Need HEALTHY Help!

[decodelighted]

Guys,
I am so frustrated. I just cannot get the hang of eating healthier. Especially: fruit storage. I get inspired, buy a bunch of fruit and then it just all goes bad before I eat any of it. This has been going on for 15 years now.

. Have all the willpower in the world *in the store* and then NONE of what I''ve bought looks good, or by the time I guilt myself into attempting to eat it, its rotten. Or dubious.

ANY IDEAS, tips, hints, slaps in the head?

Right now I have ...

Week old banana
5-6 day old Strawberries/blueberries/peaches -- stored in the fridge
day old apples/plums/lemons
brand new cherries

GAH!!!!! All I want is cake.

(DH is out of town so I was trying to eat better while he was away as an experiment. Its not going so terribly well. I''ve already given myself food poisoning once, not sure how.)

 

[Octavia]

No ideas, tips, hints, OR slaps in the head. Just sympathy. I do the exact same thing.

Will be anxiously watching to see what our healthier members have to say...

 

[lilylover]

Something that might satisfy your cake craving and meet your healthy needs ---

Strawberry Bread (It''s SOOO good especially with some reduced fat cream cheese spread on top!)

2 cups fresh strawberries
1-1/2 cups and 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour (can use half whole wheat half regular, or all whole wheat depending on if you like the whole wheat taste)
1/2 cup white sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons no sugar added strawberry applesauce (make your own! cut up apples and strawberries and heat them up on the stove, covered)
2 eggs, beaten (can use 4 egg whites instead)
1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons chopped pecans (optional)


1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter and flour one 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.

2.Slice strawberries, and place in medium-sized bowl. Sprinkle lightly with sugar, and set aside while preparing bread mixture.

3.Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and baking soda in large bowl: mix well. Blend applesauce, vanilla, and eggs into strawberries. Add strawberry mixture to flour mixture, blending until dry ingredients are just moistened. Stir in pecans. Pour batter into prepared pan.

4.Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until tester inserted comes out clean. Let cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn loaf, and cool completely

 

[brazen_irish_hussy]

Couple of things can help. First, putting most fruits in the fridge, especially colder parts, helps a lot. It will cause them to keep much longer. I buy very ripe apples for this reason because I always eat them within a week and they won't ripen otherwise. If they need to keep for a while, you can buy ones that are not ripe yet and store them in the fridge.

Second, for bananas, you have a few options. Do NOT put them in the fridge, they will go bad in a day. Some people have hooks they hang them on and they swear by them, but I have not tried it. What I like to do is freeze them then when I want one, I dip it in vanilla yogurt to eat instead of ice cream.

third, buy what is in season. It is cheaper, tastes better and keeps longer since they didn't have to be shipped across the world. Some things stay in season, like bananas, but others have a specific time. For example, you can always get oranges, but I only buy them from Dec-Feb because that is when they are in season and they taste a lot better.

Forth, if one is bad, get rid of it right away. I have heard that fruit send out chemical signals when they go bad that cause other fruit in the area to go bad. I don't know how good the science is, but I have definitely found this to be true.

As for wanting a cake, balance you craving with fruit and sweets. I mentioned bananas above, but I also dip strawberries in chocolate, not the really sweet stuff, but a very dark one sweetened with honey. I don't mind apples, but I don't love them plain. So every morning for breakfast, I cut up an apple, put a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter on a plate and dip the apples into it. It has a great taste, much better than caramel for you and gives the protein to make me feel full.

 

[RaiKai]

Mmmm...I just ate a bowl of fresh cherries.

No real tips...I am and always have loved fruit and fresh veggies and have no problems getting my daily dose, but get creative I guess. Make zucchini breads with lots of shredded zucchini and apple crisps (with a lighter topping), blend some fresh smoothies, add berries to the top of your cereal, etc...

The more you eat them, the more you may crave them too!

 

[AmberGretchen]

I''d say don''t be afraid to add stuff to the fruit to make it more exciting to you. For example, with some thick Greek yogurt on top, and some honey, it really jazzes it up. Whatever your thing is - low fat frozen yogurt or ice cream this time of year, or a little bit of maple syrup or honey, or you can make a simple syrup with ginger and/or mint flavor, or one of my favorites - liqueurs, such as Grand Marnier - a little of that, a tiny bit of sugar, and it really puts Summer fruit over the top (and makes a super yummy "sauce") that is great over just about anything.

