Fooditian: The new (more aptly named) title for trained foodies (AKA Dietitians)

 

I may have the word ‘diet’ taking up a significant portion of my professional title, but the truth is, I wish I didn’t. The word diet conjures up many negative connotations of restriction, guilt, hunger and images of boring, uninspiring food. And unfortunately, when client’s come to see me they often think that is what I’ll put them on. But that’s actually not what Dietitians are all about (would you ever have guessed?).

 

I like to educate people about healthy food, give them new recipes and meal ideas to try, get them excited about food and teach them how to decipher food labels so that they can choose healthier products themselves. I like to show people how to get in touch with their own body and listen to the signals it is sending them. Not actually hungry? Then don’t eat. Feeling full but enjoying a delicious meal? Then stop, save the leftovers for the next day and enjoy it twice! And believe it or not, we have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to medical conditions too. In fact, we studied ‘medical nutrition therapy’ or ‘clinical dietetics’ at university and have a good understanding of the relationship between food and the body (how does food impact on cholesterol, or blood pressure, blood sugar levels or energy levels, bowel function, or appetite, recovery from surgery or healing of wounds, body composition or athletic performance? We could tell you). Some of us even work in hospitals and determine tube feeds to sustain patients while they can’t eat for themselves, or in aged care and encourage higher calorie foods in malnourished older residents. So it isn’t all about weight loss. And heck, even in ‘weight loss’ cases, it isn’t all about weight loss.

 

 

The aim is to give someone the power to make their own decisions and to support them through that process. Sure, we can make suggestions, but ultimately it’s not up to us what actually goes into their mouth. In fact I try to avoid giving out meal plans because I know they aren’t going to be stuck to. And that’s ok! Food is about so much more than just fuel, or an energy in energy out equation, it’s about pleasure! Do you really want to miss out on a piece of cake on your birthday or order salad at a famous Italian pasta restaurant? I sure wouldn’t. Be flexible and be kind to yourself. Eat well most of the time and those few occasional treats aren’t going to do you any harm.

 

My tip? Stop focusing on the numbers on the scales. Focus on you, how you feel and the health benefits associated with your healthy lifestyle. Want to find out more about food and how it affects you? Speak to a Dietitian- it’s what we do! Or maybe we should change our title to Fooditian (do you think it’ll catch on?).

Chermoula spiced beer bread

There's something very satisfying about making your own bread, especially the smells that come wafting out of your kitchen while it's baking! I wanted to start with a relatively easy recipe that I could flavour with a new chermoula spice mix I'd discovered in a spice appreciation class (see here for more on this). So I cast my mind back to food technology in high school when we'd made beer bread (I know, beer in school? Surely that's not allowed now!). Now, I'm no lover of beer, or any alcohol really, but when it comes to cooking and you're left with just the flavours, it seems to work so well! Not to mention, the yeast in the beer helps this bread to rise beautifully.

I served my bread with chermoula-rubbed lamb and onion
skewers, grilled vegetables (capsicum, eggplant, zucchini,
mushrooms and spinach) and tzatziki and hummus on
the side- delicious!

Chermoula is a North African spice blend made of cumin, paprika, onion, turmeric, cayenne, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper and coriander leaves. It goes really well with grilled meats and vegetables and gives a spicy Moroccan flavour. If you don't have access to chermoula, any other herb or spice mix will do, or the bread can be just as good without any other flavour additions (as it lets the beer shine through).

Chermoula spiced beer bread

3 ¼ C plain wholemeal flour

330mL bottle of beer (dark ale recommended), at room temperature

1 tsp dry instant yeast

1-2 tsp salt

Optional: 1.5 Tbsp chermoula or other herb or spice mix

 1. Combine flour, yeast, salt and chermoula (if using) in a large bowl. Run beer bottle under a tap of running hot water for a few minutes to warm. Add to bowl and stir gently to combine.

2. Knead dough on a floured surface and return to bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm spot for at least 1 hour.

3. Punch down mixture (press with your fist a couple of times) to get rid of any large air bubbles. Again, cover and let rise for at least 2 hours or refrigerated overnight.

4. Form dough into a loaf and place on a lined baking tray. Sprinkle the top with plain flour and slash with a knife (forming 1 vertical line or 3 angled lines). Cover and let rise for another 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 230°C.

