Tag Archives: product review

Everyday Health My Calorie Counter; Book Review and Giveaway

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Do you count calories to maintain your weight?

I don’t count calories per se, but I am aware of them.  On super busy days I loosely keep track to make sure I eat at least 1,200.  I aim for my meals to have no less than 200 but no more than 600 as a general rule.  And as a future dietitian I think it’s important that I’m aware of how many calories common foods are packing.

So when Everyday Health e-mailed me about reviewing their new book, My Calorie Counter, I jumped on the opportunity.

My Calorie Counter is essentially a database of nutritional information.  I would not recommend this book for someone with no interest in tracking calories, but there is a nice section of information about nutrition and weight loss in the beginning of the book.  I liked that all of the advice in this section is correct and up-to-date (at least as far as what I’ve learned) and doesn’t rely on any fad diet mentality.  The book can be helpful all on its own, but is meant to be paired with Everyday Health’s online tools.

What I Liked –

  • The book is divided into three sections – common foods, store brands, and restaurants.
  • The restaurant section included a vast range of eateries, including nutritional information for Cheesecake Factory, which is notoriously difficult to locate online.
  • The book is small (about the slice of a slice of bread) and light enough to be easily slipped into a purse or briefcase.
  • The font is easy to read and information is shared in a graph that is easy to follow.
  • In addition to calories and total fat; saturated fat, sodium, carbs, fiber, and protein are also included.  (ie, this book can also be useful to diabetics or people watching their sodium intake)
  • As I stated above, the advice in the front of the book is up-to-date and easy to understand and would be helpful for any lay-person.
  • The book does not necessarily apply only to weight loss and dieting, but would be useful for someone looking to maintain a healthy diet.

What I Didn’t Like –

  • “Common Foods” is divided into veggies, fruits, grains, etc, but it would be easier to find what you are looking for if those divisions were marked on the top of the pages.
  • I wish that trans fat values were also included, as this is one of key things I always check for on nutrition labels.

Everyday Health is also giving me the opportunity to share with my readers.  I am giving away two copies of My Calorie Counter.  To enter to win – leave a comment on this post.  You have until midnight, Friday July 8th to enter.

Funfetti

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Sprinkles, sprinkles for everyone!

I spent my afternoon baking homemade funfetti cookies for Adam to bring to school tomorrow.  All I had to do was pour a bunch of sprinkles into this sugar cookie dough.  The end product was pretty and delicious.

I only ate one finished cookie, I kind of overdid it on dough.

Worth it.

I barely had time to pause from baking before I had to make dinner.

Open-faced chicken sandwiches with two kinds of “fries.”

Oven roasted green beans,

and Ore-Ida Sweet Potato Fries.

The sweet potato fries were a sample from the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program.

I liked the nutritional stats and ease with which they came together.  The taste and texture were pretty much identical to restaurant sweet potato fries.  Unfortunately, when you order sweet potato fries in a restaurant they are disappointingly mushy and these were no exception.  If you are someone who loves restaurant sweet potato fries then I highly recommend this product, but I’ll keep making mine from scratch.

My “sandwich” was just a slice of sourdough bread topped with pulled chicken.

Nothing fancy, but I did make the bbq sauce from scratch.

Pomegranate BBQ Sauce, makes 1.5 cups

  • 8 oz pomegranate juice (I used Blueberry POM Juice)
  • 8 oz can tomato sauce
  • 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 5 Tbsp granulated sugar
  1. Pour juice into a small saucepan over high heat and bring to a rolling boil.  Cover and cook until liquid has reduced to 1/4 the original amount.
  2. Add remaining ingredients to pan and stir to combine.  Continue to simmer for 5-7 minutes until sauce has reduced and thickened.

They’re Fake

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This has got to be a quick one because exam #1 is tomorrow and I am soooo not ready.  I spent most of the day at school with Adam, but sadly my concentration was lacking.

Lunch wasn’t lacking though.  I threw together the ingredient dream team for our sandwiches.

White Arnold’s Sandwich Thins, organic turkey bologna, Laughing Cow Light French Onion Cheese, and a smear of maple jelly.

