A fall chicken recipe, modified — chicken braised in two vinegars

I keep on eye on the New York Times for recipe ideas, but usually what they feature has too much salt, fat or sugar for my needs. Such was the case when I recently received a Times email entitled 72 Recipes You Should Make This Fall.

The Times suggests serving this chicken over polenta, I’d do it with a side of green beans or asparagus.

Looking through them, I didn’t see many heart-health choices until I came across this chicken braised in two vinegars recipe. The Times uses thighs, high in fat, so I’d substitute breasts and leave off the salt mentioned as something you can add for serving.

The ingredients (with my changes): Continue reading “A fall chicken recipe, modified — chicken braised in two vinegars” →

October 15, 2018 0

One way to keep your salt under control — a new gadget

As my blog has become more popular, I’ve heard from more public relations people pushing all sorts of foods, books, and gadgets. I’ve started doing some book reviews and occasionally write about the gadgets as well.

The Taste Stick is that white tower-like implement.

This one, Taste Stick, came to me in May, so I’m not sure if they’ve reached their fundraising goal as yet, but I hope they do. This seems like a great way to know how much salt you’re adding to anything you eat. Continue reading “One way to keep your salt under control — a new gadget” →

October 14, 2018 0

Deli shop much? You shouldn’t, but if you do, check this list

It’s literally been years since I regularly shopped in the deli section of a supermarket. The processed meats there are loaded with salt and fat plus other additives most people, not just those of us with heart issues, should avoid.

But if you still get the urge once and awhile, at least avoid the worst of the worst. WebMD recently posted this Best and Worst Choices From the Deli Section.

Among the best– rotisserie chicken, low-sodium turkey breast, roasted vegetables, bean or lentil salad, coleslaw (the kind without mayo), veggie Quiche and sushi with brown rice.

No more bologna for me, bye-bye old friend.

I’d avoid some of those as well because of high salt content. I once had a long conversation with cooks at Mariano’s, an upscale chain here in Chicago which specializes in prepared foods and has large buffets in its stores, and was told all their offerings would be considered high in salt content for someone like me. Continue reading “Deli shop much? You shouldn’t, but if you do, check this list” →

September 25, 2018 0

Top 10 No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar recipes for 2017

It’s top 10 year-in-review list time again and we’ll join the trend by writing about our Top 10 Most Viewed No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar Recipes for 2017. Our No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar Recipe Page, featuring scores of recipes we’ve found and/or tried ourselves, was far and away the most viewed thing on our site in 2017, drawing 14,101 views.

Baked mostaccioli, gotta love it, and it’s low salt and low fat.

But I wanted to drill down a little deeper to see which recipes on the page visitors were clicking on most. The results :

Clean Eating Crock Pot Chicken: tried it, loved it. Unfortunately the source blog for this disappeared, so you’ll have to wing it from the pictures I posted.
Low-sodium Thanksgiving stuffing: here’s how to make it. The secret’s in the bread you start with; you can find sodium-free bread!
Simple can be delicious, try this no-salt chicken recipe. It’s called Sheet Pan Chicken with Roasted Baby Potatoes.
5 low-sodium meals to consider. This links to five recipes on Cafemom.com and thankfully those are still there for you to try.
A Chinese food recipe that actually works as low-sodium? This is a broccoli beef stir-fry recipe form the American Heart Association.
How to make a low-fat, low-salt turkey meatloaf. I love this recipe and make it at least once a month.
Chicken parmigiana for everyone: here’s a low-salt recipe. The secret, again is in the bread, or breadcrumbs in this case. Go with panko, they are generally much lower in salt than other breadcrumbs.
Ahi tuna on the grill, with a lime twist. How can you not love Ahi tuna?
Low-fat mashed potatoes — here’s how. This time, the secret is in the milk and fat used.
Low-salt, low-fat baked mostaccioli. A holiday favorite for me, it’s a splurge but still a lot lower in fat and salt if you use this recipe.

Happy New Year, and check our recipe page for lots more you can cook up in 2018!!!

January 3, 2018 1

AMC Dine-in Menu — hear the sound of your blood pressure spiking???

Sunday is movie day in our house. We normally go to the first show of the day to get cheaper tickets because why pay more to see the same movie a few hours later? Movie theaters today are adding all sorts of new perks to get people to leave their houses. One of the new perks is expanded food options.

AMC is a large theater chain and I saw recently that it has what it’s calling the AMC dine-in menu now. The cardboard menu they give you to pick from actually has calorie counts right on it for every dish, a requirement that comes from the healthcare law commonly called Obamacare.