5. Put 8-10 ice cubes in a tray and place at the bottom of the oven (this will humidify the oven allowing a nice crunchy crust to form on the bread). Put bread tray on the middle rung of the oven and bake for 20-35mins or until the bread has risen and the crust is nicely browned.

6. Let cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

Makes ~15 small slices.

Strawberry, macadamia and oat muffins with sweet spices

A few weeks ago I went to a spice appreciation class at Herbie's in Rozelle (click here for their website). It was a lovely afternoon and the perfect birthday present for anyone who, like me, loves anything related to food. The idea of flavouring your food with herbs and spices instead of added fat, salt and sugar, is definitely one that appeals to me, and which, in my opinion, offers infinitely more possibilities! 

Now, when you think of herbs and spices you generally think of savoury dishes, right? Well, if you have ever added vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg or allspice to cakes or other baked goods, you've added spice to sweet dishes too! This time, I decided to venture further than these traditional ingredients and experiment with one of my Herbie's purchases: fragrant sweet spice mix. Made up of coriander seed, cassia, cinnamon quills, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, poppy seeds, cloves, cardamom and rose petals, it really is delicious to smell (and taste!). 

And so, this was my creation: sweet and fragrant strawberry, macadamia and oat muffins, full of fibre, low in saturated fat and sugar and with plenty of flavour! A perfect afternoon treat. Note: if you don't have access to this fragrant mix, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon with still give a lovely flavour!

Strawberry, macadamia and oat muffins with sweet spices

1 ½ C wholemeal SR flour

¾ C rolled oats

¼ C LSA 

¼ C brown sugar, plus 1 Tbsp extra

2 tsp fragrant sweet spice mix

1 egg

½ C skim milk

½ C reduced fat Greek-style yoghurt

¼ C oil (olive, canola or macadamia)

1 tsp vanilla

¾ C strawberries, diced, plus 2-3 extra, sliced

2 Tbsp macadamias, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Combine flour, oats, LSA, brown sugar and fragrant sweet spice mix in a large bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk egg, milk, yoghurt, oil and vanilla.
4. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and gently combine. Fold through diced strawberries.
5. Divide mixture among 12 muffin cases, top with chopped macadamias and a sprinkling of brown sugar (from 1 Tbsp extra). Place a strawberry slice on each.
6. Bake for 25-30mins or until lightly golden and skewer comes out clean.

Makes 12 muffins.

Dietitian Eats Series: Georgie Child

Today my good friend and fellow Dietitian Georgie lets us peek into her food diary with a look at what she eats in a day. If you've missed any of the Dietitian Eats Series posts then click here, here, here, here, here and here (yep there's already been quite a few- where have you been?!).

Georgie Child, Accredited Practising Dietitian

Currently working at a fresh healthy meal delivery company and keeping busy with her blog where she looks at different diets and ways of eating, and road tests them herself.

Website: www.foodchild.com.au

Facebook: www.facebook.com/georgiechildfood

Twitter: @foodchild

Instagram: www.instagram.com/foodchild

Email: g.child@outlook.com

Food Philosophy: Food should be eaten with enjoyment and without guilt, in a balanced way that emphasises eating a variety of fresh and healthy foods for the most part, but with a few indulgences here and there.

7.30am Rolled oats cooked in milk and a dash of vanilla, with frozen berries and yoghurt in an almost-empty tahini jar. I think there’s nothing better than oats out of an almost empty nut or seed butter jar, getting some nutty seedy goodness in every bite. My favourite is tahini, so  it’s my lucky day finding a waning jar this morning. I find that without some sort of fat in my breakfast, it won’t tide me over very long.

8am Coffee follows breakfast. And lunch. I like coffee. I have a teaspoon of instant with a dash of skim milk ‘cos I’m all class.

12.30pm Tuna salad with avocado, pumpkin, Danish feta, dressed with balsamic vinegar and balsamic glaze. I think I’ve had a variation of this salad most days for the past 5 years of my life. I know, I know, variety is key; however I just love this combo.

3pm Yoghurt with berries, nuts, seeds and wheat puffs. I love breakfast foods, and find most of my snacks resemble a mini-breakfast.

