Compass & Coffee Spoons

It's Not You, It's the Plate: A Book Report

Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Thinkby Brian Wansink is a fascinating (and quick) read. The basic premise of the book is that there are cues in our environment that control what and how much we stuff our faces with and that by being keyed into them, we can mindlessly lose weight. Many of the studies in the book rang a bell with me--because I had already read about them on Wansink's Web site: Mindless Eating.

Wansink is the director of Cornell University's Food and Brand lab. The lab's experiments (and those of similar labs) illuminate that clever marketing and sly environmental cues can drive us to eat a lot more than we think we are. For example, they constructed a special table with an "endless" soup bowl, and found that people did not stop when satiated. Those with endless supplies of soup kept eating more soup. How a food is described on a menu and our expectations of how a food will taste are almost as important as how it tastes. He uses the example of a WWII Navy cook who substituted red colored lemon Jello when he ran out of cherry. Hint: the diners never suspected a thing.

I was discussing the book with my cousin Jennifer who originally recommended it to me, and she said it helped her realize that gaining weight wasn't just genetics, that there were things you could change about what you do.  It also greatly impacted my view of eating better, but for me, it was revolutionary to realize that it's NOT just willpower. So many times, fat people are told to exhibit self-control and viewed as just having a lack of self-discipline. To me, the book says "hey, there's a reason you eat the entire quart of chocolate peanut butter ice cream." Knowing is half the battle. Now, I've stopped pretending to myself that I can (or should) be able to just have one slice of cake and save the rest for later or something ridiculous. Now, I buy smaller portions and engineer my environment somewhat with awareness of the things talked about in the book. Small changes, but they make a big difference!

Something to Live For

Now, despite the title of the post, I KNOW you're supposed to eat to live and not live to eat. At least that's what "they" say. But, let's face it, sometimes something good to eat is the little thing that will help us get through an otherwise blah day.

I'm an emotional overeater--i.e., if I am having an emotion, any emotion, I want to eat. I'm working on this, but I've had to find some alternatives to coax myself away from what I really want to binge on. Like, oh, off the top of my head, a half gallon of peanut butter chocolate ice cream (yes, it's been done).

Here are a few of those things:

1.) Vitatop by Vitalicious in Deep Chocolate. I don't buy these all the time because they're rather on the pricey side (a box of 4 at Harris Teeter is somewhere in the neighborhood of $4.50 or more), but they're good. They're 100 calories, chocolatey, cakey, and don't taste fake like some lower calorie sweet treats. I just had one of these. These have the ability to quelch a passing "I want a muffin/chocolate cake" craving. Not at your store. No worries--available online here or at 1-877-VITA-877.

 

2.) No Sugar Added Fudgsicle. Again, these don't taste fake, and I have successfully averted many-a ice cream craving on the way home from work by promising myself one or two of these. That's the fantastic thing: at 40 calories, if you eat 4, you're still ahead of the game--not so with 4 servings of ice cream. More info here.

3.) When the weather is too cold for Fudgsicles, I turn to No Sugar Added Hot Cocoa. Nothing says "cozy" like a cup of hot cocoa. And, at 60 calories per serving, you won't need to shovel too much snow to work it off (oh to be doing that in this 90 degree heat!).

4.) The last few things have been chocolate, but this one's Ginger--as in Diet Ginger ale. I have had to go a bit cold turkey on this because I was drinking wwaaaaaayyyy too much, but it had a great run for awhile in helping me avert cravings. (By the way, Canada Dry is great, but I get the store brand.)

5.) For a hankering for crunchy potato chips...Barbeque Soy Crisps. Shown are Genisoy, but I am partial to Whole Foods 365. Trader Joes also does a version, a bit cheaper I think, but I don't like them as much. Genisoy is good, as is Glenny's. Each brand has its merits. I am always sure to buy the smallest bag possible, though, despite the greater expense because I KNOW I'll eat the whole thing.

There you have it. Five treats you won't regret tomorrow! What are some of your faves?

