Garden Gazpacho Salad

Use those tomatoes and peppers from your garden or local farmer’s market to throw together this easy, tasty, healthy salad:

What Do I Need?
1 cup celery, chopped
15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
3 or 4 tomatoes, sliced
1 yellow or green bell pepper, chopped
2/3 cup salsa
1/3 cup sour cream, light
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
Optional: lettuce leaves

How Do I Make It?
Combine celery, black beans, tomatoes and peppers in a medium bowl. In a smaller container, mix together salsa, sour cream and lemon juice. Pour over bean mixture then gently mix to combine. Serve over the lettuce leaves if you like. Makes 4 servings.

This packs well too for work and school lunches.
Enjoy!
j.

7 Anti-Aging Foods

Hmmm…seems to be a big focus on anti-aging foods here on the jen Blog…can you tell somebody’s a summer birthday?! Laugh at me if you want, but keep these things on your plate to make sure you grow stronger as you grow older (I’ve been holding at 35 for a while now, and I don’t plan on budging anytime soon)!

1. Greens
Greens contain nutrients like folate and calcium that help keep bones, the brain, and the eyes strong and healthy. Levels of nutrients in broccoli and cabbage have been shown to protect against memory loss and to lower the risk of certain cancers.

2. Whole Grains
It takes our bodies longer to digest whole grains, so replacing processed grains with whole grains can help to prevent high blood sugar and diabetes. Whole gains contains lots of good fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants which can lower the risk of heart disease and some cancers.

3. Berries
Berries are full of antioxidants which have been shown to sharpen brain power, improve muscle tone, and slow the growth of certain cancers.

4. Tomatoes (and other red fruits)
Red fruits contain an antioxidant called lycopene which may reduce the risks of various cancers, and heart disease; as well as improve skin tone and texture.

5. Fish
You’ve heard about omega-3 fatty acids? They are contained in oily fish, and have been proven to support brain function, and reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and stroke.

6. Nuts
You only need a small handful to get the benefits of nuts. Nuts contain good fats, as well as vitamins and protein that help to keep your heart and brain healthy.

7. Olive Oil
Olive oil is considered a healthy fat, full of antioxidants which help heart and brain health, as well as a reduction of cancer risk.

j.

Anti-Aging Citrus Salad with Almonds

Looking for a quick light lunch? I usually am. Here’s a fantastic refreshing salad, full of many of the anti-aging superfoods!

What Do I Need?

2 oranges
1 grapefruit (we used red)
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
sugar or sweetener to taste
1 bag of spring mix salad greens
1/4 cup slivered almonds

How Do I Make It?

1. Cut the peel and white membrane off of each of the citrus fruits and then cut the fruit sections into bite sized pieces, removing the seeds as you go along. Do this in a bowl so that you can save the juice from the fruit that will come out as you work with it.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice, olive oil, vinegar and sugar/sweetener. Pour this dressing over the fruit and stir to coat.

3. Serve by placing some of the salad greens on a plate, top with the fruit mixture, and then some of the almonds.

We have more Make Life Easier Meals recipes for you at jenniferTVshow.com.

j.

Colorful Chopped Salad

A $10 meal you can prepare in 10 minutes or less??? Believe it!
Hannah Keeley of TotalMom.com shared this recipe with us on our TV show. It’s an easy way to get a healthy dinner (or lunch) on the table fast tonight!

What do I need?

1 15 oz. can Libby’s whole kernel sweet corn, drained
1 15 oz. can Garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 14.5 oz. Libby’s cut green beans, drained and chopped
1 large red bell pepper, cored and chopped
1 small head iceberg lettuce, cored and chopped (about 6 cups)
1/3 cup bottled Italian dressing

How do I make it?

In large bowl, combine all ingredients. Toss gently until well mixed. Serves 4.

Tip: Add chopped leftover ham, turkey or chicken.

We have more Make Life Easier Meal recipes for you at jenniferTVshow.com.
Do you have any easy, healthy recipes you’d like to share? We’d love to see ‘em!

j.

