Low Cal Ideas

Truvia, My New Favorite Natural Sugar Alternative

Well, I’ve officially found a great new sugar substitute that does not have the nasty after taste nor the chemicals that so many other sugar substitutes have. It’s called Truvia, and it’s not cheap, but it’s also very tasty, and does not have that same after taste that the chemical ones that aren’t good for you have, like Equal and Sweet n Low, which contain aspartame and saccharin. Do you remember Tab, the first diet soda, and how awful it tasted? It’s because it was made with saccharin. That was before we knew how bad these chemically altered sweeteners were for the human body.

I myself was a user of Sweet n Low for years. I really thought that I was doing something healthier for my body by eating this sweetener, which is made with saccharin, instead of eating sugar, and the fact is, that not only was I not saving significant calories, but I was also loading my body with chemicals that eventually convert into some sort of formaldehyde.

Artificial sweeteners have been linked to a bevy of health problems, most prevalently, they have come up as potential candidates for being a cancer causing agent, or carcinogen.  Then, about five years ago, I found out about Stevia as my interest in natural health and eliminating as many unnatural things from my diet as I could, increasing my holistic outlook on medicine and living.

Stevia is a plant, and there are certain part of that plant that are reaped to make the stevia powder that is used to sweeten drinks, cereals, you name it. It is supposed to not affect your blood sugar at all, and has no calories.  It also has not been linked to any major health problems, since it is all natural.

Truvia is actually made with “the sweetest part” of the stevia plant, and some other natural ingredients. It supposedly is all natural, and I hope it’s true and something doesn’t come out about it being a lie, because I REALLY like the flavor of this natural sweetener. It is not bitter like pure stevia extract and powder can be, or overpowering with an aftertaste at all, but it’s very smooth and natural tasting, almost like real sugar, but I daresay even a bit better of a sweetness.

I’m going to keep my eyes and ears peeled for any bad press on this Truvia stuff, because I’m hooked on it for now, and am hoping that it truly is all natural and healthy to consume. By the way, they are also having coupons online for a dollar off, I’ve been using them while I can since it runs almost $4 for a box of only 50 packets, so I’d try to use those while I can if I were you, get the deal!

Delicious Low Fat Vegetable Soup

So, I’ve told you before how I’m crazy about making soup, especially in these cold, dreary months where you are locked indoors for weeks on end before you see a sunny day where you can actually be out and about without freezing your nanos off.  Well, I just got a recipe from a friend that I tweaked a bit to make it my own.  I’m going to share that recipe with you in a moment, but a word about this and other low fat soups that use a lot of broth as their base first, and lots of veggies.

Soups can be very filling. They are, after all, hot liquid, and this fact alone makes the other foods you eat with them sort of swell in your stomach, and for some reason just hot foods alone make you feel fuller, for what reason exactly I’m not sure. They are a great natural appetite suppressant.

They are a great way to not only warm you up in the winter, but I like them because they are the ideal side dish to a healthful, low calorie meal. They help to fill you up and keep you satisfied, and yet they still contain few calories because they consist mainly of broth, which contributes minimal calories, a lot of fiber rich veggies, and maybe some kind of starch in minimal content, like a brown rice or a whole grain pasta.

That’s what this soup uses, a whole grain pasta, and the whole pot of it only uses about one to one and a half cups of whole grain pasta, I like to use the kind of whole grain pasta that also has omega 3’s added to it, I think it’s made by Barilla, so that it adds not only extra nutrients to the soup, but it also helps contribute to keeping you full, since omega 3 fats actually make you think you’re fuller, faster.

Ok, enough with talking about this soup, let’s get on with how to make it!

I’m going to list all the ingredients. All you do is put them all together in a stock pot, bring them to a boil for a minute, then turn it down to simmer for as long as you’d like so the flavors all blend together. I like to simmer mine for a while, it just gives a better flavor.

Here’s the ingredients :

4 cups of either chicken or vegetable broth, fat free (most of them are naturally fat free)

1 can of black beans, drained

1-2 cups (depending on how you are watching your carbs) of whole wheat rotini pasta

1 bag of mixed vegetables (corn, peas, green beans carrots)

2 cans of petite diced tomatoes. You can use regular too, I just prefer petite in soups

2 Tablespoons of Italian seasoning

3 cloves of garlic, crushed or garlic salt

1 bay leaf (you will take this out when it’s done simmering, it’s simply to infuse the flavor into the soup while it is heating initially)

Are 100 Calorie Snacks Really Enough?

