Burger King has introduced a new low fat french fry with 190 calories, 8 grams of fat, and 210 milligrams of sodium for a value size serving. These “Satisfries” are crinkle cut and thinly coated with batter so they don’t absorb as much oil. But can a french fry actually be healthy?

No Burger King meal is complete without a side of french fries or least that’s what the fast food giant has trained us to believe over the past 30 years.

And if the grade F meat on their burger offerings doesn’t strike your fancy, french fries may be your main course in those touch-and-go times when fast food is the only option. However, I was never under the assumption that my french fry splurge was anything other than a diet misstep. Now Burger King is trying to change that image with Satisfries, low fat french fries that supposedly have 40 percent less fat and 30 percent fewer calories than those offered by their nemesis, McDonald’s.

“One out of every two Burger King guests orders our classic French fries and we know our guests are hungry for options that are better for them, but don’t want to compromise on taste,” said Alex Macedo, President North America, Burger King Worldwide, Inc. “When it comes to what we eat, we know that small changes can have a big impact. We see Satisfries as one of the biggest fast food launches and are excited to bring this great tasting French fry to our guests.”

Small Steps: the Obesity Epidemic

To call these low fat french fries a ‘small’ step is putting it mildly. Other words that come to mind include microscopic, itty-bitty, and puny. Still, this isn’t the first step Burger King has taken in the past few years, reworking their menu with items like the cranberry and apple salad and the mango smoothie. They even took half of the cheese off their hamburger.

But can a company known for a menu item called the Whopper do anything other than make a population fatter? Fast food chains have done a bang up job so far, contributing to an obesity epidemic of mammoth proportions. In the U.S., one-third of adults are obese and even if you’re not, it still costs you. The estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the U.S. was $147 billion in 2008 because the medical costs for people who are obese are $1,429 higher than those of normal weight.

Real Change with Real Impact

When it comes to Burger King’s changes, let’s give credit where credit is due, but realize that more work is in order. Next step, reduce Burger King’s serving sizes, especially on soda, which is a leading cause of weight gain and empty calories in this country. Make refills a thing of the past. And make more vegetarian and vegan options available at fast food establishments.

But the step that’s most important of all is to make fast food a treat, not a regular part of the American diet. For road trips when there’s no other options or after a night when only hangover food will do–then maybe consider Burger King’s new low fat french fries. But otherwise, whether low-fat or not, pass on the fries and the fast food in general.

Related on EcoSalon:
Why We Have to Live Without Fast Food: Foodie Underground
10 Fast Food Chains to Steer Clear Of
What Does Our Fast Food Consumption Actually Look Like?

Image: Steven Depolo

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When thinking of a healthy french fry, think zucchini. When thinking of eating this at a McDonalds, wait for pigs to fly.

French fries seem easy enough – just a matter of potatoes and frying oil, right? Wrong. The kind of fast-food fries we’re used to aren’t as straightforward as they seem. McDonald’s French Fries contain the likes of natural beef flavor (wheat and milk derivatives), citric acid, dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate, hydrogenated oils, stabilizer tertiary butylhydroquinone, and anti-foaming agent dimethylopolysiloxane. Many of these artificial ingredients are dangerous in large quantities and overall toxic in your body.

One medium serving (117 grams) of McDonald’s French Fries packs 380 calories, 19 grams of fat, 270 milligrams of sodium, and 48 grams of carbohydrates. With one serving accounting for nearly 30 percent of your daily value of fat, the 5 grams of dietary fiber and vitamin C calcium, and iron quantities, albeit scant to begin with, are vastly overshadowed. The carbohydrate count isn’t doing any favors to your waistline either.

With these stats, there is room for a serious makeover. To lower the fat, this recipe requires baking the fries, which are lightly coated with olive oil. I also used zucchini as the base to slash the carbohydrate load. Zucchini won’t crisp quite like a potato when baked, but it will firm slightly and taste absolutely crave-worthy. The corn flour helps to achieve a crispy brown coating, but if you want a firmer fry, replace the zucchini with a sweet potato or white potato. Regardless of how you alter the base vegetable or ratio of spices, you are bound to end up with a healthier alternative to the Micky D’s classic.

Spicy Zucchini Fries

Serves 1-2

Ingredients:

• 1 large zucchini
• 1/4 cup corn flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/8 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cut off both ends of the zucchini and slice it along its length into 1/2-inch pieces.

Set aside one of the rounded edge slices and turn zucchini onto its side so it is lying flat. Again, slice lengthwise into 1/2-inch thick pieces to create French fries shapes.

In a medium bowl, toss zucchini strips with corn flour, salt, pepper, turmeric, oregano, red pepper flakes, and olive oil until each fry is evenly coated with the spices and oil.

Lay fries out on a baking sheet so each has its own place.

Bake for 45 minutes or until browned and slightly crisped. Serve with herbs and ketchup!

Bon Appetit!

Aylin Erman currently resides in Istanbul and is creator of plant-based recipe website GlowKitchen.

The post Nutritional Breakdown: Revamping the McDonald’s French Fry appeared first on EcoSalon.

Taking an odd ingredient and finding even more unusual uses for it.

