Meatless Monday: Be Mindful When You Order Salads In a Restaurant

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You Can Go Meatless

For All Three Meals

Lean Green Entrée Salads

When you’re scanning a restaurant menu and see “salad,” you usually think “healthy eating.” A big bed of greens topped with colorful peppers, tomatoes, carrots—of course salads are healthy. But when you toss in cheese, creamy dressings, crunchy bits of bread, and bacon, that so-called healthy restaurant meal can easily become the calorie, fat, and sodium equivalent of a deluxe fast food burger.

That doesn’t mean you have to forego making a meal of salad when you’re eating out—you just need to be aware of the ingredients going into your garden-based meal. As long as you choose appropriately, your salad can be all the things you want it to be: rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber, and lean protein, without high levels of calories, fat, saturated fat, and sodium.

Helpful hints. Keep the following tips in mind and reap all the benefits you desire when choosing a salad over an artery-clogging fast food burger.

Less is best. When it comes to dressing, that is. Just one packet of creamy dressing at a restaurant can easily add more than 150 calories, 15 grams fat, and 500 milligrams sodium. Your best bet is to choose vinegar and oil-based dressings. And keep them on the side, dipping your salad bites into the dressing rather than slathering it over the salad.

Downsize. Many restaurants offer their salads in both whole and half sizes. The petite portion is a great option to let you enjoy a salad and stick to your healthy eating guidelines. Another strategy is to eat half and take the other half home for another meal.

Balance. While choosing a salad made completely of leafy greens and veggies may provide a good amount of vitamins and minerals, it may be lacking whole grains and protein. For a balanced meal top your greens with lean protein, such as cottage cheese, beans, or shrimp, and consider adding whole grains crackers and fresh fruit on the side. ~Heidi McIndoo, MS, RD ~

Healthy Meatless Recipe:

White Pizza Stuffed Zucchini Boats

(Adapted from Kitchen Treaty )

It's zucchini season, and gardens and farmers markets are overflowing with this versatile veggie. If you've ever grown zucchini, you realize all too well the need for recipes where zucchini is the main ingredient, which is one of the reasons stuffed zucchini has become such a classic.Garlic, herbs, ricotta, and melty mozzarella stuffed inside tender zucchini. White pizza - sans crust - for Meatless Monday!

Ingredients:

• 3 medium or 2 large zucchini (about 1 1/2 pounds)
• 1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese (whole milk ricotta works too)
• 1 cup + 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (about 3.5 ounces), divided
• 2 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tablespoon)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, plus a couple extra leaves for garnish
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Cut ends off of zucchini and slice in half lengthwise. With a spoon or melon baller, gently scoop out seeds and discard. Place cut-side-up on a large baking sheet.
3. To a medium bowl, add ricotta, 1 cup mozzarella, garlic, 2 tablespoons basil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Using a spoon, fill zucchini with ricotta mixture, dividing evenly between halves. Top with remaining mozzarella.
4. Bake until zucchini is fork-tender and the cheese is melted and turning golden brown along the top.
5. Chiffonade remaining basil leaves and sprinkle over the tops of zucchini. Serve.

Enjoy and Bon Appetit!

Healthy Weekly Motivator

Fight Stress with Exercise

The rush of anxiety and pent-up energy that can result from stress is part of your body's natural defense mechanism's. While the desire to fight or flee is helpful in emergencies, too much tension can negatively impact your health. Instead of bottling it up, get it out with exercise! Releasing excess energy with physical activity is a healthy way to alleviate built-up muscle tension and other symptoms.

This week, after a long day, get active and aim for moderate intensity exercise. It may seem counter intuitive, but moving more will help you to relax.

Remember Green Goes with Everything

Fresh Laundry. Fresh Day.

Just how powerful is Get Clean Fresh Laundry? Besides the fact that one small bottle cleans 32 loads, it outperforms OxiClean Laundry Stain Remover Spray and Resolve Max Laundry stain Remover in the removal of stains, and is comparable toMethod Laundry Detergent, All Small and Mighty, Tide Free & Gentle in overall soil removal when used as a liquid laundry concentrate. And it works for both HE and standard washing machines. Now that's fresh laundry.Get Clean Laundry products are Natural, Concentrated, Hypoallergenic, No Phosphates, NO Chlorine, and have Biodegradable Surfactants. Give these products a try and your family will be thankful and so will the environment.

Have a great week and remember a better tomorrow starts with what you eat today!

Do you have a favorite meatless recipe you would like to share with us? Send it my way!

Wishing you health and wellness from the inside out,

Lisa

LQ WELLNESS

Professional Wellness Coach

973-383-0955

lisaquinnwc@embarqmail.com

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“Treat yourself and others with kindness when you eat, exercise, play, work, love and everything else.”

~ Dr. Wayne Dyer ~