Hungry Girl (2 page)

What happens if I make substitutions for ingredients in some recipes?

Your oven will explode. Okay, not really! You can, of course, make substitutions for products and ingredients, but the taste and nutritional information will vary accordingly, so keep that in mind when swapping.

How was the nutritional information in this book calculated?

The stats for each recipe were carefully calculated using extremely reliable nutritional databases, countless product labels, and by doing extensive research. When recipes call for generic ingredients (like light vanilla soymilk or light bread), we used average nutritional information for those products. Those averages were calculated based on a wide variety of national brands. Also taken into account were the small amounts of calories and fat in many so-called "no-calorie" and "fat-free" ingredients. We take great pride in determining the most accurate nutritional information possible. After all, we make these recipes, too!

Are optional ingredients included in each recipe's nutritional information?

No, they aren't. If you choose to use the optional ingredients listed in the recipes, the nutritional information will change accordingly. However, all optional ingredients are guilt-free items, so they won't add crazy amounts of fat or calories to any of the recipes.

Some of your recipes call for ingredients (like chicken) that are already cooked. What's the best way to cook without adding any fat?

There are so many simple ways to cook chicken, shrimp, and beef without adding fat and calories. Just cook your food in a pan with a spritz of nonstick spray, boil it in a pot of water, or steam it in the microwave or over the stove. Easy!

Typically, HG recipes include Weight Watchers
POINTS
^®
values. Where can I find Weight Watchers
POINTS
^®
values for the recipes in this book?

Good question. If you're a Hungry Girl fan, you know how much we love and support Weight Watchers. Their plans are healthy, easy to follow, and can fit into your lifestyle. That's why we co-developed a bunch of recipes with them for this book. For a listing of
POINTS
^®
values for all the recipes in this book, go to
hungry-girl.com/book
.

Where can I find photos of all the recipes in this book?

While the book is cute and pretty as is, we know it's important to see photos of our recipes. Luckily, we have pictures of every recipe in this book online at
hungry-girl.com/book
(and a bunch in the book, too!).

Why are there so many single-serving recipes in this book?

Throughout the years, we've heard over and over how easy Hungry Girl recipes are to make, and how often people prepare food for themselves. Single-serving recipes are ideal for this reason, and HG subscribers always eat up (pun intended) these made-for-one recipes. That being said, it's easy to double, triple, or quadruple any of the single-serving recipes—so you can adjust them to feed as many hungry people as you like. Just don't quadruple a recipe and eat the whole thing yourself, or you'll be in BIG trouble!

How can you have FAQs about the book when this is your first book?

Yep, we've been caught! These aren't really frequently asked questions. They're actually questions we anticipated you might have. But "QWAYMH" didn't sound as good as "FAQs." Now quit asking so many questions and start readin' already!

We're not shy when it comes to naming names, and it's no secret that we have favorites. While the recipes in the book work well with many different products, we definitely have our favorites as far as taste and nutritional information are concerned. Here are some of our recommendations:

Light Soymilk (Vanilla, Chocolate, or Plain)
8th Continent Light Soymilk
Silk Light Soymilk
Almond Breeze Unsweetened (technically not soymilk, but it's SO good and much lower in calories!)

Fat-Free Liquid Non-Dairy Creamer
Coffee-mate Original Fat Free

Fat-Free Powdered Non-Dairy Creamer
Coffee-mate Original Fat Free

Fat-Free Cheese
Kraft Fat Free Cheese
Lifetime Fat Free Cheese

Reduced-Fat Cheese
Sargento Reduced Fat Deli Style Sliced Cheese
The Laughing Cow Light Cheese Wedges (used in specific recipes)

Light Whipped Butter/Light Buttery Spread
Brummel & Brown
Land O'Lakes Whipped Light Butter
Smart Balance 37% Light Buttery Spread

Fat-Free Liquid Egg Substitute
Better'n Eggs
Egg Beaters Original
Nulaid ReddiEgg

Fat-Free Yogurt
Yoplait Light (for creamier, more decadent yogurt)
Dannon Light & Fit (for extra-low-cal, thinner yogurt)

Fat-Free Greek Yogurt
Fage Total 0%
Oikos Organic

Fat-Free Ice Cream
Breyers Double Churn FREE
Dreyer's/Edy's Slow Churned Light (not completely fat-free, but
    it's awesome and will barely affect recipe nutritional information)

Light Bread and Buns
Weight Watchers Bread
Wonder Light Bread and Buns
Nature's Own Light Bread and Double Fiber Wheat Buns
Arnold Bakery Light Bread
Pepperidge Farm Light Style Bread, Very Thin Bread,
    and Classic Whole Grain Buns
Sara Lee Delightful Bread

Whole Wheat (or High Fiber) Pitas
Weight Watchers 100% Whole Wheat Pita Pocket Bread
Western Bagel The Alternative Pita Bread

Light English Muffins
Weight Watchers English Muffins
Thomas' Light Multi-Grain English Muffins
Thomas' 100 Calorie Original English Muffins
Western Bagel Alternative English Muffins

Low-Fat Flour Tortillas
La Tortilla Factory Whole Wheat Low-Carb/Low-Fat Tortillas (sometimes labeled Smart &
    Delicious Low Carb High Fiber), large
Mission Carb Balance, Soft Taco Size
Tumaro's 8-inch Low in Carbs or Healthy Flour Tortillas

