Hockey Mom RD website

Happy Friday Everyone!!
I have imported all of my blog posts onto my new and active website: http://www.hockeymomrd.com
Thank you for following my blog :-)  All of my blog postings will now be a part of my website.
Please continue to visit and read and pass along the information you like and find helpful to your friends.

Have a great weekend!

Hockey Mom RD
Kimberly Smith Lukhard, MS, RD, LDN

It's 4:45am Do You Know Where Your Coffee Is???

Good Morning Everyone!
It is tryout day for our Jr. Pirate Travel team in Greenville, NC.  I am happy to announce we were able to field a Bantam team this year!!! Yeah! So those kids get to sleep in, their day was June 10th.  Today it is the Squirts and the Pee Wees time.  I have a second year Squirt and second year Pee Wee that I must wake soon, time is: 5:42am.  We have to be at the rink by 6:45am at the latest, my Squirt must be on the ice by 7:20am.  My Pee Wee skates at 8:45am.

We all know how nervous our skaters get, but what about the parents??? Are there any other parents that wake before the alarm in fear of the alarm not going off??? I know I can't be alone.

So here I sit at my kitchen table, coffee at my side, and two cats that think I  am starving them because they don't like their food.

I must go wake my rapidly growing little boys.  Time for waffles, fruit and chocolate milk, and power bars packed for the Pee Wee before his skate time.

So good luck to all the other Travel Ice Hockey players out there that may be trying out today or soon.

Get a good night sleep, eat a great dinner, a great breakfast, drink your good fluids and most importantly:  STAY POSITIVE!!!! Your brain is the most powerful piece of equipement you have on the ice (some may differ) but this Hockey Mom has seen time and time again how positive thinking helps my little guys. ( yes, they are still little to me at 5'10" my sons haven't broken the 5' mark, so I can say "little" probably just one more season :-)

Have a great weekend everyone!!

~kim

Where's the Beef???

Do you love red beef, and want to include it in a healthy diet for your family.  Well look no further.  I love to make chili's and spaghetti dishes. When I choose the type of ground beef I am going to add to my recipe I usually base it on price, or I buy less of the leaner ground beef. Take a look at this table and you may change your mind about what type of ground beef you purchase for your next recipe.

This nutrition information is based on a 4 oz (about the size of a deck of cards) serving of raw beef:

Beef	Calories	Calories from fat	Total fat	Saturated fat	Cholesterol	Sodium	Protein
73/27% Lean Beef	350	270	31g	13g	110mg	70mg	18g
80/20% Lean Beef	290	200	23g	9g	80mg	70mg	20g
93/7%	170	70	8g	3g	65mg	70mg	24g
85/15%	240	152	16g	8g	76mg	70mg	20g

I highlighted the 93/7% because this is the best choice if you are watching your fat and calorie intake.

So now you have a better way to choose which ground beef you will pick for your recipe. Decide by price, decide by Lean Beef percent, or decide like I do, using both price and Lean Beef percent.

Beef is an excellent source of iron, protein and zinc, all great for muscles and healing. 

So, if you enjoy eating red meat, go ahead.  Now you have the knowledge to make heart healthier (lower saturated fat choices are best) choices.
Happy Eating!

Father's Day Brunch Chez Lukhard

It was my son's idea to make the quiche for their dad.  Our neighbor delivered quiche the other week.  My older son asked what it was, he was told "Quiche, your father's favorite dessert" Thus the introduction to the yummy egg and bacon pie in our house and recipe collection.

Quiche Lorraine

1 pie 9" deep dish pie shell (frozen is fine, that is what I used this morning)

6 slice bacon

1/2  medium onion, diced

3 beaten eggs

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

Dash ground nutmeg

1 1/2 cup shredded Swiss Cheese (6 oz weighted measure, I used cheddar cheese this morning)

1 Tablespoon flour

1. Line single pie crust with double layer foil and bake at 450 degrees F for 8 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes.  Remove from oven and reduce heat to 325 degrees F.

