If you would like to order the books or learn more about them, here is a link to the set.
Eat For Health (2 book set)

a 2-book set by Dr. Joel Fuhrman

Why pumpkin? Well, like I said, it’s autumn. Pumpkin is also quite nutritious. A half cup serving only has 40 calories and half a gram of fat, yet it is loaded Vitamin A, has 5 grams of fiber, no cholesterol and next to no sodium. One serving provides more than a days worth of Vitamin A, most of it in the form of the carotenoid, “beta-carotene”, an antioxidant. Vitamin A is good for your vision, helping to prevent night blindness, and necessary for cell growth and maintenance of skin tissue. It also promotes bone and tooth development.

Chipotle Pumpkin Soup
This recipe for a warm, spicy, low-fat soup is tasty, nutritious and quick to make.

4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 T chili powder (start with less and adjust to your taste at the end of cooking)
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/8 to 1/4 tsp chipotle powder (use less to start and adjust to your taste at the end of cooking)
15 ounces pumpkin puree
1 1/2 cups black beans, cooked
1 cup frozen corn kernels
3/4 cup salsa

1. In a 2-quart pan, saute the garlic and onion for 3-5 minutes in about 1/4 cup of the vegetable broth. Stir often.

2. Add the seasonings and saute for another 2 minutes.

3. Slowly add and mix together, the broth and pumpkin puree.

4. Add the beans, corn and salsa. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook for 10 minutes.

5. Serve with bread or rice. Rice could be added directly to the bowl.

Cooking notes: If you don’t have vegetable broth, use 4 cups of water and 2 low-sodium vegetable bouillon cubes. Go light on the seasonings at first and add more at the end of cooking if you want it to be spicier. If you don’t have fresh pumpkin puree, use a 15 ounce can of pumpkin puree, but be sure that the only ingredient is pumpkin. Using the type with the pumpkin pie spices would give you some strange tasting soup! This was great with only 1/4 c chipotle salsa and the addition of 1/2 c diced tomatoes with green chiles.

More info:

• Beta-Carotene Info sheet
• Fat Soluble Vitamins
• Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin

To be a smart choice, a food cannot exceed certain amounts of total fat, saturated fat, trans fats, sodium, cholesterol and added sugars. It also needs to be in a certain food group (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low fat or fat free dairy) or have nutrients such as calcium, fiber or vitamins. The Smart Choice labels will display the number of calories and calories per serving.  I looked over the requirements for usage of the label and discovered that my personal requirements are already more stringent, especially when it comes to added sugars (1/4 of the calories could come from this!) and sodium.  Perhaps it will still be helpful for enough people to make the effort worthwhile.

Here are some of the limits a product must meet in order to display the Smart Choice label: 

More details can be found at http://smartchoicesprogram.com/nutrition.html

The Smart Choice program was set up by the Keystone Center, a nonprofit group. Food companies can choose whether they would like to participate, so not all “smart choices” will necessarily be labeled that way. Several large companies including Kraft, ConAgra Foods, General Mills, Kellog, Coca-Cola and Pepsico will likely participate.

The list of companies that will probably choose to participate seems to include those who manufacutre a lot of foods that aren’t so great for us. It doesn’t look like it includes those who fill the produce section with apples, carrots and other very smart choices although those foods would most certainly qualify. I wonder if a candy bar enriched with enough vitamins could manage to meet the standards? I’m curious to see how this turns out and if it impacts what manufacturers offer or what consumers choose to purchase.

More details:

• Smart Choices Program
• WebMD article
• ConAgra Foods News Release