Make Any Recipe More Healthy

Posted by wonderchica on April 04, 2007

I love food! I love to watch the Food Network, I love to cook, and most of all I love to eat food. The most fun I have in the kitchen is to experiment with different recipes and try to make them more healthy. I have found some great ways to cut out calories or fat, without cutting out the flavor. Here are some of my favorite cooking substitutions:

---Substitute 2 egg whites for 1 egg. You’ll cut out the majority of calories and cholesterol, but keep all the protein.

---Substitute equal amounts of applesauce for butter. This may not work in all recipes, but is fantastic in any baked item like cookies, banana bread, etc.

---Instead of using whole milk, cut down to 1% or skim. You’ll save calories and fat, and no one will be able to tell.

---Replace sour cream with low-fat or non-fat yogurt. This can be used in equal amounts and tastes great in most recipes.

---Instead of sugar, use Splenda! (Don’t roll your eyes, it isn’t nearly as bad as you imagine it to be!) Splenda is the best sugar replacement out there, and can be used cup for cup in place of sugar. Best of all, it is calorie free!!

In addition to these substitutions, I recommend using fat-free or reduced fat ingredients whenever possible. You may want to take baby steps on your way to healthier eating (ie, try reduced fat ingredients before non-fat) so that you don’t go into flavor shock due to the change. Try some of these easy substitutions and your waistline will see the difference, but I doubt you’ll taste it!