cucumber seedless soaked over night in fat free italian dressing *wishbone*

i only snack on fruit

and sometimes coffee does the trick, no need to eat all the time

veronikka said:

I think they meant "edible" snacks

ernestsewell said:

Poiple said:

Either vanilla yogurt with raw almonds or cottage cheese with pineapple.

I buy the big things of vanilla yogurt too. For those who eat yogurt a lot, here's a good tip.

Get a sieve (mesh strainer), and put it in a bowl that is smaller than the sieve. You don't want the bottom of the sieve to touch the bowl. You want a couple/3 inches.

Put a paper towel in the sieve (you can also use a big piece of cheese cloth), and dump all the yogurt in it. Put it in the fridge, and let it drain for at least 4 hours. Go overnight if you can.

What this does is drain all that watery juice that sometimes comes to the top, out of the yogurt, leaving a thicker and creamier yogurt. Shockingly, when I first did this, and dumped my yogurt back into the regular container it came in, about 1/4 of the yogurt was gone. It was all that water in it! Amazing.

Toss the watery stuff that has been drained. Empty your yogurt back in its original container. Use it as you normally would after that. It makes for a lot creamier yogurt, and it's great for parfaits (nuts, and some sliced strawberries or peaches mixed with it).

You can also do this with sour cream to make it thicker. But any kind of yogurt you get, that comes in a bigger container for bulk use, can be drained like this. Really, it's pretty easy to leave it in the fridge overnight and let it do its thing. SO worth the effort.

Hey, that´s how people in Turkey and Greece ( and probably Bulgaria and other Balkan countries) like their yoghurt. This method is called "süzme".

Interesting. How and where did you discover this method? Or was it your own idea? I´ve never tried it with vanilla yoghurt though....have to try that out.

Usually, we use this method in order to achieve a very thick, creamy, but also very sour yoghurt for stuff like tzaziki.

[img:$uid]http://www.turkishcookbook.com/images/SuzmeYogurt.jpg[/img:$uid]

Lots of peanuts, watermelon, bananas, oat cereal without wheat, carrots, celery, lots of yoghurt, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, apples, kiwis, an occasional piece of cheese with some fruit or a glass of wine.

Genesia said:

chocolate1 said:

A crappy snack is not healthy.

Something like fruit or nuts isn't bad.

Small nibbles like that will make it less likely that you overeat at the next meal because you are so hungry.

Exactly.

When I have a snack (as when I eat an entire meal), I try to make it as whole and unprocessed as possible. I don't eat cereal (the phytates in unfermented or unsprouted grains aren't very good for you), dried fruit (too much concentrated sugar - fresh fruit is better) and I almost never drink juice (again, too much concentrated sugar).

I am not a fat-phobe and I do have hypoglycemia, in addition to being sensitive to phytic acid. So I tend to have nuts, peanut butter on sprouted grain toast, veggies with smoked salmon or smoked trout spread, or a few cubes of cheese. Whole milk yogurt with berries or a glass of whole milk work pretty well for me, too.

Phytic acid can deplete your system of iron and zinc. That´s why eating tons of unprocessed wheat cereal is actually very unhealthy. Oat is the only cereal that can be eaten raw.

I totally agree about juice containing too much sugar.....I have to dilute it before I drink it (50/50).

Are you allergic to phytic acid? And what are the things that you avoid, i.e what foods contain a lot of phytic acid?

[Edited 8/8/10 5:04am]

Banana chips.

KoolEaze said:

Genesia said:

Exactly.

When I have a snack (as when I eat an entire meal), I try to make it as whole and unprocessed as possible. I don't eat cereal (the phytates in unfermented or unsprouted grains aren't very good for you), dried fruit (too much concentrated sugar - fresh fruit is better) and I almost never drink juice (again, too much concentrated sugar).

I am not a fat-phobe and I do have hypoglycemia, in addition to being sensitive to phytic acid. So I tend to have nuts, peanut butter on sprouted grain toast, veggies with smoked salmon or smoked trout spread, or a few cubes of cheese. Whole milk yogurt with berries or a glass of whole milk work pretty well for me, too.

Phytic acid can deplete your system of iron and zinc. That´s why eating tons of unprocessed wheat cereal is actually very unhealthy. Oat is the only cereal that can be eaten raw.

