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Use lean protein sources rather than fatty cuts of meat. Lean protein sources include poultry, fish, lean cuts of beef or pork, tofu, and nuts. So if your favorite stir-fry recipe calls for a fatty cut of beef, swap that out for chicken.

Keep added fats (such as cream, oils, and butter) to 1 to 2 teaspoons per serving. Simply decrease the amount of fat called for in a recipe, or flavor with broth, cooking sherry, or wine as an alternative to fat.

These steps will ensure you're making your meals low-glycemic, but don't forget to keep calories lower ahe same time. After all, following a low-glycemic diet for weight loss is a holistic approach.

Recipe makeover examples

The recipe makeovers that follow show you how to incorporate the recipe-modification strategies presented in the preceding section. Here you see just how easy it is to turn your comfort foods into healthy treats.

Modifying your favorite recipes to reduce their glycemic load isn't a perfect science, so these numbers won't always be exact. The goal is to see how changing a few simple things in your recipe can make your glycemic load lower. Try not to get too caught up in the numbers game.

Making over chicken and vegetable stir-fry with jasmine rice

The typical four-serving recipe for chicken and vegetable stir-fry served over 2/3 cup of jasmine rice includes the following:

16 ounces chicken breast, no skin

1 cup fresh snow peas

1 cup chopped raw carrots

1/2 cup chopped raw yellow onion

3 teaspoons minced garlic

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup chopped fresh broccoli

4 tablespoons reduced-sodium teriyaki sauce

4 tablespoons sesame seeds

As you can see, this recipe already features lean poultry, a low amount of oil (per serving), and lots of vegetables, so it's good on the health and calorie level. However, jasmine rice falls into the high-glycemic category. When you account for the glycemic level of the vegetables, that makes the glycemic load of the whole meal a bit high, or 51 specifically.

To make over this recipe and reduce the glycemic load, use 2/3 cup quinoa rather than jasmine rice. This simple move cuts the estimated glycemic load from 51 to 21! Impressive, huh?

Even better, increase the broccoli to 2 cups and decrease the amount of quinoa from 2/3 cup to 1/2 cup, and the glycemic load falls even further to 18.

Your recipe changes don't need to be significant. Simply changing grain (and, if desired, the amount of it) makes all the difference.

Revamping asparagus and almond risotto

Believe it or not, you can even find replacements for dishes that may seem taboo. If you're a fan of risotto, you know it typically calls for Arborio rice. The original recipe for asparagus and almond risotto looks a little something like this:

1 1/2 pounds medium asparagus, trimmed

5 1/2 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

1 medium onion, finely chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/4 cup Arborio rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 garlic clove

1 1/4 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/2 cup toasted, slivered almonds

Is it possible to make a risotto without rice? You bet! To give this recipe a lighter glycemic load, simply change out the Arborio rice (which has a glycemic load of 36) for pearl barley (which has a glycemic load of 11). This easy swap makes a big difference in the healthiness of your recipe (and I promise pearl barley still makes a great risotto).

Overhauling traditional potato salad

Following a low-glycemic diet doesn't mean you have to forsake classic barbeque and picnic favorites like potato salad. True, russet potatoes have a higher glycemic index than table sugar, making them a tough food to incorporate into your new plan. However, you can easily tweak potato salad to include some lower-glycemic ingredients. But first, the traditional recipe for potato salad:

2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped

1 1/2 cups minced celery

1/2 to 1 cup finely