Refined, high-carbohydrate foods are ubiquitous in our society. We’ve grown up with meals based on rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and the like and have become conditioned to desire these foods. Switching to a low carbohydrate lifestyle can be challenging at first.
Here are a few sneaky ways to replace some common high-carb foods with something that will fool you and your family into thinking you are having the real thing.
Healthy Ways to Replace:
Bread:
Replace the bread in wraps and burritos with a sheet or two of nori seaweed.
Instead of bread when making a grilled open sandwich, use slices of eggplant, sliced as thick or thin as you prefer.
Crackers
Use slices of cucumber, carrot, fennel, mushroom, apple or pear as a foundation for cheeses, dips, spreads or hors d’oeuvres.
White Rice:
You can use cauliflower as a replacement for white rice. Put chunks of cauliflower in a food processor and pulse until they are roughly the size of a cooked grain of rice, then blanch in boiling water for 30-60 seconds depending upon how much texture you like. Served as a healthier substitute for white rice they then become the perfect vehicle for smothering in sauce or curry, without any residual carb-guilt.
1 cup of cooked white rice has 45g of carbohydrates and 205 calories. nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/5712/2
1 cup of cooked cauliflower “rice” (about 150g) has 6 grams of carbohydrate and 35 calories nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2391/2
Mashed Potato
Cauliflower, pureed with a little butter, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper makes a delicious alternative to mashed potato. You can add in other vegetables, such as pumpkin, broccoli stems or for a little texture after the cauliflower is pureed, try adding some grated zucchini.
Yoghurt/Desserts:
Greek yoghurt is the lowest in sugar/carbohydrate content. Jazz it up by adding fresh berries, fruit or cinnamon.
Flour:
Try using flours made from almonds, coconut or even chickpea or buchwheat as an alternative or partial replacement for wheat flour when cooking. They are generally higher in protein and free of gluten.
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