First, kale is officially in season.  And soon it will be one of the only fresh veggies in season here in the Northeast.  So if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

Second, packaged kale chips have started showing up in our local food co-op and health food stores… at exorbitantly expensive prices.  And this coming from a person who routinely–and not unhappily– overpays for food.  Everyone has their limit.  The righteous indignation that overpriced, healthy food evokes in me often inspires me to make a home-made version that I can then smugly blog about.

Third, my increasingly picky babies have developed a strong preference for all things crunchy–but still not too many teeth– which makes it very hard to get vegetables into them.  Since storebought ‘veggie puff’ snacks which contain green vegetables are really more corn puffs than anything else (based on the paltry Vitamin A content), I figured it would be far more nutritious to just make my own veggie snacks at home.  Kale chips have a perfect, fall-apart-into-crumbles-in-your-mouth quality that should work well for the toddling crowd.

Lacinato Kale

Lastly, I’m a nutritionist, for god’s sake.  Why don’t I eat more kale??!!?  It’s, like, the Holy Grail of health foods.  And while I view the term “superfood” with more than a healthy dose of skepticism (it’s more of a marketing term than a nutrition term)– I would be hard-pressed to come up with a food more deserving of the title.  It scores a perfect 1,000 on the ANDI scale, after all.  It’s a powerhouse of Vitamins K, A and C, and is a good source of both calcium and iron.   (Unlike spinach, kale lacks dietary compounds called oxalates, which interfere with iron absorption.  In this regard, kale is a much better source of iron than spinach is, though the latter still tends to enjoy a strong reputation for its iron content.)

If you’re looking for something different to put out for guests as you prepare to entertain this holiday season, why not make up some seasoned kale chips to in lieu of tortilla chips or potato chips?  They’re lower calorie, lower carb and far more nutritious.

Recipe: Kale Chips Three Ways

I decided to offer 3 versions of the kale chip recipe, which partly reflects the fact that I watch too much Top Chef– where anything worth cooking once is worth cooking three times, three different ways– and partly reflects the versatility of this healthy snack, one version of which is sure to please every palate in your family.  Feel free to experiment with seasonings to suit your own taste. The base recipe is the basic, salted version whose standard recipe is simple and ubiquitous, though cooking times and temperatures vary considerably.  You can use flat-leafed kale or curly kale as you wish, though I think curly works better to hold seasoning and flat may work better for babies.  Credit for the base recipe provided here belongs to Chef Jenny Gensterblum of Léman Preparatory School in Manhattan, where my husband teaches.  She is known for her fierce arsenal of healthy but kid-approved dishes, most cooked from scratch.

Version #2 is a “cheesy” flavored one that uses nutritional yeast for seasoning instead of actual cheese.  This keeps it vegan/dairy free, and also bumps up the nutritional value by heaping sprinkles of B-vitamins on top of already Vitamin A-rich kale.  Vegan, baked kale topped with nutritional yeast?  A perfect, self-righteous antidote to the seasonal overindulgence going on this time of year, but delicious enough to keep you from feeling deprived like you would with, say, a rice cake .

Version #3 has got a little bit of a smoky/garlicky kick to it, a seasoning whose credit goes to Shauna James Ahern, the self-designated “Gluten Free Girl,” who suggests sprinkling on a combo of garlic powder and smoked paprika on just-out-of-the-oven kale chips.  Don’t mind if I do, Shauna!

Basic Version

• 2 bunches of green kale (I used Lacinato, aka., Tuscan kale/Dinosaur kale.  Other varieties work fine, too)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt to taste

Directions: Preheat the oven to 500°F.  Separate kale leaves and thoroughly rinse and dry. Stack some leaves on top of each other. Cut out the tough center rib by cutting in a v-shape, or tear out the center rib with your fingers. Slice across into strips.  (Careful not to cut pieces too small, or they may burn.) Place kale in a large bowl. Toss with olive oil and a good amount of salt. Spread thinly onto one or two cookie sheets, depending on the size. Bake for 3 minutes, remove from oven briefly, toss (tongs work well for this), and bake for an additional minute or two, until starting to brown and crispy. Watch closely as kale burns rather quickly.

