Full Fat Better Than Reduced

   A lot of people I know who are trying to be healthy take short cuts that end up getting them lost, rather than helping them out.  Rather than eating less of something fattening or unhealthy, and more of things that are naturally good,  

they will buy the reduced fat versions and then eat the same amount, or more... 

While I totally understand your reasons for doing so, I want you all to know that this is hurting your efforts by a long shot, rather than helping. 

I am a great believer in eating whole foods and eating to satisfy.  In follow up to the Jeni's post about the delicious natural artisan ice cream....on the other end of the spectrum there are many makers of reduced-fat ice creams, which in addition to containing many emulsifiers and stabilizers, are often whipped at high speeds so that much air is beat into them, to make them seem lighter and fluffier, than their all-natural, full fat, counterparts. 

 When you fill your stomach with air, after downing all of those calories, and sugars, it is easy to be hungry again soon after.  Reduced -fat ice creams can also contain nearly as many calories as regular, and often more sodium and carbohydrates.

    Another good example is reduced-fat peanut butter vs. a natural peanut butter. 

These are the ingredients in reduced-fat peanut butter:

Roasted Peanuts, Corn Syrup Solids, Sugar, Soy Protein, Salt, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (Cottonseed, Soybean And Rapeseed) To Prevent Separation, Mono And Diglycerides, Minerals (Magnesium Oxide, Zinc Oxide, Ferric Orthophosphate, Copper Sulfate), Vitamins (Niacinamide, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid)

...hmmm well I know what the first ingredient is...

These are the ingredients in a natural peanut butter: Dry roasted unblanched peanuts and salt

While the ingredients between the two are so different, the calories and fat are not.  You save only 10 calories and 3 grams of fat per serving by eating the reduced-fat!  Why not just eat the natural one that is made from real ingredients that have not been created in a laboratory, without all of the added processed sugars and oils.  It is also actually kind of fun to grind your own peanut butter if you happen to go to grocer that allows you to do so.  And the smell of freshly roasted, and freshly ground, peanuts will have you dipping your finger in the container before you can get it to the cash register.  Your body (and your taste buds) will be thanking you for giving up the reduced-fat version.

  I want you all to be healthy and happy, so if you are going to buy reduced-fat anything, please be sure that you know what you are getting into, by only giving up a few grams of fat....

Artisan and Local: Incredible Ice Cream

  With the freezing rain still pouring outside my window, I needed something that makes me happy... one of my new favorite products since moving to Cleveland.  The local artisan ice cream, Jeni's!  While I am usually a gelato fan, and actually a huge fan of the Capogiro gelato in Philadelphia, I have to admit that this Jeni's is the equivalent in ice cream of Capogiro gelato.  All of Jeni's pints are hand packed and produced right in Columbus, OH.  They use as many fresh ingredients as possible, from the Ohio countryside, while sourcing exotics from around the world.  During the Ohio growing season, they claim lots of "Ohio love", supporting local farmers, by buying local.  All of the cream is from Ohio dairy, from pasture raised cows, with no antibiotics, growth hormones, herbicides or pesticides..just cows eating grass.

Jeni's focuses on fresh clean flavors, instead of overwhelming sweetness.  There is a whole line of 16 interesting signature flavors such as: Salty Caramel, Bangkok Peanut, and Wildberry Lavender, and then a shorter line of seasonal favorites that change with the season.  This end of winter season promotes Honey Buttercake, Askinoise Dark Milk Chocolate, and Lime Cardamom Yogurt (which happens to be in my freezer at this very moment). 

 

Each flavor is so powerful and exciting that you slowly savor each spoonful, while looking forward to the next.  The ice cream is thick and creamy, but not rich, nor heavy.  

 

While there are just a few Jeni's ice cream shops around the Columbus area, you can also buy the pints in high-end grocery stores here in Ohio, or, of course on their website!  How great would it be to get a delivery of ice cream on your front porch?  When I was down in Nashville, TN last month, I noticed a new coffee and ice cream shop that just opened in the trendy Hillsboro Village...and all it sells in Jeni's!  If you haven't yet tried Jeni's, check out a store or their website and give it a try...or support your own local artisan ice cream (or gelato) producer, and let me know what you think! After all, if you are going to eat the fat and sugar in an ice cream why not make it the absolute best tasting, and most satisfying, fat and sugar possible?