Food for thought and moderation!

Sugar Free Marshmallows

2009-10-19T02:19:00.001-05:00

A recipe from a dear friend of mine!

Basic Marshmallows by Freddie Summers
1/2 cup cold water
3 1/2 packets unflavored gelatin
2 cups Whey Low granular
1/2 cup hot water
1/2 cup maltitol syrup
4 teaspoons Just Whites
4 Tablespoons warm water
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

In a large mixing bowl, soften the gelatin in 1/2 cup cold water.
In a 3 quart heavy bottom pot, mix Whey Low, hot water and maltitol syrup. Over medium heat, stir until sugar crystals dissolve and bring to a boil. When crystals are dissolved, cover with a lid for two minutes(to wash down any additional crystals that form.) Use a candy thermometer and boil mixture until it reaches 240 degrees.

Remove from heat and immediately pour over the softened gelatin. Stir until gelatin is dissolved. Beat mixture on high (with electric mixer) for 15-minutes. While you are waiting, whip Just Whites and warm water (4 Tablespoons) in a medium bowl until stiff peaks form (copper works best.) Add vanilla extract and then add egg whites to marshmallow batter during last five minutes of the beating time. Mix well.

Quickly pour marshmallow batter into a lightly greased 13 x 9 inch pan. Allow to set for 3 hours. Cut in desired shapes. These keep for several weeks. Store in fridge or Whey Low will recrystalize and make your fluffy marshmallows grainy.

By the way...these toast beautifully!

Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins (With Cream Cheese Frosting)

2009-10-18T15:14:00.001-05:00

Recently, during my searches for anything to do with photography, I came across a truly remarkable blog…The Pioneer Woman.

This woman does everything you can think of! She is a homeschooling mom, who entertains and throws dinner parties you would not believe. How do I know this? Cause she post photos of the said events, hence photography!

She post some of the most interesting and tantalizing recipes I have ever seen. What does this mean to me? That I must deconstruct the recipe and make it weight loss friendly if possible.

I saw this one the other day and thought it would go perfect for a meeting I had at work. I was right! By the time I got to take a picture, there were only 2 left.

Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins (With Cream Cheese Frosting)

Muffins:

1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup Splenda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1 heaping cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional!)
2 tablespoons Splenda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease 24 mini muffin tins.

Sift flour, Splenda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Cut in butter with two knives or a pastry blender until all incorporated. In a separate bowl, mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg, and vanilla. Pour pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Add raisins. Fold gently until mixture is just combined. Pour into greased muffin pan—batter hardly ever fills all twelve unless you keep it down to 1/2 full. Sprinkle generous amounts of cinnamon-sugar over the top of each unbaked muffin.

Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool. Ice with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/4 cup softened I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter
4 ounces fat free cream cheese
1/2 pound powdered sugar (I took Splenda and ran it through the blender to make my own!)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all ingredients on high until soft and whipped. Spread onto completely cooled muffins, or place into a large pastry bag with a large star tip and go crazy!

Store in fridge, as icing will soften at room temperature.

Strawberry Cream Freeze

2009-05-26T02:58:00.001-05:00

Ingredients:
Low fat cream cheese, 8 ounces
Skim Milk, 1 cup
Kraft Jello-o Brand Fat Free Sugar Free Pudding, Vanilla, 1 box
Cool Whip Fat Free, 8oz container
Murray's Sugar Free Vanilla Wafers ,1 cup coursely chopped
Strawberries, fresh, 1 cup, sliced
Smuckers Sugar Free Strawberry Ice Cream Topping 1/2 cup

Beat cream cheese in large bowl with mixer until creamy. Gradually beat in milk. Add dry pudding mix; beat 2 min. Stir in COOL WHIP, wafers and berries. Swirl in ice cream topping.

You can serve this recipe one of three ways. In a pie shell, in waffle cones, or like I did. Place a spoon full in a mini cupcake paper and freeze. Doing it this way resulted in 36 mini desserts. A great way for portion control.

Here are the stats when serving it my way:
Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 36

Amount Per Serving Calories: 37.6

Total Fat: 1.5 g

Cholesterol: 5.0 mg

Sodium: 68.2 mg

Total Carbs: 5.3 g

Dietary Fiber: 0.2 g

Protein: 1.1 g

*Adapted from Kraft Foods

Omelet Bites - Denver Style

2009-05-02T09:06:00.002-05:00

Omelet Bites - Denver Style

1 Yellow Onion, diced

2 Green Onions, diced

1/2 Green Bell Pepper, diced

2 slices of Ham, diced

1/2 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese

1/4 cup Picante Sauce (or Salsa)

5 eggs

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

Salt and pepper to taste. Preheat oven to 350. Saute onions and peppers till golden. Add ham and saute 1 minute more. Set aside to cool. When cool mix all ingredients together. I bake them in mini-muffin pans

Chocolate Covered Cherry Brownies

2009-04-11T15:29:00.004-05:00

One of my favorite Christmas candies is Chocolate Covered Cherries. For years, I always bought a box of Queen Anne Cherries, man, that just made my Christmas. The trouble was, I could not stop at one!

