Day 9: One Germ I Love

Every day my kids come home from school starving. My son makes a beeline for the pantry as soon as he walks in the door and he will inevitably find the one unhealthy food in the house. I’ve had to come up with a plan to have a healthy snack, that is both nutritious and delicious, sitting at the table for him when he gets home. When I read about the health benefits of wheat germ, I decided that I needed to find a way to sneak this little gem into our diet and our afterschool snack was the perfect vehicle.

First, to understand wheat germ, you should know about the components of whole grain. The husk is the outer layer of the grain that gets thrown away, while the bran is the main source of fiber. The endosperm is the main component of the whole grain and contains protein and starch and is basically the only part used in refined grain products. Finally, the smallest part of the grain, the germ, is rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber. Did you know that while the germ is the nutritional powerhouse of the whole grain, it only makes up 3% of the kernel? The germ has a generous serving of vitamin E, zinc, iron, fiber, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, thiamin, folate, vitamin B6, manganese and selenium. A mere ¼ cup of wheat germ has 104 calories, 6 grams of protein, 2 grams fat and 4 grams of fiber!

“Wonderful” you say, but how to I eat this “germ”? You can sneak wheat germ into any of your baked goods by replacing half of the flour with this nutritious substitute. You can also sprinkle it on yogurt, add it to meatballs, and mix in with your protein shakes.

 I have two favorite recipes that I want to share with you that my kids and I love for an afterschool snack. These treats are also perfect for enjoying after a workout because they provide a balanced combination of protein, carbs and fat. The balance of nutrients is exactly what your body needs to repair your muscles after a workout and give your kids the energy they need to power through their homework and keep their hunger at bay until dinner.

My personal favorite what germ recipe is my banana, honey and wheat germ snack. I think that kids love this so much because they love to dip foods. Cut one banana and serve on a plate with a tablespoon of raw honey and ¼ cup of wheat germ. We  dip each slice of banana in the honey first and then the wheat germ. Delicious!

Another great snack requires a little more preparation, but is well worth it. 

Power Energy Balls

Ingredients

• 2 cups peanut butter
• 1 cup wheat germ
• 1 cup dry milk powder
• 1 cup honey
• 1/2 cup flaked coconut

Instructions

In a medium bowl, stir together the peanut butter, wheat germ, dry milk, and honey, until smooth. Roll into walnut sized balls and roll the balls in the coconut. They’re ready!

107 calories, 6 g fat, 1 gram fiber, 4.2 grams protein

 Try out these recipes and let me know if you and your kids enjoy them!

Day 8 – I have a confession

I have a confession. I made something today for the pure sake of trying to blog about a healthy food that I don’t like. C’mon, we are on day eight and so far I have liked every healthy food that I’ve tried. I want to give you guys the dirt. I want to offer an open, honest confession of the good, bad and ugly when it comes to healthy foods. I used to not like spinach, but as I’ve grown older I’ve learned to like fresh baby spinach in a salad, in a turkey wrap and in chicken florentine. But I didn’t want to go the easy route and blog about a nice spinach salad that I would eat any day of the week. I went out of my way to make something healthy with spinach that I wouldn’t like…..just for the sake of blogging about my ordeal. But, I failed.

I made a spinach protein smoothie. See! You are gagging at the sound of that too! I found the recipe in my FAVORITE magazine, Oxygen. The recipe was a quadruple whammy with four of the five ingredients making the top 150 healthiest foods on earth: spinach, whey protein powder, kiwi and raw milk (still trying to finish that $7.00 gallon of milk). Oxygen calls this the “Fat Flusher Lean Green Shake” and promises that it will flush your system. I would typically NEVER make this type of shake, but I did it for you, my fellow bloggers!

I mixed it all up for my lunch this afternoon as my daughter ate her chicken soup and exclaimed, “Wow, your drink is green Mommy! Can you make me a pink one?” I tentatively took a sip, and what do you know…..I freakin’ liked it. I was shocked. I could not even taste the spinach at all and it tasted like an ice cream shake. I felt like I was drinking dessert for lunch. I’m not kidding you. I mean I only drank this thing so I could finally post about a food I don’t like and I surprised myself. Don’t worry though, I have to try sardines soon and I’m sure I will have a disgusted post on that day.

Do me a favor, try this recipe and let me know what you think. 

Fat Flusher Lean Green Shake

2 cups baby spinach
1 ripe kiwi, peeled and quartered
1 cup raw milk
1 scoop vanilla or plain whey protein powder
1 teaspoon vanilla 
Lots of ice

Blend all together, serve immediately.

226 calories, 1 g fat, 4 g fiber, 27 g protein

Even though this shake has four superfoods, today’s post is focused on the star of the shake: spinach. 

Calorie for calorie, spinach provides more nutrients than almost any other food on the planet. Spinach is loaded with vitamin K, which is critical for building strong bones. Spinach is loaded with calcium, vitamin A, manganese, folic acid, magnesium, iron, vitamin C and anti-inflammatory compounds. Spinach contains flavonoids, which act as antioxidants and anticancer agents. Research shows that spinach can slow down cell division in cancer cells and even lower the risk of breast, colon and prostate cancer.  Spinach can also help protect the brain from age-related declines and stroke. If that wasn’t enough, spinach also contains lutein, which protects against eye disease and vision loss. Spinach is also extremely low in calories and makes for a great salad, side dish or even addition to your smoothie! 

This is one powerhouse food that I’m definitely adding to my regular meal rotation.