I can’t help but laugh at the recommendations and prepackaged snacks that are 100 calories a pop. Honestly, even when I’m hardcore dieting, a 100 calorie snack usually does not do the job for me. I’m not sure if I have a higher than usual metabolism and just burn it off too fast, or whether my problem is that I just eat it too dang fast, but a 100 calorie snack for me on most days is like a tease, a drop in the bucket, a “snack” before the real meal, if you know what I mean.

I pass by the 100 calorie snack packs that adorn the grocery store aisles and think to myself, my gosh am I really that big of a pig, or is it just me who is not satisfied at all with a 100 calorie snack?  Apparently though, there are lots of other people like me because a lot of people say that they cheat and consume 2 of these bags because 1 doesn’t satisfy their blood sugar plummeting enough.  How are you supposed to suppress hunger with these minimal snacks between meals?

And yet, most diet books will tell you to try to stick to two snacks a day at about 100 calories each. In all honesty, I usually make my snacks about 180 to 200 calories, and that tides me over until dinner, but 100 just leaves me really hungry and wanting to scarf down a lot more food at dinner time. I’m talking about my snack in the afternoon especially, my mid morning snack I’m usually ok with the 100 calorie rule since my snack mid morning is usually a 110 calorie yogurt cup -Activia in fact, and not the low fat version, which is my favorite.

I think that if you under snack, you are setting yourself up for failure at dinner time and you will just wolf down everything in your sight since you are still ravenous from the day at work. If you consume about 180 calories, you’re not bottoming out at dinner and shoving food in your mouth indiscriminantly.  This works for me, and what does not work for me is to do the 100 calorie one after lunch and before dinner. Now, if I have not worked out that day and have a low appetite for some reason, it might work, but otherwise I just feel like it sets me up for eating too much at dinner time and beyond, in the evening, which is when it’s worst to consume the bulk of your day’s calories.

Also, the 100 calorie rule, I feel, makes it harder to stick to diet plans that dictate this requirement because you are still ravenous when you’re done with your measly little portion. Instead, just make sure your meals and your other snacking is never out of control, and you should be fine.

An Apple a Day Takes on a New Meaning If You’re Dieting

I have to admit, I have a love/hate relationship with apples.  I usually have to be in a very specific mood to actually want to consume an apple.  When I am, they taste delicious, and nothing else but their taut, firm skin and juicy inside will do to suppress your hunger.  However, if I’m not in the mood, and more specifically, if the apple is nor organic and of a variety that I really like, then I pretty much have to force myself to gag the apple down, knowing that it’s one of the healthiest, most portable snacks I can possibly put in my body.

That’s why it’s so challenging to eat healthy all the time though. Our bodies naturally crave crap, to put it simply. And, when we’ve been on a crap bender, eating whatever we want for days or weeks at a time, and then have to get back in the habit of eating healthy snacks like apples instead of something like say, chips and dip, then our bodies naturally rebel. Quite simply, we have grown used to the chemicals, the fats and sugars in all the processed and fattening foods, and our bodies go through nothing other than what I can describe as withdrawal.

These are the times when it’s all the much more important to reaquaint yourself with the apple. Not only does it help cleanse out all the bad stuff you were eating, but it gradually gets your body used to the natural sugars again, and how wonderful they can taste once you’ve gotten all the processed cravings out of your system.

Apples contain so many good things for you body, but I will tell you that I only recommend the organic variety. Apples are sprayed with chemical pesticides a lot if they are not organic. They are also irradiated to preserve freshness longer. I can tell you that both of these processes not only rob the apple of some of it’s nutrients, but they also completely ruin it’s flavor, in my opinion. If you don’t believe me, try a fresh, organic apple as opposed to a regular old grocery store produce section non organic apple, and you tell me.  You should notice quite a difference in texture and flavor that will leave you appreciation the apples’ naturally light sweetness and delicate flavor much more fervently!

