VitaTops

When I heard that Vitalicious, was offering free shipping with the Hungry Girl Explosion, I quickly entered my credit card information and purchased this deal. I have been reading numerous good things about Vitatops on the Weight Watchers message boards and was anxiously awaiting their arrival. When they came, I quickly tried one and was dissappointed. I thought that the Vitatops were dry. Although, my boyfriend who can afford to eat actual fat laced desserts thought that they were "not bad".

I will continue to eat them for breakfast and snacks, but I don't think that I will be reordering them. If they were cheaper then maybe I would continue to satisfy my chocolate cravings with Vitalicious products. I am hoping that this purchase will encourage and motivate me to bake my own reduced fat muffins and freeze them. I also have to note that my Double Chocolate DreamVitaTops do not have that many white chocolate chips.

If you are looking for something chocolatey for only 100 calories, 5-6 grams of fiber and under 2 grams of fat, but not moist, please try the VitaTops!

Salad Caprese Lunch

I am looking forward to my Salad Caprese Lunch with tiny mozzarella pearls. I love this salad so much that I am using two compartments for it. I am also having 1 cup of grapes and 1.5 servings of trail mix (from Trader Joe's). The trail mix is made of peanuts, dehydrated pineapple and cranberries, and white chocolate chips. The mix satisfies my sweet tooth and is quite filling.

(This lunch looks better in person. See the Salad Caprese Post for a better picture of the salad.)

Salad Caprese

Salad Caprese is my favorite salad. Fresh mozzarella, basil and balsamic vinegar is the perfect combination of flavor. Today, at Trader Joe's I discovered Perlini, which are tiny balls of fresh mozzarella. One serving is 28 "cheese pearls" and has only 60 calories and 4.5 grams of fat. Not bad for cheese. I made my Caprese Salad with two tomatoes, sprinkled with salt and pepper, fresh basil and balsamic vinegar. I never use olive oil in salad dressing anymore.

Tuna Fish

For lunch, I packed a tuna fish salad, cut into fourths. Mango slices, Yum! The GoLean bar was also delish. The bar tasted like a candy bar. However, it was the same about of calories and almost the same amount of fat as a candy bar too. It was 6 points. Next time, I will not be buying that.

Snacks vs. Treats

Recently, I read a small article on the difference between snacks and treats. The author stated that snacks are mini-meals and will provide nourishment. Treats will not meet those conditions and will therefore be less healthy, i.e. contain more sugar, etc.

I realized that I am definately giving myself more treats than snacks. Eventhough I pick my treats to be low-calorie and high in fiber, I still can do much better.

Take this lunch for instance:

Breakfast/Early Snack: 1/2 low-fat apple/cherry bran muffin (with coffee with sugar and creamer)
Lunch: Small turkey wrap sandwich with baked chips and kiwi
Late Afternoon Snack: Luna Bar

My goal is to replace my current treats with healthier snacks and move towards more nourishing foods.

Crystal Light + Fruit = Genius

Blending one half cup of frozen fruit with one serving of Crystal Light Lemonade is just short of divine. I experimented with cherries this weekend. Overall, lemonade blended with cherries is good, but needed a little sweetener (splenda or sugar). I prefer strawberries, but will keep branching out with other fruits. I can't wait to try mango!

Mexican Lasagna

I lightened up this vegetarian Mexican Lasagna for dinner. This casserole is full of fresh spinach, pinto beans, and salsa. I used low-fat corn tortillas and part-skim cheese. I reduced the amount cheese from two cups to one and half cups. This lightened "Lasagna" serves four at 350 calories each and 11 grams of fat. (I also omitted the cilantro, because I am not a fan of cilantro.)

If you are a fan of fat-free tortillas I would use those. Next time I make this, I am going to omit the cheese in the bottom layer.

This dish was satisfying and tasty. However, it was no substitute for my favorite spinach and cheese enchiladas.