• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

FatFree Vegan Kitchen

Simply delicious oil-free vegan recipes

  • Recipe Index
    • Recipes by Category
    • Recipes by Tag
    • Recipe Box
  • About Me
    • Press
  • NewsBites
  • Shop!
  • Website

Fatfree Baking Tip #1

April 14, 2006 By Susan Voisin 14 Comments
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Privacy Policy.

Normally I don’t do a lot of baking, but this week I found myself baking banana bread in addition to the most important thing I bake all year–my daughter’s birthday cake, which is in the oven even as I type. This year, I decided to reduce the fat in my traditional recipe a little by using the time-honored technique of substituting apple sauce for some of the oil. If you’ve looked at or made any of my bread or cake recipes, I’m sure you’ve noticed it. What I haven’t let on is a little secret that makes adding apple sauce to recipes very easy:

Apple Sauce

Individual serving packages. I used to buy those big jars of natural apple sauce, use a half-cup or so, put the rest in the fridge, and then a month later find green fur growing in the jar. After throwing away a few jars of barely-used apple sauce, I found myself reaching for the little snack-sized containers that my daughter takes for lunch. These come in 6-packs, and each holds 4 ounces, which is a little more than 1/3 cup and not quite 1/2 cup. When you see me indicating 4 ounces of unsweetened apple sauce, that’s what I’m using. Now you know my trick.

The birthday cake is now out of the oven, and the whole house smells like . . . . oops, can’t tell you the flavor. It’s a surprise, you know! Check back later tomorrow night for all the details, photos, and possibly even a recipe.

Filed Under: Fat-free Tips, Non-Recipe

Get NewsBites!

Sign up for our newsletter to receive new recipes & tips by email!

Privacy Policy
Previous Post: « Cherry-Walnut Banana Bread
Next Post: Raspberry Chocolate Cake »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. las1261

    October 17, 2009 at 12:28 am

    I use applesauce in baking. I make some yummy oatmeal raisin cookies with applesauce for the oil. And I am in the process of experimenting with applesauce in cornbread! The first time I used equal amounts of applesauce to oil, and it came out very gooey. Tasted fine, but didn't like the texture. Second time I used half the amount of applesauce to oil ratio. And it turned out much better! I may try again with a third of the amount and see what happens!

    Reply
  2. Kitty

    May 22, 2010 at 10:15 am

    I made banana ‘cake’ (or ‘bread’ – as a ‘virgin’ baker, I don’t know the difference) – yesterday using applesauce instead of oil. Since I didn’t add sugar either, the fruit was solely responsible for any sweetness.

    It’s didn’t come out too bad, considering my embarrassing track record of charring anything inside an oven. I was especially delighted when my picky hubby appreciated the dessert!

    I plan to make an apple-nut muffin next. It appears that thee baking-bug has bit me!

    Reply
  3. lauren deneen

    June 11, 2010 at 10:53 am

    Try apple butter instead of apple sauce-it makes whatever you are baking a little bit darker but the flavor is great as it is a ‘concentrated’ apple sauce.

    Look for the unsweetened kind in a natural food store as supermarket apple butter usually contains corn syrup and or other sweeteners and fillers. It is more expensive but worth it! I put it in vegan chocolate chocolate chip cookies for up to all the oil called for in the recipe or any part of it. I have also used it in vegan corn bread.

    Reply
    • Gail

      October 14, 2010 at 3:04 am

      That sounds perfect for baking sweets! We already love “toast” sprouted bread with apple butter as a treat, we often enjoy it as a snack or dessert!

      I never thought of baking with it!
      THanks

      Reply
  4. Irreverent Cook

    September 13, 2010 at 12:52 pm

    I love to use pureed prunes for a smoother texture. Just soak dried prunes in hot water, and puree them slightly with a hand blender with a few tablespoons of hot water.
    I use it in cookies and it comes out great every time!

    Reply
  5. Mekkie

    February 5, 2011 at 9:00 pm

    Yogurt and canned pumpkin work pretty well too. Obviously you have to be careful with pumpkin though because of the flavor. If you’re substituting a non-acidic ingredient (oil) with an acidic one (applesauce), you should swap a little baking powder with baking soda. This might be why some of your recipes aren’t coming out right.

    Reply
    • SusanV

      February 5, 2011 at 10:34 pm

      Whose recipes? Mine are coming out just fine! 🙂

      Reply
  6. This Chick Eats

    March 31, 2011 at 9:37 pm

    Great tip and trick. Thanks!

    Reply
  7. kay

    March 11, 2012 at 9:54 pm

    what is the exact substitute for applesauce to oil?
    can anything be substituted for butter?
    I LOVE carrot cake, please tell me you have a fat free recipe for me.

    Reply
  8. Susanne

    May 21, 2012 at 12:17 pm

    Great idea – thanks

    Reply
  9. Monica

    July 26, 2012 at 11:49 pm

    I used to do the same thing and found this little trick works so much better!

    Reply
  10. Caity @ Moi Contre La Vie

    October 25, 2012 at 9:11 am

    I’ve been using pumpkin puree as well for my fall baking needs! 🙂 Sooo good!

    Reply
  11. Jo Carr

    February 3, 2013 at 8:15 am

    I have a baking book which uses Prune Puree along with applesauce or alpple juice as a substitute also. Unfortunately, I loaned it to a friend and she’s out of town this weekend when I wanted to make some oatmeal cookies for my family.
    I love your web site and appreciate the many recepies you offer.

    Jo

    Reply
  12. cooljusher

    March 13, 2013 at 8:41 pm

    So glad to have discovered your blog. My husband has recetly been advised by the Dr. to follow a fat free diet because of early signs of health problems, won’t do me any harm either! The recipes on here look so ‘do-able’ with easy to find ingredients. Thank you!!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Welcome to My Kitchen!

Susan VoisinI'm Susan Voisin, and I love creating delicious whole foods plant-based dishes with no added oil. Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Instagram.
  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Find It Fast

  • Instant Pot Recipes
  • Ridiculously Easy Recipes
  • Weight Watchers Recipes
  • Recipes by Tag (ingredient, gluten-free, etc.)
  • Complete Recipe Index

Find a Recipe

Allergens

All of my recipes are vegan, dairy-free, and fish free. To find recipes free of other allergens, click on an icon below.

Gluten FreeNut FreeSugar FreeSoy Free

Footer

Fall Favorites

Pasta Fagioli with Cranberry Beans and Kale

Pasta Fagioli with Cranberry Beans and Kale

Vegan Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Vegan Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Spaghetti Squash Pesto Lasagna

Spaghetti Squash Pesto Lasagna

Lentil Soup with Coriander and Cumin from FatFree Vegan Kitchen

Lentil Soup with Coriander and Cumin

See More Fall Favorites

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Photos, original recipes, and text © Susan Voisin. All rights reserved. Do not republish content without permission.

Nutritional information is approximate and is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate. This site has no affiliation with Weight Watchers™️ and cannot guarantee accuracy of Points™️.

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Copyright © 2023 · Susan Voisin · Privacy Policy· Log in