Dairy-free Cheesy Version: As soon as chips come out of the oven, sprinkle a generous handful of nutritional yeast on top of them.  Toss to coat.

Smoky/Garlicky Version: Combine 1/4 tsp garlic powder with 1/4 tsp smoked paprika and sprinkle atop kale chips just out of the oven.

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1. For Those Drowning in a Sea of Potatoes and Kale, a Life Vest

Now, under pressure from consumers, a new wave of food brands are banishing BPA from their packaging by either switching the composition of their can liners or moving away from cans altogether to different packaging formats.  In addition to the brands listed below, Whole Foods Market claims that 27% of their canned private label items (“365″ brand) are now in BPA-free cans, but customer service could not provide me a list of which ones when I contacted them via e-mail due to fluctuation in available BPA-free can supply.

The BPA Basics

Polycarbonate (PC) is a plastic used for a variety of purposes, including to line the insides of metal food cans and tubes to keep their contents from touching–and therefore reacting with and being contaminated by–the metal.

The problem with BPA is that animal studies show it to be an endocrine disruptor.  In other words, it mimics the effects of certain human hormones, notably estrogen, and can therefore interfere with normal human development–particularly of the brain, prostate, and sex organs–and bodily functions, particularly of the metabolism.  While the body is able to excrete a dose of BPA within a few hours, many experts are concerned about the health implications of regular, chronic exposure to this chemical, even in small doses, such that it is constantly present in the body.  Furthermore, experts disagree on what a “safe” dose may actually be.  Indeed, data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) suggest that BPA  is present in the urine of 93% of Americans, indicating that pretty much all of us are exposed to it on a regular basis–both from the environment as well as the food supply.  Canada has declared it toxic and banned it from infant and baby products.  The US Food and Drug Administration is currently reviewing the evidence regarding BPA and human health before deciding on whether to follow suit, but in the interim, states that it is “taking reasonable steps to reduce human exposure to BPA in the food supply.”  The agency has promised to issue a decision on whether or not to ban BPA from food and beverage packaging by March 31, 2012, so stay tuned…

While direct causation between BPA exposure and adverse health outcomes in humans has not yet been established, recent research has shown that women with PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) had significantly higher levels of BPA in their blood compared to a control group (and that higher BPA levels were also correlated with insulin resistance in the PCOS group).  A larger 2008 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association similarly showed that higher concentrations of BPA in the urine were associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and abnormal liver enzymes in the blood–the latter of which may be clinically indicative of fatty liver disease or other metabolic conditions.  Some research also suggests that maternal exposure to BPA may be associated with behavioral issues in young girls, but more research is needed.  Associations may not be causation, but it surely seems safe to conclude that high exposure to BPA certainly isn’t benefiting anyone.

Where BPA is:

• Most canned foods (with the exception of brands listed below).  A compendium of non-profit agencies sponsored a study and report entitled “No Silver Lining,” in which they investigated BPA levels in food from 50 cans of food purchased in 19 states.  They found BPA in food from 92% of the cans, and variables such as product type, brand, organic or conventional or place of purchase had no bearing on the level of this chemical residue.
• Most metal food tubes (such as those used for tomato paste)
• 5 gallon bottles of water, such as those used in your office water cooler (unless specifically labeled BPA-free)
• Any plastic labeled with a #3 (“V” or “PVC”), including some vegetable oil bottles or some clear food packaging
• Any plastic labeled with a #7 (or “PC”), including some Tupperware products or other similar food containers bearing this label.  Note that many of the disposable food storage containers, like Gladware and Ziploc, are made with #5 plastic and therefore should not contain BPA.

