Creating the Low-Fat Kitchen

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If you've got a weight problem--and a growing family--then chances are you've got a kitchen bulging with the kinds of foods designed to keep all of you overweight. Cupboards crammed with creamed soups and cookies . . . freezers filled with fatty cuts of meat and ice cream . . . pantries packed with potato chips and sugary breakfast cereals. If that sounds like your kitchen, join the club.

"The typical American kitchen tends to have foods that are high in fat and high in calories, with too little fresh produce and whole-grain products," says registered dietitian Gayle Shockey Hoxter, a Murrieta, California ­ based nutritionist. "To have a balanced diet, we need a balanced kitchen, with items from all five food groups--fruits and vegetables; milk, yogurt and cheese; meat, poultry, fish, eggs and beans; bread, cereal, rice and pasta; and fats and oils. To accomplish this in the average kitchen, it usually means adding more produce and whole-grain products and cutting back on high-fat items."

Okay--we hear you out there. "How can I not keep chips and cheese and ice cream in the house? They're what my husband and my kids enjoy! And, frankly . . . so do I!" We understand. No one's saying you have to toss all your favorite foods into a Dumpster. What we're suggesting is making slow, gradual changes in the contents of your fridge and cupboards. The basic idea is to keep the kinds of foods you and your family love on hand but, wherever possible, swapping them for low-fat, low-cal versions.

Make one food swap per month--more, if you're ambitious. You'll still reap lots of low-fat benefits. Take milk, for example. "Not everyone likes the taste of skim milk, but you'll still be better off if you switch from whole milk to 1 or 2 percent milk," says Hoxter. "Or if you don't like fat-free or low-fat mayonnaise, mix a bit of it with regular mayonnaise. You'll be cutting some fat and calories and still be keeping most of the taste."

For the lowdown on other switches you can make, see "A Kitchen Makeover," on page 36. And in a year's time there'll be a lot less lard in your larder--and on you.

A Kitchen Makeover You've heard of beauty makeovers? Well, here's a makeover you can do on your kitchen. By adding a bit of this and subtracting a smidgen of that, says Murrieta, California­based nutritionist Gayle Shockey Hoxter, R.D., you can turn your fat-making kitchen into a low-fat haven for you and your whole family. Here's how.

Swap . . . For . . . In Your Fridge Whole-milk dairy products (including 1% or 2% milk) Low-fat or nonfat dairy products Regular yogurt Low-fat or nonfat yogurt High-fat cheeses Low-fat or nonfat cheeses Eggs Egg substitute or egg whites Butter; regular margarine Reduced-calorie margarine High-fat deli meats, hot dogs 98% fat-free deli meats; 80% fat-or baconfree hot dogs; 90% fat-free turkey bacon High-fat salad dressings or mayonnaise Low-fat or nonfat salad dressings or mayonnaise (Always have on hand: a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables.) Swap . . . For . . . In Your Freezer Regular frozen waffles Low-fat frozen waffles Regular frozen entrées (including pizza) Low-fat frozen entrées; pizza Regular breaded fish and other breaded products Light breaded fish, etc. High-fat meats and poultry Lean cuts of meat; skinless poultry; 90% fat-free ground turkey or beef Regular frozen cakes Fat-free frozen cakes Regular ice cream Low-fat or nonfat frozen yogurt, frozen dessert or ice milk Fruit juice concentrates with added sugar 100% fruit juice concentrates Frozen fruit in sugar Unsweetened frozen fruit Creamed and buttered frozen vegetables Frozen vegetables without sauces (Always have on hand: whole-grain breads, bagels, English muffins.) Swap . . . For . . . In Your Pantry Shortening and oils such as vegetable oil and peanut oil No-stick vegetable oil spray; alternative healthy oils--olive oil, canola oil and light oils Tuna, salmon and other fish or meat packed in oil Water-packed tuna and salmon Baked beans refried in sauce Canned, dried or frozen beans (no salt added) such as kidney, lima, garbanzo, fat-free refried beans Regular or chunky peanut butter Natural peanut butter without salt or sugar (drain off excess oil); use sparingly Canned spaghetti; pasta and rice mixes Plain pasta; rice and grains; low-fat seasoned pasta Sugared breakfast cereals High-fiber, sugar-free cereals Granola Low-fat granola High-fat cookies Low-fat cookies (including graham crackers and whole-wheat fruit bars) High-fat snacks (including high-fat microwave popcorn) Pretzels; air-popped popcorn; low-fat microwave popcorn; raisins; fat-free chips Canned fruit in syrup Canned fruit packed in water or juice Commercially prepared muffins Low-fat muffin mixes Jams and jellies with added sugar 100% fruit preserves Cake mixes 94% fat-free cake mixes; 97% fat-free frostings Creamed and high-sodium soups 99% fat-free and low-sodium soups Swap . . . For . . . High-fat crackers Low-fat crackers; rice cakes Gelatin and puddings Sugar-free gelatin and fat-free or sugar-free puddings Hot chocolate mixes and beverage mixes with sugar Sugar-free hot chocolate and sugar-free beverage mixes Cooking sherry Red or white table wine (for cooking) (Always have on hand: canned tomatoes, tomato paste, salsa, horseradish, ketchup, Dijon mustard, pickle relish.) Swap . . . For . . . In Your Spice Rack Salt; seasoned salt Reduced-sodium salt; seasoned salt Soy sauce Reduced-sodium soy sauce Bouillon cubes Reduced-sodium bouillon cubes (Always have on hand: a variety of spices, dried and fresh herbs.) Note: You'll notice that some of the changes we've made are for low-sodium versions of various products. While sodium per se isn't fattening, it can affect your weight loss. Sodium may cause your body to retain water, which means that even if you've been eating carefully, you might still register a weight gain on the scale.

