Pumpkins are one of your best friends when it comes to losing weight. They have around 13 kcal per 100g and only 2 g of carbohydrates. Their flesh is 95% water and they represent one of the best sources of carotene. In their composition pumpkins have protein (around 24 g per 100g), iron, phosphorous, magnesium, potassium, calcium, a lot of starch and some vegetable fat that is rich in vitamin E and B complex. They are also good sources of tryptophan and niacin.
You can store a pumpkin for a long time, even after you opened it. Do not put in the fridge before opening; keep it in a cool dry place. Pumpkins are nearly 100% edible, even the seeds, do not throw them away. To store the seeds, you need to separate them from the pulp, wash them and let them dry. After they dried out, put them in the oven in a greased baking tray at 120°C (250°F) and let them roast for an hour. You can either salt them or not, and keep them in a jar in a cool dry place.

And now it is time for an easy and delicious soup.

Pumpkin soup with coconut milk and spices

750 g pumpkin
Water (± 1l)
1 onion
150 ml coconut milk
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp of coriander
Salt and pepper to taste

Bring the pumpkin and onion to a boil, season and let them boil for 15-20 minutes. When cooked, mix them in a blender and bring to a boil again. Add the coconut milk and all the spices, mix it with a spoon, et voilà, it is done! When serving garnish the bowl with some pepper or cinnamon.

Enjoy.

Mariana Costenla
Dietitian/ Nutritionist

Yes, it is in fact better to eat throughout the day, not necessarily every two hours, but every three to three and a half hours.

Eating throughout the day will keep your blood glucose level stable, which in a longer term will prevent insulin resistance and diabetes; it keeps your metabolism high and your body working perfectly.

Mariana Costenla, Nutritionist

Plums are highly nutritious. With few calories (around 40 for every 100g) they are ideal for mid-morning or afternoon snacks. In addition, they are very rich in antioxidants and flavonoids, especially vitamin C and anthocyanins, which makes them helpful to our immune system, an important quality at this time of the year. They are also rich in vitamin B6, iron, phosphorous and potassium. Plums have very high dietary fibre content, particularly if they are dried. As a result, plums have a very good effect in our intestines, as they prevent and treat constipation which in turn prevents colon cancer.

There are many ways to eat plums – as fruit, as pure, in meat dishes or even as a jam. You usually do not need to peel them, but you must take the seed off, as it can be very toxic. If you find the skin sour, simply peel them and enjoy their sweet inner taste.

Another way of enjoying plums is mixing them in a cereal bowl with other fruit, dried nuts and skimmed milk or yogurt and you will start the day with a delicious breakfast to help you get through your day!

Be healthy,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/ Nutritionist

As a dietitian, I teach people how to eat well and become healthier, which by the way, is cheaper. So, why not start with a few simple solutions for everyday eating that will not compromise your day or your mental health? There is one thing you must keep in mind: if you choose seasonal foods over industrialized or pre-cooked foods you will be choosing food that is cheaper, healthier and nutritionally richer.

Here are a few tips to help you lose weight without changing your life:

• Eat Office Fruit! Eat them as a mid-morning snack or in the afternoon. If you do not get fruit in your office, buy it in a grocery store or bring it from home.
• Choose dairy products as skimmed milk or yogurts for breakfast or in the afternoon. They are healthier than any other soft drink or milk shake. Bring them from home if you can.
• If you do not have the time or the money to eat out, bring your own lunch. But please, bring more than a sandwich. You must bring something that will satisfy you until the afternoon snack.
• Consider bringing a vegetable soup, a whole bread sandwich and a fruit juice or pasta made with some vegetable or meat leftovers or even a salad with some meat, cheese and nuts.
• Please, get away from sugar. You don’t need it. Enjoy foods’ natural flavour.
• Do not let yourself get hungry. If you are starting to get hungry eat. It will be worse if you don’t.
• Eat before you go to the supermarket. If you don’t, you will buy unnecessary things!

