Posted by Alicia Leeds on Tue, Jun 01, 2010 @ 06:12 PM
They say that necessity is the mother of invention and it's also the reason I've created with some of my favorite HMR Shake Recipes!
The other night I needed chocolate - and some of you know what I mean - but the thought of a frosty shake left me cold...
So I made myself a double HMR 70+ pudding - just a couple packets in a mug with water, and by accident made it a little too thin for my taste. Then I wondered what would happen if I put it in the micro for a bit and what-do-you-know?...The outside cooked up like a brownie and the inside stayed gooey. YUM!
You'll have to try different temps in your micro - but mine worked perfectly on high for 90 seconds.
I'm going to continue to experiment with this one - maybe add a little baking cocoa next time for an even richer taste - and I think a drop of almond extract or even a teaspoon of instant coffee would be great in the mix.
Test it out yourself and post your results - We are always in the market for some new HMR Shake Recipes!
Bon Apetit!
Posted by Monica Bautista on Mon, Apr 12, 2010 @ 03:17 PM
How often do you have your HMR entree and veggies for dinner and then crave a little something sweet for dessert? If you are like me, it can happen often! Well, we have just the thing to curb your sweet craving and help keep you on track. Try our Decadent Chocoscotch Pudding for a delicious dessert that the whole family will love!
You will need:
- 4 packets HMR 70+ Chocolate
- 1 packet HMR 70+ Vanilla
- 2 cups water
- 2 T sugar-free, fat-free Butterscotch Jello Pudding
- 1 T baking cocoa
Makes 4 - 5 servings.
Directions:
Pour 1 1/2 cups water in blender. Add HMR 70+ shake mixes, jello pudding, and baking cocoa. Mix on low until smooth. Add water until you reach desired thickness.
Refrigerate 20 - 30 minutes.
Expert tips:
Top your pudding with some sliced strawberries or fresh raspberries and a dollop of fat free cool whip.
Mix up this pudding in the morning and store it in the refrigerator. When you are ready for a treat, simply blend it up and enjoy.
Bon Apetit!
Posted by Alicia Leeds on Tue, Sep 15, 2009 @ 11:41 AM
For many of us, keeping up our healthy lifestyle routine is easier during the week than on weekends. But whether it's because we want to reward ourselves for a job well done, or because our social occasions center around food, or just because we have more free time on our hands - the weekends can be a weight management disaster.
In 2004 the International Journal of Obesity published an analysis of the lifestyle habits of people from the National Weight Control Registry and found that there was a direct correlation between dieting consistency throughout the week and weight change over a one year period.
In fact, people who maintained consistent health habits throughout the week were 58% more likely to maintain their weight within 5 pounds by the end of the year.
Letting go of your diet and exercise plan on the weekends can result in calories and pounds adding up fast - even though it feels like being "good" 4-5 days a week should cover it.
Let's say your weekday plan results in a 200 calorie deficit each day for M-Th. (-800 calories) On Friday - you don't have the pizza but you do have a couple of glasses of wine. (+ 300 calories). Saturday you go to a birthday party and have a small piece of cake. (+ 400 calories). Sunday, you skip your PA (+ 300 calories) and go out for chinese food with friends (+ 700 calories).
The weekend hasn't been outrageous - but the 800 calorie deficit you worked hard for all week has not only been been wiped out - but you end the week with an extra 900 calories. You'll gain about a pound a month - 12 months a year - and pretty soon the 50 pounds you worked so hard to lose is creeping right back up again.
Balance your weekend calories by adding in more PA, more V/F and more HMR shakes and HMR entrees. By over planning and adding structure - you can actually figure out how to fit the wine, cake and chinese food into your overall plan without weight gain. You may not be able to do them all in one weekend - but by being consistent with your habits and paying closer attention to the little things - you could save yourself a lot of calories (and pounds) over time.
Here are a few easy wins:
Have an HMR shake before you go out to the restaurant (if it saves you from the bread bowl you already come out ahead)
Have a double HMR entree with veggies before a birthday party and bring a fruit plate or veggie platter with you.
Keep HMR 70+ pudding packets in your purse or car for errand days so you don't end up in the food court - all you need is water!
Add in an extra bout of PA on the weekends - make it a fun and healthy way to spend time with family and friends.
Remember, just because it's the weekend for you - doesn't mean the calories don't count. When you let go of the "start over Monday" kind of thinking you are on your way to a healthier lifestyle.
Posted by Alicia Leeds on Mon, Jun 29, 2009 @ 07:26 PM
They say the best defense is a good offense and it's a motto that works when you are trying to be more successful managing your weight.
