No recommendations, as I'm in Canada, but you may want to keep an eye on the calorie counts in low-fat products. Often, the fat is replaced with sugar for flavour, meaning the end low-fat product result is often higher in calories than the full-fat version.

You could always experiment with ways of making a mix low fat by substituting other ingredients, like applesauce or oil instead of butter, etc.

There are low-fat brownie and muffin recipes all over the internet, and the usual substitutions involve apple sauce, non-fat yogurt, or low-fat sour cream for the oil and sometimes also for the egg.

Be warned: this WILL change the texture. Here's where the mixes have an advantage over the home cook, as the manufacturers can add substances not found at the grocery store in order to make it taste more like food.

the yogurt & apple sauce tricks work well, as does replacing everything with Diet Coke (or other sodas, search for recipes).
Another trick, for single serving deserts is as follows: combine a box of angel food cake and devils food cake mix in a bag. In a small bowl, combine 1/3 of this cake mix with 3 tbs of water and stir until combined well. Then Microwave for 1 minute. It's a nice chocolatey desert with a very light texture. It's delish

They taste better than homemade low fat desserts because they have a lot of not-found-in-nature additives that are not available to the home cook. They also have a lot of sugar. They aren't food.

The common substitutes to lower fat in brownies and whatnot are to replace some of the fat with applesauce or prune/applesauce. They work to reduce the fat content but aren't great for the texture.

I'm kind of disappointed that a site about cooking is publishing posts about these types of shortcuts and engineered products. I loathe the show Semi-Homemade because these shortcuts usually promote unhealthy lifestyles. If you want less fat in your diet, control portions.

Personally, I've found that adding smaller portions of full-fat foods has helped me control my weight, and kept my cholesterol in check. Whole milk is satisfying, and keeps me fueled for hours. I can feel satisfied on smaller portions.

@MzFitz, I could be wrong, but I thought that Sagi was asking for homemade alternatives to a mix? That would not constitute a shortcut, right? Just a low-fat recipe. I do agree, however, that mixes are less than desirable.

Guys, relax a little, all right? Dieting is hard enough without having people judge you for the choices you make that are better than the choices that caused you to have to change your lifestyle in the first place. Mix-based brownies once in a while aren't going to kill anyone, and different things work for everybody.

Sagi - I would try finding a basic brownie recipe in a cookbook and substituting applesauce for half of the oil or butter, or even up to three-quarters, but not all of it. You can also use egg substitute instead of eggs, which will drop the cholesterol counts.

@ Meat Man, good point.

I would look in Alice Medrich's Chocolate and the Art of Lowfat Desserts (out of print, but widely available used) or in Nick Malgieri's Perfectly Light Desserts.

Both of these are great resources if you need to bake with less fat. (And I know Medrich's book has a recipe for lowfat brownies, though I haven't tried it myself.)

Thanks guys. I appreciate your comments and your help. Already tried few of the substitutes which were mentioned here, but still haven't reached that flavor I remember for full-fat muffins and brownies. I guess that Judi is right regarding the un-natural additives, and also regarding the sugar - which is, btw, the prime ingredient (at least in the brownies). I will keep giving it more tries, but can always use some extra help and experience :).

Just one more comment, regarding those who seemed to attack the nature of my question. I work out 5-6 a week in the gym, plus 2-3 times extra of 5-14 miles outdoor jogging. My daily intake includes less than 60[gr] of fat, over 50[gr] of fiber, and I have 10% of body fat. So, basically, I consider myself a relatively healthy person. Rest assured, that this is not due to industrial food or junk food habits, and this is exactly why I have posted this question here... to find healthier alternatives to things which were 'expelled' from my kitchen. If you don't want to help, that's fine - but I guess that there are a few more people who will be interested in healthier alternatives to common beloved recipes and dishes... and yes, even brownies and muffins :).

Thanks again for the comments - I appreciate it!

Also, this wouldn't work for brownies or cookies, but for quick breads and muffins, try substituting whole wheat pastry flour for the AP. It will provide a good dose of whole grains and fiber into your baked goods.

If you're honestly trying to watch your intake, should you be eating brownies or muffins? : )

Stop with the f**cking food police routine all ready. Who died and made you Marion Nestle?