Apples contain tons of fiber. Wanna get regular?  Eat apples!  They contain a special fiber called pectin that has been thought to really help dieters even more because it is so filling and cleansing to the digestive tract.  Apples have actually been pegged as an excellent food to eat in the morning because they supposedly help you to wake up!  They are low calorie, with a larger apple clocking in at about 60 to 80 calories, every bit usable and beneficial to your body.

Apples also contain some powerful antioxidants that not only help to fight free radicals but also help in the anti aging fight by keeping cells healthy longer and tissues more supple and healthy.  They also contain flavanoids, which are excellent for the body.  I like them most because they are super filling. I can eat a half an apple after dinner and it totally makes me full for hours longer than if I had just eaten dinner with no apple “dessert”.  They are truly the dieters friend – and the person who watches their weight would be smart to add these to their repertoire.

Broth Based Soups a Great Filler

I go through phases with soup. Right now, I’m going through a soup phase where I have soup almost every single day. I’ll blame it on the colder, more blustery weather and an instinct to sort of burrow my head in the blankies and forget about the cold outside world.  And they happen to be great accompaniments to one of my all time lazy dinner favorites, the grilled cheese sandwich.

Not only that, but the broth based soups are truly one of the lowest calorie, most filling things you can eat and accompany with your dinner or lunch to help you eat less of the calorie-dense fattening stuff like breads, cheeses and so on and so forth.  Broth based soups basically act as a sort of natural appetite suppressant since they fill your belly with warm liquid, which creates a feeling of satiety.

I really love the line by Campbells that is in a larger can that you don’t water down, it’s the Naturals line, and occasionally they will go on sale for a dollar each at Giant Eagle. I’ll load up on the broth soups like their southwest style veggie soup and the french onion one, because they only have anywhere from 50-80 calories per serving, for a total of only about 100-160 calories per can. That’s quite filling too, so you’re getting a big bang for your buck with these soups as far as keeping you full and helping you consume less calories.

You can even make your own simple broth soup and save a little more money, plus you can put whatever veggies you want in it. Generally, you just need chicken broth, which you can purchase as low sodium if you need to, maybe some extra boullion cubes if you like extra flavor, and a few bags of frozen vegetables that you think might make a nice soup.  You can add your own seasonings as well, or maybe a few chunks of chicken breast too, for a cheap, home made, low calorie and fulfilling side or even a main course.

I love to add a soup to a Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice entree for lunch. Especially if that Lean Cuisine only consists of less than 300 calories, since I like to keep my lunches at about 500 calories so it keeps me full until dinner (at least almost until dinner).  It really helps make you feel fuller faster, because soup is hot or very warm when it’s served, so this has been proven to make you feel fuller since it’s all hot liquid, and veggies are all fiber.  Unless you are watching your sodium broth based soups are a diet staple!

Oatmeal, How I Love Thee – Now!

Did you ever really despise a certain food for most of your life, and then come to really enjoy it once you’ve learned that you were either eating it the wrong way, with the wrong combination of foods, maybe cooking it wrong, or buying bad brands or something of that nature? Well, my sudden turnaround with oatmeal may be a combination of all of those, plus add in a little bit of maturity and the desire to eat a hot, nutritious breakfast without having to do a lot of work, oh and the fact that we have one of those nifty insinkerator hot water machines at our newer house.

You wouldn’t believe how easy oatmeal is to make in the morning with a hot water dispenser. Shoot, it’s easy even without the hot water machine, it’s just way easier and almost ridiculously lazy to make once you have that too! Oh, and the best part is, we also have one of those insinkerator things where I work too, so it’s voila, instant hot breakfast at work as well. Cheap and nutritious, and filling too. Here’s the types of oatmeal that I have found a new love for, and how I prepare it so that it’s tasty, never bland.

I really enjoy the brand Quaker Oats, which is probably one of the biggest maker of the ready made packets they sell at most any grocery store. There’s that and then I’ve seen a few other brands like Kashi cashing in on the craze too. My current favorites are the reduced sugar Maple and Brown Sugar, the Banana Bread, Cinnamon Roll and Cinnamon and Brown Sugar flavors. They’re all excellent, and you totally forget you’re eating mushy oatmeal when you’re eating them because the flavoring is so good.

