I don't have trouble with protein or veggies, but I don't trust my judgment on a fist-size portion of WW penne noodles (because of all that air) Do I count the air, too?
How's the best way to measure pasta? How much is a fist size portion?
interesting question... here's my vote [and i'm sure wiser heads will show up soon!]
the fist sized portion applies to cooked pasta, not uncooked. so, after they're all cooked, they tend to 'flatten' a little. so this is what i'd do for something like cooked penne... i'd get a small coffee cup - not more than 6 oz - and fill it up - NOT PACKED, THOUGH. just loosely piled in.
obviously, for something like linguine or orzo, you can measure that much more easily.. .
now, let's sit back and see what the really smart folks come up with!!!
Whenever I try to measure carby things like WW pasta or brown rice, I use a measuring cup. It always depresses me to do so but I think if you perhaps use jiffy's method or use a measuring cup, you will eventually be able to eye a serving.
I did see a book recently in the bookstore that actually had cut out portion sizes so you could carry around with you. That was kind of interesting.
Put me down as someone who uses a measuring cup...or better yet - I just don't eat pasta that often.
When I *do* make pasta at home, I gravitate towards the spinach fettucine that is dried in 'circles' - 1 circle = 1 serving. (if you're used to restaurant-sized or Italian-famiy sized portions, the tinyness of the serving might be quite a shock to say the least...)
The new US Dietary Guidelines state that 1 serving of pasta or rice = 1/2 cup - I'd say that's an EXCELLENT reference.
(One of the annoying things about palm/fist is that it's so NONspecific - I know that Bill P was trying to simplify things for the general public but sometimes it's just easier to measure portions out until you're accustomed to 'eyeballing' them - I've found my hand can get BIGGER sometimes... )
I also go the measuring cup route for pasta and rice. And 1/2 c is depressing and not at all filling when you are really hungry for a spagetti meal. I tried to do it like hey do in Italy with pasta as an appetizer (1/2 c is about what they serve) followed by a meat entree, but it just didn't work for me. I realized that while I liked the pasta it was really the red sauce I was hungry for. So I add cannelli beans or black beans and canned artichokes to the pasta to make a full bowl for an "American" pasta meal. I get the taste of the pasta and some extra fiber and, well, I just love canned artichokes in water! This gives me soemthing other than chopping into a salad. I find that this way 1/4 c of pasta and 1/4 c of beans plus 3 artichokes plus sauce is a good meal for me. I usually have seafood or chicken or boca burger in the sauce, too, as wel as mushrooms, onions, zucchini, etc. I have also switched to whole wheat pasta and find that I like it more than regular. It has a nice nutty taste. I am not too fond of the pasta with soy flour though, so taste around and see what you like.
Another non-pasta alternative: slice or shred cabbage very fine (like you would for coleslaw) and sautee it in a bit of olive oil or pan spray. You can have HEAPS of it with tomato sauce and browned ground turkeybreast/lowfat ground beef, with a sprinkle of romano or parmesan. It tastes wonderful and you get a helping that fills your plate and stomach. You can mix in a 1/2 c. whole wheat pasta if you really want the pasta, but I don't miss it at all. Like Ellen, I found it was the sauce,meat and sprinkle of cheese flavor that I really wanted.
Mel -- Great idea to use cabbage instead of pasta someone mentionned that a while back and I had forgotten, thanks for the reminder...
Ellen -- I like your idea too!
I just measure a 1/2 c. of pasta have lots of sauce and veggies, IF I'm still hungry, I'll measure another half cup, but I'm usually happy with just the first half...
What I will often do is put the pasta, the sauce and the cooked veggies on a large bed of romaine lettuce, now thats really filling too...
Ah, very late here. But what I did on WW, and still do though I'm not counting points at this stage, is to weigh out what the package says is an uncooked portion and cook that for myself. So I may end up cooking 2 pots of pasta, but it's safer. I tend to get generous with my measurements if I measure cooked.
How Much IS Fist-sized Portion?
I think if you perhaps use jiffy's method or use a measuring cup, you will eventually be able to eye a serving. 
)
