Posts Tagged ‘sugar’

Vacation Food for Kids

Saturday, March 31st, 2012

Headed out on vacation for spring break? Lucky you! If you’re traveling, you might get a much-needed break from cooking, packing lunches, and washing dishes. But it can also mean that your kids are headed for a weeks’ worth of hamburger-and-fries kids’ meals. How can you keep the food reasonably healthy for your kids while you’re on the road? Depending on where you plan to eat, we’ve got a few ideas:

Restaurants and Fast Food Joints: You don’t have to order kids’ meals. Repeat: You don’t have to order kids’ meals. Let your kids think beyond chicken nuggets and pizza by ordering from the regular menu; if the portions are too big they can split an order. Also, there’s no rule that you have to get fries with that. If fries come with the kids’ meal, ask for fruit instead, and get a single order of fries for the table to share. That way they can fill up on fruit and treat the fries more like a snack.

Another issue that tends to come up at restaurants, especially at fast food places, is soda. Your kids don’t need soda. Let them drink water instead, or milk if they like, and if they want to have a sugary beverage for dessert that can be their choice (although it’s hard to picture a kid who would choose a soda over, say, some ice cream or a cookie).

Buffet Lines: Have you ever met a kid who doesn’t like those hotel breakfast buffets where everyone gets to choose his or her favorite meal? Unfortunately, most kids make a beeline straight for the sugar cereals. So have everyone line up for toast, fruit, and/or eggs first and let the cereal be a second course if they’re still hungry.

At dinner buffets, take a stop at the salad bar first. You don’t have to control what they are choosing but just make sure that everyone has at least one vegetable and one fruit.

Picnics: Packing your own meal as you head to the great outdoors? Think sturdy, nutritious foods like nuts, sunflower seeds, dried fruits, or granola bars or mixes. You don’t need to load up on all kinds of pre-packaged fruit snacks. Look for Mother Nature’s best package – an apple, an orange, a banana, or some grapes.

Train or Plane: Bring your own sturdy snacks (see above), or else you may get stuck ordering whatever is offered in the snack car or on the meal cart. For the most part, those foods are built for longevity – in other words, they are highly salted and processed so that they last as long as possible. If you do have to order from the cart, go with the healthiest possible options rather than overly salty or fatty snacks, and urge your kids to drink water.

Parties: What would spring break be without a party? Whether it’s a family gathering or a birthday party, chances are  there will be some form of salty snacks (potato chips, etc.) and some sort of cake. Again, fill your kids up as much as you can beforehand with fruit and/or protein. And by all means, don’t park your kids right next to the bottomless bowl of candy.

Above all, let reason be your guide. Being on vacation doesn’t mean your kids need to go nuts. But if going out for ice cream is a special treat, by all means go out for ice cream. Have a great spring break!

Posted Under: Nutrition, Parenting | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
This post was written by jollytomato on March 31st, 2012

Prevent Child Obesity – 5 Tips

Monday, January 9th, 2012

Childhood obesity has been in the news this week – even more so than before – in part because of a controversial series of ads run in Georgia. These ads feature overweight kids who talk frankly about being teased and ostracized because of their weight. No matter how you feel about the ads, the pain that these kids suffer is clear. No one wants kids to have to go through that kind of torment.

There’s plenty of debate about how to solve the childhood obesity epidemic, and no consensus on solutions (Eat fewer calories? Get more exercise? Both? Something else entirely?). But no matter how the problem gets addressed, it has to start at home. Therefore we humbly submit this list of things to do in your home to make sure your kids stay healthy without adding on pounds of fat. Let’s call these the “Top 5 Tips to Prevent Childhood Obesity.”

Shop with them: Take them with you to the store or the farmer’s market or the co-op (yes, we know, it’s a pain. Bring distractions if necessary). Let them see you evaluate options and make healthy choices. Help them make choices of their own (The Fuji apples or the Granny Smith apples? The red potatoes or the yellow potatoes?).

Cook with them: Yes, it’s messier this way, but it’s worth it if they have an investment in the food they are making and they have an incentive to eat it. There are countless jobs for kids to do in the kitchen. They can make granola. They can tear lettuce for salad and put it in the salad spinner. They can shake chicken with breadcrumbs in a bag to bread it. They can chop vegetables, within reason and with good guidance. Parents – this is your free labor force – why don’t you use it? The more they get excited about cooking, the more likely they are to choose healthier (not processed) food and to think carefully about the ingredients that are in each food.

Don’t punish or reward with food: You choose what foods they eat; they choose how much they are hungry for. Whether they eat a huge meal or a tiny meal, let it go. Kids have a strong sense of how hungry they are at any given time; we shouldn’t ruin that sense by insisting that they eat a certain amount at a certain time. We know some kids who are big breakfast eaters and just eat a tiny dinner; we know others who are breakfast pickers but will wolf down any and all dinner options. Know your kid. Respect his or her eating patterns. Don’t reward them with food, and don’t punish them for not eating as much as you think they should.

Skip the kids’ packaging: Sure, it’s tempting and easy to buy those small packs of yogurt or kiddie crackers. But what you’re getting with the kids’ version of any given product is probably more sugar and/or refined or processed ingredients. Do they like yogurt? Buy a big tub of plain yogurt and flavor it yourself. Do they love crackers? They can eat grownup crackers. Do they love sandwiches? You don’t have to buy special squishy white bread for them.

