Ive been meaning to make this thread for a while.

Basically food is fuckin awesome; but alot of the good food is fatty and can be unhealthy.

Im not here to debate the semantics around health; obesity; moderation etc.

Simply suggest healthy or healthier alternatives to recipes/ dishes.

In particular recipes that are well known to be fantastic; but also known to be extremely unhealthy. The fundamental aspect being that ingredients are not taken away but replaced.

Nachos=

Corn chips ( as low fat as possible, seasoning unnecessary).
Beef mince
Alot of tomatoes (canned is good)
Low fat cheese like edam
Sweet chilli sauce
Avocado
Natural Yogurt>Lite Sour cream> Cream Fraiche in that order ( really whatever but yogurt is way healthier)
use chilli/paprika and any other spices u want to give flavor ( cus the chips are unseasoned)

Key substitutions being-

Sour Cream- Yogurt/Avocado
Seasoned chips- Spice

Edit - You can use more avocado and put less cheese on also

Any recommendations on healthier alternatives to tortilla corn chips would be appreciated.

i substitute turkey, tofu, or chicken mince for beef mince in alot of recipes. also i use one of those spray bottles for my oil, most people add to much oil to the pan. picking whole grains like brown rice/bread over the alternative of white rice/bread is another good tip. also try an eat as much veg an fruit as possible.

vegetable lasagna

portobello mushrooms
zucchini
tofu
onion
spinach
garlic
olive oil
red pasta sauce
whole wheat lasagna noodles
cottage cheese
chill flakes
mixed italian herbs
salt an pepper

cut all you veg into thin disk. mash your tofu up into a crumble, reserve half. saute mushrooms, onion,garlic, zucchini, spinach and tofu in olive oil. add your chili flakes an mixed herbs. season with salt an pepper. (season well cause you wont have much fat to add flavour)

Mix 1/2 tofu with cottage cheese season to taste with herbs an salt an pepper. Layer accordingly, sauce, noddles, veg, cheese. repeat till done.

Bake 350 for 15 min to 30 min.


beef mince replaced with veg an tofu

ricotta cheese replaced with cottage cheese an tofu mix

pasta noodles turned into whole wheat noodles

the concentration of salt needed to raise the overall saltiness increases with salt level. that is, you adding extra salt may just taste the same on the tongue. add just the minimum amount of salt

the nonstick properties of cast iron means you can add little or no oil. yes i know there are non stick pans already but they get worse everytime you use them. cast iron stays forever

i find that a white roux mixed with regular milk tastes nearly as good as when its made with cream

i find the best substitute for meat is mushrooms

i find the best substitute for meat is mushrooms

chickpeas are good too

i.e. falaphel (sp) instead of a burger pattie.

Basically food is fuckin awesome; but alot of the good food is fatty and can be unhealthy.i substitute turkey, tofu, or chicken mince for beef mince in alot of recipes. also i use one of those spray bottles for my oil, most people add to much oil to the pan. picking whole grains like brown rice/bread over the alternative of white rice/bread is another good tip.
I take issue with this. Soy (http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2007/11/16/ditch-the-soy/) is bad (http://www.healingcrow.com/soy/soy.html). Grains arent particularly good (http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2008/04/04/do-lectins-in-grains-contribute-to-obesity/) either. On the other hand, theres nothing wrong with fat (http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2007/11/11/what-if-bad-fat-is-actually-good-for-you/).

To keep this on topic, spaghetti squash (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaghetti_squash) apparently makes a healthier substitute for regular pasta. And heres a few modifications that I would make to OP's recipe:

Corn chips made from scratch via making your own tortillas and deepfrying them in lard/tallow
Beef mince (grass fed is vastly preferable for you poor american saps)
Fresh tomatos
Cheese made from sanitary raw milk
Nandos peri peri sauce (only potentially bad thing in that is the stabilisers)
Avocado
Yoghurt > Sour cream (although doesnt matter that much so long as theyre made from raw milk)
Spices (to preference)

An exact healthy tortilla recipe is something I havent had a chance to work on yet, mainly for funding reasons. But I'm thinking coconut flour, lard, and water/raw milk.

