How to measure spaghetti servings

I often cook myself pasta for lunch. I am pretty good about measure out smaller pasta such as bow tie or elbow but when it comes to measuring out dry spaghetti noodles I ALWAYS struggle. I swear I always make more than I need (but I eat it anyway). I found the following tip on EHow.com. It is seems like an easy way to remember portion size.

When you have adults for dinner, the portions vary considerably for measuring spaghetti. Since the pasta gets a bit thicker after it is cooked, the measuring can be offered to the people or you can just decide for them yourself.

Thoroughly wash hands for 2 or 3 minutes with an antibacterial soap and rinse before touching food. After removing the spaghetti from the box or plastic wrapper, hold it in between the index finger and the thumb

After removing the spaghetti from the box or plastic wrapper, hold it in between the index finger and the thumb making a circle around the pasta. For each adult consider a portion about the size of a nickle. For the larger appetite make a portion of either 2 nickles or a quarter.Children's portions are considered adequate if you measure each to have the size of a dime.If pasta is not the main dish you can consider smaller for each person. When you ask someone to tell them which size portion they want; ask them in terms of these coins for validation. Before you know it, everyone will be in tune to this measure for spaghetti.

Read more: How to Measure Spaghetti Servings | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_4730645_measure-spaghetti-servings.html#ixzz1ZGDFSqDG

FUZE SLENDERIZE

These were on sale at Costco this week so I decided to pick some up. I LOVE their normal drinks (Pina Colada ROCKS but has tons of sugar & calories). These drinks are JUST AS YUMMY! Here is the nutrition info per bottle:

Calories 10
Total Fat 0
Sodium 90mg
Total Carb 1g
Sugars 1g
Protein 0
Vitamin A 40%
Vitamin C 200%
Vitamin E 40%
Pantothenic Acid 40%
Chromium 30%

It also contains:

Super Citrimax
An extract from the South Asian Fruit Garcinia Cambogia
L-Carnitine
An ingredient that the body uses in metabolism
Chromium
A micro nutrient known to help the body get energy from food.
Vitamin A, C, E
Triple Antioxidant power that helps fight free radicals and helps support good health
Vitamin B5
A vitamin necessary for normal metabolism of fat.

AND IT TASTES GOOD!!!! Now beware it's a little pricey but if you are looking for a juice replacement that will give you a boost you have found it! Try it for yourself and let me know what you think!

10 East Ways to Lighten Up Any Recipe

Thank you SparkPeople.com for this GREAT Article!!!

Choosing healthy foods is an important part of eating right, but cooking them in a healthful way is another huge part. For example, zucchini can take on two completely different forms when it's quickly sautéed in olive oil versus battered and deep fried. What we add to foods makes all the difference when it comes to home cooking.

The first step to healthier cooking is to take recipes as suggestions. Before you start chopping and mixing, scan the recipe to see if there are any unnecessary calories. Look for excess cheese, butter and oils, as well as sugars.

Here are some tasty, healthy ideas to help you become a professional recipe overhauler!

1. Sauté—the skinny way! A couple of tablespoons of low-sodium vegetable broth can be used instead of oil or butter in your stir fry or as the basis for a sauce. This method will add a nice flavor to your dish as well as a little moisture—and you'll save calories to use elsewhere. To get a dose of unsaturated fats, serve your broth-sautéed veggies with a side salad, and pour an olive oil-based dressing over the top.
   
   
2. Say no to skin. Three ounces of chicken breast meat with skin has almost 150 calories; three ounces of chicken without the skin has 50 fewer calories. Tasty as it might be, the skin contains mostly heart-unhealthy saturated fat. You can cook with the skin on to retain moisture (add fresh herbs or citrus zest underneath it to really bake in some flavor), but be sure to remove the skin before you enjoy your meal to save on calories and saturated fat.
   
