Good Recipes?

Would anyone like to share some good recipes for healthy alternatives to our favorite "bad" foods?

Pizza.

Cheese fries?

Think along these lines. I am new here, and I love to cook...and I have recently realized that everything I know how to cook is terrible for me.

Also, can anyone recommend a good website/method for determining our own recipe calories?

I am more of a smaller portion kind of a gal than a reduce the calories of my favorites.  But if you search through recipes on this site you might find some you like.

CC has a tool called "new recipe" that I use almost daily.  It takes some experience to enter the ingredients in a way that they show up the way I want them to, but it is very useful.  Once I have analyzed it I often just add a serving to my food log, since it is kind of a pain to save the recipe (you have to enter the instructions, and I usually can't be bothered).  Once I have it entered in my daily food log I often tag it, then I can add it to subsequent days when I eat the leftovers.

BTW, it took me some time to realize that I could change the portion size once I had a serving tagged, this makes it much easier when I have small portions leftover that I often eat for lunch.

Thank you for this Dken!

I, in the past, have been a portion control sort of person. I have lost about 40 lbs rather successfully this way following the WW plan. However, I am often flabbergasted at how many calories my favorites have in them, when I am really paying attention.

I am trying to re-evaluate my relationship with food and appreciate healthier foods. Trying to convince myself I really dont want that gooey cheesy greasy slice of pizza. I want the healthy version instead...because it is better for me. I just have to retrain my tongue right?

Hey aptabb,

I'm always trying to lower calories so I can eat my favorites!  As for pizza, if I'm really craving it, I'll use a WW pita or tortilla (130cal), top with slices of tomato (25), sprinkle with oregano, and then with parmesan or pecorino romano cheese (60).  It's stronger so you don't need as much as if you used a cheese like mozzarella...then I add a bit of salami or turkey pepperoni or something (90), for around 300 cal.  Definitely not the same, but usually hits the spot!  As for cheese fries, I've heard some people rave on about sweet potato fries, but I personally don't really like sweet potatoes.  I make my own potato wedges that are pretty healthy; boil potatoes for about ten minutes until they're somewhat tender, then cut them into wedges (thinner the better for fry-like).  Spray with low-cal cooking spray or o.o. spray and sprinkle with salt, broil for 20 min or until they're as crispy as you like them.  As for cheese fries, well, don't add too much cheese!  You could also spice them up  by making your own chili, and using TVP instead of meat.  It's a meat substitute that you add water to, and with something as spiced up as chili you can't even tell the difference, and it's healthy and protein filled.  Top your potatoes with that and a sprinkling of cheese and you have better-for-you chili cheese fries! 

Also, a good website for remaking your favorites is hungrygirl: http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/index.php

Good luck!

Tink

I'd also rather eat less of an old favourite than ruin it with disappointing ingredients just to save a few cals.  You can tweak recipes however.  Pizza can be made with wholemeal flour, a thinner base, more veggies and tomato on the top, less cheese, less meat....  I've no idea what cheese fries are but expect they need to be relegated to 'rare treat' status.

I'd also suggest getting hold of some vegetarian cookbooks.  Reason I say that is because meals based around vegetables are usually the healthiest and often very filling for very low in calories.... which is ideal when you're trying to control your weight.  If you experiment a little you can introduce yourself to a whole new list of favourites.

I'm not vegetarian but my weeks now include about 75% vegetarian meals.  Favourites are Vegetable Chilli with rice, Spicy Beanburger Pittas, Courgette Frittata, Stuffed Peppers, Avocado Stuffed Mushrooms ...    Adds variety, saves money, keeps my weight down.  Can't be bad. 

Pizza - I make pizza using Sami's Bakery Spinach Millet & Flax Lavish (12" round?, 120 cal, 1g fat, 16 g fiber), I add lots of veggies, and no fat mozzarella.  You can also add turkey pepperoni or turkey bacon or ham...depending on your taste.  The great thing is its a crisp pizza that has less calories and WAY less fat than any ONE slice of purchased pizza.  BTW if spinach millet flax lavish isnt your thing they also offer wheat and other low cal, low fat, low carb products.

Cheese fries - I dont make them but if someone asked me I would probably use a sweet potato and pour no fat american cheese over them.  I hadnt done it but it has to be healthier.

I like to eat the same things, but opt for the low fat options. I make manicotti with skim ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese made from skim, parmasan (sp) and you can use whole wheat noodles. I'm not sure about the tomato sauce, now that I think about it.

Same for pizza--thin crust, whole wheat if you can find it, skim cheese, turkey pepperoni (70 cals for 17 pieces) and lots of veggies. I shoot for lower calorie foods and watch portion sizes. So I make the same things, but lower the calorie content by shopping for foods that are lower, even if it's not a huge difference. Overall, I'm sure it helps.

We stopped buying so much lean hamburger and got 93% lean turkey instead (still need beef for burgers, but you could also opt for Boca burgers). I also grab stuff that says lower sodium as well as my diet already contains too much (watch out for sodium on low fat stuff).

Be aware that low fat isn't always that great either. Foods with too many substitutes can be pretty hard on the system--fat free pringles are an example (I think they have Olean? Not sure but it ain't pretty). Cooking completely healthy, for me, will take years. :) I am working on increasing my palate (like, actually eating vegetables) so instead of just trying to cut out all the "bad" stuff, I just try to improve it.