Christmas sweet tooth swaps

Swap: apple pie for apple bake

Save: at least 250 kcals

Turn an apple dessert from stodgy to svelte by taking out the pastry. Instead, stuff whole cored (unpeeled) cooking apples with mashed banana, a pinch of cinnamon, a splash of lemon juice and a sprinkling of raisins, and bake in a baking tray filled with 200ml boiling water for 30-40 minutes in a hot oven. You can baste the apples in the tray juices for added sweetness.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: Christmas log for yogurt yule log

Save: at least 50 kcals.

Turn this luxury log lower cal by simply whisking 4 egg yolks with 175g (6oz) sugar, and folding in 50g (1oz) plain flour, 3tbsp corn flour and 4tbsp cocoa powder. Pour onto a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper and level to roughly 1cm thick.

Bake for about 20 minutes at 180ºC/Gas mark 4. Turn out onto foil and roll up quickly, and once cooled unroll and spread with reduced-sugar raspberry jam (mixed with a little Cassis liqueur) and low fat Greek yoghurt. Roll up again and slice.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: ice-cream for frozen yoghurt

Save: at least 200 kcals

Of course, we all wish for a cool white Christmas this year but rather than filling your bowl with a snow shovel of ice-cream, choose an iced dessert that’s more chilled than chubby.

Homemade frozen yoghurt is really easy: simply put frozen mixed berries (there’s bags of choice in the frozen aisles at the supermarket), 2tbsps icing sugar, low fat Greek yoghurt and a pinch of cinnamon into a blender and whizz until smooth. Put in a plastic container and pop in the freezer.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: Christmas pudding for caramelised oranges

Save: at least 100 kcals

It’s possible to get the zingy, sticky flavours of Christmas pud with a simple but sophisticated caramelised orange recipe.

Peel the zest and rind from two oranges and place in a pan with a little water, and bring to boil before simmering for 5 minutes. Strain the orange zest and reserve the water. Peel four more large oranges and cut horizontally into four slices and reassemble, holding together with a cocktail stick. Stand them in a flat-bottomed dish.

Put 250g (8oz) sugar and 250ml (8fl oz) water in a saucepan and simmer until the sugar dissolves, then bring to the boil and boil steadily until it turns a rich brown colour. Remove from the heat and stir in the orange water and gently heat again, adding 2tbsp orange liqueur or brandy. Pour over the oranges and leave them to chill for a few hours in the fridge before serving (removing the stick!)

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: Panna cotta for chocolate-orange blancmange

Save: at least 150 kcals

While panna cotta is all about the cream, a homemade chocolate blancmange (or is that brown-mange?) ticks the treat box but isn’t choc full of calories.

Mix 2tbsp skimmed milk with 3tbsp caster sugar and 4tbsp cornflour to form a loose paste. Heat 500ml skimmed milk in a saucepan and add115g broken dark chocolate. Heat until the milk boils and chocolate has melted and pour into the cornflour mix, stirring, then return to the heat and bring to the boil, stirring all the time until it thickens.

Add the finely grated rind of 1 orange and give it a final stir before pouring into a Pyrex bowl and, once cooled, set it in the fridge.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: Christmas cake for fruity loaf

Save: at least 100 kcals

A moist slice of Christmas cake is high on everyone’s list during the festive season but loaded with sugar, icing and marzipan, the calories can soon mount up. Get the same fruity kick with a fruit loaf that replaces sugar with artificial sweetener.

Mix together 125g (4oz) dried fruit such as apricots, sultanas and raisins with thumb-sized chunk of chopped stem ginger and 150ml (5fl oz) orange juice and leave to soak. Grease a loaf tin and line with greaseproof paper, and preheat the oven to 180/Gas Mark 4. Sift 125g (4oz) flour into a bowl and stir in 4tbsp granulated sweetener.

Beat 1 egg into the fruit mixture and fold into the flour gradually, stirring to make a batter. Pour into the loaf tin and bake until golden (around 35 minutes)

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: chocolate brownies for prune slices

Save: at least 250 kcals

Satisfy those chocolate cravings but lose a few of the calories by adding fruit to brownies instead of sugar.

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4 and grease a square cake tin. In a bowl mix together 60g (2oz) plain flour, 6tbsp cocoa powder, 200g (7oz) caster sugar and a pinch of salt, and give it a stir. Mix in 2tbsp vegetable oil, a splash of vanilla extract, 115g (4oz) pitted and pureed prunes and 2 beaten eggs and pour into the tin.

Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Tiramisu for an affogato-style scoop!

