Save room for a low-calorie dessert

By PAT PALMISANO

Many of us may believe that the best part of a meal is the last part, the dessert. But that happy ending can have more calories than the entire meal.

And while stressed spelled backwards is desserts, you don’t have to add more stress to your life by eating all of tomorrow’s allotted calories in the pie a la mode tonight. Taste is the number one reason why we choose the foods we do.

So here are some ways that you can bake your cake and eat it too.

• Choose low-fat popcorn (25 calories and 1 gram of fat per cup) over caramel corn at (180 calories and more than 20 grams of fat per cup) and save 155 calories and more than 19 grams of fat.

• Instead of a handful (½ cup) of chocolate covered raisins – weighing in at 360 calories and 16 grams of fat – make your own healthy mixture of a tablespoon of dark chocolate and a tablespoon of raisins for 103 calories and 4.5 grams of fat.

• Save some calories by purchasing light ice cream (110 calories and 3.5 grams of fat) instead of the premium ice cream (290 calories and 17 grams of fat) and save 180 calories and 13.5 grams of fat per ½ cup.

• If you prefer snacks that are savory, instead of indulging mindlessly on cheese, crackers and pepperoni, have an ounce of low-fat cheese, four crackers and two cups of carrot sticks, celery sticks, radishes and red pepper slices.

If it’s chocolate you are craving, a package of hot chocolate mix has 250 calories and 7 grams of fat. If you warm up a cup of low-fat chocolate milk and add a squirt of whipped topping at 175 calories and 2.5 grams of fat per cup, you have a savings of 75 cal and 4.5 grams of fat per serving.

Remembers, there are many “weighs” to end a meal on a good note that also will be good to your weight.

Registered dietitian Pat Palmisano is regional health promotion supervisor at Excellus BlueCross Blue Shield. For more tips on staying healthy, visit excellusbcbs.com.

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