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Easy As Pie

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By MARCIA BIGGS

Published: November 16, 2007

What's a holiday dinner without a traditional holiday dessert? Boring!

Unfortunately, traditional usually means tossing thoughts of healthy ingredients out the window. Refined sugar, butter and shortening are staples in pies, cakes and cookies.

Cheesecake without cream cheese? Unthinkable. But not if you're willing to update your trusted recipes with substitute ingredients aimed at lowering sugar and fat.

Most families are demanding these healthier choices. Let's face it, it's nearly impossible to have a large gathering without at least one person who is diabetic or lactose intolerant. A thoughtful host will offer a variety of desserts — at least one sugar-free — at the holiday table. And they can all be fabulous without anyone knowing how healthy they really are.

Many health magazines offer recipes for luscious pies and cakes using sugar substitutes or cheesecake recipes low in fat. Searching online with keywords such as "diabetic recipes" can bring a goldmine of healthy options, too. Not a baker? Be sure to check your local supermarket or health food store, where low-fat and sugar-free baked goods are sure to be among the choices.

For the lactose intolerant, dairy substitutes such as soymilk and tofu can work quite nicely. Look for dairy-free margarines such as Earth Balance and soy-based cream cheese. Sorbets, made from frozen fruit, are a great substitute for ice cream, but beware of sherbet, which may contain dairy products. Dairy-free and sugar-free frostings are available at the supermarket, too.

A holiday favorite of registered dietitian Michelle Stracke is a simple yet versatile pumpkin dip made with canned pumpkin and low-fat yogurt. She uses it as a component in a trifle or parfait.

"Canned pumpkin is very nutritious," says Stracke, who works for the Weight Management Program at St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa. "It's an excellent source of beta-carotene, and yogurt is a good source of calcium. If you want to make this nondairy, use lactose-free yogurt."

Her low-fat, low-sugar version of cheesecake is a portion-controlled dessert because she makes it as individual servings.

"I recommend using a muffin pan when baking these, because you know exactly the portion you're getting," she says. "I also like to use Splenda as a sugar substitute because it stands up to heat and won't brown the cheesecake. The other substitutes won't do this."

RECIPES

These mini-cheesecakes from registered dietitian Michelle Stracke are very light and fluffy, almost like a mousse. Top with sliced bananas or strawberries or the fruit topping below. If you prefer flavored cheesecake, such as eggnog or pumpkin, you can add a splash of sugar-free syrup to the filling.

GUILTLESS MINI-CHEESECAKE

Crust:

18 low-fat graham cracker squares (9 sheets)

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup light butter, melted

Filling:

8 ounces 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup Splenda or any noncaloric sweetener

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 (8 oz.) container light whipped topping

15 paper or foil muffin cups

Fruit topping:

One (1-pound) bag frozen cherries or berries

2 tablespoons Splenda

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 cup water

To make crust, place graham cracker squares in food processor and process into fine crumbs.

Place crumbs in medium-size bowl. Stir in brown sugar and melted butter.

Separate mixture evenly among muffin cups. Press firmly into the bottom of each cup. Place in freezer for 20 minutes.

While crust is in the freezer, beat cream cheese and noncaloric sweetener until smooth. Add light whipped topping and vanilla and beat at low speed until well blended. Top before serving.

Spoon cheesecake filling into chilled crusts, and place in refrigerator for at least four hours.

For filling: Combine ingredients in saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring often, until mixture is thickened.

Yields 15 individual mini-cheesecakes.

Each cheesecake: 136 calories, 7g fat, 16g carbohydrate, 1.6g protein, 12mg cholesterol, 147mg sodium.

Layer this low-fat pumpkin dip with fresh fruit and fat-free or sugar-free whipped topping for a pretty parfait. The dip has 1.5 grams of fat and 60 calories per serving.

PUMPKIN PARFAIT

For dip:

6 tablespoons canned pumpkin

2 cups low-fat yogurt

2 tablespoons orange juice

1 teaspoon cinnamon

To layer:

One banana, sliced

1 cup fresh raspberries

1 tub fat-free, sugar-free whipped topping

Blend dip ingredients in a mixing bowl.

