Leaner and Lighter Cooking

Cooking at home is generally more healthful than eating at a restaurant or getting take-out. However not all recipes are healthy! Cream based soups may taste great, but they’re loaded with saturated fat (and likely sodium too) and the shortening used to make that chicken pot pie is chock-full of trans fats. Instead of throwing in the towel, try to lighten your recipes by cutting out ingredients and or using substitutions. Here are a few tips for lightening up your favorite recipes.

Dairy
• Use skim milk whenever possible
• Make your own buttermilk by adding a tablespoon of lemon juice to one cup of milk and letting it sit for a bit before using
• Use low-fat or nonfat sour cream, cheese and cream cheese
Meat and Poultry
• Always chose the leanest cuts possible: skinless chicken and turkey (that goes for ground as well), pork loin, beef round and flank steak
• When using ground beef or turkey try substituting some of the meat with a grain like quinoa or bulgur
• Skip the meat and have beans
Starch
• Instead of a roux or cream to thicken soups, gravies, and sauces, use puréed vegetables, mashed potatoes, or a slurry of cornstarch and cold water
• Replace your refined grains (white flour and pasta) with their whole grain alternative
Fats
• Skip some of the fatty dressings and marinade and season your foods with vinegar, herbs and spices
• Substitute the fat in baked goods with fruit purees like applesauce, or prunes, and because fruit is naturally sweet, you get to cut the granulated sugar in the recipe by about ¼
• Sauté or grill your foods- skip the frialator
• Line cookie sheets with parchment paper instead of oil