Diet "stuff" - desserts: Hello all. I'm... - British Heart Fou...

British Heart Foundation

49,242 members31,173 posts

Diet "stuff" - desserts

StoneLaughter profile image
34 Replies

Hello all. I'm sure there are some of you out there who will know the EXACT information I would like.

I don't want ordinary sugar-laden fatty desserts with lots of cream; bearing in mind my medical history that would be utterly stupid. However I would like to hear if anyone has recommendations for desserts which taste good, are moist with a pleasant texture, and yet are sensible choices for arterial plaque patients?

I'm sure there must be SOMETHING which isn't fruit and yoghurt...

BTW anyone who mentions rice cakes will be lined up against the wall and shot ;-)

Written by
StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
34 Replies
lettingoffsteam profile image
lettingoffsteam

Sorry but it's fruit and some yogurt for me.I love berries so I have those but no sugary or fatty desserts.To be honest I've never been that sweet toothed so it isn't hard for me.

StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter in reply to lettingoffsteam

Nor I; I love fruit and yoghurt but it gets a bit "samey" over time. I like richer desserts rather than sweeter; trouble is the two seem to go hand in hand, and also to come with lots of saturated fats! LOL

lettingoffsteam profile image
lettingoffsteam in reply to StoneLaughter

I know your pain🤣 but luckily I also love fruit too.

gilreid1 profile image
gilreid1

Cheesecake low fat cream.

StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter in reply to gilreid1

Can you expand on this please? I thought cheesecake was risky because of the high saturated fat content of the cheese. Thanks.

gilreid1 profile image
gilreid1 in reply to StoneLaughter

Not suggesting you live on it. Life is full of risks 😊

MichaelJH profile image
MichaelJHHeart Star

Here you go. BHF endorsed!

bhf.org.uk/informationsuppo...

StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter in reply to MichaelJH

Thanks very much those look bloody delicious!

Supernanu profile image
Supernanu in reply to MichaelJH

Thank you Michael. I hadn’t seen this page before. Will certainly try some of these 😋

MichaelJH profile image
MichaelJHHeart Star in reply to Supernanu

It's definitely worth getting familiar with the BHF pages as they answer a lot of the more frequently asked questions.

080311 profile image
080311 in reply to MichaelJH

Couldn’t agree more. Lots of great reads great recipes. Baking at the moment a few treats in the oven😉

Hope you’re doing ok Pauline

Edwen_ profile image
Edwen_

Good quality honey, Good Greek Yogurt and fresh peaches or fresh figs or both. Put the yogurt in bowl add chopped fruit drizzle with honey. Simple but the combination of flavour is great.

StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter in reply to Edwen_

I'm nervous about the honey; see my reply to "StillConcerned" below regarding sugars. Am I guessing correctly that because of honey's extreme sweetness, you need very little of it?

MichaelJH profile image
MichaelJHHeart Star in reply to StoneLaughter

Honey is little more than sugar regurgitated by bees! It has no magical properties! If you buy it it's probably worth getting the organic additive free ones.

Edwen_ profile image
Edwen_ in reply to StoneLaughter

I mentioned good quality honey. I buy local Raw honey i.e. honey that hasn’t been heat treated. This is the best honey with health benefits. I only use a teaspoon 15-20g . This type of honey is a very long way from processed white sugar that you find in most deserts. It’s easy to control the amount and the taste is very special.

in reply to Edwen_

Really sorry if I’m wrong or misunderstanding, happy to be corrected if so - but I think 15g is more likely to be a tablespoon than a teaspoon...? Either way, 15g honey sounds quite a lot to me, think it would contain over 10g sugar ?

Edwen_ profile image
Edwen_ in reply to

Yes there are certainly plenty of calories in the honey. I only eat quality raw honey once a day and I measure it on scales. I don’t go over 20g which is about 70 calories. For me the health benefits and amazing natural flavour is worth it. We all have different priorities with health. I had a heart attack three years ago. I lost 4 stone and now have a healthy BMI. I eat a very healthy vegetarian diet and consume very little sugar. Raw honey is a natural treat.

3Squirrels profile image
3Squirrels

Take a look at Forksoverknives.com it’s a plant based diet designed to be healthy for heart patients (although not sure it’s got medical approval as such). Still they have a whole range of heart patient healthy desserts, cakes, puddings that I’m sure you’d find one you like.

forksoverknives.com/recipes...

Since I’ve had my heart problems I’ve made the switch to this diet and never felt so great - and lost all that stubborn weight I’d tried for years to shift, all whilst eating more than I ever have 😃.

StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter in reply to 3Squirrels

While I'm not looking for a plant-based diet, the desserts sound very interesting, thank you; I'll go look!

StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter

I understand the need for portion control... however all sugars (refined or not) need to be controlled since those that are not immediately used are converted to fats and stored in our bodies; making obesity (and therefore cardiovascular health risks) more likely.

I'm not looking for virtue; I'm looking for something I can eat without hastening my death. Not all natural fats are monounsaturated anyway; cream and cheese for instance are full of saturated fats.

side note: I am definitely not Christian.