 

[PinkTower]

DD,

Do you like smoothies? I treated myself to a VitaMix about three months ago. They are a snap to clean, and I use mine everyday. I freeze small baggies of banana chunks, a strawberry (including the stem), blueberries, etc. Then I pull them out and use skim milk, a dollop of fatfree vanilla yogurt, and a splash of vanilla. I vary this according to whim, so it never comes out exactly the same. Sometimes I will use Tropicana 50 for the liquid, for example. A VitaMix is a big investment, but I would get so frustrated with blenders leaking, and taking them apart to clean them, that I never bothered to use them. I have Crohn''s, so I have to make an effort to get as much nourishment as I can. I feel much better since I began getting more good foods in my system, and I don''t crave junk if I start my day off right.

-Mel

 

[Lula]

Hi, Deco, Welcome to the club of "fruit wasters" of which I have been a member since college (before that I was force-fed fruit by my parents!).

I like fruit juice, but I hate getting out the juicer and making my own juice. So now I pay a substantial amount of money each week to buy a jug of fresh-squeezed orange juice (with pulp) from my local grocer. It's expensive, but at least I know I will get a large class of real orange juice every day. I got sick a lot less last winter and I've convinced myself it was because I was finally getting enough vitamin C from the juice.

I like fruit, but I don't like cold fruit and I hate eating big chunks of fruit -- weird, I know. But I identified this as a huge stumbling block for me, and now I add smaller chunks of fruit to my food -- I love fruit in salads, salsas, and with cereal or yogurt.

Pre-chopping the fruit into smaller portions and storing it in portion-sized containers seems to help, too. There's something about seeing a whole pineapple on my counter that I find intimidating. It will just sit there. But if I buy pre-cut pineapple (e.g., from Trader Joe's) and divide it into portion sizes, there is a better chance I will remember to add it to the salsa I'm eating (for example). Same with blueberries or strawberries -- it's far better for me to wash them, cut them up, and store them in portion-size containers, than it it is for me to arrive home with a box of strawberries and blueberries and just stick them in the refrigerator unwashed, because sure enough I will forget about them or will be too lazy to take what I need out the box for a salad and wash them. But if they are washed and portioned and ready to go, I'll remember to add them to the salad with the other ingredients. There's no logic here, I know. But perhaps if you identify the stage you get *stuck" in with fruit, you can set up an intervention for yourself like I did!

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 3:35:50 PM
Author: Octavia
No ideas, tips, hints, OR slaps in the head. Just sympathy. I do the exact same thing. Will be anxiously watching to see what our healthier members have to say...

Sympathy''s swell too! At least its not JUST me. The whole thing makes me feel so foolish and alone. Like I''m the only one standing at the sink wondering ... "Do I just *rinse* these, or do I need to use soap?" I did not get this training growing up!

And google gives me approx. 1 million different answers about every different type of fruit/veg.

So I HUMBLY THANK ALL WHO TREAD HERE especially w/ words of support or advice!

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 3:43:23 PM
Author: lilylover
Something that might satisfy your cake craving and meet your healthy needs ---Strawberry Bread

Thanks Lilylover! This sounds delicious! And now I crave *IT*. However while I was recharging my laptop I decided to try to eat those maddening strawberries & washed them, cut them up and ate them with some seltzer water with lemon slices in it. Can''t say they tasted so good .. but at least they are G.O.N.E. and not taunting me whilst disintegrating into mush. Now I''m going to have to buy some MORE though ... for the BREAD!

Ya think it would work with *blueberries*??

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 3:47:32 PM
Author: brazen_irish_hussy
I don''t mind apples, but I don''t love them plain. So every morning for breakfast, I cut up an apple, put a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter on a plate and dip the apples into it. It has a great taste, much better than caramel for you and gives the protein to make me feel full.

Brazen Irish Hussy -- THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! These are the simple, no-nonsense kind tips I''ve been searching for! I''m hoping to be able to create little healthy habits that just become 2nd nature. Love the apple/peanut butter b-fast -- can do that! And I''ll try to be more conscious about patrolling for spoilage & chucking the baddies.

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 3:52:05 PM
Author: RaiKai
The more you eat them, the more you may crave them too!

