Where it counts: Sun Chips

I love Sun Chips. Frito-Lay really has me with their promises of multi-grain healthiness. But let's be honest, they aren't all that healthy for the average person. Then again, they aren't all that healthy for a CFer either - need more fat!

But being a Sun Chip lover, I recently bought their snack pack multipack, which gives you small bags of each of the following flavors: Harvest Cheddar, French Onion, Garden Salsa, and Original. Easy peasy to compare.

Not much to report here. All packages hold the same total calories and total fat. But you'll get 10 fewer calories from fat with the Original version.

And there are some interesting changes in the sodium, I presume they essentially bake the same chip and then just dust them with a different type of high-sodium powder? It's probably not enough to make much of a difference but here's the breakdown:

Harvest Cheddar 200mg sodium

French Onion 150mg sodium
GardenSalsa 140 mg sodium

Original 120mg sodium

Kraft Dinner vs. Annie’s – and the bunny wins by a nose!

I’m not sure the makers of Annie’s are going to be happy about this post…

Macaroni and cheese is a staple food in our home. My Canadian husband calls it Kraft Dinner and refuses to eat any other brand. My personal choice is Annie’s. Regardless of preference, mac and cheese is one of those great quick meals that is easy to customize for the CFers and non-CFers in your household. Just cook the pasta and split the portions, then add whole milk and extra butter to the CF bowl and skim milk and less butter to the non-CF bowls.

One Saturday I was embarrassed to find our pantry filled with not one...not two...but EIGHT different boxes of macaroni and cheese. All had the same serving sizes but recommended different preparations (as noted in the prior paragraph). Still, there were some interesting differences in nutritional content just with the mix in the box.

Who knew that little rabbit was such a porker?!
I have to say, Annie’s wins this contest hands down. It was the highest in overall calories and calories from fat than any of the KD mixes. Plus the Annie’s mixes alone had less sugar and more fiber in the carb count, and a bit of extra folic acid and Vitamin B1. I think this is because they use organic wheat shell pasta instead of an enriched macaroni product. The cons? Annie’s was a bit lower in iron and sodium than the KD dinners but extra salt can always be added.

(mix only)	Annie’s Shells & Real Aged Cheddar	Annie’s Regular Mac & Cheese	Annie’s White Cheddar Shells	KD Veggie Mac & Cheese*	Regular KD and KD Spirals	KD Sponge Bob Shapes	KD Organic
Calories	270	270	270	260	260	250	240
Fat Calories	40	40	40	35	30	20	20
Total Fat	4.5g	4g	4.5g	3.5g	3.5g	2.5g	2.5g
Saturated Fat	2.5g	2.5g	2.5g	1.5g	1.5g	1g	1g
Sodium	510mg	510mg	500mg	550mg	580mg	580mg	630mg
Carbs	46g	46g	47g	47g	47g	49g	49g
Fiber	2g	2g	2g	3g	1g	1g	2g
Sugars	4g	5g	5g	7g	6g	7g	8g

After comparing, I think I’ll try to convert Lil Guy over to my Annie’s preference – we can always add more salt to the mixture to increase sodium content but I like the idea of more fiber and vitamins, particularly for a carb-heavy meal.

*A word about KD Veggie Mac and Cheese – don’t expect this to be on the shelves long, it is nasty stuff! I picked up a box thinking it was just a marketing gimmick. When I started to cook it, the smell of broccoli permeated my kitchen. Turns out they substituted cauliflower as one of the main ingredients. I’ll eat a lot of stuff but this was just gross.

Update: The "creamy" version of any boxed mac & cheese (the one that comes with the liquid cheese package inside) packs twice as much fat but isn't a big hit in my house. Of course, nothing beats the fat content of homemade mac & cheese!

Recipe: Banana Coconut Pudding

My sister-in-law introduced me to the idea of coconut milk as a high-fat option for Lil Guy. Right now he loves bananas so I searched the web for a recipe with both ingredients.
I wish I found this recipe earlier because, while I'm not into making my own homemade baby food, this is an easy way to add fat and flavor to bananas for babies and toddlers.

This recipe could probably stand for a little tweaking by a better cook than me but my first go around I tried this combo:

Ingredients
4 large bananas
1 cup coconut milk
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Preparation:
Peel the bananas and cut into small slices. In a medium saucepan, bring the coconut milk to boil, then add the sugar and cinnamon. Stir to dissolve. Add the bananas and bring back to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for about ten minutes until bananas are soft. Let cool a bit, then put mixture through blender to even out any lumps. Alternatively, you could pulse the bananas to a paste first and then add to saucepan.

Results:
Lil Guy wasn't a fan of the pudding on the first try but the recipe made about four small bowls. We gave it to him again the next day and he was a fan...maybe it just needed to sit in the fridge overnight for his taste?

