My daughter Lucie loves baking healthy treats. Here are some great tips we’ve both adopted for healthier – and wildly delicious – baking:

• Substitute canola oil for shortening, stick margarine or butter. Canola oil/butter blends also acceptable.
• Use ground flax seeds, ground nuts or prepared all natural nut butters in place of bad fats (butter, stick margarine, shortening).
• Substitute pureed fruits or starchy veggies (apples, bananas, pears, squash, pumpkin) for “some” of the oil in your recipes; EX. If the recipe calls for 1 cup of oil, use ¾ cup pureed fruit or veggie as above and ¼ cup oil. Jarred baby foods are great for this purpose.
• Replace butter with yogurt
• Substitute whole wheat flour or “white” whole wheat flour ( “Ultra-grain” King Arthur Brand) for white flour.
• When reducing fat in baking recipes, use low-gluten flours (i.e. whole wheat flour, oat flour, brown rice flour) – this makes for a tenderer product.
• Use buttermilk (1% or nonfat) instead of milk or sour cream.
• Substitute plain Greek-style yogurt for sour cream.
• Substitute dark or semisweet chocolate for milk chocolate.
• Substitute pureed dates, honey, maple syrup, or molasses for sugar.
• To reduce the fat or butter in your recipes without compromising flavor( fat, especially butter, is a flavor carrier), add  nuts, spices (i.e. cinnamon), instant espresso powder, coffee, cocoa powder, dried fruit, extracts (i.e. vanilla), liqueurs (i.e. amaretto), citrus zest or juice, 100% fruit butters, nut oils, or salt.
• To thicken recipes (i.e. mousse, puddings, custards), use gelatin, tapioca, or pectin instead of heavy cream.
• To moisten and add nutritional value to baked goods, mix in 100% canned pumpkin or sweet potato puree, grated raw veggies (i.e. carrots), or mashed bananas.
• Increase nutritional value by adding nuts, oats, spices, and dried unsweetened fruit.
• Don’t over bake the recipe.

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