Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

Breakfast

I’m Ba-ack!

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Don’t worry, I didn’t have too much fun while I was away from you guys…just driving…

My family and I drove from Florida to Iowa which is about 3 days full of driving. Ugh!!!! My butt is so sore from sitting!

Anyway, I just thought I’d pop in for a little bit to let you know I’m still here. I just haven’t had a chance to sit down at the computer yet (And I don’t really want to sit anymore!)

Ok. On our way up from Florida, we stopped in Georgia for a couple days for my sister to play in a tennis tournament. We stayed at a place called the Wyndham, and let me tell you it has the BEST Breakfast buffet EVER!!! I was in heaven 🙂 It’s usually $16 (AH!), but since my sis was in the tournament, they gave us a discount (phew!)

The minute I stepped into the room full of food, I was in aw! My family kept telling me to calm down because I was just so excited to try all the yummy delicacies!

Let me take you down memory lane…

The Continental half of the dining room was the first thing to meet my eyes, and a waiter in a black and white tux stood before us smiling, “Good morning, how many people will be joining us today?”

“Five”, we responded.

As he escorted us to the table, I couldn’t help but smile. I felt like a child staring at all the unopened gifts on Christmas morning.

Once we were seated, he took our drink orders, and I ran to the plates. Fruits of all shapes and sizes were laying before, nestled in between decorative greens. A poster of the human body was color-coded to reveal which foods were best for what part of the body: Muscles, Brain, Nerves, Bones.

With my plate in hand, I slowly walked down the aisle, and contemplated what foods I should try first. Yellow watermelon, blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, grapefruit, apples, and a banana smoothie beautifully poured into a champaign glass and topped off with a slice of fresh lime. Oh my.

After I passed on the donuts, pastries, and dried cereal, my eyes met up with another line of fruit: plums, pineapple, kiwi, cherries, and raspberries just to name a few. Then a beautiful arrangement of lox and capers met my eyes. ‘I’ve never tried lox before,” I thought as I placed a few slices on my plate.

I almost dropped my plate with the next thing I saw: a full hot oatmeal bar! Any imaginable dried fruit laid perfectly still in white porcelain bowls: dates, cranberries, figs, mango, papaya. And nuts: flax, almonds, walnuts, pecans… Quickly, I grabbed a bowl and filled my oatmeal to the rim with figs, flax, nuts, and blueberries.

After setting my plate down at my table, I wondered over to the Hot Section. The usual shiny silver containers sat there, hiding their treasures within. I looked through the silver containers to find the usual bacon, breakfast potatoes, biscuits and gravy, and sausage. But something was missing. Where were the eggs?

Ah-ha! I whipped around and stood in front of a man wearing an impressively-tall chef’s hat. In front of him, three skillets stood ready to be put to work.

“What kind of eggs do you want? Or what do you want in your omelet?” The friendly man in the white hat asked. I ordered a veggie omelet with spinach, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, and peppers. Quickly, he sauteed in the veggies in oil, and then ladled pre-whisked eggs into the skillet. As it cooked, he prodded the eggs with a spatula until he felt like they were ready. Once ready, he flicked the omelet into the air. As the eggs and veggies soared, the chef stood ready to catch them. Bingo! They landed perfectly onto the skillet and cooked thoroughly the rest of the way.

I thanked the man for his good-dead, and complimented him on his handiwork as I spooned fresh guacamole and pico de gallo onto the omelet. Happlily, I walked passed the fresh whipped cream, butter and syrup waiting to be spooned onto freshly-made belgium waffles, and took a seat next to my family.

I slowly devoured my breakfast, enjoying every minute of it. I decided it was the best omelet I’d ever had, and decided that I really loved “fig newton” oatmeal. I also decided that I didn’t like raw salmon much, and vowed to stick to my cooked fish. Another thing I figured out was that I loved a certain yellow fruit that looked like kiwi on the inside, but didn’t taste like it. What was this sweet, yellow delicacy?

Plate upon plate, I went back for seconds, thirds, and fourths. I needed to try a little bit of everything. Satisfied, I smiled and declared it was the best breakfast I’d ever had.


Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What was the best breakfast you’ve ever had? Also, how do you eat healthy at a hotel breakfast buffet or on the road?

Pancakes and Peanut Butter.

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Hey Guys! This is a super short post today because I want you to check out my first guest post on Lauren’s blog, Whole Wheat or Bust. Check it out! I talk about some sugar-substitutes and a yummy sugar-free recipe at the end 🙂

But here are some of my eats the past couple days…I’ll give recipes to some of them later. If I don’t and you want the recipe, just yell at me!

