whenever you're dieting (or attempting to), there comes a time when you're hit by an attack of "i need that _________ or i will die". and usually, the food in question would be a high fat, high cal snack that you totally can do without.

to me, the biggest culprits would be fries and chips.

The Problem of Chips

my mom has this odd habit of letting the fridge go almost completely empty, and then stocking it up to bursting point. and whenever she goes on Major Grocery Shopping Overdrive, chips are always high on her list.

and i'm talking about seriously bad bad chips like Lays. tho i know they're super unhealthy and fattening, its so hard to resist the tangy taste of salt & vinegar chips! ):

after thinking on it (cos it reallyyyy gets to me), i figured out that its cos i deprive myself of snacking. so its not so much that i can't do without s & v chips per se, but more like my body craves it cos of the deprivation. its sorta an in-the-head kinda thing.

so i did some research, and i stumbled across this fab recipe from SparkPeople.com:

Low Fat Tomato Chips
Number of Servings: 4

Ingredients
1 large tomato
1 tsp garlic (chopped finely)
1 tbsp black pepper
dash of salt

Directions
1)Slice tomatoes into thin slices
2)Sprinkle with a mixture of pepper,garlic and salt.
3)Place into dehydrator for 2 to 3 hours. Or place into oven on 150 for 1 to 2 hours
4)Sprinkle with a little mozzrella cheese. (optional)

Nutritional Info
Fat: 1.3g
Carbohydrates: 3.6g
Calories: 32.7g
Proteins: 2.3g

**

The Problem of Fries

oh boy. does this ever occur often! friends, much as they love you, will not stop eating fries in front of you out of consideration! not ALL the time at least. once again, SparkPeople.com solved my problem. presenting,

Healthy Sweet Potato Fries
Number of servings: 3

Ingredients
2 large sweet potatoes, thinly sliced strips
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
5 tbsp Splenda (or alternative non-fat sweeteners)
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp Kosher salt

Directions
1)Heat oven to 425 degrees
2)In a small bowl, combine the Splenda, ground cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
3)Arrange the sliced sweet otatoes on a cookie sheet so that they are all in one layer.
4)Drizzle with olive oil.
5)Sprinkle Splenda mixture.
6)Bake for 20-30 minutes, depending on desired cripiness.
7)Let cool 5-10 minutes before eating.

Nutritional Info
Fat: 9.7g
Carbohydrates: 22.8g
Calories: 177.2g
Protein: 1.5g

this recipe is a sweet deal! cos if you order a regular sized portion from macdonalds, thats 210 cal! and here in s'pore, the portion is so little you can COUNT the no. of fries. so this just wins hands down people. (:

btw, do i sound like i'm promoting SparkPeople.com? cos i am. that site is so fantabulous! (:

these 2 recipes are great cos not only are they low in fat and calories, they're also nutritious and good for you! healthy and tasty living!