Healthier Snacks, Sides Drinks & Sweets

Eating healthy food doesn’t mean giving up your favourite foods. Your favourite recipes can be adapted easily to provide a healthier alternative. For example, non-stick cookware can be used to reduce the need for cooking oil. Vegetables can also be microwaved or steamed instead of boiling to keep valuable nutrition.

There are many ways to make meals healthier. Limit fats, sugars and salt and include plenty of vegetables, fruit, grains, lean meats and low-fat dairy in your cooking. Foods with added fats, sugars or salt are less healthy than food in which these are found naturally.

Here at Bayview Dental Centre, we are always looking for ways to make our favorite foods healthier without sacrificing flavor. So we compiled a list of our best substitutions and discovered some new ones along the way

Condiments & Sauces

Coconut Milk For Cream: Coconut milk is a great substitute for heavy cream in soups and stews. And don’t be turned off by the word “coconut”—it doesn’t taste like the sweetened shredded kind!

Greek Yogurt For Sour Cream: Half the fat and calories, yet the taste and texture are virtually identical. Plus, nonfat Greek yogurt offers an extra dose of lean protein.

Greek Yogurt For Mayo (in tuna/chicken salad): Add some herbs and a squeeze of lemon juice, and they’ll taste almost identical. Plus, this swap will save on calories and fat, and provide an extra dose of protein.

Nutritional Yeast For Cheese: The taste and texture are a little bit different, but the creamy gooiness is pretty comparable. Instead of topping that taco with cheddar, try a sprinkle of nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavoring with much less fat.

Nuts For Croutons (in salads): Every salad needs that extra crunch. But rather than getting the extra carbs (and often fat and sodium) that come with croutons, try some lightly toasted slivered almonds, pecans, or walnuts.

Avocado Mash For Mayo: Half a mashed avocado is a great substitute for mayo on any sandwich. Both give some moisture, but avocado packs a big dose of vitamin E and cholesterol-checking monosaturated fat. And while a typical two-tablespoon serving of mayonnaise has about 206 calories and 24 grams of fat, half an avocado has only 114 calories and 10.5 grams of fat.

Sliced Tomatoes For Tomato Sauce (on pizza): Cut out the extra sodium, sugar, and preservatives by replacing jarred tomato sauce with fresh sliced tomatoes. The texture is a bit different, but the flavor is much more vibrant and fresh!

Low-Fat Cottage Cheese For Sour Cream: They both add a creamy texture to many dishes, but sour cream is packed with fat while low-fat cottage cheese is packed with protein.

Pureed Fruit For Syrup: Both sweeten flapjacks or a nice whole-wheat waffle, but pureed fruit warmed on the stovetop with a bit of honey packs much less sugar than classic maple. Plus, it provides an extra dose of antioxidants and vitamins.

Herbs Or Citrus Juice: You heard it here first: Food doesn’t need to be salted to taste good! Fresh herbs and citrus juice can provide just as much flavor without the added risks of excess sodium intake.

Garlic Powder For Salt: Just like fresh herbs, garlic powder can provide a flavorful-punch without adding sodium. A word of warning, though: don’t mistake garlic powder for garlic salt.

Low-Sodium Soy Sauce For Standard Soy Sauce: The taste is virtually the same, but choosing a low- or reduced-sodium variety can cut down sodium intake by nearly half.

Homemade Salad Dressing For Bottled Dressing: By making dressing from scratch at home, it’s easy to cut out the added sugar, sodium, and preservatives typically found in pre-made dressings. Try mixing vinegar or lemon juice and oil in a 2:1 ratio and flavoring with spices like rosemary, thyme, oregano, and pepper!

Drinks & Booze

Seltzer Water With Citrus Slice Instead Of Soda: Instead of sugary sodas, opt for a glass of sparkling water with a few slices of citrus—grapefruit, lime, orange, and lemon all work well—for a little extra flavor.

Skim Milk For Whole Or 2% Milk: Fewer calories and fat with the same amount of protein makes this switch well worth it.

Cinnamon For Cream And Sugar (in coffee): Cutting out the cream and sugar in favor of a sprinkle of cinnamon can cut up to 70 calories per cup. Plus, cinnamon can boost metabolism.

Unsweetened Iced Tea For Juice Or Bottled Teas: While delicious and convenient, bottled teas, juices, and sports drinks are packed with sugar and calories. When in the mood for something icy with a little flavor, opt for a home-brewed, unsweetened iced tea.

Americano For Latte: Just by cutting the milk out of that daily latte in favor of hot water, the calorie count drops by more than 150. It’s a smart switch, especially by the fourth or fifth cup.

Red Wine For White Wine: While white wine is usually lower in calories, red offers health benefits unmatched by the white stuff, including cancer-fighting compounds and natural cholesterol checks.

Soda Water For Juice (as a mixer): Rum and coke. Cranberry and vodka. Sure, these sugary mixers take care of the inner sweet tooth. But try mixing liquor with soda water and a slice of fruit (or even just a splash of juice) and down goes the sugar (and calorie) count. Not inventive enough? Check out these 60 healthier cocktails.

Soda Water For Tonic Water: Yes, it’s clear and bubbly, just like soda water, but tonic water is actually full of sugar. Adding plain soda water and a pinch of lime gives almost the same taste with 32 grams less sugar per 12 ounces.

Cooking Tips

Olive Oil Spray For Olive Oil From The Bottle: Oil glugs out of the bottle, leading to overly-greasy dishes. Using a spray bottle is a great way to cut down on oil while still getting the non-stick benefits. A little mist is all that’s needed!

Olive Oil For Butter: When cooking eggs, this simple switch is a great way to cut down on saturated fats while getting a healthy dose of essential omega-3 fatty acids.

Oven Or Pan-Frying For Deep Frying: Yes, those chicken tenders are deliciously greasy, but by foregoing the oil bath for just a misting of oil in a pan or oven, it’s easy to cut fat without sacrificing flavor.

Steaming For Boiling: While both are great options for meats and veggies, steaming is king because it removes fewer nutrients from vegetables. While boiling can leech out some of the better nutrients (hence why water turns green after boiling broccoli), steaming keeps all that green goodness inside the veggies.