Watermelon Cake

Here are a couple of pictures of a watermelon cake that I made by carving a fresh watermelon into the shape of a rose, then I garnished it with fresh sliced strawberries and pineapple. It's so good, I want some right now. 

Blackberry Sauce

  There's no food I enjoy more than fresh, sweet blackberries eaten by the handful. I got some locally grown blackberries recently that were a bit sour, so this is how I sweetened them up and made a sauce ideal for pancakes, French toast, ice cream, or frozen yogurt. 

  Just wash the berries and place them in a saucepan with a little water so they don't stick to the bottom. Stir in some sweetener for recipes to taste and about 2 tablespoons of corn starch to thicken the sauce, the amounts will vary based on how many blackberries you have. Cook over medium heat and stir for a few minutes until the sauce is the desired thickness. Serve warm.
  This is a great way to use extra berries or to sweeten the sour ones. It has no more calories than the fresh berries would have.

Fresh Homemade Lemonade

This is a lower sugar version of traditional fresh lemonade. It's delicious served ice cold on a hot summer day.

Ingredients:

10 lemons

1 cup sweetener for recipes

1/2 cup hot water

5 cups cold water

Directions: 

Squeeze juice from the lemons. 

Heat 1/2 cup water. 

Use a 2 quart pitcher, and add the sweetener. Then add hot water and stir until the sweetener is dissolved.

Add the fresh lemon juice and stir. 

Then add the cold water and stir. 

Add ice as desired.

Tomatoes!

  In early June I planted a flowerpot garden on the back deck of my house. Two of the tomato plants have grown really well, and they smell delightful. I had planted four tomato plants, but lost two of them because I planted them too deep and the stems rotted. The two that survived have some small green tomatoes on them now. The plants require a lot of water and some plant food. They are in a nice sunny spot where they can grow.

  I started the cantaloupes from seeds, and they are flowering nicely. I'm eager for some fresh cantaloupe. 

  I also planted a raspberry plant and some cherry pits in the two empty pots. We'll have to wait and see if they do any good, though.

Flowering cantaloupe plants.

Cantaloupe plants.

Little green tomatoes growing!

Surviving Summer Cookouts

  The 4th of July has passed, and I hope everyone had a good time grilling out and watching fireworks shows. Although the holiday is over, we are still in the middle of summer cookout season. Here are some tips for lower calorie foods and healthier cookouts. 

The Grill: 

  Meats typically used for grilling-hotdogs, sausages, and hamburgers-often contain high amounts of saturated fat and cholesterol. Look for reduced fat hotdogs, sausages made with chicken, lean hamburger meat, ground turkey for turkey burgers, or veggie burgers that can be grilled. 
  The grill is not just for meat, try grilling marinated vegetables like tomatoes, zucchini, onions, and peppers. They can be put on skewers or into aluminum foil. Chopped potatoes with the skins on are also great grilled in foil. Just spray some non-stick cooking spray onto aluminum foil, place a handful of potatoes or other vegetables in the middle, and wrap them up into little potato boats.
  Another opportunity to add some extra vegetables is in toppings, slice fresh tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers to top burgers and hotdogs. Also try whole wheat buns rather than white.

Salads and Side Dishes: 

  A nice, fresh salad is another great way to get some extra servings of vegetables. Top tossed salads with reduced fat dressing to lower the calories, but still get the health and taste benefits of polyunsaturated fats. Leave the peels on vegetables and fruits for more fiber and nutrients. Make potato salad with lite mayo and unpeeled potatoes. Use whole wheat pasta for pasta salads. Also try one of these Yummy Salads.

  Baked beans are a good source of fiber and protein, but can often contain a lot of extra sugar and saturated fat. If you are preparing baked beans, limit the amount of brown sugar and bacon fat that you add. Have a moderate sized serving, about 1/2 cup. Have chips in moderation, too. If that bag of potato chips is calling your name, go ahead and have a few to avoid feeling deprived and eating the whole bag.

Desserts:

  One of the best desserts in the summer is fresh fruit. Any variety is available this time of year, especially yummy berries. Try blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries over frozen yogurt or sorbet.

  Throw together your own Fresh Fruit Salad , or try my Fruit Salad recipe. Frozen bananas or other types of frozen fruit can be refreshing on a hot summer day.
  My American Flag Cake recipe is also a lighter option for a more traditional dessert.

Beverages:

  The best thing to drink in the heat to cool off and rehydrate is ice water. Since it can be a little boring sometimes,and not everyone likes water, lower calorie drinks like sugar-free lemonade or diet sodas are good, too. If you're planning to have alcohol at your cookout, go for light beer and spritzers.  

  Cookouts are a staple of the summer season. These healthy tips should keep you on track and eating right all summer long.

American Flag Cake

  Today I want to share a recipe for the flag cake I made yesterday for a 4th of July cookout. It's made with white cake, vanilla icing, and fresh strawberries and blueberries. The cake is lower in saturated fat and cholesterol thanks to the use of egg whites and vegetable oil. Icing, however, really has to be made with a solid fat, otherwise it won't get thick enough. With this in mind, I say use real butter. You won't have to worry about trans fats, and the taste is unmatchable. 
  This cake is perfect for a 4th of July celebration, but could be made for any Summer holiday or party.

 

Recipe for White Cake
Ingredients:

1 box Duncan Hines white cake mix

1 pkg. Dream Whip

2 whole eggs

2 egg whites

1 1/4 cup water

1/4 cup oil

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix at medium to high speed until well blended and lumps are gone. 

