Fabulous, Light and Healthy Fish for Your Family

Many people who are looking for a healthier, less fattening form of protein to incorporate into their diet (that is NOT chicken) will likely enjoy halibut.  It is a large flatfish that swims sideways with the largest halibut recorded at more than 8 feet in length and weighing in at more than 500 pounds.  The picture below is provided by the Alaskan Department of Fish and Game.  It is kind of scary looking but I figure if you're going to eat it, you should know what it is and where it comes from! 

It is sold in thick white filets or steaks and doesn't taste fishy at all.  It has a denser, flakier texture than say tilapia, but is not as fishy or rich as salmon.  I'd say it's a nice in between fish.  

More than likely if you are eating enough calories in your diet, you are getting enough protein.  Most people are commonly deceived by fad diets or fitness articles into believing they need more protein than they actually need.  Because there is no protein storage "warehouse" in the body, any excess that is consumed is stored as fat. FAT, not muscle.  So the key to a healthful diet, whether vegan or otherwise, is to maintain a balance of calories in to equal the amount of energy you are expending (or energy out). I'm not a fan of counting calories by any stretch so I'd never really advocate that.  Rather, what I'm trying to explain is where fish like halibut might fit into your diet.  If you are just trying to get more bang for each bite you take-ie the most nutrition with the least amount of negative stuff-choosing fish over steak might be a nice option for you.  Of course things like quinoa are always an option for vegans and vegetarians, but omnivores I'm talking to you! 

Here's the breakdown of what a 3 oz portion of halibut might look like nutrition-wise if prepared using the recipe I'll provide below (sorry it's blurry):

Note that it's about 178 calories with about 1 gram of saturated fat.  Steak cooked in a similar fashion would have about 284 calories with about 8 grams of saturated fat.  

These small changes, collectively, over the days, weeks and months, can add up to big differences in your health.  Fat is not bad! I actually am not a proponent of Fat Free products or alternative fats because of all the added preservatives, sugars and salts used to replace flavor in those products.  I also believe that minimizing saturated fats can help you maintain or lose weight and prevent many modern diseases like heart disease, type 2 diabetes and more (supported by scientific data not listed here-y'all are smart, you can find it everywhere!). In this meal alone, swapping red meat for fish saves you 7 grams of sat fat!!! Woah!

So with all that said I'm going to give you a recipe for Halibut Cacciatore that was used in my Food Production class at school, but with a few changes I've made to amp it up a bit.  Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients  Serves 2

8 oz Alaskan Halibut cut into 1 inch chunks
Flour for dredging
2 Tbsp canola oil (measure this out! it makes a difference calorie-wise)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
4 oz of mushrooms, chopped (or about a third of a 12 oz container)
1 8 oz can of organic canned tomatoes (with the juice)
1 tsp oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 pkg of angel hair pasta

Method

1. Dredge fish in flour and heat 1 tablespoon oil in sauté pan. When oil is hot, sauté fish in pan until browned (about 2 minutes max). I just flipped the pieces once or twice. Set aside. Don't worry if they cool, you will be reheating them to finish cooking in a few steps.

2. Get some water boiling for the pasta.

3. Add 1 more tablespoon of oil to the pan.  Saute onion, pepper, garlic and mushrooms in the pan for a minute or two. Then add oregano (and a few red chili flakes if you like!) and tomatoes and season on a low simmer for about 10 minutes.

4. After you start this simmering, drop your pasta and cook until al dente or for about 4-5 minutes. Drain and put on serving plate.

5. Add fish to sauce mixture, cover and simmer for about 5 more minutes until fish is cooked through (145 degrees) and flaky.

6. Once fish is done, toss pasta in sauce and pour into serving dish. Enjoy!!!

Clear Out Your Cupboards Chili!

Simple Pantry Chili!

As we all continue to hibernate (or many of us anyway), I thought it might be nice to post a standard chili recipe (there is a great butternut squash/kale recipe in a recent previous post) that you can make without leaving your home AND that's packed with IRON, FIBER, PROTEIN, CALCIUM and tons of other vitamins and minerals.  It's also made in one pot, with about 5 minutes of prep and little babysitting! I was able to fold the laundry while this cooked.  And if you still needed another reason to make this-it tastes even better then next day! 

Ingredients (and remember use what's in your pantry-substitute where necessary)

1 onion, diced
2 small sweet peppers, diced
1 can unsalted kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
1 can unsalted black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 can unsalted navy beans (drained and rinsed)
1 14 oz can of organic crushed tomatoes (i used fire roasted)
1 lb ground organic beef (can be left out-i just had some on hand)
2 Tbsp chili powder
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of cumin
pinch of garlic powder

Method

Heat a little olive oil in a large saucepan (like a tsp) and add the onions, peppers and spices.  Saute for a few minutes until translucent, then add beef.  Saute on medium until browned.  Add beans and can of tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20-30 mins covered. DONE!

I added hand-grated cheddar cheese because my son loves it, but feel free to leave out both the meat and cheese for a vegan delight! You can add avocado instead! 

Hope you enjoy this great weeknight meal!

Use the leftovers to make fantastic breakfast burritos or as a topper for nachos at snack time!

Quick Quinoa Tacos!

First, what is Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) and why should you eat it?

Contrary to popular belief-you can get all your protein from plant sources, including this complete source, found in the grain family, although it is a seed. A complete protein means the food contains the 9 essential amino acids we can't make in our bodies, in proper proportion for easy absorption. Most people think you need to get all your amino acids from one source and that that source should be meat. However, quinoa has a similar amino acid profile-meaning it is a complete protein packed with what you need to build muscle, etc. Also, on a side note, you don't need to get all your amino acids (the building blocks of protein) from one source. Our body is built to put varying aminos together to build things-so diversifying the sources in your diet is no less nutritious than getting them all from one food.

Quinoa was eaten by the Incans back in the day before battle. Yes, men, warriors ate it. So you can feel manly without the meat. This food will give you long-lasting energy throughout the day, stable blood sugar and protein to build muscle without saturated fat, casein (a known cancer-causing animal protein), excess sodium or sugar. It is also GLUTEN-FREE!!

And guess what-it's cheap, easy and yummy!! It only took me 1 hour to prep, cook, eat and cleanup after this meal. Doesn't get any easier.

Here's how I prepared it:

Quick Quinoa Tacos

Ingredients Serves 2 to 4

1/2 cup red quinoa (uncooked)

1 cup low-sodium vegetable stock

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1/2 red pepper, chopped

pinch of cayenne

pinch of cumin

3 cloves garlic, minced

your favorite guacamole (or make your own by just smashing up some avocados)

your favorite salsa

1 can low-sodium black beans

1 lime

1 package whole wheat flour tortillas

Method

Saute the onion, pepper, garlic and spices in a sauce pan until translucent and cooked. About 3 to 5 minutes on medium high heat. Add the 1/2 cup of quinoa and toast, while stirring constantly for about a minute. Then add the broth, bring to a boil, cover, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes stirring occassionally.

While the quinoa is cooking, open the black beans, drain and rinse. Heat if you prefer. Chop tomatoes and heat your tortillas if you want as well. I also used this time to steam some broccoli for the side to this dish. (To do that just buy some broccoli, break off the little stems into a colander, put the colander in a sauce pan that you can fill with about an inch of water without having it touch, cover and steam for about 12 minutes).

Then, once the quinoa mixture is done, build your tacos! Put the quinoa, beans, guacamole, salsa, lime and tomatoes on your tortilla and enjoy!