2 ounces pepperoni
260 calories, 24 grams fat
vs.
2 ounces veggie pepperoni
80 calories
0 grams fat
2 ounces shrimp
60 calories
1 gram fat
TOTAL
140 calories
1 gram fat
THE DISH ON DIPS
This may look like a choice between different kinds of dips, but it’s also a choice between different kinds of fat. On the top are two dips with the kind of fat that can raise your cholesterol and your risk of diabetes—trans fat in the ranch dip and saturated fat in the blue cheese dip. On the bottom are two dips that can actually help prevent diabetes; both the hummus and the guacamole contain monounsaturated fat, one of the good fats. But that’s not all. The ingredients in all the dips on the bottom are from the Beat Diabetes Pyramid—chickpeas and sesame tahini in the hummus and avocado in the guacamole—so you’re actually fighting diabetes when you dip into them.
Blue cheese dip (2 tablespoons)
160 calories
14 grams fat
Ranch dip (2 tablespoons)
172 calories
9 grams fat
TOTAL
332 calories
23 grams fat
23 grams bad fat = 4 ½ pats butter
vs.
8 grams good fat = 1 ½ teaspoons oil
Hummus (2 tablespoons)
52 calories
3 grams fat
Guacamole (2 tablespoons)
55 calories
5 grams fat
TOTAL
107 calories
8 grams fat
IT’S YOUR PARTY!
Party mixes are hard to resist. Fail to resist the Chex Mix on the left, and you’re taking in 242 calories and nearly 10 grams of fat. Yield to the soy crisps on the right, however, and you minimize your calorie and fat cost and give yourself the diabetes-fighting power of soy protein.
1 1/3 cups Chex Mix (2 ounces)
242 calories, 10 grams fat
vs.
1.3-ounce bag Glenny’s Soy Crisps
140 calories, 3 grams fat, 9 grams soy protein
EASY FIX
Crackers and cheese are an easy snack to prepare but very tough on your waistline and your health. Just check out the cost in fat grams and calories—mostly from refined carbohydrates—of these half dozen crackers with Swiss. The peanuts and olives snack is even easier to prepare, costs you about half the calories, contains healthy monounsaturated fat and adds the proactive power of fiber to your fight for weight loss and against diabetes.
6 Ritz crackers
105 calories
6 grams fat
0 grams fiber
3 ounces Swiss cheese
320 calories
24 grams fat
0 grams fiber
TOTAL
425 calories
30 grams fat
0 grams fiber
30 grams bad fat = 6 pats butter
vs.
4 grams good fat = 4 teaspoons oil
1-ounce peanuts in shell
160 calories
14 grams fat
2 grams fiber
15 large olives
70 calories
7 grams fat
2 grams fiber
TOTAL
230 calories
21 grams fat
4 grams fiber
EAT YOUR CALORIES, DON’T DRINK THEM
That’s always a good idea: get your calories in filling foods rather than in beverages that are an accompaniment to additional meal items. And as this demonstration dramatically shows, it would take four oranges to equal the calorie count of this one glass of orange juice. So clearly, you’re better off getting your orange taste by eating an orange rather than drinking its juice. But if you want your fruit taste in liquid form, try a tall, cool glass of a fruit-taste diet beverage—or any other diet beverage, for that matter.
16 fluid ounces orange juice
220 calories
=
16 fluid ounces Crystal Light
5 calories
4 oranges
215 calories
TOTAL
220 calories
PLACE YOUR ORDER
Even that nonfat venti-sized iced vanilla latte will cost you 240 calories, mostly in milk and sugar. Here’s a weight-loss and diabetes-fighting tip: instead order a venti iced coffee with sugar-free vanilla syrup, then add a small amount of milk. Total calorie count? A mere 20 calories—for the same taste sensation.
Nonfat venti iced vanilla latte
240 calories
vs.
Venti iced coffee with sugar-free vanilla syrup and 2 tablespoons whole milk
20 calories
SHAKE IT UP!
Get your healthy, natural yogurt or whey protein shake here! Naturally sweetened with natural honey! Well, all that natural so-called goodness will cost you 350 calories and a truckload of sugar. And the dairy you take in is no friend to your efforts to fight diabetes. Instead, make your shake with a soy protein powder, sweeten it with a low-calorie sweetener, and know that you have saved yourself 200 calories and are battling diabetes with soy, just about the strongest weapon there is against this killer disease.
Yogurt or whey protein shake sweetened with honey
350 calories, 69 grams sugar
17 teaspoons sugar
vs.
