How to splurge without the guilt

I know I have posted these healthful hints, I will do it again so they are all in one post.

It is OK to use help in a box when you have a diet restriction, as long as there is nothing fake about what you are using. I know Whole Food cheerleaders (count me in too) will be skeptical about this but I am not endorsing the use of these everyday. I am saying that when you need a 'bad food' fix, these are a much better way to go, at a much better nutrition level then the homemade, unhealthy ones AND you won't feel guilty that you fell off the diet scale.

Please also remember, a diabetic diet is not a "diet" per se, like those you go on to loose 5 pounds. A diabetic diet is a life commitment. Without it, you loose your life. We all know whole foods, lean meats, good oil, and lots of grains is what we should all be eating but every once in a while we all crave forbidden foods and if you can eat them with the help of food science, well, why the hell not?

These are my Top 5 favorite healthy splurges....

1. Knorr sauce mixes. If you tweak them a bit, they become wonderful guilt-free splurges.
(Click on each pic to enlarge)


I always have at least 2 of each flavor in my pantry.








2. Dream Whip. Takes 1% milk and makes it 1% whipped cream. Better then Cool-Whip because you get all the nutritional benefits of using real milk and if you use the enhanced milks it is even better. I dare you to taste the difference between the two.
You can find Dream Whip in most grocery stores and I buy mine at Walmart.













3. Smart Beat Mayonnaise. 10 calories a serving, tastes exactly like mayonnaise. The Nudge could not tell he was eating it on a sandwich and he loves real mayonnaise.

4. Butter Buds. They used to be all the rage, now you don't see them advertised much but they are still around. Sprinkle on popcorn, potatoes, vegetables and even use in a sauce.
















5. Palm Sugar. When you need a sugar to act like a sugar but without all the "through the roof" glucose readings, this is the sugar for you.
Palm sugar is a nutrient-rich, low-glycemic crystalline sweetener that looks, tastes, dissolves and melts almost exactly like sugar, but it's completely natural and unrefined. It's acquired from the flowers growing high on coconut trees, which are opened to collect their liquid flower nectar. This nectar is then air-dried to form a crystalline sugar that's naturally brown in color and naturally rich in a number of key vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, including potassium, zinc, iron, and vitamins B1, B2, B3 and B6.

It is never refined or bleached like white sugar. So the nutrients it was made with are still there. That's rare for sweeteners, most of which are highly refined. Even stevia is highly refined in its white powder form (real stevia is a green herb).



None of the manufacturer's know who I am, this is strictly my opinion and items I have tested and have personally used and enjoyed throughout the last two years.

Like anything else we eat, these products should be consumed in moderation but now you don't have to give up your favorite splurges forever.