Debra Wein Pic
Friday, July 1, 2011
This Week's Topics
Recipe: Vegan Double Mochaccino Cupcakes
Worthwhile Links
Children Believe that Kid-friendly Characters Make Food Taste Better
Breakfast and Weight
Measure YOUR Metabolism!

Vegan Double Mochaccino Cupcakes

 

Makes 18 cupcakes

 

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup cocoa powder

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup brewed cold coffee

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup almond milk

1/3 cup apple butter

1 tsp. vanilla extract

 

Frosting

6 oz. extra-firm silken tofu

4 oz. vegan cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 Tbs. instant espresso powder

 

 

Directions:

1. To make Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 375F. Line 18 muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt in bowl. Combine coffee, oil, almond milk, apple butter and vanilla in separate bowl. Stir coffee mixture into flour mixture until smooth. Fill liners 3/4 full and bake 20 minutes, or until toothpick in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack.

2. To make Frosting: Pur�e tofu and cream cheese in food processor until creamy. Add syrup, cocoa and espresso powder, and blend until smooth. Chill 1 hour. Frost cooled cupcakes.

 

Nutrition:

Calories 225 , Protein 4g , Total Fat 11.5g , Saturated Fat 2g , Carbohydrates 29g , Sodium 246mg , Fiber 1g , Sugar 13g Kcal

 

Source: www.vegetariantimes.com

 

Worthwhile Links
 Find us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter

Visit our blog

Check out our award-winning 

Worksite Wellness Programs!

 

SNaC Byte Archive

 
 

 

Share SNac Bytes
Join Our Mailing List

Hello

  

DW

How is it already the Fourth of July?! Independence Day is a favorite holiday in our family. From parade to fireworks the Fourth of July is always spent with our friends and family. I'm always looking for healthful foods that are light, tasty and portable. I came across these 12 recipes and wanted to share them. I am definitely going to make the Light Guacamole!

 

What healthful fare are you going to whip up for your patriotic guests this year? Share your favorites on our Facebook page!

 

Have a healthy week and a happy 4th!

 

~Debra  

Children Believe that Kid-friendly Characters Make Food Taste Better

Toucan SamToday, many foods marketed to children have an associated kid-friendly character. take, fro example, the cartoons on cereal boxes, such as Toucan Sam and Captain Crunch, and Ronald McDonald. These characters are cute, friendly and easily identifiable. Food marketers know that children, who remember nonverbal representations more easily than verbal descriptions, will likely remember ads and commercials directed toward them when they see that character again, such as when they are walking down the aisles at the grocery store, or driving by a fast food restaurant. 

 

In addition to the marketing lure of these characters, researchers wanted to see if children's taste for a particular food was also associated with these kid-friendly characters. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, evaluated 80 children between the ages of 4 and 6 years (average age 5.6 years) to see what influence the characters had on how much these children enjoyed a specific food.

 

Children were shown boxes of the same cereal; some with kid-friendly characters and some without. Having seen only the box, participants were then asked to rate the taste of the cereal on a scale of one to five. Almost all of the children reported liking the cereal. However, those who saw a kid-friendly character on the box reported liking the cereal more than those who viewed a box without a character on it.

 

Bottom Line: Companies who sell healthful foods like fruits and vegetables do not have the marketing savvy or dollars to promote their foods like the large corporations that sell processed, "junk food". This means that parents have to go that extra step to ensure that healthful foods get top billing in the home and the high sugar, high fat foods are relegated to special occasions. Good luck! 

 

Source: Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 2011; 165 (3): 229 DOI: 10.1001/archpediatrics.2010.300

 

Breakfast and Weight

Peanut butter toastBreakfast -- it is still the most important meal of the day. The aptly named meal, you truly are breaking a fast, is very important for getting your mind and metabolism revved for the day. Now there is research to suggest that a healthful breakfast, high in protein, can actually help you to consume fewer calories throughout the day.

 

In a recent pilot study conducted at the University of Missouri, researchers gave ten, overweight teenage girls who reported not eating breakfast, either a normal-protein breakfast (18 grams of protein) or a high-protein breakfast (59 grams of protein) for seven days. On day seven, the girls were given an appetite questionnaire and underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of their brain.

 

The researchers found that, compared to breakfast skipping, both the normal- and high-protein breakfasts led to increased fullness and reductions in hunger throughout the morning. They also found that the high-protein breakfast promoted even greater changes in appetite and satiety.

 

The results of the fMRI , which can be used to identify brain activation in specific regions related to food motivation and reward, showed that eating a protein-rich breakfast reduces the brain signals that control food motivation and reward-driven eating behavior in these teens compared to the normal-protein breakfast.

 

Bottom Line: It appears that a healthy protein-rich breakfast might be an effective strategy to improve appetite control and prevent overeating in teens. Teens were targeted in this small study because approximately 60 percent of adolescents skip breakfast on a daily basis and breakfast skipping has been strongly associated with unhealthy snacking, overeating (especially at night), and weight gain.   

  

Source: Obesity, 2011; DOI: 10.1038/oby.2011.108

About Sensible Nutrition 

How is YOUR metabolism? 

 

Ever wonder if your metabolism is keeping you from reaching your weight goals? 

Let a Sensible Nutrition RD measure YOUR metabolism and tell you the truth! Call 781-741-5483 or send an email to [email protected] to schedule your appointment.  

 

 

About Sensible Nutrition

 

Sensible Nutrition is a consulting firm established in 1994 that provides nutrition and fitness services to individuals, universities, corporate wellness programs and nonprofit groups. SN's client list includes The United States Coast Guard, Blue Cross Blue Shield, EMC, Putnam Investments, Corcoran Jennison, Harvard Business School, Boston Ballet and Children's Hospital. For more information about our corporate wellness services, please check us out at www.wellnessworkdays.com.

 

SN services: One-to-one counseling, fitness counseling and training, group lectures, metabolism measures and more! Let the Sensible Nutrition staff develop a nutrition program to help you finally reach your health and weight goals! Gift Certificates are available!

 

Debra Wein, MS, RD, LDN, SN President and Co-Founder writes a regular nutrition column for the National Strength and Conditioning Association's  Performance Journal, has been quoted in Family Circle, Muscle & Fitness, Shape, Self, Men's Health, Allure and Prevention and has appeared on Fox 25, Channel 56, Channel 5, New England Cable News and several radio stations.

 

Contact us at www.sensiblenutrition.com or 781-741-5483.

SNac Bytes Footer