Pasta is my weakness

Help!!

 I am Italian and could probably eat pasta and pizza at every meal!!

 I try to limit myself to pasta once a week...is that ok? I should probably cut it out of my diet for a while but that will never bowl over in my household LOL.

 

Stupid starches are my enemy!

Well, I'm probably the wrong person to answer this, given that I don't eat any starchy foods myself (or at least, not more than about once a week).  However, it seems to me that as long as you are sticking to your calorie goals, it doesn't matter too much where the calories come from.  You might want to try some of the whole-wheat pizza crusts and pastas though, so you're getting the relative goodness of the whole-grains.  Just make sure you're getting your veggies!

Try healthier pasta and pizza, and it won't be such an issue.

For pasta, I highly recommend Barilla Plus pasta - it has whole grains, omega 3 fatty acids, a lot of fiber, and even a good amount of protein.  This stuff really fills you up, and is really good for you.  Toss with low cal marinara, veggies, and some grilled chicken and it's a great dinner.

For pizza, it's best to make your own, or get one of the healthy ones from the freezer section.  Kashi makes great pizzas, on whole grain crust, with really good ingredients.  SouthBeach makes personal size pizzas with whole grain crusts that are only about 350 cals a piece - these make a great lunch.  For your own, try making them with a whole wheat tortilla as the crust, and there are plenty of whole grain/whole wheat pizza crust recipes and mixes available.  Top it with a fresh tomato sauce, reduced fat cheese, and lots of veggies!

Starches/carbohydrates in and of themselves are not necessarily bad - you just need to get the healthiest versions of them and balance them out with veggies, healthy fats, and protein.  If you're within your calorie limit, it shouldn't be a problem.

You need complex carbohydrates not empty calories from enriched white flour (which is in both regular pasta and pizza dough).

Like santonacci said, eat whole wheat or multigrain pasta and I know for pizza up here in Canada, Pizza Pizza has the option of whole wheat pizza dough.

As for sauce for pasta, tomato sauce is the best, my favourite is healthy choice garlic lovers. Toppings for pizza, tons of veggies is the best option.

I try my best to stay away from pizza, but when I make it myself at home with whole wheat pita bread, tomato sauce, light mozzarella and tons of veggies, it is very satisfying.

Hope this helped!

I probally have pasta 3 days a week!  I have whole wheat pasta, with pasta sauce and cheese, not alot of cheese though!  ive lost 26 lbs so far! Its, as usual, about portion size.  I only have one serving of pasta when i have it. So you decided if its ok to have it or not!

Hey,

EXACTLY my problem. well that and chocolate. I seriously could eat a box of pasta at a time its really gross. Their is just something very comforting about it. And when i have a bad day thats the first thing i want to do....eat a big bowl of pasta.

I love the whole wheat barilla Pasta. My favorite is angel hair and theirs is a good pass for the real thing. Infact too good...I still cant help eating far too much of that stuff either. For Me i try to stay far away from pasta because of my portion control problem with it. If you could have a reasonable amount then i suggest trying the Barilla plus and just keeping it to a minimum.

I really only eat pizza if its a last resort or a special treat because no matter what what you slice it (haha) its still not good for you. That Said the Lean Cuisine pizzas are very yummy and i have them for lunch every now and then. I suggest a little salad on the side too.

I to am italian and eat pasta atleast a few nights a week....I either eat a wheat pasta (not as bad as I thought they would be) just check them out in the grocery store and find the best one....or I make homemade pasta with wheat....deffinatly way better for you then boxed and tastes sooo good!!!

I've been using lean cuisines and other low-cal frozen dinners as my shortcut to food I miss...  I think lean cuisine traditional-style pizzas are downright TASTY!   And I've also tried their ravioli, and I love Michelin's macaroni and cheese... not QUITE as tasty as regular, homemade versions, but much better for you and because they're already portioned out, it's easier to stick to 1 serving.

Oh I can relate! I love pasta so so so SO much. I used to love a huge plate of steaming pasta with a tomato sauce my Italian mother would make. We specifically went out and bought extra large plates just so we could fit more pasta onto them! Ohh, it was delicious but I probably ate 1500 calories in each plate and I always went back for seconds! Now whenever I want pasta I have to make sure I only make a single serving of pasta because before I was having four or five!

