Recipe: Low Fat Cassava Pie
[This low fat healthier version of Bermuda's traditional Christmas Cassava pie recipe is provided below courtesy of the dietitians at King Edward Memorial Hospital]
Cassava pie is traditionally a very high fat food rich in calories. This recipe makes one small pie using three pounds of cassava so there are not too many fattening leftovers! There are also health concerns regarding the consumption of saturated fats, hydrogenated oils containing trans fats and cholesterol. This recipe has been developed using non hydrogenated, soft vegetable margarine instead of butter, and egg substitute instead of whole eggs. It has about one third less fat than most traditional cassava pie recipes and is free from trans fats. The egg substitute keeps it light and moist. Make sure you save some of your skimmed chicken broth to baste your pie during baking.
2 lbs skinless chicken thighs
2 lbs skinless chicken breasts
Simmer the chicken with a little thyme and a pinch of salt. Remove the cooked chicken from bones. Chill broth to allow the fat to come to the surface so that it can be removed.
3 lbs grated cassava
6 oz soft vegetable margarine (like ‘Flora’or‘Bertolli’) These spreads are not hydrogenated.
DO NOT use ‘light’ margarines as they contain too much water.
1 ½ cups sugar
16 oz (2 cups) liquid egg substitute (like ‘Eggbeaters’) (equivalent to 8 eggs)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
Squeeze cassava (a small amount at a time) in a clean dish towel or cheesecloth to thoroughly remove all of the juice. Crumble the dry cassava and remove any large pieces.
Spray a deep, 9 inch pan with non stick cooking spray. Cut a piece of waxed paper to fit the bottom of the pan and spray again with cooking spray.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the margarine and sugar together. Gradually add egg substitute followed by the cassava, vanilla, nutmeg, baking powder and salt. Mix well.
Spread half of this mixture on the bottom of the pan. Add the cut up chicken. Spread remaining mixture on top and poke a hole in the middle of the pie.
Bake at 325 degrees for one hour and then baste with several tablespoons of broth, pouring a little into the centre hole.
Continue baking for another 1 ½ to 2 hours.
Cut into 20 pieces.
Each 5 oz piece provides about 220 calories
7g Fat, 11g protein, 29g carbohydrate Diabetic Exchanges: 2 starch and 1 meat
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Has anybody else besides the people who made the recipe actually try this recipe? I would really like to know because I want to try this but I do not want it to come out too dry or too wet or too something else. Did a Bermudian make this recipe?
Yes, I actually specifically asked the Hospital for this as they gave it to my mom years ago after my dad had a heart attack and had to go on a permanent low fat diet.
My mom has been making this version for 10 years [since the heart attack] and it really is pretty good – considering its a diet version. Rest of my family all eat it [uncles, cousins etc] and they say its not too bad for a low-fat version. Not quite as good as “regular” of course – but works for a diet version. Def drier than “normal” version however.
I personally have been eating it for so long that its “normal” to me now, but tastes fine to me.
Hope that helps!!!
Patricia
Thanks so much. I will be making cassava for the first time today, thats if my mama can wait till I knock off from work. But i would really like to try something healthy. I love the regular cassava but I need to lose a few pounds and this time of the year is not my fav when it comes to my waist line. Do you have to actually completely strain the casava? Like if i don’t squeeze out too much water would that make it wetter without making it too sloppy?
I asked my mom, and she said yes – def have to strain the cassava completely…