Continue reading “AMC Dine-in Menu — hear the sound of your blood pressure spiking???” →

December 17, 2017 0

A record year for the No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar Journal!!!

This website started to give people on restricted diets alternatives to eating nothing but bland, boring food. People told us back in 2012 that no one would care about salt, fat and sugar in their food. But those naysayers were wrong, apparently.

With a month and a half left in 2017, we just hit an all-time annual high for views on our site! As of this morning, we had 57,355 views in 2017, blowing past the 56,994 views we had in 2015, our previous high. Those views this year came from 30,213 visitors to the site, another record compared with the previous high of 28,596 we had in 2015.

We consistently rank at or near the top in search results for no salt, no fat and no sugar foods and recipes. Indeed, our recipe page is the most viewed place on our site with 12,513 views as of Nov. 14.

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, searches for our low-salt side dishes and our discussion on how to find low-salt turkeys will likely draw even more views before the big turkey day arrives.

Most of our viewers are in the United States but we have visitors from all over the world, which is also most gratifying.

Medical issues this year have kept me from posting as often as I have in the past, but expect that to change in the coming year. I’ll be back, finding and trying recipes that are tasty yet also low-salt, low-fat and low-sugar for you.

John

November 14, 2017 0

Test your salt IQ

Salt can lead to stomach cancer, one more reason to get it out of your diet.

I’m not a big fan of infographics, they usually only scratch the surface on a topic and I always want to know more. But I recently ran across this sodium test after completing a cardio-rehab program at my local hospital (this after a second angioplasty in five years for me this past June) and thought it worth sharing.

Try to math them up without looking at the answers first. I doubt many of you will find all the hidden sodium in some of the food items listed.

Sodium lurks in so many everyday food, like bread, ketchup and any processed meat. Beware of it.

October 31, 2017 0

No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar? No Problem!

It seems that everything we put in our mouths these days is full of salt, fat, and sugar. If you are trying to cut down on the Big Three, this isn’t very helpful for your diet. In fact, it’s a killer because SFS (salt, fat, sugar) are the main ingredients which are unhealthy in large quantities. Of course, the key is to lower the amount of each you eat on a daily basis, yet it is easier to say than do. With salt, fat, and sugar everywhere you turn, it can seem almost impossible. Luckily, it’s a realistic possibility with the following tips.

Step One: Lowering Fat

Too much fat is without a doubt the biggest enemy, so let’s tackle this one first. The odds are you like to fry food because it is a quick and easy way to prepare a meal. Did you know the following facts about frying meat and vegetables?:

– Fried food has twice as many calories as proteins or carbs

– Eating fried food four times a week increases the risk of obesity

– Frying oil takes away the healthy nutrients and turns them into harmful fats Continue reading “No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar? No Problem!” →

August 9, 2017 0

McDonald’s Artisan Grilled Chicken Sandwich — a salt bomb to avoid

McDonald’s has been working hard to improve the image of its food offerings, wanting to get away from seeming processed or simply bad fast food and I give it credit for those efforts. But sadly I think it’s still missing the point, at least for someone like me worried about salt, fat and sugar in my diet.

One of McDonald's new grilled artisan chicken sandwiches. — One of McDonald’s new grilled artisan chicken sandwiches.

The McDonald’s Artisan Grilled Chicken Sandwich is its latest attempt. artisan conveys a sense that this chicken is somehow more special than its regular chicken sandwich. So I was really hoping to see that in its nutrition information. What I saw instead though was a mountain of salt.

The regular variety has 1110 mgs of sodium, half a day’s worth for a healthy person, almost a full day;s worth for someone like me dealing with heart disease. It also sports 7 grams of fat, not all that bad, and 11 grams of sugar. Continue reading “McDonald’s Artisan Grilled Chicken Sandwich — a salt bomb to avoid” →

May 19, 2017 0

Say it ain’t so Naf Naf Grill. Did you add salt and fat?

I wrote an enthusiastic post about the relatively new fast food chain Naf Naf Grill back in 2014 when I discovered the low-salt content of its pita bread and the low-fat content of its beef in a pita offering. I’ve been touting it to friends and family ever since.

The menu board from a Naf Naf Grill location in Niles, Ill. Other outlets have slightly different offerings.

So I was shocked and dismayed recently when I checked it’s site and found the numbers have changed drastically for the worse. I’ve written Naf Naf and posted on its Facebook page to get answers but haven’t heard a word yet, very poor customer relations. Continue reading “Say it ain’t so Naf Naf Grill. Did you add salt and fat?” →

May 18, 2017 2

Tag: salt