Healthy Twists For Comfort Foods

At this time of year, tucking into a plate of your favourite food is exactly what you need. What could make that even better? Recipes that transform those heavenly dishes into something healthier! Check out our tasty round up…

We love food for its joy giving, soul soothing powers. Tough day at work? A loaded lasagna makes it better. Soaked to the skin on the journey home? A plate of buttery mash-topped cottage pie will warm you up again. Having a bit of what you fancy is a great way to fuel mood boosting serotonin to reduce stress and feel happier.

But comfort food is often carb loaded and calorie rich and overindulging can serve up a side order of guilt. Swapping out ingredients, adding in more veg and choosing a lighter cooking method can make all the difference without losing the good stuff.

Cold, dark mornings call for yummy food to bring some cheer and these light and fluffy banana pancakes are just the recipe for that. Yogurt and cottage cheese might not sound like tasty pancake ingredients, but they produce dreamy results.

Oats are filling and full of nutrition, so make  porridge even healthier by skipping the milk and sugar and using coconut milk and toping with fresh fruit and superfoods instead.

Or ever thought of having quinoa for breakfast? No, well try this quinoa breakfast bowl with mixed berries, cinnamon and almond milk, its delicious and made super easy in the pressure cooker.

And if you’re craving a cooked breakfast, try these versatile baked eggs or this knockout one pan breakfast.

There’s no better way to warm the cockles than a steaming bowl of soup. Chicken soup is already a healthy choice but this ginger and noodle version dials it up a notch. And this Italian pasta and bean soup – pasta e fagioli– is one heck of a bowl of creamy comfort food.

Grilled cheese toastie? Don’t mind if we do, especially when it’s had a spicy makeover. Better yet, we’ll take it with a side of best ever air fryer chips, easy in the EasyFry.

This deliciously cheesy vegetable lasagna is sure to help ease those winter woes. The bonus part is you only need one pan to make it as it goes from stove top to oven with minimal fuss!

Leave this rich veggie stew in the slow cooker and come home to a beautiful dinner. And this lean and tender lamb stew with rich gravy-like sauce is perfect for the pressure cooker

Lean minced beef, plenty of veg and half-fat crème fraiche give this cottage pie a healthy spin without losing any of the amazing flavours.

With a nut and seed-loaded granola crumble, this apple pud  is all levels of yum. Bonus tip: the topping also makes a great breakfast bowl. Talking of healthy crumble, this spice-scented carrot cake is a thing of beauty we just had to share.

Apart from the banana, can a crowd-pleasing banoffee pie ever be ‘healthy’? It certainly can when it’s made like this. And brownies – surely not? Yes again! These dark chocolate and almond brownies really deliver.

Comfort food done healthily – now that’s something to get excited about this winter!