Healthy meals & healthy snacks: How to make grilled Okra.

Grilled Okra.

How to make a quick & healthy snack with Okra

     by Goodhealthdiva

    

My ingredients of choice: Olive oil, homemade seasoning mix with salt,  and ground oregano.

 Mix and coat my Okra , warm the indoor grill, as I am grilling I am brushing more of the oil mix on my Okra.

10 minutes later....after snacking on some as I was grilling the rest, here's what's left...

The meal version:
That's the only grilling I did on the 4th of July.
                          
                         
                     Healthy eating: Grilled Okra
                                                  by Goodhealthdiva

My husband and I used to enjoy eating grilled Okra at a local restaurant known for their BBQ sauces. I started getting tired of  their grilled Okra because their Okra was sometime overcooked and not always attractive. It seemed like we were sometimes given leftovers and that the okras has been warmed over and over again.

I decided to make my own from now on and... boy oh boy... what a great idea.

1 pound fresh Okra from a local Indian store.

Washed and rinsed with white vinegar and water.

 Seasoned with homemade seasoning mix (Turmeric, salt, ground and dried Oregano) & Olive oil.

5 to 10 minutes of the grill

                           

A healthy and inexpensive meal for 2...

Ready to chow and happy that...

I can now enjoy fresh Okra, seasoned with my favorite herbs, and for only $2 the pound versus $2.50 for a small serving.

Do you also like okra? How do you prefer yours? Do you have a favorite okra recipe?  Please share it here or on our Facebook page "Healthy can be done"

Thanks for stopping by, sharing your comments, Following on the site , Liking the Facebook page, subscribing by email, sharing with your friends and all these good stuffs...(smiles)
Until next time have a better and healthier life...
N'na

Healthy choices: What are the benefits of Greek Yogurt

  The benefits of Greek Yogurt. What's the big deal about Greek Yogurt?
                                     by goodhealthdiva


   
Hi there,

Thanks for stopping by, it's always a pleasure to have you around.
Do you like yogurts? Just curious! I have always had a weakness for yogurts and I would eat them for breakfast, lunch and dinner and in between. I just love yogurts.

I love all kind of yogurts, even soy yogurts. But it's only recently that I started a serious love affair with Greek yogurts. One of my friend visited me at the hospital the day after I had my baby and brought me for breakfast Greek yogurts and bagels from Panera. It was my first time eating the rich and creamy yogurt and having seen many commercials on TV I was pretty curious to see how they taste.

I have diligently added them to my grocery list since then. Since I just returned from my late shopping at Target with some Yoplait Greek Yogurts, I figured it would be fun to share some facts about Greek yogurts with you all.
I wanted to share a little about Greek yogurts as a healthy smart choice for anyone conscious about their diet or just wondering " what's the big deal" about Greek yogurts?



For people watching their weight and interested in lean muscles, Greek yogurt is a great healthy choice for breakfast or as a snack. It's even a good ingredient for baking and cooking.

What makes Greek Yogurts better than regular yogurts?







Protein: Greek yogurt has double the protein of regular yogurt. For weight conscious people,it's high protein content makes it easier to ward of hunger.

Carbohydrate: Greek yogurt has fewer carbs than regular yogurt.

Sodium: Greek yogurt has about half the sodium of regular yogurt.

Texture: Greek yogurt has a thicker and creamier texture than regular yogurt because it's strained more. Regular yogurt is strained twice while Greek yogurt is strained three times.

Greek yogurt is also better than regula yogurt for cooking because it doesn't curdle when heated.

What are the similarities between Greek and regula yogurts?

Calories: There's little difference in calories between the two as long as you consistently select plain yogurt without extra sweetness/sugar.


What are other ways to use yogurts?

Yogurts, Greek yogurt or regular yogurt, are healthy substitute for mayonnaise, heavy creams and sour cream. When baking you can substitute the eggs and oil with yogurts as well.Both types can also be used in place of other high-calorie ingredients in dips, sauces, salad dressings, smoothies, and desserts. 

