remix that dish

These days every body's trying to eat a little healthier. But what a lot of people do, is maybe order the salad instead of the steak. Or if they're cooking like me, they'll opt for the chicken breasts or salmon over the pork roast. What many people might not realize (which the food network has tried to do a few times with several different shows) is that you can turn old, fatten, but oh so comforting favorites into new, updated, healthy dishes!

For example...

My Grandma came to stay with us this past week, whom we haven't seen in forever. Like most typical Southern Grandmothers, she loves to cook (where I get it from) and loves the traditional fixins' of Southern cookin'. However, due to the majority of my family being slightly overweight, and the continuous watching of my Dad's cholesterol, we had to stop her when she started to make her delicious, however fat laden Breakfast Casserole.

Typically, Grandma takes:
6 pieces of buttered white bread,
pours over eggs and milk
sprinkles sauted onion, peppers,  and sausage
and tops with lots of cheddar cheese

From there the whole thing goes into a 350 over til golden brown. Oh and let me tell you, if you're into breakfast dishes, it's just as good as it sounds.

After much consideration and the constant begging and pleading from my brothers that the Casserole still be made, my Grandma and I came up with an alternative of the same dish:

6 slices of whole grain bread,
spread it with just enough I-can't-believe-it's-not-butter Spread,
poured over egg substitute and soy milk 
kept the onions and peppers because we could,
sprinkled some soy sausage patties
and soy cheese over it all

And from there it was business as usual.

We were a little hesitant to taste it because of all the substitutes, but man, were we pleasantly surprised. The Breakfast Casserole Remix was a success!

Now, for those of you who are hesitant to use soy products or substitutes of anything, here's a word from the wise: think about it, enjoy the foods you love, with half the fat, calories, carbs and sodium, and all the benefits of added grain and protein, and be able to eat MORE than what you would in a typical plating for one serving of the old stuff!

I know I might not be able to convince everyone, I was a slow convert too. But not only can food remixes taste just as good, but you feel better after having ate them too :)