by Deborah Starr, RN

Introducing our special guest writer, Deborah Starr, RN! With years of experience in healthcare and a passion for holistic wellness, Deborah brings valuable insights and practical tips to help us navigate the journey toward better health. In this blog post, Deborah shares her expertise on how to love yourself through healthy eating without sacrificing flavor. Get ready to discover simple yet powerful ways to transform your favorite recipes into nourishing delights that support your heart and overall well-being. Let’s dive in and learn how small changes in our culinary choices can make a big difference in our health journey.

Loving yourself by eating healthy doesn’t mean not loving the taste. A few changes in your favorite recipes can help reduce calories, unhealthy fats and salt. Yet they will keep the taste yummy.

Thickening soup? Skip the flour or cornstarch. Try pureed cannellini beans instead. You won’t get that pasty flavor. You will get fiber and protein!

Making brownies or cookies? Mash an avocado and use instead of half the butter. You’ve just replaced half the fat. Don’t try to replace all the butter. For food science-y reasons, this won’t work.

Very finely ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp of water may be substituted for an egg in some baking. You’ve added fiber and reduced cholesterol. This won’t work if the recipe calls for the eggs to be whipped or in an item like a quiche, where the eggs make most of the structure.

Non-fat Greek yogurt is the over-looked cooking hero. Use it instead of mayonnaise or sour cream in dips, salads, sandwiches, and sauces. If you want the tarter bite of the mayo or sour cream, make it half Greek yogurt and the others. Better yet, add a few drops of lemon juice to the Greek yogurt. You trade up to healthy fat in a big way and reduce calories.

Forget bottled salad dressing high in preservatives and salts. Go for some rice wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar. Add some walnut oil or honey, and voila — delicious, easy and healthy. Your heart adores it!

Do you use breadcrumbs? Next time the container is empty, wipe it out and refill it with whole oats you ground up a bit in a food processor. You can’t taste the difference. They work exactly the same in recipes. No added salt or preservatives. Higher in fiber than the breadcrumbs. Fabulous, right?

Cauliflower for mashed potatoes — you know this, right? Drizzle with olive oil. Add some garlic. Make life easy and use the food processor.

Spaghetti squash for pasta. It does taste a bit different, but it is still delicious and so much healthier. The squash has fewer calories, more vitamins and fiber. Cut the spaghetti squash in half, put it cut side down in a baking pan, and roast until just getting soft. Then pull out the strings of squash with a fork. Serve with your favorite sauce.

Applesauce may be used to replace oil in baking, a 1:1 ratio. 1/4 cup of applesauce may replace 1 egg. Try using applesauce to replace 1 cup of sugar. You also have to reduce 1/4 cup of liquid elsewhere in the recipe (water, milk, etc.) or you will have a soggy mess. This cuts out a ton of calories and adds fiber. It will alter flavor, so keep in mind which recipes you use this in (think oatmeal raisin cookies and gingerbread, but maybe not peanut butter cookies).

A few easy changes can make a huge difference to your health and heart. So go ahead and show yourself some love. Take the time to care for yourself and those around you.