Making Old Favorites Minus the Milk, Eggs or Meat

Recently I've been doing a lot of reading about food allergies and food intolerances. I also found myself craving some childhood favorites: rice porridge (mine) and sloppy joes (my sister's). But I've been trying to amp up my vegetarianism, including eating vegan foods half the time, so the childhood faves were going to require some creativity. Between all the researching diet restrictions and my own choice to avoid certain foods, it feels like "ingredient substitutes" has become the theme of the past week.  

If there are foods you are avoiding because of a medical condition or for personal reasons, or if you've ever tried to throw a party where some of the guests follow special diets, you know what I'm talking about. Just because there are certain foods you (or a friend or family member) aren't eating, doesn't mean you want to give up on some of your favorite dishes. 

Recently I've been doing a lot of reading about food allergies and food intolerances. I also found myself craving some childhood favorites: rice porridge (mine) and sloppy joes (my sister's). But I've been trying to amp up my vegetarianism, including eating vegan foods half the time, so the childhood faves were going to require some creativity. Between all the researching diet restrictions and my own choice to avoid certain foods, it feels like "ingredient substitutes" has become the theme of the past week.  

If there are foods you are avoiding because of a medical condition or for personal reasons, or if you've ever tried to throw a party where some of the guests follow special diets, you know what I'm talking about. Just because there are certain foods you (or a friend or family member) aren't eating, doesn't mean you want to give up on some of your favorite dishes. 

Are You Back-Loading Your Protein?

I recently read that while most of us Americans get plenty of protein in our diets, we tend to back-load our days with protein so that we eat the largest amount at dinner, a little less at lunch and a lot less at breakfast. The problem with this is that our bodies can only use a limited amount of protein at a given time, so it's important to spread out our protein throughout the day, getting plenty at each meal and snack.

The article, from the March 2013 Today's Dietitian, Milk Proteins: Packing a Powerful Nutritional Punch by Karen Giles-Smith, MS, RD,  focuses on the idea that:

"evidence shows high-quality proteins, such as milk proteins, promote satiety, weight maintenance, muscle synthesis, and blood glucose control"

I recently read that while most of us Americans get plenty of protein in our diets, we tend to back-load our days with protein so that we eat the largest amount at dinner, a little less at lunch and a lot less at breakfast. The problem with this is that our bodies can only use a limited amount of protein at a given time, so it's important to spread out our protein throughout the day, getting plenty at each meal and snack.

The article, from the March 2013 Today's Dietitian, Milk Proteins: Packing a Powerful Nutritional Punch by Karen Giles-Smith, MS, RD,  focuses on the idea that:

"evidence shows high-quality proteins, such as milk proteins, promote satiety, weight maintenance, muscle synthesis, and blood glucose control"

"My Doctor Says I'm Low on Vitamin D"

Add that to the list of Top 10 Things People Say When They Find Out I'm A Dietitian. It is usually followed by some version of "So, what foods have vitamin D in them?" or "So, how do I get more vitamin D?"

Vitamin D helps the body to absorb calcium. Calcium, vitamin D and phosphorus work together to build and remodel bones. So, vitamin D is important for the health of your bones and teeth.

Vitamin D is unique in that our bodies can make it following exposure to the sun. The catch is that while the amount of sun exposure we need may be as little as 5-30 minutes on arms and legs twice a week, experts are still trying to figure out how much sun is enough, especially since the efficiency of sun exposure is affected by time of day, season of year, geography, sunscreen and even skin color.

Add that to the list of Top 10 Things People Say When They Find Out I'm A Dietitian. It is usually followed by some version of "So, what foods have vitamin D in them?" or "So, how do I get more vitamin D?"

Vitamin D helps the body to absorb calcium. Calcium, vitamin D and phosphorus work together to build and remodel bones. So, vitamin D is important for the health of your bones and teeth.

Vitamin D is unique in that our bodies can make it following exposure to the sun. The catch is that while the amount of sun exposure we need may be as little as 5-30 minutes on arms and legs twice a week, experts are still trying to figure out how much sun is enough, especially since the efficiency of sun exposure is affected by time of day, season of year, geography, sunscreen and even skin color.