The other day, I was craving those same cherries. Unfortunatly, I knew they would make me so sick! So, I did a little research, and came up with an appropriate alternative...

Chocolate Covered Cherry Brownies!

INGREDIENTS:
BROWNIES
2 cups Splenda sugar substitute
1 cup butter
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

CHERRY FILLING
1 oz Fat Free Cream Cheese
¼ cup Splenda sugar substitute
Sugar Free Cherry Preserves
Maraschino Cherries with stems

Mix Brownies ingredients together in one bowl.
Mix cream cheese, ¼ cup splenda, and 1 tablesoon of sugar free cherry preserves in another bowl.

Using a pastry bags, fill one with brownie mixture, the other with cherry filling mixture.

Squeeze a small amount of brownie mixture into the bottom of mini muffin tins. Once you have finished with 1/2 the brownie mixture, do the same with all the cream cheese mixture.

Place 1 cherry into the middle of each of the mini muffin containers, these will become your cherry center. At this point, cover all the cherries with the remaining brownie mix.

Place in a 350 degree oven and bake for 15-18 minutes, depending upon your oven. This makes 48 mini brownies.

Hope you enjoy!

Chocolate Jelly Roll~Sugar Free of course!

2009-02-02T02:54:00.007-06:00

It's January, well it used to be. That means one thing, a Chocolate Jelly Roll.

My father-in-law request this cake every year on his birthday. Sometimes several times through out the year also. So, to keep peace in the family, why else would I do it? Here ya go

Ingredients

5 eggs separated

1 cup + 1 Teaspoon Splenda

4 Tablespoons Cocoa

1 Tub Sugar Free Cool Whip

Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a jelly roll pan and line with parchment paper or waxed paper, then grease the paper too. You will need 2 bowls for mixing.

Beat the yolks until frothy, then add 1 cup Splenda and the cocoa powder, beating until well mixed. This will be a thick mixture, but don't worry.

Using a clean beater and bowl, whip the egg whites until nice peaks form, but not to dry.

Fold in the chocolate mixture into the egg whites. I tried this and ended up using the mixer to make sure everything was combined.

Spread cake batter into jelly roll pan and smooth out.

Bake at 20 minutes, keeping a careful eye as not to over bake.

When cake is done, remove from oven and carefully flip cake onto a clean towel. Peel the wax paper off and dust the cake with powdered Splenda (grind a 1/4 cup of Splenda in a blender/magic bullet). Cover with a clean/damp towel and cool.

Remove cool towel, spread Sugar Free Cool Whip on top of cake, but no to close to the edges.

Lifting off the other towel edge, roll the cake into a jelly-roll shape, edging the towel a bit more each time to help guide the cake without breaking.

Ice with Sugar Free Icing , and place in freezer to help firm up. Remove from freezer a couple of hours before and enjoy. This cake can also be served with fresh strawberries or raspberries as a garnish.

Happy Birthday Bob!

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

2009-01-06T02:51:00.002-06:00

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas
from Phe/MOM/menon (who got it from Brittany at The Sisters' Cafe via Melanie at My Kitchen Cafe, and then I got it from Good Eats'n Sweet Treats)

6 tablespoons honey (I used sugar free honey from wal Mart)
5 tablespoons lime juice (approx. 1 large lime)
1 tablespoon chili powder (use a little less for a milder version)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 pound chicken, cooked and shredded (approx. 2 large chicken breasts) (I poached my chicken. Save time by using a store bought rotisserie chicken. If you like a lot of filling in your enchiladas, I would recommend doubling this.)
8-10 flour tortillas (I made 6 enchiladas with Low Carb Tortillas)
1 pound monterey jack cheese, shredded (I used a Fiesta blend of Cheddar, Monterey Jack, and Queso Quesadilla and Asadero Cheese)
16 ounces green enchilada sauce (I used red since that's all I had)
1 cup heavy cream (I would recommend going with 1/2 cup, as it was a bit too heavy/rich)

To poach your chicken, put the chicken breast halves in a large saucepan and add lightly salted water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. You can do this with frozen chicken breasts, too.