2. In a large cast iron frying pan (I prefer) cook bacon.  I find it easy to cut up the bacon with scissors as I am dropping the pieces into the frying pan.  It cooks quickly and very evenly.  Drain bacon on papertowels.  In a small amount of left over bacon grease cook the onions.

3. Mix eggs milk, salt and nutmeg together in a mixing bowl, set aside.  In another bowl grate the cheese and toss with 1 T of flour.

4.  Add cooked bacon and onions to the egg mixture, and blend, then add cheese and flour mixture.

5. Pour egg mixture into pie crust and bake for 35-45 minutes.  You will know your Quiche is ready when a knife comes out clean.

6.  Allow to cool and enjoy!

(original recipe is from the Better Homes and Garden New Cook Book)

A New Twist for that Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast

Sauteed Chicken Medallions with Tomato-Basil Jus----yields 2 servings

1/2 t (teaspoon) kosher salt
1/2 t dry mustard
1/2 t ground black pepper
1/2 t dried thyme
1/2 t dried oregano
1/2 t coriander
1/2 t ground celery seed
1/4 c all purpose flour
2, 3-4 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 t canola oil
1 recipe of Basil Tomato Jus

Step 1:
Mix spices together and place in a plastic zip lock bag. Place 1/4 c all purpose flour on a separate plate. Shake the chicken in spice bag, then flour and cook in saute pan in 1/2 t canola oil. Allow the chicken to brown, approximately 10 minutes, do not over cook chicken. While chicken is cooking prepare 1 recipe Basil Tomato Jus

Step 2:
Basil Tomato Jus
3 cloves minced garlic
1 T minced shallots
1 cup chopped tomatoes
2/3 c chicken stock
1/2 t canola oil
3 T basil chiffonade (roll each basil leaf and chop)
Saute garlic and shallots in oil, add finely chopped tomatoes and cook until tomatoes soften. Add chicken stock and basil, cook for 5 minutes on a low boil. Transfer Basil Tomato Jus to chicken pan and cook together over medium heat, until done, approximately 20 minutes.

Nutrient Anaylsis per serving: Calories: 239, total fat: 6.25g, saturated fat: 1.12g, trans fat: 0g, cholesterol: 76.5mg, Sodium: 700mg, Carbohydrate: 16g, Protein: 27g.

A Supplement I support 100%

These are the Gel Bursts our Jr. Pirate Pee Wee team used during their chapionship playoff games.  And if you missed it:  Yes, they WON!!  Many of the players would say "Miss Kim, where did you get those gels??? My legs never ran out of energy.  I am sure you can find them at the local Walmart or Target or online.  And you can be sure, our pantry will be loaded with them when the season begins again :-)

 

Youth Athletes and Supplements????

The American Academy of Pediatrics  advises that the use of performance-enhancing substances should be discouraged in adolescents.  Young athletes need whole foods for growth, muscle and height.

Here is a comparison between an Amino Acid Supplement Package and Whole food


 

Amino Acids	1 Packet Amino Acid Supplement	1 Cup Cheerios + ½ cup Milk
Leucine	500 mg	239 mg+ 409mg = 648mg
Valine	340 mg	154 mg + 280 mg = 434 mg
Isoleucine	400 mg	113 mg + 253 mg = 366 mg
Arginine	570 mg	214 mg + 151 mg = 365 mg
Cost	$1.50 per packet	$0.50 per servings

If you look closely at this list of amino acids you will notice that Leucine, Valine and Isoleucine are included.  These are your BCAA's (branch chain amino acids).  Some studies have shown that the BCAA's, specifically valine and leucine may help to slow muscle breakdown during intense training.

So now you know your child can get this benefit with a bowl of Cherrios and a 1/2 cup of milk.  Choose your milk based on calorie needs.  If you need more calories use whole or 2%, if you need less use 1% or low fat. 

Go have a great workout!!

Why Carbohydrates are not the Bad Guy

Carbohydrates are your body's "go to" source for fuel.  Your brain is designed to ONLY run on glucose, which is supplied from the carbohyrates you eat.  Your muscles depend on carbohydrates to keep you pushing through your practice, game or workout. 

And no, don't head to the cookie, cake or local donut shop....I am not talking about those carbohydrates.

