Tag: sweet potato

Scaling Back Thanksgiving

Here are some tips for scaling back Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is such a great time to embrace extended family! For years, I hosted a Saturday-after dinner for 26 relatives who live nearby. It started as a Hamming it Up celebration and continued through a year when I burned the ham and another when my stove was broken. It was the only time of year the whole group got together. Your family may enjoy similar gatherings. This year, many of our traditions will change as we scale back in order to be safe.

None of us like giving up the traditions we love. We don’t even like putting them temporarily on hold. At this moment, my family is experiencing a reminder of why a different plan may be necessary this year whether we like it or not. My father’s youngest sister died a few weeks ago. Now two of my cousins who attended her funeral are sick with COVID-19.

Exposure is one of the risks we must weigh as we determine the number of this year’s invitations. While this is a hard reality, it doesn’t have to mean the menu is peanut butter sandwiches even if you’re only joining the family via Zoom. Luckily, I’ve prepared one-and-two-person Thanksgiving meals as often as large ones, so I am familiar with techniques for enjoying familiar flavors at a smaller scale.

When planning meals, I like to think a few meals past the event. What will be good served as leftovers? What do we enjoy so much I need to prepare extra helpings? What can easily be repurposed into other dishes? Can I share any leftovers with elderly neighbors or friends? Answering these questions helps me determine whether I need to alter a recipe or consider a replacement.

On a normal year, I make dressing that starts with two recipes of cornbread. This is a family favorite, so we often eat more than one serving each at the main meal. Even so, it feeds eight and still leaves leftovers. If there will only be four people at the table, I cut the recipe in half. If there are only two, I substitute rice pilaf.

Turkeys come in many sizes. If you anticipate that the smallest whole bird will leave too many leftovers, consider a turkey breast. For one or two people, I opt for Cornish hens. Some years these are hard to come by so it’s smart to shop early.

I’m a big fan of sweet potatoes, but not candied yams. That means, I usually opt for baked sweet potatoes with a little salt and butter even when I have a crowd. If you want the candied yam experience for one without lots of prep time, consider topping a baked sweet potato with butter, brown sugar, and a dollop of marshmallow crème.

If you prefer a little brown crunch on your marshmallows, you can treat a baked sweet potato like a twice baked potato. Once the potato is done, gently remove the inside from the skin. Mix in butter and brown sugar. Return to the skin. Top with marshmallow halves. Place under the broiler until the top of the marshmallow browns.

For a couple, sautéed fresh green beans is a faster and easier preparation than a casserole. If that doesn’t seem special enough, green bean bundles are another great option. I also like apricot glazed green beans from time to time. They’re fast, easy, and special all at once.

If you are only serving one or two people but still want a casserole, here’s an easy one that can be made in about 10 minutes:

Spinach and Rice

3 tbsp butter

1/4 cup diced onion

2 Minute® Ready to Serve White Rice cups

1/2 cup drained canned spinach

1/2 cup cheddar cheese

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

Place butter and onion in a 1-quart microwaveable casserole dish. Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Remove from microwave.

Cook each cup of rice separately per package directions. Add rice, spinach, and half of the cheese to onion and butter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Mix well.

Top with remaining cheese and microwave on high for 4 minutes. Serve hot.

If baking rolls from scratch sounds like too much trouble, frozen gluten-free Brazilian cheese rolls may be an option. First, and most importantly, they’re delicious! Some are available through grocery pick-up and delivery. In my city, there’s a bakery that makes these. They sell them baked or frozen delivered by multiple services.

Even if the crowd size is reduced, you may want to keep the desserts large and cut back the number of choices. Pie is always a special treat, but I serve all sorts of desserts for Thanksgiving. I’ve made personal size orange cakes, panna cotta with sweet potato topping, and cheesecake. I also like banana bread, pumpkin bread, and iced pumpkin cookies. If you want to eat dessert over a long period of time, making cookie dough and freezing three-fourths, one-half, or one-third of it for the holiday and saving the best for later can help you resist the temptation of eating more than you plan in one sitting.

Some areas are still experiencing periodic shortages. Allowing more lead time and having some backup recipes will make the holiday less stressful as you scale back Thanksgiving.

I’ve focused on adapting traditional Thanksgiving flavors, but many of us will have more freedom to shift gears and enjoy nontraditional menus this year. Whether you choose clam chowder or chili, hot dogs or shrimp, prime rib or neck bones, enjoying your selection with gusto is the recipe for a successful Thanksgiving holiday!

Brazil Bites

Healthy, Easy Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Menu

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Get to Know Breakfast for Kids

Before we leave the subject of breakfast, let’s get to know breakfast for kids. We’ve covered many popular breakfast foods for older children, but what about babies and toddlers? I’m thinking about this because we’re introducing foods to my 6-month-old grandson DJ. He stays with me 2 days per week, which means I am participating in this process.