Mix the honey (tip: spray your measuring spoon with cooking spray before measuring out the honey), lime juice, chili powder and garlic together and toss with the shredded chicken. Let it marinate for at least 1/2 hour (or toss together in a ziploc bag and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours).

Pour about 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan. Fill flour tortillas with chicken (approx. 1/4 cup) and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream and leftover marinade. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.

Serve with sour cream, rice and black beans.

Sugar Free Ham Glaze

2008-12-28T09:03:00.003-06:00

Inspired by Baritric Eating Recipe Box

Ingredients

1 8-9 pounds spiral sliced ham

1 10-ounce jar Smuckers Sugar Free Orange Marmalade or Apricot preserves

2/3 cup orange juice

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1/3 cup Grey Poupon mustard

Whole cloves (we substituted ground cloves into the mixture)

Directions

Blend preserves, orange juice, and vinegar in a small saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil, lower heat to a gentle simmer and reduce until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat, and whisk in mustard. Place ham in a shallow roasting pan, and fan spral sliced ham. This will allow the glaze to penetrate the inside of the ham. Pour glaze of ham, allowing it to seep between the slices. Bake for 15 minutes per pound at 300 degrees, basting occasionally. Remove from oven and let ham rest for 20 minutes before slicing

Cranberry Orange Cheesecake

2008-12-28T08:37:00.005-06:00

Ingredients

Crust:

One 8 ounce package Murray sugar free Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup pecans

2 tablespoons melted butter

Filling:

Two 8-ounce packages Philadelphia Reduced Fat Cream Cheese

1 cup Splenda granulated (not the packets)

1/4 cup sour cream (or Fage yogurt)

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 eggs

1 Cup Sugar Free Cranberry sauce divided

Directions

Crust:

Pulse cookies, nuts, and cinnamon in a food processor until finely ground. Add melted butter, and blend until evenly moistened. Press very firmly onto bottom of 9 inch spring form pan or 9 inch deep dish pie plate and set aside.

Filling:

Beat cream cheese, Splenda, sour cream, and vanilla with electric mixer or stand mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just well blended. Fold in 1/2 cup sugar free cranberry sauce. Pour over crust. Bake at 325 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes or until center is almost set. If using springform pan, loosen cake from side of pan; cool before removing side of pan. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Before serving, spoon a dollop of sugar free cranberry sauce over the top of each slice.

Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce

2008-12-28T07:54:00.005-06:00

Bariatric Eating Recipe Box

Ingredients

One jar Pollaners Sugar Free Orange Marmalade

One 12-ounce bag whole fresh Cranberries

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup Splenda Granular

Directions

Empty the preserves into a heavy saucepan and cook over medium low heat for 3 to 4 minutes until the preserves soften and melt. Add the cranberries and cinnamon; stirring constantly while mixture comes to a boil over medium high heat, cooking until berries begin to pop. Reduce temperature to low and simmer 15 to 20 minutes until sauce is glossy and thick – crushing the berries against the side of the pot with your wooden spoon. Stir in the Splenda and cook 5 more minutes before removing from heat to cool. Remove from heat and transfer to refrigerator to cool.

Christmas Time Favorites~ WL Friendly Recipes

2008-12-20T09:52:00.002-06:00

SF Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients
1 Cup Natural Peanut Butter
1 Cup Splenda
1 Large Egg
1 Cap Vanilla Extract
Pinch Salt

Directions
Mix Everything together. Place in 1 tbsp. mounds on a cookie sheet. Bake until lightly brown around the edges.

Nutritional Info *
Servings Per Recipe: 12 * Amount Per Serving * Calories: 146.7 * Total Fat: 11.1 g * Cholesterol: 17.7 mg * Sodium: 18.2 mg * Total Carbs: 6.1 g * Dietary Fiber: 1.3 g * Protein: 5.2 g

SUGAR FREE EGGLESS EGGNOG
Bariatric Eating Recipe Box~Holiday Foods

Ingredients
5 cups milk
1-2 cups ff half & half (depending on how thick you like it)
One 4-serving-size sf vanilla instant pudding powder
3 tablespoons Splenda granular
1 1/2 teaspoons nutmeg (fresh is BEST!)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons brandy or rum extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Whisk all together and let chill for at least an hour. May need to add more milk if you like it thinner.

Warm Cranberry Sipper
Bariatric Eating Recipe Box~Holiday Foods

The perfect drink for a crisp fall evening while sitting on the porch contemplating how post op life has changed your world. It is also great served cold over ice during those warm summer months.