I am talking about the carbohydrates found in your fruits, starchy vegetables, dairy products and grains.

Carbohydrates are long chains of glucose (sugar) molecules strung together.  Your muscles can use the glucose from the broken down carbohydrates 3 times quicker than energy from fat.

That is why you do not want to take your youth hockey player to eat at a quick fast food place inbetween games, or order a pizza at the rink when you have an 1 1/2 hrs between games.  A fatty meal before a game or practice will make your legs feel like lead.

So go load your refrigerator with fresh fruits, dairy and starchy vegetables, and your pantry with whole grains.

My sons usually have pasta with red sauce or some homemade potato soup 2-3 hrs before practice.

Happy skating!!

Be a Sugar Detective

When was the last time you truely read the ingredients on the food label??? Maybe you looked for the fat or sugar grams, or the calories per serving.  That is great!  Now make sure you take time to read the ingredients, you will be suprised what you find.  The first 3 ingredients listed are the most plentiful in the product.  So here you go....become a sugar detective today :-)

Let's look at hidden sugar. Here are some words to look for in the ingredient list that let you know there is hidden sugar in the product:

Dextrose
Brown sugar
High fructose corn syrup
Corn syrup
Molasses
Brown rice syrup
Turbinado sugar
Dextrin
Fruit and date sugar

This is a small list there are more.

Remember, sugar gives your kids a quick burst of energy, however, it is followed be a very quick decrease in energy. This is not what they need on the ice or in the classroom. Let your children help you read labels in the grocery store. Become Sugar Detectives today!!

For a good cereal look for cereals with 10 grams or less of sugar per serving.

Happy "hunting"

Ritz Cracker Pie

I would love to tell you that this is nutritious, so I will try :-)  It contains pecans, a good source of monounsaturated fatty acids.  And it is rich in carbohydrates so the pie, minus the whipped cream (the delicious fat) will help turn on your relaxing chemical, serotonin.

Oh heck, I just LOVE this pie :-)

25 Ritz Crackers, crushed

1 cup sugar, divided

2/3 cup chopped pecans

3 egg whites

½ pint heavy cream

2 T sugar

1 t vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine crushed crackers, one-half cup sugar, and pecans; set aside. Beat egg whites until stiff, gradually adding one-half cup sugar. Fold cracker mixture into egg whites. Pour into greased nine-inch glass pie plate. Bake one hour, Cool.  Whip heavy cream with 2 T sugar and vanilla extract. Spread over top of pie after pie has cooled and chill several hours or over night.

Enjoy!!

Let's Talk About Juice

The other day at work a co-worker mom asked me advice about her 10 yr. old daughter.  She informed me her daughter was about 4'7" and weighed 110 lbs.  She said the doctor didn't say anything during their recent visit.  She asked me if I thought her daugher was overweight.  I said yes, but do not mention the word diet and encourage movement.  Her mom said, ok, we are going to get back to swimming, she loves to swim.  We did a quick review of her daughters daily intake.  She does't drink sodas and her mother has limited the amount of snack foods in the house.  The calorie culprit:  Juice.  Yes, juice calories can add up and add up fast.  She informed me that she had noticed her daughter had gained the extra 20 lbs recently and it coinsided with her regular purchases of juice boxes.  I asked how many she drank in a day and she told me 5 sometimes.  That is an extra 300 calories a day in juice alone.

So look at the math: it takes 3500 extra calories to gain a pound.  If a child consumes this much juice every day, in two weeks the child will have consumed an extra 4200 calories.  Yes, more than enough to gain a pound.

Am I saying don't drink juice, not at all.  I am saying be aware.  We have juice and water in the house and my sons like juice.  But the first thing they see when they open the refridgerator is the giant water container (Brita, the kind that holds about 2 gallons of water) that they use to fill their cups.

Now go take a look in your fridge and see what you see first, chances are your child/children see it too.

For those of you that may be interested here is a link for a children's BMI calculator.  It may be helpful.  BMI stands for body mass index and the number looks at height and weight only, so muscle weight is not factored in. 

http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/usefultools/l/bl_bmi_calc.htm

Homemade Ham Stock

We make our stocks from scratch.  All you have to do is save the bones that are left over, chicken, ham, turkey, etc.  We keep them in bags in the freezer until we are ready to make a stock, or we run out of freezer space. 

