This Question of the week is inspired by the long awaited Whole Wheat Pizza Dough! That’s right people, I did it, I finally did it! I sucked it up and threw it out there.
I learned a LONG time ago that I couldn’t stop eating my favorite foods if I was to be successful at losing weight. So I turned to creating or finding healthier, lighter alternatives. For example, I replaced chips with soy crisps, ice cream with frozen yogurt, American cheese with Laughing Cow and now, fast food pizza with my own homemade. Just think of the amount of calories and fat I save. Plus think of the health benefits of less salt, more fiber, whole grains, more veggies and overall just knowing what I’m putting into my body!
So how do you incorporate your favorites? Have you made substitutions? Do you still splurge but eat less? Inquiring minds want to know!
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What's Cooking in my kitchen?
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Finally my first Farro idea! I have to say, I love this stuff! It's chewy and yummy and, well, fun! I tossed it with what I could find in my pantry and it made a wonderfully satisfying lunch. Filling but not heavy, tasty and quite nutrient dense. According to NutritionData.com this [...] -
I've seen it mentioned in a few of my clean eating and healthy cook books but honestly, I never even thought of Farro as an option for me. I refuse to shop at specialty stores and I try to use only common products that I can keep in stock and purchase from a typical grocery [...] -
I've never had a tuna melt. Is that weird? I guess that's what happens when you grow up not liking mayonnaise. I never ate tuna salad or egg salad or chicken salad. Honestly, they always kind of grossed me out. Then I realized.. hey.. why does tuna salad have [...] -
I have no idea where this idea came from. I was hungry. It was lunch. I had Brussels Sprouts. That was all the catalyst I needed.:) I decided to use a slice of real bacon to add flavor and little fat that would help sauté the sprouts. I'm trying [...] -
WOW was this good. I mean seriously good. It's not vegetarian so don't start throwing stones. I'm calling it a Garden Vegetable Burger because I use the new Laughing Cow Smooth Sensations Garden Vegetable Cream Cheese Spread. It was this recipe on Allrecipes.com that inspired [...] -
I drink water 99.9% of the time but every so often it just doesn't cut it. I want something else. Something more. Something slightly sweet. Today was one of those days. I decided to make a refreshing drink based on the famous Arnold Palmer, half lemonade and half iced [...] -
The other day I made a whole chicken on the grill in pieces. It was delicious! Just a little BBQ sauce and an open flame is all I need to make The Husband happy in the dinner department. I also picked up a few ears of corn from the grocery store. They aren't in season [...] -
Let me explain so you don't think I'm making a chili recipe and just put it on pizza. I'm calling this vegetarian Chili Pizza because chili is what inspired flavors. I think I told you. Little Bean is really into, well, BEANS! We go through a can about every 2 days. Yesterday [...] -
I've confessed my inability to follow recipes here on GreenLiteBites many, many times. I don't know why it's so hard for me. I can barely follow some of my own and I wrote the darn things! I think most of my problem stems from not having all the ingredients listed and, [...] -
Leftover brown rice and leftover sauce meet in this quick lunch idea inspired by my favorite food of all time: Pizza. I swear I can turn anything into a pizza concoction. Have you seen all my pizza ideas? I've used everything from pumpkin to zucchini, polenta to wontons. Nothing is off [...] -
This isn't a recipe just an idea I had to share. I can't believe how good it was! I've never had grilled pineapple. Can you believe it? I just never really had the desire to grill it before. When you love something raw sometimes it doesn't occur to you to cook it. [...] -
I whipped this up for lunch on a whim today because, well, I have a baby who's obsessed with three things… Cheese, Beans, and Avocado. No, really. Look... It's my go to meal for him so I find myself with beans and avocado readily available. [...] -
You know that tradition 7 Layer Mexican Dip? The one with the cream cheese, guacamole, salsa, lettuce, cheese, green onion and olives? Yea. That's the one. Well I had a craving for it the other day. Well, not exactly for it as I can never make anything the way it's suppose [...] -
If you go through the archives of GreenLiteBites I have about 5 total beef recipes. Five. Compare that to the 80+ I have tagged with chicken/turkey there's a clear winner in the meat department on my blog and in my home. I don't have a beef with beef (omg The Husband [...] -
