Category: Blog

By: Loren Barrera, Baptist Dietetic Intern

Reviewed by Katy Bowen, RD, CHEF

Edited by Andi Champion, CHEF

Engaging in regular physical activity is an important step in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. It can help increase your energy levels, make you feel happier, reduce your risk of chronic disease, and even help with relaxation and sleep quality. The CDC recommends that adults to get at least 150 minutes of physical activity each week and that children ages six or older get 60 minutes of physical activity each day. While that may sound like a lot of time, you can easily break down the time into smaller workouts or activities throughout the day. Check out our tips on how to exercise from home and add extra movement into your daily routine.

1. Step to it!

You can walk, jog, or bike ride around your neighborhood or apartment complex. Encourage your family to join you on these walks to make it a family event. If you have not exercised in a while, start off with short walks of 10-15 minutes and increase the time once you feel comfortable. You can even try walking at a nearby park if you want a change of scenery. Some schools allow nearby neighbors to utilize their track in the evening

2. Take the stairs.

If your house or apartment complex has stairs, you can climb the stairs up and down. This is an amazing cardio and leg workout. You will definitely feel the burn the next day

3. Try working out in your living room!

If the weather is cold, rainy, or you simply do not feel like going outside, you can always exercise inside of your home. Your home is the perfect place for simple workouts such as jumping jacks, push-ups, squats, sit-ups, or lunges. Just clear a space and start moving! If you like extra resistance, don’t feel like you need to go out and purchase fancy equipment. You can simply use your body weight or household items such as water bottles or canned goods.

4. Find online workout videos.

If you need a little more structure, you can always search for free exercise videos online or on YouTube. There are many options for yoga, cardio, Zumba, barre, weight training, and more that you can enjoy from the comfort of your own living room.

5. Get moving with household chores.

This might not be on the top of your list for exercising but, some household chores can increase your heart rate and cause you to sweat. Some examples are vacuuming, sweeping, mopping, gardening, raking leaves, or mowing the lawn. Not only will you check off items on your to do list, you’ll also get some exercise in!

6. Play outside with your kids.

This is an excellent way to encourage your entire family to put away the devices and bond! Ask your children to pick a sport that they enjoy such as soccer, basketball, football, or baseball. Other outdoor activities such as playing tag, hopscotch, or jumping rope are also easy ways to get your heart rate up!

Remember, exercising at home doesn’t have to be complicated. Don’t be afraid to experiment and try new workouts until you find something you enjoy.

<a href=”https://www.freepik.com/photos/kids”>Kids photo created by rawpixel.com – www.freepik.com</a>

By: Erika Johnstone

COVID-19 has affected every family across the world. With futures on hold and life-changing daily, this can be especially hard on young children and parents. Here are some helpful tips to relieve stress during a COVID-19 era.

Take a break from the news. Put the cell phone away, turn off the tv, and avoid stressful news.

Stay connected with friends and family. Keep in touch with loved ones by calling, texting, or scheduling a Zoom call.

Read a book. Check out your local public library for books, audiobooks, CDs, and DVDs.

Have a family game night. Play a board game or a fun card game with the family or check out family game night apps on your smart phone.

Find a new hobby. Try something new like painting, drawing, or baking.

Enjoy family meals. Eating meals with your children can help build strong relationships.

Reorganize your home. Take some time to clean and organize your home.

Maintain a schedule. Involve your children in making a weekly schedule. The schedule can include mealtime, school time, and more.

Stay active. Find ways to stay fit, such as walking around your neighborhood or follow a workout video from home.

Eat nutritious meals. Check out the CHEF webpage on tips and recipes for delicious healthy meals.

Erika Kertz, Baptist Dietetic Intern

Reviewed by Katy Bowen, MS, RDN, LD

Edited by Andi Champion, CHEF

A good dressing can help take a salad from boring to delicious! Homemade versions can be loaded with nutrients, heart-healthy fats, and tasty herbs to help add flavor without the extra sodium. Unfortunately, when you purchase a pre-made dressing from the store, you don’t always get the same health benefits. Like many pre-packaged foods, store-bought salad dressings can be loaded with extra sodium and hidden sugar.. Including too much sodium in your diet can lead to health issues such as high blood pressure, which is a risk factor for heart disease and stroke.

