It’s Not the Holidays Unless Baking Is Involved
Jam Dot Cookies
(Wheat free vegan)
Ingredients
2 C raw almonds
2 C rolled oats
2 1/2 C oat flour
1 1/2 Tsp. cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1 C maple syrup
1 C canola/safflower oil
Fruit juice sweetened jam
Preheat oven to 350. Put almonds and oats in food processor (split up batches) and process until it’s course meal. Put in large bowl. In a second bowl, whisk together the rest of the dry ingredients; oat flour, cinnamon, and salt. Combine all dry ingredients together. Add maple syrup and oil and mix all ingredients with a wooden spoon. Finish mixing with a large rubber spatula folding bottom of mixture on to the top. Let the entire mixture sit for a while to let the wet ingredients absorb into the dry. Scoop out 1″ balls and place them onto a sprayed cookie sheet. Depress center of cookie with your finger. Use the 1/8 tsp. spoon to scoop out jam and drop into the cookie well. Bake for 10 minutes. Let sit on cookie sheet 2 minutes before removing to rack to cool. If cookies seem to be too loose and not holding the well, add more oat flour to stiffen the dough.
Coconut Almond Cookies
(Wheat Free)
Yields 8-9 Dozen 2″ Cookies
Ingredients
1 1/2 C rolled oats
1/2 C organic almonds
1/4 C organic unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 C date sugar
1/2 Tsp. baking powder
1/2 Tsp. sea salt
1 Tbsp. organic butter
2 Eggs, organic, free range O3
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil (safflower, corn)
1 Tsp. vanilla extract
1 Tsp. almond extract
1/2 C grain sweetened chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350. Pulse oats and almonds in the food processor until finely chopped. In a bowl mix oats, almonds, coconut, date sugar, baking powder, and sea salt. In a separate bowl combine butter, vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract. Mix the liquid ingredients with the dry ingredients. Add chocolate chips at the end. Lightly oil baking sheet. Drop cookies by the tsp. full onto the cookie sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes.
Banana Muffins
Naturally Sweet
Approx. 18 muffins; 36 mini muffins
Ingredients
2 3/4 C mashed bananas (4-5 large ripe bananas)
1/3 C canola oil
1/2 C brown rice syrup
1/2 Tsp. salt
1 Tsp. baking soda
1/2 Tsp. allspice
Pinch cardamom
2 C flour (whole wheat pastry, spelt, or whiteflour)
1 Tsp. baking powder
Optional: 2/3 cup roasted walnuts (10 minutes in 350 oven and already cooled). Some of this amount can be reserved to sprinkle on top of muffins before baking.
Mix together dry and wet ingredients separately. Pour wet into dry and mix. Fold in walnuts. Pour into cupcake holders. Bake at 350 for approx. 20 minutes or about half of that time for mini muffins. Test for doneness if center of muffin bounces back, or if toothpick comes out dry.
Holiday Shopping – Solaris Whole Health Style
Done with your holiday shopping, yet? We are...this is how it's done people.
Last night, after our last client left, Stephanie and I jetted off to Staples to do our holiday shopping. THE GOAL: to buy ALL of our office supplies at once and use as many coupons as humanly possible. This was not an easy task. We spent a laborious 15 minutes mulling over which mailing label to get (white or clear, the 60 or the 80), which binder to get (do we normally use the 2″ or the 3″)? Don’t even get me started on Sharpies – tempers flared over fine or ultra-fine…
In the end (and I know you’re all just dying to know), we got everything we needed and used every coupon we had! In fact, in the spirit of the holidays, the benevolent manager of Staples was gracious enough to slip an EXTRA coupon into our hands…but not before cautiously asking us, “Are you really buying all of this?”
Happy Holidays and Good Luck, last minute shoppers! Make sure to treat yourself for a job well done afterwards, we sure did!
