Start up the fall with healthier meals

It's officially fall, the time of year comfort food cravings really settle in. There are creamy and hearty soups and chowders, cheesy lasagnas and casseroles drenched in cream-of-something soup.

But that comfort often comes with a pretty hefty cost: lots of carbs and calories, fat and sodium. It doesn't have to be that way, nutrition and food experts say. There's a way to indulge without overindulging and still satisfy those comfort food cravings.

Registered dietitian Gail Posner of Healthy Ways Nutrition Counseling advises clients to head to the farmers market and stock up on what's in season. Cooks will find "prices are low now and the flavor is high," she says.

The fresher the produce, the better the flavor. So says Mary Spencer, a cooking instructor at Taste: A Cook's Place in Northville, Mich. Spencer recommends cooking with lots of herbs, spices and flavored oils.

"When you add herbs at the beginning and the end of cooking, it brightens up the dish," she says. "What you're trying to do is eliminate the salt and some of the fat, but keep the flavor."

Here are five tips to keep in mind for a healthier spin on fall cooking. These are from Posner and Spencer, as well as Christa Byrd, a registered dietitian at Beaumont Health in Royal Oak, Mich.:

Plan ahead: While it may seem like a no-brainer, planning ahead is one of the things healthy people often do. "Things get hectic this time of year," Posner says. Take some time over the weekend to plan and prepare breakfasts, lunches and dinners for the week ahead. Having the menu set will make for a healthful dinner instead of a fast-food emergency pickup.

Read labels: A key component of shopping smart is reading labels and understanding what they mean. With sodium content, for example, there is a difference between "low sodium," "reduced sodium" and "no salt added." Use canned beans and vegetables like tomatoes (including tomato sauce and paste) that have labels stating "no salt added." With many brands, the "no-salt-added" versions contain half the amount of sodium of their regular counterparts. Products labeled low sodium must have 140 milligrams of sodium per serving or less. Reduced sodium means the product has 25 percent less sodium than the original version. Watch out for products that state "low" on the label. "Low sugar is usually higher in salt and low fat is higher in sugar," Byrd says.

Roast vegetables or double up on them: Roasting is an easy way to add flavor to your veggies. (See recipe for Roasted Vegetable Lasagna.) "You can cut up vegetables, drizzle with some oil and roast," Spencer says. "It's nothing. There's no recipe; it's whatever you brought home from the farmers market," she says. But what about those who don't have time to chop tons of veggies? Just eliminate that step, she says. So instead of cutting that pumpkin into cubes, just cut it in half, roast it with the skin on, seed it and enjoy. In most dishes including casseroles, Posner and Byrd say, increase the amount of vegetables for more nutrition in every bite. With one-dish meals, Byrd says, "get those veggies in there. It's all mixed together anyway."

Swap out ingredients: Byrd suggests using vegetable purees instead of high-fat ingredients to provide texture and thickness in some dishes. "Cook northern white beans, puree them and use them in place of the higher-fat dairy," she says. Beans, she says, have more fiber, vitamins and nutrients. "Using pureed beans is also a recommendation we use when people are allergic to milk," Byrd says. Eggs provide a creamy texture while adding more protein than high-fat dairy. And don't add sugar to casseroles that have ingredients with natural sweetness, such as sweet potatoes. Today's recipe for Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese uses cooked and mashed butternut squash to replace a good amount of the cheese. The squash adds color and a creamy texture.