Baking is a fun activity many of us do to keep busy or carry on traditions. We can certainly understand why!
Whether you’re baking for yourself, with a spouse, or to keep your kids entertained… you can pass some time and end up with a delicious treat to enjoy together!
However, as mentioned in an earlier post sugar can depress the immune system and contribute to unwanted weight gain. Weight gain, in particular, is already a struggle for many people who have been confined to their homes much more than usual over the course of the pandemic without the energy, time, space or equipment to work out, all while over-indulging in food.
We all want to “have our cake and eat it too”, don’t we? So, we’re sharing some tips to enjoy your treats without feeling poorly or derailing your health goals.
Top 3 Healthy Baking Tips
1. Manage Portions
The first healthy baking tip we want to share is to manage portions. When baking muffins and cookies try to make them smaller by using mini muffin tins or rolling cookies into smaller balls.
If time is not on your side you can batch cook and freeze half the cookies or muffins. But, be mindful of your personal habits before doubling a recipe! If you have a lot of time on your hands to cook and you know you struggle with overindulging, then don’t double the recipe as it may be more difficult to manage your portions.
2. Sneak In Some Healthy Ingredients
The second healthy baking tip we want to share is to try and use recipes that have hidden vegetables or beans in it. There are lots of delicious options that allow you to squeeze some extra nutrition into your baking, including:
- chocolate zucchini loaf
- carrot muffins
- Black Bean Brownies
- Green Monster Muffins
- Nut-Free Chickpea Blondies
3. Make Healthy Switch Outs
The last healthy baking tip we want to share is to make some healthy switch outs. By swapping certain ingredients you can make your baking lower in calories and sugar.
Below are some ideas for healthy switch outs:
- Switch out sugar for swerve or xylitol or simply reduce the sugar serving in the recipe
- Switch out cow’s milk for unsweetened almond milk
- Switch out butter for coconut oil
- Switch out white flour for whole grain flour or almond flour
- Switch out chocolate chips for Krista stevia sweetened chocolate chips
- Switch out sour cream for Greek yogurt or coconut yogurt
- Switch out eggs for flax seed
To do this, add 1 tbsp of ground flaxseed to 3 tbsp of water and allow it to sit for 3-5 minutes. Use the gelled mixture in place of 1 whole egg for an extra kick of fibre to your recipe!
Whatever you decide to bake up next, we hope it is delicious and nutritious!
