It's easy to be confused when looking for healthy foods and snacks to prepare. Pita bread and garlic sauce are often consumed as a snack at Italian-style restaurants or may be a quick between-meal snack at home. While some types of pita breads are considered somewhat healthy, garlic sauce can be high in both total fat and saturated fat.
Preparation
Most pita breads come packaged ready to eat, but you may wish to toast your bread before dipping into the garlic sauce. Garlic sauce is usually made of garlic, butter and salt, and sometimes flour is added for thickness. The ease of preparing pita bread with garlic sauce makes this snack attractive if you have a busy daily schedule and want to prepare something quickly.
Pita Bread Nutrition
Pita bread comes in several varieties, including white or whole-wheat pitas. One small whole-wheat pita contains 74 calories, 2.74 g of protein, 15.4 g of carbohydrates, 2.1 g of fiber and 0.7 g of fat. Whole-wheat pita bread is also rich in several vitamins and minerals, with 4 mg of calcium, 50 mg of phosphorus, 48 mg of potassium, 12.3 mg of selenium, 10 mcg of folate and 15 mcg of lutein and zeaxanthin. One small, enriched, white pita provides 77 calories, 2.5 g of protein, 0.3 g of fat, 15.6 g of carbohydrate, 24 mg of calcium, 27 mg of phosphorus, 34 mg of potassium, 7.6 mg of selenium, 30 mcg of folate and 15 mcg of lutein and zeaxanthin.
Butter Nutrition Facts
Butter is the primary ingredient in the types of garlic sauce that are often consumed with different types of breads. One tablespoon of salted butter contains 102 calories, 0.12 g of protein and 11.52 g of fat with 7.3 g of saturated fat. Butter offers minimal vitamin and mineral values, aside from 22 mcg of beta carotene and 97 IU of vitamin A.
Considerations
The nutritional values of pita bread make this an ideal type of bread for snacking or for making meals. However, there are healthier alternatives for dipping sauces. Olive oil sprinkled with garlic and other herbs makes a tasty dip without the excess saturated fat. Consuming too much saturated fat can raise LDL, the bad cholesterol, levels, cause weight gain and can even lead to some forms of diabetes. Other types of oils, such as safflower oil, coconut oil and corn oil, also offer low saturated fat solutions to snacking.
Member Comments