Where BPA isn’t:

• Any plastic labeled #1 PET, such as most single-serve water bottles and soft drink bottles
• Any plastic labeled #2 HDPE, such as gallon milk jugs, juice bottles, cereal box liners
• Any plastic labeled #4 LDPE, such as frozen food bags, bread bags and certain squeezable plastic containers
• Any plastic labeled #5 PP, such as yogurt, hummus or cottage cheese containers, margarine tubs, drinking straws
• Tetra-paks (a.k.a. aseptic packaging, such as the cartons used to package coconut water, shelf-stable ricemilk, chicken broth, etc..)
• Glass, Ceramics, Pyrex, Corningware.  Noted that some studies have found trace amounts of BPA in jarred foods owing to BPA used in the LID liners, even though the glass jars themselves are BPA-free.

BPA-Free Pantry Staples

Fortunately, there are plenty of BPA-free versions for most every pantry staple.  You just need to be aware of what the alternatives are, and vote with your wallet to send a message to food manufacturers that it’s time to eliminate BPA from their packaging.

Since eliminating all canned foods from your life may be impractical, I’d suggest focusing on the products you use with the most regularity–and especially ones you use to feed your kids.  If you are pregnant or nursing, I would suggest reducing your intake of canned foods as much as possible so as to err on the side of caution.

Ready-to-Eat Beans:

• Eden Foods markets their beans in a BPA-free can and have been doing so for years.
• According to the company’s Facebook page, Amy’s Kitchen, known for their canned baked beans, refried beans, bean soups and chilis, started switching their products over to a BPA-free can in early 2011.  The switch is supposed to be be complete by year-end, which is just about now…
• A new company, called Fig Food Co., has recently started distributing its ready-to-eat beans (and bean soups) at Whole Foods and some of the local health food stores on my stroller circuit.  Their organic, low-sodium products are cleverly packaged in a BPA-free tetra-pak.  I picked up a box of their Organic Baked Beans–which, incidentally, are also gluten free and vegetarian– the other day and they were quite tasty!
• Of course, if you can find the organizational skills to plan ahead and soak dry beans overnight, that’s the cheapest and surest way to ensure there’s no BPA in your beans!

Tomatoes

• Marinara sauce: Any sauce sold in a glass jar is going to be mostly BPA-free (though trace amounts may be present owing to BPA used in the lid liner).  Still, the jarred stuff will almost certainly have much less BPA than canned stuff, so this packaging would be preferable.
• Diced and crushed tomatoes:
• Eden Organic sells crushed and diced tomatoes in glass jars.  It appears their canned tomatoes may still be in cans with BPA-containing liners.
• Muir Glen Organic appears to be the first marketer to have cracked the code on a BPA-free can for an acidic product like tomatoes.  According to the company’s website, at this writing, the company is “transitioning to can liners that do not use BPA as we are canning this year’s harvest.”  I take this statement to mean that many of the products currently on store shelves are probably still the old BPA-lined variety, though I understand that products with a “use by 2013″ date should indeed be the new BPA-free batch.
• While you’re waiting for Muir Glen’s newest, BPA-free cans to arrive on a shelf near you, an Italian brand called Pomi markets a variety of tomato products, including chopped (diced), crushed and tomato sauce, all packed in BPA-free Tetra-Paks.
• Tomato Paste: While most tomato pastes are sold in cans or aluminum squeeze tubes (also BPA-lined, unfortunately), a brand called Bionaturae sells its version in a 7 oz glass jar.  I bought mine at Whole Foods.

Coconut Milk

• Currently, Native Forest is the only brand I’m aware of that markets a canned, BPA-free coconut milk.  Unless you use large amounts of coconut milk very regularly, however, I personally wouldn’t worry about using a conventional brand for the occasional 1/2 cup you use every month or so.

