Monday's Dinner

Dinner tonight featured: beets with angel hair pasta, sauted beet greens, roasted carrots, zucchini and squash, a cucumber, tomato, lettuce and fresh mozarella salad.

Adding color to your plate adds loads of nutrition. 

The beets provide protection against coronary artery disease, stroke, help lower cholesterol and have anti-aging properities.

The carrots are great for your eye health.

All the vegetables provide you with soluble fiber to help reduce your total cholesterol, and insoluble fiber to help you feel full longer and help with blood sugar control.

Load your plate up today!!

Hockey Fueling Basics

Fueling for Hockey

The ECHA Jr. Pirates Pee Wee team from Greenville, NC
  during their chapionship game
played in Charleston, SC  March 2012
They won!!!

Carbohydrates are the body’s best source of fuel. Hockey players need good quality carbohydrates.

            - Fruits

            - Vegetables

            - Whole grains

            - Cereals

            - Milk

Carbohydrates give the player fuel for the practice/game and help refuel muscles after a practice/game allowing the muscles to recover with minimal soreness, and packing glycogen in the muscles for the next time on the ice.

Hydration is key.  If your player is thirsty he/she is already 5% dehydrated, not a way to go into a practice or a game. 


Hydration begins the day before. Choose water and 100% fruit juices.  You can mix the fruit juice ½ and ½ with water to decrease the sweetness.

Children require 5- 8, 8 oz glasses of water a day.  Workout days will increase the need.

Hockey players can lose several pounds of fluid weight during a practice/game.  Taking small sips throughout practice/game will help the player feel more energized, focused and reduce muscle cramping. 

3-4 Hours prior to practice:

Peanut butter and banana sandwich with chocolate milk

Yogurt smoothie with fruit and a granola bar

Any kind of pasta with red sauce or meat sauce with milk

Lean hamburger with lettuce and tomatoes and milk

Pancakes, fruit and milk

Waffles, fruit and milk, or yogurt

Pre-practice fuel 30-60 minutes prior to practice:

Fruits (banana, orange, grapes etc)

Fruit gummies

Sports drink

Jam sandwich (yes, only jam, fats are not readily available for energy)

After practice foods to refuel the muscles:


Oatmeal cookies and low fat chocolate milk

Fruit yogurt

Crackers and peanut butter and sports drink

Fruit and nuts

Sports bar


You want your player to eat something within 45 minutes of completing their workout.  This is the ideal time to refuel to build muscle and pack in glycogen.  Carbohydrates and a small amount of protein are needed, not a big greasy meal.

The reason you see milk so much is this:

Milk is a great source of protein, carbohydrates and calcium.  Choose low fat, the calcium content is a bit higher in low fat. 

Between games power eating:

Stick with fresh fruits, and low fat carbohydrates: crackers, sandwich (peanut butter and banana), bagels, and graham crackers with peanut butter or nutella.

If your food is too rich in fat your body will not have the energy it needs to play the next game


Remember: to be a champion you not only have to practice and think like one, but FUEL like one too!!

Red Grapes

One and one-half cups of red globe grapes contains 62 calories, and is a good source of vitamins C, A, K, thiamin (B-1), riboflavin (B-2) and pyridoxine (B-6).  In addition these giant grapes are packed with phytochemicals (a compound found in plants that helps human cells protect against diseases).  Resveratrol is the most commonly written about phytochemical.  Why is this important?  Resveratrol is an anti-oxidant that helps to protect the body cells against colon and prostate cancer, coronary heart disease, degenerative nerve disease, Alzheimer's and viral and fungal infections.

Anthocyanins are another compound found in red grapes which gives the grapes the red color.  Anthocyanins are in a class of anti-oxidants that have anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-cancer activities.

Lastly these grapes are rich in the minerals copper, iron, manganese and potassium.

So don't pass these up the next time you go to the farmers market or your local grocery store.

Remember: Fruit is a Fast Food!!   Grab, wash and Go! 

For Parents and Players

Blueberries are small, but look inside these little blue packages and you will find a pharmacy of nutrients. To start with, 1 cup contains only 80 calories, is fat-free, cholesterol free, of course transfat free, and contains 14mg of Vitamin C, that is 25% of the RDA. Vitamin C helps your body absorb the iron you eat in other foods. Vitamin C is needed for your body to make collagen, maintain healthy gums, capillaries and promotes a healthy immune system.

Other nutrients in blueberries include: Vitamins A and E (antioxidants along with vitamin C), and the minerals selenium, zinc and iron.

Need more information: Blueberries can help age related problems like: cataracts and macular degeneration (the leading cause of blindness as we age), improve memory by healing our brain cells, and help motor function in aging lab animals (so maybe the same is true for humans :-) ). Bluesberries help to prevent some cancers and have antibacterial power which helps in the prevention and treatment of urinary tract infections.

Still want more information: They are heart healthy and aid in digestion due to their fiber content.

It appears you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by adding blueberries to your grocery list.

