Meal Substitions

canadagirl79

Hi. As I am just starting back into this again after 4 or 5 years I am now in need of some suggestions or ideas from other people what you do or how you've substitued your meals and stuff. I will give you a break down of what our normal meals would be and maybe you guys can offer some advice/suggestions.

spaghetti with garlic bread
porck chops with baked potato and peas/corn (canned)
Goulash
Pizza
hamburger helper
Hamburgers
sausages
steak w/potato or home made wedges

i think those are most of the foods that could be in our menu for a supper prior to the last week. I'm looking for any and all suggestions on how we may still be able to enjoy these foods, just with less cals. and maybe any suggestions on something we could eat in place of one of these...

thanks in advance

McFatterton

*whole wheat pasta instead of regular

*ground turkey or chicken breast instead of hamburger

*extra veggies in your goulash, spaghetti, EVERYTHING!

*broil your pork chops, steak, chicken instead of frying/sauteing in oil

Christie422

For the spaghetti you could substitute whole wheat pasta or spaghetti squash and you'd probably be better off making your own sauce instead of using jar sauce so you can control what goes in. I'd forget about the garlic bread. Sausages have a lot of fat, but maybe you could go with a turkey or chicken sausage instead. I'd forget about hamburger helper as well, anything that's prepackaged like that has a lot of sodium. I don't think there's anything wrong with homemade potato wedges as long as you're careful with how much salt/oil you use. Maybe just spritz them with some cooking spray or better yet use egg white and season them with a salt free seasoning. With everything you need to watch your portion sizes.

Personally I've gone through a lot of my recipes and cut back on calories where I can. For example I made greek chicken and potatoes yesterday, the recipe called for 1/2 of olive oil and I only used 3T. Couldn't even tell the difference and I cut out a lot of fat/calories. I got the meal down to just over 200 calories.

You can do it!

Emdog24

Try using spaghetti squash in place of regular pasta

Make your own pizzas with pitas, non fat or low fat cheese and load up with veggies (another bonus is that it's easy this way to make a personalized, portion controlled pizza)

If you're going to have potatoes, try sweet potatoes instead - great source of vitamin A and fiber

And instead of garlic bread with pasta (I usually try to only have 1 carb source per meal) try some slice zucchini baked with a little bit of olive oil, parmesan and garlic seasoning (I know i have a great recipe that i'll try to dig up for you!)

And try Breakfast for dinner every once in a while with egg white omelets - eggs whites are very low in calories and full of protein and you can load them up with veggies, a little bit of cheese and turkey bacon on the side (try jenny-o turkey bacon, much healthier than regular)

Hope these help!

ractayjon

spaghetti with garlic bread
porck chops with baked potato and peas/corn (canned)
Goulash
Pizza
hamburger helper
Hamburgers
sausages
steak w/potato or home made wedges

thanks in advance

My first reaction when I was reading these is that there are no vegetables.
Spag w/ garlic bread - switch to whole grain pasta, instead of sauce add veggies on top (tomatoes, broccoli, onions etc - you can stir fry these in a tiny amount of olive oil and garlic and put them on top of the pasta - the more veggies the better), skip the garlic bread and add some protein - maybe some grilled chicken. Pasta and bread are all carbs and although carbs are fine to eat any meal that is loaded one way wont be good for you in the long run.
Pork chop etc....make sure you grill or bake the chop (not fry) and the less "coating" the better - better off with some garlic and pepper then bread crumbs. Potato is fine just watch your portions and top it off with veggies rather then butter and sour cream.
goulash - again a pasta load - make your goulash with while grain pasta, ground chicken or turkey rather then beef and try to use fresh tomoatos and veggies rather then canned.
Pizza - use a whole wheat crust, skip the sauce and go for a light olive oil (its a good for you fat), top with small amoutn of cheese (if any) and load it with veggies and grilled chicken. Or ifyou really want suace choose a sauce that isnt highin sugar content and use sparingly
Hamburgers - change to ground turkey or chicken and skip the bun, put it on a whole grain wrap and add veggies
Hamburger helper - sausage - I would cut this out of your diet (mayeb rarely have it) and change your meal to chicken (baked or grilled) veggies, a salad with balsamic vinegar dressing...
Steak (choose a very lean cut of meat and grill rather then fry - but watch your red meat intake) with potato (see above suggestions on potato), maybe a rice (not white) and veggies.
good luck!!

mbrownks77

H! I'd love to have that zuchinni recipe also!

