Category: no-fat

The Dangers Of Changing Your Diet

   Most of us could do with tweaking our diets a little. And, of course, there are always those ‘one-off’ occasions when we enjoy something off-plan. But changing your diet suddenly and drastically can do you more harm than good. There are lots of things to consider before you tackle a very restricted diet. The first is the needs of your body.

Yes, excess sugar, fat, and salt will do you harm in the long term. There is scientific evidence to back that up. Sugar, in particular, can do you quite a lot of harm in the short term too. Diabetes is a huge problem for a lot of people. Managing the condition requires careful monitoring of the amount of sugar you are consuming. As your blood sugar needs to be maintained, cutting out all sugar straight away, could leave you feeling light-headed, dizzy, and nauseous. This is called hypoglycemia and can be dangerous. Continue reading “The Dangers Of Changing Your Diet” →

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Healthier items disappearing from Mariano’s shelves???

The Mariano’s supermarket chain took Chicago by storm a few years ago, generating so much positive buzz that Kroger in 2015 bought it and it’s parent company, Roundy’s for $800 million.

I've found two brands of low-sodium,low-sugar ketchup, Westbrae and LocalFolks Foods.
Localfolks ketchup, on the right, my favorite.

Mariano’s brought an approach to food sales that Wegman’s is known for on the East Coast — stores with more prepared foods and in-store chefs and eating areas, to the Midwest. What I liked about Mariano’s was that it stocked more low-salt and low-fat products than the major supermarket chains tend to do.

But my latest shopping trip to a Mariano’s in Skokie, Il., caused me some concern about whether that’s all changing under Kroger ownership. I go to Mariano’s specifically to buy three products — Kraft fat-free shredded mozzarella, low-salt canned olives and my favorite low-salt, low-sugar ketchup from Localfolks. But Mariano’s had neither the cheese nor the olives on my latest trip. Continue reading “Healthier items disappearing from Mariano’s shelves???” →

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No-salt, no-fat kebobs for July 4th — here’s loads to try

Fourth of July is normally outdoor grilling time for many, many Americans. But if you’re on a low-salt, low-fat or low-sugar diet, grilling traditional hot dogs, brats and ribs doesn’t work for you. You need to get more creative.

Chicago recipes: Lemon-Herb Chicken Brochettes With BLueberry-Balsamic Salsa; Jason Varney: Photographer; Marian Cooper Cairns: Food Stylist; Claire Spollen: Prop Stylist
Chicago recipes: Lemon-Herb Chicken Brochettes With Blueberry-Balsamic Salsa

Cooking Light recently had a piece, 14 Kebab Recipes To Grill This Summer that’s a good place to start for ideas. Some of the beef varieties or the one including salt prosciutto won’t work, but other can be modified to fit your needs while still remaining tasty fourth treats. Continue reading “No-salt, no-fat kebobs for July 4th — here’s loads to try” →

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Low-salt, Low-fat recipes for Super Bowl

The Big Game is almost upon us, that day when everyone else is eating fried, greasy, salty, fatty snacks. But if you’re on a  low-salt, low-fat, low-sugar diet as I am, my first suggestion would be you host the party so you can control the menu.

These mini cups are low in fat and salt and sugar-free. Fill them with salt-free treats for Super Bowl munching.
These mini cups are low in fat and salt and sugar-free. Fill them with salt-free treats for Super Bowl munching.

If that’s not possible, bring your own food along. Pack up everything from salt-free potato chips to a main dish like swordfish steak.

I’ve written extensively on low-salt, low-fat, low-sugar items you can create for the game, here’s a quick rundown: Continue reading “Low-salt, Low-fat recipes for Super Bowl” →

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No salt, no sugar, 4th of July recipes

Happy July 4th everyone, time to heat up the grills and celebrate. And don’t be discouraged that traditional July 4th food is filled with salt, fat and sugar, the devil’s triangle of food additives in our country. I’ve written about how someone trying to avoid them can starve on July 4th at someone else’s house.

In another sheet of aluminum foil, place your four pieces of salmon and separate with aluminum foil. Then rub in marinades for each.
Grilling salmon is a luscious experience. Click the links here to see two grilled salmon recipes form Costco.