Go buy some today at your local farmers market, favorite grocery store or roadside stand :-)
(written by Kimberly Smith Lukhard, MS, RD, LDN)

Baking Tip

Happy Saturday All! If you enjoy cooking and baking like we do you may want to try this simple tip: You can cut 25% of the fat from a baked product and still have a delicious treat. Example: The Toll House chocolate chip cookie recipe calls for 2 sticks of butter, cut to 1 1/2 sticks of butter and you have decreased saturated fat, total fat, cholesterol, and some calories, and the cookies still taste great!!  I have decreased the butter to 1 stick, and this yields a good product.  You can replace the eggs in this recipe with egg beaters... cutting out close to 425 mg of cholesterol. Try it if you like to bake, but don't cut the butter and the eggs together, that will give you a cookie that needs lots of "dipping" before you eat it.   written by Kimberly Smith Lukhard, MS, RD, LDN

Gingerbread Cookies

Gingerbread Cookies yields 24 I found this recipe in an ad for Reynolds Parchment paper and I wanted to pass it along, looks quick and easy. 3 1/2 cups flour (I use King Arthur) 1 teaspoon (t) ground ginger 1 t baking soda 1/2 t each of ground cinnamon, ground cloves and salt 3/4 cup butter 3/4 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup molasses 1 egg 1 t vanilla extract Combine all dry ingredients and set aside Beat butter, brown sugar and molasses in large bowl on low speed until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually stir in flour mixture until well blended. Divide dough in half. Wrap; refridgerate 2 hrs or until firm. Heat oven to 350 F. Line 2 cookie sheets with Reynolds parchment paper, set aside Bake until edges begin to brown, 10-12 minutes. Cool and decorate, enjoy!! I used a recipe analyzer found at: http://caloriecount.about.com/ Remember, you can always make your cookies smaller. This analysis is based on 24 cookies. Make smaller gingerbread people and the numbers go down per cookie. Nutrient analysis per cookie: calories 158, total fat: 6.1 g, saturated fat: 3.7g, cholesterol: 23 mg, sodium: 150mg, Carbohydrate: 23.6 g, Protein: 2.2g

Easy No- Mess Cupcakes

This is fun to do with kids, they love to mash the ingredients in the bags.  Warning: do not mash the bags too hard, or the bags will break and there will not be any batter to bake.  I did this with a class of 8th graders and they loved it. 


Here is a no-mess way to make cupcakes with your kids. Look at your recipe and check to see if you need to cream the butter and sugar. Now, get two sturdy, gallon size, ziplock bags.

Step 1: Combine your flour, salt and baking soda (or baking powder or both) in one bag.

Step 2: In the other bag, measure out the sugar.

Step 3:Place the softened butter in the sugar bag and allow your child to mix it up. This will take a while, the butter and sugar must be mixed very well.

Step 4: Add 1 egg to the sugar/butter bag. If 2 eggs, mix them in one at a time.

Step 5: Add the vanilla to the sugar/butter/egg bag and mix.

Step 6: Add the contents of the flour bag to the sugar/butter/egg/vanilla bag, mix well.

Step 7: Add the milk to the bag and mix.

Step 8: Now you have a ziplock bag filled with your cupcake batter. Snip the tip off one of the corners and portion the batter into the baking tins.

Bake according to recipe.

Your kitchen mess should be 2 ziplock bags and your baking tins.

Enjoy!!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins

Another muffin my boys LOVE           

Yield= 40 mini muffins

Bake 400 degrees F

10 minutes

1. 1 cup oatmeal, dry

2. 1 cup milk (add 1 t white vinegar, let stand 5 min. or use buttermilk)

3. 1 egg

4. ¼ cup applesauce

5. ¼ cup sugar

…………………………………………………………………………………………

6. 1 cup flour

7. 1 t baking powder

8. ½ t baking soda

9. 1 t salt

10. 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Step 1 (ingredients 1-5): in a large bowl mix oatmeal and milk, let stand 5 minutes so oatmeal can soak up milk, then add egg, applesauce and sugar to the same bowl, and mix--- set aside

Step 2 (ingredients 6-9): in a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix with a whisk to combine and distribute all ingredients through out flour.

Step 3: Add all the ingredients from step 2 to bowl containing milk/egg mixture (step 1). Stir in chocolate chips.

Spoon into non-stick mini muffin tins and bake for 10 minutes (oven vary)

Enjoy J

Nutrient Analysis per muffin:

Calories: 26, Total fat: 0.8g, Cholesterol 5 mg, Sodium 80mg, Carbohydrates 4.2 g. Protein 0.7g.

Disappearing Banana Muffins

Disappearing Banana Muffins

This is my great grandmother's recipe. I hope you try it and enjoy it! If you are making mini muffins you can get 30 out of this recipe. I have taken these muffins on road trips and the kids and parents gobble them up.

 

 3 ripe bananas

2 eggs

2 cups AP flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 t salt

1 t baking soda

Mash the bananas in a large bowl, then add eggs. Mix well. In a separate, bowl mix together flour, salt, baking soda and sugar. I also add a dash of nutmeg, cinnamon and clove. Now mix the flour mix with the banana/egg mix.

Spoon batter into non-stick mini muffin tins. I use a portion scoop, 1 oz, that way I know all my muffins will be the same size.

I use the mini muffin tins because they cook quickly.  If you don't have enough batter for all the spaces add water, that will help your product to bake evenly.

Bake at 400 for 9-11minutes (depending on oven)

Nutrient Analysis based on 30 mini muffins:

Amounts given are per muffin:

Calories: 58

Total fat: 0.4 g

Cholesterol: 12 mg

Sodium: 123 mg

Carbohydrates: 12.4 g

Protein: 1.4g



Money saving tip: I buy my bananas when they are placed on the discount rack at the store. Then I freeze them, whole, 3 per ziplock bag. When I want to make this recipe I thaw the whole bananas in warm water, then cut the top off and squeeze out the banana like a tube of tooth paste.

You never have to throw out a brown banana again.

 by Kimberly Smith Lukhard, MS, RD, LDN