Hate cooking but want to eat better? (By the end of this post I bet you buy this app!)

Posted on January 21, 2018 by marylbrandt

It is hard to eat well when you are a medstudent, resident or busy doc (also true for busy people not in medicine The key to eating well if you are busy is planning.. but it takes time. As I’ve written before, here are the basic steps that you need to follow to eat well if you are “too busy to cook”.

Use a calendar to organize which days you need to have dinner ready
Find the recipes you want to cook
Fill in the calendar with what you will take to work for lunch and your planned dinners.
Make a shopping list.
Shop once, then follow your plan

To follow these steps, I’ve used the internet to find recipes, Evernote to map out the week, and Grocery IQ for the shopping list. I’ve gotten pretty efficient, but it’s still takes a non-trivial amount of time… and who has that kind of time, right?

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And then I read Jane Friedman’s post “My Must-Have Digital Media Tools: 2018 Edition” and I saw this…

I was skeptical, but I downloaded it.

Here’s the bottom line… this app is “expensive” ($25). But I promise, even if you are medical student without much money, it will be the best $25 you’ll spend this year.

Here’s why – this app takes the five steps listed above and puts them all into one place. It not only makes it easy to choose recipes, plan your week and shop, it almost makes it fun. Here’s how:

Use a calendar to organize which days you need to have dinner ready.

Start on the “meals” tab and put notes in for your week. If you share cooking with a significant other or roommates, you can share the account with them so everyone is (literally) on the same page.

Find the recipes you want to cook and put them in the calendar for the week

Click on the browser tab to find new recipes. As you gather recipes in the app, it becomes your own personal “cookbook” which is searchable by category, name, or ingredients.

Fill in your calendar with what you will take to work for lunch and your planned dinners.

This was the first moment I knew I was really hooked. All you do is drag and drop the recipes you want into the appropriate day. Wow.

Make a shopping list and go shopping.

This is when I was completely sold. When you pull up the recipes you’ve chosen, there is a little “hat” icon at the top:

When you click this icon EVERYTHING IN THE RECIPE appears in a shopping list. Unclick what you don’t need and repeat for all the recipes.

Because this app is on your computer and your phone, just take your phone with you to the grocery store. As you pick up the item, click the box next to it and move on to the next item. If you are sharing the app with your significant other or roommates, anyone can add to the grocery list or unclick things they have bought.

Here’s the official website for Paprika: https://www.paprikaapp.com/. Enjoy your healthy eating!!!! Try this plan (instead of the bagels, pizza, peanut butter and other “free” foods in the hospital) for a week or two. I promise you’ll feel better, learn better and have more energy to take good care of your patients.

“I don’t have time to cook”… Oh, yes, you do!!!

Posted on September 24, 2017 by marylbrandt

I just got back from vacation and had the pleasure of attending a session where Shawn Brisby, the demo chef for Canyon Ranch in Tucson, gave us a great piece of advice …

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“Have you ever gotten raspberries home and within a day they are mush with white stuff on them?”

He had my attention.

“The problem is that home chefs don’t keep their refrigerator cold enough. They should be set at 40 degrees.”

Hmmm…

So I’ve been experimenting and … it works! (not that I doubted you, Shawn :-).

Step 1. Decide what you are going to eat for the week.

This planning is essential. It takes me 20-30 (very enjoyable) minutes to find recipes in a magazine (Clean Eating and Cooking Light are my favorites), one of my cookbooks or on line. Here’s what we’re cooking this week:

Pasta with sardines and fennel

Kale salad with apple and cheddar

Moroccan butternut squash chickpea stew

Pumpkin soup with almonds and sage

Fall salad with apples, walnuts and stilton

And, for breakfast for the week…

Sweet potato casserole with crunchy oat topping

Step 2. Make a shopping list and go shopping.

Step 3:. Prep all the food for the week

This is what makes it work in terms of efficiency. For the rest of the week, when you get home, everything will be washed, cut up and ready to throw in the pan. I timed myself and it took 1 hr 22 minutes to turn the pile of veggies you see above into this:

An hour and a half is nothing compared to the time it takes when you get home late and really don’t want to do it. Turn on some music, chop while you are watching some football.. it is a great return on investment to insure you eat well!

