Eat, Drink, Live Longer

When you and I make choices about the food we eat, it is easy to look at all the options and choose what is going to be healthy and beneficial for our bodies. But when was the last time you made a food choice based on what was healthy and beneficial to the environment? Sustainable eating is more than picking up local produce or reducing the amounts of harmful chemicals we use on our crops. Did you know what 40% of the food produced in the U.S. is wasted? When I found out, I was floored! What can we do as consumers to fill our bodies with healthy and delicious food, while also taking care of the environment.

This week, I sit down with Chris Vogliano, a Registered Dietitian, and Ethical Food Warrior. He shared with me how we have the ability to reduce the amount of food we waste, choose foods with low carbon and water footprints, and still maintain a healthy lifestyle! Chris has an easy way to repurpose your leftovers and stop wasting food using the crockpot. I’ll also show you how to use up beautiful cherry tomatoes before they go bad with my delicious Roasted Tomato and Cheese Omelet. Sustainable eating seems like a daunting task, but believe me—it’s much easier than you think!

Also in this episode:

• 3 things we can do today to eat more sustainably.
• What does it mean to have a farm to fork mindset?
• Chris’s definition of eating sustainably.
• Eat more plant proteins! Hear a few tips and tricks for eating more plants and less meat.
• What’s the beef with beef? Can a blended burger be the solution?
• Chris and I share our go-to recipes with lentils and beans.
• Utilize your freezer for eliminating fruit food waste.
• Tips for shopping your refrigerator, including your boring leftovers!
• Taking stock of what you throw away.
• Sell by dates show quality, not safety!
• My tips for using up that pint of cherry tomatoes with my slow-roasted tomato omelets.
• Choosing bio-diverse foods can promote bio-diverse agriculture.
• 1 big thing you can do today to become a sustainable food warrior.
• Check out The Waste Free Kitchen Handbook by Dana Gunders.

Links

8 Ways to reduce your Food Waste Food Print

https://chrisvogliano.com/new-blog/weighing-in-on-wasted-food

Demystify the Sell-by dates here!

http://www.stilltasty.com/

To join the Podcast Posse and follow me on Social Media!

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/

My friends at Super Healthy Kids

http://www.superhealthykids.com/

I think it’s safe to say we all carry around a little anxiety when it comes to our little ones and food allergies, particularlyto peanuts. Many schools have banned peanuts, and more and more moms have delayed introducing their little ones to the nut for fear of developing a peanut allergy. However, peanuts are delicious, nutritious, and allergies are not quite as prevalent as you might think. Here to ease some of your worries and give us the facts is my guest this week, Sherry Coleman Collins A.K.A Ms. Peanut RD.

Sherry is a Registered Dietician who shares her love of all things peanut with her husband, furry pup, and her little “peanut” of her own. Sherry has been working with the National Peanut Board for years now building on her experience with Pediatrics and School Nutrition. She is on a mission to encourage parents to do their homework, and introduce their little ones to peanut protein earlier than they might think—as early as 4 months for some! Surprised? Confused? Don’t be! Tune in to find out everything you want to know and more about the powerful peanut. Make sure you hang around for my easy and healthy soft serve “ice cream” recipe, plus all the resources you could ever need for the early introduction of peanut protein.

Also in this episode:

• Sherry’s always fed kids with her work with Pediatrics in nutrition and School Nutrition.
• What is the deal with peanut allergies and the prevalence here in the US?
• Dispelling some of the myths and uncovering the mysteries of food allergies.
• The curious case of Israeli Bamba peanut puffs.
• How to introduce peanuts to children based on their risk.
• Sherry’s favorite ways to cook with peanuts.
• Nutritional benefits of peanuts.
• Sherry’s favorite cook book (out of so many!)

Sponsors

Zespri Kiwifruit

Bush’s Beans

Links

http://nationalpeanutboard.org/

http://peanutallergyfacts.org/

Follow Sherry on Instagram and Twitter

@peanutRD

To join the Podcast Posse and follow me on Social Media!

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/

My friends at Super Healthy Kids

http://www.superhealthykids.com/

For busy parents and caregivers, it can sometimes feel like an added struggle to get our kiddos eating healthfully and adventurously. As tempting as we make our meals, and as cleverly as we hide those veggies, it can be exhausting trying to get our kids engaged with the food they eat. Well, what if I told you there was an elegant end to the Dinner Wars? Why don’t you pass the mixing bowl or cutting board over to your little one?

