Boots McBlog

Santa Claus is coming to town and along with him come all the holiday goodies and sweet indulgences.  If we don’t watch out, it is easy to end this season looking like the chubby red suited man.

I was asked to share tips on staying healthy and fit through the holidays.    Below are the notes and video from my visit to KTHV’s C-block on yesterday’s noon production.

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A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine discovered surprisingly, the average holiday weight gain is one pound.   One pound may not seem like much, but this one pound is the one pound we typically keep with us all the year through.  The cycle repeats each year, until 10 years later, we are rocking round the tree ten pounds heavier.

Believe it or not, we can glean some helpful hints from Jolly St Nick himself to keep our weight down and our health in check during this season.

Making a List & Checking It Twice:

In a study by Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, over 2000 dieters were encouraged to record their meals and snacks.   The study found the single best predictor a participant’s weight loss was whether the person kept a food journal.  The number of pounds a person lost was directly related to the number of days they logged their food intake.

Today, thanks to technology, a food journal is just an app away.

Lose It

http://www.loseit.com/

This app allows the user to set goals,  view calorie budgets,  record food and exercise, and  in addition to its extensive food library is equipped with a UPC scanner to drop in nutritional information from a packaged product.

Sparks Diet and Food Tracker App

http://www.sparkpeople.com/

The medical community rates this the highest in diet apps.  It is versatile across platforms from web, to iPad, to iPhone.  The app provides food and exercise tracking capabilities.  In addition, Sparks offers a free weight loss plan that can be implemented for all those new year’s resolutions.

My Fitness Pal –

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/

From an informal twitter and facebook survey, I found most of my friends and colleagues prefer the My Fitness Pal app.   The app is available for iphone, android, blackberry, and allows web based access.  The app touts having the largest food database.

Calorie Count App

http://caloriecount.about.com/

Like the aforementioned apps, this one has an extensive database, community support options, and provides a web based option and iPhone app.   For those who cook and eat at home, this is the ideal option for calculating calories in favorite homemade dishes.    The iPhone app also has an option for voice recording, hands free option for recording intake.

 

 

Find out who is naughty and nice

Opt to be the coworker or party guest who brings the “nice” foods.   Fresh veggies with a low fat dip can be full of fiber, low in calories and help to reduce plate space that could be taken by higher fat foods.  Enjoy noshing with friends without the caloric guilt.

For dip,   mix 1 – 16 oz carton of lowfat sour cream with 1 envelope package of dry ranch dressing seasoning mix.   Chill.  Arrange broccoli on a platter in the flat triangle shape of a Christmas tree.  Top with grape tomato ornaments, and yellow pepper strips for ribbons for a festive look.

 

He sees you when you’re sleeping….

One of the best gifts you can give your waistline and your overall health is a good night’s sleep.

In a study of over  1000 participants, those who slept less than 8 hours per night had undesirable levels of appetite related hormones and increased body fat.

Hormones leptin increased and grehlin decreased which causes an overall increase in appetite.    In addition to the decreased satiety, tired people often reach for high calorie, sweet foods and high carbohydrate containing foods for quick energy.    Those who are well rested have more energy and less desire for high calorie foods.   Eight hours of good quality sleep not only makes you feel great,  it can make you look great too.

To wrap it all up…

Keep a list, check it twice.  Choose nice foods.  Get some sleep.

These small steps will help you remain “good” this holiday season for your health’s and goodness sake.

 

 

 

Cheers, Y’all!

xxoo,

boots

 

 

 

No more burgers?   No more McClard’s BBQ?    That’s just so….so…. well, it’s  just so un -Arkansan.  Well,  it was so  un-Arkansan until President Clinton announced his change to a Vegan diet.   In the last few years,  President Clinton who has had a history of heart disease has reduced the damage to his heart and circulatory system  and dropped 26 pounds by following a strict plant based diet.  When the former first omnivore goes Vegan,  it becomes a news worthy event.   I was thrilled to be asked to weigh in on the discussion with Craig and Liz on our local CBS affiliate KTHV

 

Hit that line!  Hit that line.  Keep on going…

straight to the kitchen.   These cookies are a simple and delicious way to kick off another season of tasty tailgates.  (*8 more days – but who’s counting?)   I came across a lemon cookie recipe that jogged my memory  of another lemon cookie treat my mother served when I was growing up.    I could recall the recipe was super easy.  Cake mix + cool whip + an egg + powdered sugar.  Seriously – that easy.