Other helpful hints

Get some fun containers. These are the ones I bought, but any food quality containers will work.
Wash the other produce, cut everything up for all the recipes, spin dry them and put them in your 40 degree refrigerator. (If you don’t own one, get a lettuce spinner.)
Wash the fruit and dry it before you put it in the refrigerator.

One other tip…. Make stock! I throw all the vegetable bits (peels, seeds, etc) into a pot with water and make vegetable stock while I’m working. In addition to using this stock for any soup we decide to make, we use it instead of water for rice or pasta to increase the flavor.

What’s for dinner? How to eat well if you are too busy to cook….

Posted on August 6, 2017 by marylbrandt

I wish someone had taught me this when I started medical school. Seriously, I would have loved it… Let me walk you through what I did today to prepare for my week, and I think you will understand.

So, first… it’s summer… In Houston.

The weather makes a difference in how this unfolds, since I’m talking about cooking… i.e. (usually) adding heat.

So here’s what I did today..

I spent about 20 minutes looking through what is my current favorite cookbook for three recipes that a) I liked b) were easy and c) were summer appropriate.

2. I entered all the ingredients I needed into GroceryIQ, … plus stone fruit (that is so ripe and delicious right now), a watermelon (because it’s summer and I love them), bread and ingredients for sandwiches for lunch.

(how can you not love a cookbook that says “Heat a big glug of olive oil in a skillet”?)

3. I went to the grocery store and bought everything on the list. When you have a list, it’s really fast, so you make up the time you spent looking up the recipes and making the list. Also, you are much less likely to buy more than you need (which leads to interesting microbiology experiments in your refrigerator) or things you really don’t need (i.e. junk food).

4. I took a nap. (I was on call Friday, up all night, so I’m still catching up). Plus, Sunday naps are amazing… so don’t think you EVER have to justify them!

5. I spent about 20 minutes preparing the ingredients for Joshua McFadden’s recipe for the tuna melt “casserole” and for one of my summer favorites, ratatouille. Every time I make ratatouille, I think of Maryvonne, Monique and Maddy, my French “mothers” who taught me this recipe when I lived in France as an undergraduate.

6. Here’s where the Houston weather comes in. To minimize stove top and oven time, I roasted the squash for the tuna melt and the vegetables for the ratatouille at the same time – while they were cooking, I sautéed the onions and garlic for the ratatouille and added the tomatoes (canned). (In case you were wondering, the sweet potato is for snacks or something else TBD.)

So, we’ll have the tuna melt tonight, with some store made coleslaw (Brussel sprout and kale), and there is enough for the same meal another night, or lunches if we choose. The ratatouille can be sides to our sandwiches, or can be another meal with a protein (we are mostly “pescetarian” so probably fish… but you can choose what you want). Ratatouille is also delicious cold on it’s own or with cottage cheese, or you can add it to broth with chicken meat and make a great soup/stew.Bottom line… maybe an hour today for a week’s worth of amazing food… which is what I wish I’d been taught when I started medical school.

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p.s. Since you were wondering… The other two recipes for this week are cooked seafood salad with fennel, radish basil and crème fraiche (p115) and crunchy mixed bean salad with celery, tarragon and soft boiled eggs (p260).

p.p.s Do not get intimidated if you don’t know how to cook. YOU CAN LEARN. (and you should). Find someone to help you.

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Last Minute Holiday Presents for Medical Students, Residents and Busy Docs

Posted on December 18, 2016 by marylbrandt

It’s the holiday season in a very short time, so I thought I’d put together a list of last minute presents! These are presents that would work for anyone, but are particularly suited for medical students, residents and busy physicians.

A really good water bottle

None of us drink enough water at work …. having a water bottle does help! There are many out there but make sure the one you choose doesn’t have BPA in it. Glass and steel bottles are probably the safest, but BPA free plastic bottles are fine, too. As an added bonus, you can put something in the bottle before you wrap it… chocolates or another favorite candy, gift cards to Starbucks, etc.