My guest this week is my dear friend Diana Rice. She runs the show at The Baby Steps Dietician blog, and is also involved in Kids Cook Monday. Diana is extremely passionate about getting kids involved in the cooking process. Now, I know what you might be thinking. It’s messy! I’d never trust my toddler with a cutting knife! What’s great about Diana’s approach is that she has easy and (mostly) mess free methods that will engage your children without sacrificing your kitchen. Yes, there might be a Blueberry Smoothie Incident or two (listen for more details,) but the rewards are great. Inspire your children to seek out new flavors and foods with Diana’s simple tips and tricks. Stay tuned for two great recipes: Cheesy Zucchini Black Bean Skillet, and my Hearty Barley Salad with Cucumber, Tomato, and Arugula.

Show Highlights:

• Diana shares how her passion for cooking with children has grown.
• The documented beneficial effects of cooking with children.
• Build a more nutritious diet later in life by developing cooking skills.
• An application for real world math and science in the kitchen.
• What are the ages and stages for cooking with your children? Diana gives you all the culinary milestones.
• Empowering our children by encouraging them to participate in something the entire family can enjoy.
• Important tips for knife safety—use the bear claw method!
• Embrace the kids cooking war stories, and share a few!
• How to get Kids Cook Mondays in your child’s school.
• Diana shares her favorite cookbooks for parents and caregivers.
• Clever ideas for adapting recipes to your children’s taste.

Links

Diana’s Website

http://dianakrice.com/

Kids Cook Monday

http://www.thekidscookmonday.org/

Family Dinner Date Newsletter

http://www.thekidscookmonday.org/family-dinner-date-newsletter/

Join the Podcast Posse

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/podcast/

There’s been a good bit of buzz in the Modern Mom circle of the blogosphere about this thing called “Baby-Led Weaning” or “Baby-Led Feeding.” It sounds interesting, but what exactly is it, and why is it the latest movement in nutrition for our little ones? My guest this week is a Baby Feeding expert, Katie Ferraro, and boy does she have the chops to teach us all about Baby-Led Weaning!

Katie is a mother to five children, her oldest daughter and a set of quadruplets. Yes, you heard me, quadruplets. After struggling to feed her older daughter, Katie knew something was going to have to change for her four new babies. As a nutrition expert herself, Katie started to do some digging, and what she discovered was the brave new world of Baby-Led Weaning. Gone are the days of mushed peas and rice cereal spoonful-by-spoonful. This is a process of introducing your child to a whole world of foods by the little fistful. Katie has a wealth of knowledge and experience times four to share, and it was a pleasure to learn from her.

Listen for all the information you could ever need about Baby-Led Weaning, and stay for my healthy Avocado and Ricotta Pancake recipe, perfect for Mamas ready to take up the practice!

• Hear Katie’s journey to Baby-Led Weaning, and what it takes to master it.
• What to expect when you begin Baby-Led Weaning: stick with it!
• Build up proficient eaters by introducing solid foods at 6 months.
• Katie explains why size matters when preparing food for your baby.
• Hear how to get a list of the 100 foods your baby should try…before they turn one!
• Katie explains the nutritional benefits to Baby-Led Weaning
• Is there a financial benefit to Baby-Led Weaning?
• 50 Bananas a week? See how Katie learned the importance of snacking to meet her quadruplets nutritional needs.
• Explore the ways avocados really are a nutrient super food.
• Get my recipe for Avocado Ricotta Pancakes.
• Katie and I discuss some unconventional baby foods.
• Katie dispels the gagging myths causing fear for Baby-Led Weaning.

Katie Recommends

Inventing Baby Food by Amy Bentley

Katie’s Website

https://www.fortifiedfam.com/

Katie’s Online Course for Baby-Led Weaning

http://selffeedingbaby.com/

The First 100 Foods Your Baby Should Eat

http://100babyfoods.com/

Baby-Led Weaning Facebook Group

https://www.facebook.com/groups/babyledweaningrecipes/?source_id=318793378486514

Visit the Healthy Table Website- full of resources and recipes!

https://www.lizshealthytable.com/

California Avocado Recipes

https://www.californiaavocado.com/recipes

Sharon Palmer is my guest for today’s show. She is a registered dietician, cookbook author, and mom of two sons. Her books are The Plant Powered Diet and Plant Powered for Life. They are packed full of wonderful recipes that I’m having fun trying, and I know you will, too. Visit my blog to find out about the book giveaway!