Here are some step by step pictures of the Ham stock I made the last two days.

Step one: place all the bones in a large stock pot filled with water and boil for several hours.  We usually boil for about 3-4 hours,  a low boil.


Step 1

Step two: remove bones and allow stock to cool, then refridgerate.

Step 2: bones removed and stock had been the refridgerator

Step three: using a flat spatula gently scrap the top layer of fat off the stock, which is now a gelatin consistancy.

Step 3: what the chilled fat looks like as you use a spatula to remove the fat

Step four: bag into ziplock bags, label and date.

Step 4: label and date and store flat in the freezer

When I thaw a bag for use, I usually add 2 parts water for 1 bag of stock.

Now you have a stock without added salt.  True there may be some salt left in the ham that remained on the bones.

We cook our bean soups in our stocks: blackbeans, navy beans, lentils, split pea etc.  You can also make a yummy potato soup with a homemade stock.

Breakfast Fondue

Here is a fun summer breakfast your kids will enjoy.

Ingredients:
1 quart (1 L) plain yogurt
1/4 cup (125ml) honey
2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla
Fresh fruit
Wheat germ
Finely chopped nuts

1. Mix yogurt, honey and vanilla.  Store in a container in the refridgerator until needed.

2. Cut up bananas, apples, cantalope, etc.  Any firm fruit.  Avoid fruits that are very ripe, they will not work well.

3. Set out a dipping bowl containing the yogurt and a bowl containing the nuts

4.  Serve each person an assortment of fruits and a long fork. 

5. Now enjoy creating your own breakfast fondue mix.  Dip the fruit in the yogurt and then in the nuts.

6.  Enjoy!!

If you are allergic to nuts or do not care to use them experiement with different types of crunchy cereal.  You could crush up Raisin Bran crunch to add fiber and a crunchy taste without the worry of a nut allergy.

Homemade Caramel Corn

Yes, my sons eat sugar.  I do not have any artificial fat or sugar in my house.  I like to make many of our "treats" from scratch.  That way I know all the ingredients.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do :-)

Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 15 minutes            Bake time: 20 minutes

I weighed the gram measures on a digital scale to obtain the correct conversion for the metric measures

Step 1 stove popped popcorn.  I use a
Movie Time popcorn popper

Step 2 Butter, brown sugar and light
corn syrup

Boiling for 5 minutes, do not stir

Step 3 baking soda and vanilla added

When you pour the caramel sauce
on be patient and              mix carefully

Finished product cooling while
waiting little and big hands
walk by :-)

Ingredients

7 to 8 cups popped popcorn (the equivalent of 1.68 -1.92 L filled up)

¾ cup packed brown sugar (144 g)

3 tablespoons light colored corn syrup (45 ml)

¼ teaspoon baking soda (1 g)

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract (1.25ml)

Directions

1.    Remove all unpopped kernels from the popped popcorn.  Place popcorn in a 17 x 12 x 2 inch baking/roasting pan.

2.    In a medium saucepan mix brown sugar, butter and corn syrup.  Cook and stir over medium heat till mixture boils.  Continue boiling at a moderate, steady rate,  without stirring,  for 5 minutes.

3.    Remove pan from heat.  Stir in baking soda and vanilla. Pour mixture over popcorn, stir gently to coat.  Bake in a 300 degrees F (148.88 degrees C) oven for 15 minutes.  Stir mixture; bake 5 minutes more.  Spread caramel corn on a large piece of buttered foil to cool.  Store tightly covered. Makes 7 to 8 cups.

Nutrition Facts: 224 calories, 10 g total fat (6 g sat fat.),26 mg. cholesterol, 157mg sodium, 33 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 1 g protein.

This recipe was copied from the Better Homes and Garden New cook book.

I like to use stove popped popcorn.

Healthy, Beautiful, Hockey Mom skin!!