Photo credit and link to a site listing “best” water bottles

Pandora One

Listening to music you like without commercials is a great gift for listening while studying, in the clinic or in team rooms. Pandora can be played on any computer but also has apps for mobile devices. There are other sites, too, but this one is my personal favorite.

Here’s where to go for a gift certificate.

iPad

I am a total fan of my new iPad Pro, which has taken over as my computer on a lot of days. Because of it’s amazing power, there are medical apps, like this anatomy app that won’t run on other iPads. But the iPad mini may be a better choice for students and residents …. mostly because it fits in the pocket of a white coat. Make sure you get a cellular network plan with the wireless option, if this is the gift you choose.

Link to information on the iPad mini

Anatomy Coloring Book

This is a great combination of the proven stress relief of adult coloring books and learning anatomy. (or reviewing it, even for docs in practice) Don’t forget to order the pencils, too!

Link to order

Electric Pressure Cooker

Pressure cookers in general are an amazing kitchen tool… but the modern electric pressure cooker is also a rice cooker, slow cooker, steamer which makes it the single best kitchen appliance for students and residents.

Link to order

Prepped meals (ready to cook)

If they like to cook, but don’t have the time to find the healthy recipes and prep the meal, this is a great idea. Check out Green Chef, Blue Apron, and Hello Fresh as examples. You might want to search locally to see if there others close to you.

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A gift card to get them started with Stitch Fix

Stitch Fix is perfect for both men and women that either a) hate to shop for clothes or b) love to shop for clothes but don’t have time. It’s a service many of my friends use and love, so I can personally recommend it. After you sign up, they send 5 items a month (or at whatever cadence you want). You send back the ones you don’t want and get billed for the ones you keep.

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A membership to a local museum

If there are museums in the area that correspond to an interest this could be a great gift. Museums like the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, etc. are a great way to enjoy time off. Include a note that says you are giving this to them as a break from their studying or work!

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Best wishes for a joyous holiday season, peace in your lives and on earth and a New Year filled with health, happiness and joy!

I Forgot To Tell You About My New Favorite Breakfast!

Posted on August 19, 2016 by marylbrandt

This morning I was lecturing to the first year medical, PA and DNP students. At the end of my embryology lecture I included some advice on how to eat well as a busy student. I talked to them about how to set a good example for their future patients, how to increase vegetables in their diet by making Mirepoix every weekend, shopping at the farmer’s market, and how to plan for the week. I also talked about why it’s important to eat breakfast. I told them about one of my favorite fast breakfasts, but forgot the second one!

MLB BREAKFAST TACOS

Here are the ingredients:

This batch had beans, cheese, a red bell pepper, a jalapeño and some cilantro, but you can add anything! Spread out the tortillas and divide up the ingredients between the tortillas.

Roll them up, put them in the freezer. Two minutes in the microwave and they are ready to eat!

OVERNIGHT OATS

This is SO easy and really delicious. Put ~1/3 cup rolled oats in a bowl and add twice as much (~2/3 cup) liquid. (You may need more of both depending on your caloric needs)

My favorite liquid is kefir (liquid yogurt), but it can be milk, almond milk, soy milk, etc. Leave it in the refrigerator overnight. Eat it in the morning. That’s it!

You can add any variety of fruit, nut or nut butter the evening before or in the morning. My current favorite is blueberries and slivered almonds added in the morning.

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My New Favorite Recipe – Quiche With a Healthy Crust!

Posted on May 22, 2016 by marylbrandt

It’s not often I share a single recipe, but this one is so delicious, so healthy and so easy that it warrants a separate post.

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Although the recipe as written has spinach filling, you can use other fillings. Just to give you a few ideas…

Sausage (regular or vegetarian), bottled red peppers, cheddar cheese
Canned artichoke hearts with parmesan cheese
Ham with Swiss cheese
Fresh tomatoes, mozzarella and basil
Any leftover veggies and/or meat in your refrigerator

This “quiche” makes a great dinner, but can also be put in your bag for breakfast or lunch for a busy day or call night. Quiche freezes well, so you can make several, freeze them and have breakfast/lunch/dinner for days!

