Healthy Tricks to Make Comfort Food Less Sinful this Winter

As the weather starts to cool outside, we desire meaty, cheesy, soupy and creamy comfort foods. While pastas, meat loaf and casseroles may warm your soul, they take quite a toll on your diet. Typical comfort foods are filled with fat, grease, sodium, and simple carbohydrates, not so comforting after all.

The good news is you don't have to give up the foods you love. Making some simple changes in the way you cook can help you make comfort foods a little less unhealthy while remaining completely delicious.

Always Go for Whole Grain

Whether it's making a sandwich, a hearty pasta or rice for stir fry, you should always opt to use whole grain products. Whole grains have more of the fiber your body needs, fill you up faster, and help you stay full longer.

A whole grain switch will give you more energy, improve your digestive system, and could even help you lose weight. Plus, the wheaty taste of complex grains is much more interesting than plain white bread, pasta or rice.




Rethink Hamburger Meat

That typical 80/20 ground chuck is very popular for meatloaf, meat balls, lasagna and casseroles (yum!). What you may not know is ground turkey tastes the same with fewer calories, less fat, and less cholesterol. Test your family and friends by making your next meal with ground turkey and see if anyone notices the difference. You’ll be presently surprised, and the kids from your son's military friendly college will be over to eat all the time!

If turkey just isn't your style, you could still improve your dishes by using 93/7 meat instead of 80/20. With so much less fat, calories and cholesterol and the exact same flavor, there’s really no reason not to make this switch.

Kick the Cream

I know it sounds like a crime, but using cream just adds calories and fat. In just about every dish, you can substitute plain low-fat yogurt or evaporated skim milk for cream. If you're skeptical, try it out! Make your next stroganoff with yogurt and do a taste test.

You can also use yogurt in dips, salads (like tuna salad), mashed potatoes and any other dish you would usually use cream for.

Bake, Bake, Bake

For your fried chicken or any other fried goodies, try baking instead. Just coat your meat in bread crumbs and pop it in the oven! You’ll get the same flavor without all the added grease. Instead of French fries, cut up some sweet potatoes, drizzle with olive oil, add some sea salt and bake. This makes a delicious
side dish that’s good for you, too.

There’s no reason to cut out your favorite foods when such small adjustments can make a huge difference. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself liking the healthier versions better than your old recipes! Healthy food tastes fresh, fills you up, and keeps you satisfied. It’s a win-win situation!

Carly is an aspiring writer who currently works for a military friendly college. In her spare time she loves writing about anything and everything. She loves that blogging allows her to share her writing with people all over the world.