Pumpkin Yogurt Parfait

Serves 1

• 1/2 c pumpkin puree, canned
• 1/2 c nonfat greek yogurt (such as 0% Fage)
• 2 Tbsp sweetener of your choice (sugar, brown sugar, splenda, agave, honey, etc)
• 1/2 t pumpkin pie spice (more or less to taste)
• 1 t cinnamon (more or less to taste)
• 2 Tbsp Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal

The quick way… Throw everything except the cereal into a bowl, mix and sprinkle cereal over the top. Or, if you prefer, follow the directions below to make a pretty parfait and add some elegance to your day.

The parfait way… Divide the yogurt in half and place in 2 small bowls. Divide the sweetener  between the two bowls. Add pumpkin puree and all the spices into one of the bowls. Mix each thoroughly to combine. Layer in a parfait glass starting with 1/3 of the pumpkin mixture, 1/3 of the cereal, 1/2 of the yogurt. Continuing layering in this order.

Nutrition (without sweentener): 138 cal, 1g fat, 21 carb, 5 fiber, 13g protein

I’m always looking for new ways to use my over-ripe bananas. Usually it’s just a basic banana bread. But that gets boring after a while. I was inspired by a Hummingbird Cake recipe on Martha Stewart’s site and decided to make my own lowfat version. In making it lowfat, I knew the texture would end up being more of a bread than a ‘cake’, so I put it in a loaf pan and am calling it Hummingbird Bread. I also left out the nuts to keep it lowfat, but feel free to add pecans to the batch if you’d prefer.

I LOVE this recipe because it’s SO incredibly easy! Literally throw everything in a bowl, mix and bake. My husband is addicted. I can’t keep the stuff in the house.

Lowfat Hummingbird Bread (aka Pineapple Banana Bread)

Serves 12

• 3 cups self-rising flour
• 1 1/2 cups Splenda
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 bananas, mashed
• 1 cup crushed pineapple, with juice
• 1 t vanilla
• 1 t cinnamon
• 5 egg whites

1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Lightly spray 2 loaf pans with nonstick spray.
2. Mix all ingredients together until just combined. Divide batter between pans. Bake 40 mins or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly before sliding a knife around the edges and inverting the bread onto a plate.
3. Optional: Make a cream cheese frosting for the top out of light cream cheese (approx 4 Tbsp), powdered sugar (approx 1/3 cup), vanilla and a bit of milk (approx 2 Tbsp).

Nutrition (without frosting): 185 cal, 0.4g fat, 40.4g carb, 1.8 fiber, 13.8g sugars, 5g protein

I was telling a friend the other day about a single-serving Eggs Florentine I made for myself for breakfast earlier that morning. She asked me how I found time to make something like that for breakfast on a work day. It DID sound quite fancy for a work day, if you think about it, doesn’t it? I paused for a second, realizing that my method was quite simple and time effective. It just SOUNDED gourmet. I considered letting everyone think I was a gourmet chef every day of my life, but alas, that’s not the case. So, I decided to share my secret and the truth is it only took about 5 minutes to make.

As an added bonus, this morning ‘fine dining’ has the benefit of being a hearty way to begin a day with high protein, whole grains, veggies and is satisfying to the tongue. Plus, using the nonfat dairy, it’s lower fat than traditional Eggs Florentine. A healthy breakfast is always key to a good day, right? And in just 5 minutes? How can you say no?

But of course, I can’t just let it rest there. I had to put my theory to the test with stopwatch & camera*   in hand. Here are the results… (*Disclaimer: Taking pictures while on the clock does not turn out so well, but you get the idea)

Lowfat Eggs Florentine with Creamy Parmesan Garlic Sauce

• 1 egg
• 1 slice wheat bread (I used 2 small slices of Judy’s Breadsticks – Vegan with sunflower seeds)
• Spinach (small handful)
• Tomato (a couple of slices)
• Parmesan cheese (approx 1 tea)
• Fat Free milk (approx 1 Tbsp)
• Fat Free cream cheese (approx 1 tea)
• Minced garlic or garlic paste (approx 1/4 tea)

Ready….?  GO!

0:00

Fill pan with 1 inch water. Place on stove over high heat

0:15

Pull out all ingredients: Egg, bread, spinach, tomato, parmesan cheese, milk, cream cheese, garlic.

Pull out utensils and tools: Sharp knife, spoon, fork, cutting board, plate, small microwave safe bowl.

0:55

Place the bread on your plate. Throw a handful of spinach over the top. Microwave for 20 seconds.

Slice the tomatoes while the bread is in microwave. Place the tomatoes on top of the spinach.

