As silly as it may seem, the newest and most exciting trend that I’ve seen in the health food world is the inclusion of chia seeds into your daily diet. Yes, that’s right: chia seeds, the very same seeds that are used to decorate cheesy household ceramic pets. At first I looked at this with a skeptic eye, but then I noticed that everyone from Dr. Oz to Dr. Weil is getting on the chia seed train.

As it turns out, chia seeds are incredible sources of so many vitamins, minerals, and other vital parts of our diet. According to recent studies, chia seeds have the same of the highest omega-3 levels of any food out there—even more than Atlantic salmon.

In addition to those wonderful omega-3 fatty acids, chia seeds have more protein, fiber, and calcium that flax seeds, and are also a great source of phosphorus, magnesium, niacin, and zinc.

As a result of their high nutrient content, chia seeds can help with so many of the common ailments that occur more and more commonly as we age: high blood pressure, low energy, arthritis, general inflammation, heart disease, and even diabetes.

Because chia seeds slow down the rate at which the body converts carbs into simple sugars in our bodies, new research has shown that they can significantly aid in controlling blood sugar, thereby battling diabetes. Additionally, chia seeds can block calorie absorption, helping craving reduction for those of us battling weight issues.

According to ancient documents, Aztec warriors used chia seeds to boost their energy, maintain stamina and endurance, and even build muscle tissue.

Maybe the best thing about chia seeds is their versatility: with health experts suggesting two daily servings of 20g (about 1.5oz), a variety of meals with which you can incorporate them are a must. Some of the best ideas out there include cereal, yogurt, cottage cheese, oatmeal (see recipe below), or smoothies. Another great idea is to incorporate them into baked goods, such as breads, cookies, muffins, or pancakes.

They can also be eaten raw, added to salads, or soaked in fruit juice. One advantage that they have over flax seeds is that the body digests them much more easily —in fact, they’ve been shown to aid digestion—so there is no need to grind them up before eating them.

So, try out something new and add some chia seeds to your diet. And don’t worry—you won’t grow bright green sprouts out of your head.

Probably.

Chia Oatmeal Recipe:

1 Tablespoon of Chia seed
5 tablespoons of Organic Oats
½ of one Banana sliced or other fruit such as apple or peach
½ teaspoon of Cinnamon Pinch of sea salt
1 tablespoon of agave nectar or raw honey
small handful of chopped walnuts or almonds
1 ounce of coconut milk or almond milk optional
Bring one cup of water to a boil; add all ingredients to water; continue stirring for about 5 minutes or until you get nice texture. Serve with coconut milk.

Chapter 3 finds Mireille in a three-month “re-casting” mode… She is resetting her individual equilibrium, with the help and guidance of Dr. Miracle. Yes, the beginning is three months of resetting new/old (French style) habits. Dr. Miracle fully understands that quick fixes will not yield long-term results.

Before beginning this process, it’s important to consider a couple of really important questions…

1. Ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?” So often, our reasons are fear and self-loathing based, or what others or media says we should look like… What is your why?

Mireille states in chapter three, “To embrace recasting, you have to be ready to embrace pleasure and individual happiness as your goals… It may be easy for a wife, mother and full-time worker to neglect pleasure; perhaps a part of you even thinks it’s selfish. But you must understand there is nothing noble in failing to discover and cultivate your pleasures. (It will make you not only fat, but grouchy.)”

1. Qu est-ce qui se passé? (What’s going on here?) This question reminds us “You can’t start eating and living well in a physical or emotional vacuum.” Consider for a moment why you gained weight to begin with… like in Chinese Medicine, you can’t just treat the symptoms, you have to treat the root cause.

It could be because of age, family or work pressure, loneliness. It could be because you just had a baby or just you just quit smoking. It could be due to a more traumatic emotional experience that’s being buried.

