Forum Thermomix
Welcoming Center, Management and General Chat => Chit Chat => Topic started by: dede on May 12, 2012, 10:00:30 am
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I was looking at ways of cutting down on calories (especially fats and sugars) for most of my recipes I make.
I'm going to add apple sauce to cakes muffins etc to replace half the fat (butter, oil etc) and cut the sugar by 1/4 to 1/2 and butter in half on everything else.
And replace half the white flour with whole wheat flour.
I will report on the successes and failures as I make a recipe so others know what works and what doesn't
10 Ways to Cut Calories in Baking Recipes
Here are 10 tried-and-true tips to help make baking recipes healthier.
1. Whole-Wheat Flour Takes the Cake
In most bakery-type recipes (muffins, cakes, cookies, coffee cakes, brownies, nut breads, etc.) you can usually substitute whole-wheat flour for half of the white flour. Compared with 1/4 cup of white flour, each 1/4 cup of whole-wheat flour adds 3.5 grams of fiber, various phytochemicals, and double the amount of magnesium and selenium. The extra fiber helps slow digestion and increase fullness.
2. Cut the Sugar
In most baking recipes, you can replace half the sugar with Splenda (or a similar product). If you'd rather not use a sugar alternative, you can sometimes just cut the sugar by 1/4 and the recipe will still work out. For each tablespoon of sugar you cut out, you'll save 48 calories. So cutting 1/4 cup of sugar would save you a total of 192 calories.
3. Use an Egg Substitute
You can replace half of the eggs in your bakery recipes with egg substitute. Some cake recipes call for three or four eggs; some muffin recipes call for one or two. For each large egg that you replace with 1/4 cup of egg substitute, you'll shave 45 calories, 5 grams of fat, 1.6 grams saturated fat, and 213 mg cholesterol.
4. Cut the Fat
In most baking recipes, you can cut the fatty ingredient (butter, margarine, shortening, or oil) by half. So if a cake recipe calls for 1 cup of butter or margarine, you can usually use 1/2 cup instead. Remember to replace that 1/2 cup with a moist but healthful ingredient, and choose an ingredient that complements the flavors of your recipe. My arsenal of secret weapons includes fat-free sour cream, low-fat buttermilk, orange juice, low-fat yogurt, applesauce and other fruit purees, strong coffee, and light cream cheese. Cutting fat cuts lots of calories, as each gram of fat translates into 9 calories (a gram of carbohydrate or protein, by comparison, has 4).
5. Use Light Products
Try substituting lower-fat and lower-sugar ingredients in your baking recipes when possible. For example, if you're making a cake that calls for sour cream, use the fat-free version. Also try reduced-fat cheese, light cream cheese, less-sugar jams, light pancake syrup, light Cool Whip, light yogurt, light margarine or whipped butter, and fat-free half-and-half. Most of these products will help you cut calories and saturated fat along with the total grams of fat.
6. Cut Down on High-Calorie Extras
Recipe add-ins and embellishments can sometimes be left out or cut in half. If a recipe calls for chocolate chips, for example, you can reduce the amount. If a recipe calls for dotting your pie with butter, you can safely skip this step. In a cake recipe, you can often get by with half the original amount of frosting (In a double-layer cake, just frost the top and middle and forget the sides). And in some cakes, bars, and cookies, you can eliminate frosting and substitute a light sprinkling of powdered sugar. Using 2 tablespoons of frosting instead of 4 will shave about 130 calories, 4.5 grams of fat, and 2 grams of saturated fat. Each tablespoon of chocolate chips omitted cuts about 50 calories, 3 grams of fat, and 2 grams of saturated fat.
7. Keep a Carton of Fat-Free Sour Cream in Your Fridge
Fat-free sour cream is the bomb in light recipes for three reasons. It's an easy replacement for real sour cream in recipes like pound cake or coffee cake. You can use it as a substitute for part of the fat in recipes for things like cookies (it works especially well for brownies), cake, or muffins. Further, manufacturers often add soluble fiber-like ingredients (such as gelatin, agar gum, xanthan gum, and locust bean gum) to keep fat-free sour cream stable. These ingredients also help keep it from separating when you whip it into your batter or heat it while baking. If your eight-serving recipe calls for 1 cup of butter or oil, and you use 1/2 cup of fat-free sour cream in place of half the butter or oil, you'll save about 110 calories and 13 grams of fat per serving.
