SPRINKLES!!!

I bought these sprinkles at Surfas.  Roll balls of cold cookie dough in them before baking & they’ll look really cool.

From Blog Photos

No I don’t work for Surfas.  I’ve never received any compensation or free services or merchandise of any kind from them.  I pay full list price and they treat me the same way they seem to treat all small time non-commercial customers.  They just happen to have nice stuff and they’re relatively close by my home.

Dealing with all That CHOCOLATE in the House

Okay here's the problem, I have 8 pounds of gourmet chocolate (and a bag of Dark Chocolate M&M's) in my house, how do I keep out of it?  Well the first thing I did was to put it all in a bag & stick it in the pantry closet. When I opened the closet to get the chocolate to shoot the pictures I was nearly overcome with the perfume of fine chocolate permeating said pantry.  I knew I needed a better plan.  Now the first thing I have working for me is that I can usually keep myself from opening a sealed package.  But I am a human being gosh darn it!!! (I'm trying to stay away from bad language here)  So what I have done is put all the chocolate in a large 99¢ Only Store plastic container.  Ironic huh, Valhrona Chocolate in a 99¢ Only Store faux Tupperware container.  I guess that makes me some sort of Renaissance Man, right?  Just humor me okay! I hope this works! 

From Blog Pictures

Even Chocolate Needs a Friend

When baking with chocolate adding these ingredients really helps bring out and enhance the taste of the chocolate.  First of all vanilla:

Nielsen-Massey Vanillas

From Blog Pictures

Now there are many good kinds of vanilla and cheap nasty ones.  You get what you pay for with vanilla. If you use artificial vanilla flavor just leave my blog right now.  Neilsen-Massey is not the only high quality vanilla out there it just I tend to buy this brand and if you want to scrape out vanilla pods yourself that's even better, maybe I should start doing that.  Now when a recipe says to put in say one teaspoon of a spice, herb or flavoring I usually double it and add vanilla even if the recipe doesn't ask for it.

 Another great thing to add is:
Medaglia D'Oro Caffè Espresso Instant

From Blog Photos

A couple of teaspoons of this stuff really brings out the chocolate flavor, again even if the recipe doesn't ask for it put some in.  Medaglia D'Oro Caffè Espresso Instant is available at Bristol Farms also check & other places as well, I'm sure.  Look for the big cans of their regular espresso & it might be right there. If not you can get it here:

CHOCOLATE!!!

I'm a chocolate snob. I very rarely buy most mass market chocolate, except to give away at Halloween.  There is at least one exception:

Dark Chocolate M&M's 

From Blog Photos

M&M/Mars also makes some darn funny commercials!!!


I know, any excuse to show off.


I love to bake and with the holidays upon us I thought I would give you some of my holiday baking tips. To me recipes are not the most important thing in baking, to me it's ingredients, technique and tools. Let's start with ingredients, by far my favorite is:

 Valhrona Chocolate

From Blog Pictures

Yes Valhrona Chocolate is expensive, but it's worth it. There is a limited selection available at Whole Foods Market and a large selection available at Surfas in Culver City California, either at the store or through their new web site. It's also available at other web retailers so shop around. Don't buy the prepackaged bars, it's a lot more expensive that way. There are far too many varieties for me to list here, what I use is the cocoa powder, sometimes the unsweetened chocolate but when a recipe calls for semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate I usually use the Abinao. I don't like things too sweet so this works great for me. The percentage on the package refers to ratio of cocoa and cocoa butter to sugar, so for instance the Abinao is 85% cocoa and cocoa butter and 15% sugar. What's also great about using these varieties is that they tend to be bitter so I'm less likely to snack on them. Buying them in the feves is a lot easier than hacking of a piece of a big thick bar but easier to snack upon. Now Valhrona is far too French and snooty to make something as American and pedestrian as chocolate chips so I like Cacao Barry Mini Chips. I like mini chips better than the big ones and at $7.56 for two pounds that's about the same as the major brands and these are so much better! Cacao Barry also makes what they call Chocolate Vermicelli:

From Blog Pictures

We call them either chocolate sprinkles or jimmies. These are however one of the most dangerous things mankind has ever created! The reason I lifted the picture off the website is that I don't dare have these in the house. I will open the and immediately start pouring them in your mouth until the box is empty. The woman mentioned in my first post once said: “I could eat them right out of the box”, I gave her a look and she said “Okay, I do eat them right out of the box”. Maybe that’s what killed the relationship and oh yeah, she didn't love me let's not forget that.

