This article originally appeared in the January-February 2004 issue of the Children's Advocate, published by Action Alliance for Children.

Heart-healthy traditional foods

Health-conscious cookbooks cut the fat from favorite ethnic foods

By Julieta Santana

Huevos con chorizo, fried rice and egg rolls, fried chicken and macaroni salad. Well-loved ethnic foods, but loaded with fat-which leads to a host of health problems for adults and children. "Obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes run disproportionately high among African Americans and Latinos," says Janet Kelly of the Na-tional Heart, Lung, and Blood Insti-tute, "and have been showing up more and more in children."

But healthy eating doesn't mean tossing out your favorite foods. "The food people eat represents their traditions and values. It is important to [have] heart-healthy traditional foods," says nutritionist Joan Thompson of the Clinica de La Raza in Oakland. These sample recipes from low-fat ethnic cookbooks show it can be done.

Smothered Greens from Heart Healthy Homecooking African American Style

3 cups water
¼ lb smoked turkey breast, skinless
1 tablespoon hot pepper, freshly chopped
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ teaspoon thyme
1 stalk scallion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¼ cup onion, chopped
2 pounds greens (mustard, turnip, collard, kale, or mixture)

Cooking tip: Use a small amount of skinless smoked turkey breast instead of pork fat to lower the fat but keep the taste.

1. Place all ingredients except greens into large saucepan and bring to a boil.

2. Prepare greens by washing thoroughly and removing stems.

3. Tear or slice leaves into bite-size pieces.

4. Add greens to turkey stock. Cook 20 to 30 minutes until tender.

Homestyle Biscuits from Heart Healthy Homecooking African American Style

2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2/3 cup buttermilk, 1% fat
3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon
vegetable oil

1. Preheat oven to 450° F.

2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.

3. In a small bowl, stir together buttermilk and oil. Pour over flour mixture; stir until well mixed.

4. On a lightly floured surface, knead dough gently for 10 to 12 strokes. Roll or pat dough to ¾-inch thickness. Cut with a 2-inch biscuit or cookie cutter, dipping cutter in flour between cuts. Transfer biscuits to an ungreased baking sheet.

5. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

Grilled Chicken with Green Chile Sauce (Guatemalan) from Heart Healthy Latino Cookbook

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
¼ cup olive oil
juice of 2 limes
¼ teaspoon oregano
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup water
10 to 12 tomatillos, husks removed and cut in half
½ medium onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 serrano or jalapeño peppers
salt and cilantro to taste
4 tablespoons low-fat sour cream

Cooking tip: Marinate meats to make them tender without adding a lot of fat.

1. Combine oil, juice from one lime, oregano, and black pepper in a shallow glass baking dish. Stir. Place chicken breasts in the baking dish and turn to coat each side. Cover the dish and refrigerate overnight. Turn chicken periodically so that it marinates on both sides.

2. Put water, tomatillos, and onion into a sauce-pan. Bring to a gentle boil and cook uncovered for 10 minutes or until tomatillos are tender. In a blender, place cooked onion, tomatillos, and any remaining water. Add garlic, peppers, cilantro, salt, and remaining lime juice.

3. Blend until all ingredients are smooth. Pour sauce in a bowl and refrigerate.

4. Place chicken breasts on a hot grill and cook until done. Serve on platter.

5. Spoon a tablespoon of low-fat sour cream over each chicken breast. Pour the sauce over the sour cream.

Cactus Salad (Mexican) from Vida y Corazón Cookbook

4 cups diced nopales (cactus)
1 clove garlic
½ onion, unchopped
½ cup onion, finely diced
1 tomato, diced
1 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt

cooking tip: Nopales are the young, tender green paddles of an edible cactus. Peel the spines and small, hair-like ahuatehs off the nopales under running water because the ahuatehs can be irritating.

1. Under running water, peel off spines and ahuatehs from cactus paddle (see box above) with a knife. Cut it into approximately 1/8 inch pieces.

2. Boil cactus with the half-onion and garlic until tender (about 15 minutes).

3. Remove garlic and onion. Drain water and rinse cactus several times in cold water.

4. Let cactus cool before adding remaining ingredients. Once cooled, mix with onion, tomato, and cilantro.

5. Season with lemon juice and salt.

6. Refrigerate for several hours before serving.

Thai Beef Salad (Thailand) from Hearty Health Asian Cookbook

1 pound prime beef tenderloin
4 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro
¼ cup sugar
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
soy sauce, salt, pepper, and crushed red chili pepper to taste
2 spring onions

Cooking tip: Use lean beef to cut down on fat. Use lite soy sauce to reduce sodium.

1. Broil or grill beef and cut into small, thin slices.

2. Pound together garlic, half the cilantro leaves, sugar, soy sauce, lime juice, salt, and pepper until smooth.

3. Heat oil in a sauce pan and stir-fry the spice paste for three to five minutes.

4. Add beef and cook for another minute.

5. Remove beef and allow to cool. Serve it on lettuce leaves.

6. Sprinkle the chilies on top and garnish with spring onions and remaining cilantro leaves.

Resources:

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute offers many low-fat ethnic cookbooks. NHLBI Information Center, PO Box 30105, Bethesda, MD 20824; 301-592-8573

• Keep the Beat: Heart Healthy Recipes, $2.50

• Heart Healthy Homecooking African American Style, $3; online at www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/other/chdblack/cooking.pdf

• Heart Healthy Latino Cookbook, $3; online at www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/other/sp_recip.htm

Vida y Corazón Cookbook: Heart Healthy Recipes from Mexico and Latin America, $4.50. La Clinica de La Raza, 1515 Fruitvale Ave., Oakland, CA 94601; contact Joan Thompson, 510-535-4345

Hearty Health Asian Cookbook, free. Ohio Commission on Minority Health, 77 South High St, 7th Fl, Columbus, OH 43266; 614-466-4000

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