It’s not so much that the following uses are particularly unusual, but rather that nutritional yeast itself is an odd ingredient. It’s gaining popularity among foodies for its cheesy taste and nutritional benefits, but it still has a way to go in terms of becoming the pantry staple it’s meant to be. Nutritional yeast (nooch) is one of the only non-animal sources of vitamin B-12. It only takes 1/2-1 tbsp of nutritional yeast to get the daily requirement for B-12. Nutritional yeast is also an excellent source of iron, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, chromium, selenium, and other minerals as well as 18 amino acids, protein, folic acid, biotin, and other vitamins.

And don’t worry about the yeast fermenting in your gut. It’s deactivated, so it will not give you the bloat. This is what distinguishes it from Brewer’s Yeast, which has not been deactivated.

Pop Corn

As if popcorn couldn’t get any more addicting, nooch had to get involved. Sprinkle the powder along with a drizzle olive oil and a dash of sea salt onto popcorn just popped for a cheesy touch. Add other spices, such as garlic powder, dried thyme or dried rosemary for an even more gourmet experience.

Pizza

Skip cheese and sprinkle a light layer of nutritional yeast onto pizza just after it leaves the oven. Cheese is hard to digest, especially when cooked, but that doesn’t mean you have to cede the taste completely. If you top a pizza with diverse textures and flavors, such as a robust marinara sauce, roasted vegetables and nutritional yeast, the cheese component is unnecessary.

Vegan Cheese Sauce

The food blog world is bursting with vegan “cheese” recipes – some simple, some elaborate – with nutritional yeast as the key ingredient. Check out Angela’s Low-Fat Vegan Cheeze Sauce on her blog Oh She Glows for a 5-ingredient approach. Head over to Epicurian Vegan for a heartier vegan cheese sauce that gets some extra bulk from cashews.

Bread Crumbs

Replace bread crumbs with nutritional yeast in any mixture requiring holding power. This cuts down on the carbs and adds an extra bite. Try using nutritional yeast to hold together veggie burgers or any other patty that would normally require bread crumbs.

Kale Chips

There’s nothing wrong with the standard kale chip recipe. But, nutritional yeast takes kale chips to a whole new level – a level that merits obsession and daily consumption. Try your hand at the Spicy & Cheesy Kale Chips presented by the blog Eating Bird Food.

Macaroni & Cheese

We’ve already given macaroni and cheese a serious makeover, and nutritional yeast was an crucial player in this feat. Not only is this recipe vegan, but thanks to nooch, it offers cheesy comfort to a creamy, sweet potato base.

Pasta

Skip the grated parmesan and sprinkle nutritional yeast atop warm pasta along with some garlic powder and a drizzle of olive oil. The combination of flavors makes for a dish that doesn’t miss a thing.

Mashed Potatoes

Stir nooch into mashed potatoes, not only saving calories by nixing cheese but also cutting down on the sodium. Indeed, mashed potatoes can be healthy.

Bean Dip

Emily Malone of the blog Daily Garnish makes a fabulous bean dip using nutritional yeast. If serving this at a party, no one would even be able to tell its vegan.

Roasted Vegetables

One of my favorite go-to meals is roasted vegetables topped with shredded cheese. On days I’d like to skip the cheese and opt for a healthier alternative, I stir nutritional yeast into the finished vegetables instead. When warmed by the vegetables, the yeast smoothens out and creates a creamy sauce with help from the vegetable juices and oils.

Roasted Nuts

Roast nuts that have been tossed in some nutritional yeast. The roasted flavor will be augmented and the nuts will have a slightly cheesy coating on the skin.

Onion Rings

Nutritional yeast has been showing up in onion ring recipes, and for good reason. It helps to increase the nutritional benefit of onion ring batter and adds an edge to each bite. Make the baked fat-free onion rings featured on vegan blog My Whole Deal.

Sauce Thickener

Much like flour and butter are used to thicken a sauce, nutritional yeast can replace the flour to do the same thing.

Gravy

Keeping your health on track during the holidays is all about cutting corners in small ways. Nutritional yeast can redefine gravy. Bring this simple recipe to the table and the cheer will only heighten.

Salad Dressing

Sneak in your B12 quota is by adding a tablespoon of nutritional yeast to a homemade salad dressing like the Hollyhock Salad Dressing, which you can find on A Passionate Plate blog.

French Fries

Want some added nutrition, crisp, and kick to a homemade version of baked French fries? Drizzle olive oil over cut root vegetables and then toss them in a few tablespoons of nutritional yeast. The flavor is out of this world.

Creamy Cooked Greens

Cooked spinach pairs well with cream and cheese, but you can replace those heavier add-ins with a tablespoon or two of nutritional yeast and then watch as the bare spinach suddenly becomes decadently creamy and bold in flavor.

Vegan Quiche

Experiment with this No-Soy Vegan Quiche recipe from blog Triumph Wellness. It’s the perfect example of where just a little bit of nooch makes a big difference.

Dog Food

Dogs need their vitamin B12 too, especially if your dog is on a plant-based diet. Mix some nutritional yeast in your furry friend’s nibbles and he or she will benefit in a major way.

Baby Formula

If a baby is using formula in place of breast feeding, it is recommended to add nutritional yeast to the infant formula.  Nutritional yeast provides B12, iron and folic acid, which are essential to growth.

Aylin Erman currently resides in Istanbul and is creator of plant-based recipe website GlowKitchen.

Photo Credit: Artizone, Acquired Life

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