Judy's Turn

You Can Eat Healthy in the Office Too!

Eat healthy in your office

Every once in a while, I plan a long walk with a friend of mine to catch up. Both of us have spent many years working on contract in different offices in the San Francisco area, and on our latest walk the discussion focused on eating healthy in the office. A lot of people who work a 4 to 6 hour day don't take time for lunch. Some of us decide to take contract work so that we have flexibility and an hour lunch break usually doesn't work out.

Over the last 10 years, many offices started offering snacks for their employees and contractors. However, sometimes the options are not very healthy, full of the flavors that tempt us - salt and sugar - but aren't good for us.

My friend and I started talking about some good ideas for snacks. It helps that between us, we have 7 children, and have done a lot of feeding over the years. We're watching our kids enter the job market now, and noticing the emphasis on local, organic, healthy food. We decided that you can get a lot of healthy snacking in with just some simple ingredients. Whether they're provided by the office or you bring in your own stash, munching on these snacks will keep you alert, help you resist temptation, and probably even change your lunchtime habits.

In a recent blog post in the Harvard Business Review, Tony Schwartz writes about the personal energy crisis we're facing every day in the workplace:

The companies that build competitive advantage in the years ahead aren't going to do it by seeking to get more out of their people. They'll do it instead better meeting people's core needs — physical, emotional, mental and spiritual — so they're freed, fueled and inspired to bring more of themselves to work every day.

The pictures below provide a sampling of some of the ingredients that make for healthy office snacks.

Foods that combine to make healthy snacking habits

Whole grain, multigrain, or seeded crackers with hard cheese

Dried fruit mix

Fennel seeds

Raw, unsalted nuts

Oatmeal or mixed grain hot cereal

Easy office snack ideas

Most offices provide a microwave and hot/cold water dispensor for their employees. Lots have refrigerators. Although you don't need a refrigerator, it's nice because you can bring in items that will stay fresh for a few days.

Start with oatmeal or another grain cereal. Trader Joe's has plenty of options. Or you can make your own multi grain cereal by mixing oatmeal with flax, barley, rye or other ingredients. I have a nutritionist friend who buys oatmeal in a container, mixes it with cinnamon, nutmeg, dried fruit and a small amount of brown sugar and keeps the container in her office. She scoops out a small amount each day (1/2 to 3/4 cup), adds water and puts it in the microwave for a few minutes. If you're running to get to the office in the morning and don't eat breakfast, this is a great way to start your day. I don't like eating early in the morning, so when I'm ready for this type of snack, it might be closer to lunchtime. I'll also add fennel seeds and some high fiber granola to my bowl. In a six hour day, that might be enough for me. If not, I'll snack on some dried fruit mixed with raw unroasted almonds later in the afternoon.

Make your own dried fruit/nut/seed mix to add to the oatmeal. Several years ago, after a long flight from San Francisco to New York, we were greeted at the apartment of my husband's aunt with a mixture of dried apricots, dried cherries, walnuts, and almonds. I thought it was a delightful departure from a typical pre-dinner snack. Since then, I've always kept a bowl of this around in my own home. I'll sometimes add dried herbs or seeds to the mixture, but it keeps you from reaching for sugary items. Every once in a while, I'll add a few dark chocolate covered raisins to the mix. When I purchase my dried fruits, I make sure that they have no sugar added. As you can imagine, dried cranberries have a lot of sugar. You can eat the mixture by itself, or add it to your hot oatmeal/grain cereal after it's been heated in the microwave.

