Whole Food

It truly surprises me how unknowledgeable most Americans are about healthy eating.  Yea, the general population knows that french fries shouldn’t be your veggie intake for the day.  But too many people think that filling their shopping cart with cereals, rice-a-roni, and pasta isn’t bad for you.  Wrong.  Processed foods are not very nutritious.  Almost every food you purchase in a box or can is processed.  Meaning the likelihood that there is added sugar, salt, or fat is very high.  Only fresh or whole foods are unprocessed.  And guess what, they still taste good.  There is a lack of education, and general perceptions are shocking.  The easiest way to fuel your body with the right types of food is to shop the perimeter of the grocery store.  Think about it – fruits, vegetables, lean meats, dairy.  Limited amounts of processed foods. 

My body doesn’t need processed foods.  But that doesn’t mean I don’t crave pasta.  My mother is 100% Italian.  I will always eat pasta!  But I have taught myself to make healthy substitutes.  One of my favorite whole grains to use is barley.  Don’t forget to check out all the other grains next to barley in the food aisle.  It’s pretty amazing how many are offered.  It has a pasta-like texture that makes a great base for ‘pasta’ salads or addition to soups.  So, below are two of my fave recipes.  I just made the soup today and it was quite the hit with my husband!

Mediterranean Barley Salad

Ingredients

• 1 cup barley
• 7 sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic
•  ½ cup cilantro, chopped
• extra olive oil, to taste

Directions

1.     Cook barley according to the package (usually it is 30 minutes).  Be sure not to overcook.  It should be tender, but slightly firm

2.     In a food processor, combine the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, and balsamic.  Puree until smooth. 

3.     Combine the barley and tomato mixture.  Add cilantro.  And add a little olive oil, if needed

4.     You can serve this warm or chilled.

Lots of Veggies Soup

Ingredients:

• ¾ lbs. ground beef
• 1 sweet onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup barley (don’t get ‘quick’ barley)
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• 1 cup of celery, chopped (with the leaves)
• ½ celery root, chopped (optional, I just had it at home, not a popular veggie)
• 28 oz whole canned tomatoes, chopped a little, undrained
• 7 cups of water (I used veggie stock that I had made)
• 2 beef bouillon cubes
• 1 tsp of dried basil
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ cup kale or spinach leaves, julienned
• 1 cup broccoli, chopped
• 1 cup snap peas, whole 

Directions

1. In a large pot, brown the ground beef.
2. Add the onion & garlic, and cook until the onion is tender.  Drain.
3. Add every other ingredient except kale/spinach, broccoli, and snap peas.
4. Bring to a boil.  Then reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour. 
5. Add kale/spinach, broccoli, and snap peas at the very end.  Simmer for 5 mins

*we like hearty soup, but if you feel it isn’t ‘soupy’ enough add more water

Enjoy!

Kristyn