The husband and I are twins today (I know you’re probably all rolling your eyes…)
I got this email from him right at 12 – he and I had the same morning!
That breakfast sure held my hunger over! I felt the need to boredom snack at 11 but I had a cup of tea (cause I’m freezing too). Lunchtime! (even though I’m not super hungry)
I also had tea at 11 because I was cold and wasn’t particularly hungry for lunch (go oats!!) but decided to eat anyway.
Tea…
Lunch
This lunch had a higher percentage of calories from fat than usual, from peanut butter, oil from peppers on sandwich, swiss and ham, so it ended up feeling like less food than I normally eat. I’ve still got an ounce of hunger in me, so hopefully it goes away soon!
Foccacia spiral ham + swiss sandwich (LOVE this bread!)
Grapefruit
Yogurt + pom + jam
And carrots + celery with peanut butter. I usually put the PB in a little plastic container when I bring it to work, but it’s SO hard getting the PB out of the container, so I decided to experiment with something I could spread out flat – plastic wrap. I made this little ball of a packet to transport 10 grams (2/3 a tbsp) in:
It looks gross, but it worked like a charm for dipping! I got every last drop – with a little help from my tongue!
Total lunch calories – 531
No Excuses!
It was 32* out there and I still managed a 45 minute walk. Yes, I was freezing the WHOLE TIME!! Normally I warm up after about 10 minutes of brisk walking but the wind was so bad that my legs and face were freezing the whole time (they still are frozen!). My gloves, scarf and coat kept my innards warm though 🙂 I’m proud to say that I walk year-round – in the chill of winter and the scalding heat of summer. The only time I don’t walk is when its pouring down rain! But geez it was cold today. -160 more kcal.
Oh yeah, I am OBSESSED with this song from spinning class:
Back to work!
Serena says
Hi Kath, I'm relatively new to your blog and think it's incredibly helpful and interesting. I was wondering if you could tell us approximately how large your sandwich is (how much bread, etc.). It's so hard to tell from the pictures! Thanks!
Kath says
Serena,
It's 2 oz of bread – it was about the size of a deck of cards. This bread (homemade by the husband) came out to about 86 kcal per oz, so any more than that I would have had to cut back on other lunch parts. I'd rather have more choices and less bread!
Kath
Brianne says
Hey Kath I was hoping you could help me out. I just bought a scale (how on earth did I live without it!?) and find it to be soo helpful with portion size. I am having issues with pasta- how do you measure it? I am assuming dry and that is what I did but I got a lot of pasta ( went by the box- it was a lot of calories but it didn't look like that much pasta!) How much do you generally eat? I read that a 1/2 cup COOKED is a serving. How do I measure that dry? Thanks!
Kath says
Brianne,
I put a bowl down on my scale, zero it, and add 2 oz of dry pasta, which is one serving, usually between 180 and 210 kcal, depending on the brand. The bigger the noodle shape, the less you get for the weight. That's why I like macaroni and don't like the bigger thick shapes! Does that help?
Kath
Michelle says
Kath,
I also have a question regarding weighing food…when weighing meat do you weigh the raw meat or the cooked meat? I have always weighed it raw because sometimes the meat is mixed into a recipe.
Thanks M
Kath says
Michelle,
I always weigh things raw when I can, since it's more accurate. What do you mean by mixed into a recipe? Like you buy a piece of meat that's already stuffed or something? If I'm making the recipe myself I'll just weigh the meat before adding it to ensure I'm using the right portion.
Kath
Sara says
Your lunch looks like it was delicious!
I purchased some Kraft 100% Natural peanut butter the other day and was surprised that it didn't taste so great…is it an acquired taste?
I live in a small city and haven't been able to find any other brands of the all natural stuff! Maybe I will get used to it?
Kath says
Sara,
I have tried a few of the other natural PB's and don't like them as much as I do the grocery store brand we get (Harris Teeter). Do you have a store that has "grind your own?" I find the more natural it is the better. Does your Kraft have anything added to it like palm oil? If so, that's probably affecting the taste. Keep looking before you give up!
kath
Jo says
Sara–When I made the switch to natural pb, it definitely took some time to develop a taste for it–primarily due to the absence of added sugar (though the oil on top didn't help either).
I persisted, though, and now I can't imagine going back to the other stuff, though I am fortunate to be close to several stores who offer fresh-ground pb with no added salt, something that a lot of pre-packaged natural peanut butters contain.
Justy2003 says
Sara-
Like Jo said, it may take a while for you to adjust to the natural peanut butters. I buy Arrowhead Mills creamy peanut butter and the only ingredient is organic roasted unblanched valencia peanuts. I love it now, but when I first tried natural peanut butter I was not a fan! I've found that different brands taste different, but the Arrowhead Mills is the one I prefer!
