Eat this to prevent cancer and heart disease!

The family is gathered for dinner, Danielle is helping me prep the food, and life is good!

Hello, friends! I want to talk to you today about one of my FAVORITE things to eat. The greatest thing about it besides the deliciousness is how totally good it is for you. What I am referring to is…. the avocado. A simple and humble fruit, but WOW does it pack a healthy punch of nutrients and antioxidants that helps prevent all kinds of really bad illnesses. So my goal here is to tell you why you should be eating more avocados, and then show you a recipe for a scrumptious and easy avocado salad that I made the other day.

The main thing to remember about the avocado is that it is a fruit, but unlike most other fruits it contains healthy fats instead of carbohydrates. Each avocado has approximately 160 calories, 2 grams of protein and 15 grams of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs). Although it has 9 grams of carbs 7 of them are fiber, which means there are only 2 net carbs, making avocados a low-carb friendly plant food.

Avocados have:

Vitamin K: 26% of the RDA.
Folate: 20% of the RDA.
Vitamin C: 17% of the RDA.
Potassium: 14% of the RDA.
Vitamin B5: 14% of the RDA.
Vitamin B6: 13% of the RDA.
Vitamin E: 10% of the RDA.
Small amounts of Magnesium, Manganese, Copper, Iron, Zinc, Phosphorous, Vitamin A, B1 (Thiamine), B2 (Riboflavin) and B3 (Niacin).

Again, avocado is a high fat food. In fact, 77% of the calories in it are from fat, making it one of the fattiest plant foods in existence. But they don’t just contain any fat… the majority of the fat in avocado is oleic acid. This is a monounsaturated fatty acid that is also the major component in olive oil and believed to be responsible for some of its beneficial effects. Oleic acid has been linked to reduced inflammation and been shown to have beneficial effects on genes linked to cancer.

When it comes to nutrients, the total amount of them is not the only thing that matters. We also need to be able to absorb them… move them from the digestive tract and into the body, where they can be used. Some nutrients are “fat soluble,” meaning that they need to be combined with fat in order to be utilized. This includes vitamins A, D, E and K… along with antioxidants like carotenoids. One study showed that adding avocado or avocado oil to either salad or salsa can increase antioxidant absorption by 2.6 to 15-fold. So… not only is avocado highly nutritious, it can dramatically increase the nutrient value of other plant foods that you are eating. This is an excellent reason to always include a healthy fat source when you eat veggies. Without it, a lot of the beneficial plant nutrients will go to waste.

From a food perspective avocados are also very versatile to cook with and to eat. Besides guacamole, which most people think of when they think about making food containing avocados, you can use them in many different dishes. I slice them on top of meat, use them in salads, slice them on top of tacos or nachos, and I love them with eggs too.

I also love the recipe I’m going to share with you today. It’s an avocado salad and the reason I like it so much is that I love guacamole, but when I eat it I find that I eat half a bag of tortilla chips and that is too many carbs and calories for me. It also has black beans in it, which ups the fiber content as well as the protein, and makes it taste even better as well. I hope you enjoy it too!

Avocado Salad

4 medium tomatoes, diced
1 bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup diced onion
2 seeded and minced jalapeno peppers
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (2 limes)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
2 ripe avocados, seeded, peeled, and 1/2 inch diced

Add the tomatoes, pepper, beans, onion, jalapenos, and lime zest in a large bowl.

Whisk together lime juice, EVOO, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and pour over the vegetables. Toss well.

Carefully fold the avocados into the salad before you’re ready to serve it. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. That’s all there is to it!

I know you’ll love the taste of this avocado salad, it’s got the zesty punch of the lime juice and zest, combined with the creaminess of the avocados, the heat of the jalapenos, and the sweetness of the tomatoes. It’s a delicious variety of flavors! And remember, it’s super healthy for you too. Eating salads like this will help you live a life of vitality- with Valerie:)

One Fish, Two Fish… it’s good for you, Fish!

Lenten ladies!

