Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

[DLS]

I was wondering if you guys could share with me how you usually measure broccoli and cauliflower.
When I buy if fresh I take the stalks and trim off all the little heads cutting most of them in half so they are smaller.

BUT, when I use fitday I am trying to make sure that I am entering my "flowerets" correctly.

**I am counting the little individual pieces cut off of one stalk. I just don't see how 4 flowerets (these small heads) could possibly have the carbs they are listing it to have. If that is the case then these two veggies, I'm sad to say, will be crossed off the shopping list from now on. I mean they are good and all but that is a lot of carbs!

Just wondering how all you do your measuring. I don't like the cup method at all.

[Brook]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

I use a food scale. Much more accurate than measuring cups ever can or will be.

4oz is 4oz is 4oz, but the difference between what I can fit in a cup can vary widely.

Dr. Atkins recommended cups because he knew everyone had them and he wanted to keep it simple. It's an approximation and it works when you keep the cup loosely packed, but as you know, depending on how finely you cut up or chop veggies, the amounts in there can vary hugely. I use a scale and skip all the muss and fuss.

[D3anna]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

I use a scale as well for most of my foods...it's nice to know exactly how much I'm eating and not have to guess if it's right or not.

[Gabriella28]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

What about veggies like spinach and lettuce? Do you also use scales for those?

[LadyBethny]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

I have only used a scale!

DLS - a floweret is not the tiny heads but a stalk head - the hard part of the flower - but obviously not the whole head!

Best, to measure them anyway and enter grams or ozs into FitDay, just to be sure!

[DLS]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

Thanks so much you guys! That's what I love about these boards. There is always someone to help when you are lost!

I'll look for a scale this evening. I guess a small one that does ounces and grams is best.


Thanks again!

[LadyBethny]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

You definitely don't need anything too grand! Something that does both is handy!

[not2late]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

If you use a food scale be sure to look at soliwit's thread about the cup measurements of veggies and the corresponding weights. That thread is in the 14 Day Induction Forum. Each vegetable has a different weight per cup measure.

[LadyBethny]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

If you use a food scale be sure to look at soliwit's thread about the cup measurements of veggies and the corresponding weights. That thread is in the 14 Day Induction Forum. Each vegetable has a different weight per cup measure.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek! Do you mean the different veggie lists? I am very strict and measure out each sets of veggies according to DANDR's legal salad and veggie list.

Am I being special - are you saying that each veggie has a different legal weight? So I can't have "up to 8oz" of a mixture of cucumber, celery and peppers" and then "cauliflower, broccoli, etc" to make up the allowance.

I have read this part so many times to get it right and in fact typed it out and stuck it inside my cupboard door.

[Kansas Deb]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

I would suggest a digital scale, much more accurate, measures in ounces or grams. Cost is from about $20 and up. The first one I got a cheap one from WalMart and had to take it back because it didn't work.

[not2late]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek! Do you mean the different veggie lists? I am very strict and measure out each sets of veggies according to DANDR's legal salad and veggie list.

Am I being special - are you saying that each veggie has a different legal weight? So I can't have "up to 8oz" of a mixture of cucumber, celery and peppers" and then "cauliflower, broccoli, etc" to make up the allowance.

I have read this part so many times to get it right and in fact typed it out and stuck it inside my cupboard door.

Volume measures (fluid ounces) and weight measures (dry ounces) only equal each other for water, butter and another thing I can never remember (but it's not veggies!)

Therefore, if you measure 1 cup or 8 fluid ounces of butter, it will weigh 8 ounces, but if you measure 1 cup or 8 fluid ounces of flour it weighs 5 ounces.

If you look at fitday or the USDA nutrient database, you'll see that 1 cup of broccoli, raw weighs 88 grams. 88 gram is equal to 3.10 ounces. So 2 cups of broccoli is 167 grams or 6.2 ounces. Which means the 8 ounces of broccoli you are weighing is in reality about 2 1/4 to 2 1/3 cups. In other words, if 1 cup of broccoli doesn't weigh 8 ounces.

Look what happens if you try to weigh 8 ounces of raw spinach. the USDA says that 1 cup of spinach weighs 30 grams, which is about 1 ounce. That means if you'll have to eat 8 cups of raw spinach to get the 8 ounces of it----that's way above the 3 cup Induction limit.

When DANDR 2002 ed. first made its way across the Atlantic to the UK, the editors didn't take the fluid ounce and dry ounce difference into account. So some UKers were eating huge amounts of veggies because they were weighing 8 ounces instead of measuring 8 fluid ounces or roughly 240 ml.

[Chicklady]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

get a scale! it's just soooo much more accurate!

[DLS]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

If you use a food scale be sure to look at soliwit's thread about the cup measurements of veggies and the corresponding weights. That thread is in the 14 Day Induction Forum. Each vegetable has a different weight per cup measure.

Thanks
I'm moving on to OWL now so I'm not worried about the induction measurements quite as much, just my total carbs.

[DLS]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

I would suggest a digital scale, much more accurate, measures in ounces or grams. Cost is from about $20 and up. The first one I got a cheap one from WalMart and had to take it back because it didn't work.

I just bought the El Cheapo at K-mart for $5.49! LOL Plus I got an employee discount offered to all military so it was only $5 total.
I used it for dinner and was very happy with it. I double checked my precut 1oz cheese hunks, they were right on at 1oz. So for now this will have to be good enough. Budget friendly.

Thanks again you guys.

[Kansas Deb]

Re: Measuring broccoli and cauliflower

Donna, I'm glad yours worked.