Its fall, that means Back-To-School and not only that, it can go for us Hard-Working Folks who are just plain tired of the Weight Loss Shakes, WL Frozen Foods, Fast Food (EEEK!!! ) or Salads. Thought this was interesting:

Brown Baggin' It: Better Lunches

By Jaclyn Johnson
eDiets Contributor

When I think of a brown-bag lunch, potato chips, PB & Js and whole milk come to mind. But no longer do packed lunches have to be child-like. Now, it’s easy to pack a simple, healthy and, most importantly, delicious lunch. No longer do you have to resort to fast food or expensive restaurant lunches. Our eDiets experts will give you some tips on how to make lunches lovable again.

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When it comes to packing your own lunch, it is necessary to plan! Write out a list of what you would like for lunch that week before you go to the grocery store. This will decrease the chance you will impulsively grab food you don’t need. Also buy pre-chopped fruits and veggies and sliced deli meats, this will make it easier for you to pack your lunch and not make a mess. If you have 10 minutes of free time, you can pack a healthy lunch!

What do you need to include?
According to eDiets nutrition expert Pamela Ofstein, a well-rounded lunch should include “protein, fruits and vegetables (good fiber sources), some carbohydrates (whole grain sources), even a little healthy fat is good (nuts, avocado, etc).” Pamela’s idea of a healthy lunch is “some tuna salad or a piece of chicken (cold is just as yummy), a few crackers, small salad with vinaigrette dressing, and a piece of fruit for dessert.”

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What to avoid
Try to avoid excessively fattening foods and too many snacks. For instance, when making a turkey sandwich, what would you typically put on it? Lettuce? Yes. Tomato? Yes. Mayo? No. Oil and vinegar? No.

Try to avoid those extra fatty calories by substituting mayo with a small layer of hummus or low-fat mayo.

Secondly, don’t overdo the carbohydrates. If you are a carb-craver, avoid that fettuccine Alfred and try some whole-wheat pasta salad. Use less pasta and more mixed chopped vegetables such as carrots, olives and tomatoes. Instead of mayonnaise, toss the pasta salad in some fat-free Italian dressing, throw it in some Tupperware, refrigerate and voila!

Try to avoid the infamous sandwich companion -- chips! But if you crave the crunch Pam suggests “Low fat chips are a good alternative if you want something crunchy -- baked is the key. Some other good suggestions are baked tortilla chips, pretzels, whole-grain/low-fat crackers and rice cakes. The important thing is portion control -- that is the key.”

Lastly, try to resist temptation for dessert. After a nice healthy lunch it’s hard to fight off that craving for something sweet. Try to add some fruit, such as grapes or strawberries, to curve the sweet craving. If you can’t control the craving, don’t make yourself suffer! Every now and then it’s OK to indulge your craving as long as you don’t overdo (i.e. have a cookie not 12 cookies).

Snack Attack
We all get it! Around 4 o’clock, lunch seems like it was ages ago and dinner seems even further away. Don’t worry, have a healthy snack to hold you over. Some great snack foods are nuts (almonds and walnuts), sliced apples, Nabisco 100-Calorie snack packs, rice cakes, nonfat cottage cheese or low-fat graham crackers. Snacking isn’t a bad habit if you do it correctly!

For those of you on the go, keep a variety of pre-sliced fruits such as cantaloupe, strawberries and mango. Add them to your lunch for a quick and nutritious snack.

And Remember
Boredom can break any healthful lunch plan. Pam says, “Variety is the best. Try different foods. Add vegetables into your tuna salad; a balanced lunch can include all types of foods. You don’t have to make a typical lunch like a sandwich. Plus, leftovers make great bagged lunches.”

To beat boredom, think outside the box! When making a salad for lunch, don’t just stick to same old lettuce, tomatoes and carrots. Why not add some walnuts, raisins, chick peas, even sliced apples to the mix.

Find yourself sick of sandwiches and salads? Try soup! There is a great variety of low-fat, low-sodium and organic soups available. Just stick it in the microwave, and you will soon have a healthy and hearty meal. Another healthy alternative to a sandwich is a baked sweet potato!

UP FOR A CHALLENGE? eDiets invites its members to participate in a variety of fitness and nutrition challenges designed to keep them motivated and working toward their weight-loss goals. To learn more, click here. A little competition can do wonders.

Pam reminds us that “the goal is to keep the portions within a healthy range -- 3-oz. piece of protein (meat, chicken, and tuna). And if you are on a calorie restricted plan, if you eat more at one meal than another it is fine as long as you keep within your calorie allotment for the day.”

eDiets has great ways for you to eat healthy, lose weight and take control of your health. We're just a click away whenever you need us for inspiration and support. To get started, click here and fill out a free diet profile.

Jaclyn Johnson is an eDiets editorial intern and a journalism/mass communications major at New York University.

I didn't include all the links above, so just go to the link below if you are interested in anything listed above, its the article with all the links:

http://www.ediets.com/news/article.c..._2317708/cid_6

I've been burning my Pumpkin Pie Yankee Candle Tart and its been making me want Pumpkin Pie, so did a search and found: (Feel free to add your favorites)


Pumpkin Pie


Desserts

Was POINTS® Value: 8
Now POINTS® Value: 3
Servings: 8
Preparation Time: 20 min
Cooking Time: 60 min
Level of Difficulty: Moderate

Pumpkin pie doesn't have to weigh you down. Our lightened-up version is the perfect ending to your Thanksgiving meal.

