The main ingredients for mango ice-cream are full cream milk, mango pulp, plenty of sugar and emulsifiers and preservatives if you indulge in the store bought variety.

The hot weather may tempt you to think of ice-cream and cold drinks, but bear in mind how high the fat content of an icecream is. Just one scoop supplies nine grams of fat while providing little other nutrition.

If you are one of those who plans to try your hand at home-made ice-cream, you can modify some of the calories by using low-fat skimmed milk. If not, try not to overindulge.

Fruit custard

With banana, chikoo, apple (1 medium bowl) = 300 calories, 0 fat calories

The ingredients of a fruit custard include milk, custard powder (corn starch), sugar and fruits. It is simple, easy to make and a good low-calorie dessert option.

If you want to further reduce the calories of this dessert you can replace the added sugar totally by an artificial sweetner like Splenda without altering the taste.

Using skimmed milk also further reduces the fat calories and choose fruits like oranges, apples and grapes in small quantity over chikoo and bananas as these have fewer calories and taste even better!

One medium bowl skimmed milk fruit custard with splenda with half an apple, half an orange, few grapes = 100 calories

Eating your dessert

Just because you are watching your calories does not mean you will not feel tempted. Dieting does not mean depriving yourself, so here's how you can enjoy your dessert but avoid gaining weight!

• Choose a small plate/bowl so you take only a small portion of dessert.
• Take a small bite/spoonful enjoy it by allowing it to linger on your tongue before you swallow it.
• Share your dessert with a friend or your spouse, immediately halving the calories.

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The author is a nutritionist and a certified personal trainer. She runs Size Wise, a training studio, and also conducts fitness workshops. She has a PG Diploma in nutrition and food technology and writes for a number of publications.