Just because it’s summer doesn’t mean a girl can’t enjoy some of her favorite comfort foods. Does my stress level decrease just because it’s summer? No! Therefore, this Sometimes Healthy Girl declares the right to indulge in comfort foods, even during the hot dog days of summer.
But as delicious as comfort foods are, there are two problems with most of these goodies:
- They are generally extremely UNhealthy
- They usually take a lot of time to make
If Paula Deen has taught us anything it would be that comfort foods generally imply no less than 5 sticks of butter and at the same time, the recipes are much more intricate than simply plopping said butter into a pan, piling on some cream and cheese and throwing it on a plate.
Never fear, Sometimes Healthy Girl is here. Sorry Paula – love your personality, love your recipes and love you. But eating/preparing your food would not help decrease my stress level.
2.5 Step Healthified Comfort Food
While I do like to indulge in the real deal comfort food, I usually head to a restaurant and let the professionals handle it. The way I see it, what they come up with will probably taste 5 times better than my version (is it weird that I’m admitting that to you?).
Why bother making my own burger when Five Guys can do it better?
But if I’m really in the mood for comfort food without the hassle and pound of butter, I turn to my own 2.5 Step Healthified Comfort Foods (2.5 because some of them have a little extra half step). Below are a few of my faves, but before I present these to you, I must share a few disclaimers:
- Disclaimer #1: This food will taste better than it looks…Sorry, still haven’t mastered the whole food photography thing. Remember what you learned in 1st grade: Don’t judge a book by its cover.
- Disclaimer #2: These are not all my own original recipes. I’m creative in the kitchen, as you know from my Wacky Food Combos, but when I pick up good ideas from other brilliant “foodologists,” I’m going to use them.
- Disclaimer #3: These will not taste exactly like the original. I’m completely honest and transparent on the Sometimes Healthy Living blog. Therefore, I cannot lie and tell you spaghetti squash will taste like actual spaghetti. But, I can say it’s a damn good healthy substitute
- Disclaimer #4: I am not a registered dietician. Not that I really had to tell you that. What kind of dietician would consume Reddi Whip by the can and eat a food that admits it’s not “really butter?” Anyway, the point is that I consider these healthified versions, but you might just consider them straight wacky. And that’s okay 😉
Frozen Hot Chocolate Bars
Description: For anyone that’s ever longed for a bite of that sinful Serendipity Frozen Hot Chocolate, this recipe is for you. All the fun of frozen hot chocolate in the oh-so-convenient popsicle form. In other words, glorified homemade fudgsicles.
This can be yours...sort of
Ingredients: Favorite instant hot chocolate, Reddi Whip and popsicle makers
3 ingredients - keeping it simple my friends
Directions:
1. Mix hot chocolate, per box directions and add Reddi Whip in to taste.
Never be shy with the Reddi Whip - the more whipped cream, the happier you'll be
2. Pour hot chocolate into popsicle molds. Do not spill like this.
Oopsies....major spillage. Standard in a Sometimes Healthy Kitchen.
2.25 Allow to set overnight.
You might be asking yourself why there is a tennis ball in my freezer....read the blog. You'll figure it out
2.5 Remove from freezer, dethaw for 30 minutes (if you do not allow popsicles to dethaw, you will break the molds, especially if they are cheap $2 molds that you bought from Walgreens) and enjoy! (with Reddi Whip on top if you would like)
Frozen Hot Chocolate on a Stick = Blissful Perfection
Suggested Uses:Enjoy while waiting for your boyfriend/”no label” boy “friend” to text/call or in place of the dangerous pint of Ben & Jerry’s after a break-up. You can also eat these healthified treats if you are simply craving something cold after a nice, long run. The possibilities are endless.
Spag-Men Noodles (Recipe from Carrot N’ Cake)
Description: For those of you craving your favorite food from the college dorm days, ramen noodles, without the guilt.
Ahh remember the good ol' days? Staying up all night fueling yourself off coffee and Ramen...
Ingredients: Spaghetti Squash, Chicken Flavor seasoning, oil/butter to taste (or I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter Spray if you prefer processed foods in your comfort food…like this Sometimes Healthy Girl)
Can you remember the ingredient list?
Directions:
1. Prepare spaghetti squash as desired (I prefer Friday the 13th style – stab with large kitchen knife, microwave for 10-15 minutes, depending on squash size)
You're mine Mr. Squash
Get your shred on!