Eating Well at Work

Posted on December 26, 2015 by marylbrandt

It’s hard for those that haven’t been there to understand how medical school, residency and/or long hours in the hospital changes what and how we eat. There isn’t time to sit down to eat, there aren’t good choices and often, the only thing to eat is the “free” food at conferences. But…. Free food isn’t free. There’s a reason it’s cheap (poor ingredients) and that it “tastes good” (lots of fat, sugar and salt)… but it makes us feel terrible after we eat it. (Beware the middle of the night french fries!) More importantly, we aren’t providing the nutrients we need to take care of other people and ourselves. So, what’s the answer?

Spend the money and the time to invest in your health! Grabbing donuts or bagels in the surgeons’ lounge in the morning, pizza at noon-day conference and a hamburger at MacDonald’s in the middle of the night is terrible. (You know it’s true).

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So what’s the alternative? Here’s a five-step, easy plan that will let you eat better, feel better and avoid gaining weight in medical school and residency. This is predicated on cooking your own food but you can use this plan if you don’t cook by buying prepackaged foods. But really…. If you can learn how to take out a gallbladder or care for ill patients in the ICU don’t you think you can learn how to sauté a few vegetables???

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Make a plan
Make a shopping list
Shop once for the week and (when you can) prep ahead
Use your day(s) off to cook things that might take a bit more time and freeze some for other days
Keep a few “instant” healthy meals in your pantry

Make a plan

Map out your week’s meals and snacks using the “pizza rule” (nothing you cook should take longer to cook than it takes to order a pizza). Pay special attention to call days. It’s important to have really delicious food which can be grabbed in a minute when you are on call. I use Evernote to make my list for the week so I can share it with my family:

If you like to cook, you probably already know where to find recipes you’ll like. If you don’t cook regularly, I post recipes on @drmlb with #CallFood that meet the “pizza rule” and would be delicious on call. Here are few other sites I use regularly: Eating Well, Cooking LIght, My Recipes, Food Network, Kayln’s Kitchen, Skinny Taste. If you use Evernote to organize your list, it gives you one other advantage – you can download their add-on and clip recipes from the internet directly to Evernote. Each “note” (i.e. recipe) in Evernote can then be shared with whoever you cook with (i.e. whoever gets home first can start dinner!). It also lets you search all your notes so you can easily find your recipes in the future.

Make a shopping list

I use Grocery IQ for my shopping list. This app lets you organize your grocery list by the aisles in your favorite stores to make shopping faster. It also allows you to share the list with your significant other which means that whoever is able to get to the store first has the updated shopping list! I don’t really use the “coupon” feature or the barcode scanner, but if you choose to use these functions, please use the FoodEducate app with it to make sure your choices are healthy!

There are other apps for shopping which come recommended by others which, to be fair, I thought I should share: Any List, Pantry Manager, Paprika

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Shop once and (when you can) prep ahead

Planning lets you spend less time in the grocery store and absolutely means less food wasted. When you get home from the store think about the meals you are going to cook later in the week. If your carrot soup on Tuesday calls for sliced carrots, diced fennel and chopped onions, chop them when you get back from the store on Sunday and put your “mise en place” in baggies or containers in the refrigerator. Cooking is not that time consuming…. but prepping is!

One other good trick is to make “mirepoix” on the weekend for the week. Diced onions, carrots, celery, bell peppers, etc can be prepped and put in a bag. It can be an instant stir-fry on nights when you need something fast. You can also put a handful in soups, omelettes, or wraps to get extra vegetables in your day. Mix it with leftover rice or other grains to make an instant salad (you can add tuna, if you want, too).

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Use your day(s) off to cook things that might take a bit more time and freeze some for other days.

You need good “comfort food” when you are working hard, but it can be both comforting and healthy. For example, this recipe for spaghetti squash lasagna. The preparation for this recipe isn’t that hard (you can steam the spaghetti squash in the microwave instead of roasting it in the oven, for example) but it’s a little too long for nights when you get home late and are really tired.

Learning to use a pressure cooker (my favorite) or a slow cooker like a crock pot is a great way to cook up a batch of something when you are home and doing other things without spending a large amount of time in the kitchen

No matter what you make or how you make it, make enough to freeze individual portions and then store them so they will stay fresh. Don’t forget to mark the containers with a Sharpie and eat them within 3-4 months!

