Wheat flour alternatives
Anyone who is gluten intolerant will be aware of how stressful it can be finding foods that don’t flare up their condition. Fortunately, not only are there an abundance of gluten-free products in supermarkets these days, but there are some really tasty alternatives you can use in your baking instead of wheat flour, including: coconut flour, chickpea flour, buckwheat flour, almond flour and rice flour.
Sugar alternatives
Home baked goods are always far healthier than their processed equivalents, but it can still be surprising when a recipe instructs you to pour a cup or two of refined sugar into your cake bowl. One really healthy way to reduce sugar and fat but retain sweetness is to swap one cup for sugar for one cup of unsweetened apple sauce. Another option is to use honey, for although it still contains a lot of sugar, it is far more nutrient rich.
Dairy alternatives
If you’re making something rich and sticky (think brownies or toffee pudding) you can actually swap butter or margarine for pureed figs or prunes. Avocado is another great way to keep your bake creamy without the excess fat. Another ingenious swap, is to replace egg with chia seeds (one tablespoon of chia seeds with three tablespoons of water left to thicken for 15 minutes equals one egg)
Oil alternatives
Vegetable oil may make cake supremely moist, but it has an eye-watering calorie amount. Instead, swap one cup of pureed pumpkin for one cup oil, which will only contribute 100 calories and zero fat. And yes, canned pumpkin works absolutely fine.
Make your own brilliant bakes with a Cookie Crumbles baking Club Subscription.