In clear glass goblets, layer dip, fruit and whipped topping.

Serves 8.

From "Inspirations: A Sugar-Free Dessert Cookbook" by Ron Lynch, comes this light version of pecan pie. Top with sugar-free whipped topping, if you like.

SOUTHERN PECAN PIE

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell

1 cup fruit sweetener (see note)

1 tablespoon cornmeal

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

3 tablespoons water

2 tablespoon cornstarch

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 tablespoons very strong coffee or espresso (prepared)

24 pecan halves

In large bowl, combine fruit sweetener, cornmeal and applesauce. Beat with an electric mixer.

In a small bowl, blend water and cornstarch until smooth. Add to fruit sweetener mixture and blend.

Beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in the vanilla and coffee. Pour mixture into pie shell.

Decorate top with pecan halves.

Bake 30 to 40 minutes, or until custard is set, at 375 degrees

Cool slightly before cutting. Serves 8.

Note: To make the fruit sweetener, mix together 1/2 cup frozen apple juice concentrate (thawed) and 1/2 cup granulated fructose.

Each serving: 211 calories, 3g protein, 69mg sodium, 82mg cholesterol, 9g fat, 28g carbohydrates

Traditional chocolate pies often contain lots of cream and eggs. For those who are lactose intolerant, this chocolate pie is rich and creamy. And for everyone else, they'll never know it's made with tofu. It's from Food Network chef Alton Brown.

CHOCOLATE SILK PIE

12-ounce block silken tofu

2 cups chocolate chips

1/3 cup coffee liquor (chocolate and orange would work well, too)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon honey

1 prepared chocolate wafer pie crust

Place tofu and honey into a blender or food processor.

Melt chocolate chips and coffee liquor together until smooth in a double boiler. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour over tofu and whiz/blend the mixture until completely smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally.

Pour into pie crust and chill until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.

Serves 8.

From Cooking Light comes this low-fat version of a Thanksgiving classic.

CLASSIC PUMPKIN PIE

Filling:

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 3/4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1(12-ounce) can evaporated low-fat milk

2 large egg whites

1 large egg

1(15-ounce) can unsweetened pumpkin

Crust:

1/2 (15-ounce) package refrigerated pie dough

Cooking spray

Topping:

1/4 cup whipping cream

1 tablespoon amaretto (almond-flavored liqueur)

2 teaspoons powdered sugar

Position oven rack to lowest position. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

To prepare filling, combine first six ingredients in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add pumpkin, and stir with a whisk until smooth.

To prepare crust, roll dough into an 11-inch circle; fit into a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray. Fold edges under and flute.

Pour pumpkin mixture into the crust. Place pie plate on a baking sheet. Place baking sheet on lowest oven rack. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees (do not remove pie from oven); bake an additional 50 minutes or until almost set. Cool completely on wire rack.

To prepare topping, beat cream with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form. Add the amaretto and powdered sugar, and beat until blended. Serve with pie.

Yield: 12 servings (serving size: 1 wedge and about 1 tablespoon topping)

Nutritional Information: 222 calories, 7.4g fat, 32mg cholesterol, 241mg sodium; 3g fiber; 35.3g carbohydrates

SIDEBAR

Healthy baking tips

•Replace fat and increase nutritional value with fruit juices or fruit purées, such as applesauce, mashed bananas or prune purée.

•Cut sugar by one-third to one-half in a recipe.

•Substitute two egg whites for one egg.

•Replace whole milk or cream with plain unsweetened soymilk or buttermilk (naturally low in fat), or make your own buttermilk by combining one part fat-free plain yogurt with one part skim or low-fat milk.

•Reduce fat by "greasing" a pan with a small amount of cooking spray rather than butter or shortening, or line baking sheets with parchment paper to prevent sticking.

•Replace full-fat cream cheese with a combination of reduced-fat cream cheese, nonfat yogurt drained of its whey, and pureed low-fat cottage and ricotta cheeses. Substitute reduced-fat sour cream for regular. Or, because it's similar in color, flavor, and viscosity, use evaporated skim milk instead of cream.

Source: epicurious.com

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