I can't even stand Jif/fake peanut butters now. I got some in my ice cream at Coldstone one time and they gave me the spoon to lick…bad idea…it tasted disgusting! All processed and chemically. Yuck!
Keep trying the natural PB and your palate will adjust to it soon!
Sara says
Thanks Kath & Jo!
I've only used it twice, so I will definitely try to get used to it. I didn't think it lised palm oil and an ingredient but I will definitely check when I get home.
And I'm going to call a few of the health food stores and see if I can grind my own, that sounds like it would be the best choice!
Tiffany says
Just wanted to thank you for sharing the song you are obsessed with….I have been trying to find some new songs for my ipod while I work out, but wasn't having a lot of luck! Not only did I like and download the one you like, but found another by the same artist as well! Thanks!
Kath says
Tiffany,
Haha – I LOVE that song. My cycle instructor plays it almost every week and at 5:45 a.m. it helps to have a really good beat and catchy lyrics to wake me up! I found it by typing in the lyrics last Friday when they got stuck in my head all morning!
Kath
Danielle says
Hi Sara,
I love PB and switched to natural about 6 months ago. It does take some getting used to. I do like it better though and don't think I'll ever be able to go back :). Peanut Butter & Co. makes a fabulous creamy peanut butter made surprisingly with a mix of… peanuts! They sell it at the supermarket near me (Wegman's) but just in case, here's the website: http://www.ilovepeanutbutter.com/ Enjoy!
Brianne says
Thanks for the reply! That definatly helps. Does the husband also eat 2 oz? I'm wondering if I can just use 4 oz for the both of us and divde it in half. I'm just worried that 2 oz wont be enough for my husband!
Kath says
Brianne,
The husband doesn't weigh his bread, but he probably has double what I have! His sandwiches are always much bigger than mine – in meat, cheese and bread.
K
Mychal says
Regarding Natural Peanut Butter:
Ironically, the fresh ground stuff in health food stores is not a good choice. Peanuts contain aflatoxin, a mold that is a known cause of liver cancer. This mold is indiscernible to the human eye or tastebuds, and it continues to grow in your jar.
The highest levels are found in organic peanut butter (b/c the pesticides kill much of the mold) the peanut butter you grind fresh yourself (b/c it's been growing on the peanuts sitting in friendly warm enviroment of the store shelves). Lowest levels are in Jif, Skippy etc, b/c of the homogenization; unfortunately, these kinds have that dreaded trans fat. Again, aflatoxin is a known carcinogen and found in very high levels in peanuts.
A good compromise is to reduce your peanut butter intake to once in a while rather than daily; substitute almond butter for peanut butter a good percentage of the time; never eat organic or fresh ground peanut butter.
Links:
http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA115491 http://www.deanesmay.com/archives/007598.html http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/contact/brands/FA…
Sara says
Thanks ladies! Danielle I will definitely check out the link.
My Kraft stuff says the only ingredient is peanuts,so maybe it is just me 🙂
Brianne says
Mychal- i was very sad to read this, I love PB!
Anonymous says
Hi there. About measurements. I have heard from a variety of RDs that you are supposed to measure food cooked, for example meat. There is a significance difference.
Kath says
Anon,
I've never heard that you're "supposed" to weigh a food either way, but my understanding is that raw food is the most accurate because cooking methods can vary so much. Think how the water content of chicken would vary if you boiled it vs. grilled it over high heat. The grilled version would be much drier – therefore it would weight less due to less water – and the calories would be more concentrated. Where as the boiled would have more water absorbed and would weigh more, but it would be less calories per ounce. Make sense? Raw chicken is just raw chicken. Perhaps each chicken varies a little, but on average there is little difference between raw chicken breasts.
Please correct me if I'm wrong here.
Kath
Carla says
It took me some time to get used to all natural peanut butter (I got to a grocery store that had a peanut grinding machine). I bought a small container and hated it at first but somehow, before I knew it, it was empty and the next time I went to the grocery store, I bought the biggest container available. I can't get enough now! 😛
Anyways, question for Kath. Was just wondering where you find your recipes and/or ideas for your meals? They're all so unique and usually contain both sweet and savoury flavour which I love! Thanks!
