By Trilby Goouch
Blogs Editor

There’s a common misconception that eating baked goods such as cookies or brownies will make you ‘fat’; granted, the majority of recipes out there aren’t very forgiving on the waistline (hello cups of butter, shortening, sugar and chocolate). There are, however, many substitutions that can turn any dessert into a healthy yet satisfying alternative. You can have your cake and eat it too!

To cut butter, use half the amount the recipe calls for in butter and use applesauce, avocado, mashed banana or Greek yogurt to make up the other half; you’d be amazed at how the flavours are masked by the other ingredients in your recipe, whether it be chocolate chips, raisins, nuts or icing.

Use one can of black beans with one package brownie mix to replace the usual egg and oil requirements, or replace flour requirements with black beans in a homemade recipe (cup for a cup).

In place of white flour, use whole wheat flour to add more fibre or almond flour to add omega 3 fats and protein. (Note: almond flour is a heavier flour, so when subbing reduce requirement by ¼ cup (so 1 cup of white flour can be substituted by ¾ cup of almond flour).

Instead of cream, use evaporated skim milk which provides the same consistency.

In place of sugar, replace one cup with one banana or two tbsp of stevia, an all-natural sugar substitute. If you’re using banana, reduce the other liquids in your recipe to maintain the right consistency (you can do this by feel).

To lessen cholesterol, replace one egg with two egg whites.

Do you have any other substitutions? Let us know!

Sources:
greatist.com/health
fitsugar.com