Want to impress your workmates and have them ask you where you got such a delicious soup? This recipe takes a microwave, organic chicken broth, a handful of spinach or arugula leaves, and some shredded hard cheese like a parmesan or romano. If you've got a fridge in the office, it's easy to store these items. Make sure that you buy a boxed organic broth - it eliminates that canned taste. Again, Trader Joe's has many options, or you can almost always find Swanson's (make sure you get the low salt and no msg option) in any market. If you want some advice about the best chicken broths, check out this Chowhound discussion. Add some broth to a bowl and heat it up in the microwave. When it's hot, take it out and add the spinach or arugula - it should wilt instantly. Top with a small amount of the shredded parmesan and you've got an incredibly satisfying and healthy snack. If you want to make it a lunch, add more shredded cheese to two healthy grain crackers. Pop them in the microwave and melt the cheese. The soup and cheesy crackers will be satisfying and healthy.

There are lots of variations to snacking with these simple ingredients. You've probably got many of your own ideas. As we were finishing up our walk/talk, my friend and I both commented that we worry so much these days about the food we eat, we neglect to include that huge portion of the day when we're working. We'll eat candy from candy bowls when we wouldn't otherwise, or settle for a processed ultra sweetened "healthy" granola bar. If you're like many people and work 10 to 12 hours a day, you can decide to bring your healthy eating habits into the office. There's no doubt that a well nourished, rested employee is more productive.

 

 

 

Thanks for the Giving

 Thanksgiving is one of those holidays that you grow to love more as you experience life. Although a lot of food is involved, it's also a time to look around the table and appreciate each member sitting at it. This Thanksgiving was extra special for us. Sam had arrived safely in Taipei for his 6 month studies, Leah was home from Humboldt, our niece and nephew were with us from Los Angeles and Becky seemed to finally be kicking the Mono (as in Nucleosis) that had beaten her down for over a month. 

Our table consisted of 14 people. Just two were not immediate family - Laurie and Dan. Laurie had been with us for Thanksgiving a few times, but this was the first time that Dan joined us. Dan has a PhD in Organic Chemistry and is a scientist at Gilead. He spent a lot of time talking to Becky at dinner and offered to help her with her backlog in Physics and Algebra. She came home from her first day back at school yesterday overwhelmed with the amount of work that she had missed (Junior year of high school) and said that she would indeed need to take Dan up on his offer. I told her to contact him, but to be aware that he had an important job and might not be able to come over this week. 

Dan is sitting at our table tonight (one day later) talking about acceleration and friction with Becky. This is after a 10 hour work day and the only payment he'll take is the knowledge that he helped Becky catch up with her studies. It is truly wonderful to hear them talking and I know back there in West Virginia where Dan grew up, there was someone special in his life raising him to be a good man.

I am constantly impressed by the goodness in the people that I meet and know that many Dans are working tonight helping others without any expectations in return. And, as an older "early adopter" of social communication products, I'm glad that I have the ability to let you know about this little slice of life. Let me know if you have a story to tell.

OKAY NOW FOR THE BIG DEALS I GOT TODAY WHILE HANGING OUT ON THE PENINSULA:

Fleur de sel Caramels from Trader Jacques (for those of you who need a translation - caramels with salt from Trader Joe's) -- $6.99 (really taste good - up front at the Hillsdale TJs)

Really beautiful boxed soaps from France and Italy at Tuesday Morning in San Mateo for $7.99 - I think they'll go fast. At the front of the San Mateo store just to the left of the cashier.

 

Stale Bread

I've been thinking about writing about stale bread for a while, but not until it was validated that this is a true culinary topic by an article in the food section of a newspaper I was reading (how quaint!) did I have the nerve to share my stale bread stories.

I don't really like bread, but I know that you need to have a loaf of it around when you serve certain dishes. Like pasta. That has always confused me because I'm feeling like really, isn't one huge serving of carbs enough here? But anyway, I'll get a fresh baguette, slice it up and then a large portion of it will not get eaten so I have stale bread lying around that no one will eat. I know you can make bread pudding, but usually, I would let it sit around for a few days and then throw it away.