DJMy daughter-in-law naturally compares notes with friends and co-workers who have babies about the same age. She reports that most of them buy baby food. Some start by introducing rice cereal, others begin with oatmeal. Some mix in bananas immediately. Others feed one food at a time. Most of her friends choose an organic baby food brand. Her family advises that she should add rice cereal to bottles, and begin introducing fruit juice. Sometimes she just stares into space when we talk about it. As a first time mother, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the advice and differing opinions.

DJ’s pediatrician says, “Asking me when it’s okay to start giving him juice is like asking me when it’s okay to start giving him Oreos.” He doesn’t think a baby needs all the sugar in fruit juice. He also says that as DJ gets older, we can use a little prune juice for constipation, but to buy the adult version and dilute it with water rather than pay more for baby juice.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends only breast milk for the first 6 months and continuing to breastfeed until 12 months – even after the addition of solid foods. The AAP owned website Healthychildren.org advises against adding cereal to bottles because it is a choking hazard. (Exceptions are sometimes made for babies with reflux.) Babies need to be able to sit in a feeding chair or seat with good head control before introducing solids.

In the Healthychildren.org site’s guide to starting solid foods, there is no recommendation for introducing any certain food first. It is suggested that you introduce one food at a time for a period of several days before introducing another food. With each new food, watch for signs of an allergic reaction like diarrhea, rash, or vomiting. In a few months, your baby should eat a daily variety of meats, vegetables, fruits, eggs, and fish along with breast milk. A new recommendation is to expose your child to peanuts within the first year.

What about cereals?

It is traditional to introduce cereals before vegetables and fruit. Most baby cereals are made from rice, oats, or barley. There is no reason to begin with cereals and several reasons not to. Amylase, the enzyme need to break down and digest complex grains is not present in babies’ salivary glands until they have molars. Digesting grains takes more energy for an immature digestive systems and food intolerance can result from introducing foods for which the gut isn’t prepared.
There are also concerns about the arsenic levels in rice.

In a family with a history of celiac disease, if a child becomes sick, tired, and grumpy after the introduction of wheat, rye, barley, or oats, it may be best to discontinue those foods. If the child then feels better, remove those foods from his diet. Removing wheat, rye, barley, and oats will allow your child to feel good while you take some time to consult a doctor who has expertise in gluten intolerance and celiac disease. That still leaves rice, quinoa, millet, and certified gluten-free oats as cereal options.

Okay, I’ve introduced my baby to a variety of solid foods, what should she eat for breakfast?

If your baby is less than a year old, one or two simple foods followed by breast milk will suffice. A combination of protein and carbohydrates from fruit will give him a good start for the day. Eggs, applesauce, and bananas are good choices.

Toddlers can also benefit from protein, carbohydrates from fruit and a small amount of carbohydrates from whole grains. They will enjoy eggs, plain whole milk yogurt, fruit, and unsweetened warm cereals made from rice and oats. Once your child is over a year old, you can offer a small glass of whole milk along with breakfast.

What about fruit juice or cold cereal?

As we saw a couple of weeks ago when we compared the nutrition value in store bought orange juice to that of an orange, the orange is superior in providing vitamin C and fiber in fewer calories. As DJ’s pediatrician notes, there’s no need for a child to drink juice. Providing your child fresh fruit is a better option.

If you feel strongly about offering juice, your child will get the most nutritional benefit if you make it yourself from fresh fruits or vegetables just before serving and do not use sweetener. In fact, there’s nothing wrong with feeding your baby fresh fruits and vegetables from the very beginning. With the help of a baby food grinder or processor, you can create your own baby food in a matter of minutes from the options you cook for the rest of your family.

Bananas can be mashed with a fork and diluted with breast milk. Steamed broccoli pureed in a food processor with a little added water is one of DJ’s favorites. He also likes acorn squash, avocado, sweet potato, and applesauce. We’re about to introduce peas followed by butternut squash, then potatoes. So far, we haven’t felt a need to buy baby food. We will avoid preparing spinach, beets, green beans, collard greens, and carrots for him until he’s a little older because of a concern about the nitrate content.

Boxed breakfast cereal is highly processed and high in carbohydrates from grains. Many brands and flavors are also high in carbohydrates from added sugars. None of us has a nutritional need for added sugar. If you are going to choose a boxed cereal, be sure to read the nutrition label. The best choices will contain whole grain, no added sugar, minimal sodium, no gums, minimal starches, and no artificial ingredients.

Can’t I just give the kids some toast & jelly?

