One of the great things about cooking and baking homemade recipes is you have complete control how they are made and what they are made with. There are so many ways to switch and swap ingredients that can go a long way to improving the nutrition quality and reducing the caloric content of a recipe. Next time a recipe calls for one of these ingredients try swapping it with a healthy alternative!

1. Black Beans in place of Flour

• Substitute black beans pureed (~15oz can) for flour in a 1:1 ratio
• This substitution adds fiber and protein with a small reduction in calories!

2. Unsweetened Applesauce in place of Sugar

• Substitute unsweetened applesauce for sugar in a 1:1 ratio
• *for every cup of applesauce added reduce liquids by ¼ cup*
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce = 102 calories, 23 grams sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar = 780 calories, 201 grams sugar

3. Mashed Banana or Pureed Avocado in place of Fats

• Substitute 1 cup mashed (ripe) banana or 1 cup purred avocado in for 1 cup of butter or oil
• 1 cup mashed banana = 200 calories
• 1 cup purred avocado = 360 calories
• 1 cup butter = 1,628
• 1 cup olive oil = 1,920 calories

4. Greek Yogurt for Mayonnaise

• Substitute non-fat plain Greek Yogurt for Mayonnaise in a 1:1 ratio
• This substitution works best for chicken and tuna salad
• ¼ cup non-fat plain Greek Yogurt = 33 calories, 6 grams protein
• ¼ cup low-fat mayonnaise = 140 calories, 0 grams protein

5. Olive Oil Spray for Olive Oil (bottled)

• Substitute olive oil spray for olive oil when greasing baking pans or coating meat/vegetables before cooing
• 3 second Olive Oil Spray = 21 calories
• 1tbsp Olive Oil = 120 calories