corn nut

'Are you raising your daughter as a vegetarian?' I must have been asked this question fifty times already. Nora is growing up in a bi-eating household...my husband eats meat and I don't. I have been a vegetarian for fifteen years, mostly for moral reasons but the health issue plays in to it too now. I did start eating fish again a few years ago because I was recommending it to patients so often.
My husband, Paul, is very supportive of my food choices (when he's not pressuring me to get back into meat;). He rarely eats meat at home and I certainly don't buy it or cook it for him. But once in a while, he'll pick up some organic chicken or get a recipe idea for a dinner we're hosting and make a meaty stew or something.
I'm not a preachy vegetarian. I mean I could be, but I sure don't want to be preached to about my food morality. I include meat in meal plans for my clients, because the majority of them do eat it. But, for health reasons, I also include lots of legumes, fish and seafood, which is a big change for a lot of people.
Anyway, back to the 'big question'...does Nora eat meat? Sure, because it's good for her now and eventually, it will be her decision whether she includes meat in her diet. She doesn't encounter it often, but so far she's tried chicken, turkey and beef, in pretty small amounts. Most days her protein comes from fish, dairy and legumes and she's just started trying nuts. This is perfectly healthy for a growing girl and she could do just fine without meat, but I definitely do not want to be 'forbidding' her from eating something, especially if her dad is eating it. But you can guess that her exposure to a more vegetarian style of eating is much greater than the average kid and I can only hope it leads to an appreciation of a variety of healthy foods.
Already, Nora, a girl after my own heart, loves her legumes. Paul made chicken for dinner for himself and Nora, which we served with polenta and greens. It was a huge hit and she probably had 4 helpings of polenta (thus, the name Corn Nut). I made some delicious kidney beans for my protein, and Nora ended up going crazy for them too. Not that she didn't also like the chicken...
In fact, she liked it so much, I asked Paul if he would like to do a guest post on my blog to talk about his chicken recipe. Stay tuned for that:)
In the meantime, try these oh so easy, hearty and healthy, Italian-style beans.

Red Beans with Rosemary
Serves 4

2 cups kidney beans, dried (or sub navy beans)
water
2 bay leaves
3 sprigs rosemary, fresh
1 tsp salt

Place beans in a medium pot and fill with water. Bring to a boil for 2 minutes then turn off heat and allow beans to soak for 1 hour (or can soak them overnight). Drain and rinse beans then place in same pot and cover with fresh water. Add herbs and salt. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer, covered, until tender (1-1.5 hours, depending on size of beans).
Serve over sauteed greens and polenta.

Nutrient Information (per serving):
310 Kcals
21 g Protein
56 g Carbohydrate
14 g Fibre
1 g Fat
6 mg Iron
581 mg Sodium


Polenta
Serves 4

4 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup cornmeal (coarse for polenta)
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Bring water to a boil in a medium-sized pot. Add salt, then gradually whisk in cornmeal. Reduce heat and continue stirring until thickened, about 15 minutes. Stir in butter, oil and cheese. Serve immediately.