All over the world today, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) associated with bad lifestyle habits are on the rise, and India is no exception. A prominent NCD that has led to growing concerns today is heart disease. Whether you have obesity or diabetes, hypertension or high cholesterol, if things get worse, matters will escalate to the level of heart disease—and that’s best avoided, right? If you want to prevent heart diseases, then altering your diet is the best thing to do.
However, one of the first things you will be asked to cut out when on a heart healthy diet are sweet dishes. The reason behind this is quite simple. Sweet dishes and desserts of most kind are not only loaded with sugar but also fats. Whether it is a simple ice cream or a halwa, a closer look shows that these have almost equal amounts of fat and sugar, a combination that spells doom for heart health.
So, does this mean you have to skip desserts for the rest of your life if you want a healthy heart and prevent all heart diseases? Of course not! There are some easy ways you can tailor desserts to make them more heart healthy. And then there are delicious and healthy goodies that can easily double up as desserts too! Wondering how? Here, take a closer look at 8 simple yet yummy dessert ideas that are totally heart healthy.
Video credit: YouTube/The Domestic Geek
Fresh Fruits
Whether it is mangoes and ripe papayas in summer or apples and figs in winter, most fruits are packed with natural sugars and taste like heaven as they are. What’s more, these fresh fruits are all extremely nutrient-dense because they are loaded with dietary fibre, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. So, just have a small platter of the sweetest fresh fruits for a heart healthy dessert.
Bread Pudding
A good bread pudding is loaded with carbs, yes, but it is never fried and is always topped with fresh fruits. So, to make a heart-healthy bread pudding, all you need to do is lessen the amount of sugar you add to the milk and bread dessert and add more sweet fruits to balance out the sweetness. With this simple trick, you can easily enjoy bread pudding while on a heart healthy diet.
Low-Fat Kheer
Among all Indian desserts, kheer is one that is easiest to turn into a heart healthy version. To do this, replace high-fat milk with low fat ones. The second thing you should do is replace the rice with grated beetroot or apples—veggies and fruits that are naturally sweet, so you won’t need to add any sugar either. This will not only cut off the carbs and sugar from kheer but also make it more fibre-packed.
Wholemeal Pancakes
Everybody loves pancakes for breakfast, but can you have them while on a heart healthy diet? Yes, you can! Just replace refined flour with wholemeal flour—you can go for whole wheat, bajra, buckwheat, ragi or any other whole grains to make the flour base for the pancakes. In addition, you can also decrease the sugar content and add more fresh fruit toppings for sweetness.
Fruit Crumble
Once again, the easiest way to make a heart healthy fruit crumble requires a closer look at the ingredients and replacing them with healthier options. Load up on more sweet fruits and cut off any sugar from the recipe. Secondly, replace refined flour with wholemeal flour. Thirdly, replace the butter with a plant butter like almond or peanut butter. Simple steps to transform a fruit crumble into a heart healthy delicacy.
Yoghurt Parfait
Everybody knows parfaits are super-healthy because they are loaded with layers of healthy ingredients. For a heart healthy parfait, you need to double down on yoghurt use and add more variety of fruits. Take the parfait as an opportunity to indulge in all the seasonal fruits, and don’t shy away from trying out ingredients like chia seeds too.
Sorbet
If you don’t like eating fresh fruits for dessert every day and are craving a frozen yet healthy dessert that is not as high-fat as ice cream, then a fruit sorbet is the best thing for you. All you need to do is grind seasonal fresh fruits to a pulp, add no sugars—in fact nothing needs to be added at all—and just freeze it to make the simplest sorbets that are absolutely heart healthy.
Baked Fruits
If you are on a heart healthy diet, then nothing is simpler or healthier than baked fruits for dessert. Baking actually breaks down the natural sugars present in fresh fruits, which intensifies their sweetness naturally. Don’t believe us? Just try baking a whole apple or some figs and see for yourself what an amazing dessert that makes.