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Low fat, low salt, barley, twigs and ...

Reality TVClubHouse Discussions: General Discussions ARCHIVES: Jan ~ Apr 2009: Cooking Corner: Low fat, low salt, barley, twigs and air diet users admin

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Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 3:46 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
ok..maybe not barley and twigs LOL
since my dh's heart attack, we have to REALLY watch the sodium intake. they want to limit him to 2000 mg/ day; preferrably with no meal being over 600 and no more than 150/serving/item.

i know to increase our uses of fresh herbs, lemons, limes. i was already cooking with alot of broth to cut fats down, but they are loaded with salt.

any recipes?

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 6:20 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
Annie I had to follow that diet for a while and it really is hard. I don't know whether you have a Trader Joe's near you, but it was invaluable to me when I had to limit my sodium intake so much. They have very low sodium chicken/veggie/beef stocks, low sodium tuna (it's really necessary if you eat tuna because other tunas are very high sodium), low sodium pasta sauce and canned tomatoes, etc. I also used to eat Ezekiel breads, which have almost no sodium and are quite healthy.

If you don't have a Trader Joes, you might have a Whole Foods, which also has things like that. It has a reputation for being very expensive, but I have found that you can get staples (like the things mentioned above) pretty cheaply. It was funny, because when I was first out of the hospital a friend used to take me because it was too precarious to get around myself...we'd pick up a bottle of pasta sauce, say, and look at the label and she'd say, "oh my god!" and quickly put it back on the shelf because the amount of sodium is just amazing. [Side note: Mexican markets can also be good for tuna. For some reason, they have tuna that's very low sodium.]

I'm sure you already know that when you make salads, nothing is better than making your own dressings. Vinaigrette dressings give the illusion of salt without the sodium. Spicy foods are also good because, I think, we associate strong flavors with salt. The good thing is that the desire for salt dissipates pretty quickly and if you have something with much sodium in it, it just feels wrong--not only do you retain fluids, but the saltiness really sticks out.

There are also websites that specialize in low sodium products, but I never had to resort to them...and they struck me as unnecessarily expensive, anyhow.

I'll be thinking of you and your husband. I know it's quite trying at first, but it's really not so bad. Sorry, just realized this doesn't have recipes. You might want to check out the congestive heart failure board I used to go to, chfpatients.com. The owner has been having CHF-related problems, so it's not active like it was when I had my diagnosis, but it does have recipes here. I'll confess I never made any because they didn't seem like things I'd enjoy eating, but everyone is different.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 9:56 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
Thanks Tish!! I gave up adding salt years ago, and you are right, I don't miss it. But, I am finding that I am sort of missing the products that had it added into it! LOL
We have Whole Foods. I will check them out and that link.
I take it you are all better now?!

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 2:26 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
Yes, Annie, I was as lucky to recover fully as I was unlucky to get the virus that caused my CHF. I'm sure the doctors gave you a list of things to avoid--the most depressing list ever. I remember how shocked I was that hot chocolate was forbidden!

If I can re-find the low sodium sites I used to frequent, I will post them. ETA: here is the Heart healthy Market....it has lots of very low sodium products but, as I wrote earlier, I never shopped there because of the expense. I always wanted to try their soups, but if I was too lazy to make my own I just went to Trader Joe's.

Another ETA: and here is Mega Heart, which I remember being helpful, too.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 2:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
Glad to hear you are doing great!
I had to laugh at our list of 'bad' food. Since we were in Hawaii, it had alot of things we had never heard of or would never eat..spam for example! LOL
Thanks for those links!

Escapee
Member

06-15-2004

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 2:51 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Escapee a private message Print Post    
I found a cereal that I love. It's 100 calories, only 6 grams of sugar and 6 grams of fiber, and only 1.5g of fat per serving.

It's Kashi Honey Sunshine. VERY good with some bananas in it.

Mamie316
Member

07-08-2003

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 3:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
I'd like to thank you too, Tishala. My mom's BP was way up at her last visit with her cardiologist and we've been trying to cut back on her sodium intake. I will have to take her to Trader Joe's.

Texannie, my mom was born and raised in Kauai so there has always been plenty of Spam. LOL She has bought the low sodium kind as of late. But there is also always lots of soy sauce on things that she makes and it's hard to get her to cut back on it. She's 84 and sometimes it's hard to try and make her eat differently.

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 3:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
Mamie, Trader Joe's has a long list of low sodium products: here [.pdf file]; I just looked and Whole Foods says each store has a list of its low sodium products, so I'm guessing you have to ask someone at the store for the list.

