The most addictive foods are the most processed ones, with the highest amounts of fat and added sugar. It might be hard to cut out these foods, but with healthy alternative recipes, your body will leave the table smiling!
1. PIZZA
Just hearing the word ‘pizza’ can conjure up cravings for this savory comfort food for many people. And it’s no surprise, given its widespread popularity.
Most people also know that pizza is far from being a healthy food. Laden down with unhealthy oils, processed cheese, gluten, fatty meats, and much more, it’s clear that pizza is low on the healthy foods scale.
But fortunately that doesn’t mean you have to always go without. Making a pizza at home with healthy plant foods will give you the comfort and experience of pizza, without the strain on your liver and other vital organs. Not to mention your energy and waistline, which would only inhibit your healing process more.
This recipe is perfect to enjoy with friends or family, and pairs beautifully with a a big fresh salad.
Veggie Pizza (wheat & dairy free)
Ingredients:
1 gluten-free/dairy-free pizza crust (Sami’s bakery millet/flax crust)
1 jar marinara/pizza sauce
1-2 cups thinly sliced red, yellow, &/or orange bell peppers
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1-2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup olives, chopped
1/2 red onion, sliced
4 basil leaves
1 Tbs olive oil
1/4 tsp fresh dried thyme & oregano,
pinch sea salt & pepper
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F & position a rack in the middle of the oven
2. Bring large skillet to meat heat, add 1 Tbs olive oil, onions, peppers, garlic, dried herbs, salt & pepper & stir. Cook until soft 10-15 minutes.
3. Top pizza crust with desired amount of marinara/pizza sauce & top with sautéed veggies
4. Place pizza either directly on oven rack or pizza stone
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes
6. Top with fresh basil & red pepper flakes, if desired
Eat & enjoy!
Recipe from MedicalMedium.com
2. CHOCOLATE
Chocolate can be good for you depending on the quality. Try not to go for any milk chocolate bar off the shelf. It is not only lacking in the nutrients good quality chocolate has, but is also probably loaded with added sugar and milk. If those are the first two ingredients on the label, move along.
This homemade chocolate is made with just a few essential ingredients – virgin coconut oil, cocoa or cacao powder, and pure maple syrup. (Feel free to use whichever liquid sweetener you prefer). The virgin coconut oil replaces the cocoa butter found in traditional chocolate so while it needs to be kept in the freezer, it’s a great way to sneak some coconut oil into your day. You can also use any toppings you’d like – dried fruit, nuts, + seeds all work lovely. It melts much faster than regular chocolate, so be sure to keep it chilled until ready to enjoy. Eat it straight from the freezer!
Vegan Chocolate Bark
Ingredients:
1/4 cup raw hazelnuts
1/4 cup raw almonds
1/3 cup large flake dried coconut
1/2 cup virgin coconut oil
1/2 cup cocoa or cacao powder, sifted if necessary
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 tablespoon smooth almond butter, optional
pinch fine sea salt
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 300F. Line a 9″ square pan or a small baking sheet with two pieces of parchment paper, one going each way. Set aside.
2. Add hazelnuts and almonds on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove baking sheet and add the coconut flakes and spread out. Continue roasting the nuts and coconut flakes for another 3-4 minutes, or until the coconut is lightly golden. Watch closely to avoid burning – coconut burns fast!
3. Place hazelnuts on several sheets of damp paper towel. Wrap the hazelnuts and rub them vigorously with the paper towel until the skins fall off. It’s ok if some skins don’t come off. Discard the skins and roughly chop the hazelnuts and almonds.
4. In a medium saucepan, melt the coconut oil over low heat. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa (or cacao) powder, maple syrup, and almond butter (if using) until smooth. Add a pinch of sea salt to taste. Stir in half of the almonds and hazelnuts.
5. With a spatula, spoon the chocolate mixture onto the prepared parchment-lined pan or sheet and smooth out until it’s about 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Sprinkle on the remaining nuts and all of the coconut flakes. Place into freezer on a flat surface for about 15 minutes, until frozen solid.
6.Once frozen, break apart into bark. Store in the freezer until ready to eat. I don’t recommend keeping it out on the counter long because it melts fast.
