Healthy Low-Sugar Recipes

A staple in South American cuisine, homemade empanadas can be served as a main dish or a side. We keep this simple by focusing on the empanada filling and instead of making the dough from scratch, we achieve flaky empanadas with the help of refrigerated pie crust.

This carrot soup is loaded with veggies and features vibrant curry paste and creamy coconut milk. And this big-batch recipe freezes well for up to 4 months. Enjoy this mildly spicy soup with a toasted mango-chutney-and-cheese sandwich, or thin the soup with more water or broth and use it as the base for a curry with chunks of firm white fish and broccoli.

Store-bought pasta sauce just can't compare to homemade marinara--and the slow cooker makes marinara from scratch much easier. This fresh tomato recipe was developed to preserve the summer bounty from your garden or farmers' market; it freezes well for up to 6 months so you can pull out pasta or pizza sauce anytime. Keeping the skins on makes it even easier, plus they contain pectin, which helps thicken the sauce.

This mini quiche recipe uses classic Provençal flavors--garlic, oil-cured olives, anchovies, caramelized onions--to season these very-green egg cups. They keep well, perfect for breakfast on the fly, but the flavors are sophisticated enough to serve for brunch. If you frequently make mini quiches, consider investing in silicone mini muffin tins; they make popping these out a dream!

Slowly cooking summer-ripe tomatoes in a low oven makes them candy-sweet. Turn to this recipe to preserve the summer bounty from your garden or farmers' market; it freezes well for up to 6 months. Tuck these tasty bites into sandwiches; stir them into risotto; or chop them and mix with Kalamata olives, olive oil and fresh herbs to scoop up with pita chips.

This versatile sauce draws inspiration from the fiery Yemeni hot pepper-herb sauce zhoug. This recipe was developed to preserve the summer bounty from your garden or farmers' market; it freezes well for up to 6 months. Spoon it over grilled meat, mash with egg yolks to make deviled eggs or stir into Greek yogurt to make a dip. Taste your jalapeños before adding them--if they're particularly hot, adjust as you see fit.

Minced dried cherries and pistachios make these energy balls a salty-sweet snack to satisfy all your cravings. Almond butter and cocoa add substance and chocolaty appeal. Serve any time of day as a snack or dessert, or pack them for a hike.

This easy energy ball uses natural ingredients to give you a quick bite of energy when you need it. Dried apricots and honey hold together the coconut and oats, while ginger and tahini deepen the sweet flavors. Ready in just 25 minutes, you can have these as a grab-and-go breakfast, afternoon snack or sweet treat after dinner.

The secret to getting these scrambled eggs creamy is whisking plain kefir into the uncooked eggs. Using the French method for soft curds, the beaten eggs are cooked slowly. For the best results, use a nonstick pan.

James Beard Award-winner and Top Chef contestant Karen Akunowicz of Fox & the Knife in Boston turns this Italian-inspired bread salad into a hearty fall dish. Instead of tomato, fennel mingles with the vinaigrette to let the bread soak up its licorice notes, while the arugula lends the dish a hint of pepper. The lemony vinaigrette is so simple and tastes so much fresher than store-bought. Make a double batch to toss on other salads. It will keep in the fridge for up to a week. Add some shredded chicken to the salad to make it a meal.

Forget the maple syrup and powdered sugar. Here, French toast gets a savory dinnertime makeover by fusing two brunch favorites. Slices of crusty French bread are dunked in mustardy egg custard and topped with red onion, smoked salmon, dill and a simple caper-cream sauce.

The spiced chicken atop these bowls is ready fast with the help of the broiler. Serve with warm whole-wheat pita for scooping up extra hummus at the bottom of the bowl.

The combination of oat milk, vanilla extract and sweet cherries makes this recipe taste like a cherry pie smoothie. Adding a bit of brown sugar boosts that nostalgia even more.

Give your blueberry smoothie a tropical update with the rich flavors of coconut milk and coconut cream. Freshly squeezed orange juice lends bright flavor to this healthy smoothie recipe, but if you're short on time, bottled will work just fine.

Peanut butter and banana is a classic combo that's even more delicious with the addition of tangy probiotic-rich kefir. Plus, this peanut butter banana smoothie helps you up your veggie servings for the day with a bit of mild-flavored spinach mixed in.

Cauliflower in a smoothie might sound like a deal breaker, but trust us, it's worth it. Not only does it boost your veggie servings for the day, it also makes this peach smoothie even creamier.

A squeeze of lemon juice adds bright flavor to this frozen fruit smoothie. Mango provides plenty of sweetness without having to add juice, but if it's too tart for you, a touch of agave will do the trick.

This pickling liquid gives bright flavor to carrots--try it with green beans or peppers as well.

Ben Bebenroth, chef and owner of Cleveland's farm-to-table Spice Catering, likes to make this sauté with Ichiban eggplant, which is a long, slender variety with thin skin that he grows on his farm.

Here's a salad to toss together during the dog days of summer, when peaches and tomatoes are both at their best. Use a combination of lettuces that have different textures and flavors--a tender, more buttery variety with something more substantial and peppery, for instance.