Beware of Baking Soda and Baking Powder
FACT: Beware of Baking Soda and Baking Powder. It blew my mind when I found out how much sodium baking soda and baking powder contained. When I got serious about lowering my sodium intake I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how I could enjoy my weekend breakfast with my husband. Our typical breakfast was a Belgian blueberry waffle, home style potatoes and sausage links. No need to do the math this meal is well over the recommended American Heart Association daily allowance of 1500 mg of sodium per day. My initial workaround to reduce sodium was to eliminate the meat and search for a pancake/waffle mix with lower sodium. This is when I realized that baking powder and soda contain a ridiculous amount of sodium.
-1/8 teaspoon of Baking Soda contains 150 mg of sodium
-1/8 teaspoon of Baking Powder contains 95 mg of sodium
All the recipes called for a minimum of 2 TSP of baking powder (1520 mg of sodium!) for a serving size of 4. I could eliminate the salt from the recipe but I was not sure what to do about the baking powder. I like fluff in my waffle.
TIP: After more research, I found a baking powder substitute that is sodium free. HAIN Baking Powder. With the help of the HAIN product I can now enjoy sodium free pancakes, waffles, biscuits and scones. Yes, we make these food items from scratch but it is well worth the effort. I can now enjoy a zero sodium breakfast with waffles and potatoes or introduce 2 sausage links and be well under 400mg of sodium for the entire meal. HAIN’s can be purchased on-line or at retail stores like Whole Foods.