Naples Florida Weekly
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How to navigate sugar traps




 

 

If you are watching your weight or sugar, you are probably mindful of what you are eating. However, many people don’t realize that there are hidden traps just waiting to mess up our healthy meal plans.

For instance, beware of the buns in the cheeseburgers. Aside from tomatoes, onions, and lettuce, which all contain a small amount of sugar; a medium sized bun packs 20 grams of processed carbohydrates. A simple solution to this dilemma is to swap your bread for either grilled eggplant or zucchini, or a large portabella mushroom.

Another hidden source of sugar comes from salad dressings. Even if you think you are eating a healthy salad, it may be chock full of sugar. Dried cranberries contribute about 15 grams of sugar and the dressing, even something seemingly healthy like pomegranate vinaigrette, packs on another 15-20 grams.

How to solve a dilemma? Make your own low-calorie, low-sugar delicious salad dressing at home. Consider making this cilantro-avocado salad dressing – it takes 5 minutes. Dressing ingredients (for a 4-person salad): ½ an avocado, ¼ cup Greek yogurt, ½ cup of water, 1 cup of cilantro leaves and stems, 1 small clove of garlic, ½ tsp. of salt, a squeeze of lemon juice. Pulse all of the ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth. This awesome recipe yields a ¾ cup of dressing with a total of 3.6 grams of sugar.

— Svetlana Kogan is a board certified medical doctor with more than 20 years of experience. For more information about her practice, visit www.customlongevity.com

— Svetlana Kogan is a board certified medical doctor with more than 20 years of experience. For more information about her practice, visit www.customlongevity.com

If your takeout meal is cooked in a scrumptious glaze, beware of a carbohydrate overdose. A typical shrimp entrée may look like a sensible dinner, but it can be a recipe for fatigue and belly bloat due to the glaze on the shrimp, which packs at least 30 grams of sugar. Another example of a restaurant sugar trap is a common barbeque glaze, which packs a whopping 78 grams of sugar into one dinner serving.

Want the alternative healthy solution? Try cooking your salmon or chicken with sugar-free maple bourbon glaze from Tarasketokitchen.com. In a small saucepan over low heat, stir together ¼ cup of water and ½ cup of bocha sweet mix made from kabocha superfood until granules are dissolved. Remove pan from heat and whisk in: 1 tbsp. of butter, ¼ cup of monk fruit granulated sweetener, 1 tbsp. of Dijon mustard, ¼ cup of bourbon, ¼ teaspoon of allspice, and ½ tsp. of maple extract. You could also add 1/8 tsp. of xanthan gum for thickness. If you do the latter, mix in a blender. ¦

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