fake grilled sandwich..confusing

coolstacey6

alright, I thought butter was bad. everyone says use olive oil...so I spread a tablespoon of olive oil on 2 slices of whole wheat bread, put some boars head roasted chicken in between and put in the pan to pretend I was having a grilled sandwich. Just wanted a crunchy sandwich. When I entered the olive oil in my food log just now...HOLY crap. I then looked up butter and it's less in calories AND fat. I thought I was doing good?? butter vs. olive oil??? what's up?

stringcheeze

alright, I thought butter was bad. everyone says use olive oil...so I spread a tablespoon of olive oil on 2 slices of whole wheat bread, put some boars head roasted chicken in between and put in the pan to pretend I was having a grilled sandwich. Just wanted a crunchy sandwich. When I entered the olive oil in my food log just now...HOLY crap. I then looked up butter and it's less in calories AND fat. I thought I was doing good?? butter vs. olive oil??? what's up?

Butter has higher percentages of saturated fat (bad fat), and cholesterol.

To compare:
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fats-and-oils/509/2
vs
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/dairy-and-egg-products/133/2

(put both on 14g servings)

Despite the calorie/fat difference, I choose olive oil every time.

P.S. cooking sprays might be the better, low fat, low cal way to go about, especially if you get a 100% kind (no other by-products). A second long spray on both pieces of bread will help to toast it in the same way as if you put 1/4tsp on each slice.

girlruns

The fat in olive oil is considered healthier, but the calories will be higher since the fat is higher (I think it is 9 calories per gram of fat?).

A couple of years ago I was working with a trainer who put me on a detox type plan where I could eat all the fruits and veggies I wanted, but if I cooked anything, I had to use real butter, not margarine--butter is natural and not full of the chemicals in margarine. I have kept that in mind ever since. I still use margarine (its so low calorie, it's hard to give it up) but I do keep butter on hand to use when I can.

xarrium

Butter has milk solids as well as fat (which is why when you melt it there's the nice clear yellow fat and the whitish milk solids), so it has less fat per unit than olive oil... calorie wise, it's "better", but olive oil has more "good fats"--monounsaturated, primarily--than butter. Butter is still better than most margarine brands (which usually have fewer calories than butter but also commonly have the evil trans fats). This is actually a great example of being mindful of more than just calories... what those calories come from is just as important as how many you eat. (Personally, I would recommend butter on bread/toast because a tablespoon of butter goes further than a tablespoon of oil on something that's absorbent, and it tastes better in my opinion.)

DancingDreamer

like other people have said the fat in olive oil is the kind of fat thats actually good for you while the fat in butter is the kind that is REALLY bad for you.

as a suggestion: have you tried using pam spray to fry your sammiches with? one spray (that covers an entire frying pan) is zero calories, and its canola oil.

also...you could always use margerine.

coolstacey6

Thanks you guys! That helped alot!

akninsas

When im craving a grilled cheese sandwich. I just toast my wheat bread in the toaster, put the slice of 2% cheese on it, then microwave it for 10 seconds for the cheese to melt. Its not exactly the same as a real grilled cheese, but its very close and you save a lot of calories.

jdier

I love using Bestlife Buttery Spread with Extra Virgin Olive Oil. It has 0 trans fats and no partially hydrogenated oils. I used to only use butter, but now I use this primarily.

ashlee954

This is why I always look up something BEFORE eating it. That is if I am anywhere near a computer. If I am out and unsure then I order what I know is low cal.

Vanessa1977

Natural vs Unnatural .... hmm, which one to choose, it's not always about the calories, sometimes you have to take into consideration the quality of the product you are putting into your body.

Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh cream. It consists of an emulsion of water and milk proteins in a matrix of fat, with over 80% being fat. It is used as a condiment and for cooking in much the same ways as vegetable oils or lard.

Butter is solid but soft at room temperature, and melts easily. Its color is generally pale yellow, but can vary from deep yellow to nearly white (butter is typically paler, for example, when dairy cattle feed on stored hay rather than fresh grass in the winter). In countries where cows are fed on pasture year-round (grass fed beef) butter does not change colour much.

Butter sold in United States markets is typically salted. Visitors from Europe should know that anything labeled "butter" in the U.S. is salted unless specified otherwise. Flavorings, colorings, and preservatives may also be added.

---

Olive oil is made from the pure juice of crushed olives, olive oil is a natural product which contains no additives or preservatives. It is high in monounsaturates, which means it may help to control cholesterol levels as part of a healthy balanced diet

Mindful_Trent

One thing: be careful when the cooking oil sprays say that they are "0 calorie" - in reality, their serving sizes are so small (usually 1/4 of a second of spray) that they are allowed to round down and say they have 0 calories. Since most people spray 1 or 2 seconds at a time (4 to 8 servings) you actually end up with what is definitely not "0 calories" - I'll use olive oil cooking spray and enter it as 1/4 of a teaspoon of olive oil or something like that, just so that I'm not underestimating the calories.

astridfeline

you could buy an oil sprayer/mister and fill it with whatever oil you prefer. here's an example:

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=oil+mister&wrapid=tlif12822377512942&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=11557949775952053388&ei=OWVtTPfkMIaEtgOgmo2iDg&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCYQ8wIwAA#

stringcheeze

When im craving a grilled cheese sandwich. I just toast my wheat bread in the toaster, put the slice of 2% cheese on it, then microwave it for 10 seconds for the cheese to melt. Its not exactly the same as a real grilled cheese, but its very close and you save a lot of calories.

I do this too, but only 'cause I'm too lazy to get out a fry pan. :laugh: