142. To get more juice out of a lemon, orange, grapefruit, or lime, roll it on a counter or
between your hands before cutting it. Microwaving also makes it easier to juice citrus fruit:
microwave one fruit (taken from the refrigerator) on high for 30 to 45 seconds; two fruits, for 60
seconds.
143. For a potato chip tastealike: Preheat your oven to 400° F., wash one large baking potato, and cut it into thin slices. Lightly coat a baking sheet with oil (you can use a spray), and arrange
the slices in a single layer; brush or spray very lightly with oil, and sprinkle with paprika. Bake
for 30 minutes, turning once. The slices should be crisp and brown.
144. If you like wine but want to avoid the alcohol, try nonalcoholic wines, which contain less
than 0.5% alcohol. Removing the alcohol eliminates many “empty” calories, so nonalcoholic
wines have less than onethird the calories of regular wine—about 20 to 30 in 5 ounces, versus
the usual 100. Grape juice is another option, though it is high in calories. Like nonalcoholic
wines, it contains some of the hearthealthy compounds found in wine, but lacks the heart
benefits that come from the alcohol itself.
145. Watch out for chicken nuggets at fastfood restaurants. They are not a healthier choice
than the burgers. Nuggets are among the fastestgrowing foods in the American diet, especially
among kids. Made from finely ground dark and light meat, as well as skin, they also contain lots
of breading, fillers, and added fats, including arterydamaging trans fats from partially
hydrogenated oils. Frozen nuggets sold in supermarkets can be just as bad.
146. If you’re trying to lower your blood cholesterol, don’t drink lots of unfiltered European style coffee, such as that made in a French press (a carafe with a plunger). Large amounts of such
coffee can boost cholesterol levels by 6 to 10%. The culprits are substances called diterpenes,
found in oil droplets floating in the coffee as well as in the sediment. Espresso or Turkish/Greek
coffee has a similar, though smaller, effect on blood cholesterol. Drip coffee (made with a paper
filter) and percolated coffee contain only negligible amounts of diterpenes and thus are no
problem.
147. To test how much fat is in a cracker, rub it with a paper napkin. If it leaves a grease mark,
there’s lots of fat in it. Even if the fat in the cracker comes from highly unsaturated vegetable oil, you don’t need the extra calories.
148. Beware of claims made for locally prepared foods labeled “diet,” “light,” or “lowcalorie.” Surveys show that such foods (muffins, ice cream, cookies, etc.) often
weigh more and have much more fat and calories than the label says. Lax enforcement at the
local level allows many food makers to get away with wild claims and boldly understated data.
149. Choose Canadian bacon instead of regular bacon to save on calories and saturated fat. Grilled Canadian bacon, which is more like ham, has about 50 calories and 2 grams of fat per
ounce (one thick slice). Regular bacon has about 165 calories and 14 grams of fat per ounce (four
slices). They are equally high in sodium, however, with about 450 milligrams per ounce.
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