How To Enjoy Your Favorite Pasta Dishes With Less Guilt

Pasta is one of those meals where you like to pretend it’s good for you, since it does have tomatoes in it (and they have vitamin C in them, don’t they?), but you know it really isn’t all that good for you. Pasta can be pretty fattening and packs in a lot of carbs. Although, if you’re only indulging in pasta once a week or less then you’re at least doing something right.

If you want to feel a little better about your pasta consumption you can make some of the following changes to your cooking routine. Pasta can be an entire meal in one plate and can be a great comfort food, so don’t nix it from your diet just yet.

Look Into Organic Sauces

When you’re shopping for pasta sauces you should consider buying something organic. Tomatoes are commonly one of those fruits that are hit with a lot of pesticides since they have a lot of bugs that like to eat them. By going organic you’re also helping to ensure you’re getting fewer preservatives in your food, meaning it’s a bit fresher and has more nutrients.

You could also consider making your own pasta sauce. In fact, you could also consider growing your own tomatoes. Then you know exactly what’s gotten into them and onto them.

Try Whole Wheat or Wheat Free Pasta

There are good things about wheat and there are bad things about it. Wheat flour is often bleached, which can make it not so healthy of a food item if you’re trying to cut down the chemicals you’re getting through your food. You can avoid this problem by buying whole wheat pasta.

You might also want to check out some of the other pasta grain options. With the rise of gluten-free foods, you can find pasta made from corn, rice, and even ancient grains. Test them out and see which ones you like best. There are also grain-free options.

Add More Vegetables

Consider going meatless once or twice a week if you’re normally a meat eater. There are plenty of vegetables you can substitute for meat in pasta dishes. Some of them include squash and even broccoli.

Even if you stick with meat, consider adding more vegetable and less meat (and maybe even less pasta). The more vegetables, and the more of a variety of them, the better for your health!

Try A Different Meat Option

You could also switch what meats you’re using. Beef is high in fat and is known to be a culprit in clogging arteries. Sausage is also a common ingredient in pasta dishes and is also high in fat.

Try making pasta with chicken, even breaded chicken. It will give it a different look and a different taste that you may still enjoy. You could also try crab when having pasta alfredo.

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