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    Cooking Light Low-Sugar Recipes
    Cooking Light Low-Sugar Recipes
    Cooking Light Low-Sugar Recipes
    Ebook194 pages1 hour

    Cooking Light Low-Sugar Recipes

    By Meredith Corporation

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    About this ebook

    Although sugar often gets a bad rap, in its natural state, sugar is a relatively harmless carbohydrate that our bodies need to function. At Cooking Light, we believe that all foods can fit, so we recommend moderation when it comes to sugar-laden foods. But to keep you on track with your healthy eating lifestyle, we offer a wide variety of low-sugar recipes, from breakfast treats and main dishes to snacks and desserts. None of the recipes have more than 10 grams of added sugar per serving and most have less. Plus, these recipes come with the bonus of being packed with vitamins, minerals, and fiber. In our Test Kitchens, we've come up with ways to create satisfying recipes using less sugar, natural sugars, and alternative sweeteners, all designed to help you reduce added sugars in your diet and improve your health.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMeredith Corporation
    Release dateMar 13, 2020
    ISBN9780848701833
    Cooking Light Low-Sugar Recipes

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      Book preview

      Cooking Light Low-Sugar Recipes - Meredith Corporation

      01. GUIDE TO SUGAR

      Sugar is not off-limits in a healthy diet. Here’s the lowdown on the types of sugars and how much is OK.

      SUGAR: THE SWEET TRUTH

      Overindulge your sweet tooth, and you up your chances of heart disease, tooth decay, and weight gain. Because sugar also stokes inflammation, it may spur other diseases. But sugar is critical in your cooking and baking. It gives you that delicious, deep browning in waffles, cookies, and cakes. It balances salty, sour, or acidic flavors in salad dressings, marinades, and sauces. It keeps breads and baked goods tender. Eliminate all sugar from your diet, and your cooking and eating could trend toward blah. The key is to use it judiciously and in moderation.

      TYPES OF SUGAR

      Here are eight commonly used sugars—natural and processed—and information about how some sugars rank on the glycemic index. The glycemic index is a number from 0 to 100 that represents the relative rise in blood glucose two hours after consuming that food. (Pure glucose has a ranking of 100.)

      EASY PEACH HAND PIES

      1. GRANULATED SUGAR

      Regular sugar is relatively high on the glycemic index (60 to 65 out of 100)—so it’s metabolized faster, causing a bigger sugar high and crash.

      2. BROWN SUGAR

      Molasses is what makes brown sugar brown. Use light brown sugar in baking, condiments, and glazes; use dark brown for baked beans.

      3. BROWN RICE SYRUP

      Not as sweet as sugar, this syrup has butterscotch and nutty notes—as well as one of the highest glycemic index numbers at 98.

      4. COCONUT SUGAR

      This sugar has no coconut flavor. At 54 on the glycemic index, it’s metabolized more slowly than other sugars, tempering that sugar high.

      5. CORN SYRUP

      Made from corn, this sweetener isn’t the same as high-fructose corn syrup. HFCS contains fructose and is sweeter than corn syrup but is no worse for you, nutritionally, than other sugars.

      6. MAPLE SYRUP

      With a glycemic index number of 54, maple syrup is rising in popularity. Though it boasts disease-fighting antioxidants (darker grades deliver more than lighter ones), it’s still sugar.

      7. HONEY

      One study showed that this yellow- to amber-colored sweetener has about the same antioxidant capacity as maple syrup, though it’s much higher on the glycemic index.

      8. AGAVE

      This syrup comes in varying shades of amber and dissolves well in cold liquids. It’s 25% sweeter than sugar, so you can use less, and it’s the lowest on the glycemic index of all the sugars here.

