Comfort Food Alternatives?

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  • kbradford26
    kbradford26 Posts: 13
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    Wow thanks for all the great tips everyone! I'm excited to try some of the new recipes. :)
  • AlysonG2
    AlysonG2 Posts: 713 Member
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    My husband requests this all the time. It's delicious.

    http://www.thecomfortofcooking.com/2013/02/spicy-roasted-vegetable-macaroni-and-cheese.html
  • ottawaheather1970
    ottawaheather1970 Posts: 5 Member
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    I love Skinny Taste! I've made her Pumpkin Cupcakes with great success - and less than 100 calories each! Those are my go-to sweets. I keep them in the freezer so they stay nice and fresh.
  • ottawaheather1970
    ottawaheather1970 Posts: 5 Member
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    Also, has anyone tried baking brownies with black beans instead of oil / eggs? I heard you can do it with all kinds of recipes and it really bumps up the protein and fiber, even the moistness! My coworker brought some in and I couldn't taste the beans, they were just nice, moist brownies.


    I made the ones from the Skinnytaste.com website and no, you could not taste beans at all. I tried reducing the sugar as well but I took it down a little too much, so they are not so sweet. Mine turned out more like cake than a brownie but they were a big hit. Although not as big a hit as the Pumpkin Cupcake recipe. Yellow cake mix, 1 cup pureed pumpkin, 1 cup water, pumpkin spices - mix and bake.
  • palomino698
    palomino698 Posts: 36 Member
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    Another vote for skinnytaste.com, fantastic recipes and adaptations that always work out perfectly and taste wonderful!
  • Ke11er
    Ke11er Posts: 147 Member
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    http://atastylovestory.com/the-famous-brilliant-black-bean-chocolate-cake/

    This is a yummy chocolate cake made with black beans recipe. I'm not sure, but your question about black bean brownies has inspired me to try modifying this recipe to see if it would work. I'm thinking less eggs and it should become like brownies. Anyone ever tried that?
  • nomorebingesgirl2014
    nomorebingesgirl2014 Posts: 378 Member
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    Ohh great post
  • tabbyblack13
    tabbyblack13 Posts: 299 Member
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    I love the skinnytaste cloud cookies. I make the black & white verity but I use dark M&Ms instead because I get fun color changes to the batter from the M&Ms.
  • kbradford26
    kbradford26 Posts: 13
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    I've just logged on to the site... I may not sleep tonight! So good!
  • dsb188
    dsb188 Posts: 121 Member
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    I'm not sure if you are doing low carb or what specific diet but when I first started dieting I did the following:

    ICECREAM:
    Two Frozen Bananas with Coco Powder in the ninja- It tasted as close to icecream as I could get.

    CHIPS:
    Kale Chips in lieu of potato chips. I even made a ranch seasoning, and bought some low salt bbq seasoning for them

    PIZZA:
    Cauliflower Pizza Crust (you've probably heard of this before)

    PASTA:
    I bought a juliener (spelling?) from ebay and I use it to cut zuchinni into super thin strips like angel hair pasta.

    Quesadillas/Mexican:
    I made cauliflower tortillas and made quesadillas

    Mac and Cheese:
    Cauliflower Mac and Cheese

    I love baking as well but I can't stand using artificial sugars. They taste so bad to me. I have the recipes for most of these if you want them.
  • Mangopickle
    Mangopickle Posts: 1,509 Member
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    I make chickpea brownies from chickpea flour and no one can tell the difference. No real calorie change but slower carb and higher protein. And as delicious as any Giradelli brownie.
  • PatsyFitzpatrick
    PatsyFitzpatrick Posts: 335 Member
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    This is my 1st site to use when looking for recipes.It has nutritional & WW info for every recipe,plus most are delicious.

    http://www.skinnytaste.com

    WOW Great find thanks for sharing.
    Patsy
  • raggiemom
    raggiemom Posts: 139 Member
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    bump to check out recipe sites later
  • ceciliaruns
    ceciliaruns Posts: 41 Member
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    I'm a big baker too, I LOVE eating all of my creations and that's why I end up gaining over the winter. I bake for my kids when I'm losing and I honestly can't let myself have one single bit or I'll splurge!! I will sometimes take a bite without thinking, then spit it out in the trash. :( I do bake "healthier" things, using whole wheat flour, flax seed meal, coconut oil, apple sauce, etc. My go-to sweets now are no-bake raw balls I make with oats, flax, honey, peanut butter, fruit puree (such as dates or figs) I freeze them and allow myself one or two of them. They are satisfying and delicious and I don't think about cookies after I've had one. Some of my family favorites are on my website.

