How To Make Baking Healthier

Freshly baked bread, cakes, chocolates and other tasty delights are the ultimate treat for any household but over indulging is often as unhealthy as it is scrumptious. Sadly.

Traditional home baking recipes focused more on decadence than they did fat content and breaking a habit of a lifetime can be difficult. Using the wrong flour when baking bread, using fatty oils or butter when making cakes or including sugars when healthier options are available are the normal mistakes bakers make but there are things you can do to increase nutritional value (or at least decrease fat and sugar content) without jeopardizing flavor.

Here we look at simple things we can all do to cut down on the calories. Listed below are 10 ways to make your baking healthier:

1. If you are baking cakes or cookies then you can replace a large proportion (up to half) of the grease or butter with apple sauce. You can make use of other pureed fruits in place of apple sauce if you prefer.

2. Cut half of the sugar content by replacing it with a sugar substitute, such a Splenda. It is important to use a mix of sugar and sugar substitute to ensure you attain the desired browning obtained from sugar.

3. Instead of using cream or milk you can use buttermilk (1 % or non-fat).

5. Use whole grain wheat flour in place of white flour. White flour is refined with the bran, germ and endosperm removed during the milling process which extracts the fibre, vitamin B and iron content leaving few of its original nutrients

6. Instead of utilizing fats and oils to grease your pan, use a silicone baking mat. Silicone baking mats are entirely non-stick so unhealthy greasing is not needed.

7. Keep salt content down. No more than 1/2 a teaspoon for a batch of cookies is necessary. Salt is still crucial when making yeast bread or rolls, however, as it is essential for yeast action.

3. Instead of using cream or milk you can use buttermilk (1 % or non-fat).

5. Use whole grain wheat flour in place of white flour. White flour is refined with the bran, germ and endosperm removed during the milling process which extracts the fibre, vitamin B and iron content leaving few of its original nutrients

6. Instead of utilizing fats and oils to grease your pan, use a silicone baking mat. Silicone baking mats are entirely non-stick so unhealthy greasing is not needed.

7. Keep salt content down. No more than 1/2 a teaspoon for a batch of cookies is necessary. Salt is still crucial when making yeast bread or rolls, however, as it is essential for yeast action.

John Dennes