TV Appearance tomorrow – Energy Drinks February 28, 2012

The past 24 hours have been full – full of parenting adventures. It turns out Jackson’s breathing was related to a viral infection that worsened last night. After a failed attempt with a nebulizer treatment at home, we took him to the ER around 9pm for labored breathing. Jackson seemed to improve quickly and they sent us home a little before midnight with instructions to follow up with our pediatrician today. Today we spent several hours at the doctors and then getting the needed equipment to improve his breathing – a humidifier, eucalyptus oil, nose sucker (my name for it), and saline solution. After his 3 hour nap (and my hour and a half nap) he is doing better. It seems to be finishing up in his chest and now just a stuffy nose. Praise the Lord that he is ok and it didn’t worsen!

Tomorrow is a new day! Hopefully filled with better health. I will be making an appearance on First Coast Living on behalf of UNF to talk about energy drinks and healthy alternatives. The program airs from 11-11:30am and it is available online. Please tune and watch! I’ll hopefully look pulled together.

A Food Fight with Darth Vader February 27, 2012

I just finished “feeding” my son this morning. He is now taking his morning nap, and I have a moment to survey the scene left behind us in the kitchen. I feel like it takes a lot of equipment to feed a baby! My kitchen sink is piled up with bowls, spoon, sippy cup, high chair tray, high chair tray cover (that is supposed to keep me from having to clean the tray – not!), dirty wash cloth, bib, and cutting board. It feels like we had a food fight, and Jackson looked like he was a contestant on Double Dare. He sounds like Darth Vader because my little guy has his first cold. =(

I believe we had a break through this weekend with eating, however. I introduced him to sweet potatoes. I’ve been putting off the orange veggies because they are “sweeter”, but I think I needed some encouragement that we were getting somewhere. So yesterday we tried taters and I think he liked him. He at least didn’t make that awful, I-don’t-like-it face when I spooned it into his mouth.

Our progression of food thus far is: raw avocado (mixed with milk), zucchini, asparagus, and sweet potatoes. For each of these I have given him spoonfuls of the pureed version and also large spears of the raw version to gnaw on. I think it’s important to have Jackson discover food through his own way of playing with it (always supervised, of course). I also like presenting him with options while he eats. Maybe this is because I like to eat this way. As an example, this morning I had pureed zucchini and sweet potatoes (I put a small bit of both on the spoon) and asparagus spears. I am putting his sippy cup on the tray as well so he will begin to associate drinking water with eating. He loves his cup! I don’t think he’s getting much water out of it but it’s the right idea.

I’ve included 2 different add-ins, as I like to call them, to his food so far. I’ve dipped his puree into his powdered probiotics since this is a flavor he is very familiar with. That seemed to work well for increasing acceptance. Today, I tried sprinkling a little of  Garden Blend Juice Plus+ over his sweet potatoes for extra immune-boosting power and that also went over well.

Jackson and I are flying together later this week, for the first time. I’m a little nervous about it. Do any of you have good travel tips for babies??? I could really use them. With that said, I’m not sure how this will impact his eating progression. I would like to do another new veggie later this week but it may not happen. Peas are next on my list, to be exact. I think I will bring along a couple of jars of organic peas and see how it goes.

I’m starting to think that using organic, frozen veggies are a great way to go for making your own baby food. Freezing preserves all the nutrients so if you don’t get to cooking your produce right away, as happens to me often, no nutrients are lost. Frozen peas are on my grocery list this week.

I realize that this post will only benefit a small number of you that have babies. But hopefully you enjoy reading about my daily attempts of healthy living. Now it’s off to my living room for some home yoga and then I’m fixing a vegetarian lunch for my friend.

I hope you have an awesome, veggie-filled, high energy day!

Kicked-Up Cocoa Butternut Squash February 23, 2012

I’m sitting in my kitchen (quiet kitchen I will add as it is nap time), having just finished some of my chicken mole and thinking about you! My full week is coming to a close, and as is common, it will end differently than planned. That’s ok though. I’m enjoying this unplanned moment of peace. I’ve done something today for my body – exercised, my mind – gardened, and soul – visited with friends and played with my son. I have some grading to do, cleaning to start, and veggies to chop but I think I’ll put that off just a littler longer. I’m going to enjoy sitting for a moment longer.

