panKates

Instant mashed sweet potatoes

We're big fans of sweet potatoes around here.  Aside from the fact that they're loaded with nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C, and fiber, we think they're pretty tasty.  So my Mom found these Betty Crocker instant mashed sweet potatoes at the grocery store the other day and got me a box.

While it's always better to make something like this from scratch -- and I do make mashed potatoes from scratch every so often -- I always like to keep some quick-cooking boxed foods in the cabinets for nights when I need an easy side dish and/or don't have time for something homemade.  I also have to note that the mashed version has nowhere near the vitamins of the real thing.  But whatev, you can't expect too much from potato flakes.

Anyway, I decided to pull the box out tonight.  My parents came up to Charlotte today and left us a full homemade dinner in our fridge...so we didn't really need another side dish, but I thought it would be a good opportunity to try this out.  She had made my Jamaican jerk meatloaf, a recipe I posted last year with sweet potatoes as a recommended side.  The potatoes were nice to look at:

...but they were a little on the sweet side for our preferences.  Not necessarily bad, it just reminded me of the sweet potato casserole your Aunt Bobbie Sue might make for Thanksgiving dinner...like, the kind that's loaded with marshmallows and brown sugar.  Really sweet.  So if you're into that, and you like to keep the making of an easy side dish on hand, then go for it.  But like I said, you won't get the same nutritional benefits, and you better have a sweet tooth.

In other news, that corn in the above picture was fresh-picked for us by my Dad this morning...local, home-grown with no pesticides, herbicides, etc.  We're so spoiled!  (Oh, and there was a cucumber salad that went with the dinner, I just forgot to serve it before I took the picture!)

And one final note: for any of y'all who haven't made the Jamaican jerk meatloaf yet, you have got to try it.  So delish, so easy, and low in fat and calories.  My Mom had the brilliant idea of adding about 1.5 tablespoons of fat free sour cream to the recipe...this will help keep the extra-lean turkey meat from getting too dry.  And like any good meatloaf, it's even better the next day.

Anyway, Nashville Star is on and interfering with my ability to write coherent sentences.  Happy Monday!

Fat Free Jalapeno Jack

Like most folks (I think), I'm a huge fan of cheese.  One of my favorite snacks is cheese and crackers, or fruit and cheese, or wine and cheese, or almost anything with cheese.  In fact, Russ can tell you that one of the best meals I ever had was this fab-o cheese platter during a day of wine tasting somewhere down in Santa Barbara.  It was somehow almost the best meal of my life.  (It was also right after we met Andrew Firestone from the Bachelor and listened to him make cheesy [no pun intended] jokes about how swirling wine in your mouth makes the same sound as a hot tub...only slightly funny if you've watched the Bachelor.  But that's another story.)

Anywho, a little full-fat cheese never hurt anyone.  But I don't eat a little cheese.  I eat a lot, usually every day.  So I'm always on the lookout for tasty low-fat or fat free varieties.  Kraft Singles makes a decent fat free version, but that stuff never has enough flavor for me.  I use Kraft Free Shredded cheeses (cheddar and mozzarella) in lots of recipes, but we all know you can't eat shredded cheese with crackers.  Plus, cheddar and mozzarella gets boring after a while...I love peppery cheeses, but have never seen a fat free version.

So it was like Christmas morning for me when Russ saw this fat free jalapeno jack (!!!) in our grocery store the other day.  I wanted to buy the whole shelf, but limited myself to one or two. 

It's made by a company called Lifetime Specialty Cheeses (click here for the website), and it looks like they have about 8 different varieties (my store only carries jalapeno jack and swiss).  Per ounce, it has only 40 calories and zero grams of fat.

Now, to be honest, it's not the best for eating with crackers...it's a little bit on the rubbery side if you just slice and eat it.  However, it's great on a sandwich, in scrambled eggs, etc.  In fact, I've been having the best turkey sandwiches for lunch lately with a few slices of this stuff.

