If a recipe calls for fruits and vegetables to be deep fried, choose a different preparation method, such as baking, broiling, or grilling.
When preparing meat:
Choose the leanest cuts of meat available.
Trim the excess fat from meats.
Drain the excess fat produced when ground meats are cooked.
Replace high fat dairy products with lower fat types to reduce the fat and calories that these products add to your recipe.
Replace whole milk with low-fat or fat-free milk.
Replace sour cream with low-fat or fat-free sour cream or with plain yogurt. (Fat-free sour cream and plain yogurt work best in unheated recipes)
Replace heavy cream with half-and-half, evaporated skim milk or light cream depending on the type of recipe. In soups, casseroles, and sauces, try half-and-half or evaporated skim milk. In baked goods try half-and-half or light cream to replace heavy cream.
Use low-fat versions of cheese, if available.
Frying is a high-fat cooking method that should only be used on occasion. When a recipe calls for meat or vegetables to be deep-fried, consider other cooking methods such as baking, broiling, or grilling.
In baked goods, such as cakes and breads replace fats and oils in part with applesauce, baby food fruits or other pureed fruit. Replace up to 3/4 of the oil or fat with applesauce or other pureed fruit.
In most recipes that call for sugar, the sugar can be reduced by up to 1/3 without replacing it with a sugar substitute.