Hopefully you’ve tracked your diet for a few weeks, now it’s time to evaluate and identify your worst offenders. Now remember, this is the French way, so this does NOT mean immediately deprive yourself of all of them, but start to decrease them gradually. You also want to consider which of these “offenders” give you the most pleasure, and which don’t really give you that much pleasure.

You may be able to eliminate the ones that are not REALLY giving you pleasure, so that you can decrease but more enjoy the fully pleasurable’s…

Here are some great guidelines to incorporate during recasting and always:

Slow and Steady – There is no lasting glory in rapid weight loss.

Variety – crash diets run the risk of nutritional deficiencies, not to mention boredom. Remember, quality over quantity!

Ritual Preparation – French women love to shop and prepare food. Dr. Miracle advises, buy only what you need for the next day or two. Cook simply and cook at home, really see and know what you’re putting into your body. In my recent tele-class, this was a big point that I made, when you cook at home, your put your love and energy into your prep and you’re in control of the ingredients.

Water – we almost all need more. Increase incrementally; don’t try to do it all at once.

Ritual Eating – this is so important, Mireille dedicates an entire section on this later in the book. But for now, remember, sit at the table, do not eat in front of the T.V., use cloth napkins (I always do), eat on plates, not out of cartons, set the mood, light a candle, you get the idea…

Portion Control – As this is often a losing battle with most Americans, the best advice mentioned, that I fully support is, cut back gently.

Don’t stock the offenders – self-explanatory.

Substitutes – As Mireille’s biggest offender was sweets; Dr. Miracle provided a great recipe to help her satisfy that need.

Apple Tart Without Dough

Ingredients:

4 medium-size Golden Delicious apples

2 tablespoons lemon juice

4 Cabbage leaves

1-tablespoon sugar

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Dots of butter

1. Peel and core the apples, cut into quarters, slice each quarter into thirds, and sprinkle with the lemon juice. Place the apples on the cabbage leaves.
2. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Mix the sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle almost all of it on the apple slices (leaving enough ot cover the dots of butter). Add small dots of butter and cover with the remaining sugar-cinnamon mixture.
3. Bake the tart in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

A couple of other mentions:

Move – more on this later, but there are so many ways to incorporate movement into your day.

Never Be Hungry – According to Mireille, one of Dr. Miracle’s wisest prescriptions.

En-Cas – Carry “just in case” healthy snacks.

To wrap this chapter up, I think some of the most important things to remember are adjusting anything in small amounts will be the key to moving toward your equilibrium. And! Learn to cultivate QUALITY over quantity!

Chapter 4 shares some great success stories…

Please let me know your thoughts about this three-month re-casting period and the recipe !

My daughter inherited her love of coffee directly from me, and definitely brought that love with her to her semester in Paris. Luckily for her, her host parents share her passion, and she wakes up every morning to a fresh pot of coffee to go with her petit déjeuner. This was not the case, however, one early Monday morning when she was running a little late for her 9:30am art history class.

She tells the story like this: “That morning, I emerged, as usual, maybe a little later than usual, to find the coffee pot upside down on the drying rack. Ghislain, one of my host parents, was in the kitchen peeling these weird, French mini apples that we always have in a bowl on the counter.

Nikki [in French]: Oh, is there no coffee this morning?

Ghislain [in French]: No, today I am eating apples. Would you like an apple?

Nikki: No…

It took me another thirty seconds to realize that there was, in fact, NO COFFEE, and being late, as I was, I didn’t have time to make any. Seriously? Apples? What is this guy talking about? How are apples a replacement for coffee? Are these apples laced with caffeine?”

As hilarious as I found this story, it got me to thinking about apples, especially since, my daughter added when recounting the tale to me, that she eats them every day, but not for a source of caffeine. So, if not for caffeine, for what?

It turns out that apples are a powerhouse of vitamins, fiber, and antioxidants—all extremely important elements of a well-rounded, anti-aging diet.

