Low-fat And Carb Salmon Cakes

Crisp, golden salmon cakes with creamy hollandaise sauce may be a delicious treat, but the amount of calories, fat and cholesterol in many recipes may discourage you from indulging. Salmon offers numerous health benefits, from boosting your cardiovascular health to protecting your bones. To take advantage of the essential nutrients in salmon without going over your daily allowance of fat and calories, try a low-fat, low-carbohydrate recipe for salmon cakes.

Ingredients and Preparation

A low-fat recipe from the American Council on Exercise, or ACE, calls for extra-virgin olive oil, diced celery, chopped fresh parsley, whole-wheat bread crumbs, canned or leftover baked salmon, a large egg, Dijon mustard and black pepper. Form patties with the salmon mixture, fry them lightly in olive oil, then bake them in the oven. You can top salmon cakes with a low-fat creamy dill sauce that replaces full-fat mayonnaise with a combination of low-fat mayonnaise and plain yogurt. Additional ingredients in this tangy sauce include fresh dill, sliced scallions, lemon juice and parsley.

Nutritional Content

One serving of salmon cakes has 324 calories, 10g of fat, 7g of fiber, 31g of protein and 21g of carbohydrates, according to data from ACE. Fat content includes 1g of saturated fat and 3g of monounsaturated fat, along with 129 mg of cholesterol. One tbsp. of creamy dill sauce has 28 calories, 2g of fat, 2 mg of cholesterol and 2g of carbohydrates.

Fats

The omega-3 fatty acids in salmon and the unsaturated fats in olive oil may lower your cholesterol and triglyceride levels and help prevent heart disease and stroke, according to the American Heart Association, or AHA. The AHA recommends that you limit your total fat intake to 50 to 70g of fat per day if you are following a 2,000-calorie diet, with most fats coming from unsaturated vegetable oils, fish, nuts or seeds. To reduce the fat and cholesterol in this salmon cake recipe, separate the egg yolk from the white before cooking and blend only the white into the salmon mixture.

Carbohydrates

One serving of low-fat salmon cakes has 21g of carbohydrates, the equivalent of one carbohydrate exchange, according to ACE. Most low-carbohydrate diets limit your daily carbs to 50 to 150g per day, according to MayoClinic.com. If you're following a low-carbohydrate diet that allows 100g of carbs per day, this serving represents 21 percent of your daily carbohydrate intake. To lower the carbohydrate content in this recipe, you can reduce the amount of bread crumbs. One slice of wheat bread includes 12g of carbohydrates, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and makes about one-third cup of fresh bread crumbs when you process the bread in a food processor.

Health Benefits

Salmon offers protein, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, potassium, zinc, vitamin D and B-complex vitamins, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The calcium in salmon contributes to healthy bone formation and provides protection against osteoporosis, while vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium. To include more salmon in your diet, experiment with recipes such as low-fat salmon cakes, salmon salads or grilled salmon kabobs with fresh vegetables.