Sweets and Treats in a Healthy Diet

Eating healthily makes us feel good, physically and mentally, but it isn’t always easy to stay away from certain foods. Junk food is easily replaced, but the difficult part is ignoring that desire for sweets. Luckily, there are some amazing solutions to this problem. Here are some ideas for healthy sweets and treats you can make yourself.

Groaning for granola 

Homemade granola is a great thing and homemade granola bars are even better. Plus, making them is a piece of cake. You can buy the ingredients in bulk and keep them stored for whenever you need them or have that craving for sweets. The combinations are endless. Use cornflakes or rolled oats, combine them with almonds, hazelnuts or cashews, add some coconut flakes or dried fruit and you’ll have a treat worthy of kings. You can chop the nuts and crush the cereals with a rolling pin, put them in a bowl, add a few teaspoons of water and some heated honey, just enough to bind the ingredients.

Nuts and coconut flakes can be roasted before use, and you can always add some seeds, such as chia, sesame or pumpkin. Mix it all together and put it on a baking sheet, pressing it with a spatula. Let it cool a little before cutting it into bars, but not too much, because the bars will break if you cut them when cooled completely. Store them in a sealed container and you can eat them for days at a time. Although healthy, these treats don’t have to be low-calorie, which depends on the ingredients you use, so be careful and eat them in moderate amounts.

Ice cream or I’ll scream! 

Even in winter, and especially in summer, ice cream is the favorite sweet for most people. However, the versions with too much sugar and fat won’t really work if you’re on a diet, so it’s necessary to find some alternatives. One of them is using fresh fruit and a little bit of honey instead of chocolate, sugar or nuts. Put some berries in your blender, sprinkle them with honey, add a few spoons of low-fat Greek yoghurt and blend it all together. If you freeze the fruit before blending, you’ll get something similar to a thick sorbet or a milkshake, which you can put in a tall glass and enjoy instantly. If the fruit is room temperature, put the mixture in plastic containers and freeze it for a few hours.

Instead of berries, you can always use tropical fruit, like mango, pineapple or papaya. When you don’t have the time or if you’re outdoors and in urgent need of that cool sweetness, you can always buy a small portion of delicious ice cream. Just be sure that you don’t eat more than that one portion.

Feeling smooth with smoothies 

Fruit is always a good choice for any diet. It’s healthy and sweet enough to make you feel good, whether you decide to eat an apple on the run or make a delicious smoothie combination. All you really need is a blender and fresh fruit. It’s true, a little bit of honey won’t kill you, but try going without it if possible. Mix strawberries with apples or half a banana, or make a tropical shake with citruses, pineapple, kiwi or even passion fruit. You can even add vegetables, such as spinach, beets or carrots. Blend it all together, stick a straw in it and sip it slowly to prolong your pleasure. Try to stay away from figs and grapes, though, since they contain a high amount of carbs.

So, even if you’re on a diet, there’s no need to stay completely away from all that’s sweet and nice. The most important thing is to choose your treats wisely and to stay in control of how much you eat. If you don’t overdo it, you can freely enjoy your healthy sweets. And don’t think too much about what you’re not allowed to eat. There are still some amazing things you can eat and relish.

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