It’s Lent for me, and many other Christians in the world. Lots of us follow the Lenten custom of not eating meat on Fridays until Easter. Now, not eating meat does not mean fish, because fish is not meat, even though fish is meaty. I get many questions about this from people who don’t follow this custom, and I know it has a biblical foundation, though I’m not sure what it is exactly. Anyway, I think it’s a healthy habit to get into regardless of your religious affiliation, and I try to eat fish at least 2 or 3 times a week. In today’s post I wanted to let you know why fish is so great for you and then give you a REALLY SUPER EASY RECIPE FOR A SUPER DELISH FISH DISH- I’m so rhymey today, aren’t I?!

Salmon is a rich source of Omega 3 fatty acids- the good stuff!

Ok, so why is fish so good for us you ask? Great question, my friends! Well, first it’s low in calories and high in protein, which is always a good thing. Mostly, though, the reason fish is so good for us is because of Omega 3’s. Omega 3’s are fatty acids that improves the immune system, and helps prevent blindness, depression, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, lupus, kidney disease and cancer.

Rainbow trout is another excellent source of Omega 3’s- and it tastes good too!

The fish with the highest amounts of Omega 3’s are farmed Atlantic salmon, tinned anchovies, sardines, Pollock, oysters, Albacore tuna, wild caught Salmon, farmed rainbow trout, and my old friend canned light tuna. However, even white fish has a significant amount of Omega 3’s, so if that’s the only kind of fish you like, eat it and enjoy the Omega 3’s! The recipe I’m going to share with you next can be made with any kind of fish that you would like to use. I just always say to use the freshest fish available in your area and don’t be afraid to ask the butcher which fish is most fresh. He/she will lead you in the right direction. Here we go!

Ingredients assembled for Easy, Delish Fish Dish!

Easy Peasy Fish and Salsa

1/4 cup chopped, pitted green olives
2 Tbsp capers
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 handful parsley or cilantro, roughly chopped
Juice of one lime
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Fresh or pickled jalapenos chopped (optional)
4 fish filets 4-6 oz each
Salt and pepper to taste
4 large sheets aluminum foil

Salsa ingredients in the bowl and ready to go onto the fish!

1. Make the salsa first- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees or heat your grill to medium low. In a mixing bowl, combine the olives, capers, cherry tomatoes, parsley or cilantro (cilantro is my personal choice), lime juice, olive oil and jalapenos if using.

Fish with salsa on top- ready to go into the oven!

2. Assemble the packets- Fold four sheets of aluminum foil in half lengthwise, and then unfold and lay them on the counter. Season each fish fillet with salt and place it on one side of the foil, parallel to the crease. Top each fillet with one quarter of the salsa. Fold the foil over so it covers the fish completely and then roll the edges tightly to seal the package.

Fishies in foil, cooking away in the oven!

3. Cook the fish- Place the packets on the grill or in the oven. cook the fillets until their done all the way through, about 8-10 minutes on the grill, 20 minutes in the oven. Slash the packets open just before eating.

All done and ready to plate!

This is flavorful and simple, however it will definitely impress whoever you’re serving. It seems like a much more complex dish because of the flavors, but because of the quick prep and cook time you can seriously be ready to eat in 25 minutes, no joke. Make some brown rice to go along with this, serve with guacamole and you’re done!

This will be my lunch and I CAN’T WAIT TO DIG IN!

So there you go, my friends, a little info about fish and one super tasty recipe for a simple fish dish. Remember to eat fish at least once or twice a week, and not just because it’s Lent. Fish is high in protein, low in calories, and it is full of Omega 3’s to protect you from some heinous illnesses. Enjoy your fish, it will help you live a life of vitality- with Valerie!

Super Healthy Superbowl Sunday? It’s Super Easy!

Ready for the Superbowl?!!

Ok, here’s the deal, did you know that Superbowl Sunday is the NUMBER ONE EATING DAY OF THE YEAR? Yes, that’s right! More food is eaten on this upcoming Sunday than any other day of the year! Even Thanksgiving is a distant second to Superbowl Sunday in terms of calories. And get this, OVER 6,000 CALORIES ARE CONSUMED!!! When I read that statistic I was stunned. I also read that the week before Superbowl Sunday is also at the top of the list in terms of calories. I guess anticipating the gorge fest brings on early pre-gorge fests.

The typical gathering!

