| |
- Give Your Heart A Healthy
Beat
- Modifying Recipes to
Lower Fat Content
Modifying Recipes to Lower
Fat Content
To become more heart healthy, many
people are reducing their intake of fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and
calories. They are also adding fiber to their diets. You don't have to
give up your favorite recipes, but you may need to adapt them to this new,
healthy way of eating. There are three ways to do just that.
- Eat foods that are high in fat,
saturated fat, cholesterol, and calories less often.
- Reduce portion sizes. Take
a smaller piece of cake, and put less margarine on bread, and less
dressing on salads.
- Modify recipes. You can
change a cooking technique or change an ingredient. The rest of this
document will concentrate on modifying recipes.
First, identify the high-fat items,
such as oil, margarine, nuts, cream, and whole eggs. Ask why each
ingredient is there. Is it for appearance? Out of habit? For flavor or
texture?
Can an ingredient be eliminated? For
example, products can be made without nuts and high-fat toppings can be
eliminated.
Can an ingredient be reduced? Often,
fat can be reduced by one-third. For example, if a recipe calls for 6
tablespoons of oil, use 4 tablespoons. If a recipe calls for 1 cup of
shortening, use 2/3 cup instead.
Can you use a substitute? Skim milk
can be substituted for whole milk. Skim evaporated milk can take the place
of cream. Yogurt or no-fat sour cream are substitutes for sour cream. Two
egg whites can take the place of a whole egg.
Second, see what a difference a
change in preparation can make. A 3.5-ounce portion of light meat chicken
that has been fried with the skin on has 246 calories and 12 grams of fat.
Remove the skin and roast the same portion and it has only 173 calories
and 4.5 grams of fat. Oven-fried chicken has 185 calories and 5.3 grams of
fat.
You eliminate 100 to 120 calories
for each tablespoon of fat you remove from a recipe.
When making soups or stews, allow
time to refrigerate the broth. The fat that hardens and accumulates can be
skimmed off.
If the recipe directions say saute,
use a nonstick pan. Or use a nonstick spray or steam-cook vegetables in
broth or in the microwave.
Would you like to see some examples?
We have taken a Sweet Potato Casserole that gets 54 percent of its
calories from fat and reduced the percentage of fat calories to 31
percent. There's a Chicken Stack-Up Salad that got 71 percent of its
calories from fat originally and now has 31 percent of its calories from
fat. Beef Supreme has been reduced from 56 percent of its calories from
fat to 41 percent, and Grandma's Meatballs have been reduced from 67
percent of its calories from fat to 52 percent.
Reducing Fat, Not
Taste--Sweet Potato Casserole
Original Recipe
3 cups sweet potatoes
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/3 cup light cream
1/2 cup butter
Topping
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1 cup pecans, chopped
Cook potatoes, mash, and mix with
1/2 cup sugar, eggs, vanilla, light cream, and 1/2 cup butter. Spread in 9
x 13-inch pan.
In a small bowl combine topping
ingredients. Mix well. Sprinkle topping over casserole. Bake at 350
degrees for 30 minutes.
Modifications
1. Could reduce sugar to 1/3 cup, if
desired.
2. Substitute 4 egg whites for 2 whole eggs. Could use egg substitutes.
3. Replace cream with skim milk. Could use evaporated skim milk.
4. Use reconstituted Butter Buds in place of butter.
5. For topping, replace butter with margarine and reduce the amount used
to 1/4 cup. Use 3/4 cup brown sugar. Reduce pecans to 1/2 cup.
The original recipe has 747
calories. These modifications reduce the calorie content to 429, a
decrease of 43%. Fat content has been reduced from 45 grams to just 15
grams, down 67%. Saturated fat content has been cut from 20 grams to 2
grams. And milligrams of cholesterol have been cut from 154 to 0.
The use of brand names does not
imply endorsement of products named or criticism of similar ones not
mentioned.
Cutting Fat--Chicken
Stack-Up Salad
Original Recipe
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
4 cups shredded lettuce
1 cup chopped celery
1 10-ounce package frozen peas, thawed
1 cup cooked elbow macaroni
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded Cheddar cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
1 8-ounce carton sour cream
Combine chicken, salt, paprika, and
lemon pepper seasoning; toss gently. Layer lettuce, chicken mixture,
celery, peas, cheese, and macaroni in a 4-quart casserole. Combine
mayonnaise and sour cream. Spread evenly over top of salad, sealing edges
of bowl. Cover tightly and chill overnight. Toss immediately before
serving.