The topic for today is one that is of interest to many listeners. I’ve heard your questions about how to “go meatless” more often. So, how do we prepare more meatless meals for our families? Is it something you’ve needed some practical tips about trying? Sharon has the answers and she’s sharing them right here. Join us!

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• The differences in terminology: vegan, vegetarian, plant-powered omnivore, etc.
• All the options within the plant world, like grains, legumes, soy, fruits, vegetables, herbs, seeds, chocolate, and coffee!
• The “SAD” (standard American diet), which lacks a wide variety of plants
• The health benefits of a plant-based diet: reduced risk of chronic disease, healthy weight, and reduced carbon footprint
• In Sharon’s 2^nd book, a 52-week plan that makes plant-based eating easy and simple
• Simple steps to implement more plant power: more whole grains, nuts, and seeds
• What to do if the whole family doesn’t embrace plant-based eating:
• • Try “meatless Monday” (and get creative!)
  • Offer a variety of flavorful plant-based items with a small portion of poultry or fish
  • Adapt favorite recipes, like lasagna
  • Use meat as a seasoning and not the main course
• “Blue zones”—what are they and where are they found?
• Why the controversy around soy and tofu?
• How to “jazz up” tofu with flavorful sauces, casseroles, and stir-fry
• Sharon’s recipes that I recently tried: Tofu Cobb Salad and Red Lentil Soup with Root Vegetables and Sage
• How to deal with nutrition shortfalls in a plant-based diet
• Cooking with dried beans and lentils
• The growing market and availability of vegan cheeses
• The versatility of cashews
• How to deal with a bumper crop of home-grown vegetables
• Sharon’s favorite recipes: Tortilla Soup and Pho—because they are customizable!
• Sharon’s favorite cookbook authors: Deborah Madison, Rich Landau, and Alex Caspero
• Sharon’s favorite chefs: Tal Ronnen and Matthew Kenney

Resources:

www.lizshealthytable.com

Email: [email protected]

www.sharonpalmer.com

www.superhealthykids.com

Check out my closed Facebook group: Liz’s Podcast Posse

Why are kids picky? Is it possible to turn finicky eaters into adventurous eaters? You'll be surprised, the answer is YES! Listen in to lots of veggie talk today, because I'm going to be talking about picky eating and I'm going to be sharing two recipes from Chop Chop. One of them is for a delicious, Raw Brussels Sprout Salad and the other is for a Carrot Salad, with mint, honey, lime juice and peanuts (only if you like them).

Sally Sampson will be joining me on the show, today. She is the founder of Chop Chop Kids, which is the non-profit publisher of Chop Chop, the fun Cooking Magazine for Families. This was named The Publication Of The Year by the James Beard Foundation, back in 2013. Sally has written twenty-three cookbooks, so she knows a thing or two about cooking! She's a mom of two and she's written a book called The Picky Eater Project, Six Weeks To Happier, Healthier Family Mealtimes.

Whether you have picky eaters or not, I still think you're going to love this episode, because we have so many ideas for making vegetables more appealing and even including your kids in the cooking process. Listen in now to find out more!

Today, Sally talks to Liz about:

• A life and career changing event that happened in her family.
• More about Chop Chop Magazine, which is distributed in Pediatrician's offices all over the country.
• Her book, The Picky Eater Project and how it all started.
• Her rules, which are neither mean-spirited, nor rigid- they involve treating children with respect.
• What she's noticed about kids at her photo shoots.
• The negative messages that parents tend to give their kids.
• Dealing with issues about texture.
• 90% of kids will eat food that they've cooked themselves.
• Making the dreaded green vegetable more appealing.
• Setting up taste tests for your kids as a fun game.
• The best way to cook broccoli florets.
• Tips for roasting vegetables.
• The thing about lettuce cups...
• The ingredients that go into the Raw Brussels Sprout Salad and why kids love it.
• A lazy tip to make the Raw Brussels Sprout Salad easier.
• Getting your child to do a Recipe Review.
• Letting kids learn about what they like.
• Sally's favorite Cookbook-The Chop Chop Cookbook.
• Sally's Online Cooking Club for Kids.

