Moist, buttery corn bread is the perfect side to many entrées, but it's also a prime way to add unnecessary fat, sodium, and cholesterol to a meal. Sharon Scott of Arlington, Va., was concerned about these nutritional shortcomings when she asked me to diabetize her Southern-style corn bread. Her dish was loaded with cheddar cheese, eggs, and full-fat sour cream—plus bacon and bacon fat. As a result, the corn bread was high in saturated fat (8.7 grams per serving) and packed with sodium (816 milligrams).

I lightened up the dish by replacing high-fat products with reduced-fat ones and included chopped onions and red bell peppers for flavor. To maintain richness but cut fat, I traded the bacon for a can of cream-style corn. I also reduced the serving size to a 2-inch square since a 3 1/2-inch piece of corn bread is a bit too much. In the end, Scott was won over and gave the diabetized recipe a big thumbs up.

To see the recipe for Diabetized Corn Bread, click here.