I'm a kitchen sink smoothie maker. Whatever I have on hand goes in the blender and viola! A quick breakfast or a healthy snack. Last year I posted an "Elastic Approach" to how I make smoothies but I still like to share specific combinations that worked really well. This was one [...] -
The other night it was just the kids and I home for dinner and I decided to make what I wanted to make no holds barred. Without The Husband home it's much easier for some reason. Hmmm wonder why? Ok, not here to husband bash.. really.. I'm not! I'm here [...] -
*sigh* I was really hoping to share an awesome turkey burger idea. I had grand plans for my leftover ground turkey. The results was alright but they could have been so much better. I added diced pineapple, red pepper, green pepper, oats and soy sauce to the meat and formed 2 patties. In hindsight I [...] -
I made this on a total whim yesterday having no idea if it would work. To my surprise it did AND the husband actually said he liked it... UNSOLICITED! Here's the story. I had only 4 tilapia fillets defrosted for dinner. I knew it wasn't going to be enough for us [...] -
This is a slight reboot of a recipe I posted last year simply called Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili. Staying true to my use-what-I-have-on-hand roots I, well, used what I had on hand and made a similar dish with a spicy twist. Topping the result with avocado added a cool creaminess that [...] -
Did you hear? The Laughing Cow recently launched Smooth Sensations a line of 5 cream cheese spreads. There's Classic Cream, Classic Cream Light, Strawberries & Cream, Garden Vegetable and my favorite… Cinnamon. It's a sweet wedge of creamy goodness! Today I decided to use my new favorite flavor [...] -
Confession time, I recorded a 30 minute video making this with both kids (partally) 2 nights ago. I miss videos. I really do but they seem so much more difficult with 2 children. I'm also having technical difficulties with my video recording and audio syncing making it VERY time consuming to edit. [...] -
A couple of years ago I shared a modified version of Sloppy Joe's I made for a party. Everyone loved it but I've been wanting to try to make something similar for the family on a smaller scale and without the pre-made canned Manwich sauce. I don't particularly have any issues [...] -
Yesterday I was dreaming about a salad. Not just any salad, but a chickpea filled, cucumber, and red onion salad with a fun, tangy dressing. Unfortunately, I had no cucumber or red onion. Well, that's a lie. I had a half of cucumber but it was a mushy mess and [...] -
Dinner meals are getting harder and harder for me to share lately. I've gone back to just whipping things up without really measuring anything (this meal was going to be one of those until I realized I still had enough light to take some photos.) I've also instituted a few brainless meal nights [...] -
Three years ago I posted a video called "Makin' Hard Boiled Eggs" where I shared my system for, well... making hard boiled eggs. Genius name, I know. I'm smart like that. Anyway, since then I've gotten tons of feedback and comments thanking me but all the information is locked in a long winded 10 minute [...]
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I LOVE hot wings style foods so I adapted by making it at home. If I make it at home, I can grill the chicken instead of fry it, mix the hot wing sauce w/out so much butter, eat it w/ lower calorie ranch, and eat it with a bunch of veggies instead of the fries.
For the most part, I would rather eat a small amount of a really high quality version of the real thing. For example I’ll eat one small square of 85% dark chocolate when I have a craving for sweets or have a few shavings of full fat parmesan in my salad when I want real cheese. I would rather eat a small portion of a truly decadent dessert once in awhile than a diet dessert every day.
For the most part, I find that my cravings for big indulgences largely go away if I find really delicious, special ways of preparing healthy foods. Creamy yogurt, juicy mangos and strawberries, whole wheat pita bread brushed with olive oil and spices…these are all so delicious and satisfying that I don’t mind saving the really unhealthy stuff for special occasions.
For example, if I was craving for meaty kebab. I count the calories and finally switch to healthy alternatives. Replacing meat kebab to fruity kebab. Simple subtitution and yet extremely tasty
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Hello, just found your blog & so inspiring!! I was a loser, then a gainer, now I want to be a loser again!!