Whole grain toast can be a good option as long as it’s not topped with something sugary. Starting the day with a meal high in sugar and carbs and low in protein can lead to sudden fatigue mid-morning.

Other breakfast choices that are high in added sugar include pancake syrup, chocolate hazelnut spread, jelly, doughnuts, cinnamon rolls, toaster pastries or strudel, chocolate milk, and some muffins.

It’s okay to think outside the box.

Although it’s traditional to eat bacon or sausage in the morning, there’s nothing wrong with beef, chicken or fish for breakfast. Your child doesn’t have the same sense of tradition that you do and may like those just fine. Vegetables are another good option.

We all want to give our children the best start on the day that we can, and the best way to know what’s in your child’s food is to prepare it from fresh ingredients. Keep it simple with eggs and fruit or leftover chicken and vegetables and you’ll still be out the door in no time.

For more information regarding gluten intolerance and celiac disease from an allergist, pediatrician and gastroenterologist, visit drrodneyford.com.

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/feeding-nutrition/Pages/Switching-To-Solid-Foods.aspx

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2016/09/11/are-infant-cereals-really-best-first-food-for-babies.html

http://www.babyfoodmakerguide.com/guide/top-10-best-baby-food-grinders-2016-reviews/

http://www.livestrong.com/article/541308-fruits-vegetables-that-are-high-in-nitrates/

Holiday Indulgence–Is It Worth It?

For those of you who are tempted to fudge a little here and there, I recently asked myself this question–Was a recent holiday indulgence worth it?

After 9 months of strict adherence to the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, Thanksgiving arrived.  I cooked sweet potato pie, corn casserole, cornbread dressing (stuffing if you prefer), an amazing sweet potato and squash soup, and gluten-free macaroni and cheese for my extended family.  While I cooked, I tasted.  At the dinner table, I tasted.  For a couple of days afterward, there were leftovers in the fridge that…I tasted.  Now mind you, a taste isn’t a serving.  It’s just a couple of spoons full, and I never tasted anything containing harmful gluten.

Then came the cold December afternoon when I returned to my office ready for an afternoon snack.  No, not just ready…I felt like I was starving.  While I was out of the office, the most beautiful, red holiday basket had arrived.  Sporting a huge bow and from the most exclusive flower shop in town, it was filled with chocolate chip, key lime, and iced spice cookies, party mix, candy, and one gluten-free item – a tin full of dark chocolate hazelnut toffee.  Not more than 5 seconds after I finished reading the label, I ripped off the plastic seal and popped open that tin.

After all, I was starving and there were huge hazelnuts embedded in the toffee.  I broke the toffee away from a nut and popped it in my mouth.  After all nuts are allowed on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet.  Still hungry, I continued.  The third nut I peeled had a tiny bit of candy still attached. Chocolate, caramel tasting sugar – YUM!  I didn’t try nearly as hard to remove all the candy from the fourth nut…or the 5th, 6th, or 7th.  After all, it was only sugar (not gluten) AND I had been strictly following the SCD, perhaps I was ready to reintroduce some items into my diet.  This justification worked so well for me that I used it again the next day when I pulled the lid off the tin.

Then came Christmas lunch.  May as well try the scalloped potatoes, and then finish off the toffee.

Four days later I have two New Year’s parties to attend and I am doubled over in pain or I would be if I weren’t talking to the repairman who’s here to fix the alarm.  I can’t believe I used to work like this all the time.  It feels like someone detonated a bomb below and to the right of my belly button.  I’m contemplating the minimum amount of time I can spend at each party because I’m afraid I may need to stick close to a bathroom.  I plan to take a second dose of activated charcoal and hope for the best.

In the midst of this pain and anxiety, I hear the question nagging at the back of my brain: Was straying off the SCD worth it?  Hmmm.  The toffee was delectable, and the potatoes satisfied my longing for filling carbohydrates, but now I’m on track for what may be a lengthy healing process.  Hmmmmmmmmmmm.  Was it worth it?

YES.  Yes, the transgression was worth it.

Ahhh yes, the transgression was worth it, but not in the hedonistic way you may think.  It was worth it because the discomfort I am experienced reminded me in a very concrete way WHY I choose each moment of every day to adhere to an eating plan which allows my body to heal. Such discomfort also serves as a reminder of how difficult it used to be to focus and function before I went gluten-free. I feel amazed and proud of my progress.

And I feel proud of you for wanting to feel your best and for being willing to make choices that will keep you on the path of healing.  To be tempted is to be human.  Give yourself a break if you weren’t perfect last week, but don’t use yesterday’s mistake as an excuse to give up on yourself or to stop making good choices.  Just use it as a reminder of WHY you choose to consume only foods that contribute to your optimum health.

Have a wonderful holiday season!

Cheri