For example, you can top your baked potatoes with yogurt instead of sour cream.
Yogurt makes a great marinade for meat. Check here for my marinade for meat kabobs.

Greek yogurt cost more than regular yogurts and has less calcium but again, for a healthy choice to support your weight management endeavors the amount of proteins in Greek yogurt makes it a worthy contender.

Why is protein so important?

Proteins are the building blocks of life and the body needs it to maintain itself and repair itself. Every cell in your body contains proteins.

What are some good sources of proteins?

Animal sources of protein:

• Fish or shellfish
• Turkey or chicken with the skin removed.
• Lean cuts of beef or pork, such as round, top sirloin, or tenderloin (trim away any visible 

Non animal sources of protein:

• Nuts and seeds such as almonds, almond butter, almond milk, hazelnuts, mixed nuts, walnuts, peanuts, peanut butter, sunflower seeds, etc.

(Make sure to watch how much you eat, because nuts are high in fat)

• Beans such as black beans, kidney beans, lentils, pinto beans etc
• Tofu and other soy protein products
• Low-fat dairy products 
• Greek Yogurt!!!

 What else can you do with yogurt?

You can also use plain unsweeten yogurt as a deep conditioner for your hair.

You can use plain yogurt as a face mask because yogurt moisturize the skin.

Come back for future posts sharing deep conditioner or face mask recipes!

What do you prefer? Greek or natural yogurt? Why? If you like Greek yogurts which brand is your favorite? How do you cook with Greek yogurt?

Thanks for stopping by, sharing your comments, Following,Liking the FB page, subscribing by email, sharing with your friends and all those good stuffs...(smiles) Until next time, have a better and healthier life...

Good eat: Homemade quick dinner : A vegetarian dish with mushroom and herb pasta dish

Hello dear!

Today I wanted to talk food! If you are a regular around here you already know that tasty food and meaningful eating is one of my passions (smiles)! So I simply wanted to end this week by sharing a simple dish that I find myself making quite often lately, and for good reasons!
1) My husband and children love it!
2) The ingredients can easily be "prepped" ahead of time!
3) Most of the ingredients can be precooked and refrigerated or even frozen!
4) Either I cook it from scratch or precook some ingredients, the dish is simple and quick to make!
5) The dish is versatile and can include any meat/seafood of your choice or nothing but herbs.
6) This dish is an excuse for me to use my fresh herbs and fill the house with the natural and wonderful aroma of nature's best culinary herbs!






The dish I am sharing was made with:
oil
precooked pasta
1/2 pack of mushrooms
1/2 tomato
1/2 green pepper
some fresh and dried herbs such as basil, rosemary, thyme, parsley,oregano,cilantro
garlic
salt


Off to a great start: Culinary herbs from my kitchen garden!
I selected the following from my herb garden: Basil,thyme,rosemary,oregano. It always smells good when I chop them...

 I am getting things set up by having sort of a " Mise en place"! I have already washed my tomato and green pepper with a mixture of water and white vinegar. I actually rinsed my herbs with the same solution even though my herbs are from my own kitchen garden I still rinse everything! No E-coli in this kitchen because I am a stickler on rinsing everything I use! Even if what you purchase is prepackaged you should still rinse before cooking/eating because you don't know how well it was rinsed! Better safe than sorry!

I put a little bit of oil in the wok, once it's hot it's time for my mushrooms...

Mushrooms

Oh...dear... it already smells so good around here....

Mushrooms and fresh herbs

 Under normal circumstances I would have added some fresh garlic, everything taste greater with garlic, if you ask me. I held off on the fresh garlic because I am pregnant and I am taking it easy on the strong flavors!

Mushrooms with herbs, green peppers, and tomatoes.

 I throw in the pasta, spice them with some more herbs and add a little bit of salt. I mix it all up and work it really good!
The herbs I selected are dried herbs from my spice cabinet that I also call my natural medicine cabinet. They are : dried parsley, Italian seasoning, dried oregano and dried basil, humm...the food looks so colorful and will taste pretty flavorful.