Tools of the Low-Fat Brigade

Losing weight isn't just a matter of what you're cooking--it's also a matter of what you're cooking with. Thanks to the vast array of kitchen gadgets and gizmos available today, cutting fat and calories from your home-cooked meals is easier than ever. Follow this checklist to see what you may be missing.

No-stick skillet. Toss a tablespoon of butter or oil into a regular pan and you're adding 110 needless calories and 12 grams of fat to your meal. Instead, you can fry or sauté your favorite dish the low-fat way using a no-stick skillet and a squirt of no-stick vegetable oil spray. Buy the best skillet you can afford--you'll be using it a lot. You'll also need a set of plastic or wooden utensils so you won't scratch the skillet's surface.

Steamer. Steamers have been around for some time, and cooks who use them know how great they are for steaming veggies, rice and other foods without cooking away their taste and nutrients. Now you can also get stackable steamers so you can prepare several items at the same time.

Blender. Another all-around favorite in the kitchen, the blender's calorie-cutting potential is tremendous. Blenders help retain the creamy consistency that's often lost when the fat in food is eliminated, and, as you know, blenders are tops for whipping up frothy drinks, creamy soups, dips and desserts. Besides the traditional countertop models, there are newer, handheld immersible ones that can be used right in the pot or bowl.

Plastic or metal strainer. Strainers are terrific for skimming fat from soups and stews.

Microwave oven. "Your microwave is a great aid to low-fat cooking because it lets you cook without added fat," says registered dietitian Nancy Clark, director of Nutrition Services at SportsMedicine Brookline in Brookline, Massachusetts, and author of Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook. It also helps you jazz up simple foods. "Plain old boring fruit cooked in the microwave is very appetizing," adds Clark.

Double meat loaf pan. Traditional meat loaf is an American favorite--but it also packs on about 18 grams of fat per four-ounce serving when prepared the usual way. Now, thanks to this nifty device--which allows the fat to drip out of the inner, perforated pan into the outer pan--you can cut fat by as much as 75 percent.

Popcorn popper. If you automatically think of popcorn as a healthy, fiber-rich snack food, hold on: Some ready-to-eat and microwave brands may contain a whopping ten grams of fat per three-cup serving, reports registered dietitian Judy E. Marshel, director of Health Resources of Great Neck, New York. But you can have your popcorn and eat it, too--guiltlessly--if you prepare it in an electric or microwave air popper. (You can buy low-fat microwave popcorn.)

Salad spinner. This gadget isn't just for drying wet lettuce. "A salad spinner is great for keeping salad items crisp and ready," says Marie Simmons, syndicated columnist and author of The Light Touch and several other cookbooks.

Plastic freezer bags. "One reason people don't eat more vegetables is that they have to stop, clean and peel them," says Simmons. "So after you bring your veggies home from the store, trim them, cut them up and store them in resealable bags so they're ready whenever you want a quick hit. They're especially good for kids, so they can help themselves." Keep enough plastic bags handy for cutting up and storing (in the fridge or freezer) fresh fruit, too.