Despite purchasing unsweetened coconut milk, I found the pudding to be too sweet for my taste so might lessen the sugar next time. Plus, I might try this custard version as another option (but beware it includes honey as an ingredient, which shouldn't be served to children under age one).

Alternative Versions:
Banana Vanilla Haupia from The Food Network
Banana Coconut Pudding from Epicurious

Turns out that bananas and coconut milk are a popular recipe in southeast Asian countries. The balance of ingredients and preparation create a range of dishes, from bananas in a type of milk sauce to something resembling more of a pudding texture.

Thai Style
Indonesian Style
Indonesian Style II
Vietnamese Style
Laotian Style
Cambodian Style

I was interested in comparing the nutritional quality of coconut milk to whole milk to half and half - see photo below. Note that the serving size of the half and half is 1/8 that of the other two options so when comparing, you'll find that cream definitely gives you a big caloric bang for your buck. Whole milk definitely has more calories - more than twice as many. But it also has more cholesterol and carbs. Coconut milk is a better source of Vitamin A and B12, which is also important for CFers. 

L-to-R: Target Brand Half and Half, Horizon Organic Whole Milk,
Trader Joe's Unsweeted Coconut Milk

So...verdict is that coconut milk might be a nice suitable substitution for milk in recipes where you want to give that coconut flavor. We hope to try more curry-and-coconut based recipes when Lil Guy gets older (and mom becomes a better cook).

Update: I tried making the custard version recipe and while I wasn't a big fan of the result, Lil Guy loves it! We made the recipe exactly and served it chilled.

Where it counts: Waffles

Reading labels is something you get good at as a mom and as a mom of a CFer. I’m starting to learn that it comes in handy for some products and not for others.

Take Pepperidge Farm goldfish for example. There is a multigrain cheddar version and a regular cheddar version. The nutrition info is almost exactly the same and there is no added fat with one version over the other. So pat yourself on the back for being a healthy mom of a CFer and go for those multigrain goldfish without a guilt trip.

Where it does count – waffles. Twenty calories and two grams of fat difference between buttermilk and multigrain – see photos below. (A bit more sugar and a little less fiber than I’d like but with CF there are always tradeoffs.) So Lil Guy gets buttermilk and Big Guy gets multigrain. I figure we still have a few years before Big Guy figures complains “L’Eggo My Eggo!”

Buttermilk - 20 more calories, including 2g more of fat

Whole Wheat - Slightly more salt and fiber

My Five-Point Methodology

When examining recipes, food labels and menu options, I use the following five-point methodology. Not every CF patient or parent might agree with my process but wanted to be clear about it on this blog.

1. I look for foods that are high in calories, fat and sodium but are low(er) in carbohydrates. Patients with CF have an approximately 50% chance of developing CFTR-related diabetes. However, Type II diabetes in the general population has been shown to develop over time with poor diet and exercise habits. While the mechanisms behind CFTR-related diabetes are different, we figure it might help to delay the onset in Lil Guy.
2. When examining a high-carb option, I prefer for it to have a little (or a lot) of fiber in it to aid with nutrition and digestion.
3. I avoid products containing artificial food dyes and here is why.
4. Whenever possible, I avoid using canned ingredients for cooking and here is why.
5. Where possible, I try really really hard to buy organic (and here is why) but I'll be the first to admit we're not very good at that. We live in an urban environment and it's really hard to find organic options at the grocery stores.

CF couldn’t have happened to a better…or worse family!

Cystic fibrosis. To say it is easy. But to hear it as a diagnosis for your child is one of the hardest things.

One of the more ironic moments that follows is when the doctors tell you that your child has to stick to a diet with “liberal amounts of fat and sodium.” Salt and buttered applesauce anyone?

On the one hand, before CF happened to our family, we were pretty much following the CF diet already. Let’s be honest, our family looooves take out!

On the other hand, as a mom, I can’t cook. And it’s not so much a “don’t want to” thing. Instead, I appear to have whatever recessive genetic condition causes me to

burn things

               overcookthings

                                 turn things into mush

                                                             and break the garbage disposal in the entire process.

Your pulmonary team has probably already directed you to this ONE website for recipes. It’s not too bad, don’t get me wrong. The recipes on there seem good and easy to make.

But if you’re looking for something different, try "Google"ing “high fat high sodium diet.” The search results trend all these wonderful sites telling me how bad salt and butter are for our health. Well thank you Google but your search results are just not relevant.

This blog will be a collection of high-fat, high-sodium and (preferably) lower-carb recipes. We’ll also throw in our recommendations for menu options at fast food restaurants and where you can get more bang for your CF buck when it comes to grocery items.

We would love for members of the CF community to share their recipes and tips too – so please send them in, proper credit will be given on the site!