Ingredients

* 4 sprays cooking spray
* 4 sheet phyllo dough
* 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
* 1/4 tsp ground cloves
* 1 tsp ground cinnamon
* 1 tsp ground ginger
* 1 tsp cornstarch
* 1/8 tsp table salt
* 1 1/2 cup canned pumpkin, puree
* 1 1/2 cup fat-free evaporated milk
* 1/2 cup fat-free egg substitute
* 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

* Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a 9-inch round pie pan with cooking spray.

* Cut phyllo sheets in half. Place 1 sheet in prepared pan and lightly coat with cooking spray. Top with another sheet of phyllo, placing corners just to the right of the previous sheet's corners. Repeat with remaining sheets to form a circle. Press layered phyllo into pan and roll in edges. Bake until lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

* Whisk together brown sugar, spices, cornstarch and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg substitute and vanilla in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk wet ingredients into dry ingredients.

* Pour filling into crust. Bake until set, about 50 minutes. (Cover crust edges with foil during baking if they are becoming too brown.) Cool completely before cutting into 8 pieces.

Chef Tips

* We renovated Pumpkin Pie by:

o Replacing a butter-laden crust with layers of light, crispy phyllo dough.

o Using fat-free egg substitute instead of whole eggs.

o Using vanilla extract for sweetness.







© 2007 Weight Watchers International, Inc. © 2007 WeightWatchers.com, Inc. All rights reserved.
WEIGHT WATCHERS and POINTS are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. and are used under license by WeightWatchers.com, Inc.

I saw this recipe on hungrygirl.com for a pumpkin cheescake pudding that looks fantastic but I have yet to try it. I love anything pumpkin!!!


Upside Down Pumpkin Cheesecake Pudding

(Serves 10 - calories: 115, fat: 0.4g, sodium: 207mg, carbs: 18g, fiber: 1.8g, sugars: 7.5g, protein: 5.2g = 2 Points)

Ingredients:
8 oz fat free cream cheese (room temperature)
8 oz Cool Whip Free
8 oz fat free sour cream
2 pouches 100 Calorie Packs Honey Maid Thin Crisps (crushed)
1 can pumpkin puree (16 oz)
1 Tbsp lemon juice
3/4-1 cup Splenda (depending on how sweet you like it)
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Direcions:
Mix cream cheese, Cool Whip, sour cream, lemon juice and Splenda. Then add the pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Mix it all together and pour into 10 dessert dishes. Top with a small handful of crushed Honey Maid Thin Crisps. Chill in the fridge for a few hours, then enjoy. Mmmmmmmm...pumpkinlicious! Serves 10.

Do you have to use coolwhip in that or can you substitute? Coolwhip makes me sick
Could I make Meringue or use Greek Yogurt?

I'm sure you could use regular whipping cream, already whipped. I'm not sure about the yogurt. The regular whipping cream would blow the calorie content though. Maybe someone else will have an idea of a better substitute.

BrendansMum ... YOU SO ROCK!!

1,000 thanks!!! I have been dreading Thanksgiving -- I can control my portions and eat healthy dinner-wise, but to go without pumpkin pie

Or, worst yet, I'd go back to my pumpin pie binges (you prob. wouldn't even believe me, LOL).

And I would not put forth the effort to make a healthier pump. pie, don't have the ingredients on hand, and wouldn't go buy them.

But YOUR recipe THAT I can do!!!!! Thank you for sharing!

You're so very welcome Ladiibbug. I have searching high and low for some healthy alternatives for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I made a squash casserole tonight that will not be on the menu until I can get a lower calorie version concocted. It is a fabulous recipe but so not good for you. I will post it as well with my changes. My mom makes a sweet potato casserole that is fantastic and this is very similar except you use squash. It calls for butternut but you could use hubbard squash {which I did} or acorn even. Also I think this would be just as good with no topping at all. If you do want the topping you could use the splenda/brown sugar mix. You may even be able to use less of the condensed milk since there are 110 cals. in 2T. I love candied yams, which I usually make for the holidays and this is by far better for you than those.


INGREDIENTS

* 3 cups mashed, cooked butternut squash
* 1/2 cup sweetened no fat condensed milk
* 2 eggs, beaten {sub. egg beaters or 2 egg whites}
* 1/4 cup butter, softened{use a lower cal/fat butter spread}
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1/2 cup skim milk
* 1/2 cup splenda

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter one 2 quart casserole dish.
2. Blend together the butternut squash, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, butter, vanilla, milk and splenda.
3. Pour into prepared casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 to 45 minutes or until set and edges begin to bubble.
4. Prepare a topping if desired by combining 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter and 1/2 cup chopped nuts. Mix together and sprinkle over squash before baking.

Try www.cookinglight.com. I've tried a few of their low fat/low cal versions of holiday favorites over the years and they've all been very good.

Today I saw their latest ed. at the grocery store - not sure if T/Giving was included.

Sounds Delicious!!! I'm going to have to try that!!