Vegetables

• For staples like peas, corn and string beans, choose frozen over canned.  (They taste way better and are more nutritious, anyway).  To heat them up, either steam the frozen vegetables on the stovetop, or microwave them with a few tablespoons of water in a covered microwave-safe glass or Pyrex/Corningware dish.  DO NOT microwave them (or any food) in a plastic container!
• For specialty items, like artichoke hearts, you can easily find products packaged in a glass container.  Choose these instead of canned, unless you’re buying Native Forest brand, whose canned fruits and vegetables are in BPA-free cans.

Soups and Stocks

• Look for soups and broths sold in Tetra-Paks, like those by Pacific Natural Foods, or Imagine Foods.
• Alternatively, use bouillon cubes for broths

Canned Kiddie Pasta

• I can think of 100 reasons to avoid buying canned pasta products like Chef Boyardee Ravioli or Campbell’s SpaghettiOs for your kids.  But their BPA content is probably sufficient to make a compelling argument for choosing refrigerated (fresh) or frozen ravioli instead and/or boiling your own alphabet-shaped dry pasta.  We’re all crazy busy, but are any of us really *THAT* busy that we can’t even find the time to boil water for pasta?

Tuna Fish

• Look for mainstream brands of tuna sold in those “flavor fresh” pouches rather than cans, such as StarKist or Chicken of the Sea.  The pouches are BPA-free.
• If you’re willing to spend more for a more sustainably fished tuna, look for brands called Wild Planet or  Vital Choice; they both market a BPA-free canned tuna product.  (You can order tuna online from both companies, along with a variety of other canned seafood products.)
• Whole Foods brand canned tuna (and salmon) are consistently in BPA-free cans as well, according to an email response I received from their customer service

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Reduce diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy foods

Support sustainable farms & limit subsidies to big agribusiness

Expand access to food and alleviate hunger

Protect the environment and animals by reforming factory farms

Promote health by curbing junk food marketing to kids

Support fair conditions for food and farm workers

If you’re interested in furthering some or all of these causes, here are some ideas to get involved or learn more:

Join me at EAT NYC today, October 24, at 6:30pm: Columbia Grammar and Prepatory School (5 W. 93rd St)

• I’ll be partnered with G-free NYC, the city’s only gluten-free marketplace, at EAT NYC– a celebration of local, healthful and sustainable eating in New York City.  There will be food tastings from some of NYC’s best restaurants…streaming episodes of “LUNCH NYC,” a TV series highlighting health-conscious goings-on around town…NYC organizations working hard to improve food systems in the city… and of course, a chance to chat with me about what’s on your mind as we nibble on free gluten-free, healthy snacks generously provided by Beanitos, Zing Bars, Kookie Karma, Mini Pops, Skinny Crisps and Purely Elizabeth!

Take Action on an issue important to you by signing a petition!

• E-mail a letter to Congress demanding that they take measures to fix our broken food system in the upcoming Farm Bill!  Click here to sign a letter that will be sent to your state Senator and representative in the House!

• Sign a petition to support pending legislation in your state requiring Genetically Modified Food to be labeled.

• Californians: Call Governor Jerry Brown and ask him to reverse the state’s decision to allow the use of carcinogenic pesticide Methyl Iodide on Strawberries!  Use the talking points and phone number provided by the Pesticide Action Network of North America provided here.

Visit a local farmer’s market and buy some fresh-in season produce to cook a from-scratch meal tonight!

• Here in New York, the Union Square Farmer’s Market is open for business today (Monday) until 6:00pm, and the stands are piled high with crispy local apples, the season’s first cruciferous veggies, gorgeous squash of varying shapes and sizes, and all the leafy greens, herbs, fresh baked breads and humanely-raised meat, eggs and cheese you need to complement your meal.
• To find a Farmer’s Market near you, visit Local Harvest’s website and enter your zip code!

Read a great book to learn more about the issues above!  Some recent reads I recommend are include:

• The Town that Food Saved, by Ben Hewitt
• Eating Animals, by Jonathan Safran Foer
• The End of the Line, by Charles Clover
• Food, Inc, by Karl Weber, Ed.

Vote with your wallet!

