Central Peninsula Hospital | Thrive | Fall 2018

Go ahead. Have your cake and eat it too—without guilt. Baked goodies do have a place in a healthy diet. That’s if you sneak in these tweaks for better- for-you treats. And no, you won’t be sacrificing flavor. 1. Get stingy with sugar. Try re- ducing the amount of sugar in a recipe by one-quarter to one-third. Chances are, you won’t notice the difference. 2. Make over muffins and quick breads. You can usually cut saturated fat and calories by trading applesauce for the oil in recipes. 3. Be fussy about flour. In most recipes you can use fiber-rich whole- wheat flour in place of all-purpose flour. You might also try almond flour, which Makes 4 servings. Ingredients 3 ⁄ 4 cup quinoa 3 ⁄ 4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt, divided 1 ⁄ 2 medium Fuji apple, cored and finely chopped 1 ⁄ 2 cup fresh pomegranate seeds 1 ⁄ 3 cup finely chopped cilantro 1 ⁄ 4 cup finely chopped fresh mint 1 ⁄ 4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley 1 ⁄ 3 cup finely chopped scallions, green and white parts 1 ⁄ 4 cup blood orange juice or orange juice plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice Freshly ground pepper 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil H o l i d a y quinoa salad Directions ●   ● Rinse quinoa in strainer; drain well; and place in heavy, medium saucepan. ●   ● Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with wooden spatula until grains stick to bottom of pot and then start to move freely and smell toasty, about 5 minutes. ●   ● When grains of quinoa start to pop, move pot from heat and pour in 1 3 ⁄ 4 cups water, standing back as it will splatter. Im- mediately return pot to heat and reduce heat to medium. ●   ● Add 1 ⁄ 4 teaspoon salt, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until quinoa is almost tender. ●   ● Off heat, let grain sit covered for 10 minutes. ●   ● Using fork, fluff quinoa and transfer it to mixing bowl. There will be about 2 1 ⁄ 4 cups cooked quinoa. ●   ● Let quinoa sit until it is room tem- perature. Add apple, pomegranate seeds, cilantro, mint, parsley and scallions to grain, and, using a fork, mix to combine. ●   ● In small bowl, whisk orange juice or two citrus juices with remaining 1 ⁄ 2 teaspoon salt until it dissolves. Add 4 to 5 grinds pepper; then whisk in oil. ●   ● Pour dressing over salad, and toss with fork to distribute evenly. ●   ● Serve within 2 hours. The quinoa and dressing parts of this salad can be made up to 8 hours ahead and then covered and refrigerated separately and combined shortly before serving. Source: American Institute for Cancer Research Calling all bakers works well for crusts. It adds nutrients and a big burst of flavor. 4. Dial down dairy fat. Stick to low-fat milk, yogurt and buttermilk. Grease pans with nonstick cooking oil, not butter. And swap cream-cheese frosting, which is loaded with saturated fat and low in nutrients, for a protein- rich frosting made from Greek yogurt. 5. Add good stuff. Boost nutrients by adding shredded or pureed apples, carrots or bananas to recipes. 6. Scale back. For calorie control, keep portion sizes modest. That’s easier if you cut brownies and sheet cakes, for in- stance, into 2-inch squares and dish out cookie dough in 1-tablespoon scoops. Sources: Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics; American Heart Association 6 Central Peninsula Hospital Nutrition information Serving size: 1 ⁄ 4 of recipe. Amount per serving: 179 calories, 4g total fat (less than 1g saturated fat), 32g carbohydrates, 5g protein, 3g dietary fiber, 366mg sodium. Healthy doesn’t have to be boring