   
3. Squeeze on the citrus. To add a powerful flavor punch with minimal added calories, use citrus on steamed veggies instead of butter or over a salad instead of a dressing. It’s even great on fruit salad in place of sugar and adds some zip when squeezed onto a pasta salad. Don’t forget to use the flavorful zest of citrus fruits as well! Wash a lemon, orange or lime, then use a zester or grater to add the zest to dishes such as baked seafood.
   
   
4. Be choosy about cheese. When using a mildly flavored cheese, such as Monterey Jack, you need more cheese to taste it. But when you choose a cheese with intense flavor, you can use less and still get the desired effect. Try a reduced-sodium feta, sharp Cheddar or aged Parmesan next time. Light cheese wedges such as The Laughing Cow brand are useful when you're watching fat and calories, too. Try mixing one of these soft cheeses into your scrambled eggs or noodle dishes instead of loading on the shredded mozzarella.
   
   
5. Go Greek. Tangy, fat-free Greek yogurt is a healthful replacement for sour cream. Try this switch in herbed and spiced dips, tacos, nachos, enchiladas, or throw it in a cooked dish as a thickening agent. You’ll save 45 calories for each 2-tablespoon serving.
   
   
6. Puree your produce. Add body to soups and sauces with pureed vegetables instead of heavy cream, evaporated milk, butter or cheese. This move will also add fiber and nutrients to your dish for very few calories. A puree of carrots will add texture to meatless spaghetti sauce, and mixing a blend of beans into a chili or soup will add flavor and thicken it—all with very few added calories. In this recipe, Chef Meg thickens a taco soup with chickpeas!
   
   
7. Get cozy with cottage cheese. When a recipe calls for a significant amount of a crumbled cheese, such as feta or ricotta, substitute half the amount with reduced-fat cottage cheese. This will retain taste, texture, protein, and calcium while ditching some of the fat and calories. This works well for stuffed peppers and most baked pasta dishes.
   
   
8. Pump up the veggies! You can easily reach the recommended five servings of fruits and veggies when you’re cooking at home. Veggies can compliment any dish on your menu, adding nutrient-packed bulk to the meal for few calories. Add chopped asparagus and mushrooms to your next omelet, red peppers (or a frozen stir fry mix) to baked casseroles, or any kind of beans to a pasta salad. Include fresh or frozen spinach in pasta sauces and soups, and broccoli in your casseroles. The opportunities for adding veggies are endless for almost any dish!
   
   
9. Cut the cream. When making cream-based soups, sub fat-free half-and-half for any heavy cream. The switch gives the soups a creamy taste and velvety texture without all the saturated fat of heavy cream. This works great in pasta sauces as well.
   
   
10. Make your own marinade. Marinate lean meats in vinegar and citrus combos (with a bit of oil added) rather than a pre-made oil-based dressing. You can also try a fruit juice or wine. These agents will still tenderize and flavor the meat, and a mix of herbs and spices will bring out the flavor! (You'll also save sodium by not using the store-bought varieties!) Try cutting the meat in strips before dousing it to really let the marinade take effect.
    

As you can see, there are endless ways you can boost the nutrition and reduce the calories of almost any recipe. Get creative and experiment in the kitchen. You may just find that you like these new ways of cooking just as much—or even better!

Interesting info

So the other day at work my friend and I were craving butter mints. You know the fluffy little pillow like mints! Love them. Anyway I was googling the nutrition info to how many calories there are. I found the following information on Livestrong.org

Overview

A bowl of butter mints is not an uncommon sight at weddings and on buffets. Known for their light pastel colors and silky-smooth texture, butter mints are low in calories if you limit yourself to one or two.

Calories

One butter mint provides seven calories and can last a few minutes as you savor it after a meal. Grab a handful of seven or eight butter mints, however, and you'll be eating more than 50 calories.

