Home Bodies: Cooking at Home Saves Calories and Money
Healthy Recipes

by Gay Riley, MS, RD, CCN
NetNutritionist.com

Dining out has become a way of life in America. Americans eat from two to 21 meals away from home each week (that’s 104-1,092 meals a year). We have become a sedentary, impatient society. We have more food choices than ever before, and convenience food is available to us 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Physical laziness, television, and restaurant foods have made Americans one of the fattest nationalities.

Most people eat about 10 of the same foods on a regular basis. You can save 20 percent or more in fat calories by preparing those 10 foods at home with low-fat ingredients rather than eating at a restaurant. Restaurants add fat for flavor, satisfaction (fat satiates mind and body), and as a cheap stabilizer. Foods on buffets and steam tables are often loaded with fat to keep them fresh longer.

Preparing food at home has many advantages.

• You can save money.

• You control the sugar, fat and salt.

• You burn calories because preparation requires exertion. Even for a quick meal, you must shop, prepare and clean up.

• You can relieve stress.

Keeping healthy, delicious foods close at hand is a good way to lower your risk of impulse eating. If you come home from work and there’s nothing to eat, you’ll probably opt for fast food or home delivery. However, if you have ground turkey breast, nonfat cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, red bell pepper, onions and taco seasonings, you can make a low-fat taco salad in just a few minutes.

How long does it take to steam some broccoli and cheese in your microwave? Compare the fat savings of a quick meal at home versus a fast-food version. For example, in a fast-food taco salad, there are 905 calories with 61 percent of those calories from fat. However, a homemade taco salad with two ounces of chips is 532 calories and just 17 percent fat.

Try the following recipes for quick and tasty dishes. Make a file of favorite low-fat foods, and when you grocery shop, make sure to buy the ingredients to have on hand.

BREAKFAST PUDDING

2 cups nonfat vanilla yogurt
1 cup raw rolled oats or muesli
1 cup fresh fruit (cherries, blueberries, peaches)

Mix well and chill. Serve with a slice of whole grain toast.  4 servings. Serving size: 1 cup

Per serving: 240 calories, 2 gm fat, 15 gm protein, 47 gm carbohydrates, 8 percent fat

QUICK POTATO SOUP

1 bag Simply Potatoes (chopped, no onions)
1 bag Simply Potatoes (shredded, no onions)
3-4 cups broth
½ cup chopped or grated carrots
2 oz. chopped turkey-ham
¼ cup milk (1/2% or 1%) to thicken, if desired
Coarse ground pepper (to taste)
Nonfat cheddar cheese (optional)
Scallions (for garnish)

Bring potatoes and broth to boil in a soup pot. Add carrots and stir on medium high until soup begins to thicken. Add turkey ham. Add milk to thicken. Season with pepper. If desired, top with cheese and heat in microwave to melt topping. 6 servings. 

Per serving: 120 calories, 6 gm protein, 20 gm carbohydrates, 2 gm fat

BEAN BURRITOS

16 oz black beans (cooked or canned)
4 low-fat, large whole-grain tortillas
½ cup chunky salsa
½ cup chopped tomatoes
2-oz low fat or nonfat shredded cheddar cheese
4 Tbsp. nonfat sour cream

Fill each tortilla with ½ cup beans, 2 tablespoons salsa, 2 tablespoons tomatoes. Sprinkle with ½ ounce of cheese and 1 tablespoon sour cream. Roll up and microwave for 40 seconds. Serve with a salad.  Serving size: 2 burritos.  2 servings.

Per serving: 492 calories, 5 gm fat, 21 gm protein, 90 gm carbohydrate, 9 percent fat

PARTY PIZZA

1 low-fat ready-made pizza crust (9-inch round), Afghan bread or pita bread
1 cup low-fat spaghetti sauce
½ pound mixed vegetables (broccoli, pepper, mushrooms, onions, frozen or fresh)
4 ounces turkey-ham, chopped or thinly sliced
¼ cup grated nonfat cheddar cheese
¼ cup grated low-fat mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook vegetables until tender. Spread spaghetti sauce over pizza crust. Layer vegetables and turkey over sauce. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 20 minutes. 6 servings

Per serving: 331 calories, 5 gm fat, 16 gm protein, 56 gm carbohydrates, 14 percent fat

APPLE DUMPLING

1 apple (Red or Golden Delicious)
2 tablespoons lite syrup or sweetener
2 tablespoons apple juice
1 tablespoon water
½ teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons rolled oats or muesli cereal (or instant apple oatmeal)
Cinnamon
Butter flavoring
2 tablespoons vanilla nonfat yogurt (optional)

Core apple and place in microwave-safe bowl. In a separate bowl, combine liquids, then add oatmeal. Stuff mixture into apple and sprinkle with cinnamon. Microwave on high for 4-6 minutes. Sprinkle with artificial butter. Top with yogurt. 1 serving.

Per serving: 293 calories, 1.5 gm fat, 5 gm protein, 67 gm carbohydrates, 5 percent fat

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