Always leaders in dietary excellence, Burger King has come out with a new kids’ menu. The menu consists of three different meals, each of which is supposed to be lower in fact, sodium, and have fewer than 560 calories. Here is a list of the meals, taken from the Burger King website:
* Hamburger with BKTM Fresh Apple Fries, low-fat caramel dipping sauce and calcium-fortified MINUTE MAID® Apple Juice;
* New BK BURGER SHOTS® with BKTM Fresh Apple Fries, low-fat caramel dipping sauce and calcium-fortified MINUTE MAID® Apple Juice; and
* 4-pce CHICKEN TENDERS® (reformulated to be reduced-sodium) with BKTM Fresh Apple Fries, low-fat caramel dipping sauce and HERSHEY’S® Fat Free White Milk.
Each of the meals is supposed to get no more than 30 per cent of its calories from fat, and 10 per cent from added sugars. There also must be less than 600 milligrams of sodium.
Sounds like a great initiative. However, since when are FRIED APPLES a healthy alternative? Read more…
Eating healthy is tough enough, without certain junk foods disguising themselves as healthy choices. Here is a list of some of the worst culprits, and some better alternatives:
Baked potato chips: May be low in fat, but they’re still high in calories and aren’t nutritionally beneficial.
Alternative: Popcorn - Still salty and crunchy, but high in fiber and lower in calories.
Gummy fruit snacks: They’re basically candy with vitamins. They also contain high-fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils.
Alternative: Fresh or dried fruits - Antioxidants.
Light ice cream: Not all light ice creams are low in calories (they’re just low-ER than their full-fat counterparts). Plus, since they don’t have the rich taste you’re looking for, you’re more likely to eat more than one serving.
Alternative: Dairy-free ice cream - It still has a great taste and texture, with fewer calories.
Diet soda: Research shows a possible link between diet soda and heart disease.
Alternative: Flavored seltzer water - No calories, no artificial colors or sweeteners, but it’s fizzy and flavorful.
“Calorie-free” spray margarine: Being labeled, “Calorie-free” means there could actually be as many as 5 calories in a serving.
Alternative: Spray-it-yourself olive oil - This real fat can be more healthy and flavorful than the “fake” stuff.
Nonfat salad dressing: They’re often high in calories cause they’re packed with sugar.
Alternative: Oil-based salad dressing - You’ll get the taste and good-for-you fats.
Low-fat cookies: You think you can indulge, but they’re still filled with sugar and may have tons of calories.
Alternative: Oatmeal cookies - You’re getting cookies AND whole grains. But be careful you’re not also getting high fructose corn syrup, white flour, and butter.100-Calorie Snack Packs: These small packages fool you into believing you’re not eating much, and therefore you end up eating more.
Alternative: A small-serving of almonds - You get fiber and protein, plus good fat.
Ever wondered where your favorite drink originated? Check out the histories of some of the most widely consumed cocktails:
The Mojito - Ingredients: white rum, sugar or sugar cane juice, lime, carbonated water and mint muddled together.
History: May be traced back to sailors in 16th century Cuba, using the drink to disguise bad rum.
The Singapore Sling - Ingredients: gin, cherry brandy and Benedictine in equal parts with a dash of bitters and Cointreau and finished off with pineapple and lime juice and grenadine.
History: Mr. Ngiam Tong Boon at the Raffles Hotel’s Long Bar in Singapore mixed the first one somewhere between 1910 and 1915. The recipe was modified in the mid-twentieth century by Tong Boon’s nephew.
The Sidecar - Ingredients: equal parts brandy or Cognac, Cointreau and lemon juice.
History: This drink probably dates back to Paris during or just after the first World War. The name may come from a motorcycle sidecar used to bring an American Army captain to and from the place of the drink’s invention.
The Pisco Sour - Ingredients: Pisco (a regional brandy from South America), lemon juice, bitters and egg whites.
History: Either a variation on the whiskey sour from Peru, or a combination of local limes and regional liqueur by an English steward in Chile.
White Russian - Ingredients: equal parts cream, vodka and Kahlua.
History: Originally invented in the 1930s, the recipe was standardized during the 60s in a drink recipe book. The name of the drink refers not to the location of its invention, but rather the connection between Russia and vodka. The drink has made a recent resurgence because of the cult film, the Big Lebowski.
The Manhattan - Ingredients: whiskey, sweet vermouth and bitters, garnished with a maraschino cherry.
History: Basically the only fact that is known about the origin of this drink is that it was created on the island of Manhattan. One story says Sir Winston Churchill’s mother threw a party is honor of a presidential nominee, and the club hosting the party, the Manhattan, created the drink for the event.
The Mai Tai - Ingredients: white and gold rum, pineapple juice, orange and/or lime juice.
History: Created as a result of the Tiki/Polynesian trend, by one of two restaurant owners.
Tom Collins: Ingredients: gin, lemon and lime juice and soda water.
History: Possibly the result of a hoax in nineteenth century New York City. It went something like this: you would run into your friend on the street some night, and he would say that he had just left a bar where another guy - Tom Collins - had been talking trash about you. You run to this bar to confront the guy, where the bartender tells you he’s just left for another bar. You continue running from bar to bar, trying to find Tom Collins while your friends laugh at you. It was only a matter of time before a bartender offered you a drink when you burst into his bar asking for a Tom Collins.
Bloody Mary - Ingredients: vodka, tomato juice, salt, pepper, cayenne and Worcestershire sauce.
History: Originally just tomato juice and vodka, it was originally a hangover cure. However, once the rest of the ingreidents were added by a separate inventor, the drink really took off.
The Martini - Ingredients: gin, vermouth and bitters.
History: Drunk by some of history’s greats - such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway and Truman Capote, this classic cocktail came to be in the late nineteenth century. However, the recipe as we know it today gained popularity in the early twentieth century, and was also a popular drink during prohibition due to the ease of access to gin.
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