2. Sprinkle a large amount of chicken seasoning onto your spag-men noodles.
2.5 Top with butter (spray) to taste and dig in!
Can you believe this is a VEGETABLE?
Suggested Uses: Indulge after skipping a long run to watch the Bachelorette. This way, you can congratulate yourself on the fact that you chose a healthy alternative to pasta and will feel less guilty for not running. If prepared ahead of time, you may reheat this dish after a long night at the bars in place of ramen noodles. Warning: Do not make this dish while intoxicated. There is no need to mix knives and alcohol 😉
Healthified Lettuce Wraps
Description: For those of us who don’t have a PF Chang’s within city limits and feel deprived without the chain’s trademark lettuce wraps. Even if you live in a city full of 5 star restaurants, you’re allowed to admit you actually like chain restaurants’ food too.
Tastes 4 Star to me - P.F. Chang's, nobody does it better
Ingredients: Pre-Cooked chicken (You can make it yourself if you want to go all over-achiever on me), Broccoli slaw, Plum sauce and Soy sauce
No shame in pre-made chicken - keep it simple, you're stressed - you need comfort and you need it fast
Directions:
1. Place chicken, broccoli slaw into skillet on medium high; add 3 tablespoons of plum sauce and a whole lot of soy sauce. Cook for 5 minutes until pre-cooked chicken is mucho tender.
Sometimes Healthy Girl CAN cook - look at this pretty skillet full of deliciousness
2. Place on top of hearts of romaine lettuce and go wild!
Not quite like the photo above, but it took 2 steps to make and it tastes mmmm mmmm good
Easy, breezy and tasty
Suggested Uses: Indulge in these healthified lettuce wraps after a long day at the office so you can pat yourself on the back for being able to put together a half-decent meal after a hard day’s work. Best paired with white wine and mindless reality television.
Pumped up Fudge (from Hungry Girl)
Description: This recipe is straight from the sometimes popular, always controversial Hungry Girl. Nevertheless, it’s the perfect medicine to make whenever your monthly friend drops by for a visit.
Your little friend will be tricked to like the healthified version of fudge
Ingredients: Brownie mix and pumpkin
So...I used brownie mix but took a picture of the wrong boxed mix...pretend this is Duncan Hines classic brownies okay? Use that imagination...
Directions:
1. Mix brownie batter with 2 cups of pumpkin while preheating oven to 350 degrees. Batter will be thick (No raw eggs in this recipe so go crazy and lick the bowl, just don’t eat the entire bowl of mix- you’ll feel really bad about yourself)
Check out that thick, chocolatey batter....
2. Place in 8X8 baking pan and wait 35-40 minutes for fudge to cook (watch the Notebook while you wait). Note: Fudge will look borderline “not cooked” – don’t stress (you already have enough stress!) – it just needs to settle a bit.
Lick the bowl, lick your fingers - go crazy!
2.5. Allow to cool in fridge for 60 minutes or so (finish the Notebook) and slice into 36 bite-sized pieces of fudge
Oh yeeeah
Suggested Uses: Best used to appease your monthly visitor. However, you may also use them to earn your coworkers love and affection.
My coworkers love me because I give them chocolate.
So there you have it. Four Sometimes Healthy Comfort Foods that you can make in 2.5 steps or less? Better than the original? Maybe not. BUT, they’re easy to make, they taste good and they’re healthified.
I’m off to eat a frozen hot chocolate bar (with a bunch of whipped cream) and get a bit of that thing they call SLEEP. Goodnight y’all!
Question:
What’s your favorite comfort food? Do you make a healthy version or do you stick to the original always?
LOVE this post – so well said and now all I want is 5 Guys ahhhhhh.
Something Like That is one of my FAVORITES! Such a good summer song that makes me crave BBQ? crazy. we neeeeeeed to meet up soon! maybe if there is a free fitness class in the park or somewhere — and then we can get burgers & fries after 🙂 let me know! xo
OH yes, we definitely need to do that! Or maybe after a race? There is a Shake Shack on the Upper East Side that is calling our name 😉
ooh, that fudge looks really good! I think my favorite comfort food is definitely sweet stuff. cake, cookies, cupcakes, anything like that. lately I’m especially obsessed with carrot cake. SO delicious.
If you like sweet stuff, try the fudge! Trust me, I got rave review at work. Plus, you can lick the bowl all you want 😉
Oh wow, all of that looks super delicious! I think my favorite comfort food is ice cream- and usually I go with the original. However, I’m freezing some bananas and gonna try that banana soft-serve and see if that does the trick 🙂
Oh I’ve always wanted to try that. Let me know how that works out!