I add only the equivalent of a few tablespoons of hot water, since I’m not a fan of really soupy oatmeal. This gives it a thicker texture, although I also don’t like it too thick and pasty, so I often add a little water first, check it’s consistency, then keep adding it until it’s just right. I then add a couple tablespoons of chopped plain walnuts to the top of the oatmeal. I sometimes add a little extra sweetness by adding a half packet of stevia to the top as well.

I only eat one packet of oatmeal in the morning, so I’m pretty generous with the walnuts because they add the really filling fats and omega 3’s that get me through the morning and help suppress my appetite better throughout the day.

Oatmeal provides a filling, hot and nutritious breakfast that’s fiber filled and the walnuts add a lot of vitamins and nutrition as well, I wouldn’t recommend eating it without them. Sure, the plain stuff may be better for you, but when you’re eating such a small amount, it probably doesn’t matter.

Is There Such a Thing as a “Light” Cocktail or Beer?

In the quest to still get our jollies from drinking alcohol, and still maintain our trim waistlines and not blow up out of control, which is what a lot of drinking tends to get you because of it’s large amount of empty calories, many people have searched for the alternatives to typically heavy caloried drinks so that they can still get a buzz, but not ingest all that sugar and carbs, which inevitably don’t break down the way they should, are harmful to our livers, and inevitably also make us lethargic and lazy, and generally not very ambitious the next day.

Sure, there are drinks that you can enjoy that are the lesser of two evils, such as reduced sugar cocktail mixes or sugar free ones, or you can enjoy the lower calorie and lower sugar alcohols like plain vodka, instead of drinking all the heavily flavored fruity vodkas and other hard flavored alcohols, but what else can you do? Well, the key, and you’re not gonna like this much, is moderation. Even if you think enjoying those “Skinny Bitches” is harmless, your are still essentially ingesting alcohol, which is broken down by your body much like sugar is. It also has no filling effect, which is why people call it empty calories.

It really is like ingesting totally empty nutrition, and the real danger of course is to our organs, but it’s also to our inhibition. How many times have you been steadfastly dieting, only to ruin it when you’re drinking because your guards go down and your hunger is essentially fueled by all the extra sugar you’re partaking in. What I like to do is occasionally enjoy a really good beer. One that really fills you up, because not only do you get a pleasant buzz from it, but you also get a little bit of a feeling of fullness that acts as a sort of natural appetite suppressant, whereas with the sugary sweet cocktails, you aren’t getting any substance.

From the beer at least, whether it’s light or dark, but especially darker and higher in calories, you are getting all those barley and hops, which actually make you feel full. That’s why people say “not filling” – yeah, like that’s a good thing, the whole idea is to NOT over do it on your beer, that’s why you’re drinking light in the first place. I say ditch the light beer and instead enjoy one that may be higher in calories, but is also much stronger, you can sip it slower and savor it, and it actually does fill you up – many times just one does.

The Versatile, Healthy Smoothie

As we strive to become more aware of our health and nutrition levels, we have become increasingly inventive on different ways to enhance our quality food intake while keeping our calories down. One of the best examples of this phenomenon is the varied and creative use of the healthy beverages called the smoothie.

Smoothies are a fast and easy way to deliciously get our fruits and vegetables, together with other items, such as yogurt, in for the day. Smoothies are blended and chilled beverages made from crushed ice and other foods such as fruits, vegetables and sometimes yogurt or milk. Depending on your taste preference and nutritional needs, you can pick and choose from hundreds of recipes online and elsewhere to create your own smoothies at home.

In addition to helping you meet your fruit, vegetable and dairy requirements for the day, you can blend in vitamin and herbal supplements as desired. For dining out, there are smoothie restaurants such as the Tropical Smoothie Cafes and Planet Smoothie. The Tropical Smoothie Cafe also features wraps, salads, sandwiches and catering. These low fat smoothies help you to maintain a body that accelerates fat loss by adding low fat dairy, which has been shown to accelerate weight loss and help with your overall weight maintenance.

Some of the most popular ingredients for smoothies include strawberries, bananas, orange juice, milk, yogurt and ice cubes. There are variations of the strawberry-banana flavored smoothie that add in oatmeal or wheat germ for even more nutrition. Berries of all kinds are well liked in smoothies. Many of the recipes include rasberries and blueberries as well as strawberries.