ANY recipe that calls for any kind of chocolate will be so much, actually incredibly better with these chocolates!!!


Now before you get all excited about the health benefits of chocolate you need to know the fat and sugar in all chocolate negates all the health benefits. You can eat straight cocoa powder, but that's no fun!

Holiday Dangers!!!

Between my friend Cherise Bangs' house warming party, The Saban Free Clinic Dinner & two, yes two Thanksgiving dinners I've gained SIX POUNDS since last Sunday!!!

"The Biggest Loser"

On ‘The Biggest Loser,’ Health Can Take Back Seat

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/25/business/media/25loser.html

Sexual Harrassment

A woman yelled "nice legs" at me as I was walking home from Trader Joe's today.

Exercise

Not something I really like doing but it is important.  If you want to lose weight dieting is MUCH more important than exercise.  Not that exercise isn't important but look at it this way, say you want your car to weigh less, what's the best way to do it?  Drive around & around burning up gas to lighten the car or put in less gas?  Also after exercising many people feel they've worked out, now they get to reward themselves.  Well I got news for you, it's a lot easier to consume calories than to burn them.  Here are the cool things I use to help me exercise & monitor my weight.

Wii Fit

As you can see by my setup I'm not much of a gamer but I do use it almost every day.  I do about 20 minutes of exercises a day but the best thing about Wii Fit is how it monitors your weight.  I know every day how much I've lost or gained since September of 2008.  It's wonderful to see the graph & how my weight's been going down & down from obese to overweight to now  in the normal range.  Now Wii Fit is not always nice, gain too much weight & it will treat you like a 4th grader who's come home with a bad report card.  But there's no fudging, it's very easy to see how much you're losing (hopefully not gaining).  The training is not too intense but if you're like me only want to get toned, not muscle-bound, the Wii Fit can help.  I do believe my Wii Fit trainer is Christian & she does seem to have a substance abuse problem but I don't have the Wii Fit Plus just the older version so maybe she's cleaned up her act.  I do use light wrist weights & dumb bells to make things a little more intense.  Here's the setup:

Here's the Wii Fit balance board along with a really thick spongy exercise mat which really helps cushion things.

I also do push ups with the push up stands.  I don't know if the stands make a difference, but everyone seems to use them these days.  I purchased the weights, stands & mat at Walmart, another company that doesn't need my help selling stuff but I found these items much cheaper there than my local sporting goods stores.


To lose weight & stay healthy however you need to do aerobic exercise & get your heart rate up.  After my Wii Fit work I walk to my nearby gym & get an aerobic workout, usually on an elliptical machine.  To get a good workout in you're going to have to make sure you're keeping your heart rate up.  To do this I use a:

Polar Heart Rate Monitor

The strap goes around your chest & it transmits to the separate watch monitor.  There are a lot of fancy settings but I have set up so that when my heart goes above the rate I've chosen the timer starts, if I go below that rate it stops counting.  I currently do a half hour at heart rate which I current have set as a minimum 120 beats per minute, meaning I have to work hard enough to keep my heart rate over 120 for a half hour.  Sometimes I don't make the whole half hour, usually I do.  I started at 113 BPM minimum, took it up to 125 BPM minimum but now 120 seems to work best for me.  I   also used to do a whole hour but found myself too tired later to really do anything for the rest of the day so I've dialed it back a little.

So this is it for unfun, yet cool stuff.  Check back soon for some really cool stuff, I promise you!!!