Phil_London profile image
Phil_London

Hi, I am like you, crave some good healthy options, I have found as a start low calorie ice cream made with milk like soya or alternatives, and it tastes great, if your an ice cream fan, Low calorie ice cream, saturates are about 1.5g per 100g, fat low, sugar very low, thats a start, I got told that the fat in the deserts or any food is OK just keep within or lower than the daily limit, but watch the saturated fat meep them really low as well as the sugar and the salt,(for those with high BP) I have found a range of low sugar biscuits also so low in fat and saturates so there are option. I will keep an eye out for other desert options also and let you know.

StoneLaughter profile image
StoneLaughter in reply to Phil_London

Thank you Phil very helpful.

cunningy profile image
cunningy

I think the trick is to watch your portion sizes, so a tiny bowl of something delicious rather than a huge slab of cake :) I don't practice what I preach, I like the Aero bubbly chocolate mousse, it's 3g fat (1.8g saturated fat) and 93calories per pot, so I think it's allowable, but they come in packs of four, and I find it very difficult not to eat all four at once!

If I'm looking for ideas for low fat/calorie desserts, I usually Google "desserts under 150calories"

I found a few ideas here: recipes.sainsburys.co.uk/ar...

Janma123 profile image
Janma123

Hi, I make fruit crumbles, either using fruit that doesn’t need to be sweetened or using an artificial sweetener. The crumble topping contains porage oats, flour, butter and a tiny sprinkle of Demerara sugar on top. You can also add ground almonds, chopped nuts or coconut to the topping mix. Bake until golden. Serve with cream, ice cream, yogurt, creme fraise or anything else you fancy.

Thin pancakes rolled with fruit or stewed fruit and a dollop of yogurt or ice cream are tasty too.

in reply to Janma123

You don't need to use butter you can use Benecol or Flora pro-active to cook with, you will not taste the difference.

Janma123 profile image
Janma123 in reply to

Benecol and Flora don’t make such a nice crumble - it tends to be dry and powdery. I have experimented with all sorts!

in reply to Janma123

Maybe you are not putting enough in? My wife, who is a chef and makes very good crumbles and pastry with it made the comment that a crumble should be 50:50 just the same as pastry. The ones she makes are certainly not as you describe?

Chappychap profile image
Chappychap

Like you, following a heart incident I resolved to improve my lifestyle. Better diet, lose weight, regular exercise, etc, etc. no surprises, it was all the usual suspects.

I suspect that when it comes to losing weight you may well have a few false starts. Not because of any lack of determination on your part, but more because what may be widely regarded as an effective weight loss diet may simply not work for you. So you should prepare yourself for several blind alleys and false dawns before you finally discover a weight loss diet that actually works for your DNA, your gut, your lifestyle, etc.

Along the way you'll find lots of fervent people giving you earnest advice about what diet you should follow. It always surprises me how passionate the debate around diets can become, and like religion or football teams it seems to be a choice that's ruled by the heart more than the head!

My only advice is stick with it, and be prepared to try different approaches. A sensible starting point is the BHF recommended Mediterranean Diet, but you may need to try some twists around that central theme. It's worth noting though that in a classic Mediterranean Diet there are very, very few sweet dishes. A few meals may end with a piece of fruit, but actual desserts were limited to just a few holiday occasions per year! So you may need to re-adjust your expectations about what constitutes "normal" intake of sugar!

Good luck!

Gorn35 profile image
Gorn35

Sainsburys do a nice Be Good To Yourself tiramisu and apple and blackberry crumble for a treat now and again. My problem is genetic, but I also suffer from arthritis so am going on an exclusion diet to see if it helps so I feel your pain.

in reply to Gorn35

I think the key to all this is to not see these things as a "treat"? It is not a treat if it is contributing to clogging up your arteries, is it? For me things like Tiramisu, which are no doubt rammed full of all sorts of bad stuff, are just plain off the list, and so called "good to yourself" alternatives will have equally bad things in them to compensate. I used to absolutely love cheese, and eat far too much of it in far too big portions on a regular basis, despite my slim build. Now, I don't eat any at all save for a very small amount of goats cheese on things like Bruschetta now and again. To be honest I have found giving it up easy, because if I ever find myself in the same situation again, I can say to both myself and my wife that I have done everything possible to try and stop it.

Pollypuss profile image
Pollypuss

Weight watchers oddly enough do a lovely low calorie chocolate pudding

Pollypuss profile image
Pollypuss

Double chocolate brownie from weightwatchers

benjijen profile image
benjijen

If it has more than 3 ingredients then beware. More than 5 then avoid!!

GarrBo profile image
GarrBo

Courgette recipes! Puddings and bread made from this veg are delicious and are moist with a pleasant texture

You may also like...

Ectopic heart beats scary stuff any advice?

Potassium in the diet

Diet

I'm waiting to see the surgeon who carries out bypass procedures to see what he thinks about my...

Diet.

Diet

cholesterol so shouldn’t the opposite hold true? Would love feedback. 4 stents 6 months ago.