• No message is clearer to food manufacturers than the one you send by choosing to buy–or stop buying– their products.
•  If you eat meat, choose as humanely-and sustainably raised meat as you can afford (and eat less of it).
• Put your order in now for a Heritage Breed Turkey for Thanksgiving to avoid having to buy a factory-farmed variety.  (Attention GILT members: whole Amish Heritage breed turkeys are 30% off now @ gilttaste.com !)
• Choose Pastured or Certified Humane Eggs (and learn more about de-coding egg label claims by reading this helpful guide)
• Choose sustainable varieties of fish as recommended by the Monterrey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch (you can download the app!)

Happy Eating!

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Some want sweet, and some want salty. Some crave crunchy and others smooth.  Some go for frozen, and others go for chocolatey.  A good nutritionist, I have learned, needs to have a snack to scratch each one of her client’s snacky itches.  And being that so many of my clients have gluten intolerance, I try to keep my snack ideas gluten-free as well.

So, I’ll assume you’ve already tired of my tier one snacks: the apples with peanut butter, the string cheeses, the hummus with baby carrots, the yogurt with fruit.  You came, you snacked, and you’re still hungry for more.

Best Salty-Crunchy Snack: Bean Chips

High in fiber and protein–and naturally gluten-free– bean chips are a far superior choice to corn tortilla chips when those salty snack cravings hit.  Made primarily or entirely from ground bean flours– like chickpeas, lentils, pintos or black beans– these chips are generally a naturally low-glycemic snack.  This makes them far healthier than other salty snacks with a largely undeserved “better for you” reputation, like baked potato chips or pretzels.  Eat them alone, or dip them in some salsa, hummus or guac if you can spare the calories.  My favorite brands are:

• Beanitos Black Bean chips, which have 5 huge grams of fiber and 4g of protein per 140-calorie, 1 oz serving.    Empty calories these are not!  While still savory, they are also less overtly salty than a standard chip (only 55mg sodium per serving!)…a good choice for fellow snackers looking to limit their sodium intake.

• Mediterranean Snacks Baked Lentil Chips: each 110-calorie, 1 oz serving is a generous 22 chips, and contains a respectable 3g of fiber and 4g of protein.  I think of these as a more nutritious substitute for rice crackers, since texture-wise, they’re somewhere in between a chip and a cracker.  If you’re avoiding dairy, read the ingredient labels, as certain flavors contain it.

Best Frozen Treat: Yasso Frozen Greek Yogurt Pops

Step. Away. From. The. Stonyfield Farm. Frozen. Yogurt. Sure it’s fat-free, but each 1/2 cup serving has 18-23g (4.5 to 6 tsps) of sugar.  While it may still have a reasonable 100-120 calories per serving, all that sugar will spike le blood sugar, feeding into the sweet-cravings cycle that will ultimately undo all the good eating that you try to do.

Besides, it was just a matter of time before the Greek Yogurt revolution infiltrated the freezer section.  But while the vast majority of regular fruit-flavored Greek Yogurts are LOADED with sugar– as is Stonyfield Farms’ “Oikos” Frozen Greek Yogurt by the pint– the folks at Yasso managed to come up with tasty, fruit-flavored frozen Greek Yogurt pops with just 70 calories each and a more reasonable 11-12g of sugar per serving (some of which is from the natural milk sugar in the yogurt itself, of course).  The pops are also fat free, contain 6g of protein and have 15% of the daily value for calcium.  These nutritional credentials–not to mention a more natural ingredient list– make Yasso pops more impressive than most varieties of those wildly popular Weight Watchers and Skinny Cow low-calorie frozen treat pops as well.

