Great Healthy Desserts

The key to making dessert part of your healthy diet is to consider desserts as a special part of your life; dessert is not something that should be eaten every day.

If you are working on losing weight, then dessert should be considered a serving that you substitute for another portion maybe once a week. The best dessert recipes should be 200 calories or less, with a minimum of simple sugars wherever possible.

For instance, one of the simplest and most refreshing desserts is fresh fruit. Whatever is in season is always going to be the best choice. There's nothing better than fresh sliced strawberries, peaches, raspberries, blackberries or blueberries. Tossing fruit with a little bit of sugar (about 1/2 tsp. per serving) and letting it chill for at least an hour makes for a great syrup. Use a little spray of canned whipped cream makes this a perfect dessert. The fruit will be about 100 calories, and 1/4 cup of the whipped cream has only 30 calories (less if you buy the fat-free version).

The same is true for some of your favorite desserts from childhood, including pudding cups and Jello.

Here are some ideas:

Healthy Choice No Sugar Added Ice Cream

Turkey Hill No Sugar Added Ice Cream

Edy's Light No Sugar Added Ice Cream

Breyer's No Sugar Added Ice Cream

Haagen Dazs Fat-Free Sorbets

Jello Pudding Cups

Haagen Dazs Chocolate Sorbet Bar

Fudgesicle No Sugar Added Frozen Bar

Häagen-Dazs Raspberry & Vanilla Frozen Yogurt Bars

Nabisco 100 Calorie Packs Chips Ahoy Thin Crisps

Nabisco 100 Calorie Packs Planters Peanut Butter Cookie Crisps

For those with less will power, it's helpful to purchase desserts that come in individual packs or go out for a dessert to the frozen yogurt store, for instance. Cutting down on the main meal dishes just a bit will also leave more room for guilt-free dessert.