More Simple Substitutions

I'm feeling a bit lazy tonight so this will be short. I have a huge sweet tooth....it's really gross and makes my cheek pooch out ;-). I'm generally not a fan of artificial sweeteners but after I realized how many calories I cut by using them in my tea I knew something had to give. I'm currently sampling various artificially sweetened products, usually substitutes for desserts. So far I've tried Hunt's Cherry Snack Pack. It's so-so by itself. I get a bitter taste in my mouth when I eat it plain but it's only 10 calories and 0 grams of fat. Eating with the dark chocolate is really good though (see yesterday's post about the Black Forrest Surprise). I've also tried a lite yogurt smoothie... same problem as the snack pack. Tonight I tried Breyer's Double Churn Lite Chocolate ice cream. It's half the fat and calories as regular ice cream with 100 calories and 3.5 grams of fat in a 1/2 cup serving.... of course I ate a full cup. It was very chocolatey, creamy, sweet, and left me with no bitter taste. I don't think it saves me very many calories and I don't chew very often, but when I chew gum now, it's sugar-free. I like Trident any flavor except their fruit mixes so far. It does taste a little bitter at first but wears off quickly. Still looking for your substitutions. Post a comment and I'll try to mention it on the main page. I'm working on having comments posted on the main page. Got any tips for that? Thanks for reading. Read more!

Simple Substitutions

Check out My Food Log to see how I incorporate these simple substitutions into menus. These substitutions allow me to not feel deprived. Not feeling deprived is important so that I don't gorge on "moment on the hips, forever on the hips" foods.

Splenda or Equal in my previously sugar sweetened tea. I don't like Sweet-N-Low because it tastes bitter to me. Splenda also tastes bitter to me if I use too little.... weird. This saves me about 400 calories per day as I drink alot of tea (too much in fact but that's another post).

Marinated mushrooms in place of meat. I still eat meat, but I can't afford the calories at every meal. I use a brand called Monterey. A serving of 'shrooms is "about 4". I slice them and add them to marina sauce, in salads, and in wraps. And 1 serving has only 10 calories and 0 grams of fat!

Hummus Dip instead of mayonnaise. I could use light mayo but it tastes weird to me. When I want to whet my palate and add a punch of flavor I use Hummus Dip. This is a little different than real hummus. It has fewer calories, less fat, and costs less. I've used this on wraps, with tuna, and with sandwich meats. I use a brand called Wild Garden. It costs less per ounce than other prepared hummus too. Each serving of 2 tablespoons has 35 calories and 2 grams of fat.

Nothing wrong with Lite Bread. It chews a little thicker but saves 40 or so calories from each 2 slice sandwich. I also like some lite yogurts, lite ice cream, lite dressing, and I almost forgot my favorite...Cabbot's Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese. Cabbot's has several varieties including 15% lite, 30% lite, and 50% lite. The latter is a little hard to cook with but the taste is all there.

Currently my favorite sub. I call it Black Forrest Delight. This is a semi-sub as I still use real chocolate. I use 1 serving of Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate. The sub here is Hunt's Sugar Free Cherry Snack Pack. I nibble at the chocolate so it melts in my mouth and follow with a small bite of cherry. It really takes the edge off when I'm having a decadent craving. Weighing in at 210 calories and 11 grams of fat, it's an acceptable solution for indulging.

Got any great substitutions? I'd love to hear about them. Read more!