Snacks

I try my best not to snack but sometimes you gotta have something sometimes.  Anyone who knows me knows I'm a diet soda fiend but I can't recommend that.  Your best bets are fresh seasonal fruit (pears are really good right now & the Satsuma tangerines are starting to come in) & popcorn.
Now when I say popcorn I don't mean movie popcorn or microwave popcorn.  I mean air popped or popped in a microwave bowl like this or this one that I have:

Not as nice looking as the one from the Nordic Ware website but I've had this one for 8 years so they're tough.  You can find it here in a really cool looking finish:

Measure out 2 tablespoons of kernels, I just found this brand at Gelson's  or at Amazon, it's quite good:

Put it in the microwave & nuke it on high (not the popcorn setting) untill you don't hear any popping for 10 seconds.  You put some "spray butter" on it, I like Parkay spray:

Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon of salt, get a fine fancy sea salt, it will be better & now you have a 120 calorie snack.

Other than fruit & popcorn, your only other real choice is eeek!!! raw vegetables.
"BUT ALEX I'M STILL HUNGRY!!!"
Well that's going to happen, anyone who says you can lose weight without being hungry is
LYING
to you.  If you want to lose weight bad enough you'll quit eating so much, if you can't eat less than don't bother, just keep getting fatter & fatter.
PS: My next set of posts are going to be about exercise, after that my posts will be much more fun, I promise.

What's for Dinner???

Usually either the same as breakfast or lunch.

Lunch Part II

Now after the salad I should have some freshly made lean protein, perhaps some whole grain side & fresh vegetables but that's just too much work & too easy to make too much, remember earlier I mentioned portion control.  So I nuke a frozen meal, there are many varieties of lower calorie meals but my favorites are made by Kashi .  See my earlier post about conflicts.  These two are my favorites:

What's great about the Kashi  meals is they are not only low in calories but also lower in sodium than most other frozen meals.  Some brands just load up on salt while they call themselves "healthy".  They're also high in fiber & have a real firmness & texture to them, sometimes with frozen meals you feel like your eating soup.  They're available most everywhere, except the Red Curry Chicken is only currently available at Albertson's They tend to be a little more expensive than the other brands, look out for sales.
I'm also a fan of Amy's Tofu Lasagna:

I usually like using pictures of the items I took myself but I ate the last one I had.  Not just good for tofu or good for frozen lasagna, this is good lasagna!  It's available almost everywhere (in L.A. at least).  Unlike Kashi , Cascadian Farm & Hain, Amy's is not part of any big food conglomerate, not that there's anything wrong with that!
But speaking of conglomerates I do like quite quite a few varieties of Lean Cuisine.  These two are my favorites:

There are like 75 different varieties so it's hard to get bored.  They can be quite inexpensive, I've seen them as low as $1.88, look out for sales & coupons.
There are many other brands, whatever you like.  Also some that aren't called "lean" or "healthy" can be low in calories as well, just make sure you check the sodium levels, some have over 100 milligrams per serving!
A good tip for frozen meals.  Microwave for 4 minutes slightly off center of the microwave, stir them well & let them sit for at least another 5 minutes, they'll taste much better!

Lunch Part I

When I grew up pretty much every dinner started with a salad.  I guess that's kind of a West Coast thing but it's a tradition I've kept up.  Now most salads as a kid were iceberg lettuce with Bob's Big Boy Bleu Cheese Dressing.  Now while quite tasty it's maybe not your healthiest choice.  Since I've tried to make lunch my main meal of the day, I'll start it with a healthier salad.  Now if I really wanted to put in the effort I would buy a variety of fresh lettuces (letti?), wash them & spin them dry in my salad spinner.  I do that sometimes but I usually just buy the bags of prewashed lettuce.  I would recommend one brand but I don't really have a favorite, whatever looks the best, is the freshest & on sale.  I get a big mixing bowl & fill it with A LOT of lettuce, I'll eat a whole bag sometimes!  Now here's a little trick of mine, even though I'll put other stuff in the salad, I'll toss just the lettuce & dressing first, that way all the other stuff doesn't end up at the bottom of the bowl.  Now you may ask, or not, what kind of dressing do you put on your salad.  Well there are many lower calorie, lower fat salad dressings on the market but by far my favorite is:

