Earth Week Specials This Week

In honor of Earth Week, Dining Services is featuring special organic and earth-friendly lunches this week. 

Monday, April 16th

Pines - Organic Eggplant Parmesan, Free Range ¼ Chicken Chipotle, Whole Wheat pasta with marinara sauce. Pizza made with organic marinara.

Tuesday, April 17th

Canyon Vista /FoodWorx– Free Range Chicken Florentine, Oven Roasted Acorn Squash filled with sweet and spicy organic lentil stew. Organic Twice Baked Yukon Gold Potatoes, Pizza made with organic marinara.

Wednesday, April 18th:

Café Ventanas – Organic Vegetarian Eggplant Parmesan, Whole Wheat pasta with organic marinara sauce, seasoned organic vegetables. Pizza made with organic marinara.

Thursday, April 19th

Plaza Cafe – Free Range Chicken Rotisserie, whole wheat pasta with marinara sauce, steamed organic vegetables. Pizza made with organic marinara.

Friday, April 20th:

OVT - Organic Roasted Red Potato Pizza , Fresh Mozzarella, Organic Baby Spinach and Shredded Parmesan Cheese. Baked Organic Butternut Squash Topped with Organic Quinoa pilaf garnished with a Parmesan Crusted Organic Tomato

What are you doing for Mother Earth? This week I've begun a concerted effort to save water.  I'm trying to save water by reducing my shower time (haha, I know there is a joke there but I promise I'll be nice & clean, just spending less time just standing there letting the hot water hit my face & trying to wake up), turning off the faucet while I'm brushing my teeth and only doing full loads of laundry (not a problem with a baby in the house!)

Happy Earth Week!

Real Deal Today at Cafe Ventanas

Come by Cafe Ventanas on ERC for the Real Deal on Nutrition. I will be at Cafe V during lunchtime dishing up the LiveWell meal and answering your nutrition questions.

Today's LiveWell meal at Cafe V is the Baked Salmon with an Indian-spiced Rub. Salmon is healthy because of its omega-3 fatty acids and protein content.

The LiveWell Salmon with Indian-spiced Rub has:

230 calories, 17g fat, 5g fiber, 14g protein in a 4-ounce portion.

Sometimes students ask me how salmon can be healthy when it appears to be high in fat - well, that is because the type of fat that makes up the majority of fat in salmon is good for you. Try not to "eat by numbers" when you are making your meal selections. Think of the big picture and your overall intake, not the individual grams of fat or numbers of calories.

Real Deal Today at Cafe Ventanas!

I'll be at Cafe Ventanas today during lunch serving up the LiveWell meal and answering your nutrition questions.

Today's LiveWell meal is Salmon with Tomato and Fennel: 298 calories, 19g fat, 0.5g fiber and 29g protein.

Stop by for a healthy meal and to say hello!

How Can You LiveWell Today?

LiveWell meals are offered everyday in Dining Services.

Today's LiveWell options are:

• Latin Pork with Mango Mojo at Pines


• Tuscan Chicken with White Beans at Cafe Ventanas


• Peruvian Pork at Canyon Vista


• Lemongrass Chicken at Canyon Vista and Plaza Cafe

Look for the Nutrition Facts for all LiveWell items posted right by the meal.

Happy Eating!

Organic Featured Meal today At Cafe Ventanas

Today's featured organic meal in honor of Earth Week is at Cafe Ventanas (ERC):

• Herb Roasted Free Range Chicken


• Eggplant Parmesan


• Garlic Sauteed Vegetables and Roasted Potatoes

Also stop by any of the Places & Markets, which are featuring organic, local and Fair Trade items this week and every week!

Happy Earth Week

It's Earth Week and to celebrate, join Dining Services for the following special meals:

• Monday, 4/18 at Pines: Free Range Coq au Vin with organically grown vegetables

• Tuesday, 4/19 at Canyon Vista: Free Range Chicken Florentine, Oven-roasted Acorn Squach filled with sweet and spicy organic lentil stew, Organic Twice-Baked Yukon Gold potatoes, steamed organic vegetables, Dessert: Organic Strawberry Cheesecake

• Tuesday, 4/19 at Foodworx: Quinoa Pilaf with Ratatouille Sauce and Caesar Salad

• Wednesday, 4/20 at Cafe Ventanas: Herb-roasted Free Range Chicken, Eggplant Parmesan, Garlic Sauteed Vegetables and Roasted Potatoes

• Thursday, 4/21 at Plaza Cafe: Organic Vegetarian Eggplant Parmesan and Free Range Chicken Parmesan, Organic Whole Wheat Pasta with marinara sauce, steamed organic vegetables

• Friday, 4/22 at Oceanview Terrace: Organic Tomato Basil Primavera with Organic Pasta, Pizza made with organic ingredients and wheat crust, Dessert: Organic Berry Compote with Organic Whipped Cream

LiveWell everyday with Dining Services Restaurants

Dining Services has 5 full-service restaurants with daily LiveWell meals:

• Canyon Vista (Warren)


• Cafe Ventanas (ERC)


• Oceanview Terrace (Marshall)


• Pines (Muir)


• Plaza Cafe (Revelle)

Every day, there are at least 4 LiveWell options to choose from for a healthy, RD-approved meal.

Today's options are:

• Tuscan Chicken with White Beans at Cafe V


• Vegetarian Gnocchi at Plaza and Canyon Vista


• Bruschetta Baked Chicken at OVT


• Five Spice Chicken Saute at Pines

Featured LiveWell Dish: Gnocchi

Here is a picture of the LiveWell Gnocchi that I had for lunch last week at Plaza Cafe.