8. Go Cuckoo for Cocoa
Cocoa is a great way to add the chocolate flavor to bakery recipes without getting the saturated fat (and calories) found in chocolate chips or chocolate squares. Cocoa has the healthy flavonol antioxidants found in the cocoa bean, too. Look for recipes that call for cocoa instead of chocolate chips or bars, or use 6 tablespoons of cocoa plus 1 tablespoon of canola oil plus 1 tablespoon of fat-free sour-cream instead of 2 squares of unsweetened baking chocolate. For every 2 squares of baking chocolate you replace, you'll shave almost 90 calories and 14 grams of fat (most of which is saturated fat).
9. Add Zest to Your Batter With Citrus
The zest, or outermost layer, of a citrus fruit is full of aromatic oils and flavor. Adding citrus zest is an easy, zero-calorie way to boost the flavor of low-fat dough and batters. I use zest in all sorts of recipes, from muffins, cookies, cakes, and bars to frosting, pies, and pancakes.
10. Use Cooking Spray and Nonstick Pans
Using nonstick pans and dishes and a spritz of canola cooking spray means you'll need less fat in the batter or crust to keep food from sticking. All sorts of nonstick bakeware are available, from springform pans, to cake and muffin pans, to cookie sheets and deep-dish pie plates. When you use one of these pans, your lighter cakes, muffins and tarts will come out nicely brown and won't stick.
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=78682&page=2 (http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=78682&page=2)
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Great list of ideas Mandi, thanks for sharing with us.
This one is amazing for just 2 squares of chocolate - to think you need so much to replace 2 little squares :o How often do we use just 2 squares of chocolate, it is usually heaps more so the following would blow out for a 200g block. Would that be right?
6 tablespoons of cocoa plus 1 tablespoon of canola oil plus 1 tablespoon of fat-free sour-cream instead of 2 squares of unsweetened baking chocolate.
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I'm not sure about that one Judy, maybe it's a misprint. :)
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Thank you for the list Mandi.
I also look for healthy alternatives in cooking :)
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Great list Mandi, thank you :-*
I don't eat baked goods like cakes or biscuits, but I have a bit of a knack for baking so I make them often for friends. I'm always interested in ways to make them healthier.
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6T cocoa is a HUGE amount? Is that right?
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It's a huge amount DriverJess, I wonder about that hint. Not sure how much chocolate it is supposed to replace. You would think with the oil added as well that it would be more calories than 2 squares of chocolate. I think it's a typo. I just copied the hints from the web site. :)
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yes it is 6Tbl of cocoa i have it on my substitute list
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Yep I was just looking at other sites and that is correct. Although its probably American TBs so might vary a little. :)
Morning fundj :)
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morning mandi
i have used this a few times when making muffins
Combine 6 tablespoons cocoa powder with 2 tablespoon of butter, margarine or vegetable oil. This will make the equivalent of 2 ounce of unsweetened baking chocolate.
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2 ounces = 56 grams
Thanks fundj :)
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Thanks Dede. great list. I have fiddled with a few recipes to get the calories down and it is not easy to maintain the texture and taste and get fewer calories. Heather's Zucchini and coconut cake is one. I made this 4 times to get it right. I found that egg white was a great help to help the cake stick together and lower the calories.
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Tablespoons... Uk one 15 mls, Australia 20mls.... Only just learnt that on google.
We learnt as kids that a T of flour was 1/2 ounce. Yes I learnt to cook with imperial and am now bilingual with metric. ( so are my grown up kids) .
I often use a normal tablespoon from the drawer to measure things,
Just checked that is still half an ounce (13 gms) whereas my cooking spoon set tablespoon is less - .4 ounce or 11 grams.
My baking scales measure in 1g intervals.
So I was thinking when I said huge amount- 3 ozs cocoa from 6T. ....
Will maybe try this substitute although a lot of my Choc recipes are cocoa based.
Not so keen on the diet stuff: mayo, Philly, etc because of the additives. Prefer to have less of the real stuff, and not eat carbonara very often!
All fascinating. Thanks.
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I use light sour cream in muffins too.
Great list,
Thanks, Robyn
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I have just made a chocolate brownie and cut half the butter and replaced with apple sauce, and used 1/3 less sugar and half whole meal half plain white flour. Just come out of oven and looks and smells great. I guess the taste test will tell :)
Also making a bimby chocolate cake. Used half butter half apple sauce. Same with flour 1/2 whole meal 1/2 white. Dropped the sugar down from 370g to 250g and used light milk (which is what I always use) in the oven now.
At least doing this will also save money with using less ingredients ;D
As long as it tastes fine then it's a win win situation for the waist and the pocket.
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Sounds great Mandi :D
Can't wait to hear how they turn out... ;)
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Ok I think I have gone a little crazy.
I have also made some choc chip cookies with half the butter and half the choc chips ;) and used half whole meal half white flour.