Hmmmm, I have a hard time incorporating my fav’s as I have little control, lol. Out of site out of mind for me. I guess I use healthier preperations, lots of grilling & little to no frying. If I must use ground beef (dh hates ground turkey) I rinse the extra fat out when it is still in the colander.
Don’t have time to answer the question of the week cause I have to go check out that long awaited pizza dough recipe! Go, Roni!!! lol
I totally still indulge! EXCEPT with chips and ice cream, I have NO ability to control myself with those two items.
But, I eat chocolate every day! Light Hot Chocolate, Thinsations (Oreo or Chips Ahoy) and small squares of either milk or dark chocolate are all my standbys.
I satisfy cheese cravings by using an ultra fine cheese shredder and using old or extra old cheese (less volume, lots of flavour!), and for my bread/carb cravings I always have WW bread in the house – a whole sandwich for only 110 calories worth of bread!
I LOVE cheese! I can’t live with out cheese, but more importanly I can’t live without mac and cheese. So now instead of the velveeta kind I get it at the health food store and make with low fat plain yogurt, not with the butter and milk. It gets really creamy and it’s better for you. Sometimes I will eat the velveeta kind but not the whole box like I use to :)
Whole Foods makes something called a “jumble cookie,” which is just as it sounds — a jumble of oats, chocolate chips (white and dark), raisins, nuts… it’s heaven in your hand. And a total fat bomb. So I found a recipe for an instant oatmeal cookie, which is made with just a packet of plain instant oatmeal and a few other ingredients. I merged the two-cookie recipe into one giant cookie, added just enough chips and goodies to approximate the flavors of the jumble, and even though it’s not quite the same, I can at least walk past the cookie case at Whole Foods and tell myself, “you can have one when you get home, AND eat your dinner too.” It works. At least three weeks out of the month :)
I definitely am still struggling with this. Pizza (I know we’ve talked about this before) is still my hardest challenge – so I can’t wait to try the whole wheat pizza crust recipe! Fries are my other big weakness, but I have done well with that by making sweet potato fries. They are so easy and yummy, and for the most part they really satisfy my craving for fries.
Better ‘n Peanut Butter has changed my life. IF you don’t know what it is, it’s a peanut butter substitute – all natural, half the calories, that uses peanut flour. Anyway, I love nut butters, they are one of my trigger foods – but with Better ‘n Peanut Butter, I can have some and since it’s not quite as good as the real thing, not feel the urge to eat a tone of it at once (usually…) it’s nice to feel in control!
Thanks for your efforts…insight…and honesty! I honestly believe that making your own food is the answer. Teaching people how to do it themselves helps us integrate these changes into our lives. For example….I think it is REALLY expensive to go to the store and purchase most of the prepackaged 100 calorie packs etc…Even the flat outs are fairly expensive(That is usually how I make my pizza). Then to top it off…I don’t feel like sharing the health with my family! We can simply create our own 100 calorie packs by baking our own and storing them in the handy dandy zip locks….freeze and viola! Then it is easier to share the health. Suddenly it is part of your life and your families life. Andy you have changed your habits and created healthy habits for your kids. Keep it up Roni.
I just wrote about one of my big comfort foods recently; something my great grandmother used to make for our family… kidney beans and bacon. It’s a depression era dish, just a side of bacon, a few cans of kidney beans, and onion. Nothing spectacular, but I hold it in a special place in my heart, because I loved my great grandmother so much…
I made it just the other day using turkey bacon, and it was almost as good as the regular, and 5 points for 1 cup, which is a good amount of dinner and a good amount of points. Quite happy.
Now, I just need to find a decent Mac and Cheese recipe that’s less than 7 points.