Next time you’re craving a salad, skip the pre-made version and try making your own at home. It’s much easier than you may think and you likely already have some of the ingredients in your kitchen. You can start with an acid such as apple cider vinegar, white wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, or lime juice. Then add some heart-healthy olive oil and your favorite herbs and spices. You can even add minced garlic or dijon mustard for even more flavor!

Some of our favorite salad dressings are Ranchy Dip and our Italian Dressing. Ranchy Dip is a better-for-you take on traditional Ranch dressing. It’s lower in sodium than store-bought Ranch and contains more protein and herbs for flavor. This kid-friendly dressing is also a great way to encourage your children to eat more vegetables. Just like regular Ranch dressing, Ranchy Dip  can be served as a dip with raw vegetables.

Our Italian Dressing is lighter option for a salad and packs tons of flavor. It can also double as a marinade for your favorite lean protein such as chicken or pork. Store any leftovers in a mason jar in your pantry for next time.

Now that you know how easy is it to make salad dressings at home, you can include the entire family in the process. Play around with ingredients and explore different flavor combinations. By making nutritious, wholesome dressings you can enjoy vegetables without the added sodium.

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by Katy Bowen, RDN, LD, MS, CHEF

Does making a meal in the kitchen feel a little overwhelming? Do you feel like a larger kitchen would make cooking less of a chore? Regardless of the actual size, here are some tips to get the most out of your kitchen space and make cooking more enjoyable!

Declutter your utensils. If you notice you have five whisks, but only really use two of them or three muffin tins but you never use all of them at once, try clearing that clutter out of your kitchen. Place the extras in a plastic bin to store outside of your kitchen or donate to a second-hand store.

Simplify your counter space. Move small appliances that you don’t use daily to a cabinet or other storage space to free up your countertop. This will increase your workspace so the whole family can make the meal together!

Start off on the right foot. Before you begin making a meal, do a quick clean in your kitchen. Emptying the dishwasher andsink or wiping down the counters only takes 5-10 minutes to complete, but a clean kitchen will make cooking much more enjoyable!

Clean up as you go. As you begin to chop produce, open cans of vegetables, or finish off a box of pasta, the scraps and trash can really start to add up. Try using an empty bowl to place produce scraps in as you chop orsimply move your trash can closer to your prep area. Also, as you finish using a bowl or utensil, place it in the sink to keep your countertop clear.

Get creative and include your family If prep space is limited in the kitchen, set up a cutting board at the kitchen table and ask your children to help chop ingredients. You can also make or buy a small, mobile island on wheels for extra counter space!

Organize your pantry. A cluttered pantry makes looking for ingredients a chore and can cost you extra money. When you’re cooking a recipe, sifting through a bunch of cans and boxes in the pantry is the last thing you want to be doing. If you can’t easily find ingredients, you might end up purchasing items you already have at home. Use our CHEF approved pantry guide to organize your space and make sure you have all the essentials!

Check your kitchen flow. When your whole family is in the kitchen making a meal, moving around the kitchen can be frustrating. Think about your path from the refrigerator or stove to the sink – is there anything in the way that you could move?

Are you moving into a new home or apartment soon?

When you are house or apartment hunting, you will want to look for a kitchen that works for your family. Your kitchen is one of the most important areas of your home and having a functional workspace can make all the difference. A kitchen should not only be large enough to move around in but should have the necessary features to allow you to cook with ease. If your family enjoys cooking together in the kitchen, here are some other features you may want to consider.

Nothing says ‘I love you’ like making a delicious dinner for your family, so this Valentine’s Day, skip the busy restaurant and opt for a healthy home-cooked meal! Try including the entire family in the cooking process to bond and build confidence in the kitchen. From chopping to washing produce to setting the table, there’s a job for everyone!

