Touch o’ green adds
fun to good nutrition

For 364 days out of a year, eating green eggs and ham isn't very appealing, unless you are an ardent Dr. Seuss fan.

But on St. Patrick's Day, there are no color constraints. You'll find people consuming everything from green scrambled eggs to green mashed potatoes to green-colored beer.

When food is made fun, most people will be more adventuresome in their food choices. This is especially true of children.

St. Patrick's Day provides a great opportunity to try new ways of preparing fruits and vegetables and other low-fat foods that fit into this festive holiday theme. How far you go in the "greening" of your menu depends upon how daring you perceive your eaters to be.

For home or office celebrations, why not surprise everyone with the following recipe for St. Patty's Musubi Pupus. The green-colored rice is sure to grab their attention. What's more, by substituting green cucumber slivers and ume pickles in place of Spam, you'll have a fun pupu with only 85 calories and less than one gram of fat per serving

St. Patty's Musubi Pupus

1-1/2 cup short-grain white rice
1-1/2 cup water
3-4 drops green food coloring
3 tablespoons white rice vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon canola oil
1 ounce thinly sliced ume (pickled plum)
1/4 cup cucumber slivers
Nori sheets

Combine rice, water, and green food dye and cook until tender.

Mix vinegar, salt, oil, and brown sugar. Stir into cooked rice.

Divide plum, cucumber and rice into 16 portions. Form musubi with plum and cucumber in the center and cover with nori sheet.

Serves 16

Approximate nutritional analysis per musubi: 85 calories, 0.5 g total fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 200 mg sodium*

Served as either an appetizer or main course, this Cream of Broccoli Soup tastes so good no one will guess the recipe is low in fat and brimming with vitamins and minerals. You can make the soup ahead and serve it either hot or cold, depending upon the temperature of the day.

Cream of Broccoli Soup

From "Bone Appetit"

6 cups fresh broccoli
4 seconds vegetable oil spray
1 cup thinly sliced onion,
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 cup water
1 Herb Ox vegetable bouillon cube
1 cup skim milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Trim off tough ends of broccoli stalks and peel sides. Cut into large pieces. Steam broccoli until tender.

Spray chopped onions in a bowl with vegetable spray for 4 seconds; transfer to pot. Saute over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes or until onions soften and become translucent. Add water if necessary to keep from burning. Add garlic and saute for 1 to 3 additional minutes.

Dissolve vegetable bouillon cube in hot water and add milk, salt, and pepper.

Stir and transfer half of broccoli, onion mixture, and bouillonmixture to blender or food processor. Process until smooth adding half of the prepared bouillon, milk, salt, and white pepper. Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl and cover to keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining ingredients.

Serves 4.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 90 calories, 1.5 g total fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, less than 5 mg cholesterol, 450 mg sodium.*

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Barbara Burke is a Hawaii-Pacific University instructor who has been teaching
and writing about food and nutrition since 1975.

Joannie Dobbs, Ph.D., C.N.S., is a food and nutrition consultant
and owner of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.
She is also responsible for the nutritional analyses
indicated by an asterisk in this section.

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