John and I were looking for an alternative to oatmeal and wheat-based breakfast cereals.  A friend of mine recommended we try Teff.  She ran across it at Whole Foods.  Teff is a North African grass.  The grain can be ground into flour and used in baking. Teff is kind of like millet or quinoa in terms of cooking.  The Teff we use is a tiny red grain, but I understand it comes in other colors. It is considered high protein – 7 grams -  has 4 grams of fiber and 37 grams of carbohydrates per 1/4 cup dry.  That 1/4 cup dry grain cooks up to just over 1 cup of cooked Teff.  And, that cup of cooked Teff is very filling.  The flavor is different from any other grain I have eaten – hence another reason why it is a good breakfast alternative.

To cook your Teff, bring 1 cup of water to a boil, add the 1/4 cup Teff, cover and simmer for 15 or so minutes – until it is thick and all of the water is absorbed. You will want to stir it occasionally as well. The alternative is to make a big batch and keep it in the fridge for a few days. To reheat, measure out your serving in a bowl (a larger one that gives it room to expand), add a little extra water, cover and cook in a microwave on high for 2 – 3 minutes.  Serve like you would oatmeal.  I used a little butter, brown sugar, and goat milk.

You can find Teff at stores like Whole Foods. I would also suspect that health food stores may carry it. Or, you can order it online. Bob’s Red Mill has both the grain and Teff flour you can use for baking. We haven’t tried baking with it yet, but it is on the list to try.

Clients often ask for recommendations for bars and other quick, portable, and shelf-stable foods they can keep with them for when they get in a food crunch.  They need something they can throw in a purse, bag, or glove box.  One of my favorite items to keep handy are KIND bars.

KIND bars are whole food packed with nuts, fruits, and other good things.  They are higher in fat than other bars, but that is because they have nuts in them.  Lots of nuts.  Nuts also provide some protein.  Those nuts also mean they are crunchy and take some work to eat.  That extra work can slow you down and allow your body to get signals to you saying it is satisfied.

KIND bars are available at a lot of grocery stores and health food stores.  If you are looking for a portable snack remember to be KIND to yourself.

John, my husband and I, have been enjoying Meatless Mondays.  We take turns picking dinners during the week, and taking turns on Mondays always produces a surprise.  I’ve found some amazing recipes on the Meatless Monday website including Lemon Mint Qunioa Salad.  We have pulled out our favorite vegetarian cookbooks including Deborah Madison’s great Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.  Quick-Fix Vegetarian is another favorite.   And, I’m still craving the watermelon salad from Runner’s world.

We went to a friend’s house on July 5.  She said, “You’re still doing Meatless Mondays, right?  I hope so, because I fixed vegetarian.”  She had some great dishes that have inspired me to continue playing around with my own recipes.  We have also discovered a new to us grain – teff – which makes a great breakfast.

I’m looking forward to next Monday to see what lands on the table.  John made pasta with a tomato sauce including sundried tomatoes and goat milk feta.  I’ll have to see what I can find to top that. . . .

John, my husband, and I have been enjoying Meatless Mondays.  We have some favorite vegetarian recipes, and are having fun finding some new ones.  I thought I’d share a couple with you.

First, I made Lemon Mint Quinoa Salad last night.  Rather than just the white quinoa, I used white, red, and black.  It was very colorful.  One of the keys (we learned the hard way) is to rinse the quinoa for a couple of minutes in a sieve.  This removes the bitter outer coating called saponins.  You’ll know if you don’t rinse long enough.

The second recipe is one John found in this month’s Runner’s World – Watermelon Salad.  One of my favorite things about summer is watermelon.  Neither of us thought the salad would be filling, but were we wrong!  I’ve shared this recipe with several others and everyone is craving it.

Let me know if you give them a try!

Several of my RD and foodie friends have been talking about the “Meatless Monday” movement.  This is a movement started by John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health to promote a reduction in meat consumption to improve public health and the health of the planet.   Reducing meat consumption can help lower your risk for several diseases including some cancers, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.  It also helps the planet by reducing the need to produce, process, and transport meat to stores.

What’s involved in “meatless Mondays”?  Simple, not eating meat on Monday.  The John Hopkins group has established a website where you can find recipes to help you go meatless on Monday.  You can also sign a pledge and sign up to receive weekly newsletters to help you have a meatless Monday.

I’ve signed the pledge and am looking at recipes for Monday.  I should also add it to my calendar to remind me until it becomes a habit.

Here’s to going meatless on Mondays!

Now that the semester is over, things are calming down a bit (at least that is what I keep telling myself). This is allowing me a little more time to read non-school related books. I’ve been working on “The China Study” by T. Colin Campbell. Even though I’m not all the way through it, there are a lot of compelling arguments about eating a plant-based, whole foods, low fat diet. There appear (I use the word appear because it can be hard to draw correlations/causations between observational studies and outcomes) between a meat-based, high animal source fat diet and all sorts of diseases including cancer. I’ve considered going vegetarian many times before, but am allergic to both dairy (from cows) and soy which really limits my protein options and has kept me from trying it in the past. However, I’m tinkering with it again.

What does “vegetarian” mean? It depends who you ask. Some adhere to the strict vegan meaning which means no animal products at all (no meat, no fish, no eggs, no dairy, etc.). There’s also lacto-ovo vegetarian who does not eat meat or fish but does eat dairy and eggs. Honestly, I don’t care about the terminology. I care about eating the way that will keep me the healthiest possible for the longest time. This means lots of energy, lots of food and at a healthy weight.

So, I’m trying to eat plant-based, whole foods and low fat as much possible. This morning I tried quinoa for breakfast. Added a little vanilla unsweetened Almond Breeze, Smart Balance, brown sugar and Splenda. Quite tasty! I also had 1 – 2 cups watermelon. YUM! I’ll probably have a gemma (pea) or hemp protein shake mid-morning to up the protein.

The biggest challenge so far – eating out. John and I eat out a lot. Finding meatless options can be a huge challenge. So, I’ll probably include a couple of servings of chicken and fish a week.

My goal: minimize animal protein and fat while still being able to lead a normal life. We’ll see how all this goes. I’ll keep you posted!

Have a great, healthy day!