That got me thinking.    What if I gave the recipe a whirl with RED VELVET cake mix.   Woo Hoo!   Let me tell you these are delicious and will add the perfect Razorback red to your football fare.

WOO PIG Cookies

1 box of  Red Velvet Cake Mix *

1 8 oz container of cool whip

1 egg

2 cups Powdered Sugar

 

In mixer combine dry cake mix, cool whip, and one egg.  Stir until well mixed.  The batter will be very sticky.**    In a separate bowl pour powdered sugar.

Drop dough by teaspoonful into  powdered sugar and roll into a ball.

Take that ball down the field.  Give a cheer.  Rah! Rah!

(oops! sorry , getting a little excited)

Place the dough ball on cookie sheet.   Leave adequate space between cookies as these will flatten out while baking.    Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.     Let cool on pan 10-15 minutes and then transfer to wire rack for further cooling.

Store in air tight container.  ***

 

*Note 1:  Feel free to try this recipe with different cake mix flavors – lemon, strawberry, devil’s food, funfetti.  Heck,  Tennessee and Texas fans could even rock orange cake mix cookies at their tailgates.  The red velvet ones will taste and look better.  – Just saying

**Note 2 :   The batter is very very sticky until you roll it in the powdered sugar.    I tell you this because,  if you are like me and not the neatest of cooks,  these are quite simple to whip together, but they can cause quite a mess.   So much so,   I was inspired to tweet this while testing the recipe:

***Note 3:  If you want to take these up a notch.   Pipe 2-3 teapsoons of canned cream cheese frosting between two cookies to make a sandwich.  Voila,  it’s a Woopie Pie….or better yet,  a WOO PIG pie.

 

Alright, Hog Fans,   you’ve got a week to get those tailgate menus planned.   On your toes.  To the finish.     Here’s to good eating and a winning season.

 

Woo PIG SOOOOOIE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

(In my best Ricky Ricardo accent)  Blog-gy, I’m home!

I had lunch with a friend the other day who questioned my absence from the blog.  She mostly was inquiring what’s been cooking – literally.

That got me thinking, what have I been cooking?   I’m one of those types who takes pictures of everything with my iPhone.  (Feel free to follow my feed on insta.gram)   So I decided to take a spin through my trusty picture gallery to view my epicurian adventures this summer.  As I did, I  was reminded of a few new dishes,  as well as old favorites that I should and will share with you over the next few days.   These are my favorite kind of recipes.  The kind which sound difficult but in reality are quick, easy, and full of flavor.

Without further hullaballoo  -  let me introduce you to my little cuban (southern) friend.

“The Cuban” sandwich originated as a pressed ham and cheese on cuban bread and was a  favorite of  cigar  factory workers.   In the late 1800′s , early 1900′s The expatriates brought it to Miami where they served  it as a mix of cheese, roasted pork,  ham, pickles, and sweet mustard on  bread.   The sandwich is heated on a press called a plancha which is a panini maker without the grate marks ( i.e.  using griddle plates).   By the 1960′s, it was a regular on Miami menus and recently touted as one of the 15 essential sandwiches.   (Thank you, wikipedia for these fun facts)

The McCottage version of this toast of Havana originated   oh – about two weeks ago when I had leftover grilled pork tenderloin  I didn’t want to waste.    ( BONUS:  I’ll share with you our favorite way to prepare Grilled Pork Tenderloin.  If you have leftover tenderloin screaming to be used – you can skip down a few steps.)  As I learned from my sweet Mam-ma,  sometimes you just have to put together what you got and see what happens.   And wow, did we like what happened.  The fig preserves are a staple in these parts and give the sandwich it’s southern flair.