Protein Berry Soft Serve
Afternoon came and I wanted pancakes( and peanut butter of course), so I whipped out a batch in 5 minutes(without a mix!)you guys are totally getting the recipe.
Carrot Cake Oatmeal
Mondo Salad
Sausage, veggies, and noodles

So… What do you think?

I’m Sick

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Yep…the last couple days have been spent in bed…

I had a headache, a blown up nostril, and aches all over my body. It must be a sinus infection or something because my left nostril was swollen-it looked funny!!

But, I am feeling MUCH better now, thank you! STill have a headache and I’m super tired, but at least I can breathe.

Anyway, here has been my daily “sick” schedule:

  • Sleep til 8, eat breakfast at 9
  • Rest in bed, check emails
  • Eat lunch at 12
  • Do homework throughout afternoon
  • Eat dinner at 6
  • Watch T.V.
  • Go to bed at 9:30

Yep, pretty boring. But, all this free time has given me an opportunity to be extra productive! I have gotten lots of homework done, and created new recipes (simple as the recipes may be, they are still good!)

For breakfast each morning, I started the day off with a mango or some strawberries, and this creamy-mess below. I was inspired by my Healthy Banana Puddin, and the way I blended the grains is sure to make Chocolate-Covered Katie proud (it’s covered in chocolate, Katie!). The texture and taste reminded me of a childhood favorite, Coco Wheats!

Edit: Oh no! I guess I’m not the first one to make a chocolate-pudding like mixed grain, sorry, Katie, I didn’t mean to take your Chocolate Cream Pie’s spotlight! Sorry!


What is this mess?

Wheat-less Coco Wheats

~This hot cereal is vegan, gluten-free (if made with gluten-free oats), dairy-free, nut-free, and of course, sugar-free!

Serves 1

  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
  • dash of vanilla (optional)

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and boil on high. Turn down to low, and simmer until the oats are cooked. Pour the ingredients into a blender (I used my magic bullet), and blend until smooth.

Needless to say, this was something I looked forward to in the morning!

Then for lunch, I would always whip myself up some miso soup, served in a mug.

Super Simple Miso Soup

~This soup is vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, and of course, sugar-free!

  • 1 cup water
  • 2 teaspoons miso paste
  • 1 chopped green onion

Heat water and green onion in a saucepan until it’s just about to boil. Add miso and stir until it dissolves. Do NOT boil miso!

Super easy soup, and very good for you. My miso paste’s label said that, “Miso cuts the chances of ovarian cancer by 50%!” The soup warmed my tummy.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What do you eat when you’re sick?

Just like Banana Pudding

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Hello Hello everyone! I went to Tallahasee this weekend! That’s right, the capitol of Florida. (Come on guys, you have to remember your states and capitols from fourth grade…at least that’s when I learned them-it was required.)

I must say that Tallahassee was one of the most beautiful cities I’ve ever seen. Rolling hills, pine trees, forests, and beautiful southern plantation homes. I   I came here for a tennis tournament, and the courts were in the middle of a forest, and surrounded by winding roads with plantation mansions!

It was a nice visit, and before we drove home, we checked out the Florida State Seminoles.

All of this excitement in a nice southern place made me in the mood for some banana pudding-the sugar free way. Plus I hadn’t slept well over the weekend, and I wanted something soft and soothing.

Healthy Banana Puddin’

~This recipe is gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, and of course, sugar-free!

Serves 1 (double, triple or quadruple the recipe for more fun!)

  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 1 cup water (or milk or milk substitute of choice)
  • 1/3 banana
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Cook the oats and water in a saucepan to boil. Turn down to low heat until the oatmeal is soft and cooked. Then, put the oatmeal, banana, and vanilla in a blender (I popped them into my handy-dandy magic bullet) and blend until smooth. Voila! It’s done!

You can serve it hot or cold, make it more banana-ey, or add spices of your choice (my mom added nutmeg).

Its perfect for dessert, breakfast brunch, or a snack because it is well balanced with the complex-carbs of oatmeal. It is naturally sweet from the banana, so you don’t have to feel guilty about it! How great is that?

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What is the most beautiful place you’ve ever been to, and why was it so beautiful?

Also, what meal would you like to see health-ified? I love a good challenge!


Happy Birthday! (Yesterday)

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Yesterday was my mom’s birthday, so I didn’t have time to post anything. But……today I get to show you what i did yesterday! Yay!

First off, I got up early to make her a special Birthday Breakfast. She doesn’t like breakfast in bed, but she does enjoy a good meal. So what was this special meal? Baked Banana Oatmeal and a Fruit Salad! Served with a glass of Orange juice and hot jasmine green tea.

