H.M.
I use Nutella. It is a hazelnut peanut butter with a touch of cocoa in it. It is healthy and tasty. A little more expensive then peanut butter but so tasty.
I got to thinking the other day that what I have been spreading on my toast is not very healthy. My family and I are trying to eating a little healthier. I am still new at this. I would like to make better choices with my food selection. Usually I purchase "I can't believe its not butter" or whatever is on sale. Last year I received and email talking about butter spreads and how toxic they can be, but never thought twice about it?
I use Nutella. It is a hazelnut peanut butter with a touch of cocoa in it. It is healthy and tasty. A little more expensive then peanut butter but so tasty.
In my opinion real butter in moderation is better than any type of spread because the spreads are made of oils and chemicals and the butter is cream based. I know everyone says butter is bad for you but it can't be worse than spreading over processed goo on it. If you want to try something other than butter, maybe apple sauce with no sugar added would be a fun thing to try or home made apple butter? Good luck! -S
I switched to just plain ol' butter years ago. A subsitute I used for years in between time was 1 cup of butter, 1 cup of olive oil, two tablespoons of powdered milk, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Start with the butter at room temp, blend it all together, pour into container, then refrigerate until it re-solidifies. It's cheaper than straight butter and probably healthier, but then straight butter is healthier than any of the other substiutes I know of.
I use Earth Balance buttery spread. I have found it tastes the most like butter and really isn't bad for you. We have actually dubbed it fun spread. You can find it at Fry's in the health food section. It is a vegan product and has less chemicals in it than most butter alternatives. Hope this helps.
Try Butter. A little good fat is more satisfying and you'll eat less.
Jelly, real honey, PB, cinnamon sugar...
Start shopping at Sprouts or Whole Foods - you'll find some fantastic healthy, natural and organic options for just about everything!
well-butter spreads ARE full of additives, preservatives and a bunch of other yucky stuff. A rule that I always use is if a product contains more than one ingredient that I can't pronounce, I don't buy it.
Except for our butter spread. Because our son can't have any milk, we need to buy a milk/whey/casein free butter spread.
If you are looking for healthy (as far as what is IN the food), go with good ol natural butter and use it sparingly.
If you want something healthy as far as low cal, etc, go with a spread.
But you aren't going to find both. If I had the choice, I'd use a spread for toast and bread and the real deal for baking. Also, if you switch to olive oil instead of butter for cooking (sauteing veggies for example), that is also much more healthy.
Look for anything that does not have hydrogenated or partially-hydrogenated oils of any kind! Stay away from these in everything you purchase. Earth Balance is a good spread because it uses expeller-pressed oils.
If you use real butter, consider Organic Valley. They are a co-op with "real" farmers, who farm the old fashioned way (cows who actually eat grass on a pasture) instead of employing cruel, factory farming techniques.
You can get coupons here: http://www.organicvalley.coop/coupons/
There is nothing better than REAL butter, from a cow that ate grass in the sun. All the other spreads are not real food, imo. Real butter is a real food used for centuries by humans, unlike these other manufactured, processed foods. You can learn more about REAL foods at http://www.westonaprice.org.
Look for this at the store, I have tried it..it tastes very good :)
real butter is better for your health than any fake but if you are vegan (or even if you aren't) you can try coconut oil
Earth Balance, Ghee, or Organic Valley butter.
Here's a fantastic site that should give you all of the information you need:
http://www.snopes.com/food/warnings/butter.asp
Keep reading to view the chart they compiled of various brands.
We use Smart Balance. It's much healthier than other margarines. The taste is a little different but it's not bad and the kids don't even notice the difference.
Even better tasting than smart balance is Earth Balance! The original tastes very much like butter, and they make a whipped version that spreads easy.
Please don't get your nutritional advice from chain emails! The other two recommendations are what my dr has told me to use (smart balance). If you just use butter, there is nothing in it that is "bad" for you- but it has a lot of fat and cholesterol.
Peanut or another nut butter is probably the best "natural" choice for a spread.
I second SmartBalance! Its great! I use to eat it with toast everyday.
We try to eat a whole-foods diet, so we use real butter - no artificial spreads or fake fats. In moderation, it's a good thing!
smart balance is good, but DO NOT get the regular one,it does not spread easily.it is like trying to spread traditional butter... Hard! The light smart balance butter spreads easily... Also for quick on the go mornings I also like the I can't believe its not butter spray. On weight watchers it is zero points.
I've been making BETTER BUTTER for years in our home. Super, super, easy. You'll need a hand mixer. People tell me all the time I should market this, but the recipe has been around forever. This makes a delicious, easy to spread butter. Very dangerous with fresh bread around. Even though the original recipe states not to use it in cooking, I do use it in cooking all the time.
Better Butter Recipe:
Use equal parts softened butter and olive oil or grapeseed oil.
Blend with hand mixer then pour into plastic tubs and refrigerate:
1 Cup Butter
1 Cup EVOO (extra virgin olive oil or Grapeseed Oil)
1 Tsp. Salt dissolved in 4 Tablespoons of Water
4 Tblsp. dry/powdered milk
4 Tblsp dry soy lecithin
That's it. Literally EVERYONE who comes to home loves this spread. You just have to make it part of your routine. I make a large batch, use one, then freeze one.
I have even made this without all the added ingredients of milk and lecithin, salt and water. It still turns out beautiful and spreadable. It's just oil. So experiment if you want with the oils. Just make sure to purchase a healthy oil.
Happy spreading!
Jen