11 cooking tips to trim points

[Guest guest]

11 cooking tips to trim POINTS

from WeightWatchers etools newsletter

We've all been there: You sit down to dinner and wish you had just one or two

more POINTS® to really have a super supper. Well, now you can! With a simple

ingredient swap here or a lightened-up cooking technique there, you can get

more food for your POINTS. See our top 11 POINTS-saving tips, below. Plus,

learn your fellow community users' favorite ways to trim back on fat and

calories.

1. Swap applesauce for 1/3 of the total butter or oil in a cookie or cake

recipe (light-colored batters) - or substitute pureed prunes for that same

amount if you're making a chocolaty dessert. You'll add moisture while

subtracting POINTS.

2. Sauté your vegetables in a little chicken or vegetable broth instead of

butter or oil. That's no POINTS for the broth versus 1 POINT per teaspoon for

butter or oil.

3. Thicken soups with prepared instant mashed potatoes instead of heavy

cream. The instant spuds have just 3 POINTS for 1/2 cup, versus 12 POINTS per

1/2 cup of cream.

4. Opt for a strong-flavored cheese. You'll get much more flavor from

crumbled blue cheese, for instance, than from shredded cheddar, so you can

maximize taste with a lesser amount.

5. Chop and toast nuts to cut back on the total amount of nuts needed in a

recipe. Toasting maximizes their flavor, and chopping them allows you to

cover more " ground. " Also, experiment with using toasted rolled oats in lieu

of nuts in some baked goods.

6. Make your own whole milk substitute. Swap it for fat-free milk and add a

little fat-free yogurt, pureed tofu or powdered skim milk to thicken it up.

7. Many people know that you can use fat-free egg substitute in place of

whole eggs. But did you know that you can substitute 2 egg whites for 1 whole

egg in most recipes? Then, to make egg-based dishes like frittatas and

casseroles look more authentic, try adding a little turmeric to the whites

for a more natural appearance.

8. Use pureed silken or soft tofu in place of cream in dressings and pasta

dishes.

9. Replace the mayonnaise in tuna, egg, pasta and chicken salads with pureed,

seasoned silken tofu or plain low-fat yogurt, dressed up with your favorite

diced vegetables and seasonings.

10. Make your own taco shells by hanging soft fat-free tortillas directly

over an oven rack and baking at 400°F until crisp.

11. Chop, grate, shred. You can top a casserole with much less shredded

cheese than cheese cubes or slices. The same goes for shaved chocolate,

shredded coconut, chopped nuts and other high-POINTS foods.

Community Users Suggest.

These slimming, POINTS-reducing strategies were recommended by users on our

Food Talk and Recipe Review boards:

" In rice or stuffing mixes, add a little more water and eliminate the butter

or oil. "

" I look at a recipe and see where the POINTS are, then cut back on that

ingredient. I got my 4 POINTS smoothies down to 1 when I realized all the

POINTS were in the orange juice and yogurt. Now I use a tablespoon of yogurt

to make it creamy, and Crystal Light instead of juice with my frozen fruit.

" Try using spaghetti squash (which can be made stringy like spaghetti when

cooked) instead of pasta. "

" I use butter spray to make my grilled cheese sandwiches and use egg

substitute in place of eggs most of the time. It's the little things that add

up quickly! "

" I've noticed that many things I used to cook with oil are perfect without

it. For instance, oil in water for pasta? Unnecessary. A few tablespoons of

oil in soups and beans ... also not needed. "

[Guest guest]

Great tips! Thanks

11 cooking tips to trim points

11 cooking tips to trim POINTS

from WeightWatchers etools newsletter

We've all been there: You sit down to dinner and wish you had just one

or two

more POINTS® to really have a super supper. Well, now you can! With a

simple

ingredient swap here or a lightened-up cooking technique there, you can

get

more food for your POINTS. See our top 11 POINTS-saving tips, below.

Plus,

learn your fellow community users' favorite ways to trim back on fat and

calories.

1. Swap applesauce for 1/3 of the total butter or oil in a cookie or

cake

recipe (light-colored batters) - or substitute pureed prunes for that

same

amount if you're making a chocolaty dessert. You'll add moisture while

subtracting POINTS.

2. Sauté your vegetables in a little chicken or vegetable broth instead

of

butter or oil. That's no POINTS for the broth versus 1 POINT per

teaspoon for

butter or oil.

3. Thicken soups with prepared instant mashed potatoes instead of heavy

cream. The instant spuds have just 3 POINTS for 1/2 cup, versus 12

POINTS per

1/2 cup of cream.

4. Opt for a strong-flavored cheese. You'll get much more flavor from

crumbled blue cheese, for instance, than from shredded cheddar, so you

can

maximize taste with a lesser amount.

5. Chop and toast nuts to cut back on the total amount of nuts needed in

a

recipe. Toasting maximizes their flavor, and chopping them allows you to

cover more " ground. " Also, experiment with using toasted rolled oats in

lieu

of nuts in some baked goods.

6. Make your own whole milk substitute. Swap it for fat-free milk and

add a

little fat-free yogurt, pureed tofu or powdered skim milk to thicken it

up.

7. Many people know that you can use fat-free egg substitute in place of

whole eggs. But did you know that you can substitute 2 egg whites for 1

whole

egg in most recipes? Then, to make egg-based dishes like frittatas and

casseroles look more authentic, try adding a little turmeric to the

whites

for a more natural appearance.

8. Use pureed silken or soft tofu in place of cream in dressings and

pasta

dishes.

9. Replace the mayonnaise in tuna, egg, pasta and chicken salads with

pureed,

seasoned silken tofu or plain low-fat yogurt, dressed up with your

favorite

diced vegetables and seasonings.

10. Make your own taco shells by hanging soft fat-free tortillas

directly

over an oven rack and baking at 400°F until crisp.

11. Chop, grate, shred. You can top a casserole with much less shredded

cheese than cheese cubes or slices. The same goes for shaved chocolate,

shredded coconut, chopped nuts and other high-POINTS foods.

Community Users Suggest.

These slimming, POINTS-reducing strategies were recommended by users on

our

Food Talk and Recipe Review boards:

" In rice or stuffing mixes, add a little more water and eliminate the

butter

or oil. "

" I look at a recipe and see where the POINTS are, then cut back on that

ingredient. I got my 4 POINTS smoothies down to 1 when I realized all

the

POINTS were in the orange juice and yogurt. Now I use a tablespoon of

yogurt

to make it creamy, and Crystal Light instead of juice with my frozen

fruit.

" Try using spaghetti squash (which can be made stringy like spaghetti

when

cooked) instead of pasta. "

" I use butter spray to make my grilled cheese sandwiches and use egg

substitute in place of eggs most of the time. It's the little things

that add

up quickly! "

" I've noticed that many things I used to cook with oil are perfect

without

it. For instance, oil in water for pasta? Unnecessary. A few tablespoons

of

oil in soups and beans ... also not needed. "