Tip: To make this nut-free, simply omit the almond butter, hazelnuts, and almonds. It will still turn out just fine! You can try adding toasted sunflower seeds on top for a little crunch.
Recipe from OhSheGlows.com
3. CHIPS
Potato chip cravings don’t mess around. But answering that craving with store-bought veggie chips isn’t a great idea: They’re often made of mostly potato starch and coloring, and devoid of any actual real vegetables. What to do? Easy. Skip the greasy bag of chips and make your own batch from real veggies—and little else.
Spiced Sweet Potato Chips
1 12-oz sweet potato, peeled
½ tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp sugar
¼ tsp chili powder
¼ tsp salt
1. HEAT oven to 375°F.
2. SLICE potato into very thin slices using v-slicer mandoline. Spray 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. Arrange potato slices on the baking sheets in a single layer. Coat slices lightly with cooking spray.
3. BAKE for 7 minutes, or until barely starting to brown. Turn potato slices over and return to the oven. Bake until lightly browned, about 7 to 10 minutes more. Transfer finished slices to a bowl and repeat with remaining slices, if necessary. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the cumin, sugar, chili powder, and salt.
4. POUR spice mixture over chips and toss well before serving
Baked Beet Chips
3 med beets
1½ Tbsp coconut oil
¼ tsp salt
1. HEAT oven to 350°F. Peel 3 medium uncooked beets and cut into thin slices. Toss with coconut oil and 14 teaspoon salt.
2. SPREAD slices onto two baking sheets in a single layer and bake for about 15 minutes. Flip beets and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, or until beets have dried out and become crisp. Cool before serving. Chips can be stored in an airtight container for up to three days.
Recipe from Prevention.com
4. COOKIES
When your sweet tooth kicks in, a nice chocolate chip cookie always hits the spot. But did you know just one of these cookies contains around 200 calories and 18 grams of sugar? And let’s face it, when have you ever eaten just one cookie when a craving strikes?
Welcome to the dream cookie. Ram packed with healthy ingredients, chewy, crispy around the edges, thick and bite-sized, with healthy dark chocolate sprinkled throughout.
Irresistible Chewy Trail Mix Cookies
Ingredients:
DRY INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup gluten-free rolled oats, blended into oat flour
- 1/2 cup almond meal or almond flour
- 1/2 cup gluten-free rolled oats
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced almonds
- 1/4 cup Sucanat or coconut sugar or brown sugar
- 1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 3 tablespoons mini dark chocolate chips (or finely chopped chocolate)
- 2 tablespoons raw cacao nibs
- 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
WET INGREDIENTS
- 1 tablespoon ground flax + 2 tablespoons water, mixed together
- 1/4 cup “drippy” raw almond butter (or other all-natural nut butter)
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)
- 1 tsp vanilla
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the ground flax and water in a small mug and set aside so it can gel up.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients.
- In another medium sized bowl, stir together the wet ingredients, including the flax egg until thoroughly combined.
- Add the wet mixture on top of the dry mixture and stir well until combined. This will take quite a bit of stirring until all of the dry patches of flour are gone.
- Portion small balls of dough (just smaller than golf balls) onto the baking sheet, spacing them a couple inches apart. I ended up baking two trays of cookies because I didn’t know how much they were going to spread out.
- Bake cookies for 13-15 minutes (I baked for a full 15 minutes), until light golden brown on the bottom. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack until completely cool. The cookies will break apart easily until cooled, so be careful.
- Wrap up and store leftovers on the counter or in the freezer, if desired.
Recipe from OhSheGlows.com
5. ICE CREAM
Easy as 1-2-3, this creamy, sweet and cool snack or dessert proves that added sugar and oil are not always necessary to satisfy your cravings. Keep some peeled bananas in your freezer so they’ll be ready when you are.
Banana Nice Cream
Ingredients:
- 2 large bananas, sliced and frozen
- 1 cup unsweetened plain soymilk
- 2 tablespoons creamy almond butter or peanut butter
Method:1. Put bananas, soymilk and almond butter into a blender.
2. Purée, turning off the motor and stirring the mixture two or three times, until smooth and creamy.
3. Pour into two bowls and serve
Recipe from Wholefoodsmarket.com
Blog compiled by Breathe in Life Co-founder, Melissa Jol
