Dinner Analysis

Tonight, we had an exceptionally healthy dinner, and I have to say that it was very tasty as well. How do I know this? I know how I always know: my 11 going on 20 year old ate everything without one complaint. Because her mother is a dietitian, she typically wants the opposite of what is offered to her at home. Yes, The Gourmet Healer deals with the same issues all well-meaning parents do. But sometimes, I/we get it right. And tonight was one of those nights.

The child isn't completely a loss when it comes to veggies, because she's been exposed repeatedly to them. This really makes or breaks a child's relationship with healthy foods. Even so,I will say (while holding back tears) that she does not like chard, spinach or broccoli. But she does, however, love beans (presented as a soup), my roasted beet salad, Brussels sprouts and asparagus fries. And tonight, she ate the lightly steamed (over-cooking is a major turn-off for kids, BTW) zucchini and carrots that my husband tossed in Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVVO if ya didn't know--crazy good health benefits), sea salt, pepper and our (my) chopped homegrown basil. She also devoured the roasted Brussels sprouts, which were thinly sliced and then tossed in EVOO, chopped homegrown sage leaves, pre-roasted chopped garlic (done the night before), sea salt and pepper.
She ate the veggies, no problem, but as usual, her fave was the meatloaf. This was very simple to make. I mixed 1 pound of grass fed (hey--you are what you ate...ate) ground beef with two free range eggs (the difference is obvious and worth it), about 1/2 cup oat bran, 1/2 cup Eden Organic Pizza Sauce (BPA-Free Can!!), a couple pinches of sea salt and 3 large chopped artichoke hearts; I baked it covered (uncovered for the last 10 min) at 315 for 40 min in a 8x8 inch pan (greased with a small amount of expellar-pressed grapeseed oil; meat spread evenly and packed), alongside the Brussels sprouts, which were spread evenly in a large roasting pan for even and quick cooking. I added just a slight amount of EVOO and sea salt to the sprouts when plated, and they were lovely.

In addition to a tall glass of filtered water, I enjoyed our dinner with about 5 oz of Frey organic, sulfite-free (no headache or stuffiness for me) red table wine. It was delicious, and at $9.99/bottle, very affordable. It will last me the whole week or a little longer.

Notice that I cooked the meatloaf and sprouts at a lower temp and extended the cooking time a bit. This is important when it comes to making sure that fats don't oxidize during cooking and turn harmful, simultaneously losing their health benefits. It would be a shame if all of your efforts to make wholesome real food went to waste because you didn't know about this...This is especially true for eggs (which I used in the meatloaf) and plant oils like EVOO, which are very heat sensitive and lose benefits/oxidize at temperatures above 325 F.

RECAP

• lower cooking temps and longer cooking times: keeping those healthy oils and fats healthy
• High fiber/low starch/low glycemic index: 2 servings of veggies and high-fiber oat bran and artichoke hearts slipped into the meat loaf; high fiber=healthy cholesterol levels and proper detoxificiation; low-glycemic index=less of a blood sugar spike, which means less need for insulin. lower insulin production means less fat cell generation/storage, no extra insulin circulating to feed cancer cells, no re-bound low blood sugar and subsequent food cravings.
• Grass-fed/free-range animal products: better ratio of Omega 6:Omega 3 fats due to natural diet, meaning less resulting inflammation.
• Healthy + Delicious = YUM

I planned what I would make for the week and made a list before I shopped over the weekend. I planned according to what I already had, in order to stay within budget and avoid wasting food. Knowing what you're going to cook and that you have the ingredients needed BEFORE you get home and start cooking saves a lot of time and stress. Try it!

Enjoy,
The Gourmet Healer