As a Nutritionist and someone who is fascinated with health and wellness, I love to eat healthy. I love the way it makes me feel inside and out. But I also love to eat. I love to indulge. I simply love food.
Food is fuel. It’s the nutrients that keep up alive. But food is also an experience. A social experience. An emotional experience. We eat cake and ice cream at birthday parties. Dinner parties usually include dessert and sweets. Celebrations and gatherings involve sugary treats and fancy drinks. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with taking part in these food-focused situations, but — what if we could make them just a little bit healthier? We can! In fact, most of the indulgent foods and comfort foods that so many of us love can actually be made using whole food, real ingredients — as opposed to processed and refined ingredients. I know what you’re thinking. Whenever you make something healthier, it just doesn’t taste the same. Or it’s not as good. That doesn’t have to be the case.
Here’s your challenge for today — find a healthier, whole food version of a favorite food or treat. This can be a dessert item, a comfort food, a cocktail you love. Anything. Your choice. You can find a recipe and make the treat yourself, or find a healthier store-bought version.
DAY 6 CHALLENGE — find a healthier, whole food version of a favorite food or treat.
There is almost always a way to make a favorite “unhealthy” food better. By better I mean healthier, less processed, with less sugar, and made with real, whole-food ingredients — and without compromising taste. Because who wants to eat something just because it’s healthier if it tastes like cardboard? That’s a big no thanks for me!
Okay — so here is a small list I’ve come up with to help you choose recipes with real, less processed ingredients. Plus I’ve got a list of tons of my favorite recipes from the blog [and from others] below.
p r o c e s s e d , r e f i n e d , l e s s h e a l t h y i n g r e d i e n t s * —
*avoid these ingredients when possible
dairy: non-fat dairy [yogurt, milk, cheese]
sweeteners: anything sugar-free [these items will likely include artificial sweeteners such as Sucralose, aspartame and acesulfame K]
sweetener: white sugar
flours: refined, white flour
fat sources: vegetable oil, margarine, vegetable shortening
ingredients you can’t pronounce
artificial colors
artificial flavors
sauces with added gums, stabilizers and refined sugars
w h o l e f o o d , l e s s p r o c e s s e d i n g r e d i e n t s —
dairy/milk: organic, whole dairy [plain yogurt, milk, cheese], nut-based milks and yogurt
sweeteners: coconut sugar, real maple syrup, honey
flours: whole grain flour, almond flour/meal, coconut flour, brown rice flour, oat flour, etc.
fat sources: coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, grass-fed butter, ghee
foods with ingredients you can pronounce and know what they are
real extracts [vanilla, peppermint, almond, etc.]
For starters, here is a list of my favorite, whole food based foods [mostly desserts!] straight from the blog. And, they’ve all been husband and toddler approved —
Gluten-Free Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Coconut — if you love chocolate chip cookies, these are a personal favorite of mine! Sweet, delicious and chewy. I can’t seem to keep these in the house for more than a couple of days because they’re that good!
Grain-Free, Dairy-Free Lemon Coconut Cookies — similar to the cookies above but with a fresh, lemon flavor. I absolutely love these ones too!
Healthy, Whole Grain No-Bake Granola Bars
Mini Paleo No Bake Pumpkin Pies
Banana “Ice-Cream” – add frozen bananas to food processor with splash of milk and tsp vanilla extract. Process until smooth and creamy. This is a toddler and husband favorite in our house!
Sweet and Salty Almond Butter Popcorn
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Dark Chocolate Cookies
Dark Chocolate Covered Frozen Banana Bites
Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Chewy Gingersnaps
Whole Wheat Flax Crackers — if you love crackers, these are definitely worth a try! They are a labor of love until you get used to making them, but are delicious and another family favorite. I always make a batch of homemade hummus to go along with them.
a few of my favorite recipes from other food bloggers —
Pizza Crust — this is the easiest and tastiest whole wheat pizza crust I’ve ever had and we usually make pizza once a week, so I’m glad I found this delicious recipe from Cookie + Kate.
Fudgy Chocolate Tart — these tarts are super decadent a rich, and oh-so good! I make them in mini muffin tin molds for the perfect bite-sized treat.
Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies — I recently made these using almond butter because we have a peanut allergy in our house. They were so good and easy to make! The jam was just as delightful and very simple to make.
If you need help finding a way to make one of your favorite treats healthier, simply send me an email and I’m happy to help!
Alright, let’s get today underway! Check your inbox tomorrow for your final challenge, challenge #7.
Don’t forget to —
- drink your water,
- build a healthier, balanced plate,
- move your body each day,
- eat more greens,
- and be mindful.
And if you’ve missed any other challenge days, simply click here.
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