Ingredients
½ cup Splenda
2 whole cinnamon sticks
10 whole cloves
2 cups Ocean Spray Light Cranberry Juice – Splenda sweetened
1 cup orange juice (I used low sugar from Krogers)

Directions
Combine Splenda, cinnamon sticks and whole cloves with 2 cups of water in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Add cranberry and orange juice, reduce heat and simmer ten minutes. Ladle into mugs and serve.

Nutritional Info
Makes 5 cups - Per ½ cup:
Calories 40, fat 0g, carbs 5g, protein 0g

Tuscan White Bean Dip
Bariatric Eating Recipe Box~Holiday Foods

Use fresh sprigs of rosemary to garnish this zesty combination of delicate cannellini beans, herbs and spices. Serve with assorted Crostini Toasts, Pita Chips, or Bagel Chips.

Ingredients
¼ cup olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1 teaspoon fresh chopped rosemary, or ½ teaspoon dried
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Two 15-ounce cans cannellini beans, or great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon red wine or cider vinegar
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepperKosher salt (use kosher salt in the kitchen as the flakes have great flavor)
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small skillet over medium low heat. Slowly cook the onions and garlic for 5 to 6 minutes until soft, stirring constantly. Add the rosemary and smoked paprika and cook an additional minute. In a food processor, blend the cannellini beans, sautéed onion mixture, vinegar, red pepper, and ½ teaspoon salt until smooth. Slowly add the remaining olive oil. Add additional salt and lots of black pepper to taste.

Transfer to covered bowl and chill to allow flavors to blend. Bring the dip to room temperature before serving – about twenty minutes - so the flavors of the ingredients come out.

This dip is also crazy delicious when baked in a medium oven proof dish at 325 degrees F for 20 to 30 minutes, until bubbling around the edges.Makes 2 cups.

Nutritional Info
1/4 cup portion:
Calories 59, fat 2g, carbs 6r, protein 2.5g

PB2 Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

2008-11-09T07:35:00.003-06:00

A friend of mine sent me a pretty cool website the other day, Desserts Magazine: For people who eat desserts first!. I found a recipe for Flour less Peanut Butter Cookies, and thought I could modify to meet my lifestyle food choices. Now, once again, I could make or eat this everyday, but it was nice for a treat. Most of the time we make new food recipes, we usually take them to my in-laws. This way, they are not in our house tempting us!

These were pretty good, though a little bit dry and crumbly. I just might add a little liquid next time!

Hope you enjoy!

INGREDIENTS
1 cup PB2 prepared peanut butter
¾ cup granulated Splenda
1 large egg, slightly beaten
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¾ cup Sugar Free Chocolate Chips
½ cup roasted pecan halves

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottoms of two 12-by-18-inch sheet pans with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, stir the peanut butter, sugar, egg, baking soda and kosher salt until combined. Stir in the chocolate and peanuts.

Using a small, greased ice cream scoop, measure out the dough in teaspoon sized balls. Place the dough on the prepared pans, spacing them 2 inches apart.

Bake on the middle shelves of the oven, rotating the pans 180 degrees halfway through the baking time, until lightly golden and spread to a puffy mound, about 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool completely on the pans on wire racks. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to week. Yields: 24 cookies

Butternut Squash Soup

2008-11-09T06:27:00.004-06:00

Beth went out for lunch a couple of weeks ago and talked about the Butternut Squash soup she had. I saw this one over at Bread & Honey. So, I thought I would make it for her. I did modify it according to what I had in the house, but it is still the same recipe!

I love food blogs, and Bread & Honey is one of my new fvorites. Summer Allen-Gibson is the creator of Design is Mine, as well as a mum, illustrator, and baker. She spends large portions of her days buried in cookbooks and trying out new recipes in her kitsch-filled kitchen. Alicia Lynn Carrier is a 24 year old mom, freelance photographer, and nerd. She loves food, spending time at home, and taking pictures of stuff in people's houses. Her website is here.

Very yummy after spending a "cold" day at the football field!

Hope you enjoy!

Butternut Squash Soup

1 butternut squashes
1 poblano pepper
1 small yellow onion
1 whole head of garlic (I will be roasting garlic again!)
8 ounces baby carrots
3-4 cups of vegetable or chicken stock.

Preheat your oven to 375ºf.

