Don’t let a sweet make you bitter! 7 Healthy Baking Substitutions

I know that we really like sweets and everything that is buns, chocolates, pancakes… 100% vegetable versions of all of them can be made, and we can also reduce the amount of sugars and poor quality fats that we usually add, to make them a little healthier.

This does not mean that you can stuff yourself with sweets every day, but it does mean that you can make healthier preparations and in the process learn new techniques and use common ingredients in other ways.

How to Substitute Sugar and Butter or Margarine in Baking Recipes

He sugar It is the sweetener par excellence in all kinds of desserts, cakes, buns, etc. It confers sweetness without adding flavours, it helps the dough remain tender and spongy, it favors cookies, biscuits and pancakes, etc., from being browned on the outside.

Depending on the type of preparation, we can sweeten with one thing or another, paying attention to the role that sugar plays in each of them and adjusting other ingredients.

The margarine or butter In sweets it is used for many things, from adding fat to the dough to imparting aroma. In many preparations it is beaten to the point of ointment with sugar to make a spongy base. In others it simply provides creaminess and juiciness.

1. In biscuits

For sweeten the biscuits Sweet fruit such as bananas, apples or dates can be perfectly used. Enough with beat it with the mixer until it becomes a paste and add it to the dough. In this case, the beaten fruit will provide a little more moisture, so you can add a pinch more dry ingredients (cocoa, flour, starch, etc.) and a little more yeast, since it also adds a little more weight to the mixture. mass.

For an 18 cm cake in diameter you can add up to 2 ripe mashed bananas, 1 apple or 10 dates, depending on the sweetness we want to give it.

Sweet vegetables and vegetables (carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin…) are also good for us. More quantity is needed, so they will be the base of your recipe and you will have to adjust the flour and liquids to make it fluffy. It’s easy, while we make the dough we just have to add the liquid and dry ingredients and in the end we have a creamy dough rather than pasty.

When it comes to adding fat to a dough to improve its elasticity and juiciness we can choose an olive oil with a mild flavor (this is important, an oil with a lot of flavor will give it a lot of pungency), sunflower oil high oleic or coconut oil. Use a little less than the indicated amount of butter/margarine and increase the liquids a little, so it will be fluffier.

It can be used perfectly in cakes, cakes, pancakes, waffles, etc.

can also be added white tahiniwhich has a milder flavor, although it will be quite noticeable in the final texture and flavor.

2. In crepes or pancakes

To sweeten fine doughs such as crepes or pancakes, you can also add bananas or dates, in smaller quantities, and increase the leavening a little (baking yeast or baking soda + acid) to prevent them from being too thick.

As a liquid you can use rice drinkwhich is sweeter in itself (always, of course, without sugar).

3. In your homemade cookies

For substitute sugar when making cookies, since the dough portions are smaller and with less baking time, it can be used banana, apple, datesraisins or another sweetener with a less viscous and creamy texture, such as dark chocolate finely chopped, pumpkin (roasted, cooked or steamed, without salt) or carrot.

In general, cookies made with fruit can be rubbery if we go too far with fruit, but it is easy to correct this texture by adding more liquid, a little more flour and a little more leavening agent. In this way the dough will be less dense and when baked in the oven it will be able to dry more easily.

Sweet greens and vegetables like pumpkin and carrots are generally lighter in texture and can be used as a base for the dough, as they are not as sweet as dates or bananas (so you will need more).

Substitute butter or margarine It depends on the technique used. If you start from a sandy dough, we can use slightly melted coconut oil or olive oil.

If you need to assemble the margarine, it is better to use a unsweetened nut butter (peanut, cashew, almond, etc) and if you want a pinch of oil. Increase the liquids a little so that it has the same consistency and that’s it.

The ripe plantain serves as egg replacer, substitute for sugar and partly as a substitute for butter and margarine due to its creamy texture and ability to retain liquid. You can put half a banana more and reduce the amount of oils in the dough.

4. In ice creams, popsicles and sorbets

For ice creams, popsicles and sorbets, it is best to resort to fruit or dark chocolate (or both). Creamy ice creams can be made with fleshy fruits such as peachmore fibrous like pineappleor classics like strawberries.

Always make sure that your ice cream mix does not have too much water and use an ice cream machine to avoid the formation of large ice crystals.

In the case of flavored popsicles such as chocolate, vanilla or cream, you can use beaten dates.

5. In bars and snacks

In bars and snacks they can be perfectly added smoothie fruit and pieces of fresh or dried fruit, which will also give it an extra flavor. Also lemon or orange zest, cinnamon, vanilla, etc.

6. In chocolates

In chocolates and the like you can add dried fruit well shaken or powdered (mango, apple, raspberries, strawberries, etc.) to sweeten and also add flavor. It can be combined with other ingredients that reinforce the sensation of sweetness, such as lemon or orange zest, grated coconut, cinnamon or vanilla.

7. In frostings and glazes

In frostings and the like it is better to use solid fats at room temperature such as cocoa butter or the coconut oilbut you can also substitute part for coconut cream or by aquafaba.