I take issue with this. Soy (http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2007/11/16/ditch-the-soy/) is bad (http://www.healingcrow.com/soy/soy.html). Grains arent particularly good (http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2008/04/04/do-lectins-in-grains-contribute-to-obesity/) either. On the other hand, theres nothing wrong with fat (http://www.modernforager.com/blog/2007/11/11/what-if-bad-fat-is-actually-good-for-you/).

To keep this on topic, spaghetti squash (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaghetti_squash) apparently makes a healthier substitute for regular pasta. And heres a few modifications that I would make to OP's recipe:

Corn chips made from scratch via making your own tortillas and deepfrying them in lard/tallow
Beef mince (grass fed is vastly preferable for you poor american saps)
Fresh tomatos
Cheese made from sanitary raw milk
Nandos peri peri sauce (only potentially bad thing in that is the stabilisers)
Avocado
Yoghurt > Sour cream (although doesnt matter that much so long as theyre made from raw milk)
Spices (to preference)

An exact healthy tortilla recipe is something I havent had a chance to work on yet, mainly for funding reasons. But I'm thinking coconut flour, lard, and water/raw milk.

Sweet.

How is deep-frying your own chips healthier again :D?

is Tabasco ok instead of peri peri? ( i have Tabasco)

Sweet.

How is deep-frying your own chips healthier again :D?

is Tabasco ok instead of peri peri? ( i have Tabasco)Healthier due to lack of preservatives/additives/processing/other extra junk, and if youre using coconut flour, it also lacks grains (and makes "corn chips" a bit of misnomer). And lard/tallow are stable due to high saturated fat content. Palm oil would be good too, and possibly avocado oil (has ultra high smoke point, but wont be as shelf stable as the other 3). Thats not to say theyd be exceedingly healthy, just healthier.

I personally think tabasco tastes like shit, and the bottle I have on hand here doesnt even have an ingredients list for some reason... so I cant comment beyond that.

Do note that as I havent tried coconut-based tortillas yet, I have no idea on any taste difference it may make.

Healthier due to lack of preservatives/additives/processing/other extra junk, and if youre using coconut flour, it also lacks grains (and makes "corn chips" a bit of misnomer). And lard/tallow are stable due to high saturated fat content. Palm oil would be good too, and possibly avocado oil (has ultra high smoke point, but wont be as shelf stable as the other 3). Thats not to say theyd be exceedingly healthy, just healthier.

I personally think tabasco tastes like shit, and the bottle I have on hand here doesnt even have an ingredients list for some reason... so I cant comment beyond that.

Do note that as I havent tried coconut-based tortillas yet, I have no idea on any taste difference it may make.

thats true natural alternative is usually healther than the processed option; the question is it worth making chips homemade as an opportunity cost to buying a packet for 3$ and spending no time.

Palm oil is the most unhealthy natural lipid (IMO)

thats true natural alternative is usually healther than the processed option; the question is it worth making chips homemade as an opportunity cost to buying a packet for 3$ and spending no time.

Palm oil is the most unhealthy natural lipid (IMO)That time/cost tradeoff always comes down to personal preference (and to a vastly lesser extent whats in your local brands of corn chips).

And palm oil unhealthy? Really? I wouldve thought corn, cottonseed, grapeseed, safflower, soybean and sunflower would all be worse. See: here (http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/unsaturatedfats.shtml).

You don't have to cut out meat and fats to eat healthy. It's about balance.

darkmage35, you know my views on your paleolithic diet. i have trouble with your championing of saturated fatty acids an your disbelief in the health benefits of whole grains.

i cant believe you seriously recommended people fry their food in tallow.

It's really not hard to eat clean. Lean beef, chicken breast, oily fish. Wholegrains, wholewheat pasta, brown rice, fruit, vegetables....

How can you fuck that up? Learn how to make a few sauces, casseroles, chuck some spices in etc.

health benefits of whole grains.

The only real benefit whole grains have is that they're less nutritious than their refined (dehulled, blanched etc.) versions.