Links:

Sally's website: www.chopchopmag.org

Sally's Free Online Cooking Club for Kids: www.chopchopcookingclub.org

For a Free Giveaway: Head on over to my website: www.lizshealthytable.com. On my blog I'm going to share the Carrot Salad Recipe and also the information about the free giveaway, to win a one-year subscription to Chop Chop. (US only, please.)

To be part of the Podcast Posse, go to the podcast page on www.lizshealthytable.com and there's a little button in the sidebar that says “Join the Podcast Posse”.

Do you love eating pasta, but you don't think that it makes a healthy meal? Then you're really going to enjoy today's show, as Alexandra Caspero and I, dig into pasta, with a modern, Italian twist and share some easy and nutritious recipes that I’m sure you're going to want to make for your family. Listen in to find out why you really can eat pasta! And yes, you can eat pasta and be gluten free!

Today’s guest, Alex, is a vegetarian, who is based in St Louis. She is a registered dietician and she's the voice behind the beautiful food blog, Delish Knowledge. She's also the author of the new cookbook Fresh Italian Cooking For The New Generation. Listen in to today's show and discover more about healthy eating, the Italian way.

Today, Alex and I talk about:

•Two of the recipes from Alex's book - Roasted Vegetable Ziti and Pasta E Fagioli.

•Alex's book- Fresh Italian Cooking for the New Generation.

•Making meat-free meals really enjoyable.

•Alex's meat-free, delicious Mushroom Lasagna.

•The story behind Alex's recipe for her Grandmother's recipe for Pasta E Fagioli.

•Why kids will really enjoy Alex's Pasta E Fagioli.

•The magical properties of pasta water.

•Herbs - they can really take a dish from ho-hum to delish!

•That Italian cooking is meant to be designed as you go, so improvise till your heart's content.

•The difference between whole-wheat pasta and white flour pasta and substituting gluten free pasta if necessary.

•Making your own pasta- great to get your kids involved!

•Alex's favorite recipe in her book – Fresh Corn and Zucchini Gnocchi.

•The different choices that are available for you in Alex's cookbook.

•Alex's favorite foodie- Ina Garten of the Food Network.

•The cookbooks that Alex thinks everybody should have on their bookshelf.

Links:

Alex's website: www.delishknowledge.com

Liz's website: www.lizshealthytable.com – Go to the blog for recipes and for the free giveaway of Alex's book.

Liz's email: [email protected]

Resources:

Books: Everyday Pasta by Giada De Laurentiis

The Flavor Bible and The Vegetarian Flavour Bible by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

Your host, Liz Weiss, is a dietician, cookbook author, food blogger and the mom of two grown boys, who have eaten her out of house and home, for the past two decades. Liz used to co-host a show called Cooking With Moms and also an online platform called Meal Makeover Moms, from 2008 to 2016 with Janice Bissex. The time, however, came to move on and so came the birth of Liz's Healthy Table.

On today's show, Liz tells you about her journey in the world of nutrition, as a mom and a foodie. She also talks about what you can expect to hear on the show, moving forward, as she's done a survey, to find out what you, the listener, would like as topics. Her guest for today, is her husband, Tim, who is a pescatarian. Listen in to find out what Tim has to say and also what's in store for you on Liz's new podcast.

On today's show, you'll hear:

• About Liz's closed Facebook Group, Podcast Posse- how you can join it and what you can expect to find there.
• Some upcoming guests and topics for future shows.
• What it's like for Liz's husband Tim to be married to a registered dietician.
• Why Tim calls Liz a bully, when they go out to dinner.
• What it was like for Tim at the dinner table, when their boys, Josh and Simon were still toddlers.
• Tim's favorite meal, that Liz cooks for the family.
• What Tim used to eatwhen he was a bachelor.
• About how Liz loves to camp out and cook over an open fire.
• The cool things you can do when you visitwww.lizshealthytable.com
• How growing up was a big, fun, food adventure, with a mom who was a Home Ec. teacher and a really great cook.
• That when kids learn how to cook, they are more likely to embrace eating a variety of healthy foods.
• All about Liz's education.
• The nutritional work that Liz did at CNN.
• Liz's Healthy Lunch Task Force, to advocate for radical and healthy changes in the elementary school's cafeteria.

Links:

Liz's website: www.lizshealthytable.com

Liz's email: [email protected]

Resources:

Books by Yotam Ottolenghi- Plenty and Jerusalem