Rate Your Plate
Choose either Sometimes, Never or Usually to answer the following questions and find our about your eating habits:
- Consider nutrition when you make food choices?
- Try to eat regular meals (including breakfast), rather than skip or skimp on some?
- Choose nutritious snacks?
- Try to eat a variety of foods?
- Include new-to-you foods in meals and snacks?
- Try to balance your energy (calorie) intake with your physical activity?
- Eat at least 6 equivalents* of grain products daily?
- Eat at least 3 cups* of vegetables daily?
- Eat at least 2 1/2 cups* of fruits daily?
- Consume at least 2 cups* of milk or yogurt, or 2 oz cheese daily?
- Go easy on higher-fat foods?
- Go easy on sweets?
- Drink 8 or more cups of fluids daily?
- Limit alcoholic beverages (no more than 1 daily for a woman or 2 for a man)?
*See USDA MyPyramid for recommended serving sizes.
Score Yourself
Usually = 2 points; Sometimes = 1 point; Never = 0 points. If you scored...
- 24 or more points....Healthful eating seems to be your fitness habit already. Still, look for ways to stick to a healthful eating plan -- and to make a "good thing" even better.
- 16 to 23 points....You're on track. A few easy changes could help you make your overall eating plan healthier.
- 9 to 15 points....Sometimes you eat smart -- but not often enough to be your "fitness best."
- 0 to 8 points....For your good health, you're wise to rethink your overall eating style.
Whatever your score, make moves for healthful eating. Gradually turn your "nevers" into "sometimes" and your "sometimes" into "usually."
Mini-Muffin Bites
- Nonstick spray ½ tsp. nutmeg ¼ cup cooking oil
- 1 ½ cups flour ½ tsp. salt (optional) ½ cup skim milk
- ½ cup sugar 1 medium egg ½ tsp. cinnamon (or to taste)
- 2 tsp. baking powder
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray pans with nonstick vegetable spray. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the egg, oil, and milk, beating with a fork until they are well mixed. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until the dry ingredients are moistened, about 20 strokes.
Spoon the batter equally into the prepared muffin tins. Sprinkle each muffin with cinnamon. Bake in preheated oven about 7 to 10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. (Mini-muffins require close attention so they do not burn.) Serve warm with a glass of lowfat milk. Makes 24 mini-muffins or 12 regular muffins. Nutrition Facts: Each mini-muffin has 76 calories, 2 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 8 mg cholesterol, 38 mg sodium, (86 mg with added salt).