Yale Rudd Center Evaluates Fast Food Nutrition And Marketing To Youth - Did You Buy Fast Food For Your Kids This Week?

Fast Food Harms Young People's Health

OK, this may not be a shock to you but the results of this comprehensive study by Yale University's Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity should be. Here are some of the facts they have uncovered about the fast food industry's relentless marketing to youths and poor level of nutrition. You can read the 200+ page Complete Report on their website.

How Fast Food Companies invest in Getting Your Children Addicted to Fast Food

* The fast food industry spent more than $4.2 billion for marketing in 2009.

* The average preschooler, ages 2-5 years old, saw 2.8 TV ads for fast food every day.

* Children 6-11 years of age saw 3.4 TV ads for fast food every day and teens 12-17 years of age saw 4.7.

* McDonalds's web-based marketing targets children as young as 2 years of age at Ronald.com.

* Each month McDonald's 13 websites attracted 365,000 child visitors and 294,000 teen visitors on average.

* 9 fast food restaurant Facebook pages had more than one million fans as of July, 2010.

* Smartphone apps were available for eight fast food chains so they can reach your children anytime, anywhere.

* The average fast food restaurant had 15 signs promoting specific menu items, but only 4% of them promoted healthy menu items.

And it's Working!

* 84% of parents took their child to a fast food restaurant at least once in the past week; 66% went to McDonalds.

* 40% of parents reported that their child asks to go to McDonald's at least once a week.

* 15% of preschoolers ask to go to McDonald's EVERY DAY!

What they are Serving Your Kids

* Just 12 of 3,039 (less than 1/2 percent!) possible kid's meal combinations from fast food restaurants met nutritional criteria for preschoolers; 15 met nutritional criteria for older children.

* When ordering a kid's meal, restaurant employees at McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's and Taco Bell automatically served french fries or another unhealthy side dish more than 84% of the time. A healthy beverage was offered less than 50% of the time.

* Subway, on the other hand, offered apple slices, yogurt or 100% juice with their kids' meals 60% of the time, making it the only fast food restaurant in their study to routinely provide healthy choices.

* Teens between 13-18 years of age ordered 800 to 1,100 calories in an average fast food visit.

The Study's Recommendations

* Fast food restaurants must establish meaningful standards for child-targeted marketing.

* McDonalds must STOP MARKETING DIRECTLY TO PRESCHOOLERS.

* Fast food restaurants must do more to develop and promote lower-calorie and more nutritious menu items

* Fast food restaurants must do more to push their lower-calorie and more nutritious menu items inside the restaurants when young people and parents make their final purchase decisions.

What You Can Do!

After looking at this report and their recommendations, I am not very hopeful that this multibillion dollar industry is going to suddenly stop targeting our young children nor are they going to start feeding them healthy meals. Why would they? Their past strategies are paying off handsomely even if it helped cause the significant rise in child and adult obesity.

So it's up to you. Here are some tips to avoid the relentless marketing and the dependency on fast food.

* Restrict or eliminate unaccompanied TV watching. Entertain the kids with thought provoking games and books.

* Too busy to do that, then rent or buy educational videos. At least they're not getting brain washed while you are preoccupied with other chores.

* Talk to them about these fast food companies, their unhealthy food and underhanded marketing tactics. Even my young grandchildren understand how McDonald's should be avoided and tell others not to go there.

* Have some simple meals on hand so when you are too busy to cook, you resist the urge to buy fast food. Remember, even a bowl of healthful cereal and berries or an almond butter and "all fruit" jelly sandwich for dinner is healthier than anything you will find in a fast food restaurant.

* Avoid fast food restaurants at all costs. Even if they have some healthy offerings, once you enter the door, what is the chance you are going to really order them? Who can resist the aroma of french fries or the advertisements plastered all over the walls for unhealthy but tempting meals?

* Develop your child's palate for healthful foods. The most important thing you can do is get them used to eating good, wholesome food. My daughter-in-law helps drive a student garden program at the elementary school. Now, to the utter shock of the parents, the kids go home and ask to eat salads!

* OK, at the risk of getting arrested for promoting child labor, teach your kids how to help fix meals. With my busy career, my kids found their way around the kitchen pretty early in life. Today they are excellent cooks. I'm not saying you should hand them a Ginsu knife, turn on the oven and leave the room. But you can have them help you prepare a salad, or fix their own sandwich. Seriously, it will eventually pay off.

Remember, we vote with our forks. When we spend our hard earned money on fast food, it just propagates this industry putting small, more healthful eating establishments out of business. Make a special effort and help break our youth's addiction to fast food.

Check out the Foods For Long Life Facebook Page!

Go Nuts For This Raw Vegan Pecan Pie, Made As Cute Little Tarts - A Great Thanksgiving Dessert

This recipe calls for 4 1/2 " tart pans with removable bottoms.

Press walnut mixture into and up the sides of the tart pans.

Fill with cashew and date filling. Then top with pecan halves.

A Special Dessert

I love pecans, especially raw Texas pecans. Unfortunately whenever I've been served pecan pie, I generally just pick the pecans off the top and leave the rest. Traditional pecan pie is made from processed white flour, lots of sugar and corn syrup, butter and eggs. This delicious raw dessert has no processed sugar - it's sweetened by dates. Three kinds of heart healthy nuts are used in this tart: English walnuts, cashews and, of course, pecans. Some ground flaxseeds are added to the crust to optimize the omega 6 to omega 3 balance to 4:1.

But as "non-processed" as it may be, this dessert is very rich so save it for special occasions like the upcoming holidays. You also only need to eat a small portion. Last night Doug and I each ate 1/4 of this small tart and it was plenty.

Tart Pans

I use 4 1/2" tart pans with 3/4 inch sides for this recipe. I found some on the King Arthur website. You can use others that are close to that dimension. But whatever you use, a fluted tart pan is very elegant.

Complete Raw Vegan Thanksgiving Menu

Last Thanksgiving I posted a Complete Raw Vegan Thanksgiving or Winter Holiday menu from raw appetizers to dessert. It's been a very popular post so check it out for lots of great "raw" ideas for Thanksgiving.

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Raw Vegan Pecan Tart

[makes two 4 1/2 inch tarts, 8 servings]

For the crust

Some extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil to grease the tart pans

3/4 cups raw English walnut pieces

4 teaspoons dried, shredded, unsweetened coconut

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 large Medjool dates, pitted

4 teaspoons ground flaxseeds

For the filling

10 large Medjool dates, pitted and soaked for 1 hour

Some reserved date soak water

1/3 cup raw cashews, soaked 6 hours or more

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon unrefined virgin coconut oil, softened

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

20 perfect, raw pecan halves

You'll need two 4 1/2 inch tart pans with removable bottoms.

Oil the insides of each tart pan with extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil.

To make the crust, place English walnuts, coconut, salt and cinnamon in a food processor with an S blade. Process until crumbly.

Add dates and ground flaxseeds and process until the mixture begins to stick together.

Divide mixture among the two tart pans and press firmly into the bottom and up the sides of the pans. You can use your fingers or the back of a teaspoon. (No need to clean the food processor, you'll be using it again).

To make the filling, drain the dates reserving the soak water. Drain and rinse the cashews.

Place the dates, cashews, lime juice, vanilla extract, coconut oil, and sea salt in the food processor and process until smooth, scraping down the sides often. If it is too dry, add 1 tablespoon of the reserved date water but only if needed. Save the rest of the date water to sweeten your morning smoothie.

Fill the crust filled tart pans with the date filling.

Top each tart with 10 pecan halves.

Refrigerate for several hours. Carefully push tart up and remove side pan. You can serve tarts on their removable disk or carefully try to remove it.

Cut each tart into 4 pieces and serve. Or, more easily, set tarts on the table and hand your guests forks!

Per serving: 247.5 calories, 13.3 g fat, 2.3 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 1.3 g ALA omega 3 and 5.4 g omega 6 fatty acids, 3.1 g protein, 33.4 g carbohydrates and 6.2 g of dietary fiber.

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How To Make Healthy, Low Fat, Creamy Vegan Mashed Potatoes. Also, A Recipe For Mushroom Gravy And A Delicious Vegan Substitute For Sliced Turkey.

Soy curls are a great substitute for chicken or turkey.

You won't believe these creamy mashed potatoes are dairy free!

Getting Ready for Thanksgiving

I'm dedicating the entire month of November to developing more raw and cooked vegan recipes and menus for my favorite holiday - Thanksgiving. Last year I posted A Complete Raw Vegan Thanksgiving menu as well as a Healthy Cooked Vegan menu so do check those out.

Best Ever Vegan Mashed Potatoes

I had some silken tofu left over from the Vegan Mac and Cheese recipe I posted on Monday. (By the way, this could also make a good side dish on Thanksgiving or just use the cheese sauce for your side dish of broccoli). Anyway, I thought that this light and fluffy tofu would make a great dairy substitute in mashed potatoes - a mandatory Thanksgiving dish. Together with Yukon gold potatoes, a touch of vegan buttery spread and seasoned with salt and pepper, these were simply the best mashed potatoes ever! And healthy too. Without the addition of heavy butter or cream, each serving is just over 100 calories with less than a half gram of saturated fat and no cholesterol! Whether you are a vegan, lactose intolerant, cooking for guests who avoid dairy or just love mashed potatoes, you need to try this recipe. For best results, use the silken tofu in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, not the kind they sell in boxes. I also love using thin skinned Yukon gold potatoes. After boiling, the skin peels off very easily.

Soy Curls Make a Great Meat Free Substitute for Sliced Turkey

You can host a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with nothing but side dishes but if you want something that looks and tastes like poultry, give these Soy Curls a try. Made from whole soy beans, these are far less processed than other fake meat products made from processed vegetable protein or wheat gluten.They take on the flavor of the spices with which they are seasoned. For this dish, I sprinkle them with poultry seasoning.

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Creamy Vegan Mashed Potatoes

[makes 8 servings]

2 pounds Yukon gold (or other) potatoes, cleaned and quartered with skin

Water for cooking

1/2 teaspoon sea salt for cooking

1 cup silken tofu, warmed (8 ounces)

1 tablespoon vegan buttery spread

Reserved cooking water, if needed

1/4 teaspoon sea salt (more or less to taste)

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper (more or less to taste)

Cook potatoes in salted boiling water until soft. Drain and peel off skin.

