Author: Brittnay Sharman
Junk food is great, right? It’s tasty and moreish, but not always so great for our health. The likes of pizza, crispy fries and dessert make it difficult to avoid. Don’t panic yet, Brittnay Sharman from the Nut Butter Hub is here to suggest some healthy plant-based swaps to your favourite comfort food so that you can indulge, guilt-free.
Don’t Step Away From The French Fries
The next time you want fries, try baking instead of deep frying them in copious amounts of oil. Try tossing your sweet potato wedges in a bag with olive oil and semolina to create a coating that will ensure that you get a crispy crunch every bite. You can also try using a healthy oil like coconut to help reduce cholesterol levels. Better yet, give oil-free potato wedges a go!
Make a Condiment The Star
Making your own condiments can be an excellent way to give your meals a flavour boost. It is super simple and healthy way of adding some flavour to less than exciting meals. A salad can become an exciting ordeal with the addition of your delicious home-made hummus, dressing or salsa. On pasta, we are talking home-made pesto.
Add Smoky Flavours
Smoking food is a simple way of packing loads of flavour whilst adding unique complexity to your dishes. You can either hot or cold smoke your food to give different depth of flavour; hot smoking both cooks and flavours your food whereas cold smoking only flavours it. Not only can you smoke meat and fish, but you can also smoke fruit and vegetables using a propane meat smoker. Do not forget to try smoking garlic, aubergines and mushrooms.
Healthy Fried Rice, That Still Tastes Like Rice
Rice is healthy in moderation. However, if you find that you finish a dish big enough to feed a village, it might be time to find an alternative. Hint: Cauliflower Fried Rice! All you need to do is roughly chop your cauliflower and throw in a food processor for a minute. You will find that the texture of this faux rice is very similar, thus can be used to play the role that rice does in any dish and your family will love it!
We Scream for Healthy Ice Cream
Dairy alternatives are readily available in your local grocery store, but if you would like to make your own guilt-free ice cream, then banana nice cream is what you’re looking for! Fast and easy, blend 3 to 4 frozen bananas which makes a smooth ice cream texture. Experiment with additions, think: peanut butter, cocoa, coconut, dash of almond milk, touch of vanilla essence. Use your favourite toppings such as nuts and dark chocolate to make this even more of a special treat. Try this Peanut Butter Nice-cream recipe!
Totally Tasty Pudding
Chocolate pudding is great for when you want something decadent and sweet for dessert. Try cutting out some of the calories by using an avocado base. Yes that’s right, you can make your pudding with avocados. Simply blend some cacao powder, non-dairy milk, avocado, and sweetener then leave to chill in the fridge for a few hours. The result: a nutrient-dense creamy chocolate pudding.
Don’t Ditch the Desserts
Healthy dessert recipes are so crafty, you can hardly taste the difference. There are so many options for healthy desserts using alternative ingredients. Just remember that just because they are healthier, doesn’t mean you can eat all of them, save some for the kids; they will love them too!
Switching your favourite junk food for healthy plant-based swaps is so much easier than one may think. Take the time to prepare food at home, get to know what you’re putting into your body and say goodbye to the guilt of satisfying cravings - because with these healthy plant-based swaps - your body will thank you for it.
To learn more about Brittnay: The Nut Butter Hub