What is Evaporated Milk?

• Just as the name implies, evaporated milk is made by heating milk until 60 percent of the water evaporates. The nutrients are more concentrated and the consistency is heavier than regular milk.

Benefits

• The USDA suggests using evaporated milk as a healthy alternative for heavy cream in sauces, soups and gravies. With evaporated milk, you can create soups that are rich and creamy, yet low in calories and fat.

Nutrition

• The USDA counts 1/2 cup evaporated milk as a serving in the milk, yogurt and cheese group of the nutrition pyramid. Most brands of evaporated milk contain 160 calories and 8 grams of fat in a 1/2 cup serving, giving you 67 percent fewer calories and 84 percent less fat than heavy cream. To create even lighter soups, you can use nonfat evaporated milk, which has only 100 calories and 0 grams of fat per 1/2 cup.

Substitution

• If you have a favorite recipe for cream-based soup, like cream of broccoli, you can create a healthier recipe by using an equal amount of evaporated milk in place of half-and-half, light cream or heavy cream.