Sweetener Myths and Facts Sweeteners & Your Dietary Health: Learn the Dietary Facts Here. www.SweetSurprise.com/

Sponsored Links

Basic Nutrition

The calories in butter mint come from carbohydrates, which in turn, are derived from the sugar that butter mints are made of. Each butter mint has 2 g of carbohydrates and no protein, fat or fiber, although some homemade butter mints may contain butter, and thus fat. Butter mints are not a good source of vitamins and minerals.

Warning

While eating an occasional butter mint won't add too many extra calories to your daily intake, eating a handful on a regular basis will add too many refined carbohydrates to your diet. Refined carbohydrates, such as those in butter mints, can promote obesity, heart disease and diabetes, according to The Harvard School of Public Health.

I LOVED The warning part. My friend and I chatted for a bit and wondered if all sweets contained that warning would we eat as much as we do? I mean didn't a law just pass that all cigarette cartons must have a graphic warning label? So why doesn't the sugary, high sodium, food that is killing our country have to provide a graphic warning label? Interesting...

PS I have been LOVING my Eat This Not That books! More to come on those!!

Eat This Not That

Okay so I failed to order Jillian Michaels Master Your Metabolism but I am kind of okay with it because I really don't have a ton of time to read these days. I did however just order the above books and am STOKED!!!!
Why did I decide to order these? Well the other day I went to Barnes and Noble to browse the cookbooks and ran across Cook This Not That. One it has a ton of pictures! I LOVE cookbooks with pictures! I like to see what it is supposed to look like. What really caught my eye was the 'Who Blew Up Food' page. It basically had a table that compared restaurant food, store bought food, & home cooked food. It BLEW ME AWAY!! I put the book back on the shelf and ran home to order it (yep I'm cheap--thank you Amazon)!
While ordering I came across the MANY other This Not That Books--Eat This Not That-Restaurant Survival Guide, Cook This Not That -Supermarket Survival Guide, etc. etc. Anyway I saw the Eat This Not That-For Kids!!! Kaci is eating real foods and has been for a while now I am pretty cautious with what I feed her but I really think this could be helpful.
Both of these books are supposed to be great books to just sit down and read but are meant to be flipped through and read in sections too. Which is great for me because let's face it I don't have time to sit down and read much right now.
They should arrive by Aug 22nd! WOO HOO! I will let you know what I really think when I get them and put them to use!

Healthy Snacking

Hey everyone! I so I have been back at work for about a month now and I have gained about 3 lbs. I KNOW that isn't alot of weight but I don't want it to be the beginning of a trend. I have been trying so hard to get on a schedule and to make sure that Kaci and Aaron are taken care of. That I kind of have neglected/given up on myself. Well after 3 weeks of 'adjusting' I'm done. My workout schedule starting to get more consistent now I just need to work on my eating. Here are some of the things that I am going to be snacking on at work:

Celery Stick & Carrots w/Ranch-- Yes, I said ranch. All things in moderation

Rice Cakes--Yep I love em

Chobani Yogurt I can't eat it plain way too thick but add a little fruit and it's magic!

Cheese and Crackers I've fallen for Laughing Cow cheese

Fruit

My friend at work came across an article with GREAT suggestions for last minute breakfast & snack ideas. Check these out:

Orville Redenbacher Smart Pop Popcorn 100 Calories a bag

Hummus: Tribe All Natural Hummus Snackers 50 Calories per container

Nuts : Blue Diamond Almond Bag to Go 100 Calories

Dried Fruit

Thanks for reading and sharing Kristy!

Tips to Tame Your Snacking from JM

Are you a binge eater or do you have troubles snacking? Most of you know that I this is my number 1 problem. Sometimes when I start to binge I just give up and give in. But I am learning to master this problem. So the other day I came across this Jillians Michaels podcast and loved some of the tips she gave and thought I would share a few.

When you want something sweet try fruit and try a fruit that you have to peel or something that will take time.