7.30pm I was going over to my boyfriend’s place, and he doesn’t have a fridge yet (I KNOW, right!??). I brought over a chicken stir-fry for the both of us that I’d made at home. It was packed with veggies and was pretty tasty, if I do say so myself. I usually use reduced-salt soy or tamari as the sodium can rack up in stir-fries.

8.30pm We were out and about and decided we could really go a slurpy. I hadn’t had one in years! This is one of those Zilched 1% Added Sugar varieties, and I shared it with my boyfriend. Usually I’ll have something like yoghurt and fruit for dessert, but this really hit the spot tonight.

Dietitian Eats Series: Morgan Brown

After a very brief hiatus, Dietitian Eats is back! Showing you what Dietitians really eat and giving you some ideas for your own healthy eating. Make sure you go back and read all the ones you may have missed too! (Or click on the links below). There has been:
- Me
- Caitlin
- Laura
- Kate
- Cath

And today, for number 6 is Morgan!

Morgan Brown, Accredited Practising Dietitian

Currently working as a Community Dietitian in Queensland. She's also about to launch her own food and health blog (so watch this space!).

 

Email: mlbrown855@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/morgan.brown.986227

Food Philosophy: Like all my fellow dietitians who have been featured in this series, I love food and everything about it – cooking with it, eating it and discovering new and exciting things about it. My food philosophy is simple- eat healthy, delicious, nutrient-dense foods (preferably from the 5 core food groups which make up the Australian Dietary Guidelines) 80% of the time. That way you can treat yourself 20% of the time. 

 

 

 

7am At the moment I am training for a half marathon which is due to take place in Brisbane during August. In preparation for this, I am doing loads of aerobic and interval training. This morning was no exception- I had just completed a 16km run and was starving by time I returned home. So I decided to have 2 eggs on toast (soy and linseed) with 1/2 a smashed avocado, some rocket and fetta drizzled with balsamic vinegar. I’ve always been a big breakfast person, and if I’m not having eggs of some sort I’ll have oats with fruit and soy milk.



 

10.30am This is one of my favourite snacks and it’s simple to prepare- 1 small handful of natural almonds and ½ cup of frozen blue berries.

1pm Today I had leftovers for lunch, which I love doing! Homemade vegetarian curry with pumpkin, chickpeas, cauliflower and kale. I like to include as many different coloured vegetables as I can at lunch as they help to bulk out my meals and make sure I am meeting my veggie serves. If I’m not having leftovers, I’ll usually have a mixed salad with brown rice and canned tuna or salmon, or a toasted sandwich with a side salad.

 

 

3pm I don’t always have an afternoon snack - it usually depends on what I am doing and if I’m feeling hungry or not. Today I walked up to my local café and brought a small soy latte. I usually have 1 coffee per day and 1-2 cups of green tea.

 

7pm Like breakfast, dinner is one of my favourite meals. I really enjoy cooking with fresh ingredients and love experimenting with new recipes. Tonight was beef stir fry, cooked with pumpkin, carrots, broccoli and silver beet. I also crushed up a few unsalted peanuts for garnishing. I made the marinade from scratch using salt reduced soy sauce, fish sauce, chilli, lime juice, tamarind paste and a small squeeze of natural honey.  Dinner usually includes 1 serve of meat or meat alternative, ½ plate of veggies and 1-2 serves of low GI carbohydrates. Tonight I’m having some brown rice as this is a great source of fibre which helps to keep me feeling fuller for longer.



8pm I always have yoghurt after dinner, usually with different fruits, seeds and nuts. Tonight I had low fat Greek yoghurt with 1 small plum and pumpkin seeds. With all my main meals and snacks I drink water.  

 

Dietitian Eats Series: Catherine Lucas

The Dietitian Eats Series is quite simply a series of posts on what Dietitians eat! I think there's something really satisfying about the guilty pleasure we get from being let in to a very personal part of someone's life- their food! This is the 5th instalment so if you missed any be sure to go back and check them out! (And if you're lazy like me, just click here, here, here and here).

Today's food diary is that of Cath...

 

 

Catherine Lucas, Accredited Practising Dietitian and PhD Candidate

 



Currently researching nutrition in pregnancy and lactation for her PhD, tutoring at university and working in private practice.

