Category Archives: Food

Packing for a Healthy Road Trip

I was happy to be invited back to FOX19 Cincinnati this morning to share some tips for Packing for a Healthy Road Trip. It’s a topic close to my heart since I am getting lots of practice loading up the car with two adults, our three kiddos, the contents of our dressers, and a cooler full of reasonably healthy foods! Our family is spread out across the Midwest and Northeast and we try to make the rounds to visit them as often as we can – that’s a lot of miles in the car and a lot of meals on the road!

I’m sure you’re planning your own road trips this summer. How often have you fueled yourself on these trips with fast food, chips and candy from convenience stores, and bottle after bottle of soda? By the time you arrive at your destination, you feel icky and your energy is drained. That’s no way to start a vacation, and it doesn’t have to be that way. With a little advance planning, road trips don’t have to be diet disasters. In fact, you can arrive at your destination feeling terrific. And as Sheila noted this morning,  packing a cooler can save you money, too!

Here is the clip from the FOX 19 Morning Show to inspire you, as well as the recipe for the Healthy Chicken Salad I shared.

Here’s to summer of happy, healthy travel!

 

Healthy Chicken Salad

serves 4

about 175 calories per serving

Ingredients

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, poached, broiled or grilled, then shredded with your fingers or a fork or cut into small cubes   OR 2 – 8 oz. cans of chunk white meat chicken, drained

3-4 Tbsp. lowfat mayonnaise

1 tsp. Dijon or spicy mustard

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Optional: Add any of the following –  1/4 cup chopped celery, 1 Tbsp chopped parsley, 1 c. red grapes, halved, 2 Tbsp. chopped walnuts

 

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl and divide among 4 tortilla wraps. I like Ole Extreme Wellness High Fiber Tortillas (81 calories and 12 grams of fiber per wrap!).

 

 

 

 

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Chilled Asparagus Soup

The classic name for a pureed potato and leek soup is vichyssoise….but I thought if I put that in the title, I might scare some of you off! Why complicate an easy soup with a difficult title? This soup is made terrifically creamy by pureeing the cooked potatoes and leeks; the addition of asparagus lends beautiful color and excellent flavor.  The added cream garnish is delightful, but completely optional. You won’t sacrifice texture if you omit it.

So, why such a crazy name? The origins of vichyssoise are somewhat unclear. Some consider it an American invention while others claim it has French roots. Louis Diat, a chef at the Ritz Carlton in New York City, is most often credited with popularizing it in America in the early 1900s, and he claims to have named it after the spa town of Vichy, close to his hometown in France.

No matter what you call it or who invented it, it’s delicious. And this version from Bon Appetit is particularly well suited to lunch on a hot summer’s day.

 

Chilled Asparagus Soup

Adapted from Bon Appetit June 2009

 

Serves 4

 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup thinly sliced leeks (white and pale green parts only)

1/2 cup – 1/2″ cubes peeled russet potato

2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

3 cups – 1″ pieces trimmed asparagus

1/4 cup chilled whipping cream (optional)

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint

 

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan (with a lid) over medium heat. Add leek and potato and saute for 2 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cover and cook until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Add asparagus and simmer uncovered until asparagus is just tender, 5-6 minutes (less if you are using very thin stalks). Remove the pan from heat. Transfer 8 asparagus tips to a bowl to save for garnish.

2. Puree soup until smooth with an immersion blender, or in batches in a blender. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide soup among 4 shallow bowls. Place in freezer for 15 to 20 minutes to chill quickly.

3. If using the cream, whisk cream, mint, and a large pinch of salt in a small bowl until cream is slightly thickened.

4. Drizzle mint cream, or sprinkle mint, over soup and then garnish with asparagus tips.

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Rice Noodle Bowl with Broccoli and Bell Peppers

 

Here’s a vegetarian dinner so quick and so delicious that you’ll never miss the meat! If you’ve never cooked with rice noodles before, then you’re in for a treat. They’re usually shelved with the Asian foods (Thai) and this is what they look like. There are several popular brands on the market. In this recipe, you’ll break the long dried noodles into pieces BEFORE rehydrating them which makes them much  more manageable when it’s time to eat! That’s right, I said “rehydrating”. You don’t actually cook these noodles, you just let them sit in hot water until they become soft. The chile garlic sauce gives this a little kick, so if you like your food less spicy, you may want to use less of it than what the recipe specifies.

 

Rice Noodle Bowl with Broccoli and Bell Peppers

Adapted from Vegetarian Times July/August 2010

 

Serves: 4

 

Ingredients:

8 oz. dried rice noodles, broken into 1-inch pieces

3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

4 teaspoons rice vinegar (you could substitute apple cider vinegar)

1 tablespoon sugar

4 teaspoons chile sauce (less if you don’t like your food too spicy)

1 cup water

2 tablespoons canola oil

2 bunches finely chopped green onions (white and light green parts only)

3 cloves or 4 teaspoons minced garlic

2 red bell peppers, thinly sliced

2 cups broccoli florets, cut into 1″ pieces

3 tablespoons chopped roasted peanuts

 

Directions:

1. With a small whisk combine soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, chile sauce, and 1 cup of water in a small bowl. Set aside.

2. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add broken noodles and remove from heat. Let stand 5 to 7 minutes or until noodles are rehydrated. Drain and discard water. Set noodles aside.

3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add bell peppers and broccoli. Cook 1 minute. Add soy sauce mixture and bring to a boil, cooking 1 more minute, or until red pepper and broccoli are tender. Stir in noodles. Serve sprinkled with chopped peanuts.

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