Delicious, Healthy Foods

[redduck]

Inspired by Midpack's thread: "Beyond Meat Burger...," I realized once again, that foods that I find to be delicious are usually unhealthy or very unhealthy (or both). Are there foods that are both healthy and delicious that you can eat a whole lot of (or whatever measurement you choose) everyday and still live to tell the tale?

 

[Helen]

Grilled/broiled cauliflower is delicious!

I slice it then pour lemon infused olive oil over it, then squeeze a fresh lemon on it then add salt. I let it sit for a bit before cooking.

Trader Joe's has the best price on cauliflower that I have found.

 

[haha]

Grilled/broiled cauliflower is delicious!

I slice it then pour lemon infused olive oil over it, then squeeze a fresh lemon on it then add salt. I let it sit for a bit before cooking.

Trader Joe's has the best price on cauliflower that I have found.

Best price, and very nice fresh head. I is one of my go-to vegetables too. I also sauté it after cutting into sub-heads.

Ha

 

[Sojourner]

It does seem to be the case that most foods I consider extremely delicious are not especially healthy. Like chocolate ganache lave cake with vanilla ice cream. Or buttery, salty, kettle corn.

But there are some healthy foods that aren't quite so decadent that taste really good when cooked and prepared the right way. Two examples would be fava beans and fresh, wild caught salmon. I also really love oven-broiled brussels sprouts.

 

[Chuckanut]

I make a wonderful chicken stew using chicken thighs, carrots, sweet potatoes, olive oil, onions, assorted spices and a bit of chickpea flour to thicken it all up. Sometimes I will toss in some string beans.

 

[zinger1457]

Another take on the above is cauliflower rice, grind up the cauliflower in a food processor and saute in a pan with a little olive oil, taste great with any meal.

 

[MBAustin]

High quality seafood, especially crab and scallops prepared simply, makes me much happier than candy bars.

 

[Dtail]

Another vote for cauliflower, wild caught salmon, plus red and black beans.

 

[brewer12345]

I would tell you that the game meat I eat a lot of is healthy.


For the non-hunters, roast a few large sweet potatoes, put them in a mixer, add a couple eggs and a can of coconut milk. Pour into a casserole, stud with pecans, and bake at 350 until set.

 

[COcheesehead]

Use julienned zucchini in place of pasta. Add in a peanut sauce or a red sauce to go from Asian to Italian.

 

[MichaelB]

Should we replace the current recipe sticky with a new one for healthful Foods?

 

[LOL!]

Just about any lightly dressed fresh salad fits the bill. For a contrast, start with big glass bowl and add a small amount (quarter cup) of leftover cooked brown rice, a quarter cup of any canned bean you like (black, garbanzo, pinto, kidney, whatever), some bits of fresh broccoli or cauliflower, some frozen corn kernels, a tablespoon of whatever chinese sauce (hoisin, blackbean paste, szechuan, ...) and microwave covered for 1.5 minutes, stir, microwave again, stir. Then add the cold salad ingredients (baby spinach, tomatoes, croutons, blueberries, carrots, snap peas, ...), and a little dressing. Mix everything up and eat. Prep time is about 5 minutes including the 3 minutes of microwaving.

One could eat the above in massive amounts all day long. Clean up is trivial because the glass cooking bowl is the mixing bowl, then the serving bowl, then the sink/clean-up bowl.

It is also incredibly inexpensive.

 

[ABQ2015]

I make a skinless chicken breast green chile stew (includes tomato and a limited amount of potato) and a vegetable soup that are good. Also my light version of tostados - corn tortilla hardened in the microwave, small amount of pinto beans with green chile, a little bit of cheese, and lots of chopped lettuce, tomato, and salsa on top. Fajitas with lots of bell peppers and onions and salsa minus the sour cream and guacamole. Eggbeaters green chile omelet. Steamed mashed sweet potato but I have to limit the portion. Mashed white potato with half cauliflower. Shrimp cocktail or a lowfat shrimp scampi with less butter and more chicken broth. Scallop dishes.

Low fat turkey sausage with onion, diced tomato and tomato sauce, and lots of bell peppers over whole wheat pasta. I've made tomato based Indian dishes too - basically reduce the meat and fat and increase the vegies.

 

[Nick12]

When I was in college in the 1980s the Hare Krishnas came to my campus. They passed around some delicious vegetarian Indian food. We were starving college kids but the food that they blessed sure tasted Yummy!

