Healthy Eating

The realization came to me slowly, but a few years ago when I lost about 25 pounds on Weight Watchers I came to realize that you get much more for your caloric buck when you stay away from processed foods. The Weight Watchers plan allows you to eat anything you want but you need to stay within their points system, based on calories, fat, and fiber content of foods. I learned a lot about portion size during this time period as well. It turns out that as an added bonus to feeling better when you cook with food ingredients (rather than processed food ingredients) your grocery bill is a lot smaller as well.

All of this is just an intro to a clever food solution that I've devised and want to share with you. Since we've moved to the midwest, I've had to find new brands for almost everything I was used to eating. I started trying out different brands of Greek yogurt, but none were satisfying me.. I wanted Greek yogurt but I also wanted strawberry yogurt and I was not finding such a creature. Trader Joes carries (or at least carried) a nice strawberry flavored Greek yogurt. But, alas, there is no Trader Joes within a reasonable distance from our house.

I started hearing about Fage which is Greek yogurt made from only milk, cream and yogurt culture. Plus, according to the packaging, it is produced from animals that are not fed by any chemicals, hormones, or antibiotic substances. AND they have a strawberry version. Here is the clever part ...

I could buy individual serving packages for about $2.50 apiece. I would have to mix in the strawberry substance myself. OR I could buy the bulk package that has about 4 servings in it for $5. They don't have the side flavor mix-in though. So, instead, I buy a high quality strawberry preserve (right now I'm using Dickinson's organic strawberry but I usually buy Bon Mama) and scoop in a small spoonful. I end up scooping in less strawberry than comes in the individual serving package, so I'm getting less sugar using my method plus I'm saving money.

It's really nummy. You should try it!