Mikelifesteer Homemade Uncrustables

Take two pieces of 100% whole wheat bread – I like to use double fiber bread, if available, to enhance the fiber intake. Remove the crust from the bread. Make the filling.  Two fillings that I have tried are:

Peanut butter, reduced fat cream cheese, low-sugar strawberry jam 

Peanut butter, reduced fat cream cheese, Musselman’s apple butter, cinnamon, raisins

In a ratio of approximately two heaping teaspoons of peanut butter to an equivalent amount of the other ingredients combined

You can of course try other components of the filling: prune butter, almond butter, various dried fruit and/or nuts, unsweetened apple sauce, chocolate, honey, wheat germ, etc.

Mix the filling and put in between the bread, and then seal the bread along the edges by pinching together.  Wrap in aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees F.  After cooling you can eat or freeze (it freezes very well).  I usually cut in half, so each one made is two servings for me.

As with all the baked materials I make, the homemade version is not going to be as sweet as the store-bought, but it will be healthier – and you’ll know exactly what’s in it, how it was made, etc.  In addition, when you eat healthier, your tastes change, so that you don’t always like very sweet things.

In fact, as a fan of apple pie and various baked goods based on apples – including those I make myself – I find one of the major flaws in store-bought apple pies and other such baked goods is that they are too sweet.  Rather than let the natural sweetness and tartness of the apples come through, they bury it under excessive sugar.  That’s coupled with – at least for the cheaper versions – using mushy apple filling that is barely recognizable as apples; in addition, the crust they have is too thin and too flaky.  I like thicker crust, less sweetness, fresher apples, just the right amount of seasoning – let the apples and apple based products (apple butter or apple sauce) themselves provide most of the flavor.  The same principle applies to these homemade uncrustables – no extra sugar is added; whatever sweetness and sugar is already present in the filling is what provides the flavor.

What to snack, if you have to

 

I do snack. I admit it. Despite that I like the idea of eating only once a day, I still snack. 


But, in my defense, my lunch is usually less than 300 calories and I snack only within my "eating" hours, between 5 AM and 5 PM (yes, I know, this is 12 hours; therefore, my fasting period is probably not long enough to dip into the fat metabolism). 

For my job, I prepare apple slices, baby carrots, and celery sticks. In addition, I have my daily banana and "other" fruit (whatever is in season). 

More recently, I added sunflower seeds and whole wheat crackers for the times when I crave salt. I have also experimented with some homemade crackers (these are much better than Triscuit).

To make it easier on me, I wash the carrots and celery on Sunday, distribute them in sandwich bags and keep these in the refrigerator for the weekdays. 

Once I stop working, I may not downsize to one meal a day, but I may shorten my eating period to six-eight hours a day, and take advantage of the daily intermittent fasting.

Apple Varieties

Eating more fruits and vegetables is an important component of a healthy diet. Adopting such a diet would be easier, if people fully explore the varieties of different fruits and vegetables available, to find those most appealing to their individual taste, or just to have some variety and avoid "taste boredom."

For example, there is a large variety of apples, that differ in sweetness, tartness, crispiness, etc. The image here shows many, but certainly not all, of the varieties. Most people think of apples as "Red Delicious" and, if they are somewhat more adventurous, "Golden Delicious" or "Granny Smith," but there are other varieties as well, and you should at least try some of them, and see what you think.
 

The same principle applies to other plant-based foods, but apples are a good place to start, since there is such a wide variety, and apples have a relatively long "shelf-life" at room temperature, so one can take time trying them out.

Bulgur and apple dessert

Ingredients
You will need 1 cup of bulgur (I use quick cooking 100% whole grain Bob’s Red Mill), ¼ cup of old fashioned Quaker oats (this can be increased or skipped, according to your taste), 3-4 medium size apples, a dash of cinnamon, and 2 Tbsp of sugar (or mashed banana).
 
Directions
Cook one cup of bulgur wheat in two cups of water by simmering for 12 minutes. At the end, add the oats and turn the heat off. Slice thinly the apples and microwave them to soft (I microwave them for 2-3 minutes). Mix the wheat, apples, cinnamon and sugar (or banana), cover, and let it cool to room temperature. Store in a glass jar in the refrigerator. Serve as a dessert or breakfast.
 
Play
For more health benefits, add flax seeds, walnuts, lemon peel/juice, and raisins. Instead of sugar, sweeten the dessert with mashed bananas. Finally, add a spoon of peanut butter or coconut oil. 


 For more on bulgur, watch the video below: