Healthy Treats for a Sweet Tooth

A sweet tooth isn’t a bad thing. If you choose to satisfy that sweet tooth with high calorie, high fat, high sugar treats it will ultimately lead to high numbers on the scale.

There’s no need to treat a sweet tooth like it’s the enemy. In fact, denying cravings can be problematic. Ever had a chocolate craving and tried to ignore it? It just gets bigger and bigger like a snowball rolling down a hill. Rather than ignoring minor cravings, satisfy them with a healthy option before they turn into monster cravings. Some healthy — and tasty! — ideas:

- Try grilled fruit for dessert. Halve stone fruits such as peaches or plums then spray with zero calorie butter spray and sprinkle with cinnamon before grilling. Enjoy them as they are or top with a dollop of low-fat vanilla yogurt.

- Dip fruit. Melted dark chocolate is a decadent dip for fresh fruit, but remember that a little goes a long way. You can also make a light dip by mixing low-fat yogurt, a couple teaspoons of yogurt and some toasted coconut.

- Substitute. Indulge in your favorite homebaked treat, but substitute less-than-healthy ingredients with healthier options. For example, make oatmeal cookies but use applesauce in place of the fat, whole-wheat flour instead of white, and dried cranberries instead of chocolate chips.

- Serve a slice of angel food cake for dessert and top it with a mix of berries.

- Snack on a couple ounces of dark chocolate and some almonds.

What’s your favorite low-calorie sweet treat?