While I try to avoid generalities, one I do use is that the less processed food is, the healthier it likely is as well.
That’s why sushi has become an even larger part of my diet than it was before my two stents were put in to unclog my arteries.
Nutritionists do raise a red flag about eating a lot of white rice, but sushi can be found with brown rice and there’s also sashimi which is sushi’s rice-less cousin. But sushi can get expensive.
So I was excited to try a Chicago sushi lunch spot that sells sushi by the pound ($1.25 an ounce) rather than the piece. Grain & Sea is a very neat-looking spot with an almost limitless sushi buffet.
You walk the food line, taking whichever you want and have it all weighed at the end of the line.
I’ve never eaten canned tuna, thankfully. I much prefer tuna steaks like these.
A major canned tuna recall is underway. The product may cause deadly botulism, reports the Associated Press. Botulism can bring on difficult in breathing, paralysis and, ultimately, death.
“Tri-Union Seafoods of El Segundo, California, last week recalled certain lots of tuna sold under the Genova, Van Camp’s, H-E-B and Trader Joe’s brand names, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
“The company said that lids on the “easy open” cans may have a manufacturing defect that could cause the products to leak or to become contaminated with the bacteria that causes botulism.
Grilled swordfish steaks could be a hearty Easter dinner choice. Or try this recipe from the Times..
Super Bowl Sunday isn’t just about football and new TV ads. It’s also about snacking, big time. But most American snacks are not heart healthy, so I’ve tried over the years of doing this blog to give you some healthy, and tasty, alternatives. Just click this link to review all my Super Bowl-related posts.
To get into specifics, how about swordfish steaks for your main course of the day? Use a salt-free spice rub to give them great flavor.If weather allows, grill them outside to spare your house a fishy smell afterwards.
Food trucks have been hot for years but in my Chicago suburb, Evanston, early restrictions limited them largely to one Mexican food truck that shows up at all the the local festivals, and which always seemed a bit overpriced to me.
But that changed dramatically in recent weeks when not one, but two food trucks featuring classic East Coast lobster rolls came to town. Full disclosure, I love lobster. My wife and I honeymooned in Maine back in 2007, primarily for the lobster, which we had several times a day at the rock bottom prices it sells for there.
Yet, getting lobster in the Midwest can be of a hit or miss proposition. The ubiquitous Red Lobster, for example, has the blandest lobster I ever tasted. We never go there. More likely, we buy our own and boil or grill it at home.
So I was really excited to see two lobster trucks posting on Facebook about their planned stops here in Evanston. Neither was cheap, $25 from Happy Lobster, $23 for a lobster roll from Cousins, but I tried them both and a clear winner emerged — Cousins Maine Lobster.
The other, Happy Lobster, didn’t really serve a traditional Maine lobster roll. It used a hamburger bun-type bun. A real lobster roll uses a hot dog bun-like split roll, toasted. Anyone from New England, or anyone who grew up in New York and went to Nedick’s knows what those are.
You can see the difference in the photos below:
Cousins also had just the right hint of mayo, although that too is a departure from traditional rolls which can have lobster meat swimming in mayo.
The staff at Cousins also was much friendly. Setting up in a local microbrewery parking lot, they were giving out shirts, hats and other freebies and talking to people as they walked up.
Happy Lobster’s truck parked at a local hospital during lunchtime and, although it encouraged online ordering ahead, did not have my order ready when I showed up on time. Several of its customers were forced to stand around in the rain waiting for their orders.
Is lobster heart-healthy? It is high in cholesterol content, once thought to be harmful, but thinking has changed on that. It also is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which these days are considered heart-healthy.
So if you see a Cousin’s truck coming to your town, give it a try, I highly recommend it.
Happy 2024 everyone! Now that the year-end holidays are out of the way, it’s time to get back to healthy eating. Here’s a tasty recipe to start with, Sheet-Pan Roasted Salmon & Vegetables.
Here are the ingredients with my notes on what to change to cut salt content and help in other ways as well:
1 pound fingerling potatoes, halved lengthwise (red potatoes are better if you’re worried about sugar and diabetes)
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
½ teaspoon sea salt (omit this, fish has enough of its own salt)
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 5 to 6-ounce fresh or frozen skinless salmon fillets
2 medium red, yellow and/or orange sweet peppers, cut into rings
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 ½ cups chopped fresh parsley (1 bunch)
¼ cup pitted kalamata olives, halved (substitute low-salt regular olives to cut salt)
¼ cup finely snipped fresh oregano or 1 Tbsp. dried oregano, crushed
1 lemon
Directions are fairly straight-forward:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place potatoes in a large bowl. Drizzle with 1 Tbsp. of the oil and sprinkle with garlic and 1/8 tsp. of the salt and black pepper; toss to coat. Transfer to a 15×10-inch baking pan; cover with foil. Roast 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, thaw salmon, if frozen. Combine, in the same bowl, sweet peppers, tomatoes, parsley, olives, oregano and 1/8 tsp. of the salt and black pepper. Drizzle with remaining 1 Tbsp. oil; toss to coat.
