Carrots

The Color of Orange:

Aside from carrots being an excellent food choice, carrots are beautiful. In the United Sates, carrots are usually seen as a deep orange root with a fern-like top, but the variation of color doesn’t stop with orange. Carrots can also be found in yellow, white, purple, red, and every shade in between.

Eat Raw:

Carrots are very versatile and the dishes that you can add carrots to are virtually limitless. Eating carrots raw will give you the optimal amount of nutrients that they provide.

Carrots are extremely high in beta carotene, Vitamin A (converted from beta carotene), and are also an excellent source of Vitamin K and fiber. Carrots also contain Vitamin C, Potassium, Manganese, as well as many other vitamins and minerals.  Carrots are also known for being rich in antioxidants.

Health Benefits:

There are many health benefits that come with eating carrots-

           

            Cancer Preventative:

Studies have show that eating carrots regularly help prevent colon cancer  and breast cancer.   According to the National Cancer Institute, it has been estimated that “230,480 women will be diagnosed with and 39,520 women will die of cancer of the breast in 2011.” Their estimate for colon cancer was over 141,000 people being diagnosed, and over 49,000 will die of colon or rectal cancer in 2011. (Click here for more information)

If keeping a stock of carrots in my refrigerator reduces my risk of getting breast or colon cancer, I'll do it.  This does not guarantee that I will never get cancer. With cancer running on both sides of my family, my chances of getting it are greater. I want to reduce as much of that possibility as I can.

           

            Vision:

From everything I’ve read, carrots don’t necessarily improve your vision,  but the Vitamin A will maintain your eyesight.   Likewise, Vitamin A deficiency will result in poor eyesight.  Carrots also help with reducing the risk of cataracts and glaucoma. 

           

            Skin:

Carrots (juice, seed, oil) help with moisturizing and nourishing the skin, and fighting acne.

           

Kids and Carrots:

Most kids enjoy eating carrots. They are a clean and easy snack with a sweet taste and a nice crunch.  My kids will eat carrots plain, but they also enjoy jazzing them up a bit. They like to dip carrots in dressings and peanut butter. They have also been known to eat them as ants on a long, with raisins imbedded on the peanut butter spread carrots. Yes I know this is supposed to be with celery, but if you cut a carrot just once length wise, then cut to desired lengths, they work just as well for holding your peanut butter and raisins.  You don’t even need to stop there. You can mix it up a bit by trying different butters (peanut, almond, cashew), and using different kinds of dried fruit (blueberries, currants, cranberries, strawberries, etc).

If you are one of the unlucky parents whose child does not like to eat carrots, explore a few options.  Growing up, my mom almost always put the traditional carrot sticks in my sack lunch. They weren’t terribly exciting, but I enjoyed them. Baby carrots are sometimes just enough of a change that suddenly carrots become exciting. If the baby carrots or carrot sticks tend to dry out before the kids can eat them, add a tiny bit of water in the Ziploc baggie and give it a few shakes. Water will help the carrots from drying out.

Try different kinds of dips. The traditional ranch dressing seems to be an all-time favorite dressing/dip, but it is loaded with fat.  Healthier dips/hummus can be purchased at the store, or you can just make one yourself.  Homemade dips are almost always the healthier and most affordable choice.  Healthifying a recipe is fairly easy as well.  Replacing half the amount of sour cream with plain Greek yogurt will reduce the calories, but will maintain the thick consistency of the dip.  I have seen a low-fat mayonnaise recipe, and a vegan mayo recipe to help reduce the fat in the ranch dressing / dip, but I have not tried them.  The sky’s the limit with options to try. Just be creative.

Organic Sweet Carrots:

I love munching on carrots that have sweetness to them. Costco sells organic baby carrots for .99/lb, but with baby carrots (at any store) it is hit and miss with the taste.  Most of the time Costco will also have the regular full-sized carrots (my friend calls them horse carrots because they are so big) for .50/lb - .59/lb. These carrots look a little intimidating, but they have cut the sizing into two smaller bags within the larger bag.  These carrots always stay fresh longer than from other stores.  Not only are these carrots organic, but they are sweet. I have almost never come across a batch that wasn’t sweet.

Transitioning to Whole Wheat

100%  whole wheat is packed with fabulous nutrients, and freshly ground whole wheat ensures those nutrients.  If you are trying to eat healthier and want to incorporate whole wheat into your diet, there are a few things you should know.

Start with Hard White Wheat:
I recommend starting with hard white wheat due to its mild flavor.  Hard red wheat's flavor is robust and may be unpleasing if you are used to traditional white bread.

 Switch Over Slowly:
If you are used to white all-purpose flour, drastically switching to 100% whole wheat may not be the best choice for your body.  It's not a race to prove to people that you have converted over from processed foods to unrefined, whole grains. Take it slowly and in the end, your body will thank you.

Drastically switching to whole wheat may result in symptoms such as:

• Diarrhea
• Constipation
• Upset Stomach
• Bloating
• Excessive Gas

It takes some time for your body to adjust to the whole grains and unprocessed foods you are putting into it. Just as it is important to take gradual steps when introducing a baby to food, so should you take gradual steps when introducing your body to less refined, healthier options.

When using recipes that call for flour, I would recommend starting off with 1/3 whole wheat flour and 2/3 unbleached all purpose flour.  When you feel that your body is handling it well, increase the amount of whole wheat to 2/3 and decrease the unbleached flour to 1/3.  Eventually you will be able to use 100% whole wheat.  If you can't seem to adjust to 100% whole wheat because of the flavor difference, then find a ratio of whole wheat and unbleached flour that you can handle.  In the end, it is still a healthier option from the typical bleached all-purpose flour.

A Wheat Grinder Isn't Necessary:
The typical person doesn't necessarily have a wheat grinder in their pantry, especially if you are new to using whole grains or whole wheat.  Many stores sell 100% whole wheat flour. Typically whole wheat comes in 5 lb bag.  Just read the bag thoroughly to know whether you are buying red wheat or white wheat. 

Cook the wheat berries / kernels whole. There are many recipes out there that incorporate whole wheat berries or cracked wheat. If you are in the adjusting period and come across a savory recipe that calls for wheat berries, you can replace a portion of the wheat berries with brown rice.

Costco

Costco has been slowly replacing products with healthier choices. At my local Costco, I have found some great buys. They carry a variety of great tasting, fresh, organic produce. The produce I buy at Costco stays fresher than any other store I generally purchase from.

Here is a condensed list of quality and affordable products that Costco carries:
Organic Carrots - $0.50 lb / 5 lb bag
Organic Baby Carrots -  $0.99 lb / 5 lb bag
Spinach - 2.5 lb bag about 3.99 / bag
Organic, Whole Wheat Spaghetti - $0.98 / lb  (8 pack)
100% Pure (Grade A) Maple Syrup 32 oz $12.78-$13.20 (price fluctuates every so often)
Almonds 3 lbs $3.23 lb
Organic Blue Agave 2-23.5 oz bottles $7.49

When their coupons come out, I've also been able to get organic canned diced tomatoes for $0.50 can. They have a decent amount of good buys, but they do have a lot of pricey items as well.