Smart Substitutions

Tweaking recipes to make them healthier only works if they also taste great

Healthy food isn't going to do anyone any good if no one is eating it. That's been my motto for the 15 years or so that I've been lightening recipes. In other words, even if it's light, it's gotta taste great.

Lightening recipes for extra calories comes down to basically two things: 1) trimming extra fat and fat-containing ingredients and 2) trimming extra sugar and sugar-containing ingredients.

The keys to successful lightening are:

• Find the ideal fat and sugar threshold for the recipe. How much can you cut calories, fat, and sugar without compromising flavor and texture? See the table below for more help on this.
• Use the fat substitute that works best in that recipe. See the table below for more help on this.
• Review the functions of each fatty or sweet ingredient before you make changes to your recipe. When fat or sugar serves an irreplaceable function, you'll probably need to keep some of it in, but you can usually cut fat in half and sugar by one-fourth.
• Substitute reduced fat and reduced sugar ingredients and products when appropriate. For example, use reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese instead of regular, use a good tasting fat-free or light sour cream instead of regular, or use fat-free half and half instead of regular. You can also use reduced calorie pancake syrup, unsweetened frozen fruit, etc., instead of regular.
• Change to a cooking method that eliminates the need for cooking fat (broiling, roasting, poaching, steaming) when possible. But when it is necessary to maintain the character of the food, do use a cooking method that involves fat -- just use less of it (oven frying, sautéing, or pan frying in less fat, browning).

Ideal Fat Thresholds and Substitution Table

Based on two decades of experimentation with the best ways to lighten recipes, I've discovered there are ideal fat thresholds that you must keep for flavor. So, if you cut back the fat in a particular recipe, you'll need a "fat replacement" -- an extra ingredient you can add to help replace the fat you have taken out.

Example #1 If you are making a brownie recipe and you cut the butter back from 8 tablespoons to 3, you can add 5 tablespoons fat free sour cream to the batter to make up the difference.

Example #2 If you are making a spice cake using a cake mix, don't add the 1/2 cup of oil the recipe requires; instead add 1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce (or some other fat replacement) instead.