Get in Your FnVs with These Grain Alternatives! Good morning! We hope you tried a salad a day last week and saw how easy it was to hit the goal of 7 servings of fruits and veggies (FnVs) each day—6 if you use XVOO in your dressing! In these next few weeks, we’re moving beyond the obvious salad onto different ways to substitute and replace grains with FnVs in some of your favorite dishes. You probably remember the old government-issued food pyramid from the low-fat craze of the 90’s… The same food guide pyramid that told us to eat seven servings of grains per day (keep in mind this was the SAME food pyramid which also incorrectly told us eggs were a dairy product—which isn’t even anatomically correct!). Importantly, eating all those grains crowds your plate of more nutrient-dense foods like FnVs and protein. So, for the next two weeks we will be showing you how to replace those grains with FnVs, which are more nutritious and carb/diet friendly. This week, we start with pasta, noodle and rice substitutes and recipes. Need a little guidance in the kitchen? Ask us! We have a retired chef on board. Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti Squash is probably the OG pasta substitute. It’s a squash that, when cooked, produces strings of squash which resemble noodles/pasta. It can be prepared in the oven or nuked, and then treated like pasta or noodles with toppings. PREPARING SPAGHETTI SQUASH How to Prepare Spaghetti Squash:
RECIPES The recipes for spaghetti squash are endless! But here are a few to get started. Noodled FnVs In 1991 as part of the raw food movement, it started with “zoodles” (noodles made out of zucchini) and quickly progressed to boodles (noodles made out of beets), coodles (noodles made out of carrots) and now most all FnVs can be noodled—even red cabbage! PREPARING FNV-BASED NOODLES In the early days, folks had to invest in a large countertop spiralizer. Now, most grocery stores sell them pre-noodled for you fresh and frozen. RECIPES here are the recipes ready to go with your purchased veggie noodles. Keep in mind-they can replace pasta/noodles in a hot dish-but are also great as an alternative to lettuce in a salad! Firm fruit can also be spiralized! Guests at the next BBQ will be dazzled by your spiralized fruit salad and kids will gobble up your fruit crumble recipe. Other "Noodley" Options Palmini—hearts of palm pasta—is a fairly new player to the market. There is an entire line of palmini pasta alternatives, including lasagna noodles. These cook up a little firmer, more al dente than typical veggie noodles. RECIPES Once prepared, they hold up well to almost any pasta dish you can dream up. But here are a few recipes to get you started… Shirataki noodles have been around awhile, they are made from the fiber of the Konjac plant. They are decidedly NOT for everyone except for those adventurous eaters out there (WE like them! J) RECIPES If you decide you are curious, here are a few recipes to consider. Rice Alternatives As with the noodles, riced vegetables are more nutritious and carb/dieter friendly. And just like the noodles, they also can be made at home or purchased fresh or frozen by the Green Giant and Trader Joe’s and Palmini has a hearts of palm rice version of their products too. PREPARING RICED FnVs If you choose make your own at home, here is how. RECIPES Once you have your riced veggies, here are a few recipes to consider:
Well, we've left a lot on your plate for this week. Make sure to continue logging your FnVs intake, and we'll see you next week for breakfast and dessert! Feel free to email your Motivated Mondays Coach Michele at [email protected] with your individual questions. TRACK YOUR PROGRESS YOUR MINI RESOLUTION: EAT MORE FRUITS-n-VEGGIES (FnVs)! Strive for seven servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Use the calendar to log your servings, as well as your exercise, sleep, sugar and water goals! Click to view and download the log.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
MICHELE MCCAMBRIDGE, MPH, MSMichele is the Senior VP of Membership Development at Concierge Choice Physicians. She is also a professional in the areas of nutrition, fitness and wellness. Archives
October 2024
Categories |