Cut Calories in Half With This Simple Baking Trick

Ovens are working overtime in the Fall with cooler temps and all those food-centric holidays. Cookies, muffins, cakes, bars, and quick breads are on the menu, and unfortunately, even when you try to cut calories by making ingredient substitutions like avocado for butter or applesauce in place of oil, a serving size will still run you 100 to 300 calories or more!

Here's an easy way to slash calories in half. Look at the serving size on your recipe, then double it by making the original serving sizes half the size. So instead of making one dozen muffins or cupcakes, make 24 minis. For cookies, scoop out smaller balls of dough and make 48 instead of two dozen. Instead of cutting 15 brownies (three rows of five), cut them smaller to make 20 (four rows of five) or 24 (four rows of six). When baking oatmeal pumpkin bread, cut the usual eight slices, but then cut those in half, so you get 16. Or instead of using a typical loaf pan, bake the batter in a 9-by-13-inch pan so you can cut 15 squares instead of eight slices. This will allow you to get a little taste of that home-baked goodness without going crazy overboard on calories. Just be sure to monitor baking times if you're using a different sized pan, since they will change depending on the size and volume of your treats.

Related: How to Replace Sugar in Baked Goods