I read this morning that the most popular food item served at Superbowl parties is vegetables! What?!! I guarantee you that people aren’t eating 6,000 calories of veggies on Sunday! Though, vegetables are the most popular food item, we finally get to the root of the problem when you hear the most consumed food items on this day, which are chicken wings and pizza. According to Fox Sports, Pizza Hut will deliver 2 MILLION PIZZAS with 1,700 orders per minute occurring shortly before kickoff. One slice of pepperoni and sausage pizza is 350 calories and three chicken wings are approximately 255 calories so you can see how this meal is problematic calorically. That’s before the beer or margaritas are consumed, and the chips, dips, and desserts too! Can you see now how you can easily get to 6,000 calories with a four hour plus game?!!

So you see the concern that I have, don’t you? And you should be concerned too! With all of this in mind I began to think about my wonderful readers and how I could advise you to make good choices on Sunday (and every day, of course!). The first scenario is the easiest one, which is if you are the one hosting the Superbowl party. Then you can control the menu and preparations. You can also control what your guests bring, that is if they call to ask you.

The second scenario is more difficult- if you are someone else’s party guest. Then, you have MUCH less control over what is served and your choices will be more limited to what is available. However, I have a solution for you that I hope you’ll like (and it’s not to starve yourself by the way, I’d never say that!). The solution is CHILI!! Specifically, you call host of said party and ask him/her if you can bring something to contribute to the party and when he/she says yes then you offer to bring a pot of chili. It won’t be turned down because EVERYBODY loves chili! This is how you will eat safely and healthily on Sunday.

My yummy (and healthy chili)!

Why is chili such a good solution you ask? Well I’ll tell you, it’s because chili is healthy and filling! The beans and meat provide a nice serving of protein, the tomatoes and tomato sauce a great serving of vegetables, and the beans give you a nice punch of fiber which fills you up and helps you stay full. Calorie wise you’re better off with chili too because one serving (one cup) is only 259 calories and you will feel FULL after you eat it. If you have a cup of chili, one (only one!) beer, a handful of tortilla chips and guacamole you will only have consumed about 600 calories. That’s a FAR CRY FROM 6,000!! Plus all of the nutrition you will have gained from this meal is light years away from the nutritional wasteland of greasy pizza and fried chicken wings!

The best salad I’ve ever made- REALLY!

I’m going to share my recipe for chili, which I think is simple and fabulous. I’m also including the MOST DELICIOUS SALAD RECIPE EVER which I just made up the other night when I was in the mood for something different. I served the salad with my chili and I think the Mexican flavors in the salad really complemented the similar flavors in the chili. Bring the salad and the chili to the gathering and you will make some friends I promise you! If it’s your own gathering make my salad and chili, add some salsa, guacamole and tortilla chips and you’ve got a HEALTHY, DELICIOUS PARTAY!

My yummy chili con carne

2 lbs ground beef
1 large can (28 oz) pureed tomatoes
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 onion diced
2 cups water
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 big cans (28 oz) kidney beans
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

First, sauté onions and minced garlic in a dash of extra virgin olive oil, then after about 3 minutes, add the ground beef and cook until no longer pink. Next add all the rest of the ingredients and either put that into a crockpot and cook on low for 6 hours, or leave it on the stove on low heat, stirring frequently until thick and bubbly. You may need to add more spices as it cooks so taste it every once in a while. And that’s all there is to it! Done!

Chili and Mexican salad- what could be better?!

The most delicious salad ever

1 bag of organic lettuce greens of your choice
1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and with insides removed, chopped
1 stalk of green onion chopped
1 medium tomato chopped
1 handful of fresh cilantro leaves, rough chopped
1/2 avocado chopped
1 lime
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Take the first 6 ingredients and add them to a large bowl. Then in a smaller bowl take the next four ingredients and make the vinaigrette by squeezing one lime into the bowl and then whisking in the olive oil until the two ingredients are combined. Then add the salt and pepper, stir, add the vinaigrette to the salad and toss. This one’s done too! The creaminess of the avocado makes the salad so rich and the jalapenos, since they’ve been deseeded and the insides removed, are no longer really spicy, just fruity and flavorful. The cilantro adds that delicious freshness too. And the lime makes the vinaigrette really pop with flavor! It’s just really good!

And that’s how you avoid consuming 6,000 calories on Sunday, my friends! If you make a pot of chili and a delicious salad you will feel satisfied and know you’ve eaten something really good for your body. I know you can do it! Enjoy yourself in moderation and you’ll be living a life of vitality- with Valerie! 🙂

Eat Clean, Stay Lean!

