A better question is, remember why?
Showing posts with label dessert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dessert. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Peppermint Patties: Gateway Drug?
For Lent this year I gave up Peppermint Patties.
I know, this sounds silly compared with last year,* but my PP consumption was getting out of control (not to be confused with PP).
I started getting them regularly because they’re delicious, obviously. And they're relatively low in PointsPlus Values. I’d take 3 (one serving) to work, usually have one after lunch, and then 2 left to either snack on during the day or have on the way home.
Not terrible.
Then I started eating 2-3 after dinner.
Also not terrible.
Then I started bringing the bag into the living room with me after dinner and eating a few more (…and a few more). Then I started going through an entire bag over the course of a weekend.
Terrible!
I know, this sounds silly compared with last year,* but my PP consumption was getting out of control (not to be confused with PP).
I started getting them regularly because they’re delicious, obviously. And they're relatively low in PointsPlus Values. I’d take 3 (one serving) to work, usually have one after lunch, and then 2 left to either snack on during the day or have on the way home.
Not terrible.
Then I started eating 2-3 after dinner.
Also not terrible.
Then I started bringing the bag into the living room with me after dinner and eating a few more (…and a few more). Then I started going through an entire bag over the course of a weekend.
Terrible!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Small Packages
In honor of the company's 40th birthday, Starbucks recently unveiled a new logo:
To celebrate, for a few days Starbucks offered one of their new "Petites" with any drink purchase:
Basically, they are trendy, bite-sized minidesserts.
Minidesserts seem to be exploding among restaurants, and Starbucks has jumped on the bandwagon. In a recent interview with the Seattle Times, Annie Young-Scrivner, global chief marketing officer at Starbucks, said:
1. Money
People are eating out less, and dessert on top of that is a superfluous expense. Minidesserts are relatively cheap.
2. Choices
Restaurant patrons are now able to sample several different desserts for the price of one large dessert, without having to share several plates.
3. Calories
The growing trend toward "healthy" eating and living says that smaller portions are healthier. The Petites at Starbucks are even advertised as being "all under 200 calories."
Says Kathy Hayden, food-service analyst for Chicago-based Mintel research company, on the snack food trend:
Not really a big deal to most, but I work in the design industry where there is always commotion over rebranding
To celebrate, for a few days Starbucks offered one of their new "Petites" with any drink purchase:
Basically, they are trendy, bite-sized minidesserts.
Minidesserts seem to be exploding among restaurants, and Starbucks has jumped on the bandwagon. In a recent interview with the Seattle Times, Annie Young-Scrivner, global chief marketing officer at Starbucks, said:
"Our research shows that customers are looking for that little something in the afternoon. They don't want it to be very big. They just want a couple of bites of something to complement their tea or espresso or other beverage."The reasoning experts give for this growing trend seem simple enough:
1. Money
People are eating out less, and dessert on top of that is a superfluous expense. Minidesserts are relatively cheap.
2. Choices
Restaurant patrons are now able to sample several different desserts for the price of one large dessert, without having to share several plates.
3. Calories
The growing trend toward "healthy" eating and living says that smaller portions are healthier. The Petites at Starbucks are even advertised as being "all under 200 calories."
Under 200 calories? Should I really consider that bar low?
A whole bagel with light cream cheese is under 200 calories. So are six cups of popcorn. And what about all those 100 calorie packs full of junk food?
Completely by accident, we did end up going into Starbucks during the celebration and getting our free Petites. We chose one Red Velvet Whoopie Pie and one Tiramisu Cake Pop.
Neither was very good.
The cake pop had the consistency of raw cookie dough, and the whoopie pie cakes crumbled in my hand as I ate. They both tasted like your basic, store-bought baked goods (i.e. slightly fake and not as good as it looks).
The nutritional information for all of the Petites is not yet listed on the Starbucks website, but based on my calculations, I think it's safe to estimate that each item they offer is roughly 5 PointsPlus Values.*
Wait, what?
I eliminated 95% of the drink menu trying to pare down my PPV to 2 or less for a drink, and you're throwing in a one-bite treat that is worth 5 PPV??