I do a lot of substituting, and your food blog has taught me so much. I do love pizza so we have your version at least once a week – the the light flat out bread, with turkey pepperoni, which I actually prefer now to regular GREASY pepperoni – UGH! We don’t eat a lot of the prepackaged meals – probably just a couple of meals a week when we don’t have the time to make something better. I love a grilled cheese so now we use the 35 calorie bread with low fat cheese and FF spray butter. A month ago, we had a get-together and we had WW lasagna, stuffed baked zucchini (modified to be lower fat), low fat breadsticks, and a WW choc. cake recipe for dessert. You would have never guessed any of it was lower fat – it was fabulous! I can only imagine the amount of fat and calories I HAVEN’T eaten just by modifying recipes and making healthier choices!
And, btw, I can’t wait to try your new pizza crust!!
I love french fries. About twice a week, I slice some potatoes and fry them in 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil. Satisfies my grease craving and still on the Core plan.
Peanut butter and chocolate is my biggest weakness. I used to eat peanut butter straight out of the jar! Now I eat the Recees 100 calorie wafers, Edy’s loaded peanut butter cup (it’s not 1/2 fat, but the NI is about the same for their 1/2 fat varieties), and add PB2 (powdered peanut butter) to my WW chocolate or vanilla smoothies. I also like Better n’ peanut butter. Brownies are another weakness, so I must always have the No Pudge brownie mix on hand. They are great “frosted” with cool whip free and PB2.
The longer you eat healthy, the more the bad cravings go away. At least for some things. While I do have a weakness for fast food, I still allow myself once a week, and fit it into my daily points. I used to eat a TON of chocolate, always had candy bars in the house, and I no longer do that. No pudge brownies, yogurt, skinny cow ice cream sandwiches, and chocolate chips have been my standby’s for my sweet tooth.
now, i LOVE ranch dressing, and hadn’t had it in over four months since starting back on WW. I had a little bit a couple weeks ago, and it was good, but I was amazed at how little I used compared to how much I used to eat.
cheese is another thing that is big for me. Like others have mentioned, I still have cheese almost every day. But now, I use the lowfat versions, and once in a while i will treat myself to a cheese plate of the “real” stuff and share with my husband.
It’s all about moderation. i would be living a miserable life if i cut out all things delicious in my diet.
Oh, yay! I love pizza and I can’t wait to try out this pizza crust. Even if my family doesn’t convert over to the thin crust, if I have something I can make when they order pizza out I’ll take it gladly!
Right now, I’m finding I have a big weakness sitting in my pantry that is KILLING me. Trail mix. I bought a huge bag of it for my son and daughter. I realize that nuts and raisins are healthy, but uh…this is the kind with M&Ms and I KNOW it isn’t healthy. And, yet, I find myself craving the crunch and the chocolate and goign and getting a handful now and then. I’ve moved them to the top shelf…but I wont’ be buying that again for awhile.
I feel bad when my family is deprived of things they love because of my lack of willpower, but that’s just going to be how it is until I can get a handle on it I guess!
Substitutes for me: Laughing Cow, Dannon Light N Fit strawberry yogurt (just tried this–it’s SOooo good!), light popcorn and tonight I made spaghetti squash with my sauce and turkey meatballs and I loved it!
I’m like you – I find substitutions. The whole “have a little of the real thing” thing? It doesn’t work for me. First of all, I want these things TOO OFTEN. Second of all, stopping at a little? Not so easy. It’s easier to find really good substitutions that I enjoy.
Oooooooh, I need to try that pizza crust. Yeast and I, we don’t know each other, but I can give it a shot.
Weighing and measuring what I’m cooking make a huge difference for me — I find I rarely need as much oil to roast my veggies as I was using before weightwatchers and knowing how many points something is gives me motivation to lighten it up (I have a crunchy pea salad recipe I got from wondertime magazine (which is a fab parenting magazine, BTW) which was something like 8+ points per serving as written, and by using light mayo, replacing some of it with yogurt, cutting down on the nuts and subbing in turkey bacon I made an equally good version that’s only 3 points! The final thing I do is portion control. I buy those 100 calorie dark chocolate bars at Trader Joe’s — I know how much I’m eating and I enjoy it. For me, it’s all about cutting down on the mindless eating.