Road Trip USA: Nutrition Edition [Day 4]
Day 4 – Saturday, October 24th, 2009
Lincoln, NE to Snowmass Village, CO
11 hours in the car
The breakfast selection at the Motel 6 was almost entirely wheat-based: cereals, bagels, muffins, etc. I grabbed an apple and Katie, the dogs, and I were on our way. I was feeling pretty happy about bringing those nuts and snack bars right about now. We entered beautiful Colorado and our lunch stop was Wendy’s and I was blown away by their gluten-free selections. I learned my lesson and used my handy, dandy, internet-capable phone to check what I could eat beforehand. Wendy’s website has an up-to-date, well-organized page dedicated to their menu items without gluten. I decided to make up for not eating much yesterday and ordered a cup of chili without cheese and a baked potato! What can I say? I’m a soup and chili kind of girl.
I am full until we get to my family friend’s apartment where we’re staying in Snowmass. Katie and I wanted to take advantage of the kitchen to make a home-cooked meal and there happened to be a grocery store very close to the apartment. I restocked on snacks for the road before we dined on grilled chicken, brown rice, and, you guessed it, soup! Pacific Natural Foods has great gluten-free broths and soups. Katie and I tried the Organic Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato soup and we loved it (even though it is dairy-based… sorry Stephanie!).
Road Trip USA: Nutrition Edition [Day 3]
Day 3 – Friday, October 23rd
Chicago, IL to Lincoln, NE
8 hours in the car
Woke up early, had some scrambled eggs, and left for Nebraska! My snacks and lunch consisted of a snack bar, almonds, and a banana. It’s hard to remember to eat when you’re sitting still all day, driving through cornfields, but I’ll try to improve on this tomorrow. The only nearby eatery was a Quiznos across the street from our hotel in Lincoln where I planned to get a big meal to make up for not eating that day. Planned is the key word here because things didn’t go quite as I imagined.
Me: “Are any of your soups gluten-free?”
Cashier: “What?”
Me: “Are any of your soups gluten-free?”
Cashier: *blank stare*
Me: “Do any of your soups not have wheat or barley?”
Cashier: “You want wheat?”
Me: “No, I can’t have wheat…”
Cashier: “Soooo, you want a sandwich?”
I spotted another employee and waved them over.
Me: “Are any of your soups gluten-free? Or do you have a binder or booklet that lists the ingredients in your soups?”
Employee: “I don’t know, but I can give you the bag the soup comes in. It says something on there that I can’t ready because my eyesight isn’t very good.”
He went in the back and came out with a half-congealed bag containing a serving of tomato basil soup. All right, we’re making progress here! Until I looked at the bag and read, “PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS: Thaw in microwave for…”
I had read enough. I settled on the Classic Cobb Salad that comes with grilled chicken, which seems like a good choice. Back in my hotel room, I Googled Quiznos’ gluten-free items and found an “allergen table”. The only menu items that don’t have gluten are the salad dressings and the fruit parfait. I chalked it up to their salads coming with flatbreads on the side until I noticed that even the Honey Mustard Chicken Salad that doesn’t come with flatbreads is indicated as having gluten. Further research on blog posts on celiac.com say to stay away from the grilled chicken strips at Quiznos. I’m not sure about the reliability of these blogs, but there isn’t anything else in the salad that COULD have gluten. What’s gluten doing in grilled chicken that isn’t marinaded? And what else is in the chicken? Lesson learned: we are not going back to Quiznos on this trip.
Road Trip USA: Nutrition Edition [Day 2]
Day 2 – Thursday, October 22nd
Chicago, IL
Katie and I decided to break up the trip by spending a day in Chicago. Unfortunately, it rained all day so we stayed around Whitney’s apartment since we couldn’t take the dogs anywhere and things can get messy when they are left alone in a new place.
I had some Yoplait Light mixed berry yogurt for breakfast and chili leftovers for lunch. I met up with a family friend at a wine bar for dinner, where I was hoping to eat a small snack. All they had were pizzas, cheese plates, and fried food. Needless to say, my snack was a glass of wine…it’s just like eating a handful of grapes, right?
Luckily, Whitney and Katie had made delicious gluten-free pasta primavera full of broccoli, tomatoes, red peppers, and onions for dinner when I got back!