I totally agree about juice containing too much sugar.....I have to dilute it before I drink it (50/50).

Are you allergic to phytic acid? And what are the things that you avoid, i.e what foods contain a lot of phytic acid?

[Edited 8/8/10 5:04am]

I'm not allergic, just very sensitive. Basically, stuff that's high in phytate just messes with my digestion - turning me into a walking gas bomb.

Most grains have a lot of phytic acid. Oats are extremely high - I can't eat oats even if they've been fermented. Soy is also extremely high - another reason (apart from its just being yucky) I don't eat tofu. Fermented soy only (miso, soy sauce) - and then, only in small doses.

I don't seem to have a problem with most breads. But then, I always eat sprouted-grain bread at home and usually stick to sourdough if I have bread at a restaurant. I have a terrible time with pasta, though.

ernestsewell said:

Poiple said:

Either vanilla yogurt with raw almonds or cottage cheese with pineapple.

I buy the big things of vanilla yogurt too. For those who eat yogurt a lot, here's a good tip.

Get a sieve (mesh strainer), and put it in a bowl that is smaller than the sieve. You don't want the bottom of the sieve to touch the bowl. You want a couple/3 inches.

Put a paper towel in the sieve (you can also use a big piece of cheese cloth), and dump all the yogurt in it. Put it in the fridge, and let it drain for at least 4 hours. Go overnight if you can.

What this does is drain all that watery juice that sometimes comes to the top, out of the yogurt, leaving a thicker and creamier yogurt. Shockingly, when I first did this, and dumped my yogurt back into the regular container it came in, about 1/4 of the yogurt was gone. It was all that water in it! Amazing.

Toss the watery stuff that has been drained. Empty your yogurt back in its original container. Use it as you normally would after that. It makes for a lot creamier yogurt, and it's great for parfaits (nuts, and some sliced strawberries or peaches mixed with it).

You can also do this with sour cream to make it thicker. But any kind of yogurt you get, that comes in a bigger container for bulk use, can be drained like this. Really, it's pretty easy to leave it in the fridge overnight and let it do its thing. SO worth the effort.

The stuff that drains out of yogurt isn't water - it's whey. And you can do all kinds of cool stuff with it, like making sauerkraut or fermented oatmeal (which is tastier and healthier for you than the unfermented kind).

Don't throw it away - it's good stuff!

grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe

KoolEaze said:

Hey, that´s how people in Turkey and Greece ( and probably Bulgaria and other Balkan countries) like their yoghurt. This method is called "süzme".

Interesting. How and where did you discover this method? Or was it your own idea? I´ve never tried it with vanilla yoghurt though....have to try that out.

Usually, we use this method in order to achieve a very thick, creamy, but also very sour yoghurt for stuff like tzaziki.

[img:$uid]http://www.turkishcookbook.com/images/SuzmeYogurt.jpg[/img:$uid]

It's actually a pretty common practice in cooking in the US. I learned it from Ina Garten, and I've seen Martha Stewart and others do it. It surely wasn't my own idea. Try it with any yogurt or sour cream you plan to use for something. Of course, with less product left over, be careful how you mix in something (like a dry dip mix that calls for 16 oz, and you're actually left with about 11 or 12 when the whey is drained off).

When I typed it up, I did think of tzaziki! I think for any dip you make, the thicker consistency would be perfect.

Genesia said:

The stuff that drains out of yogurt isn't water - it's whey. And you can do all kinds of cool stuff with it, like making sauerkraut or fermented oatmeal (which is tastier and healthier for you than the unfermented kind).

Don't throw it away - it's good stuff!

I figured it was called something, but would have never thought of whey. I'm so NOT an oatmeal guy. But I'm not sure what I would personally do with it. I've never made sauerkraut, but that might be a fun experiement.

müsli straight from the box/bag/jar.

ernestsewell said:

Poiple said:

Either vanilla yogurt with raw almonds or cottage cheese with pineapple.

I buy the big things of vanilla yogurt too. For those who eat yogurt a lot, here's a good tip.

Get a sieve (mesh strainer), and put it in a bowl that is smaller than the sieve. You don't want the bottom of the sieve to touch the bowl. You want a couple/3 inches.

Put a paper towel in the sieve (you can also use a big piece of cheese cloth), and dump all the yogurt in it. Put it in the fridge, and let it drain for at least 4 hours. Go overnight if you can.

