Veggie Bee

I’m anxious to read the new book by former FDA commissioner Dr. David Kessler, The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite, after seeing him on the Today Show. Here’s their article on his new book, Dieter’s Best Intentions Hijacked by their Brain.

Have you heard of conditioned hypereating??  Has you diet ever been “hijacked” by your brain against your will??

I don’t often eat out at fast food or casual dining restaurants simply because I like to be aware of not only the ingredients I’m eating, but also the calories of the meals. I also usually have to make special requests, you know what I’m talking about… dressing on the side, no oil, no meat, etc. So unless I’m with someone else who wants to eat out at one of these places, I would rather just eat something I’ve prepared at home (and yes, sometimes that means Amy’s Kitchen frozen meals!)  I’m not the type of eater who likes to portion control my food either, I like to be able to order something and eat it all if I like it!

I was excited to end up at two separate restaurants over the weekend that made it completely easy to just order straight off the menu! I knew exactly what was in the food I was ordering and the calorie count, I didn’t even have to make substitutions or special requests. I applaud these establishments for helping us out with our weight management…. now if I could just ensure fresh, organic ingredients…. ah well, one step at a time.

• Coco’s Bakery - they have locations on the west coast and we have one right down the street. We wanted to go somewhere for a quick breakfast and I was pleasantly surprised to find their Fit & Lively menu options (at the bottom of the menu page). I had the Tomato Basil Egg White Omelette. They also have Fit & Lively lunch & dinner options. Scroll over the symbol by each item name and it will give you the nutritional info.
• Islands Burgers - I usually have their veggie burger with the endless fries as a splurge, but I decided to take a look at their menu online before we went to see if I could find a meal that wouldn’t be such a splurge. They’ve added their Paradise’s Bikini Beach menu and it lists all the calories for each choice. I enjoyed the No Blame Grilled Veggie Tacos and they were really good! I stole a few french fries from David too, shhhhhh!

It was so nice to just order straight off the menu with no changes, no requests, no questions. I hope every restaurant starts doing this.

Are there any restaurants that you’ve been to that have calories and nutritional info right on the menu??

Mama Bee has been using a hula hoop for a while now for core strengthing. She uses a weighted hula hoop and spends about 20 to 25 minutes hula hooping during one of her morning shows that she watches daily. Apparently she’s a trend setter! Now I’m hearing about hula hooping everywhere and everyone seems to be trying it.

I got an email from Livestrong.com about how to hula hoop and now that I’m looking into it more, there’s a lot of info out there!  Here’s the video for How to Hula Hoop and more information from Livestrong.com on hula hooping.

Asparagus is one of those power foods that should be included in any healthy diet. If you’re not a fan of asparagus by itself as a side dish, there are plenty of recipes that include it in the mix.

Check out these impressive facts for a cup of asparagus (134 grams):

• Contains only 27 calories and 3 grams of fiber! Definitely a high-volume low-calorie whole food.
• No fat or cholesterol.
• 3 grams of protein.
• Minerals such as potassium and iron.
• Vitamins such as vitamin C, folacin, thiamine and B6.

Now pick a recipe to try this week and keep me posted on which recipes are your favorites for asparagus!

• Martha Stewart ~ a fantastic collection of asparagus recipes, you’re bound to find something you like here.
• Fitness Magazine ~ a simple roasted asparagus recipe for a side dish in no time at all.
• 101 Cookbooks ~ Asparagus Stir Fry ~ I really love this blog for all kinds of interesting recipes, mainly vegetarian and whole food ideas and beautiful food pics.
• California Asparagus Commission ~ they’re not kidding around about asparagus, everything you always wanted to know you can find here.
• Michigan Asparagus Advisory board brochure (pdf) ~ simple and easy-to-follow recipe ideas.

Asparagus is a wonderful whole food and you don’t have to worry about additives or preservatives. Go organic and buy locally and that’s as close to an ideal food that you can get!

I’m going to make the Asparagus Stir Fry from 101 Cookbooks this weekend. Which recipe looks good to you?? Do you have a favorite recipe for asparagus??

Roni at Roni’s Weigh is giving away $100 courtesy of SunChips and she’s also sharing her own personal process of learning to live greener & healthier.

Are you taking any steps to live more green? Go visit her site and add your tips to the comments to be entered into the drawing for $100! She’ll draw randomly for a winner on Friday.

Just because you’re trying to increase your veggies, doesn’t mean they have to be bland or topped with artificially flavored dressings! You don’t have to sacrifice taste for health.  There are a lot of options out there that can support your efforts to enjoy veggies in a lower fat or lower calorie way.  Ideally, you’ll want to aim for a maximum of 45 calories for 2 tablespoons of dressing since most regular dressings can easily increase your daily calorie intake. There are plenty of options with wonderful natural ingredients available, don’t settle for preservatives and artificial ingredients no matter what the calories are!