Twitter: @_cathlucas

Email: cjl623@uowmail.edu.au

Food Philosophy: Like most dietitians I love food! I feel like Michael Pollen sums up the best dietary advice perfectly, “Eat food, mostly plants, not too much”.

 

 

 

6am Rolled oats made with low fat soy milk and topped with stewed pear and cinnamon. Oats are definitely my favourite thing for breakfast, they keep me feeling full longer than anything else and I love the sweetness of stewed fruit and cinnamon. I usually top this with LSA but didn’t have any left in the pantry today!

 

 

 

10.30am 1 banana

 

 

12pm Salad made with locally grown lettuce, grated carrot, ½ can kidney beans and fetta. Topped with a splash of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

 

 

3pm 1 small skim milk hot chocolate. This is a treat I have once or twice a week when I have had a stressful morning and need something to get me through the afternoon. I think that it’s the walk from my office to the café that actually does the most to clear my head.

 

 

6pm Smoked salmon and avocado rice paper rolls. I was leaving straight after work to drive down the coast for the weekend. Usually I would prepare a sandwich to take for the trip, but I didn’t have time this week. Instead I opted to grab some rice paper rolls on my way home which saved me from getting stuck on the road with Macdonalds or KFC as my only options. I follow this with 1 white chocolate and berry scone from Bakers Delight. A sweet treat for the long car trip down the coast.

 

 



Dietitian Eats Series: Kate Callaghan

For the past couple of weeks I've been bringing you the food diaries of Dietitians to show YOU what healthy eating looks like and to prove to you that we love food just as much as you (and are only human when it comes to chocolate!).

If you've missed any in the series click here, here and here!

But for now? Meet Kate...

Kate Callaghan, Accredited Practising Dietitian and Personal Trainer

Currently working in New Zealand, Kate is particularly passionate about women’s health and recovery from eating disorders, as well as digestive problems such as coeliac disease, IBS and IBD.  

Website: www.theholisticnutritionist.com  

Blog: www.againstthegrainnutrition.blogspot.com.au

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AgainstTheGrainNutrition

Twitter: @ATGnutrition

Instagram: kate_callaghan

Email: kate.theholisticnutritionist@gmail.com

Food Philosophy: “Fresh is best”. I believe we should choose real, whole, unprocessed, nutrient-dense foods and eat the way nature intended, rather than filling up on packaged and processed foods.

I have coeliac disease and an intolerance to milk, so all of my meals are gluten-free and dairy-free (but definitely not taste-free!), other than a little yoghurt. I try to include as many colourful vegetables in my day as possible, and I encourage my clients to do the same as they have an abundance of vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants, which provide amazing health benefits. Animal-based protein and healthy fats provide the icing on the cake!

7am Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. I change it up every couple of days, but this one really makes me smile. It is such a great start to the day and really easy to make – 2 eggs mixed with mashed banana and cinnamon, cooked in a pan as you would an omelette and served with yoghurt, berries, flaxseeds and coconut flakes. Yum!

10am It was a sunny, warm day, so I felt like a smoothie, which I enjoyed while sitting out on my verandah (I work from home a lot). I posted this on Instagram and had some very envious comments. I simply threw in a blender: frozen mixed berries, natural yoghurt, cinnamon, vanilla and water, topped with goji berries and cacao nibs.

1pm As we head into winter, I usually have warm foods for lunch, but it was hot the day I had this. I tend to get carried away with my salads – a little bit of everything ends up being quite a massive pile of vegetables! This Super Salmon Salad was made with as many veggies as I could find, avocado, seeds, lemon juice and olive oil. I used canned salmon here, with bones, as they are a great source of calcium and omega 3 fatty acids.

4pm As odd as it sounds, I had a craving for broccoli on this day. I know, sounds weird right? So I roasted up some broccoli florets and topped with a little olive oil and pine nuts. It was actually pretty delicious and really hit the spot. Some (most) days I will probably have a couple of squares of dark chocolate, too. I am human, after all.

7pm I LOVE roast veggies, so they will always be part of dinner. This meal is another easy one (I generally am quite a lazy cook) - Yellow chicken curry served with steamed broccoli (just in case I hadn’t had enough in the afternoon) cabbage and roasted pumpkin.