Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

Jackie J wrote:Hi Jeff, Forgive me if you 've answered this in another thread, but do you not eat breakfast? If you do, what do you eat?

Greetings,

I am not a breakfast eater in general, though have no "rule" about it and/or don't have any specific recommendation for anyone else. We all have to find how to best incorporate the principles and guidelines into our own lives and schedules. I find most people enjoy breakfast, though for me, unless I am out somewhere and it is being made for me, I usually skip it.

In regard to recipes ideas, I don't have many as it is not something I prepare. However, we do not need separate "breakfast" recipes and any recipes I recommend could just as easily be eaten for breakfast as it can for lunch or dinner. Many cultures consume breakfasts of foods that are not far different from some of my recipes.

However, having said that, when I did eat breakfast on a regular basis, my three favorite breakfasts were

1) Oatmeal with some fresh fruit and berries and a little flax seed on it

2) A bowl of fresh fruit with a little flax seed sprinkled on it.

3) Breakfast rice, which was just some leftover brown rice with fresh fruit, berries and a little flax on it.

If you need more ideas, the recipes section here, and the McDougall newsletters and cookbooks have many breakfast recipes in them.

Jackie J wrote: Also, in the updated recipe post, the calories for each recipe was about 600-650 but in the original post the total calories for the day from eating two recipes is 1513. That doesn't add up.

Good catch. I double-checked and the calories in the analysis are correct, not the calories for each recipe. Depending on the varieties of each item chosen, the calories will vary but the calories for each recipe will be about 700-750. Mia Culpa!

Remember though, the main issue is calorie density, not calories and these meals come in around 300 cal/lb or less, even with the higher calorie value for the total meal. So the final meals are all very low in calorie density, high in nutrient density, high in satiety and fill you up for few calories.

In Health
Jeff

mmm, Jeff. I think you just gave me my Basic Meal for This Week!

I might use quinoa for some of it, though. But I have brown rice coming out my ears and want to use it up so I can buy a rice blend. I have the tomatoes and mixed vegs, just need to pick up a large bag of baby spinach at the grocery and I'm set. How much would using quinoa change the calories?

looks good, and needs to be cheap FOR SURE.

blessings, HeidiW

KareninTN wrote:Is this "Jeff's Mini?"

Seriously, this sort of dish ought to be demonstrated at the McD programs along with all the fancy stuff. People who are intimidated and overwhelmed by recipes in the back of McD books (I can't be the only one!) need to see how simple it CAN be, if you want it to be.

Karen

Boy howdy, I agree! I need an inexpensive, easy and quick, tasty, filling "diet". I understand that people that are demonstrating these programs like to show what *CAN* be done - the variety and "company meal" quality is nice... LATER. For now, I just want to get started and I haven't had a paycheck in a month! Getting even a limited amount of so many different things hurts. I'd like a "Minimalist's Guide to McDougall".

There is always some trade-off between cost and convenience but it can be done.

To hit the lowest numbers, you have to buy in bulk (oats, beans, rice, frozen veggies, etc).

However, regardless, I would challange anyone to put together a more nutritious diet (at about a 2000 calories average) for less of foods low in calorie density, high in nutrient density and high in satiety. It's not just price, but price, nutrition & time.

I recently did the same experiment for Whole Foods and was able to create a diet at 2000 calories that surpassed all the RDA/RDI for all nutrients (except D and B12) for around $5. They implemented it in their stores as part of HSH and in the Wellness Clubs.


In Health
Jeff

frozenveg wrote:So find something cheaper, and tell us about it--unless you think it's the dollar menu at McDonald's!

Ha! I actually did this a couple of years ago when I challenged myself to eat for $3 a day. Here was the result:

Sample Menu:
Breakfast
Old-fashioned oats (1 cup dry) = $0.14 300 cal.
Small box of raisins = $0.21 130 cal.
Ground flaxseed (1 Tbs) = (free gift) 60 cal.
Tea = $0.05 0 cal.
Stevia = $0.09 0 cal.
Breakfast total = $0.49 490 cal.

Lunch
Split pea soup (2 cups) = $0.26 each 268 cal.
Medium baked potato = $0.09 168 cal.
Baby carrots = (free with coupon) 42 cal.
Apple = $0.30 90 cal.
Lunch total = $0.65 568 cal.

Dinner
Brown rice (1/2 cup dry) = $0.15 170 cal.
1/2 bag of mixed vegetables = $0.50 120 cal.
1/4 bag spinach = $0.25 30 cal.
1/2 can of canned tomatoes = $0.18 44 cal.
1 tsp. chopped garlic: $0.04 5 cal
Dinner total = $1.12 369 cal.

Snack:
Oatmeal leftover from breakfast
Banana = $0.16 110 cal.

Total for Day: $2.42 1537 cal.

Strictly for my own amusement, I compared this to three meals from the McDonald's dollar menu.

My meals:
12 gm fat (from oats and flax) 2 saturated fat, 0 cholesterol. 7% of calories from fat.
2300 mg sodium (I used bouillon in my soup)
319 gm carbs, 52 grams fiber
54 gm protein (more than adequate)
469% of RDA for vitamin A
190% of RDA for vitamin C
107% of RDA for iron
45% of RDA for calcium
Cost:$2.42 for 1537 cal.

From McDonald's $1 menu: a sausage biscuit for breakfast, a McDouble for lunch, and a McChicken for dinner:
58 grams fat, 23 grams saturated, 135 mg cholesterol 44% of calories from fat.
2910 mg sodium
107 gm carbs, 6 grams fiber
51 gm protein
6% of RDA for vitamin A
4% of RDA for vitamin C
50% of RDA for iron
36% of RDA for calcium
Cost: $3.00 for 1180 cal.

