Everyone’s mom seems to have a recipe for meatloaf.  But when a typical serving has around 500 calories and 35 grams of fat, I decided it was time for me to come up with a healthier version of this comfort food to serve my kids. My meatloaf is so moist  - and no one notices it is made from lean ground beef.  And by making this substitution you save about 200 calories and 15 grams of fat.   I think my mom would approve!

Ingredients:
• 2 pounds lean ground beef
• ¾ cup quick oats
• 1 egg
• 2/3 cup tomato juice
• 1 small onion, chopped
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt

Sauce:
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl; shape into a loaf. Place into a 9” x 5” x 3” pan.
3. Mix sauce ingredients together and set aside.
4. Bake the meat loaf for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and pour sauce evenly over the top. Return the meat loaf to the oven and continue to cook for another 30 minutes.

Serves 8

Nutritional Contents
Per Serving:   319 calories, 11 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 23 g protein, 20 g total fat, 8 g sat fat, 581 mg sodium

Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD is a nutritionist and the creator of The F-Factor Diet™, an innovative nutritional program she has used for more than ten years to provide hundreds of her clients with all the tools they need to achieve easy weight loss and maintenance, improved health and well-being.  For more information log onto www.FFactorDiet.com.

Q: Is it really true that eating after 8 p.m. makes you gain weight?

A: At the end of the day, the more calories you eat, the more weight you gain—regardless if it’s during the day or at night.  Even the healthiest foods, when eaten in greater amounts than needed for energy will be stored as fat.  It is not possible to circumvent the laws of thermodynamics and energy balance.  It all comes down to calories in vs. calories out.

The reason most people think that eating at night causes weight gain is because people tend to eat extra at night.  They might not take into account what they have already eaten during the day and this leads to weight gain.  But, if you have eaten well balanced meals during the day and saved some of your extra calories to eat at night, you will NOT gain weight.
So if you eat the same exact meal at 5 p.m. or 9 p.m. it will not affect your body differently. As long as they have the same amount of calories, what really matters is the total amount of food and drink you had over the course of the day, week, or month and how much energy you expended during that time frame.

However, the reason most people do gain weight when eating at night is because they have a late dinner after not eating for a long period of time.  This makes it hard to make good food choices and also to keep portions in control.  You may end up picking up a slice of pizza or two whereas if you weren’t as hungry you would have time to cook a healthy dinner without sabotaging your diet.  The second concern that comes with late night eating is “mindless” snacking in front of the TV, while studying for finals, or hanging out with your buddies.  People tend to pig out on ice cream, cookies, or pizza (not on celery and carrots) and this leads to weight gain because it is usually extra calories taken in.

So aim to spread your calories out throughout the day and if you do have to eat a late dinner, don’t worry about it leading to weight gain as long as you have not overeaten during the day.  Just remember, it all comes down to the total number of calories taken in—regardless of what the clock says.

Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD is a nutritionist and the creator of The F-Factor Diet™, an innovative nutritional program she has used for more than ten years to provide hundreds of her clients with all the tools they need to achieve easy weight loss and maintenance, improved health and well-being.  For more information log onto www.FFactorDiet.com.

Don’t we all love that McDonald’s Egg McMuffin?  But did you know that it has more than 400 calories and 25g fat and NO fiber? 

My healthy version is tastier than the real thing, has more fiber and fewer grams of fat. I promise, you won’t miss a thing and you will feel fuller for longer!

 Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 slice Canadian bacon
• 1 egg
• 1 slice Kraft Free American cheese
• 1 Thomas’ light multigrain English muffin

1. In a nonstick skillet, cook Canadian bacon until lightly browned on both sides. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Spray pan with nonstick spray. Add egg and scramble.
3. While egg is cooking, place the cheese on one half of the English muffin and put both sides into a toaster oven to toast.
4. Remove English muffin from toaster oven, place Canadian bacon and scrambled egg on muffin, and top with the slice of cheese. Enjoy!

Serves 1

Nutritional Content
Per Serving:  248 Calories, 28 g carbohydrates, 8 g Fiber,  21 g protein,  7 g total fat,  2 g sat. fat, 861mg sodium

Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD is a nutritionist and the creator of The F-Factor Diet™, an innovative nutritional program she has used for more than ten years to provide hundreds of her clients with all the tools they need to achieve easy weight loss and maintenance, improved health and well-being.  For more information log onto www.FFactorDiet.com.