Honey pikelets also half whole meal half white flour
A raspberry coconut slice (yep you guessed it) half whole meal half white flour and about 1/3 less butter.
My kids will either love me or hate me (not sure at this stage). :)
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Ok I think I have gone a little crazy.
I have also made some choc chip cookies with half the butter and half the choc chips ;) and used half whole meal half white flour.
Honey pikelets also half whole meal half white flour
A raspberry coconut slice (yep you guessed it) half whole meal half white flour and about 1/3 less butter.
My kids will either love me or hate me (not sure at this stage). :)
:o :o :o :o :o :o
Sounds like the entire forum will need to come around for afternoon tea Mandi :D
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I think you have gone a lot crazy. ;D :-*
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Oh and I'm making some cheese and bacon rolls. And guess what?
Half whole meal half white bread flour ;)
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Awaiting your baking results with great interest.
Could do a lot with applesauce.
Every time I try to increase. Amount of whole meal flour in bread I get huge resistance. I get a bit in and have compromised on untreated organic flour no 4 from www.shipton-mill.com
However I can put grains and seeds in so that adds goodness and fibre.
Need to look again at that suggestion from the toddler forum about grinding seeds to add protein and vits/mins.
Enjoy your baking.
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Well thumbs up for the pikelets. But that's all that has been tried so for. Just pulled cheese and bacon rolls out of the oven, they end up having three rises as I was busy doing other things so I just kneaded it again and let it rise again :)
They smell great. Will report back tomorrow afternoon from the critics (family). ;D
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There were some little grubbies in my wholemeal flour, so I couldn't use that >:(
But I did have some apple sauce, so I used it to replace half of the butter in these apple and sultana muffins :D
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Have you tried one yet Amy?
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Not yet. I'm going to feed them to the family first and see if they keel over... if everyone stays upright then I'll try one ;D
Is that mean? ???
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Amy, that is very sensible....... ;D
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Amy, that is very sensible....... ;D
Phew! Thanks Robyn ;D
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Absolutely Amy - they always say put your own oxygen mask on first.
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Lol Amy. That's the way. I still got to find out the verdict from the critics yet. Will report back as soon as I know what they thought.
But I do know from DD12 that the coconut jam slice was awesome (half whole meal half white and 1/3 less butter) :)
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But I do know from DD12 that the coconut jam slice was awesome (half whole meal half white and 1/3 less butter) :)
Whoo! Good work Mandi :D
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Lol Amy. That's the way. I still got to find out the verdict from the critics yet. Will report back as soon as I know what they thought.
But I do know from DD12 that the coconut jam slice was awesome (half whole meal half white and 1/3 less butter) :)
Very impressed dede. 1/3 less butter???
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;D you will be looking like a super model in no time at all mandi :-*
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Ha ha fundj, I nearly chocked on my cuppa when I read that.
Just trying to reduce some calories in this house with all the cooking I do. Saves some money too.
Bimby cake was great apparently, and choc chip cookies great too.
I think I'm on a winner with this reduction of fat and sugar and increase in some whole meal flour.
I'm very happy with my effort.
Next step is to add a few other goodies to my cooking as well (hidden nutrition)
Ha ha ha (insert evil laugh) ;D ;D ;D ;D
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OOOO, the dreaded hidden nutrition, good luck with that one.
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They won't even notice Michelle (well that's the plan) I know the choc chip/ chick pea cookies were something they enjoyed but didn't realize :)
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I have tried to hide veges in brownies, but my kids are too smart.
They can tell the difference.
Robyn
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dede have you heard about Chia Seed gel it can be used instead of oil,butter and i think also eggs, i use it instead of oil sometimes when making bread
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Uni - do you buy the gel . . or do you make it from the seeds themselves?
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i make it
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I do have Chia seeds fundj which I add into bread sometimes. I really like them but the kids are not so keen :(
How do you make the gel? Sounds great. But would be very expensive ?
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this last lot i got from the chemist warehouse for only 13.00 kg.
i add 1/3 cup chia seeds and 2 cups of tap water to a large clean glass jar with an airtight lid
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I'm really interested in this . . didn't even know about it :-))
Just found this link on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4k3FnTFiKsw
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Wouldn't the chia seeds sink to the bottom (or float) or do the dissolve over time?
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Well just watched the you tube video. I will be a monkeys uncle, how cool is that ;D
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dede have you heard about Chia Seed gel it can be used instead of oil,butter and i think also eggs, i use it instead of oil sometimes when making bread
If you have 30gms of butter or oil, how much chia seed gel do substitute?