Until I watched Rachel Ray make a soup that needed stale bread in it. If I didn't have stale bread, I'd put the sliced baguette in the oven and bake it until it was hard and throw it in the soup. Then I started toasting the baguette with olive oil on it. And after that added shredded parmesan cheese on it as it toasted. Finally I started topping the toasted bread slices with fresh herbs. I had essentially created a crouton or a great piece of toast ready for a tapenade or bruschetta. When I don't need croutons, I put the stale bread in the food processor and create bread crumbs. I haven't thrown out a baguette remnant in a couple of years. Or purchased bread crumbs. Trust me on this one.

From Shattered Glass and Lost Delights Comes a Spotless Kitchen

This post reminds me that I need a June Cleaver category. Because I just had an experience where I ended up feeling a lot like June. Except for the shirtwaist dress and the pearls. And the perfect makeup.

This afternoon I decided to bake a package of brownies that I found in our pantry. They were a good brand, with real fudge icing to spread on them while they were still warm. They looked and smelled great and I put them off to the side of the counter to serve as dessert tonight. Good June Cleaver moment.

A few hours later, my daughter was in the kitchen getting a glass bowl from a high cabinet. I heard something drop on the granite counter and then the sickening sound of glass shattering everywhere. I walked in the kitchen and saw first that many shards of glass had embedded themselves in the brownies that had been cooling right under the cabinet. Then I looked around and saw that small pieces of glass were everywhere in sight. The brownies were thrown out, along with a pot of soup that had been sitting on the stove without a lid. I didn't know if glass had gotten into it, but wasn't going to take chances. After I freaked out (not very June Cleaver-like), I decided to use this opportunity to teach my daughter how to be very thorough when cleaning up glass that had broken around food. We got out the hand broom and the dust pan after picking up all the big pieces of glass and throwing them out. We swept up any other pieces that were left on the counter and then the vacuum with a crevice tool came out of the closet. While I carefully sucked up every last tiny shard that was in that area of the kitchen, I began to calm down and decided to use the crevice tool to clean all corners of the kitchen, including all the drawers and shelves of the pantry. Now we're talking June Cleaver. Meanwhile, my daughter slid out of the kitchen quietly - happy that a Mom meldown had been avoided.

Soon I was noticing spots on the kitchen floor and got down on my knees and scrubbed them off. And hey, what about these cool granite counter wipes that I bought 10 years ago and had never used? I carefully wiped down all the counters until they gleamed. Note to self - buy more granite counter wipes in case glass breaks and I get the urge again. My my, the white cabinets sure needed scrubbing. And you couldn't forget the inside of the refrigerator. Before I knew it, the kitchen was spotless and we were sitting down to tuna melts and no brownies at 9:50 pm.

What an accomplishment! June would have been proud.

Judy's Soup

Note from Judy - it is so rare that I get credited for any positive culinary experience, I'm basking in this - even though I can't remember giving such detailed directions....

Way back when my kids were small, and getting good food on the table fast was a high priority, Judy gave me a great soup recipe. It became a staple at our family dinners, then -- as the girls grew up -- I made less and less of it. Finally, I stopped making it altogether, the recipe receding to the far reaches of the memory bank.

In November, Judy, Jay and Bill and I were having dinner, and for some reason -- after a round of champagne and caviar, followed by an elegant wine-soaked dinner, all in celebration of Bill's birthday -- I remembered the long-forgotten soup. The recipe again, Judy? 

Container of chicken stock. Some version of stuffed pasta. A bag of fresh spinach. Boil and serve.

Before there was a Whole Foods, the ingredients were available at any grocery store. With the advent of Whole Paycheck, the easiest of soups can now go way, way upscale. The container of chicken stock? Now free-range. And the stuffed pasta? In the frozen food aisle is an amazingly good product: O'Hana House Bite Size Won Tons, a mini potsticker made in California. For the purposes of the soup, I recommend the chicken and cilantro, made with organic chicken, in the purple bag.

Feeds two, with one portion left over.