In a deep bowl, combine potatoes, silken tofu, buttery spread, salt and pepper and beat with a hand beater until smooth. Add a tablespoon of hot reserved cooking water if needed. Do not over process. Yukon gold potatoes can get pasty.

Serve immediately with mushroom gravy.

Per serving: 109.3 calories, 2.4 g fat, 0.4 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 4.4 g protein, 4.3 g carbohydrates and 2.5 g dietary fiber.

Mushroom Gravy

[makes about 1 1/2 cups]

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup chopped onions

8 ounces organic white button mushrooms, thinly sliced (or other mushrooms)

1 cup veggie broth, room temperature

4 teaspoons corn starch

1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)

2 shakes garlic powder

ground pepper to taste

On medium low heat, in a saucepan, sauté the onion in olive oil until soft, about 4 minutes.

Add mushrooms and cook until they soften and release liquid, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix broth with corn starch until smooth. Add to mushrooms and onions and stir until it thickens.

Stir in salt, garlic powder and black pepper. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve.

Per tablespoon: 8.9 calories, 0.6 g fat, 0.1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0.3 g protein, 0.8 g carbohydrates and 0 g dietary fiber.

Vegan Turkey Slices

[makes 8 servings]

One 8 ounce package of soy curls

Hot water to cover

4 tablespoons Red Star nutritional yeast

2 teaspoons poultry seasoning

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Place the soy curls in a bowl and cover with hot water for 10 minutes.

After they rehydrate, drain and squeeze out excess water. Return them to a clean and dry bowl.

In a small bowl, combine nutritional yeast, poultry seasoning, black pepper, salt and garlic powder.

Sprinkle the mixture over the soy curls evenly and toss well.

Heat oil and sauté the soy curls until golden (about 5 minutes) and remove from heat.

Serve immediately with mushroom gravy.

Per serving: 149.8 calories, 8.3 g fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 12.6 g protein, 7.3 g carbohydrates and 4.3 g dietary fiber.

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Vegan Mac And Cheese - A Hearty Favorite Without The Dairy. Also Makes A Great Cheese Sauce For Broccoli And Cauliflower

Broccoli with cheese sauce provides even more veggie power.

Mac and Cheese goes Totally Vegan

A year ago I posted a recipe for Healthy Mac and Cheese that not only greatly reduced the amount of cheese and fat in the traditional mac and cheese but also provided extra servings of veggies. I did this by blending butternut squash into the cheese sauce.

I continued to work on this recipe to totally eliminate the cheese and I think I finally did it! This dairy free, vegan cheese sauce can also be used on broccoli or cauliflower. Just think, instead of negating the benefits of eating healthy veggies like broccoli and cauliflower by smothering them with fatty, high calorie cheese sauce, you can now double the benefits by smothering them with even more healthful veggies that just look and taste like cheese sauce! This recipe also provides vitamin B12 from the nutritional yeast, critical for vegans and vegan children.

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Vegan Cheese Sauce

[Makes 2 1/2 cups, enough for 8 ounces of pasta]

1/2 small onion, chopped, (about 1/2 cup)

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

2 cups butternut squash, diced

2 tablespoons reserved cooking water from squash

1/2 cup silken tofu, (4 ounces)

1 tablespoon vegan buttery spread

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

1/2 teaspoon sea salt, (or to taste)

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, (or to taste)

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

On medium low heat, in a small saucepan, sauté the onion in olive oil until soft, about 4 or 5 minutes.

Steam the butternut squash and reserve some of the cooking water.

Place sautéed onion, steamed squash, 2 tablespoons of the cooking water, silken tofu, vegan buttery spread, nutritional yeast, salt, cayenne, garlic powder and lemon juice in a high speed blender and process until smooth, hot and steamy, a minute or more. Use immediately on cooked pasta or on steamed veggies.

Per 1/2 cup serving: 77 calories, 3.5 g fat, 0.7 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 3.2 g protein, 9.6 g carbohydrates and 2.3 g dietary fiber.

Vegan Mac and Cheese

[makes 4 main dish servings or 6 side servings]

8 ounces of elbow pasta

2 1/2 cups vegan cheese sauce

Prepare pasta according to package. Drain and return to pot.

Add hot vegan cheese sauce and stir well.

Serve immediately.

Per 4 main dish servings: 296.2 calories, 5.4 g fat, 0.9 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 11.0 g protein, 53.9 g carbohydrates and 4.9 g dietary fiber.

Per 6 side servings: 197.5 calories, 3.6 g fat, 0.6 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 7.3 g protein, 36.0 g carbohydrates and 3.3 g dietary fiber.

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Raw Purple Cauliflower Crudité With Tahini Dipping Sauce

Purple cauliflower from my garden.

Purple Cauliflower?

When I planted my winter garden, I picked up a tray of cauliflower starts. After planting them, I put in the little plastic marker so I'd know what I planted and noticed that it said, "purple cauliflower"! I thought I had bought the regular, run of the mill white cauliflower! You know, the kind that makes lovely white soups. I was a little annoyed that I didn't pay more attention to what I had bought but then I got excited at the thought of this unusual vegetable. But I did wonder, "what am I going to do with 14 heads of purple cauliflower?"

