Tina V. Nutrition

06/05/2026

06/05/2026

Hi! Let me re-introduce myself…

My name is Tina and I’m a Registered Dietitian and an Assistant Director for a Dietetics Coordinated Program. We have awesome interns and over the summer, I get to see them in action.

Thanks to our wonderful sites and preceptors, our program spans across the Chicago-land and even out-of-state. The interns are doing amazing and everything was ✨summer vibes✨.

*not sponsored by - just discovered them and they’re great, so thought I’d share.

06/02/2026

✨Thank you for having me at career day this year ! It was a pleasure to share my career as a Registered Dietitian with you all!

05/01/2026

❤️Every semester, the last day of classes is always bittersweet. I had mixed emotions heading into both of my classes today, having the jitters as if it was the first day of classes all over again. I had great conversations with students during and after both classes today and those little moments of connection warms my heart.

The cherry on top was picking up my Chancellor Service award for Outstanding Student Org Advisor, which I’m so grateful that .at.uic nominated me for this year. I love working with this group and seeing the students gain leadership skills, creating their own moments of connection, and finding community at UIC. Thank you for nominating me this year and for allowing me the privilege of being part of your journey. 🫶🏼

01/15/2026

Quick and easy lower carb chicken and veggie soup! For those of us who grew up with chicken and rice congee, a quick and easy lower carb higher fiber swap is to swap out the rice for cauliflower “rice”, peas, and corn! Obviously coming back to the Chicago cold, I crave soup. Therefore have been coming home to this easy, comforting, and delicious bowl of soup. Leftover chicken and frozen veggies work perfectly well in this recipe!

Makes 2 servings:
Ingredients:
- 8oz cooked chopped chicken breast
- 3 cups of low sodium chicken stock
- 1/4 cup peas
- 1/4 cup corn
- 1/2 cup cauliflower “rice”
- salt and black pepper to taste

Add all ingredients to a pot and bring to a boil. Top with black pepper and joy! That’s it! 😋

Calories: 285
Carbs: 26g
Protein: 31g

01/13/2026

Xin chao buoi sang - Good morning…Slow down your morning and make Vietnamese coffee (ca phe) with me. In a world of Nespresso and drive throughs, it’s a nice reminder that coffee is an art and the process of making it can be meditative.

It’s not about how fast you can get a cup of coffee and how much you can get done in the morning rush, but it’s more about the quality of the coffee and a reminder to make every cup worth it. It also ties me back to my culture and the time we were able to spend with family and friends. To a more peaceful, slower 2026 because what the hell was 2025?😵‍💫🫶🏼

05/01/2025

Just finished teaching my last class this semester! They have their final next Friday and then it’s a wrap. I always love chatting with the students on the last day and it always reminds me of why I do what I do. Sending 200 students out in the world with more evidence-based nutrition knowledge.🥰

03/30/2025

🥗Sunday lunch: I was craving lettuce wraps, so I air fried chicken thighs loaded it with lots of veggies and paired it with rice and Vietnamese nuoc cham. Nuoc cham is a mixture of fish sauce, lime, garlic, and sugar. It pairs well over many rice and noodles dishes. As you can see, Jax was excited for his plate. He tried a little of the broccoli but definitely loved his rice and chicken more. Also, notice hubby’s plate is just the cooked veggies, which is how he prefers his veggies where I crave my fresh veggies. I totally forgot my cilantro garnish but it was still delish. 😋

Focus on pairing carbs with protein and high fiber meals for the best diabetes management.

Carb count: 15g of carbohydrates per 1/3 cup of rice. That means if you eat 1 cup of rice, that is 45g of carbs. How to know if that’s good for YOUR blood sugars? Check your blood sugars 2 hrs after your meal and if it’s less than 180, if yes, then it’s a meal that works for you!

Food 📸- how did I do ?? Took a couple tips from your talk yesterday! 🤭

03/30/2025

Thrilled to see some familiar faces today at ’s Spring Assembly! Missed my and IL AND peeps! We got to hear from wonderful speakers and had a lovely time catching up with some of my faves. Until next time!🍊

08/30/2024

These were too good not to share! Smoked salmon and cream cheese on top of carrot chips and seaweed topped with EBB seasoning and Chili Onion Crunch Sprinkles. 😋🤤 ✨3oz of carrots for 8g of carbs paired with healthy fats from salmon is a winning snack in my books! ✨Here is what happened: I was reaching for my crackers to pair with smoked salmon and cream cheese for a snack today and realized I ran out of crackers but had carrot chips! Let me tell you, these turned out even better than expected. They’re so good and will definitely be in my snack list moving forward. Let me know if you try this!