Lunch Date #14: Awesome articles and recipes from the past week

Hi friends! Welcome back to another mid-week news roundup. Thanks for finding time in your busy day to catch up.

Here’s my collection of articles and recipes from the last week, from protein guidelines for kids and adults to homemade pretzel cinnamon rolls.

I hope you find this helpful!

What I’m Reading:

Food, Nutrition & Health:

• 5 Tips to Create Healthier Slow Cooker Meals – Jen Haugen for Food & Nutrition

• 10 Bogus Health Trends That Waste Your Time – Jessica Girdwain for Health

• 6 Foods That Are Totally Lying To You About Where They Come From –  Renee Jacques for Huffington Post

• Should I Drink Coconut Water? – Mandy Oaklander for Time

• In Defense of Ranch Dressing – Real Mom Nutrition

• Kids Not Eating Vegetables? Is It the Texture? – Cara Rosenbloom for Food & Nutrition

• Seasonal Produce Picks – Berkeley Wellness

• 5 Instant Ways to Be a Better Cook – The Law Student’s Wife

• Protein: How Much Do I Need to Eat? – Love and Zest

• Healthy Protein Sources for Kids – Frances Largeman-Roth for Cooking Light

Mindfulness:

• 5 Ways to Practice Mindful Eating Around the Holidays – Kara Lydon, The Foodie Dietitian

• Evidence shows grateful kids are healthier kids – Laura Saponara for Thriving Schools

Exercise:

• The Latest Ways to Walk Off Weight: 3 walking workouts to burn major calories – Fitness

• What to Eat Before and After a Workout – Kati Mora for Fitness

 

What I’m Tweeting (follow me @sweetfoodie!)

• If you think your child gets enough sleep, think again. Nearly 70% of children have a sleep problem. Source: Kids Eat Right

• For a healthier Thanksgiving, make half your plate veggie sides (not you, creamed spinach), 1/4 protein and 1/4 grain/starch

 

What I’m Salivating Over:

Breakfasts:

• Pumpkin Pie Smoothie Bowl – Kara Lydon, The Foodie Dietitian

• Ina Garten’s Blueberry Bran Muffins – The Wednesday Chef

Salads:

• Seared-Chicken Salad with Green Beans, Almonds, and Dried Cherries – Martha Stewart

• Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad Recipe – Cooking Light

• Tossed Salad Recipe Creator – Berkeley Wellness

Soups:

• Butternut Squash Soup in Pumpkin Bowls – Snack Girl

• Butternut Squash & Sweet Potato Soup – To Live and Diet in L.A.

Apps & Sides:

• Cinnamon Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Almonds – Cookin’ Canuck

• Layered Veggie Hummus Dip – Teaspoon of Spice

• Balsamic Brussels Sprouts with Maple, Walnuts, and Feta – The Law Student’s Wife

• Here’s Why You Should Never Throw Out Potato Peels – The Kitchn

Main Courses:

• Simple Caramelized Butternut Squash and Kale Florentine Lasagna – Half Baked Harvest

• Grilled Balsamic Skirt Steak – My Recipes

• Turkey-Mushroom Lasagna – Berkeley Wellness

• Caprese Fettuccine with Chicken Sausage –  Snixy Kitchen

• My Favorite Simple Roast Chicken – Thomas Keller on Epicurious <- This is outstanding

Slow Cooker:

• Crockpot Meatballs – The Lean Green Bean

Snacks:

• Homemade Chips Recipe Creator – Berkeley Wellness

• Honey Mustard Roasted Cashews – The Law Student’s Wife

• 150-Calorie Healthy Homemade Snacks – Pop Sugar Fitness

Desserts:

• Gingerbread Snacking Cake – Smitten Kitchen

• Maple Walnut Bars – Snixy Kitchen

• Hermit Bars (Chewy Molasses Cookies) – The Lemon Bowl

• Candied Orange Peels – Saveur

• Gingerbread Man Granola – Half Baked Harvest

• Pretzel Cinnamon Rolls – The Kitchn <- I. Must. Bake. These!!

Thanksgiving/Holiday:

• Sweet Potato Cornbread – Leite’s Culinaria

• Cranberry Maple Apple Crumb Cake – Healthy Seasonal Recipes

• Mini Apple Pie Tartlets with Pecan Streusel – Joyful Healthy Eats

• Bubbe’s Mushroom Challah Dressing – My Jewish Learning

• Cranberry Tart with Nut Crust – The Kitchn

• Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust – The Lemon Bowl

• Crusty European-Style Rolls – King Arthur Flour

• Thyme-Roasted Potatoes and Carrots – Enjoy Every Bite

 

All of these recipes & many MANY more on my Pinterest page. Follow me!

 

Photos From the Week:

Clockwise from Top Left:

• Inexpensive flowers from Trader Joes can really brighten up a room. I love these happy little irises, which bloomed overnight, surprising me in the morning!
• I started a new notebook the other day, and put a fun sticker I got at the Food & Nutrition Conference on the inside cover. As an avocado lover, this sticker from Hass Avocados makes me smile whenever I flip open the cover.
• Thomas Keller’s roasted chicken is the best roast chicken I’ve ever made. And the easiest. You don’t add any extra fat, no herbs or lemons stuffed inside. Just salt, a little pepper and a hot oven. In the end, you get a chicken with perfectly crisp skin hiding tender meat inside. Highly recommend. To minimize any splattering causing smoking/fire alarm noises, lay a piece of tinfoil on the top rack.
• I love stamps! USPS has great ones for food lovers right now – one with celebrity chefs and another with scenes from the farmer’s market. Yay!

Be well! I’ll see you for another mid-week lunch date next Wednesday!

Question: What’s Your Favorite Thanksgiving Dish?