Eat This, Not That! Healthy Food Swaps
This is one of my favourite topics as there are so many incredible ingredients to use instead of the typical unhealthy foods that a lot of traditional recipes call for. We often buy things like smoothies, juices, protein bars, etc. which can be some of the WORST for packing in more sugar than a slurpee!! Ugh. Just when you think you’re being healthy. So annoying, right? Here are some great swaps you can use when cooking and baking, and just some of my favourite alternatives you can try throughout your daily life!
Most people try to out train a bad diet, thinking you can eat whatever you want, so long as you do an intense workout after. This will NEVER work. It will catch up with you eventually if it hasn’t yet. The goal is to focus on foods for long term health. It’s easy to lose weight fast by eating low quality foods but it’s all about the inside out for longevity and overall wellness.
Sugar. Regular white sugar is straight up empty calories with no nutrition and it has proved to be as addictive if not more than cigarettes. There are two types of sugars that make up conventional white sugar: glucose and fructose. Both fructose and glucose are broken down quickly by the body and can cause spikes in blood sugar levels and resulting in intense crashes after the intense high, leaving you craving more to get your high again.
Monk Fruit derived from dried fruit. The extract is up to 200 times sweeter than conventional table sugar, has zero calories and carbs, and does not raise blood glucose levels, meaning most people with diabetes can have this. Most sweeteners can cause side effects like gas, bloating, or allergic reactions, whereas pure monk fruit won’t cause that for most people. The one thing you need to be careful of is when monk fruit is combined with other sweeteners like erithrytol or xylitol, which is quite common, and these can often cause bloating and indigestion.
Coconut Sugar. Coconut sugar is less highly processed than table sugar but it won’t save you any calories. However, it does have a lower glycemic index, meaning it impacts your blood glucose level less than table sugar. This is because it contains inulin, which is a fibre-like material that slows the rate of glucose absorption into your body. It’s minimally processed, non GMO and more environmentally friendly than whit sugar, plus it has some nutrients that sugar doesn’t, including some minerals such as calcium, potassium, iron, and zinc. BUT, when compared to unprocessed, whole fresh fruits, which are a great source of healthy sugar and contain lots of fibre and minerals, you should still be cautious of how much coconut sugar you are having. With that said, it’s all about balance and a little coconut sugar in your cookies won’t kill you and it is definitely a better option that conventional white sugar.
Maple Syrup. When buying maple syrup make sure to read the label carefully to ensure you’re getting real maple syrup and not just the maple-flavoured syrup, which completely defeats the purpose of using it. What sets maple syrup apart from typical white sugar is its minerals and antioxidants such as zinc, manganese, iron, potassium, and calcium. It has a slightly lower glycemic index than refined white sugar, but this doesn’t give you the go ahead to use it every day. Overall, I would go for a good quality Grade B as it has a more robust maple flavour, which I find I need to use less of it to get that nice sweet maple flavour.
Honey. Honey contains amino acids, antioxidants, enzymes, minerals, vitamins and is less processed than sugar. It can help as a cough suppressant in warm water with lemon, it can help with allergy relief, and is easier to digest than regular sugar. I don’t often use honey, I usually use maple syrup but I do love the taste of really good quality local honey if I can find it.
Table Salt. Table salt comes from mining salt deposits. Manufacturers then process it into a fine crystal that is easy to mix in food.
Sea salt comes from evaporating seawater, so it is a natural source of sodium. Regular table salt is just not the same quality. By consuming sea salt you will be getting good minerals such as magnesium, calcium and potassium. However, this doesn’t mean it’s okay to use a ton of it. Being cautious of your sodium intake is super important, but what is also super important is getting enough of it to stay healthy and hydrated.
Eggs. Are they healthy? I personally only eat organic farm fresh eggs as I don’t like to support the conventional egg + meat industry. Eggs are packed with nutrients such as omega 3s, choline, B vitamins and protein which are all vital to overall health. However, most often people will make or order eggs that are fried in butter with greasy bacon, hash browns and buttered white toast. This is when eggs aren’ the healthiest. What it really comes down to is what you eat with your eggs and how they’re cooked. I love to scramble or cook over-easy in grassfed beef tallow or grassfed ghee. or medium boil them. It’s important to leave the yolk somewhat runny to retain the most nutrients.
I used to eat eggs almost every morning. I would buy brown ‘free-run’ eggs because I thought I was being healthier than the conventional white eggs. Then I found out ‘free-run’ means the chickens can move around just SLIGHTLY more than the cage they are usually stuffed into. This is usually only a few feet of movement. So that’s when I started buying organic farm fresh, which end up being much cheaper and the taste is significantly better and nutrients much higher. Some great alternatives for eggs in baking and cooking are:
Tofu Scramble. This is best made with soft organic tofu. The texture and taste is so similar to eggs it actually threw me off the first few times I made it, but now it’s my go-to breakfast. Watch the video below for the full recipe.