Nutritional Know-How

I wanted to let my blog readers in on a good resource, the "Eat This, Not That" website. Part of Men's Health magazine, the column was made into a book. I was first clued into this by my cousin Jennifer, who used the book to successfully shed calories (and pounds) that lurked in unknown places. I consider myself to be relatively calorie-savvy (as in, aware of them as they're entering my mouth), and even I was shocked by some of the information.  For example, the "Turkey and Swiss Sandwich" at Au Bon Pain, clocking in at 850 calories and 41 (yes, 41) grams of fat. I could see myself ordering this and thinking I was doing okay--maybe slightly more calories than a sandwich I'd make myself, but not bad. Boy was I mistaken! I was also disheartened to find out (though, not surprised) that my favorite ice cream: chocolate peanut butter swirl, is one of the worst options at Baskin Robbins. That's one of those things I'd rather just save up for than waste any calories on an inferior ice cream!

p.s. Sorry for the lack of posting--I've been busy with trip-planning and my mom's visit. More on those later!

Yesterday's Dinner

I thought my dinner last night looked purty (I think due to my Fiestaware plate and the orange-themed dinner), so I thought I'd share. It was also delicious.

Those are Mango Coconut Curry Nuggets, an adaptation from a Weight Watchers cookbook recipe. Basically, you take boneless chicken, cut it up into chunks, and then coat it with a mixture of mango chutney, curry powder, and cumin. Then dredge each piece in a mixture of panko or breadcrumbs and coconut. I honestly didn't think the coconut added much so I might skip it next time. I used fresh frozen coconut--recipe called for sweetened flaked coconut. Recipe also didn't have breadcrumbs, but I felt that would work better. I like using panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) because they're usually made with less preservatives and weird ingredients than regular breadcrumbs.  Bake for 15 min in a preheated 475 degree oven. Hot stuff!

I ate them dipped into a mixture of mango chutney and fat free sour cream. Yummy. I bet a similar recipe would work well with pork chops too.

Cuppy Cakes!

Since I found out on Shelterrfic that Martha Stewart has designated this week "Cupcake Week," I figured now was as good a time as any to post my chocolate cherry cupcakes I made on Sunday in celebration of the cherry blossoms. The recipe is from Nigella Lawson. Not surprisingly, her version looks much cuter. Something to do with the chocolate icing and little cherry on top. Mine were as nude on top as exotic dancers, but no less delicious.

First are the ingredients: butter, bittersweet chocolate, eggs, sugar, flour, and cherry jam. The cupcakes are actually easy to make.

Everything can be mixed in the pot you melt the butter and chocolate in. Now, I'm warning you, at this point, you may be tempted to eat it all, but be patient. Though, I can't blame you if you at least taste it. 

The finished product. Mine sunk a bit, but tasted great. I tried making an icing out of just confectioners sugar and water, but it did nothing for the cakes, so I left them go as is.

Safeway Versus Harris Teeter; Or, Evil Versus Sanity

I've blogged before about how much I hate the shopping experience at Safeway (here and here). Yesterday, I was able to experience the juxtaposition between shopping there and at Harris Teeter. I've shopped at HT a lot recently. I haven't shopped at Safeway at all. Lest I forget how annoying it is, I went yesterday. It was actually to get baking chocolate for the cupcakes I was making. Safeway was closer...that's about all it is. Here's how it went.

Harris Teeter. I parked my car in the underground lot at the Pentagon Row HT and walked up and into the store. I sanitized the handle of my cart and walked to the freezer section. I leisurely strolled around, picking out my food. I reached the soda aisle and was disappointed to find out that there was no HT brand diet ginger ale. I asked the guy stocking wine if they had any in the back. Even though he didn't work in the soda section, he looked me in the eye sympathetically, and said he would go and check if there was any in the back. He was sincerely apologetic that they were all out, and suggested I check back the next day when a shipment would be coming in. I went to the deli and got freshly sliced chicken breast, where the deli worker asked me if the thickness was okay. I waited about 2 seconds in line before being checked out by a friendly cashier.

Safeway: I parked in the lot and dashed through to avoid getting hit. Mind you, I only had one item to get, so the shopping part of it was pretty painless. If I had to buy a whole order as at HT, I can tell you how the situations I encountered would have gone:

• Soda aisle--I wouldn't have been able to find anyone. If I had, they would have taken about 2 seconds to pretend to listen to what I was asking before they summarily dismissed me by shrugging and saying they didn't know.
• Deli--I would have been given presliced meat and given attitude if I asked for it fresh. I probably wouldn't even have had a choice of chicken. They would have had one flavor and it would have been Safeway's "primo taglio" (which I'm pretty sure is Italian for "tasteless") brand.