I hope so! Because the more I *waste* them, the more hesitant I am to buy more and its a vicious cycle. I just need to keep experimenting enough to get a couple of "standards" that work for me ... and to finally learn what just *doesn''t* work no matter how much I''d wish to cough it down.

 

[KimberlyH]

make it part of your morning routine. you could have:

a smoothie (milk, ice, fruit)
parfait (plain or vanilla yogurt, fruit, granola)
fruit salad w/ a bit of sugar sprinkled on top
banana vread (it''s fudging a bit, but whatever works)

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 5:10:25 PM
Author: AmberGretchen
I''d say don''t be afraid to add stuff to the fruit to make it more exciting to you. For example, with some thick Greek yogurt on top, and some honey, it really jazzes it up. Whatever your thing is - low fat frozen yogurt or ice cream this time of year, or a little bit of maple syrup or honey, or you can make a simple syrup with ginger and/or mint flavor, or one of my favorites - liqueurs, such as Grand Marnier - a little of that, a tiny bit of sugar, and it really puts Summer fruit over the top (and makes a super yummy ''sauce'') that is great over just about anything.

I loves the greek yogurt ... so that''s good. Have to put Grand Marnier on the shopping list. I''ve heard of people using that in berry mixes now that I think of it ... but I wouldn''t have ever put 2 & 2 together so THANKS!

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 5:28:00 PM
Author: Pink Tower
DD,
Do you like smoothies? I treated myself to a VitaMix about three months ago. They are a snap to clean, and I use mine everyday. I freeze small baggies of banana chunks, a strawberry (including the stem), blueberries, etc. Then I pull them out and use skim milk, a dollop of fatfree vanilla yogurt, and a splash of vanilla. I vary this according to whim, so it never comes out exactly the same. Sometimes I will use Tropicana 50 for the liquid, for example. A VitaMix is a big investment, but I would get so frustrated with blenders leaking, and taking them apart to clean them, that I never bothered to use them. I have Crohn''s, so I have to make an effort to get as much nourishment as I can. I feel much better since I began getting more good foods in my system, and I don''t crave junk if I start my day off right.
-Mel

You know, Mel ... I have NEVER made a smoothie at home. I used to get them at my old gym ... a banana strawberry peanut buttery thing. And they were good. I did like them. That''s a great idea for me. And it might even work for DH if I can figure a way to make strawberries taste like double fudge. Hmmmm.

I think I''ve stayed away from milky things because of my lactose intolerance -- but that''s no excuse anymore with all the Almond Milk and Soy Milk & Lactaid around. Time to try it out! Fun!

 

[TravelingGal]

Deco, with strawberries...

Never wash them before putting them away. They''ll rot superfast. If you''re not doing that, then here are a couple of other tips...

Take a tupperware container that is wide and long. Line the bottom with paper towel. Line the strawberries in one single layer, then add another paper towel. Add another layer, and so forth. Put paper towel over the top and do NOT put on the lid. It''s moisture that causes strawberries to go bad. If you have a big container like the ones you buy at costco, you can just line that container and close the lid as they have vents in them. Otherwise, if your tupperware container doesn''t have a venting system, do not put on a lid.

If you like smoothies, invest in something easy to make them like a magic bullet blender. Freeze some bananas (peel them first, then cut them in half and put them in a single layer in a ziploc bag). Take a frozen banana, strawberries (frozen works well too, but cut them in small chunks before you freeze), and whatever else you want with just a small splash of juice (or if you really want healthy, just use water) and blend. The frozen banana will give it an icier consistency. To clean blender, just simply add a bit of soap and hot water, and turn it on. Super easy to clean.

Also wonderfully healthy and YUMMY is take strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and GOOD (and I mean GOOD. The bottle I have is about $25 bucks a bottle) balsamic vinegar. Just a couple of splashes on the fruit will do. Let soak for a few hours. The vinegar will be yummy syrupy goodness and so fantastic on the berries. If you need a little guilty pleasure, it''s great to have this over ice cream.