Yesterday I picked my first head. I broke off a piece and noticed how tender and lovely it was. What a shame it would be to cook it. I decided to just serve it raw. I cut it up in little pieces and put it on a sushi plate with dipping sauce. I may post more interesting and exotic recipes with the rest of the heads but last night we just enjoyed a really good glass of pinot while we dipped our first head of purple cauliflower in this yummy tahini dipping sauce.

Health Benefits

Purple cauliflower makes a delicious and unusual crudité. When eaten raw, it's packed with vitamin C. It's a cruciferous vegetable so it has cancer prevention properties. It does this in three ways: by detoxifying the body, as an antioxidant and as an anti-inflammatory. It gets its purple color from anthocyanins, the same antioxidant flavonoids found in red cabbage and red wine. So you get the added benefit from these beneficial phenolic phytochemicals.

Omega 6 to omega 3 ratio

I've written many times about how important it is for people not to eat too many omega 6 fatty acids without balancing them with omega 3. Otherwise, the omega 6 fatty acids will block the conversion of the ALA omega 3's to the more healthful DHA and EPA. The ratio for vegans should be anywhere from 4:1 to 1:1. The tahini in this dipping sauce has almost all omega 6's so in order to drive the ratio to 1:1, I add a tablespoon of flaxseed oil. That same dipping sauce with olive oil instead of flaxseed oil would have a ratio of almost 18:1 omega 6 to omega 3 and that is not as good for you, especially if you are vegan. This is not as critical for people who get their EPA and DHA omega 3's directly from fish.

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Raw Purple Cauliflower Crudité with Raw Tahini Dipping Sauce

[Makes 4 appetizer servings]

For the crudité

1 head raw purple cabbage (cut up)

For the dipping sauce

2 tablespoons raw tahini

2 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon nama shoyu soy sauce

2 tablespoon raw agave nectar

1 garlic clove, mashed and finely minced

1 tablespoon of cold pressed, unrefined flaxseed oil

Thoroughly combine all of the ingredients for the dipping sauce. Divide up the cauliflower pieces onto 4 sushi plates and serve with small soy sauce bowls filled with 2 tablespoons of tahini dipping sauce.

Per serving: 143.6 calories, 7.3 g fat, 0.8 g saturated fat, 1.9 g ALA omega 3 and 2.0 g omega 6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 4.5 g protein, 18.6 g carbohydrates and 4.0 g fiber.

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Hearty Vegan Barley Mushroom Stew, Low In Fat And Calories But Rich In Health Benefits

Medley of local mushrooms.

The Weather is Changing

Woke up to some chilly fall weather this morning. Time for barley mushroom stew. I'm reposting this from a recipe I wrote 2 years ago with some improvements.

We Don't Need to be SIck!
The number 1 cause of death in the United States is heart disease. The number 2 cause of death is cancer. This doesn’t have to be the case. Although people are quick to point out their “bad genes” and tell you that their health conditions were “passed down”, I don’t completely buy it. Yes, certain genes pass on terrible diseases, or at least your propensity to get these diseases. And, in some cases, very little can be done about it. But in most cases (some estimate over 80%), your parents’ degenerative disorders, like cardiovascular disease, diabetes and even cancer, do not have to be a fait du compli. I believe that it’s not “genes” that we pass down, but “recipes” and “lifestyle habits”. You can help break the chain by not smoking, increasing your level of activity and of course, eating a healthy diet. The American Dietetic Association claims that vegetarians have lower rates of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity and other diseases.

How Barley can help Prevent Heart Disease
In 2005, the FDA approved the health claim that the soluble dietary fiber, beta-glucan, found in barley can reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. This is the same fiber that gives oats their heart healthy qualities. Studies have also shown that barley can lower total and LDL cholesterol in both men and women. High fiber foods, such as barley, have also shown to improve blood sugar levels and protect against colon cancer. This ancient grain is also a good source of manganese and selenium (a very powerful antioxidant).

Mushrooms - A True Longevity Food
Mushrooms have been used in Chinese medicine for centuries to promote longevity. There are thousands of mushroom species. (DO NOT, however, pick wild mushrooms, as many of them are fatally toxic.) This low calorie, low fat, delicious food has been shown to boost your immune system, suppress tumors, resist both bacterial and viral infections and support cardiovascular health. Mushrooms are also high in B vitamins, copper, selenium, potassium, magnesium and phosphorus. Many people have just eaten the little white, button mushrooms, but for the most health benefits, branch out and try shitake, crimini, portobello, oyster and many others. Some of these can be rather pricey, but they don’t weigh much and they are worth every penny. Look for local mushroom growers in your area.

Hearty, Low Calorie Main Course
This barley mushroom stew is a low calorie, low fat, nutritious main course which combines the magical powers of barley and mushrooms. To add color and many healthy plant chemicals, this recipe includes red and green bell peppers. Red peppers contain lycopene, a carotenoid that has gotten a lot of recent attention in its ability to protect against cancer and heart disease. To add some "meat-like" flavor, you can toss in your favorite vegan link. My favorite is Field Roast Smoked Apple Sausage.

