I have to admit, I like junk food. Not just your typical sweets and candy (which are still excellent btw), but all of the carb-y goodness that french fries, doughnuts, cake, and bread have to offer as well. In my quest to live 90% cleaner, I’m also trying to clean up my diet without giving up every single comfort food put on this earth for my enjoyment. I wanted to find some healthy food swaps for some of the dishes that I eat regularly. Lowering the calorie count and grams of fat, while beefing up the vegetable and nutrient quotient as much as possible were key, but they also had to taste good. I realize that the taste wasn’t going to be exact, but it had to at least be a close-ish second. Here are a few of the healthy alternatives that I think are worth the swap.
My Top 5 Healthy Food Swaps
Noodles for Zoodles
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Noodles are a glorious thing. They are filling, hold numerous sauces well and are part of many major ethnic cuisines. When I’m not up for the large carb overload, I have started opting for zoodles, or vegetables spiralized or cooked to resemble noodles in shape and texture. Zucchini noodles are the most obvious option since they hold their shape well, cook fast and really do work well in most dishes. Carrots, beets and peppers also work surprisingly well, but may not work for most dishes. For zoodle making ease, I like this spiralizer that has blades that can easily be changed out for different shaped zoodles.
Another favorite of mine for a noodle substitute is spaghetti squash. Spaghetti squash takes a little longer to make, but I think has a heartier texture. Especially if you roast it in the oven with a little olive oil. After it is cooked, you simply take a fork to it and scratch the surface until you get spaghetti like strands.
Dairy Milk for Nut Milk
Many people do great with dairy products and have no problems at all. For a large portion of the population, dairy can cause issues with your digestive track, and even your skin. (Check out my post How to Get Clear Skin Naturally to learn more about how cutting out dairy helped my skin.) I, personally have had great luck with changing from regular dairy milk to nut milks. I prefer the traditional unsweetened almond milk, but with the surge in nut milks these days, there is bound to be one that suits your needs. Most nut milks are fortified with extra calcium and vitamins, while cutting out the sugar and fat.
Rice and Potatoes for Cauliflower
Cauliflower rice is definitely all the rage. You don’t even have to make it yourself anymore. Most grocers and online retailers have it available already chopped to rice size for you, frozen or fresh. Anywhere that you use rice, you can usually substitute with cauliflower rice. If anything, you may just need to use more of the cauliflower rice to make up the volume difference. I especially like cauliflower fried rice recipes and using cauliflower rice as a side dish with Mexican and Asian meals.
You can also mash cauliflower rice up and make them into a mashed potato consistency. This works especially well if you add just a little butter, garlic and/or chives to the mix.
The one cauliflower rice application that I am not completely sold on is using cauliflower rice pizza crust. Just doesn’t quite do it for me yet. Maybe I haven’t made or tasted one yet that I felt was good enough, but I will definitely still keep trying!
Chips for Veggie Chips
I’m not talking about the veggie chips that you find in the store that are made with a scant amount of veggie powder. I’m talking about the kind that you make yourself. You can slice most veggies and some fruits super thin with a mandolin and place them on a cookie sheet to dry out and cook so they turn into a chip like texture. My favorites are zucchini, sweet potato and apple “chips”.
White Sugar for Natural Sugar
Some researchers put white sugar on the same level as smoking cigarettes for how bad it is for your overall health. I don’t know if I would go quite as far, but most of us know that we should lessen our refined sugar intake. I like to use fruits, honey, maple syrup, or applesauce instead of white sugar to lessen my load. (Read my post How to Start a Refined Sugar Free Diet for more information.) There are a whole mess of sugar free diet books and websites on the market that can help you make the transition.
These are my top 5 healthy food swaps that I end up using on a pretty much daily basis. Now, I do slack off sometimes and go for the originals, but I feel that by choosing healthy alternatives for 90% of the time, I am doing pretty well. I don’t think that making healthy food swaps has to be hard, it just has to be something that you are fairly comfortable with until your palate starts to change.
What healthy food swaps have you made that I haven’t listed?