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Has any one tried reducing the fat content in pastry? I want to make Lentil Pie but the pastry kills the calorie count. I also like the idea of making pies with leftovers. Any suggestions?
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dede have you heard about Chia Seed gel it can be used instead of oil,butter and i think also eggs, i use it instead of oil sometimes when making bread
If you have 30gms of butter or oil, how much chia seed gel do substitute?
in bread i use 1 1/2 tablespoons instead of oil
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I think the lowest fat content I have done in pastry is 3 ozs fat to 7.5 ounces flour. Use a mix of plain and SR flour. Sorry don't have metric conversion as not in kitchen at present.
Came from a heart foundation cookbook.
Obviously a bit more water is added.
It is ok but you can tell the difference.
Family still prefer shorter pastry.
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Dash, there are some pastry recipes that replace the butter with oil instead, I was having a bit of a look on the Internet. Not sure if it would be better though. Will look into it a bit more. I don't actually like butter pastry, I find it too rich. Would love a better alternative.
There is also a cream cheese pastry recipe on the forum.
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Thick slices of wholemeal bread with the crusts removed make a good, healthy alternative to pastry.
I have only ever done this with individual pies though. Not sure how a big pie would go ???
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Good idea Amy. :)
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Good idea Amy. :)
Why thank you Mandi :D Its not every day that I have them ;)
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Short crust pastry (no butter)
75 ml water
75 ml oil
225 g flour
Making the pastry
Weigh out the flour. Pour your cold water into a measuring jug – let the tap run first if you have to, to get it as cold as possible. Then carefully pour the olive oil into the same jug.
With any ordinary knife, mix the oil and water for a few seconds
Pour the liquid ingredients into the flour.
Using the same knife (never your warm fingers), mix the liquid and dry ingredients together briskly for about a minute to combine everything. At this stage it should start to bind together, but it won’t be a neat little ball just yet.
So use your fingertips to knead the stuff together, very lightly, and very quickly so that it comes together in a rough ball of dough.
Put the ball into a polythene freezer bag or Tupperware container with a lid. Leave it in the fridge for three quarters of an hour to rest so it becomes easier to handle and roll out.
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Thick slices of wholemeal bread with the crusts removed make a good, healthy alternative to pastry.
I have only ever done this with individual pies though. Not sure how a big pie would go ???
works well in the pie maker 2 , DD does it.
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And great in a muffin tin. I roll the slice of bread a little the push down into muffin tin, pour a little sauce (sweet Chilli, tomato, BBQ or what ever) inthe bottom, a whole egg, some chopped bacon, salt and pepper and cook in oven. DH loves these. And so easy to make :)
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Dede,
I thought of your thread when I was cooking Nonomix's Banana and choc chip cake last night. I reduced the butter and the sugar by about 25 g each. Small change I know (especially with the choc chips) but the resulting cake was still sweet and yummy.
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I'm glad ES, I think if we reduce the sugar and fat in recipes (even just a little) it will make a difference in the long run. No longer will I add the full amount of fat and sugar to recipes. I will cut back where I can, and substitute some ingredients to a more healthy alternative. :)
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You will all be gorgeous and slim in no time.
I often reduce the amount of sugar in my baking and always use low fat versions of things. I use natural yoghurt for sour cream too. Hopefully every little helps.
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dede, i forget to say that i have stopped using sugar, when i make bread
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Does that make any difference fundj? I know it's only a small amount with most bread recipes but doesn't the sugar help the yeast react?
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Oh and an update on all the items I cooked for school/work, everything is gone except the brownies which the kids were not to keen on. Although there is not many left. :)
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dede i havent notice any difference, the real italian nonnas dont use it ;D
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Well if it makes no difference then I can't see the harm in removing it completely from the recipe :)
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dede i use bread improver not sure if that helps with the rising
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I use butter milk for cakes, muffins, picklets etc to reduce the fat content.
Can't tell any difference.
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I never put sugar or bread improver in my bread, but some times use slower method. I put a comment few days ago in achookwoman's bread comment thread.
Mc mich I use homemade buttermilk in baking too. But it sounds like you are replacing something with buttermilk? If so what please?
I often use it in place of milk eg in a gingerbread.
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If I have buttermilk I use it in all baking. I read somewhere that it is supposed to help with the lightness, I don't know if it does or not.
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It does make muffins and cakes lighter apparently.
DJ I replace regular milk for buttermilk or if muffins call for oil substitute half oil and half butter milk.
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I don't use buttermilk very often. Probably because it has the word "butter" in it, and that puts me off :-))
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Buttermilk is actually low fat Amy.
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Buttermilk is actually low fat Amy.
