The Hemp Connection:
fruit

I've been getting a lot of questions about juicing lately, so it's clearly a popular trend right now. I love the fact that juicing gets more vegetables into people who normally wouldn't get them. However, there are some important things to know about juicing if your intent is to use it for a healthier diet.

1. Juice contains calories! Ounce for ounce, juice and soda are similar calorie-wise. 8 ounces of either is about 120 calories. Some of the sweeter juices are even more calorically dense. Don't get caught up in the false assumption that because it's juice, it's lower in calories, or that unlimited quantities are permissible.

2. When you juice your vegetables, you remove the fiber. In researching this blog post, I learned that many juicer companies actually sell this point, claiming that without the fiber, the nutrients that are left are more easily absorbed. The fiber itself is an important nutrient! Especially if you're someone who has trouble regulating energy or blood glucose levels. If you're counting on your juice as your source of all of your vegetables, you could be cutting yourself short on fiber.

3. If carrots are what you're juicing, be aware that you can overdose on vitamin A. I've seen this actually happen, it's not just a myth. If the pads of your hands and feet start to get an orange-ish tinge, and you've recently fallen in love with juicing carrots, you might want to think about the connection. Be sure to vary your juice ingredients.

4. Spinach, another common vegetable to juice, eaten in high quantities, is high in oxalates. This compound can prevent the absorption of iron, calcium, and magnesium. It can also promote the development of kidney stones. Oxalates leach out of spinach when it is cooked, but if you're using the juicer for convenience, this extra step may not be useful. Other foods high in oxalates, in case you're using them in your juicer, include rhubarb, beets and sorrel.

5. Juice contains little to no protein. You may find that when you switch to a juice-heavy diet, your craving for sweets increases. What I recommend to people who ask about juicing, is to make a smaller amount of juice and blend it in with milk, yogurt, or protein powder. I actually like to use 1 cup of plain yogurt, a ripe banana, one other piece of a different fruit, plus a handful of veggies and some ground flaxseed. I always vary the fruit and the vegetable to be sure I don't overload on any one food. And I keep the fiber and protein in my breakfast.

If you make those simple adjustments, the possibilities and combinations are endless. Enjoy!

Most women already know by the time they find my website, that a higher protein/lower carbohydrate diet will help them to manage their weight and their insulin resistance. But for some reason, people think that in order to eat better, it has to somehow be programmed and contain a lot of expensive foods. Absolutely not!

Peanut butter is one of my favorite protein foods. It's cheap. It's easy to use. You can keep a jar in your office, or in your suitcase when you travel. And the fat it contains, if you use old-fashioned style, is one of the healthier fats to include in your diet. (Trans fats are what happen when good fat is processed to keep the fat in regular peanut butter from separating out.)

I like to use a peanut butter sandwich as a way to eat more fruit. I don't use jelly, I put whatever is in season on my PB: peaches, pears, apples, berries, bananas…I've even used raisins in a pinch.

Don't get too caught up in thinking healthy has to be hard. It's probably already in your kitchen and there's more potential uses for this treat than your childrens' lunchboxes!

In PCOS-land (that’s where we all live, by the way — PCOS-land – as in, this body IS PCOS-land), there’s an endless stream of advice about diet, nutrition, eating disordered behavior, and how to combat all of your problems with food. I know that for me, as well as for many of the PCOS clients I see, this leads to a gradual death of the love of food. “Diet” is absolutely a four letter word, and even the term “eating plan” can feel onerous and restrictive. Many, if not most of us, have experimented with various forms of restriction designed to improve our health. No sugar, no wheat, no dairy, no coffee, no alcohol, no, no, no, NO! Sometimes, I get so caught up in the NO, NO, NO that I forget how much I adore food, and all of its splendid permutations. Nature delivers this glory to us (well, sometimes we have to tweak it with a little processing), and we reject it?! Something about that feels really wrong to me.

The other day, I went to a local farmers’ market, and had the joy and privilege of sampling everything from heirloom tomatoes in all their batiky-looking hues to tree-ripened apricots, raw cane juice, hummus, pastry, and some wickedly good burrata, the fresh Italian cheese that’s made of mozzarella and cream. To say it is made of mozzarella and cream does not quite do justice to the beauty of this plump ball of handmade cheese, bathing in its slightly creamy water bath. Burrata – good burrata – is all soft luscious edible heaven, creamy, cheesy, delicate and mild, with a hint of a buttery quality. It’s semi-symmetrical and pleasingly pale. Sometimes I just want to look at it, or perhaps hold it gently in my hand, like an egg about to hatch, more than I actually want to eat it, but that would be a crime!

