Here’s something new for your holiday table – a really delicious side dish that’s pretty and good for you.
Quinoa contains complete nutritional protein, so it makes a good dish for vegans at your table (just substitute the egg with egg replacer or flax eggs).
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Red and Green Holiday Quinoa Stuffing Green * Serves 12
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, finely sliced, divided
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 pound pound kale, remove leaves from stem and chop in food processor
salt to taste
white pepper to taste
1-1/2 cups pecans, chopped in food processor
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 Tablespoon fresh thyme (strip the leaves from the stem)
2 cups cooked quinoa (rinse well first – more info here)
1 Tablespoon Earth Balance margarine, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten (or equivalent egg replacer)
3/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup fresh pomegranate seeds
Preheat oven to 325F. Lightly grease a 9 x 13” glass baking dish with Earth Balance margarine or olive oil (or mist with olive oil).
In a large saucepan over medium high heat, heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil. Add half of the garlic and cook until soft but not yet golden. Raise the heat to high, add the vegetable stock and chopped kale and toss to combine. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover and continue cooking, stirring until all the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and white pepper and set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, toss cooked kale and chopped pecans until well combined.
In a separate saucepan over medium high heat, heat 1 Tablespoon of of olive oil; add the onion and remaining garlic; sauté 2 to 3 minutes. Add the sage and continue cooking until onion is caramelized, approximately 3 to 4 more minutes. Stir in the pecan – kale mixture.
Transfer the onion-pecan-kale mixture to a large mixing bowl. Add the cooked quinoa and stir to combine. Stir in the 1 Tablespoon melted Earth Balance margarine. Season with salt and white pepper. Add the egg and wine and toss to coat. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Cover and bake 30 minutes. Garnish with pomegranate seeds before serving.
The new year is almost here! Plan to get a new start on your Total Health!
January 2010 * Online Class
(what? no title? Members can join the contest to determine the class title!)
21 days * Monday, January 4 through Sunday, January 24
This class focuses on your personal goals (or call ‘em resolutions) and provides guidance and support so you can achieve them. You can change your life in 21 days with Marilu. Eat right, get fit, look great, and feel better in 2010 at Marilu.com.
This is not an excuse to eat whatever you want, lay around like a slug, or burn your candle at both ends (and the middle) trying to do it all during the holidays – putting off taking care of yourself for January. No, it’s not.
In fact, we know from personal experience that taking care of our health during the holidays makes us feel great, our clothes fit as planned, our energy levels high – not to mention that sense of self-righteousness we feel when we’re treating ourselves right (yeah, we can be a little shallow sometimes, but we’re honest – it feels GOOD when we take care of ourselves – we invite you to enjoy that righteousness for yourself!).
If you need support during the holidays, we’re here for you. Our member community is active and supportive. Our coaches have practical solutions to help you be your B.E.S.T. every day.
Join now for support – stick around for the biggest, best online class to help you get 2010 off on the right start.
When you’re deciding on your holiday outfits, check your hairstyle, too. Different clothing styles work better with different hairstyles. Hair accessories can also be part of your ensemble.
You may already have your hair appointments scheduled for this holiday season – cut, color, blowout, whatever you need (or want!) done. If you still need an appointment, don’t wait any longer to call.
At home, remember to be a little on the “spare” side with product. A quarter of shampoo and a dime of conditioner will do for a wash. Styling products almost always work on the “less is more” principal, too. Plus you’ll save a little money if you don’t use as much product.
First, don’t ever drink if you shouldn’t. And don’t lie to yourself about whether you fall into that category.
Stay with one kind of alcohol (beer, wine, or a particular hard liquor).
Drink two glasses of water for every glass of alcohol (that’s 12 ounces of beer, 4 ounces of wine, or 1 shot of hard liquor).
Limit yourself to two drinks per event (or day, if you’re going to more than one party).
Limit yourself to five drinks a week.
Remember that alcohol inhibits your decision-making abilities. If you need to make good decisions about your life, career, relationships, or driving – or even about dessert – then don’t drink. Save it for another party.
Trade in carbonated beverages for water, and see your weight change and your health improve. It’s not instant, but it’s a small change that will add up fast.
Sodas made with sugar or corn syrup add calories without nutrition, and lead to tooth decay (just ask your dentist).
Even diet sodas cause problems. The chemical sweeteners can lead to cravings for more sweet foods, or for salty foods (to balance the sweetness of the soda). Either way, you don’t need those extra foods. And we really don’t know what all those chemicals are doing in our bodies over time.
