Sweet sausage fusilli

(NAPS) - If teaching table manners and catching up on the juiciest classroom gossip aren’t incentive enough, now you can add health benefits to the long list of reasons your family should share a meal. A recent review of research in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition suggests that children who eat meals with their families consume healthier foods.

With worldwide childhood obesity rates expected to double to 287 million kids by the end of this decade, simple actions such as eating together could make a difference. Children learn their eating behaviors from adults and will consume more vegetables, lean meats, and whole foods, rather than fast foods or unhealthy snacks, when they are served regularly.
 
Add veggies, grains, and lean proteins to kid-friendly dishes such as pastas, pizza, and tacos. Try out formerly “adults-only” fare with dialed-down spices or simple side dishes. Also, serve plenty of monounsaturated fats from foods such as olives, nuts, and avocados, for proper brain growth and vitamin absorption.

Round out the meal with a salad and fruit for desert and you have a supper that’s easy to make, full of flavor, and a little bit familiar.  And you’ll watch them enjoy eating healthy!

Sweet Sausage Fusilli

            1.5       Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
            8          oz. sweet Italian poultry sausage, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick half moons
            1/2       tsp. chopped oregano
            1          qt. (8 oz.) broccoli florets, blanched
            1          cup black, ripe olives, whole, pitted
            1          qt. cooked whole wheat or “blended” fusilli pasta
            1/4       cup shaved Parmesan cheese
            Kosher salt and crushed red pepper flakes to taste

Directions
Heat ½ tablespoon olive oil in a large non-stick saute′ pan over medium-high heat. Stir in sausage and oregano and season to taste with salt and pepper flakes. Cook for 3-5 minutes until browned.
Mix in broccoli, olives, and pasta and cook until heated through. Toss with remaining olive oil and top with Parmesan cheese just before serving. Serves 4.

For more recipes and nutritional information, visit www.calolive.org.

Nutritional Analysis Per Serving: (courtesy of Carol Plotkin, MS, RD): Calories 350, Fat 14g, Cholesterol 35mg, Sodium 700mg, Carbohydrate 43g, Protein 17g, Calories from fat 120