Lesson 3: Meal Planning
Light Meals, Snacks, and Desserts
Studies show that long periods between meals can increase sensitivity to sweet and salty tastes, causing you to binge on chips, pastries, and other junk foods. These foods, in turn, spike blood sugar levels which can lead to more cravings. It becomes a vicious cycle. However, frequent, sensible snacks can add to your daily quota of fruits and veggies, as well as help curb cravings so that your hunger doesn't get out of control. Be sure to keep a variety of healthful snacks handy at home and at work so that you can keep cravings at bay.
Sweet finger-food suggestions are apples, bananas, grapes, or other fruits, or dried fruit mixes. Cantaloupe and melons can be cut and chopped as soon as you buy them and stored in sealed bags for quick use later.
When you’re not in the mood for anything sweet, pop some sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, popcorn, or mixed nuts in your mouth, or open a jar of salsa and choose from your inventory of radishes, baby carrots, cucumber, and celery for dipping.
Other quick light meal and snack suggestions include
If you like sandwiches for a quick lunch, you don’t have to feel guilty about building a soy bologna sandwich on whole wheat bread with cheese slices, served with sliced carrots, radishes and celery. And even if you opt to order a pizza, you can always order it with extra veggie toppings.
Desserts are our rewards and our comfort foods. They are meant to be enjoyed. But sometimes a healthful dessert can be enjoyable as well. Rice cream and soy dream can deliciously take the place of ice cream. Melon pieces with fruit, or strawberries drizzled with honey can be a luscious treat, or a sweet carrot-raisin dish, carameled sweet potatoes or even pumpkin pie. Puddings turn veggie when they're made with soymilk.
Smoothies also make a satisfying comfort food, as well as a great energy food. If you keep on hand soymilk, yogurts, canned, fresh or frozen fruits and berries, fruit juices, peanut butter, instant oatmeal and wheat germ, you can always ‘mix and match’ to create a creamy and energizing snack. You can even add a little brewed green tea. My favorites include vanilla soymilk with fresh strawberries, or frozen peaches, or tropical fruits, such as pineapple, banana, and coconut. A little vanilla flavoring goes well with the tropical flavors. Orange/peach/mango frozen juice concentrate makes a good tropical flavoring as well. Chocolate soymilk is good with bananas or peanut butter. Experiment, create, have fun!
Instant Apple Pie
1 bowl of dry cinnamon toast crunch cereal (whole grain)
4 Tbsp of cinnamon applesauce
Toss and serve with a glass of vanilla soymilk