Kath says
Carla,
I have no idea!!! I guess my answer would be experience. The husband and I started getting creative in the kitchen as soon as we had one of our own. We have learned a LOT in 2.5 years! I am inspired by all kinds of things – recipes in magazines, The Food Network, other blogs, the season, what's on sale. I have a lot of foods (and you can probably name them if you've been reading the blog!) that I just love. I really love the sweet/savory combo so when we're doing something like collard greens we try to think of sweet things to go with them (dried cherries) or when doing something like last night's black-eyed peas we think about what we have on hand (bok choy) and what we're craving (mushrooms) and voila! My best advice would be to take a basic recipe – spaghetti sauce for example – and think about what you really love that would go well with it. Goat's cheese? Kalamata olives? Baby spinach? Fresh rosemary? A little cocoa powder!? There are very few things in the kitchen that I wouldn't mix (citrus and dairy I don't find very appealing) but just think about what you like and what's at the grocery store and on sale at the moment! And certainly listen to your cravings (for healthy things at least 🙂 )
Kath
the husband says
RE: Peanut butter
I'll take the risk on the organic peanut butter because the toxin might not be in every jar, but one thing that's definitely in every jar of non-organic is TRANS-FATS!!!! What's it gonna take for people to start taking these seriously?
RE: Our recipes
My best advice to any cook is to move beyond recipes (except when baking). There's nothing more liberating to have the confidence to deviate from a recipe and be fairly certain it will come out fine. Kath and I have pretty much grown tired of "cookbooks" because most are not very instructive, and most "recipes" are just collections of ingredients. You could probably figure out the method yourself. Teach yourself how to cook and the recipes will become obsolete.
And if you want the best actual "cookbook" out there, it's Alton Brown's I'm Just Here For The Food, Food + Heat = Cooking It's broken down into cooking methods – searing, roasting, grilling, frying, water, etc. In fact, Kath needs to add that to the "required reading" section!
Libby says
To the husband: I think it's especially *organic* peanut butter that's high in the cancer-causing toxin; *natural* peanut butter (ie, just ground nuts) doesn't have to be organic, and in fact, it's healthier if it's not. Just one of those weird twists of healthy eating! In the case of peanut butter, adding trans fat=bad (as in Skippy), but adding pesticides=good because they kill the cancer-causing mold. (The aflatoxin doesn't grow on almonds, so interspersing almond butter for peanut butter is a good idea.)
Laura says
I found this helpful link for all the people who try to have healthier diet.It's called 100 smartest diet tips ever. Check it out http://health.yahoo.com/weightloss-motivation/100…
Karen says
Re: The natural peanut butter concerns – based on what I have read, I agree with the husband.
The risk of contamination from natural PB is exceedingly low and the harm caused by eating trans fats is exceedingly high. As an alternative, almond butter is fantastic…I actually like the more mild/less sharp flavor better and it is also lower in saturated fat. Give it a try!
Courtney B says
Hi Kath! You really do such a wonderful job with your blog, I enjoy reading it every day. Thank you! I just have a general question about pasta–how many calories are in one cup of cooked penne (or any other type of noodle)? I don't have a food scale so I don't know how to accurately measure pasta, and I eat it A LOT! And I just started eating spaghetti squash (I also had it tonight!) and I love it! Thanks for everything!
Kath says
All this peanut butter talk is interesting, but I guess my thought is that if aflatoxin was really that prevalent no one would eat the stuff. So I guess I'm just willing to take the small risk. I do like almond butter but it's twice as expensive and since I eat peanut butter daily I don't know how feasible it is to be going through almond butter twice as much. I will keep all this in mind though and if almond butter goes on sale (as it does from time to time) I'll put it in the cart instead for a change!
Laura,
Thanks for the link!! There were some great ideas in there. I'll finish reading them at work today 🙂
Countney,
Thanks for reading the blog! According to CalorieKing's database, 1 cup of cooked whole wheat elbow macaroni is 174 kcal. This would probably change slightly for bigger pasta shapes, but I think you can generally assume it's just under 2 oz.
Kath
Karen says
Regarding the cost of almond butter: Kath – I share your annoyance that it is quite expensive relative to PB. But, it does make sense…almonds (and walnuts) are more expensive nuts than peanuts, which are grown cheaply and in abundance. I have found that Trader Joe’s brand is comparably inexpensive and the flavor is consistently good. As I see it, a jar is approximately 8 dollars, which lasts me an entire month (2 tsp./ serving most days of the week.) I like the nutritional composition (minimal saturated fat) and the taste better than PB. Also, I think I just got tired of eating natural PB bec. I ate so much as a child growing up in very health-concious household!
Karen says
I wanted to share a tip with those of you who have not yet purchased a food scale, but are considering doing so. I bought a smaller, basic model Salter at Williams and Sanoma a few years ago, and although I love the compact-ness and sleekness of it, the downside is that it has a maximum capacity of 5 pounds. This limitation is not an issue for ordinary daily weighing of single servings of nuts, grains, dried fruit, etc., but it is a bit cumbersome when I want to make a recipe, i.e. several servings. For example, I cannot just plop a gigantic squash on my scale, as can Kath…just something to think about when selecting a scale.