The Agricultural Research Service offers links to USDA documents on food composition and nutrition.

The University of Illinois offers The Nutritional Analysis Tool, a web-based program that allows you to analyze the nutritional value of the foods you eat.

Cooking Light

Source of recipes and information on cooking, menus, food and a healthy life.

Mayo Clinic Health Oasis

Source of Personal Health Scoreboard, a tool to rate your health and covers heart disease under Disease and Condition Centers.

Reducing Fat, Not Taste--Sweet Potato Casserole

Original Recipe

Main Ingredients

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.

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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.

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Reductions

The original recipe has 747 calories. These modifications reduce the calorie content to 429, a decrease of 43%.
Fat content was 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.
Trans fat has also been reduced.

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The use of brand names does not imply endorsement of products named or criticism of similar ones not mentioned.

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Additional Recipes

Chicken Stack-Up Salad

Beef Supreme

Grandma's Meatballs

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Next -- Watch Out for Extra Sodium in Your Diet

Previous -- Modifying Recipes to Lower Fat Content

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This document is part of a series called GIVE YOUR HEART A HEALTHY BEAT.
Direct questions or comments to: Jackie_McClelland@ncsu.edu
NCCES is based at North Carolina's two land-grant institutions: North Carolina State University and North Carolina A&T State University. Cooperative Extension Centers are located in all 100 counties and on the Cherokee Indian Reservation.
Last modified: October 2011
Designed by David Barker

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