To Your Good Health on Easter

Try this fun Easter treat from guest blogger, Maggie Green, registered dietitian nutritionist and author of The Kentucky Fresh Cookbook. Sounds delicious and very festive for Easter or anytime that you want to enjoy a food with lots of health benefits. Here's Maggie!!!

Tomorrow is Easter Sunday and for those who celebrate this joyous holiday I share a favorite Easter brunch recipe for eggs of course: a sign of new life, a sign new hope, and in the nutrition world: the most perfect protein.

Guacamole Deviled Eggs
Makes 24 deviled eggs halves

Whether called stuffed, salad, or dressed eggs (the word “dressed” is used in the South to avoid dignifying the word “devil” at church functions), it’s a challenge to find someone who doesn’t adore deviled eggs. When I make deviled eggs, I buy extra-large or jumbo eggs. They are not much more expensive plus they have more egg yolk and a bigger egg white to work with. This variation adds an avocado and lime juice for guacamole-style flavor in the filling. When peeled, hard-boiled eggs are slippery little devils. Invest in a deviled egg plate or carrier to transport eggs to a party or picnic. A single-function platter houses indentations to sit the eggs in once they are stuffed. For the Easter table, the egg platter comes in handy or lay the stuffed eggs on a plate lined with finely shredded red cabbage. Pretty, pretty, eggs.                    

12 extra-large or jumbo eggs
1/2 avocado, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 green onion, minced
Juice of 1/2 lime
One generous pinch ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cilantro leaves, for garnish

Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring water to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook eggs until the yolk is completely set, about 15 to 17 minutes. Drain and run cold tap water over the eggs to cool. Cover with cold water to cool further or place in the refrigerator. Peel eggs. Cut in half and scoop the egg yolks into a bowl. With a fork or electric mixer mix in the avocado, onion, lime juice, coriander, salt, and pepper. Use a small spoon, scoop, or piping bag to fill each egg white with the yolk mixture. Place on a paper-towel lined and top each egg half with a leaf of cilantro. Keep chilled until ready to serve.

Have You Tried Green Eggs and Ham?

Green Eggs and Ham Dip

I highly recommend that you check out this amazing video with a couple of delicious recipes by my friend and registered dietitian nutritionist, Melissa Halas-Liang. See how she makes good nutrition fun!

Getting kids to eat their vegetables can be hard.  But getting enough veggies, and especially green veggies, is extremely important for fighting disease, and overall health.  Dips are a great way to sneak in extra nutrients at snack time. Check out these recipe videos, you can use a food processor or blender instead, but I used the Champion for a creamier more consistent texture. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEujRFnEb1c

Healthy Boosts
Sneaking leafy greens and herbs –two foods that are super nutritious and full of disease fighting plant compounds– into dips is a great way to get your kids to eat their veggies without putting up a fight. Try pureeing spinach into hummus or mixing pureed kale with a little lemon juice and ricotta cheese. For an added health bonus, use crunchy colorful bell peppers or red or blue baked corn chips to scoop up your dips.

To make your dips a bit more satisfying, try using protein packed Greek yogurt or hard-boiled eggs. In addition to high protein, Greek yogurt is also low in fat and has a creamy, satisfying consistency. Additionally, Greek yogurt offers the benefit of probiotics. Probiotics are beneficial bacteria strains that keep the digestive tract happy. Greek yogurt makes a great replacement for sour cream in many recipes, such as the veggie dip provided below. Another great sweet and spicy yogurt dip recipe is to combine roasted beets, plain Greek yogurt, and horseradish in your food processor, blender, or juicer. For more Greek yogurt ideas, check out these healthy treats!

Fresh herbs not only give dips their zesty flavor, but they provide a nutritious element as well. Herbs provide phytochemicals, which are beneficial compounds in plant foods that promote healthy bodily functions and help fight disease. Plus, herbs are packed with antioxidant power. For example, two tablespoons of dried basil has 2 times as much antioxidant as a cup of green grapes and 3 times as much as a cup of cooked carrots. Additionally, because herbs are packed with flavor, they can be used in place of salt and can also be used to create healthier versions of your favorite dips. Add fresh basil to pureed sun-dried tomato and white bean dip.

Reading to Make Nutrition Fun

One of the best ways to get kids excited about eating well is by reading books that talk about healthy foods. There are tons of books out there with wonderful stories that your kids will love.  Once you read the story, plan to try and make some of the foods described in the book! One of the most famous books about food is Green Eggs and Ham, a dish that requires the addition of lots of healthy but not always loved green foods, and can make a delicious and healthy meal snack for your kids.

Recipes: These recipes are made with the Champion Juicer for a smooth consistent texture that homogenizes the vegetables. You can use a food processor or blender, but the Champion Juicer avoids the need to scrape out the side of the blender, start, and stop again to mix.

Veggie Dip

Ingredients:

•      1 large kale leaf cut off the stem

•      1 medium zucchini cut into chunks

•      1 large handful of fresh parsley leaves

•      1 bunch of fresh chives

•      1 garlic clove

•      8 oz 2% Greek yogurt

•      ¼ tsp onion salt

Directions:

1.    Fit the blank screen (or use homogenizing body) onto the juicer body.

2.    Alternate kale, zucchini, fresh parsley, fresh chives, and garlic.

3.    Mix in yogurt and onion salt. Perfect as a dip for vegetables or tortilla chips.

4.    Also delicious as a sandwich spread or baked potato topping.

Green Eggs and Ham Dip

Ingredients:

•      3 hard-boiled eggs

•      2 handfuls fresh spinach leaves

•      2 tsp. pickle relish

•      1 tsp. Dijon or brown mustard

•      ½ tsp. lemon juice

•      1 ½ Tbsp. light mayonnaise

•      1 slice black forest ham, Canadian bacon, or regular bacon

Directions:

1.    Fit the blank screen (or use homogenizing body) onto the juicer body.

2.    Alternate processing eggs, spinach, relish and mustard.

3.    Mix in lemon juice and mayonnaise. In a skillet, crisp black forest ham, Canadian bacon, or regular bacon. 

4.    Dice and sprinkle on top of dip.

Melissa Halas-Liang, MA, RDN, CDE is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator with a Masters in Nutrition Education who is a nationally recognized childhood nutrition expert. She is founder of SuperKids Nutrition Inc. where she is “saving the world, one healthy food at a time.” Read more about her Super Crew children’s books and discover how good nutrition can help you live your best health potential through her on-line courses blog, Melissa’s Healthy Living.