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1. A New Year and a New Me? Ok, I Say That Every Year.

I get in line at some restaurant on Friday along with 300 other people. I tell myself that waiting is just rediculous because I could have cooked a meal and eaten it long before I see anything that resembles a table in the non-smoking section. And this last Friday night....even though the pizza was great, I still washed it down with a beer and didn't bother to even justify the entire experience by ordering a salad. Why do I do this to myself? Because it tastes great to me and I'm lazier than heck when Friday night comes along. I have a friend that has described me well....I'm a carbo junkie!

I tell myself how busy my life is. I work all day, come home tired at night, and leave the weekends to clean house and work in a little fun. I find it amazing that I can be so organized at work, take the time to plan ahead and not use that very same skill to make my homelife easier to live. I have known for years that organizing at work saves me time and aggravation. You would think that I would take the time to plan a menu for the week.

So, why? I'll tell you why! All that stuff that I'm not suppose to be eating tastes good! My friend says I'm a carbo junkie and my mother says I was born with a sweet-tooth. The junkie part is true, but the sweet-tooth part isn't. I developed that little item all by myself. I can't blame the local Shop Rite for putting those candy bars at the check-out counter....that's just good business. It's really my fault that I have re-discovered the Zero Bar from my youth. Not theirs.

I also know that living on carrot sticks isn't going to do it. Neither are any of those diets....high protein, cabbage soup, the one gallon of ice cream a day, cut out all the fat, count the calories, etc., etc., etc.

I've also realized something else. The ten minutes in the day, right after I get home from work, is the most dangerous time of the day. I'm just a little hiper! Look in the frig., grab anything, hand in the cookie jar, grab a soda, pick at the left over pasta from a local restaurant and when worse come to worse....it's to the pickle or olive jar. Then top it off with what's left in the bag of pretzels. No one in their right minds would mix these foods at any other time of the day! I tell myself that I'm a well educated person......I know better, but I do it anyway.

So here are the top ten hints for getting into healthy shape.

1. Purchase prepared fresh fruit and all ready clean greens. They might cost you a little more now, but you will actually eat this stuff instead of throwing it out because you are too lazy to clean it.
2. Walk around the block every night.
3. Write a menu for the week and take it shopping with you.
4. Walk around the block every night.
5. Make sure you check all of your supplies before you go shopping. This will save you money.
6. Walk around the block every night.
7. Don't purchase anything that isn't on your list unless it's on sale for a future menu.
8. Walk around the block every night.
9. Cut down on the white food: pasta, rice, white bread, dairy. I didn't say don't eat it.....just cut down on it.
10. Walk around the block every night.

If you can look yourself in a mirror and call yourself an idot without crying, you have a pretty good confidence level. That means you might be able to take a look at the following link and give yourself a little pep-talk and a bit of education to go along with it.

When you have finished there, here is a link for broth soups to help you along. After all, you are going to cook anyway...try these recipes from our buddy Pat at SoupSong.com.

And the ones that are a little on the creamy side, try the recipe in section three of our newsletter to get you through it.

One of the best Soup Newsletters Written

Great Recipes from Hope at www.cooksrecipes.com

I have a sister-in-law that refers to it as turning into a "hoover". She is correct! You're not alone. More of us skip meals or eat on the run and nighttime beingeing is one of the most satisfying ways to end the day.

So what triggers refrigerator-raiding? During the day, you're busy and more able to ignore the raging dips in your blood sugar when you skip a meal or eat too lightly. But by nightime, not only is your body demanding to be refueled, you're less able to turn away from it. If you drink a lot of coffee during the day, you inhance the problem. Caffeine cause your insulin levels to rise, thus increasing your need to feed.

Nutritionists suggest eating a little something every three to four hours during the day to keep your blook sugar levels steady and help stave off cravings later on.

Beyond the strictly physical reasons, night-eating is an unconscious way to deal with stress. Ever wonder why you turn to "soft" foods like ice cream or pasta at night? These foods provide high levels of comfort and serotonin, a calming effect. Think of it as dietary Prozac. A better way to cope is to plan some after-work exercise and/or massage sessions which produce equally soothing body chemicals, like endorphins.

Here are a couple of places to go to get more information on fad diets and some help with sticking to a healthy life style.

Fad Diet Info

Stay on your diet tips

3. Fat Free Cream Soup Mix.

I'm like most of the world. I like cream soups! The creamier the better! You know what it's like....the more cream or cheese, the better. Granted, the following isn't exactly in the same league as a heavy cream finish; however, I have found it to be a great substitute for when I want a creamier soup. We need to thank Sandy in Alaska for this one.

Fat Free Soup Mix
2 cups powdered skim milk
3/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup or less vegetable base
2 T. dried onion flakes
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. thyme leaves
1/2 tsp. pepper
Directions: Combine all ingredients, mixing well. Store in airtight container until ready to use. To substitute for one can of condensed soup, combine 1/3 cup of dry mix with 1 1/4 cups cold water in a saucepan. Cook and stir until thickened. Add to your casserole as you would canned products. You vary these by adding mushrooms, or minced celery, etc., 1/3 C. mix has 93 calories, 0.1 g. fat., 0.1 g fiber. Makes 1 C soup.

This is a great item to use when you absolutely have to have gravy on something. I've learned to live with just putting a little stock over my chicken, turkey or mashed potatoes.

When Gravy is a must:

Chicken Gravy/Sauce

1/4 cup cold water
1/4 tsp. Chicken Base
1/3 cup fat free soup mix
1 T. powdered butter buds or substitute (optional)
1 cup fat free evaporated milk

Combine water and chicken base in small saucepan with whisk. Stir in soup mix and powdered butter and evaporated milk. Cook, stirring, over medium heat until thickened. Makes 1 cup gravy/sauce. The entire cup has 293 calories, o.1 g fat, o.1 g. fiber.

Directions: Combine the ingredients, adding the cornstarch last. Bring to a boil, stirring. Add to your stir fry. Enjoy

A couple of little sites to help you put together some simple meals.

Simple Meals-Food List

4. The Triglycerides Rule.
Triglycerides are the chemical form in which most fat exists in food as well as in the body. They're also present in blood plasma and, in association with cholesterol, form the plasma lipids.

Triglycerides in plasma are derived from fats eaten in foods or made in the body from other energy sources like carbohydrates. Calories ingested in a meal and not used immediately by tissues are converted to triglycerides and transported to fat cells to be stored. Hormones regulate the release of triglycerides from fat tissue so they meet the body's needs for energy between meals.

Excess triglycerides in plasma is called hypertriglyceridemia. It's linked to the occurrence of coronary artery disease in some people. Elevated triglycerides may be a consequence of other disease, such as untreated diabetes mellitus. Like cholesterol, increases in triglyceride levels can be detected by plasma measurements. These measurements should be made after an overnight food and alcohol fast.

The National Cholesterol Education Program guidelines for triglycerides are:

Normal Less than 150 mg/dL
Borderline-high 150 to 199 mg/dL
High 200 to 499 mg/dL
Very high 500 mg/dL or higher

These are based on fasting plasma triglyceride levels. AHA Recommendation -- Dietary treatment goals Changes in lifestyle habits are the main therapy for hypertriglyceridemia.

These are the changes you need to make:

If you're overweight, cut down on calories to reach your ideal body weight. This includes all sources of calories, from fats, proteins, carbohydrates and alcohol. Reduce the saturated fat and cholesterol content of your diet.

Reduce your intake of alcohol considerably. Even small amounts of alcohol can lead to large changes in plasma triglyceride levels.

Be physically active for 30 minutes on most days each week.

People with high triglycerides may need to substitute monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats such as canola oil, olive oil or liquid margarine instead of carbohydrates for saturated fats.

Carbohydrates raise triglyceride levels and decrease HDL ("good") cholesterol. Substitute fish high in omega-3 fatty acids instead of meats that are high in saturated fat like hamburger. Fatty fish like mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon are high in omega-3 fatty acids.

Because other risk factors for coronary artery disease multiply the hazard from hyperlipidemia, control high blood pressure and avoid cigarette smoking. If drugs are used to treat hypertriglyceridemia, dietary management is still important.

Patients should follow the specific plans laid out by their physicians and nutritionists.

Diet Help

5. Market Watch...Going Shopping?
Dairy:
Inventories are slightly smaller due to depletion from the high holiday demand. Demand for butter and cheese products will be less for the next month so prices should remain reasonable and steady.

Seafood: Fresh:
Prices should remain steady on local fish (cod,haddock,pollack,flounder). Luckily there weren't large price increases caused by holiday demand. Supplies were ample enough to keep prices in check. If predicted winter storms hit the northeast coast prices may spike a bit early in the week. The next period for large seafood demand isn't until Valentine's Day/President's Day weekend in February. Halibut is out of season until April. Prices are good on clams. Plentiful supplies and nice quality clams from Long Island.

Seafood: Frozen:
Iceland Seafood Co. has announced a price increase on their line of products. Prices will rise in a few weeks. Iceland Seafood Co. attributes this price increase to the rising cost of fuel and freight costs. Supplies of shrimp and lobster tails are still plentiful!

Meats:
Beef:
The beef market is beginning to go back to normal after 2 weeks of short kills and unsual demand. Historically rib meat prices drop after the holidays and this year is no exception. Prices have fallen substantually; in fact the bottom is probably very close. Tenderloins prices have also dropped. Choice strips are steady to lower while no-roll/select are steady to higher. Round cuts and grinds are holding at relatively high prices.

Pork Loin prices are down slightly and ham prices are up.

Chicken Wing prices have continued to trend higher, however they are going up at small increments. Breast prices are steady.

Lamb Domestic lamb market is still very high.

Veal Top round prices have bottomed out and producers are asking for higher prices. All other cuts are steady.

Produce:
Pears: Good supply of green anjous from Washington State still available. Sizes continue to be heavy to large and sugar content is good. Prices are reasonable.

Broccoli: Prices are slightly higher and demand is high. Cooler weather in California has slowed growth rates. Lighter supplies are expected to be lighter for the coming week.

Carrots: Market is steady and no price increases are expected.

Cauliflower: Light volume and increased demand are the two factors that have contributed to keeping prices unstable. Market prices has been rollercoasting and are expected to continue due to cold mornings in the desert growing areas.

Lettuce: Prices will continue to be high due to cold weather in the California growing regions. Freezing temperatures during night hours have caused smaller, lighter and discolored heads.

Potatoes: Prices are steady for now; however, growers are having shipping problems and this could lead to higher prices.

Bananas: Nice quality coming in from Costa Rica and Honduras. Nice size bunches, firm fruit so expect prices to remain steady.

Sprouts: Both alfalpha and bean sprouts are grown in PA hot-houses. Therefore, supplies are plentiful and prices good.