Soy protein shake with Splenda and ½ cup of strawberries
150 calories, 0 grams sugar
SIZE MATTERS
These three mini quiches stuffed with ham and cheese barely take the edge off your appetite. Yet for the same number of calories, you can enjoy this feast of crabmeat-filled tomatoes. The striking difference in the amount of food becomes even more striking when you see how much you’re saving in fat intake—and how much fiber and phytonutrients you’re gaining with the tomato-and-crabmeat appetizers.
3 ham-and-cheese mini quiches (3 ounces)
215 calories, 20 grams fat
20 grams bad fat = 4 pats butter
=
2 grams good fat = ½ teaspoon oil
10 plum tomatoes filled with 6 ounces crabmeat
215 calories, 2 grams fat
CREAMY GOLDEN SOUP
When what you crave is a creamy, golden-yellow soup, go for the one with the nutrition benefits and the calorie savings. This curried yellow split pea soup hits the spot when you’re in the mood for something smooth and rich, and it brings you the rewards of phytonutrients as well—without the high calorie count and saturated fat content of the cheese soup.
1 cup 4-cheese soup
470 calories, 45 grams fat
45 grams bad fat = 9 pats butter
vs.
2 grams good fat = ½ teaspoon oil
1 cup curried yellow split pea soup
150 calories, 2 grams fat, 4 grams fiber
A CROWDED PLATTER OF TASTE AND NUTRITION
Those lonely-looking cubes of cheese and pâté contain a whopping 375 calories and represent a pile of fat. Check out instead the crowded platter of elegant smoked salmon with cucumbers—at far fewer calories and less than a third of the fat. What’s more, the salmon offers a crowd of omega-3 benefits, and the cukes offer a few grams of fiber.
1½-ounce cube havarti cheese
170 calories
14 grams fat
1½-ounce cube liver pâté
205 calories
19 grams fat
TOTAL
375 calories
33 grams fat
33 grams bad fat = 6 ½ pats butter
vs.
8 grams good fat = 1 ½ teaspoons oil
4 ounces smoked salmon on 16 cucumber slices
180 calories, 8 grams fat
OOH LA LA!
The French have a word for it, of course. And that single cup of genuine French onion soup looks pretty petit next to those mountainous bowls of m
oules meunières—mussels steamed with herbs, shallots and wine. At about a quarter of the calories and less than half the fat, the three bowls of mussels are a much better deal than the onion soup—just as delicious and far better for you. Formidable!
1 cup French onion soup
450 calories, 34 grams fat
34 grams bad fat = 7 pats butter
vs.
9 grams good fat = 2 teaspoons oil
1 pound mussels cooked with wine, herbs and garlic
150 calories, 3 grams fat (x 3 = 450 calories, 9 grams fat)
A GREAT RECIPE FOR A HEALTHY SOUP
Here’s a recipe for a wonderful soup that is truly healthy and oh so satisfying.
COLD TOMATO AND AVOCADO SOUP
2 pounds ripe tomatoes
1 medium European or Kirby cucumber, peeled, halved and seeded
1 large garlic clove
¾ cup chilled tomato juice
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ ripe avocado, cut into
¼ -inch chunks
1½ tablespoons slivered fresh mint leaves
1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Place a tomato in the pan and boil for 30 seconds to loosen the skin. Cool under cold running water and slip off the skin. Repeat with the remaining tomatoes.
2. Core the tomatoes and cut into quarters. With your fingers, scrape out the tomato seeds and discard.
3. In a food processor or blender, working in batches if necessary, process the tomatoes, cucumber and garlic until very smooth. Place in a bowl and stir in the tomato juice, lemon juice, oil, salt and pepper. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour, or until ready to serve.
4. In a small bowl, gently combine the avocado and mint.
5. Ladle the soup into four serving bowls. Evenly divide the avocado mixture among the bowls.
Yield: 4 servings
Per serving: 140 calories, 8 grams fat
1 cup vichyssoise
320 calories, 29 grams fat
vs.
Cold Tomato and Avocado Soup
140 calories, 8 grams fat
SHRIMP FOR DINNER
Hungry for shrimp? Have a small cup of shrimp fried rice and take in 26 grams of the bad kind of fat. Or down two bowls of this soup with shrimp. The latter is a satisfying main course that gives you the added nutritional power of varied vegetables, the good kind of fat and exceptional Creole-style taste.
CREOLE-STYLE RED BEAN SOUP WITH SHRIMP
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 scallions, thinly sliced
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
2 cups vegetable broth
1 15½-ounce can red kidney beans
1 14-ounce can Italian-style tomatoes, chopped
½ teaspoon marjoram, crushed
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
12 ounces medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails left on
1. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the scallions, bell pepper and celery and cook, stirring frequently, for 4 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender, adding some of the broth, 1 tablespoon at a time, if the pan gets dry.