What this does is drain all that watery juice that sometimes comes to the top, out of the yogurt, leaving a thicker and creamier yogurt. Shockingly, when I first did this, and dumped my yogurt back into the regular container it came in, about 1/4 of the yogurt was gone. It was all that water in it! Amazing.

Toss the watery stuff that has been drained. Empty your yogurt back in its original container. Use it as you normally would after that. It makes for a lot creamier yogurt, and it's great for parfaits (nuts, and some sliced strawberries or peaches mixed with it).

You can also do this with sour cream to make it thicker. But any kind of yogurt you get, that comes in a bigger container for bulk use, can be drained like this. Really, it's pretty easy to leave it in the fridge overnight and let it do its thing. SO worth the effort.

{big pic was here}

You know, that's a great idea, Ernest. I've always hated that watery crap (whey as I now know it to be) sitting on the top every time I would open (especially) the sour cream container. Just one look at that stuff would a lot of times just make me put the lid back on and forget about it. I'll have to try your draining method.

raw almonds, fresh fruit

Fresh fruit - I just bought some cut up watermelon and cantelope at the grocery store today. Been on a watermelon kick lately - that stuff is sooo good! Just about any fruit will do, anything but pears. For some reason, I just don't like the grainy texture of a pear. But all other types of fruit, I will eat a ton of until I am completely full - I love it!

ernestsewell said:

Genesia said:

The stuff that drains out of yogurt isn't water - it's whey. And you can do all kinds of cool stuff with it, like making sauerkraut or fermented oatmeal (which is tastier and healthier for you than the unfermented kind).

Don't throw it away - it's good stuff!

I figured it was called something, but would have never thought of whey. I'm so NOT an oatmeal guy. But I'm not sure what I would personally do with it. I've never made sauerkraut, but that might be a fun experiement.

It's super easy. Just shred some cabbage, put it in a big bowl with a tablespoon of salt and a quarter cup of whey. Pound the crap out of it with a mallet or meat pounder until the salt and whey are mixed in thoroughly and the cabbage is releasing some juice. Pack it into a couple of quart-size Mason jars, pushing the cabbage down under the level of the juice. Leave some headroom in the jars, because the cabbage will heave as it ferments. Screw the lids on - but not too tightly. You want to allow a little of the gas that will be produced to escape.

Let the jars sit at room temperature for about three days. (Put them on on a kitchen towel, as the fermentation may cause some leakage around the lids.) Then put them in the warm section of your frig (top shelf is best). The flavor will continue to develop for as long as six months.

I guarantee it'll be the best sauerkraut you've ever eaten.

Edited to say: Homemade kraut is great for the complexion. The friendly microbes do good things for your gut, which is reflected outside. And cabbage has a high sulfur content, which is also good for the skin.

[Edited 8/8/10 12:14pm]

PANDURITO said:

veronikka said:

I think they meant "edible" snacks

oh but they are! I eat them everyday

paintedlady said:

Yougurt with fresh blueberries (a favorite for breakfast also) or a peice of straight fruit.

Lately I dig concord grapes and Brie spinkled with fresh lavender and a glass of dessert wine. (Eiswein, Moscato, Braschetto di Aqui or Port)

this is why I am fat.

OMG won't you be my fucking neighbor???

Genesia said:

ernestsewell said:

I figured it was called something, but would have never thought of whey. I'm so NOT an oatmeal guy. But I'm not sure what I would personally do with it. I've never made sauerkraut, but that might be a fun experiement.

It's super easy. Just shred some cabbage, put it in a big bowl with a tablespoon of salt and a quarter cup of whey. Pound the crap out of it with a mallet or meat pounder until the salt and whey are mixed in thoroughly and the cabbage is releasing some juice. Pack it into a couple of quart-size Mason jars, pushing the cabbage down under the level of the juice. Leave some headroom in the jars, because the cabbage will heave as it ferments. Screw the lids on - but not too tightly. You want to allow a little of the gas that will be produced to escape.

Let the jars sit at room temperature for about three days. (Put them on on a kitchen towel, as the fermentation may cause some leakage around the lids.) Then put them in the warm section of your frig (top shelf is best). The flavor will continue to develop for as long as six months.