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Barley, Mushroom Stew

[makes 4 large servings]
2 t olive oil

1 1/2 cups diced onions

1 1/2 cups diced carrots

1 1/2 cups diced celery

3 small cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pound of assorted mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
2/3 cup of pearl barley, rinsed

4 cups veggie broth
1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 shakes of cayenne pepper (or to taste)

2 bell peppers, 1 red, 1 green, diced

1 Field Roast smoked apple sage vegan sausage link (optional)
3 T of fresh parsley, chopped

On medium heat, sauté the onion, carrots and celery in 2 teaspoons of olive oil for 4 minutes.

Add the garlic, stir for a minute and then the mushrooms. Cook until they soften, about 5 to 8 minutes.

Add the barley, veggie broth, bay leaf, salt, black pepper and cayenne (NOT the peppers) and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and cook for 35 minutes.

Add the peppers and cook an additional 15 to 20 minutes or until the barley is tender and much of the broth is absorbed.

If you want to add a vegan link, take the link and dice it into small pieces. Sauté in a small, lightly greased non-stick pan until it is warm and crisp. Stir into the soup right before serving.

Remove the bay leaf and garnish each bowl with ½ T of parsley.

Per serving (no vegan link): 237.3 calories, 2.8 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 7.2 g protein, 46.3 g carbohydrates and 9.5 g of dietary fiber.

Per serving with one vegan link: 297.3 calories, 5.3 g fat, 0.3 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 13.7 g protein, 49.1 g carbohydrates and 10.3 g of dietary fiber.

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How I Develop Recipes And Nutritional Information For This Blog

How Engineers Cook!

I usually start my blog with a beautiful picture of food. So this morning you are probably wondering why I have a picture of a piece of paper filled with numbers and food droppings. I thought it would be fun to explain to you how I develop recipes and calculate the nutritional information. If you have Excel on your computer, you can use this technique to develop your own healthful recipes at home.

As some of you know, I started my career as an electrical engineer and then spent 3 decades working in high tech. So when I traded my lap top for a sauce pan, I couldn't totally abandon my love of engineering tools. Especially the Excel spreadsheet!

My goal for recipes is that they be delicious, healthy, easy to make and nutritionally balanced. Sometimes I have to make a dish quite a few times before I get it just right. I'm currently writing my first cookbook so I'm taking this opportunity to fine tune and improve many of your favorites recipes from this blog.

The Steps

The first pass recipe

I usually start with an ingredient that inspires me. In the case of the Thai Garden Stir Fry, pictured above, it was the head of cabbage and a zucchini that I had from my garden. Often I'm inspired by another recipe that I love but I want to make it vegan or more healthful. Sometimes the amounts of each vegetable I use happens to be the amount I have on hand. Seasoning will be whatever sounds good to me or whatever herbs I have available.

I cook up the initial recipe, carefully writing down amounts, times and temperatures and number or resulting servings. I take pictures and then feed it to my husband and anyone else who is around for feedback. I take a notepad to the dinner table and write down ideas to improve the dish while we are eating.

The spread sheet

I then list all the ingredients and their amounts on a spread sheet. The ingredients are on the left side and across the top I list the nutrients I'm interested in. I usually list: calories, g of total and saturated fat, mg of cholesterol, g of protein, g of carbs and g of fiber. If the recipe has nuts and seeds or other ingredients high in essential fatty acids, I list omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids.

Nutritional information

I then fill in the spread sheet with nutritional information. I start with information from SELFNutritionData or Calorie count websites and if they don't have what I need, I use other resources on the internet, my text books or manufacturers information.

If the recipe has too many calories or fat, I look at the spreadsheet for the offending ingredient and either reduce it or substitute it. This is tricky because you don't want to ruin the flavor.

One of the things I pay a lot of attention to is the balance of omega 6 to omega 3 fatty acids. Since vegans do not eat fish, they depend on the conversion of ALA omega 3 fatty acid to DHA and EPA. This doesn't happen very efficiently (I actually recommend supplementing with an algae derived DHA and EPA). One of the things that effects this conversion is that vegans eat too much omega 6. So I try and keep my recipes high in omega 3 and try never to have more than a 4:1 ratio of omega 6 to omega 3. You may notice that I use lots of flaxseed oil, flax, hemp and chia seeds, as well as English walnuts, all high in omega 3.

Adjust the ingredients

I take a copy of the first pass spread sheet to the kitchen and use it to make notes when I cook the dish a second time (hence the messy paper in the picture). I now adjust the ingredients to optimize the nutritional content of the recipe and incorporate the feedback from those who tasted the dish. Not exactly what Julia Child did but she wasn't an engineer.

Sometimes it works

Some of my dishes make it to the blog and some don't. But the important thing is it's fun experimenting with different vegetables, fruits, grains, nuts, seeds and spices. And by creating a spread sheet and looking up the nutrients, you learn what's in the foods you are eating- good and bad. Give it a try!

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Vegan Blueberry Orange Muffins With Omega 3 Rich Flaxseeds - No Eggs Needed For These Fluffy, Low Sugar Muffins!

