5 "Bad" Foods That Are Actually Healthy

I hope everyone had a nice Chinese New Year and Valentine's Day weekend! Me, I was just stunned that I favored tikoy over chocolate on the shared holiday! Ah, well, I only have tikoy once a year. Chocolate...I can have that all year round.

Anyway, Suzanne just shared with me this article that I'm sure all of you would enjoy, 5 Bad Foods That Are Actually Healthy. While it's still not justified for you to eat ice cream or beef every day, it's nice to know that they're not as bad as widely thought, and can even provide health benefits. Anyway, here are my favorite ways to enjoy each of those "bad" foods....

1. Ice cream
When we have a tub of ice cream at home, I only allow myself a single scoop. When I order ice cream at the mall, I also always order a single scoop or whatever the smallest size is. I confess that my favorite ice cream is Sebastian's Ice Cream, and even their smallest size can be very generous. I try to share as much as I can, but when I have the cup all to myself, I savor it, because I only indulge occasionally. Another option if I go to Sebastian's is that I split an ice cream sandwich with someone else...(I've never eaten an entire Sebastian's ice cream sandwich by myself...that would entail superhuman powers!).

2. Chocolate
Just as the article mentioned, I always try to snap off just a 100 calorie portion every time I eat, which is about two squares of quality chocolate. I now avoid my old favorite candy bars (anything with a core of caramel, nougat, wafers, etc. for example) and now just choose pure chocolate. I opt for good quality chocolate brands...that way, I satisfy my chocolate craving with just an appropriate serving.

3. Cheese
I sometimes choose Laughing Cow light cheese wedges, but when I want a good hard cheese, I like a real mild cheddar (not processed cheese food like QuickMelt, or the like) or Marca Piña queso de bola.

4. Beef
I love burgers and steak! While I am known to be able to finish a half-pound burger by myself, again, I don't do so often. I try to follow a 3 oz. portion as much as I can, although I personally don't see any harm in ordering a quarter-pounder at McDonald's on occasion. Most fast food burgers are well under 4 oz. anyway, so I try to choose charbroiled or grilled burgers instead of griddle-fried McDonald's or Jollibee. Also, I actually don't like cheeseburgers as much as I like plain hamburgers.

5. Pizza
If only there were whole-grain pizza crusts, pizza for me would be the perfect food. I prefer thin-crust pizzas, so that there's less of that nasty refined white flour to go around. For New York-style pizza, I prefer Brooklyn Pizza; just one slice is enough for me. Italian-style pizza is still my style of choice. I also prefer meatless pizzas, usually the classic margherita, which is essentially tomato, mozzarella, and basil. Simple but still delicious.


No exercise all during the long weekend! I'm trying to rest out my fatigued legs.

Friday's meals
Breakfast: Whole wheat croissant with blackberry preserves, coffee with low-fat milk
Lunch: Roast chicken, 2 slices of 100% whole-grain bread, unsweetened green tea
Snack: Tikoy
Dinner: Ham, cheese, and apple on ciabatta, chips and salsa, spinach-artichoke and pesto dips (props to Trina for putting together a nice office party!)
Dessert: Vanilla cupcake

Saturday's meals
Breakfast: Whole wheat pan de sal with peanut butter, coffee with low-fat milk
Lunch: Grilled squid, rice, atsara
Snack: Ube hopia, ham with whole wheat pan de sal, coffee with low-fat milk
Dinner: Vegetable lumpia, siomai, steamed lapu-lapu, steamed shrimp, pancit canton, lettuce, chocolate lava cake, cassava cake

Sunday's meals
Breakfast: Hopia mongo, cassava cake, coffee with low-fat milk
Lunch: Vegetable lumpia
Snack: Coffee with low-fat milk, tikoy
Dinner: Steamed lapu-lapu with chili garlic sauce, brown rice, bite of banana pecan cake