Best Chocolatey Snack: Emerald Cocoa-Roast Almonds

Brilliant!  While traditional chocolate-dipped almonds can add mega calories and sugar to an already naturally caloric snack, the clever people at Emerald Nuts thought to just lightly dust their almonds with cocoa powder, adding lots of chocolate flavor with negligible additional calories or sugar.  Since both cocoa and almonds are well-established to be antioxidant-rich, heart-healthy treats, this snack truly is a healthy indulgence.  150 calories per 1 oz (1/4 cup) serving, or buy a 100-calorie pack and pair it with a piece of fruit.  Again, this is another low-glycemic gem.  My only reservation about this product is that it contains artificial sweeteners (I’m not a huge fan), but I certainly don’t think that in and of itself is enough to knock these chocolately almonds off their pedestal.

Best Sweet, Creamy Treat: Kozy Shack No Sugar Added Puddings

Fellow Lactards: time to break out those Lactaid Pills!  These are an unabashedly milky treat… and a delicious, low-calorie one at that.  Each 1/2 cup serving has 60-90 calories (depending on the flavor), just 4-5g of natural sugar (from the milk), and a shorter, friendlier ingredient list than their key competitor, Sugar-free Jell-O Pudding Snacks.  While they do contain one artificial ingredient– Splenda (sucralose)– they don’t contain a Ace-K (a more dubious artificial sweetener), nor do they have artificial colors as do the Jell-O products.  Each serving also has 3-4g of protein and about 10% of the daily value for calcium, which is not too shabby!  Flavors range from rice and tapioca to chocolate mint, chocolate, vanilla and strawberry.

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But for the past decade or so, a team of researchers has been publishing papers about the effects of an experimental diet called the “Portfolio Diet” on blood lipid levels of people with high cholesterol.  Unlike prevailing dietary approaches that emphasize what foods to avoid, the Portfolio Diet focuses on ADDING a handful of beneficial foods to the daily diet. The portfolio of foods and nutrients  included: nuts, soy protein, plant sterol-enriched margarine, and “viscous” (soluble) fiber specifically found in foods like oats, barley, eggplant, okra and psyllium husk supplements.

Each of these foods was selected based on previous research which suggested a different and complementary cholesterol-lowering mechanism; the hypothesis was that if a portfolio of all these foods was eaten daily as part of a low saturated fat diet, it could help lower cholesterol by launching a multi-pronged attack on all the ways that cholesterol is manufactured, transported and/or recycled in the body.  The researchers wanted to compare the benefits of this Portfolio Diet compared to (1) a typical low-saturated fat diet, and (2) a typical low-saturated fat diet plus a statin drug.

Their initial findings, published in 2003, were interesting but largely impractical.  While their experimental Portfolio diet did lower cholesterol as much as people on a standard low-saturated fat diet who took a statin (as compared to the control group that just followed a typical low-saturated fat diet), there were several limitations.  First of all, the study groups were each less than 20 people, making it difficult to draw any widespread conclusions.  Secondly, the researchers provided the participants with virtually all the food for their meals to ensure compliance– a circumstance that would not be replicated in real-life settings.  Thirdly, the amount of fiber in the Portfolio Diet was so colon-blowingly-large (78g per 1,000 calories… or 140g/day on an 1,800 calorie/day diet) that most Americans (whose average fiber intake is reportedly only ~14g/day) attempting to follow it would probably spend half their day on the toilet or warming the planet irreparably through the  toxic cloud of methane gas they produced as a result.

Last month, however, the researchers published a study in JAMA with much more promising–and practicable–results.  They took a scaled-back version of their Portfolio Diet to test against the original, intensive version, to determine whether it would still provide the same cholesterol-lowering results as compared to the standard, low-saturated fat “control” diet.  Furthermore, they tested these 3 diets in a larger test group than the original study (between 80-90 people in each group), and allowed the participants to prepare their own food rather than having it provided to them–thus simulating real-life conditions much more closely.  The participants included both men and women, and the average participant was overweight (average BMI=27).  The experiment lasted 6 months.