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Keep a few “instant” healthy meals in your pantry

Despite my best efforts to plan, there are weeks when I’ve miscalculated amounts, don’t have enough time or just don’t want to eat what I had planned. When that happens, it’s great to have a go-to “instant” meal, which usually comes out of the freezer and pantry. Here are some to get your list started!

Moroccan Lentil Stew – (particulary good with harissa and served over couscous)

Quick meals from frozen ravioli

Shrimp fried rice

Top 10 Holiday Gifts for Physicians and Physicians in Training

Posted on November 15, 2014 by marylbrandt

The holiday season is rapidly approaching. Here’s my top ten gifts for medical students, residents and physicians…. or any busy friend!

Mark Bittman’s new book How To Cook Everything Fast.

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This is an amazing cookbook and it is perfect for busy people. The recipes are interesting, delicious and healthy. The instructions are easy for a novice without being simplistic and the layout of the book in innovative and makes it really easy to use.

An electric pressure cooker.

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Slow cookers are often suggested for medical students and residents but I don’t think they are as good as a pressure cooker. You have to be there when slow cookers are (slowly) cooking, which is usually your rare day off. Also, it’s hard to cook vegetables in a slow cooker. Pressure cookers on the other hand cook broccoli in 2 minutes (perfectly!). I’ve been told that the electric pressure cookers take a little longer to come up to pressure, but it seems a small downside for a device that also lets you slow cook, steam, sauté, and cook rice.

Coffee or Tea

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There are several options to consider if they are a serious coffee or tea drinker. A Starbucks or Teavana gift card in a cute “medical” coffee mug? A Starbucks Verismo coffee brewer? Nespresso? Keurig?

A FitBit

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Anyone in medicine loves gadgets and loves data. The fitbit has become a socially acceptable piece of “jewelry” in the hospital and it unquestionably changes behavior to increase activity. Having washed three of the “clip on” Fitbits with my scrubs, I would recommend one of the wristband Fitbits!

A maid or housecleaning service

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Doing housework has to be on everyone’s lowest list of fun things to do on your day off, but it’s especially true for people who are studying extensively or taking call in the hospital. My parents helped finance someone to come occasionally to help clean my apartment when I was an intern. It was without a doubt the best present I’ve ever received.

Anything that helps make it easy to get more exercise

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Another great gift is anything that will promote more exercise… a bicycle to commute to school or work? Yoga classes? Spin classes? A gift certificate for new running shoes? Resistance bands for the call room? A membership to a YMCA or a gym close to where they live? Certificates for post workout massages?

“Date night” packages

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Whether they are single or have a significant other, being able to socialize is an important part of stress reduction for busy people. Create combinations of gift cards to movie theaters and restaurants to support “date nights”. If they love art, music, or sports think of season tickets (or ticket packages) to museums, music venues or professional sport teams.

An “over the top” alarm clock

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It’s not easy getting up at “dark thirty” to make it to rounds, but being on time is important. The snooze button is not a good idea… but it’s so easy to hit. This alarm clock is my personal favorite to make sure you get out of bed. After a few hits of the snooze button, it rolls off the table and around the room until you turn it off!

Great books by, for and about doctors.

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If they are a serious reader, think about a Kindle (or other eReader). The Kindle paperwhite is small, lightweight, back lit and has a great battery life – which makes it great for the occasional times on call that you can find 30 minutes to escape into a good book. You can also read it outside in bright sunlight (unlike tablets like the iPad) On my list of great reads for doctors (in no particular order)…

Cutting for Stone by Abrahan Verghese

How Doctors Think by Jerome Groopman

House of God by Samuel Shem

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukheries

Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Guwande

William Osler: A Life in Medicine by Michael Bliss

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman

The always appropriate gift of money

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If you are going to give gift certificates or money, “package” it with some humor (in a pill bottle with a “prescription”) or a context (this is to help you buy good food for times you are too busy).

Please let me know (comment or email) anything else to add to this list! Happy Holidays to all!