According to the website, Lifetime cheeses are carried at a number of grocery stores in all regions of the country (click here to see a list of store names by region).  You can also order some and have it shipped to you...click here.  I just called to get the shipping info, and it sounds like you pay $4.25 per block of cheese (8 oz.), and shipping for 6 blocks would be $7.11.  Not bad if you order a bunch.

They also make lactose-free and cholesterol-reducing varieties. 

So if any of you are cheese fanatics like me, look closely in your grocery store's cheese section or ask the manager to start carrying this stuff.  While I haven't tried the other varieties, the jalapeno jack is a winner.

Stocking Stuffers...

Just a quick post to spread the word about a seemingly cool stocking stuffer idea I just came across while doing some online Christmas shopping.  I've heard about the LesserEvil snack company and their healthy snacks, but for whatever reason, I've never gotten around to trying them.  Anyway, I was just perusing Amazon.com and came across this:

It's chocolate-covered kettle corn, a.k.a. "Cocoa Coal."  From some online reviews I found, it sounds pretty tasty, and has only 120 calories and 1.5 grams of fat per one-cup serving (also...no trans fat and Vegan).  This box has 24 packages, but you can also get them from the LesserEvil website in 4-packs ($9.99) and 12-packs ($29.99).

I don't know many folks who have 24 stockings to stuff, but if you order the 24-pack from Amazon, you can get it for about $36.  If you click here, you'll see that the box is $41.71, but they're doing an instant $5 rebate offer right now.  Plus it ships free with super-saver shipping, so it's a pretty good deal.  I'll use any extras as little gifts for my office amigos.

Not that this is relevant, but typing this up has brought back one of my favorite Christmas memories.  When we were kids, my older brother Kristian and I used to wake up in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve to top off everyone's stocking with bags of "Snowman Poop" (styrofoam peanuts in Christmas Zip-Loc bags with some cheesy poem inside).  It probably sounds lame, but we thought we were so cool because we did this for years and no one in the family ever figured out who it was...people thought it was my aunt, my cousin, etc.  We were never suspected, probably b/c no one thought of us as the creative types.  In fact, I'm probably outing us to a few relatives by putting this on the website.

Anyway, I'm sure Cocoa Coal will make a better stocking stuffer than snowman poop.  Just wanted to share the idea...gotta get back to my Christmas shopping!

Gimme Lean sausage

A couple days ago, I revisited a favorite recipe from September for four cheese pizza. Wanting to change things up a bit, I decided to make it a four cheese and sausage pizza. To keep things on the healthy side, I went to the grocery store with the intention of finding low-fat turkey sausage...until I came across this "Gimme Lean" sausage made from soy. (Get it? "Gimme Lean"...rhymes with "Jimmy Dean"...)

It's made from non-genetically modified soybeans and -- for any of you interested -- it's certified vegan. Of course, we're nowhere close to being vegetarians (much less vegans), but with only 60 calories and 0 grams fat per 2-oz. serving, I wanted to give it a try.

It was a huge hit...both the sausage by itself and as a topping on the four cheese pizza. We couldn't stop talking about how much it tasted like the real thing, and Russ is convinced that you could fake out anyone with this stuff.

You just brown it on the stove for a few minutes, then use it in almost any recipe that calls for sausage. It turns out that my co-worker and good friend Viviane, who is a vegetarian, uses it all the time (I can't believe she never told me about it!). She says it's fabulous in meat sauce, in thin patties for breakfast sandwiches, etc. Needless to say, I can't wait to try it in bunches of new recipes...a recipe for low-cal jambalaya is on the way!

I know lots of people -- none of whom read this blog, of course :) -- who would instantly turn their noses up at the thought of eating a meatless "meat" product. But the next time you're making a recipe that calls for ground sausage, I think you should give this a try...the only thing you'll miss is the cholesterol-raising and artery-clogging saturated fat found in the real stuff. Your heart will thank you.