If you are like me, you come home, take off your coat, walk to the kitchen and open the fridge. Maybe I'm hungry maybe not...it's just a habit I've gotten into and it's one that can get me into trouble. I don't really expect to find anything I didn't put in there on the last shopping trip (but one hopes)... perhaps some forgotten leftover... a stray piece of something delicious hiding behind the broccoli...
I open the fridge a lot throughout the day, grab something and snack. Whatever is there... So what's there better be healthy, and low in calories - or my nibbles throughout the day will bust my calorie budget for sure.
Grapes are my must have - washed and chilled in my grandmother's berry bowl. (It makes me feel good just seeing it in there.) Baby carrots, too, fresh, cold and crisp. (I like them dipped in a little Walden Farms Ranch dressing.)
But sometimes only sweet and creamy will do, and so I''ve learned to keep a blender full of HMR 70+ pudding ready to go in the fridge at all times. The great thing about the HMR 70+ is that you can make it in the morning and keep it in the fridge for up to 36 hours - just replace the blender jar on the base - give it a quick whip and you've got a rich, thick, "in the box" treat.
It helps to have 2 blender jars - that way you still have a free blender for a full volume shake if you want it. Or - you can blend the HMR 70+ pudding and put it in Tupperware - then just give it a quick stir before you eat it.
If you already make your shakes in the morning, rinse out the blender and mix up some pudding right away... this will save time, and your after work snack will be waiting for you when you get home.
I usually mix 3 or 4 packets of HMR 70+ puddings at once, and have tried a variety of combinations that keep fresh over time. Avoid using fruit if you plan to keep the puddings longer than a couple of hours. Basic HMR 70+Vanilla with Fat Free Sugar Free Vanilla Jello Pudding is wonderful (you can always spoon it over fruit later). Also HMR 70+ Vanilla mixed with HMR 70+ Chocolate and Fat Free Sugar Free Butterscotch Jello... try 2:1 or 2:2 for more or less chocolate...
There are an endless variety of flavors you can achieve with extracts and Jello flavorings and spice. But most of all, HMR 70+ Pudding is your best defense against high calorie snacking. It will be there when you need it to keep running for the goal!
Posted by Alicia Leeds on Wed, Apr 22, 2009 @ 05:01 PM
I am a dessert fan. Love dessert. Dessert after supper, dessert after lunch. Actually, my undying love for dessert is a problem.
If it weren't for ice cream and creme brulee and chocolate mousse, cake and cookies and BROWNIES...(really brownies are the worst)...I would have no (caloric) problems whatsoever. I couldn't care less about eating a potato chip. I'm just fine with my salads and baked potatoes, broiled fish and chicken... but...When the meal is over the dessert monster rears her hungry head and demands her due.
I have tried not having dessert and it just makes me feel...unsatisfied. Deprived. Cranky. The day is unfinished, really, if I haven't had my sweet stuff.
But the bitter truth is, that unless I am willing to devote several hours a day to doing a cardio workout, all the yummy delectables I dream of are simply not in the calorie budget. High cal goodies are out of the question.
Take, for example, The Cheesecake Factory Chocolate Cake - seven layers of chocolate filled with chocolate frosting, then frosted and sprinkled with jimmies. (They sell a version of this at COSTCO) The serving size at The Cheesecake Factory is 16 full ounces of cake. At about 150 calories per ounce you are looking at oh... roughly 2400 calories. (for DESSERT!!) I would have to walk 10 hours to burn that off. That's a problem.
To eat dessert or not to eat...but alas! HMR 70+ pudding is the solution to the dessert lover's dilemma. At 110 calories and 14 grams of protein, it's the best bang for your sweet buck on the market. In fact - you could eat more than 20 servings of HMR 70+ chocolate pudding for the same number of calories in the Cheesecake Factory Chocolate Cake. No Kidding. Problem solved.
A typical 4 ounce chewy rich and delicious brownie is about 550 calories. One brownie - about 2 hours and 15 minutes on the treadmill.
5 servings of HMR 70+ pudding is also 550 calories. So I often make 5 (More is Better) servings of 70+ in the blender. Whip it up real nice and creamy, add a little extra cocoa. When I'm having a BROWNIE attack - I give myself permission to eat the whole blender full. I figure - even if I ate it all, I would still come out ahead of the game - because it is unlikely I would be able to have just one brownie barring (cue megaphone...) "Step away from the bake sale with your hands up lady!"
Like I said, I love dessert. And the good news is I have had fewer than a handful of sad, dessertless nights since I started working with HMR ten years ago. Does "More is Better" HMR 70+ work for me? The proof is truly in the pudding!
Check out the latest post on Fit n'Fast Recipe TV to see how HMR 70+ can work for you!