As we start the New Year, the
temperatures continue to chill us, the leaves are gone, the days stay short and the air continues to crisp. It can only mean one thing: Time to make soup! Grab your ladles and start simmering… We are “souping” with style. I pulled this recipe from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ Food & Nutrition Magazine and I absolutely loved it! It was robust and hearty but also had that “healthy” feel too! This recipe is a perfect match for any dreary winter day! -SY

Ingredients:

2 tablespoon olive oil

½ Vidalia onion, diced

1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved

½ tablespoon black pepper

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 bay leaf

5 cups chopped kale

3 pre-cooked Italian-flavored chicken sausages, sliced

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1 cup water

1-14 ½oz can low-sodium great Northern beans, rinsed and drained

Directions:

Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium-low heat. Add onion and garlic, cover and cook for 3-5 minutes.

Stir in tomatoes, pepper, thyme, oregano, and bay leaf. Cover and cook 3-5 minutes.

Add kale and chicken sausage, stirring to ensure kale is coated with oil. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes until kale is slightly wilted.

Add broth, water and beans. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 10-15 minutes. Remove bay leaf.

Serves 4

Serving size: 1 cup

Calories-222; Total Fat-10g; Saturated Fat-2g; Cholesterol-33mg; Sodium-330mg; Carbohydrates-20g; Fiber-7g; Sugars-3g; Protein-15g

Much like fashion, nutrition trends come and go
frivolously in hopes of being one that will stick with consumers. Published in Today’s Dietitian magazine, registered dietitians from across the nation weighed in on what products they think will be “trending” this coming year.

Here are a few things they foresee:

Souping – “Souping is the new juicing,” according to Rachel Beller, MS, RDN, CEO of Beller Nutritional Institute. Souping isn’t referring to bone broth diets that you drink before a meal to suppress your appetite, but rather to exclusive soup meal plans that even include desserts.

Sprouted Grains – Sprouted grains provides increased vitamins and minerals, antioxidants, increased digestibility, and nutrient absorption. Sprouting creates enzymes that make plant proteins, essential fatty acids, starches, and vitamins more available for absorption. You can expect to see sprouted grains in cereals, snack bars, rice, and risotto mixes.

More Products With Less Sugar – On average, we as Americans consume around 22 teaspoons of added sugar per day. This without question is leading to an industrial push of decreasing sugar in food products. As a result, companies will probably turn to more “natural sweeteners” like stevia, maple syrup, agave syrup, etc.

Probiotic Push – Probiotics are most often found in food products such as yogurt. With research proving a strong relation between a healthy gut and brain connection, probiotics will continue to be a hot topic. According to Sarah-Jane Bedwell, RD, LDN, a dietitian from Nashville, “looking into 2016, it won’t be uncommon to find probiotic-fortified foods and beverages, such as orange juice, cereals, and waters.”

International Year of Pulses – Pulses include lentils, dry beans, beans, and chickpeas. Pulses are a vital source of plant-based proteins and amino acids. They can be expected to be seen in snack bars, prepackaged salads with edamame and roasted soy nuts, and in soups. –SY

*This list was revised from Today’s Dietitian magazine. For a complete list follow this link http://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/1215p26.shtml

Unfortunately, one of the number one things that seems to come with the holidays is stress. Dinner parties, family get-togethers, gift shopping, hosting, planning, ahhhhh stress!! While we’d all like to never have stress at all, sometimes it’s just part of life and we have to deal with it. The good news is that there are foods that can help reduce some of that stress! Here’s a list of some foods that make it to the top of our list:

Nuts – Stress depletes a lot of our B vitamin stores which are also related to energy. A couple servings of pistachios a day can lower blood pressure and reduce stress.

Red peppers – A recent study showed that people who took high doses of vitamin C before engaging in stress-inducing activities had lower blood pressure and recovered faster with replenishing cortisol.

