If you’re on a diet or embarking on a healthier lifestyle, you have probably resigned to ditching your favorite treats in favor of protein and veggies, or even worse, you’re dialing your dentist to extract your sweet tooth for fear of submitting to those inevitable cravings! Before you go to extremes, there’s good news – you can have your cake and eat it too! It’s true: including small splurges in your diet can actually help you stick to a healthy eating plan because you won’t feel deprived.

The trick is to opt for treats that satisfy your sweet tooth without loads of fat and calories, and to include heart-healthy ingredients, like walnuts, fruit and dark chocolate. The main caveat to eating dessert is that you have to eat it in moderation. You will never see the results you want if you’re making a date with Ben and Jerry every night!

Following are four tasty dessert recipes that are full of heart-healthy ingredients and model more decadent desserts that you may crave. Many are less than 250 calories per serving and can be prepared within 30 minutes. The best part about them is that you can enjoy them without a huge side of guilt!

Dark Chocolate “Mousse”

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 - 16 oz package silken tofu, drained

6 oz bittersweet dark chocolate, finely chopped

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

½ cup water

1 tbsp brandy

1 tbsp espresso (or instant coffee)

½ cup sugar

Optional Topping

1 1/4 cup chocolate shavings and 11/2 cups fresh raspberries

Directions

In a blender, puree tofu until smooth. Place chopped dark chocolate, cocoa, powder, water, espresso and brandy in a saucepan. Stir constantly over medium heat until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and mix in sugar, stirring until smooth. Add chocolate mixture to puréed tofu and blend until completely incorporated. Spoon the mouse into serving bowl and cover and refrigerate for at least one hour. To serve, top with fresh raspberries and chocolate shavings.

Sweet Berry Cobbler

Serves 6

Filling

3 cups frozen berries (organic if possible)

3 tbsp honey

2 tsp cornstarch

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Topping

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup rolled oats

2 tbsp raw sugar

Pinch of salt

4 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small bits

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions

Preheat oven to 425°F.

To make filling

Cook frozen berries in saucepan over low heat until defrosted. Add cornstarch (avoiding high-heat) and stir constantly until incorporated. Turn up to medium heat and add honey and cinnamon, stirring about 3 minutes. Spoon filling into a 9-inch pie dish.

To make topping

Whisk together flour, oats, cinnamon, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle topping over filling until covered.

Bake until topping is golden brown and fruit is bubbling, about 20 minutes. Serve warm. Optional toppings include toasted walnuts or nonfat frozen yogurt.

Baked Apples stuffed with Dried Cranberries and Pecans

Ingredients

4 large apples (Gala or Fuji work best)

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup dried cranberries

2 tbsp chopped pecans, toasted

2 tbsp packed dark brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tbsp unsalted butter (1/2 tablespoon softened and 1/2 tablespoon cut into 4 pieces)

1/2 cup unfiltered apple cider

1/4 tsp vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Core apples. Stand apples up and make 4 evenly spaced vertical cuts starting from top of each apple and stopping halfway from bottom to keep apple intact. Brush inside of apples with lemon juice and stand apples in a 9-inch pie plate.

Toss together cranberries, pecans, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. Rub softened butter into mixture with your fingers until combined well, then pack center of each apple with mixture. Put a piece of remaining butter on top of each apple. Pour cider and vanilla around apples and cover pie plate tightly with foil.

Bake in middle of oven, basting once, until apples are just tender when pierced with a fork, about 40 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until apples are very tender but not falling apart, 20 to 30 minutes more.

Transfer to serving dishes and spoon sauce over and around apples. Serve warm. Optional topping: nonfat frozen yogurt.

Easiest “Cheesecake”

Serves 2

Ingredients

4 whole-wheat graham crackers

4 tbsp light cream cheese

8 tsp jam

Directions

Spread each graham cracker with 1 tablespoon of light cream cheese and 2 teaspoons of jam. Serve!

In addition to these yummy treats, fresh fruit always makes a fantastic dessert. Taste buds can get jaded from all the processed, sugary sweets and often we forget how delicious a simple bowl of berries can be. Drizzle with a teaspoon of honey – and voilà! – you have a nutrient-dense dessert ready in less than five minutes.

As long as you eat healthfully the majority of the time, the occasional sweet treat will help you meet your goals. Just don’t fool yourself into seeking out “diet” desserts that aren’t. Many low-fat products are full of sugar and just leave you feeling deprived so you end up eating three times the amount. Treat yourself to what you’re really craving and just eat half. It will satisfy your craving without adding too many calories to your daily intake.