I usually always try to make a healthier verson of comfort food. I love making chicken tenders with egg whites and bread crumbs or crushed oats, pizza with low fat cheese and whole wheat pizza dough, and modified cookie dough by using peanut flour and freezing it. On the other hand, if I am craving Ice Cream, then I go for it…nothing healthy about it!! Oh yeah, and wine…don’t think you can really modify that lol.
haha agreed on the wine front. But let us remember that a glass of red wine is healthy 🙂 Does that mean the more we drink, the healthier it is? 🙂 Like your cookie dough idea. Thanks for sharing!
My comfort food is ice cream. But, I’m certainly not about to churn it myself to make it healthier. So, I just use my little 1/2 cup measuring cup (sometimes) so that I don’t eat the whole half-gallon. I love your captions/self-commentary! So funny! It’s inspiring to see someone (else) create and cook. I don’t do it myself, but it’s always fun to pretend that I’m going to use these great ideas. 🙂 Yours are so easy though, maybe I will.
Aw thank you so much! Don’t worry – I myself rarely cook anything too complicated. The more steps, the greater the possibility that I will mess something up. Thus, I keep it simple. Most of the recipes I post will be simple so keep coming back 🙂 Also, feel free to send me suggestion/ideas for something I should try. Thanks for reading!
I am certainly going to bookmark this post! Those lettuce wraps look incredible and something I have been wanting to try for a long time!
My favorite comfort food used to be onion rings dipped in a tartar sauce…oh my, so so good. But I haven’t had anything like that in YEARS, so if I were to have a favorite comfort food again, I would try to healthify it. The recipe for the frozen hot chocolate looks intriguing too, I have seen that advertised on Travel Channel i’m pretty sure 🙂
My favorite comfort food is chicken fingers and fries! No way to make that healthy 🙁 but luckily my fav chicken finger place is back on the east coast and I’m on the west coast. I’ve gotten into fro yo as my go to comfort food out here, so I guess moving has helped make my comfort foods more healthy!
Does the fudge have a strong pumpkin taste? I’m not sure if I would like that, but i LOVE fudge!
hmmm check the comments section. I think there might be a healthified recipe for chicken fingers. As for the fries, simply make your own! You can slice em, bake em and boom, healthy fries! What would us girls do without fro yo?
NOPE – you cannot even taste the pumpkin. TRY IT!!
BEST POST EVER!!! I am going to make all of these things especially the hot chocolate popsicles….you have me drooling!
AWWWW thanks Janae! That means a lot coming from you! 🙂 You should try those choco popsicles ASAP – they are so easy to make and the Reddi Whip really adds another “layer” of flavor. hahaha
Comfort food = Milano cookies. And I don’t mean 1 or 2. I mean like an entire bag of Milano cookies. Preferably the raspberry kind.
haha I think you’ve mentioned those cookies before?? I see a little theme here ;-). We have Milano cookies in the vending machine at work and you may have inspired me to buy some today 😉
GREAT post! I make that fudge all the time–it’s sooo good! I also loved your humor throughout 😉
Thanks! I had fun writing it 🙂 That fudge is the best. And it doesn’t include a bunch of processed ingredients so I feel a little better about eating it haha…
My coworker has a little thing that he likes to do, which he dubbed “Five Guys Fridays.” I also sit three feet away from him. Fridays are really difficult because the smell permeates every possible thing on our desks. Must. Remain. Strong!
(Except for those cajun fries. You can always have two or three of those sticks of heaven.)
Yesterday I went into my boss’s office and the smell of Five Guys was everywhere. It was KILLING me. So i held it together (barely) got out of there as quickly as possible and ate a delicious salad. It was such a triumph 😉
I like making healthified versions of some things. However, pizza is not one of them. Pizza is pizza, and I shalt not mess with greatness. 🙂
ok ok ok I respect that. But healthified pizza is good too. I swear 😉 Alright, I admit it’s not as good as the real thing, but it’s not half bad. Ever had deep dish chicago-style pizza? THAT will change your life.
The homemade popsicles sound so, so good!
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For the fudge, do you actually mix the brownie batter (according to the directions on the box) and then mix it with pumpkin, or just mix the powdered brownie mix with the pumpkin? It sounds great and I really want to try it!
Just mix with powdered brownie mix with the pumpkin! (a 15 oz can). The batter will be thick – but that just means its fudgy and delicious. Let me know if you have any other questions 🙂
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