Making Thanksgiving Dinner

I If you want to get a head start on Thanksgiving, make your cranberry sauce on Monday. Just refrigerate it until Thursday. Follow the directions on the package. I don't add as much sugar (we like ours more tart) and sometimes need to add a little more as it is simmering (use the fine baker's sugar if you're going to add more later). I add mulling spices in a tea strainer to the water as it boils. Then I chop up an orange and cook it with the cranberries. Also, I simmer  them longer than the recipe on the bag indicates for a thicker consistency. A couple of times I've used apple cider instead of water. Here's a good recipe for cranberry sauce with port. 

They're also very beautiful served in a white bowl with a bit of green herb (basil or italian parsley) for garnish.

Yellow Cake Mix and Me

I love recipes on the internet. You can do a search and find about 600 different recipes for the same dish. That's how I found out that you can do almost anything with a yellow cake mix. I am certain that you can probably even use it to make stucco walls.

A couple of days ago, I decided to make a cake for our family. We really like spice cake with caramel icing, but when I got to the grocery store, they were out of the spice cake mix. So I bought yellow cake mix and was sure that there was a way to doctor it up for a spice cake. Although I had to make up a portion of the recipe, I was successful with the following:

Start with a yellow cake mix and follow the directions, replacing the water with applesauce. I used Betty Crocker's Super Moist Yellow Cake Mix and replaced the water with 16 oz. of unsweetened applesauce. The recipe also called for three eggs and 1/3 cup vegetable oil. Then I went into my spice drawer and pulled out all the spices I owned that I thought might be good in a cake (this was my original idea). I sprinkled cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice and ginger into the batter. I mixed the batter as usual and followed the directions for baking that's on the box.

This post has made me realize that I will probably never write a cook book. You have to be very exact with your measurements and descriptions. I'll leave you to choose from the 600 recipes for caramel icing if you want to frost your doctored up yellow spice cake.

Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store Cafe

I can't figure out if I like North Beach in San Francisco better on a rainy February Sunday, a busy Saturday night or on a sunny Labor Day weekend. Through the years, I've spent a lot of time in the 'hood and I love it for all that it is at any time. The other day, after a steep walk down the steps from  Coit Tower, I entered Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store Cafe for the first time. I bring back two memories from the visit, and they're both great ones. First of all, they have a variety of focaccia sandwiches and they offer a half sandwich for $5.50. Second, they have both the smallest and one of the cleanest bathrooms that I've ever experienced in San Francisco. Service is slow, but the meatball sandwich was excellent. When we entered at about 11:30 am, there were many tables. By the time we left, a hungry family of four was standing in the doorway ready to pounce on our corner table. Mario's is just off Washington Square Park at the corner of Columbus and Union.

Kentucky Sweet Tea

All family gatherings when I was growing up in Kentucky included "sweet tea." Really, it's just iced tea with sugar in it, but it's always called sweet tea, as in "Would you like some sweet tea?" I haven't thought too much about sweet tea for many years, but this summer, on our annual visit, I set out on a quest for the perfect sweet tea. I couldn't find one on any menu except for McDonald's and it tasted like sugar water. Yuk. It's not as if you can just order regular iced tea and put a couple of packets of sugar in it. Real sweet tea is made by brewing the teabags and sugar together, making sort of a tea syrup that you add to a pitcher of water and serve in glasses filled with ice. Also, fewer people make it any longer, because many of their guests don't want sweetened tea for health or dietary reasons. Finally, on our last day, I was invited to visit my Aunt Joan for tea. She asked if it would be all right if we drank sweet tea because she had just made some. It was perfect, not too sweet and it really took me back. Yesterday, I made a pitcher of sun tea and added a small amount of baker's sugar (it dissolves really well) to the pitcher as the tea was brewing in the sun. The result was a great mix of culture - Kentucky sweet tea made with Chinese green tea bags brewed using the old Arizona sun tea recipe.

Treasures From The Freezer

Every once in a while, if I can't figure out what to make for dinner, I'll go to the freezer in the garage and try to find something edible. Today, covered in frost, was a box of creamed spinach. With artificial cream flavor. You boil the pouch. All for your dining delight!