Freeze fruit...they make a fantastic snack for summer. Frozen bananas taste like ice cream. Take red seedless grapes and freeze those, and they are like flavored ice pops (make sure they taste yummy BEFORE you freeze them, otherwise they just taste like bleechy bland ice cubes! Frozen grapes don''t freeze solid, so you don''t have to worry about them breaking teeth. The just get crunch/slushy/icy. Yum yum. The grapes last awhile, frozen, so you don''t have to worry about them going bad as quickly.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 6/12/2010 6:12:37 PM
Author: decodelighted

Date: 6/12/2010 5:28:00 PM
Author: Pink Tower
DD,
Do you like smoothies? I treated myself to a VitaMix about three months ago. They are a snap to clean, and I use mine everyday. I freeze small baggies of banana chunks, a strawberry (including the stem), blueberries, etc. Then I pull them out and use skim milk, a dollop of fatfree vanilla yogurt, and a splash of vanilla. I vary this according to whim, so it never comes out exactly the same. Sometimes I will use Tropicana 50 for the liquid, for example. A VitaMix is a big investment, but I would get so frustrated with blenders leaking, and taking them apart to clean them, that I never bothered to use them. I have Crohn''s, so I have to make an effort to get as much nourishment as I can. I feel much better since I began getting more good foods in my system, and I don''t crave junk if I start my day off right.
-Mel

You know, Mel ... I have NEVER made a smoothie at home. I used to get them at my old gym ... a banana strawberry peanut buttery thing. And they were good. I did like them. That''s a great idea for me. And it might even work for DH if I can figure a way to make strawberries taste like double fudge. Hmmmm.

I think I''ve stayed away from milky things because of my lactose intolerance -- but that''s no excuse anymore with all the Almond Milk and Soy Milk & Lactaid around. Time to try it out! Fun!

You don''t need milky stuff for a smoothie. I find pineapple juice (just a small splash) adds nice sweetness and the frozen bananas gives it sweetness and consistency.

 

[princesss]

I''m in this club about half of the time.

This morning I went to the farmers market and battled my embarrassment and just ASKED the farmers, "Hey, how do I pick a good ________? How do you like to eat it? How should I store it?" They were all happy to help or offer an opinion - today I learned to just trust the guy with the cantaloupes (you walk up and he says, "Do you want to eat this today or tomorrow?" you answer, and he hands you a melon. Okay, no guesswork there!) and not to store peaches in the fridge.

I try to buy fruit I''m craving right then - the more likely I am to eat it that day, the more likely I am to remember how good it was and want more!

When in doubt, fruit salad is delicious. Just chop up a bunch of fruit, add some berries, and let it sit. If you want it a little sweeter, a little bit of a simple sugar syrup (I like basil or mint in mine) poured over top and then mixed around can really sweeten things up and make an incredible dessert. It also makes a great addition to lemonade - I have basil lemonade chilling in the fridge right now.

For dessert, a little bit of dark chocolate works with just about everything. Or a little freshly whipped cream (none of that canned stuff!). I second the suggestion of Greek yogurt and honey in the morning.

It''s a work in progress for me, but it''s a fun adventure.

 

[TravelingGal]

Oh, and with the banana, I''d say if worse comes to worst, put a wee bit of chocolate syrup over it and small amount of chopped up nuts. I''d probably be even yummier frozen, of course!

 

[AmberGretchen]

Date: 6/12/2010 6:06:51 PM
Author: decodelighted

Date: 6/12/2010 5:10:25 PM

Author: AmberGretchen

I''d say don''t be afraid to add stuff to the fruit to make it more exciting to you. For example, with some thick Greek yogurt on top, and some honey, it really jazzes it up. Whatever your thing is - low fat frozen yogurt or ice cream this time of year, or a little bit of maple syrup or honey, or you can make a simple syrup with ginger and/or mint flavor, or one of my favorites - liqueurs, such as Grand Marnier - a little of that, a tiny bit of sugar, and it really puts Summer fruit over the top (and makes a super yummy ''sauce'') that is great over just about anything.

I loves the greek yogurt ... so that''s good. Have to put Grand Marnier on the shopping list. I''ve heard of people using that in berry mixes now that I think of it ... but I wouldn''t have ever put 2 & 2 together so THANKS!

Happy to help - hopefully! One other option that''s surprisingly tasty (though perhaps not quite as healthy

) - drizzle some really high quality chocolate sauce over a bowl of fresh fruit - very tasty

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 6/12/2010 6:26:56 PM
Author: TravelingGal
Oh, and with the banana, I'd say if worse comes to worst, put a wee bit of chocolate syrup over it and small amount of chopped up nuts. I'd probably be even yummier frozen, of course!

