Food for the soul

By VASUDHA KHANNA

Being a foody and still eating healthily has not always been easy for me—especially with those late-night sweet cravings. But recently, prioritizing my health has become very important to me. That is when I came up with these healthier versions of comfort food. These are the perfect recipes to nourish your body while tickling your taste buds with your favorite flavors!

Power-Packed Choco Chip Muffins

If there was one thing I have made too many times it would be these protein-packed nourishing choco-chip muffins. These are my favorite dessert and I love creating variations within them with ice cream, custard, or yogurt. Sometimes, I even fill their centers with these ingredients. Feel free to switch them up and experiment with your favorite flavors with them — I know I have.

Ingredients (makes 6): ¾ cup whole wheat flour ⅛ cup Cocoa Powder ⅛ cup drinking chocolate ½ cup chocolate chips (if you don’t have chocolate chips, just crush a bar of chocolate) ⅓ cup sugar/⅛ stevia/¼ cup honey or any sweetener of your choice (you can adjust sweetener according to your preference) 1 tsp baking powder ½ tsp baking soda ½ cup yogurt ¼ cup milk

In a bowl sift in the flour, cocoa powder, drinking chocolate, baking powder, and baking soda. Give this a stir and keep it aside.

In a separate bowl, mix in yogurt, milk, and sweetener and beat it until it makes a smooth mixture.

Now in small quantities add the dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and keep mixing after every addition to avoid any lumps. Use a whisk if you can. Now that you have a gorgeous-looking creamy batter, avoid overmixing. Add your chocolate chips to the mixture and, using a spatula, mix them in with the cut and fold motion of the spatula. Grease your muffin tin and preheat the oven at 350 F and bake the muffins for 15 minutes, switching the tray around if necessary for even baking.

TIP: If you do not have chocolate chips, you can also use chocolate chunks from the slab and put them in after you pour your batter into your baking tin. This will give you a result similar to choco-lava cupcakes!

Italian Amaretti Cookies

These delicious, rich cookies are one of my favorites. Their crumbly texture dissolves into a creamy sensation that is totally otherworldly. Filled with the goodness of almonds, these will 100% satisfy the raging sugar craving.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups almond flour ¼ cup honey ½ cup egg whites/aquafaba 1 tsp almond extract

In a bowl, add the almond flour and honey.

In a separate bowl, whisk together egg whites until white and frothy. Add the almond extract and whisk again.

Mix the flour mixture into the aquafaba Use your hands to turn it into a dough and break it apart to make cookies. Roll dough into balls and press down a bit to make them into cookies. Place an almond in the middle and pop them into a preheated oven at 350F for 20-25 minutes.

Let cool and sprinkle powdered sugar on top.

Caulfredo Spaghetti

Creamy alfredo pasta with little to no cheese? Sounds impossible, right? My caulfredo pasta recipe has become my go-to since I first discovered it. Maintaining the creamy richness of alfredo while adding the benefits of cauliflower, this recipe is the perfect comfort food.

Ingredients:

4 cloves of garlic 1 full cauliflower head Salt 1 cup milk of choice Mozzarella cheese/nutritional yeast (optional) Lemon juice Black pepper Oregano Chili flakes Veggies of choice (I usually go for bell peppers, broccoli, and mushrooms)

Place all the ingredients in a medium pot and bring to a boil.

Cover and let simmer for at least 15 minutes or until the cauliflower tenders starts to fall apart

Pulse the mixture until smooth in a blender or food processor.

In a separate pot, boil the pasta.

Heat your sauce, more garlic, and vegetables in a pan.

Add pasta to the veggies and toss. Serve piping hot and enjoy this healthy caulfredo pasta!