Healthy Food: Sensational Substitutions for Cooking and Baking

Is your motivation waning? Are you already feeling deprived because your favorite recipes are off limits? Making meals count is important. Meals should be satisfying, good tasting, pleasing to the eye, nutritious, and have a texture that is pleasing to your palate. Otherwise, you WILL feel deprived. The good news? It is easy to modify some of your favorite recipes by using the sensational substitutions listed below. You don’t have to eat a sparse and boring "diet meal" any longer.

Cooking Substitutions

Instead of… ---> Try…
1 Cup Cream ---> 1 Cup Evaporated Milk
Cream to thicken Soups ---> Pureed Potatoes or Vegetables
Oil-based Marinades ---> Citrus Juice or Flavored Vinegar
Stick Margarine ---> Small amounts of Olive oil, Canola oil, or Broth
2 ounces of Mild Cheddar Cheese ---> 1 ounce Reduced-fat Sharp Cheddar Cheese
White Rice ---> Brown rice, Bulgur, Kasha, Quinoa, Whole Wheat Couscous
Meat or Poultry for Stir Fry ---> Tofu (Extra Firm, Cubed) or more Vegetables
Ground Meat ---> Ground Turkey Breast; Finely Chopped Vegetables with Less Meat; Crumbled Tofu, Tempeh, or Soy Crumbles; Beans

Baking Substitutions

Instead of… ---> Try…
1/2 Cup Oil, Butter or Margarine ---> 1/4 Cup Applesauce + 1/4 Cup Canola Oil, Butter, or Margarine
1 Egg ---> 2 Egg Whites
Sweetened Condensed Milk ---> Nonfat Sweetened Condensed Milk
Evaporated Milk ---> Evaporated Skim Milk
1 Cup Chocolate Chips ---> 1/2 Cup Mini Chocolate Chips, Chopped Dried Fruit, or Chopped Nuts
Frosting ---> Sliced Fresh Fruit with a dusting of Powdered Sugar
Sour Cream ---> Nonfat Sour Cream, Low fat Sour Cream, Pureed Low Fat Cottage Cheese
Whole Milk ---> Skim Milk
Cream Cheese ---> Low Fat Cream Cheese
Sugar ---> Artificial sweetener for some or all (follow manufacturer’s directions); 1/4 to 1/2 Less Sugar in the recipe