The pasta were precooked a few days before and refrigerated! Thankfully I saved time that night.
A few evenings prior to fixing this dish I actually fix the same dish with just a minor difference. Days before I used some precooked onions,mushrooms and green peppers.

 I did not add tomato to the dish on that night so I added some oil to the pasta as I was mixing my dried herbs. This time around, by having some tomato in it, it created some 'juice' to my dish and kept me from adding olive oil when mixing the dried herbs in.
Here, even though I saved time on the pasta, I still had to make everything else from scratch!

 Spicing things a little with a touch of chili pepper from my kitchen garden!

Chili pepper

Voila! Ready to chow! Like we say in French ..." Bon appetit"!

Mushrooms and pasta

Scrapping the wok for some leftovers....I want to cry...there's no more!

" C'etait trop bon" ( It was too good)

Try it and tell me what you think! There's nothing like some fresh herbs to take a simple dish to the next level!
Like I mentionned earlier, I fix some variations of that dish quite often for my husband and oldest son who love the fresh herbs in the pasta. Some days I add meat, or shrimp ,most days it's just herbs alone in the pasta. We rarely eat meat so we are cool with a pescetarian or vegetarian version! With the right seasonings the dish is still very tasty! I just use whatever ingredients I have and adapt my dish to what's available! I can do without any meat or seafood as long as I have the fresh and dried herbs! Thanks to my kitchen garden I no longer lack fresh herbs!

There was a time, years ago, when I would easily get  frustrated for not having any herbs while cooking. I would be cooking something and need some herbs for a dish but lacked the time to run to the store or would have to spend a lot to buy a bunch when all I need was a few leaves! Having a herb garden for the past 4 years have made cooking more fun and delightful! During the winter I cut most of my plants and freeze some herbs to make sure that I still have some to enjoy during the cold weather.

Do you have a simple mushroom and pasta recipe you would recommend? What's your favorite culinary herb?
Happy and healthy eating!

N'na

Good eat: A taste for Thai food @ Rain Thai Bistro

   My previous article was on Thailand and since "Thailand's on my mind" and I since love to eat international food, I figured that a trip to a local Thai restaurant was a pretty timely way to satisfy my desire of anything Thai...

When I am hungry for Thai food, I normally go to a small restaurant downtown Chattanooga, called “Thai Smiles”. This  past Sunday my hubby suggested we tried a restaurant closer to the house right next to our gym. So we tried RAIN a Thai Bistro, located in the Hamilton Place Mall area in East Brainerd Chattanooga TN.

Rain Thai Bistro Chattanooga TN

Rain Thai Bistro Chattanooga TN.

                                                            

 Before we even got seated, a young lady who recognized us from a different restaurant she used to work at, came to us and teased us that we were following her. After the little chit chat I asked her my favorite question "What do you recommend"? She mentionned that her favorite is the Fried rice.

Menu @ Rain Thai Bistro Chattanooga TN.

Not knowing what to expect, I selected the Spicy Basil and requested that it be mild to play it safe, because the server had told us that 'Hot' and 'Thai' were truly spicy.
I should have been more adventurous and go for at least 'hot' because ' mild' truly lacked… “dimension”.. It was not spicy at all, the food was good but spicy food takes your taste buds to a different dimension, don't you think? Plus it's actually good for you, for your metabolism... Well...I just think that spicy food is tasty unless you have acid reflux issues or ulcer.

Even though the food was not as spicy as I wanted it was truly good, I had to order an extra side of white rice this was just not enough...

Spicy Basil @ Rain Thai Bistro

Our server Joshua recommended that I try the same dish with noodles instead of rice at my next visit. So I will keep you up to date on that one.

The hubby and the children kept it simple and went for Fried Rice. I had to convince my youngest two that they would love it as they had never had Thai fried rice before.

