Healthy Italian?

awyler

I'm going out to dinner this week for Italian. What is a healthy choice? It's pasta, cheese, bread, sauce... bad bad bad! Any suggestions? Thanks! )

sweetbn

A red sauce without meat will save you a ton of calories and fat over an alfredo... and penne vs. raviolis as well. I say limit the cheese, only eat half of what you order and good luck! Also if you can order sauce on the side and add it yourself you may find you eat less of it.

PS it is okay to cheat once in a while... maybe half a slice of bread won't hurt.

utes09

You can always ask if they have whole wheat pasta.

If they bring bread to the table you can ask them to not, or to ask your party to move it away from you.

Ask for sauce on the side (that way you can control how much goes on), substitute marinara for a cream sauce, vegetables steamed, no cheese.

Also you can ask for a to go box right when your meal comes out and already box up half of it for later, or see if they will do this prior.

Look over the menu before you go, if you can, and see what kind of options they have. Looked for grilled items, and you can always ask for things to be prepared without the butter or added sauce.

Hope this helps!

kayemme

drink a lot of water while you're eating; take small bites and enjoy every bit. that's how the italians do it.

xarrium

I agree with the take-out box idea... just pack up half your stuff right away and you can't overeat (and you get two meals from one). Not sure if they have salads where you're going, but a green salad with a vinaigrette is a very Italian thing, so maybe that restaurant will have a salad menu. (NOT Caesar salad, though... obviously.) If possible, try and get some kind of lean meat that isn't breaded and fried, the protein will help curb the appetite. If all else fails, just enjoy yourself--you might have to lose the battle to win the war!

sunnysmile

I saw on Bertucci's site you can eat a cheese calzone for about 650 calories, so stuff it with veggies, eat half and bring the rest home. Combine with a cup of soup and it's a doable idea, was for me and husband anyway, we split the calzone, no dangerous leftovers.

Otherwise, definintely pack some to go before you eat, pick your portion, could even be a third (by some italian restaurant portions)

good luck

dresdenkali

One of the things I do is try to plan around it. When we go out, I try to look up their nutritional information ahead of time and plan out my meal. Based on what I do there I plan the rest of my meals for the day around it without skipping a meal. I't surprisingly easy to figure out most of the time what you can get and stay with in your daily budget... some places are really harder than others.

funkyspunky871

Try looking up the nutritional value of the restaurant. You didn't say, but if you're going to Olive Garden (my fav, ), they have an entire light option menu.

Anyways, don't be afraid to ask for them to cook your meat with minimal oil. Ask for your meal without cheese and go for marinara sauce. :P

If all else fails, order what you want and put half of it up in a to-go box right away. Sometimes it's good to have a "cheat meal" of sorts. It might just help boost your weight loss.

bethinagain

Start off with a tomato/cumber salad, it's very filling and low on calories, most Italian restaurants serve it. Enjoy a cup on minestrone, it's pretty low on calories but high on sodium. By this time you should be pretty satisfied, so a nice broiled fish with veggies might work and they usually have it on the menu with a tomato/amoglio sauce.

If you don't like fish, then try any of the grilled chicken dishes that are prepared with sundried tomatoes or artichokes. Ask if they have anything that is served with rapini or swiss chard, that's usually a great dish or sometimes you can order a side of it instead of your everyday California mix veggies.

Enjoy the wine and stay away from the bread!!!:laugh: :drinker:

lutzsher

There should be some of the "typical" italian salads on the menu, a few are wonderful and quite low in calories. Fill up on that and then have a reasonable (smallish) portion of dinner . . . I actually don't like to bring home the leftovers as I then feel inclined to eat them. The old saying about kids starving in impovrished countries still rings in my ears (thanks Mom) but my shrinking waistline really does not mind wasting food I really shouldn't be eating anyway . . . . .

awyler

Thanks Ladies! I'm heading to the gym now so I can have some extra calories saved for later! Haha!

Michellerw1

Pasta prima vera with no sauce (maybe a little butter) is usually what I get. One place PACKS it with veggies, and I add a lil parmesan cheese.

Depending on what kind of italian restaurant it is, you may be able to get some broiled fish or chicken with greens.