The worst part is, the same Seattle Times article by Michelle Locke equates the new dessert trend with changing snacking habits:
"People who once packed a bag of trail mix or brought a banana to tide them over the 3 o'clock blahs now may pop into a quick-serve restaurant for a snack wrap or other small menu item."So instead of a filling 5 PPV worth of trail mix, or a 0 PPV banana, people are buying one bite of cake, on top of the 4 PPV+ drink they're already splurging on, that likely won't keep them satisfied through the end of the day, all of which will likely cost upwards of $5? Seems healthy to me!
Says Kathy Hayden, food-service analyst for Chicago-based Mintel research company, on the snack food trend:
"I don't think anyone's losing weight from them. I think that they're a nice little extra."Really, Kathy, you think so?
*The Lemon Sweet Squares are probably the best option at 3 PPV.
The full Seattle Times article is here
Find 200 snacks under 100 calories here
Thursday, February 3, 2011
It's hard to be healthy!
...but you knew that.
If you're anything like me (and if you're taking the time to read this, I'm guessing you are),
you want to be healthy. You intend to be healthy. You even try to be healthy.
But when it comes to actually being healthy - to consistently making healthy choices about diet, exercise and lifestyle in general - it's just. plain. hard.
When I told a friend I was starting this blog it went something like this:
me: I'm starting a blog. It's called Healthy Isn't Easy. Isn't that a good name for my blog?
friend: [stifling laughter] Healthy Isn't Easy? As you're eating a bowl of frosting??
It's true, I was eating a bowl of frosting.
I came to have a bowl of frosting because, well... I made it.
Yes, I made a bowl of frosting with the specific intention of eating it straight from the bowl.
My rationalizations were these:
1. I maderelatively healthy choices all day, and I really wanted dessert.
2. Frosting was the simplest thing to make - only four ingredients, and easy cleanup!
3. I would only make half of the recipe, which would be half the calories!
4. The frosting was low-fat! It was healthy, really. I used 100% juice instead of milk.
5. I had, in fact, made the frosting the night before, and this was leftover frosting.
Wow! Such self-control! I am doing so well!
These are, of course, all poor excuses to binge on pure sugar and fat at 10:00pm when I should have been going to bed. In retrospect:
1. One can make healthy choices that include eating dessert, but this was not one of them.
2. The easiest solution, as we all know, is not usually the best or most healthy solution.
3. A halved batch of frosting is still more frosting than no frosting.
4. Who are you trying to kid?
5. I give myself credit for not eating the entire bowl in one night, but the self-control should have been exercised when tempted to make the frosting in the first place.
To finish the conversation:
me: I'm starting a blog. It's called Healthy Isn't Easy. Isn't that a good name for my blog?
friend: [stifling laughter] Healthy Isn't Easy? As you're eating a bowl of frosting??
me: But that's the whole point!
If you're anything like me (and if you're taking the time to read this, I'm guessing you are),
you want to be healthy. You intend to be healthy. You even try to be healthy.
But when it comes to actually being healthy - to consistently making healthy choices about diet, exercise and lifestyle in general - it's just. plain. hard.
When I told a friend I was starting this blog it went something like this:
me: I'm starting a blog. It's called Healthy Isn't Easy. Isn't that a good name for my blog?
friend: [stifling laughter] Healthy Isn't Easy? As you're eating a bowl of frosting??
It's true, I was eating a bowl of frosting.
I came to have a bowl of frosting because, well... I made it.
Yes, I made a bowl of frosting with the specific intention of eating it straight from the bowl.
My rationalizations were these:
1. I made
2. Frosting was the simplest thing to make - only four ingredients, and easy cleanup!
3. I would only make half of the recipe, which would be half the calories!
4. The frosting was low-fat! It was healthy, really. I used 100% juice instead of milk.
5. I had, in fact, made the frosting the night before, and this was leftover frosting.
Wow! Such self-control! I am doing so well!
These are, of course, all poor excuses to binge on pure sugar and fat at 10:00pm when I should have been going to bed. In retrospect:
1. One can make healthy choices that include eating dessert, but this was not one of them.
2. The easiest solution, as we all know, is not usually the best or most healthy solution.
3. A halved batch of frosting is still more frosting than no frosting.
4. Who are you trying to kid?
5. I give myself credit for not eating the entire bowl in one night, but the self-control should have been exercised when tempted to make the frosting in the first place.
To finish the conversation:
me: I'm starting a blog. It's called Healthy Isn't Easy. Isn't that a good name for my blog?
friend: [stifling laughter] Healthy Isn't Easy? As you're eating a bowl of frosting??
me: But that's the whole point!
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