January 10, 2020 at 09:30PM by CWC Perishable items—like fruit, veggies, eggs, and milk—go in the fridge of course. And everything else is packed into the pantry. But prepare to be shook, because everything you know about food storage and pantry items is about to change. A lot of the healthy staples you currently store in your pantry—like nuts and matcha—should actually be in the fridge in order to keep them fresh and nutritious. So what to refrigerate, and what not to refrigerate? We asked chefs and nutritionists to name the pantry items you might want to move to your refrigerator. The pantry items that should be stored in your refrigerator 1. Nuts and seeds Nuts and seeds are pretty much always found in the pantry. But by storing them in the fridge, they’ll last way longer. “The biggest reason to store dry goods in the refrigerator is to prevent the oils in nuts and seeds from turning rancid,” says Emily Brekke, executive chef at Mint Kitchen. Storing them in airtight containers like Mason jars instead of the bags they come in is helpful, too. 2. Nut butter It’s not just nuts that do better in the fridge—it’s also their respective butters. “Once opened, nut butters will be fine at room temperature in a cabinet for a few months, but if you want to maximize their life, they will stay twice as long in the fridge,” says Allison Scheinfeld, RD, a Brooklyn-based registered dietitian. “This is especially true for natural
Category: Vegetarians
Scientists say these 5 healthy habits extend your healthspan by 10 years
January 10, 2020 at 07:45PM by CWC As humans strive to live longer and healthier lives, longevity experts are on a mission to prolong not only your lifespan, but to increase the number of years you’ll live free of debilitating disease. Scientists at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health assembled an international research team to discover how healthy lifestyle habits you adopt now can extend your healthspan by up to 10 years. The study, published in The British Medical Journal on January 8, looked specifically at years lived without diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or cancer. Researchers examined self-reported data collected every other year since 1980 from nearly 175,000 healthcare professionals age 30 to 75. They found that people over 50 who had never smoked, maintained a healthy weight, ate a healthy diet, exercised regularly, and drank only a moderate amount of alcohol lived about 84 healthy years—a full decade longer than those who did not. “In many ways, these health behaviors are interconnected,” says XinQi Dong, MD, a gerontologist and director of Rutger University’s Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research. “This study enables people to better quantify the years added. The message is laudable.” While the study suggests practicing all five of these habits provides maximum benefits, Ross Arena, PhD, a physical therapist researching rehabilitation and prevention says adoption of just one can be helpful. “What are you willing to do? Can you go for a walk a couple times per week? Something is better than
Upgrade your afternoon snack routine with this delicious, stress-fighting veggie dip
January 02, 2020 at 01:00AM by CWC [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A38hYM-5K0A] Looking for a delicious snack that fights stress while you eat? Watch the video for the recipe. Given the consequences of chronic stress on overall health, it might be wise to add “chill the f**k out” to your new year’s resolutions for 2020. (Especially given that it’s an election year…) While you may have a few go-to tactics for battling modern life’s greatest wellness enemy, there’s one key element you’re likely overlooking: food. In the latest episode of our YouTube series Plant Based, herbalist, holistic health coach, and Supernatural founder Rachelle Robinett shares a superfood snack you can stress-eat with abandon when times get tough. In the video, Robinett walks us through her go-to recipe for a veggie dip that features what she calls a “perfect combination of stress-busting tactics.” It’s infused with three adaptogenic herbs that help the body, well, adapt to stress: ashwagandha, rhodiola, and ginseng. “Ashwagandha is known primarily for calmness, stability, and normalizing cortisol levels,” she says. “Rhodiola, which is one of my clients’ favorite herbs, is something that helps to promote calm, stability, and is supportive of mood.’ Ginseng, meanwhile, helps reinvigorate waning “life force” and promotes better circulation, she says. It’s not just the herbs that make this dish ideal for stressful days. “The format of a thick vegetable dip is also perfect for stress because we tend to snack when we’re stressed, and if you have something healthy to snack on… win,” Robinett says. Wanna
The 6 healthiest canned soups to always keep in your pantry, according to a dietitian
