TODAY nutritionist Joy Bauer shares her list of common comfort foods with lower-calorie swaps. Find out how you can keep the great taste, but lose the fat!";
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Lose: 2 slices of New York pizza
1,300 calories, 50 grams fat
Choose: Lean Cuisine Brick Oven Style Frozen Pizza
320 calories, 9 grams fat
Homemade pita pizza with vegetables
250 calories, 6 grams fat
Though certainly delicious, each oversized slice of pizza is loaded with refined white starch and whole-milk mozzarella cheese, which contributes an unhealthy dose of calories and artery-clogging saturated fat to the diet.
If you’re a pizza lover, stock your freezer with portion controlled, lower calorie alternatives — they typically use reduced-fat cheese and add tasty vegetable toppings. Of course, you can always build your own pita pizza at home by just splitting a 100% whole wheat pita and lightly toasting it. Top each half with 1 tablespoon tomato sauce, 2 tablespoons part-skim cheese, your favorite veggie toppings and place in oven or broiler until cheese melts.
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Lose: One pint Ben & Jerry’s chocolate chip ice cream
1,040 calories, 64 grams fat
Choose: One cup Turkey Hill low-fat Mooose Tracks ice cream
280 calories, 10 grams fat
Ice cream is a particularly nutrient-dense snack — factor in fancy mix-ins like chocolate chips, nuts, cookie dough, caramel, hot fudge, and marshmallows, and the calories skyrocket. Instead, choose a low-fat variety and watch serving sizes. You’ll cut calories and fat nearly in half.
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Lose: Potato chips
One ounce = 160 calories, 11 grams fat
Choose: Soy crisps
One ounce = 110 calories, 3 grams fat
Regular potato chips have little nutritional value and are an empty source of calories. Instead, satisfy your craving for crunchy chips by munching on a serving of soy crisps (you’ll benefit from significant reductions in both fat and calories). What’s more, soy crisps are made from soy flour, which offers both protein and fiber — a winning combination that leaves you equally satisfied and fuller for longer.
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Lose: 2 slices of white bread with butter
260 calories, 10 grams fat
Choose: Thomas’ Light English Muffin with 2 teaspoons peanut butter
160 calories, 6 grams fat and 8 grams fiber
The refined carbohydrates in white bread are rapidly digested by the body, leaving you hungry again soon after. To add insult to injury, the butter smeared on top is one of the richest sources of saturated fats — the type of fat that can raise LDL or “bad” cholesterol levels.
For a healthier take on bread and butter, top a Thomas’ Light English muffin with 2 teaspoons of peanut butter. This snack offers a combined total of 9 grams of fiber and 10 grams of protein — the perfect combination to keep you feeling full for hours.
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Lose: Taco Bell Grande Nachos
770 calories, 44 grams fat
Choose: Taco Bell Fresco-Style Chicken Burrito Supreme
330 calories, 8 grams fat
Taco Bell Grande Nachos are piled high with ground beef, sour cream, and cheese sauce — a triple whammy of calories and saturated fat. For just about the same amount of protein (and less than half the calories), you can get a Mexican fiesta with 75% less fat. Taco Bell’s Fresco Style Burrito Supreme is filled with healthful ingredients like lean white-meat chicken, black beans, lettuce, tomato, onions, and salsa. The beans provide a significant amount of fiber, a nutrient that is difficult to come by in most fast food options.
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Lose: Bacon cheeseburger
1100 calories, 80 grams fat
Choose: Turkey burger with lettuce, tomato, onion, ketchup on half the Bun
334 calories, 13 grams fat
A bacon cheeseburger is a dieter’s nightmare — more than 1000 calories! When cravings for a juicy burger kick in, choose one made from ground turkey instead of the usual beef. Ground turkey is a much leaner source of protein than beef, so this simple substitution typically cuts out a large amount of fat and calories. Skip the greasy bacon and calorie-laden cheese and instead load on onion, lettuce, pickles and tomato. Lose half the bun and save an additional 80\+ calories from the meal.
";
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Lose: Large order of French fries
600 calories, 33 grams fat
Choose: Baked sweet potato fries
220 calories, 0 grams fat
A large order of French fries from your favorite fast food chain can cost you 600 calories and 33 grams fat — ouch! In place of French fries, make your own baked fries using nutrient-rich sweet potatoes. Slice half of a large sweet potato into small sticks and spread on a baking sheet. Lightly coat with cooking spray, sprinkle with kosher salt and other seasonings, and bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes. In less time than it takes you to drive to and from the local fast food restaurant, you’ll have a healthy side dish on the table.
Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of beta-carotene, a powerful antioxidant and precursor of Vitamin A responsible for giving sweet potatoes their characteristic orange color. Plus, like beans and apples, sweet potatoes provide a hefty dose of soluble fiber, notable for its mood stabilizing and cholesterol-lowering effects.
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Lose: Fried chicken wings with blue cheese dressing
720 calories, 59 grams fat
Choose: Baked chicken tenderloins with hot sauce and low-calorie blue cheese dressing
120 calories, 1.5 grams fat
Because of the high ratio of skin to meat in chicken wings, these infamously unhealthy appetizers are loaded with saturated fat and calories even before they hit the fryer. And that’s before you factor in the blue cheese dressing! On the other hand, baked chicken tenderloins doused in buffalo wing hot sauce are a wing substitute for the health-conscious eater. Don’t forget to pick up a low-cal blue cheese dressing.
";
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TDY_Joy_comfort[i-1].body = "
Lose: Macaroni and cheese
2 cups = 880 calories, 40 grams fat
Choose: Whole-wheat elbow macaroni tossed with ½ cup tomato sauce and
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
2 cups = 420 calories, 5 grams fat
Home-cooked macaroni and cheese combines a whole host of unhealthy ingredients — high fat cheeses, whole milk, butter, and refined grains. Instead, enjoy healthier pasta by tossing 2 cups whole wheat elbow macaroni with tomato sauce and parmesan cheese. The whole wheat pasta provides whole grains while revving up your intake of fiber, protein, and B vitamins.
In addition, tomato sauce provides a hearty dose of lycopene, a potent disease-fighting antioxidant especially rich in cooked tomato products. A sprinkling of Parmesan cheese adds a boost of cheese flavor without adding huge amounts of calories or fat.
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Lose:
2 small scoops of raw chocolate chip cookie dough 200 calories, 10 grams fat
Choose:
2 South Beach oatmeal chocolate chip cookies 100 calories, 5 grams fat
Two cookies worth of raw dough provide 200 calories and 10 grams of fat, half of which are saturated. What’s more, once the package is open, it’s difficult to tell how much dough you’ve actually consumed, and the calories from those extra nibbles add up quickly!
As a healthier option, choose a 2-pack of South Beach Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. Here, 2 cookies have only half the calories and fat of their dough equivalent. Plus, they’re automatically portion-controlled for you, so you’re less apt to overeat.
";
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