Slice squashes lengthwise, so you can scoop out the seeds. You can cut them down a little more if you'd like, to fit on your pans and maybe cook a little faster. Drizzle with olive oil, salt lightly, and place on a baking sheet in the oven. You know what? Do i need to describe the whole process? Everything gets drizzled in olive oil and roasted at the same time in the oven. I wrap the onions, shallot, and garlic individually in tinfoil, and leave the seeded, halved pepper on a baking sheet, along with the carrots. Keep an eye on the pepper and remove when it becomes blistery and begins to blacken. Just peek in on everything every once in awhile and make sure nothings burning.

Pull things out as they finish (The peppers will finish first, then the carrots, then the shallot probably, then the garlic, then onion, then butternuts, probably.) Just keep poking everything until it's mushy. Let everything cool so you can handle it easily, and heat up your stock while you wait.

Bust out your blender or food processor, and put a large pot aside for the finished soup. Begin blending the ingredients (duh, don't forget to peel your butternut) in steps, adding warm stock as needed to get it smooth. Dump it all in the big pot and stir it up really well, adding more stock if necessary to thin to desired consistency. Put over heat if necessary- letting all the ingredients cool can leave you with a lukewarm soup. Serves 3 or 4

NSA Apple Cake ~ Marilyn

2008-10-26T09:10:00.001-05:00

No Sugar Added Fresh Apple Cake

Ingredients
3 eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce1/2 cup canola oil
2 cups Nature's Crystals sugar substitute (Splenda will NOT work)
1 1/4 cups low carb flour (I use almond flour)
1 1/4 cups self rising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large apples, cored and grated (I use Granny Smith and grate them in food processor)
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts
1/4 cup I can't Believe its not Butter
1/2 cup Nature's Crystals Brown Sugar Substitute
1/3 cup skim milk

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pam or Baker's Secret a rectangular pan or bundt pan. Blend eggs, applesauce, oil and white Nature's Crystals until creamy. Mix baking powder, soda and salt into almond flour and then into self rising flour and add to batter a little at a time. Batter will be very stiff. Fold in apples and 1 cup nuts.
Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Let cool 30 minutes, then remove from pan if a bundt pan was used.

Topping:Melt the I Can't Believe its not Butter, the brown sugar substitute, and the skim milk in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to boil for 2 minutes, add remaining nuts and boil another minute. Pour over cooled cake.

Nutrition
18 servings
202 calories per serving
12 g fat
12 g carbs
6 g protein

Sugar Free Bread Pudding~Marilyn

2008-10-26T09:08:00.008-05:00

Sugar Free Bread Pudding
1 1/4 loaves French or Italian bread without seeds
6 eggs-room temperature
3/4 cup Natures Crystals (Splenda will NOT work)
1 1/2 cups skim milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Tear bread into bite size pieces early in day and allow to sit in air stirring every once in a while so that all the bread gets dry. Spray Pam in a large rectangular pan. After bread has dried out, slowly pour milk over it until saturated. Add sugar substitute. Add eggs and mix with a spoon. It is important that the eggs are room temp and that you do not mix with a mixer. Once eggs are incorporated, pour batter into prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. It will puff up like a soufflé. While baking make sauce of your choice.

Sauce
1/2 cup I can't Believe its not butter
1/2 cup Nature's Crystals Powdered sugar substitute
1 egg

Directions

Melt butters in saucepan, add sugar substitute and cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Beat egg in another pan. While whisking egg, slowly add a little of the hot sauce to temper eggs and prevent them from scrambling, then return all to the pan and cook for another minute.

White Chocolate Sauce add 3 pumps of DaVinci Sugar Free White Chocolate syrup.

Praline Sauce add 2 pumps of DaVinci Sugar Free Praline Syrup and 1 pump DaVinci Sugar Free Caramel Syrup and 1/2 cup chopped pecans.

Cinnamon Dolce Sauce, add 2 pumps sugar free cinnamon syrup and 1 pump toasted marshmallow syrup.

Nutrition
White Chocolate Sauce
16 servings-2 Tablespoons
226 calories
12 g fat
20 g carbs
7 g protein(with 2 tablespoon praline sauce)

Praline Sauce
16 servings-2 Tablespoons
247 calories
14 g fat
20 g carbs
7 g protein

5 Minute Pumpkin Cake

2008-10-22T03:23:00.002-05:00

There is nothing like pumpkin when there is a fall crispness in the air! I got the idea from Michelle (Eggface). She made the sugar free version of the 5 minute chocolate cake the other day. So I thought I would experiment! Here's my version:

Scott’s 5 Minute Sugar Free Pumpkin Cake

2 Egg, beaten
3 Tablespoons Milk (I used Hood’s Calorie Countdown)
4 Tablespoons Cinn-a-bliss2 Tablespoons Canola Oil
6 Tablespoons Rolled Oats (Grind it into a flour)
3 Tablespoons Canned Pumpkin
1 Tablespoon Splenda
1 scoop Vanilla Protein Powder
1 Teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice

Mix egg, milk, Cinn-a-bliss, pumpkin and oil and combine thoroughly. In a separate container, grind oatmeal into a flour type consistency. I use my magic bullet for this. Add the rest of your dry ingredients to the oatmeal and mix well. Tip dry into wet and stir till combined.

