COLLEGE STATION — Most people know one of the best ways to get heart healthy is to change eating behavior. What they don’t always know is how to do that without giving up some favorite recipes.
Cutting fat, cholesterol, calories and salt can actually be pretty easy, said a nutrition specialist at Texas A&M University.
“The Texas Agricultural Extension Service has a new guide called Altering Recipes For Good Health.’ With a little planning and experimentation, many of our favorites can become better for us,” said Dr. Mickey Bielamowicz
One thing chefs should remember is that recipes are chemical formulas, Bielamowicz said. All changes are experiments. Some work very well, others are less satisfactory.
“Recipes for combined foods, like casseroles and soups, are more flexible than others. A cookie recipe is more adaptable than a cake recipe. Recipes for most baked products can be altered, but recipes for any preserved product, such as pickles, salsa, jellies or candies shouldn’t be changed,” she noted.
Most people don’t notice much difference in their foods when the following kinds of changes are made.
“Reduce sugar and fat by one-third,” Bielamowicz said.
For example, if a recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar, use two-thirds of a cup instead. As a general rule, try using a half-cup of sugar per cup of flour in cookies and cakes. For quick breads and muffins, use 1 tablespoon per cup of flour.
“To enhance the flavor when sugar is reduced, add vanilla, cinnamon or nutmeg,” Bielamowicz suggested.
Fats constitute lard, oils, shortening, margarine, butter and beef fat. If a recipe calls for a half-cup of fat, use one-third cup instead. This works best in gravies, sauces, puddings and some cookies. For cakes and quick breads, use 2 tablespoons of fat per cup of flour.
Herbs, spices or salt-free seasoning mixes will help eliminate salt from recipes while adding flavor. Another suggestion is to reduce salt by one-half.
“Don’t eliminate salt from yeast bread or rolls — it is essential for flavor and helps texture,” Bielamowicz warned.
By substituting whole grain and bran flours for all-purpose flour, new flavors, textures and fiber are added to food.
For example, whole wheat flour can replace from one-fourth to one- half of the all-purpose flour in a recipe.
Oat bran or oatmeal can replace up to one-fourth of the all- purpose four. “Make sure it’s ground to flour’s consistency in a food processor or blender.”
Bran cereal flour is made by grinding ready-to-eat bran cereals in a food processor or blender for 60 to 90 seconds, Bielamowicz said. “It can replace up to one-fourth of the all-purpose flour.”
Not all products are interchangeable. Bielamowicz does not recommend substituting margarine for solid shortening when baking.
“Just because an ingredient is a fat, it doesn’t necessarily make it interchangeable with another,” she said.
For example, oil is 100 percent fat. Margarine is an emulsion containing 80 percent fat and 20 percent water. Substituting 1 cup of oil for 1 cup of margarine adds more fat to the recipe intended. “The cookies would feel and taste greasy,” Bielamowicz explained.
Though it is possible to substitute lite margarine-type spreads for solid shortening when baking, Bielamowicz offered another solution.
“Rather than substituting reduced-fat margarines, try using less margarine. You won’t have to alter the amount of liquid in the recipe and you’ll save calories.” Lite or diet margarines have more water in them, so the amount of liquid ingredients would also have to be reduced.
Alternative sweeteners may be used instead of sugar. According to a maker of a non-nutritive saccharin sweetener, its product can replace up to half of the sugar called for in a cookie or cake recipe.
Here’s where experimentation comes in. This product’s literature stated that in a cake recipe, liquid ingredients may have to be increased or dry ingredients decreased. For cookies, dry ingredients should be reduced 25 percent. If the batter is still stiff, an extra egg white may be added.
Sweeteners made with aspartame are not recommended for cooking or baking, Bielamowicz said.
Dairy products offer a variety of choices for making a recipe leaner.
“You can use reduced-fat sour cream, low-fat or non-fat yogurt, or cottage cheese instead of regular sour cream in sauces and dips. Skim milk can be used instead of whole milk in most recipes,” Bielamowicz said.
For example, heavy whipping cream has 832 calories, 90 grams of fat and 336 milligrams of cholesterol. Using evaporated skim milk as a substitute cuts calories down to 200, with 1 fat gram and 9 milligrams of cholesterol.
“Altering Recipes For Good Health” also contains ideas for fiber substitutes. One suggestion is to use brown rice, barley or wheat kernels as a substitute for white rice in casseroles, soups, stir fry and side dishes.
“This guide has it all,” Bielamowicz said. “It also contains an herb and spice guide, recipes and all kinds of ideas for substituting foods. It even works for persons with diabetes who follow the food guide pyramid.”
The “Altering Recipes For Good Health” is available through county Extension offices. For more information, contact your county Extension agent.
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