While I’m sitting here, I thought I share one of my recipes from my cooking class at Whole Foods Tuesday night. It turned out delicious! We are about to say good bye to winter squash so here is a way to go out with a bang! It might sound strange, but it works. The cayenne and cocoa add great antioxidants to the ones already present in the squash. I think the seasoning will also work on any winter squash or even sweet potatoes. Get crazy and experiment!

Oh, and don’t forget to get excited about the new changes coming to my blog. I’m hoping to have them ready to unveil by March 1st – just in time for National Nutrition Month. =)

Kicked Up Cocoa Butternut Squash

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 tablespoon Kosher salt

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (more or less, to taste)

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 large butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

Olive oil

¾ cup toasted slivered almonds

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2.  In a small bowl, combine the cocoa powder, salt, cayenne, cinnamon and sugar.
3. Arrange the squash chunks on a large baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and toss to coat evenly. Sprinkle cocoa mixture over the squash and toss to coat.
4. Roast for 35-40 minutes, or until tender.
5. Transfer to serving plate and sprinkle with the toasted almonds.

A Wild Week February 20, 2012

This week I have bitten off quite a big bite. I have 2 cooking classes (see last week’s post for more info) and a nutrition expert panel on Friday night. I’m really excited to be doing this panel with my good friend and fellow sports dietitian, Kerri Napoleon. The event is at Jacksonville Running Company (Batram Park location) at 7pm. It’s free and open to all. Come join us and bring all your nutrition questions.

On another note, I spent some time reading my nutrition journal today. I read some great studies on phytonutrient intake and shaping children’s eating habits. I look forward to sharing some interesting tidbits with you later this week.

Please be patient with my writing this week. Between developing recipes and caring for the fam, I won’t have a lot of extra time. Follow my twitter posts (@jbraddockrd) for updates on the week.

Oh, one more thing. I’m very excited to announce that some fresh changes are coming to Fresh Food Perspectives. Stay tuned and please spread the word about this site.

Have a healthy week!

Spiced Rub Tenderloin Recipe February 16, 2012

Yesterday I tried a different approach to cooking a venison tenderloin. Venison is extra lean so you have to be careful about cooking to prevent drying it out. I found a suggestion to “reverse” cook it and an amazing dry rub that I tweaked to my liking. I also loved playing with this spice combo. It really worked with the gaminess of the venison. I think this would also work great with beef and I would certainly try it with pork. Enjoy!

Spiced Rubbed Tenderloin

1 venison tenderloin

1 tablespoon Kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 heaping tablespoon cocoa powder

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon powdered espresso

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons butter

1. Adjust oven rack to center position and preheat oven to 300°F. Pat venison dry with paper towels and place on rack set in rimmed backing sheet.
2. Combine salt, cocoa, pepper, chili, coriander, cumin, sugar, and espresso in small bowl. Rub into the meat on all sides.
3. Roast venison until center registers 130°F on an instant read thermometer for medium.(Mine was still red at this temp. Leave in longer for less red.) Remove from oven and set aside.
4.  Immediately heat oil in large heavy-bottomed skillet over  medium high heat. Add venison and butter and cook, turning until all sides are evenly browned, about 4 minutes total. Return to rack, tent with foil, and allow to rest 15 minutes.
5. Slice and serve.

*Note: I use a instant read, digital thermometer that I leave in the meat while it’s cooking. It is a must-have tool, in my opinion, for cooking meat. It makes it so easy and you will never under/over cook again.

Seasonal Growing Chart and Upcoming Classes February 14, 2012

Happy Valentine’s Day friends! I hope you take a chance to love on your body today with some exercise and/or delicious produce (and then go eat a chocolate).

I am squirming in my kitchen chair with excitement as I just discovered the Slow Food First Coast website with the date of their upcoming Farm Tour 2012. The date is for Sunday, April 22nd. They do not have the events up yet but last year’s line up looked awesome. My calendar is marked and I hope to see some of you out there visiting and supporting our local agriculture.