Happy New Year,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/ Nutritionist

Nearly 60 to 70% of their weight is sugar. 100g of dried dates give you approximately 270 kcal and 68% of carbohydrates.  They are rich in potassium (700 mg), more than any bananas or oranges, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, iron, niacin, vitamin B6 and fibre. They also have a high amount of vitamin C, good for our immune system.

Because of their viscosity and sugar content, do not forget to brush your teeth after eating dates or you might get some caries.

There are many ways to eat dates, for example, filled with candied fruit or nuts, or even as part of Christmas fruit cakes. In Arabic countries dates are also commonly used to create flour and beverages. There is one delicious way to eat dates, one you must not have many times because it is the opposite of healthy. It will give you not only a high amount of sugar, but also a lot of animal fat. Those with diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension or heart disease should not follow this recipe.

Nevertheless, for those trying something new here is the recipe!

Bacon wrapped dates

Wrap a thin slice of bacon around the date and secure with toothpick. Fry in a non stick pan until the bacon is cooked, turning to brown evenly. Serve hot.

See you next time,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/ Nutritionist

References

McCance & Widdowson’s Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset

Chestnuts or sweet chestnuts are called Castanea sativa. They can be found inside the chestnut husk that falls from the tree at the beginning of fall. Although it is a seed, it is highly nutritious and has been used for several years as a substitute for other foods such as bread or potatoes. It has twice the calories and carbohydrates of the potato, nearly all in the form of starch; it has more protein and 3 times more fiber. It contains carotene, riboflavin, thiamine, vitamin C and B6, folic acid, iron, phosphorous and potassium.

Although they are very energetic, unless you eat them every day, you will not put on extra weight by eating them.

There are plenty of ways of cooking chestnuts.  They can be boiled, roasted, baked and stewed. They are also very good as a purée or a soup and they make the perfect match for meat dishes.

Here are some recipes to try on.

Chestnut soup

Bring to a boil 500 g of peeled and skinned chestnuts and 2 leeks in 1 l of water. Blend the soup and season with salt and a little pepper. Add 1 cup of milk and wait until it begins to boil. Blend again if necessary. When serving add a little chopped parsley or some cream.

Chestnut mousse

Bring to a boil 350 g of peeled and skinned chestnuts (use frozen, it is easier) and season it with a little salt. Drain well, mash to a purée and mix 250 ml of cream, 3 yolks and 100 g of sugar. Beat the egg whites to a stiff peak and fold everything together. Keep in the fridge for 3 hours before serving.

See you next week,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/ Nutritionist

Candying fruit consists in substituting its water content by a sugary content. The fruit is soaked in hot sugar syrup that will preserve it for a longer period. It still maintains some of its nutritional characteristics but becomes highly caloric given
its sugar concentration. People who suffer from diabetes should not eat this kind of fruit or cakes made with candied fruit such as fruitcake. Of all known ways to preserve fruit, only refrigerating or freezing does not change its calories.

Not all fruits can be crystallized. Soft fruit as berries aren’t easy to crystallize as they tear apart. The best fruits to candy are oranges, lemon, figs, peaches, cherries and pineapple.

Although it is a useful way to preserve fruit, it is not commonly used during the year. Candied fruit is specially used for fruitcakes in weddings and Christmas, so this is a good time to start making your own candied fruit.

Here is a recipe for making candied pear:

First of all, wash all the fruit. Cut the pear in big pieces so it won’t tear easily.  Put the pear in a pot with 4 cups of fresh
water and 400 g of sugar and let it boil until it is transparent but unbroken. Transfer to a colander to drain.

Repeat bringing the pear to a full boil for 10 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and allow it to cool. You will need to repeat this step for 3 days. Then let dry out in the air and store it in a jar.

If you would like a less caloric candied fruit, after draining it the first time, put it in the oven at 170ºF until it dries without burning.

See you next week,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/Nutritionist

Its sweet flavored, white water-rich flesh yields a lot of juice and breaks down at a slight pressure. It contains sucrose, fructose, vitamins B1, B2 and C, nicotinic acid, carotene, calcium, phosphorous, iron and organics acids. The edible skin of the Ya pear gives us an additional source of fibre.