No Eggs Needed

My husband is the baker of the family (until this morning when I created these beautiful muffins!). For years he added eggs to everything he baked, even recipes that didn't call for them. He loved to see his baked goods rise and was convinced that the eggs were the key ingredient.

But after learning some tricks of vegan baking, we figured out that many of our favorite recipes can be made by using other techniques. In this recipe, the use of 1 tablespoon of baking powder does the trick.

5 Reasons For Omitting Eggs

1. They are expensive

Eggs can cost from 20 to 40 cents per egg depending on their size and how they are grown (organic, free range, etc.). Why pay that extra money when you don't need to?

2. Eggs are a possible health risk

Eggs are a source of Salmonella contamination. I'm sure you remember last summers recall of millions of salmonella infected eggs. Although not from eggs, my grandson had a life threatening case of salmonella and believe me, it's definitely something you don't want to experience.

3. Think of the poor chickens

A typical battery cage used to house egg-laying hens is the size of a sheet of paper. They are stacked in tiers and chickens never see the light of day. Jonathan Safran Foer, author of "Eating Animals" compares it to being stuck in a crowded elevator your entire life. Even "cage free" or "free range" could mean that the chickens are packed together and debeaked. He says, "I could keep a flock of hens under my sink and call them free-range".

4. Egg allergies

Egg allergies is one of the most common childhood allergies. But it doesn't always end at childhood. I was diagnosed with egg allergies as an adult. Eating factory farmed eggs made me dizzy, nauseated and gave me a headache. Organic eggs from my friends happy and well cared for pet chickens did not have this effect on me. This is something I cannot explain.

5. The environment

The egg industry generates tons of chicken waste that contains nitrates and other pollutants that can get into our water supply. Roxarsone, an arsenic feed additive, is routinely given to chickens to fight parasites and increase their growth, Like nitrates, arsenic can ultimately finds its way into drinking water. The enormous demand for cheap eggs has led to huge factory farms that are posing these serious environmental risks.

So I offer you this egg free muffin recipe. I encourage all of you, vegan or not, to give it a try!

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Blueberry Orange Muffins with Flaxseeds

[makes 12 muffins]

2 cups white whole wheat flour (or half whole wheat and half white)

2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds

8 packets stevia (optional)

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon sea salt

½ cup organic cane sugar or Sucanat

zest from 1 orange (1 teaspoon)

¼ cup fresh orange juice

½ cup unsweetened, non-GMO soy milk

2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 ½ cups frozen blueberries, unthawed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 12 muffin cups or line with paper liners and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, flaxseeds, stevia, baking powder and salt.

In another bowl, combine sugar, orange zest, orange juice, soy milk, applesauce and vegetable oil. Add to dry ingredients and stir until just blended. Fold in blueberries.

Fill each muffin cup three quarters full with batter and bake until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center and golden brown (about 18 to 22 minutes). Remove from oven, cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, remove from pan and serve warm.

Per serving: 164.5 calories, 5.8 g fat, 0.7 g saturated fat, 330 mg ALA omega 3 and 691 mg omega 6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 3.3 g protein, 24.9 g carbohydrates, and 3 g dietary fiber.

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Anti-Aging Smoothie - Raw Frozen Red Or Purple Grapes With A Shot Of Matcha Green Tea, A Good Combination Of Resveratrol And Catechins

Freeze cleaned, dry grapes in a plastic basket.

Resveratrol and Anti-aging

You may have heard about resveratrol, the compound found in the skins of red grapes and various other sources like berries and peanuts. It has been accredited, by some, for explaining the French Paradox (the ability for the French to eat a rich diet and not suffer high incidences of cardiovascular disease because of the red wine they consume). It also has anti inflammatory, antioxidant and cancer preventive properties. The phenomenon most discussed, however, is how resveratrol has anti-aging benefits by activating sirtuins, a class of longevity genes in the body. Sirtuins can reduce cellular decay and promote cell repair. (I'm so excited about this compound, it is one of the few supplements that I take on a daily basis). Raw red and purple grapes are one of the best sources of resveratrol. Once heated, the amount of resveratrol in grapes drops dramatically.

Grape seeds also have many health benefits due to their antioxidant properties. They are associated with improving blood circulation, lowering blood pressure, improving blood cholesterol levels and preventing hardening of the arteries. So if you have a high speed blender that is capable of grinding seeds, you can make this smoothie with seeded grapes.

Matcha Green Tea

Green tea, with its rich catechins called EGCG (epigalloctechin-3-gallate) also have been associated with anti aging health benefits. I particular like Matcha Green Tea which is a green tea powder, especially when making smoothies. Green tea has a little caffeine so putting it in your morning smoothie certainly helps you wake up and gives you a jolt of energy. I'm pretty sensitive to caffeine and had to give up coffee years ago but I'm very tolerant to the caffeine in green tea. Another benefit of green tea is that it can lower blood sugar.

Frozen Grapes - A Good Weight Loss Tip

Besides putting them in smoothies, frozen grapes make a great little dessert. If you are trying to lose weight and want something sweet, pop some frozen grapes in your mouth. The frozen texture and sweetness of the grapes are very satisfying and may keep you from eating that bowl of Ben and Jerry's!

