I use fat-free cream cheese as a fat replacement in cookie dough, biscuits, scones and cakes, but I wouldn't dare put in on my bagel. Fat-free cream cheese just doesn't taste as good as real cream cheese, and the texture is too different. But light cream cheese and Neufchatel (1/3 less fat) cream cheese taste good and can be used in recipes or on bagels.

Which cream cheese should you use to make a less fatty cheesecake? If you are on the picky side, try using all light cream cheese. If you aren't that particular, you might be happy with half fat-free cream cheese and half light cream cheese. Adding grated lemon peel for some extra flavor helps too.

We All Scream For Ice-Cream

If you've ever taken a glance at the ice cream aisle, you know there are many different brand of lighter ice cream and each brand has many flavors to choose from. I'm just listing the best-tasting light ice creams here. There may be other great-tasting ice creams available in your area of the country.

You might notice there aren't any fat-free ice creams in the table below. That's because none of these ice creams tasted any better than just "OK."

How Sour Is Your Cream?

Believe it or not, the best tasting sour cream is a fat-free sour cream, not a "light" sour cream. When I tried Naturally Yours Fat free sour cream (in the white tub with black spots that looks like a cowhide), I was surprised to find that I really liked it. There are also quite a few store-brand light sour creams that taste good. Some of the light sour cream brands taste and look more like plain yogurt than sour cream (too sour for my liking). Naturally Yours fat-free has the best texture and flavor, and can be used to top potatoes or tacos or in casserole or sauce recipes.