In addition to being packed with immune-boosting vitamin C, apples are full of those amazing antioxidants that keep your cells healthy, your cardiovascular system in tip-top, and your heart healthy. However, it turns out that my daughter’s host parent made a mistake: the skins of apples contain the majority of the fruit’s vitamin C and antioxidants, so make sure not to skip out on those.

Apples also contribute to your heart health through a type of metabolite called flavonoids. Flavonoids have been shown to lower the risk of heart disease, as well as regulate blood pressure, and prevent inflammation. Studies have also shown that unlike most fruits, especially citrus fruits, apples actually lower the risk of asthma and other lung-related problems, and flavonoids are key nutrients when it comes to general lung support. And juicy, delicious apples are just packed with them!

Looking for a sweeter source of fiber than wheat bran? Just pick up some apples! Apples contain both kinds of fiber, soluble and insoluble, which are both really important for regulating LDL cholesterol.

Additionally, there is exciting new research being done that seems to show a correlation between the daily consumption of apples and a reduced risk of breast, lung, and colon cancer.

You can try chopped up apples in your salad, apples with peanut butter (one of my favorites) or with almond butter, chopped apples in your hot cereal in the morning, or baked apples with cinnamon, yum

So do your body—not to mention your taste buds—a big favor, and pick up a Pink Lady, a Red Delicious, a Granny Smith, or a Fuji apple ASAP!

“This entry has been posted as part of Prevention Not Prescriptions Tuesday hosted by The Kathleen Show” Click here and check it out!

There really are great winter season recipes that are nutritious and delicious!

There is nothing like starting your day with a warm bowl of oatmeal in your belly. We’ve all heard about the heart healthy benefits of oatmeal and when you add in cinnamon, almonds, sunflower seeds and the rest of the ingredients below, this ends turns out to be a powerhouse of health benefits to start your day.

Did you know that one cup of winter squash may provide up to 146% of your daily value of vitamin A since it is rich in beta carotene, the pre-cursor to vitamin A? Beta-carotene is one of the carotenoids found in winter squash that provides it with its deep orange color and has been shown to have powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Yay orange colored foods!

Swiss Breakfast Oatmeal

Breakfast is our most important meal and this Swiss Breakfast recipe is a nutritious and tasty way to start the day. It has a unique combination of sweetness and tartness and can be served hot or cold so it’s a great breakfast dish to include as part of your Healthiest Way of Eating year-round.

Prep and Cook Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cups rolled oats
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 TBS cup raisins
• 2 TBS sliced almonds
• 2 TBS dried apricots, chopped
• 2 TBS sunflower seeds
• 1 dates, chopped
• 1 TBS dried cranberries

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Bring 2 cups water to a boil.
3. Add mixed ingredients. Turn heat to low and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally until water is absorbed, about 7 minutes.
4. Cover, and set for about 2 minutes before serving.
5. Serve with low-fat milk or dairy-free milk.

Serves 8

Healthy Cooking Tips:

You can make a larger batch of this breakfast cereal to have on hand.

Nutrition:

per serving: calories 325.56, protein 10.98, dietary fiber 7.42g

Recipe courtesy of  George Mateljan www.whfoods.org

Southwestern Stuffed Acorn Squash

6 servings

Active Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 1/2 hours

Nutrition Profile

Ingredients

• 3 acorn squash, (3/4-1 pound each)
• 5 ounces bulk turkey sausage
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 medium red bell pepper,chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 cups chopped cherry tomatoes
• 1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed (see Tip)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Several dashes hot red pepper sauce, to taste
• 1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Cut squash in half horizontally. Scoop out and discard seeds. Place the squash cut-side down on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until tender, about 45 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, lightly coat a large skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium heat. Add sausage and cook, stirring and breaking up with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Add onion and bell pepper; cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, chili powder and cumin; cook for 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes, beans, salt and hot sauce, scraping up any browned bits. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until the tomatoes are broken down, 10 to 12 minutes.
4. When the squash are tender, reduce oven temperature to 325°. Fill the squash halves with the turkey mixture. Top with cheese. Place on the baking sheet and bake until the filling is heated through and the cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes.

