One of my lovely dieticians noted carbs are often a villain in diets these days. As with dessert… every thing in moderation! It’s okay to eat bread. In fact, it’s downright fabulous. I admit to loving bread. Especially when contemplating the eating of a sandwich. My goodness, sandwiches are wonderful.
So one serving of carbs should consist of:
- 15 grams carbohydrates
- 3 grams protein
- 1 gram fat
- 80 calories
As for the delightful (and not so delightful) items one can consume for serving of carbs, well… take a look…
Cereals (yum!), Beans, Grains, Pasta:
- 1/3 cup cooked or canned beans (all kinds)
- 1/2 cup hot cereal, such as oatmeal, cream of wheat, rice, etc. (yeah!)
- dry cereal – read the box! (less than 100 calories per serving)
- 1/2 cup cooked pasta (all kinds)
- 1/3 cup rice (all kinds)
Starchy Vegetables:
- 1/2 cup cooked or canned corn
- 2 T. uncooked corn meal (masa or matzo meal)
- 1 6-inch piece corn on the cob
- 1/3 cup cooked malanga (I don’t even know what that is)
- 1/2 cup cooked or canned peas (eauw!)
- 1/3 cooked plantain (no thanks)
- 1 small (3 oz.) potato… baked, boiled, or steamed
- 1 cup squash… winter, acorn, hubbard
- 1/2 cup yam or sweet potato (I’ll pass)
Breads (now we’re talking!):
- 1/2 bagel (approximately 1 oz. … a waste of my carbs!)
- 1 oz. slice of bread… whole wheat, rye, white (sandwiches, here we come!)
- 2 small dumplings or gnocchi, steamed (not enough bang for your buck)
- 1/2 English muffin (yum!)
- 1/2 pita pocket bread, 6″-8″ in diameter (mmm!)
- 1 small roll… dinner or hard (huh?)
- 1/2 sandwich but or roll (think hamburger, hot dog, or kaiser)
- 1 6″ corn or 8″ flour tortilla (Mexican food again!)
Crackers/Snacks:
- 4-6 crackers (80 calories per serving)
- 3 graham cracker squares
- 0.75 oz. hard pretzels
- 3 cups plain, popped popcorn
Starches/Breads with Fat have slightly different nutritional values:
- 15 grams carbohydrates
- 3 grams protein
- 5+ grams fat
- 120-150 calories
So what constitutes “Starches/Breads with Fat,” you ask? Take a look see:
- 1 2.5″ biscuit
- 1 oz. corn, taco, or tortilla chips
- 10 potato chips (uh, why bother?)
- 1/3 cup refried beans
- 1/3 cup fried or Spanish rice
- 1/2 cup spaghetti or marinara sauce (weird on the list of carbs, I know)
You just have to know that these six items count as 1 starch/bread and 1 fat serving. If you’re willing to sacrifice your fat serving, go for it! I have to admit, at some point, there will be sacrifice for refried beans. Mmm.
Source of this data? Don’t really know… the dieticians gave it to me. They’re very nice that way. Although, theirs didn’t have all the entertaining color commentary.