I have to say both The Angler and I agreed  this is one of the tastiest panini’s we’ve created to date.

 

 

 

Start with —

Pork Tenderloin 2-3 pounds

1 cup chili powder

1 cup granulated white sugar.

Mix chili powder and granulated in zip lock bag.  Add raw tenderloin and coat the meat with the spice mixture.   Set in fridge and let it marinate for at least 30 minutes.   Bring to room temp before grilling.    At this point I turn it over to The Angler.  The grills are his domain.    Here’s what I know.   He throws the tenderloin on his Little Rock made PK (charcoal) Grill.    He brings it into me when the internal temp of the meat has reached between 155 -165 degrees.

At this point,  I let  the meat rest 10-15 minutes before cutting   I then slice half of the tenderloin and serve with a spinach orange salad, and couscous.    The other half of the tenderloin,  I am now saving for the goodness that follows.

 

The McCottage Cuban

1 small french bread loaf

8-12 oz of pork tenderloin,  sliced thin,  ( warm in microwave if using leftover tenderloin to help cheese melt easier)

2 slices of smoked gouda cheese, sliced in half to make 4 slices

4 tsp of Fig Preserves

12 Hot and Sweet Pickle slices.

To assemble the sammie,  slice the french bread into four equal parts.  Then slice the bread horizontally to make a top and bottom.   Spread 1 -2 tsp of fig preserves on the lower half of the bun.  Then layer tenderloin slices, slice of smoked gouda, and 2-4 pickle slices.  Top with remaining bun.   Place on preheated panini press  on medium heat.  Cook for 5-8 minutes until bread is toasted and cheese melted.   Slice and serve.

 

This sandwich will have you doing you’re very own Ricky Ricardo impersonation.   You’ll see , “It’s so very nice. So full of spice.“

 

 

 

 

Salud, Y’all!

 

 

Ah, summertime.    The time of year I seem to enjoy cooking the most.   Perhaps, it’s the longer hours in the day,  the slower pace.   More than likely,  it is because we use the grill more often…which means I prep food and The Angler actually cooks it.   While the angler is always looking for ways to use his many grills,   I am always on the hunt for a new recipe – espeically for veggies.     With the new food guidelines (My PLATE)  released a few weeks ago ( which I adore by the way.   It looks like the method I’ve been teaching clients all these years versus that pesky pyramid),  this little recipe will make it easier to fill half your plate with garden goodness.

Eggplant is one of those daunting veggies.   It’s usually the most enticing hue.  It looks gorgeous in a bowl on your countertop.    But,  what exactly do you do with it?    I grew up  eating eggplant cut into slices  dredged in flour and fried.   While this is delicious, it is not necessarily figure friendly.    Here’s a tastier and healthier way to include this purpley goodness.

Sweet Heat Grilled Eggplant

1 eggplant

2 tablespoon honey

3 tablespoon olive oil

2-3 garlic cloves mined

1/2 tsp chipolte chili powder

3 tsp balsamic vinegar

salt

Slice eggplant into 1/4 inch slices, lengthwise.    Lay eggplant slices on a paper towel and sprinkle with salt.   Let it rest 15-20 minutes.  ( This will help to draw moisture and bitterness out of the vegetable)

Meanwhile,    mix honey, vinegar, garlic, chili powder, and olive oil in a bowl.  If you like your foods extra spicy, add up to 1 tsp of chili powder.

With a dry paper towel,  wipe salt from the eggplant.   Place eggplant slices and marinade in a ziplock bag to help coat the slices.

On a heated grill,  brush/ rub the grates with olive oil.   Place the  marinated eggplant on the grill for 4-6 minutes per side.   Remove from grill and serve.

Serves 2-4 as side dish.

 

Another EGGcellent way to serve this dish is as a meatless meal.   Pair the eggplant slices with goat cheese on ciabatta bread.   Using your panini maker or sandwich press, heat until the cheese is all melty and yummy.

This is a seriously to die for sammie or  serve the slices next to a great steak and salad.

Bon Appetit, Y’all!