4x comfort food that won’t make you gain weight
A big plate of pasta, a bowl of ramen or an oven dish with loads of cheese: all comfort food through and through. Unfortunately, they’re not exactly healthy. Craving comfort food but want to be a little healthy? Then go for one of these dishes.
Falafel
If you get cravings in the middle of the night for a sandwich with deep-fried chickpea balls and a generous scoop of garlic sauce, we can safely say it’s comfort food, right? I always make my falafel myself, because homemade is extra delicious and healthy, but ready-made is fine too. Instead of deep-frying the balls, as in this delicious falafel recipe, I bake them in a thin layer of oil (you can even bake the supermarket version in the oven without oil), and the pita is whole wheat. Hello, fiber! I make the garlic sauce with low-fat Greek yogurt and believe me, if you add enough garlic, it really doesn’t matter. Add tomato, cucumber and pickles to the sandwich, serve with a salad and you’re done.
Miso soup
A warm bowl of miso soup is always comforting. With soba noodles in it, it’s ultra-umami. As if that weren’t enough, fry the shiitake mushrooms in sesame oil and soy sauce, which makes them crispy and gives them an almost bacon-like flavor. Almost, anyway. Add crispy, spicy tofu (thanks, Sriracha) and the ultimate fit-girl food, kale, on top, and your healthy comfort food is complete. You can also replace the tofu with grilled mackerel for extra omega-3.
Congee
This may well be my ultimate comfort food, whether I want to eat healthily or not. Savory rice porridge may sound a little strange, but make congee and you’ll know what I mean. A major advantage? You use twelve parts water for one part rice, so you end up consuming very few calories while still feeling incredibly full. You can go all out with the toppings; I always add pickled cucumber, a boiled egg, cubes of silken tofu and thinly sliced spring onion. Leftover chicken works too. Whatever you do, fried onions and Sriracha are an absolute must.
Dahl
Another lovely dish that’s best eaten on the sofa with nothing but a spoon. Under a blanket. This red lentil dahl with coconut milk is exactly what you need when it’s raining outside. The coconut and Indian spices give the curry a wonderfully warming flavor that makes all your problems disappear like snow in the sun. An added bonus: this dish is perfect for freezing. Make a huge pot and freeze individual portions, so you can always grab a bag from the freezer when you’re feeling stressed. And give this vegetarian Indian curry a try too!
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