Tag Archives: Healthy Snacks

Getting Back to My Old Habits

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Hi friends,

Hope your week is getting off to a good start! As I have shared before, I have to work at staying at a healthy weight, always have and probably always will.  If I don’t exercise regularly, I can easily gain weight. In addition to exercise, I try to eat healthy foods and drink lots of water. I don’t deprive myself of anything, I eat in moderation, but do try to watch what I eat. Chocolate is one of my favorite treats and I don’t think I will ever give it up. A life without chocolate would just be less delicious, haha!

I have been married for a little more than three years and cook more often than I ever did when I was single. Actually, I rarely cooked when I was single and my fridge had limited items, most of which were healthy. I was and still am more of a snacker. I tend to eat small meals throughout the day. It is my system and it works for me. I rarely ate a full meal for dinner when I was single, I would have some crackers or a slice of bread with greek cheese, or maybe a few pieces of chocolate covered almonds, or a piece of fruit or some veggies, accompanied by a sparkling water. I know, sounds odd, but it was simple, tasty, healthy, and satisfied me. I rarely used the stove, let alone the oven – I would eat mostly fresh food and raw fruits or veggies.  Now that I am married, I have way more temptations in the fridge and pantry! Way more! I buy the groceries for our household and try to keep it healthy….but sometimes, my hubby will stop at a convenience store and buy chips or at a bakery and buy donuts or pastries. In addition to that, I  cook dinner for hubby a few times per week and sometimes I eat some of it. How can you not eat pasta or mashed potatoes? They are so delicious and the temptation is just too much when you are the one doing the cooking!

So, on a recent visit to Trader Joe’s ( I shop there every week), I bought edamame. I used to snack on them or have them as an entree for dinner. They are healthy, contain protein and lots of vitamins (plus at about $2 per bag, it is an inexpensive snack). This past weekend, when I got the urge to grab for a snack, I heated a bowl of edamame, sprinkled a little sea salt on them & voila’, a delicious snack! They are also tasty with a sprinkle of lime or lemon juice! I also find that because they have fiber, they make me feel satisfied for a longer period of time. In addition, I eat them from the pod, with my hands, so it takes me longer to eat them, hence my brain has time to register that I am eating and send a signal to my body that I am satisfied (full).

I am trying to get back to my old habit of not eating a full meal for dinner and instead snacking on healthy treats likes veggies & fruits!

Do you like endamame? How have your eating habits changed over the years? If you are single, do you eat a full meal at dinner time? If you are married, do you eat a full meal for dinner – or did you eat a full meal at dinner time when you were single?

Hugs,

Paola

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The bag is not very large, enough for three to four servings and is sold frozen. I purchase the unsalted, soybean in a pod bag.

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Edamame have vitamins, protein, & fiber.

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I simply rinse the edamame and heat them in water. They are ready in just a few minutes!

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I strain them. DSCN7890 DSCN7894

Place them in a bowl, add a little bit of sea salt & voila’ – a delicious & healthy snack!

How I Stopped Eating Chips

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Tortilla chips are one of my favorite snacks! Not potato chips, but tortilla chips. It is funny because, even though I am Mexican, I don’t eat tortillas often, nor do I crave them. I’ll take a good handmade tortilla any day, but don’t really buy them for home, nor do I cook with them. Over the years, I have eaten a lots of bags of tortilla chips. I started to compare chips and found that the lowest calorie, fat, & sodium tortilla chips, that I still find tasty, are the one’s from Trader Joe’s. I used to buy them often and because when I was single I lived alone, guess who would eat all the tortilla chips? That’s right – ME! My husband likes potato chips more than tortilla chips, so even after I got married, if I bought a bag of tortilla chips, I would eat the entire bag by myself. I wouldn’t eat it all in one sitting, I would eat a few one day, then a small bowl the next day and the next, until the bag was gone. Sometimes I would prepare a bowl of tortilla chips with lime and chamoy or chile, it was delicious! Some nights, instead of dinner, I’d have a bowl of tortilla chips. I wouldn’t do it every day or every week, but when I did buy a bag, I would eat chips almost every night. I really like pita chips too and for a while was buying these in place of tortilla chips, but these also have lots of calories, fat, & sodium – plus it was hard to only eat a few.

I noticed this was becoming a bad habit and would make me feel bloated from the sodium the next day. So, I decided to break the bad habit and stopped buying both of them. I haven’t bought a bag of tortilla or pita chips in months. I still eat these tasty snacks at parties or restaurants, but just a few.

I am not saying I will never buy a bag of tortilla or pita chips, but for now, I am trying to eat healthier and unprocessed food. So, I have replaced chips with fresh carrot chips and mushrooms. Both these veggies are very low on calories and have zero fat. I also eat plantain chips if I want the crunchiness. So, if I am craving tortilla chips or pita chips, I’ll eat mushrooms or carrot chips. Before I know it, my craving is gone and I have eaten healthy snacks that nourish me.

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Last week, we were in San Francisco and I wanted to stay on my healthy diet – it’s more of a lifestyle. So, we went to the grocery store. Instead of buying the bag of tortilla chips I would usually buy for the weekend in San Fran, I bought fresh veggies, hummus, salad, and fruit. This healthy food kept me feeling full and avoided me eating unhealthy food. It worked! Plus, I do find these veggies to be tasty.

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I love, love hummus, but don’t eat it often because it has lots of calories, fat, and sodium. Yes, yes, I know it is natural, has the healthy type of fat and oils, but still calories are calories. So, I snacked on hummus with mushrooms, carrot chips, and tomatoes. Delicious! At home, I also eat the mushrooms and carrots alone or with a small amount of low fat sour cream. Some friends eat carrots with chili and lime, I may try that.

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There are many pluses to eating healthier, more importantly, I am nourishing my body. These veggies have vitamins, protein, and fiber. The minuses are that natural veggies don’t keep fresh as long as processed foods do. So, I have to eat them within a few days of buying them. Also, they do cost a bit more than buying a simple bag of chips, but it is worth it because in the long run, it is better for me.

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So, next time you are craving chips….try these snacks, they are yummy, low-cal, and more importantly healthy for you! Maybe someday, you’ll actually crave these instead of chips. I am still working on that!

Do you snack on veggies? What is your favorite snack?

Hugs,

Paola