Individual seasonings
Use these together or separately instead of a bottled dressing. These are usually available at restaurants as well!

• Balsamic vinegar ~ Balsamic vinaigrette is made using vinegar as well as oil. However, balsamic vinegar by itself has only 14 calories per tablespoon and its flavor goes a long way on a salad or over veggies.
• Lemon juice ~ Used alone or combined with any of these other ingredients, it can add a flavor punch over salad or steamed, grilled or roasted veggies.
• EVOO ~ Extra virgin olive oil. Good extra virgin olive oil is best used as a dressing since heating it too much can change its flavor. At 120 calories a tablespoon however, you may not want to pour it on your veggies without care. Try spritzing it or using a Misto sprayer to give you better portion control.
• Salsa ~ Naturally made salsa can be super flavorful using only a few ingredients and makes a great topping not only for salads but over potatoes or black beans as well.

By the bottle

• Galeo’s ~ Their tag line is “The world’s best dressings!” and I have to wholeheartedly agree. All of their dressings are fantasic. My favorite is the Miso Sesame, but all 4 of their flavors are yummy!
• Trader Joe’s ~ If you live near a Trader Joe’s, you know what a blessing this place is for healthy, cost-effective foods. They have a few great options for salad dressings:
  • Parmesan Ranch ~ you can find it in the produce section.
  • Balsamic Vinaigrette
  • Asian Sesame Vinaigrette
• Follow Your Heart ~ They have 2 really great ranch dressing which can usually be found in the refrigerated section of your local grocery store’s produce section.
  • Low Fat Ranch
  • Low Fat Spicy Southwestern Ranch
• Newman’s Own ~ many of Newman’s Own dressings are high in calories and fat, but 2 of his dressings stand out as both tasty and low calorie. Plus all the profits go to charity!
  • Low Fat Sesame Ginger Dressing
  • Balsamic Vinaigrette
• Annie’s Naturals ~ Annie’s carries a wide variety of organic and natural sauces and dressings. Here are a few of their lower calorie options. Check the store locator to find Annie’s near you!
  • Lite Gingerly Vinaigrette
  • Lite Honey Mustard Vinaigrette
  • Lite Raspberry Vinaigrette

Individual packets

• Newman’s Own Light Italian Dressing ~ Minimus.biz is a site for finding travel-size and convenient products, but I could only find one salad dressing to recommend since most of the others contain what can only nicely be called “unnatural.” If you find any others on the site that you have a question about, let me know. These individual packets make it very convenient for travel or to keep handy in your purse for meals out where you may not be able to find suitable dressing.

Recipes

• If you never want to buy your dressing again, check out A Veggie Venture for all the information you’ll ever need about making your own! Be careful with the amount of oils in dressing recipes if you’re trying to lose weight, remember that all oils are around 120 calories per tablespoon.

What’s your favorite bottled salad dressing or dressing recipe??

Have you planned your fitness for the day or already accomplished it?!! Don’t let the day get away from you without planning some type of exercise, even just 10 minutes…   I know when we’re really busy it’s easy to talk ourselves out of exercise, but you’re worth 10 minutes of exercise in your day!! Start problem-solving right now how to get in that 10 minutes today!

I ran 3 miles this morning and now it’s time for some jump rope and abs!

I’m also working on a post for super tasty salad dressing ideas. I’ll have that up by tomorrow, just in time to plan your salads for the weekend. 

What’s your fitness plan for the day?!

A simple and easy way to add new veggies to your life is to try roasting them. Roasting brings out a wonderful flavor and texture of your veggies and are great additions to salads, soups, dips and even as pizza toppings!

Roasting doesn’t have to require a lot of oil, try using nonstick cooking spray on the pan and over the veggies, or use a Misto Olive Oil Sprayer to control the amount of olive oil you use.

Check out these links for more tips and recipes for roasting all types of veggies:

• Hot Properties ~ from the San Diego Union Tribune, it includes several recipes like Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower with Lemon and Garlic.
• Roasted Vegetables: Recipes & Tips ~ From WebMD Health Center, it includes some info on how to roast garlic.
• Ratatouille of Roasted Vegetables ~ a recipe from Eating Well. This recipes uses a minimal amount of oil to lower fat and calories while maximizing the flavor of roasting.
• Balsamic Roasted Vegetables ~ a recipe from Epicurious. To lower the fat and calories, use less oil than the recipe calls for and check out the reviews for variations on the recipe.

My favorite veggie combo for roasting has been eggplant, zucchini and red peppers!

Do you roast vegetables regularly??  What’s your favorite combination of vegetables to roast??