Heart healthy recipes
Heart healthy recipes are necessary for those who are looking to minimize the risk of heart disease or those who are dealing with heart disease. In order to enjoy a heart healthy lifestyle, nutritious meals and snacks are very important. This does not mean that you have to completely give up the foods that you love. You simply need to learn ways in which to reduce the amount of fats in the foods that you eat and learn healthier way to prepare some of your favorite dishes.
Most people realize that eating fresh fruits and vegetables is very healthy. There are many recipes that you can incorporate into your daily meals that contain fresh fruits and vegetables and these recipes can be very tasty. In order to eat healthier you do not have to necessarily give up the sweets that you love. You can still enjoy a variety of cakes, cookies and pies that are created to be lower in calories and saturated fats as well as carbohydrates. For low-fat or heart healthy desserts consider fresh or frozen fruits, yogurt with fresh fruit, angel food cake or low fat ice cream or frozen yogurt. These provide that sweet taste that you crave while still being very low in calories and fat. It is important to understand that when choosing things such as ice cream and yogurts, you need to pay strict attention to the saturated fat content in these foots. Some foods may claim to be healthy yet still contain a high level of fat and calories. Reading your labels is very important in heart healthy cooking and eating.
You can prepare many desserts yourself using oils that are low in saturated fat, fat free or low fat milk, egg whites as opposed to the entire egg and egg substitutes. If you are purchasing desserts from the store, be certain that you read the label to ensure that the saturated fat content is low. Products that are made with hydrogenated oils typically contain high levels of fat so limit your intake of store bought desserts whenever possible.
Snacks are also a very important part of your day and can be prepared to be very heart healthy. For those who are pregnant or nursing and for children and teenagers, snacks are very important and help to provide energy as well as vital nutrients that you need to get through the day. Choosing snacks that are low in fat or preparing your own heart healthy recipes will ensure that you keep the fat and calorie levels down. Raw fruits and vegetables, low fat cookies, popcorn that is made in a popcorn popper, unsalted pretzels and juices are very good choices for the heart healthy individual.
Substituting lower fat foods for those higher in fat and calories is an excellent idea. The next time you reach for a bag of chips, try substituting baked tortilla chips or salt free pretzels. These substitutes have lower fat content as well as lower cholesterol and are much healthier for your heart. Other snacks that are for a heart healthy diet include rice cakes, frozen fruit bars, sherbet and pudding made with fat free milk.
When preparing recipes it is important that you pay attention to the specific ingredients. Heart healthy recipes typically use ingredients that are lower in saturated fat and cholesterol. If you have a favorite recipe that is not heart healthy, you can substitute healthier alternatives to make your recipe. For instance, if your recipe calls for cooking oil such as in cakes, you can substitute apple sauce. This gives the cake the same texture but contains no fat. Egg whites or egg substitutes can be used in place of whole eggs and fat free varieties of milk, sour cream and many other dairy products are also available to replace those fattier ingredients. You should keep in mind that the total amount of calories, cholesterol and fat that a recipe contains will depend on the ingredients that you use. When you substitute your regular recipe ingredients for lower fat or fat free alternatives, you are making your own favorite recipes heart healthy.
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