So my meals were less expensive, provided more carbs, fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals and calories. And my meals were so bulky with water and fiber that I could eat more than enough and be completely satisfied. If I'd eaten that $3.00 worth of Mickey D's crap, I would have been starved at the end of the day.

Kate

There you go! Although I'll never find a 21 cent box of raisins or a 36 cent can of tomatoes up here!

In Alaska, there isn't even a dollar menu. Last time I looked, I think it was a $1.69 menu, or 2 for $6, or something like that...

So my $27 produce bin had:
3 peaches
5 bananas
6 oz blueberries
1 onion
8 red potatoes
Big bunch of kale
Arugula
Bunch of asparagus
Zucchini
2 oranges
Bunch of green beans
Bunch of beets

Now this will easily feed me, but doesn't include other beans, rice, oats, or sauces I will also need.

I loved reading this thread, knowing that it finally came to fruition in Jeff's great videos. I love those videos and have had a great time making and modifying the recipes. I've cooked with basic bulk beans, rice, wheat, fruits, veggies, and oats for years and years. I raised a large family of big eaters with a tiny food budget. I've seen oats go from 25 cents a pound to well over $1 a pound in #50 bags. Rice, beans, and wheat have been about the same. Now I buy organic and the cost is double that. However, it is still cheaper than open-heart surgery AND a lot more fun. Bulk buying and gardening are the secrets to affordable healthy eating, especially when you go organic.

We do this one pot cooking, when we travel, too. Either we use more cans and dehydrated veggies or we stop at grocery stores each evening for fresh and frozen. We carry a little butane stove, soup pot, bowls, spoons, cloth napkins, and blender all in their own little suitcase. In the motel, nobody is the wiser. At the rest stop, we are the stars of the hour. In winter we also bring along a thermal cooker, cooking all the food in the hotel, because we don't want to get out and cook in the snow and ice. It is so fun and tasty, too.

Hey Jeff,

Thanks for your great recipes. I made a variation of SNAP pasta primavera, which turned out wonderfully. I'm in an area way out in the country, where brown rice pasta isn't available; I can't eat wheat. But the market had some beautiful yellow potatoes.

Primavera Soup makes 6 big, beautiful, delicious bowls of soup.

28 oz. diced tomatoes
2 c. water
1 can garbanzos
2 large yellow potatoes, cooked and diced
1 lb. frozen stir fry veggies with asparagus
1/2 lb. frozen mixed sliced peppers
1/4 lb. frozen chopped spinach
2 T. powdered dehydrated veggies
red pepper flakes, black pepper, smoked paprika, garlic, onion, Italian herbs to taste ( I use lots.)

For dessert I made the oat bars. They turned out the oat cake I used to make for breakfast in the old eggs and dairy days. Starting with 2 c. extra thick cut gluten safe oats, I mixed in 2 c. almond milk, a pint of fresh raspberries, a diced apple, a smashed banana, 1 t. cinnamon, and the zest of one orange. We ate it while warm. Delicious!

That looks great!

Will have to try it.

Thanks!

In Health
Jeff

Katydid wrote:

frozenveg wrote:So find something cheaper, and tell us about it--unless you think it's the dollar menu at McDonald's!

Ha! I actually did this a couple of years ago when I challenged myself to eat for $3 a day. Here was the result:

Sample Menu:
Breakfast
Old-fashioned oats (1 cup dry) = $0.14 300 cal.
Small box of raisins = $0.21 130 cal.
Ground flaxseed (1 Tbs) = (free gift) 60 cal.
Tea = $0.05 0 cal.
Stevia = $0.09 0 cal.
Breakfast total = $0.49 490 cal.

Lunch
Split pea soup (2 cups) = $0.26 each 268 cal.
Medium baked potato = $0.09 168 cal.
Baby carrots = (free with coupon) 42 cal.
Apple = $0.30 90 cal.
Lunch total = $0.65 568 cal.

Dinner
Brown rice (1/2 cup dry) = $0.15 170 cal.
1/2 bag of mixed vegetables = $0.50 120 cal.
1/4 bag spinach = $0.25 30 cal.
1/2 can of canned tomatoes = $0.18 44 cal.
1 tsp. chopped garlic: $0.04 5 cal
Dinner total = $1.12 369 cal.

Snack:
Oatmeal leftover from breakfast
Banana = $0.16 110 cal.

Total for Day: $2.42 1537 cal.

Strictly for my own amusement, I compared this to three meals from the McDonald's dollar menu.

My meals:
12 gm fat (from oats and flax) 2 saturated fat, 0 cholesterol. 7% of calories from fat.
2300 mg sodium (I used bouillon in my soup)
319 gm carbs, 52 grams fiber
54 gm protein (more than adequate)
469% of RDA for vitamin A
190% of RDA for vitamin C
107% of RDA for iron
45% of RDA for calcium
Cost:$2.42 for 1537 cal.

From McDonald's $1 menu: a sausage biscuit for breakfast, a McDouble for lunch, and a McChicken for dinner:
58 grams fat, 23 grams saturated, 135 mg cholesterol 44% of calories from fat.
2910 mg sodium
107 gm carbs, 6 grams fiber
51 gm protein
6% of RDA for vitamin A
4% of RDA for vitamin C
50% of RDA for iron
36% of RDA for calcium
Cost: $3.00 for 1180 cal.

So my meals were less expensive, provided more carbs, fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals and calories. And my meals were so bulky with water and fiber that I could eat more than enough and be completely satisfied. If I'd eaten that $3.00 worth of Mickey D's crap, I would have been starved at the end of the day.

Kate

This post is everything! Thanks for posting it! (I know this thread is 8 years old but I just found it, lol!)