Holiday Nutrition Pocket Guide
Pick up this pocket-sized guide at your next appointment!
1. DON’T Skip Meals.
A common strategy during the holidays is to skip breakfast – and lunch – because you know a big meal is coming, so you ‘save up’ the calories for the celebration. This strategy backfires, because you come to the meal starving and wind up eating way more than you ever intended.
2. WATCH Your Portions.
Many people lose weight and keep it off with the simple strategy of portion control. Eliminating or even limiting certain foods is brutally hard during the holidays. So do the next best thing: Eat reasonably small portions, limit the foods you know you should limit, and don’t stuff yourself.
3. STAY Hyrdated.
Often, when we crave food, it’s not really hunger that’s driving the urge – it’s mild dehydration. So drink tons of water. A slice of orange, lemon or lime will flavor the water and cut your cravings; flavored non-caloric seltzers accomplish the same thing.
4. EAT Slowly.
Hormones signal the brain when you’re full, but it takes about 20 minutes from start time before you feel it. Slowly eating not only aids in digestion but also gives your brain a chance to know what the stomach is doing. If you make the meal last, by talking, putting down your fork between bites or just plain waiting, you’re less likely to eat on ‘automatic pilot’ and more likely to realize you’re full.
5. REPLACE Sweet with Spicy.
Cravings for sweets sometimes evaporate when you put something pickled or spicy in your mouth. It’s okay to indulge the occasional sweet craving, but eat something spicy or pickled first and you may find you no longer want to.
6. LOAD Up On Greens.
Fiber is your secret weapon. Not only is fiber supremely healthy and directly related to the reduction of risks for a whole host of diseases, it is a huge player in the weight-loss field. It also contributes to a feeling of fullness.
7. FINISH Your Holiday Meals In An Hour.
The body produces a second insulin hit if it senses a lot of food coming in continuously. You can avoid that second hit (and the subsequent fat storage that it triggers) by finishing within an hour of starting. If you see something you like that you forgot to eat within the hour, that’s fine; just save it for tomorrow. It’ll still be there, and you won’t be wearing it on your hips.
8. PLAN Ahead.
During the holidays, try to plan around when you’re going, what temptations are likely to arise and how you’re going to deal with them. Decide in advance what you’re going to allow yourself, but prepare for it so you don’t go overboard. Don’t be afraid to taste things without finishing them.
9. DON’T Show Up Hungry.
You know what foods you need to stay away from. Well, those foods are a lot harder to resist when you’re starving and your blood sugar is in the pits. Eat a meal or healthy snack before the party. Try this an hour or so before the big holiday dinner and watch your willpower soar while your waistline stays in place.
10. DON’T Deprive Yourself.
Apply the 80/20 rule. Eat healthy 80% of the time, the other 20% of the time – ‘go to town’, indulge! Give yourself permission to ‘go all out’ on a meal/party twice a week. Then get back into your routine.
Excerpted from http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com
Stephanie Solaris to Join NFL Combine Staff
Congratulations are in order for Solaris Whole Health’s very own, Stephanie Solaris!
For 12 weeks starting in January 2010, Stephanie Solaris, founder and director of Solaris Whole Health, will serve as nutritional support for the TEST Sports Club’s NFL Combine Program.
Combine is the NFL’s training program for potential recruits. For more information on the NFL’s Combine Program, click here. For more information about TEST Sports Club’s NFL Combine Program, click here.
Upcoming Events: December Edition
“Navigating the Holidays”
Thursday, December 10th @TEST Sports Clubs, directions
from 7pm – 8pm
free admission
Meet & Greet w/Stephanie, tips on how to “navigate the holidays” nutritionally, Q & A, raffle prizes
Corporate Lunch & Learn: Hilltown Systems
Friday, December 11th
Stephanie Solaris will be presenting at a corporate luncheon on December 11th. If you are interested in having Stephanie come speak at your company or community event, please contact the office (732.667.3209) for more information.