Salmon – Omega-3’s have been known to reduce stress and anxiety by at least 20 percent and salmon is packed with it. Try getting at least 2 servings a week.

Spinach – Not only does spinach have the ability to make you stronger like Popeye, it’s loaded with magnesium which regulates cortisol and blood pressure too.

Oatmeal – Complex carbs like oatmeal, take longer to digest which leads to more comfort and “soothing” power.

Dark chocolate – There aren’t many people that don’t like chocolate (because it tastes amazing). The good news is that dark chocolate lowers cortisol and stress levels so indulge! Just remember to keep portion sizes in mind!

Tea – Especially decaf, herbal teas like chamomile, peppermint or ginger. Herbal teas are known to be calming and they soothe the digestive tract that can often times be affected by stress. -SY

At my house, pumpkin pie is a must have on Thanksgiving. We all have those traditions that we don’t really like to change but if we could save 254 calories, time it takes to make the pie, and it still tastes great, why wouldn’t we!? This Frozen Pumpkin Mousse Pie is super easy to throw together and you can make it up to 3 days ahead of time! Enjoy!

Ingredients

CRUST

30 small gingersnap cookies (about 7 ½ ounces)

2 T raisins

1 T canola oil

FILLING

1 C canned pumpkin puree

1/3 C packed brown sugar

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

2 pints (4 C) frozen low-fat vanilla ice cream, softened

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350° F. Coat a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan with cooking spray.

To prepare crust: Combine gingersnaps and raisins in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add oil and pulse until blended. Press evenly into the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pan.

Bake the crust until set (about 10 minutes). Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To prepare filling: Combine pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg in a large bowl and mix well. Add ice cream and stir until blended. Spoon the mixture into the cooled pie crust. Freeze until firm, at least 2 hours. Let the pie soften slightly in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes before serving.

Makes 10 servings.

Nutrition Comparison
Frozen Pumpkin Mousse Pie	Regular Pumpkin Pie
230 Calories	484 Calories
5g Fat	33g Fat
1g Saturated Fat	20g Saturated Fat
2g Fiber	3g Fiber
179mg Sodium	191mg Sodium

Give it a try! I promise it’s worth it! -SY

“Desserts” and “healthy” don’t usually go together, right? At least that’s what everyone thinks… However, there are numerous ways to make those desserts a little more “healthy”. Obviously moderation is still important but with the right substitutions, desserts can easily contain less fat and sugar and still taste good! I don’t know about you guys, but with the holiday season rolling around, my mouth waters at the thought of warm apple crisp. Listed below is an Old-Fashioned Apple-Nut Crisp that makes a few substitutions to create a “healthier” version.

Give it a try and tell us what you think!

Ingredients:

5 medium-large crisp, tart apples (McIntosh, Empire, Granny Smith or Cortland) peeled and thinly sliced (about 6 cups)

3 tablespoons granulated sugar, or Splenda Granular

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, divided

2/3 cup whole-wheat flour

1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant)

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

2 tablespoons canola oil

2 tablespoons frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed

1/3 cup coarsely chopped hazelnuts, or walnuts

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat an 8x8in deep baking dish with cooking spray.

Combine apples with granulated sugar (or Splenda), lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a large bowl. Toss to mix. Transfer to the prepared baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine whole-wheat flour, oats, brown sugar and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a medium bowl. Mix to blend. Using your fingers (or a fork or pastry blender), cut in butter until evenly distributed and there are no chunks. Stir in oil, apple juice concentrate and nuts; toss well until evenly moistened and clumpy.

Remove the foil from the baking dish and scatter the topping evenly over the apples. Bake uncovered until the topping has browned and the fruit is soft and bubbling, about 30 minutes more. Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Recipe serves 8.

Nutrition Facts (per serving): 274 calories; 10 g fat (3 g sat); 8 mg cholesterol; 47 g carbohydrates; 3 g protein; 6 g fiber; 1 mg sodium; 231 mg potassium. -SY