Safe Fish Checklist

Safe Fish Checklist For Children, Teens and Women of Childbearing Age


     A large body of research supports the importance of omega-3 fatty acids in the diet, yet American diets are highly deficient in omega-3s. Fish are an important source of both omega-3s and protein, but they are often contaminated with methylmercury (which is a potent neurotoxicant) and PCBs (which have been linked to cancer). People should neither avoid fish consumption, nor consume fish blindly.
Use this checklist to help you find the safest fish:
~ Buy your fish from someone whom you can ask questions. Ask where the fish came from, when it is in season, if it was farmed or is wild. If it’s farmed, how was it grown? If it’s wild, how was it caught? Is this fish really a... (red snapper, grouper, wild salmon, etc.)? According to the Environmental Defense Fund, these are prime candidates for fish fraud.
~ If you eat fish that you or someone else has caught, check if there is an advisory against eating the seafood. Contact your state department of health or check out the US Environmental Protection Agency's state-by-state list of fish advisories.
~ Look for fish that are lowest in contaminants. Opt for species that are small in size, low in fat, and that don’t live on the bottom of waterways. Safer fish include Herring, Mackerel, Anchovies, Clams, Wild Alaskan Salmon, Shrimp, Tilapia, and Black Sea Bass. Reduce the most contaminated fish from your diet, including ahi or bigeye tuna, tilefish, swordfish, shark, king mackerel, marlin, orange roughy and fish caught in any waters that are subject to a mercury advisory. In regards to canned tuna, Albacore or solid white tuna is most likely to have higher concentrations of mercury, and chunk light tuna, lower concentrations. Print the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Safe Seafood Pocket Guide, get the Safe Seafood app for your iPhone, or use FishPhone (Blue Ocean’s text messaging service) to always have safe fish information on hand.

~ Choose wild-caught instead of farmed for most species. Farming can have negative impacts on the environment and health. This is especially true for Atlantic salmon.
~ Keep servings in proportion and eat different kinds of seafood from meal to meal. For an adult, a serving size is about 4 to 6 ounces. Serve proportionately less for a child—about 2 to 3 ounces. Try not to eat the same fish or shellfish more than once a week. Since children get most of their mercury from canned tuna, it is important for parents to limit their children's consumption to less than one ounce of canned light tuna for every 12 pounds of body weight per week, in order to stay below the level of mercury the EPA considers safe.

~ Reduce PCBs, dioxins and some pesticides in fish and shellfish by using cooking methods that reduce fat;
■Trim fat, skin, and any darker meat along the top or center of the fillet.

■Remove the mustard from crabs and the tomalley from lobsters.

■Broil, grill, bake or steam to cook the seafood. Use a pan that allows fat to drip away from the fish, such as a broiling pan or steaming basket. Avoid frying fish.

■Avoid sauces made from liquid fish drippings or cooking water.

■Avoid dishes that call for whole fish with internal organs intact.

NOTE: Mercury cannot be reduced by these methods.

~ Consider reducing your consumption of fish that are over-fished or raised / harvested in an environmentally questionable manner. You can send a text message to the Blue Ocean Institute’s Fish Phone to instantly learn sustainable seafood information. To find out about your seafood choice, text 30644 with the message FISH and the name of the fish in question. They’ll text you back with their assessment and better alternatives to fish with significant environmental concerns.

Worst Meals

There is even a fish meal on this list!
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/6-worst-meals-america

Fiddleheads and Sea Scallops

     In spring a young woman's fancy turns to thoughts of fiddleheads.
     Ok, I am playing fast and loose with that notion, just for fun. Fiddleheads though, should never be treated fast and loose. On the contrary. Fiddleheads need to be slow and tight.
     I'm not sure if the rest of the country enjoys fresh and local fiddleheads as we do in here in the northeastern United States. After our long hard winters they help us mark the beginning of our warmer, funner, usually happier season and we rejoice in seeing them and eating them. I love the name, obviously after what they resemble. Here is what they look like just after washing and trimming the woody ends. You can see what they actually are; tender fern fronds yet unfurled.

     There are lots of ways to prepare them, just simply sauteing them in garlic and butter will do just fine. It is generally accepted that you should blanch them first in boiling water and then remove to a quick ice bath before proceeding with your recipe. This serves two purposes; to remove any bitterness and to bring out an even brighter vernal green color. Tonight I found myself out of rice, and turned to baked potato to serve this recipe over. It worked out well.

Sea Scallops and Fiddleheads

     Heat 1 T butter and olive oil in frying pan. Saute minced garlic then adding one at a time; chopped onion,  mushrooms, and prepared fiddleheads, stirring for a few minutes each time. Then add washed scallops (mine were so large I cut them into thirds) and stir. Add white wine and let simmer briefly. Season to taste. Serve over an open baked potato with a dollop of sour cream tossed with fresh garden herbs.

Here are the nutrition stats for fiddleheads;

 http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/3055/2

A Couple More Points of view to Ponder

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=1473

Strawberry Banana Pancakes and Fiesta Nachos

Strawberry Banana Pancakes
     There is a yummy, super healthy, kid friendly breakfast recipe from the Meatless Monday offerings this week.
     And here is one I just offered up, for younger chidren you can call them Fiesta Nachos because they are so colorful. A great game day treat for grown-ups too.

 For the bottom layer I like to use both blue and white corn tortilla chips. The next layer was a couple of scoops of vegetarian chili, and some salsa. Next is my homemeade guacamole which I keep a superfood by using no oil, just fresh avocado mashed with chopped tomato, onion, lime juice and cilantro. Then comes a moderate amount of greek yogurt (you can mix with some sour cream if you can't deal with that) and shredded jack cheese spread over the top. I sprinkled some choppped green pepper on too, topped with another handful of chopped cilantro. You should think of nachos like pizza though, there is no one right way to do it. Just focus on going heavy on the good for you stuff, and going lightly on the higher fat ingredients. Warm these up in the oven for just a few minutes, and serve with plenty of napkins. Most teenagers go wild for a tray of these, and you can feel pretty good about serving them.

Next up, rhubarb recipes, I have a bountiful crop up in the backyard, where I've been hard at work lately spreading fresh loam in all of the raised beds.

Shocking Graphic Reveals Why a Big Mac Costs Less Than a Salad « SpeakEasy

Shocking Graphic Reveals Why a Big Mac Costs Less Than a Salad « SpeakEasy

Pasta dishes and Lentil Balls

     Have had a few great meals since my last post. Back in December when I first announced to my friends that we were going on a pescetarian diet, one of my best girlfriends said "Don't resort to a pasta diet." I assured her I wouldn't do that. But this week I may have overindulged in pasta. A few days ago; truffled lobster macaroni and cheese, served to me with a side salad at a new retro diner near my house. Delightfully decadent.

I had half of it for lunch the next day, and even the half portions seemed so rich I felt the need to waddle to the gym. A few days later I bought some fresh local shrimp and was craving the garlicky goodness of scampi even though it is not a dish that my children appreciate. I whipped this up, shrimp scampi with spring herbs, and served it over fresh (not boxed) linguine, with just a bit of freshly shaved Parmesan cheese. As my kids didn't devour this dish I also had two meals from it. And back to the gym I went.

In a desperate attempt to redeem myself as a healthy food blogger I am going to whip up this super-food recipe shared by Meatless Monday yesterday. Lentil Balls with Raita. Now if you'll excuse me I've got to get back to the gym.