      SNEAKY SOURCES OF SUGAR

      Sugar is added to 68% of packaged foods and drinks in the U.S.—plenty of which aren’t even sweet-tasting. So if you want to cut back on the sugar in your diet, being mindful of these products is an easy first step. Here are a few places sugar typically hides:

      PLANT-BASED MILKS

      Most almond, coconut, soy, and other plant-based milks contain 2 to 5g of total sugar per serving. That said, we found an almond milk that contained 15g. Look for varieties that are labeled unsweetened.

      NUT BUTTERS

      Some peanut butters deliver as much as a teaspoon of sugar per 2-tablespoon serving. Seek out a spread that lists simply nuts as an ingredient, or perhaps nuts and salt or oil. Flavored nut butters will almost always contain added sugar.

      BACON

      Most bacon has added sugar, as it boosts flavor in salt-cured foods. But a few companies (Applegate and Wellshire Farms) are making delicious bacon without any sugar. Can’t find these? We’ve noticed that most lower-sodium bacons also don’t contain sugar.

      KETCHUP

      Though most barbecue sauces and ketchups have added sugar, not all of the sugar listed in the nutrition facts is added—tomatoes contain natural sugar. Compare ingredient lists and pick one with sugar as far down as possible.

      CHICKEN STOCK

      A handful of chicken broth and stock brands contain unnecessary added sugar. Fortunately, there are plenty of brands to choose from that do not, so read ingredient lists and select a product that contains no added sugar.

      HOW MUCH IS OK?

      When it comes to sugar, how it’s delivered makes all the difference. Naturally occurring sugars in fruit, veggies, and even milk typically don’t need to be on your worry list, as they come bundled with nutrients, fiber, vitamins, and antioxidant benefits. But added sugars—sweeteners in processed food, from cane sugar to honey and high-fructose corn syrup—deserve scrutiny.

      BLACKBERRY-CITRUS GRANOLA BOWL

      Go sweet without added sugar by tossing fresh or dried fruit into granola or grains.

      The USDA recommends limiting added sugars to 10% of your daily calories. For a 1,600-calorie diet, that means no more than 160 calories (10 teaspoons/40g) from added sugars. The American Heart Association advises even less: only 100 calories from added sugar daily (6 teaspoons/24g) for women and about 150 calories (9 teaspoons/36g) for men. Most Americans get way more than this, though: We average 19½ teaspoons of added sugar a day—312 calories’ worth—mostly from beverages and packaged snacks.

      Of course, you can still have the occasional treat—just get your fix in a smarter way. For instance, a sugar source such as dark maple syrup contains antioxidants. And natural sugars, such as fructose from fruit and lactose from milk, can have the same effect on your cooking and baking as spoonfuls of the white stuff, with less of an impact on your waistline.

      BREAK YOUR SUGAR HABIT

      We—as consumers—get that less is more when it comes to sweeteners. In fact, the majority of us are limiting how much sugar we eat. But let’s go beyond just seeking out products labeled as low sugar. Here are three tips for taming your sweet tooth:

      GLUTEN-FREE CHOCOLATE-PUMPKIN MINI MUFFINS

      1. Read ingredient lists to eliminate sneaky sugar sources where you don’t actually taste—or need—the sweet. Look for sugar and sugar aliases like cane juice, sorghum, or Sucanat. Also keep an eye out for anything that ends in -ose (maltose, dextrose) or juice concentrate.

      2. Because caffeine may make your taste buds perceive foods as less sweet than they truly are, mind your coffee habit. When people drank 200mg of caffeine, they rated sweetened coffee and sucrose solutions as less sweet than when they drank a caffeine-free placebo. Don’t ditch caffeine entirely—just be mindful.

      3. Rein in stress. Eighty percent of people say they eat more sweets when they’re stressed. A recent study might explain why: When stressed women drank a sugar-sweetened beverage, their body’s stress response was tempered (the hormone cortisol dropped) more than in stressed women who had an artificially sweetened drink.

      6 WAYS TO USE NATURAL SWEETENERS IN YOUR COOKING

      1 Cut added sugar in

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