How to Make Desserts Healthy & Sugar-Free

"Sugar-free" doesn't have to mean a dessert is not sweet. Try alternatives that are rich and satisfying without compromising your healthy lifestyle.

Instructions

Step 1: Experiment with substitutes Experiment with baking breads and cakes using heat-stable sugar substitutes for baking healthy desserts. Use sugar-free syrups and low-calorie replacements in banana bread and muffins.
Step 2: Blend smoothies Blend chocolate smoothies or shakes without sugar, using avocado, nuts, and Chia seeds as thickening agents. Flavor it all with raw cacao, coconut milk, and chocolate.
TIP: Use dried, unsweetened fruit, such as raisins or diced dates, to add natural sweetness to everything.
Step 3: Replace the oil Replace half the oil in muffin or cake recipes with applesauce or pureed fruit to make them moist without using sugar.
Step 4: Use cinnamon, sweetener, and apple juice Surprise the family with an apple pie sweetened with cinnamon, sugar-free sweetener, and apple juice. Use the same sweeteners for cranberry streusel pie, or an apple pizza over reduced-fat cream cheese.
Step 5: Go natural Go natural and put together frozen fruit cups with fresh fruit, lemon juice, and sugar-free sweetener. Add pecans, which are low in oxidants and high in vitamin E, for a healthy balance.
TIP: Be creative and substitute low-fat ricotta cheese for whole-milk or plain Greek yogurt for sour cream in your recipes.
Step 6: Bake anything Bake a cheesecake, pineapple upside-down cake, banana cream pie, or rice pudding with measures of nutmeg, cinnamon, real fruit, and ginger, and use sugar free sweetener.
FACT: Sara Lee started in 1939 when Nathan Cummings bought the C.D. Kenny company, a wholesaler of sugar, coffee, and tea.