Cheerios: Smart About Diabetes....#SmartAboutDiabetes #Cheerios

   

Did you know that February was Heart Healthy Month? I know you wouldn't know it by my blog posts...full of sweet rolls, lasagna, and banana bread. The truth is, we don't eat like that all of the time at my house. We have to practice moderation because my husband has Type II diabetes. That's not to say we don't fall off the wagon. In fact, February was especially hard for us--perhaps all of the cold weather had something to do with that...

Some of you may remember me talking about Pete's encounter with diabetes. We both thought that he was simply run down, stressed out from all that was going on in our lives. When I finally talked him into going to an urgent care clinic, he was just hours away from a diabetic coma! What followed was a full year of insulin shots and learning how to eat correctly (this was a big benefit to me too, as I was diagnosed with some fairly high cholesterol).  Luckily, he was able to reverse some of the damage that the diabetes had done. His eyesight went back to normal and he lost about thirty pounds of excess weight. Eventually, he was able to stop the insulin shots. While he does still take medication, the modifications he made to his diet really turned things around.

Adapting a new eating style wasn't as hard as it sounds. We were pretty much scared straight from the effects of Pete's diabetes, so we started by measuring out our foods and learning how to count carbs. One food that we didn't have to give up was our favorite breakfast food....Cheerios!

I'll bet you didn't know that Cheerios:

Contains beta-glucan, which can help to lower cholesterol*

Is a One Carb choice product

Has just One Gram of Sugar

Has 100% Whole Grain Oats as the first ingredient

*Three grams of soluble fiber daily from whole grain oat foods, like Cheerios cereal, in a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. Cheerios cereal provides 1 gram per serving.

While Pete prefers regular Cheerios, my favorite is the new Dark Chocolate Multigrain Cheerios....Oh my! Look at this stuff!

Seriously, just add some coconut-almond milk and you have the equivalent of a candy bar in your bowl...only better for you! 

Have I talked you into wanting to get healthy? Start by making one small change and see what kind of impact you can make with your health. Visit SmartAboutDiabetes.com and take The Pledge. I dare you.

Disclosure: General Mills provided me with product and a gift card through Platefull Co-op. As always, all opinions are my own.

Kung Pao Chicken Tacos..#recipesfromtheheart

Today we are joining together to help raise awareness for Heart Disease. Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic lost her Mom to heart disease when her mother was 47, and Kim was 15. Each year on the day her Mom passed she shares stories and photos of her Mom. This year she joined forces with Jen of Juanita's Cocina, whose life was also touched by heart disease when her Stepfather had a heart attack. Jen's Stepfather is alive and well more than a decade later, and for that, Jen is thankful every day. The ladies got in touch with other bloggers to ask them to share their own stories about how heart disease has touched their lives. So today we share stories and recipes from our hearts to yours, in memory and honor of Momzie, Kim's Mom. We hope you will share your stories with us today as well.

Like Kim, I too lost a parent, my father, to heart disease when I was 15. I like to think that with advances in medicine, he would have had a much better chance of surviving today. Recently, I was told that I had really high cholesterol levels. I realized then, that no matter what kind of advances there have been in medicine, the best chance for avoiding heart disease was going to have to come from myself. So, when Kim asked if I would be interested in being part of her effort to raise awareness for heart disease I did not hesitate to say yes.

I've been modifying my eating habits for several weeks now, but it took awhile for me to really get serious about it. In fact, it was last October that I told my doctor I was intent on dropping some pounds and getting my cholesterol back down to normal levels....of course I had to get through the holidays first. The Cooking Light magazine that I picked up right after my doctor's appointment sat on my nightstand gathering dust. Until now. Holy cow, there are some great recipes in there! I chose my favorite one to share with you today, but I did make some minor changes.

Kung Pao Chicken Tacos (slightly adapted from Cooking Light magazine)

Ingredients:

1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2" pieces

3 tablespoons lower sodium soy sauce, divided

1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons corn starch, divided

2 tablespoons canola oil

3 tablespoons lightly salted dry roasted peanut, coarsely chopped

2 stalks celery, diagonally sliced

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 1/2 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons rice vinegar

2 tablespoons sesame oil

2 teaspoons Sriracha sauce (or chile paste)

1 large garlic clove, minced

8 (6") corn tortillas

2-3 green onions, sliced

1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced

Place the chicken in a large zip-lock plastic bag. Add one tablespoon soy sauce and 1/4 cup corn starch; shake the bag well to coat the chicken. 

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the canola oil, swirling to coat. Add the chicken and saute for 6 minutes, or until done. About 2 minutes before the chicken is done, add the peanuts and the celery to the pan.

While the chicken is cooking, whisk together the remaining soy sauce, 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch, honey, rice vinegar, Sriracha sauce, and garlic. Add to the pan, stirring to coat the chicken and cook for an additional minute.

Heat the tortillas under a broiler, turning after about two minutes, until the tortillas are lightly blistered. Place two tortillas on each of 4 plates; divide the chicken mixture among the tortillas. Top with the green onions and the bell peppers.

To be honest, I've never made Chinese food before...I didn't know what I was missing.

The hubby gave these a thumbs up!