Drinking a carbonated beverage means drinking in gas… and then you have to get rid of the gas. No matter which end it comes out, it’s not the image you want to project. At least we don’t think so.
You know the most famous exercise slogan ever … just do it. We’d like to modify those words just a bit.
Just do something. Anything. But move.
Take a walk.
Shovel the walk.
Go for a hike.
Ride your bike.
Go inline skating.
Go ice skating.
Get some friends and play basketball.
Or volleyball.
Or hockey.
Tennis, anyone?
Jump rope.
Hula hoop.
Go sledding.
Go for a swim.
Chase the dog.
Chase the kids.
Dance with your sweetheart.
Whether you celebrate Chanukah or not, latkes (potato pancakes) and applesauce are delicious. We like them for a weekend meal, or a lighter weeknight supper, served with a green salad.
Latkes are a traditional food because they are fried in oil, and the oil that lasted eight days was the miracle of Chanukah. Our latkes are not fried, but they do use a bit of oil. Try them this week.
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Healthy Potato Latkes
from Healthy Holidays, by Marilu Henner Green (no applesauce) / Yellow (with applesauce) * Serves 6
2 Tablespoons plus 6 teaspoons canola oil
1 medium organic Spanish onion, diced
6 medium organic baking potatoes
2 large cage-free eggs
2 Tablespoons matzo meal
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 350F. In a heavy nonstick saucepan over low heat, put 2 Tablespoons of the oil. Add the onion and saute until softened, about 10 minutes. Cool.
Coarsely grate the potatoes into a mixing bowl. Squeeze out the excess liquid or drain in a colander. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and mix in the sauteed onion, eggs, matzo meal, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
Grease a 12-cup non-stick muffin pan well, and pour 1/3 cup of the potato mixture into each muffin cup. Smooth the tops lightly and spoon 1/2 teaspoon oil over each. Bake about 45 minutes, or until firm and brown at the edges. Remove from the oven and run a small, sturdy rubber spatula around the edges of the latkes to release them. You can leave them in the pan 15-30 minutes to keep hot. Serve the latkes hot with applesauce.
Traditional Applesauce
from Healthy Holidays, by Marilu Henner Purple * Serves 8
4 pounds organic apples, cored, peeled, and quartered
1/2 cup Sucanat®
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 Tablespoon strained fresh organic lemon juice
In a large saucepan, combine the apples, Sucanat®, cinnamon, and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then lower the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer 10 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes, or until the apples are very tender. Cool. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the apples to a food processor. Puree the apples. Return the puree to the saucepan and simmer a few more minutes, stirring until it is the desired thickness. Add the lemon juice and more Sucanat®, if needed, stirring to blend.
If you don’t have a food processor, use a handheld potato masher or an immersion (stick) blender to puree the apples.
As we head into winter, snow days are expected in many parts of the Northern hemisphere.
What’s your Snow Day plan? If you got a totally free day, what would you do? Lay around? Catch up? Start or finish a project?
We think it’s good to have a general idea of what to do with a totally free day – in case there’s a need for some supplies to be on hand. We love to bake on snow days – the house smells great, it’s warm, and there are “treats” like pumpkin bread or cookies or blueberry muffins.
You may choose to clean out a closet, wrap all your holiday gifts, write and address all your holiday cards, cook “ahead” and stock the freezer, finish a scrapbook or other craft project, do your online banking, or (we have to say it) shovel some snow.
If you have kids at home on a snow day, you may not be able to be “productive” in the traditional sense, but you can invest in the relationship you have with your kids – and that’s totally productive. Play board games, or read a story and act it out, or (for younger kids) build a fort with pillows and blankets.
Think ahead about what you might want to do on a Snow Day. You may never do any of them – but you’ll at least have some ideas in your head when it happens. And you can always use your ideas on a weekend.
On this last day of our That’s a Wrap – The Time is WOW class, here’s one more song kind of related to clothing and presentation (thanks again Sally!).
Dress yourself in love – that is, love yourself, and you’ll always look great. You’ll always want to look great, too.
Part of looking great is being fit, so get up and get moving. The tempo of this song is suited to strength training, so pick up your hand weights or a couple of soup cans or water bottles, and tone those arms. Just because it’s winter doesn’t mean sleeves are part of every outfit… so don’t ignore your arms!
, by Marilu Henner