Food
01:00 AM EST on Wednesday, March 3, 2004
The numbers are not good, dieticians Janice Bissex and Liz Weiss report. Most children get 10 percent of their daily calories from fast food; only 4 percent of kids reach the goal of five fruit and vegetable servings each day. Being moms as well as dieticians, Bissex and Weiss developed a meal makeover plan that would help busy families reach better numbers without a lot of complaints from the gallery. What's neat about their mission (see tips and recipes on their Web site at www.mealmakeovermoms.com) and their new book (The Moms' Guide to Meal Makeovers, Broadway Books, $15.95) is that they offer ideas for letting kids eat favorite foods. They have realism on their side -- they know you can't change everything about a kid's diet. But they still provide plenty of nutrition. They've taken chicken nuggets, French fries, mac and cheese, and found ways to make them less offensive to nutritionists. Maybe your child won't fall for all of it, but even some would be improvement for most families. Through recipe testing, Bissex and Weiss have found ways to cut the bad trans-fat and saturated fat. For example, if they are making muffins, they eliminate the two sticks of butter in favor of canola oil. If a recipe calls for chocolate chips, they use mini chips to lower the volume. They replace white flour with whole wheat flour and wheat germ whenever possible. "People are very concerned with fat, but there is a happy medium for eating," said Bissex. Through trial and error, they learned how to take out the fat and leave taste in. They did a fried-chicken makover replacing bread crumbs and the like with a mixture of Rice Krispies and chopped pecans over skinless drumsticks. Baked instead of fried, they're lower in fat, saturated fat and calories. They suggest baking sweet potato fries instead of deep-frying white potatoes. Both the fried chicken and fries can cook in the same oven at 425 degrees and be ready in 30 minutes. They did a similar makeover for homemade chicken tenders. Theirs have three times the protein of commercial brands. Their shopping tips include: Weiss and Bissex do not believe in fat-free foods. This is because they lose some of their appeal when all fat is removed. So food manufacturers, in the case of cookies for example, often replace the fat with more sugar. People look at the nutrition facts and see the fat-free number but fail to recognize how many calories are present. People then eat more than should. In the case of fat-free dairy products such as cheese, when they tested lasagnas, they found the fat-free version of ricotta lacking in flavor and grainy to boot. Low-fat keeps the creaminess and gets rid of the some of the fat. This sort of sensibilty and attention to detail appears throughout their book. Bissex and Weiss also tested many convenience foods and identified those with the fewest additives, low levels of fat and sodium, but still acceptable to kids. These "Best of the Bunch" include Cacadian Farm French Fries, Annie's Homegrown Shells and White Cheddar macaroni and cheese, Natural Fish Sticks, Stouffer's Grilled Vegetable French Bread Pizza, and Coleman All Natural Uncured Beef Hot Dogs. If you need sausage, Jones Lite Sausage is best. The makover for breakfast can be easy. For healthy cereals, look on the package for high fiber numbers. If that doesn't sell, make a bowl that mixes half of a kid's favorite cereal with half the high-fiber stuff. Always serve with a side of fruit or a fruit smoothie. Limit bacon to two slices. The Makeover Moms are friends who live in Massachusetts, Weiss in Lexington and Bissex in Melrose. In the recipes we share here, note the following makeovers: CHEESY CAULIFLOWER One 16-or 20-ounce bag frozen cauliflower florets, or 1 small head cauliflower, broken into florets 3/4 cup 1 percent lowfat milk 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder 3/4 cup preshredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese 2 tablespoons dried plain or seasoned bread crumbs Cook the cauliflower according to package directions or steam fresh cauliflower until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Set aside. While the cauliflower is cooking, whisk together the milk, flour, mustard, and garlic powder in a small saucepan until well blended. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat and continue to simmer and stir gently until the mixture thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. Stir in the Cheddar and Parmesan cheese until melted. Preheat the broiler on high. Arrange the cauliflower in a baking pan and pour the cheese sauce evenly over the top. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs and broil until the bread crumbs turn golden brown, about 2 minutes. Preparation Time: 5 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes Calories 140, fat 20 g, saturated fat 1, sodium 80 mg, carbohydrate 21 g, fiber 2 g; protein 9 g. HONEY WHEAT POPOVERS 1 tablespoon butter, melted 2/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/3 cup whole wheat flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup 1 percent lowfat milk 2 large eggs, beaten 1 tablespoon honey Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Brush the insides of 10 muffin cups very well with the melted butter. Set aside. Whisk together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk together the milk, eggs, and honey in a medium bowl. Add the flour mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour the batter into the muffin cups, filling each about half full. Bake for 30 minutes or until puffed and golden. Serve immediately. Makes 5 servings (2 popovers each) Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes Calories 170, fat 5 g, saturated fat 2.5 g, sodium 190 mg, carbohydrate 24 g, protein 7 g. NO-NONSENSE NUGGETS 3 cups corn flakes 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon onion powder 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder Pinch of pepper 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into nugget-size pieces 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 2 large eggs, beaten Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Lightly oil or coat a large baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. Place the corn flakes in a resealable plastic bag and crush to a fine texture using a rolling pin or the bottom of a small saucepan, or place in a food processor and pulse several turns until finely crushed. Combine with the Parmesan cheese, salt, onion powder, garlic powder and pepper in a medium bowl. To bread the chicken, coat in flour, shaking off excess. Dip in the egg, then coat well with the corn flake mixture. Arrange the chicken on the prepared baking sheet and cook until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Makes 4 servings Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Calories 290, fat 7 g, Saturated fat 3 g, sodium 510 g, carbohydrate 25 g, fiber 1 g, protein 31 g. SNAPPY PORK STIR-FRY 1 pound boneless center cut pork chops or pork tenderloin 1 cup orange juice 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 2 tablespoons lite soy sauce 1 tablespoon cornstarch 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 4 teaspoons toasted sesame oil 2 to 3 large carrots, sliced thin on the diagonal (2 to 3 cups) One 6-ounce box frozen snow peas, thawed 1/2 cup cashews Trim the pork of all visible fat, slice into very thin strips, and set aside. Whisk together the orange juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, cornstarch, hoisin sauce, ginger, and garlic powder in a medium bowl until well blended. Set aside. Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook, stirring frequently, until no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the pork to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm. Add the remaining oil to the skillet. Add the carrots and stir-fry until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Add the snow peas and cook an additional 1 minute until heated through. Rewhisk the orange juice mixture and add to the skillet with the cooked pork and cashews. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Continue to simmer and stir gently until the mixture thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. Makes 4 servings Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Calories 430, fat 18 g, saturated fat 4 g, sodium 490 mg, carbohydrate 39 g, fiber 4 g, protein 28 g. KRISPY HONEY-FRIED DRUMSTICKS 2 cups Rice Krispies cereal 1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped 3 tablespoons honey 2 tablespoons lite teriyaki sauce 12 drumsticks, skinned (about 3 pounds) Salt and pepper Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place the Rice Krispies in a bowl and crush slightly with your hands. Stir in the pecans and set aside. Place the honey and teriyaki sauce in a large bowl and stir to combine. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place drumsticks in the honey mixture and toss to coat evenly. Working with one drumstick at a time, roll in the cereal mixture until well-coated (lay it on thick). Place the chicken on a large baking sheet and cook until the meat is done and the coating turns golden brown, about 30 minutes. Makes 5 to 6 servings Preparation time: 15 to 20 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes Calories 350, fat 15 g, saturated fat 2.5 g, sodium 250 mg, carbohydrate 22 g, fiber 1 g, protein 32 g.
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