I guarantee it'll be the best sauerkraut you've ever eaten.

Edited to say: Homemade kraut is great for the complexion. The friendly microbes do good things for your gut, which is reflected outside. And cabbage has a high sulfur content, which is also good for the skin.

[Edited 8/8/10 12:14pm]

I'm bookmarking just for this post.

Thanks, Genesia!

PunkMistress said:

Genesia said:

It's super easy. Just shred some cabbage, put it in a big bowl with a tablespoon of salt and a quarter cup of whey. Pound the crap out of it with a mallet or meat pounder until the salt and whey are mixed in thoroughly and the cabbage is releasing some juice. Pack it into a couple of quart-size Mason jars, pushing the cabbage down under the level of the juice. Leave some headroom in the jars, because the cabbage will heave as it ferments. Screw the lids on - but not too tightly. You want to allow a little of the gas that will be produced to escape.

Let the jars sit at room temperature for about three days. (Put them on on a kitchen towel, as the fermentation may cause some leakage around the lids.) Then put them in the warm section of your frig (top shelf is best). The flavor will continue to develop for as long as six months.

I guarantee it'll be the best sauerkraut you've ever eaten.

Edited to say: Homemade kraut is great for the complexion. The friendly microbes do good things for your gut, which is reflected outside. And cabbage has a high sulfur content, which is also good for the skin.

[Edited 8/8/10 12:14pm]

I'm bookmarking just for this post.

Thanks, Genesia!

My pleasure. Hope you try it - it's really good!

is poonanny healthy...?

I've started pickling anything I can get my hands on, like olives, cucumbers and chillies. I don't really know what I'm doing but I figure if I put vinegar, salt and sometimes some garlic or these thai shallot/garlic type things in there it'll turn out ok. So far so good. Just finding out what works best.

I eat Greek yogurt with fruit every day. Sometimes paired with granola. I never tire of fruit....so many different fruits to choose from. Vegetables on the other hand are a problem for me...pretty picky. I'm ok with some, especially broccoli. I'll steam it and throw a sodium free bouillon cube in there to give it flavor. V8 juice is a good way to get your vegetables in too.

Water.

ernestsewell said:

virginie74 said:

Let me explain : having a snack IS NOT healthy. So I tend to avoid them.

That is a flat out lie. Mosts dieticians will tell you to eat 5 - 6 times a day, having smaller meals and snacks. The main goal of any diet like The Zone Diet, etc is one common thing: Keep your metabolism up by eating more frequent, and smaller meals and snacks. An apple can be a snack. A granola bar can be a snack. It's not unhealthy.

What's unhealthy is your approach. You should never peak and valley in your eating cycle through the day. It effects your blood sugar levels, and a ton of other things. When you maintain a higher and consisten metabolism rate through the day, you are not only more energetic, but you can burn more calories through the day, and your body has a small, steady, and plentiful supply of fuel (aka food). You should trail off your eating to lighter things by late afternoon, because around 3 p.m. is when your metabolism activity takes a huge dive (which is why folks have that tired afternoon crash all the time). You also shouldn't eat about 3 hours before bedtime. If you have to have something, eat a piece of fruit, or have a cup of hot flavored tea.

So yeah - that.

Yeah, they also say to eat a protein whenever you eat fruit so that the sugar in the fruit doesn't cause a spike in your blood sugar level. The fruit/yogurt is my favorite combo. Sometimes a piece of string cheese & fruit is quicker snack for when I'm stuck at work.

funkycat00 said:

Water.

I still have to force water down. I'm better with Spring water, but it's not practical to buy it daily. I try to get in a good amount of pure water, but I also use Crystal Light for when I can't bear a lot of it. I try to avoid heavily sweetened drinks too. I admit I do miss drinking very sweet tea regularly, Hawaiian Punch-like drinks, and the occasional Mountain Dew. I used to have frequent UTIs so I stopped with the ton of sugar in tea & koolaid. I stopped with regular sodas too. Now, when I drink tea, I sweeten it with Splenda.....even though there are still disputes over Splenda. Stevia is too pricey to purchase on a regular basis. With the addition of cranberry pills now, I can't remember the last time I had a UTI.

I like having soup too

Childhood favorite. Still love it now, except I prefer it without the 'ants' on the log

Strawberries and grapes are probably the closest I come to healthy snacks.