Pour into microwave safe bowls. I used 3 small ramekins, and it worked well. Microwave for 5 minutes. Top with Sugar Free Whipped Topping and drizzle with Cinn-a-bliss or Smuckers Sugar free Caramel Topping and enjoy!

Susy & Derrel's Power Pancakes

2008-09-03T03:37:00.004-05:00

This recipe has been sitting in my edit column for way too long! I actually forgot about it. My friend Susy sent it to me, and they aredeliciouss! Thanks Susy!

Power Pancakes

1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese

4-5 egg whites

1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 packets of equal
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend for 1 minute.

Cook like you would pancake batter. yum yum.

298 calories
29 grams of carbs

35 grams of protein

5 grams of fat

I cook one big pancake. Of course I can't eat the whole thing, it makes 2-3 meals. I put the rest in the fridge, but I like them cold too, and I always eat them plain. Susy !

Faux-Tato Salad

2008-09-01T17:08:00.004-05:00

Faux-Tato Salad
~ Sue, Tina & Stacy~

Ingredients

1-2 large heads cauliflower, roughly chopped
6 hard boiled egg whites, chilled and chopped
½ envelope ranch dressing/dip mix
1 ½ cups mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
3 tbsp dijonnaise
2 tbsp non-dairy liquid creamer (Coffeemate)
1 cup diced red onion
2 celery stalks, diced
¼ cup chives, chopped
3 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp dill, chopped
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
1/3 tsp salt
Paprika, optional for garnishing

Place cauliflower in a large microwave-safe bowl, and pour 1/3 cup water over it. Cover and microwave for 6 - 8 minutes or until cauliflower is soft. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix together the ranch mix, mayo, sour cream, Dijonnaise and salt. Set aside. Once cool enough to handle, drain any excess water from the cooked cauliflower. Lightly mash just 2 cups of the cauliflower, and then place in a blender. Add creamer and puree or pulse until blended. Don't worry if it isn't completely smooth. Pour mayo mixture into the blender and mix until blended and creamy. Chop the rest of the cauliflower into small half-inch pieces. Place these cauliflower pieces in a large bowl, and add the onion, celery and vinegar. Toss and let sit for 5 minutes. Pour the blender mixture over the vegetables and mix well. Add the chopped egg whites, chives, dill and parsley, and fold them in. Chill for several hours. If you like, sprinkle with paprika just before serving. Fix the day before for an even better flavor.

Peanut Butter Fluff

2008-09-01T17:07:00.002-05:00

Peanut Butter Fluff
~ Sue, Tina & Stacy~

Ingredients
1 cup peanut butter
1 (8 ounce) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup Splenda
½ tsp vanilla
1 small tub sugar free cool whip, thawed

Beat together everything except cool whip until smooth and mixed well. Add cool whip and fold in until mixed together. Chill in fridge for soft dessert or scoop out and freeze for bite size treats. You can also smooth out into a pan and freeze then cut and eat.

Strawberry Dessert

2008-09-01T17:04:00.002-05:00

Strawberry Dessert
~ Sue, Tina & Stacy~

Ingredients
1 large container of fat free vanilla yogurt
1 package strawberry sugar free jello
Strawberries, frozen or fresh

Mix dry jello into the yogurt and stir until jello is dissolved. Add fruit and serve.

15 Minute Black Bean Salad

2008-09-01T17:03:00.002-05:00

15 minute Black Bean Salad
~ Sue, Tina & Stacy~

Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
8 cherry tomatoes, quartered and gently squeezed to remove seeds
½ cup minced onion
2 medium cloves garlic, pressed
½ cup diced red bell pepper
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds coarsely chopped
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together and serve. This salad will keep for several days and gets more flavorful if you let it marinate in the refrigerator for a while.

Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms

2008-09-01T17:02:00.008-05:00

Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms
~ Sue, Tina & Stacy~

Ingredients
1 (8 ounce) package white mushrooms
1 (8 ounce) package turkey Italian sausage links, casings removed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp chopped parsley
¼ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Drizzle olive oil into a 9x13 inch baking pan and add 2 tbsp water. Set aside. Wipe mushrooms with a soft cloth and carefully remove stems. Scoop out some of the flesh to make a well in each cap. Finely chop stems and set aside. Over medium heat, sauté the sausage in the olive oil until crumbly and almost browned; 3-4 minutes. Add garlic, chopped mushroom stems, and parsley. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat; add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in Parmesan cheese. Carefully fill each mushroom cap with 1-2 tablespoons sausage mixture and place in prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with shredded Parmesan cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until brown and crispy.

Broccoli Salad

2008-09-01T17:02:00.007-05:00

Broccoli Salad
~ Sue, Tina & Stacy~

Ingredients
2 heads broccoli, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
6-8 strips bacon, crumbled (we used Hormel Bacon Bits)
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup sugar
2 tbsp red wine vinegar

Mix broccoli, onion, cheese, and bacon in a bowl. In another bowl, mix remaining ingredients to form the dressing. Add the dressing to the broccoli mixture and enjoy. Best if let set for several hours before serving.

One Happy Chicken ~ Smoked Chicken

2008-08-30T09:02:00.003-05:00

Smoked Chicken

Ingredients

1 Whole Chicken

1 cup Emerils Seasoning

1/3 cup Splenda Brown Sugar

1 Qt Crystal Lite Apple Drink (Wal Mart Brand)

Hickory Chunks

Directions

Mix Emerils and Splenda brown sugar together. Skin 1 whole chicken and coat with Emerils/Splenda mixture. Let sit overnight for the spices to meld with the meat. Prepare smoker according to manufacturers directions and place chicken on wire rack. Every 30 minutes, spritz down chicken with apple juice. Smoke approximately 3 1/2-4 hours, or until temp reads 165 degrees.

Let chicken stand before shredding and use you favorite BBQ sauce. We use Walden Farms Sugar Free BBQ sauce.

Enjoy!

Blueberry Custard Pie

2008-08-30T08:58:00.002-05:00

Blueberry Custard Pie

Ingredients
1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell
2 c. fresh blueberries
4 eggs
2/3 c. Splenda
1 1/3 c. Hoods calorie countdown milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Directions
Sprinkle blueberries in bottom of pie shell. Mix beaten eggs, sugar, milk and vanilla together and pour over blueberries. Bake at 400 degrees until custard tests done with a knife coming clean when stuck halfway between the rim and the middle (approximately 30 minutes).

Strawberry Custard Pie

2008-08-28T18:17:00.006-05:00

Strawberry Custard Pie

recipe courtesy Mass Recipes

I will admit, I still love food! I try real hard though to take things in moderation. One of the recipe blogs I frequent is Columbus Foods. She does a great job of spot lighting local foods. Oh yeah, she takes awesome food porn! Anyway, her recipe called for blackberries. Just a little pricey right now, so we went with strawberries. All I can say is, "I hope it tastes as good as it looks"! I'll let you know! I did modify the recipe to make it a little more weight loss friendly!

Ingredients
1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell
2 c. fresh strawberries
4 eggs
2/3 c. splenda
1 1/3 c. Hoods calorie countdown milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Directions
Sprinkle strawberries in bottom of pie shell. Mix beaten eggs, sugar, milk and vanilla together and pour over blackberries. Bake at 400 degrees until custard tests done with a knife coming clean when stuck halfway between the rim and the middle.

Firehouse Chili ~ Wendy Warren

2008-08-28T16:10:00.002-05:00

FIREHOUSE CHILI
~Wendy Warren~

Pictures to follow!

Ingredients
(makes enough for 10 or so firefighters/20-25 normal eaters)
2 lbs good ground chuck/round
1 large chopped onion
1 can (all cans 14 oz) diced tomatoes with chilis
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can Margaret Holmes seasoned pinto beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can refried beans with green chilis
3 TBSP Jim Beam hot sauce
2 TBSP each of olive oil, parsley, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder
4 TBSP chili powder

Directions
Brown and drain meat. Add onions, hot sauce, and all the spices to the meat and let flavors blend for 5 to 10 minutes over medium heat. Then, add all the tomatoes and beans and stir well.....be sure to get the refried beans mixed in well. Let chili simmer on low for 3 to 4 hours.

Chocolate PB2 Protein Ice Cream

2008-08-26T18:13:00.005-05:00

Ingredients

1 Cup Hoods Calorie Countdown Milk

1 Cup Land of Lakes Fat Free Half and Half

2 Scoops Matrix Perfect Chocolate Protein

¼ Sup Splenda

2 T Torani SF Chocolate Syrups

2 Heaping T of PB2

Directions

Mix all ingredients together . I use an immersion blender, or what I affectionately call a boat motor to make the ice cream nice and airy. Make sure everything is blended well. Pour into your ice cream freezer and follow the manufacturers instruction for freezing. When ice cream is finished freezing, it will be at the soft serve stage. You can eat it then, or place in an airtight container ripen in the freezer.

