Many of you have been watching the progress of our Napa farm renovation
and the completion of our media kitchen. It’s finally time for the next step? The dining room.
Since our floor plan is open and the dining area isn’t really a separate room, it was important to find just the right table to complement our contemporary kitchen design.
Voila! Here is picture of our new table called The Sigma Drive Expandable dining table.
The top is a vertical slice of gorgeous Canaletto Walnut also know as American Black Walnut. Like the tree itself, the outer edges of the table are irregular too. It is currently being crafted in a small town called Carre in Northern Italy and will be delivered to us from www.italydesign.com in Emeryville, California.
In preparation for it’s arrival, I have chalked the dining area floor to show where the Sigma table will live. Two different colors of chalk markings show the table length with and without table extended. Thank you www.italydesign.com
| | Size 1 | Size 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 78 3/4” (200cm) | 94 1/2” (240cm) |
| Length Extended | 118 1/8” (300cm) | 133 7/8” (340cm) |
| Width | 43 5/16” (110cm) | 47 1/4” (120cm) |
| Height | 29 1/2” (75cm) | 29 1/2” (75cm) |
The Holiday season is already upon us, and many of my wonderful fans and followers on Facebook and Twitter have been asking for simple tips and recipes for kids during the holidays that busy moms and dads can use to both entertain and inspire healthful snacking. Below I have included both a short list of quick and easy snack ideas that can also both be fun and healthy for parents and kids alike. I have also included a delightful recipe from my forthcoming "Cooking with Quinoa for Dummies" book, set to be released early next month, for amazing Quinoa Breakfast Bars, full of fiber and flavor that are sure to impress.
- Air popped popcorn – you can even string them up and use as a Christmas tree decoration!
- Ants on a log – spread low fat cream cheese or peanut butter on a celery stalk and sprinkle on some raisins or dried cranberries, blueberries or cherries.
- Fresh fruit kabobs – use what’s in season such as apples, and pears, bananas
.
- Apple smiles – slice up an apple and spread peanut butter on them and arrange on plate as
- Fresh fruit smoothies – even using fresh frozen fruit for this fun treat is healthy. Add kefir or low fat yogurt
with milk to boost the nutritional value andcalcium for strong bones.
- Yogurt and fruit layered parfaits –
, a touch of agave nectar to add sweetness and a spoonful of granola for crunch.
- Snowflakes – take a whole-wheat tortilla and spread a thin layer of low fat cream cheese over the surface. Then sprinkle with cinnamon
.Fold tortilla
Quinoa Breakfast Bars [1]
Yield 24 bars
Ingredients
Cooking oil spray
2 ½ cups gluten-free old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick)
½ cup quinoa flour
½ cup nonfat dry milk powder
½ cup unsweetened coconut
½ cup sliced almonds or chopped pecans
½ cup chopped dried apples or other dried fruit or berries
½ cup currants or raisins
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup dark honey
½ cup natural almond butter or peanut butter
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Directions
1 Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly coat a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking oil spray.
2 In a large mixing bowl, measure the rolled oats, quinoa flour, milk powder, coconut, almonds, dried apples, currants, and salt. Stir well to combine and set aside.
3 In a small saucepan, warm the honey and nut butter over low heat, stirring occasionally until blended. Do not boil. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
4 Add the warm honey mixture to the dry ingredients and quickly stir the mixture until it’s well combined. The mixture will be sticky but not wet.
5 Pat the mixture into the prepared baking pan and press firmly with your hands to remove any air pockets.
6 Bake the bars until they just begin to brown on the edges, about 25 minutes.
7 Cool for 10 minutes then cut into 24 bars, each about 11⁄2 x 21⁄4 inches.
8 When the bars are just cool enough to handle, remove them from the pan to a cooling rack. When they are completely cool, store them in an airtight container. Keep them in the refrigerator for optimal freshness.
Per serving: Calories 161 (From Fat 56); Fat 6g (Saturated 2g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 61mg; Carbohydrate 25g, Dietary Fiber 2g, Protein 4g
In my 12 seasons as nutritionist on The Biggest Loser, interviewing and coaching each and every contestant, I learned a great deal about the most common mistakes people make around the kitchen that can lead to weight gain. I also spent a great deal of time working with the contestants and developed simple and easy-to-follow guidelines.
When the Food Network's Healthy Eats blog asked me about some of my top cooking tips for weight loss, recently these are the three I thought of immediately:
- Put Flavor First! Steamed broccoli and grilled chicken may help you drop pounds but it’s not a sustainable eating plan -- too boring! You have to put FLAVOR FIRST. Having the right condiments, dressings and sauces on hand can turn a ho-hum meal into an extraordinary culinary experience. My favorite store bought items to keep on hand include, salsa, capers, no-sugar fruit spreads, guacamole, horseradish, mustards galore, low-sodium soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and I’m the Queen of homemade dressings, sauces, dips and “mayos.”