Save: at least 350 kcals

With its cream, mascarpone and spongy finger-mix, tiramisu is possibly one of the most cal-horrific desserts you can eat, clocking up as much as 450 calories per slice!

If you love coffee but not the fat then go for a low-cal take on the ‘affogato’, an Italian drink that mixes espresso with ice-cream.

Pop a scoop of frozen vanilla yoghurt into a glass; stir in a dash of coffee liqueur into a small cup of hot espresso and pour over the yoghurt. Serve immediately.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: Chocolate cake for banana bread

Bananas are a great substitute for sugar in cakes, and banana bread has that satisfying sweetness without the sugar.

Mash a couple of ripe bananas along with 2 egg whites and 1tsp vanilla extract, and in a separate bowl mix together 200g (7oz) plain flour, a large pinch of baking powder, 150g (6oz) sugar and ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda. Pour this into your banana mixture and stir, and pop into a loaf tin.

Bake for 45 minutes to an hour in a medium oven (or until a cocktail stick comes out clean).

Save: at least 130 kcals

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: Bread & butter pudding for apple pudding

Save: at least 50 kcals

Okay, so a bread and butter pudding without the butter may not live up to its name, but substituting the butter for apple puree gives all the taste without the trans fats.

Simmer 2kg cooking apples in a pan with 2tbsp balsamic vinegar and 2tbsp water until soft. Force through a sieve into a bowl and add ½ cup of sugar for each cup of apple puree. Stir and add a pinch of salt, 2tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp ground cloves, ½ tsp allspice and the juice and rind of 1 lemon. Cook uncovered in a pan, stirring, until thick and then cool for 1-2 hours.

Spread a little of your puree (you can freeze the rest) on toast triangles, and arrange them in a baking dish. Make a custard using 2 eggs, 85g (2oz) sugar, 450ml (15fl oz) skimmed milk and 1tbsp cornflour in a jug and pour over your toast. Bake in a medium oven for 30 minutes or until the egg mixture sets.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: cheesecake for cottage cheese cake

Save: at least 50 kcals

Slash per slice in this fatty dessert by replacing the cream cheese with low fat cottage cheese – pureed in a food processor – or low fat Greek yoghurt or ricotta, and mix with a squeeze of lemon and vanilla extract.

Instead of using whole eggs use half egg whites; halve the sugar and substitute it with bananas or dates; and use half oats or wholewheat cereal and half amaretti biscuits for the base.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: trifle for jammy ‘jars’!

Save: at least 100 kcal

Make individual puds with a trifle less fat by whisking 6 egg yolks with 110g (3oz) sugar until pale and sift in 35g (1oz) plain flour. Bring 475ml (16fl oz) skimmed milk to the boil and remove from the heat and add a dash of vanilla essence.

Stir gently into your egg mixture and return to a clean pan and whisk over a gentle heat until it boils. Stir continuously until thickened, and set aside to cool.

Spread reduced-sugar jam onto sponge fingers and pop two or three into large wine glasses, and drizzle each with sherry. Add your custard mixture, a spoonful of canned fruit in juice (pineapple or peaches work nicely) and layer until you reach the top of the glass, finishing with a spray of low-fat aerosol cream. Chill before serving.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: chocolate soufflé for cocoa pots

Save: at least 50 kcals

Whip up a restaurant style dessert in a minute – without lashings of calories.

Mash 2 bananas and 1tsp vanilla extract together in a bowl and sift in 2tsp cornflour, 45g (1oz) cocoa powder and 1/4tsp salt and stir well. In a separate bowl, beat 2 egg whites with 2tbsp sugar until they form soft peaks and fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the banana mixture, then fold in the rest and spoon into ramekins.

Place on a baking sheet in the oven and bake at 180C/Gas Mark 4 for 12 minutes or until the soufflés rise and form a crust.

See also: Super-trim party snacks

Swap: sticky toffee pudding for sticky carrot cake

Save: at least 100 kcals

Some savvy swaps means you can have your cake – and eat it – here! Soak 200g (7oz) dates in boiling water until soft.

Beat 4 eggs in a bowl and add a knob of low fat margarine and 150g (5oz) grated carrot. Chop up your dates and add them and half the liquid to the bowl, along with 175g (6oz) plain flour, ½ tsp baking powder, ½ tsp bicarbonate soda, 1tsp ginger and 1tsp cinnamon.

Whizz all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth and pour into a cake tin and bake at 150C/Gas mark 3 for 30 minutes. Serve hot with a drizzle of maple syrup or, better still, honey.

See also: Super-trim party snacks