I saved enough to make one taco for lunch the next day....

Joost Stapelbroek  (The Dutch Baker) 1917-1974

Three brothers--all died very young, from heart disease. 

Please visit these other fabulous bloggers for more stories and heart healthy recipes:

Spicy Oven Fries by Cravings of a Lunatic

Healthy Snacking with Radish Dip by Juanita's Cocina

Arugula, Walnut Pesto by Dinners, Dishes and Desserts

Farro, Apple & Pecan Salad by It's Yummilicious

Chicken-Quinoa Burgers with an Avocado Yogurt Sauce by The Spiffy Cookie

Pasta House Wilted Salad by Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker

Gooey Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Bars by The Cooking Actress

Dark Chocolate Covered Walnuts by All Day I Dream About Food

Mini Pear Walnut Crisps with Blood Orange Caramel Sauce by Chocolate Moosey

Kung Pao Chicken Tacos by The Dutch Baker's Daughter

Honey Soy Glazed Salmon by Curry and Comfort

Apple Walnut Spinach Salad by Magnolia Days

Broiled Salmon Gyros with Cucumber Feta Yogurt Dip by Damn Delicious

Maple Mustard Glazed Salmon by That Skinny Chick Can Bake

Make-Ahead Chocolate Oatmeal by Crumb

Hoisin Flounder by Taking on Magazines

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus by The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen

Veggie Nachos by Dine & Dish

Cheesy Quinoa and Asparagus Bake by Hungry Couple

Ahi Tuna Salad by Noshing with the Nolands

Canapes of Apricot, Goat Cheese, Almonds and Rosemary by Cook the Story

Thai Chicken Soup by From Cupcakes to Caviar

Italian Turkey Quinoa Meatloaf by Rachel Cooks

Black Bean Quesadillas by Pastry Chef Online

Sautéed Rataouille with Quinoa by Whipped

Polenta Rounds with Apples and Cheddar by Diethood

Whole Wheat Focaccia with Artichokes....it's a Hearts and Flours Improv!

It's time for another monthly Improv and this month--in honor of Valentine's day--our theme is "Hearts and Flours"! For those not in the know, the monthly Improv, hosted by Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker, is a friendly little competition where we create dishes based on two seasonal ingredients. Truth be told, I took this month's theme a little out of the box. Instead of creating a heart shaped food, I used "hearts" in my food--and made it heart healthy to boot!

Yum...I love artichoke hearts! Unfortunately, I've only ever had them in fatty appetizers or drenched in oil. These are packed in water.

If you haven't deduced from my last post, Healthier Mixed Berry Muffins, I'm trying to drop a lot a little weight and eat a little healthier. That is not to say that I won't continue posting some decadent stuff (I promise--those Orange-White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cinnamon Rolls will be up next), but I've found that a little moderation is in order. Luckily for me, my husband is on the same wavelength so it's easy for me to try out some new things.

One of the things that we discovered is that it's a lot easier for us to make better eating choices when we're at home. That said, it's hard to make dinner for the two of us after working all day. So, believe it or not, this focaccia bread recipe came about because I was tired and in a rush (thank goodness for my KitchenAid mixer!)

Whole Wheat Artichoke Focaccia

Printable Recipe

Dough:

1 cup warm water (like bathwater warm)

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon fast rising yeast

1 cup white whole wheat flour

1 1/2 - 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon salt 

Topping:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or black pepper)

1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts packed in water, drained and sliced

1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

1 cup fresh spinach leaves

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Combine the water, sugar, oil and yeast in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer. Let this mixture sit for about 5 minutes, or until it starts to foam.

In the mean time, whisk together the white whole wheat flour, 1 1/2 cups of the all purpose flour, salt, and seasoning. Add it to the yeast mixture.

Using the dough hook on the stand mixer, knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until it cleans the sides of the bowl. Add more flour, a tablespoon at a time, if needed. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, turning it once. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and set it in a warm, draft-free area to rise for 30-45 minutes.

Whole wheat flour can make the dough a little dry. Initially, I dumped all of the flour into the mix at once...I had to add a little more water. Luckily, the dough is pretty forgiving and it all turned out fine.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F; spray a 15" X 10" pan with cooking spray.

Gently deflate the dough and press it into the prepared pan. Brush the dough with olive oil and sprinkle with the garlic powder and the pepper. Evenly top the dough with the sliced artichoke hearts, drained tomatoes, onions,and spinach. Sprinkle the cheese and the Italian seasoning over the top.

I was going to bake this on a pizza stone, but discovered it had broken in half (!). Luckily, using the jelly roll pan made this even easier.

I loved this combination of toppings, but you can get creative here...add some olives, fresh herbs...whatever floats your boat. :)

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden. Cut into squares--this will make 6 servings at about 300 calories per serving.

I really loved how this turned out! If you aren't familiar with white whole wheat flour, you can read about it on the Whole Grains Council website...it's a great way to add whole grains if you aren't fond of regular whole wheat flour. Feel free to substitute your favorite spices. I used a little cayenne pepper to give it a slight kick, but regular pepper works fine. I'll bet some fresh basil (I didn't have any) would make a nice addition, too.

Don't forget to check out what everyone else is making!