Check out my video for coffee house healthy eating tips. It’s sure to “charge up” your next visit.

Be careful of the “silent sabotagers” – coffee beverages. Many drinks can have the calorie and fat value of desserts. A large whole milk mocha will set you back 400 calories and almost half your daily limit of saturated fat.

If you’re the kind who likes a little coffee with your sugar, try to think “less.”

• Use less sweetener, one pump flavor shot or one sugar packet.
• Choose fat-free milk.
• Get a small size “designer” beverage.
• Choose unsweetened drip coffees, Americano, or iced coffee most of the time and save the indulgent drinks for once in a while.

Pace yourself on the pastries. We all love the homemade muffins, bagels, and croissants at the coffee house. But the portion sizes can be over the top. They’ve all practically doubled in size – and fat and calories – over the last 15 years. You don’t have to totally abandon these tasty treats, but you should really make them treats!

• Choose eggs, breakfast burritos, oatmeal, or low-fat yogurt parfaits most of the time. These choices have more protein, which will help you feel full without robbing you of too many calories.
• Split muffins and other pastries with a friend or two so you can each have a “taste” (enjoy every last morsel) and make the bulk of your breakfast for something more nourishing.
• Look for bran muffins or low-fat baked goods. Many coffee houses offer modest sized banana breads, hearty muffins made with with carrots, apples, and raisins. The low-fat recipes will use less oil and replace it with low-fat yogurt or applesauce.

Check-out the new healthier Starbucks menu.

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How to Choose Healthy Eats and Drinks at a Coffee House

The popsicles come in a slew of different yummy flavors: Lemonade, Pink Lemonade, Peach Iced Tea, Classic Orange, Cherry Pomegranate and more. Each refreshing treat has only 15 calories and no sugar. (Compare that to a 360-calorie ice cream drumstick or a 500-calorie hand-dipped waffle cone.)

Whether you’re poolside, at the beach or just lounging in an air-conditioned room, enjoy one or four of this completely guilt-free cool treat on a hot summer day. And if you’re following Weight Watchers, a diabetic eating plan or any low-carb, low-sugar program, you can’t go wrong with these icy pops.

Definitely make some room in your freezer. We are sure you are going to love Crystal Light’s new Frozen Pops.

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We Love Crystal Light’s Frozen Pops

If you haven’t seen the ads yet, Wendy’s has just launched two new flavors to their usual Frosty menu: Frosty-cino and Coffee Toffee Twisted Frosty (try saying that eight times in a row!). As I was doing my search, I didn’t realize that Wendy’s sports a frozen ice cream line that rivals Dairy Queen. From the traditional Frosty, that as a kid I eagerly spooned up, to their newly added frosties including vanilla, strawberry, M & M’s, Nestle Toll House Cookie Dough, and Oreo, the list was much heftier than I remembered as a young girl.  

Unfortunately, much to my dismay, these new Frosties are also pretty hefty when it comes to calories and fat.  Here’s how these new frozen treats stack up in numbers:

Frosty-Cino: One small has 390 calories, 10 grams of fat with six of them being the artery-clogging saturated fat, and 52 grams of sugar! That’s about 13 teaspoons of sugar for those of you who need a visual comparison for a shock factor.

Coffee Toffee Twisted Frosty: One size (it only comes in one size) has 540 calories for the vanilla and 550 for the chocolate. Fat grams are 20 grams for the vanilla and 21 grams for the chocolate, 15 of them for both flavors are saturated fat grams and 69 grams of sugar, or 16.4 teaspoons.

As a self-professed soft-serve ice cream-aholic, it is my summertime duty to at least sample one of these new decadent treats. Given these irreconcilable nutrition stats, I have narrowed my options down to two: Eat the Coffee Toffee Twisted Frosty (’cuz that is the one that is really crying my name) in its entirety and nix lunch and dinner for the day or grab four of my favorite ice cream loving pals, five spoons and pass it around.

Since our taste buds tire of a flavor after a mere three bites, I’m inclined to opt for option number two. That way, I can have my Frosty and not feel like I’m sacrificing a half of day’s worth of food for a few minutes of ice cream decadence.

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The Skinny on Wendy’s New Twisted Frosties

• There’s a product out that I personally buy and enjoy.  It’s called “No Pudge! Fudge Brownie Mix.”  It comes in a variety of flavors: Regular, Cappuccino, Mint, and Raspberry.  All you have to do is mix the powder mix with the amount of vanilla flavored yogurt it says in the directions, heat, cool, cut, and enjoy.  Or you can check out the product’s website and see a big listing of different recipe ideas.

• An easy and good dessert are the Jello pudding mixes. Simply add skim milk, chill, and enjoy.

• Adding or topping desserts with fruit is always a sweet and easy way of adding nutrients.

• Incorporating oats and whole-grains is always a good idea. Take a look at this delicious recipe I found on iVillage.com for Cranberry Orange Oatmeal Cookies.

Ingredients
1 cup softened unsalted butter
2 cups light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
2 teaspoon orange zest
1 teaspoon pure orange extract
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups rolled oats
2 cups dried cranberries
2/3 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Cream together butter and brown sugar in a large bowl. Beat in eggs one at a time until well mixed. Add zest and extracts and mix well.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Stir in oats, then add to butter mixture and mix well.
4. Fold in cranberries and pecans (if desired). Drop by the teaspoonful 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges just start to turn golden brown.
5. Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 4 minutes, then remove to wire racks to finish cooling. Store in an airtight container or freeze.

Find more healthy dessert recipes here at DietsInReview.com.

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Guiltless Desserts That Satisfy a Sweet Tooth

Whichever avenue you choose to satisfy your cravings this Thanksgiving, consider making one of these 10 healthier dessert recipes. Be mindful to follow recipes that don’t require a lot of heavy cream, butter, sugar or salt, and bake with whole grain flour when you can.

1. Harvest Time Praline Apple Cranberry Pie

2. Diabetic Pumpkin Pie

3. Diabetic Pumpkin Pudding

4. Almond Fudge Truffles

5. Pumpkin Walnut Snack Muffins

6. Pecan Meringues

7. Pecan Pie Crust

8. Rhubarb Bars

9. Caramel Apple Salad

10. Diabetic Date Dainties

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10 Healthier Thanksgiving Day Desserts

1. For individual servings, use small paper or plastic party cups, or cupcake liners. For one single batch, place in a flower pot or kids sand bucket.

2. Fill about half full with Diabetic Pumpkin Pudding. This is a homemade pudding recipe that you’ll find to be irresistible during the fall season. It’s thick and creamy, and only has 123 Calories.

3. Crumble on top of the pudding Homemade Granola. It’s crunchy and sweet, and you can send the extra in your kids’ lunches, or make your own healthy breakfast.

4. Finally, top with Sugar Free Gummy Worms. Your kids will have too much fun helping to make these creepy crawlers.

You should get about 8 servings, and likely have some extra granola for snacks (unless you half the recipe). These three amazing, sugarless recipes can be part of your regular snack rotation; but when they come together at Halloween, they make one heck of a fun dessert.

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Sugar-Free Dirt and Worms Dessert