The results?  Not only did the scaled-back version of the Portfolio Diet result in the same degree of cholesterol lowering as the intensified version… but the participants’ food records indicated that the average intake of Portfolio foods among the scaled-back group was LESS THAN HALF (41%) of the target amount!  In other words, the dieters reaped a significant benefit (LDL reductions of ~13%) from adding a relatively modest amount of Portfolio foods to their low-saturated fat diets.  In real terms, this translated into an average decrease of LDL levels from 171 mg/dL to 147 mg/dL.  Though the more closely participants adhered to the diet, the greater their reduction in LDL was.

The Nuts and Bolts of the Experimental Portfolio Diet

So what, exactly, did the participants eat, and how much?

• For starters, all groups followed a low-saturated fat diet.  In this study, it was a vegetarian diet that included eggwhites and low-fat dairy products, but no meat.  Because only animal products have cholesterol, the vegetarian diet resulted in a significant reduction of dietary cholesterol intake to below 200mg/day among ALL study groups, even the controls.

• Secondly, all groups were counseled to restrict their calories to an amount designed to maintain their current weight, such that weight gain or weight loss would not muddy the results.  In reality, this translated into intakes of about 1,800-1,900 calories per day, including the portfolio foods.  (This is an important point, since adding a minimum of ~600-700 calories worth of Portfolio foods per day to achieve target nutrient levels could result in weight gain unless something else was taken away to compensate for it!)  After 6 months, no group had lost a significant amount of weight.

• Third, the scaled-back Portfolio Dieters had nutritional counseling twice during the 6-month study period to help them adhere to the diet.  (Consider this a thinly-veiled plug to make an appointment with a registered dietitian!)

• The ACTUAL average intake of portfolio foods/nutrients per day, assuming an 1,800 calorie/day diet, was as follows:
• 11g of “viscous” fiber per day (mainly from psyllium husk fiber supplements, oats, oat bran and/or barley)
• 21g of soy protein per day
• 1.1g of plant sterols per day from an enriched margarine product
• 47g of nuts (including peanuts) per day

How do these nutrients translate into actual foods and portions?  And how many calories are associated with these portions?  Read on:

“Viscous fiber”:

• 1 cup cooked plain oatmeal has 4g fiber and 160 calories
• 1/2 cup of cooked pearled barley has 3g of fiber and 95 calories
• 1 slice oat bran bread has ~1.4g fiber and ~80 calories (varies by brand; read labels for precise info)
• Psyllium husk powder (dietary supplement): 2 TBSPs have 9-10g fiber and ~35-45 calories, depending on the brand
• Note: other good sources of “viscous” fiber include okra, eggplant, strawberries, beans.
• For gluten-free readers: pearled barley is off limits, but certified Gluten-free oats are marketed by Bob’s Red Mill and Arrowhead Mills.  Psyllium husk is naturally gluten-free, but check your product’s label to ensure it was not processed in a facility/on equipment that also processes gluten-containing ingredients.

Soy protein:

• 1/2 cup of raw, firm tofu (~4.5 oz) has 20g of protein and 180 calories
• 1 cup plain soymilk has 6g protein and 80-120 calories
• 1/2 cup shelled edamame (boiled soybeans) has ~10g protein and ~100 calories
• 1 oz of dry roasted “soy nuts” (1/4 to 1/3 cup depending on brand) has 10-11g protein and 120-140 calories
• Note: study participants also ate more processed soy products, such as meatless soy “deli slices”

Plant Sterols (from enriched margarine products):

• 1 TBSP of Smart Balance HeartRight has 1.7g of plant sterols (45 calories)
• 1 TBSP of Promise Activ has 1.0g of  plant sterols (45 calories)

Nuts:

• 47g of nuts is about 1.7 ounces, or 1/3 cup of most nut varieties (270-340 calories for dry-roasted, depending on the variety.  Read the label of your favorite nut for more precise info or check out this chart for a comparison by nut type.)