January 01, 2020 at 05:00PM by CWC On weeks when I really don’t feel like meal-prepping, I have an easy solution. I buy five canned soups to stash at my desk for speedy lunches. I have my own favorite (Amy’s French Country Vegetable), but just to make sure I’m on the right nutritional track for cozy, mid-day fuel, I asked a dietitian to name the healthiest canned soups on the market. “Canned soup can be extremely high in sodium, and according to the American Dietary Guidelines, the goal is to stay below 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day,” says Tracy Lockwood Beckerman, a registered dietitian and author of The Better Period Food Solution. “If you suffer from heart disease or diabetes, you want that goal to even lower: 1,500 milligrams.” The ideal soup, says Beckerman, will have about 400 milligrams of sodium. “That’s less than 20 percent of the total amount of sodium intake a day,” she adds. As with all your meals, you’ll want to make sure your canned soup of choice balances carbs, fat, protein, and a ton of veggies. Below, Beckerman names the healthiest canned soups that fulfill the criteria of the most popular diets today. The healthiest canned soups for every diet Photo: Amazon Paleo and whole30: TRUE AND PRIMAL GRASS-FED BEEF AND VEGETABLE SOUP “Not only is this a paleo option, but this soup is made with natural spices and 100 percent grass-fed beef—making it Whole30 approved. It’s also gluten free, high in protein [24
Make healthy eating a reality with this delicious 28-day plan
January 01, 2020 at 11:00AM by CWC Year after year, “dieting and eating healthier” tops the list of most common New Year’s resolutions for Americans. But this is a different kind of healthy eating challenge from others you might see in January. We’re not here to tell you to follow a specific kind of eating plan, nor are we ever going to focus on eating for a certain kind of body. Instead, we want to help you prioritize whole foods over processed ones, and make doing so super simple so you might consider keeping it up throughout the year. Why? Simply put, it’s one of the few healthy eating “golden rules” that experts can agree on, no matter if they’re a fan of Paleo or keto or the Mediterranean diet. And it’s something that can be adapted to nearly any way of eating, regardless of a person’s unique nutritional or dietary needs. But it’s easy to bite off more than you can chew when working towards a new goal, no matter how gung-ho you feel on January 1. Because it takes 28 days to build a habit, we’ve set up our food challenge to give you a piece of actionable advice every single day for the next four weeks, all with the goal of getting you to eat more whole foods while meeting your own individual healthy eating goals along the way. Ready to join us on four weeks of change? It all starts on January 5. Read up on
The flexitarian diet lets you go mostly plant-based without *totally* ditching burgers
January 01, 2020 at 01:00AM by CWC If there’s one food lesson we learned this year, it’s the importance of plant-based eating for health and the environment. But it’s one thing to know that eating fewer animal products and more plants is associated lots of benefits—from reduced risk of heart disease to better digestive health—and another thing entirely to commit to it 100 percent. Sometimes you just need a real beef burger, you feel me? If you feel seen by the above, then you’d probably be down with one of the buzziest eating plans right now: the flexitarian diet. The term has been around for about a decade; it was coined by dietitian Dawn Jackson Blatner, RDN, in her 2008 book The Flexitarian Diet: The Mostly Vegetarian Way to Lose Weight, Be Healthier, Prevent Disease, and Add Years to Your Life. But it’s something that really started to pick up steam in the healthy community in recent years, as more and more people became aware of the health and environmental consequences of eating tons of meat. “The flexitarian diet gained momentum because it’s perfect for those looking to increase consumption of plant-based foods without having to commit to a 24/7 vegetarian or vegan lifestyle,” says Charlotte Martin, MS, RDN, CSOWM, CPT. Also, with sustainability efforts on the rise, many people are looking for ways to decrease their carbon footprint, and reduced meat consumption is definitely one of those ways. But how does this eating plan work, and is it too good
The vegan version of the most Googled recipe of 2019 is packed with protein
December 31, 2019 at 09:00PM by CWC When you think of the most Googled recipe of 2019, what comes to mind? Well, if a perfectly crisp cauliflower crust, creamy pasta dish, or mouth-watering dessert came to mind, you’re wrong. It was actually shepherd’s pie. Yep, the bland-looking dish packed with minced meat, gravy, and mashed potatoes. If you’re a bit surprised… me too. But clearly people are really into their shepherd’s pie! I’d really like to one-up those many searches with a healthier, prettier, and completely vegan vegan shepherd’s pie that’s loaded with plant-based protein. And leave it to Ella Mills, the plant-based cookbook author behind Deliciously Ella, to do just that with her take on the traditional recipe that uses sweet potatoes and black beans, leaving you energized after devouring the dish rather than weighed down. “This is my favorite Shepherd’s pie recipe, and it’s such a crowd-pleaser.” —Ella Mills of Deliciously Ella “This is my favorite Shepherd’s pie recipe, and it’s such a crowd-pleaser,” she wrote on her website. “The beans are sautéed with red onion, garlic, maple, coriander, lime juice, spring onions, mushrooms, and tomatoes until they’re soft and full of flavor. Then they’re baked under a layer of sweet potato mash.” Vegan shepherd’s pie takes more of a time commitment than something like pasta, but the finished product is impressive. Between the wholesome ingredients, herbs and spices, and many protein- and fiber-filled plants, this recipe is 100 percent worth the hype. For the full recipe, head
