As someone who is in a constant battle between wanting dessert and feeling guilty after eating it, I am always looking for healthier dessert options. And since having my children, and wanting them to live a healthier lifestyle, I am on a constant lookout for new dessert recipes that help satisfy that sweet tooth craving.
One of the most popular go-to’s in my family is ice cream. We all pretty much love it. What is not to love? That cold, creamy sweetness comes in just about every flavor imaginable — from plain vanilla to my favorite, cotton candy, and everything in between. One day while browsing Pinterest for new recipes, like everyone does nowadays, I found a great healthy alternative: making ice cream from frozen bananas. Yep, frozen bananas, no ice cream maker required. I already had some overripe bananas sitting on my counter, so I peeled them and threw them in the freezer. After dinner that night, I tossed them in the food processor along with a little skim milk and honey to add a touch of sweetness. My kids loved it. Over time I added strawberries, chocolate chips, and peanut butter to make different flavors. You can add a cup of strawberry banana yogurt to get even more creaminess and sweetness. It’s a great go-to that cuts the sugar and fat found in regular ice cream.
The following cookie recipe is another healthy dessert option I stumbled upon while browsing around Pinterest. You can make any kind you want as long as you have the basic recipe on hand.
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1 cup oatmeal
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1 egg
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1 cup all-purpose flour
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½ cup brown sugar
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1 ½ tsp. baking powder
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1 tsp. vanilla
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1 pinch salt
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2 tbsp butter
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1 tsp. cinnamon
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½ tsp. nutmeg
This is just a basic recipe for oatmeal cookies. I even substituted the the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour, and instead of the butter I used coconut oil. Different add-ins can be used as well: chopped apples, peaches, chocolate chips, dried fruit. I usually make a few different batches of these on a day when I have some free time, and throw them in the freezer. When the sweet tooth strikes, you can microwave them for a few seconds and there you have a quick healthy dessert. Even my husband likes these, and he can be a hard one to please when I try to add a healthy change to his diet.
This might be an oldie but it’s a goodie; I remember my mom making this a lot when I was still at home. It’s a healthy, refreshing, and satisfying dessert: angel food cake with strawberries and whipped topping. Angel food cake is naturally fat free, and if you use fat free whipped topping, you’re cutting more calories. If you don’t add any sugar to the strawberries they are healthy for you naturally. If you did want some extra sweetness you could add an artificial sweetener to the strawberries. My mom used Splenda a lot, because it tasted the most like real sugar.
I hope these ideas are helpful in the battle between trying to satisfy that sweet tooth and trying to pick healthier options.