With a crunchy pear on the side.

And Adam and I split my 2nd sample from Sweet and Salty Zone Perfect Bars for dessert.

Cashew Pretzel was even tastier than the trail mix bar.  There were loads of pretzels and they were still perfectly crunchy.  I definitely recommend buying these bad boys if you see them.  At 200 calories it was perfect for sharing.

My hunger hit when I got home and it hit hard.  Thankfully I’ve got a husband who’s always willing to split mini ice creams with me.

I also made a bowl of popcorn (with melted Smart Balance Light).

I’m still hungry if you can believe it, so I’m off to make dinner.  Tonight’s recipe is going to be a good one!

Are My Hoisin The Club?!

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Forget about what Rebecca Black says, Saturday is where it’s at!  We didn’t even do anything all that exciting today – studying, grocery shopping, easy dinner – it just was a good day.

Since I’m ridiculous about meals on the weekend I went with lunch – snack – dinner rather than breakfast – lunch – dinner.  Besides, lunch for breakfast means you get in more veggies.

Yes, that is Wegman’s hot bar.  Yes, I’m aware we have a problem.

Fruits (pineapple, berries, strawberries, watermelon),

Veggies (avocado, squash, mushrooms, carrots, brussels sprouts, broccoli),

and a mini crustless Quiche (with tomato and artichoke heart).

Adam and I split a Zone Perfect Sweet & Salty Trail Mix Bar for dessert.

The kind folks at ZP sent me some samples of their new Sweet and Salty line since they knew how much I adored their Cookie Dough stuff.  Adam and I agreed that the bar was good, but not as good as the cookie dough ones.  There was a great peanut butter flavor spread throughout it, and the bar lived up to its sweet and salty name.  I’m looking forward to trying the other variety.

In addition to being repetitive and crazy, constant hot bar isn’t cheap!  Adam has to purchase lots of random snacks and coffees this summer (he’s off for 2 months to study for a major exam and focuses better in public venues) so we need to save our pennies where we can.  I tried to do an extra good job of stocking up on groceries this week; I’d rather spend a little more money at the store and save some money not going out for random things throughout the week.

One of my have-snacks-in-the-house-stop-buying-nachos-damn-it purchases was a 10ct box of mini 100-calorie popcorns, and one of those bags ended up being my afternoon snack.

I also grabbed a (sweetened) cappuccino from Wilson Farms.

Looking back at this post, it seems like I had more than enough to eat today, but you know I couldn’t keep my hand out of the cashews while I cooked dinner!

We whipped up a simple stir fry that ended up being delicious.

The inspiration for the dish was the 2 unopened bags of spinach that were starting to go bad, but these guys were the real stars –

Step-by-step, serves 3-4.

Heat 1 Tbsp evoo in a large pan or wok over medium-high heat.  Add 10 cups of raw baby spinach.

Cover and cook until wilted.

Add 1 15 oz can baby corn, 1 15 oz can stir fry mushrooms,

5 green onions, sliced, and 2/3 cup salted cashews.

Top with 4 Tbsp Hoisin sauce and continue to cook.

In a small bowl on the side, whisk together 3 large eggs.

Make a hole in the veggie mixture and pour eggs into it.

Cook until starting to slightly scramble then toss to combine.  Continue to cook stir-fry until desire doneness is reached.

Delicious.

I topped my bowl with Sriracha,

and Adam added some baked tofu to his.

I stole a few pieces of tofu and they were so tasty I’m planning on making them again soon so I can share the recipe with you guys.

When I’m feeling unsatisfied after dinner a yogurt bowl for dessert is always the answer.

This one centered around a Dannon Light and Fit Caramel yogurt.

I almost never eat fake-sugar yogurts (if I’m not eating Greek I’m buying Stonyfield because it is humanely sourced) but this guy was pretty fantastic.  Topped with unsweetened shredded coconut, the last of the butter toffee almonds, and a few butterscotch chips.

Sweet dreams, readers!

