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Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Confessions of a NOT so Susie Homemaker


Happy Wednesday, everyone! I am honored to have Mrs. Sheena Quizon Gregg, MS, RD, LD guest posting today. She is a dear friend and a fellow registered dietitian...oh and a Newlywed!! Please, take the time to check out her blog, A Filipino Foodie| Thoughts and ramblings of a Filipino Foodie Dietitian. Enjoy!



sheena homemaker1
I am super excited today to be a guest blogger on Newlywed Nutrition. Having celebrated my 1 year anniversary with my husband this past weekend, I was pumped to get an invitation from Cindy to blog on her site. With a year of marriage under our belt, my husband and I have learned and are continuing to learn what works best for us when it comes to eating healthy...and regularly. When clients come to see me in my office, I always try to encourage them to have a contingency plan/back up meal in the fridge for those nights that no one wants to cook and both individuals are too pooped to run to get take out. But, I'll be honest, even though I'm a dietitian, I am very guilty of saving up tons on recipes on Pinterest and right after we got married it was like, "WHAM", and I found myself making desserts left and right. Have any of you found yourself in that position? For me, I wanted my husband Terry to know how great of a cook I was and subconsciously show both of our moms that I was capable of feeding my husband delicious hearty meals every night- almost like a modern day Donna Reed. But alas, 6 months and 10 lbs later, that scenario ended and it was time to figure out what the balance would be for us to ensure that not only were we eating regular meals in the evening, but that it didn't take 2 hours to cook and oodles of calories to be considered savory and delicious. During this learning process, we've found some staple things that have worked best for us to have on hand in the kitchen when we're both pretty pooped from a full day of work or need something quick for breakfast:
  1. Frozen steamer bags of vegetables: Having these babies in the freezer have made getting our daily veggie servings so much easier. In fact, one product that has helped even more (especially when it comes to $$) is Ziploc's Zip' N Steam Steamer bags so that we can use any brand of frozen vegetable. In fact, these bags will allow you to steam fresh veggies, as well as, fish, poultry and potatoes. And if any of you are weary about how nourishing frozen vegetables are, fret not. Advances in technology have allowed food growers and companies to flash freeze produce at it's peak level of nutrition ensuring that great vitamin and mineral content will be available in a frozen vegetable.
  2. Grilled chicken breast: On Sunday or Monday evenings, my husband and I try to make sure we've got some grilled chicken breast on hand in the fridge that we can use later in the week to throw on a bed of salad greens or to shred up for a quick chicken salad. Having a staple protein like chicken on hand, cooked and ready to go, can help in providing satiety in a meal and take that salad on your plate to the next level.
  3. Cereal and Milk: I know I know, this sounds so simple and unoriginal, but I cannot tell you how many times I've craved a bowl of cereal for breakfast (or even dinner) and there was not a drop of milk or crumb of cereal to be found in our home. The key to this though is going with a low-fat or no fat milk or dairy milk alternative, along with a cereal that has a good amount of both protein and fiber...one of my favorites is Kashi Go Lean Crunch (YUM!). My husband enhances his cereal routine by adding dried cranberries and sprinkles of flaxseed meal to increase protein, fiber, and heart healthy fats.
  4. Boiled eggs/egg whites: Having boiled eggs/egg whites on hand has been helpful for us at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We like to boil eggs the evening or so before and have them in the fridge ready to go as a quick source of protein at breakfast or chopped up to go on a salad at lunch or dinner. Boiling your eggs makes it easy to remove the yolk and use the egg white as a protein source without the added dietary cholesterol.
  5. Rice and Beans: Not only are rice and beans complimentary proteins in terms of nutritional value, but they are also complimentary in taste. We like having both dried and canned beans (low/no sodium added) in the pantry for a quick source of fiber and protein. If you opt to used canned beans, I recommend placing them in a colander and rinsing away the excess liquid that is full of sodium. These beans can be tossed in a salad for extra protein, or added as a side to your frozen veggies to provide both complex carbohydrate and great protein. Brown rice can be quickly made with a rice cooker and can provide a multitude of vitamins and minerals while also providing cholesterol lowering fiber to your diet.
I invite you to try out a few of my suggestions and you may find yourself already doing some of these things. When it comes to your quick "go to" meal or snack, what do you choose? :) I appreciate Cindy letting me visit today and invite you to come by A Filipino Foodie when you have a chance... I'd love to hear from you!

4 comments:

  1. Im addicted to my Kashi Go Lean Cereal every morning!

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  2. What about such vdr as ideals ? it is a nice solution for your business and just a nice topic for your blog. what do you think?

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  3. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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