I've said it before and I will say it again (and again):
MEASURE EVERYTHING!

Now my own personal gripe: The metric system is really by far the superior measuring system. Why? All you move is decimal points. Okay, here is an example of American Logic:

24 t= 8 T = 1/2 C = 1/4 pt .= 1/8 qt = 1/32 gal.= 4 fl. oz.= 1 gill or 1 stick butter=two #20 or one #8 disher

Does this make sense to you??? This is why I looked up every chart of weights and measures to make sure that when they told me about a food in grams or ounces, I could figure out just how much that really was. %=JUMP|convert|Find that list here for you to print out for FREE!=%

Dishers come in a variety of sizes, and the number has something to do with the number of scoops from that disher that can be found in a pound of hamburger or a gallon of ice cream. WHY they don't have straight-forward 1/8 cup, 1/4 cup 1/3 cup, 1/2 cup, etc., no one knows. What I DO know is that often they only have a COLOR on the end of the handle, and if you don't remember what that color stands for, you are out of luck. I etch the quantities on the side or end of the disher for easy reference!

For all this complaining, they still beat your standard measuring cup hands down for ease of use. Ambidextrous ones allow either right or left handed individuals to pop that ingredient right out onto the plate or into the mixing bowl, no spatulas, no scraping. They are perfect for measuring out .5 oz cookies like Zone Cookies, and are great in the dishwasher.

Dishers or scoops are also available through my business, "Cookie Cutters by Karen", where we make custom made cookie cutters out of any shape you outline--especially kids handprints! They are a heavy gauge aluminum, the ends are pop riveted together and your name or message is etched on the side of the cutter. They come with craft and baking ideas as well as recipes --none are zoned out yet!

I have been questioned about measuring, and someone reported that Dr. Sears said eyeballing is okay, don't go overboard on measuring. Be it far from me to argue with Dr. Sears, but I only caution you on this: Using a serving spoon, measure out what you think is1/4 cup of pasta. Now, using a measuring cup, measure out 1/4 cup of pasta is. Then, using a gram scale, measure out your dry pasta. I contend that most people will be so far off "eyeballing" their measurements that they will sometimes add as much as one or two extra blocks, especially when it comes to carbohydrates. If you are really serious about this, measure whenever you can, which will help your accuracy in "eyeballing" when you can't measure. I use dishers because they are extremely fast, accurate and easy to locate in my kitchen drawer. Having them plop the food out makes it faster and one less step in food preparation. This diet is easy, but for many people, it is time consuming. I want you to succeed at it, and if time is a factor, the dishers just make it easier.