Working together in the kitchen is also a great way to get children excited about eating healthier and to expand their taste preferences. If they help you pick out the recipes and have a hand in preparing the meal, children may be more likely to try foods they wouldn’t normally be interested in.

We’ve put together a menu that’s kid-friendly and will be sure to steal your Valentine’s heart! Along with each recipe, we’ve added some tips on how you can include the little members of your family in the kitchen. Before you get started, make sure to highlight the importance of food safety with your children by properly washing hands before, during, and after touching raw and ready-to-eat ingredients.

The first item on our menu is Broccoli, Avocado, and Quinoa Salad. While it will serve as our side dish, it can also be an entrée if there are any vegans or vegetarians in the family. This filling yet light recipe is loaded with nutrients and fresh flavors. The combination of quinoa and pumpkin seeds makes this recipe an easy way to include more plant-based protein into your diet. The addition of avocado will give you a boost of heart-healthy fats and the broccoli adds fiber, calcium, and iron.

Tips for including your children in the cooking process:

-Show them how to wash fresh produce.

-Let them help prepare an ice bath for blanching.

-Teach them how to properly measure ingredients.

-Allow them to mix the ingredients.

-Use a mason jar when mixing the dressing. Your child will have fun shaking the jar to combine the flavors!

-If they are old enough or if you own a kid-friendly, plastic knife, teach them age-appropriate knife skills and the “claw” technique to keep fingers and hands safe. Our knife safety video is a great place to start! https://youtu.be/BL4whr85kCc

Our main dish is Italian Herb-Crusted Chicken. This protein-rich recipe relies on dried herbs rather than extra salt to add flavor the chicken. If you don’t have an Italian herb blend at home, you can make your own by combining dried herbs such as oregano, basil, parsley, thyme, or rosemary. Additionally, if anyone in your family has a dairy allergy, you can skip the parmesan cheese.

Tips for including your children in the cooking process:

-Show them how to measure out the different ingredients for the herb breading.

-Review food safety and discuss the importance of keeping raw meat separate from fresh produce. You can learn more in our food safety video: https://youtu.be/jxtm_0buR-k

-Try greasing and lining the baking sheet.

-Teach them how to clean their work area.  

-Demonstrate the safe use of an oven and stove top for baking, roasting, toasting, and sautéing.

-Practice using an oven timer.

To satisfy your sweet tooth, we’ll round off our menu with Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Bark. Desserts don’t have to be loaded with sugar to be delicious. We can make creative swaps in our recipes to decrease the amount of added sugar but maximize the flavor. Our sweet treat will use dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate, which contains more sugar. We’ll combine spices, extracts, and dried fruit to add natural sweetness to the recipe. We promise, you won’t even miss the extra sugar!

Tips for including your children in the cooking process:

-Help them understand the basic principles of reading and following an age appropriate recipe.

-Practice using a spatula to remove ingredients from a bowl.

-Show them how to safely use a grater or a micro-plane.

-Review the basic science of cooking and how common ingredients change during cooking (for example, the chocolate melts and the water begins to boil when we add heat).

-Practice hand skills and coordination of carrying, transferring, and pouring of ingredients.

Keep in mind that recipes are just guidelines. We encourage you to experiment with new flavors and make these recipes your own. You can swap out any ingredients based off your family’s taste preferences or with what you have in the kitchen. Don’t have broccoli? You can use green beans, squash, bell pepper, or any other vegetables you have on-hand. Frozen vegetables are great options too and can be just as nutritious as fresh produce. Don’t care for apricots? Use dried cranberries instead! Can’t find hazelnuts at the store? Try chopped almonds!

We hope you enjoy this Valentine’s dinner! For more healthy recipes and inspiration, check out chefsa.org/recipes.

by Andi Champion, Marketing Manager, CHEF

Forget about Valentine’s Day, we’ve got Galentine’s Day on the calendar! Galentine’s Day, which takes place on February 13th, is a day to honor and show appreciation for the friendships in your life. Strong friendships help us build confidence, give us a sense of community, and provide us with support through life’s ups and downs.