Galeos Miso Dressing

The toasted sesame is my favorite but all the varieties are very, very good.  Now when I say very good I don't mean good for lower fat, lower calorie dressing I mean this stuff is just about the best bottled salad dressing I've ever had.  It has only 22 calories & 2 grams of fat per tablespoon, Bob's Big Boy Bleu Cheese Dressing, for example, has 65 calories & seven & a half grams of fat per tablespoon.

But I don't just pour this stuff on, you do that you can end up with a pretty high calorie salad.  I measure out 2 tablespoons & then pour it on.  Here's a good tip 2 tablespoons equals one ounce, get yourself some one ounce shot glasses & it makes it easy to measure.

Galeos Miso Dressing is available at Ralphs, Albertsons, Whole Foods, Gelson's, & some independent  Markets.  It usually runs for $4.99 a bottle, but if you try it & like it you can order it by the case from Galeos & save a little bit of money or you can find it here:

Any kind of fresh vegetables will make this salad better.  I especially like the little grape tomatoes my favorite brands are Santa Sweets & Nature Sweet Cherubs.  Than can be a little more expensive than the store brands, but they're always good.  Nature Sweet Cherubs are in a cute container & seem to last forever.  They're available almost everywhere as are Santa Sweets but you can find Santa Sweets in a larger size at Costco.

I really love olives and hearts of palm and artichoke hearts in a salad & while they're all low in calories (except when packed in oil), they do have a lot of sodium.  These are a good substitute:

They're not quite as good as the kind in the jar, but they have far less sodium & are a bit cheaper.  As you can see by the label they're available at Trader Joe's.

By the way, before you ask, nope no croutons allowed.

CONFLICT ALERT!!! CONFLICT ALERT!!!

When I was talking about Kashi GOLEAN I forgot to mention that I was in a commercial a few years back for Kellogg's Frosted Mini Wheats.  It's also a good excuse to show you the spot:

 

Can anyone spot the Israeli Britney Spears in this spot?

Breakfast Part IV, The Confession

Now while 1 cup of GOLEAN & a half cup of  Fiber One slathered in Almond Breeze is a high quality, very healthy breakfast it's, now how do I put this nicely, a little bit plain.  Now while plain is the favorite flavor in Ned Flander's home, it's not in mine.  Some fruit's good, raspberries & sliced peaches are among my favorites but watch out a very popular cereal fruit can be 100 calories per fruit.  Yet sometimes (okay all the time) I want just a little bit more. So I add a half a cup of what you might call "kiddie" cereal.  These two are my favorites:

Cascadian Farms Cinnamon Crunch & Froot Loops are you kidding Alex?  Well man(or woman) can't live on purely healthy stuff alone & believe it or not these two aint too bad.  They both have fiber & since I only have a half cup of one or the other, we're only talking 55 calories.  Froot Loops are, needless to say, available everywhere on the planet earth, watch for coupons & sales.  Cascadian Farms Cinnamon Crunch (check the site for coupons) which is owned by General Mills is available almost everywhere except Trader Joes.  It can be a little pricey, so watch out for sales.
So let's do a little breakfast calorie rundown:
1 cup GOLEAN         140 calories    10 grams fiber
Half cup  Fiber One      60 calories    14 grams fiber
Half cup FL or CC       55 calories      1.5 grams fiber
4 oz.  Almond Breeze   40 calories
Total                           295 calories    25.5 grams fiber
And I promise you, you will be full!

