Two Appliances Central to my Heart Healthy Kitchen

My favorite 2 appliances that have helped transform my kitchen into "heart healthy enabled": George Foreman Grill and Sunbeam Breadmaker.

George Foreman Grill & Sunbeam Breadmaker
2 appliances central to my heart healthy kitchen

Why am I in love with these two appliances?

George Foreman Grill:

• Easy to use & cost effective.
• Make fresh grilled meals without the mess of a full grill!
• Has allowed me to stock my freezer with heart healthy seafoods & chicken breasts that can be grilled to serve in just 5-20 minutes!
• Tip #1: spray your meats with I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray before grilling - this will lengthen the life of your Foreman Grill.
• Tip #2: sprinkle garlic powder on just about anything you are grilling (the spray will keep the powder on the meat). 1 teaspoon of garlic powder adds 33mg of potassium and only 2mg of sodium to whatever you are cooking! 

Sunbeam 5981 Breadmaker:

• Easy to use & cost effective.
• Has allowed me to explore and discover heart healthy (no sodium) breads.
• You cannot be heart healthy on store bought (highly preserved) breads - read the labels, it is not possible. You can make heart healthy, homemade breads without much effort and this Sunbeam Breadmaker is my cornerstone to accomplishing this!

These two appliances have enabled me to bring a whole array of foods I once thought "too hard to make" or "not heart healthy" back into my kitchen and healthy lifestyle!

Heart Healthy Tuna Fish Sandwich

Imagine... A tuna fish sandwich low in fat & low in sodium with a boost of potassium to benefit your heart! It is possible...

The Tuna Base: Mix 1/2 a 5 oz can of "chunk light tuna in water" with 1 teaspoon of nonfat mayonnaise.

The Bread: 1 serving of your favorite "no sodium" sandwich bread (cut into 2 slices). Plenty of no sodium bread recipes are provided in previous posts, my favorite to use with tuna is the garlic chili bread or the garlic herb bread.

The Preparation:

• Toast 1/8 cup of low fat mozzarella on the sandwich bread.
• Sprinkle 1 tsp of garlic powder on the toasted cheese (while still hot).
• Spread the tuna base on the bread to complete the sandwich.

The Heart Health Facts:

• 345mg potassium: 82mg (bread) + 90mg (tuna) + 120mg (mayo) + 20mg (mozzarella) + 33mg (garlic).
• 341mg sodium: 9mg (bread) + 180mg (tuna) + 60mg (mayo) + 90mg (mozzarella) + 2mg (garlic).
• 6g fat: 3g (bread) + 0.5g (tuna) + 2.5g (mozzarella).
• Total: 345mg potassium, 339mg sodium, 6g fat [a 1:1 health ratio]

 Now, complement the sandwich with any heart healthy side dish and you have a heart healthy meal! Examples:

• Sandwich with a fresh orange: 602mg potassium, 341mg sodium, 6g fat [a 2:1 meal]
• Sandwich with a vegetable medley side: 1233mg potassium, 396 mg sodium, 7g fat [a 3:1 meal]

There you have it - a hearth healthy tuna fish sandwich meal!

Brown Rice & Broccoli - A Heart Healthy Side Dish

An easy & tasty side dish to have with any meal: Brown Rice & Broccoli delivering a 7:1 to 3:1 health ratio!

The Ingredients:

1. 1 cup (after cooked) Brown Rice - try any of the "10 minute boil in a bag" varieties for easy prep.
• 115mg potassium, 0mg sodium, 1g fat.
2. 1 cup steamed Broccoli.
• 261mg potassium, 20mg sodium, 0.2g fat.
3. [optional] 1 tbsp Heart Healthy Salsa.
• 40mg potassium, 40mg sodium, 0g fat.
4. [optional] 1/8 cup Low Fat (2%) Mozzarella.
• 20mg potassium, 90mg sodium, 2.5g fat.

The Results:

• Brown Rice & Broccoli: 376mg potassium, 20mg sodium, 1.2g fat
  19:1 health rating!
• Brown Rice, Broccoli & Salsa: 416mg potassium, 60mg sodium, 1.2g fat
  7:1 health rating!
• Brown Rice, Broccoli & Mozzarella: 396mg potassium, 110mg sodium, 3.7g fat
  4:1 health rating!
• Brown Rice, Broccoli, Salsa & Mozzarella: 436mg potassium, 150mg sodium, 3.7g fat
  3:1 health rating!

I like adding either mozzarella or salsa (or both) to the brown rice and broccoli mixture. While the straight rice & broccoli is a 19:1 health gem, I find I need the salsa and/or mozzarella flavoring to make this taste great.
Easy to make, tastes great and a potassium:sodium health rating worth adding to any meal. This 7:1 to 3:1 side can join with any healthy main dish to deliver a meal your heart will love!