2:11

Drop egg in the now boiling water. Turn heat down to medium-high. Let it cook for approx 2 mins.

2:15

Put parmesan, milk, cream cheese and garlic in small bowl. Stir lightly.

2:55

Microwave for 20 seconds. Stir.

4:15

Remove egg from pan and place on top of the spinach. Drizzle sauce over the top.

4:58

Done. Now, go eat!

Nutrition: 150 cal, 6g fat, 14g carb, 2.5g fiber, 3g sugars, 11g protein

I’m a huge fan of Kashi TLC Granola Bars. My husband and I buy them in bulk at Costco for quick grab-n-go snacks. I know that granola bars really aren’t that difficult to make. The problem was I’d never found a recipe I really liked. They usually ended up being too crunchy (I like chewy bars), too dense, too high fat, or too – I don’t know – Just “too”!

Until I found a couple of key ingredients that has helped me turn the corner in the elusive perfect granola bar recipe – Peanut Flour (aka PB2) and Brown Rice Syrup.  The peanut flour helps keep them together and adds a lovely protein punch and the brown rice syrup is thick and sticky enough to keep them chewy.

They are still “too”. This time, they’re “too good” and I can’t stop eating them.

I love these and I hope you do “too”… Have fun playing with the ingredients. The base recipe works, so whatever you want to toss in to your own preference, have at it!

Chewy Trail Mix Granola Bars

Makes 8 bars

• 1 cup oats
• 1 cup high fiber cereal (Trader Joe’s or Fiber One) OR 1 cup of unsweetened, whole grain cereal of your choice
• 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
• 2 Tbsp agave nectar
• 1 t olive oil
• 1/4 cup lowfat peanut flour or PB2
• 1/4 t kosher or sea salt
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries (or other dried fruits)
• 1/8 cup mini dark chocolate chips (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Generously spray a 9×5 loaf pan with nonstick spray.
2. Spread oats and almonds over a baking sheet.  Bake for 10-15 mins, stirring once midway through. When the almonds have turned slightly darker and are fragrant, remove from oven.
3. While oats and almonds are baking, combine brown rice syrup, agave nectar, olive oil, peanut flour and sea salt in a large bowl.
4. Remove oats and almonds. Turn oven down to 300 F
5. Place hot oats and almonds in the syrup bowl, add fiber cereal and cranberries stirring until completely coated.  Pour mixture into loaf pan.
6. Using the back of a spoon that has been lightly sprayed with nonstick spray, lightly press the mixture into the pan until the top is smooth and the mixture is slightly compressed. Do not press down too much or your bars will be to dense, but if you don’t compress them slightly, they will fall apart. Sprinkle mini chocolate chips over the top.
7. Bake for 20 mins. Remove from oven and let cool for approx 20 mins. Slide a knife around the edges of the pan and very gently (so as not to lose all your chocolate chips) invert the pan onto your hand or cutting board. Slice into 8 even bars.

Nutrition: 140 cal, 3g fat, 27g carb, 5.5g fiber, 4g protein

Plus, like the VitaTops, these are right around 95 calories each with just 0.4 g fat and about 2.2g fiber. (i.e, good for you!). The full nutrition stats are at the bottom of the post for all of you out there who want the deets.

These muffins are GOOD. So good I can’t wait for them to cool down after they come out of the oven and generally end up burning my tongue off on the super hot apples inside. Worth the burn.

Cran Apple Bran Muffins

Makes 18 muffins. (faux vitatop muffin copycat recipe)

• 1 c wheat bran
• 3/4 c skim milk
• 1 1/4 c wheat flour
• 1 1/2 t baking powder
• 1/4 t baking soda
• 1/4 t salt
• 1 1/2 t cinnamon
• 1/4 t nutmeg
• 1/4 c brown sugar
• 1/2 c splenda
• 1/3 c applesauce, unsweetened
• 1/4 c nonfat egg substitute (or egg whites)
• 1 Tbsp vinegar
• 1 1/2 chopped, peeled apples
• 1/3 c Craisins

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat a 18 cups of 2 muffin tins with nonstick spray.
2. Combine wheat bran and milk. Let rest 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl.
4. In a separate bowl, combine brown sugar, splenda, applesauce, egg and vinegar.
5. Add wheat bran and milk mixture and wet ingredient mixture to the dry mix and stir until just combined (do not over mix)
6. Stir in apples and Craisins (or reserve Craisins to sprinkle over the top if you wish).
7. Divide batter evenly between 18 muffin cups. Bake 12-15 mins, until a toothpick comes out clean.
8. Devour!

