Time to Put on the Apron and Lighten Up

I don't know about you, but I love to bake. In fact. I love to bake cookies and breads MORE than I love to eat them. I'm just weird like that. Go figure.

And since it is that time of year when I don the apron and get flour all over the kitchen, I wanted to share a few tips that you can use to lighten up your baked recipes without sacraficing flavor or texture.

Some of these you may be familiar with and some, or all, may be brand new. Regardless, they are all worth trying when you want to eat a warm, gooey chocolate chip cookie fresh from the oven but don't want to feel guilty about it.

1. EGGS

If your recipe calls for three whole eggs, use two yolks and two whites. If it calls for two eggs, use one yolk and two whites. Alternatively, use 1/4 of egg substitute in place of half of the eggs called for in the recipe. In breads, cakes and cookies you can't tell the difference.

2. OIL & BUTTER

Most baked goods call for either oil or butter, both of which can pack a lot of fat and calories. Next time you bake, try cutting the "fat" ingredient in half. So if a cake recipe calls for 1 cup of butter, oil or margarine, use 1/2 cup instead. The missing half of the fat ingredient needs to be replaced by something moist. Some great substitutes are applesauce, greek yogurt, pureed fruit, lowfat buttermilk, light or fat-free cream cheese and lowfat or fat-free cottage cheese. You may need to experiment to see which subsitutes work best with which recipes.

3. SUGAR

Sugar is what makes things taste sweet, but it is also what gives you cavities and saddlebags. Almost every recipe for baked goods calls for sugar, some in minute amounts, others in huge quantities. In order to cut the amount of sugar in your baking without sacraficing sweetness, try using something that has concentrated sweetness. Stevia is 250 times sweeter than sugar, which means you use a lot less of it. In fact, you only need one teaspoon to equal a full cup of sugar. To compensate for the loss of volume, add applesauce, pureed fruit, canned pumpkin, fruit juice or yogurt.  Add 1/4 to 1/2 a cup of the replacement bulk for every cup of sugar that is called for.

Other sweetners you can try include maple syrup and molasses. When using maple syrup, use ¾ cup for every cup of white sugar and decrease the amount of liquid in the recipe by 3 tablespoons. For molasses,  use 1 1/3 cups molasses for 1 cup sugar, and reduce the amount of liquid in the recipe by 5 tablespoons.
Another good substitute is honey. Use ¾ cup plus1 tablespoon honey in place of 1 cup sugar, and reduce the other liquid ingredients by 2 tablespoons. Unless the recipe includes sour cream or buttermilk, add a pinch of baking soda to neutralize the acidity.

4. CHOCOLATE AND CHOCOLATE CHIPS

Everyone loves chocolate-laden sweets, but beware: they are full of hidden fat (that's why chocolate tastes so good). To retain the lovely chocolate flavor but pare down some of the fat, instead of using two squares of baking chocolate, use 6 tablespoons of cocoa powder, 1 tablespoon of canola oil and 1 tablespoon of fat-free sour-cream. For every 2 squares of baking chocolate you replace, you'll shave almost 90 calories and 14 grams of fat (most of which is saturated fat). If your recipe calls for chocolate chips, use the same ingredients and amounts listed above for every two oz. of chocolate chips you are replacing.

5. MILK

If your recipe calls for whole milk, you can substitute 2% without anyone noticing. You can also use fat-free milk and whisk in a tablespoon of fat free plain yogurt or Greek yogurt per cup to add body to the milk. Alternately, soy or almond milk works great in many recipes and often the taste of the finished product is better than if made with cow's milk.

You don't have to completely give up baking--and consuming---goodies. Plan ahead by going over your recipes and figuring out your substitutions so that you have them on hand on baking day. And above all, be brave and dare to experiment. Some great low-fat cookies just may be in your future.

It's Holiday Time! Indulge Yourself (With Restraint)

So it's that time of year again...holiday goodies are everywhere. Gift baskets full of cheese and sausages, office parties with eggnog and deviled eggs, cocktail parties with wine spritzers and mini-quiche. Plates of cookies and boxes of candy at every turn. It's enough to sabotage anyone's good eating plan.

It's inhuman to deny yourself these fat-laden treats. We all deserve to treat our tastebuds to the forbidden now and then. By not doing so, your subconscious will plot against you and before you know it you're downing double-doubles from In 'n Out and Ben and Jerry's Mooset Tracks ice cream by the quart. Only the strongest of constitutions can go completely fat-free, sugar-free and treat-free for long.

The reason for this is that our bodies are programmed to insulate themselves with fat. And to accomplish this, our tastebuds are programmed to like the way fat tastes. When you eat something with fat in it, say a butter cookie, your olfactory glands send a message to your brain that says "Mmmm, good. More please." 

Ever wonder why as good as an orange can taste, it never hits the spot quite like a bite of cheesecake or a bite of mashed potatoes dripping in country gravy? Simple, an orange has zero fat, and while it does send a pleasant signal to the brain, our brains will not rank it up there with something that contains the coveted ingredient: fat.

We can train our tastebuds to love, or at least enjoy foods that are low in fat and rank high on the healthy scale. This takes time and patience, just like housebreaking a puppy. And, like you do with a puppy, you need to allow for mishaps that present themselves at certain times, like the holiday season.

The key is in the planning. You should not plan to avoid all parties, buffets and lunchrooms laden with tempting loot. Instead, head to these events with the mindset that you will taste whatever you want, but it will be in moderation. One piece of summer sausage on a toothpick. One cracker with a smathering of cheeseball on it. One cookie and one small glass of egg nog.

If you are in a restaurant situation, order something yummy but only eat half. Share with someone else or take the remainder home for another day. If you are offered a slice of pie or cake, ask for a sliver rather than a slice. If they cut you a larger piece than you wanted---which happens quite frequently---simply pass it to someone else and ask who ever is cutting to cut you a piece half that size.

Another helpful trick is to eat before you go to a party or dinner. Have a light meal or a healthy snack to curb your appetite. All the goodies won't be near as tempting if you're not hungry.

Above all, enjoy yourself and your family and friends during this wonderful time of year. Indulge in the festivities, food and drink. Just don't over do it!