Meet Your Daily Fiber Quota

These three easy-to-prepare tasty meals offer a total of three servings of whole grains, the daily recommendation for people with diabetes.

Breakfast
1/2 cup oatmeal made with 8 ounces skim milk
5 unsalted almonds
1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1 hard-boiled egg

Lunch
Whole wheat bread with 3 ounces grilled chicken breast, 1/2 cup chopped romaine lettuce, sliced tomatoes, 1/2 cucumber cliced, 1/4 cup chopped red cabbage
Dress sandwich with 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar and 1 Tbsp olive oil
1 orange

Dinner
3 ounces broiled salmon with juice of one lemon wedge
1/2 cup brown rice pilaf
1 cup steamed green beans
1/2 cup grapes

Natural Weight Loss Food: Avocado

Avocados are a famously fatty fruit.  The green fleshed avocado for a long time was thought of as the dieters nightmare, containing more fat and calories per pound than almost any other food.  But recent scientific research has discovered that avocados are actually loaded with "good" monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.  These types of fight though still relatively high in calories actually help lower cholesterol levels and decrease the risk of heart disease, which is the leading cause of death for Americans. 

The trick to buying avocados is determining the ripeness of the fruit.  The skin of a ripe, ready to eat avocado will give a little when you press it firmly.  If it is hard, the avocado is not ready.   If your thumb practically breaks through the skin, it is overripe.  To ripen a green avocado you can place it in a paper bag on the kitchen counter for a few days.  To speed up that process even more, toss in a ripe banana or apple.  These fruits give off ethylene gas, a natural ripening agent. 

Avocados have a tremendous amount of nutrients packed in one small little package.  They're loaded with dietary fiber, vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin E, potassium (60 percent more than bananas), magnesium and folate, and they contain absolutely no cholesterol or sodium.

The fat content of avocados is truly impressive. A medium-sized avocado contains 30 grams of fat -- as much as a quarter pound of beef.  But as we mentioned before, this is mostly "good" fat. Of the 4.5 grams of fat in each serving of avocado (7 percent of the daily allowance), 3.5 grams are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.


These unsaturated fats raise the body's levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) -- also known as "good" cholesterol -- and lower levels of low-density lipoprotein, the "bad" cholesterol that contributes to heart disease. For that reason, the American Heart Association recommends a diet that contains 30 percent of calories from healthy unsaturated fats like avocado.

When eaten in moderation, avocados can provide healthy fats for a balanced diet and contribute to long-term cardiovascular health.

Pumpkin Pie Bites from The Titanium Chef

I love baking during this time of the year because I can use pumpkin!  I know I could bake with it all year long but there is just something about chilly weather that makes baking with pumpkin perfect.  Try this delicious recipe from The Biggest Loser's chef Devin Alexander.  It contains healthy fruits, whole grains and natural sweeteners.  And another great bonus is that pumpkins are loaded with the cancer-fighting antioxidant beta carotene.  What could be better than that, a delicious dessert that will also help prevent cancer?!?  Try it out, you won't be disappointed!

Pumpkin Pie Bites
Serves 32

Butter-flavored cooking spray
3/4 cup whole-grain, crunchy, low-sugar cereal (like Kashi's Whole-Grain Nuggets)
2 T maple syrup
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
8 egg whites
1 15-oz (1 3/4 cups) solid pumpkin puree
3/4 cup agave nectar
2 T whole-wheat pastry Flour
2 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Coat and 11X7 glass or ceramic baking dish with cooking spray. 

Finely grind cereal in food processer.  Transfer to a small mixing bowl and stir in syrup and cinnamon.  Spoon into baking dish; spread evenly across bottom.  Bake for 7-9 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, lightly beat egg whites until they bubble very slightly.  Fold in pumpkin, agave nectar and flour until well-combined.  Stir in vanilla, pie spice, baking powder and salt and continue mixing until well combined.  Pour into baked crust, spreading in an even layer.  Bake 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out almost clean.  Cool on wire rack.

Cut 32 pumpkin "bites" (3 cuts along the width, 7 cups along the length).  Top each bit with 1 tsp whipped topping, if desired.

Nutrition per "bite": 94 calories; trace fat; trace saturated fat; 0mg cholesterol; 102mg sodium; 21g carbohydrates; 15g sugar; 2g fiber; 3g protein.

Agave nectar-made from the Mexican agave plant-is available at most supermarkets, but make sure to buy a brand that doesn't contain added high-fructose corn syrup.  If you have a local Sam's Club or Costco they have by far the best deals on agave. 

Peasant Stew from the Titanium Chef

Winter seems to be in full swing and all I want to eat is soup.  This soup has a lot of great flavors in it and is very low in calories and fat.  You can even make it healthier by making it vegetarian and leaving the chicken thighs out.  There are two kinds of beans in the soup so you will still get lots of great protein without the chicken.  This is a great crockpot recipe, try it out!

Peasant Stew
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
6 chicken thighs, skinned (about 1.5 pounds)
1 cup chopped onion
1 can Mexican style tomatoes
1 can diced green chiles
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup minced cilantro
1/4 cup low fat sour cream

Combine cumin, salt and pepper; sprinkle over chicken.  Throw chicken, onion, tomatoes, chiles and beans into crockpot and cook on high for 4-6 hours or on low for 8.  Check chicken to make sure it is cooked through. 
Place 1 chicken thigh each in 6 bowls.  Ladle 1 1/4 cups stew into each bowl.  Top with 2 tsp cilantro and 2 tsp sour cream. 

Grape Nuts Bars--from Jamie The Titanium Chef

Whether your are a Grape Nuts fan or not you will love these bars.  They are great for breakfast, for a snack and as a treat.  These bars do not have a lot of fat in them but are packed full or good fiber and protein with just the right amount of sweetness.  They also are incredibly easy to make...Give them a try!

Grape Nuts Bars
3/4 cup reduced fat peanut butter
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
4 cups Grape Nuts

Line a 9X13 pan with foil and spray.  Place first three ingredients in a microwave safe bowl.  Heat for 2 minutes, stirring after each minute, mixture should come to a boil.  Pour in Grape Nuts and stir to combine.  Dump mixture into pan and press down lightly to level out.  Allow to cool.  Lift foil to remove them from pan and cut into 30 squares.  Store in an airtight container or individually wrap in plastic. 

Feel Fuller on Fewer Calories #2

Your Best Food Choices

Changing lifestyle habits is never easy, and creating an eating plan using this concept is no exception. The first step is knowing which foods are best.

• Vegetables. Most vegetables--salad greens, asparagus, green beans, broccoli and zucchini, for example--are low in calories but high in volume.
• Fruits. Practically all types of fruit fit into a healthy diet. But some fruits are better than others. Whole fresh, frozen and canned fruits without added sugar are better options than fruit juices and dried fruits which are concentrated sources of natural sugar and therefore have a higher calorie content.
• Carbohydrates. Most carbohydrates are either grains or made from grains, such as cereal, rice, bread and pasta. The best type is whole grains because they're higher in fiber and other important nutrients. Examples include whole-wheat bread, whole-wheat pasta, oatmeal, brown rice and whole-grain cereal.
• Protein and dairy. These include food from both plant and animal sources. The best choices are foods that are high in protein but low in fat and calories, such as legumes (beans, peas and lentil, which are also good sources of fiber, fish, skinned white-meat poultry, fat-free dairy products and egg whites.

Eat sweets. and high-fat foods in moderation since many of these foods are high in calories but low in volume.