DrBorkBork

spaghetti with garlic bread-- use spaghetti squash instead of pasta, and make your own low sodium garlic bread
pork chops with baked potato and peas/corn (canned)-- eat chicken with cauliflower and sugar snap peas over rice (pork chops & baked potato becomes *drumroll* STIR FRY!)
Pizza-- make your own low sodium crust, and load that sucker up with 6" of veggies. YUM!
hamburger helper-- use ground turkey, it will help, and utilize some of the suggestions they make on the box (add mushrooms, tomatos, etc)
Hamburgers-- use turkey patties & oroweat buns
sausages-- too much sodium in these, sorry, cut back or eliminate

You can find low sodium bread recipes here:
http://www.lowsodiumcooking.com/free/Archive.htm

If you own a breadmaker, making your own bread & dough is a snap!

hmwth

Keep up the good work.

canadagirl79

thanks for all the suggestions everyone...it was a huge huge help...there's even something things that I think hubby may like....i completely forgot about adding chicken pieces to a pizza...we bought one of those at the grocery store a couple months back and fell absolutely in love with it it was so good. we will have to give it a try....the only veggies i really like are peppers and tomato..i'm such a picky eater. I know, i know..i should try more things especially when dieting, but trust me, i've tried all those other things before, and almost gagged lol

I will definately write these down...and if anyone has any home made recipes for things they make, i would definately love some....i need to to start filling my recipe box with good healthy meals and I sadly don't have any..

where would i find spaghetti squash?? i know i've seen cooks on tv, that actually make the spaghetti from the squash on set, but is it something that i can buy already made?

canadagirl79

darn, i completely forgot to add a couple other things we have.....

whenever the small whole chickens go sale, we buy one of those and will usually cook it on a Sunday in my crockpot...with boiled potatoes and rice gravy (white rice that cooks in with the chicken and then you add gravy browning)

and i will do a roast in there too.....i believe we still have one in the freezer......and we like spare ribs with chinese fried rice

as you guys can probably tell, our eating habbits are horrible LOL

DrBorkBork

You can find spaghetti squash in the produce section of your local grocer. It's not uncommon. If you don't find it there, try another store with a better produce department.

Cooking everything yourself will save you a ton of money. There are ways to make your favorite fast food at home, just look up the recipes online and find ways to make them healthier.

For the pizza, go with chicken & peppers. I hated olives & mushrooms, but they taste completely different on a homemade pizza. I will put tomatoes, bell peppers, olives, onions, mushrooms, and pineapple on mine. It's amazing! I see no reason to ever eat chain pizza again.

tanzmitpalmer

For the spag, I'd drop any cheese that you put on it, add grilled vegetables (buttloads of onions, mushrooms, and peppers), and just add more garlic to the sauce and add a salad so you can drop the extra bread. If you use beef in your spag, make sure it's 97/3. Or you can replace it with ground turkey, or some vegetarian crumbles.

Pork chops are just fine if they're trimmed and baked on a broiler pan. The occasional good ol' fashioned country fried pork chop is totally okay too, as a nommy treat. I'd trade out the canned veg for steamed, herbed veg (sooo much more flavour), and top the potatoe with fat free sour cream and chopped onions or broccoli.

Goulash sounds fine... I wouldn't change it. Pizza is just plain unchangeable (sticking with veggie pizzas would be a better option though). Ditch the hamburger helper altogether (I'd do lean meats with seasoned rice instead). For hamburgers, make sure you use 97/3, use a white cheese if you're a hardcore cheeseburger person, and trade in your usual sides for a nice leafy salad, or a baked potato.