One of the reasons why I enjoy eating out so much is because I believe that  eating food is an experience to take beyond satisfying our palate. I love being in a nice setting and when I am not eating out I like to create an environment at home that truly brings me a lot of pleasures from what I serve my food in, to my table setting. The Rain  Thain Bistro offered so many little gifts. More that I could capture at my first visit there so stay tuned for more.
I asked the children to tell me about 'Thailand' from what they observed from the decor....
Elephants, tropical flowers, bamboo trees, buddhist art, water fountains, the Buddha, etc...the beautiful environment certainly reflected Thailand' on a tiny scale.

Whispering : It's soothing to have such nice decor in the restroom but ever better when the restrooms are very clean and they were very clean yeaah!!!



I just like the sink...

Outdoor fountain at Rain Thai Bistro

Well that's it for our delightful time at Rain Thai Bistro I am heading through that back door to the Asian Market where I get my Green Tea from...

But before I leave you, I wanted to invite you to check my friend's Lala's video. She's a new vegetarian and interesting enough her first cooking video is about a Thai dish...Aren't you curious to know what her 'Taste for Thai food' was a few weeks ago?

So what have you had a taste for lately? Thai food by any chance? If so what would you recommend? The 'Bangkok chicken" at "Thai Smiles" downtown Chattanooga is truly my favorite local 'Thai dish'.

N'na

Good Eat: Bahama Breeze's seafood paella & a little more...

Hello Everyone...
 I hope you all had a great week-end! I know I did...(smiles).My last post was about food and this one is about food as well. I do have a lot of other things I plan on sharing with you soon, very very soon so make sure to become a Follower and a subcriber if that's your first time here.

Even though I wrote about making beef brochettes in my last post, you should know if you are familiar with this blog, that I am more of a pescetarian and I very rarely eat meat. So true to my gastronomic passion I am talking today about seafood...seafood at....




I was in Atlanta recently celebrating my 10 years wedding anniversary and I finally had the chance to try a restaurant I have been wanting to try all the years I have lived around the Atlanta GA area. So after shopping at some stores on Barrett Parkway in Kennesaw GA, my husband and I had a late lunch or early dinner, depends on how you see, at Bahama Breeze!


Have you ever eaten at the Bahama Breeze?
The setting is refreshing, relaxing, and very different from conventional restaurants.

 Under normal circumstances I would have had more pictures of the interior and I would have elaborated on the tropical setting, the fun music played by a Live artist outdoors and the fun tropical uniform the servers had on...but today I will just talk about food, maybe at my next visit there I will take more indoors pictures for our enjoyment. For now we are talking Good Eat!

My husband loves  Sweet Tea but even our server told him that their sweet tea are awful. Hubby insisted on having some Sweet Tea but soon decided to order the same thing I was having because it was amazingly delicious.My beverage was a refreshing and perfect Strawberry Lemonade! I love Sweet Tea but given the options I am more a lemonade person and I love Strawberry Lemonade because I find it to have more 'texture' than a regular lemonade or a Rapsberry lemonade!


Strawberry lemonade at the Bahama Breeze

 For appetizers I selected some broiled shrimps served in a buttery sauce with French bread for dipping. It was soooo gooood! Sorry I don't remember the exact name of my selection but here is what it looked like...

It was so gooood....

We completed our meal by sharing a Seafood Paella! I love love love Paella! I had many friends from Spain back in college so I naturally fell in love with Paella. It had been years since I had one and it was great to enjoy some this Saturday!

Seafood Paella from Bahama Breeze

Now, there's something I have to say about this...it's a seafood Paella and the original dish on the menu is made with a little bit of sausage in addition to the seafood. I do not eat sausages so I could request to replace the sausage with an extra something else. I simply asked for extra seafood!  The dish can be eaten with some hot sauce if one loves spicy food.I added a little Tabasco sauce that definitely gave this already delicious dish, an extra omp!
Well, that was it for my delicious meal at the pleasant, fun and relaxing Bahama Breeze!


Oh...You might have noticed...this Seafood Paella was served with oysters...I ate most of the oysters and only hours later did I realize that true to the myth oysters could be an aphrodisiac! Did you know that oysters are listed as one of the top aphrodisiac foods? I have been meaning to write a post about this for a while now, so today will be kind of an intro!!!