- Make extras or big batches: Whenever you cook, freeze half in individual containers. When hunger strikes you’ll always have a cup of soup, a pasta dish or a scrumptious leftover to reheat in minutes or take with you. No excuses for visiting the drive thru!
- Always have a bowl of fresh fruit in sight: Keep containers in the fridge of freshly cut veggies to graze on or to quickly heat or sauté. Most of us eat mindlessly much more often than we realize. If you’re going to graze anyway, feel good about it!
Read the full interview on The Food Network's Healthy Eats Blog. And learn more about putting Flavor First at FlavorFirst.com.
Diet co-authored by Cheryl Forberg, RD ranked No. 2 for weight loss, and No.1 for diabetics
U.S. News and World Report ranked The Biggest Loser Diet among the top diets for weight loss on its annual list of The Best Diets. The Biggest Loser Diet ranked No. 2 among all tested diets for weight loss, and was named the No. 1 diet for fighting and managing diabetes by the prestigious magazine.
Cheryl Forberg — a Registered Dietitian, James Beard award-winning chef, New York Times best-selling author, and Nutritionist for The Biggest Loser for 12 seasons, co-authored the diet and since the show’s debut in 2004 to season 12 2011, she individually counseled each of The Biggest Loser’s 250 contestants on how to transform their eating and cooking habits — consequently helping to change their lives.
Forberg has long touted The Biggest Loser Diet’s benefits to diabetics. In fact, one-in-four contestants have diabetes when they report The Ranch: But they all leave without it.
Measuring portions is an essential element of my eating plan, and the one I've taught the Biggest Loser contestants for the past 12 seasons.
| Teaspoon | Tablespoon | Cups | Pints/quarts gallons |
Fluid ounce | Milliliter |
| 1/4 teaspoon | 1 ml | ||||
| 1/2 teaspoon | 2 ml | ||||
| 1 teaspoon | 1/3 tablespoon | 5 ml | |||
| 3 teaspoons | 1 tablespoon | 1/16 cup | 1/2 oz | 15 ml | |
| 6 teaspoons | 2 tablespoons | 1/8 cup | 1 oz | 30 ml | |
| 12 teaspoons | 4 tablespoons | 1/4 cup | 2 oz | 60 ml | |
| 16 teaspoons | 5 1/3 tablespoons | 1/3 cup | 2 1/2 oz | 75 ml | |
| 24 teaspoons | 8 tablespoons | 1/2 cup | 4 oz | 125 ml | |
| 32 teaspoons | 10 2/3 tablespoons | 2/3 cup | 5 oz | 150 ml | |
| 36 teaspoons | 12 tablespoons | 3/4 cup | 6 oz | 175 ml | |
| 48 teaspoons | 16 tablespoons | 1 cup | ½ pint | 8 oz | 237 ml |
| 2 cups | 1 pint | 16 oz | 473 ml | ||
| 3 cups | 24 oz | 710 ml | |||
| 4 cups | 1 quart | 32 oz | 946 ml | ||
Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is a holiday of celebration, yet it also is the beginning of a process of self-examination and internal reflection and contemplation, which ends ten days later with Yom Kippur.
The traditional foods that are eaten on Rosh Hashanah hold a great deal of symbolism (and, if you are not careful, many calories). Apples and honey are perhaps the most well known traditional new year’s foods; they represent a sweet new year ahead. It is also a tradition for Jews to eat a slow-cooked stew, which may be made from the head of an animal, like fish heads, or cooked cows’ tongue. This symbolizes the “head,” or start, of the year.
Pomegranates are eaten during this holiday because of their many seeds, which symbolize fruitfulness. Not only do pomegranates symbolize good things, they are full of goodness. They are high in vitamin A and potassium, and a good source of fiber. They are also rich in polyphenols, a potent class of anti-aging and heart-healthy antioxidants.
Challah, a typical Jewish bread, is baked in a round shape on Rosh Hashanah. This is then dipped in honey. The roundness symbolizes wholeness and continuity, and again, the honey represents wishes for a sweet year ahead. It’s particularly important to keep challah and honey to symbolic portions — enough to respect your tradition, but not so much as to upset the balance of your diet.
Ten days after Rosh Hashanah, which begins at sundown on Wednesday, September 28, comes Yom Kippur. This is the holiest day of the year in the Jewish faith. It is otherwise known as “the Day of Atonement.” Jews will fast for a period of 25 hours (from sundown to sundown) on Yom Kippur. This is thought to help one focus on well being, asking forgiveness, and praying for a better year ahead.