Baked Banana Oatmeal

~This Baked Oatmeal is vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free, and of course, sugar-free!

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups regular rolled oats
  • round 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 2 Tablespoons ground flax (optional)
  • 1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional-I used a mix of almonds and walnuts)
  • 1 1/2 cups milk of choice (i used almond milk)
  • 1/2 cup applesauce
  • 1 or 2 bananas

Simply mix all of the ingredients together except the banana(s). The batter will be thick. Now, you can use 1 banana mashed and mix it into the batter, and then top with sliced bananas; or just top with one sliced banana; or just use one mashed banana mixed into batter. For this batch, I just topped with 1 banana. Pour batter into a lightly greased glass dish (or whatever you have lying around), and bake in the oven at 350* for 30-35 minutes.

You can even make the batter the night before, and then throw it in the oven the next day. Just make sure to wait and add the baking powder right before you bake it so that the chemical components don’t die overnight. This is what I did today so that I could sleep in a few extra minutes! 🙂

Fruit Salad

Blueberries, strawberries, bananas, red grapes

Hey this salad would be perfect for July 4th-red, white, and blue!

All together, a beautiful, scrumptiously satisfying breakfast:

We didn’t really do much the rest of the day. We went to Outback for dinner, but it was a Thursday, so we were still busy. Don’t worry, we’ll go do something special this weekend. Iron Man 2 perhaps?

I did give my mom lucky bamboo, though!

Ok, the one I bought didn't look this cool, but it was still cute (and lucky!)

Did you know lucky bamboo isn’t even bamboo? It is actually a member of the lily family. Man, I learn new stuff every day!

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What have you learned recently? Anything strange, new, or exciting?

What is Stevia?

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The new sugar-substitute, stevia, has been getting a lot of attention lately as more and more health food products have been adding it to their ingredient list. What is it exactly, and is it safe for me to use?

Well, stevia is actually an herb that’s extracts can be up to 300x sweeter than regular cane sugar. Stevia also does not raise blood sugar. So far, scientific tests that have been done with stevia has not proven that it is unsafe, but I don’t think enough has been done to prove anything yet. Since it is an herb, it has no calories or grams of sugar in it. In the laboratory, steviol can be converted into a mutagenic compound, which may promote cancer by causing mutations in the cells’ genetic material (DNA). “We don’t know if the conversion of stevioside to steviol to a mutagen happens in humans,” says Huxtable. “It’s probably a minor issue, but it clearly needs to be resolved.” This would be with high doses, however, and there is not enough scientific data to confirm this yet.

What I think: I have bought one bottle of liquid stevia to try. So far, I like the taste of it (I tried the french vanilla kind), and it is easy to use. I only need a a couple drops of stevia to make foods sweet for my taste. Also, I have not had ANY reactions to it whatsoever. No headaches, no rashes, no stomach aches…. So this made me really happy. I’ve tried it in my oatmeal and other desserts, and i has been fine. I eat just a couple drops at a time, and use it minimally.  Its still an experiment to me, and I would like to see more tests done on it. The bottom line: a few drops a day won’t hurt you.

Anyway, onto a lighter subject: Breakfast! My favorite time of day. Today, I had strawberries and cream oatmeal. Mmm…Summertime gets me in the mood for this kind of stuff:

Strawberries and Cream Oatmeal:

  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 1 cup almond milk (or other kind of milk of choice)
  • 1/4  tsp vanilla
  • 1 Tablespoon ground flax (optional)
  • chopped strawberries

Boil the oats and milk together in a saucepan. Then, add vanilla, ground flax (if using), and strawberries. There we go! Perfect for a summer day.

After this lovely breakfast, I went out to play tennis for a couple hours with my sister. We got a good sweat in! Then, back home for lunch:

Morning-star Black bean burger over a bead of spinach, topped with cherry tomatoes. With a nice glass of a strawberry-mango smoothie. I love these black bean burgers because they are super fast to make, and taste good, too. I get them in bulk at Costco. To heat them up, I simply throw them on a pan and heat over medium-high for about 5 minutes.

The smoothie was super simple, too:

Strawberry-Mango Smoothie:

  • Frozen strawberries
  • Frozen mango pulp
  • orange juice
  • milk of choice (i use almond milk)
  • optional: protein

Simply blend ’em up! The mango pulp I use is from Goya. I recently found this in the frozen food section at Sweetbay. It was only $1.50 for one packet, and the only ingredient is mango. The packet lasts a while, too. It could probably make about 5 good-sized smoothies.

Whew! This was a long post today! I hope you got something out of my rambling!

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What do you think of stevia? Have you tried it before? Do you like the taste? If you know any more information about it, please tell me because I would really like to learn more!