FYI most alcohols are gluten-free, so bottoms up
December 31, 2019 at 12:00PM by CWC If you’re gluten intolerant or suffer from celiac disease, you already know standard beer is a no-go since it’s made of water, hops, yeast, and gluten-containing grains like barley, rye, or wheat. But as wellness culture slowly trickles into the beverage industry, you may be led to believe spirits, too, contain gluten, and that they’re off limits. And that is categorically false—to a certain degree. “The only other consideration I can think of that could matter is if a spirit is made in a facility that processes gluten. For instance, if a vodka brand also makes beer,” says Kevin Gray, beverage expert and editor of the drinks website Bevvy. “It’s hard to imagine that cross-contamination scenario, but it could happen, I suppose.” Let’s back it up for a second. Distilled alcohol is necessarily always gluten-free because the distillation process strips away the protein that those with gluten intolerances react to. Gray says alcohol labeled “gluten-free” has not been manufactured any differently than counterparts without gluten-free labeling, so distilled spirits like vodka, rum, whiskey, and bourbon labeled “gluten-free” is redundant. It’s the equivalent of a veggie burger brand proudly declaring their products are “meat-free.” Your “gluten-free” vodka might actually be a misnomer, but the microscopic amount it does contain won’t harm you. As per the Food and Drug Administration, a product can be labeled “gluten-free” while also legally containing a gluten content of up to 20 parts per million since it’s the lowest amount
Shop once, eat 5 times with this Whole 30-friendly dinner plan
December 31, 2019 at 01:14AM by CWC In the wellness crowd, it feels like there are few terms more firmly associated with new year’s resolutions than Whole30. According to Google Trends data, search interest for the popular eating plan, which functions as a temporary elimination diet, spikes consistently every year in January. “Whole30 is a whole food-centered diet that eliminates gluten, dairy, grains, legumes, alcohol and all added sugars,” says Maggie Michalczyk, MS, RD. The eating plan was designed to help people identify potentially problematic foods, although Michalczyk says many people also use it for weight management. “It’s often done in January when most people feel they want to get back on track after the holidays and want a specific set of rules to follow,” she adds. Given that it cuts out so many food groups, following Whole30 makes grocery shopping and meal prepping a definite challenge. You might feel clueless wandering down the aisles, unsure of what you can and cannot eat. And since you’re cutting out processed foods, that grocery bill might be higher than you’re used to. It should be noted that Whole30 is fairly restrictive, and isn’t necessarily the right thing to try for everyone. But if you’re looking to try it yourself in January, Michalczyk has a shopping list with some easy dinner ideas to get you started. Five days down…25 to go. Your Whole30 shopping list: Nutritional yeast Almond butter Coconut aminos Carrots Peppers Snap peas Fresh ginger Parsley 2 onions 1 spaghetti squash
This Mexican stew is loaded with protein—and it’s 100 percent vegan
December 30, 2019 at 10:00PM by CWC If you’re in desperate need of a new recipe on rotation after one too many tomato soups and grilled cheeses, I have the perfect addition to your lineup: a vegan Mexican stew that’s loaded with plant-based protein. Bethany Ugarte, the blogger behind Lilsipper, has been eating menudo—a tradition Mexican soup—during the holidays for as long as she can remember. While the main component of the original version is cow stomach, she remade it with all vegan ingredients to reap the benefits in a healthier way. And the star of the show is none other than everyone’s favorite legume: chickpeas. With 39 grams of protein per cup, chickpeas are an excellent source of nutrition. Put together with vegetarian both, tomatoes, kale, and a splash of metabolism-boosting hot sauce, you create a simple meal in minutes. The next time you want to cuddle up with a cozy stew, whip up Ugarte’s easy-to-make recipe. Mexican chickpea stew Ingredients 3 cups chickpeas (pre-cooked or canned) 4 cups water 4 cups veggie broth 1/4 cup Frank’s RedHot Sauce 1 18 oz. jar diced tomatoes 1 cup fresh dinosaur kale, chopped black pepper to taste 1. Warm all soup ingredients in a pot. 2. Once warm, garnish as desired. For another healthy plant-based recipe, try this immunity broth: [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-U4V3PTnas] These are the best plant-based proteins that won’t mess with your digestion. Then check out the only 7 spices you need to create a million flavor combinations. Continue Reading…