One recipe for a blueberry smoothie calls for vanilla yogurt, orange juice, lemon juice and vanilla extract in addition to the berries. You can mix these ingredients together with crushed ice and even add flax seed or wheat germ if you like. Smoothies can be made for breakfast in the morning if you find it easier to drink a beverage than to stop and eat because of time constraints.

A healthy smoothie can help you stay alert and focused until lunchtime while you are at work. In hot weather when your appetite may be suppressed, an ice cold smoothie is likely to appeal to you. For parents of children who are finicky eaters, you can give them smoothies to boost their nutrition and even call it a “milkshake”. Smoothies will probably appeal to children because of their naturally sweet fruity flavors.

‘Tis Soup Season! Low Cal Soup Ideas

It is the season for soups and chilis, to warm your bones and your heart with some hearty, yet low fat and low calorie soups that are great accompaniments to your meal at night, and also happen to really fill your belly when you need to start feeling full! One of my favorites lately is a tomato basil soup that I make with low fat organic coconut milk instead of the heavy cream it calls for.

It’s still very flavorful and satisfying, yet it doesn’t have all the clogging dairy and fat because of the absence of the cream. You may be able to use low fat coconut milk in a variety of recipes for soups in place of milk or heavy cream, just see what’s required in the recipe first and decide whether it’s slightly sweet, nutty flavor would go right with it.

A lot of people think that coconut milk is fattening, but you can definitely buy it lowfat and it’s also got a ton of health benefits as well. It’s great for the skin, and it’s been shown to help keep some of your organs in tip top shape as well.

Some people may be allergic to it, or get gout from it, but if you aren’t, take full advantage of this wonderful food! You can also make a low fat turkey chili with black beans, just take your favorite chili recipe or mix and use low fat ground turkey instead of red meat and also use black beans instead of kidney beans for a different flavor and a better texture.

You can make multiple bean soups with chicken broth, tomatos, and chilis, that are not only good for you, but contain tons of fiber to keep you regular, they warm you up, and they also taste wonderful and fill you up much faster because they’re hot and they’re primarily liquid.

Teryaki Tuna Steaks and Squash : Healthy Dinners!

I’ve really been in the mood to experiment with making different kinds of healthy fish lately. I only really like very mild white fish. Even some white fish is too fishy and strong tasting for me, so I try to stick to things like tuna, mahi mahi, grouper, and sword fish. Even with those, I try to only buy them when they are vacuum sealed for freshness.

Too often when I’ve purchased even mild white fish that is not vacuum sealed, I find that it tastes fishy. In fact, foodies say that the only reason a fishy taste comes through on any type of fish is because it is too old. Fresh fish is definitely best, but we all know you can’t always get fresh fish, especially if you live inland or don’t live near a source of fresh water. This is where the vacuum sealing comes in handy, it limits the amount of oxygen the fish is exposed to and keeps that fishy taste at bay.

I’ve recently found a great store brand of tuna steaks that vacuum seals them. They’re ultra fresh and they taste great. Let’s talk about a meal idea using marinated tuna steaks and fresh squash, which is in season now. It’s very healthy and low in fat, has protein, tons of vitamins including beta carotene in the squash, and is satisfying for a cool fall day.

The first one is super easy. It’s teryaki marinated tuna steaks. Take your favorite premade teriyaki marinde, and pour it over the tuna steaks after pricking them lightly with a fork. I do this just 30-40 minutes before I cook them, and it works fine. Once marinated, put the tuna and leftover marinade in a frying pan and cook it through, with the teriyaki making a wonderful, tasty glaze. I even like to blacken mine a little on the outside, but i like my fish done pretty well, while some may find that too drying.

For the squash, you’re going to need a bit more time to prepare, so actually start with that first. I’ve used Golden Hubbard and Golden Acorn so far with this low fat recipe, and both are great. Bake the squash, halved, in the oven on 350 until soft. Once soft, take out and scoop out the squash part into a thick glass bowl as it will be hot. Add low fat butter and fat free or low fat sour cream to taste, with salt and pepper. I also added sauteed onion to mine, and mashed it all together. It’s almost like eating mashed potatoes, but healthier, and you have a wonderful, satisfying meal for the fall!