Why should you eat lemon peel? (Lemon Chicken recipe included)

On Monday of this week I included a lemon chicken and orzo for the boys, Kui, Angelo and Jesse. Anyone who knows me knows that I hate throwing things away and I'm always trying to use the most of everything I cook with, see Could've lost a "Lb." Unlike the lemon chicken recipe I grew up with as a kid, this week I cooked the lemon peel down with the chicken. It was fantastic, and had a concentrated lemon flavor with a great texture that took on the savory nature of the sauce.

I began searching for "The health benefits of lemon peels." Apparently the peel is where all the most beneficial properties of a lemon reside. Putting a slice in water has been openly done forever, but it's rare that I actually see people eating the peel, or the fruit and rind. For people who can't actually eat the fruit, the peel is a great way to get most of the lemon's benefits without the lemon's highly acidic flavor.

Lemon peel contains high levels of calcium and vitamin c that improve bone health. Polyphenol flavonoids (a class of plant secondary metabolites) in lemon peels lower cholesterol and the presence of potassium maintains blood pressure, heart related issues and diabetes. The peel is also high in antioxidants and those are good for everything!! (cited)

Lemon peels contain up to 10 times more vitamins than the juice. Don't forget about the fiber! 3.5 oz of lemon peel contains a little over 10 grams of fiber. (found here)

For bad breath or oral hygiene the peel is also great since the high levels of vitamin c and citric acid aid in repair of teeth and gum related diseases.

So the next time you think about using that peel to grind in your kitchen sink disposal STOP...and eat some instead!

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Servings: 4-6

Price: $15

Ingredients:

6 chicken breasts
Juice of one lemon
1/4 cup of lemon peel (you can include slices as I did)
1-2 Tbs. butter (you can sub. olive oil)
1/2-3/4 cup chicken bullion water (Tbs. of chicken base)
1 Tbs. garlic
pepper

Directions:

Dice chicken into bite sized pieces, mince the garlic, juice one lemon and set aside. Peel desired amount of lemon peel and also set aside. Microwave or heat 1 Tbs. of chicken base in water.
In a saute pan or skillet cook your garlic for about a minute, add your diced chicken and continue to brown on medium heat, don't forget to season your chicken. When the chicken has cooked almost through turn the heat up to med/high and de-glaze the pan with the lemon juice and chicken bullion. Add the lemon and continue to cook for about 15-20 minutes on low/medium. If your sauce is a little watery, which can happen if the chicken wasn't cooked on a high enough heat, then you can remove the chicken from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside and turn the heat up on the sauce till it reduces and thickens. Turn the heat off and return the chicken to the sauce.

* I added lemon slices afterward for presentation*

ENJOY!

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Superfoods: Kale and Beans

I am in no way advocating a completely meat-free diet or judging anyone who adheres to one. Years ago I personally worked in a raw, organic, vegan kitchen and it was a lot of fun. I feel that people should be very understanding that it truly is a lifestyle and a lot of work. Being "Vegan" or "Vegetarian" isn't just not eating meat or animal by-products. To be healthy and to safely live a meat-free life you need to supplement correctly with foods that will make up for not eating the sources of some pretty important vitamins and minerals. While no one actually likes to hear that they should eat "fats" it is also a pretty important component to overall health and energy.

In my, so far, short existence I have encountered many different ideas on food and feeding the body. There are many correct ways to make that happen and then there are many detrimentally unhealthy reasons for not being healthy. Since food is such an important part of my life I love getting to talk to people about how and what they eat, and sometimes that isn't the true nature of our conversations. In listening to people and watching them I have learned a little about "some things" and enough for form a small opinion.

Here I would like to share that I myself have struggled with my weight and have tried many different "eating habits" to maintain or control myself for optimum health. Anything you read here is an observation of a wide variety of experiences and an educated guess at best, but generally that is what most sciences are.

The inspiration for this rambling today comes to you via "MindBodyGreen" a health forum I follow on Facebook. I love their posts because they have great ideas along with RELIABLE information. There is nothing more frustrating than reading about something I find on the internet or even in a magazine regarding health, passing that information on to my friends or family, and then finding out I have to track them down to tell them it was wrong. And YES, that is something I DO, just ask The Hunebee! It is very comforting to know that MindBodyGreen does their research keeping their opinions to themselves till they have gotten to the bottom of all the possibilities:)

Today we are not talking about why Animal Meat products are bad, rather what foods you can eat that have as much if not more of the vital nutrients and less of the cholesterol. This is also inspired by the constant struggle I have with picky eaters, staunch childhood diets, and emotional pacifiers. There is a MAJOR balance between food "The Vitality for LIFE" and food "The Hobby."

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-6142/All-Hail-Kale-Infographic.html This is a great article from MindBodyGreen with some amazing facts about Kale.

"Did you know that kale has more iron than beef, or more calcium than milk." 

That is the first line in the article, how could that not grab you!! I also learned from MarthaStewart.com that the colder the weather the sweeter the kale, making fall through spring the best time to grow or eat.