As a pharmaceutical supplement, it is widely used in northern China to treat respiratory diseases. Studies show  that the ethanol extract of the Ya Pear has significant anti-inflammatory activity. Its juice also acts like an emollient so it can be used as an  ingredient for cosmetic use.

As in any other fruit, the attractiveness to the consumer relies on the aesthetic qualities of flavour, colour and texture, so bagging is very important. Non-bagged fruits have a more solid content; they have more water and more chlorophyll and xanthophyll content. Environmental factors such as air temperature inside the bag or light intensity also influence the quality of the fruit. So if you can, choose non-bagged or dark bagged pears.

When at home, it is almost impossible to slow down its process of ageing but storing it at cold temperatures may help, and if you want to cut it and not eat it immediately, a bit of ascorbic acid and rosemary may help prevent the browning processes. Pears ripen from the inside out, so you should eat them a few days after acquiring them.

And do not forget; always wash them before serving.

Be healthy,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/Nutritionist

References

Chenlong Xiao, Wen Luo, Mingyang Liu, Liwei Zhu, Min Li, Hongshun Yang, Yun Deng. Quality of Fresh-Cut Pears (Pyrus bretschneideri Rehd cv. Huangguan) coated with Chitosan combined with Ascorbic Acid and Rosemary extracts. The Philippine Agricultural Scientist, Vol 93, No 1 (2010)

Shoujiang Chen,a,b Min Zhanga and Shaojin Wangc . Physiological and quality responses of Chinese ‘Suli’ pear (Pyrus bretschneideri Rehd) to 1-MCP vacuum infiltration treatment J. Sci Food Agric 2010; 90: 1317–1322

HE Tian-ming,LI Xiu-li,WU Yu-xai,LI Jiang. Effect of Bagging on Fruit Development of Korla Fragrant Pear(Pyrus bretschneideri Rehd). Journal of agricultural and food chemistry

Li-Jing Huang, Wen-Yuan Gao, Xia Li, Wan-Shun Zhao, Lu-Qi Huang, Chang-Xiao Liu. Evaluation of the in Vivo Anti-inflammatory Effects of Extracts from Pyrus bretschneideri Rehd  

The richness of fruits and vegetables is not the same once we cut, peel and expose them to light and temperature. The longer they are exposed the more vitamins they lose. Both fruits and vegetables have hydro soluble vitamins which mean that they are soluble in water. Even more, they are heat labile, which means they are destroyed when heated, like when they are boiled. There are several ways we can prevent vitamin loss.

Here are some tips:

• Prepare your fruits and vegetables right before cooking or eating them;
• Do not prepare them over night, or leave them in water;
• Avoid preparing fruit juices long before you drink them;
• Do not leave open fruits or vegetables exposed to air, light and temperature. If you cut any that you are not cooking, cover them and put them in the fridge or frezzer;
• Avoid cutting vegetables in very small pieces for the area exposed to heat is bigger and so will be the vitamin loss;
• If you grate your vegetables, eat them right way;
• Avoid peeling fruits and vegetables;
• If you can, boil vegetables with the skin on, and them peel them off before you eat them, but remember, vitamins and minerals are present in higher amounts in the skin;
• Use as little water as you can to boil vegetables and save it, for example, for a soup;
• Prefer steaming or stewing whenever you can. This way you will keep most of fruits and vegetables’ nutritional contents.

See you next week,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/ Nutritionist

Seasonal and local fruit are more nutritious and tastier.

Fruit are rich in water, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fibre and carbohydrates. They play a key role in our immune system and their characteristics vary according to their season. Importantly, they give you what you need when you need it!

Nature does what it knows best. In winter time, fruit have higher contents of vitamin C and their colours are mostly yellow and orange, giving you carotene that turns into vitamin A inside your body. This provides your immune system with all the strength to fight infections.  On the other hand, during summer time, fruit have higher contents of water, preventing dehydration.

If we should eat 3 to 5 portions of fruit and vegetables every day, we might as well choose seasonal fruit. Fruitful Office likes to respect the seasons and include seasonal office fruit in its baskets.

Be healthy,

Mariana Costenla

Dietitian/ Nutritionist