Thursday, November 17, 2011

Crembos* and Salads

[image: crembos, photo taken from Wikipedia]



[ *For non-Israeli readers, here is Wikipedia-based definition: Krembo (Crembo) is very popular in Israel, especially in the winter as an alternative to ice-cream. It comes wrapped in aluminium foil, and consists of a round biscuit base on the bottom and whipped egg whites cream from above, coated in a thin layer of chocolate. There are vanilla and mocha flavoured Krembos. In Hebrew, the word krembo is a combination of krem (cream) and bo (in it). The average krembo weighs 25 grams (0.882 ounces) and has 115 calories. ]

When I was in nursing school, I could eat ice cream in the freezing Illinois winter. I remember eating ice cream cones while trudging back to the dorm, through the snow, from the hospital. On arrival in Israel I was shocked to discover that half of the year one couldn’t (in those years) get ice cream in the winter; only crembos. It seemed to me a rather poor switch….
But it was my chilren who really introduced me to the confection. They urged me to buy them for shabbat, and for years we did. I came to like the coffee flavored variety.
But slowly over the last 3-4 years the family tastes have changed. Not only did the children grow, but as a family, most of us changed our eating habits and adopted healthier lifestyles.
People who are used to eating foods with high sugar and high fat content are often puzzled by their friends reaction to such foods as “too rich”. The “indulger” often can not imagine that there could come a time when these calorie-laden foods will no longer “call” him.
But if you change the way you eat and live, your tastes adapt. Foods that once seemed a “normal” treat not only cease “calling” you… they often become unappetizing. Or they become foods that you can enjoy…..in miniscule portions. [As an example, I remember that for me the minimum portion of chocolate used to be a 30-gram bar. Today I still enjoy (rarely) chocolate… but one or two cubes (maximum) at a time…]
And when you are watching your weight, a crembo is a pretty empty 115 calories. Give me a lettuce salad with pomegranate seeds over a crembo any day…..

This post is in response to Esser Agorot’s “Krembo Challenge

2 comments:

Esther said...

Funny- I saw the photo of the Crembos and thought... "Mmmm." And then my next thought was, "But they are just way too sweet. If they cut out half the sugar in them, it would be much more enjoyable."

And then I read the rest of your post. LOL :)

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