The bottom line?  While much more research is needed to validate these results and refine exact quantities of foods and nutrients needed to achieve optimal benefits from a cholesterol-lowering persepctive, the fact remains that swapping in nutritious, high-fiber, plant-based foods such as those in the Portfolio Diet for animal protein foods and refined grains in your current diet is very likely to benefit your health in many ways.   If you can’t go all the way, the study’s results nonetheless suggest that swapping in a smaller amount of these foods is still likely to produce some benefit, so give it a try!

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Peas are having nothing short of a renaissance, and they owe their meteroic rise from the lowly ranks of TV-dinner cast-off to Top Chef-testant Carla Hall’s well-publicized 2009 preparation of fresh peas with butter, lemon and thyme for Jacques Pepin.  The peas were proclaimed by the judges to be the best dish of the evening, which is saying a lot given that they went head-to-head with some heavy-duty comfort food.

I’ll admit, though, that peas re-entered my own radar when I was making baby food for the wee ones (consider this the first of what I fear may be many blog posts inspired by baby food).   As I steamed a bag of frozen organic petite peas and pureed them, their vibrant, emerald color and creamy texture reminded me of classic London pub grub, where a tasty pile of ”mushy peas” commonly accompanies Fish n’ Chips.  (Indeed, every British chef, from Jamie Oliver to Nigella Lawson has a version of a Mushy Peas recipe.)  When I tasted the puree, I was struck by how sweet and flavorful it was!  Yum!  Why had I been snubbing peas all of these years?!

Sure enough, Max and Stella agreed.  Our babysitter, who had warned me that most kids hate peas, couldn’t believe how well-received my version was.

Stella loves peas!

Which underscores the point that, when it comes to peas, preparation is everything.  Frozen, petite peas steamed just until bright green and still al dente= delicious.  Canned peas or frozen peas overcooked till wrinkly, mushy and gray= Feh.  And while fresh peas in the pod (“Shelling Peas”) are still in season and available at the local farmer’s markets, even top chefs like Jaques Pepin and Daniel Humm concede that the frozen, petite variety are just as good for cooking.  Although frozen peas are indeed available year-round, ’tis now the season for fresh herbs in abundance… and peas shine their brightest when paired with the likes of fresh mint, tarragon, thyme or cilantro.

Fancy, easy-peasy pea recipes

• Deb from Smitten Kitchen, the queen of indulgent comfort food,  just posted her recipe for Linguine with Pea Pesto; use gluten-free pasta if you wish to create her simple and springy recipe. (If you can find RP’s fresh GF Linguine, it would be *fantastic* with this recipe!)
• Or make a pile of Jacques Pepin’s Puree of Peas with Mint and Cilantro, a recipe featured in his book “Fast Food My Way.”  Serve alongside a lovely piece of grilled fish and some grilled asparagus for a fast and delightful summery dinner.
• Fancier still is Daniel Humm’s recipe for Garden Pea soup with Morels, a divine concoction that’s sure to have you keeping your freezer well-stocked with bags of frozen peas.  (NB: if you’re ever able to splurge on a meal at his schmancy restaurant, Eleven Madison Park, you’ll get to enjoy gluten-free bread service in addition to your show-stopping meal.)

Peas: Sorta like a lower-carb, green potato

Starchier and higher protein than your typical green vegetable–but less carby than a potato–peas make a nutritious stand-in for the starch or grain typically found on a dinner plate. One half-cup serving of cooked, frozen peas has about 60 calories, 4g of protein and 11g of carbs (of which 4 huge grams are fiber).  That’s about 100 calories less than a half of a medium baked potato with the same amount of protein and fiber… but still about double the calories of an equivalent portion of, say, cooked broccoli.  Despite their relative starchiness, however, peas are considered a low-glycemic index food (GI=39), rendering them an even smarter baked potato/mashed potato/rice swap for people with pre-diabetes, diabetes and PCOS.  Vitamin-wise, peas are an excellent source of blood-clot facilitating and bone-health promoting Vitamin K, and a good source of Vitamin C, folate and Vitamin A.

Related posts:

1. Get thee to a farmer’s market! Sugar Snap Peas are here!