Halloween/Fall Treat

With the five kids, we have a party pretty much every day at my house…
but, imagine what it’s like when my friend Gina and I get together with our kids! She also have five, so it’s two moms—ten kids and a lot of fun!
This picture of us was from a visit to a pumpkin farm. We fit in well with the school groups there that day!
If you’re gathering friends and family for a party this season, you’ll appreciate having this easy dip recipe. I got if from a man dressed as a conehead (honest, I did) who brought it to a family Halloween party. Everybody loved it! It would be perfect to make and set out for Thanksgiving guests either before the meal, or for the football after.

Easy School Lunches and After-School Snacks

Already sick of packing peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for school lunches?
My friend Judy Dodd is Giant Eagle’s Food and Nutrition Advisor. She loves wrap sandwiches for easy-to-pack lunches.
She suggests a whole grain wrap, turkey, cheese, and spinach leaves (she says kids love the bright color).
Some children like the wrap without the wrap! (Just roll up the meat and cheese). Another good tip is to skip the mayo, and pack salsa for dipping. Sometimes Judy makes a creamy salsa by mixing in yogurt cheese. She makes this herself by putting some high-quality plain yogurt into a coffee filter and then letting it strain into a bowl in the fridge for about three hours. What’s left in the filter is yogurt cheese, concentrated with nutrients. Judy drains the salsa a little before mixing it with yogurt cheese so that it’s creamy. This is also a great dip for cut up raw vegetables.
Skewers are a fun for lunch, too. Poke a hole in vegetable, fruit, and cheese cubes with a regular metal or wooden skewer, then thread the cubes on drinking straws (much safer in the lunchroom). Pack some yogurt or salsa dip for these.
Judy also gives trail mix an A+. This recipe has several variations, and is packed with fiber, B vitamins, and protein for energy:
2 cups Lower Fat Whole wheat or Cheese Crackers
2 cups Giant Eagle Toasted Oat Cereal (or Cheerios)
2 cups Bite-sized Shredded Wheat
2 cups Mini Pretzels
1 cup Dry Roasted Peanuts or sunflower seeds, optional
1 cup dried cranberries, raisins or dried fruit bits
Optional:
Add low fat popcorn
Use mixed nuts, sunflower seeds, or other nuts instead of the peanuts
Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese and bake at 300 degrees for 10 minutes on a cookie sheet.
Add 1 cup M & M’s, Mini chocolate or peanut butter chips
Add broken baked tortilla chips, sprinkle with chili powder or a seasoning mix and mix well.
You can make any one of these combinations in bulk, store it in an airtight container, and use it as needed for lunches and after school snacks.
Think about the lack of lunch time when assembling your child’s lunch: make half a sandwich with double the meat and cheese, cut wrap sandwiches in pieces, cut an orange into rings, pack a drink so your child doesn’t have to waste time standing in line. A small frozen bottle of water will keep the lunch cool while it thaws. It’s also good to tuck a couple of anti-bacterial hand wipes in little reusable container to make it easy for your child to clean-up before and after lunch.
Also, some children eat lunch at school very early, so be prepared to give them a significant snack as soon as they get home. Any of the lunch ideas I told you about would be great. Hard-boiled eggs, yogurt, string cheese and crackers, and smoothies are nice choices, too.
Smoothies are easy; just pop everything into a blender and blend on high for about a minute. Start with 1/2 cup plain or vanilla yogurt, and a little bit of milk; then add:
· Chocolate-covered banana: 1 banana, handful of chocolate chips
· Fruit Cup: ½ cup canned diced canned peaches, 1 banana, ¼ cup orange juice
· Berry: ½ cup strawberries, ¼ cup blueberries, ¼ cup raspberries
You can also add a little more yogurt to each and pour out and freeze in small cups, or ice cube trays for a sneaky, vitamin-packed dessert (I won’t tell if you won’t!)
j.