Skip the juice: This is a tough one, especially considering that most of us grew up drinking juice ourselves. But food is different now, as are activity levels and serving sizes. Juice manufacturers will try to sell you on all of the vitamins your kids are getting. But what they’re primarily getting is all of the sugar from fruit and none of the fiber. Want them to get those vitamins? Serve fruit. And pass out water or milk for drinking with meals.

We have one last pointer that doesn’t have to do with food specifically: Turn off the TV. Yes, we know kids love TV and it’s a big help to Mom and Dad sometimes.  But when the TV stays on and on for hours it gets destructive. First, your kids are exposed to countless crummy commercials. And second, it puts them in couch potato mode, where it becomes impossible to get up. So pick out a show that they want to watch, and then turn it off when it’s over (the DVR is a big help with this). Or pick a movie that everyone wants to watch and watch it together. It’s the same theory that dieters talk about with “intentional eating” only this is “intentional TV watching.” Decide what you’re going to watch, watch it, and then move on to the next thing – preferably something outside.

Here’s to a happy and healthy 2011!

Posted Under: Childhood Obesity, Nutrition, Parenting | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
This post was written by jollytomato on January 9th, 2012

Weekend Fun Food: Chocolate

Friday, June 10th, 2011

We’ve got chocolate on the brain, as anyone who follows our Twitter feed might have noticed. We just got back from a sneak preview of a new chocolate exhibit opening today at Muzeo in Anaheim and now we can’t stop thinking about chocolate in all of its luscious, creamy cocoa-y deliciousness.

Chocolate is an incredible food, when you get down to it. It’s almost universally craved by kids and adults alike (we have a little guy who when asked what he wants on his pizza, declares, “Chocolate!”). It’s coveted not only for its versatility in cooking but also its health benefits (more on that in a minute). Plus it’s got an amazing history that spans the globe throughout the centuries.  So…if you think of chocolate as just a bar that comes in a shiny wrapper, you need to give it another look.

As we learned at the exhibition (part of a national tour developed by the Field Museum of Chicago and sponsored in part by the National Science Foundation) cacao was first domesticated between about 1800 and 300 BCE. Although we tend to think of chocolate as a solid today, for 90% of its history it was consumed in liquid form. The ancient Mayan people of Mexico and Central America, for example, consumed it as a spicy drink. It wasn’t until the 16th century that the Spanish, who found cacao while searching for gold in the New World, added sugar to make it a sweet food. As the chocolate craze swept Europe in the late 17th and 18th centuries, the Italians began experimenting with it and used it to flavor everything from soup to polenta — even dipping liver in chocolate and frying it (it is absolutely killing us not to have a picture of this). In 1828 a Dutch chemist invented the cocoa press, which extracts cocoa butter from chocolate leaving the cocoa powder behind – and the industrial age of chocolate production began.

Cacao seeds (pictured in their seed pods) contain the chemicals caffeine and theobromine, which give them a bitter taste. They also contain significant amounts of naturally occurring flavonoids (substances also found in red wine, green tea, and fruits and vegetables), which are associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and some cancers. However, commercially produced chocolate also carries a heavy load of saturated fats and calories, so there are certainly healthier ways to get the same benefits. If you’re going to eat chocolate, dark chocolate is the way to go. Dark chocolate has fewer calories, less saturated fat, and twice as many antioxidants as milk chocolate.

If your kids are like ours, they are probably used to the super-sweet taste of milk chocolate. One way we got them interested in dark chocolate was to serve this power snack mix – the only rule being that they have to eat all of it, not just the chocolate pieces.

Choco-Cherry Power Snack Mix

1 cup roasted unsalted peanuts

1 cup dried cherries

1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks

Combine all three ingredients in a bowl. Serves 4. Note: Most stores sell dark chocolate chunks in the baking section; if you can’t find them, break a dark chocolate bar into small pieces.

At dinnertime, you can introduce your kids to a savory chocolate dish such as mole sauce. Most mole sauces have a tomato base and have a rich, dense spice mixture. We like this step-by-step version over at Casual Kitchen. You can also try this classic mole from Rick Bayless or this much easier version from Fork Fingers Chopsticks.

For dessert, let your kids try something authentic and international like this West African hot mocha from the Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company:

West African Hot Mocha

6 ounces dark milk chocolate, finely chopped

1 1/3 cup milk

2/3 cup heavy cream

1 T. granulated sugar

2 teaspoons instant coffee (optional – we reduced it to just one teaspoon for the kids)

1 T. pure vanilla.

Melt chocolate in a medium, heatproof bowl over hot water. Stir often, until almost smooth. Then remove from heat and whisk until completely smooth.

In a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine milk, cream, and sugar. Warm over low heat, stirring often, just to simmer. Quickly stir in coffee to dissolve, and remove from heat.

Add a small amount of the hot liquid to the melted chocolate, whisking in well until smooth. (If the chocolate “seizes” and refuses to smooth out, try adding a bit more liquid.) Very gradually add the remaining hot liquid, whisking until smooth after each addition. Scrape the bowl occasionally with a rubber spatula.

If necessary, return to pot and reheat over low heat, stirring often, until very hot. Stir in vanilla and serve at once.

Bonus tip: To make your drink extra-frothy, pour it back and forth between two containers to create a foam. (Thanks to the Mayans for that one!)

Happy weekend to all!

If you’re in Southern California, check out the chocolate exhibit at Muzeo: 241 S. Anaheim Blvd. in downtown Anaheim; 10 am to 5 pm daily; $13 for adults, $9 for children 12 and under; ages 3  and under are free. The exhibit runs through September 11.

Posted Under: Just For Fun, Nutrition | Tags: , , , , ,
This post was written by jollytomato on June 10th, 2011
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