News

There is a common misconception that avoiding sweets and desserts is a must if you are trying to lose or manage your weight.

The good news is, we are here to bust that myth once and for all 😊

Trying to avoid sweets can leave us feeling restricted. We know that categorising foods as good or bad doesn’t serve to develop a healthy relationship with food and can leave us feeling bored with restricted choices of foods we allow ourselves to eat. This can be a barrier to sustaining healthy eating in the long-term.  

Here are our top tips for including dessert whilst still allowing you to keep on track with your health goals.

Having Dessert Could Help your Weight Loss

Reducing the number of high energy foods such as lollies and takeaway foods is a great strategy for weight loss. Unfortunately, people often cut these foods out completely, which only increases the desire for such foods. As a result, when we do finally give in to the cravings for these foods, we often end up consuming large quantities in a short space of time. This offsets any energy deficit we may have been in. The key is to include small portions of these foods every so often to help prevent the desire to binge. Aim for a meal out each week or 2-3 sweet snacks of roughly 500-600kj per week.

Ready-Made Desserts

These can be a great way to help with portion control of your desserts. Try only buying the specified number of desserts you are planning to include in your diet for the week/fortnight to avoid consuming too many. Here are our top picks:

Homemade Dessert Recipes

Home-made desserts can allow you greater control over what ingredients your desserts include. For example, you can use wholemeal flour, add in nuts and even include fresh fruit to boost the nutritional content of your desserts. We’ve included some recipes for you to try at home as well as our favourite options:

• Mini muffins (add a square of choc to the centre for a gooey taste)
• Homemade frozen yoghurt. Use your favourite yoghurt and add in berries, melon, banana or mango pieces. Also try using diet cordial with strawberries, watermelon and mint leaves for a refreshing water iceblock.
• Microwave mug cakes. Try using oats instead of flour as a base for a dessert that is higher in fibre and nutrients.

Strawberry and Banana Muffins:

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups self-raising flour
• ½ cup Splenda sweetener
• ½ cup strawberries chopped
• 1 small banana chopped
• 200g low-fat Greek yoghurt
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 egg beaten

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees and spray a muffin tray with olive oil spray, or use muffin patty cases
2. Sift flour into a bowl and add in the sweetener and fruit, then make a well in the centre of the mixture
3. Add yoghurt, egg and oil to the centre and stir until combined. Be careful not to over stir at this step
4. Divide the mixture between the muffin tin and bake for 25minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean

Frozen Yoghurt:

Ingredients

• 4 cups of frozen fruit of your choice (we like to use mango or a 4-berry mix)
• ½ cup plain Greek yoghurt
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp. honey

Method

1. Process all ingredients in a food processor until smooth (approx. 5minutes).
2. Serve immediately or transfer into an airtight container to freeze

Takeaway Message

Occasional desserts can form part of a healthy diet and can still be included in your weight-loss strategies. The key is to include these foods in small portions on a more regular basis to prevent overeating rather than avoiding them completely.

For more personalised nutritional advice, chat with one of our experienced dietitians and get started today.