Compare and Contrast

On Saturday mornings, I volunteer at Stray Rescue. I usually get there around 6:30 in the morning and leave between 12:00 and 1:00. At this point I'm hungry, but drive-through options are, to say the least, not usually healthy. The new Panera by me now has a drive-through though, and I do love their yogurt parfaits. I also wanted to get a hamburger for the old dog and cat who are losing weight and getting much pickier as they get older. While at McDonald's, I decided to grab one of their parfaits as well.

And so we begin the compare/contrast.



Taste: McDonald's yogurt is thicker and creamier. The parfait also has more types of fruit in it but less granola. The Panera parfait is not as sweet but the granola has more nuts in it. I think this battle has to be considered a draw. It would really depend on what I was craving.

Cost: A Panera parfait is $3.99. The McDonald's version is $1. However, the McDonald's version is almost exactly half the size, so, for an equal portion, which I would consider a reasonable size meal, it would be $2. This makes McDonald's the winner here.

Nutrition: So let's assume that for lunch I would eat one Panera parfait or two McDonald's parfaits. With that in mind, there would be 10 more calories from McDonald's.(310 vs 320) The Panera parfait has 11 grams of fat (I assume from more nuts) while two of the McDonald's parfaits would have a total of 4 grams of fat. Here's the kicker. Sugar. The Panera parfait has 28 grams of sugar. Two McDonald's parfaits would have 42!!!!!! Holy cow. So, who wins here? I consider calories a draw, McDonald's wins in fat, but Panera smokes them in sugar.

Overall: Well, I like knowing that McDonald's, which is everywhere, has something that I can eat and be satisfied with. I also like knowing that it is so affordable. However, the sugar thing kind of freaks me out. Why do they have all that sugar? Is it necessary? Doubtful. My guess is that I will still tend towards the Panera version, but the McDonald's one will be a good backup.

*Note also that I know I could have the stuff to make these at home, but I'm talking about when I'm HUNGRY here people. There are times when even that basic pseudo-cooking seems like too much.