Secrets of Fat-Free Baking: Over 130 Low-Fat & Fat-Free Recipes for Scrumptious and Simple-to-Make Cakes, Cookies, Brownies, Muffins, Pies, Breads

My boyfriend was recently sentenced to a low fat diet and I thought my baking days were over. I picked up this book to see what I could do and I am most pleased! Everything has been tasty and there is a lot of useful information about replacing the fat in pre-existing recipes and measuring things. We cook at home more often now, so we are not only losing weight - we are saving all that money we spent on takeout! All the recipes I have tried are comparable in texture and flavor to the real thing. An added bonus is they are not only lower in fat but much higher in nutritional value!

As a baking fanatic, I was in search of a cookbook that would allow me to continue baking, while not expanding my waistline in similar proportions. This book is the answer! I was somewhat skeptical at first...as I am a firm believer in shortening and sugar. But Ms. Woodruff's book is filled with delicious recipes! I was thoroughly surprised, and very happy. I make a different muffin recipe each week, and bring these low-fat muffins to work as breakfast all week long (sure beats Pop-Tarts or hi-fat muffins). A favorite is the Mandarin Orange Blueberry muffins. And for cookies, the Butterscotch Crisps are sure to satisfy the sweet tooth in all of us. I can't wait to purchase Ms. Woodruff's OTHER cookbooks!

Each chapter is based on a set of recipes using on fat replacers: prune puree, dairy, mashed vegetables, etc. There's one recipe per page, with some small space for notes at the bottom. It also provides nutritional info. There are some whimsical food drawings scattered through the book.In other sections of the book there are tips for how to convert family favs to lower fat versions. It also explains why the oven temps and cooking times are sometimes lower than "normal," and how to best use the correct flours to avoid dry or hard results. (ex: whole wheat cake/pastry flour and not all-purpose for airier results, caution not to overmix so the dough doesn't get tough). Although care is needed to produce moist, properly cake-y cakes and cookie-y cookies with the right texture, all you need to do is just be careful about following the directions. There are some already vegan versions and changing the others is usually a matter of trading egg whites for something like Ener-G egg replacer. Not a big hassle compared to coverting other recipes in other books. This is baking from scratch, so there will be some time taken up with measuring. If you prefer your baking to be more of a "just add eggs and water to a mix" type you aren't going to be happy with the longer ingredient lists measuring out tiny amounts of things. Those who are used to cooking or enjoy baking will have no problem and will have the ingredients on hand -- the only two "unusual" things the "average" person may not be used to are powdered egg replacer and lecithin granules, but the majority of the recipes don't go there and just use plain ol' baking powder, flour, sugar, etc.A small section on bakeware would have been nice -- at least mentioning to watch dark colored bakeware for burning for those who are totally new to baking. It's not critical though.Overall, a welcome addition to my cookbook collection. Successful LF vegan baking can be quite the challenge and this makes it easy!

This is a great book, it teaches you how to modify your favorite recipes for lower fat and cholesterol content. The recipes are simple, fun to make and have ingredients that are easy to find. Best of all - my family will eat this food! they love it and don't know it is healthier, except of course that they feel better! Good job Ms. author, I will definately check out your other books.

I just returned from our monthly stockclub meeting. Our hostess served a tray of baked goodies from this book. They were the best low-fat treats I have tasted. After a quick glance through the book, I had to have it!!