Nutrition: 95 calories. 0.4g fat. 20.7g carb. 2.2g fiber. 2.2g protein.

Wheat Bran Banana Muffins

• 4 Bananas, very ripe
• 1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/3 c brown sugar
• 1/3 c splenda
• 1/3 c egg substitute (or egg whites)
• 3/5 c skim milk, soured with 1 Tbsp white vinegar
• 2 c whole wheat flour
• 1 c wheat bran
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (approx)

1. Preheat oven to 375. Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray.
2. In a large bowl, mash bananas. To bananas, add applesauce, sugar, splenda, egg whites, skim milk with vinegar added to it.
3. In a separate bowl, mix flour, bran, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
4. Add dry ingredients to wet, and stir until just combined. Do not over beat.
5. Divide evenly between 18-24 muffin cups, sprinkle with about 5 chocolate chips each muffin, and bake for 18-22 minutes, until lightly browned and knife inserted comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Mango Coconut Muffins

• 2 c whole wheat flour
• 1/4 c sugar
• 3/4 c splenda
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 c egg substitute
• 1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 c skim milk
• 1 Tbsp vinegar
• 2 tsp coconut flavoring
• 2 cups diced mango (about 3 mangos)
• 1 medium banana, mashed

1. Preheat oven to 350. Generously spray muffin tins with cooking spray (these tend to stick a bit)
2. In a large bowl, combine the first 5 ingredients (dry ingredients).
3. In a separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients except the mango and banana.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just moistened.
5. Stir in mango and banana. Bake for 20 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

I was introduced to Oat Bran by my friend and fellow food blogger, Faith of I Pray to Gouda. Without making myself like a mad woman, I’ll say it simply – I’m addicted. This stuff is so good and you can do all kinds of things with it making it taste all kinds of goodness. Ahhh… So so yummy. You really do need to try it. (See? Now I’m a oat bran ‘pusher’!) Plus, it’s so easy, you have no excuses.

I can whip up a quick oat bran breakfast for myself in about 3 mins, so it’s a great on the go meal. It also works well to bring to work with me because I can throw the oat bran, sweetener and cinnamon in a tupperwear container and just add the water and microwave it there. Easy, peasy!

And in honor of Valentine’s Day, here are a pair of  MY favorite ways to make oat bran. (FYI – I used two mini bowls and half the recipe for each for presentation purposes, but you’ll want to use bigger bowls)

Step 1: Assemble Ingredients.

• 1/4 cup Oat Bran (I use Toasted Oat Bran from Trader Joe’s)
• 3/4 cup Water
• Dash of salt
• Sweetener of your choosing, to taste (Agave Nectar, Sugar, Stevia, Splenda, etc)

Strawberries n Cream:

• Freeze dried , unsweetened strawberries (Trader Joe’s them and I’m ashamed to admit I have found yet another addiction. These little guys are awesome morsels of crunchy “yum”. They also have freeze dried mango, blueberries and banana chips – all unsweetened. You MUST try them!)
• 1/8 c (2 Tbsp) Nonfat, plain greek yogurt (I use 0% Fage that I buy in bulk at Costco)

Banana Cinnamon:

• Cinnamon (I like a lot. I usually use 1 t. or more)
• 1/2 of a ripe banana, sliced and warmed in the microwaved for about 30 seconds to make it warm, gooshy and caramelized

Step 2: Cook Oat Bran.

In a microwave safe bowl with some extra room for boiling up (so it doesn’t run over), stir together the oat bran, water, salt and sweetener. Microwave for 1 minute. Take out and stir.

For Strawberries n Cream: Add your strawberries at this time and stir.

Microwave for an additional 30 seconds to 1 minute until it just begins to boil. Watching CAREFULLY (aka – do not take your eyes off the bowl. The moment you do, it WILL boil over and create a mess. You don’t want that to happen. And don’t say I didn’t warn you… ha!). Stir again and continue microwaving for 15 seconds at a time until your preferred consistency is reached.

Step 3: Add the Fixin’s.

For Strawberries n Cream: Add greek yogurt and mix together well. Top with a few more strawberries if you feel fancy.

For Banana Cinnamon: Add cinnamon and mix together well. Top with warmed bananas.

Step 4: Eat.

‘Nuff said.