Try putting you treat on a fancy plate. So you want a couple of cookies? Okay have one or even two but take the time to make it look fancy and don't sit in front of the computer/tv eating. Take the time to really enjoy it. Sometimes don't acknowledge that we are having a dessert or a treat. We just graze and then feel the guilt. If you need something sweet track your calories and dish it up like it is part of the plan.

Still going? Negogiate and compromise...that is right if you are to eat 500 calories worth of cookies determine how much work you are going to have to do to burn it off. Is it worth it to you? If so, eat your cookies and hit the treadmill until those 500 calories are gone. This may even make you decide it's not worth it. Even just thinking about this causes you to slow down and think.

Also don't eat standing up or in front of the tv/computer.

Try brushing your teeth. Toothpaste + sugar =yucky!

ENVIROMENTAL CONTROL-You cannot eat what is not there!

(You know my chocolate chip cookie recipe? I no longer keep all of the ingredients in my home!)

I hope you find these helpful. I sure did.

One more random tip. Do you have problems with portion control (like I do)? Think about this:

How big are your dinner plates? I am a visual person and I like my plates to look full. Therefore I started serving my meals up on my salad plates so that I 'trick' my brain into thinking that I am getting more food. Try that and let me know what you think.

Check out this portion control plates & bowls.

The bowls have rings to tell you cup sizes. The flowers on the plates represent your portions (largest=veggies, med=carbs, small=protien).

Tried it & Liked it and 5k update

As I have mentioned before I am a Breakfast girl! I love a plate of pancakes with warm buttery syrup. That doesn't really fit into my healthy lifestyle. But this morning that is just what I had. Only I made it with this...

Heart Smart Bisquick (made with egg whites) and topped it with this...

So during my last shopping trip I found this little gem. Maple Grove Farms Sugar Free Syrups! (I really like Maple Grove Farms, they make a lot of low cal salad dressings. LOVE EM) Now I am not going to lie to you and tell you it tastes JUST LIKE regular syrup. But I will tell you that if you are a breakfast lover like me and you want to find a great syrup substitute this TOTALLY fits the bill. Let's compare the nutrition facts for just a second...

REGULAR VS Maple Grove Farms Butter Syrup

Serving Size 1/4 cup

Calories 30

Total Fat 0

Sodium 100mg

Carbs 11g

Sugars 0

Sorbitol 10 g

Protein 0 g

As for my fist 5k I signed up for the Murray Fun Run on July 4th. I told myself I would NEVER run this because I would see too many people but my friend talked me into. I don't have much time to train but it will be fun even if I just end up walking. :) We'll see what happens.

Breakfast Lovers Listen up!

I LOVE BREAKFAST! Could have eat Breakfast Brunch and Brinner (thank you Scrubs!) EVERYDAY!

Lately I have been missing my Fluffy Buttery Pancakes and Syrup Drenched French Toast! But today I discovered something that satisfied that craving!

French Toast & Strawberries

Dice 3-4 large Strawberries and let marinate in 1 tbsp of Agave Nectar

Take 2 pieces of Sara Lee's 45 Calories and Delightful Wheat Bread

Egg & Water (beaten)

dip the bread in the mixture and cook.

Spread Brummell and Brown Yogurt Spread Evenly

(I don't know why I haven't shared this tasty little tid bit with you yet. Butter lovers try it! You will LOVE it! only 45 calories and 1/2 the fat of other butters!)

Top with Strawberries!

YUM YUM! Your looking at about 280 calories!

I know you've probably all try something like this before but I don't care! It made my morning! So I'm sharing it!

PS Ever tried peanut butter banana tortilla (whole wheat/carb balanced tortilla)? Sounded gross at first but I gotta tell ya I'm a believer! Makes a GREAT snack!

VERY Filling. Tip: warm the tortilla for about 5-10 seconds.

Water Water Water

So I LOVE water! LOVE IT! But sometimes it can get a little boring right? I love Crystal Light, anyone else? But even still sometimes I am bored. Until I added ice...yes ICE! I've been making frozen drinks with my Magic Bullet. A packet of Crystal Light, ice & water and VA LA! My own frozen lemonade! I know it sounds lame but it makes this stay at home mom feel a little bit fancier!