Have you noticed how in some movies two people would have a romantic moment eating some oysters...Did you watch the movie JUMPING THE BROOM? Do you remember the scene where in the kicthen Meagan Good is asked by the chef to taste some oysters...

 I believed the moment I watched this scene that the chef knew exactly what he was doing when he asked her to come in the kitchen to taste something for him...Well oyster as an aphrodisiac might be fact or fiction depending on how you see it! The scene I am referring to certainly tries to hold to the myth! If you have not seen the movie I will not spoil the fun so go watch it and come back and comment about it!


So...hint hint here: if you plan a romantic dinner with some very specific intentions...oysters should be on the menu...just saying...according to the myth...it's worth trying right?




We did more shopping after eating and funny enough at the end of the day I realized that I did not buy a single pair of shoes or even some new outfits. I checked in the hotel with bags of books...yes...crazy right? Bags of books! Waldenbooks had some sales and I splurged...on books...
I think a good meal, some good books and a nice comfy hotel suite are very simple and yet very pleasant ways to spend a relaxing week-end...humm that's not exactly all... but saying more would be beyond the scope of this blog!
All I can say is...beware of delicious Seafood Paella because according to the myth Oysters do come with side effects. The kind no men complain about...

Me personally I did not complain about this sweet peacefully room away from the kids and...

Hilton Hotel Atlanta GA

 I certainly did not complain about waking up to such a view...Hello ATL! Yeah...I know... the Bahamas could have been better but at least ATL got Bahama Breeze...

View from the Hilton Dowtown Atlanta

More about ATL in some of my upcoming posts. To be continued....

Do you like oysters? Did you know oyster to be considered an aphrodisiac?  Do you think it's true or do you think it's just a myth? Have you seen JUMPING THE BROOM? Any random comment on the movie?

N'na

Good Eat: Beef kabobs with yoghurt marinade and the blessings of a kitchen garden

Well it's almost holiday week-end and being pretty much grilling season I wanted to offer you all a little bit of grilling inspiration. I eat more seafood than I do meat and poultry once in a while I just like to eat some tender homemade brochettes! Lamb is my preferred meat but beef chunks are cheaper and more easily available so I am sharing below something you can cook on a budget and still have a diliiiiciouuus meal!!!
Everyone has their own way for making marinade or grilling etc so here's N'na's way!!!

                                            
It's so much fun to flavor dishes with fresh ingredients right there at my fingertips. The fresh herbs I selected here from my kitchen garden were thyme, oregano, rosemary and parsley. Read more about it the following link: http://goodhealthdiva.blogspot.com/2011/04/benefits-of-gardening-my-edible.html

Some of my ingredients from the kitchen cupboard: Ground cumin, cayenne pepper, white vinegar, salt, oil, dried parsley flakes, dried oregano powder, Cajun spice. I prefer using Apple cider vinegar for cooking but since I was out of ACV I just used the white vinegar!

                                                                  Add some  Yogurt.

Mix it all together

Store in a Ziploc bag and shake well and

Let it marinate and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours or overnight.

Get your skewers ready, cut what the fruits or veggies you would use,

I used some tomatoes, onion and green pepper,

and make your brochettes

Time for the Grill!!!!

Remember to turn often!

To keep your meat from being dry mix a little bit of oil and crushed bouillon  cubes. I used something from West Africa called " Cube Maggi". Use a brush and brush the kabobs with the mixture.

Voila!!! Delicious brochettes!

It looks good doesn't it? It was delicious as well. We did serve them with rice and potatoes on that day but I enjoyed them just fine with nothing else!

Well have a nice week-end and hope this post gave you some new ideas for the next time you grill. If you haven't done it yet grow a kitchen garden and keep some potted herbs by your kitchen. They will always be useful and add some omp to your dishes!There is nothing like cooking or grilling with the flavor of fresh ingredients especially the ones you can have at your fingertips when you have a kitchen garden!

N'na