Family Recipes: Ginger Salmon

Salmon is full of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. These help nourish growing brains and are important for proper brain development, especially at a young age. It can also protect the heart and its high in protein and iron. Add the fact that it's delicious, and you have the perfect food for children. And if you choose wild salmon, you'll avoid most of the contaminants associated with farmed salmon.

Ingredients

• 1 lbs salmon fillets, boneless
• 3 green onions, chopped
• ¼ cup fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp white wine
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• ¼ tsp sugar

Method

1. Find your largest frying pan (large enough to hold all the salmon at once) and fill it with ¾-inch of water. Add the wine and the ginger . Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to a low simmer.
2. Put the fish in the pan and cover with a loose-fitting lid. Poach until the fish flakes and is no longer opaque, about 15 minutes. This will vary according to the thickness of the fillets.
3. When the fish is fully cooked, remove from the pan carefully. Use a spatula to avoid damaging the fillets. Place on a serving dish and remove some of the liquid from the pan. No more than ¼ cup of liquid should be used, but half that is usually enough. Reserve this liquid in a bowl and discard the rest.
4. To the liquid add soy sauce, oil, and sugar. Whisk together until smooth, making a sauce.
5. Drizzle this sauce over the fish. Garnish with onion and serve immediately.

This dish is excellent served alongside a hearty salad or over pasta. Don't like salmon? Try some of your other favorite fish. This dish is simple enough that it will compliment many different flavors.

Taking Care of Your Child's Teeth

It's a sad fact that almost 60% of children ages 5 to 17 are affected by tooth decay. This makes it the most common chronic disease of this age group. Why is this the case? Because many of the foods children consume have added sugars. When children chew these high sugar foods, bacteria in the mouth interacts with the sugar to produce an acid that breaks down tooth enamel. And when tooth enamel breaks down, you have tooth decay.

Foods That Help Prevent Tooth Decay

One of the best ways to fight tooth decay is to have your kids consume less sugar and more of those foods that actually help strengthen tooth enamel. Start with calcium-rich foods such as milk products, leafy green vegetables, and calcium-enriched orange juice. Make sure you get enough vitamin D, since vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium. Cheese is a good choice, since it produces saliva that kills off bacteria.

Crunchy vegetables such as raw carrots and celery help to produce saliva that can actually neutralize the bacteria in your child's mouth. In addition, chewing these foods massages the gums and fruits high in vitamin C (such as kiwis and most citrus fruit) help to keep gums healthy. If opt for fruits that are low in sugar (including apples and pears), you'll be helping keep your child's teeth healthy. Avoid dried fruit as it can stick to the teeth and encourage tooth decay.

And don't forget to have your child drink lots of water. Water helps keep gums hydrated and doesn't introduce excess sugar into your child's mouth.

Tips for Avoiding Tooth Decay

If you want to keep your child's teeth healthy, limit those high sugar snacks. Candy and cookies are obvious sources, but also take a look at those sweetened drinks (such as pop and juice) that can be loaded with sugar. Allow your children to have these things in moderation only. Check labels to find hidden sugars, and avoid anything that has a lot of added sugar.

Starch, which breaks down into simple sugars in the mouth, is also a leading cause of tooth decay. Unfortunately, starch is hard to avoid. Combat this problem by teaching your kids good oral hygiene. Encourage them to brush and floss daily, and make regular trips to the dentist. You might also consider a fluoride rinse that will help rid the mouth of bacteria. Listerine Smart Rinse, but there are other options.

Whatever you do, don't take oral health for granted. Your kids need their teeth, and oral hygiene has to start young for full effect.

Family Recipes: Cinnamon Sweet Potato Fries

Sweet potatoes are full of vitamin C and fibre. They're also loaded with carotenoids which help fight cancer, protect your heart, and boost your immune system. In addition, one single sweet potato gives you well more than the recommended daily amount of vitamin A and supplies you with copper, vitamin B6, potassium, iron, and manganese (which is good for your bones). With all these benefits, it makes sense to create some tasty dishes using the sweet potato. And so comes one of my favorite recipes: Cinnamon Sweet Potato Fries.

Ingredients

• 4 medium-sized sweet potatoes, washed and scrubbed but not peeled
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Slice the sweet potatoes into fries. These should be no larger than ½ inch thick and should be as long as the sweet potatoes themselves. Think standard french fries. Rinse and place these in a large bowl.
3. Pour the oil over the sweet potatoes and mix well. Add the cinnamon and toss.
4. Arrange the sweet potatoes in a single layer on the baking sheet.
5. Bake for 15 minutes and turn over.
6. Bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the fries are golden brown.
7. Season with salt and serve immediately.

These fries are a favorite in our home. You can peel the sweet potatoes if you like, but since most of the fibre is on the skin or just below it, you want to keep as much as you can to maximize the health benefits of this simple dish. Store any extra sweet potatoes in a cool, dark place, but not in the fridge. They'll last longer in the bottom of your pantry than in the refrigerator.

Family Recipes: Sweet Blueberry Sauce

Blueberries are sweet and delicious, but they're also one of the healthiest berries around. They help aging memories and fend off free radicals to protect people of all ages. They're also packed with fibre, helping to prevent constipation, relieve diarrhea, and protecting against urinary tract infections. Any mother will love that. And children love them. Love them so much that they'll eat them straight out of the fields.

But not everyone has a blueberry patch in their backyard. Some of us have only the frozen blueberries you get at the supermarket. Kids may not like to eat them frozen, but you can do plenty of things to frozen blueberries to make children crave them. So if you have some frozen blueberries lying around, try this simple and sweet blueberry sauce.

Ingredients

• 1½ cups frozen blueberries
• 2 tbsp berry sugar (a little more if you like a sweeter sauce)
• 2 tbsp finely grated lemon peel

Method

Add all ingredients to a small saucepan. Warm on the stove at medium heat, stirring constantly. Do this for 4 minutes or until the sauce begins to boil. When the boiling occurs, immediately remove the sauce from the heat. Continue stirring for 1 minute.

This sauce can be poured over French toast, waffles, or pancakes. You might also want to blend it with vanilla yogurt for a quick snack or even use in in a smoothie. You can refrigerate this sauce for up to 2 weeks or freeze it for up to 2 months, so make a large batch and use it whenever you can.

We like to use it as a dip for fruit such as pears and apples. My boys like to dip whole bananas in the sauce and freeze them, making blueberry-dipped banana popsicles. It's a healthy addition to any dish.