Breads and Grains

• Breads, cereals, rice and pasta are naturally low in fat. The sauces, butter, cheeses, etc. you add increases the calories and fat.
• To increase fiber and heartiness, replace up to 1/3 of the all-purpose flour called for in a recipe with whole grain flour.
• When eliminating fat in a bread recipe, it is a good idea to substitute whole grain flour for 1/3 to 1/2 of the flour called for. The fiber will help maintain a pleasing texture in your baked goods.
• Make your own oat flour by grinding quick-cooking rolled oats in a blender. This works well when substituted for part of the refined flour (white) because it retains moisture and reduces the need for fat.
• To retain moistness, bake fat-free and fat-reduced breads at a slightly lower temperature. Bake muffins at 350 °F. and quick breads at 325 °F.
• Use fruit and whole grain breads in stuffing rather than high fat nuts.

Vegetables and Fruits

• Start your meal with a low-fat soup to take the edge off hunger and serve plenty of vegetables.
• Stir-fry vegetables in a nonstick skillet sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Sauté onions or other vegetables in defatted stock, broth or water rather fat since the object is to tenderize.
• Season vegetables with a smoked turkey thing, defatted chicken broth, a small piece of lean ham or smoke flavoring.
• Substitute skinless chicken thighs for ham hocks, fatback, or neckbone.
• Mash potatoes with skim or evaporated skimmed milk and no-fat yogurt or sour cream rather than whole milk and butter.
• Toasted wheat germ can add a crunch and nutty flavor to baked goods such as sweet potato casseroles with 80% less fat than nuts.
• Experiment with herbs and seasonings. 1 teaspoon dried herb=1 tablespoon fresh.
• For vegetables with a buttery taste, use butter sprinkles or reduced-fat spread.

Dairy Products

• Use 1%, skim, or nonfat dry milk in recipes calling for milk.
• Buttermilk adds a rich flavor and texture to baked goods. If you don't have any on hand, mix equal parts of nonfat plain yogurt and skim milk or 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice and 1 cup of skim milk.
• Evaporated skimmed milk can be substituted for cream in a variety of dishes such as quiches, sauces, cream soups, and puddings.
• One cup of skim milk mixed with 1/3 cup of nonfat dry milk powder can replace the cream in most recipes (adds calcium too).
• Add instant nonfat dry milk powder to fat-free brownies and cookies to enhance the flavor and promote browning.
• For a low-fat whipped topping, partially freeze 1/2 can of evaporated skimmed milk in a mixing bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of sugar and whip until soft peaks form.
• Use nonfat or reduced-fat sweetened condensed milk in place of the regular version.
• Nonfat plain yogurt works well as a base for many dips and dressings. For a thicker yogurt product, you can place plain yogurt in a colander (lined with cheesecloth and placed inside a bowl to catch the liquid) for several hours or overnight.
• Avoid using a mixer with nonfat products such as frozen whipped toppings and cream cheese because it affects the texture. Mix recipes with these ingredients by hand.
• When adding yogurt to hot sauces or gravies let the yogurt warm to room temperature. Stir one tablespoon of cornstarch or two tablespoons of flour into each cup of yogurt being used. This will prevent curdling.
• If using no-fat or reduced-fat dairy products in casseroles, stir in a tablespoon or two of cornstarch or a couple of egg whites to bind the excess water in theses products.
• Use strong cheeses to give more flavor with a smaller amount.
• Roll your favorite cheese ball in "Grape Nuts" cereal for crunch without fat.
• Fat-free cheeses should be mixed in dishes rather than sprinkled on as a topping. These cheeses don't always melt well but do give flavor to the dish. Sprinkle fat-free cheeses on uncooked dishes such as salads.

