Healthy alternatives and substitutions for cooking

It can be hard to give up our favorite foods. We are so used to the taste, but often it is easy to find a reasonable, healthier alternative that can be just as satisfying. You just need to take a few minutes to read labels. Here are a few suggestions to get you started.

Instead of … Maple pancake syrup (¼ C = 200 calories, 53 g sugar)
¼ C = 4 TBSP
Try … Strawberry Preserves (2 TBSP = 50 calories, 9 g sugar), OR Apple Butter (2 TBSP = 35 calories, 8 g sugar)

Instead of … White Rice (1 C = 242 calories, .5 g fiber)
Try … Brown rice (1 C = 218 calories, 3.5 g fiber)

Instead of … Browning meat in vegetable oil (1 TBSP = 119 calories, 13.5 g fat)
Try … Browning meat in low-sodium chicken broth (1 C = 10 calories, 0 g fat)

Instead of … Regular mayonnaise (1 TBSP = 57 calories, 5 g fat)
Try … Best Foods Reduced Fat Mayonnaise (1 TBSP = 25 calories, 2 g fat)

Instead of … Dean’s Guacamole Dip (2 TBSP = 90 calories, 9 g fat)
Try … Salsa (2 TBSP = 10 calories, 0 g fat)
Taco sauce has similar numbers.

Instead of … Regular cottage cheese (1/2 C = 117 calories, 5 g fat)
Try … Nonfat cottage cheese (1/2 C = 80 calories, 0 g fat)

Instead of … Microwave Butter popcorn (5 C = 200 calories, 12 g fat, 4 g fiber)
Try … Orville Redenbacher’s Smart Pop Butter microwave popcorn (1 C = 15 calories, 2 g fat, 6 g fiber)

Instead of … Yoplait Original Strawberry Yogurt (6 oz. = 170 calories, 1.5 g fat, 27 g sugar)
Try … Fred Meyer Lite Strawberry Yogurt (8 oz. = 100 calories, 0 g fat, 12 g sugar), OR Dannon Light & Fit with Fiber Strawberry Yogurt (4 oz. = 70 calories, 8 g sugar, 3 g fiber)

Instead of … Eyeballing it
Try … Always measure your fats (this includes cheese!) and sugars in any recipe, and see if you can taste the difference with a little bit less than what it calls for