Meet Skip: A SWH Success Story
BEFORE
AFTER
Meet Skip
Sports Performance Director at TEST Sports Clubs, husband, father, active community member and POP Warner Coach. Skip is a busy man who likes staying active.
The Contest
Here’s the 411 on Skip…As the Sports Performance Director at TEST Sports Clubs, being fit IS Skip’s job description. So, as you can imagine, looking and feeling healthy is extremely crucial.
However, after years of wear and tear from playing football during his formative years, Skip’s body was at less than optimal health. He was stressed, tired, irritable, overweight – and those were just the visible symptoms!
Not the type to sit around and wait for miracles to happen, Skip tried out several fad diets, including the Atkins Diet on which he lost 100lbs (half of which was muscle, not actual fat). Of course, as we at Solaris Whole Health have advocated time and time again, diets don’t work – individualized nutrition does!
Low and behold, Skip wasn’t able to sustain his weight loss, eventually gained it all back and it was in this condition that he found himself at our doorstep.
In the spirit of athletic competition to which Skip is so accustomed, he proposed a friendly wager with a fellow compatriot (the wager being bragging rights, of course). The contest was simple – see who could lose the most weight and keep it off. Skip’s weight loss weapon would be Stephanie Solaris, founder and director of Solaris Whole Health and his opponent’s would be low-calorie dieting. To the victor go the spoils!
The Plan of Attack
When new clients join Solaris Whole Health, the first piece of data we collect from them is a form they fill out called the “Health Profile Questionnaire” (HPQ).
On the HPQ form is a long list of potential health issues that a client might be experiencing (i.e. indigestion, headaches, bloating, chronic cough, etc.). Clients rate each symptom according to severity (scale of 1-4, 4 being the most severe). The more severe the symptoms or health issues are, the higher the scoring will be. Skip scored an 52. He was experiencing fatigue, mood swings, very sore muscles and joints, and presented with metabolic syndrome (high blood pressure, cholesterol, high fasting glucose and triglycerides).
The first health concern Stephanie addressed was Skip’s mood and stress levels. After years of physical and mental stress, Skip’s adrenals were extremely fatigued and his biochemistry was off balance. His body was craving certain foods, specifically chocolate, to give him a quick burst of energy.
“After we addressed his mood and stress through supplementation and food/mood awareness, we worked on his body composition,” says Stephanie. “We usually see the symptoms decrease first. Once this happens, the body is ready to start letting go of the fat. As you can see in Skip’s HPQ progress (see chart below), his symptoms decreased immediatey with the proper supplementaion and nutrition; and his weight followed.”
Skip's HPQ progress over the course of 1 year.
Two weeks into the program, they began work on Skip’s body composition. Much to his chagrin, he actually gained scale weight.
“I was gaining weight and said, ‘Whoa, whoa, I think we’re going the wrong way!’ ” Skip recalls. Even though the scale said Skip was gaining weight, he was actually losing pure fat and water, and developing more muscle (which we all know weighs more than fat). For Skip’s body composition chart, see below.
Skip's body composition analysis over the course of 9 months.
Eventually, Skip began losing scale weight as well. “I had to get him to eat a potato,” recalls Stephanie, “After the Atkins Diet, he had developed a fear of starches. We need quality starches to feed our brain and keep our energy up during the day. It was very difficult to get him to start eating starches again, but he eventually succumbed. Skip lost even more weight, and had increased energy and vitality!”
The Outcome
“Within 4 months I saw my blood pressure go down, stress level go down, body weight and body fat percentage go down, and my joint pain disappear! The biggest thing is, I have ENERGY ALL DAY LONG,” says Skip. “My whole family is eating better and they are all losing weight and feeling better. Other than looking good and feeling great, there was an amazing added bonus: I was able to ride on a roller-coaster with my son. It was the first time I had been able to fit on one since middle school.”
Needless to say, Skip won the contest. He lost 54 pounds of pure fat and water and gained 4 pounds of muscle mass. Congratulations to Skip on his double win – to his good health and beating that other guy in a contest!