ETA: As I look more closely at the Trader Joe's list, I am somewhat suspicious. They have their olives listed as low sodium, which might be technically true, but I'm guessing the serving size has to be quite small for them to have less than 140 mg sodium/serving. Which, I guess, is another important point: we need to account for a reasonable serving size alongside the sodium content. It's possible to make a potato chip with 100 mg sodium per serving, but it doesn't much matter when a serving size amounts to 4 potato chips cuz NOBODY only eats 4 potato chips in a sitting. Do they?

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 3:26 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
What kills me is how the sodium amount always goes up when they lower the fat in foods! grrr
The hospital did serve low salt shoyou (soy) sauce with everything. We also laughed at the Mcdonalds that had the spam and egg breakfast.

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 3:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
What looks like a good blog: Please Don't Pass the Salt: A journey into the world of low sodium cooking & low sodium recipes

Wish I had known about that when it would have been useful to me, although I am willing to stipulate that I could live my whole life and never want to eat turkey scrapple.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 3:57 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
What the heck is turkey scrapple???

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 4:05 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
Well, scrapple is a Philadelphia thing; I'm guessing it came over with poor German settlers. It's completely gross...basically pork parts that are too awful to make it into hot dogs. And then they mix it with cornmeal and flour and fry it. And some people put maple syrup on top of that. Or ketchup. They don't care, I guess, because ketchup and maple syrup combined has to taste better than scrapple.

I have never eaten it because, thank God, I grew up Jewish and my family didn't eat pork products, but I have smelled it cooking and...just yuck. Anyhow, that blog has a recipe for turkey scrapple, which is better for you, I suppose, than pork scrapple. But no scrapple is the real answer. None at all.

I have looked through the blog and it has a lot of good information and some good recipes. Just not turkey scrapple. Thinking of it sends shivers up my spine.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 4:15 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
OMG..it's rodeo time right now and the BBQ cook-off starts today. There was a newscaster there this AM doing a story. One of the 'new' items that one team was cooking called "Pork Explosion" a layer of bacon woven together in a lattice pattern, next was a thick layer of pork breakfast sausage, then some fried crumbled bacon was put on it. you then rolled it jelly roll style, basted it with sauce and smoked it. The report was joking that a bottle of lipitor came with it! LOL

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 4:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
that's a great blog, tish!!!

Juju2bigdog
Member

10-27-2000

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 4:58 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Juju2bigdog a private message Print Post    
Texannie, both Rice Epicurean and Central Market would also probably have a large selection of low sodium products. Food shopping choices is sure one of the things I miss about not living in a big city. My little town is still giddy with joy that we finally got a Trader Joe's after YEARS of rumor-mongering. The first couple months, you couldn't even get into the parking lot, lol.

Best wishes to Steve for a speedy recovery. He sure is lucky to have you to cook for him and worry about him.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 5:01 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
aw shucks, Juju...right now, the neighbors are all lined up with meals. i don't think i will actually be cooking for a month! and they are all doing a pretty good job with the low salt too.
Rice is close, not so much Central Market, but Whole Foods is close too.
the biggest thing he is having so far (and he really hasn't been home that long) are chips and salsa. salsa is ok and i bought corn tortillas for him to use to dip. triscuits hint of salt are pretty low too.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 10:18 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
I am so so sorry I asked Tish. I'm not much of a pork fan, but even the turkey scrapple sounds horrible!

Annie, one of the side bonus effects of this is that you'll find yourself eating healthier as well as Steve. My aunts no fat, low chol., no salt, diabetic, plus the whole false teeth thing and when I first started cooking for her I had no idea what to do or how to do it. Once I got it down I was quite happy with it, to save time I was only cooking one meal instead of two (except the once a week she had salmon, ick,) and we were all eating healthier. Sis said the same thing when they moved in with her and she started cooking for aunt.

Landileigh
Member

07-29-2002

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - 10:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Landileigh a private message Print Post    
annie, oatmeal is a fabulous food - 0 sodium, and you can go NO sodium in broth by using the no sodium broth cubes made by Herb-Ox. you just dissolve a cube or packet in a cup of water and voila, just like from a can! also, you'll want to get Hain Baking Powder for no-sodium baking powder.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Friday, February 27, 2009 - 5:22 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
Thanks Landi, no one in my family can stand oatmeal. Only if we put enough sugar/milk ect can we choke it down...kind of blows the benefits! LOL
I am definitely checking out the Herb-Ox cubes. Several people have mentioned them.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Monday, March 02, 2009 - 9:20 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
He's jonesen big time for enchilladas (cheese and chili gravy no less!) any clue on how to make those low salt???

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Monday, March 02, 2009 - 6:55 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
Make your own enchilada sauce - if you don't use canned sauce, you can drastically reduce sodium. For example, you could use THIS (CLICK) link but instead of using the 6 oz. of tomato sauce from a can, buy some romas and blend them yourself into 1/2 cup (or a bit less) of sauce. If you leave out the 1/8 tsp. salt as well, you've just taken out most of the sodium in the recipe.

