It’s a McMiracle

Like classic Nickelodeon shows, 60’s fashion and Betty White, I’m making a comeback.

88 and better than ever

I’ve spent the last two months getting ready for the upcoming semester by not thinking about the upcoming semester, but the time for fun is now over and the time for studying, working and blogging has returned.

In the months that have passed, I have snorkeled in some fine Florida springs, kayaked some beautiful water in the Tampa Bay area, caved (still can’t really feel my knees) and camped in Central Kentucky, relaxed at a cabin in the North Carolina mountains and enjoyed some good old-fashioned family time.  I assure you, it was all much needed.

Exploring > Studying

Hopefully you have all been eating despite my absence.

I’ll have some new recipes up soon, but in the meantime, I need to comment on a few things.

First, McDonalds.  I’ve hated on you before for your oatmeal-contaminated bowl of sugar and 38-igredient Chicken McNuggets.  But I’ve got to tip my hat to Ronald and his crew for finally cutting the calories in the happy meal.  For the first time ever, Apple slices will be included in every happy meal so the kids have something else to throw away.  AND, better still, the portion of french fries will be cut in half.

Now, now, I know what you are thinking.  They only did this because of pressure from Mrs. Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign, and this is just another socialist tactic to take money from the wealthy, greedy potato farmers and give it to the underprivileged yet charmingly hard-working apple pickers.  (C’mon Tea Party – you’re missing an opportunity here.)

Anyways, the fry packets are being cut down from 2.4 ounces to a 1.1 ounce bag.  Cool, huh?  Don’t worry that kids still have the option of doubling their fries if they don’t want the apples, because I don’t know a kid on this planet who would turn down a packaged bag of apple slices.

Lots of kids choose apples and milk over fries and soda.

The full nutrition info hasn’t been released yet, but I’ll post it as soon as McDonald’s puts it out there.

There’s a funny flipside, though.   When I was in North Carolina, we stopped in to a McDonald’s to use the restroom and grab a cup of coffee.  They have a deal there (perhaps elsewhere too, but I haven’t been to many in the last few years) where you can take a regular meal deal and bump it to a large for only 90 cents – more fries, more soda, more regret.  But there’s more:  If you take the bait and get the large meal, they throw in an apple pie for FREE.

Maybe that’s not as interesting to you as it was to me, but I found it hilarious.  Cut the french fries for the kids and throw free apple pies at adults already buying the largest possible meal.

What else, what else?

Oh yeah, I still haven’t seen a Pepsi Social Vending Machine, nor has anyone sent me a free Pepsi.  A little bummed on that front.

I went to my first totally raw restaurant (nothing is cooked, no ingredients get above 105 degrees), Leafy Greens in St. Pete.  It was really good, but until someone convinces me otherwise, I think that’s a crazy way to live (it’s cool, though – people say the same thing about vegetarians and vegans).  I had tacos, which tasted like tacos, but had nothing I traditionally associate with tacos (no tortilla, cheese, sour cream or filling).  Worth a try, but I’ll keep my oven, thank you very much.

If you are still reading at this point, I’m impressed.  In terms of coherency, future posts can only get better.

Talk to y’all soon.

McDonald’s Oatmeal is a Sham

A few months back, McDonald‘s unveiled the next product in their we’re-trying-to-be-healthier-please-keep-eating campaign —  fruit and maple oatmeal.  (On a side note, I actually got mail from McDonalds advertising this new product.  Where they got my address, or why they think I’d care, I have no idea).

Like Candy For Breakfast | Photo courtesy of Ronald McDonald

Turns out, I do care.  While I have never eaten their oatmeal and almost never dine at any of their 8 trillion locations, I did silently applaud their decision to add healthier options to their menu.  Heck, that might even be something I’d consider eating – I mean, it’s just oatmeal, right?

Wrong.

Thank goodness for journalism, though, to help us see through the billion dollar ad campaigns.  This NYT blog post started the madness.

Back to the oatmeal — let’s start with the ingredients.  The basic constituents of this delightful “bowl full of wholesome” (their words, not mine) are oatmeal, diced apples, “cranberry raisin blend” and “light cream.”  Sounds innocent enough, and to an extent, it is.  Sure, the oatmeal itself contains “natural flavor.”  And yes, the apples are coated in calcium ascorbate.  And the “light cream” does contain seven ingredients (huh?) – “Milk, cream, sodium phosphate, datem, sodium stearoyl lactylate, sodium citrate and carrageenan.”

That’s not too bad by McStandards.  Personally, I add sodium stearoyl lactylate and carrageenan to all my breakfast foods.  So no big deal there.

But what really got me was the nutrition information.  This bad boy has 32 grams of sugar.  That’s more than a full size Snickers candy bar (check for yourself).  Oh, and it’s not too shabby in the calorie department either – 290 as served.  That’s more than a cheesburger or an Egg McMuffin.  Yikes.

Nutritional Facts for "Fruit and Maple Oatmeal"

But ya know, McDonald’s has every right to sell candied oatmeal and you have ever right to buy it.  What bothers me, though, is that it’s advertised as a “bowl full of wholesome.”  It’s not.  Save yourself the sugar crash and make your own oatmeal.  It’ll be healthier, cheaper and will take less time than sitting in that drive through line.

And to think, I had just settled down after my McRevelation about the Chicken McNuggets, too.  Here’s a fun party game.  Make your friends guess how many ingredients are in a chicken nugget.  They’ll guess 2, cause that would make sense.  NOPE.  Then, they’ll guess 10, trying to be funny.  NOT EVEN CLOSE.  Then they’ll guess 20, staring at you quizzically.  STILL COLD.  This is when you have to jump in, cause you’re at a party and games like this can’t go on that long.

There are 39 ingredients in a chicken McNugget.  If you can name five of them without looking it up, I’ll give you a dollar.

Yum.

Here’s a hint, one ingredient rhymes with frymethylpolysiloxane – that’s right, dimethylpolysiloxane!  According to their website, this is “added as an antifoaming agent.”  It’s a form of silicone, and it’s also a key ingredient in Silly Putty.  Cool, right?.

Or there’s another fan favorite – TBHQ (stage name for tertiary butylhydroquinone).  That’s butane, and it’s an illegal additive in most European countries.  Don’t worry, though.  It’s only included in trace amounts, for a little zing.  Still, the Consumer’s Dictionary of Food Additives gave this warning about TBHQ:

Death has occurred from the ingestion of as little as 5 grams. Ingestion of a single gram (a thirtieth of an ounce) has caused nausea, vomiting, ringing in the ears, delirium, a sense of suffocation, and collapse.

Sweet.

Oh, oh, Mickey D’s.  You’ll keep selling us butane nuggets, and as long as you throw in a tiny beanie baby, we’ll keep feeding it to our kids.  When will we learn?

The Defendants | Photo Courtesty of Liz and Laura