This one is for all the busy hockey moms out there! Treat yourself to an "internal facial" and give your skin that healthy glow! The following fruits and vegetables rank high in antioxidants (which help fight wrinkles) according to a study at Tufts University in Boston: Fruits: prunes, raisins, blueberries, blackberreis, strawberries, raspberries, plums, oranges, red grapes, cherries, kiwifruit and pink grapefruit. Vegetables: Kale, spinach, Brussels sprouts, Alfalfa sprouts, Beets, Red Bell peppers, Onions, Corn and Eggplant.

Another summer skin tip: when you are grilling, frying and roasting meats this summer be sure to use marinades made from acids, like lemon juice and vinegar.  Add to the marinades some cinnamon, ginger, marjoram, rosemary, sage or tarragon to help decrease the formation of AGE's (advanced glycation end products.  AGE's can increase wrinkles becasue AGE's damange protein collagen.
So eat smart, and save your skin!!
Have a great weekend!!

Family Budget Tip

I went shopping this morning at Sams.  I had to think for the next 3 weeks.  We needed meat, fish and vegies and fruit.  Here is the break down of the cost per serving of the pork and salmon I bought.


7.61 lbs of pork tenderlion for $13.62 = 121.76 oz which yields 40, 3oz portions or 30 4oz portions. So many dinners for less than 45 cents per meat serving. Pork is rich in thiamin, vitamin B1, which is important in the conversion of food into energy and nerve transmission. Salmon was $15.77 for 2.26 lbs = 9, 4 oz servings for $1.75/ serving, a bit more expensive but great brain and heart food. Now I many meals for my rapidly growing boys that didn't break the bank.

Fun Times

I love hockey and nutrition, but there has to be more in a child's life.  One of our favorite activities is "hunting" for sharks teeth near our house.  Here is a picture of what we found yesterday.

Sharks Teeth June 6th, 2012 Greenville, NC

Go explore your neighborhood and see what treasures you can find :-)

Quinoa Risotto with Spinach and Parmesan Cheese

Quinoa is a great source of protein, it contains all the amino acids, just like meat, and it is gluten free.
My boys like this dish.  I hope you enjoy it :-)

Yields 6 servings

1 Tablespoon Olive oil

½ yellow onion, small diced

1 garlic clove, minced

1 cup Quinoa rinsed well

18 oz chicken or vegetable stock

1 cup fresh spinach

½ cup carrot, peeled and shredded

½ cup mushrooms, sliced

¼ cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated is best

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

(Choose sodium free or reduced to cut back on your salt and don’t add extra salt)

Directions:

1.       In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes.

2.       Add the garlic and quinoa and cook for about 1 minute, stirring occasionally.  Do not let the garlic brown.

3.       Add the stock, and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer until the quinoa is almost tender to the bite but not hard in the center, about 12 minutes.  The mixture will be brothy.

4.       Stir in the spinach, carrots and mushrooms, simmer until the quinoa grains have turned from white to translucent

5.       Stir in cheese and season with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately.

Quick Breakfast Oatmeal

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=VX9tjfSTBzw

This is a video of my favorite breakfast.  I use quick cooking Quaker Oats or the store brand.  This breakfast contains about 10 grams of protein (staying power to help ward off midmorning slump), potassium (good for your brain activity), soluble fiber (to help lower your cholesterol) and calcium for strong bones and teeth.

And yes, it really does take less than 3 minutes, and my microwave is the same one I had in Grad school 15 yrs ago, so you may be able to make it even quicker :-)

Enjoy!!

Breakfast in less than 3 minutes

Quick and Easy Oatmeal Breakfast

Click on the link above to go to my youtube video and watch the steps.

I wanted to share a "how-to" video of my favorite quick breakfast.  I use quick cooking Quaker Oats, or a generic variety.  If you are watching your fat and sugar grams, use low fat or fat free milk, or soy, almond or rice if you prefer.  I love brown sugar, but if you cut out the "heaping" spoonful that I use you can save about 90 calories, and use only 1/2 a banana and you cut out another 60 calories.  So build your own quick and healthy breakfast.  Remember it is the most important meal of the day.   Power up your mind and your body!!