2. Stir in the beans with their liquid, tomatoes with their juice, marjoram, black pepper and the remaining broth. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until the flavors have blended.
3. Add the shrimp and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes, or until the shrimp are opaque.
Yield: 4 servings
Per serving: 210 calories, 5 grams fat
1 cup shrimp fried rice
420 calories, 26 grams fat
=
2 servings Creole-Style Red Bean Soup with Shrimp
420 calories
10 grams fat
MATCH POINT
Here comes the waiter with a tray of standard cocktail party pastry treats. And over there are three other cocktail party choices: shrimp with cocktail sauce, mouth-watering asparagus wrapped in veggie ham and grilled mushrooms in a black bean sauce. The food on all three groaning-board platters matches the calorie count of that modest tray of pastry hors d’oeuvres. But the savings in fat and the gain in nutrition from these seafood and vegetable delights are matchless.
2 ounces pastry-type hors d’oeuvres (pigs-in-blankets, cheese straws, spanikopita, etc.)
270 calories, 18 grams fat
18 grams bad fat = 3 ½ pats butter
=
4 ounces shrimp
with cocktail sauce
140 calories
2 grams fat
9 stalks marinated asparagus
wrapped in 3 slices veggie ham
80 calories
1 gram fat
6 grilled mushrooms
with 2 tablespoons black bean sauce
50 calories
1 gram fat
TOTAL
270 calories
4 grams fat
4 grams good fat = 1 teaspoon oil
ITALIAN FEAST
If you love the taste of Italian sausage and peppers, take a look at these two virtually identical platters. Same amount of food, same delicious taste. But now note the difference in calories and fat content. That’s where the resemblance ends.
4 ounces Italian sausage
382 calories
31 grams fat
1½ cups sautéed peppers
85 calories
3 grams fat
TOTAL
467 calories
34 grams fat
34 grams bad fat = 7 pats butter
vs.
4 ounces veggie Italian sausage
186 calories
9 grams fat
1½ cups sautéed peppers
85 calories
3 grams fat
TOTAL
271 calories
12 grams fat
12 grams good fat = 2 ½ teaspoons oil
DO THE MATH
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but even a Picture Perfect demo may not speak as eloquently as the numbers in this food comparison. On your left is a fairly uninteresting, only mildly appetizing meal of braised beef and plain white rice. On your right, a multicolored, multitaste, multitextured meal of foods right off the Beat Diabetes Pyramid: fish, fresh vegetables and yummy sautéed portobello mushrooms. Just check out the numbers: that small, dull dinner comes in at nearly three times the calorie count of the Pyramid meal and with nearly five times the fat.
34 grams bad fat = 7 pats butter
2 4-ounce slices braised beef brisket
600 calories
34 grams fat
2 cups plain white rice
440 calories
0 grams fat
TOTAL
1,040 calories
34 grams fat
vs.
7 grams good fat = 1 ½ teaspoons oil
6 ounces grilled fish (any white fish)
180 calories
2 grams fat
1 cup beans, peas and corn
160 calories
0 grams fat
1 cup sliced portobello mushrooms, sautéed
60 calories
5 grams fat
TOTAL
400 calories
7 grams fat
CHINESE CHOICES
Each of these three typical Chinese meals offers an appetizer from Column A and a main dish from Column B, but just look at the differences among them in calories and fat. Just about anyone interested in weight loss and diabetes prevention would eschew the first meal with its fried egg roll and high-fat meat choice. True, the middle choice saves you considerable calories and fat while adding some fiber and nutrition, but it’s still fairly high in refined carbohydrates. The final choice is all Pyramid. With vegetable wonton soup, full-flavored seafood
and mixed veggies in ginger sauce and healthful brown rice, it’s a complete and very tasty arsenal of weight-loss and diabetes-fighting weapons.
Egg roll
405 calories
19 grams fat
2 grams fiber
6 ounces orange beef
460 calories
24 grams fat
0 grams fiber
1 cup pork fried rice
440 calories
20 grams fat
1 gram fiber
TOTAL
1,305 calories
63 grams fat
3 grams fiber
63 grams bad fat = 12 ½ pats butter
vs.
4 steamed vegetable dumplings
240 calories
1 gram fat
2 grams fiber
6 ounces chicken, 2 cups Chinese vegetables in ginger sauce
400 calories
14 grams fat
10 grams fiber
1 cup steamed white rice
220 calories
0 grams fat
Eat & Beat Diabetes with Picture Perfect Weight Loss Page 13