Introduction
To meet the recommendations in the Child Care Menu Planning – Practical Guide, ingredients can be modified to increase whole grains and reduce sodium and sugar.
Modifying Recipes
Sodium
- Reduce salt by at least half.
- Compare labels. Choose ingredients with 10% DV sodium or less.
- Dilute broth with water.
- Rinse canned goods when possible (e.g., beans, lentils).
- Enhance flavour with herbs and spices.
- Avoid adding salt if recipe uses higher sodium ingredients like cheese or soy sauce.
Sugar
Tip: To meet guidelines, limit sugar to 1/3 – ½ cup of sugar for 12 portions of a baked product (e.g., muffins).
- Reduce sugar by at least half.
- Replace sugar with unsweetened apple sauce, mashed pumpkin or banana.
- Use small amounts of dried fruit (e.g., raisins, chopped pitted dates) to add sweetness.
- Enhance flavours by using spices and extracts like cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, vanilla, almond, maple, orange or lemon.
Whole Grains
- Replace at least half the white flour with whole wheat or whole grain flour.
- Add oats to increase the whole grain content (e.g., baked goods, meatballs).
- Try other whole grains such as barley, bulgur, millet, quinoa, spelt, whole grain couscous, wild or whole grain brown rice.
Baked goods and mixed dishes should not contain any Do Not Serve ingredients (e.g., chocolate chips, marshmallows, imitation bacon bits). For additional examples, see the Child Care Menu Planning – Practical Guide.
To adapt for food allergies, refer to Common Food Allergen Substitutions for Child Care Settings.