I forgot the fresh basil leaves, but decided to make a farmers’ market lunch with caprese salad (tomato/cheese) as the focus. The mottled golden-green heirloom tomatoes, and the blackish brown ones, thickly sliced and lightly salted with a little sea salt – no pepper for distraction! – and a little olive oil, alternated beautifully with equally thick slices of that fat ball of burrata. With a medley of fresh stone fruit on the side, the apricots, plums, peaches, and nectarines all in a state of perfect ripeness, I was happy. Let me say that again – my food made me HAPPY – wow. It wasn’t a source of torture, guilt, deprivation, or punishment.

It looked beautiful, tasted fabulous, energized my body, was super fresh, and, most importantly, I had given myself the gift of the complete and utter pleasure and joy of food. And yes, I followed it up with three bites of fabulous French pastry, just for pleasure, and without a hint of guilt. My body felt fine, and my mind and soul were infinitely improved for having had the experience. It’s still summer – maybe you’d like to play too.

Gretchen Kubacky, Psy.D. is a Health Psychologist in private practice in West Los Angeles, California. She specializes in counseling women and couples who are coping with infertility, PCOS, and related endocrine disorders and chronic illnesses.

If you would like to learn more about Dr. HOUSE or her practice, or obtain referrals in the Los Angeles area, please visit her website at www.drhousemd.com, or e-mail her at Gretchen@drhousemd.com. You can also follow her on Twitter @askdrhousemd.

Do you tend to think of salads as a place to use vegetables? Or do you categorize salads as"those with vegetables" and"those with fruit"? Start mixing things up! In my kitchen, a salad is always started with veggies, but then I always add some type of seed or nut, and some type of fruit.

What's in your fruit bin? Peaches, grapes, berries? Toss them with the lettuce and tomatoes. They'll add color, antioxidants, and flavor.

It's that time of year when it just doesn't help things to use the stove or oven. Anything cool--keeps your body temperature down, and keeps your kitchen from heating up the house.

That is why, in my home, this is gazpacho time of year. Traditional gazpacho is a cold vegetable soup. Have you tried any of the fruitier varieties? Here are some great fruity gazpacho recipes from around the Internet just waiting to be tried!

Blueberry gazpacho (pictured here)
Mango gazpacho
Watermelon gazpacho
White gazpacho (with grapes)
Peach gazpacho
Pineapple gazpacho

These recipes are not very high in protein, so be sure to add a cold bean, lowfat cheese, or bean salad to help temper the glycemic load. Also, instead of topping with sour cream, try plain Greek yogurt.

Hope this helps you to stay deliciously cool!

Yesterday was our traditional grilling holiday. Now that it's the heat of summer, you might as well take advantage and keep the heat outside of the kitchen!

Fruit is not something traditionally thought of as a grilling food, but it is a great accompaniment to grilled meats.

I Googled"grilled fruit" recipes to get you started thinking. Many of the recipes have some sort of sweetened glaze, but I think if you have fruit that is truly ripe, you can often get away without adding sweetener.

The photo in today's blog is of the Grilled Watermelon Tomato Salad that was featured in today's New York Times. It's worth reading the blog post, which I've linked to with the recipe below.

Whatever is in season, it gives grilling a reason!

Grilled Watermelon Tomato Salad

Grilled Pear and Hazelnut Packets

Grilled Pineapple Fruit Salad

Grilled Fruit Kabobs

Grilled Pluots

Grilled Oranges

Have you ever tried frozen fruit? It's a great way to take advantage of the piles of berries and stone fruits that go on sale this time of year. Simply freeze them to pull out for a great cooling snack on a hot summer night.

I'm partial to frozen strawberries--I fill up a coffee mug and savor them while I watch the evening news.

Frozen bananas have the same consistency as ice cream. If you peel them and insert a wooden stick before freezing, you have a great alternative to a sugary popsicle.

Experiment and see what your own favorite is!

I had a bag of really sweet plums this week, as well as a few frozen chicken breasts. So I Googled both of these with the word"salad"…and found this really nice recipe from the Northwest Cherry Growers:

I didn't use the rice, and I bet if you like quinoa, as shown in the picture and in this second recipe, you could substitute that to further improve the protein content and glycemic index. I also used only half of the canola oil, and threw in a handful of sliced almonds instead.

Fruit and protein are a great combination for an easy summer dinner. And an easy way to get ideas, is to do what I did, Google the fruit and protein you have along with the word"salad". There's a pretty good chance someone has posted a recipe somewhere!

