Natural Substitutions for Better Baking

When the holidays roll around and the sun goes into hiding for the winter, bakers all around the country roll out their dough and go into pie mode. Although pies are not my specialty, holiday cookies, cakes, bars, or breads are always great gift ideas and should be savored, not stuffed down our gullets like sweets so often are. Even though there are guilty pleasures floating around the holiday season from pumpkin and pecan pies to gingerbread houses and sugar cookies with sprinkles, there are ways to get around using some of the heavier ingredients in your favorite treats.

Paula Deen’s favorite friend, the butter stick, is getting a bad reputation of late with obesity on the rise and butter being necessary in almost every commercial recipe. Why shouldn’t we like butter, its delicious! Both high in calories and saturated fat (the really bad kind of fat) butter in large quantities is never a good idea. If you use half of the butter in your favorite recipe you can swap in applesauce or another pureed fruit (think prunes, cranberries, or blueberries) to keep the moisture and flavor inside. You can also use vegetable oil instead of butter altogether, depending on the recipe. If you happen to use applesauce in your next batch of homemade banana bread, consider warming a piece and spraying with a butter-type spray to simulate the melted-butter taste you desire.

If you try to stay away from artificial sweeteners and are hoping to steer clear of the growing diabetes numbers, there are also ways to keep granulated sugar out of your desserts or savory yet sweet dishes. The stevia plant from Peru has 300 times the sweetness of white sugar and is now being touted in grocery stores across the country in many forms. For a more natural option if you are wary of change, try substituting honey or any kind of flavored syrup (maple, coconut, boysenberry) in muffins, breads, or whenever you need a sugary boost on your menu. Remember to use ¾ cup of honey or alternate per cup of sugar called for.

I was always told that if I didn’t have enough shortening to make peanut butter cookies, that I could just double the amount of butter used and the consistency would turn out the same. Little did I realize that doubling the butter in a recipe may keep the moisture and induce the “Yum,” it’s not the best idea from a bodily standpoint. Expert bakers recommend investing in “non-virgin” coconut oil instead because physically, it acts exactly like shortening, except with added minerals and vitamins for an extra health boost no one expects from a mouth-watering cookie or frosting-laden cupcake.

While a great source of protein, incredible, edible, chicken eggs are often the culprit when it comes to a spike in cholesterol. Although they are perfect for binding crust, keeping dough together, and smoothing out batter, eggs can also wreak havoc on your insides. Use egg whites instead to help your pastries rise, and instead of using an egg in the dough, nutrition-minded bakers say to crush a tablespoon of flax seed (also great whole tossed on yogurt or blended in a smoothie for extra fiber) and dissolve in three tablespoons of water, per egg, to create the necessary goopy texture that eggs have.

Now chocolate is a hard one because where would milk be without its beloved chocolate chip cookie to dip in it? However, not all chocolate is looked upon as merely additional calories. If you are lactose intolerant and need a substitute for dairy, try using 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon of oil per ounce of chocolate. For the health-conscious without special dietary needs, instead of milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips or baking squares, try dark chocolate and help your heart while indulging your sweet tooth. Additionally, carob chips have come a long way from their early hippie days, and are a good alternate.

Aside from cutting down on ingredients in scrumptious nostalgic holiday goodies, there are also ways to keep your kitchen pantry slimmed down as well. Invest in items (like a food scale) that allow you to cook healthier and feel better about what you’re putting into your body and anyone else you happen to cook or bake for.