OP asked a question about low fat alternatives. If you can't answer the godd**MN question without adding in your moralizing and what you think she should/should not be eating, either start your own godsD**MN blog or STFU all ready.

OP-you didn't need this judgemental crap, nor did you need to justify why you asked this question with -"HEY, I WORK OUT!" stop feeding into this whole food cop judgmental foodie Bullshyte that goes on all the time.

Woah, I'm sorry that my comments were perceived as a personal attack.

My point is that I'm disappointed that a blog that seems rooted in the foundations of food preparation would entertain discussions about factory food products such as cake mixes. I reacted to the photo of the cake mix.

I'm aware that I have an unconventional (traditional) view of nutrition, which is why I like this blog.

sagi - you can always add a can of black beans to sub for the oil/eggs in any boxed mix to make it low fat:

http://theactorsdiet.wordpress.com/2010/05/01/lynn-experiments-gone-well/

Mzfitz:

Bullshyte. Sometimes it just better to STFU if you can't answer a question.

The way people can't answer a question with KNOWLEDGE instead of their goddessD**M moralizing about everything from "ooooo, you are evil for using teh mixes" to "hey, low fat is stupid and if you are trying to watch your weight just stop eating okaytnksbye" is stupid, asine and rridiculous.

Also, makes you look like a jackazz.

What I have noticed in looking at baking mixes is the most important item to look at is the number of eggs used in the box mix. Most box mixes contain the dry ingredients which don't have any fat. The fat is what you add, along with the liquid, to make the batter complete. Look for a regular brownie mix that only uses 1 egg and a small amount of oil/butter.

Jeebus, kitchengoddess please chill! I totally understand your point -- and it's very valid -- but no need to be yelling at people, calling them asinine, a jackazz and telling them to STFU. That defeats your argument.

I don't think MzFitz was trying to be the food police. I think she, and everyone else on this thread, also brought up some valid points. The original question didn't include many details as to why the questioner was seeking a low fat diet -- weight loss? "good" nutrition? "heart healthy" belief? etc. I think everyone was just trying to help, hoping their comment might address the [unstated] underlying problem.

Now, you're totally right that some of us here -- especially myself -- get a bit preachy with the food/nutrition commentary. But please keep the angry name calling to a minimum, k?

@Funster -- When I first read the post, my immediate thought was "Why on earth is she on a low fat diet?" I'm a dietitian, and while I realize eating a low fat diet is standard nutrition advice from the American medical establishment, I completely, 100% believe this is terrible advice. So, I don't recommend this to any of my patients.

With that said, you have obviously found what works for you and are doing well, so more power to you. I am truly in awe of your exercise and fiber intake. If I may ask, how on earth do you get so much fiber everyday? I have a hard time getting patients to even get half that amount, so I would welcome any tips.

10% body fat is very low. You didn't say if you are male or female. Females tend to stop menstruating below 15%, so if you are female and this happens you'll need to increase your body fat. Amenorhea can cause osteoporosis and lead to bone fractures, especially if you're athletic. Female gymnasts, ice skaters, ballet dancers, marathon runners, etc are groups this can happen to.

Oh PS -- Prune puree can also replace fat in a recipe too. Google that, I can't remember the proportions. Apple sauce and prunes are high in pectin, which helps with moisture retention (and thus mouth feel) making them decent fat replacers. I've had excellent success with applesauce in muffins.

Once, many years ago, I had chocolate zucchini cake which was incredibly moist and delicious, with absolutely no zucchini taste. Perhaps seek out a recipe using zucchini and tinker to make a brownie.

And, as others have said, be careful with lower fat versions whether packaged or homemade -- they tend to have more carbs (esp sugar).

This is completely unrelated except via fat content, but arborio rice pudding made with skim milk and dried fruit and just a touch of sugar is fantastically creamier and better than traditional rice puddings made with eggs and/or heavy cream. Just fyi.

I've heard good things about applesauce and prune puree. I think you could also probably use apple and/or pear butter as substitutes, as well. Ditto black beans in brownies.