 

[ERD50]

Does anyone actually know what is healthy and what isn't (in moderation)?

A few years ago, we would have been told to use margarine and avoid eggs, but now we recognize that trans-fat in margarine is far worse than saturated fat in butter, and eggs aren't the cholesterol issue they were thought to be.

I'm not convinced we know much more today. I'll just stick with eating a variety of foods.

-ERD50

 

[mamadogmamacat]

Cauliflower ground up in food processor is also great as the filler in any soup where you would otherwise use rice or pasta.

Based on observation and experience, "health food" is very much an individual thing. I found limiting carbs to do wonders for my health overall, not just in terms of weight loss. Yet,I also know people my age and older who eat mostly carbs and have no weight problem and they tell me their blood work is good without medication. Add to that the fact that our palate seems to change with age in terms of what we can tolerate both in terms of taste (I like spicy rather than sweet most of the time now, opposite of where I was 20 yrs ago) and gastrointestinal effect (I have to limit grain intake or will pay for it for a few days after, to put it mildly, yet I ate bread often 10 yrs ago with no ill effect other than weight)

 

[Bestwifeever]

A generous amount of smoked paprika will make even the healthiest food taste a bit decadent.

 

[Chuckanut]

I'm not sure if this qualifies due to the amount of added sugar, but I occasionally make a peanut butter chocolate chip cookie that is pretty good. I cut the added sugar amount by 40%, and use 1/2 semi-sweet chips and 1/2 unsweetened chips. Flour is 40% whole grain, 60% unbleached white.

Maybe I should call them healthier rather than healthy.

 

[MRG]

Does anyone actually know what is healthy and what isn't (in moderation)?

A few years ago, we would have been told to use margarine and avoid eggs, but now we recognize that trans-fat in margarine is far worse than saturated fat in butter, and eggs aren't the cholesterol issue they were thought to be.

I'm not convinced we know much more today. I'll just stick with eating a variety of foods.

-ERD50

Nah. We don't know what we think we know about healthy food.

I was thinking about some apples, butter, flour and a little sugar. Grandma Opal's Apple pie.

 

[redduck]

…
Are there foods that are both healthy and delicious that you can eat a whole lot of (or whatever measurement you choose) everyday and still live to tell the tale?

Sounds like cauliflower is both healthy and good-tasting. But, what I was originally looking for was something that is delicious (yet healthy) and that I want to eat a until my eyes roll back in my head and my face falls into my plate (or disappears into a large tub of high calorie ice cream). I'm asking: is there a heathy food that is so delicious that people will continue eat until they become nauseous?

 

[footenote]

Like Mamadogmamacat, low-carb-healthy-fat does wonders for my weight and cholesterol numbers and the menu is crazy tasty and satisfying

(btw, I agree with her that some people can eat carbs and stay healthy and slim. I ain't one of them.)

Tonight: Chicken and smoked poblanos in white-wine cream sauce over green beans

 

[NW-Bound]

Sounds like cauliflower is both healthy and good-tasting. But, what I was originally looking for was something that is delicious (yet healthy) and that I want to eat a until my eyes roll back in my head and my face falls into my plate (or disappears into a large tub of high calorie ice cream)...

I just noticed your signature line:

When the people shall have nothing more to eat, they will eat the rich--philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau

In the theme of the thread, I have to ask if the rich make delicious and healthy food?

 

[MichaelB]

In the theme of the thread, I have to ask if the rich make delicious and healthy food?

My guess is no they don’t, they pay others to make it for them.

 

[NW-Bound]

But I sidetracked before answering your question.

The problem is that what is healthy yet tastes so good that you can gobble a huge amount of depends a lot on personal taste. I can tell you what works for me: plain old salad.

I can, and have often eaten a huge bowl of salad big enough to feed a family. I can eat until I quit, not because I am full but because I do not feel I am getting anywhere with satiating my hunger. Salad has zero calories besides what comes with the oil in the dressing.

And that much fiber is not good for me later, either. So, is there anything that's so healthy that you can eat an unlimited amount of? I am afraid there is not.

 

[lemming]

Avocado (when they were seasonal) maybe? Walnuts or almonds? Or brazil nuts with chocolate. I can overeat watermelon enough to get a tummy ache but not much else-and it is not that healthy

I don't think healthy foods trigger the right hormones to get you to overeat.