Healthy Recipes: 101 Cookbooks

Posted on April 20, 2014 by marylbrandt

It’s been a while since I posted about cooking and the pizza rule”. If you are trying to eat well as a medical student or resident, the key to success is planning, finding simple healthy recipes, and cooking for yourself.

101 Cookbooks has recipes that are healthy and many that are fast… but a few minutes on this beautiful blog will also feel like a “mini-vacation”. Heidi Swanson’s beautiful writing about food and travel, her award winning images plus the wonderful recipes make this time well spent.

Summer Vegetable Curry

Kale Market Salad

Best School Lunch: Sicilian Broccoli and Cauliflower Pasta

* The “pizza rule”: Find recipes that let you cook dinner in less time than it takes to order a pizza.

Eating on the Run

Posted on July 5, 2013 by marylbrandt

“Downside, I skipped lunch and it is still in the work fridge. Upside, I don’t have to pack a lunch tomorrow!” – tweet from an intern on her first day

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It’s hard to eat well when you are crazy busy taking care of patients. Doctors really do know about nutrition, and we know we should set a good example. So why do we eat so poorly at work? I can’t do better than the list of reasons from this post:

1. The ”I don’t know when I’ll get to eat again” Phenomenon

2. The “Graham Crackers and Peanut Butter” Phenomenon

3. The “It’s free, therefore I must eat it” Phenomenon.

4. The “I’m so tired I have to eat something to stay awake” Phenomenon

5. The “I’m on call so I deserve a giant cookie” Phenomenon

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Why it’s important to make conscious choices about what you eat at work

1. You actually hurt your patients if you don’t eat well.

Physicians that don’t eat at work have slower simple and complex reaction times. You don’t think as clearly or respond as quickly. Start thinking about your own nutrition as a part of good patient care.

2. If you are like most people, not eating at work will result in gaining weight.

Even if you don’t gain weight, you will likely have a detrimental change in your body composition. (i.e. you’ll get flabby)

3. Not eating at work will result in losing weight for some people.

For some people stress leads to appetite loss. These are the residents that aren’t hungry even though they are not eating enough. The message here is that your weight during residency is a decent barometer of your stress level and how well you are coping. If you are losing or gaining, notice it early and adjust how you are eating, working out and coping with the stress of your job.

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There’s no question that the best option is to plan, prepare and bring your own food to work. Even though it takes time to do this, you’ll save time in the hospital by knowing what you have and where it is. (A good point made in the article “Strategies Resident-Physicians Use to Manage Sleep Loss and Fatigue” which you can download from http://med-ed-online.net/index.php/meo/article/download/4376/4558). Food choices in the hospital are limited, often poor, and not always available. Make time on the weekends to plan for the upcoming week and shop for good food. If you can, choose one healthy recipe to cook on your day off and make enough that you have plenty of meals in the refrigerator for when you get home.

General principles

Eat at least every 6 hours. It’s probably better if you eat smaller amounts every 3-4 hours. Eat even if you are “not hungry” if it’s been 4-6 hours since your last meal.
Make sure you are getting plenty of protein. Eating simple carbohydrates makes you less alert and creates bigger swings of insulin levels.
Don’t drink your calories. (But do drink enough water)
The processed comfort foods that appear like magic in hospitals (doughnuts, pizza, etc) seem delicious when you eat them, but are terrible for you.
Plan, plan, plan. It’s worth it.
Eat fruits and/or vegetables with every meal.
Bring good food from home. If you don’t cook, buy good food to bring.
Make sure you have “pocket food” in your pocket at all times. (Food that fits in your pocket and doesn’t need refrigeration.) You may not be able to stop for a real meal, but you’ll be able to eat something.

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Examples of “pocket foods”

Kind bars. Many meal replacement bars might as well be candy bars when you look at the ingredients. Clif, Larabar, and Odwalla are all good choices. Kind bars have no added sugar, a fair amount of protein and are made of only real food.
Peanut butter and jelly sandwich. (Whole wheat bread, fruit spread, peanut butter without transfats)
Cabot 50% cheese or string cheese (higher protein, lower fat than most cheese)
Edamame (shelled is easier)
Homemade Trail mix – mix different nuts and dried fruits together and put in snack bags
Baked or steamed sweet potatoes with a little salt
Fruit