The return of blazing hot summer weather has me looking for light and breezy fare. Not only do I want the food to sit lightly, I want the prep to be fast and the planning to be simple. That has left me looking for ways to lighten up things I eat regularly.
Here are ten tricks I use:
Skip the cheese. Yes, salads, sandwiches, pasta, and casseroles are delicious when smothered in cheese, but they can also be delicious without!
Forego the butter. A tiny touch of honey or jam on your toast makes it satisfying and lighter on the palette.
Use raw nuts. Without added oil, nuts bring a delightfully fresh crunch.
Reduce the dressing. I sometimes eat salad without any dressing at all, but there are many ways to lessen the amount you use. One is pour less on. Another is to dip each bite of salad in dressing after it’s on your fork.
But there are other dressing tricks too. You can make a vinegarette that uses no oil, squeeze lemon or lime juice over your salad in place of dressing, or dilute ranch-style dressing with salsa. Salsa can work as a dressing substitute as well. You can also hold the oil and use nonfat plain Greek yogurt as a base for creamy dressing.
Substitute ground turkey. Ground turkey makes a great beef substitute for burgers, meatloaf, and meatballs. A little Worcestershire sauce will beef up the flavor (see what I did there).
Ditch the gravy. If you’ve had to become gluten-free, you may have already done this just for convenience. But biscuits, roast beef, mashed potatoes, and hamburger steak can be enjoyed without gravy.
Skip the syrup. Use a single pancake as a shell for your eggs to create a breakfast taco.
Freeze out the frosting. Instead of frosting cake or cupcakes, sprinkle them with a light coating of powdered sugar. Okay, I don’t regularly eat cake or cupcakes, but if I’m served them, I remove the frosting right away because it weighs things down. I’d much rather have just a sprinkle of sugar or a light glaze.
I recently baked a birthday cake for a friend using applesauce instead of oil and glaze instead of frosting. It’s easy to turn canned frosting into a glaze by diluting it with water, milk, or even coffee. Keep the fun by lightly glazing and then throwing on a few novelty sprinkles.
Grill baby grill. An outdoor grill is ideal in the summer because it keeps the kitchen cool, but you can also grill on the stovetop with a grill pan. Grilled veggies are excellent and lighter than their sautéed counterparts.
Swap the slaw. When it gets hot, I swap out mayonnaise-based dressing for a vinegar-based one my mom preferred. To lighten the slaw even more, add some cucumber.
None of these changes require me to buy special ingredients, add prep time, or change my normal routine. That’s the kind of adaptation I love when turning meals into light and breezy fare.