Nonfat Whole Wheat Carrot Craisin Muffins

Prep time: 15 mins
Bake time: 18-20 mins
Makes 12 muffins

• 1 1/4 c white whole wheat flour (or whole wheat)
• 1 t baking powder
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1/4 t ginger
• 1/2 c brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 c light orange juice (Trop50)
• 1/4 c egg substitute (Egg Beaters)
• 1 1/2 c grated carrots
• 1/2 c dry, sweetened cranberries (Craisins)

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Spray a 12 cup muffin tin lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Sift (or mix with a whisk) the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and ginger together in a bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the brown sugar, applesauce, orange juice, and egg beaters together.
4. Add your dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until almost combined. Fold in the carrots and cranberries. (do not over beat!)
5. Divide the batter evenly in 12 muffin cups. Reduce the oven temperature to 360 and bake for 18-20 mins until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.
6. Let cool 5 mins in the pan, then carefully transfer the muffins to a wire rack to continue cooling.  (Letting them cool out of the pan allows the edges to not become soggy.)

Nutrition: 105 calories, 0g fat, 25g carbs, 2g protein, 2g fiber

I’ll just go on record and say that this is absolutely AMAZING and DELICIOUS and you might as well double the recipe right off the top because you’ll eat it all and then come back wanting more. I made this for our Christmas morning brunch and it was a hit. I tripled the recipe and came home empty handed. Every single crumb was devoured. I made it a week later for dinner. It worked just as well for either meal!

To top it all off, it’s HEALTHY. (what a nice way to start 2010, no?). The nutritional content on this both surprised and thrilled me and it’s for an entire quarter of the pie! It’s just 192 cals, 4.8g fat (2g sat fat), 10.5g carb, 17.5g protein, 7.8g fiber. Don’t lie. You’re in awe too.

Mediterranean Vegetable-Cheese Pie

Serves 4.
Recipe from SELF, April 2005 courtesy of Epicurious.
Rancho La Puerta Spa, Tecate, Baja California

• Olive-oil cooking spray
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced in 1/8-inch rounds
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 8 oz (about 8 cups) baby spinach
• 3 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
• 2 whole eggs
• 3 egg whites
• 1 cup nonfat ricotta or fat-free cottage cheese (I couldn’t find nonfat ricotta, so I went with the cottage cheese and couldn’t tell the difference)
• 1 tbsp feta, crumbled
• 3 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil or dill, or 3 tsp dried basil or dill, divided into 2 equal portions (I used fresh basil)
• 3 Roma tomatoes, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
• 1 1/2 tbsp grated Asiago or Parmesan
• 1 1/2 tbsp grated lowfat mozzarella

1. Heat oven to 350°. Coat a 9″ pie plate with cooking spray.
2. Line bottom of plate with potato slices. Cut remaining slices in half and arrange around side of plate. Bake 12 to 15 minutes.
3. Remove from oven and set aside. Coat a sauté pan with cooking spray and sauté onion over low heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Add spinach to pan and let wilt, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Drain excess fluid from onion and spinach mixture. Stir in olives.
4. In a bowl, beat eggs and egg whites. Stir in ricotta and feta. Add half the basil or dill and set aside. Spoon onion and spinach mixture into pie plate over potatoes. Layer on egg mixture, then slices of tomato. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until egg is set and a knife inserted into pie comes out clean.
5. Sprinkle grated cheeses evenly over top of pie and top with remaining basil or dill. Return to oven for 5 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Cut pie into 4 wedges. Serve immediately.

192 cals, 4.8g fat (2g sat fat), 10.5g carb, 17.5g protein, 7.8g fiber.

These muffins are darling and deliciously spicy for fall. The best part about them? They’re lowfat and (I like to think) good for you!  I found the muffin recipe online and adapted it to suit my tastes – namely adding the cream cheese and crunchy topping. I love a good streusel topping but with this lowfat muffin, I didn’t want to add the extra butter and sugar a traditional streusel would add. So, I decided to try it with Kashi cereal. It was the perfect “streusel” topping without adding all the extra unwanted calories/fat to hips – er- I mean – muffin!

Mini Lowfat Pumpkin Muffins with Cream Cheese filling

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp table salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp pumpkin spice
• 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup fat-free egg substitute
• 2/3 cup fat-free skim milk
• 1/3 cup fat-free cream cheese
• 3 Tbsp powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup Kashi GOLEAN Crunch! cereal

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Coat a mini muffin tin with cooking spray or line with cupcake wrappers, if desired.  (You may also use a 12 cup muffin tin as well)
2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt , baking soda, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl.
3. Combine applesauce, pumpkin, sugar, egg substitute and milk in a medium bowl; mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
4. Add applesauce mixture to flour mixture and mix until completely incorporated.
5. Combine cream cheese and powdered sugar.
6. Pour batter into muffin tins so each hole is about 2/3 full.
7. Drop approx 1/2 t of cream cheese mixture onto the top of each muffin and sprinkle with Kashi cereal.
8. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.