Vegan Challenge Thoughts, and Lunch

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We’ve completed another Vegan Month!  The husband and I both successfully eschewed all animal products (mostly; there were a few packaged food slip-ups) for all of February.  First off – No, we didn’t pick February because it’s the shortest month.  But yes, we are glad we didn’t have to go another three days!

For the most part, the challenge was a success.  Adam completed the entire month with me and I am so proud of him!  Our main goal was to push ourselves back to the kitchen and that definitely happened.  Other than the last week or so (which with 4+ tests would have been crazy even if we had a personal chef!) we pulled back from our take-out habit and got back to basics.  I made a few old favorites, and discovered some great new vegan recipes.  It was wonderful to get to flex my creative muscles in the kitchen again.

The part that wasn’t so successful was our attitude.  We started strong, but towards the end we just couldn’t wait for the challenge to be over.  I’m actually not sure I deem this longing a failure though.  It wasn’t a “I want pizza and nachos and buffalo wings, oh my!” craving, all though those things did sound good.  Instead I found myself desperate for scrambled eggs and lean meat.  All I really wanted towards the end was a turkey sandwich.  Unfortunately, since I couldn’t eat the sandwich I ate a lot of french fries instead.

Now that the challenge is over, we are going to return to our normal diet, with improvements.  Adam is going to cut back on his milk consumption and mix it up with almond milk half the time.  I’m going to continue to question whether or not every dish really needs cheese.  We are going to continue to try to ratchet up our produce consumption.  We’re going to continue to enjoy a lot of meatless meals, but we are also going to feel good about eating lean, humanely-sourced meats.  We’re excited about it.

Now on to today’s lunch.

I finally got that turkey sandwich.

Chicken actually, this was a Sandwich Thin with horseradish mustard, 2% swiss, and Applegate Farms Organic Roasted Chicken Breast (more on that in a sec).

I usually tend towards turkey because I’m afraid chicken will be slimy, but this was anything but.  I taste-tested while I assembled my sandwich last night and was very impressed.  The roasting gave a great smokey flavor and one serving has just 60 calories.

Plus another juicy pear.

Ok, secs up:  At the start of vegan month I received a rather ironic product sample –

a variety of meats from Applegate Farms.  While I don’t have a moral issue with the consumption of animals, I do think it’s imperative that those animals be treated with respect.  Applegate Farms makes products that mesh with my values.

When I opened the package to squirrel cold cuts into the freezer, I discovered they also sent a cute book, children’s illustrations alongside their food philosophy.  I think this page sums up my response to the vegan challenge pretty well –

[Eat less meat, enjoy it more!]

Do you eat (any kind of) meat?  Why or why not?  What’s your food philosophy?

A Loaded Lunch Post

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Hi guys; I hope everyone is having a good Monday!  I prewrote this lunch post and set it to publish in advance because I’ve got a lot to talk about today.  While I’m actually eating lunch, you guys will be getting a lunch-time recipe!

First up, the recipe!  Homemade Veggie Burgers –

  • 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • half a large sweet onion, chopped
  • 1 large purple eggplant, chopped
  • 2 T worchestire sauce
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 15 oz can chick peas, drained
  • 1/2 cup raw oats
  • 1 tsp sweet curry powder
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • salt and pepper to taste
  1. Preheat oven to 400*.  Spread two baking sheets with aluminum foil and grease thoroughly with cooking spray.
  2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion to pan and saute until starting to become translucent, 2-3minutes.  Season with pepper and salt to draw out the moisture.
  3. Add eggplant and worchestire sauce* to the pan.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5-7minutes. 
  4. Remove pan from heat and set aside.
  5. Place chick peas in the bowl of a medium food processor and pulse twice.  Do not pulse until smooth, remember, you are not making hummus!
  6. Working in 1/2 cup batches, pulse eggplant mixture into the chick peas. 
  7. Pulse in oats and seasoning until well-combined, scraping down the sides as need be.
  8. Remove the food processor’s bowl from its base, being careful to mind the blades.
  9. Shape mixture into 8 palm-sized patties and place on the prepared baking trays.  The patties will be very soft, but will firm up as they cook.
  10. Bake for 30-35minutes, until the outsides of the burgers have started to brown.