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Anti Aging Smoothie

[serves 2]

2 cups red or purple grapes, frozen

1 large or 2 small bananas

2 teaspoons powdered matcha green tea

1 tablespoon ground flax seeds

2 cups cold water

6 to 8 drops liquid stevia (or other sweetener,optional)

To freeze grapes, rinse and dry well and place in a basket like the one pictured above. You can also place them on a plate or cookie sheet that has some edges to prevent them from rolling off. Once frozen, you can store them in a ziplock bag until needed.

Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Serve immediately.

Per serving: 183 calories, 1.5 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0.8 g ALA omega 3 and 0.3 g omega 6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 2 g protein, 43.5 g carbohydrates, 31.5 g sugar from fruit, and 4 g fiber.

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Vegan Grilled Rosemary Portobello Mushroom Burgers With Spicy Red Pepper Hummus And Watercress On Sprouted Whole Grain Buns

Place on large dish and brush rosemary marinade on both sides.

Portobell0s on the grill - you can also broil them in the oven.

Portobello Mushrooms, a Great Meat Alternative

Eating less meat or giving it up completely doesn't mean you can't enjoy a good burger! I can write about how much riboflavin, selenium and other key nutrients these wonderful mushrooms contain or what a good source of protein and fiber they are but one of their most important attributes is simply this: THEY TASTE LIKE MEAT! So if you are looking for a natural meat alternative that is free of highly processed wheat gluten or soy protein isolate, look no further.

This delicious portobello burger recipe also includes spicy garbanzo hummus, a complete protein. It's pretty easy to make but feel free to use a ready-made hummus from your local grocery if you are in a pinch for time. Throw this on a sprouted whole grain bun with your favorite sprouts or watercress and you may have the tastiest and healthiest burger in the world! And, it by-passed the factory farms and its production didn't generate any greenhouse gas. Life is good.

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Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burger with Spicy Red Pepper Hummus

[makes 4 burgers and 2 cups of hummus]

For the marinade and burger

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, minced

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

4 large Portobello mushrooms, stems carefully removed

For the hummus

One 15 ounce can garbanzo beans, drained (1 1/2 cups)

2 tablespoons tahini

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 cup roasted red peppers (8 ounce jar)

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

The rest

4 sprouted whole grain buns

1 cup watercress or sprouts

To make the marinade, combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, rosemary, black pepper, garlic powder and dijon mustard in a small bowl. Carefully remove the stems from the portobello mushrooms and clean with a damp paper towel. Place the mushrooms in a large casserole dish or plate and slowly brush the marinade on both sides. Set aside.

To make the hummus, rinse the roasted red peppers well, removing any seeds or blackened skin. Combine garbanzo beans, tahini, garlic, lemon juice, roasted red peppers, cayenne and salt in a food processor or blender and process until smooth, occasionally scraping down the sides. This will make more than you need for the burgers.

Cook the marinated portobellos on a hot grill for about 10 minutes turning a few times. You can also broil in the oven or cook on an electric panini maker or George Foreman grill. If you'd like, brush a little olive oil on the buns and throw on the grill until lightly toasted.

To assemble the burger, place 1/4 cup of spicy hummus on the top half of the bun and 1/4 cup of watercress or sprouts on the bottom half of the bun. For additional flavor, you could put additional dijon on the bottom side of the bun under the watercress. Place the cooked portobello mushroom on the watercress and serve immediately.

Per burger with bun, watercress and 1/4 cup hummus: 351.5 calories, 15.5 g fat, 1.8 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 15.7 g protein, 44.2 g carbohydrates and 8.3 g fiber.

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Raw Cucumber And Radish Salad With Lemon Dill Dressing

A Quick and Beautiful Raw Salad

My daughter Linda sent me this lovely picture and recipe the other day so I'm passing it along. It's a good way to use up those final cucumbers from your summer garden and the new radishes from your fall garden. Cucumbers are more of a summer dish because of their "cooling" properties, however, those of you on the west coast who are experiencing our fall heat wave can still appreciate this.

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Linda's Cucumber and Radish Salad with Lemon Dill Dressing

[serves 2]

1 medium cucumber, peeled and cut into cubes

5 small radishes, sliced

1 tiny handful of fresh dill, minced or 1/2 teaspoon dried

2 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place cucumbers and radishes in a bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, dill, salt and pepper then slowly whisk in olive oil. Toss dressing with the cucumbers and radishes and serve.

Per serving: 78.8 calories, 7.0 g fat, 1.0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0.5 g protein, 2.3 g carbohydrates and 0.5 g fiber.

Add tomatoes for more of a Greek vibe or make the salad with cucumbers alone.

Vegan Thai Garden Stir Fry With Rice Noodles - Penseys' Bangkok Blend

Stir fry onions, peppers, shitake and zucchini with garlic and ginger.

Add cabbage to other veggies and toss frequently.

Fast growing Chinese Kaboko cabbage from my garden.

Penseys' Bangkok Blend for Thai style cooking.

Soak rice noodles in hot water, rinse and add to stir fry.

Tonight's Dinner brought to you by Mother Earth!

