Juicy Grilled Corn on the Cob

Just watched an episode of Top Chef where the chefs (working in teams of 4) had to prepare a healthy school lunch on a very limited budget (less than $3 per student). What amazed me was how many of the teams paid little, to no attention, to fruits and vegetables. In one particularly bad example, a team making bananna pudding didn’t like the taste, so they added 2 lbs (!) of sugar to sweeten it (it should come as no surprise that this team lost).

Anyway, with summer here, and simple, healthy fruits and vegetables on my mind, I thought I’d share this easy summer BBQ dish – grilled corn on the cob. Although many people prefer to grill corn still in the husk, I find this more often leads to dried out corn with burnt kernels. Here’s a quick tip to keep your corn juicy and sweet.

Start with 6 ears of corn, remove the husks and as much of the silk as possible.

Place all of the corn in a large pot and cover with cold water for 10 – 15 minutes (you may need to put the lid on to keep all the ears submerged).

Remove the corn from the pot one at a time, do not remove any exces water, and immediately wrap in aluminum foil (twist both ends to create a fully sealed package for the corn to steam in).

Place the wrapped corn on your grill and let roast for ~20 minutes, turning once half way through.

The water will not only help to keep the corn from drying out, but will also provide the steam to help it cook.

Once cool enough to unwrap, add a little butter (or margarine) and enjoy.

Avocado

Did you know that more avocados are consumed on Cinco de Mayo than on any other day in the year. Why? Guacamole.

As much as I love guacamole, although it is cholesterol free, it does contain quite a bit of fat. In fact a typical 1 oz serving contains 60 calories, 21 of which are from fat. So in order to indulge in one of my favorite dips, and greatly reduce the fat content, this low fat recipe substitutes peas for a portion of the avocado. The peas have a similar texture and a more vibrant green color, while lending a slightly sweeter flavor. The best part is that the calories contained in a 1 oz serving are reduced to 26, with only 8 calories from fat. Now that’s a low fat dip that I can eat every day.

I hope you enjoy it too.

Ingredients:

• 10 oz package of frozen peas
• 1/2 small ripe avocado
• 1/2 cup cilantro, stems removed
• 1/2 ripe tomato, deseeded and chopped
• 1/3 cup chopped onion (optional)
• Squeeze of fresh lime juice

Preparation:

Original recipe from Fiona Haynes – About.com

By neutralizing free radicals that enter your body, antioxidants provide a protective barrier within your body. Free radicals are simply chemically active atoms or molecule fragments. They are active because they are electrically charged, either positively, missing electron(s), or negatively, containing excessive electron(s). This electrical charge seeks to become neutralize itself by scavenging your body to remove (or donate) electrons, in the process damaging your healthy cells.

Free radicals are generated naturally within, and are generated externally. Internal sources of free radicals include aerobic respiration, metabolism, and inflammation. External sources include sunlight, strenuous exercise, x-rays, smoking, alcohol and pollution.

Regardless of the source excessive free radicals (generated by pollutants) can cause damage to your body in excess of what it can naturally combat. Every time a free radical is neutralized by an antioxidant, the antioxidant itself is consumed, and is no longer able to defend your body. This is why your body’s level of antioxidants must be maintained.

The most antioxidant rich foods are nuts and berries – natural and unprocessed – which make a very tasty and healthy snack.

The top seven antioxidant rich nuts and berries (in terms of antioxidant content per serving) are:

-          Blackberries

-          Walnuts

-          Strawberries

-          Cranberries

-          Raspberries

-          Pecans

-          Blueberries

To make sure that your child receives the full benefit of theses nutritional powerhouses, each healthy snack should be at least a single serving in size.

For the berries, a single serving is 1/2 cup, and for nuts a single serving is 1 oz, or approximately 1/4 cup.

Now that summer is here and kids are more acitve, it’s even more important for kids to eat healthy. Yogurt not only provides an excellent source of calcium and vitamins, but it is also cool and refreshing – which is especially useful on hot summer days. What is great about this Fruity Yogurt Snack, is that by making it yourself, you can customize the flavor to suit your child. If you paln ahead, you can also involve your child in the selection of the fruit, and have them prepare it (blend in the fruit). Depending upon your child’s age, they could be fascinated at how the yogurt changes color to match the fruit they added in (this works especially well with juicy fruits like berries).

Ingredients:

- Plain Low-fat or vanilla-flavored yogurt
- Fresh fruit of choice, cut into small pieces
- Honey or maple syrup (to be added only if a little extra sweetness is desired)
- Granola (optional – adds fiber)

Directions:

1. Mix fresh fruit of child’s choice into low-fat unsweetened yogurt.
2. Add a dash of honey or maple syrup for a touch of sweetness if desired
3. Sprinkle granola on top for crunch (a kid friendly texture).

You’ll be amazed at how fast the yogurt disappears when kids get to flavor it
themselves.
Get more information on How to Prepare Healthy Meals for Kids here.

My Grandmother (Father’s side, from Northern Italy) would make this every once in a while, with the only heat being provided by a dash of crushed red pepper flakes. Once I got a hold of it, most of the tomato sauce was taken out and replaced with whatever hot sauce I had handy.

This dish can be served as an appetizer (as described below), or as a topping on burgers, hot dogs, and even pizza. It is also an excellent filling for Stuffed Mushrooms. Don’t worry if you can’t decide how to have it the first time, because you’ll want to make it again.

Molten Mushroom

Ingredients

3 Tbsp Olive oil
1.5-2 lbs Whole White Mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1 med yellow onion, finely chopped
Dash of Salt
~1 tsp Pepper
~1 Tbsp Red Pepper Flakes
1/2C Tomato Sauce
~4 oz (or more) of Favorite Hot Sauce – to taste

Tortilla Chips or Plain Crackers to serve

Chopped Mushrooms in skillet

 

 

Preheat a large skillet over med-high heat. Add Olive oil and turn skillet to coat entire bottom. Add chopped mushrooms, onion, salt and pepper. Toss to coat.

 

 

Fully evaporated & slightly browned mushrooms

Allow mixture to saute ~15 – 20 min (stirring occassionally) until all liquid
from mushrooms evaporates and mushrooms and onions start to brown slightly.

Adding Hot Sauce

Add tomato sauce (be careful since it will tend to splatter once it hits the hot pan). Mix to coat. Add hot sauce and mix thoroughly with wooden spoon. Remove from heat, scoop into serving bowl.

Serve either warm or cool – with tortilla chips or crackers.

Leftovers (if there are any) can be refrigerated and either reheated, or served cold.

NOTE: Mixture should have a chili-like consistency before removing from pan. If too ‘soupy’ continue to heat until some of the liquid evaporates. If you’re adding more Hot Sauce to increase the heat, cut back on the tomato sauce slightly.
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Ingredients

2 cans chic peas, drained
1 6 oz jar marinated Artichoke Hearts
1 Cup of thinly sliced celery
2 Tbsp Italian Dressing
1 12oz jar olive salad, drained, and coasrely chopped

Combine chic peas with artichoke hearts and their liquid, celery and salad dressing in a medium sized frying pan. Heat until bubbly.

Fold chopped olive salad into artichoke mixture.

Spoon into bowl and serve warm.

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