I had a friend on weight watcher's who loved to make fudge using canned pumpkin - it was essentially canned pumpkin mixed with brownie mix and then baked. She cut it into 1" cubes. It wasn't bad, but my foodie tastebuds detected the box mix flavor. That being said, you could probably do something similar with pumpkin in a more traditional recipe.

Good luck!

Try http://joyofbaking.com/healthydesserts/LowFatBrownies.html ?

ilovebutter seems to get where I was coming from. My comments were meant to inspire dialogue, and fall in line with both the post, and the mission statement of the blog:

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/mission

Unlike kitchengoddess, I never called anyone names...

@ILoveButter - I'm male, so I'm still not falling apart :). And being on low-fat diet doesn't mean I don't consume fat - I am, but not through butter, oils, creams etc. Mainly by nuts and almonds, fish oil, and egg yolks, but all in a pretty strict way.
Getting to 50[gr] of fiber - not that difficult when you're not on low-carbs. Oats, full grains, fiber 1 (which by itself contribute 25[gr] of fiber every morning) - you get enough of those, and it's easy. And before working out - I don't mind enjoying some sugars, so... that's why those mixes work out for me.

@Mzfitz - that's ok, didn't take it to heart :).

There is a FANTASTIC recipe for a lower fat chocolate cake in Veganomicon. Apparently it was printed in the Washington Post -- link here:

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/mighty-appetite/2008/07/bekindtoyourheart_cake.html

It's really, really good.

*note that, in the recipe posted above, you should use either whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour... not "regular" whole wheat flour.

Funster, I'm a big fan of fiber too. I gross everyone out with my daily glass of Psyllium.

I've been experimenting with and "perfecting" sugar-free, low-fat muffin recipes for quite some time and am posting the successful ones here:

http://sweetenersandlight.blogspot.com/search/label/muffins

I recently discovered a vegan egg substitute called EnerG that works really well. It's a powder that you mix with water before adding to your other ingredients. It's gluten free as well and, miraculously, doesn't mess up the texture of whatever you're making. Plus, it's pretty cheap considering how many eggs the whole box will replace. That might be something worth trying, as it will cut out the fat content from the eggs.

BTW, I can't post without saying this, so sorry to beat a dead horse, but everyone will live. I'm incredibly disappointed to see name calling and pure vitriol from anyone on this blog. Obviously kitchengoddess has had a bad experience somewhere along the line that caused that outburst, but we're all grownups here (or at least we should be) and there is no reason to explode like that, and calling people names, no matter how you spell them so admin won't catch them, is completely inappropriate. Get some perspective, for goodness sake. It's a discussion thread on a food blog. Sheesh.

That said, thanks to everyone who posts legitimate, thoughtful answers, including the warnings about things that others might not have thought about. I've gotten a lot of valuable tips from the posts in the year or so that I've been reading. Keep 'em coming! :-)

You might find some luck looking at vegan baking blogs and recipe books. The Veganomicon also has a recipe for lower-fat banana bread that is awesome. The same authors have a cookie book that has all kinds of healthier cookies, including low fat brownies.
I use silken tofu as an egg replacer, and add ground flax seed (about a tbsp). A mashed banana or apple sauce work well too. And as mentioned above, black beans work well.

http://happyherbivore.com/2009/05/vegan-blackbean-brownies/ (the bean recipe I use, I add a lil extra cocoa and vanilla)
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/ (a great resource for fat free or very low fat goods, usually with other health perks like whole grains or unrefined sugars, searchable by those criteria- including brownies and muffins!)

Love all of the helpful suggestions.

What I don't love, is the automatic assumption that because you're watching your fat or sugar intake, you're on a weight-loss diet.

I eat low-fat to help control a medical condition. Sometimes I still crave something sweet. But without all of the judginess - that doesn't taste good.

I find some pretty amazing recipes on cookinglight.com. Their test kitchen is constantly pumping out delicious low fat/calorie recipes that taste anything but.

I find that I loose a lot of taste when I sub applesauce instead of butter/oil. I get a much richer flavor with low fat yogurt or sour cream recipes.

Also, have you tried making brownies with black beans (I know, I know, it sounds ridiculous), but the flavors just WORK. Here's my go to one: http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/black-bean-brownies/Detail.aspx .

Happy cooking :)