As for my actual experience yesterday, I stood in the "express" lane for an inordinately long period of time during which it appeared the checkout woman wasn't doing anything. Also, a dog ran through my aisle. Better than what I thought it was at first (a rat), but still--a dog! Followed by a girl.

It goes without saying that I can't wait until the HT opens in my 'hood.

Dinner Tonight: Tilapia and Roasted Veggies

Did you know that there is a Tilapia Association? There is...it lives on the Web here. I may have mentioned that part of AT's Cure is making dinner several times per week. I followed through today with a modified tilapia recipe from this site. I also roasted some baby squash, carrots, red peppers, and shallots. Yum!

Tilapia is a mild tasting fish and good for people who "hate fish." For this reason, chefs hate it, apparently. I like a good strong fish like salmon or tuna, but if you just want some fish or need to fool your kids or something, this is good. It's also relatively sustainable because of farming--choose US farmed fish, though, because it's less likely to be raised in polluted water. I looked on the Association's web site and chose the Tilapia Lemon Parmesan. Since I didn't have the cheese, I had to improvise.

1. Wash the fish and pat dry.

2. Sprinkle with some butter, lemon juice, and herbs (I used Herbes des Provence).

3. Broil for about 5 or 6 minutes until opaque and flaky. (Overcooking fish is a major reason people hate it--they think it's dry).

4. Mix some mayonaise with garlic or garlic powder, salt & pepper to taste, some more herbs, and lemon juice and coat the top of the fish with the mixture. Broil for another minute or 2 until the mayo mixture is bubbly.

Now, I realize that adding a bunch of saturated fat to a heart-healthy food doesn't make much sense. I bet omitting the butter and using spray and lemon juice and using a substitute (yogurt? light mayo?) would work just as well. But, this was yummy.

For more on sustainability, visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch.

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas...

there was a party at my house! I threw a Twelfth Day Tea on Sunday. I maxed out the available space in my apartment with the 15 guests who came (though, I guess one was tiny and didn't take up much space!). It was great to meet Jacob's daughter finally! Adorable!

Unfortunately, as she does not yet have teeth, little Charlotte couldn't help us eat the bounty of food we had. I made two savory dishes with Pilsbury Crescents--reuben crescent wraps (I believe the original name for them was "Crusty Reuben Bites.") and the same thing as a veggie version with Roasted Red Peppers, Goat Cheese, and Fontina Cheese.

I went a little baked good crazy the day before. I made some great molasses cookies (from Cooking Light--see here for the recipe), pizzelles, sugar cutout cookies, and scones (from a mix) while watching the Steelers devastating loss to Jacksonville. Everyone had sweets on the brain, because we had SO many baked goods that people brought, all DEEEElicious.

Believe it or not, this table is AFTER most people have eaten!

It was great to have everyone over for one last hurrah, especially before taking down the Christmas decorations. I was thinking maybe next time (because I want there to be a next time) I may do an open house, because while I LOVE having all my friends over, I could fit even more if they were spaced out. Maybe I should give timed tickets, like a museum! LOL.

The Christmas decorations are now down, and my apartment's feeling empty and non-festive. Fortunately, I have a lot of "projects" planned to keep my mind off of it! Here's one last wreath...

 

Easy Fall Recipe

For my book club last week, our food theme was "fall food." Needless to say, our meeting featured a lot of pumpkin. I decided to make "mini caramel apple upside down cakes." I didn't have a recipe, so I went about improvising to make something as easy as possible. Here's what I did.

I took several fresh Pennsylvania apples and peeled and sliced them thinly. I then put them in muffin tins (I had to cut several of the slices in half for them to fit), drizzled them with caramel sauce, sprinkled a few pecan pieces in, and then filled the tins with some spice cake mix. Here are the results.

They tasted pretty good. Next time, I'd put a little more caramel. I was worried about putting too much in, but the ones that had more were better. I wanted to use yellow cake, but it was sold out, so I'd probably try that next time too. They were fun for a fall gathering!

Beets

I made fresh beets for the first time today. They were a delivery from the Greengrocer. I was surprised at how "earthy" they tasted compared to canned (that wasn't my word...I got it from a cookbook). Roasted them and tossed them with slices of juicy orange. Delish!

Oh, and I also sauteed the leafy tops with some onion and olive oil...rather good.