For those of you who celebrate Easter another food holiday is over and for those celebrating Passover you are still in the midst! So what do you do when there is a day you just can’t control? Maybe you are scheduled to go to several different places and expected to have a full meal, dessert and candy at each one. How can you approach a day like that and feel good at the end of it?

There are a few ways to approach this type of situation, some of which I wrote about in December. Step #1 – Try to keep up your normal eating habits and routines as much as possible. Step #2 – Keep portions of high calorie foods small. Step #3 – Pass on those things that are not really “worth it” to you. Step #4 – Spend time with family and friends doing special things together. If you do a little planning ahead of time, you will be prepared when temptation hits. What do you when things haven’t gone according to plan and you realize that you are overdoing it? OR when you realize on your way home that you have overdone it and you feel a little ill…. Don’t panic, follow these steps instead!

Step #1 – Don’t beat yourself up! We are all human and things happen. Put what you have already done in the past and move forward. A lot of us “fall off the wagon” from time to time but that doesn’t mean you should just give up. Say to yourself “Wow, today was crazy, but tomorrow will be back to normal!” One day isn’t going to be your downfall, it’s what you do on the other 364 days that really make a difference.

Step #2 – Move forward in a positive way. One day (or one meal or one hour) of irrational eating doesn’t have to undo all of your typical healthy eating behaviors! If you had a bunch of candy after breakfast, make sure you give yourself a healthy and satisfying lunch. If you had a big lunch at your mother’s and then a dessert buffet at your in-law’s like I did (I’m totally serious, just dessert and candy; lots of fun!). Just make sure your next meal is a good one.

Step #3 – Take some time to really evaluate what happened. How were you feeling when you overate? Were you feeling some anxiety or stress because of family dynamics? How did you feel afterwards? Evaluate your physical sensations (bloating, discomfort at being over-full, head-aches, and sluggishness) then compare those feelings to the way you feel when you are eating a more balanced diet. Being able to really assess what happened and why, as well as how it made you feel afterwards can be very helpful in making sure that history won’t repeat itself!

The spoils of Easter at my house

A friend and self described “horrible eater” asked me for some advice the other day. In his words he “eats like a college guy” and subsists mostly on fast food and the only vegetables he eats are the incidental ones that show up on his Big Macs. He needs to lose weight for health reasons and wanted me to help him figure out what to eat at various fast food establishments nearby. Since I love a challenge (and I really want to help my friend) I spent quite a bit of time going over the nutrition information for fast food menus… it really wasn’t pretty!

Right now I can almost hear some of your thoughts: “There are healthy options at some places! What about Subway?” “I thought McDonald’s and Burger King added some healthy options, they even have apple slices, right?” Well, I’ll tell you what bothered me the most. Sodium. Almost every single menu item I came across was loaded with sodium. As you already know from reading my post about Sea Salt, American’s consume way too much sodium. The recommended upper limit is 2300 mg and for some people the recommendation is even lower at 1500mg. High intake of sodium can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke. Where does all of this sodium come from? Processed and prepared foods like fast food and pre-packaged “convenience” foods in the grocery store are full of it.

So, what did I recommend to my friend? Well, since his number one goal is for weight loss and he says he will eat fast food no matter what, I gave him some choices that are lower in calories from several menus. We also talked about going down the street to the supermarket to find some quick options that might be better choices there, and also adding just one piece of fruit a day to his diet (as a start). What were the best choices for fast food? They included apple slices, yogurt parfait, and oatmeal, all of which you can buy for less at your supermarket and have on hand at home or in your office. Having some easy options on hand will not only be more healthy, it will be less expensive and faster! Very often healthy eating comes down to planning ahead which can be a challenge to all of us. Taking a few minutes once a week to plan ahead can really pay off.

This week I encourage you all to check out the nutrition information for some your local eateries, then ask yourself if it’s worth it. Knowledge is power!

A snippet of the nutrition information posted for a sandwich.

April Fools!

Well, not really…. A few months ago I started developing a recipe for breakfast cookies after hearing about one that Ellie Krieger made. I couldn’t leave well enough alone and altered it quite a bit (and I’m still working on variations). That recipe includes pureed white beans, pumpkin, old fashioned oats, walnuts, and any variety of apples and raisins or dried cherries and chocolate chips or mashed bananas…. They are packed with real food nutrients like fiber and protein from whole grains, vegetables, fruit and nuts. I don’t usually post recipes, but maybe I’ll post this one (if there is interest) when I finally get it perfected.

In the meantime I’m going to post a recipe for some other cookies that I don’t call breakfast cookies per se, but if you paired one with a piece of fruit and a cup of milk they would be a good choice! I got the original inspiration for this on another blog and now I can’t remember where. Even though I can’t give the credit, at least you should know that it wasn’t originally my idea – full disclosure!

Simple Peanut Butter Cookies

• One 15.5 oz can of Chick Peas, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/2 cups pitted Dates (about 20)
• 2/3 cup Peanut Butter
• 1/2 cup Skim Milk
• 1 large Egg
• 1/2 cup Dark Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 375° (or 350° Convection). Grind chickpeas and dates in the food processor until well chopped. Add peanut butter, milk and egg and process until smooth. You cannot over process this, make sure the mixture gets really smooth! Scoop out into a separate bowl and stir in chocolate chips. Scoop onto golf-ball sized portions onto parchment covered cookie sheets. Tap the pan on the counter to spread the batter a little. Bake for about 15-17 minutes. Each one has about 140 Calories, 20g Carbohydrate, 4g Protein, 3g Fiber.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

I’ve also made a different variation on this recipe.

Peanut Butter Brownie Cookies

• One 15.5 oz can of Chick Peas, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/2 cups pitted Dates (about 20)
• 2/3 cup Peanut Butter
• 1/2 cup Skim Milk
• 1 large Egg
• 1/3 cup Cocoa Powder

Preheat oven to 375° (or 350° Convection). Grind chickpeas and dates in the food processor until well chopped. Add peanut butter, milk and egg and process until smooth. You cannot over process this, make sure the mixture gets really smooth! Add in Cocoa Powder and process until smooth. Scoop onto golf-ball sized portions onto parchment covered cookie sheets. Tap the pan on the counter to spread the batter a little. Bake for about 15-17 minutes. Each one has about 120 Calories, 18g Carbohydrates, 4g Protein and 3g Fiber.

Unbaked Brownie Cookies

Baked Brownie Cookies

Enjoy!