A Dumb Question re: Database Recipes

Options
scapez
scapez Posts: 2,018 Member
in Food and Nutrition
When I add a new recipe, I input all of the ingredients then I weigh the final product...if the final product weighs say, 600 ounces, and the total of the ingredients is say, 3000 calories, then I divide the total calories by the weight to get the calorie count per ounce.

Hope I explained that right. :ohwell:

So then how do I do this with pasta that is heavier cooked than it was dry? I understand that the calorie value hasn't changed, but will the increase in weight throw off my "formula"?

Replies

  • LuckyLeprechaun
    LuckyLeprechaun Posts: 6,296 Member
    Options
    You divide it by servings, not by weight.

    So you tell the recipe calculator how many portions you'll divide it up into, and the computer divides the total calorie count by that number of servings.
  • alasin1derland
    alasin1derland Posts: 575 Member
    Options
    what I did was weigh out a single serving dry, boiled and drained it, then weighed it again. That way I can cook pot for the whole family but I know how much one serving weighs after its boiled and weigh it onto my plate.
  • Xanne
    Xanne Posts: 27 Member
    Options
    I input all the ingredients and their calorie and nutrient amounts, then divide the completed recipe by volume (i.e., cups, TBSP. etc.) rather than weight. I think that makes determining your servings a little easier - especially since not everyone has a nice digital food scale, like I do.:smile:
  • AmandaInGA
    AmandaInGA Posts: 122 Member
    Options
    When I add a new recipe, I input all of the ingredients then I weigh the final product...if the final product weighs say, 600 ounces, and the total of the ingredients is say, 3000 calories, then I divide the total calories by the weight to get the calorie count per ounce.

    Hope I explained that right. :ohwell:

    So then how do I do this with pasta that is heavier cooked than it was dry? I understand that the calorie value hasn't changed, but will the increase in weight throw off my "formula"?

    2 oz of dry pasta equals 1 cup of cooked pasta... HTH
  • LuckyLeprechaun
    LuckyLeprechaun Posts: 6,296 Member
    Options
    When I enter a recipe, I say that it's one serving, and then I divide it up as I see fit when I put the number of portions in my diary.

    Example: I entered the recipe for chocolate krispy treats. I entered the recipe as one serving, so the recipe shows the calories for the whole tray of treats. When I slice them up, I cut them into 8 pieces, so I tell my diary that I had 1/8th, or 0.125 of a serving.

    I do it like this so that I don't have to alter the recipe in order to have a different portion size. So if I cut up the krispy treats smaller next time, it's only a matter of using a different portion size.


    I hope I made sense.........
  • scapez
    scapez Posts: 2,018 Member
    Options
    When I enter a recipe, I say that it's one serving, and then I divide it up as I see fit when I put the number of portions in my diary.

    Example: I entered the recipe for chocolate krispy treats. I entered the recipe as one serving, so the recipe shows the calories for the whole tray of treats. When I slice them up, I cut them into 8 pieces, so I tell my diary that I had 1/8th, or 0.125 of a serving.

    I do it like this so that I don't have to alter the recipe in order to have a different portion size. So if I cut up the krispy treats smaller next time, it's only a matter of using a different portion size.


    I hope I made sense.........

    That does make sense, and I think it work well for something like krispy treats. I like to weigh my finished recipe and figure out the cals per ounce, this way I don't have to modify the recipe and don't have to pre-determine a serving size...I can eat one ounce or 12 and still easily figure out how many calories I had.
  • slindsey137
    slindsey137 Posts: 214 Member
    Options
    I do mine by cups. After I finish cooking I measure how many cups it is (when I can, obviously not things like meat) I have nifty mixing bowls with cups measurements on the inside. I did just get an awesome new digital food scale though, so I might start doing it that way.
  • sandrakarinab
    sandrakarinab Posts: 32 Member
    Options
    Your formula won't be off. Total Calories in your recipe haven't changed with the addition of water.

    Calories per cooked ounce will be more accurate than serving size if you're like me, and change how much you eat depending on appetite and how many calories you can afford to stay with your daily allocation.
  • VanillaBeanSeed
    VanillaBeanSeed Posts: 562 Member
    Options
    My problem is, I cant always go through a whole pot of something and ladel it out one cup at a time and see how many cups are in the ENTIER thing, just so I can devide it by cups. Its just not always practical.

    Sometimes I measure everything in cups before I cook it and then devide by how many cups I used... but then things change when they cook.. liquid evaporates.. so this probably isnt accurate either?!

    Sometimes I measure everything in grams before it cooks.. will the overall grams change after things have been cooking and boiling away?!

    ARGGGGGGGGGGGGG

    And I hate to just say, ok, ill split into four portions... cuz I know I wont get them equal.

    HELP! haha
  • 126siany
    126siany Posts: 1,386 Member
    Options
    When I add a new recipe, I input all of the ingredients then I weigh the final product...if the final product weighs say, 600 ounces, and the total of the ingredients is say, 3000 calories, then I divide the total calories by the weight to get the calorie count per ounce.

    Hope I explained that right. :ohwell:

    So then how do I do this with pasta that is heavier cooked than it was dry? I understand that the calorie value hasn't changed, but will the increase in weight throw off my "formula"?

    2 oz of dry pasta equals 1 cup of cooked pasta... HTH

    Not always. Whole wheat pastas and high fiber pastas don't gain much volume at all in cooking. The shape of the pasta makes a difference. The amount of time you cook the pasta also makes a difference.

Categories