Rinse salmon; pat dry. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 tsp. salt and black pepper. Spoon sweet pepper mixture over potatoes and top with salmon. Roast, uncovered, 10 minutes more or just until salmon flakes.
Remove zest from lemon. Squeeze juice from lemon over salmon and vegetables. Sprinkle with zest.
Salmon is great if you’re looking for a substitute for red meat main dishes. It has body and flavor to it, and supposedly some of the good fat we’re supposed to eat.
Halibut is a luxury fish, one more commonly eaten at restaurants than at home because many people are afraid to try preparing fish themselves. But this recipe sounds worth trying, albeit without the almonds mentioned if, like me, you can’t stand nuts.
Halibut on a carrot puree at a restaurant in Milwaukee which is, sadly, no longer there.
Here are the basics, from the site lovelyfoodblog.com, minus changes I would make:
INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 pounds halibut fillets
3/4 teaspoon salt (leave out the salt)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Sauce
1 large red bell pepper
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 cup slivered, toasted almonds (only if you like them, I don;t so would omit)
1 thick slice of bread, torn into pieces (find the lowest salt bread you can)
1 teaspoon salt (omit, fish is salty as is, no extra is needed)
1 teaspoon paprika
1 cup drained canned diced tomatoes (buy low- or no-salt ones)
2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
To create the dish:
To make the sauce, preheat the broiler. Quarter the bell pepper and place it, cut side down, on a baking sheet along with the garlic cloves. Broil, turning the garlic once, until the garlic is browned and soft and the skin of the bell pepper blackened and blistered. Removed from the boiler and set aside cool slightly.
peel the blackened skin from the pepper and remove the core and seeds. Put the bell pepper and garlic in a food processor along with the almonds, bread, salt and paprika. Process to a paste. Add the tomatoes and vinegar and process until the tomatoes are small and fully incorporated.
To cook the fish preheat a broiler to high. Season the fish with the salt and pepper and broil about 4 minutes. Turn and broil for another 4 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through. Serve the fish immediately, with the sauce drizzled over it.
Soon it will be time for grilling salmon outside again in my Midwest home. Can;t wait. In the meantime, check out these baked salmon recipes.
I’ve written in the past that you can never have too many salmon recipes. So here are 10 more from MyRecipes.com. All are baked, which is healthy, ut check recipes to see if you need to eliminate any salt, fat or sugar that ingredients may bring.
Salmon with Green Beans and Smashed Potatoes, the first recipe listed, looks simple to make and tasty, I’d leave out the salt and go with a fat-free mayo. If you’re worried about sugar intake, substitute red potatoes too. This recipe shows its nutrition info, which is always helpful.
Not all the recipes have nutritional information however. Crispy Sheet Pan Salmon with Lemony Asparagus and Carrots sounds tasty too but has no nutrition info, sadly. I may try it anyway.It also includes mayo, get that fat-free. And again, leave out the salt, you don’t need it for fish.
One way to save money as prices rise at the supermarket is to buy whole fish and fillet them at home rather than buying more expensive fillets.
Filleting a fish was once intimidating but there are scores of videos online these days that can lead you through the process.
Once you’ve created the fillets, you have the head, tail and spinal column left over. If you just throw these out, there goes your savings from buying a whole fish. So why not make fish stock from them instead?
I did that recently with a salmon I bought at a local supermarket. I found this relatively simple recipe for fish stock using salmon on delectabilia.com.
You can use what veggies you find on sale, feel free to vary the recipe a bit. Also leave out the butter, using olive oil to saute the veggies works fine. I liked this recipe because it doesn’t have a lot of fat or salt in the ingredients it recommends. Remember to get the lowest sodium vegetable stock you can find too.
Here’s a short video taking you through all the steps, enjoy.
Salmon is a go-to main course for anyone trying to eat less unhealthy fat and more healthy fat. I regularly make it now instead of the steaks and burgers I once ate before my heart surgeries. This piece from Myrecipes.com gives you 30 potential salmon side dishes. Match those with the salmon recipes you’ll find on our recipe page.
Grilling salmon is a luscious experience.
Avoid the ones with cream (bad fat) and if a recipe calls for salt, leave it out or cut it drastically.
You’ll see several asparagus dishes in here, I normally grill asparagus outdoors in the summer to go with salmon.
I’m planning to try the first side discussed, lemon-feta green beans, but will use the fat-free feta I regularly buy at a local supermarket. I love the idea of searing lemons. And kudos to the recipe for not adding salt — the cheese is salty enough.
The No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar Journal 