2. Chickpea Omelette. I couldn’t believe how good this was the first time I made it. I was actually mad at myself after I ate it that I hadn’t been eating it a long time ago. The taste and texture, just like the tofu scramble, is so similar to an omelette it’s crazy! Find the full recipe below.
3. Flax Egg. This is great for baking and cooking such as cookies, pancakes, breads, muffins, pizza crust, and cakes. Add 1 Tablespoon of ground flaxseed with 3 Tablespoons of warm water and let it sit for 5 minutes to form a gel consistency.
4. Chia Egg. Very similar to the flax egg - make the same way. I usually grind my chia in a coffee grinder. Great for baking breads.
5. Mashed Banana or Apple Sauce. These are great substitutes when making banana bread, cookies, pancakes, or muffins. You’re getting the natural sugars and fibre from the whole fruit, plus it’s a natural way to sweeten the recipe. Use 1/4 cup mashed banana, 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce, 1/4 cup pumpkin puree or 1/4 cup nondairy yogurt in replace of one egg.
4. Flour
Almond Flour. This is a go-to when baking for me as it gives a really nice light texture. It’s literally just ground blanched almonds, so you do have to be careful with how much you use. Usually when baking I’ll do like 1 cup almond flour, 1/2 cup tapioca flour and 1/2 cup oat to get a good consistency, depending on what I’m making. I keep mine in the freezer if I don’t use it within about 1 month so it doesn’t lose its nutrients sitting out.
Oat Flour. I will always make my own by grinding gluten free organic oats. This is so easy to make and it gives great texture in loaves, muffins and cookies. I keep this in my pantry in an airtight container but if I don’t use it within about 2 months I’ll pop it in the freezer.
Cassava Flour. This is a great gluten free flour made from Yucca root vegetable. The consistency is best for pancakes, breads and tortillas. It’s more of a chewy texture so you have to be a bit careful with it as it can result in a weird gummy texture if you use too much of it. I often mix it with another flour to get the right texture. It’s also a bit more expensive so you don’t want to be using it all the time.
Coconut Flour. This is high in fibre and great to mix with other flours. You often won’t need much as it can be super drying. A recipe will usually call for 2 Tablespoons or a max of around 1/2 cup.
Tapioca Flour. This is used in gluten free baking a lot so I would definitely suggest buying some. It’s easy to digest, low in sodium, and contains some calcium and iron. It’s great for thickening sauces, creating a chewy texture in baked goods, creating a crisp crust for pies, and is often used with a mix of almond flour in cookies. Arrowroot starch can be used interchangeably with tapioca.
Gelatin
Agar agar. I only started using agar agar until about a year ago and now it has definitely become a staple in my pantry. It’s a vegetarian gelatin substitute made from seaweed that is used as a thickener for soups, jams, ice cream and others desserts. It’s about 80% fibre so it’s great for your digestion, plus it has zero calories, carbs, sugar or fat. Amazing right? It also doesn’t have any flavour, smell or colour, which makes it super convenient to use in any recipe!
Rather than the creamy texture you would get from gelatin, agar will be slightly firmer. You also need to use way less. 1 teaspoon agar powder is equivalent to 8 teaspoons gelatin powder. To use it, you have to dissolve 1 teaspoon in 4 Tablespoon hot water in a sauce pan, bring to a boil and let simmer for a few minutes for the powder to dissolve. Let it cool completely to set the agar, then mix with other ingredients in recipe.
Psyllium Husk. Psyllium is a type of fibre that acts as a gentle laxative, which is why you have to be careful with how much you use. It can lower blood sugar levels, boost satiety, aid weight loss, lower cholesterol levels, and has prebiotic effects, meaning it’s good for your gut and digestion! I love to add it to my baking, pasta sauces, soups, smoothies, etc. BUT, like I mentioned above - you don’t want to go overboard with this as it can cause problems. Too much of anything is too much, just remember that! I personally don’t use it everyday but definitely use it weekly and in some of my recipes!
Oil
Water. Steaming our veggies is a great way to use less oil. I can say first hand how much I love to throw a bunch of veggies on a tray, drizzle avocado oil over it and enjoy the delicious browned veggies with a delicious sauce and quinoa. BUT, it isn’t something we should be doing all the time. Especially if you’re drizzling a sauce over top which has oil in it, it just becomes a lot of oil.
A trick I like to do is use a tiny amount of oil when sautéing veggies like onions, garlic, and mushrooms then add the rest of the veggies you’re using and add a bit of low sodium veggie broth or water to the pan, cover with a lid and let cook for a few minutes and the veggies taste amazing! Use fresh or dry herbs for more flavour.
When baking cookies, muffins, etc - they often call for at least 1/2 cup of oil. I will often cut it down to about 2 Tablespoons then add about 1/4 cup of apple sauce, mashed banana, pureed pumpkin, or nondairy yogurt instead and it works great.
For salad dressings - I would try to not use more than about 1/4 cup depending how big the batch of sauce is and how often you use it. But I would try cutting the amount of oil called for in half and adding water for the rest.
Butter
Apple Sauce or Mashed Banana. Just like the oil called for in most baking recipes, if butter is called for, trying subbing half the amount for apple sauce. Some things like pie crust obviously won’t work so it depends on the recipe, but usually cookies, cakes, muffins, and breads will be fine to swap some out.
Soda
La Croix. I tried this for the first time only recently and I fell in love! I’ve only tried the apricot flavour so have continued to buy that one. It’s a great alternative to pop and is especially good with some fresh lemon or berries! BUT, like I mentioned above, too much of even a good thing is too much. I wouldn’t consume this every day as the “natural flavours” in it aren’t something that you should be having every day as it can cause indigestion and bloating.
Soda water with fresh berries. I have a soda stream which is a great kitchen hack for making your own soda. My favourite combos are: mint + fresh strawberries, mango + fresh lime, raspberry + lemon and mint + lime. Get creative with your flavours but again, DON’T GO OVERBOARD WITH THE FRUIT!! lol.
Iced tea - literally though, just make tea and ice it. I love to ice the following:
lemon ginger green tea
hibiscus berry
Kusmi BB Detox
roasted dandelion root + splash of coffee + unsweetened soy or almond milk topped with cinnamon
Conventional Noodles
Rice noodles. Brown or white. Organic and/or non GMO is best.
Zucchini noodles. A spiralizer is such a great tool to have in your kitchen. I have used mine a ton ever since I bought it about 5 years ago! They aren’t expensive either. There are smaller ones too if you don’t have much space in your kitchen. I love to make soba noodle salads with them, add them to any pasta recipe and also to salads.
Kelp Noodles. I hated these when I first made them. If you make them right and put them with the right sauce they are awesome. The trick is soaking them in hot water with lemon + salt. Try out my Creamy Vegan Alfredo sauce with them below and I promise you will love them!
11. Spreads for sandwiches and wraps
Avocado
Hummus
Dijon mustard
Vegenaise. I don’t use this often as it’s processed, but sometimes I’ll spread a thin layer on a wrap or sandwich with avocado or dijon and it’s SO GOOD.
12. Ice Cream
Banana Nice Cream. Freeze bananas, add to blender, and blend until smooth. You may need to add a splash of coconut milk but don’t go overboard - you don’t want to make it runny. Some great add ins are: Lily’s dairy free chocolate chips on top, or Alter Eco 85% blackout chocolate, blend in frozen strawberries or drizzle almond butter on top.
13. Candy.
Medjool dates. I like to take the pit out of the date and stuff it with about 3/4 teaspoon nut butter and sometimes I add Lily’s chocolate chips and a sprinkle of sea salt. I find two of these with a tea in the afternoon around 3pm is the PERFECT pick me up.
Fruit. When we over consume fake sweetness, our taste buds change and actually cause us to crave more sugar. Fake sugars tell our body it’s getting sugar but our brain we aren’t, leading our brains to tell our bodies we need more as it never actually got any. And too much refined sugar just gives us a high then a crash after. Consuming fruits like banana and berries are a great alternative to sugary candies. Your body will adjust over time.
14. Latte
Misto. Try cutting the amount of nondairy milk in your coffee or tea in half if not about 1/3 of the amount. It still gives the creamy taste but you’re not adding a ton of extra calories.
Add Inulin Fibre to keep you full. 1 teaspoon of Organic Jerusalem Artichoke Prebiotic Inulin fibre can help fill you up and aid in digestion as well as a healthy gut.
15. Chips and Salsa, Guac or Dip
Look for baked chips if you are buying them. Be careful of the amount of sodium and filler ingredients like ‘gums’ and ‘brown rice syrup’ and ‘palm oil’. I also recommend avoiding corn products as much as possible. Look for baked chips made with avocado or olive oil.
Swap in veggies such as carrot + cucumber sticks, radishes, or celery.
Make your own dip. See my post ‘My Love Affair With Dips’ for great recipes.
Make your own healthy chips (try my flax wraps made into chips). Watch this video below. All you have to do is cook the wrap for about 1-2 minutes extra on each side to get it crispy, then cut into triangle chips!
