Got Good-Tasting (and Lower-Fat) Dairy Products?

Wouldn't you like to know which fat-free and reduced fat-dairy products taste great and are worth buying and trying? Ultimately, it's up to the discretion of your taste buds, of course, but we can certainly nudge you in the better-tasting direction.

Here are our findings:

Great-tasting reduced-fat cheeses

Cheeses with only a little fat taken out -- like Cracker Barrel Light Sharp Cheddar, with 6 grams of fat per ounce -- are more likely to look and taste like regular cheese.

I've been using these reduced-fat cheeses for years and have found they work great in every cheese situation I find myself in (in recipes, on crackers, for grilled cheese sandwiches, etc.).

I've also found that fat-free cheeses just don't compare to regular cheese, because they have zero fat per ounce compared to about 9 grams per ounce for regular cheese.

What About Cream Cheese?

I use fat-free cream cheese as a fat replacement in cookie dough, biscuits, scones and cakes, but I wouldn't dare put in on my bagel. Fat-free cream cheese just doesn't taste as good as real cream cheese, and the texture is too different. But light cream cheese and Neufchatel (1/3 less fat) cream cheese taste good and can be used in recipes or on bagels.

Which cream cheese should you use to make a less fatty cheesecake? If you are on the picky side, try using all light cream cheese. If you aren't that particular, you might be happy with half fat-free cream cheese and half light cream cheese. Adding grated lemon peel for some extra flavor helps too.