AARP Rewards Healthy Plate Contest, Week 3 May 17-23

My tip is to incorporate the Blue Zones diet, which is similar to the Mediterranean diet. I started with beverages: coffee with breakfast, tea with lunch, and wine with dinner. I also drink a large glass of water with lemon first thing in the morning. As for snacks, measure out a serving of raw unsalted nuts, and keep them handy for snacking. Remove processed food and replace with whole foods like: swap potato chips with veggie sticks, swap soda for water, etc. Set the table, measure your food, try new spices (like tumeric or cumin in your tuna salad), and eat mindfully.

Guys, A healthy plate is greens , protein, 🍖, let’s do turkey and-or chicken 🐔 plus Fish 🐠. Babe dessert is Fresh Fruits 

Tturmeric is great! My morning old fashioned oatmeal starts with dash of salt, shakes of turmeric and cinnamon, then 1\3 c. dry oatmeal, 2/3 c. Water. Nuke 1 min 45 sec. Stir in 1-2 T. almond or peanut butter. Then a squirt of local honey. No mid morning cravings. Can make to 1 or 2 pm with decaf coffee and water only! Tumeric is used in countries with very low numbers of dementia. Friend says a teaspoon of mustard (turmeric in it) will stop leg cramps and restless legs! He's a landscape contractor.

Sometimes I stray from my long term goal of loosing weight.  That happened leading up to and after the passing of my best friend to Stage 4 Cancer in January.  I have been slowing getting back on track.  I've actually been following AARP Rewards Healthy Plate Contest without knowing it.  1) I had to look hard at how my eating had changed and what I had stopped eating.  I added back raw veggies!!  I cut them when I get home so it's grab and go all week. 2) I have eliminated fried food, which I don't eat often but it had to be a mindful change and I donated all the non-perishable food I had for those who could benefit from them.  Now on Week 3) Anti-Inflammatory...always a good one this time of year.  I hit those farmers markets, we have plenty of blueberries and strawberries to load up on.  I will put them in my Oatmeal (with cinnamon and a dash of turmeric) for breakfast, an afternoon snack and a raw produce smoothie (another thing I stopped doing).  I have a few Quinoa Salads I do but this is the one I'm making next - 1C Quinoa (cook as usual), Mix together cooked Quinoa, 1 English Cucumber diced, 1/2 red onion diced (or scallions if you have some fresh hanging around), 1 can black olives chopped (I often mix black olives and green olives with pimento).  Dressing: 1 C EEOV, 1/4 C white balsamic, 1 T lemon juice, 2 T dijon mustard (I prefer 1/2-1 tsp dry mustard) and salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well.  Pour over salad and mix well.  Serve warm or chill first.  Happy Memorial Day everyone!

Turmeric Latte

1 1/2 cups milk:  almond, coconut, or cow's milk

1 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon vanilla

sweetener to taste:  honey, maple syrup, stevia

If using a non-dairy milk, 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil or ghee or butter

In a small saucepan, combine:  milk, turmeric, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, black pepper, and coconut oil or ghee or butter if using a non-dairy milk. Bring to a gentle simmer, do not boil, stir or whisk for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add vanilla and sweetener. 

One of my favorites is my morning oatmeal to which I add tumeric, either flax or chia seeds and either a teeny bit honey or teeny bit of brn sugar, and cinnamon.  I have been doing this for so long, that there are many mornings, that I don't even remember making it! But, it helps my MS! 

I'm eating a lot more fruits and vegetables. I've also planted lots of herbs and am using those nearly every day. I also eat plain yogurt with fruit several times a week.

I always eat a lot of vegetables and fruits, but one thing I'm trying is a little more variety, to eat fruits and vegetables in season whenever possible, trying to buy from the farmers markets when I can. And to add variety I aim to select a wider range of colors. I'm an amateur artist, so when I see the bins full of brightly colored fruits and vegetables I think to myself 'I'd love to paint this scene'! So I'm trying to select fruits and vegetables with an artist's eye! 

Second, I'm incorporating more fresh, and colorful herbs and spices. I sometimes tend to add too much salt to my food - I tend towards the savory & salty versus the sweet - but I notice that when I use fresh lemons, spices, and herbs, I don't need the salt.