Did you Know?: Fat Reducing, Yet Flavor-Preserving Substitutions in Recipes

It’s an ongoing debate—can you REALLY make a healthier version of a dish and still preserve the FLAVOR?? That’s what’s it really all about after all, isn't it—flavor. Turns out, there are several common ingredients that you can substitute in regular recipes that don’t mess with the flavor while simultaneously reducing the fat content (which can often reduce grocery cost too—newsflash, fat isn’t free!). Now, I’m not going to lie to you; there are recipes where you definitely don’t want to substitute ingredients because the recipes just won’t taste the same. The recipes that I’m talking about are those where you can substitute and you, the picky, taste-bud sensitive cook, truly cannot tell a difference, or if you can, the taste is so subtle that you are okay with it because you didn’t want to fork out an addition $2-5 for the butter or other pricey ingredient. That said, here are a few of my favorite substitutions that I use the most:

INGREDIENT                              SUBSTITUTION


• White Flour                            Whole wheat flour


Cooking TIP: Increase the liquid in the recipe; whole wheat flour needs more moisture.
Health benefit: Unlike white flour, whole wheat flour has protein in it, so if you are not a huge fan of meats, dairy, or fish, you can still get some of your protein from whole wheat/whole grain foods.

• Oil or Butter (melted)           Applesauce (unsweetened)


Cooking TIP: This does NOT work for recipes needing softened butter, like a cookie recipe where the butter is creamed with the eggs and sugar.
Health benefit: NO FAT, obviously, with applesauce, but you will also get a serving of fruit in your diet. If you have a hard time eating fruit each day, applesauce is a nice way to work it into your diet.

• Buttermilk                              Milk with white vinegar


Cooking TIP: I use this a lot with buttermilk biscuit recipes when I don’t want to pay for or run to the store for buttermilk. The vinegar works to sour the milk (similar to buttermilk) while at the same time interacts with the baking soda (remember those volcano science projects…) to create air and fluff in the biscuits. I substitute a little over ¾ cup milk and 3 Tbs. white vinegar for 1 cup of buttermilk.
Health benefit: Buttermilk isn’t at fattening as most people think, but you can control the fat content even more with the milk substitution because you can choose whatever type of milk you like.

• White sugar                            Honey


Cooking TIP: I do this substitution with sauces, breads, pancakes, cakes, and cookies. The only time I don’t substitute it is when I am making a recipe that calls for both white and brown sugar—those flavors are necessary with one another.
Health benefit: White sugar is processed, heated, and refined. Honey comes in its natural state and is better for the body.