BAKING HACKS FOR HEALTHIER HOLIDAY TREATS

I love baking. There's something about the smell of freshly baked, well, anything really, that just makes the whole house feel warm and cozy. And Christmas baking is even more fun because I get to dig into my recipe box and create each person's favourite treats to enjoy over the holidays.

Cookies and Treats

Right about now you're probably thinking, “Wait a minute, how do Christmas cookies and treats ever fit in with a eating healthy plan?” Well you'll be happy to know, it can be done! For those of you who know me personally, I'm all about figuring out ways in which we can “...have our cake and eat it too” so to speak. And on my quest for ways on how to infuse some nutrition into my family's Christmas goodies, I've found it all comes down to the level of quality in the ingredients you choose. Believe it or not, swapping out even a few of the basics makes a world of difference. So, which ingredients should you swap? Start with the basics.

Baked Goods and the 3 Nasties

Typically, baked goods are made largely of flour, sugar and fat. The trouble is not so much with the ingredients, but with the type and quality. Regular, run of the mill (no pun intended) white flour is wheat that has been highly processed, stripped of its nutritional value, and refined to produce that soft, fine white powder the majority of people use when baking. Not to mention it's full of gluten and more than likely a GMO product, a topic all on its own. When we use this type of flour in our recipes, it's very quickly absorbed into the blood stream, causing a spike in blood sugar which results in the body storing fat.

Sugar is much the same as flour. Again, highly processed and refined to produce that bright white colour and fine granules as found in table sugar, or fine white powder as in icing sugar. And you guessed it, another recipe for spiking blood sugar and storing fat.

So now we have two main ingredients that encourage the body to store fat, and then we add fat to the recipe, often in the form of lard, shortening or margarine. Fat also goes through manufacturing and the processing involved often creates toxins within the item. This makes it extremely difficult and sometimes even impossible for our bodies to metabolize and if our bodies can't metabolize it, it gets stored as fat and our liver is tasked with the difficult job of detoxing our body of this foreign substance.

So What Now?

Now that you've all done a pantry purge, here's what I use in place of these three nasties. One of the best user-friendly, yet nutrient dense flours is spelt. I buy a brand called Anita's which is organic and non-GMO. Although not gluten free, as a sprouted grain with far less processing and refinement, the fibre and nutritional value has not been stripped away allowing for slower digestion, better metabolization and a much smaller elevation in blood sugar. As an added bonus, those who experience stomach upset or gastrointestinal discomfort with white or whole wheat flour, rarely have the same problems when using spelt.

When it comes to sugars, again, like flour the less refined the better. To get the sweetness in my baking without having to add so much sugar I substitute at least half of the sugar called for with coconut palm sugar. Coconut sugar looks and behaves much like brown sugar but with a much lower glycemic index, meaning once again, slower digestion and better blood sugar levels. Just to give a comparison, white sugar has a glycemic index of about 85, while coconut palm sugar is around 35, so less than half the level of increase in blood sugar just by making this simple swap. For balance of sugar called for in the recipe I use stevia powder. Stevia has a glycemic index of zero, so really it doesn't matter how much you use. Stevia does taste quite sweet and often times I won't need to use as much as the recipe called for. Do taste as you go the first few times to get the amount that works for you. I have actually gone as far as replacing three-quarters of the sugar with stevia having good results. Just a caution, replacing all the sugar with stevia can cause the food to over brown and look burnt.

Fat. We need it in our diet, it's definitely a requirement in baking so let's choose the ones that will be beneficial and work with our bodies. Olive oil, coconut oil (solid and liquid) and nut butters are a great way to incorporate healthy fats in your baked goods and give your body something it can actually work with rather than having to work through. Even butter is a far better choice simply because it's a real food not a manufactured, food-like substance.

Flour, sugar and fat are only three of literally a dozen items we can swap out in favour of more nutritious and delicious options. How about apple pie made with spelt flour and coconut oil crust and filled with local apples tossed in cinnamon and a sprinkle of coconut palm sugar? Gingerbread cookies with all the flavour and less than half the sugar? Or truffles made with cashew cream and dates? The possibilities are endless.

So this Christmas as you pull out your family's favourite recipes, I invite you to swap out a few of the nasties for a healthier option. Your family will love the taste and you'll love what doesn't go to your waist.