Mamie316
Member

07-08-2003

Monday, March 02, 2009 - 7:01 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
My mom does love her oatmeal, which is a good thing.

Goddessatlaw
Member

07-19-2002

Monday, March 02, 2009 - 7:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Goddessatlaw a private message Print Post    
Texannie, throw cockroaches in the oatmeal (that would be raisins for the uninitiated). It makes the medicine go down so much easier.

Also, don't let anyone tell you you're torturing your husband by not letting him have his beloved bacon (for example). My gg-aunt was a nurse, and when my gg-uncle was diagnosed at the age of 68 with all kinds of malaise (heart, colon, blood) she put him on a low-sodium low-fat diet that bought him an extra 20 years. She made him quit smoking, too, but that was a bit of a different subject.

The whole family was like - whatever, the man isn't going to make it past 75 let him have the things he loves. But the fact is, she bought him 20 more years by monitoring his habits and intake. And he loved every one of those extra years with his wife.

It really, truly does make a difference even when you think it doesn't.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Tuesday, March 03, 2009 - 4:48 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
Thanks GAL!
he got somewhat of a reprieve on the salt front...he didn't have hypertension before all of this and his bp has been pretty low (they are adjusting his meds) so the doc said he didn't have to be super vigilant. still no added salts, and lower is always better.
he's too young to let him eat whatever he wants though! so everything i fix will definitely be on the heart healhty side.

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Monday, March 16, 2009 - 6:55 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
So I just finished reading The Omnivore's Dilemma and I've made the decision to reduce my meat consumption--by which I mean chicken, beef, or pork--to only once a week. The rest of the time, I'm going to go with a diet of mostly legumes, beans, vegetables, and fish. It's not to lose weight because I'm not heavy, and it's not to be more heart healthy because I've been doing that for a while, but because I've decided it's the only responsible thing to do for the planet.

We already know that beef is an environmental disaster--about 1/5 of all carbon dioxide that leads to global climate change comes from the hyperproduction of beef cattle and it also leads to deforestation. Pork and chicken production causes pollution of a different sort, leaving antibiotics in the soil that seep into the water supply.

And it's an unhealthy lifestyle. It's at least as responsible for the fatness of America as high fructose corn syrup and sodas. And yes, I know that fish has its own problems like mercury, and that I can get organic chicken, but I can't afford that. So I think the only responsible thing to do is to severely curtail my consumption of meats. I may have to wean myself off them, but I've decided it's important enough to do it. If anyone is interested, read Michael Pollan's book above (Omnivore's Dilemma) or In Defense of Food or Mark Bittman's new book Food Matters. I will not give up butter, however. No matter what.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Monday, March 16, 2009 - 7:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
LOL..as long as you have butter, the barley and twigs will take ok!
good for you. i am still reeling over the price of chicken that isn't filled with salt and fillers, so i may not be far from you!

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Monday, March 16, 2009 - 7:23 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
Is Bittman a non-meat eater? I adored watching him on Spain...on the Road Again (a PBS series w/Mario Batali, Gwyneth Paltrow, Bittman and a Claudia something from Spain), and I know he ate almost everything (including squid in ink and ham) then. Just wondering what his view is.

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Monday, March 16, 2009 - 7:28 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
No Bittman DOES eat meat, but he says he doesn't eat any meat products before 6 PM. He has changed his diet pretty significantly over the past few years--Food Matters talks about it (and about his weight loss that happened as a result of it).

Annie, I talked to a friend today who has been a vegetarian for years and she has started eating chicken in the past few years, since her kids were born. But she eats the organic chicken and, frankly, I don't have the budget for it. So I think I will do better to more or less cut it out.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Monday, March 16, 2009 - 7:52 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Texannie a private message Print Post    
$6.99/lb at whole foods today for chicken breasts!!! Sanderson Farm (Randalls) doesn't have salt in it either $4.99/lb. makes those salty $1.99 chickens look pretty damn good!

why not meat before 6?

Tishala
Member

08-01-2000

Monday, March 16, 2009 - 7:54 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tishala a private message Print Post    
I think it's just to impose an artificial boundary as a way to reduce consumption. And that way you can have meat at dinner but not for lunch or breakfast, which, for most people, reduces consumption by at least half.

Urgrace
Member

08-19-2000

Monday, March 16, 2009 - 7:56 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Urgrace a private message Print Post    
If you haven't heard of scrapple, it may be that you have heard of panhas or haggis, and is very similar in taste and texture to polenta. The traditional way to eat scrapple is with apple butter.