Modifications
1. White meat is lower in fat than
dark meat, so use only breast meat. To reduce the fat that occurs
naturally in chicken, remove any visible skin and fat or reduce the total
amount of chicken.
2. If you are on a low-sodium diet,
be aware that salt and lemon pepper seasoning contain sodium.
3. Substitute reduced-fat cheese for
regular Cheddar cheese.
4. Use reduced-fat or fat-free
mayonnaise. Using nonfat mayonnaise saves 1,392 calories and 176 grams of
fat.
5. Use a fat-free sour cream product
or blend low-fat cottage cheese until smooth to substitute for sour cream.
The original recipe contains 3,717
calories; making these modifications cuts calories almost in half to
1,901. The fat reduction is an even more dramatic 80 percent, from 293
grams of fat in the original recipe to 60 grams. Saturated fat has been
cut from 86 grams to 32 grams, and cholesterol has been cut from 793
milligrams to 541 milligrams.
Cutting Fat--Beef Supreme
Original Recipe
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 14.5-ounce can whole tomatoes
1 10.5-ounce jar pizza sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 8-ounce package medium egg noodles
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes
5 green onions with tops, chopped
Brown beef in large skillet; drain
off drippings. Add tomatoes, pizza sauce, and garlic. Simmer for 10
minutes.
Cook noodles according to package
directions; drain. Combine noodles, sour cream, cream cheese, and green
onions.
Spoon half of noodle mixture into
greased 12 x 8 x 2-inch baking dish. Top with half of meat mixture.
Repeat. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
Modifications
1. Use ground turkey for ground
beef.
2. Egg noodles do not contain enough fat to warrant substitution.
3. Many foods may be substituted for sour cream. Use fat-free sour cream,
unflavored yogurt, blended cottage cheese, or ricotta cheese. Any of these
would work in this recipe.
4. Substitute reduce-fat cream
cheese for regular cream cheese.
These changes cut the calories from
3,961 for the original recipe to 3,150. The fat has been reduced from 246
grams to 144 grams. Saturated fat has been reduced 53 percent, from 112
grams to 53 grams. And cholesterol has been cut from 808 milligrams to 568
milligrams, a reduction of 30 percent.
Reducing Fat--Grandma's
Meatballs
Original Recipe
2 pounds ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup bread crumbs or oatmeal
Butter for frying
Mix all ingredients except butter in
a large bowl. Make meatballs the size of large walnuts. Fry in butter
until browned and juices run clear.
Modifications
1. Use extra lean ground beef. Use
less ground beef to keep the serving size to 4 ounces raw, which is 3
ounces cooked.
2. Eggs hold the meat together. Use
2 egg whites or 1/2 cup egg substitute.
3. Use skim milk instead of whole
milk.
4. Replace butter with vegetable
spray or use a nonstick skillet or bake the meatballs on a broiler pan.
The calories have been cut from 514
to 436 for the recipe, a decrease of 15%. Fat grams have been reduced from
38 to 25, down 34%. Saturated fat has been cut from 16 to 10 grams (down
38%) and cholesterol has been reduced from 214 milligrams to 150
milligrams (down 30%).
North Carolina Cooperative Extension
Service
Warning:
This program is a heart disease risk reduction program consisting of
information on healthful eating and walking, with an emphasis on your individual
capabilities. There exists the possibility of certain biological changes
occurring during your participation in the walking exercises. These changes
include, but are not limited to: abnormal blood pressure, fainting, disorder of
the heart beat, and in rare instances, heart attack or death. Thus, prior to
participating in this exercise program, you should consult a physician.
The North Carolina Extension Service shall
not be liable for any claims, demands, actions, or cause of action, whatsoever,
to person or property arising out of or connected with participation in Give
Your Heart a Healthy Beat.
Path:
Home>Education>Health
Information>Give Your
Heart a Healthy Beat: Modifying Recipes to Lower Fat Content
|
|
