Most of us have memories of at least one meal that our mom would prepare faithfully -- one that nobody could ever top. For Alyson Moreland Haynes, that comfort and joy was "a plate of spaghetti and meatballs topped with fresh Parmesan cheese." Her mom's secret? A homemade marinara sauce "heavy on the herbs and garlic," Alyson says. "When mom made it, all the scents from the spices and seasonings would envelop the house. Even today, she makes vats of it and freezes it, so whenever my sister, Paige, and I come home, she can just whip it out for us."

When Alyson set out to lighten Rhunette Moreland's spaghetti and meatballs, her goal was to come down on the fat and calories without compromising one bit of flavor. While careful to keep the sauce's rich, garlicky taste, she decreased the oil. Along with beef meatballs, she created turkey and lamb alternatives. And instead of frying them, she baked them to trim the calories of her mom's spaghetti and meatballs by more than one-third. She also cut the fat, cholesterol, and sodium by about half.

Best of all, when Alyson served her lightened version, Rhu approved -- more than that, she asked for the recipe.

Reliable Sauces
If you are in a hurry for spaghetti, you might want to make meatballs and not the sauce. If so, you can always pick up one of the light sauces that are now in your supermarket. Read the label carefully, of course, making sure that one cup has about 100 calories and only 3 to 4 grams of fat.

Before & After

Calories per Serving
792 | 556

Fat
43g | 14.6g
Percent of Total Calories
49% | 24%

Cholesterol
169mg | 73mg

Sodium
2,979mg | 822mg

To the Rescue. Do you have a favorite recipe that needs a healthy makeover? Maybe we can lighten it up. Send it to us, along with your reasons for wanting a healthier version and any interesting stories or traditions about the recipe. Include your name, address, and daytime phone number with the recipe, and send it to CL_Web@timeinc.com with "Lighten Up" in the subject line. We can't lighten every recipe we receive, but if we adapt yours, we'll send you a Cooking Light cookbook. We reserve the right to edit all recipes. All recipes submitted become the property of Cooking Light and may be republished and used for any purpose.