Panera cookie 420 calories. Really?!

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Commitment2014
Commitment2014 Posts: 20
in Food and Nutrition
Hello! I had dinner at Panera today. I was fighting my sweet tooth urge until the cashier notified me that I had a free pastry available on my rewards card and that it was about to expire. I quickly glanced at the treats area and decided the candy cookie had to be the least in calories so I chose that.

Unfortunately I devoured the cookie before I entered it into my food log. I was astonished when I found out that it was 420 calories!! Big lesson learned today-determine the calories on uncertain items before I eat them! Honestly I would have only had half!

What are some foods/treats that shocked you when you found out their nutritional value? Do you still eat them?
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Replies

  • Jkowals123
    Jkowals123 Posts: 133 Member
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    Oils are a shocker as is butter! I think
    I used 300 + calories on oils the other
    day!
  • MrGonzo05
    MrGonzo05 Posts: 1,120 Member
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    Yes, because it is an unreasonably large cookie.
  • fattymcrunnerpants
    fattymcrunnerpants Posts: 311 Member
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    Odwalla shakes. And yes, I still drink them. Only instead of having a shake AND toast for breakfast, I just have the shake :D I don't like to deny myself anything so I either make the portion smaller or work them into my diet.
  • tonightokayalright
    tonightokayalright Posts: 289 Member
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    Store cookies are 4-5x the size of the ones I make at home. Although they look and taste reeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy good, I usually feel obligated to eat the whole thing.
  • LaurenAOK
    LaurenAOK Posts: 2,475 Member
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    Actually, cookies (specifically from Panera, too) were one of the biggest shockers for me as well. I mean, I'm not usually surprised when restaurant foods have crazy high calories, but I don't see how one little cookie can pack in so many calories! It's not just Panera, either - something about the way cookies are prepared must involve a lot of calories, cause I find them to be way "worse" than other desserts like brownies or cake. But that's what MFP is for - you learn what you're putting into your body, and then you can use that knowledge to make a better decision next time (or the same decision if you want - but at least you'll be informed about it!)
  • albertine58
    albertine58 Posts: 267 Member
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    At Panera locations in NYC the calorie counts are all right on the pastry labels in the case - and some are almost 700 calories!! Au Bon Pain's pastry case is even scarier. Even when I'm *not tracking*, I won't ever buy an 850-cal pecan roll. What is even in there?! They're not even THAT huge!
  • tatiianag13
    tatiianag13 Posts: 76 Member
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    Yeah. On one hand it is kind of sad. No amount of "balanced diet" is going to help you overcome 400-900 calorie "snacks." The bad news is that you really just have to cook (or go to artisanal places that charge more).

    On the other hand, its also kind of freeing. No *wonder* we're obese--its not just because we have no self control and keep stuffing our faces like hedonists, its because our factory-made food (and restaurant sized portions) are a killer. Its actually kind of comforting to me to know that its not that I can't ever eat desserts. I just can't eat over-sized, factory-produced desserts.
  • JourneyingJessica
    JourneyingJessica Posts: 261 Member
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    Cheesecake Factory has a cheesecake that is 1,200 cals/slice ... I almost cried when i saw that.
  • jdelisle
    jdelisle Posts: 1,050 Member
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    This is Canadian, but for me it was Boston Pizza's Crispy Chicken Pecan Salad. Granted the chicken is fried but it's a whopping 1,200 calories for just one salad!
  • the_great_unknown
    the_great_unknown Posts: 194 Member
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    Those cookies are shockingly high. I miss living in California where they had to post the calories for them. I was also shocked to discover the Costco food court ice cream bars that I used to share with my ex were 840 calories each. Each. Good thing I haven't had one in over five years.
  • MysteriousMerlin
    MysteriousMerlin Posts: 2,270 Member
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    This is Canadian, but for me it was Boston Pizza's Crispy Chicken Pecan Salad. Granted the chicken is fried but it's a whopping 1,200 calories for just one salad!

    YESSSSSS...restaurant salads shock the s4!t out of me.

    I was blown away by O'Charley's the other day. My husband had ordered the Chipotle Chicken Strips. It was a big portion, so he brought 2 of the strips home. I had them the next day, then logged them. The SODIUM...1694mg! In 2 strips! 2! My ENTIRE meal the night before wasn't even HALF that sodium. Not to mention the 2 strips were 415 calories... :huh:
  • MinimalistShoeAddict
    MinimalistShoeAddict Posts: 1,946 Member
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    Sounds like a delicious cookie to me!
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    Homemade and bakery-style cookies are very calorie-dense because of all the fat in them (butter, peanut butter, chocolate, etc., depending on the type of cookie). A typical chocolate chip cookie that you'd make at home from scratch will have 200 to 250 calories. And the cookies at bakeries, Panera, Starbucks, etc., are all considerably larger than a typical cookie you'd make at home. But the high volume of fat in these cookies is also why they taste so much better than the dry, crunchy Nabisco cookies at the grocery store.

    As someone who bakes a lot, I don't really see a huge difference in calories between brownies and cookies (if you're making them right, anyway ... I've seen a ton of brownies that are dry and practically gray because of the lack of fat and the poor quality of chocolate used in them, so they're probably lower in calories). Unfrosted cakes tend to be very similar in calories, as well. A simple glaze won't add much because it's all sugar, but a buttercream or cream cheese frosting will obviously add a fair amount of calories because of the fat content.
  • fbmandy55
    fbmandy55 Posts: 5,263 Member
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    Cookies from Potbelly, the amazing oatmeal chocolate chip ones, over 530 calories. The taste is SO worth it from time to time..
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    I once had a veggie burger from Ruby Tuesdays, a long time ago. It was over 1500 calories.
  • paniolo5
    paniolo5 Posts: 186 Member
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    Those cookies are shockingly high. I miss living in California where they had to post the calories for them. I was also shocked to discover the Costco food court ice cream bars that I used to share with my ex were 840 calories each. Each. Good thing I haven't had one in over five years.

    Oh goodness...didn't realize that. I haven't had one since I re-started MFP 2 months ago. Guess I won't ever have one again. Nothing is worth that (except maybe chocolate cake...)
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    um, you know that cookie is like the size of your face, right?
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    I once had a veggie burger from Ruby Tuesdays, a long time ago. It was over 1500 calories.

    That is shocking and unbelievable . . . you had a veggie burger when there was beef on the menu?
  • sylviatx
    sylviatx Posts: 156 Member
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    "No *wonder* we're obese--its not just because we have no self control and keep stuffing our faces like hedonists, its because our factory-made food (and restaurant sized portions) are a killer. Its actually kind of comforting to me to know that its not that I can't ever eat desserts. I just can't eat over-sized, factory-produced desserts."

    This.

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