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EmilyC
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| Posted: Feb 13 2008 at 9:59am | IP Logged
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My dh has been complaining lately that I don't make any healthy food. I know he's right, but I don't really know how to cook healthy--I use lots of butter, olive oil, and other fattening things in my cooking, and I LOVE to bake treats (and eat them  ). I've tried eliminating some of the worst things an even changing some recipes to make them healthier, but I do not like the results at all.
He's trying to loose some weight, and I don't want to be a hinderance to him. There is health problems on both sides of our families and all of us could benefit from eating healthier diet. Could you guide me to some links or books that might be helpful in making healthy food that tastes as good as the not-so-healthy stuff?
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: Feb 13 2008 at 11:00am | IP Logged
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You're going to have to give yourself a bit of time to get used to using less fats.. you will notice the difference. But let something be good on it's own without comparing it to the "old way".
Also, you need to use more spices and seasonings.. part of what you're probably craving is more flavor.
And there are some tricks out there.. for instance you can cut down the hamburger in a speghetti sauce without losing the meat flavor by using one of the good meatless (also no fat) beef flavored instant broth/bullions out there. (I use McKay's)
I don't know of books though.
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CrunchyMom
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Well, I come from the other end of the spectrum. I like a lot of the ideas from Nourishing Traditions. We still use a good bit of fat (well, perhaps a LOT compared to proponents of a low fat diet) in our cooking and diets, but it is the processed and refined sugars, white flours, etc... that we have cut out. My dh and I both lost a good bit of weight and feel a lot better on this diet.
This school of thought is introduced with weight loss as the primary goal in the book called The Coconut Diet. The book also includes a lot of recipes.
It seems counter to what we've been programmed to think, but the good fats actually help us assimilate the food and feel more satiated.
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Lara Sauer
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| Posted: Feb 13 2008 at 12:07pm | IP Logged
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Have you simply considered smaller portions?
I use butter and olive oil when I cook. I simply cook in smaller amounts.
I have 7 children, two who are teenage boys(!), so with my husband and I, that make 9 eaters! However, I still only make 1 lb of pasta for dinner. Believe it or not, there are 8 full servings in a lb of pasta.
I guess I would need to know exactly what types of things you are cooking to have a better idea on how to make some healthy suggestions.
Can you give us an idea of your menu?
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Mary Chris
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Instead of taking things away how about adding healthy food into your diet. a salad and vegetable at dinner, brown rice insetead of white, ww flour instead of white...you get the idea.
For lunch, a salad with some hard boiled egg or leftover chicken, or cheese
I am working on increasing fruits and veggies in our diet.
I hope that as I work healthy things in I can start working the other stuff out.
My dh had a lot of success using Weight Watchers online (I unfortunately did not)  He learned a lot about portion size and almost always has a salad for lunch.
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~Rachel~
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Smaller portions become easier when you eat slower too 
I found that when I cut out the salt, that if I add in herbs and spices, you barely notice (once your tastebuds adjust anyway ).
I also switched to using JUST organic butter and olive oil/canola oil.
Then I switched to using primarily white whole wheat flour. THIS was a huge step, but was a lot easier with the white whole wheat than with the red. I have completely switched AP for WWW by accident in a number of things without noticing! You can definitely go 1/2 and 1/2 on the majority of recipes.
The best tips I come up with are:
- Eat regularly. Make sure you have all three meals and a couple of snacks. This makes it easier to go smaller on the portion size.
- Cut out sodas. Or at least cut down. One a day is plenty
- Drink LOTS of water. This is much easier said than done, but worth it.
- Buy white whole-wheat flour (I like King Arthur) and use it in place of 1/2 of your AP flour. With only a few exceptions your baked good will turn out fine!
- Opt for the healthy option. Although low fat milk sounds better for you, it really isn't. Use whole milk, and just use less... except where it calls for in a recipe. I prefer to use organic milk, but YMMV.
- If salt is a problem, leave it out. ALL cooking can have supplemental salt added at the table. Most baking does not need much. If a recipe calls for it, then try a little less. Use only UNSALTED butter, and you will actually decrease your salt consumption
 Use low sodium foods where possible or make your own.
- Cut down on meat consumption. You can do this in two ways... eat fewer times a week or eat less meat at each meal-- you usual portion can be cut up and spread out over a couple of meals.
- Eat fish at least once a week, and go veggie at least once a week.
- Increase the VEGETABLE portion on the plate. And I mean the GREEN ones... not potatoes and corn
Those are my best bets... The reason I advocate the whole milk and butter BTW, is because we actually NEED those fats... we just don't need as much as we tend to get They have a better mouth feel...
HTH
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SusanJ
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These are all great suggestions. I just wanted to chime in to emphasize that it is often sugars/refined carbs that contribute to poor health. Fats are needed by the body--just make sure you are choosing healthy fats: butter, olive oil, fatty fish, etc.