Thought of another one, since I have it in the fridge...you can dip banana or strawberries into a cup of sugar free Jello choc Pudding! 60 calories a cup, so that's not bad!!!

 

[decodelighted]

I''m going to keep responding in order but I had a quick question for the SMOOTHIE-lovers out there. Are you using a straw to drink them at home? Or do you just drink them from a glass? I''ve seen a plastic "take out cup/straw" combo somewhere online and think that might be fun to drink smoothies out of -- but wanted to know what you guys were doing.

 

[Haven]

I was doing THE SAME THING about two years ago when DH and I first lived together. I'd buy way too much fruit, and then I'd skip the fruit and eat the Cheezits instead. And then I'd get upset when I had to throw away the fruit.

Sorry if I'm repeating some tips, but this is what I have to do because a) I'm cheap, and b) I will always eat the salty bad foods over the good ones if I have the choice.

- Buy only one or two pieces of one or two fruits at a time. I know it's tempting to buy more and you think you'll NEED another Jonagold apple after you eat that first one, but guess what--you can go back to the store and buy another.

- Do not keep whatever your version of the Cheezit is in the house. It's death for all good intentions. I will walk into the kitchen intending to rip open a big, juicy orange, and then two seconds later I find myself sitting cross-legged on the sofa watching reality TV with one hand in a box of Cheezits. I cannot help myself, so I just can't keep them in the house at all. When I really want some, I'll buy a box on my way to class and then give what I don't eat to my students.

- If you find a couple of super easy yummy fruit snacks that you like you WILL eat more fruit. My personal favorite is to put a bit of peanut butter and some honey in a ramekin, slice up a Jonagold apple into thin slices, and then dip away. Mmmmm. I also like pears with very thinly sliced extra sharp cheddar.

- This was the hardest lesson for me to learn: Buy the better quality fruit from the better quality store. Even if it *looks* like the fruit costs more on the surface, it doesn't because it will last longer, so you're less likely to have to throw it out. I switched to buying my fresh cilantro from Whole Foods, so it costs twice as much now (a whopping $2 a bunch instead of $1--THE HORROR!) YET, I can now use the same bunch for the batch of rice and beans that I make on Monday, AND the batch I make on Thursday, and sometimes, it's STILL good for the following Monday batch. Before, it barely lasted until Tuesday, so I was buying two and three times as much cilantro.

- My husband eats a ton of fruit smoothies. He loves them, and it takes a lot of fruit to make them, so if you like them that is a great option.

ETA:
I realize cilantro isn't fruit.
AND
Now I really want some Cheezits.

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 6:04:16 PM
Author: KimberlyH
make it part of your morning routine. you could have:
a smoothie (milk, ice, fruit)
parfait (plain or vanilla yogurt, fruit, granola)
fruit salad w/ a bit of sugar sprinkled on top
banana vread (it''s fudging a bit, but whatever works)

Hi KimberlyH! I am going to try out the smoothie thing this week! And mmmmmmm banana bread. I haven''t made that in a while. Thanks!

 

[princesss]

Date: 6/12/2010 6:43:39 PM
Author: decodelighted
I''m going to keep responding in order but I had a quick question for the SMOOTHIE-lovers out there. Are you using a straw to drink them at home? Or do you just drink them from a glass? I''ve seen a plastic ''take out cup/straw'' combo somewhere online and think that might be fun to drink smoothies out of -- but wanted to know what you guys were doing.

We do sometimes. We keep colourful straws in the house just to make it fun.

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 6:21:42 PM
Author: TravelingGal
Deco, with strawberries...

Never wash them before putting them away. They''ll rot superfast. If you''re not doing that, then here are a couple of other tips...

Take a tupperware container that is wide and long. Line the bottom with paper towel. Line the strawberries in one single layer, then add another paper towel. Add another layer, and so forth. Put paper towel over the top and do NOT put on the lid. It''s moisture that causes strawberries to go bad. If you have a big container like the ones you buy at costco, you can just line that container and close the lid as they have vents in them. Otherwise, if your tupperware container doesn''t have a venting system, do not put on a lid.

