Last Friday's post was all about my adventures in removing simple carbs from my diet. White bread, sweets and my favorite, Goldfish crackers, are no longer a part of my life and I'm not missing them. It's been two full weeks and not a craving to speak of.
When I received this comment from R & R from Getting It Back Together, I thought it would make a good topic for a post:
My biggest problem is that I cannot get my husband to eat anything "grainy". If it isn't made with white flour, he thinks it tastes like wood. Any suggestions?
I do have a few suggestions for those of you who have family members who refuse to eat whole grains. Keep in mind that when people are used to eating white flour products, it takes a period of time to adjust to the heartier texture of whole grains.
1. When you begin to introduce whole grains into the diet, start off slowly. For instance, you can use half white flour/half wheat flour in baked goods or other recipes that call for all-purpose flour. Slowly adjust the amount of whole wheat flour so that your family can acquire a taste for whole grains. I found that whole wheat flour has a rather bitter taste in baked goods especially. There is the option of white whole wheat, but the gluten level is higher, a problem for some people.
2. Switch to whole grain pastas. This was an easy one for my family. I started off by experimenting with whole grain pasta in lasagna. Since the sauce hid the color of the pasta, my family was none the wiser. Many restaurants will substitute whole grain pasta for white pasta if you make the request.
3. When making sandwiches, use one slice whole wheat and one slice of white bread. I've tried dozens of different brands over the years and found that my two favorites are Brownberry 100% Whole Wheat Bread and Pepperidge Farms Whole Grain. Be sure to check the nutrition label before purchasing whole wheat bread. 100% Whole Wheat flour should be the first ingredient. Don't be deceived by the color of the bread either. Often food coloring is added to products to obtain the appearance of whole wheat.
4. If a recipe calls for bread crumbs, use whole wheat bread crumbs rather than white. A good place to try this would be in meatballs or meatloaf, two of my family's favorites. (I use extra lean ground beef and lots of seasoning to add flavor, but keep fat and calories low.)
5. A friend recently mentioned that she dips chicken breast in egg white, dredges it in whole wheat flour to coat and bakes it for a low fat entree. I would add some favorite spices to the flour for added flavor. (Thanks to my friend, Chris, for the tip!)
6. Switch from white rice to brown rice. A good place to start is with a rice pilaf. I make mine with low sodium broth, beef consomme or canned French onion soup. When eating out, request brown rice rather than white.
Whatever you do, hide the evidence! What they don't know won't hurt them. Actually, it will help! The fiber that you get with whole grains is essential to our bodies and aids the digestive process.
For more information about switching to whole grains, go here.
Do you have any tips for adding whole grains to your family's diet?
Thanks for stoping by Karen!
ReplyDeleteThe whole grain thing is so funny in our house. My husband and 2 kids have been switched to whole grain pasta, bread etc without even knowing, I've introduced it slowly.
One day my husband said "we really should switch to whole grain pasta" my response was "you've been eating it for months" :-)
I guess it just goes to show you that it isn't that bad after all. The easiest transition for my family was the pasta. I found that it tastes even better the next day so sometimes I'll make up a lasagna the night before I plan to serve it.
ReplyDeleteHey Karen,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment! Loving all that great info on your blog!!
Kerry :)
I love whole grains. I switched a few years ago and haven't had white bread since and have eaten very little of anything besides whole grains.
ReplyDeleteI really love your posts, Karen. As ALWAYS, such good and helpful ideas. As bad as I eat, one thing I DON'T have a problem with is eating whole grain breads & pastas. I hadn't thought about using it to dredge food in, but I don't use it in that manner that often.
ReplyDeleteI have a hard time with wheat products. But maybe I could try multi-grain items.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I made this switch cold turkey and never looked back.
ReplyDeleteIt was amazing to have bread that actually had TASTE and TEXTURE! And I liked it! (LOVE the Arnold's Double Fiber!)
I didn't cut out all simple carbs. I still have a sweet every once in a while. But I eat 90% to 95% whole foods. I've even found that Peanut Butter and Co.'s Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter makes a great sweetener in my fruit smoothies (it's all natural, no sugar added peanut butter), so I no longer add honey even.
Great job switching! As for my family, it's all I buy, so they can eat it or starve. lol