Family, Physical Activity and Nutrition: Sami set a goal and made it happen!

I can’t wait for you to meet Sami, a wonderful former student of mine who shares a little about growing up, feeling better than ever and achieving her goals. In her own words…

My name is Sami Clifford and while I am currently a communications major at Sacramento State, I have always been interested in learning more about food. When I was taking classes at Cosumnes River College this past Spring semester, I thought Professor Hagenburger’s class would be a fun way to better educate myself about nutrition. I planned to share what I learned with my family, so we could all know more about what we eat and the impact on our bodies, especially since diabetes runs in our family. While we were always an active family, I loved the class because I learned way more than I expected about how to improve our quality of life through our food choices. I also learned some new recipes that make it easy to eat well, even when I am busy and even made one of my dreams come true before the end of the semester!

When I was young, everyone else in the family ate meat, but I didn’t want to. So, I have actually been a vegetarian since I was six years old. My mom told me that when I was little, I would eat everything on my plate except for the meat. Considering I was only six years old, I did not know what a vegetarian was, so I told my mom that I was not going to eat anything with eyeballs. My family has always been very supportive of my decision to not eat meat. My parents were raising three kids, so making a special meal for one kid might sound like more work, but they never complained (thank you Mom and Dad!).

Unfortunately for my parents, I was also pretty picky about what I would eat when I was younger, so eating out seemed difficult. Now that I am older, I can always find something to eat wherever we dine out. For example, we recently went out to celebrate my brother’s birthday. He wanted to go to a BBQ place called “Sauced” in Sacramento. He told me that he was second guessing his request, because he wanted to make sure I would be able to find something to eat. I told him not to worry, that I’d find something, and I did! I ordered a huge sweet potato loaded with delicious black beans and topped with chives. I really like exploring different options at restaurants.

As a child, I remember eating meatless soy products as protein alternatives. However, my mom did not like me eating any processed products too often, so as I got older, I began to look for whole food alternatives. I experimented more with a variety of protein rich foods, and now love to include tofu, lentils and/or beans in most of my meals.

During class, Hagenburger taught me about the numerous benefits of eating tofu and lentils. I learned that edamame (soy beans) and tofu are not only a great source of protein (including all 8 essential amino acids), but also provide amazing phytonutrients (plant nutrients) that help protect my cells from damage, support a healthy body weight and reduce my risk of developing cancer. I had always baked tofu in the oven or put it in a stir-fry, but I was curious if you can eat it raw and you absolutely can! I now crumble it up in my salads full of dark, leafy greens and other colorful veggies.

When I did the 21DayKickstart challenge for extra credit, I found a lot of recipes on Pinterest that used lentils, since they are packed with protein, vitamins, minerals and more phytonutrients. Lentils are so fun to work with since they cook quickly and don’t even need to be soaked ahead of time. There are brown lentils and green lentils that hold their shape well, and red split lentils that get super creamy and even black lentils that are smaller and really add interest to a dish! I love putting lentils in my curry and chili, and they taste great sprinkled on my salads, too!

My family has always been an active family. We did a lot of camping and outdoor activities together. Growing up, my siblings and I would play outside with the neighbor kids every day after school and on the weekends. We would play intense games of basketball and four square. We also played soccer and softball. While we have all grown up, we haven’t stopped playing as a family! We like to do mud runs and other obstacle races together. We have done the Tough Mudder, Rugged Maniac, and the Spartan Race. My dad, sister, and brother have always been distance runners and have run many races, including several half marathons. Watching them run and set their personal records inspired me to get into running. About three years ago, I started to run. At first, I would just run on the streets around my neighborhood. As I improved my fitness level, I began running 5K and 10K races. An ultimate goal of mine was to run a half marathon. On April 29th, 2018, I ran my first half marathon! There is nothing like the rush of adrenaline you get when you are about to cross the finish line… It was really incredible to take what I was learning in nutrition class throughout the semester and apply it each day, and ultimately accomplish my half marathon goal! Eating well and having fun staying physically active enables me to enjoy a great quality of life and make wonderful memories with my family and friends.

I wanted to share a quick recipe with you that not only fuels my brain through long study sessions, but also gives me the energy I need to keep exercising (which also helps me manage stress). Instead of getting take out, I make this dish exactly the way I want to, save money and time, get to enjoy every bite without feeling sluggish or greasy, and have plenty to share, plus some for lunch or dinner the next day!

Sami’s Satisfying Veggie Delight

Ingredients

16 ounce package of organic, extra firm tofu
2-4 Tablespoons vegetable broth
1 small red onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon grated ginger*
1 garlic clove, crushed*
1 cup carrots, sliced or chopped
1 cup thinly sliced sweet potato
½ cup broccoli, chopped
½ cup bell pepper, chopped
1 cup edamame (freezer aisle)
½ cup zucchini, chopped
1-2 Tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon curry powder (or more taste)
2 Tablespoons sesame seeds
Cooked brown rice*

Procedure

1. Drain water from the tofu and cut into cubes. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees, flipping after 10 minutes.
2. Wash and cut all of the vegetables*, starting with the garlic.*
3. Heat the vegetable broth in a large wok. Add onion and cook until tender (about 5 minutes). Add garlic and ginger.
4. Place the longest cooking vegetables in the wok (carrot, broccoli, sweet potatoes and edamame, if frozen) – see tip below about the size of pieces. Add more vegetable broth or water, as needed while cooking. When those vegetables are almost tender, add the quick cooking veggies (bell pepper, zucchini and edamame, if already cooked).
5. As soon as all of the vegetables are tender, but still firm to the bite, add soy sauce and curry sauce mix, if using. Combine well and heat through.
6. Serve the stir-fry in a bowl over brown rice or quinoa (or your favorite cooked whole grain), sprinkled with sesame seeds.

The Nutrition Professor’s Shop Smart, Prep Smart, Cook Smart Tips:

• Grating ginger with a microplane is a breeze, especially when the ginger is frozen (it doesn’t get fibrous that way and last for months in the freezer).
• Feel free to use any veggies you like, the more colorful the better!
• To maximize the health benefits of the garlic, be sure to press or mince your fresh garlic and let it sit for 5-10 minutes before heating.
• When cutting the rest of the veggies, think about the size of the pieces, since you want them to cook evenly. Also, harder veggies, like carrot and sweet potato will take longer to cook, so smaller pieces might make sense.
• To save time, Sami likes to use frozen bags of cooked brown rice, though you can also make a big batch of brown rice for the week (see my technique for “Brown Rice – Easy & Excellent Every Time”)

Timaree Hagenburger, a registered dietitian, certified exercise physiologist with a master’s degree in public health, is a nutrition professor at Cosumnes River College. She is so excited about the new Plant-Based Nutrition and Sustainable Agriculture certificate program there, and feels such joy when she interacts with Sami and other current and former students, as part of her Thrive On Plants Club and her hands-on cooking class! Timaree also conducts local events, corporate wellness work, has a regular segment on California Bountiful TV and published her first cookbook – The Foodie Bar™ Way: One meal. Lots of options. Everyone’s happy. available at www.FoodieBars.com – where you will also find details about Timaree’s upcoming events (cooking demos, book signings and talks about the incredible power you yield with your fork!).