If you like smoothies, invest in something easy to make them like a magic bullet blender. Freeze some bananas (peel them first, then cut them in half and put them in a single layer in a ziploc bag). Take a frozen banana, strawberries (frozen works well too, but cut them in small chunks before you freeze), and whatever else you want with just a small splash of juice (or if you really want healthy, just use water) and blend. The frozen banana will give it an icier consistency. To clean blender, just simply add a bit of soap and hot water, and turn it on. Super easy to clean.

Also wonderfully healthy and YUMMY is take strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and GOOD (and I mean GOOD. The bottle I have is about $25 bucks a bottle) balsamic vinegar. Just a couple of splashes on the fruit will do. Let soak for a few hours. The vinegar will be yummy syrupy goodness and so fantastic on the berries. If you need a little guilty pleasure, it''s great to have this over ice cream.

Freeze fruit...they make a fantastic snack for summer. Frozen bananas taste like ice cream. Take red seedless grapes and freeze those, and they are like flavored ice pops (make sure they taste yummy BEFORE you freeze them, otherwise they just taste like bleechy bland ice cubes! Frozen grapes don''t freeze solid, so you don''t have to worry about them breaking teeth. The just get crunch/slushy/icy. Yum yum. The grapes last awhile, frozen, so you don''t have to worry about them going bad as quickly.

Yo My T-gal!
These are all great tips. Thanks so much. In the past I''ve done strawberries lots of ways ... in the container, washed & in a bowl, washed/cutup/sugared -- every which way they end up wrong! Or, most likely, forgotten for too long while (as Haven mentioned) I''m busy eating other Sexier, Naughtier, Trashier foods. Gonna need some tupperware I guess! And a Magic Bullet! I went digging around and found some Trader Joe''s Balsamic Vinegar -- maybe that''ll do until I can save up for the good stuff.

If I found a WINNER of a way to do it (either the Grand Marnier or the Balsamic, or both) I''d buy more berries for sure. They are HIGH RISK around here now as they''re the most delicate of all the fruits in terms of spoilage. But they ALSO are the most delicious to me in *flavor*, when done by almost anyone else but me! Re: frozen bananas, love your way to freeze them for smoothies. Will try that this week. I *used* to freeze grapes ... don''t know why I stopped. Will put that on the "to try" list also.

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2010 6:26:46 PM
Author: princesss
This morning I went to the farmers market and battled my embarrassment and just ASKED the farmers, ''Hey, how do I pick a good ________? How do you like to eat it? How should I store it?'' They were all happy to help or offer an opinion - today I learned to just trust the guy with the cantaloupes (you walk up and he says, ''Do you want to eat this today or tomorrow?'' you answer, and he hands you a melon. Okay, no guesswork there!) and not to store peaches in the fridge. It''s a work in progress for me, but it''s a fun adventure.

Awesome, the clubhouse is feeling less empty! And I was at the farmers market today too -- baffled & bewildered as usual. Literally, I watched a lady sampling cherries & then just bought the type she chose. Wuss!! Interesting about the peaches. I just took mine out of the fridge to see if I could ripen them a bit more - but I can''t find a brown paper bag. Right now they''re just on the table. We''ll see ... Thanks Princess!!

 

[decodelighted]

Pardon me while I go freeze my banana. (That was fun to type)

 

[decodelighted]

I''m back! And I just ate my first Pluot! (Plum/Apricot combo ... anyone else seen these?) I think I had a bit of an AHA moment yesterday & realized that my choice of *beverage* is affecting what I eat. I always thought my Diet Coke habit wasn''t so much of a big deal BUT BUT BUT ... I like my foods & beverages to complement each other & you know what goes wonderfully with Diet Coke: fast food! salty snacks! cookies! pizza!

What DOESN''T "go" with Diet Coke? Anything remotely healthy. Who wants to sit down with a Diet Coke & an Apple? Or a Diet Coke and a fruit yogurt parfait? NO ONE. So my ADDICTION to Diet Coke IS making me fat *indirectly*.

Sooooo ... I bought a bunch of lemons and sparkling water and purified water to try to experiment with drinking that more in the hopes that it will pair better with the FOODS I want to want to eat.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Deco, when shopping just remember...it''s the MAGIC bullet, not the silver bullet

That''s not going to help you much in the fruit blending department....




SORRY! I couldn''t resist