Steak... just make sure it's nice and lean, and bake that mutha in a foil packet with salt and pepper, and a shot of tobasco. Or grill it if you can. Alternatively, you could by a lean roast and pop it in the oven with loads of potatoes, onions, celery, carrots, and serve it with a side of seasoned rice.

lisawest

Don't feel bad about your past food choices! My husband and I had very similar eating habits before we started. We started by making small changes and controlling our portion sizes. We measured EVERYTHING! We have since come up with some pretty good recipes that we like. Most of those recipes are adjustments to what we previously ate. Using chicken or fish instead of beef, fresh or frozen veggies instead of canned, and low/no sodium options when available are all some of the adjustments we've made. Here's a couple recipes we have that are pretty good.


Skillet enchiladas:
1 lb meat of choice, we like chicken or lean beef
1 can diced tomatoes (or about 2 cups of cooked diced tomatoes)
1 med can tomato sauce (or 2 sm cans, I haven't yet figured out how to make this myself, but working on it:laugh: )
1 can diced green peppers (or about 1/2 cup diced fresh peppers)
4 or 5 burrito size tortillas, cut into 1 inch squares
2 cups corn (frozen or fresh)
Enchilada seasoning (can be bought or you can make your own)

Brown meat in a skillet, drain if using beef. Add in tomato products, peppers and seasoning. Simmer for 5 minutes until bubbling slightly. Add in corn. Simmer another 5 minutes. Add in tortilla squares. Stir well. Serve with rice, fat free sour cream, shredded cheese, or salsa.

You can add brown rice into the skillet instead of the tortillas, but you will need to add water if you do this. We use low sodium options whenever possible. Walmart has begun offering low/no sodium canned tomato products.


Hamburger Pie
1lb lean ground beef or turkey
1 can tomato soup (again, I'm trying to learn how to make this myself, but so far none of it's been quite the same. Although tomato sauce seems to work alright also.)
2-3 cups frozen veggies of choice (green beans, corn, peas, mixed, your choice!)
1/4 cup diced onion
6 servings mashed potatoes (mashed sweet potatoes are good, also. Making either fresh is best. Go easy on the milk and butter! Sweet potatoes only need a little butter to make it happen.)

Brown and drain meat. Add in soup, veggies and onion. Heat 5-10 minutes. Separately, make the mashed potatoes. In a 1.5 or 2 quart casserole dish, put the meat mixture in the bottom. Carefully spoon the potatoes on top. (Don't "throw" them on! The meat will slosh out the opposite side!) This can be topped with shredded cheese. Either microwave 2-5 minutes, or put in a 350 oven for 5 minutes.

Both of these recipes are the "starting blocks." I may add extra veggies, switch things out for something I've been craving. Don't be afraid to try something out.

If you stick to about a 1 cup serving size on both of these, you will have plenty of leftovers so that you can have easy to enter lunches! If you would like other recipes, let me know!

Good luck!

mbrownks77

Hey Lisa! Those both sound awesome. Could you possibly write some of your faves down or email them to me? I'm so new at trying to ccok healthy that I've got no clue! LOL I think it's really cool that your hubby is doing this too! Wish mine would but it will never happen... Have a great weekend!

canadagirl79

would you believe i went to the grocery store and did not see any spaghetti squash OR ground Turkey...IT'S ALL HAMBURGER GRRRRRR :mad:

I must also add to that i am a sucker for nacho chips and salsa as well as plain chips with onion dip

lisawest

would you believe i went to the grocery store and did not see any spaghetti squash OR ground Turkey...IT'S ALL HAMBURGER GRRRRRR :mad:

I must also add to that i am a sucker for nacho chips and salsa as well as plain chips with onion dip

Fresh salsa. Mmmmmmm. You can make it yourself with a FRACTION (read NONE) of the sodium. You can find tons of recipes online. www.allrecipes.com is a good site for finding things!

