If you have a sweet tooth, eating healthy may be more of a challenge for you, and you’ve probably already looked for healthier dessert choices. If the selection seemed limited, you might be leaving out a few stellar options. These are nine options that might take a little prep work but will be worth the time.
1. Make your own soft serve ice cream
This is a good time to invest in a blender, if you don’t already have one. Select your favourite fruits for the sweet flavouring, though bananas, mangoes, or pineapples are excellent choices. Mix the fruit together with just a little orange juice and agave. Add low-fat cottage cheese to keep it healthy, but give the dessert that soft-serve texture. Mix well and serve.
2. Dip fruit in dark chocolate
While regular chocolate may be sweet without the reward, dark chocolate reduces free radicals in the body, promotes better heart health, and may help to prevent cancer. Buy a bar that contains 70-80% dark chocolate and melt up to two squares per serving. You can drizzle the melted chocolate over bananas, apples, raisins, or berries.
3. Freeze your grapes
Grapes are a delicious snack and provide a host of benefits, including lowering LDL cholesterol and promoting more efficient blood flow. If you throw them in the freezer for a couple of hours, you can create a delicious cold treat that’s still packed with those beneficial nutrients. If that’s not enough, use cotton candy grapes for an extra sweet taste.
4. Spread “banana butter” on a rice cake
Bananas are a great treat by themselves and they’re packed with plenty of potassium and other nutrients. To make a sweeter dessert, mash up a banana and mix it with a tablespoon of peanut butter. You can spread the “banana butter” over wheat toast or a rice cake.
5. Sugar-free pudding
You can buy sugar-free pudding at any grocery store these days. There are a few flavours available in the premade cups, or you can buy the mix and make your own. To add flavour and texture, throw in some almond chips and mix together. This is an easy way to satisfy your sweet tooth when you don’t feel like creating a bigger dessert.
6. Spice up your fruit
Cut up some apples, pears, bananas, or whatever else suits your craving at the moment. Top with just a small amount of maple syrup and sprinkle with cinnamon, before heating up the concoction in your oven or microwave. In addition to warming the fruit, the heat will melt the syrup and spread it over the fruit more evenly. Wait for it to cool and enjoy your warm treat.
7. Keep coconut chips on hand
You really don’t have to do anything special, because coconut is naturally sweet. Simply pop open a bag of coconut chips and begin munching. If you’re feeling especially ambitious, you might try cracking open a whole coconut and shaving off your own chips. You can also drink coconut milk, or add it to your coffee or tea.
8. Grilled pineapple for your next cookout
Another new treat that has people raving is pineapple that has been heated on the grill. Sprinkle pineapple wedges with clove and cinnamon for zest, before throwing them over the hot coals. After a few minutes, they’re ready to serve as is, or you can top them with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
9. Make your own trail mix
Combine dark chocolate chips, raisins, berries, and almonds to create a sweet mix of flavours. Similarly, you can add dark chocolate chips to peanut butter on a rice cake or on wheat toast. The chocolate and peanut butter will satisfy your sweet tooth without doubling up on your refined sugar intake.
Staying healthy doesn’t mean having to give up your sweet tooth altogether. If you’re creative and adventurous, you can come up with your own concoctions to satiate your cravings. As long as you select healthy ingredients, you can still indulge in your favourite taste sensations.
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