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Timeless Holiday Treats

Monday, December 12th, 2011

The holiday season is all about revisiting old traditions while creating new traditions for years to come. Give your classic holiday cookie recipes a unique flavor, texture and health boost with these ingredients.

Oats

Transform traditional holiday baked goods into healthful indulgences with simple ingredient swaps. Replace all-purpose flour with white whole wheat flour for a natural source of fiber and nutrients or add oats for whole-grain goodness. Substitute Quaker® Old-Fashioned or Quick Oats for up to one-third the amount of flour for hearty and delicious cookies with double the fiber of treats made with all-purpose flour alone. In baking recipes, use Old-Fashioned Oats when a hearty texture is desired and use Quick Oats for a smoother texture.

Dried Fruit

Dried fruits like cranberries, raisins and dates give baked goods a wonderful chewy texture. Naturally sweet dried fruits lend an extra special sweet flavor to cookies and contribute healthful nutrients like iron and fiber. If your recipe calls for chopped raisins or dates, try spraying the knife lightly with cooking spray before chopping to prevent sticking. To keep raisins or dates from sinking to the bottom of your batter or dough, dust lightly with flour before stirring into the mixture.

Healthier Fat

Small amounts of fat are necessary for tenderizing and flavoring baked goods. For recipes calling for oil, try using light olive oil or canola oil. For recipes calling for butter or margarine, try I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!® Baking Sticks. They bake and taste like butter, but contain 50 percent less saturated fat. Made with a blend of soybean and canola oil they also provide an excellent source of omega-3 ALA per serving and are trans fat free.

Easy Breezy Cleanup

Enjoy baking even more with easier clean up! New Reynolds Wrap® Pan Lining Paper is a unique combination of aluminum foil and parchment paper that’s specially designed to prevent all of your holiday sweets from sticking to baking pans or cookie sheets—so clean up is a cinch. Storing or freezing cookies for later? Place cookies in an airtight container with Pan Lining Paper in between the layers of cookies to keep them from sticking together.