Who says you can't be Puerto Rican AND eat healthy?

5/10/2012 *Sara-Marie* 0 Comments

Yes, I really did have a fried egg (with a perfectly runny yolk!), fried sweet plantains, and some avocado for breakfast. AND it was thebomb.com. AND it was guilt free!

How you may ask?

Well its simple:

1.) Measure everything out and practice portion control

2.) Instead of frying in lots of oil, I did more of a saute in olive oil cooking spray

Why it's healthy:

AVOCADO
- 1 oz = 1 point
-They have good fat and all sorts of good for you stuff that promotes heart health and anti-inflammatory benefits, just to name a few

EGG
- 1 large egg = 2 points
- Good source of protein and despite the bad wrap that they used to get, they are actually good for you
- Something I learned recently: Eggs are an excellent source of choline which can boost brain health!
- I "fried" my egg in cooking spray and covered the pan so that the steam/heat cooked the top of the egg yolk without flipping. I enjoy a runny egg so I keep a close eye on it. I sprinkle a little salt, pepper and ground cumin. So delicious.

PLANTAINS
- 2 1/2 oz = 2 points
- Good source of fiber, vitamin C and A and actually have more potassium than a regular banana!
- When you have SWEET plantains (AKA yellow with dark spots) on your hands, there is NO NEED to pan fry in a bunch of oil. Just a couple of cooking sprays to ensure they don't stick to your pan and you are good to go! You can enjoy the amazingly sweet medallions without the slipperly/oily mess.

Here's the proof:

No oil in that pan! Just about 5 sprays of Olive Oil Cooking Spray

- Outside of boiling and baking GREEN plantains, the only other way to enjoy green plantains is to double fry and make tostones. The double batch of oil PROBABLY takes away all of the health benefits but its worth the treat every now and then. (Mark loves them, by the way!)

So today, I really enjoyed my Puerto Rican breakfast and enjoyed it even more knowing that it was only 5 points and full of good for me stuff.

Any other Puerto Ricans (or Cubans or Dominicans or Ecuadorians or Colombians or Mexicans, etc) out there that continue to enjoy traditional Latino foods but have cut down some of the fat/calories without losing the flavor? I love new ideas!