food ideas
Top 12 Ways To Give Condiments a Flavor-Boost
By Leslie Fink, MS, RD | 8/3/2005


Sure, you could spend hours in the kitchen creating sauces and
dressings from scratch. But why would you when tasty combinations are
as easy as adding horseradish to bottled ketchup or chopped chipotle
peppers to low-fat mayonnaise?

"The addition of one item really can make a difference," says Robin
Vitetta-Miller, MS, author of Picnics: Easy Recipes for the Best
Alfresco Foods (Clarkson Potter, 2005). Chipotle peppers add heat and
smokiness, horseradish gives texture and heat, and honey can lend the
right amount of sweetness to just about any condiment.

Here are some of Vitetta-Miller's favorite ways to embellish store-
bought condiments and other supermarket items for use as vegetables
dips, sandwich spreads, burger toppings, entrée sauces and more.

Add wasabi powder or wasabi paste to low-fat mayonnaise for a spicy
vegetable dip or sandwich spread.


Get creative with Dijon mustard by adding a touch of honey and dill.
Bev Bennett, cookbook author and recipe developer, makes her own
honey mustard to get just the right level of sweetness. She also
throws in a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes for extra heat.


Mix together fat-free plain yogurt, shredded cucumber and garlic
powder for a simple Greek-inspired vegetable dip, turkey burger
topping or sauce for grilled chicken.


Add ketchup and mustard to bottled barbecue sauce and spread it over
meatloaf before baking for excellent moisture and flavor. Bennett
offers other barbecue sauce additions such as smoked paprika or
minced roasted garlic cloves.


Combine sesame oil, soy sauce and minced scallions for an easy Asian
dipping sauce for vegetables and steamed dumplings.


Create a creamy sauce for nachos, tacos, burritos and Tex-Mex wraps
by adding fat-free sour cream to prepared salsa.


Stir fresh fruit such as minced pineapple into low-fat cottage cheese
and serve with sliced apples for dipping.


Or go savory and mix salt-free garlic and herb seasoning (and fresh
herbs, if desired) with low-fat cottage cheese and spread it into a
pita filled with roasted vegetables.


Fold chocolate syrup into reduced-fat cream cheese and use as a fruit
dip.


Top your favorite burger with a dollop of ketchup combined with
plain, fat-free yogurt or nonfat sour cream.


Add some of the sauce (but not the actual peppers) from canned
chipotle peppers to either guacamole or ketchup for a little smoky
heat. Bennett suggests adding chipotle sauce (tastes like tomato
sauce with a hint of chipotle chili flavor) to plain yogurt as a
dressing for chicken salad.


Serve crab cakes with a sauce of low-fat mayonnaise spiked with
horseradish.

NEXT STEPS

Tired of scooping up the same old boring dips? Read Skinny Dipping
for delicious new recipes that are low in fat but high in flavor.

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