Eat Healthy and Enjoy the Food!

Article submitted by Bill "Pops" Hahne.
For more information, he can be reached at 228-466-6312 or by e-mail: chefpopsapproved@aol.com.

Being a senior citizen and a chef is a tough job. I love to cook, I love to eat, and yes, I must watch my cholesterol, sugar, salt, and fat intake. Sound familiar? Remember when "healthy" food was synonymous with "not so good tasting?" This is not true today. Years ago I was executive chef at a hospital in Bloomington, Indiana. The hospital dieticians taught me about nutrition and I taught them how to make healthy food taste good. We came up with "Chef's Tips for Seniors" to make our meals healthier and more enjoyable. We told seniors what they've been hearing all along, plus we taught them how to make healthy food taste great. Let's start with the basics (again!):

• Use common sense in portion size. Try to maintain a total caloric value (for example-2000 calories) in your daily meal planning. Get help from a dietician or from a good diet textbook.
• Reduce fats and oils-specifically saturated fats.
• Decrease simple sugars and increase foods high in complex carbohydrates.
• Try to use less animal protein and more vegetables and fresh fruits.
• Reduce salt and sodium.
• Increase use of whole foods or minimally processed foods to increase intake of vitamins and minerals.
• Be responsible and sparing with alcoholic beverages (empty calories).

Sounds like no fun and no taste? Not really; here are a few tips on gaining great taste while eating healthier:

• Trim off excess fat from meat BEFORE cooking to reduce fat intake,
• Use ground turkey in meatloaf, burgers, chili, spaghetti sauce and even sausage gravy, good flavor-way less fat.
• Potatoes are good roasted and baked (forget those French fries!). By using a low fat yogurt instead of butter as a topping, perhaps blending it with a low fat cottage cheese and chives, you will enjoy great flavor with less fat. Oven roasted potatoes are great with olive oil and fresh rosemary.
• Simple salad dressings can be made with flavored vinegars and sugar substitute, no oil needed
• One simple tip to cut salt: don't add it until the very end of the cooking process; you can then use up to 70% less salt!

Remember, healthy cooking methods are a must!

• ROASTING-roast meats on a rack so the fat drips into a pan, away from the meat.
• BROILING-as with roasting, broiling allows fat to drip away from meats.
• POACHING-gently cooking foods in a simmering liquid, such as cooking a fish filet in a lemon broth-no cooking oil needed.
• STEAMING-vegetables may be steamed until the right degree of doneness they taste better and are healthier without oil.
• "DRY" SAUTÉ-using a Teflon coated skillet means you can sauté without using cooking oil.

Be adventurous in your cooking. Try different blends of spices, herbs, cooking methods, and combinations of healthy foods. For example, try poaching fresh fish in a broth you made from your favorite flavors, or steam vegetables over water flavored with herbs or citrus. Stuff a chicken with squash and fresh rosemary then roast or broil it. Finally, grow your own herbs; start with the easy-to-grow types like basil, parsley, rosemary, and thyme. Next year expand to tarragon, bay leaf, oregano and others. There's nothing like the true flavor of home-grown herbs. Eat, enjoy, and be healthy!