Carb-Conscious 🧑🍳Cooking: Tips for Balancing Your Meals 🍽️
Are you tired of feeling sluggish after a meal? It might be because your recipes are too high in carbohydrates. Many popular dishes, from pasta to baked goods, are packed with carbs, which can lead to energy crashes.
Here are some signs that a recipe might be carb-heavy:
- The main ingredient is pasta: Pasta is a high-carb food, so recipes centered around it can be carb-heavy.
- Multiple carbohydrate-rich foods: Dishes like those found in Latin, Asian, Southern, and Italian cuisines often combine multiple carbs, such as rice, corn, and beans.
- Refined flour and sugar in baked goods: These ingredients can spike your blood sugar and lead to energy crashes.
Don’t worry, you can still enjoy these delicious dishes while balancing out the carbohydrates. Here are some easy swaps:
Pasta:
- Calculate carbohydrate content per serving.
- Consider using half servings or side dish portions.
- Swap for vegetable noodles (zucchini, sweet potato, butternut squash).
Here is a delicious recipe that swaps zucchini for the pasta for a lower carb version of lasagna.
Reduce carbohydrate-rich ingredients:
- Substitute cauliflower rice for rice in Mexican dishes.
- Increase non-starchy vegetables and protein sources in vegan dishes.
This recipe calls for brown rice which is a great whole grain option and it is easy to swap cauliflower rice. You can use frozen riced cauliflower, some stores will do the work for you or you can simply put chunks of cauliflower into a food processor and rice it yourself.
Modify baked goods:
- Use almond or coconut flour instead of white flour.
- Reduce sugar by ¼ to ⅓ and use natural sweeteners.
- Add cocoa nibs or Lily’s Dark chocolate chips for a low-sugar chocolate treat.
Here is an unusual treat that combines the staying power of protein, the healthy fats found in almond flour and a little bit of sweetness in the chocolate chips.
Here are some additional tips:
- Portion control: Be mindful of portion sizes, especially when it comes to carbohydrate-rich foods.
- Focus on nutrient-dense foods: Incorporate more vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats into your meals.
- Consider the overall carbohydrate content: Look at the total carbohydrate content of your meal, not just individual ingredients.
Utilizing Plate Method is a easy way to keep all your macro portions in balance.
By making these simple adjustments, you can enjoy your favorite recipes without sacrificing your health goals.
If you would like to figure out other ways to modify your eating for more energy and in a way that will move you in the direction of your goals, make an appointment with Coach EJ and discover how Nutrition and Wellness coaching can be your next best step.
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