I don't know what to tell you about the chips. Those are one of my weaknesses, too. Although I did eat salsa on my celery while I was pregnant with #2. I still like to eat it that way sometimes. Warning: celery does not tone down the salsa like the chips do!

Megan: I'll bring some to work next week!

canadagirl79

i am wondering what you guys use for cheese? i like to put a little bit in my salad, and things like that but aren't too sure which is the best way to go when it comes to cheese. also, every now and then as a treat on the weekend we like to buy some ingredients to make nachos....green and red pepper, tomato and hamburger...of course the hamburger has to go. ...would this still be something we could do with lots of veggies and low fat cheese or something?

Sunsh1ne

- use whole wheat pasta, and add extra vegetables to the sauce - a can of diced tomatoes, some shredded carrot, fresh onions. For the garlic bread, get some ready-made bread dough, like the canned pillsbury stuff. Flatten the dough into a big rectangle or oval, and spread it with 3-4 tablespoons of melted butter mixed with garlic and any other seasonings you like on your garlic bread. starting on one of the long sides, roll it up, pinch the ends and edge to seal it, and bake according to package instructions.

- Add extra veggies to the goulash, and less potatoes and meat.

- Use skim milk moz on your pizza, and again, add extra veggies.

- Add frozen peas to the hamburger helper and use ground lean turkey instead of beef, or scrap the box and do frozen vegetables and ground turkey stir-fry. If you want a little flavor, add 2 T black bean garlic sauce and 1/2 c water to dilute, and stir it around until the water cooks off and everything is lightly coated with sauce.

- Try some hamburger alternatives and find out what you like - turkey patties, chicken patties, and there are some really good veggie burgers out there, in tons of flavors. Or try halving the recipe and making sliders, so there's more room on the plate for vegetables.

- look for lean sausages, and look for lean preparations - poaching instead of frying, for example. Vegetables. I can't say it enough, vegetables.

- With the steak and pork chops, try substituting sweet potato for regular potato. When you do mashed potatoes, try mixing in turnips or parsnips, which are lower in calories, higher in vitamins, and still pretty mild-tasting.

DrBorkBork

Check out Garden of Eatin blue corn chips. They are low cal and super low sodium!
Check the frozen section for the ground turkey. They come in tubes (at least ours do)

Would love that recipe for homemade salsa! I'm a sucker for chips & salsa too.

I pretty much eliminated milk & cheese from my diet. The sodium in the cheese alone just isn't worth it. I have it on occasion, but not nearly as much as I used to.

lisawest

Would love that recipe for homemade salsa! I'm a sucker for chips & salsa too.

I generally just find one on www.allrecipes.com Search "fresh salsa." I usually look for one with NO cans involved!

Here are links to some I like:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Fresh-Salsa-2/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Fresh-Salsa-II/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Fresh-Salsa/Detail.aspx

rinren84

I made mini pizzas when i really want something "pizza like" but just don't have the calories left in the day... I bake them on a cookie sheet covered with foil (less clean up) at 425 degrees for about 25 minutes.

Whole wheat tortilla sprayed with pam
Diced tomatoes from a can (the fire roasted ones are also really good)
Those grilled chicken shortcuts from tyson or perdue by the meat dept or salad dept
fresh spinach (just lay the leaves right under the cheese and they will shrivel up)
dash red pepper flakes or maybe some italian seasoning, garlic powder, etc
and Feta cheese crumbles (they pack a bigger taste punch when using less)

So yummy!

rinren84

would you believe i went to the grocery store and did not see any spaghetti squash OR ground Turkey...IT'S ALL HAMBURGER GRRRRRR :mad:

I must also add to that i am a sucker for nacho chips and salsa as well as plain chips with onion dip

I always find my ground turkey in the freezer section in rolls (like sausage) near the frozen ravioli. it's cheaper than the fresh stuff you get in the meat department. I know they carry it at Aldi if you have one of those.