Meats

• Poultry cooked with the skin on (and removed after cooking) has only slightly more fat than when cooked without the skin however, removing the skin after cooking slow removes any seasonings.
• Three ounces of turkey breast has 2 grams less fat and 20 fewer calories than 3 ounces of chicken breast.
• When purchasing meats look for the words "round" or "loin" as these are indicators of leaner cuts.
• The leanest cuts of beef are: eye of round, top round, round tip, and top sirloin.
• The leanest cuts of pork are: Tenderloin, ham (95% lean), boneless sirloin chops, boneless loin roast, boneless loin chops.
• In general, the higher and more expensive grades of meat like USDA Prime and Choice, have more fat due to a higher degree of marbling that cannot be trimmed away.
• Read labels carefully when purchasing ground turkey and ground chicken. These often contain skin and fat.
• Ground dark turkey breast has 8-10% fat by weight and ground turkey breast is 1% fat by weight.
• Texturized vegetable protein (TVP) is a low-fat soy product that makes a good substitute for ground beef.
• For low-fat meat gravy when oven roasting (poultry, beef, pork), pour off the juices in a large, flat pan so you will have a large surface area for cooling. Set the pan in the freezer and allow the fat on top to congeal. Remove the fat and mix the remaining juices with some flour that you have previously browned in a dry skillet or in the oven on a cookie sheet (to extend the gravy and finish off with a gravy browning and seasoning sauce ("Kitchen Bouquet" or Gravy Master").

Miscellaneous

• Because egg substitutes have been pasteurized, they are safe to use in eggnog and uncooked dressings.
• Replacing 1 egg with egg substitute (1/4 cup) or 2 egg whites in recipes will save 50 calories, 5 grams of fat and 210 milligrams of cholesterol.
• Don't replace all eggs if a recipe calls for several. It is a good idea to keep one or two whole eggs to maintain the taste and consistency.
• Toast nuts to intensify the flavor so you can use less in recipes (use 1/2 what the recipes calls for).
• Use honey or corn syrup to replace some of the butter or margarine in crumb crusts. Save more calories by crushing reduced-fat cookies.
• When modifying recipes, make changes gradually. For example don't try to replace all the margarine and eggs in a cake recipes. Begin by replacing half the fat and substitute egg whites or egg substitute for part of the eggs called for.
• Add extra flavorings - eg. vanilla extract, cinnamon, etc...to compensate for the flavor lost from fat.
• Spray baking pans with nonstick cooking spray and coat with flour as usual. For chocolate baked goods, try coating with cocoa.
• A great way to reduce fat and calories in favorite foods is by portion size-eat a serving, not a "helping".
• Every tablespoon of nonfat margarine you substitute for regular margarine will save you 11 grams of fat.
• Cutting the amount of butter, margarine, shortening, or oil in recipes by 1/4 to 1/3 should not affect the product.
• Choose margarine with liquid vegetable oil as the first ingredient.
• You can bake with reduced-fat margarine. These reduced-fat products are diluted with water so you cannot replace them on a one-for-one basis. To compensate for the water substitute 3/4 as much of the lighter product (eg. 1 cup margarine=3/4 cup reduced fat margarine).
• Be careful not to over bake low-fat goodies as they can become dry. You may need to lower the temperature by 25 °F.
• You will have to do some experimenting with individual recipes but in general you can replace margarine, butter, shortening or oils in baking with an equal volume of pureed fruit (applesauce, babyfood prunes, babyfood apricots, mashed bananas). Begin by replacing half the fat in your recipe and next time try reducing even more.
• If replacing solid fat (shortening, margarine) you may need to use less of the substitute than the amount of fat the recipe calls for.
• Other fat substitutes you can use: nonfat buttermilk, nonfat yogurt, honey, molasses, maple syrup, corn syrup, fruit juice concentrates, and mashed cooked pumpkin or sweet potatoes. Use nonstick cooking sprays sparingly. The serving size is generally a one-second spray so using more than that can add fat to your foods.
• Replace regular canned cream soups such as cream of mushroom with the reduced-fat versions.
• For a tasty low-fat gravy, brown flour in a nonstick skillet or on a baking sheet in the oven. Whisk with water and add a seasoning sauce such as "Kitchen Bouquet" or "Gravy Master". Browning the flour eliminates the raw flour taste with out using fat.
• Fruit juice concentrates add sweetness and flavor to baked good while enhancing the nutritional value.
• Fruit spreads can sweeten baked goods without adding extra sugar.
• Use the freshest ingredients possible because they give the best flavor (eg. freshly ground pepper, fresh onion rather than dried, etc...)