I was a carbaholic. Back in 1995, I bought cases of ramen for dinner, ate two bagels during staff meetings and frequented the vending machine at work regularly. My eating habits changed slightly with age recognizing that simple carbs were really unhealthy. Though I did stand behind eating whole grains rather than the “white ones,” I still felt bloated and packed on a few extra pounds because I ate mostly carbs and few vegetables. It wasn’t until a few years ago when I was looking to add more produce in my life that I started substituting vegetables for bread and pasta.  I tried spaghetti squash, zucchini noodles aka zoodles and now I’m eating cauliflower rice.

So, if you are looking for an easy healthy tip try using veggies in place of your pasta. Or, start out making your dinner half pasta/half veggie pasta. Here’s how you can do it.

It’s crazy how easy it is to prepare dishes with these veggies. I actually think cauliflower rice is the quickest. It’s just a few steps: wash, slice, put small pieces in a high speed blender or food processor, then pour out and serve. I sometimes use it solely as my “rice” with sauce and veggies on top. I’ve also created light pasta salads combining half cauliflower rice/half whole grains (like farro) with fruits, veggies and specialty oil mixes.

Please check out the video and let us know what you think. It’s less than two minutes and provides a quick demo.

What foods do you substitute for simple carbs like white pastas, sugar and white bread?