Susan
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EmilyC
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Thanks for all the suggestions! I am very curious now about the whole fat idea...FIL had a heart attack a few years back, and my father is on medication for high cholesterol, so dh is very much of the mind that we should be eliminating all fat. Can you send me to any websites with more info about that? Would you reccomend the book Nourishing Traditions? I can probably get it through ILL.
The things I typically cook are:
mashed potatoes with sour cream, butter and cheese (and sometimes bacon)
Pork Chops/Ham with fat still on (it makes the meat so much more tender)
I make lots of treats--cakes, cookies, etc. because I enjoy baking. I've not made anything this week though--and I'm desperately craving something sweet. 
casseroles with cheeses, cream soups, etc.
Lots of white rice (we've tried several times to switch over to brown, but we really really can't stand brown rice.)
I'll usually make pancakes and sausage for dinner once a week.
Nothing that is that terrible, no fried foods, etc. But high calorie, somewhat high fat type things.
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~Rachel~
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| Posted: Feb 13 2008 at 1:34pm | IP Logged
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Nourishing Traditions is good... so is Real Food by Nina Planck.
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| mashed potatoes with sour cream, butter and cheese (and sometimes bacon) |
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OK... try alternating these with roasted potatoes (red potatoes in their skins, parboiled and then roasted with a little garlic and herbs in a pan).
If you have them once every two or three weeks, that is not so bad. Team it up with some green veggies and you have a nice meal
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| Pork Chops/Ham with fat still on (it makes the meat so much more tender) |
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Then take the fat off after cooking but before eating
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I make lots of treats--cakes, cookies, etc. because I enjoy baking. I've not made anything this week though--and I'm desperately craving something sweet. |
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I love these too. Make them special... once a week for teatime or on Sunday or something like that.
Also make your own whole wheat bread. It'll help satisfy the baking urge
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casseroles with cheeses, cream soups, etc. |
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Again... just do them less often. We find that bean soups are popular here, and if the family will eat a large salad, then make a soup and salad evening. You can have the creamed soup once a month or so, and if you have a soup night each week, make some of them vegetable. You can add loads of veggies and make a nice soup... or beans. Beans are really good
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| Lots of white rice (we've tried several times to switch over to brown, but we really really can't stand brown rice.) |
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Try some of the prepackaged brown with a herby sauce. Then try and make your own. I recommend cooking in stock with herbs and spices rather than just in water.
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| I'll usually make pancakes and sausage for dinner once a week. |
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You can make this better by using white wholewheat flour and making your own turkey sausage. HEAVILY season the sausage though You can have pork occasionally... just not every week.
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| FIL had a heart attack a few years back, and my father is on medication for high cholesterol, so dh is very much of the mind that we should be eliminating all fat |
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Not true. You NEED fat for your body to be fully nourished. Just be careful what kinds...
Research suggests olive oil and canola to be the best... and butter is the best of the saturated fats.
Replace all your crisco with lard or butter!
Good fats can be used more sparingly than bad fats!
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~Rachel~
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I should also add that brown rice can easily go off... it'll have a funny smell when it is rancid. Kind of like flour that has gone off... a grainy, strong smell, rather than a clean almost scentless odour. When they are rancid they do not taste good at all!
And your pork chops/ham, make those special occasion only . You can even leave the fat on then .
Meats are best for you when pasture fed, so try and get some organic pasture fed meat.
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ElizLeone
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If you cut out all sugar and all refined carbs, you will lose weight, still using butter and olive oil and retaining all the flavor. Good fats abound. The fats you find in nuts and olive oil are very healthy. Eggs are healthy.
When I started low-carbing, I had about 25 pounds to lose (a decent amount on my short frame). I was "bordeline high cholesterol." After several months of "low-carbing," following the guidelines above, I'd lost all my weight. To top it off, my post-diet blood tests revealed that my cholesterol levels were "golden" (in the doctor's words).
I realize your question was not about a specific diet, but how to cook healthier. But I had to put in my plug for cutting out the sugars and processed carbs as a way to achieve both health and weight loss while still eating great-tasting food.
Just my two cents. You're welcome to pm me if you want specifics.
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ElizLeone
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Somehow, I hadn't seen all the responses when I posted mine.
I just have to pipe up again and say that I couldn't agree more with Rachel's list. You will definitely improve health and lose weight (if you have any to lose) by making those basic changes that Rachel suggests.
We don't buy anything other than whole milk in our house, and we use butter regularly. We are all trim. Whole milk is very good for you (says the girl from Wisconsin). The calories in whole milk are not going to help you if you also have sugar and refined carbs in your diet. But if you keep your diet "clean," whole milk can be a very healthy part of that.
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4Real Forums : Our Lady's Loom, Larder, and Laundry
Topic: Healthy eating?