16. Salad Dressings
It’s SO easy to make you own dressings. I honestly can’t remember the last time I bought one. I would say that salad dressings are the most common way people think they are being healthy when they actually aren’t. If you look at the fat, sugar, salt and calories in a salad after everything on it plus a dressing, it ends up being worse than a burger. Ask for no dressing and get olive oil, vinegar and lemon on the side when eating out.
A great trick when making a salad at home is to throw in fresh herbs, drizzle with fresh lemon, a bit of olive or avocado oil + apple cider vinegar and the flavour is amazing! Click the button below to watch my video on 3 of my favourite homemade dressing recipes!
17. Yogurt + Milk
Make sure these are unsweetened. Anything flavoured will often be packed with sugar (even if it’s cane or coconut sugar, it’s still sugar!) or it will be packed with sweeteners which can cause bloating and indigestion.
Be careful of too many ‘gums’ in the ingredient list - these can cause bloating and indigestion.
Buy grassfed milk and organic nut milks when possible. Quality over quantity.Make your own! I love making my own Homemade Hemp Milk, its sooo easy. Or just add a scoop of almond butter to your blender with water, vanilla and a sprinkle of sea salt and blend until frothy!
18. Protein Shakes, Smoothies and Packaged Protein Bars
MAKE THESE AT HOME! These can pack in SO much sugar and sodium it’s insane.
Smoothies and shakes often add way too much fruit and nut butters so the sugars and fat are super high plus it’s way more affordable to make them at home so you know exactly what goes in it. If you do end up getting one out, ask for half water, half unsweetened almond milk, half banana instead of full, easy sweet or half the fruit. You would be surprised how much fruit they put it in there to end up having the same amount of sugar as a slurpee! Crazy, right?!
Same with protein bars and balls. The reason they stay good for who knows how long is because of all the fillers that are in them, as well as sugar + sodium. They often contain ‘sugar alcohols’ which make most of us super bloated and are the worst for your digestive system.
Watch the video below for my FAVOURITE protein balls ever. These are seriously unreal - I cannot get enough. The recipe starts at 6:30 minutes into the video.
19. Oils
Avocado Oil + Coconut Oil . Use these for high heat. Examples: roasting veggies, baking tofu, or sautéing on high heat.
Sesame Oil + Olive oil. Use these for lower temperatures or cold. If you use these oils for sautéing on high heat or baking you will lose the nutrients in these oils. Cold pressed and extra virgin olive oil is a great option, and try to buy these in a dark bottle to preserve the freshness. Also, try keeping them away from your oven so they aren’t next to the heat as they will lose their nutrients faster.
20. Ketchup + Mustard
Conventional ketchup like Heinz is packed with sugar, high fructose corn syrup and sodium. Look for Primal Kitchen brand or organic brands with lower sugar. Of course, if you’re at a friends BBQ or if it’s once in a while that’s fine, but if you use it often at home then it’s worth spending a little extra to get a good quality kind.
2. Conventional Mustard . Look for organic. That is all.
21. Peanut Butter
Peanuts are actually a legume (meaning they can often cause bloating/indigestion) and have a really high percentage of allergens. They don’t often produce a typical allergic reaction, but often it ends up being more of a gut reaction like bloating and indigestion. They’re also super susceptible to growing mold and can actually be slightly toxic. Like I mentioned above, it’s fine here and there to have some, but I wouldn’t suggest having it every day or even weekly. Look for an organic peanut butter that is unsalted, otherwise try swapping it for almond butter.
22. Pizza. Okay so pizza isn’t unhealthy if you do it right.
For the crust: make your own! My cassava crust recipe will be up this coming week. The secret is adding psyllium husk to fill you up and for lots of fibre!
Add tons of veggies on it and start by eating a salad before the pizza to fill you up
Cheese is fine just don’t go crazy.
Get good organic tomato sauce that isn’t packed with sodium (around 400 mg per 125ml)
23. Popcorn
I LOVE making my own popcorn. These are my go-to recipes:
The Bomb Popcorn: add 3 Tbsp coconut oil to pot on medium-high heat and cover with lid for about 30 seconds. Add just less than 3/4 cup popcorn kernels. Cover with lid and shake vigorously back and forth every 10 seconds. Drizzle 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1/3 cup nutritional yeast, and 1 teaspoon sea salt + pepper.
Dill Pickle:add 3 Tbsp coconut oil to pot on medium-high heat and cover with lid for about 30 seconds. Add just less than 3/4 cup popcorn kernels. Cover with lid and shake vigorously back and forth every 10 seconds. Drizzle 2 Tbsp melted vegan butter over popcorn, 1 Tbsp dried dill, 1 tsp dried onion powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 Tbsp sea salt and toss to evenly coat the popcorn.