Healthy and pretty too!

Well, friends, the kids have all gone back to school and we’ve survived subzero temperatures here in the Midwest so it’s officially the start of a new year. As I’ve said in past posts I do not believe in “resolutions” for the new year but I do try to set some goals for myself. One of those goals is to clean up my diet a bit. I ate quite a few sweets over the holidays, and more carbs (pasta, potatoes, etc) than usual. I feel sluggish and bloated right now. So, it’s time to get back to my healthy way of eating or as I call it, “Eat Clean, Stay Lean”. With that in mind I want to share a great salad that I’m eating right now. It’s tasty and satisfying- and healthy too. It’s particularly good at this time of year because oranges are in season right now in California and Florida, thus they’re readily available. The salad can be made with grapefruit as well if you prefer. My girls brought me a few oranges and grapefruit back from their recent Florida vacation, and they’re so juicy and delicious that I’ve used one in this recipe. I think you’ll really like this salad!

Winter Citrus Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

Assemble all ingredients first!

1. Assemble ingredients- 1/2 Bag of organic salad greens, 1 orange, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), 1 teaspoon minced onion, 5 black or Greek olives- pitted, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. This is enough for 2 side salads and will give you some vinaigrette left over.

Cut the skin and pith off the orange!

2. Cut the skin and pith off the orange- First cut down the orange to remove the skin and pith. The pith is the white part and it’s quite bitter so make sure you get it all off.

De skinned and pithed!

This is what the orange will look like after it’s done. Now it’s ready to supreme.

Making supremes!

3. Supreme the orange- You supreme (pronounced su- prem’) an orange (or any citrus fruit) when you cut the wedges out of the orange defined by the thin membrane that separates the wedges from each other. It makes for really pretty sections of orange in the salad and preserves the juice for the vinaigrette.

Squeeeeeeeze that orange!

4. Preserve the juice- Now you’re going to squeeze the heck out of the orange into a smaller bowl where you’ll make the vinaigrette. It will produce a ton of orange juice, more than you’d expect so keep squeezing til you can’t squeeze no more! 🙂 Then discard the pulp.

Vinaigrette made!

5. Make the vinaigrette- Add the minced onion, salt and pepper to your orange juice. Give a quick stir and then add your EVOO while whisking continually until combined. Taste, and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Add oranges and olives to your greens!

6. Get your salad ready for the vinaigrette- Add the oranges and olives to your salad greens in a large bowl. Then, pour approximately half the vinaigrette over the salad and toss well. Save the rest of the vinaigrette for future salads. It also tastes really nice added to quinoa or as a marinade for chicken or fish.

And that’s it! This is a delicious and nutritious salad. Flavorwise, you get the sweet/salty combination that I love from the oranges and olives, and the bit of minced onion gives it a nice flavor. Nutritionally, the oranges add a ton of vitamin C, the greens give antioxidants and fiber, and the EVOO and olives add heart healthy monounsaturated fats (MUFA’s). I ate this salad with a leftover pork patty we grilled the other day and a dollop of guacamole. Definitely a meal that works for my “Eat Clean, Stay Lean” goal. Try it, you’ll really like it! It will help you live a life of vitality- with Valerie!

Holy Guacamole!

Graduation! A time for fun, family, and food!

Tis the season- for picnics, graduation parties, family get-togethers, and pot luck gatherings. If you’re like me, always trying to determine what to bring at the last minute, I turn to my easy, quick go-to, my guacamole. Since I always have the ingredients on hand, it’s a fast and delicious addition to any meal! If you’ve never made guacamole, no fears, I will walk you through it step by step.

Guac ingredients and my Molcajete.

The first step is to assemble your ingredients, utensils and bowls. I use the following ingredients in my guacamole: 2 avocados, 1 medium sized tomato, a quarter of an onion, 1/4 cup cilantro, half a lime, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, salt and pepper to taste. I use the Spanish version of a mortar and pestle, called a Molcajete in which to make it, because I think it’s a really cool way to serve the guac.

Veggie wash.

Next, I use a vegetable and fruit cleanser to clean my vegetables before preparing them. I feel this is an essential step because even though I buy organic vegetables whenever possible I still want to make sure they are clean before serving them. There are numerous different fruit and vegetable wash products on the market today, the one I am currently using is called “Veggie Wash” and can be purchased at any grocery store.

