Healthy Substitutions

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homerunexpress
homerunexpress Posts: 7 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Looking for healthy substitutes to some not so healthy favorites. Ways to cut calories in dishes, deserts, and one to one substitutes.

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  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
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    First of all, I'm going to say there is no such thing as bad food if you can fit it into your calorie allowance and are meeting your nutritional requirements, so please don't think you need to cut anything out just because you are on a 'diet' :).

    But, yep, sometimes things just don't fit into our cals and we need to find creative ways to reduce them. Can you give some examples of specific things? That will make it easier for us to make suggestions :)
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    It depends on what sort of substitutions you're looking for :) Some swaps, like low-fat yogurt for full-fat, are relatively painless. While others, like cauliflower crust pizza, are an abomination. (And with all the cheese, not much of a calorie bargain.)

    Sometimes, it's easier to just take your favorites and say, okay, I can have them. Maybe not as often, and maybe not in the portion sizes I was used to, but here and there as treats.

    In the context of an otherwise balanced diet, no food is "bad" or "not so healthy".

    As Nony asked, perhaps you can tell us what some of your favorites are, and we can give you some suggestions.
  • homerunexpress
    homerunexpress Posts: 7 Member
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    I love Peanut Butter but the caloric count is high! I substituted PB2. I have also substituted spaghetti squash for pasta. Egg whites vs whole eggs cuta the calories in 1/2
  • alemapnewton
    alemapnewton Posts: 2
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    I am looking for foods that include fats, I am always short on fat St the end of the day
  • homerunexpress
    homerunexpress Posts: 7 Member
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    I have done the cauliflower pizza crust amd actually liked it. I used low fat mozzarella cheese and egg whites... Helped keep the caloric count down.

    I also prefer Johnsonville brand Turkey Link Sausage... to other brands.

    Im really just looking for suggestions to help myself and others make healthier choices and substitutions for ingredients to make our favorite recepies healthier
  • homerunexpress
    homerunexpress Posts: 7 Member
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    alemapnewton wrote: »
    I am looking for foods that include fats, I am always short on fat St the end of the day

    Avacados and nuts (especially walnuts) are great sources of fats
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    homerunexpress wrote: »
    I love Peanut Butter but the caloric count is high! I substituted PB2. I have also substituted spaghetti squash for pasta. Egg whites vs whole eggs cuta the calories in 1/2

    What I do when I have pasta is have a 2 ounce serving of pasta with a TON of veggies. A small serving of pasta is 200 calories, not too much. If you stretch it with veggies, it will make a full meal.

    I love PB2 and eat it all the time mixed into yogurt or smoothies.

    Don't be afraid of whole eggs, though. You need some fat, and there are important nutrients in the yolk.

    I'm on low calories and I eat whole eggs!

    Sometimes it's more about having the actual food, but in a small amount, and then finding a way to stretch it. If you have a big appetite, have 1 whole egg with a bunch of whites and a lot of spinach, for example. Or my example with pasta. If you like potatoes, look for really small ones and top them with non-fat yogurt and green onions or salsa.

    If you haven't been doing this very long, don't be in a rush to drastically cut out everything you love. You'll burn out too quickly. Don't cut your calories too low.

    Vegetables are your friends. Spaghetti squash is great because you get a lot of volume for few calories, but have it with the pasta too. You'll be more satisfied.

  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    Oh, okay, gotcha. Have you heard of the vegetti vegetable spiralizer? I have one and love it. It makes zucchini "zoodles". I saute mine in a teeny bit of cooking spray and use that as a pasta stretcher. You could use it as a pasta sub. I like it better than spaghetti squash.
  • homerunexpress
    homerunexpress Posts: 7 Member
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    I also love El Pollo Loco's Avacado salad (290 cals) + Light Cilantro Dressing (70 cals). Great for those times you need a quick meal or are too tired to cook! While a McDonald's kids meal is similar in calories, this salad is a much healthier choice :-)
  • iowaoly
    iowaoly Posts: 35 Member
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    mammapeach910 is the spiralizer expensive, bulky or hard to use?
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    It was about $12 on Amazon, and it fits into a really small kitchen drawer. It's not hard to use at all. I love it. I think I've seen posts on the forum seeing some people say they found it at Bed, Bath & Beyond too.
  • midpath
    midpath Posts: 246 Member
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    I gave up pasta, bread, potatoes, basically sugar. I still eat desserts, and pizzas, etc so I'm not denying myself food. I just eat them differently. I replaced pasta with eggplant or zucchini, pizza crusts are giant Portobello caps or slices of a thick veggie like butternut squash or eggplant (I really like eggplants lol), look into stevia to make desserts, I drink teas and water, cheese for me has been replaced with soy cheese (both soy and regular has sugar in it but it's not a ton) and I think it tastes pretty similar. And then I started using my oven a lot. Baking casseroles, campfire packets (throw some protein and veggies with some sauce in some foil, ball it up and bake it), and eating raw snacks like carrot sticks and such instead of pretzels and popcorn.

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