I'm in love with the new Dunkin' Donuts smoothies. They are made of fruit and yogurt so they sound healthy, but are they really diet-friendly? I'm following Weight Watchers and I don't want to sabotage my diet, but the Mango Passion Fruit Smoothie is just sooooo good and very hard to resist. Help!
Diggin' Dunkin' Smoothies
Dear Diggin',
Seems the more I WRITE about smoothies, the more people write IN about smoothies. I've said it before and I'll say it again; you REALLY need to be careful with smoothies unless you make 'em yourself. Dunkin' Donuts Smoothies are certainly no exception. The DD website promises that these drinks are "made with real fruit and yogurt, and are a good source of Calcium and Vitamin C. Dunkin' Donuts Smoothies are the snack that won't slow you down." But click around the site, and you'll soon learn the horrifying truth about these beverages. A medium-sized Mango Passion Fruit Smoothie from Dunkin' will cost you 550 calories, 4 grams of fat and 118 carbs, not to mention 103 grams of sugar! Yeeeeesh! A small one has 360 calories, which is better but (in my opinion) still way too many calories to waste on 16 ounces of liquid -- especially if your goal is to NOT sabotage your diet. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Instead, try to whip up a mango-y smoothie treat at home by blending frozen mango chunks, 4 ounces of Tropicana Pure Mango Orange juice (a new discovery of mine -- it is fairly high in calories, so use it sparingly), crushed ice, Splenda and some fat-free vanilla yogurt (use 1/2 a container of the 60-calorie kind). Play around with adding a little water or light milk (or a similar sub), and you'll come up with an AWESOME smoothie swap for about 150 - 170 calories or so. Do it! And be strong -- resist the ones from Dunkin' Donuts.
Dear Hungry Girl,
Now that fall is pretty much here and the weather is starting to cool down, I find myself craving heavy comfort foods like pizza, french fries (gasp!) and any type of cheesy, crunchy food. This is a far cry from my normal warm weather routine of salads, grains and crisp vegetables. What can I do to satisfy these cravings without sabotaging my waistline? Help!
Fall-ing into Bad Habits
Dear Fall-ing,
The same thing happens to zillions of people this time of year. You're not alone. Once the weather starts to cool off, people are less excited about eating chopped salads five times a week. It happens. No worries, though, there are MANY awesome ways to "fake" comfort foods. Here are links to some of our favorite recipes and swaps:
Seems the more I WRITE about smoothies, the more people write IN about smoothies. I've said it before and I'll say it again; you REALLY need to be careful with smoothies unless you make 'em yourself. Dunkin' Donuts Smoothies are certainly no exception. The DD website promises that these drinks are "made with real fruit and yogurt, and are a good source of Calcium and Vitamin C. Dunkin' Donuts Smoothies are the snack that won't slow you down." But 
The same thing happens to zillions of people this time of year. You're not alone. Once the weather starts to cool off, people are less excited about eating chopped salads five times a week. It happens. No worries, though, there are MANY awesome ways to "fake" comfort foods. Here are links to some of our favorite recipes and swaps:
