If you naturally have a sweet tooth but want to start making more health-conscious decisions, fear not! Switching up your desserts to vegan alternatives, even if you’re not vegan, is a great way to cut out those unhealthy additives from butters and sugars. Vegan cooking requires you to think outside of the box when recreating flavours that taste just as good as what you already know, and we’ve got the recipe ideas to help you recreate your rave faves in Dessert Favourites: 5 Easy & Healthy, Vegan Alternatives You’ll Love!
1. Apple Crumble
The ultimate British staple. Apple crumble is one of the most popular desserts in the UK. If you’re newly vegan, or are looking to pursue a vegan diet, following this recipe is a great way to start.
All you need to do is switch out the non-vegan ingredient, butter, for an alternative such as coconut oil and you’re set to go! This vegan and gluten-free recipe from The Happy Pear above shows how to make apple crumble with the added twist of a few extra berries in the mix.
2. Carrot Cake
Carrot cake remains a universal tea-time classic. What’s great about this little dessert is that half the ingredients are already vegan. Carrots provide an abundance of beta-carotene which is known to improve eye health and keep skin radiant. All you need to worry about is the butter-cream icing which, by swapping cow’s butter for a vegan butter eliminates those saturated fats and cholesterol.
3. Banoffee Pie
Banoffee Pie may not sound like a healthy entrant here, but stick with me! While wise bananas are featured in the dessert, they are countered by an abundance of caramel, cream and sweet biscuits that make up the dessert’s foundations. Fortunately, with a few tweaks using some vegan ingredients such as date caramel and coconut cream means the nutritional value goes up while the empty-calorie sugar content goes down.
4. Cheesecake
One of those incredibly versatile desserts, cheesecake is fantastic for any occasion whether it be a simple whip together dessert for the household, or a showstopper at your dinner party. Vegan cheesecake crusts swap out sugary biscuits for a crunchy, nut-based one for a mix that’s high in healthy fats and vitamin E. Experiment with your preferred flavours and try to go for fruits, or citrus-inspired fillings for an enlivening boost of vitamins.
5. Brownies
Classics! These make for a great, go-to treat. Switching up the batch to a healthy version means these sweet treats can pass for a daily snack! Brownies can be made healthier by forming the body of the brownie from alternatives such as sweet potato, avocado or even beetroot. The chocolate flavour provided from the enriching, feel-good cacao powder which is high in antioxidants, such as iron and copper, make for a brilliant mood-boosting dessert.
What are your fave dessert recipes? Which of the vegan alternatives mentioned above have you tried? Let us know in the comments below, and join in the conversation on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram!