Pour batter into a greased 9" x 13" pan. 

Bake for 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean. 

Cool completely before icing. 

Vanilla Icing Recipe

Ingredients: 

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter

1 box (approx. 2 1/2 to 3 cups) powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract 

1/4 cup skim milk

Directions: 

Combine all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. 

Mix at medium to high speed until creamy. 

Decorating the Cake: 

Wash blueberries and strawberries in advance, and let them drain. Slice the strawberries in half longways. 

When the cake has cooled completely, cover the full surface of the cake with icing. 

Place the blueberries in rows on the top left corner of the iced cake. It's helpful to mark your corners for the blue section, this gives you a guide so it's easier to get the rows straight. 

Then place the strawberry halves in rows for the red stripes on the cake. 

Keep the cake refrigerated so the fresh fruit doesn't get too soft.

Fresh Salads

Today I have 5 fresh salad recipes ideal for summer. 

Chunky Chicken Salad
Ingredients: 
2 1/2 lb. chicken breast 

1 1/2 cups celery

1 1/2 cups grapes (any variety)

1 cup pecans

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 cup lite mayo

Instructions:

Boil chicken until cooked thoroughly. Tear into bite-sized pieces. 

Chop celery, cut grapes in half, and break pecans in half. 

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. 

When boiling the chicken for this recipe, I like to use a chopped onion and a few stalks of celery, usually the yellow inner stalks from the bunch, with the leaves still on. Throw everything into a stock pot and cook the chicken. This makes the most delicious broth that can be drained and used later for any type of soup or dumplings! 

This recipe is also versatile. Any variety of grapes can be used, whatever you prefer or have on hand. The chicken salad is also good with some pineapple added. It's excellent on a green salad, a sandwich, or with some crackers.

Pear Spinach Salad

Ingredients: 

1 bag raw spinach leaves

1 ripe green pear

1 cup walnuts

2 cups raspberry vinaigrette dressing

Instructions:

Slice pears longways. 

Toss all ingredients together in a large salad bowl. 

Serve immediately. 

This salad is healthy, low calorie, and super quick and easy. The ingredients really don't even have to be measured. You can just toss everything together and add the dressing straight from the bottle. 

Summer Salad

Ingredients: 

1 small container cottage cheese

1 Tbsp. chopped green onion

1/2 cup finely chopped cucumber

1/2 cup finely chopped tomato

Instructions: 

Combine all ingredients. 

Refrigerate for a few hours to allow the flavors to mingle.

Simple and delicious! 

The final 2 salads for this post are linked from previous articles on my blog. 

The first is my absolute favorite fruit salad ever, so enjoy! 

http://goodsouthernfood.blogspot.com/2011/02/aunties-fruit-salad-recipe.html

And the second is a delicious crab salad.

http://goodsouthernfood.blogspot.com/2011/02/seafood-recipe.html

Gardening

  Yesterday I planted four heirloom tomato plants and a packet of cantaloupe seeds in flower pots. I know it's a little late in the season to be starting a garden, but the plants look like they will do fine. Plus, everything was on sale! 
  Since I'm new to gardening, and don't have a good history of a green thumb, I used the flower pots, rather than tilling up a place in the yard. This makes the plants easier to manage, and more convenient to water. 
  In just a few weeks, I should have lots of yummy tomatoes and cantaloupes. I used heirloom tomato plants because, let's face it, what else is there? Heirloom tomatoes are so much juicer and flavorful than anything available in stores. When people tell me they don't like tomatoes, I always tell them it's because they haven't had an heirloom tomato. Cantaloupes ripened in the sun and picked on a nice warm day always taste better, too. 
  I'm looking forward to enjoying some fresh tomatoes and cantaloupes. I'll post more pictures when the harvest comes in! 

Heirloom tomato plants.

Cantaloupe and heirloom tomato plants.

 

New My Plate Food Guide From USDA

  The United States Department of Agriculture recently upgraded from the Food Guide Pyramid to the new My Plate food model. The plate method is something Dietitians, such as myself, have been using in nutrition education for a few years now, so it was a welcome change. The plate method is easier to follow than the old pyramid, as it gives a model for each meal, and encourages an increase in fruit and vegetable intake, more whole grains, and skim or 1% milk.  

   Follow this link to view the new My Plate model: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/

   The website has several helpful tools including the tip of the day, food tracker, and food planner, so take a few minutes to explore.
 The Dietary Guidelines for Americans were updated earlier in the year. Click this link to read my previous blog post on the guidelines: http://goodsouthernfood.blogspot.com/2011/02/new-dietary-guidelines-for-americans.html
 These links provide helpful website information on the updated Dietary Guidelines:
http://goodsouthernfood.blogspot.com/2011/02/httpwww.html  
http://goodsouthernfood.blogspot.com/2011/02/dietary-guidelines-executive-summary.html
http://goodsouthernfood.blogspot.com/2011/02/dietary-guidelines-selected-messages.html

Fresh Fruit

   Sometimes getting your friends and family to eat healthy foods is all about presentation. I recently prepared this fruit plate at a lunch with some friends, and it went over really well. With the ready-to-eat fruit, everyone would just walk by and grab a bite. 
   I used brown and green pears, sliced them longways, and then garnished the plate with blackberries and raspberries. Fresh oranges or apples would also be good, and kiwi or pomegranate for the garnish would taste wonderful.