I also found a wonderful tool for you on their website, a seasonal growing chart.  This will help you know what to expect from your CSA or farm deliveries. Click here: Seasonal Variety of Produce

Next week I am teaching 2 cooking classes! I hope you can join in on the food fun. Tuesday, February 21st my colleague Ryder and I will be at Whole Foods Jacksonville cooking up savory chocolate dishes.  Click here to sign up.

Next Thursday, February 23rd, I’m back at A. Chef’s Cooking Studio with an exciting class: How to use your CSA box! I’m working on the recipes now but I am planning on using kale, beets, fennel, radishes, kholrabi, and maybe more. Click here for the Studio’s website and calendar. Call Chef Andrea to sign up.

Have a healthy, love-filled day!

My Very Personal Half Marathon February 13, 2012

I use this title because that’s how my race experience started: very personal. I wish it was because I was so intrinsically focused and in tune with my running. I wish it was because of the great cause we were running for. But alas, it was because our shuttle bus was extremely late and we finally made it to the finish line about 30 minutes after the start gun was shot.

This was the most unique race start I have ever had. Crossing the start line, just me, my husband and 2 running friends, was really beautiful, but strange. We did get lots of high fives from the volunteer staff.

The best part about starting late is that we passed a ton of people! The first 3 mile stretch over JTB was really cold and still quiet. By mile 4 we had caught up to the walkers and my body was warming up, sort of. (Did I mention it was in the 30′s with wind??) Mile 5 was on the beach and it was beautiful – the sun was still rising and the waves were crashing. By mile 8, we were all still feeling good and I knew the rest of the race would be enjoyable. The fact that my body was still pretty cold probably helped to not notice any aches or pains.

During the 9th and 10th mile, the top marathoners began coming through. They are so beautiful to watch and I wished that I could run like they do. The last 3 mile legs of the race was great. We had great crowd support to push us along and it really helped. During the last 1.5 mile I felt great and made it through the finish line strong. I definitely attribute this to good fueling along the course with my chewies, peppermint patties, and fluids at every station.

Overall it was a great experience and I’m really glad I trained for this race. My husband and I are recovering well and continue to eat lots of antioxidants.

Thanks to those who texted, facebooked and emailed me well wishes. I really appreciated it!

 

 

Feeding the Little One February 12, 2012

This week Jackson (my 6 month old) attempted to eat food for the first time. At the beginning,  I seemed to forgot everything I’ve read while feeding him – all that stuff about more food ending up on him than down his throat. Jackson seemed to be clueless as to what to do with the new, strange substance in his mouth. I realized that I have to help him learn to eat.

We have attempted avocados 3 days in a row and it’s still more out than in (his mouth). I think he will get the hang of it soon. He seems to lung at everything I put in my mouth so he has to some clue about it.

I think I will be feeding avocados for 3 more days and then try another green veggie. So far he has not had any negative reactions. Good news! Here are some pictures to entertain you and make you smile. Have a great week!

Mom, I'm not too sure about these avocados

 

Some Nerves February 11, 2012

I’m running a half marathon here in Jacksonville tomorrow morning. I’m getting excited. My bag is packed and my clothing picked. My fuel is going to be Stinger chews and peppermint patties ( my favorite race fuel).

I am most nervous about the weather. It’s going to be cold and windy tomorrow morning. So please think of me at 6:30am and pray for sunshine and no wind. (Did I mention 6 of 13.1 miles on are a huge bridge over water? Yeah, that’s why prayers are needed for no wind.)

Tomorrow afternoon, as I am recouping, I’ll fill you in on the race and on feeding Jackson.

Here’s to adventures in healthy living!!

It’s a Big Day February 9, 2012

We are going to feed my son today for the first time. I’m so excited! I promise to write all about it.
I am going to start him with green veggies and the first one is avocado (technically a fruit). We will add a new one each week – peas, broccoli, green beans. Next we will add yellow veggies and lastly orange. Next month we will begin fruit.
So it’s time to go eat some avocado. I’ll let you know how it goes and even post a pic.
Have a healthy day!