It's already that time of year. Halloween has come and gone,
and the "holidays" are around the corner. Many of
us are now starting to think of some of the details for the
holiday season, and one of these details may be "what
am I going to bake/cook for...Thanksgiving, Chanukah, Christmas,
Holiday Parties, or New Year's." No matter what event,
party or dinner you'll be attending over the next few months,
if baking a special dessert or preparing a favorite meal or
side dish is in your future, you may find this week's tips
helpful.
Here are some healthful substitutions for baking and cooking.
INSTEAD OF the traditional ingredients on the left. . . .
TRY the healthier ingredients on the right:
| butter. . . |
canola oil or olive oil |
| oil (in cakes, cookies, and sweet breads). . . |
prune/fruit puree or applesauce |
| 1 ounce of chocolate. . . |
3 tablespoons cocoa |
| 2 eggs. . . |
1 egg + 2 whites or egg substitute |
| cream or whole milk (in batters, muffins or biscuit
doughs) |
skim/fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk |
| cream cheese (in cheesecake). . . |
low-fat ricotta + yogurt OR light cream cheese |
| whole-milk ricotta cheese. . . |
½ whole milk ricotta plus either part-skim ricotta
or low-fat (1%) cottage cheese |
| sour cream. . . |
plain yogurt |
| whipped cream, ice cream (to top cakes and pies). .
. |
frozen yogurt, low-fat yogurt |
| 1 cup whipping or heavy cream. . . |
1 cup evaporated skim milk |
| mayonnaise. . . |
1 tsp dijon mustard + 1 cup plain yogurt, salt and pepper |
| sour cream. . . |
Plain or vanilla yogurt + 1 tsp baking soda added to
dry ingredients OR low-fat sour cream |
| heavy cream (in soups). . . |
puree soup ingredients with cooked potato instead of
cream |
| cake frosting. . . |
dust with cinnamon and cocoa or confectioner's sugar |
| butter or oil (for coating baking pans). . . |
vegetable oil spray |
| sugar. . . |
use 2/3 to ½ of the amount suggested |
