Sue Rose, RD - Office Location

Our constant eating challenge seems to revolve around time. There is often too little time to shop, or too little time to cook, or not enough time to think about what we are eating. The following information is for those time challenged people who really want to eat a healthful diet without spending a lot of time doing it. Look for frequent updates with meal and snack ideas for fast, simple, and healthy food "assembly".

~Healthy Sundae~

Take a very large serving of sliced strawberries and mix with a sliced banana. Add a generous topping of aerosol whipped topping. Adding a touch of sugar-free chocolate syrup can also help satisfy your sweet tooth. This dessert is about as healthy as it gets and chances are you will not miss the ice cream ......and your hips will appreciate the lack of fat!

You can also take strawberries or other fruit and add a small container of sugar-free fat-free pudding with a touch of whipped cream for a very high calorie rich tasting dessert without the fat and calories!

~Homemade Lasagna in a Flash~

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Recipe is for 8 X 8 inch pan.

You might not think this could be something to be whipped up in 5 minutes, but it is possible if you know some secret preparation steps! The trick is in the lasagna noodles and the secret noodles are Barilla flat no boil noodles. All you do is assemble the lasagna. Spread any jarred spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a baking pan. Place a layer of noodles to cover the bottom of the pan (2 strips of noodles will cover an 8 X 8 inch pan) and sprinkle about 1/2-1 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese, add another layer of noodles and spoon on sauce, and then layer some low fat ricotta cheese. Place another layer of noodles and layer again with 1 cup mozzarella cheese, a heavy dash of oregano & 1/4 cup parmesan cheese. Add a fourth layer of noodles and sprinkle top with parmesan cheese and sauce. You may adjust ingredients, spices, etc. and add your own ground beef if desired.

Cover with foil and bake for 50-60 minutes.

~English Muffin Pizzas~

Split an English muffin in half. Spread each half with a small amount of pizza sauce, a dash of oregano, and 1 ounce of part skim mozzarella. Warm the English muffin in the microwave or toaster oven to melt the cheese. To increase the nutritional quality of this snack or light meal, try using a high fiber English muffin. The dash of oregano provides health enhancing pytochemicals and the pizza sauce is an excellent source of lycopene which can fight cancer. Add a fresh salad or serving of fruit and you have a delicious light meal which is very healthy and takes less than 5 minutes of preparation time.

Nutrition information

Food Exchanges = 2 Starch and 2 lean to medium meat exchanges
Approximately 300 calories.

~Low Fat Grilled Cheese Sandwich~

Spray nonfat cooking spray in a skillet. Spray two slices of high fiber bread (such as Natural Ovens brand bread) on one side only with I Can't Believe It's Not Butter brand original buttery spray. Place one piece of bread in the skillet with the butter sprayed side face down. Place one slice of cheese on top and place the second piece of bread with the butter sprayed side facing up. Brown the first side of the sandwich and then flip the sandwich over and heat until the second side is lightly browned and the cheese has melted. Another option is to layer some sliced tomatoes on top of the cheese to add additional flavor and nutrients.

Nutrition information

Food Exchanges = 2 Starch and 1 medium to high fat meat exchanges
Approximately 300 calories

~Healthy Tortilla Turkey Wrap~

Use one small LaTortilla Factory wrap and place on a plate. Layer with 2 ounces of lean turkey, spinach leaves, and one slice of Swiss Lorraine cheese and roll it up. You can warm it for a few minutes in the microwave to melt the cheese, or just roll it and eat it cold. This meal or snack will take approximately 30 seconds to prepare! The LaTortilla Factory wrap has only 50 calories, but a hefty 8 grams of fiber. There is also a larger wrap with 100 calories, and 14 grams of fiber. The fiber will stick with you and keep hunger away for hours.

Nutrition information

Food Exchanges = 1 Starch and 3 lean to medium fat meat exchanges
Approximately 300 calories

~Fruit Smoothie~

Blend 3/4 cup of any frozen berries, one small banana, and either one cup of vanilla yogurt or 1 cup of soy milk. This snack or meal replacement will provide a lot of health enhancing phytochemicals, calcium, and fiber! If using soy milk, select a brand with at least 30 mgs. of isoflavones.

Food Exchanges= 1 milk exchange and 2 fruit exchanges
Approximately 200 calories

~Broccoli & Pasta Salad~

Mix together one cup of cooked Barilla Plus brand pasta and one cup cooked broccoli.
Add your favorite brand of fat-free or low fat Italian dressing and mix into the pasta and broccoli. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Serve as either a cold or warm pasta salad.  This is an excellent way to get your green vegetables into your diet.

                                                  Nutrition Information

              Food Exchanges = 3 starch and 2 vegetable exchanges
                                             Approximately 300 calories and about 8 grams of fiber