Feature Articles: Food, Fitness and Eating Well
Creative ways to lower the fat
Tammy Roberts, MS, RD, LD, nutrition and health education specialist, Barton County, University of Missouri Extension
If you’re focused on making healthy choices, remember that you can decrease the calories and fat in casseroles and other favorite dishes by making your own substitutes for some high-fat foods. Although the substitutions don’t taste the same as the high fat version, you will get used to them if you use them regularly — the good health is worth it!
Here are three recipes for making your own substitutes:
Sour Cream substitute
1 cup low-fat cottage cheese
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons skim milk
Place the three ingredients in an electric blender and blend until creamy. Use in recipes calling for sour cream. Keep refrigerated.
One tablespoon of sour cream has about 26 calories and 2.5 grams of fat. The sour cream substitute made with 1 percent milkfat cottage cheese has about 10 calories and .14 gram of fat per tablespoon.
Cream Cheese substitute
1 cup low-fat cottage cheese
4 tablespoons margarine
1 tablespoon skim milk
Combine all ingredients in blender and mix until smooth and creamy. Keep refrigerated.
Two tablespoons of cream cheese has 99 calories and 9.9 grams of fat. The substitute has 17 calories and 1.1 grams of fat.
Creamy Whipped Topping
1 cup evaporated skim milk
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla
Chill bowl, beaters and evaporated skim milk. Whip evaporated milk until peaks form when you lift the beaters away from the mixture. Add sugar and vanilla and mix well. For firmer topping, add 1½ teaspoons unflavored gelatin, dissolved in a small amount of warm milk, to the chilled milk before whipping. Chill the topping to firm it. Serve it over fresh fruit for a low-calorie dessert.
Whipped topping made with 1 tablespoon of whipping cream has 52 calories and 5.5 grams of fat. The substitute made with 1 tablespoon of evaporated milk has 13 calories and 0 grams of fat.
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Last update: Monday, January 11, 2010