PLUM GINGER CHICKEN SALAD

Makes 4 servings, each serving equals three 5 A Day servings.

Ingredients

• 1 (4-to 6-ounce) package long grain and wild rice mix
• 2 cups cooked boneless chicken breast cubes
• 1/2 cup sliced green onions
• 4 plums, sliced
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

Prepare rice mix as directed; cool to room temperature.

Combine rice, chicken, green onions and sliced plums in large mixing bowl.

To prepare dressing, combine oil, lemon juice, soy sauce and ginger; pour over rice mixture and toss lightly.

Chill until served.

Enjoy!

I love peanut butter sandwiches. But I've stopped using jelly and started putting fruit on them instead. You've all eaten peanut butter and banana sandwiches…what about apples? Pears? The other day, I even had a peanut butter and strawberry sandwich. It was very tasty. I'm looking forward to the nectarine version tomorrow.

Go ahead…give it a whirl!

I love fruit. All fruit. I could survive on it if it was nutritionally complete.

I am also surprised at how many women with PCOS avoid fruit, because they've been told it's too high in carbohydrates. And then they tell me about what they binged on late at night after a full day of avoiding fruit.

Fruit isn't just carbs. It's fiber. And vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants! Lots and lots of antioxidants! This word should be tattooed backward on all of your foreheads so that every time you look in the mirror you are reminded that PCOS is oxidizing you faster than your body normally would allow itself to be…and your best defense is…fruits and vegetables!

Fruit is best eaten with a protein, so that its glycemic effect is lessened. I thought, while fruit was in high season, I'd post a weekly fruit idea and see how it gets you started.

I'm really in love with this tea and fruit idea I recently wrote about. It's really just decaffeinated tea with sliced fruit in the bottom, like you'd see in sangria. This really adds so little sugar to the batch that you can have it without worrying too much about the carbs. The tea itself has antioxidants, especially if you use decaffeinated green tea, which gives you a potent double whammy that is far better for your body than any soda ever canned.

You can make tee-gria with any kind of fruit that's cheap. So I've just been going to the store, buying a bunch of fruit on sale, and making decaffeinated tea. It's just sweet enough, without being too sweet, and a nice change from water. Right now I have peaches in my tea. I am curious how the cherries are going to taste!

The combinations of fruits and teas out there, could keep you busy experimenting for years! If you came up with a great combination in your own kitchen…please share with us!

Recently the Environmental Working Group's annual"Dirty Dozen" list came out. It is this group's awareness tool for the health risks of pesticides. What is important to remember, in addition to the important message that pesticides in our foods can pose health risks, is that this does not mean that you have to avoid these foods altogether. Here are some ways to keep your favorite fruits and vegetables on your list.

1. Avoid top ten lists of"best foods". Any time you narrow your list of foods you eat to a dozen or so, you automatically concentrate their risks, as well as their benefits. I noticed that on this list of foods (listed below), several foods showed up that are common on diet diaries of clients who are trying to eat"healthy". If you eat blueberries because they are brain friendly, vary them with kiwi and watermelon. Every food has a benefit, and you don't want to miss out!

2. Eat organically. Organic produce is grown without the use of pesticides, immediately eliminating their risk.

3. Use a fruit and vegetable wash. I find them in my local grocery store, but if you don't see them, you can also order them online. Here is a list of brands available at amazon.com.

4. Eat locally and in season. When you eat fruits and vegetables that are not in season, they must be imported. And regulations about pesticides differ in different countries. It's nice to eat cherries in January, but you're going to have a better idea of what rules governed their production if you wait until July and get the ones your local farmer grew. (They are likely going to taste better too, since they weren't picked early and trucked thousands of miles before getting to your table.)

5. Become familiar with the"Clean 15". This is the EWG's other list that doesn't get as much press, probably because good news doesn't sell as much viewership and advertising time. It's the list of the cleanest fruits and vegetables, and it includes:
onion
avocado
sweet corn
pinepple
mango
asparagus
sweet peas
kiwi
cabbage
eggplant
papaya
watermelon
broccoli
tomato
sweet potato

OK, here's the list. Again, just because a food appears on this list doesn't mean you shouldn't have it. It just means these choices should be purchased, handled, and consumed with more delicacy, and should not be consumed in excess just because they're"healthy". If you'd like their wallet guide, and their upcoming iPhone application, click here.
Celery
Peacches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries
Nectarines
Bell Peppers
Spinach (this sample was found to contain as many as 48 different pesticide residues--wash thoroughly!)
Kale
Cherries
Grapes
Leafy greens
Carrots
Pears