• 2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Onion, diced
• 3 Cloves Garlic, chopped
• 1 can chipped tomatoes (14.5 oz)
• 3 24 oz no-sodium-added Chicken Broth (or stock, just add a little extra water)
• 3 C water
• 8 oz package pasta shells
• 1-2 tsp lo-so or no-so italian seasoning
• 1 bunch fresh, clean Kale (cut into small; pieces) (can combine or substitute with spinach, but kale gives the better flavor for this dish)
• 2 15-oz cans lo-so white beans (cananelli, great northern, pinto…)
• 1 T tomato paste (lo-so)
• 1/4 t pepper
• Parmesan cheese for topping
• fresh chopped parsley for topping

Prepartion:

• Heat oil in soup pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add garlic snd cook 1 minute longer.
• Stir in tomatoes, broth and water. Bring to simmer over high heat, then add pasta and seasoning. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
• Add kale and cook 5 minutes. 
• Reduce heat to medium; add beans, tomato paste and seasonings. Continue to heat through.
• Garnish individual servings with parmesan cheese and parsley

Created by GKM Staff

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup Red Wine Vinegar
• 4 large cloves Garlic
• 1 tbsp Grainy Dijon Mustard
• 3/4 Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/2 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

Preparation:

• Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Puree. Drizzle in oil while pureeing if possible, otherwise just mix it all together and puree at once or stop and add oil intermittently.
• Adjust ingredients or process to needs and/or taste. You may want it thinner if you’re using it as a salad dressing or thicker if you’re using it for a dipping sauce. You may want to add pepper or a salt substitute.
• This recipe is very lo-so! It’s yummy! Adding anchovies (for a true caesar dressing) will only add a ton of sodium; try it first without the anchovies (or capers, a popular substitute for anchovies, but just as rich in sodium).

Serving Suggestions:

• This is such a flavorful dip…you can easily pair with veggies, lo-so snack dippers etc. and not miss a thing!!!
• serve as a dressing for a salad (thinner)
• serve as a dip (thicker) for:
  • vegetable tray
  • pretzels (no-salt) 
  • tortilla chips (no-salt and/or gluten-free for maximum health benefits)

Summer and fall have the perfect weather to cook outside.  Cooking on a grill is low fat, healthy and full of smoky southwest flavor.  So I went on a mission to find a barbecue sauce that was tasty, low in sugar and sodium.  Beware marinades and barbeque sauces can be loaded with sodium and sugar.  Most barbeque sauces I found at the grocery store had 15 grams of sugar in 2 tablespoons.  Not to mention around 3oomg of sodium.  Good news: Heinen’s grocery store carries 2 BBq sauces made with only 9 grams of sugar and 100mg of sodium in 2 TBSP.  1.) Bone Suckin Sauce which is $4.99.  2.) Road House Southern Sunset for only $3.29.  Smokin’ Joe Jones makes a diabetic BBq sauce made with all natural ingredients and with no diet sugar flavor.  This sauce is available online for $5.95.  If your grocery store does not carry any of these brand names, talk to the store manager.  The store manager can order most products requested, so just ask.   Another option would be to make it yourself.  Here is a mouthwatering recipe that you can use as it is or add your own ingredients.  Add fresh chopped jalapenos for heat instead of hot sauce to keep the sodium down. 

Ingredients: 

Note:  To help keep the sodium down in your diet choose to use Heinz sodium free ketchup. Heinz also makes sugar free ketchup. 

•  1-3 tsp of liquid smoke
• 1 small onion, minced
• 3 clove garlic, minced or 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 small can (6 oz) tomato paste
• 1 can (12 oz) diet (sugar-free) cola - Splenda-sweetened preferred
• 1/4 cup (sugar-free or low sodium) ketchup
• 3 T mustard
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 pinch ground cloves, chili powder, chipotle powder, smoked paprika (add more or less to taste)

Preparation:

Note:  Most Diet drinks are sweetened with Aspartame.  Aspartame will lose its sweetness when cooked at higher temperatures and for longer periods of time.  Use a soda sweetened with Splenda instead.  Splenda can withstand the heat: Pepsi One, Diet Rite, and Jones Diet sodas.

1) Cook onion in a non stick pan for about 20minutes.   Onion will caramelize and become sweeter with a golden color.   Add garlic at this point if you’re using fresh and stir it for half a minute or so.

2) Add the rest of the ingredients, plus about half a cup of water.  Stir well.

3) Simmer for 20-30 minutes.  It will cook down a bit and flavors will combine.

4) Adjust the spices so you have the balance you want - you can add vinegar or herbs at this point.

The recipe makes approximately 10 servings of 1/4 cup each.   Each serving has about 3.5 grams of carbohydrate and 200-400 mg of sodium depending on which ketchup you use.

I started with a Giada De Laurentiis recipe as a basic for Italian Wedding Soup; her recipe seemed to have lots of positive feedback on the Food Network.

In an effort to make the soup even healthier for the needs of my family (low sodium, low cholesterol etc…), I made some changes.

Here is the recipe as it reflects my changes. “Cold Feet Soup” is the name I chose because I use chicken as the meat ingredient!!!

Meatballs:

• 1 small onion, grated
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 1 large egg white
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon salt substitute (Tony Chachere’s is my current Fave)
• 1/3 cup raw rolled oats
• 1/4 cups water
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 lb ground chicken
• Freshly ground black pepper

Soup:

• 12 cups low-sodium chicken stock (Kitchen Basics No Sodium Added Stock is my Fave)
• 1 or more cups water
• 1 pound curly endive, coarsely chopped (spinach works or a combination of the two)
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
• 2 large egg whites
• 2 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Meatballs: Stir the first 7 ingredients in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the cheese and ground chicken. Shape the meat mixture into 1-inch-diameter meatballs. Set aside.

