Dinner

Go for garden burgers

Most veggie burgers give you two-
thirds of the protein but only one
quarter of the fat of a regular
hamburger, not to mention 5 grams of
fiber. You can pan-fry a vegetarian
burger in a teaspoon of olive oil or nuke
it in the microwave. Dress it up with
sprouts, a smear of goat cheese, some
roasted red peppers, and a whole
wheat bun

Turn a potato into dinner

Heap a baked potato with black beans, salsa, and an ounce of
shredded pepper-jack cheese to make a meal. Count on 12 grams
of fiber and 12 grams of protein. The cheese has a third of the fat
of butter, plus you get more than 200 milligrams of calcium.

Go Green

Spinach pasta gives you twice as much potassium and folic acid
as the regular kind, along with a nice hit of beta-carotene. For a
quick and easy meal, toss spinach bow ties with crumbled feta,
black olives, and chopped tomatoes.

Snacks

Avoid that afternoon slump

Eating between meals can keep your
energy up and your weight down -- if
you choose snacks that combine
carbohydrates with protein for a pick-
me-up that lasts. Try these: carrots
and hummus, apple slices and peanut
butter, or cheese on whole wheat
crackers. Because peanut butter,
hummus, and cheese are high in fat,
it's best to limit your daily servings of
these.

Choose a frozen fruit treat

For a quick and healthy sweet snack, wash seedless grapes, put
them in a zip-top bag, and toss them in your freezer. Grapes
contain resveratrol, an antioxidant that helps protect your heart,
and they're even sweeter when frozen.

-- Peter Jaret is a medical writer and book author whose work has
appeared in Health, National Geographic, and many other
publications. He is the recipient of the 1992 American Medical
Association award for medical reporting and the 1998 James Beard
Award for journalism.

References