Day / May 3, 2013

by tessbrennan

Healthier Fruit Pizza

In a world of quick options, we frequently “don’t have that option” so I make things from scratch.  Since I’m making it from scratch, I may as well kick the nutrition up a bit as I go… So here is my recipe for healthier Fruit Pizza.

Start with the crust:

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  • 1 cup softened butter
  • 3/4 cup natural sugar
  • 1 1/4 Tbsp vanilla
  • 2 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup instant protein
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp salt

In a large bowl with your mixer:

  1. Beat butter for 1 minute
  2. Add sugar and beat another 3 minutes
  3. Beat in vanilla and eggs – mix 1 minute
  4. Scrape the sides of the bowl if needed
  5. Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes
  6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
  7. Spray down your stone baking dish with olive oil (very well)
  8. I divided dough between two pans (see photos below) and spread it out with my hands.
  9. Bake at 375 degrees F for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned
  10. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

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For cream topping:

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  • 8 ounces Neufchatel Cheese (WARM & SOFT)
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 8 ounces sour cream
  • 1 tsp orange zest
  1. Beat cream cheese with mixer 2 minutes
  2. Mix in sugar & vanilla for 1 more minute
  3. Beat in sour cream until mixture is smooth
  4. Mix in zest of the orange
  5. Spread 1/2 of mixture onto each baked cookie crust and smooth around
  6. Arrange fruit around on the pizza top as desired.
  7. Chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes and slice to serve

 

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Fruit pizza with a bit of protein to stabilize blood sugar, no preservatives or artificial anything! Great for a pot luck or just as a special treat for cleaning your plate of all the veggies and protein!!!

by tessbrennan

Sneaky Knee Pain–how do I eliminate it?

In 2005 after finishing my second 60-mile walk I developed horrible knee pain.  After the birth of my child, in 2007, it hurt so badly I went to see the joint specialist. (The best surgeon in the Joint, so to speak.)

He checked me out, told me I didn’t need surgery and prescribed some physical therapy.  The surgeon told me the same thing the physical therapist told me.

Feel Good Fast Knee pain

KNEES DON’T GO BAD, ALL ALONE! (typically)

Just ponder that for a moment.

It turns out, I had put on 40+ pounds during the pregnancy.  (That’s an additional 160 pounds of pressure on each knee.) I walked for exercise, but I did NOT stretch.

Your knees go bad (if not involved in an accident) for two reasons. 1. Weak ankles or 2. Weak Hips. 

My issue was weak hips.  1 week of consistent stretching and my knee pain subsided.

I wanted to provide you with some of the stretches that my doc and the PT crew recommended.

Feel Good Fast Knee to chest - cropped

Bring 1 knee up to the chest and pull it to your chest with your hands until you feel the stretch.  Try to hold it for about 30 second, then repeat with your other knee.  (Try doing this 3 times for each knee)

Feel Good Fast Leg dangle hip stretch-cropped

This one is blurry, but I think it can get the point across.  I call it the leg dangle.  Lay on the edge of your bed and allow the leg on the edge to “dangle” off the edge.  Work to keep your knee straight and feel the stretch in the top of that thigh.  I keep my opposite hand out on the bed to stabilize myself.  Turning your head can intensify or lessen the stretch as well.  Try to allow this stretch for 30 seconds.  (3 times for each leg)

Feel Good Fast Cross over hip stretch-Cropped

The third stretch I use to relieve the tension in my hips is what I call the cross over.  Again, lay on the edge of the bed.  This time cross the opposite leg over the body and allow it to “hang” off the edge of the bed. You can intensify this stretch by how straight you keep your knee, which direction you look while stretching, and the angle your leg is to  your body.  Again, 30 seconds for each stretch and 3 times for each leg.

 

I am not a medical professional, I don’t pretend to be. I just wish to share what has worked for me in eliminating the pain in my knees. 

 

One last note.  Weight loss had tremendous impact on my knee pain as well.  When you consider that each pound overweight we are, increases the weight bearing load of our knees by 4 pounds.  Thus, when we are 25 pounds over weight – our knees feel 100 pounds of extra weight to carry and deal with.

For more information, feel free to contact me.  If I don’t have an answer, I have a colleague who does and I am happy to refer.