Nutrition info on Gimme Lean sausage...

Per 2 oz. serving (note that 4 oz. is often considered a standard serving for meat):
Cal: 60
Fat: 0
Carbs: 6
Protein: 7

PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter

One of my subscribers, "SA," e-mailed me last week to tell me about a new powdered peanut butter product called PB2.  Being the peanut butter lover that I am, I checked it out right away and was surprised to learn about this "all natural" product that contains only 54 calories and 2.8 grams of fat for a 2 tablespoon serving!  Now "all natural" doesn't mean it's just peanuts...it does contain sugar and salt as well.  But no crazy preservatives or other ingredients that you can't pronounce.  According to the producer's website, it's "made with USA grown peanuts that are slow-roasted and pressed to remove fat."

It's made by a company called Bell Plantation in Tifton, Georgia, and as far as I know, you can only order it through their website: www.bellplantation.com.  (Click here  to go directly to their product page.)  The other small catch is that the minimum order is 4 jars (each of which is $3.99).  But according to the expiration date on mine, it appears to be good for a year...and there is no doubt that I'll easily go through 4 jars of this stuff in less than a year.

Yes, it is powdered.  You turn it into peanut butter by mixing 2 tablespoons of the powder with 1 tablespoon of water and stirring until smooth.  I think you could use a little less water and have a thicker peanut butter. 

My order just arrived on Friday...I tried it as soon as it came, and I'd give it a 9 on a peanut butter scale of 1 to 10.  I ate it plain, and I could just barely tell that it wasn't the same as my usual full-fat all-natural peanut butter.  If you put in on a PB&J sandwich or spread it on a rice cake, I'm sure you'd hardly notice the difference.  I think PB2 and Wheat Thins will be one of my new favorite afternoon snacks.

Here's a quick side-by-side nutritional comparison of PB2 and your average all-natural peanut butter, per 2 tablespoon serving:

                             PB2                                 Average all-natural peanut butter
Cal:                         54                                                          210
Fat:                        2.8                                                           16         
Carbs:                    3.7                                                            6
Fiber:                      3                                                              2
Protein:                  4.3                                                            8

If you dabble in peanut butter only occasionally, it may not be worth the slight hassle of ordering this stuff online (and ordering 4 jars of it) just to save 150 calories per serving.  But if you love a good PB&J sandwich or like to make dips or sauces with peanut butter, I'd say it's worth the effort for such a big savings in calories and fat.

UPDATE: Check out my PB2 recipe for a peanut sauce to be used with Thai chicken satay...click here.  I also came up with a low-cal PB2 chocolate peanut butter parfait that you've gotta try (click here), a recipe for peanut butter honey french toast (click here), and my new favorite, PB2 pad thai (click here).

Single-serving blender

The blender is one of my favorite kitchen appliances...I love banana milkshakes, frozen margaritas, and post-workout protein shakes.  When Russ and I got married and moved into our new place, I bought the biggest, fanciest blender I could find.  The only problem is that it is SO big and bulky and heavy and hard to clean, I find myself not using it as often as I'd like.  So instead of my usual morning protein shake, I end up just mixing the protein powder in a cup with milk and ice.  Not very tasty, but so much easier than pulling out my blender and then spending 5 minutes dealing with the cleaning ordeal when I'm done...when I'm already in a hurry to get showered and get to work.

The solution?  A Hamilton Beach Single-Serving Blender.  My Mom discovered this mini-appliance a few weeks ago, and I swear it's transformed my life.  Ok, maybe that's a bit extreme, but this thing is amazing.  It's small and light, which means it's easy to clean.  But here's the best part: the blender jar is actually a portable travel cup!  It comes with a separate "travel lid" so you can blend, pull the jar off the base, put the travel lid on, and then drink right out of the jar.  That means one less cup to clean, which saves even more time.  And because the blender is so small and lightweight, it would be great to keep in your office or to pack for traveling.  (By the way, the link above takes you to the Target website, where you can order one for $16.99...possibly cheaper elsewhere.)