That is my tidbit for the day!

Odd and Ends-Basically playing catch up

First off sorry for the long pause there. I really didn't mean to leave you hangin. Things have been going well. I finally figured out how to kick my chocolate chip cookie addiction. You see when I make cookies I hate to waste them. So I used to put the dough in the fridge and then slowly eat it all. NOT GOOD! Anyway I decided that from now on every time I make a batch I either give them all away or I freeze the batch. This prevents me from feeling like they will be wasted and I can still have one or two every so often. Does that make sense?

I know some of you are wondering about these last 5-7 lbs. I am trying really hard and have made some progress ESPECIALLY after adjusting my caloric intake. Still my body is holding tight. I really do believe that I may not lose it until I stop nursing-does that sound like a cop out? I am still trying with all of my might to shed it! :)

So tomorrow I start my 5th week of Jillian Michaels 6 week Abs!

Total KIlLER! I LOVE IT! I did level one for 3 weeks. Along with the 35 min workout I did 20mins of JM's Banish Fat or JM's Trouble Zones! My abs are better than they've ever been! No I don't have a six pack YET but Im not finished :) Level 2 is a WHOLE other animal! It took me a week to adjust to the intensity level. Saturday I began to add my 20 mins of other DVDs. It's rough and when I finish I'm dripping with sweat! Love that feeling!

PS I LOVE that I can mix and make JM's DVDs! A few circuits of BF and a few circuits of TZ! SO Diverse!

So many of you know that I like to try out new calorie counter apps (Livestrong.com, FatSecret.com, SparkPeople.com, etc.). A few of you have told me about MyFitnessPal.com. So this past week I decided to give her a try.

Features I LOVE:

I LOVE the selection of foods! I feel like it has EVERYTHING!

Love that you can have friends to support

LOVE the nutrients breakdown

I do still find myself missing my SparkPeople (I miss my reports, I miss the ease of adding my recipes, etc). I really do like MyFitnessPal in fact if I end up going back to SparkPeople I will probably keep the other on my iPod because of it's extensive list of foods. I'll give it a another week.

New favorite snack:

Special K Cracker Chips

Yes, the do taste a little like styrofoam but they kick my chip cravings FOR SURE! LOVE IT!

New favorite app:

Dinner Spinner from Allrecipes.com

I'm totally excited to try the recipes I found over the weekend. Any time I can get quick easy healthy recipes I am happy!

Sorry to cram so much into one post! I have been trying to get on and get stuff posted but life just got busy (and blogger was busted). I missed you all and hope that your journeys are going well! :)

REMEMBER: If at first you don't succeed TRY TRY again! Changing your lifestyle, eating habits, workout habits, thinking habits, is HARD! The real challenge is JUST NOT GIVING UP! You can make this change!

Some Great NEW finds!

So I have found and fallen in love with a few new things.

First Sara Lee 45 Calories & Delicious Wheat Bread!

YUM! I LOVE a good turkey sandwich but always hated how many calories JUST the bread was! NO need to worry anymore! This bread is just 45 cals a SLICE! It is yummy too! Nice and soft!

Next is Wishbone Ranch Dressing Spritzer!

I LOVE salad but I have to have dressing I can't eat a dry salad. In the past it's been hard to find a yummy low cal dressing but not anymore! This dressing is just 2 calories a spritz! And it tastes good!

Tuna Artichoke & Olive Salad

As a nursing mother I have to watch the amount of fish that I eat but with this new recipe it's going to be hard! I ate this for lunch today! It was SUPER Yummy! (Thank You Eatingwell.com) The only thing I would caution you about is that it is high in sodium. :( So if you do eat this be sure your other meals are low sodium meals!