Boneless Skinless Lean Chicken Breast
Tyson Fresh Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
Perdue Fit & Easy Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

Fat-Free or Nearly Fat-Free Hot Dogs
Hebrew National 97% Fat Free Beef Franks
Hoffy Extra Lean Beef Franks
Yves Meatless Hot Dogs or Tofu Dogs
Ball Park Fat Free Franks or Bun Size Smoked White Turkey Franks

Ground-Beef-Style or Sausage-Style Soy Crumbles
Boca Meatless Burgers (ground-beef style)
Morningstar Farms Meal Starters Grillers Recipe Crumbles (ground-beef style)
Morningstar Farms Meal Starters Sausage Style Recipe Crumbles

Veggie Burger Patties
Gardenburger Veggie Burgers
Morningstar Farms Garden Veggie Patties
Dr. Praeger's Veggie Burgers (blot the oil!)
Amy's Veggie Burgers

Low-Fat Turkey or Veggie Chili
Boca Meatless Chili (found in the freezer aisle)
Health Valley Chili (no-salt-added versions available!)
Dan Good Chili (recipe on page 122)

Extra-Lean Turkey Bacon
Jennie-O Extra Lean Turkey Bacon

Extra Lean Ground Turkey
Jennie-O Extra Lean Ground Turkey Breast
Butterball Extra Lean Ground Turkey Breast

Turkey Pepperoni
Hormel Turkey Pepperoni

Breaded-Chicken-Style Soy Patty
Boca Meatless Chik'n Patties Original
Morningstar Farms Chik Patties Original

Baked Tortilla Chips
Guiltless Gourmet Tortilla Chips
Baked! Tostitos

Rice Cakes/Mini Rice Cakes/Soy Crisps
Quaker Rice Snacks and Soy Crisps

Freeze-Dried Fruit
Gerber Organic Mini Fruits (found in the baby-food aisle)
Crispy Green Crispy Fruit (crispygreen.com)
Just Tomatoes, Etc. (justtomatoes.com)

Sugar-Free Maple Syrup
Cary's Sugar Free Syrup
Mrs. Butterworth's Sugar Free Syrup
Log Cabin Sugar Free Syrup
Joseph's Sugar Free Syrup

No-Calorie Sweetener Packets
Splenda No Calorie Sweetener

Sugar-Free Calorie-Free Syrup
Torani Sugar Free Syrup

Sugar-Free Powdered Drink Mix Packets
Crystal Light On The Go
Wyler's Light Singles to go!
Market Pantry single pouch sugar-free drink mix

Salad Dressing
Wish-Bone Salad Spritzers
Hidden Valley The Original Ranch Fat Free
Wish-Bone Light!
Litehouse Vinaigrettes (check labels for the low-calorie ones)

Nonstick Spray
Pam No-Stick Cooking Spray

Canned Brands We Love
S&W (low-calorie and low-sodium options)
Health Valley (fat-free, low-salt, and no-salt broth options)
Libby's (high-quality pure pumpkin)

Visit
hungry-girl.com/book
for updated versions of this list.

This book is packed with simple recipes that anyone can make. The instructions are clear and easy, and you won't find words like "sift," "blanch," or "emulsify." So you don't need any fancy cooking dictionary to help you. What you
do
need is a bunch of things that will help make your HG recipe endeavors easier. They are as follows:

1. Measuring cups.
Those little measuring cup sets definitely come in handy. One measuring cup will do, but those cute little sets are better (and they're
cheap
).

2. A basic food scale.
Most of the ingredients are measured by cup, but occasionally certain ingredients require you to weigh your food. A simple scale—preferably digital—with weight measurements in both grams and ounces works best.

3. A very good blender.
Food processors are okay, but a good blender is exactly what you need to help you with the recipes in this book. (And blenders are super-easy to use and clean.)

4. Nice pots and pans.
You don't necessarily need the most expensive or fancy bakeware, but you do need some functional pots and pans in a variety of sizes.

5. An electric mixer.
You can easily find cheapie-cheap versions of this kitchen staple at any store that sells home appliances. No need to get one that's too fancy or pricey!

6. Measuring spoons.
Never
use regular serving spoons to measure ingredients for recipes. Sticking with actual measuring spoons is the only way to get accurate measurements and calorie counts.

7. Lots of nonstick cooking spray.
Never let your kitchen run out of this stuff. It's used in a huge number of HG recipes. Keep extra cans on hand to be safe.

8. Good ice.
Wimpy ice is bad. Old ice is worse. Keep lots of large, fresh ice cubes on hand. Do whatever it takes to make that happen. Please!

Other things you may want to have on hand:
cute glasses (for our drinks and cocktails), fun straws, lots of food-storage containers, and a George Foreman Grill (for grilling up all the chicken our recipes call for!).

Breakfast may be the most important meal of the day, but it can also be the most challenging. Who has time to think about what to eat in the morning—or the energy to prepare it? Ugh. Here's the deal: Skipping breakfast is a bad idea, and hitting the drive-thru can be an even worse one. The breakfasts in this chapter are very easy to make (really), and they're superdelicious. Try them out, and many of these will become staples in your life. Rise and dine!