Flour, eggs, applesauce, honey, and Greek yogurt sit on a counter.

Healthy Choices

Experienced cooks know that substituting ingredients in recipes is a practical way to increase the nutrition of a dish while cutting down on unwanted salt, fat or sugar.

If you are new to this art, understand that amounts may require tweaking to get the results you desire. For example, you’ll notice some texture and flavor differences in muffins if you swap mashed bananas for oil. Start out by using half of the oil and replacing the other half with banana. Next time, try less oil and more banana. Soon you will find the taste and a healthier muffin you’re after.

ingredient substitution

1 cup sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar + 2 cup agave nectar (reduce liquids by ¼ cup; bake at 25˚F lower temp)

1 cup oil or butter (in baked goods)

1 cup mashed bananas, unsweetened applesauce, pumpkin puree, grated zucchini, nonfat plain yogurt, baby or prune puree

1 cup packed brown sugar

14 tablespoons granulated sugar + 2 tablespoons molasses

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup plain yogurt or ⅔ cup Greek yogurt + ⅓ cup milk or 1 Tbsp lemon juice or vinegar + milk to make 1 cup (let stand 5 min.)

1 cup sour cream

1 cup Greek yogurt

1 cup mayonnaise (for salad dressing)

1 cup Greek yogurt

1 egg

2 egg whites or ¼ cup egg substitute

1 cup honey

1 cup agave nectar or 1¼ cups granulated sugar + ¼ cup liquid or ¾ cup corn syrup + ½ cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch
(for thickening)

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 square unsweetened chocolate (1 ounce)

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon butter

2 cups tomato sauce

¾ cup tomato paste + 1 cup water and ¼ teaspoon salt

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