Soup: Bring the broth to a boil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and endive; simmer until the meatballs are cooked through and the curly endive is tender; about 10 minutes. Whisk the eggs and cheese in a medium bowl to blend. Stir the soup in a circular motion. Gradually drizzle egg mixture into the broth, stirring gently with a fork to form thin stands of egg. Season the soup to taste with salt (substitute) and pepper.

• Some gluten-sensitive people don’t eat oats; if this is you, just skip the oats in the meatballs! If you’re not concerned about gluten, perhaps try adding some tiny pasta to the broth. If you are concerned about gluten and still want a bit more substance to the soup, some good brown rice adds a nice feature!

Serve soup warm and enjoy!

 How to cope with the gluten free diet? Tips and gluten free recipes.

Makes 6 Servings

Total fiber = 6 grams

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 2 large carrots, shredded (about 2 cups)
• 1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean or higher)
• One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• One 15 1/2 -ounce can black-eyed peas or pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• One 15-ounce can corn kernels, drained and rinsed (or 1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed)
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/3 cup pre-shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the carrots and beef and cook, breaking up the large pieces, until the meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain excess fat.
2. Stir in the tomatoes, beans, corn, chili powder, cumin, and garlic and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, 20 to 25 minutes.
3. Serve in individual bowls and top with shredded cheese. Heat leftovers and pack in a thermos along with some of the shredded cheese on the side.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 220 calories, 5g fat (1.5g saturated), 320mg sodium, 27g carbohydrate, 6g fiber, 18g protein, 110% vitamin A, 20% vitamin C.

Recipe by Liz Weiss, MS, RD

Makes 1 Serving:

Total fiber = 5 grams

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
• 2/3 cup 1% lowfat milk
• 1/4 cup blueberries
• 1 to 2 tablespoons chopped nuts, optional
• 1 teaspoon pure maple syrup, optional

Directions:

1. Combine the oats, ground flaxseed, and milk in a deep microwave-safe bowl and stir to combine.
2. Place in the microwave, uncovered, and heat on high for 90 seconds. Remove carefully and stir in the blueberries, and the nuts and maple syrup as desired.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 210 calories, 6g fat (1g saturated, 1.4g omega-3), 70mg sodium, 30g carbohydrate, 5g fiber, 10g protein, 20% calcium

Recipe by Liz Weiss, MS, RD

Ingredients:

4 skinless, Organic boneless chicken breasts (Mary’s Chicken)
2 brown cage free organic eggs, beaten (Organic Valley)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup flax bran cereal (healthy bread crumbs) (Natures Path)
1/2 cup Flax seed
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
2. Trim any fat from chicken and cut into 1 inch strips.
3. In a bowl beat the eggs with the water and add the chicken.
4. In a blender add the cereal and blend until a powder. Place in a bowl reading for breading
5. Combine the parsley, healthy bread crumbs, flax seed, basil and ground pepper. Stir in the oil with a fork and mix well to distribute evenly.
6. Place coated chicken pieces on the prepared baking sheet and bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes, turn the pieces and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Ingredients:

1 (10 ounce) package fresh spinach leaves
1/2 cup Organic sour cream
1/2 cup shredded low fat cheese
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 skinless, organic boneless chicken breast halves - pounded to 1/2 inch thickness (Mary’s Free Range Chicken)
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 Tablespoons Hummus (Eden Foods)
 

Preparation:
 
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Place spinach in small sauce pan stirring every minute or so, or until wilted. Stir in sour cream, low fat cheese, and garlic.
3. Lay the chicken breasts out on a clean surface, and spoon some of the spinach mixture onto each one. Roll up chicken to enclose the spinach. Secure with toothpicks, and arrange in a shallow baking dish. Add the ready made hummus into the mix
4. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes in the preheated oven, then increase heat to 375 for an additional 15 mins.
Be sure to take the toothpicks out. Serve and Enjoy!

Health Benefits:

Chicken is rated as a very good source of protein, providing 67.6% of the daily value for protein in 4 ounces. The structure of humans and animals is built on protein. We derive our amino acids from animal and plant sources of protein, then rearrange the nitrogen to make the pattern of amino acids we require. People who are meat eaters, but are looking for ways to reduce the amount of fat in their meals, can try eating more chicken. The leanest part of the chicken is the chicken breast, which has less than half the fat of a trimmed Choice grade T-bone steak.

Ingredients:

1¾ cup whole wheat flour (Bobs Red Mill)
¾ cup crushed flax seeds
1 cup organic brown sugar
¾ cup milk
¾ cup instant
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
5 carrots shredded
1 pinch of salt
2 fresh apples skinned and shredded
2 brown organic eggs (Organic Valley)
 
Preparation:

Combine all of the dry ingredients and mix with a hand blender on low speed. Add the wet ingredients and continue to mix. Place in a non stick cooking muffin tray and bake in a 375 degree oven until brown.

Health Benefits:

Flaxseeds are rich in alpha linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fat that is a precursor to the form of omega-3 found in fish oils called eicosapentaenoic acid or EPA. Since the fats are found in their isolated form in flaxseed oil, it is a more concentrated source of ALA than the seeds themselves (although it doesn’t have the other nutrients that the seeds do). ALA, in addition to providing several beneficial effects of its own, can be converted in the body to EPA, thus providing EPA’s beneficial effects. For this conversion to readily take place, however, depends on the presence and activity of an enzyme called delta-6-destaurase, which, in some individuals, is less available or less active than in others. In addition, delta-6-desaturase function is inhibited in diabetes and by the consumption of saturated fat and alcohol.