LiveWell Gnocchi:

• vegetarian
• made from potatoes, which are a great source of potassium
• 1 serving contains 350 calories, 17g fat, 4.5g fiber, 10g protein
• costs $5.95 with one side. I chose steamed vegetables (broccoli, zucchini, and carrots) with my meal, which is pictured to the right.

When can you get this Gnocchi dish next?

• This Monday, Feb 21st at Cafe Ventanas

LiveWell today in Dining Services

LiveWell meals are healthy, RD-approved meals.

Check out the choices that you have for LiveWell meals TODAY, Feb 7th, 2011:

Tuscan Chicken at Plaza Cafe (Revelle) & Canyon Vista (Warren)

Potato Gnocchi at Pines (Muir)

Salmon w/Indian rub at OVT (Marshall)

Chicken Bruschetta at Cafe V (ERC)

Come see me at Cafe V! Today at lunchtime.

Come by Cafe Ventanas on Eleanor Roosevelt College today during lunch to see me dishing out the Real Deal on Nutrition AND the LiveWell meal, 5-Spice Chicken.

5-Spice Chicken Nutrition Facts: 300 calories, 14g fat (0g trans fat), 1.5g fiber, 37g protein

Come say hi, talk nutrition, and grab a healthy meal!

Come Get the Real Deal Today at Cafe Ventanas

I will be at Cafe Ventanas on ERC today during lunchtime serving the LiveWell meal.

Come by to eat a healthy meal and to say hello. Bring your nutrition questions too!

To learn more about LiveWell, the campus-wide student wellness inititiave, of which LiveWell meals are an important part, click on:
http://wellness.ucsd.edu/index.shtml

Thanksgiving Lunch TODAY in Dining restaurants

I LOVE THANKSGIVING! Please join Dining Services' restaurants today for a Thanksgiving feast, going on now! Here is a preview of what you'll get at Pines & Cafe Ventanas.

Come get the Real Deal on Nutrition TODAY at Cafe V!

I'll be at Cafe Ventanas today serving the LiveWell meal.

Come say hi, ask a nutrition question, or just get a tasty, healthy, LiveWell meal.

Hope to see you there!

Where? Cafe Ventanas on ERC
When? TODAY from 11:30a-12:30p

Get Steamed! (Veggies, that is)

Each Dining Services' restaurant has at least one steamed vegetable option at every lunch and dinner. The veggies can be entirely plain or seasoned with herbs and spices - there is no butter or margarine or oil added to these side dishes.

This plain, steamed veggie option is always a healthy choice!

The picture at right is a vegetable medley of carrots, broccoli, cauliflower and squash served at Cafe Ventanas.

LiveWell Cod with Spicy Mango Salsa

LiveWell COD w/SPICY MANGO SALSA

(per 4oz piece of fish)
180 calories
2.5g fat
1g fiber
33g protein

With 2 sides (as pictured to the right at Cafe Ventanas), this healthy entree is $6.95.

Still not sure what LiveWell meals mean? All LiveWell meals are nutrient-analyzed and approved by me, Dining Services' registered dietitian (RD). LiveWell meals must meet nutrition criteria for calories, fat, saturated fat, sodium, fiber or vitamin/mineral content.

Organic Items on the Salad Bars

Dining Services has the following organic items on the salad bars on all campuses:

• romaine lettuce
• spinach
• spring mix
• cucumbers
• broccoli
• baby carrots
• tomatoes
• olives
• kidney beans
• garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• black beans

We also have some organic salad dressings. The picture here is Cafe Ventanas' salad bar. Mix and match your salad fixings for endless meal variety. Choose mostly oil-based salad dressings or, if you really love creamy, ranch-type dressings, just go easy on the amount.

Quickest and Healthiest Snack for Busy Students

Your parents have been imploring you to eat fruit since you were a baby. And now, that's my job! Here is a picture of the fruit available at Cafe Ventanas (ERC).

Fruit is a very convenient and healthy snack solution for busy students. All fruit is good for you. Try to have a variety of different colored fruits throughout your day.

Fruits that travel well in your backpack: apples, oranges, tangerines, clementines, bananas.

Drinking small amounts of 100% juice is fine but aim to eat mostly whole fruit for the best nutritional benefit.

Just the Facts, Ma'am

Swirl is a healthy iced drink available at Plaza Cafe, OVT, Cafe V and Canyon Vista. Swirl comes in a regular 100% juice form and in a Swirlite version, which is lower in calories because it's sweetened with sucralose.

New this week: all Swirl dispensers have the Nutrition Facts labels on them. Check out the labels the next time you're in the mood for a sweet, icy treat.

This photo shows the Cherry Snow Swirl label at Plaza Cafe.

Welcome Back!

Welcome back for spring quarter! I hope you had a great spring break and are feeling refreshed and ready for the final quarter of this academic year.

Dining Services looks forward to bringing you fresh and delicious meals this quarter.

Fun and Healthy Dining events this week:

• Check out Meatless Monday TODAY at the Grill at Cafe Ventanas (ERC)
• Visit the traveling farmer's market, Farm2U, on Wednesday (3/31) at Earl's Place (Warren College)

Sushi at Cafe V

Sushi in a dining hall!? Yes, it's true. Dining Services has staff members who are trained in making sushi rolls at Cafe Ventanas. The sushi is so popular that Dining is training more employees in sushi-making to meet student demand for more variety and servings of sushi at lunch and dinner.

This photo is my sushi lunch of half veggie roll and a half veggie tempura roll.

When eating sushi, go light on the soy sauce since it's high in sodium. Enjoy the refreshing mix of the ginger and wasabi. YUM.