An easy and neat way to get the pit out of an avocado.

Now it’s time to get the pit out of the avocado. It is easily done by taking a knife, piercing the pit, and while holding it over the trash, twisting the knife. The pit pops right out and can be discarded.

Removing the avocado from the skin.

Then, remove the avocado from the skin and place it in your bowl. I do this by first scoring the inside of the avocado, horizontally and vertically. Then I take a spoon and run it underneath the skin of the avocado and the inside is not only quickly separated from the skin but it’s already chopped into cubes from the scoring.

Rough chop of Cilantro.

After this step is complete, the next thing is to chop the cilantro. Now I admit I am no chef so my rough chop is very rough but it gets the job done. I start with a quarter cup of cilantro but you can use as much or as little as you’d like, and I chop it into small pieces. Add it to the avocado in the bowl.

Chopped avocado, cilantro and onion.

Next step is to chop your quarter onion. Again, I’m no chef so I try to dice the onion into small pieces so my family won’t get big chunks of raw onion when they’re eating, although a few large hunks usually end up in finished product. Use as much or as little onion as you like.

The addition of lime makes guacamole sublime!

Squeeze the juice of half a lime into the bowl. I think there is no substitute for fresh squeezed lime, those “lime in a bottle” products don’t even taste like lime to me, but if that works for you then go for it.

Use the pestle, or a spoon, to combine the ingredients.

Chop an entire tomato, add a teaspoon of minced garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Then, using the pestle or a spoon, I kind of smash the pieces of avocado, but I leave it a little chunky because I like it that way. However, if you like it smooth keep stirring and smashing until it gets to the texture you’d like it to be.

The all important taste test!

Now, the next step is very important. After combining the ingredients to your desired level of smoothness, taste your guacamole so you can determine the balance of flavors. If more salt or pepper, etc, are needed now is the time to add them before it is served.

Voila! The finished product!

I serve my guacamole with blue corn tortilla chips made by Garden of Eatin, which I purchase at Whole Foods or Earth Fare, my local health food grocery stores, but they are available at some regular grocery stores as well. They’re gluten free, non gmo (genetically modified), all natural and delicious too. Plus I think they make a nice color contrast with the green and red colors of the guacamole for presentation purposes. I also wiped down the sides of the Molcajete to make it look prettier. You may have to add more salt and pepper again at this time because I always think guacamole needs more salt, but have other people taste it and see what they think. Now the fun part happens when you get to eat your delish creation!

Wrap guacamole carefully to preserve it!

If any guacamole remains after everyone has enjoyed it, I have found a way to wrap my guacamole so that it doesn’t get brown and yucky looking. Most people wrap the top of the bowl with plastic wrap, but I actually put the wrap on the guacamole. I gather the leftover guac into a mound in the middle of the bowl and then place the plastic wrap directly on the guacamole making sure there is no air between the guac and the wrap. This keeps the guacamole green and fresh tasting for one or two days. Any longer than that and it will not taste or look good no matter what you do so eat it all before then.

My version of guacamole is very good for you, first it has avocado which is an excellent source of monounsaturated fatty acids or mufa’s. That’s the good for you plant based fat that is essential for enhancing heart health and protecting against chronic diseases. Even though guacamole has a relatively high amount of fat, it’s the healthy fat that can actually help you lose weight! It also has tomato which contains lycopene, vitamin C and folate, which may reduce cancer and heart disease risk. Guacamole is very fiber rich, with 15.4 grams of fiber in a 1 cup serving, that’s a significant amount given the minimum 20 grams of fiber we need every day. Fiber is very good for our hearts and our digestive systems, and it helps you feel full longer too.

Thanks for reading my post today and please feel free to leave comments. I hope this recipe works for you and if you try it, be sure to let me know! Buen apetito!

Valerie

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Vitality with Valerie

Sharing the importance of living a joyful and healthy lifestyle!

guacamole

Eat this to prevent cancer and heart disease!

One Fish, Two Fish… it’s good for you, Fish!

Super Healthy Superbowl Sunday? It’s Super Easy!

Eat Clean, Stay Lean!

Holy Guacamole!

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