Chicken and Chicken

Chicken Patties
1 lb. ground chicken breast
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/3 cup chopped green onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried sage
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. olive oil
2 cups non-fat chicken broth

1. Mix together the chicken, bread crumbs, garlic, green
onions, thyme, sage, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Form
into 8 patties and place them, covered, in the fridge for
about 1/2 hour.

2. Spray a large fry pan with cooking spray and half the oil.
Cook 4 of the patties for 6 minutes on each side, or until
brown and no longer pink inside. Move these to a plate.
Cook the other 4 patties in the remainder of the oil and
move these to the plate.

3. Pour the chicken broth into the fry pan and bring to a
boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the broth is reduced to
half the amount you started with. Spoon this broth over
the patties when serving.

1 patty is 79 calories, 2 gm. total fat, 32 mg. cholesterol,
111 mg. sodium, 0.4 gm. fiber.


Chicken Salsa
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thawed
1/2 cup non-fat chicken broth
1/2 cup onions, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 cup salsa

1. Spray a fry pan with cooking spray and cook the chicken
for about 2 minutes on each side.

2. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.

3. Add everything else. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes or
until chicken is cooked through.

Makes 4 servings.
1 serving is 199 calories, 4 gm. total fat, 73 mg. cholesterol,
192 mg. sodium, and 1.6 gm. fiber.

Spice Up Your Life

Spice of Life
Vast fortunes made and squandered, powerful rulers seduced, ailments cured, and nations discovered…all in the name of spice. Spices have always cast a spell on our imaginations. They flatter our senses: our sight with their vibrant colors, our smell with their enticing fragrances, and our taste with their distinct flavors.

Spices have been the catalysts of some of the greatest adventures in human history, like Christopher Columbus' voyage. Still today, spices empower us as explorers, even if we never journey beyond the kitchen counter. They energize our daily adventures in food and remind us of journeys to exotic places and favorite meals with loved ones.

-from The Enspicelopedia at www.mccormick.com

You know how I'm always saying to use spices instead of fat to add flavor?

Check out the website listed above and go to the Enspicelopedia. Not only can you can read up on the history of spices, but you can find out everything you wanted to know about many, many different spices.

Can You Dine Out and Eat Healthy?

It's no secret that food always tastes better when eating it in a restaurant. I think part of the reason is because we don't have to prepare it ourselves, and we don't have to do the dishes afterwards! But really, the big reason food tastes better when eating out is that the meal has a higher fat content which gives it more flavor.

Many restaurants today do give you "diet" or low fat options on their menu, but these don't always sound appetizing. Keep in mind that many restaurants will let you make changes to the dishes you order. Here are some tips on how to tweak your order:

1. If you must use condiments, use them wisely. Creamy dressings are higher in fat than vinaigrettes. Instead of high fat mayonnaise, just use ketchup and mustard.

2. Beware the restaurant salad. Some salads are very high in fat. It's not the lettuce, but everything else they add in. Take a look at what's offered and pick one that has lower fat toppings. Get the dressing on the side and remove the croutons.

3. Hold the cheese. This is a relatively painless way to remove fat and calories from your meal.

4. Hold the bun. If you just have to have a burger, have it without the bun and eat it with your knife and fork. It still tastes great.

5. Grilled instead of breaded. This applies to chicken, fish, and vegetables. Always pick the healthier option.

6. Make your side dish steamed or roasted veggies instead of french fries or onion rings. Avoid that overly-full-sick-feeling after your meal.

7. Baked potato? Limit the amount of potato you eat, limit the butter and toppings, and eat the skin.

8. Drink water with a lemon instead of soda, lemonade, or alcohol. Your body will thank you.

Eating out is a treat but there are a lot of fat-filled land mines to avoid. You can make healthier choices that still taste great and make you feel better. Picking healthier food options becomes easier the more you do it!

Trim The Fat In Your Diet - 5 Ways

Maybe you're trying to shed a few pounds or perhaps you need to lower your cholesterol. The first thing you need to do is take a look at what you eat and start "trimming the fat". For most of us, it's easier to lower the amount of fat coming in, than it is to try and burn it off after the fact.

