Small but effective changes

A lot of times people say to me, "I could never eat low carb because I like real food." Well guess what, so do I. And we eat real food every meal. It's all about portion control and easy, yet effective, substitutions. 

So let's start with my favorite, bread. I LOVE BREAD. Before making the low carb switch I would eat a bagel or two pieces toast every morning for breakfast. For lunch I would pack a sandwich with "whole wheat" bread, because that makes it healthy, right? For dinner I would make garlic bread, rolls, pizza, etc. As delicious as all of that sounds, that is no longer what my daily meals look like. However, it's not like I never eat bread, because I do. One adjustment I made to my love for bread was the type of bread I eat. I no longer buy the 99 cent loaf of "whole wheat" bread, but instead spend the extra money on a healthy and nutrient packed loaf of bread, called Ezekiel 4:9. Ezekiel bread is made from the 6 following legumes and grains: wheat, barley, millet, lentils, soybeans, and spelt.  It is packed with protein, and rated 84.3% as efficient as the highest forms of protein such as eggs or milk. It contains 18 amino acids, 9 of them being essential amino acids.  It is easy for your body to digest the bread due to the sprouts breaking down the starches and making them into easily digestible simple sugars. Allows for increased absorption of minerals, increased vitamin C and B, and a great source of fiber. All ingredients in the bread are organic and kosher, there is no flour, no GMO's, refined sugars, or anything artificial such as shortenings or preservatives. With that being said, it is best to keep it in the freezer to ensure it doesn't mold. 

Ezekiel brand makes tortillas (our favorite), waffles, pocket breads, english muffins, buns, and breads. As I mentioned, it is a little more pricey, however, they are a much healthier choice than other breads on the shelf. Ezekiel bread can be found in the freezer section of the organic/natural isles. 

Another one of my favorite foods, noodles. Lasagna, spaghetti, noodles in tomato soup, chicken alfredo, yum yum yum.  As everyone knows, you can get a box of noodles for under a dollar. However, just like with bread, you get what you pay for in terms of nutrition. When I cook with noodles now, I always use organic brown rice pasta, which is made from brown rice as opposed to wheat. Below is a picture of the brand I use, which comes in many different kinds. 

 

These pasta products are also in the organic section of the grocery store. Again, they cost more than a $0.99 bag of noodles, however there is much greater nutritional value in the brown rice pasta. At first I was worried that I wouldn't like how it would taste, but you can't even tell the difference! This pasta is not mushy, tastes great, is gluten and wheat free, and packed with fiber, specifically insoluble fiber.

Another great noodle replacement are zoodles...noodles made from zucchini! I use the "As Seen on TV, Veggetti" and LOVE it! It's probably one of my favorite kitchen gadgets that I own and also inexpensive. I believe you can get them at Target, Walmart, Bed Bath and Beyond, Kohls, etc. for under $10!

It's super easy too. All you do is cut one end off of a zucchini, insert it into the end of the Veggetti, turn it, and out come your zoodles! You can also use yellow squash or carrots. 

You then add them to a skillet with about 1 TBS. of olive olive, cook for about 3-4 minutes or until tender, and wa-lah! You have some healthy, nutritious, vegetable noodles! I have TONS of recipes to go with these tasty noodles that I will post at a later date. 

These are just three easy alternatives you could make to your daily cooking habits that will help to get you started on your low carb journey!