It was one of those evenings when I was trying to use up the last of the zucchini from my summer garden and an enormous head of Chinese cabbage from my new winter garden. I just planted 6 starts of Kaboko Chinese cabbage about 4 weeks prior and already had these huge heads ready to eat. So I took out my non-stick electric wok and cooked up all the veggies I had in the house along with some fresh shitake mushrooms and rice noodles.

Health Benefits of Cabbage

There have been hundreds of studies that have linked cabbage to cancer prevention. This cruciferous vegetable provides this benefit due to its high content of antioxidants and glucosinolates. Cabbage also can lower cholesterol. Many of these studies show maximum benefit when the cabbage is steamed or sautéed only for a brief period of time. In this recipe, the cabbage is added towards the end and cooked for only a few minutes so it should provide the maximum health benefits.

Bangkok Blend

Did you ever purchase an interesting spice and forget to use it? I went crazy with a Penseys catalog a while back and bought dozens of spices. Some of them made it to the back shelf and were forgotten. Bangkok blend unfortunately, was one of them. When I decided to make this stir fry I was looking around for spices to use and rediscovered it. Bangkok blend is a mixture of sweet peppers, garlic, ginger, black pepper, galangal, hot peppers, lemon grass, basil and cilantro. It's nice and spicy and is wonderful in this stir fry. I use 1 tablespoon in this recipe for medium heat. For a less spicy dish, you can reduce it to 2 teaspoons and if you want to bring tears to your eyes, you can use 4 or more teaspoons.

How to make Rice Noodles

In case I'm not the only one who ignores instructions clearly written on a package, I thought I'd point out that rice noodles are never boiled. To cook them properly, you boil water, remove it from the heat, immerse the rice noodles in the hot water for the specified time, drain and serve. The first time I cooked rice noodles, I assumed you boiled them like spaghetti. I'm Italian. How else would you do it? After watching the rice noodles disintegrate before my eyes, I decided to read the package.

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Thai Garden Stir Fry with Rice Noodles

[serves 4]

1 tablespoon Penseys' Bangkok Blend (or other Thai seasoning)

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon unrefined sesame oil

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup thinly sliced onion

1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper

2 cups thinly sliced zucchini

2 cups fresh shitake mushrooms, cut in half or thirds

1 head Chinese cabbage, 1 inch slices (about 10 cups)

7 ounces of dry rice noodles

This dish is best cooked in a non stick wok.

Mix Bangkok blend and cornstarch in a small bowl. Slowly mix in soy sauce and water and set aside.

Boil water for noodles. Remove it from the heat. Soak noodles while making the stir fry which will take about 8 or 9 minutes. Make sure noodles remain firm, rinse and set aside.

Heat oil and quickly stir in ginger and garlic until fragrant (no more than 10 seconds).

Add onions, peppers, zucchini and shitake mushrooms and toss frequently for 5 minutes until the veggies just begin to soften.

Add cabbage to the wok and toss frequently until the cabbage and all veggies are crisp tender, about 4 minutes.

Stir up cornstarch mixture and mix into the stir fry until it thickens.

Carefully mix in the rice noodles and serve immediately.

Per serving: 304 calories, 4.4 g fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 9.8 g protein, 58.8 g carbohydrates and 5.0 g fiber.

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Vegan Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding - Rich, Creamy And A Great Source Of Omega 3 Fatty Acid And Soy Protein

All you do is stir chia seeds into chocolate milk!

I Love Chia Seeds!

As many of you know, chia seeds are one of my favorite power foods. They provide over 2 grams of ALA omega 3 fatty acids and over 4 grams of fiber per tablespoon. They also are a very good source of manganese, phosphorus, iron and calcium. The best thing about them is that when they are put into soy milk, for example, they become the consistency of tapioca. I've published over a dozen postings on chia seeds so be sure to check them out.

More Chocolate

I must be in the mood for chocolate this week. I had some leftover soy milk from making Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream for Tuesday's posting and it occurred to me that I had never tried making chocolate chia pudding. How can that be? I've made so many things with chia seeds but never chocolate pudding.

I immediately poured some chia seeds into the chocolate soy milk, gave them a vigorous stir, and they started to thicken beautifully right before my eyes. I threw the mixture in the refrigerator until the next day so they would get really thick and creamy, and the result was amazing. How simple can it get? Two ingredients with hardly any prep time. You MUST try this.

I need to experiment with a raw vegan version of this. I imagine it will just be a matter of replacing the cinnamon with some raw cacao in my Raw chia seed pudding recipe and perhaps increasing the number of dates.

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Vegan Chocolate Chia Pudding

[serves 4]

2 cups organic, non-GMO chocolate soy milk

5 to 6 tablespoons raw chia seeds (depending on how thick you want it)

Berries (optional)

Combine chia seeds with chocolate soy milk and stir vigorously with a fork for several minutes. Let sit for 15 minutes and stir again until the chia seeds are well blended and separated. Let the mixture sit out for an hour, stir one more time and refrigerate at least one day until thickened and firm. This is a good dessert to make a day or two in advance in order to give it time to set. When ready to serve, top with strawberries or raspberries and divide into 4 small serving dishes.

Per serving: 106.3 calories, 5.6 g fat, 0.7 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 5.1 g protein, 15.2 g carbohydrates, 6.2 g fiber and 3.1 g ALA omega 2.7 fatty acid.