Healthy Eating

[SciFiFisher]

Do you know what this board needs? A thread about healthy eating. Tis the season of blatant consumerism, gluttony, and pie. And to be honest I truly do love Thanksgiving and Christmas. Except for the extra few pounds I always used to put on at this time of the year. For various reasons this year, I am changing my relationship with food. I want to eat healthily and enjoy my food more.

One of the things that is hard to replace in that category is mayonnaise. Seriously, have you tried tuna or chicken salad without mayo? And sandwiches? OK, you can add mustard. But, let's be honest. Mayo doesn't just taste good it cures a lot of the dryness issue with sandwiches and things like chicken salad.

I found an almost perfect recipe for a healthy version of chicken salad that has obvious implications for sandwiches, turkey leftovers, and tuna salad. It involves using plain greek yogurt and low-fat cottage cheese as the base for a mayo substitute. I am already thinking about ways I can use the greek yogurt alone or with low-fat cottage cheese to make sandwich spreads and etc.

Anyway, here is the recipe for a healthy version of Chicken Salad I found on Allrecipes dot com.

Their site is wonky at the moment because it's Gobbler and Pie day so everyone is looking for that recipe that will save their baked kale from disaster. If only they realized the fix is to throw it out.

Here is the recipe in case you hate clicking:
Healthy Chicken Salad

A protein-packed alternative to the normal chicken salad. This one is healthier, quick, and easy to make. I peeled my apple, personal preference, but feel free to add it unpeeled.
Prep:
15 mins
Total:
15 mins
Servings:
4
Yield:
4 servings
Healthy Chicken Salad
Ingredients

1 (6 ounce) container fat-free Greek yogurt (such as Fage®)
½ cup low-fat cottage cheese
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup diced apple
¼ cup sweetened dried cranberries (such as Craisins®)
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons chopped pecans
½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 ¼ cups cubed, cooked chicken
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Directions

Step 1
Combine Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, celery, apple, cranberries, onion, pecans, and Dijon mustard in a bowl; stir until well combined. Mix in chicken and season with salt and pepper.

Cook's Note:
You can use raisins instead of Craisins(R), if you prefer.
Nutrition Facts
Per Serving:
168 calories; protein 14.6g 29% DV; carbohydrates 12.9g 4% DV; fat 6.3g 10% DV; cholesterol 28.5mg 10% DV; sodium 247.6mg 10% DV.

[Rommie]

I confess I never liked American mayo much so that's not a particular pitfall for me. The fresh stuff with friets in the Netherlands though... damn I'm salivating already!

I've noticed for me half the trick is eating healthy isn't tough if you're willing to pay for it. Cheap and healthy is the difficult one. Did a farmer's market yesterday and F is super into brussels sprouts so got him some (lots of ranting on his side that people just don't like them because they don't cook them long enough- no, he doesn't even use bacon), and we incredibly have a local fishmonger here so got some fresh fish from them, but damn while fresh cod is amazing (I always thought I didn't like cod/haddock, turns out it just has to be fresh) it also costs like $24 for two so we're not much cheaper than if we went to a restaurant to eat out for tonight's healthy meal! I keep saying hey, we aren't dipping into a restaurant budget much lately, might as well give it to the fish guy!

Also, especially in pandemic world I'm honestly just not moving enough now that it's gotten cold/ dark at 4pm. We put in an order for some exercise equipment for the new house, but we won't probably see it until the new year as everyone has the same idea! I've been doing an extended lunch break lately where I can then do a long walk, but honestly, it's tough in winter.

[SciFiFisher]

Yes, being able to move more and eat less is particularly challenging this year.

[code monkey]

this is a group for me! I've recently hit a milestone in my pursuit of health (and smaller sizes) and i'm working on the next 10 lbs.

eat less and move more. you're a man after my own heart, fisher. that's the secret! and when I give that as the answer to 'how did you lose the weight?' i'm greeted with a skeptical look. oh right, I found the magic and i'm not sharing. i track calories and protein and write down everything that i eat.

