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Makeovers will
pare fat

It's time to dust off a favorite recipe -- one that you haven't prepared in a long time because it doesn't fit your healthier lifestyle.

Beginning in January, we will revise readers' favorite recipes to help make them lower in fat without sacrificing flavor.

Every four weeks, a recipe will be selected for a makeover. We will choose different kinds of recipes throughout the year to demonstrate a variety of techniques to reduce fat.

Mail recipes to Recipe Makeover, Features Department, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, HI 96802. Or email to drdobbs@ juno.com, using "Recipe Makeover" as your subject title.

Please follow this checklist when submitting your recipe. The goal is to write your recipe clearly enough so that someone else could prepare the dish:

Recipe title.

Recipe source (grandmother, Betty Crocker, yourself).

List of ingredients. Be as specific as possible. For example, say "1 cup chopped onion" rather than "one onion, chopped" or "1 15-oz. can of tomato sauce" instead of "one large can tomato sauce." Specify brand names if possible.

Oven temperature (say "350 degrees F" instead of a "moderate oven").

Approximate preparation and cooking time.

Any notable precautions (example, "use ceramic or glass dish, not metal").

Yield (number of servings).

Serving size (i.e. "1/2-cup serving").

Your name and a phone number or email address.

Here is a mashed potato makeover for Thanksgiving. The yield for all versions is eight 1/2-cup servings.

Basic Mashed Potatoes

2 pounds white potatoes (about 6 medium)
1/4 cup margarine or butter (1/2 stick)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup whole milk
Dash pepper

Wash and peel potatoes, and cut into large pieces. Place in a 3-quart saucepan containing about one inch of water and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cover and heat to boiling over high heat, then reduce to a simmer (slow boil).

Cook potatoes, covered, for about 20 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork. Drain potatoes and place in a medium bowl. Mash with a potato masher or electric mixer. If using a mixer, don't overmix or the potatoes will be gummy.

Add milk in small amounts, beating after each addition. Add butter or margarine and remaining salt and pepper. Beat vigorously until potatoes are light and fluffy.

Approximate nutritional information per 1/2 cup serving: 140 calories, 6.5 g total fat, 4 g saturated fat, 20 mg cholesterol, 270 mg sodium*

'Tastes-Like-Sour-Cream' Mashed Potatoes

Replace milk with 3/4 cup buttermilk. Omit butter or margarine.

Approximate nutritional information per 1/2 cup serving: 85 calories, 0.5 g total fat, less than 0.5 g saturated fat, less than 1 mg cholesterol, 230 mg sodium*

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Cut the top off a whole head of garlic. Place garlic (about 30 garlic cloves or a total of 1/4 to 1/3 cup soft garlic) in a small glass baking dish and pour over it 1/4 cup vegetable broth. Cover. Bake about 1 hour. Squeeze the garlic from skins. Use in place of butter or margarine.

Approximate nutritional information per 1/2 cup serving: 100 calories, 1 g total fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, less than 5 mg cholesterol, 240 mg sodium.*

Health Events

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Barbara Burke is a Hawaii-Pacific University instructor who has been teaching
and writing about food and nutrition since 1975.

Joannie Dobbs, Ph.D., C.N.S., is a food and nutrition consultant
and owner of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.
She is also responsible for the nutritional analyses
indicated by an asterisk in this section.

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