Meals that you can't really quantify

m1311

What do you do when you don't really know how many calories are in something? I have eaten two meals lately that I didn't cook. Yesterday for Mom's day, I had a beet salad dressed with oil, and poached salmon, as well as mashed sweet potatoes and then some lemon meringue pie. I didn't weigh or measure the portions, so later I was trying for educated guesses. I do measure portions every couple of days on some food item, just to make sure that I am coming close to knowing amounts.

I'm doing my best to go through the lists, but sometimes the options for caloric value are so wildly different that I think it's not really valid to plug pieces into my diet. Today I had a hummus plate at a restaurant, and their pita bread was clearly oiled. I don't know what to guess for that!

Even if I were cooking everything myself, I'm not sure I'd want to figure out individual portions. Maybe I'm just being lazy, but then again, maybe some of you have figured out tricks I'm not thinking of.

MySweetPotato

you can measure portions by comparing them to objects. check this site out: http://www.foodnetwork.com/healthy-eating/10-ways-to-measure-perfect-portion-sizes/pictures/index.html

m1311

Thanks! That page is great for portions. I love the ping-pong ball for measuring peanut butter.

Now...what to do about when you get served something that you didn't make and you can't really go around asking how much honey and butter they put into the mashed sweet potatoes, for instance. Do you just aim high on a generic recipe?

susannamarie

If my mother made it, I aim high because I know it's full of butter.

If I was out somewhere, I aim middle-of-the-road. I don't want to end up ravenous later because I overestimated calories either.

m1311

If my mother made it, I aim high because I know it's full of butter.

If I was out somewhere, I aim middle-of-the-road. I don't want to end up ravenous later because I overestimated calories either.

I love it! In our house, if my mother is coming to dinner and my husband made it, it's full of butter and honey. We're trying to fatten her up!

Okay...I will start aiming in the middle. I actually got totally starving today because I got a fair amount of exercise. Suddenly I was hungry in a way I haven't been in a long time. Still I did try to stay hydrated, and I also tried to snack in advance. Didn't work.