Healthy Substitutions
Source: The American Dietetic Association's Complete Food & Nutrition Guide
by Roberta Larson Duyff, MS, RD, CFCS
Bacon
Canadian bacon
Lean ham
Butter, lard, and other saturated fat (coconut oil, palm oil)
Soft tub margarine (first ingredient on food label listed as liquid vegetable oil)*
Corn, cottonseed, olive, rapeseed (canola), safflower, sesame, soybean or sunflower oil
*(When cooking, it is better not to substitute reduced-fat margarine or corn oil spreads for regular butter and margarine unless a recipe has been specifically developed for their use. Their increased water content can make a substantial difference in the food's taste, appearance and texture).
Chocolate
1 ounce baking chocolate = 3 tablespoons cocoa
powder and 1 tablespoon oil
Cream
Evaporated skim milk
Cream soup
Defatted broths
Broth-based or skim milk-based soups
Full-fat cheese
Low-fat, skim-milk cheese
Cheese with less than 5 grams of fat per ounce
Fat-free cheese
Ground Beef
Extra lean ground beef
Lean ground turkey or chicken
Ice Cream
Low-fat or nonfat ice cream
Frozen low-fat or nonfat yogurt
Frozen fruit juice products
Sorbet
Mayonnaise
Low-fat or fat-free mayonnaise
Whipped salad dressing
Plain low-fat yogurt combined with low-fat cottage cheese
Nuts
Dried fruit such as raisins, chopped dried apricots
or dried cranberries
Ricotta cheese
Low-fat or fat-free cottage cheese
Nonfat or low-fat ricotta cheese
Salad dressing
Low-calorie commercial dressings
Homemade dressing made with unsaturated oils, water, and vinegar or lemon juice
Sausage
Lean ground turkey
95% fat-free sausage
Sour cream
Plain low-fat yogurt
1/2 cup cottage cheese blended with 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
Fat-free sour cream
Whipped cream
Chilled, whipped evaporated skim milk
Nondairy whipped topping made from polyunsaturated fat
Whole egg
Two egg whites
1/4 cup cholesterol-free liquid egg product
1 egg white plus 2 teaspoons oil
One egg yolk = One egg white
One egg (as thickener) = 1 tablespoon flour
Whole milk (as a beverage or in recipes)
Skim, 1 percent
or 2 percent milk