I was struck by the realization that if something isn't in the house I can't eat it. therefore i'm careful about what I buy. i know that i'll do better with cookies wrapped in individual servings than a box of unwrapped cookies and so that's the only type i get. sometimes, just looking at the calorie count makes whatever i was considering lose its appeal.

as for exercise, unless one is working at the level of a world-class athlete in terms of time and intensity, it's not going to burn enough calories to take off a significant amount of weight. however, it is important. cardio, endorphins, muscle tone …

i used to go to the town pool every morning for water aerobics. when i felt that i wasn't getting enough cardio, i swapped out 2 days for Zumba. then everything closed down so it's now 4 days of Zumba on zoom and a mile walk on another day. i am no gym rat. in fact my favorite form of exercise is a good brisk sit. however, it's become part of my routine and that endorphin rush when the leader says that class is over is amazing.

i love deserts and was elated with the discovery of slim twin, halo top, scandal-less …

[Rommie]

Yes, the "if we don't buy it we don't eat it" thing has definitely been in full swing in our house this pandemic! I mean, I guess it held true pre-pandemic, but there were more diverse food sources than just the pantry way back when.

Also! Kinda excited about the new house because the closest little grocery stop, two blocks away, is a Greek grocer. They make their own grape leaves, hummus, tzatziki, etc. I'm like hey if the Mediterranean diet is supposed to be the best, and we can just adopt that by living next to a Greek grocer, I'm ok with that!

i love deserts and was elated with the discovery of slim twin, halo top, scandal-less …

Our favorites in this are the Dove minis. They're a mix of chocolate and vanilla in the box and chocolate covered, and our standard desert of one or two actually feels like a desert but doesn't cost much.

[SciFiFisher]

I am definitely on board with the idea of not having it means it doesn't add to my gut. I have also totally accepted another facet of this issue is sleep. If I don't get enough sleep I definitely eat more and worse. So... does anyone know how to rock an insomniac 10 year old to sleep without giving him a concussion?

[SciFiFisher]

I am definitely a sweet tooth person. I do find that smaller portions of really good desserts help. Halo top and etc are good options too. I look at a pint of that and go "Wow I can eat the entire thing and it is only about 320 calories!" Yes, CM I know the idea is to only eat 1/4 or 1/2 of the entire pint.

[Rommie]

Went to the Greek place the very first day, and guys this is something I can get behind. Amazing hummus and tzatziki and olives and all that! But I guess everything in moderation even there- they had more than a dozen kinds of feta, a Greek yogurt bar with half a dozen options (omg honey blueberry to die for), and 4 kinds of baklava alone. Curse you, Greeks!

[code monkey]

… Yes, CM I know the idea is to only eat 1/4 or 1/2 of the entire pint.

did I say that, fisher? no, I did not.

a pint is dinner.

[code monkey]

Went to the Greek place the very first day, and guys this is something I can get behind. Amazing hummus and tzatziki and olives and all that! But I guess everything in moderation even there- they had more than a dozen kinds of feta, a Greek yogurt bar with half a dozen options (omg honey blueberry to die for), and 4 kinds of baklava alone. Curse you, Greeks!

> a dozen kinds of feta?! a greek yogurt bar? (ok, my favorite is the plain, non-fat.) 4 kinds of baklava? - that makes up for the yogurt and feta! rommie, I am green with envy.

[SciFiFisher]

Went to the Greek place the very first day, and guys this is something I can get behind. Amazing hummus and tzatziki and olives and all that! But I guess everything in moderation even there- they had more than a dozen kinds of feta, a Greek yogurt bar with half a dozen options (omg honey blueberry to die for), and 4 kinds of baklava alone. Curse you, Greeks!

Baklava....

[SciFiFisher]

One of the things I have discovered is that plain greek yogurt makes a good substitute for anyplace you might use a dressing or mayo. I just made a version of egg salad that was made with greek yogurt instead of mayo. It was quite tasty. If you are a purist or you just love the taste of mayo this is NOT a mayo substitute. It is however a good way to replace the creamy texture that mayo brings. It helps keep things like egg yolks or white meat chicken or turkey from being too dry. With some seasonings you can really make it work.

[Rommie]

Yes, a few years back we substituted it for sour cream as most Hungarian recipes call for a healthy dose of that, not too much difference and allegedly healthier. I do draw the line if it's taco night though and use sour cream there.

As someone who isn't a fan of American mayo, I'll have to try it as a substitute there too now that I have a source!