Tips & Notes

• Tip: While we love the convenience of canned beans, they tend to be high in sodium. Give them a good rinse before adding to a recipe to rid them of some of their sodium (up to 35 percent) or opt for low-sodium or no-salt-added varieties. (Our recipes are analyzed with rinsed, regular canned beans.) Or, if you have the time, cook your own beans from scratch.

Nutrition

Per serving: 259 calories; 7 g fat (4 g sat, 1 g mono); 29 mg cholesterol; 38 g carbohydrates; 15 g protein; 7 g fiber; 482 mg sodium; 884 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin C (80% daily value), Vitamin A (45% dv), Calcium (20% dv), Iron (15% dv)

Recipe courtesy of  www.eatingwell.com

Hope you enjoy this week’s recipes, please leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Be Well and Happy,

Dianne

Is it just me, or do you smell the scent of cinnamon wherever you go this time of year?

It seems like the holiday season brings about the scent of cinnamon. The weird thing is, I hate the smell of cinnamon candles, cinnamon scented oils and incense. I also do not like the taste of cinnamon candy and gum. I do, however, like the taste of cinnamon in most baked goods… Whew, good thing, because I am hearing more and more about the health benefits of it.

What cinnamon reminds me most of is my grandmother’s rice pudding. She seriously made the world’s best rice pudding—the best I have ever tasted—and she used to always sprinkle cinnamon on top.

Cinnamon is one of the oldest known spices; it is even mentioned in one of the earliest books on Chinese botanical medicine, dated around 2,700 B.C. Historically, it has been used as a spice as well as natural medicine.

Cinnamon’s nutrients come from the essential oils from the bark of the cinnamon tree. When the bark dries, it rolls and forms a quill, or what’s more commonly known as a cinnamon stick. You can use whole cinnamon sticks in some recipes, or, of course, ground cinnamon powder.

It is amazing how such a sweet and tasty spice can have so many essential health benefits. Some of the benefits that cinnamon has include anti-clotting, anti-microbial, and anti-inflammation actions as well as blood sugar regulation.

Cinnamon’s anti-clotting activities have been shown to prevent the collecting of blood platelets, and it can improve the flow of blood. Therefore, it may reduce the dangerous risk of blood clots and benefits your cardiovascular health.

Cinnamon has anti-inflammatory qualities that can decrease joint and muscle pain, especially the joint pain associated with arthritis.

As an anti-microbial agent, cinnamon has been well studied for its ability to help stop the growth of bacteria as well as fungi, including Candida in yeast infections and H. pylori, the bacteria that can cause ulcers.

Additionally, cinnamon is a great source of calcium and manganese, which are both great for strong bones, dietary fiber, and iron.

In Chinese Medicine, cinnamon is considered a “warm herb” meaning it warms the energetic channels in our body to relieve pain, improve circulation, and warm the extremities.

Although cinnamon can be used year-round, it is ideal to use it during the colder winter months since it’s considered a warm spice/herb.

Here are some great ways to consider using herbs. Remember: to keep the maximum number of nutrients and flavor of cinnamon, try adding it only at the end of the cooking process.

• Try sprinkling it in homemade, warmed almond milk sweetened with a little agave nectar or honey.
• You can add it to your morning oatmeal.
• How about sprinkling some into warm apple cider?
• Sprinkle it on sweet potatoes or winter squash.
• Add it to black beans that you could use for a burrito.
• Sprinkle some cinnamon on whole grain toast with a drizzle or two of honey or agave nectar.
• Of course, you can make rice pudding like my grandmother used to make… though I am not sure anybody can make rice pudding like she used to.

Please feel free to add any of your favorite cinnamon recipes!