My Mom left a day and a half ago and I’m still in mourning.

We had such a good time – it was filled with cousins, touring LA (movies, Venice beach, Hollywood Blvd), and many, many amazing meals.

After an amazing last breakfast (bld) and a trip to the airport, I came home utterly bummed and super sad. I ate a brownie for lunch. I sulked around. And then I pulled myself together and made these green beans. Even though I’ve been in a bit of a cooking slump lately, spending some time in the kitchen is always something I enjoy and usually makes me feel better. (If the recipe turns out well, I enjoy it even more!)

These green beans are simply delicious. I had torn out a recipe from Bon Appetit for Green Beans with Miso Butter, but the ingredient list was long and the process a bit tedious for me. I skipped most of the ingredients and process, leaving only my favorite parts. The miso adds wonderful savory flavor to standard green beans and comes together in minutes!

Eat them on a depressing afternoon, a sunny, fun afternoon or alongside some grilled fish, chicken or tofu with a side of brown rice.

I’m always looking for ways to make a recipe healthier.

Well, I take that back – there are times to make a recipe healthier and there are times when you should leave it be. Some recipes aren’t meant to be healthy.

But when the time is right to make a recipe a bit healthier – here are my favorite tips:

How to Make any Recipe Healthier: 

• reduce an ingredient! This can work with cheese or dairy products, mayonnaise, oil, sugar, etc. Play around with the amount to find the best result.
• swaps grains: Using whole grains (bread, pasta, tortillas) in place of white flour versions can help increase fiber and protein and can sometimes even decrease calories.
• reduced-fat products: In my opinion there isn’t much of a flavor difference between the full and reduced-fat versions of cottage cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise. (Reduced-fat cheese is NOT ok with me!)
• add veggies! This is a favorite of mine – if a recipe calls for 1/2 an onion or bell pepper, use the whole thing! Veggies add bulk to your meal for very few calories. Serve entrees over lightly steamed spinach instead of pasta, and always add more greens and lettuce to salads.

How do you alter recipes to make them a little healthier?