Some great Kale recipes can be found here:

For those of you that LOVE bacon and the tang of apple cider vinegar check out:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/braised-kale-with-bacon-cider-10000000577156/

Everyone knows how much I love Garbanzo beans, if you do as well go here:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/garbanzo-beans-greens-50400000109639/

I love a very basic kale, cooked down, a little spicy and definitely with fresh lemon. Try Martha's recipe:
http://www.marthastewart.com/862205/spicy-sauteed-kale-lemon?czone=food%2Fwinter-produce%2Fwinter-produce&gallery=286367&slide=862205&center=1009854


BEANS!
Protein, Fiber and Antioxidants OH MY! By the way Red Meat has little or no fiber (found on WebMD's article http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/beans-protein-rich-superfoods), but I'm not cutting out meats entirely, I'm just giving you an option that you can add to your meals. Red meats shouldn't be eaten with every meal or even every day,  and with "Super foods" like beans you don't have to. Here is an excerpt from WebMd on the importance of Beans and the benefits to your health and weight loss:

"Beans are comparable to meat when it comes to calories, says Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, a registered dietitian at Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Wellness Institute in Chicago and a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. But they really shine in terms of fiber and water content, two ingredients that make you feel fuller, faster. Adding beans to your diet helps cut calories without feeling deprived."
(By Jenny Stamos Kovacs WebMD the Magazine - Feature Reviewed by Kathleen M. Zelman, MPH, RD, LD)

*Who doesn't want to feel full on less?!

Besides my bean recipes here are some great ones that I've found while searching around:

Slow cooked tomato and herb white beans from theKitchn.com

http://www.thekitchn.com/slowcooked-tomato-and-herb-whi-97163

Here is a Three Bean salad from Allrecipes.com it's a sweet version of the bean salads that I often post:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Three-Bean-Salad-5/Detail.aspx?prop24=RD_RelatedRecipes

I had these at a local soda shop in San Diego and they were fantastic! Roasted crispy Chickpea's from Steamykitchen.com :
http://www.steamykitchen.com/10725-crispy-roasted-chickpeas-garbanzo-beans.html

I have met many people who don't understand not eating meat every day, or at least for dinner every night. While meats have their benefits they also have consequences. I see that if you can eat something else once in a while and not deprive yourself of the health requirements, then why not? That, in the first sentence, is the most obvious answer to why there is so much more meat consumption....people don't understand. Like all eating habits it is about education. We all love to indulge, but when indulgence meets health safety we have to grow up and think outside the box. I am lucky to have a toddler who will eat most anything you place in front of her. Oddly she prefers not to eat as much meat as she does beans and vegetables, but that is a win in my book.

So to conclude kale and beans are a great source of iron, calcium, protein, fiber and a mixed alphabet of vitamins. Some of those vital nutrients prove much higher than that of red meat, which is a great thing for creating healthier eating habits and learning new things.

Tahini is MY new Peanut-butter!

About a month and a half ago, after the girls started their diets, I started a protein shake regiment. Christine uses Herbalife and Kat uses Body by Vi. I purchased a generic chocolate whey protein powder which I actually found to have more protein per serving than both of those other two products and is cheaper. I love cheap stuff. In the beginning I used one scoop of powder, 6-8 oz. of water and 1 frozen banana. There are people who use peanut butter for added protein and of course flavor but I saw that as a lot of unnecessary fat. Christine found out that bodybuilders and weights enthusiasts use a dehydrated form of peanut butter that is somewhere around 70% less fat (might be higher) and has all the benefits of protein and flavor. I looked for dehydrated peanut butter and the only place that carried it that I could drive to was GNC, I'm assuming it's a specialty product, and it was way tooo expensive for "peanut butter."

I found a solution in substitution and that came in the form of "Tahini." Tahini is sesame seed paste most commonly used in "Hummus." It has many wonderful health benefits and a great nutty flavor. I use a brand that roasts the seeds before they are ground down which has shown to boost the level of calcium per serving and has been proven to be the type of calcium most easily absorbed by the body. There is also a huge difference in "hulled" and "unhulled" sesame seeds. Unhulled sesame seeds are still in the casing and the most healthy of the two. Hulled sesame is obviously seeds no longer in the casing which has been proven to show a major decrease in calcium levels. So to recap use unhulled, roasted or toasted for the highest serving of calcium. Sesame seeds is also a great source of magnesium, copper, vitamin B1, zinc and dietary fiber. (reference and information found on http://saveourbones.com/the-power-of-the-sesame-seed/)

Now for added vitamins, overall health and flavor I use 1 Tbs. of roasted Tahini paste in my protein shake every morning. The flavor is great and although it is not peanut butter, it isn't really a comparison, and just tastes awesome! LASTLY, but not least it's GLUTEN FREE.

TRY IT!

Could've lost "a" Lb.

I grabbed a small head of cauliflower when I was grocery shopping recently. I was in a little rush so I didn't pay as much attention to the actual size of the "head" I chose. When I was about to cut it open I realized that there was almost more foliage around it than the actual part most of us use. I was irritated and thought, "Geez, I just payed for double the amount I actually got, lame..." Then I started thinking that obviously the whole thing is edible, and I should experiment. I planned on roasting it anyway so I separated the green leafy exterior from the actual cauliflower and trimmed it down to the healthiest looking pieces. Then chopped them into bite size pieces and tossed them into my baking dish, which also moonlights as a cake pan:) I did the same with the white part. I mixed them with a "marinade" of Caesar dressing, small amount of tomato paste, lemon pepper, black pepper, parsley and salt. I included pictures from every stage. The foliage made it that much better. I have done this cauliflower bake many times, but this was the first time with the "WHOLE" thing. The green pieces taste like cauliflower (obviously) but as if it were mixed with celery. I can only image that there's added fiber and vitamins, along with a texture different from the Cauliflower florets. It was a great balance. I bake this at 350° for about 20-25 minutes, or until desired consistency. I like it firm. 

ENJOY!