Here are 5 ways to lower the amount of daily fat you take in:

1. Cut the cheese.
You have 2 choices - either eat cheese with a lower fat content (like mozzarella, or "lite" versions of other cheese), or just eat less cheese. Experiment and find what you like. Some cheese is still quite good even if it's made from 2% or skim milk. Sometimes you want the full flavor, so just cut back on the amount you eat.

2. Slimmer, trimmer meats.
Choose types of meat that naturally have less fat. Trim fat off meats before cooking. Look at the labels for the percentage of fat. Hamburger, for example, comes in different packages based on fat percentages.

3. Less butter is better.
Use sparingly. Don't use butter at all when you can't really tell the difference in taste. Use seasonings to enhance flavors, instead of butter.

4. Good-bye deep fry.
Tons of fat here. Try frying in a pan with cooking spray, or use the broiler in your oven, or use a George Foreman-type grill.

5. Read labels and take the low-fat road.
There are a lot of options these days for lower fat versions of many of your canned goods. Just be sure to read labels carefully as some fat-free versions may still have lots of calories and sugar. Better than eating canned would be to eat fresh when possible. Fresh vegetables and fresh fruit eaten raw or close to raw are excellent choices.

Sure, fat makes food taste good, but you can also enhance flavor with seasonings. And while our bodies do need some fat, most of us eat way too much of it. Try the above tips for lowering your fat intake. Remember, it's usually easier to do it this way than to try and get rid of it later.

5 Tips On How To Cut Back On Sugar

In an effort to pursue a healthier lifestyle many families are looking for ways to cut sugar.

There are many reasons why we should reduce our kids’ intake of sugar. One reason is to avoid tooth decay. Take it from me, visiting the dentist to get crowns because of huge fillings that led to broken teeth is not how they want to spend their adult hours or money.

Another reason to cut back on sugar is because it affects children’s behavior. This may or may not be proven depending on who’s study you read, but I believe sugar intake is linked to behavior and moods.

Even for adults, consuming large amounts of sugar causes a rush of energy in our body as the sugar hits the blood stream all at once. Unfortunately, the sugar rush doesn’t last and then we “crash”. This leaves us feeling drained and irritated. That’s when we reach for the afternoon cup of coffee, or more sugar.

There are medical reasons to cut your sugar intake too. Increasing insulin levels is how the body responds to sugar. Over time high insulin levels can lead to insulin resistance and that can lead to Type 2 Diabetes.

Here are five ways to start cutting back on your family's sugar intake:

1. Avoid sweetened breakfast cereals.
A serving of plain Cheerios has one gram of sugar. The last time I looked, Frosted Cheerios had 14 grams of sugar.

2. Kick the soda habit.
Pop is loaded with sugar. You may have to slowly wean yourself away from soda, but there are lots of healthier alternatives. Of course, water is the #1 choice. Read labels carefully as some of the bottled drinks have almost as much sugar as soda pop.

3. Choose foods that do not have added sugars.
Some foods give you a choice between added sugar and no added sugar. Jelly, canned fruit, applesauce, and oatmeal come to mind.

4. Choose whole grains.
Simple carbs turn into sugar in your body while complex carbs take more effort for the body to use up. The more whole grains that you choose — the better for your body. Pick brown or "sticky" rice instead of white rice and whole wheat bread instead of white bread. You may not like whole wheat pasta, but it might be okay if you use half whole wheat and half regular pasta together. Also, some brands may taste better than others. You'll just have to experiment.

5. Sweeten naturally when possible.
It will help you break the sugar habit if you start turning to naturally sweetened choices. Bananas, grapes, apples, and oranges are healthy choices when you want something sweet. If you like to bake, you can cut the sugar in half in many of your recipes and it will still taste good. You can sweeten your oatmeal or muffins with raisins and cinnamon. Many things can be sweetened with applesauce like muffins, cakes, oatmeal, and scones.

Start with the little things and move on everytime you hit upon something that works for you. As you use less table sugar, you'll find that food actually tastes better with it's natural sweetness.

Remember, even the smallest things you do to improve your health helps!