I’ve always loved experimenting with ways to make desserts healthier. After a meal, I often find myself craving something sweet. While an occasional indulgence is completely fine, I enjoy taking on the challenge of transforming my treats into something a little more nutritious. Small, simple ingredient substitutions can make any recipe healthier without sacrificing flavor.
Let me emphasize the word attempt here - many of my healthier dessert experiments feel like science projects. That’s part of the fun! It’s all about trying, failing, and eventually figuring out what works and what doesn’t. This can be done with snacks as well, and one of my favorite healthy snacks are these energy bites.
If you’re inspired to explore healthier desserts, the best place to start is with understanding alternative ingredients. Once you have an idea of what you want to swap, pick a recipe and begin your experimentation. Simple recipes often work best for this purpose, as they are less dependent on precise chemistry. Quick breads, crumbles, pancakes, and even chocolate avocado zucchini bread. Recently, my go-to healthy recipe has been apple banana oat pancakes. They hide vitamins and fiber-rich fruits in a delicious pancake, giving me a wholesome dessert that’s just as satisfying.
Now, let me walk you through this wonderful recipe using some great substitutes for conventional ingredients.
Ingredient Swaps for Apple Banana Oat Pancakes
1. Apples and Oat Milk
For this recipe, I replaced the milk with blended apples and oat milk. While it’s possible to use oat milk alone as a substitute for regular milk in a pancake recipe, I wanted to incorporate additional fiber and vitamins into my pancakes. To achieve this, I chopped up fresh apples and blended them with oat milk for a nutrient-packed liquid base. If you’re in a rush, you can use applesauce instead, but keep in mind that applesauce often lacks the fiber found in whole apples.
2. Flour: Whole Wheat and Oat
All-purpose flour doesn’t bring much nutritional value to recipes, and The American Heart Association recommends that at least half of our grains be whole grains. Whole wheat flour is a simple substitute to incorporate more nutrients; however, it can make your baked goods denser and tougher. I’ve found that the best approach is to replace only a portion of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour to maintain texture.
Additionally, oat flour is another great option for this recipe. You can make it at home by blending oats into a powder. Oats are also naturally gluten-free. However, gluten-free flours often require a starch and a second flour to provide structure to recipes. Gluten-free flour blends are also readily available and can usually replace regular flour at a 1:1 ratio.
3. Bananas
Bananas work surprisingly well as an egg substitute, with half a banana equating to approximately one egg. While this substitution results in a slightly denser texture (think banana bread). Another excellent egg alternative is pumpkin or squash puree - about 1/4 cup equals one egg.
4. Avocado Oil
In recipes where melted butter is added to the mixture, oils make an easy, healthier substitute. This swap lowers saturated fats. For recipes that require solid fats, such as pie dough, vegetable-based butters can serve as suitable alternatives. Most of these have less saturated fat, making them a great choice.
5. Agave
Agave syrup is a fantastic substitute for sugar, with the added benefit of having a lower glycemic index (GI). GI measures how much your blood sugar rises after eating; agave has a GI of 11, compared to table sugar at 80. Agave is also sweeter than sugar, so you can use less while still achieving the desired sweetness. If using liquid sweeteners like agave in baked goods, be mindful of the added water content. To account for this, use about 3/4 the volume of sugar the recipe calls for and reduce the liquid content by 2 tablespoons.
Apple Banana Oat Pancakes Recipe
Yield: 12 medium pancakes
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Total time: 55 minutes
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oat flour
4 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoon agave
1 banana, mashed
1 1/2 cups apples (blended with oat milk, or substitute applesauce)
1/4 cup oat milk
4 Tablespoons avocado oil (plus more for cooking)
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, combine the vanilla extract, agave, banana, blended apples (or applesauce), oat milk, and avocado oil.
- Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until combined. If the batter feels too thick, add oat milk one tablespoon at a time until pourable.
- Heat a non-stick pan over medium-low heat. Lightly coat with oil. Drop about 1/4 cup of batter onto the pan and spread it slightly. Cook until golden brown and bubbles appear (though bubbles may be less prominent than typical pancakes). Flip and cook the other side until golden. Adjust the heat if needed to cook through without over-browning.
- Serve immediately with your favorite toppings!
Experimenting with healthier foods can be an exciting and rewarding process. If you’re inspired to dive deeper into healthy food, don't miss our hands-on Meatless Monday: Spring Garden Spotlight coming up on Monday, May 19 at 6pm at Lincoln Square. You'll learn to make:
- Pea, Mint and Radish Crostini with Whipped Ricotta
- Butter Lettuce and Scallion Bisque with Herby Greek Yogurt
- Risotto Primavera with Chanterelle Mushrooms, Asparagus and Leeks
- Strawberry-Rhubarb Cornmeal Skillet Cake with Lavender Whipped Cream