So take charge of your diet and look to our recipe page for a variety of dishes you can make today, like:

You don’t have to fast on the 4th when you’re trying to eat healthy. We have recipes for you. Enjoy the day!

John

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Low-salt, low-sugar barbecue chicken with a garlic kick

My quest for low-salt, low-sugar ketchup led me to try Doc’s a while back but I’ve written about how it was too spicy for my tastes. Rather than throw out the bottle, however, I’ve been saving it to use as a barbecue sauce, figuring the spiciness would work better for such usage.

Ingredients for my barbecue garlic chicken.
Ingredients for my barbecue garlic chicken.

 

I thought about it as I was preparing to bake some chicken breasts recently and, after looking to see what else was in my pantry and refrigerator, hit upon the idea of mixing it with a Localfolks barbecue sauce that I’d found tasty but quite mild.  Continue reading “Low-salt, low-sugar barbecue chicken with a garlic kick” →

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A handy way to eat apricots year-round

Apricots have long been one of my favorite fruits, but they tend to be delicate and only available for a short span of time in our northern climate. So I was excited to see these dried apricots recently while visiting a Shop & Save supermarket in a nearby suburb.

The Awesome Apricot Yummy Fruit Bus. I'm on board with it.
The Awesome Apricot Yummy Fruit Bus. I’m on board with it.

The product would seem aimed at children since the apricots come in individual trays inside a box that looks like a small school bus. It’s branded the Awesome Apricot Yummy Fruit Bus.

Still, reading the nutrition label, this seemed like a no-brainer to try — no fat, almost no sodium and 11 grams of sugar per tray, considerably less than other dried fruits, such as figs, that I’ve bought in the past. Continue reading “A handy way to eat apricots year-round” →

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Walmart, Aldi’s, others making fresh and organic food moves

Consumer desire to buy more unprocessed fresh and organic foods has definitely gotten the attention of the mainstream food retailing world. Three articles crossed my email recently confirming that.If you want to eat low-salt, low-fat and low-sugar, fresh is certainly the way to go for most of your meals, as I’ve been advocating here since having an angioplasty in 2012.

Mondelez has to compete with fruit for the healthy snack trade, can it?
Fresh is increasingly where it’s at for today’s food retailers.

Bare-bones food retailer Aldi, which specializes in featuring sore brands to hold costs down, is making several moves in fresh foods, according to Forbes and other media reports.

“The retailer is expanding the number of fresh foods offered, placing an emphasis on the perimeter rather than the packaged and processed foods in the center of the store. It’s making sure that dairy products are free from artificial growth hormones and all private label products—90% of the store—are now free from synthetic colors, partially hydrogenated oils and added MSG.

“Checkout lanes are being reconfigured to replace chocolates and candy with single-serve packages of nuts, trail mixes, dried fruits and granola bars,” Forbes reports. Continue reading “Walmart, Aldi’s, others making fresh and organic food moves” →

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An original eggplant recipe from the Frank family, next generation

Christmas 2015 brought a rare and special gift for me, both my adult children and their partners were able to be back in our home for Christmas dinner. My son lives in St. Paul, Minn. these days and my daughter is even farther away in Portland, Ore., so this was truly a very special holiday for me, and one that ended up producing some new holiday dishes I recommend to you, especially if you’re a fan of eggplant as I am.

I was creating an extensive low-salt, low-fat, low-sugar Christmas menu but also was thinking about my daughter’s vegetarian diet when I decided to give my children a menu challenge of their own — we would stage Battle Eggplant ala the old Iron Chef show, a program we enjoyed watching together when they were younger.

The contestants, from left to right, Matt and Kelsey, me, Daniel and Jenny.
The contestants, from left to right, Matt and Kelsey, me, Daniel and Jenny.

I presented them each with a large eggplant and opened our kitchen to them in terms of spices and other ingredients. Anything we had was open to use, much like the Iron Chef shows. My wife’s family, which came after the cooking was done to eat dinner with us as well, would be the judges and not know who made which dish. Continue reading “An original eggplant recipe from the Frank family, next generation” →

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