I still love my big, fancy Cuisinart blender, and I still use it for everything other than my morning protein shakes.  But if any of you are like me and have a daily smoothie or shake of some kind, I can't recommend this enough.  I think it has cut down my morning routine by a good 6.5 minutes.

What's red and green and goes 200 mph?  Never mind, just go buy one of these...

Enviga Lawsuit

Well, it looks like the makers of my new favorite energy drink were recently sued in U.S. District Court in New Jersey.  A consumer Watchdog group, the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is suing Coca-Cola and Nestlé for fraudulently labeling and marketing its recently released green tea product, Enviga.  The Attorney General of Connecticut is also investigating the issue.

I discussed the basic claims behind Enviga earlier this week - if you drink 3 cans per day, you could allegedly burn an additional 60-100 calories per day.  These claims are based on a study performed at the University of Lausanne.  It sounds like the main criticism of the study is that it was only a "short-term test of thin people who were given a strictly controlled diet."  I love this quote from CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson. “Imagine—two of the companies partly responsible for the general fattening of America are now urging us to pay them $4 a day to slim down with Enviga. The chutzpah!”   Ironic, indeed...

You can read more about the lawsuit by clicking here, or read more about criticisms of the Enviga research by clicking here.

The good news is that it doesn't sound like having a can or two of this stuff is particularly bad for you - or at least that hasn't been said yet.  So as I sit here sipping on the berry flavored version (pretty tasty, I might add), I'm sticking with my original conclusion: I won't be drinking 3 cans a day, but I will probably keep it around for a 5 calorie, afternoon pick-me-up.  And who knows, maybe I'll burn a few extra calories here and there...

Calorie Burner in a Can?

So my grocery store was having a promotion the other night for this new "Calorie Burner" drink...buy a 2-liter bottle of Diet Coke, get a free can of Enviga.  Made by Nestea, this sparkling green tea allegedly has a "unique combination of active ingredients proven to help you burn more calories."  Like most people, I'm generally leery of such claims...but I was already planning to buy Diet Coke for my husband, so I certainly couldn't turn down the freebie.

My store had 2 flavors: original green tea and berry.  I picked up a can of each.  According to the Enviga website, there is also a peach flavor...sounds yummy.

I haven't tried the berry yet, but I found the green tea flavor to be pretty refreshing, with a flavor that reminded me of sweet tea with a hint of lemon.  I'd give it a flavor score of 8 on a scale of 1-10. 

As for the calorie-burning claims...the fine print on the can indicates that drinking 3 cans per day can increase calorie burning by 60-100 calories.  If you check out the Science section on the Enviga website, you'll see that Nestea commissioned researchers at the University of Lausanne to conduct clinical trials with double blind placebo studies on the effect of consuming this beverage.  The study was actually published in the Feb. 2007 issue of the journal Obesity.  Pretty impressive.

Here's a summary of the research results:

"The present study provides evidence that consumption of a beverage containing green tea catechins, caffeine, and calcium increases 24-hour EE [energy expenditure] by 4.6%, but the contribution of the individual ingredients cannot be distinguished.  Although this increase is modest, the results are discussed in relation to proposed public health goals, indicating that such modifications are sufficient to prevent weight gain. When consumed regularly as part of a healthy diet and exercise regime, such a beverage may provide benefits for weight control."

I'm not sure that I want to start drinking 3 cans of this stuff every day, but I'll probably start keeping a few cans in my office fridge for a low-calorie, late afternoon pick-me-up...it's gotta be better than the sugar-free Red Bull I turn to every so often.  And since I already drink a cup of green tea as part of my morning routine, maybe the combined effect will boost my daily energy expenditure.  Now I just need to get my husband to start drinking more Diet Coke...