^ i respectfully disagree.

http://www.healthcastle.com/whole-grains.shtml

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070509161030.htm

http://www.mypyramid.gov/pyramid/grains_why_print.html

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/whole-grains/NU00204

http://naturalhealthperspective.com/food/whole-grains.html

darkmage35, you know my views on your paleolithic diet. i have trouble with your championing of saturated fatty acids an your disbelief in the health benefits of whole grains.

i cant believe you seriously recommended people fry their food in tallow.Ah, but can you argue against the much more clear-cut health detriments of soy? You really should cut that tofu out of your diet, and we can argue about whole grains later.

The saturated fat thing is for stability reasons, mainly. Coconut oil would also be good (oh look: 92% sfa! :p).

guys guys, i said no semantics!

guys guys, i said no semantics!Sorry about that. Now then, substitutes.

Grass fed beef > Grain/antibiotics/animal-remains fed beef >> Tofu
Raw-based dairy > Pasteurised, homogenised dairy
Fresh vegetables > canned vegetables
Virgin cold-pressed oils > Refined oils
Nut flour > Grain flour (although its fucking expensive, unfortunately...)
Free range chicken/eggs > Battery chicken/eggs

Ah, but can you argue against the much more clear-cut health detriments of soy? You really should cut that tofu out of your diet, and we can argue about whole grains later.

tofu is one of my guilty pleasures, but i will not argue for soy. unless it is of the fermented type, such as tempeh. :o but i would gladly argue whole grains.

The saturated fat thing is for stability reasons, mainly. Coconut oil would also be good (oh look: 92% sfa! :p).

i am not going to say all sat fats are evil, hell i save my baccon drippings. and there is butter in my fridge. but i use them sparingly. research shows that a diet heavy in sat fats can put you at greater risk for heart disease or stroke.

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3045790

and heart disease is the leading cause of death in america

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/02/20070201-2.html






you can make your own conclusions

tofu is one of my guilty pleasures, but i will not argue for soy. unless it is of the fermented type, such as tempeh. :o but i would gladly argue whole grains.At least we agree about soy then. Fermentation is a good thing(tm).
i am not going to say all sat fats are evil, hell i save my baccon drippings. and there is butter in my fridge. but i use them sparingly. research shows that a diet heavy in sat fats can put you at greater risk for heart disease or stroke.

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3045790

and heart disease is the leading cause of death in america

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/02/20070201-2.htmlYou know, I do think that something just doesnt add up here (http://www.health-report.co.uk/saturated_fats_health_benefits.htm). Rancid fats contain large amounts of free radicals. Saturated fats are highly stable, even at high temps and for long periods of time (coconut oil is shelf stable for over a year). Monounsaturated fats are also reasonably stable, but you probably shouldnt use them in high-temp cooking (olive oil makes a good salad dressing though). Polyunsaturated fats go rancid very very easily, and oils high in them have to be highly processed to remove smells and whatnot so theyll still appear to be "fine".

Hence why I recommended lard, tallow, etc for deepfrying.

Now, getting back on topic... It appears coconut flour absorbs a lot of moisture, so when substituting it for wheatflour you should use considerably less of it, as you can see comparing and contrasting this (http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/breads/r/coconutrmuffins.htm), this (http://glutenfreebay.blogspot.com/2006/10/my-first-experiment-with-coconut-flour.html), and this (http://www.wellness-shop.com.au/blueberry_muffin_recipe.html). God I wish I had some spare money to try this stuff out.

hmm nut flour seems cool.

i mean, its flour from nuts!

that antibiotic/animal remains fed shit is nasty i went to America once and had to eat that shit.

Luckily we now how to farm shit good in New Zealand

Just eat a balanced diet, what is wrong with all of you?

Even high performance atheletes don't eat as clean as some of you are trying.

You know, I do think that something just doesnt add up here (http://www.health-report.co.uk/saturated_fats_health_benefits.htm).


that was a very interesting article. i can actually say i learned a few things from it. and while you have not totally convinced me that sat fats are healthy i can understand where you get your views from.

sat fats are not evil by nature.

bump for health