    www.readysetyum.com/whats-cookin.html

    Here is one ball recipe...I have another that is to die for, I'll get the recipe together and post.
    http://www.ziplist.com/recipes/2480480-100_Calorie_Raw_Mocha_Energy_Balls?return_to=/recipes/box
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
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    Cant help you with the baked goods as I'm not much of a baker but for the cheesy pasta or other casserole type comfort foods, I make substitutes and/or add in healthier ingredients. In general, you can cut down on the amount of pasta a bit, add lots of veggies to bulk it back up (broccoli, carrots, bell peppers, mushrooms, etc), use leaner meats or less meat and less or lower fat dairy products. Use more herbs/spices to improve flavor.

    If you like alfredo and don't mind using jarred sauces, Classico makes a pretty decent light alfredo. Or you can make your own alfredo substitute with low fat cream soup and a little parmesan.
  • GBrady43068
    GBrady43068 Posts: 1,256 Member
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    I've found that I can control most of my cravings, except my cravings for those things that are so, so delicious and comforting, but are completely bad for you. I'm talkin' potato chips, perogies, chocolate cake, creamy pasta, apple crumble, COOKIES... Basically anything packed with cream, sugar, carbs and FAT!

    I'm a big baker, and I love to cook, so I'm wondering if anyone has any health-i-fied comfort food recipes, or ingredient alternatives, that I could add to my arsenal?
    Nothing is "completely bad for you"...it's all about moderation. However, I do understand that some foods can just be triggers for us and it's easier to avoid them for the most part so we don't overindulge. There are some easy ways you can make small substitutes that will help lower some of these amounts of cream, sugar, and fat in what you eat.

    A pretty simple one is swapping out the oil in brownies with (this will sound completely ridiculous but it actually works well) black beans. You take them out of the can, put in a sieve and completely rinse all the "sauce" from the canning off (helps get rid of the excess sodium), then puree it with approximately a cup of water. Add the puree to the brownie mix and bake as normal. That will save you most of the fat calories and you get the bonus of adding a bunch of fiber to them. The "special" brownies have been eaten undetected by kids so I take that as a good sign of nothing "tasting weird" if you can get picky kids to eat 'em.

    I don't have personal experience but I'm told anywhere that sour cream is used, plain Greek yogurt can be substituted. I would imagine you may also be able to substitute it for plain cream if you added some sort of sweetener..either natural but lower calorie (stevia/agave) or artificial (aspartame, sucralose, etc.)
  • GBrady43068
    GBrady43068 Posts: 1,256 Member
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    Also, has anyone tried baking brownies with black beans instead of oil / eggs? I heard you can do it with all kinds of recipes and it really bumps up the protein and fiber, even the moistness! My coworker brought some in and I couldn't taste the beans, they were just nice, moist brownies.
    I have...worked well and was easy..see my response above :)
  • DeliriumCanBeFun
    DeliriumCanBeFun Posts: 313 Member
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    This is a great lighter version of alfredo, and my husband and kids all love it! I'm not a fan using nutmeg in this and only usually buy 2% yogurt, but it's very open to alterations depending on your taste. I always double it because we have a big family, and the leftovers are great.
    http://www.celebrations.com/c/recipe/skinny-chicken-broccoli-alfredo
  • JohnDowding
    JohnDowding Posts: 46 Member
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    My comfort foods are pasta and anything mexican :-) I do okay substituting cashews as a late-night snack (mostly), but once in a while those backfire too.
  • Athijade
    Athijade Posts: 3,282 Member
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    I find that trying to use substitutions does not work for me. I know I have used the sub. I know it tastes different. So it doesn't meet my craving. Then I feel bad because I wasted calories on a meal I didn't really enjoy instead of just eating the real thing, but less of it. I then crave it MORE then before which means I will have trouble watching said portion when I finally give it.

    Also, when I make stuff like pizza and lasagna, I make sure to have some sort of vegetable with it to fill out my meal. This helps with portions.

    I also make sure I plan to have these meals ahead of time. Knowing I have it to look forward to helps with those cravings. I also don't plane a meal like that on a daily or weekly basis. For example, tonight is breaded pork chops and mashed potatoes with gravy. Mmmmmm

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