Faced with isolation, people have become lazier than ever before and must try harder to consider more mindful eating habits.

This can be achieved by following a few simple guidelines: Add more whole grains, nuts, eggs, cheeses and fruits and veggies to your diet. If you must have meat, ensure that it has a fatty content level of 10% or less. Avoid using regular oils packed with saturated fat and use olive oil instead.

In addition, try to prepare all of your own meals and use a free app or food journal to keep track of calories and ingredients you consume. I use MyFitnessPal, but there are a number of others to choose from.

To get you started, here’s a simple and savory meal to satisfy your winter cravings.

Sweet Green Corn Tamales

Start to finish: 3 hours

Serves 12

Step 1: Prepare masa according to package instructions

Note: Substitute the canola oil for olive oil or buy 3 pounds of pre-prepared masa from a Mexican market and mix together with the following ingredients.

Ingredients

• 4 cobs of sweet corn 
• ½ cup real butter
• ¼ cup sugar

Instructions

1. Cut corn off cob and gently grind it up using a food processor
2. Melt butter
3. Mix together ingredients with prepared masa
4. Set aside

Step 2: Prepare the stuffing

Ingredients

• 1 sweet yellow onion
• 1 cup cheddar cheese
• 1 jar Trader Joe’s Hatch Green Chile Salsa

Instructions

1. Sauté onion
2. Shred cheese
3. Mix onion, cheese and salsa together
4. Set aside

Step 3: Assemble the tamale

Ingredients

• Corn husks
• Prepared masa
• Prepared stuffing

Instructions

1. Put corn husk in water to soften
2. Place ¼ cup of prepared masa on corn husk 
3. Place 2 tablespoons of stuffing in center
4. Fold corn husk over to make it look like a hot pocket

Step 4: Steam the tamales

Note: This step requires a steamer basket.

Ingredients

• Uncooked tamales
• Water 

Instructions

1. Gently stack 6-8 folded tamales in steamer basket
2. Put 3 cups water into a pan and bring to a boil
3. Put steamer basket on top of pan
4. Cover steamer basket with lid, then steam for 45 minutes
5. Carefully remove tamales from steamer (use potholders and tongs) and place next batch in to cook
6. Cool each batch for 30 minutes
7. Serve warm