March Cook it Quick

The March Cook it Quick newsletter from the University of Nebraska Lincoln Extension is here!

The recipes include:

• Slow cooker hamburger stew
• Confetti bean salsa
• Pasta primavera
• Spaghetti and savory meatballs

Other links include:

• Green fruits and vegetables
• Dirt pudding for kids
• Recipes for cooking with kids
• Does your plate look like MyPlate?
• and more.

The website also has a way you can subscribe to the newsletter or read through the archives if you missed a past article.

If you use social media, you can use the buttons on the right side of the newsletter to share with your friends and family.

Green for St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is Saturday, March 17. You don't have to be Irish to go green for St. Patrick's Day by eating more dark green veggies or enjoying the greenery outside by being more physically active.

We know that spinach and romaine lettuce are dark green veggies, but have you tried kale or arugula? Both can be used for salads or eaten as a veggie side. If you like pesto, here is an alternative recipe using arugula (and delicious I might add, because I've made it) and walnuts instead of traditional basil and pine nuts.

Arugula-walnut pesto (from Oldways)

¾ cup California walnuts, toasted
1 bunch arugula, washed, with stems removed (2 ounces of clean stemmed leaves)
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon (about 3 cloves) chopped garlic
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt

Instructions: 

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, combine all of the ingredients and process for 1 to 2 minutes, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the pesto is smooth.

Did you know that you can add spinach to a shake with fruit and you won't taste the spinach, but you will taste the yummy fruit? Try different combinations of spinach, berries/bananas/other fruits you enjoy, milk and ice cubes to find what your family likes. You can find recipes if you Google "spinach shake."

Some other healthy green fruits and veggies to try for St. Patty's Day: green grapes, Granny Smith apples, asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, avocados, green beans, peas, kiwi, cucumbers, zucchini, and honeydew melon. Try a new one today!

Don't forget to eat a rainbow of colorful fruits and veggies to get all the nutrients we need everyday.

We have had such wonderful weather lately, so it's time to get outside and get some more physical activity. Go for a walk, bike ride, or get the whole family involved in a game or sport outdoors.

Some towns have 5K's or 1 mile walks/jogs for St. Patrick's Day. Look at your local event calendar or in your local media to see if you can find one to help meet your physical activity goals.

National Nutrition Month

March is National Nutrition month, as recognized by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formally the American Dietetic Association). Here are some tips to help you eat more nutritious foods and cut back on the foods that are lower in nutrients. The key is not to add too many foods to what you are already eating, but to replace with healthy ones. Try one tip at a time and add more when you are successful.

• Make a goal to replace French fries with a vegetable. If you can choose between French fries, salad, broccoli, or a baked potato, make the best choice.

• Instead of corn, try a dark green, red, or orange vegetable instead.

• Switch out white bread for 100% whole wheat or 100% whole grain bread.

• Try brown rice instead of white rice or whole wheat pasta. With all whole grains, you may have to get used to it, but the extra fiber and nutrients are well worth the switch.

• Have fruit for dessert. Cut back on brownies, cake, cookies, and ice cream. Indulge your sweet tooth in fruit instead.

• Want an easy side dish? Try beans with your own mix of seasonings. They are inexpensive, easy to fix, and can be seasoned a lot of different ways. Save yourself time and money with that swap.

• Include one dairy serving at each meal. Choose from one cup of 1% or skim milk, low-fat or fat-free yogurt, or low-fat cheese. Soy milk, almond milk, or lactose-free milk can also be good choices, but make sure they have a similar amount of calcium, vitamin D, and protein when comparing the labels.

• Get some of your protein servings from seafood. The American Heart Association recommends two servings of fish per week to get the heart-healthy omega-3s that we need.

• Eliminate or greatly reduce SOFAS. SOFAS are solid fats and added sugars. Many processed foods, bakery treats, and restaurant foods are the sources of SOFAS in our diets. Cutting back on those also helps cut back on sodium too.

• Use vegetable oils for cooking instead of solid fats, such as olive, canola, corn, and soybean oil.  

• If your normal dinner consists of a cheeseburger and fries (a typical meal), it's easy to change that to meet the MyPlate recommendations. Take off half the bun and throw it away. Replace the French fries with a side salad or other colorful veggies. Even better, go for a plain cheeseburger (no cheese or mayo) and add low-fat or fat-free milk or yogurt on the side. This eliminates some extra fat from the mayo and makes your dairy choice healthier.  

• Let's say your normal lunch is a turkey sandwich on white bread with chips, a cookie, and a soda. How can you make this meal fit into MyPlate recommendations? One slice of bread instead of two with your turkey, switch out the chips for celery, carrots, green peppers or other veggies you like. Try fruit for dessert instead of the cookie. You can add the fruit to low-fat yogurt for a yummy parfait. Or, have low-fat milk instead of the yogurt. For an even better lunch, make your bread 100% whole grain instead of white.
  

For more information about healthy eating or National Nutrition month, visit the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics webpage. Another good resource is the USDA’s Choose My Plate webpage.

Nutrition labels on meat

The meat you buy at the store may look a little different now. As of March 1, there are new USDA labeling requirements for ground meat and ground poultry, as well as other popular cuts of meat.

Previously, most meat (unless they had added ingredients) did not have a nutrition label on its packaging. 

Here is a summary of the new requirements:

• Ground meat and ground poultry must have a nutrition label
• If the ground meat or ground poultry has a percentage of lean meat, it must also show the percentage of fat. For instance, 90% lean must also say 10% fat.
• Small businesses are exempt from the rule, as long as they provide lean vs. fat information and make no additional claims on the label.
• Nutrition information for about 40 popular cuts of meat will either appear on the label or on a nearby poster or sign. 
• The nutrition information for non-ground cuts of meat will be based on the average nutritional analysis for that cut.
• Number of calories, total grams of fat, and total grams of saturated fat will be the components of the nutrition label.
• Trans fat does not have to be listed, it is voluntary. 

It is not anticipated that these new labeling requirements will have an added expense to consumers.

The new nutrition labels will help shoppers make healthier decisions about which products to purchase. It will now be easy to compare different cuts of meat and their prices to purchase the healthiest and most economic meat purchases.

Read the USDA press release for more information.