I'm curious...

[Jaylah]

What, if anything, have some of you decided just to give up entirely rather than using the "South Beach approved" substitute?

For example, I've read a couple of posts by people that said they didn't like the idea of artificial sweeteners, so just basically gave up things that required sugar or brown sugar to make.

For myself, while I love steamed or raw cauliflower, I'm just never going to think that mashed cauliflower tastes anything like mashed potatoes. I'd prefer to give up mashed potatoes entirely rather than perform such sacrilege on cauliflower. Same with white rice. Although I loved Jasmine rice so much I could happily eat it plain (and am looking forward to eating it sparingly when I reach Phase 3), I don't care how finely you mince up cauliflower. It doesn't taste like rice. I'll eat brown rice occasionally, but will never try to fool myself into thinking cauliflower is rice.

I've also given up pasta. I haven't been able to find any 100% whole wheat pasta in any of the stores around here that doesn't taste horrible. So I've gone to spaghetti squash. I have found that spaghetti squash usually has too much liquid in it right after you cook it. So I cook up a couple of large spaghetti squashes at a time, put the scraped out flesh in a colander over a bowl, cover the whole thing and let it sit in the fridge overnight. By morning, most of the liquid has drained out so it no longer waters down sauce. Then I put the squash in individual sized portions in Zip-Lock bags in the freezer.

[DCLissa17]

I've given up cookies/muffins. Yes I know you can make bean ones and flax ones and whatnot....but they just aren't the same taste-wise and I still end up stuffing them in my face and overdoing on calories, so I just don't have them at all unless it's a couple bites of a real one at work or whatnot.

And Skittles....haven't found any substitute for skittles in SB-world...lol

[ami]

Your point is well taking. However, nothing is really required to eat in this diet. All foods are just options to choose from. I love steamed cauliflower, I don't like to mash it either. If you don't want to eat whole wheat pasta, then eat other carbs like wild rice, etc.

This diet is about making your own choices and see how certain foods work for you. The menus and the list of foods to enjoy are just suggestions, not rule writing in stone.

[Jaylah]

Ami, I wasn't aware that I had made a point. Or I even had one to make. I was, as the title says, just "curious" about whether anybody else had chosen to just give up certain food or foods rather than try to make a "mock" substitute for it.

[Chris55]

I'm one of the people who doesn't use artificial sweeteners. When I'm behaving myself, LOL, I try and stick to fruit, a little agave syrup on my ricotta or yogurt, and dark chocolate. Occasionally as a treat I'll use a tiny bit of honey, brown sugar, or maple syrup because I can use a tiny bit and get a big bang of taste.

I'm with you on the cauliflower. I love cauliflower but I would never mash it to smithereens. I'd rather live without the potatoes. I also love turkey burgers but don't substitute them for beef burgers. I don't like turkey burgers with lettuce, tomatoes, and regular burger fixings. I like them either with greek seasonings and lf feta cheese or a little bbq sauce (I know, not SB). But I do also eat beef burgers.

Pasta is a problem for me since I don't like any of the ww pasta's I've tried and my family hates them. The only thing I can manage to make with ww spaghetti and pass it off is a lo mein type of dish with soy sauce or oyster sauce - the brown color is kind of expected. I've been using a compromise pasta, Ronzoni smart taste. I try to only have pasta once a week or so and like I said, when I'm actually on plan, I have a tiny portion and eat more veggies and protein with it than the rest of the family.

I've always eaten brown rice, love it and also love jasmine rice. Brown rice does increase my cravings, though, so I try not to have it so much.

[Jaylah]

I also love turkey burgers but don't substitute them for beef burgers.

I'm with you there, Chris. I can think of a lot of yummy things to do with ground turkey, but I don't see it as a replacement for ground beef.

[Jaylah]

And Skittles....haven't found any substitute for skittles in SB-world...lol

I know! Isn't that sad ?????

I don't think it would even help me if they came up with sugar-free Skittles. I quite smoking by sucking on those sugar-free "Star" mints once, and they weren't kidding when they warned that excessive consumption could lead to digestive upset!

[DCLissa17]

It's so sad, Jaylah! I have a huge sweet tooth so giving up candy is hard!

As a complement to this topic, what SB foods do you eat that you now can't imagine replacing with it's "real" counterpart?

For me, it's cauli mashed potatoes. I know, right?! But honestly, I never ate cooked cauliflower before SB and I LOVE mashed cauliflower w/ a little garlic, yogurt, butter, and cheese - baked in the oven. I've always liked "real" mashed potatoes (who doesn't?) but I hardly ever made them. I don't see the mashed cauli as a mock version really, just a different dish.

Also, last week I made eggplant lasagna. I never really ate real lasagna and can't imagine that it takes better than this awesome dish!!

[Beachmommy1105]

any of the "mock" recipes (likethe mock cinabons) I flat out dispise ricotta lol I don't know why but the concept of eating ricotta and making it sweet...yuck.

I too would rather do without potatoes then eating mashed cauliflower. I actually LOVE cauliflower...