What began as a made-up holiday to celebrate female friendships on the television show, Parks and Recreation, Galentine’s Day has become a fun way for friends to get together and show each other how much they mean to each other. This celebration doesn’t have to be limited to gal pals, you can enjoy the day with any of the platonic friends in your life!

This year, celebrate safely with a socially distanced brunch or plan a Zoom call. We’ve got delicious and healthy recipes to take your menu to the next level.*Giggles and gossip not included.

We’ll start off with Banana Kale Muffins. These may look like an ordinary breakfast item, but these delicious muffins pack a nutritional punch! Instead of regular flour, this recipe combines oat flour and wheat flour, both of which contain fiber and can help you digest your meal more easily. We’ll also use a combination of spices and extracts, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla, to help naturally sweeten the recipe without the extra added sugar. The addition of kale is another thing that makes these muffins stand out. Kale is a nutrient powerhouse and is packed with vitamins and minerals such as vitamins A, C, and K, folate (a B vitamin key for brain development), zinc, and calcium. You may be nervous about adding kale to muffins but trust us, with all the other flavorful ingredients, you won’t even be able to taste it!

Next up, we’ll make a Vegetable and Cheese Frittata. This dish is full of colorful vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, tomato, and bell pepper. Did you know that each color of fruits and vegetables contains different nutrients? Green produce like the spinach and broccoli we’re using, gives us vitamins K & E, iron, and B vitamins. These nutrients help us with everything form protecting the body’s cells and tissues, to helping carry oxygen throughout our body, to even helping our body turn food into energy. Red produce, like our tomato and bell pepper, contain vitamin A which contributes to eye health and vitamin C which helps our immune system fight off infections. Eggs and cheese will round off this dish to add protein and calcium.

Frittata can be a little tricky to follow our tips to make the perfect frittata every time!

1. Make sure you use the right egg to pan ratio. Thin frittatas can quickly overcook. For a 12 inch skillet, use 12 eggs. For a 9 inch skillet, you can use 8 or 9.
2. Make sure you use an oven-friendly pan. We’ll need to put the pan in the oven to make sure the inside is fully cooked and to get the perfect golden color on top. Using a pan with plastic will cause it to melt under high temperatures.
3. Keep an eye on your frittata while it’s in the oven. We don’t want it to over cook and become dry.
4. Mix it up! Use whatever vegetables you have on hand in your frittata. Exploring new flavor combinations is part of the fun of cooking!

The last dish to round out our menu is going to be Fruit Salad. This mix and match recipe can be easily customized based off of your taste preferences and what’s in-season in your area. Simply chop up your favorite fresh fruits, add some delicious herbs such as mint or basil, and add a drizzle of honey or agave.

We hope you enjoy these recipes and celebrate the amazing friendships in your life this Galentine’s Day! For even more tasty and healthy breakfast recipes, visit chefsa.org/recipes.

Written by Pre-K 4 SA

For many families, there may be an endless struggle at the dinner table to have children eat all of their fruits and vegetables.

However, Pre-K 4 SA is trying to change the evening argument by showing young children the importance of nutrition by having them grow fruits, vegetables and herbs in their very own garden.

For many years, Pre-K 4 SA has had gardens for its classes. However, last year, a Garden to Table program created by CHEF: Culinary Health Education for Families (CHEF) was introduced into Pre-K 4 SA’s curriculum. In this program, all classrooms are assigned a garden in their outdoor learning areas. Here, they plant seeds, then water, weed, and nurture their gardens until the students see the bounty of their efforts as the fruits, herbs, and vegetables sprout.

This academic year, the CHEF program was modified to meet Pre-K 4 SA’s high-quality standards and introduced to teachers. As of October, teachers are teaching basic nutrition and practical cooking skills to encourage healthy eating routines. Additionally, CHEF is collaborating with the San Antonio Food Bank in teaching the importance of nutrition to San Antonio’s youngest learners at Pre-K 4 SA.

“Health and nutrition have become an integral part of my life and sharing what I’ve learned has become my goal,” said Julie Taylor, CHEF instructional specialist. “CHEF has allowed me to bring knowledge to young children through hands-on, meaningful activities that teach basic nutrition and practical cooking skills.

CHEF’s mission is “rooted in the belief that food is medicine.” The organization’s ultimate goal is to motivate individuals and communities to adopt and sustain healthier eating habits.

In San Antonio, CHEF is known through its collaborations with the Children’s Hospital to educate and heal patients and families. CHEF actively trains and certifies healthcare providers in culinary medicine and performs clinical research to measure the efficacy of the CHEF protocol in an acute care setting. Representatives also teach nutrition in after school programs throughout the community.

Every month, a teacher from each classroom will choose a time, day and recipe for his or her class to prepare. In small groups of 10 students, the children will create a recipe by picking their ingredients from their gardens. Classroom-grown fruits, herbs and vegetables will be washed and prepared for recipes. Ingredients not on hand will be ordered from the San Antonio Food Bank.

One of the children’s favorite recipes is “confetti corn,” which has a variety of colorful vegetables such as cooked corn kernels, poblano peppers, carrots, green onions, and cilantro. To better guide the children in understanding the recipe, they are provided a recipe with pictures to help them distinguish between the vegetables.

Once the vegetables have been washed, teachers show their students how to properly hold and use their kid-safe knives and cutting boards for the cutting process. The children begin to carefully cut, cube and dice as they prepare their ingredients for the recipe at hand.

As part of high-quality standards, throughout the 20 to 30 minutes of building a recipe, teachers encourage students to assist their families in cooking at home. Children learn more about the five food groups and the importance of balanced meals and healthy food portions.

Teachers take the time to engage with the students and discuss their experience using new utensils, different tastes and textures of each ingredient, and the combined taste of ingredients. Teachers are encouraged to use culinary terms to help students expand their knowledge of nutrition.

As part of the CHEF program, parents are encouraged to volunteer in their child’s class to assist teachers and students. The added support by parents encourages them to learn more about nutrition and see firsthand what ingredients and recipes their children enjoy.

Children begin to understand that with practice, cooking becomes more fun. Recipes are seen as guidelines for creative and delicious meals. Pre-K 4 SA is happy to fully incorporate the CHEF program to instill balanced nutrition at a young age.

The CHEF program encompasses much more than just ingredients in recipes. As part of Pre-K 4 SA and its core curricular innovations, 4-year-olds are able to refine their motor skills and develop a new vocabulary that promotes stronger health outcomes for the child’s future.

To learn more about Pre-K 4 SA, visit: https://prek4sa.com/

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By Erika Kertz, Baptist Dietetic Intern

Reviewed by Katy Bowen, RD, Director of Community Outreach, CHEF

Edited by Andi Champion, Marketing Manager, CHEF

Purchasing your produce when it’s in-season has many great benefits. In-season produce is good for the environment, contains more nutrients, and tastes better than out-of-season produce. It’s also an easy way to save money since the grocery store can sell it for less due to the increase in supply.

During the winter months in Texas, shop for broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, spinach, kale, and carrots. These hearty vegetables are perfect for soups or stews and will keep you warm in the chilly weather! Another tasty way to include more seasonal produce in your diet is with our Wholesome Whole Grain Bowl. This bowl can be easily customized based off what is in-season in your area and off of your taste preferences. Make this meal as colorful as possible by including a variety of vegetables to get the most nutrients.

If you are craving fruit during the winter, look for oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, and pomegranates at the grocery store. Citrus fruits grow and taste better during this time of year. They also contain immune system boosting vitamin C, which can be help our body ward off the common cold. A tasty way include winter fruits in your diet is with our Pomegranate Kale Salad. This filling but light salad packs tons of flavor and nutrients!

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