Get the Salt Out (49 page)
Authors: C.N.S. Ph.D. Ann Louise Gittleman
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Follow the topping instructions as directed in the recipe above, but assemble the pizza slightly differently: Spoon 3 tablespoons of pizza sauce evenly on the pizza, leaving at least a ½-inch rim around the crust that is unsauced. Then mix the ½ cup of pizza sauce into the vegetable-sausage mixture and spoon the combined mixture evenly on top of the lightly sauced pizza crust. Sprinkle the recommended amounts of oregano, fennel, sage, fresh parsley, and fresh basil on top and place the pizza directly on the center rack in the oven. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes.
Serves 4.
303
Use salt-free seasoning packets when you make foods like tacos or fajitas.
(The Spice Hunter is one brand to look for.) If you aren’t able to find a salt-free mix, season meat or poultry to taste with garlic powder, onion powder, and salt-free chili powder.
One Salt Shaker.
304Make nachos and other similar snack foods with natural cheese instead of processed cheese products.
Natural cheese is salty, but it is lower in sodium than processed cheese. That means you should skip artificial cheeses such as Cheez Whiz and Velveeta and always opt for the “real stuff.” Here’s a
recipe for homemade nachos that uses natural Monterey Jack. It comes from
Salt: The Brand Name Guide to Sodium Content
by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. They are a great improvement over the salty nachos offered at movie theaters, amusement parks, and ball games.
Two Salt Shakers.
NACHOS
3 fresh corn tortillas, each cut into 8 wedges
¼ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh green chiles, stems and seeds removed,
or
1 canned whole green chile, rinsed and chopped
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Lay the cut tortillas on a cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes, or until the tortillas are crisp and slightly browned. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven. Spread the cheese evenly over the tortillas, then spread the chiles over the cheese. Bake 3 to 4 minutes more, or until the cheese melts.
Serves 2.
305Hold the cheese on Mexican food to lower the sodium content further.
Mexican favorites such as tostadas, enchiladas, and even tacos usually have such flavorful seasonings that they can be enjoyed without cheese. Here’s a recipe for simple, cheeseless Bean Burros that have plenty of flavor. It’s another low-salt idea from Holly Sollars.
Two Salt Shakers.
BEAN BURROS
2 cups Refried Beans [see tip 263]
4 whole wheat tortillas (see Note, below)
Shredded green leaf lettuce,
or
half-shredded iceberg lettuce and half-shredded green leaf lettuce, for topping
Salsa [see tip 339], brother low-sodium salsa to taste (optional)
Heat the whole wheat tortillas in a 325-degree oven for a few minutes until warm. Divide the warm Refried Beans into 4 portions. Spoon each portion onto the center of each individual tortilla and wrap. Garnish the tops of the burros with shredded lettuce and salsa, if desired.
Serves 4.
NOTE: The sodium content of whole wheat tortillas can vary considerably, depending on the brand. Garden of Eatin’ is the lowest-sodium brand I know of; it contains 170 milligrams per tortilla.
306Replace whole wheat tortillas in Mexican food with corn tortillas to cut the sodium even more.
Whole wheat tortillas frequently average about 200 milligrams of sodium each, whereas corn tortillas usually are sodium-free and always have plenty of flavor.
One Salt Shaker.
BONUS TIP:
For a change of pace and color, try using blue corn tortillas. They, too, are sodium-free. Garden of Eatin is one good brand you can find in health food stores.