Breakfast Part III

Now you may ask, or not, Alex what do you put upon this concoction as a moistening agent.  Well dairy & I don't seem to get along that well, but if you want your milk your only real choice is non-fat milk.  Now you may say "I hate non-fat milk", well suck it up, losing weight is hard work & if you're not able to make changes in your life than don't bother.
There are many, many milk substitutes these days, you've got the old standby soy milk, but I've seen rice milk, hemp milk, ,no it won't get you high and oat milk but my favorite is:

Blue Diamond Almond Breeze

It comes in several different varieties, but my favorite is the unsweetened vanilla flavor.  As you can see it only has 40 calories a serving, which is less than any other milk substitute I've ever seen.  The best place to buy it in this juice box like package is Trader Joes.  Their regular price is the same as the sale price you'll also find it at Whole Foods or Gelson's or you can find it here:



Almond Breeze is now also available in refrigerated cartons.

  The only advantage to this package I know of is that it can tend to be a little bit cheaper.  The only places I've found the unsweetened vanilla flavor in a carton are Albertson's  Whole Foods & Gelson's.  I bet you can guess where it's the cheapest.

Breakfast Part II

Fiber One

Now the last thing General Mills needs is my help selling this stuff.  This stuff flies out of the store faster than it will fly out of your body.  I measure out one half cup.  Coupons are ubiquitous as are sales.  It's available everywhere except Trader Joes & I'm not sure if they have it at Whole Foods.

Breakfast Part I

Kashi GOLEAN

Kashi GOLEAN constitutes the lowest strata in my morning bowl of cereal.   I measure out one cup & pour it into the bowl, I don't pour it straight into the bowl.  It is not only high in fiber, but it's also high in protein.  I used to eat almonds in the morning, but I found I could get more protein for fewer calories with GOLEAN.  But dang them almonds sure is tasty.  Protein in the morning seems to give me the energy to work out & do whatever it is I need to do.  GOLEAN is available pretty much everywhere, from Walmart to Whole Foods (Kashi is owned by Kellogg's).  Trader Joes regular price is usually less than most other stores regular price.

I don't think you can say too many good things about fiber, it's probably the one thing no one argues about, eat fiber & plenty of it which brings me to the next level of my cereal bowl.

Enough of the Introspection, Let's Get Going with Cool Stuff Alex Likes.

Measuring Cups

People ask me how I lost weight so I'm going to start this blog with the tools I use to cut me down to size.  Measuring cups, that's the first thing you're going to talk about Alex?  Yes because it isn't really about what you eat (even though that's important) it all comes down to how much you eat.  Measuring cups don't lie, if you reduce your portion size, you'll reduce your size This is what people smarter than me have to say.  What's also great about measuring cups, oh & spoons too, let's not leave out the spoons, is that no matter whether you buy them at Williams-Sonoma or 99¢ Only Store they all work the same.  I will get into how I use them in upcoming posts.

A lot More About Me

I've been overweight for most of my life.  The only reason I say most is that in September 2008 I finally decided I no longer wished to be fat.  I had said to myself for many years that once I met a woman who was worth losing weight for I would do it.  At the time I was friends with a woman who I was head over heels in love with.  She was not in love with me & I knew it but I decided to lose weight for her.  The catalyst may have been the drunk in Las Vegas who took this picture.  

From Blog Photos

I cropped her out to protect her privacy but she is one of the most beautiful women I've ever known & I've spent my whole life in Hollywood.  After taking the picture the drunk loudly asked her "What are you doing with THAT guy?"  Now of course this guy was just some idiot Vegas jerk, but I knew he was right.  At that point I decided to no longer be fat.  What ever happened this truly was a win-win suitation, either we would end up together or I would end up skinny.  This was a bad relationship & it ended badly, how else can bad relationships end?  I ended up hurting her and others but mostly myself.  But I did it, I've lost about seventy pounds since then, here's a slideshow of me over the years.

The reason I mentioned all this is that My first set of posts are going to be about food & food preparation & how I lost all that weight but I have an audition now so I'll start on those posts later.

Alex

In this blog I will review various products, services & anything else in the world I feel needs my opinion. All items listed as of now are items or services I have paid for, I have received nothing free of charge. I will do my best to mention any conflicts I may have, but since I have been in many commercials & my family is in both the entertainment & news business there's a good chance I will leave something out.