You'd think they'd call it something else then wouldn't you? How about "unbutter milk", or "skinny people's milk"?
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If I have buttermilk I use it in all baking. I read somewhere that it is supposed to help with the lightness, I don't know if it does or not.
It is recommended for baking, and is probably superior sometimes to using milk. Here is something (http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/food/cookingtips/785476/benefits-of-buttermilk)about the benefits.
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I use buttermilk quite a lot in my baking too
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If I have buttermilk I use it in all baking. I read somewhere that it is supposed to help with the lightness, I don't know if it does or not.
It is recommended for baking, and is probably superior sometimes to using milk. Here is something (http://aww.ninemsn.com.au/food/cookingtips/785476/benefits-of-buttermilk)about the benefits.
Great link, thanks CP :D Does anyone know if you can get lactose free buttermilk?
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Apparently not Amy but this (http://www.circleofmoms.com/article/homemade-lactose-free-buttermilk-sweetened-condensed-milk-02219) lady makes her own plus she makes lactose free condensed milk too.
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Thanks Judy!!! ;D
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It amazing what you can find out when you have many people to give you info that you never knew about before.
I love the saying that your never to old to learn new things :)
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Trying some choc ripple biscuits today. I cut down the sugar from 320 to 200g, cut down the butter from 150g to 80g. But I found the mixture to dry so I added an extra egg (2 all up), but that was too much. Next time I would try 1 egg and if to dry then just add another egg white only. They are in the oven now. Will report back :)
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Trying some choc ripple biscuits today. I cut down the sugar from 320 to 200g, cut down the butter from 150g to 80g. But I found the mixture to dry so I added an extra egg (2 all up), but that was too much. Next time I would try 1 egg and if to dry then just add another egg white only. They are in the oven now. Will report back :)
Looking foward to hearing how the turn out Mandi :)
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This is the verdict Amy from DS (5)
(http://img.tapatalk.com/7cbbfad0-50cf-66db.jpg)
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What a cutie!!!
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Thanks Desi :)
He's my baby and always will be now (definitely will be no more :D )
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Naww!!! :D :D :D
Congrats on the bikkies and having such a gorgeous boy!!
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What a darling. Never say never dede.
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Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
:D :D :D (I'm done lol)
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Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
Never, never, never,never, never, never, never,never, never, never, never
:D :D :D (I'm done lol)
:o :o :o
How long did it take you to type all those?
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he is gorgeous mandi, come on one more to keep him company ;D
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Copy and paste Amy :D
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Thanks for this thread dede. I am (thinking about) joining in a weight loss challenge some ladies at work have going so I know this info will be a big help - baked Goodies are my weakness!
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he is gorgeous mandi, come on one more to keep him company ;D
No way fundj, not happening. His cousin is 2 so he can play with him :)
I would rather cut off my left testicle than have another baby lol
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or his ;D
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or his ;D
Yep definitely his (left and right) and maybe middle too :D
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Mandi using one egg and one egg white is another way to reduce calories and cholesterol in recipes. The yoke contains more of the calories in an egg and all of the cholesterol.
He is definitely a cutie and I don't blame you for saying no more Mandi. I was at a club swim meet today and it was so nice to grab my one bag and leave at the end while my training partener and hs wife collected 4 bags and assorted other bits so they could get going with their 3 kids.
I have never regretted having the snip.
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Yes DH had the snip while I was pregnant with DS (5)
Had to be done.
DH tells everyone that he only had to walk past me and I would be pregnant :D
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That's not much fun then Mandi ;)
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Reading all these posts, I had to double check to make sure I was stillon Forum Thermomix... ???
... ;D
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Reading all these posts, I had to double check to make sure I was stillon Forum Thermomix... ???
... ;D
Lol I know what you mean there :D
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Reading all these posts, I had to double check to make sure I was stillon Forum Thermomix... ???
... ;D
so true amy i wonder what ppl would say if they read some of the posts
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Lol Uni I've been caught out a few times reading some of the older threads... :o
I'm loving the openess though. Just like one big, happy family on Forum Thermomix! We are the sort who walk across the hallway naked to have a shower, right?
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if i am home alone ,yes amy ;D
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I made the easy apple Teacake again today for the school working bee and replaced some of the flour with whole meal. It was just as delicious. Everyone loved it.
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Yes I think little changes go un noticed.
Made chocolate crunch today with less butter, but the base was to crumbly. So will have to add something else to make the base a wetter mixture. Will experiment next time :)
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Dede, maybe natural yogurt or buttermilk would work next time.
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Yep I think something like that would work. Just need a little more moisture in the base.