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Canku
Ota
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(Many
Paths)
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An
Online Newsletter Celebrating Native America
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January
10,
2004 - Issue 104
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The
Healthy Refrigerator
Healthy
eating would be a lot easier if someone would clean
out the refrigerator, get rid of the junk, and stock
the shelves with nutritious choices. But until you find
a nutritionist-slash-personal assistant to do the job
for you, take a peek into this healthy refrigerator.
It might keep you away from the Cool Whip.
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Dairy
and Staples
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HUMMUS
Keep tubs on hand, plus bags of baby carrots. The combo is
a low-fat, high-protein snack alternative to hunks of cheese
or a fistful of cookies.
CHEESE
Replace mellow, soft cheeses with sharp, harder ones. A small
amount packs lots of flavor, saving you both dollars and fat
grams. Look for aged Cheddar and Parmigiano-Reggiano.
EGGS
Keep eggs in their carton on a lower shelf to guard against
the loss of carbon dioxide and moisture. The shells may look
impermeable, but they are covered with tiny holes that can
absorb odors and flavors.
BUTTER AND MARGARINE
Use real butter where it counts, but sparingly. Keep sticks
in a covered dish. (Freeze sticks you're not using.) When
it comes to margarine, soft kinds in tubs and those labeled
"trans-fat free" are the only healthy butter substitutes.
CHICKEN BROTH
Buy it in resealable cartons. Use it to cook rice, mash potatoes,
or saute vegetables for rich flavor without butter or oil.
(Add broth to a warm skillet with the vegetables; cover and
cook until tender.) Look for low-sodium or organic broth.
YOGURT
As with milk, go for low-fat instead of nonfat to enjoy more
flavor. You can bake with it or drain it through a coffee
filter for yogurt "cheese."
MILK
One percent milk has enough fat for baking but isn't unhealthy
to drink. Buy milk in opaque containers to protect it from
light, which can reduce the vitamin content.
ORANGE JUICE
Select juice that is calcium fortified. There's barely any
difference in taste, and drinking one glass will give you
a third of your recommended daily allowance of calcium. Orange
juice is also a good source of potassium.
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Oils, Water, Produce
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SALAD DRESSINGS
Your healthiest bottled-dressing options are vinaigrettes
made with olive oil, but if you have a weak spot for creamy
dressings you can make them last longer (and eat fewer calories)
by thinning them with milk, mild rice vinegar, or herb tea.
Tossing a salad with dressing before serving it is the key
to using less.
MAYONNAISE
Go for low-fat mayonnaise rather than the low-cholesterol
kind. Regular mayo doesn't have a lot of cholesterol to begin
with, but it does have a great deal of fat.
DRINKS
Keep filtered water or seltzer in the refrigerator and you'll
always have a cold, refreshing, healthy drink on hand. (Soda
consumption in the United States surpassed milk consumption
in 1994 and is still shooting upward.)
LEFTOVERS
Spoon leftovers even the take-out kind into
glass or plastic containers that are microwave-safe. Some
take-out trays and yogurt tubs are made from a kind of plastic
that can leach chemicals into food at high temperatures. Avoid
reheating in plastic containers that aren't designated microwave-safe.
BAGGED LETTUCES AND
VEGETABLES
Consider bags of baby spinach and other salad greens a shopping-list
staple. For longest shelf life, buy prewashed greens in single-variety
bags (the fragile leaves in salad mixes spoil first and can
ruin the whole package). Combine them with more economical
lettuce, such as iceberg, as needed.
PRODUCE
Put produce in its place. That generally means either out
of the fridge entirely (tomatoes and tropical fruits) or in
one of the bottom bins, where the humidity is controlled.
When vegetables lose moisture, they get limp and may lose
vitamins. Spinach can lose as much as 50 percent of its vitamin
C if left out overnight.
OILS
Olive, canola, and sesame oil are your healthiest options.
If you have all three, you'll be ready for just about any
kind of cooking. All are best kept in the refrigerator, because
they oxidize when exposed to heat and light. Oxidized oils
taste rancid and may release free radicals, which are linked
to many health risks. Chilled oils may become cloudy, but
they'll clarify at room temperature.
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The Freezer
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PREPARED FOODS
Packaged meals come in sensible portions but with sky-high
sodium content. (The bulk of the sodium in the U.S. diet comes
from prepared foods, not from what we use in cooking or sprinkle
on at the table.) With homemade frozen foods, wrap tightly,
label, and date. Meals stored in the freezer should be used
within three months.
WHOLE GRAINS
Brown rice, whole-wheat flour, and oatmeal are the best grains
to stock, but they should be kept cold. Unlike refined grains
(the white ones), whole grains contain the outer bran as well
as the inner seed, or germ. The germ contains some fat. And,
like cooking oils, that fat can oxidize at room temperature.
SWEET SNACKS
When frozen, marshmallows get caramel-chewy and grapes end
up tasting like cold gumdrops. Either will give you satisfaction
without giving you fat.
BANANAS
When bananas are too speckled to pack in lunch bags, throw
them into the freezer unpeeled. The skins will blacken, but
the fruit will stay sweet and ripe inside. Blend one with
orange juice, berries, and yogurt (no need for ice) for a
breakfast smoothie.
NUTS
Freeze an assortment peanuts, pistachios, almonds,
and walnuts all of which are loaded with antioxidants.
Don't worry about the fat. Nuts are mostly made up of monounsaturated
fats (the good kind). Like oils, nuts need to be kept cold
and out of the light to remain fresh.
ICE CREAM
A University of Pennsylvania study found that the larger the
container, the more careless we are about indulging. Buy ice
cream in four-ounce individual servings or pints.
SOYBEANS
Here is the healthy, high-protein snack that will break you
of the potato-chips-before-dinner habit. Edamame (soybeans
in their pods) are the best-tasting tofu alternative. Drop
them frozen into boiling water for a few minutes, drain, and
salt. Serve warm or chilled (with a separate bowl to collect
the discarded pods).
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Canku Ota is a free Newsletter celebrating Native
America, its traditions and accomplishments . We do not provide subscriber
or visitor names to anyone. Some articles presented in Canku Ota may
contain copyright material. We have received appropriate permissions
for republishing any articles. Material appearing here is distributed
without profit or monetary gain to those who have expressed an interest.
This is in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107. |
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Canku Ota is a copyright © 2000,
2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 of Vicki Lockard and Paul Barry.
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The "Canku
Ota - A Newsletter Celebrating Native America" web site and
its design is the
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Copyright ©
1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 of Paul C. Barry.
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All Rights Reserved.
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