Sugar and you: With Lemon-Grilled Chicken

by Anthony J Sepe

http://fromadietitienasperspective.blogspot.com

 

       

Have you ever thought about sugar?  Honey? Brown sugar? White Sugar?  Which is more nutritious?… is honey or brown sugar better for you than white sugar?  Well, that’s a common misconception, too.  Honey, actually is a mixture of sugars (fructose, glucose, sucrose, and other sugars), formed from nectar of bees.  Ounce for ounce, the nutrient content of honey and table sugar is about the same.  Here though is a difference:  a teaspoon of honey weights slightly more than a teaspoon of table sugar, it has somewhat more calories and carbohydrate.  Honey is sweeter than table sugar, so less can be used to sweeten foods.  Brown sugar is merely sugar crystals, flavored with molasses.  From a nutritional standpoint, it too has 16 calories and 4 grams of carbohydrate per teaspoon—the same amount as table sugar.

 

Often we hear of refined sugar.  Refined sugar is most simply described as sugar, separated either from the stalk of sugar cane or from the beet root of sugar beet.  The sugar-containing juice of the plant is extracted, then processed into dried sugar crystals.  It’s sold as granulated or white sugar.  Scientifically, C6H12O6.

In the following recipe, I add,1 tsp of lite soy sauce, 1 tsp of brown sugar and 1 teaspoon of jelly and mix together.  This off-sets the lemon with a “bitter-sweet” taste.

 

Lemon Grilled Chicken

Ingredients:

1 lemon

2 Tablespoons of olive oil1 clove of garlic, crushed

1 Tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley

1/4 tsp. dried thyme

1/4 tsp. dried marjoram

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 tsp. lite soy sauce

1 tsp. brown sugar

1 tsp. jelly

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

 

Preparation Method:

1.  Use a peeler to remove strips of zest from half of the lemon, then trim into fine strips with a small knife.  Reserve and et aside.  Grate the other side of the lemon to make 1 tablespoon zest.  Finally, squeeze the juice from the lemon into a bowl.

2.  In a large bowl, combing the lemon zest and juice, oil, garlic, parsley, thyme, marjoram, salt and pepper.  Pour in the mixture of lite soy sauce,brown sugar and jelly.  Add the chicken breasts to the bowl and spoon the marinade over the chicken until well-coated.  Cover with plastic Wrap.  chill for 30 minutes, or overnight if you have the time.

3.  Preheat the griddle, grill or broiler to medium heat.  Put the chicken pieces on the griddle, reserving marinade.  Cook chicken until cooked through out, about 10 minutes on each side.  Brush with reserved marinade 2-3 times during cooking.   Sprinkle with reserved lemon strips and service immediately.  Garnish with parsley sprigs.

 

Serve with:  Grilled or sautéed mushrooms and mixed pasta salad.

Nutritional Information:  Calories 252, fat8.9g Sat fat 1.5g,carbs 1.7g

Serves: 4

Enjoy!!