Traditional foods eaten to break the fast on Yom Kippur are eggs, cheese and bread. Many times, a family will prepare the break-fast meal a day ahead, so they don’t have to deal with any food the actual day of fasting. Other families will only break the fast with cold foods, such as boiled eggs, cheese, bread, and cold meats. Again, the traditional foods might not exactly be up to your usual low-fat and low-carb standards. Boiled eggs, in moderation, are, of course, a wholesome food (you may even want to prepare my “deviled” eggs, where the yolk is scooped and replaced with hummus, a day in advance). Try to eat whole wheat bread and or bread made with other whole grains instead of their white-flour counterparts.
Keeping healthy foods on hand is important, as the urge to over-indulge and make the wrong food choices is always a danger when you are very hungry (as you might be at the end of a fast).
Find the recipe for my “deviled” eggs and five other quick, prepare-ahead snacks that would be ideal for breaking your fast here.
The charismatic trainer Dolvett Quince joins The Biggest Loser this season, bringing years of expertise in, in his words, "body sculpting." He keeps his clientele in shape and works with some to transform their bodies (one client lost 325 pounds) as founder of Atlanta, GA-based Body Sculptor fitness studios. In preparation for this season of BL, I had the chance to chat with Dolvett about fitness, training Atlanta's celebs (Justin Beiber even brought him on tour), and his advice for the rest of us.
Cheryl: What is the number one mistake people make when starting a training program?
Dolvett: Getting started without stretching.
Cheryl: What do you say to someone who thinks they are too out of shape to start exercising?
Dolvett: How much more out of shape are you gonna get before you get started?
Cheryl: You own your own successful fitness studios and have trained everyone from Justin Beiber to Janet Jackson. Of your accomplishments as a trainer, which are you most proud of?
Dolvett: I'd have to say making it here on Biggest Loser, I can affect more people, and help change lives.
Anna Kournikova, who has been a guest on the Ranch in the past, joins The Biggest Loser as a full-time trainer this season, bring her own sort of fire and intensity and a whole new energy. Kournikova has had a tennis racket in her hands since the age of five, and, as the daughter of two athletes, grew up training hard, pounding backhands in her native Moscow, and made a splash on the international tennis circuit while still in her teens.
I met with Anna at the start of season 12 to discuss The Biggest Loser approach to food and nutrition and had the chance to ask her a little a bit about her career and what she would do to motivate the contestants this season.
What’s the greatest adversity you’ve faced and how did you overcome it?
Anna: Having significant injuries as a professional athlete and finding creative ways to still workout and train.
What do you think you can do to inspire others?
Anna: The most important thing I can do to inspire others is to tell them to dream big! Growing up in the Soviet Union I was a small girl with very modest means but I had big dreams of becoming a professional tennis player. I can personally tell everyone that with a lot of hard work and dedication you can achieve things that you never thought were possible.
What would most surprise people about you?
Anna: I am a huge adrenaline junky and love to try all sorts of cool and exciting action sports.
How would you describe your tennis playing style, and, how if at all, do you think this relates to your approach to life?
Anna: I have always loved to be creative on the court, and sometimes it worked to my advantage and sometimes it didn’t. I was never a “play it safe” athlete; I always loved to take some risks. I think I approach life this way, too.
I am, overall, pretty regimented, which is a given having been a professional athlete, but I love to mix it up a bit and have some fun. I am a Gemini so it’s in my blood!
For the backyard gardner or farmers market forager, tomato season is one of the true joys of summer. They may not be around for long, but when they are there is little you can put on your plate that so easily and simply (and healthily) packs so much flavor.
Some swear by the many, many interesting and wildly different heirloom varieties (in all sorts of colors and patterns). Others just as proudly show off the hybrids they grew in their backyards, passing out bags bursting with tomatoes to friends and neighbors when the bounty arrives. But either way, come August and September in most of the country those at the table are in for a delicious treat.
The tomato has long been a controversial fruit, er, vegetable, though. Did you know that on May 10, 1983 The U.S. Supreme Court officially declared the tomato a vegetable, based on the fact that they are generally served with dinner and not dessert? Botanists may argue the other way. Whichever side of the debate you fall on however, one thing is for sure: The tomato is a good for you food!
Tomatoes are not only extremely versatile and taste great; they also have many nutritional benefits. They are high lycopene. Lycopene is a phytochemical found in tomatoes (and fruit such as watermelon and pink grapefruit) that has potent antioxidant properties. Many studies have revealed evidence that lycopene may help decrease the risk of prostate cancer while working in concert with other nutrients.