I'm a pretty big pasta fan too. Here's another vote for the Barilla Plus pasta varieties. They are wonderful. They fill you up faster than regular and the nutrition content is so much better.

My BF  complains about it, but he will eat it. I love it.

Ronzoni Smart Pasta has 6g fiber and 6g protein in every 2oz -- for 180 calories.  Tastes exactly the same as regular pasta.

I only cook individual servings now -- I measure out the 2 (or occasionally 3) ounces and cook it -- no danger of there being left overs.

Ronzoni makes good whole grain pastas, and I've been able to find whole grain, low-fat frozen ravioli too! The secret is portion control! Read the box to find the portion size and measure it out! Only eat one portion. Usually 3/4 cup dry is a portion for dry pastas. These days when I eat pasta I mix in an equal amount of a green vegetable.

As for pizza, I'm right there with you. Me & my husband have been pretty bad lately & getting pizza 2 or 3 times a month - used to be 1 or 2 times a week before we started losing weight. But now when we do get pizza, we only get a small and we get a salad with it. We used to get a large with some chicken wings or something and we'd eat the leftover for breakfast!

In Italy, people eat pasta every day.  The thing is, it's not a whole meal.  It's a small course and the serving is small.  It's also not drenched in rich sauce.  Instead they add a "condimento" - just a little something for flavor.  Pizza is a rare treat, either a single small slice at a pizzaria, or a slightly larger serving made at home.  Nobody eats half a pizza like many Americans do. Moderation is the key.  That's why the Italians are among the slimmest people in the world.

I'm 100% Italian and trying to return to my roots by adopting the Mediterranean Diet of mostly vegetables and grains, legumes and nuts, small amounts of dairy, meat and fish, even smaller amounts of olive oil, and hardly any sweets.  It's doing me good!  I reduced the size of my serving of pasta and now find that if I take more than that, I can't finish it!  You really can change your eating habits.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-diet /NU00190

 

Hi! 

 

I am in a similar situation.  My fiance and I would share homemade pizza every night!  Pizza is just not worth the calories to me; I am on weight watchers and a small slice of cheese is worth almost a quarter of my daily food allowance.  Quite an eye opener for me because before I was counting I would eat half of the pizza... yikes.  The real challenge for our Italian brothers and sisters is portion control anyhow! 

 Pasta is easier. 

1. I switched to whole wheat 

2. I am very strict about the portion size (1 cup; about the size of a fist)

3.  I load up the sauce with veggies and grilled chicken.  (I'm a big fan of spinach or peas in my red sauce)

 

Hope that's helpful!   

 

  

have you ever heard of shirataki pasta? they're almost completely all fiber, so they are extremely low-cal.

 http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/products/p/s hiratakinoodle.htm

i've never had them because i don't think i can get them in montreal, but i definitely want to at some point. anyways, that could be a substitute. what about spaghetti squash? a low-cal option that has a lot of vitamins. 

Original Post by santonacci:

Try healthier pasta and pizza, and it won't be such an issue.

For pasta, I highly recommend Barilla Plus pasta - it has whole grains, omega 3 fatty acids, a lot of fiber, and even a good amount of protein. This stuff really fills you up, and is really good for you. Toss with low cal marinara, veggies, and some grilled chicken and it's a great dinner.

Barilla doesn't have a 100% whole grain pasta.  Even Barilla's "whole grain" pasta is only 51% whole grains.  The Barilla Plus is just their white pasta with some added grains (flaxseed, lentils, chick peas, oats, spelt, barley).  It is BARELY any healthier for you than regular white pasta.

Read the labels and find pasta that is 100% whole wheat.  Even then, compared with other foods like leafy greens, you'll find that 100% whole wheat pasta falls way down the list of nutritional foods and isn't that far from white pasta.

It's hard to limit pasta intake, I know.  I say eat it, but eat it after you have a great big salad.  That way you'll get a lot of great nutrition from the salad and you won't be as hungry for pasta. 

quick question: serving size is 56g on CC. That's cry pasta right? Cause for barilla plus it's less then a cup, and already 200 calories.