Healthy Obsessions

7-11!

Okay, so this healthy obsession isn't 100% healthy, nutritionally speaking, but as far as convenience, products and variety, it's good! And, sometimes in the long run it's good for your wallet, mind and body.

I love the flavored coffees at 7-11. I wanted a blueberry one last week, but my bus was there, so I caught my bus instead of stopping in. Next time around, I just happened to miss the bus.

So, no blueberry coffee! At least, not this day. But, they had all these other flavors, Colombian, extra bold, french vanilla, Irish creme, and my pick, butter toffee! Basically, 7-11 has stepped up their coffee game. Better 7-11s have a pretty well stacked DIY beverage counter, complete with sugar substitute, reg sugar, turbinado sugar, skim milk, whole milk, half & half...I really could go on. It's great, lots of flavors, at a decent price, all at your customizing finger tips.

And that's not all. 7-11 has done the DIY to their snacks. They have their own line of snacks, 7-11 branded, with some odd name, I forget. But, they had these cute little mini-muffins. So, I could get a coffee, and a pack of muffins for under 5 bucks, and under 200 calories. They also have bananas, a good grab-n-go option, but their price is a little high IMO, unless you elect to get 2 for $1.

And, they had something else! Extra Dessert Sensation gum with a BOGO coupon! Which, is probably the most awesome gum ATM. Gum stimulates saliva, which contains all sorts of jazz, as well as decay fightin' minerals, so it may be very good for gum & teeth health. Also, the gum tastes pretty much like the dessert, so guilt free flavor in a nice portable medium. Except the strawberry, kind of a let down. Meh.

Thank heaven for 7-11.

Throw it in a bag!

Plastic zip-loc bags are a must. Again, not eco-friendly, but if you're trying to eat healthily but at work for hours, pressed for time or trying to dismantle a bomb, you may not have the time to cook a meal.

So, just throw it in a bag.

If you haven't read my entry about flavor building, shame! Read it! Basically, take the main components of a favorite high-calorie meal and transfer it to a lower-calorie dish. Then, put that dish in a bag.

I was talking with my Neg, and this idea came to me when I suggested she make her own granola. Basically, take a high protein bran-like cereal, freeze-dried or dried fruit, roasted lightly salted nuts, and a bit of spice for added flavor, and you've got portable granola. Kind of like making your own chex mix.

Salads are also easy tho throw in a bag, and you're not limited leaf based. I've bagged mixes using broccoli slaw and pasta. Rice could work as well. I also like squirting a bit of lemon (acid!!!) on my salads, fruit salads in particular. Lemon juice is an excellent alternative to salad dressing, doesn't add extra calories, adds vitamin C and keeps produce bright (retards oxidation)

Obviously, there are things you should avoid bagging: usually liquids, cut tomatoes, things that need heavy refrigeration. But, I've found that if I take a smaller bag or, tiny container, I can bag that stuff in my plastic bag. Things that need cold are often bagged with a mini-ice pack to keep them cold.

Trading Post Basics

Remember the Oregon trail?

Ahh, they days were you were supposed to be learning to type, word process or research, you were on the Oregon Trail, finding fruit with Indians (there were no Native Americans in 2-bit land) or caulking your wagon across the river and watching all your friends die of cholera and dysentery? Fun times!

Remember the very start of the game? Where you had to ration out supplies and goods? Basically, let's go back to that. This is a simple cash & calorie saving idea that EVERYONE can do, from chef to foodie.

Talk to the people that make your food. I went to the farmer's market in Jamaica last Friday, as well as the Friday before. I picked up yellow tomatoes, and some Crispin (a.k.a. Mutsus) apples to try out. I was also checking out some baby pears and local greens, but I passed on buying them.

I really dug the Crispins, so I went back. I'd spied the baby pears I from the week before and the farmer noticed this, and remembered me from that other Friday. Since I'd asked him questions and bought some goods before, he let me try the baby pears for free. He originally offered me one, but I ended up with four.

Now, before you run off to become BFFs with your local corner store guy, be mindfl that this won't happen each time. They need to sell their food to live, and stuff. However, I find that I get really good fruit when I talk to my produce guy. I have 2 regular ones I visit. They like that I actually buy stuff, that I often come back for more stuff, and that I tell people their stuff is good. In exchange, I get good, well priced seasonal fruit and monthly samples.

What's also cool about talking to the people is that you get it straight from the source. If you want something in particular, they'll be happy to tell you when they'll have it since you come back. You'll also be rationing out because you're buying what you need -- I love strawberries, but I won't buy 4-5 cartons if I can't take them home easily.

My main fruit man is on the corner of Parsons & Jamaica Avenue in Queens. I call him my little strawberry man because he once told me he only gets strawberries as sweet as him. To this day, I cannot get him to repeat that message to anyone else, because I used it once to help him with a sell. Heh.

Foodprint - Quickies

Eating well on the go is an art form. It's a shame that there aren't any medals or awards I could earn for it. I suppose health is the reward. Sigh.

Since obesity is common, healthful options are becoming common. There was a time when I'd asked for a dish steamed, and would get a look for the server that would lead you to believe that I asked for the heart of their firstborn. In Russian.

I don't get that look quite as often. I've also stop asking for people's firstborn, coincidentally.

• Fruit stands. These are the best option for healthful snacks, especially semi-portable ones like apples & bananas. For the less portable, toss a small Tupperware-like container in your purse to make the unportable portable. You could also invest in a fruit guard.

The banana one is very, interesting looking.

• Coffee & Tea. Basically, drinking this unsweetened, and piping hot can sometimes stave off hunger without adding calories to your day.

When it's hot out, I ditch the coffee or tea, sometimes the iced varieties have sugar blended in, and I get a low-cal Slurpee, Italian ice, or diet green tea Snapple. Things with citrus and ice refresh & cool you off. The feeling of "refreshment", that tart puckering citrus kind, can potentially keep you from gobbling excess calories.

• Steamed vegetables or vegetables with minimal prep. Chinese fast food places have steamers, that's often how they prepare your broccoli & brown sauce item, y'know, before they entrench it in the sauce. You can still have the sauce, just have it on the side. Other good items, broth based soup, plain baked potato, crudites & salad w/ dressing on side.

• Usually healthy food is considered to be boring or bland, but really good food is often made from the simplest, freshest ingredients. Sometimes, that's the healthier option for you. I went to a good-bye dinner where the menu was "french" inspired. I got a Cobb salad with side dressing, thinking it would be drab. It was actually one of the more delicious items I've had in a while because the egg was fresh -- the lettuce, tomato & ham -- all fresh and chopped & lined up soooo cute. It definitely had the "eat with your eyes" factor going for it.

• Lastly, Duane Reade. If you have to have something "junky" this is a good place to hit. Why? They sell a lot of single served items, spec K snack bars, baked lays, and my favorite Popchips. Some of the items, like big cookies, are not so great, but I find that Duane Reade also has a lot of gimmicky health foods, soy chips, 100-cal packs, that you could randomly sample for on the go snacking and could fit into a very well-balanced diet, when consumed in moderation.

I love Popchips. <3

Well, waiting are you waiting for? Go and go eat!