Written by: Leah Patrick, Food City Dietetic Intern, Samford University

The holiday season is full of family and food. With all of this delicious food surrounding us, there are times where it may feel like we are over-indulging. However, there are a few changes that you can make to a dish, such as replacing one ingredient or adding a new ingredient, so you can still enjoy your favorite holiday foods without feeling like you are sacrificing your health goals. 

Here are some tips that you can use to help make your favorite comfort foods a little healthier:

1. Replace enriched pasta with a whole grain pasta in your pasta dishes. By making this substitution, you add fiber to a dish that might not have had fiber already in it. However, whole grain pastas do take a few extra minutes to cook, so keep that in mind when making this substitution.

2. Use low-fat or fat-free dairy options. This can be done in macaroni and cheese or mashed potatoes which can call for heavy cream. These alternatives still give you a lot of nutrients, but have less fat in them. If you would like to keep the creaminess, try using half cream with half low-fat/fat-free milk of half and half in place of the full amount of cream.

3. Add beans to stews, chilis, and some sauces. This is one of my favorite tricks, because of its versatility. Beans add both protein and fiber to a dish that might not have had these nutrients. Extra tip: if you are not a fan of beans try mashing them up before mixing them in, mashing can hide the beans and make it harder to notice they are in the dish, doing this also adds texture and thickness to the soup.

4. Reduce the amount of salt used. Easier said than done, I know, but in place of salt there is a large variety of different seasonings and spices that can be used to add flavor to a dish without raising your blood pressure, including Mrs. Dash, Dan-O’s, and fresh herbs.

There are many adjustments that can be made. Find what works for you.