Sadly this is what is has come to for The Joy of Caking. A measly cup of sugar-free Jell-O.
Lets talk about the upside of a cup of sugar-free Jell-O. It has only 10 calories, tastes very cherryish ( I bought the cherry and black cherry pack), and is capable of a few upgrades – capable enough to satisfy most of my cravings for sweets. Thank goodness! Now, do I have you convinced that sugar-free Jell-O is far better tasting than the homemade treats you and I make?
I didn’t think so. I’m not all that convinced either. I’ve never been a big diet freak, but there is something I have noticed over the years. The older I get, the harder it is to stop gaining weight, and the harder it is to lose weight when I want need to.
With weight loss foremost in my mind I spent some time last night in the grocery store reading labels. I decided I was going to forego buying anything that was high in fat, sugar, and calories. I didn’t even stroll down my favorite isle – the baking isle. Can you imagine? No flour, sugar, chocolate chips, or butter. What a hard task for a baker like myself.
Have you ever shopped when you’re thinking along the lines of dieting? It’s a real chore finding food to buy that resembles something healthier, and is still tasty. Lets compare a breakfast food for example. Take bagels and english muffins. First, there is a considerable difference in calories between the two. I prefer bagels but english muffins are lower in calories. Then compare the whole grain to the white, the regular to the light, and one brand from the next. This is what I call work. If everything I wanted to buy was this involved, the grocery store could easily become my home away from home. Do I sound like Andy Rooney yet?
Have you ever notice the price difference from healthy food to what some might consider unhealthy food? Why is it that anything that appears to be better for you costs more money? If an english muffin has more calories doesn’t it make sense that more ingredients went into it? Apparently not the case.
To settle my nerves after my trip to the grocery store I upgraded my cup of cherry sugar-free Jell-O a bit. I added some sliced banana and a squirt of whipped cream – while it did help satisfy my sweet tooth, it certainly is not comparable to a piece of my homemade chocolate and cream cheese crostata. This is the price I have to pay for being a bit too excessive during the last ten months that I’ve been baking my fool head off and blogging about it.
Will you stand by me while I work on this self-improvement project, or until I’m sick of it? Please join in, I’d love to hear your suggestions, tips, and thoughts on getting healthier in 2011.
THE JOY OF CAKING 