Tomatoes are also high in vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium, and fiber. One medium tomato is approximately 95% water and has 22 calories. One cup of fresh tomatoes provides over 57% of the daily value for vitamin C, 22% of the daily value for vitamin A, and almost 8% of the daily value for fiber.
Sometimes it's all we can do to wait to pop the deep red slices into our mouths as soon as the orbs are sliced. Others blanche and preserve their ruby treasures or boil them down into sauces so the late-summer treat can last months more.
But raw or cooked -- which is better? Fatsoluble nutrients such as lycopene become more concentrated when tomatoes are cooked. Vitamin C, on the other hand, is more abundant in raw tomatoes. You'll be happy to know that you should enjoy this anti-aging “fruit” both ways for optimal benefits.
Try this recipe I learned from a friend in Hawaii for a delicious tomato salad -- you'll find it at FlavorFirst.com.
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Win a one-year membership to the Biggest Loser Club! Season 12 is just weeks away, but until the premiere we'll be giving away a year-long membership to the Biggest Loser Club, a customized interactive diet and fitness program, every week. To enter for your chance to win sign up for my monthly newsletter of tips, recipes, news and advice. Sign up here.
Everyone wants the best for their children. That goes without saying. And while we all also know there are worse things you can do to your kids than sending them off to school with Lunchables, there aren't many. So we get up early and pack what we hope is a healthy lunch. Parents find it comforting that they’re sending their precious cargo off to school with home-packed meals, but there can be some hidden evil in that lunch.
Here are three of the biggest mistakes we make when feeding our kids during the school year, and ways we can prevent them.
1. No Skipping
One of the biggest mistakes that we make (or our children make) starts before school. Skipping breakfast. This is a no-no for sure. Not eating breakfast reduces learning and decreases ability to focus and pay attention. In addition, it can be a contributor to obesity. When you skip breakfast, you may get overly hungry later and this can lead to poor food choices, eating too much and eating too fast.
So, give your kids a healthy breakfast each morning (and take this as an opportunity for you to have one -- because you need it, too). Start the day off well with oatmeal, a piece of whole-wheat toast with peanut butter, scrambled eggs or egg whites. Even a healthy, protein filled smoothie works great for fueling the day.
2. Lukewarm Lunches?
Unsafe home-packed lunches can be a major problem. Bacteria are evil little buggers, and when our cold food isn’t kept cold enough and our hot food not kept hot enough, they have a perfect environment in which to multiply. Perhaps that stomachache or intestinal upset little Johnny came home with wasn’t a bug he caught from a classmate; it may have been his lunch! Hot foods need to be kept at or above 140 degrees, and cold foods should be kept at or below 40 degrees.
A recent study from the University of Texas in Austin, which was published in the Journal of Pediatrics, found that over 90% of pre-schoolers’ home packed lunches were not at a safe temperature for eating once lunchtime arrived. Be sure to pack several ice packs in your child’s lunch box, and use insulated lunch boxes to maximize staying temperatures. Freeze liquids (and even yogurt) the night before, then in the morning place them in the lunch box. Avoid using lunch foods that spoil easily, such as egg salad and things mixed with mayonnaise. There are even lunch boxes that can be placed directly into the freezer the night before use.
3. Attack of the Snack Attacks
Careful with the after school snacks! Now, don’t get me wrong, snacks are good for us, and I encourage several small snacks throughout the day. The problem isn’t the snacks; it’s what a child may choose for a snack (especially if mom or dad isn’t around).
Many people store convenient snack packages in their pantry or cupboards, such as chips, cookies and the like. If they’re around, guaranteed the kids will snack on them. Instead, choose to have fresh and healthy snacks easily available. Good examples are, dried fruit, fresh fruit, trail mix, low-fat cheese and whole grain crackers, yogurt, cut up veggies, and hummus. Also, many kids will drink their calorie allotment for the day with out realizing it, so don’t have sodas, punch and other high calorie drinks around.
A healthy treat such as my Very Berry Smoothie from my latest cookbook Flavor First makes an ideal after school snack. Get the recipe here.
Win a one-year membership to the Biggest Loser Club! Season 12 is just weeks away, but until the premiere we'll be giving away a year-long membership to the Biggest Loser Club, a customized interactive diet and fitness program, every week. To enter for your chance to win sign up for my monthly newsletter of tips, recipes, news and advice. Sign up here.
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Cheryl Forberg, RD, is a James Beard award-winning chef, a bestselling author and the former nutritionist for NBC's "The Biggest Loser." 