*please note – worchestire sauce is actually not vegan.  But, we’ve got three bottles of it in our pantry (from a review for the blog) and I can’t afford to buy another bottle of something else.

For lunch I packed a veggie burger on an Arnold Multi-Grain Sandwich Thin spread with a bit of horseradish mustard.

Delish!  I snuck a bite of the burgers during production last night and I’m loving the use of eggplant as a base.

On the side, a baggie of sliced cucumber.

The Sandwich Thins were actually sent to me for free to review the two newest varieties.

I’ll let you know in my evening post what I thought, but I’ve tried other varieties in the past so I’m expecting to love them.

The review is part of a healthy living initiative, so I was also sent this wicked cool Le Sportsac gym bag.

Way too cool for me 🙂

What are you having for lunch today?

Chocolate Straws and Muffin Bars

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This morning I had Adam drop me off at my school on the way to his, so I could finally get those to-do’s done.  It was nice to be out of the house, and up before 9, for a change.

Plus it felt good to check things off the list.  I picked up my recommendation letter, and delivered it to the application desk, and I printed off a few things.  Then I went to the registrar’s office….no, wait, I didn’t.  I walked halfway home and then I remembered that I had one final to-do!  I trekked back and was informed that my music class does indeed cover two requirements, which means I can’t drop it, no matter how god-awful it sounds.

I wasn’t expecting to make that extra half trip, but I’m glad I came prepared with breakfast in my purse.

LaraBar sent me their newest flavor to sample, Blueberry Muffin.  I’ve heard mixed reviews in the blog world so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I loved it!  I don’t know how they managed to approximate a baked good so well using dates.  There was this great crumbly muffininess to it.

When I finally did make it home from tromping about in the cold, I was parched.  Enter a big glass of skim milk with a chocolate milk straw.

I don’t drink a lot of milk (I prefer to get my dairy in yogurt form), but when I do I love it.  The straws are pretty neat too, they just barely flavor the milk with cocoa.  I tried to find a link and came up short, but I did discover that the Got Milk? site is totally amazing.  You should check it out.

Two Questions for Hump Day:

  1. What is your favorite way to eat dairy?
  2. What is your favorite LaraBar flavor?

Take-home Test Tuesday

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The husband and I (he was home from school too) had a nice lazy morning today.  Lots of kissing, no rushing, and plenty of staying in bed until 9.  I wish I could relax all day; to bad I’ve got a take-home test to tackle and my most important exam tomorrow!

I knew I needed a breakfast that was healthy, hearty (protein), and a little fun too.

Mission accomplished.

A few weeks ago I got an e-mail asking me if I’d like to try the new yogurts from Yoplait and Fiber One.  I’m pretty loyal to Greek yogurt, but when I stray Yoplait almost never lets me down (their Greek is pretty great too!).  Pretty soon, Vanilla and Strawberry arrived in the mail.

The yogurt is also available in Key Lime and Peach.  Sidenote – I will definitely be on the lookout for key lime, yum!

I was disappointed by the ingredients list (Michael Pollan would not be impressed), but definitely pleased by the nutritionals.

Since 50calories is a little low for breakfast to me, I decided to try both flavors in today’s bowl.

P.S. That meant that my breakfast based had 10grams of fiber and 6grams of protein, booyah!

Eaten atop a sliced banana, under a sprinkle of gingerbread flax granola.

Mmmmn.

I wasn’t expecting to be all that impressed with the flavors – I take my fake sugars in diet soda, thank you – but I was very pleasantly surprised.  The strawberry had big chunks of real strawberry and the vanilla was lushiously creamy.  Plus they were pretty thick, for non-Greek. 

I’d say B+.  If you usually eat plain yogurt (especially Greek) I wouldn’t make a permanent switch.  But if you are a flavored yogurt eater then these are a definite upgrade.

My morning’s also included some Wegman’s eggnog coffee with skim milk and nutmeg.

Fully caffeine buzzed, I’m off to hit the books!

What kind of yogurt do you eat?