Here is the recipe (PS I halfed this cause I knew my husband won't be eating it). Try it and let me know what you think! :)

5 servings, about 3/4 cup each

Active Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 12-ounce can (or two 6-ounce cans) chunk light tuna, drained and flaked (see Note)
• 1 cup chopped canned artichoke hearts
• 1/2 cup chopped olives
• 1/3 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano, or 1/2 teaspoon dried

• PREPARATION

  1. Combine tuna, artichokes, olives, mayonnaise, lemon juice and oregano in a medium bowl.

  TIPS & NOTES

  • Note: Chunk light tuna, which comes from the smaller skipjack or yellowfin, has less mercury than canned white albacore tuna. The FDA/EPA advises that women who are or might become pregnant, nursing mothers and young children consume no more than 6 ounces of albacore a week; up to 12 ounces of canned light tuna is considered safe.

  NUTRITION

  Per serving: 210 calories; 8 g fat ( 1 g sat , 1 g mono ); 25 mg cholesterol; 12 g carbohydrates; 20 g protein;3 g fiber; 791 mg sodium; 166 mg potassium

Halt The Salt

Are you watching The Doctors?

If not YOU SHOULD BE!! This show is a great resource!! You can DVR it! ABC 4 at 9AM every week day! If you don't DVR it please visit the website and at least read what they discuss! It's extremely informative!

I just finished watching Fridays episode (yes, I do know that it originally aired back in Dec) where they talked about Halt the Salt...it was extremely eye opening! Basically it was a warning that Americans are consuming WAY too much salt (it's recommended we consume 1500mg a day on average most Americans are eating upwards of 3400mg a day!!). Sodium increases blood pressure which is a MAJOR cause of death in the US!

So far today I had eaten my healthy breakfast and Lunch and I estimated that I had already consumed 1355mg!!! Almost all of my daily recommended intake!

Anyway EXTREMELY interesting! I recommend watching this episode and then joining the Halt the Salt Movement. They also provided this Quick Reference Label Guide for shopping!

I hope you watch or read it! :)

What's Cookin This Week

Okay Here is the menu for next week. I'm still waiting for some of you to send me your recipes.

BREAKFAST

Same old same old!

WW Waffles w/Strawberry Cream Cheese

Egg & Bagel Thins

Warm Granola

(If you haven't tried this you need to! SO filling and comforting)

LUNCH

Crispy Chicken Tostadas

(I found that this is really yummy if you make it more of a salad)

Turkey Sandwich (on Bagel Thins) & Tomato Soup

DINNER

Shepherd's Pie (with a twist-sweet potatoes)

Loaded Twice Baked Potato

(I didn't get a chance to make these last week)

Chicken Quesidillas

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

(I tried this recipe with Beef and it was great, I thought I would try it with Chicken)

Chicken Cordon Bleu-Yeah we like it that much!

Dessert

Chewy Chocolate Brownies (We'll see how these taste)

Pina Colada Frozen Dessert

What's Cookin This Week-Snacks and Dessert

Here are some healthy snack & desserts I'll be enjoying this week!

SNACKS

Fruits and Veggies (DUH)

Yoplait Light

String Cheese

Dessert

Strawberries and Angel Food Cake

(you can add some whipped cream if you'd like)

What's Cookin This Week

Alrighty you know the drill. Here is what's cooking this week. Remember some of these recipes I haven't tried yet. Others I have already posted but it just means they were THAT good! :)

BREAKFAST

Warm Granola

WW Waffles with Cream Cheese

Bagel Thins and Egg

LUNCH

Tuscan White Bean Soup (This was SOOOOO YUMMY!!!!)

Bagel Thin Turkey Sandwich and Tomato Soup

DINNER

Meatloaf

Chicken Piccata

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

Stuffed Twice Baked Potato

Crispy Chicken Tostada

Chicken Cordon Bleu (This was STELLAR!!)

So there you have it! That is what is cooking at my house! If you try these recipes and like em (or don't like em) let me know! Enjoy!