Enjoy! this has got to be my favorite!

White Chocolate Protein Ice Cream

2008-08-24T16:57:00.002-05:00

White Chocolate Protein Ice Cream

Ingredients
1 cup Hoods Calorie Countdown Milk
1 Cup Land of Lakes Fat Free Half and Half
2 scoops Lean Dessert Whipped Vanilla Protein
¼ cup Splenda
2 T Torani SF White chocolate Syrup
2 T of Jello SF White chocolate Pudding Mix
Smuckers SF Hot Fudge Sauce

Directions
Mix all ingredients together except hot fudge sauce. I use an immersion blender, or what I affectionately call a boat motor. Make sure everything is blended well. Pour into your ice cream freezer and follow the manufacturers instruction for freezing. When ice cream is finished freezing, it will be at the soft serve stage. You can eat it then, or place in an airtight container ripen in the freezer. When serving, top with a drizzle of Smuckers SF Hot Fudge Sauce.

Enjoy!

Peach Protein Ice Cream

2008-08-16T14:09:00.006-05:00

Last week I talked about going to the Farmers Market in Nashville. Well we bought some freestone peaches that were absolutely remarkable. In other words...yum! I had eaten maybe one or two this week and noticed they were getting a little ripe. what a better way to use them, than Peach Ice Cream! Yeah!

Now we are not talking normal peach ice cream, it's all about protein around here. So we came up with a Protein Peach. It turned out really well!

Protein Peach Ice Cream

Ingredients
2 cups Hood Calorie countdown Milk
1/2 pureed peaches
1/2 cup diced peaches
1/3 cup Splenda
1 Tbsp DaVinci Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup
2 Scoops BSN Lean Dessert Whipped Vanilla Protein

Directions
In a bowl, mix together milk, Splenda, and vanilla syrup until blended well. Add pureed peaches and stir together. Mix in 2 scoops of vanilla protein using a hand mixer on high. This will make your mixture nice and frothy! Pour into your ice cream maker and follow your manufacturers directions for use. When ice cream is done, it will be like soft serve. You can eat it then, or pack in an air tight container and stick in freezer to ripen. Top with a dollop of Sugar Free Cool Whip if you would like!

Enjoy!

Here are some links to other Protein Ice Creams I have made:

Chunky Monkey Protein Ice Cream

Strawberry Caramel Protein Ice Cream

Pistachio Protein Ice Cream

Cookies & Cream Protein Ice Cream

Splenda Blend Sour Cream Pound Cake

2008-08-10T20:02:00.002-05:00

It seems recipes have a way of spreading from one household to the next. Or in the age of the world wide web, from one blog to the next. I saw this recipe over at Lovin Life with Lea, and thought uhmmm, that sounds good. Then I found followed the link Lea had left and found the recipe over ar Recipeczar! So, we made it for church on Sunday, and added fresh strawberries. Wow, it was delicious! So, hope you enjoy!

Splenda Blend Sour Cream Pound Cake
http://www.recipezaar.com/107856

A delicious dessert, always keep a pound cake in the freezer for a begining of a delicious dessert. Toast or grill slices of pound cake and top with fresh fruit or your favorite topping or ice cream.
by Barb Gertz
1¾ hours 20 min prep
SERVES 18

Ingredients
3 cups sifted cake flour
1 1/2 cups Splenda granular
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter, softened
6 large eggs
1 (8 ounce) carton sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees; GREASE and flour a 10-inch tube pan or a 12-cup BUNDT pan; set aside.

Combine flour, Splenda Sugar-Blend for baking, and soda in a large mixing bowl; cut butter into flour mixture with a fork or a pastry blended until crumbly, (this procedure may be done with a mixer at the lowest speed, cover mixing bowl with a tea towel to prevent spattering, I have a guard that fits on my mixer bowl-Kitchen Aid).

Combine eggs, sour cream, and vanilla in a small mixing bowl; add 1/4 of the egg mixture to flour mixture; beat on low speed of an electric mixer until blended; beat at medium speed for 30 seconds or until batter is smooth, stopping to scrap down sides of bowl; REPEAT PROCEDURE 3 times.

Spoon batter into prepared pan; Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in center comes out clean, cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pan, cool completly on a wire rack.

Nutritional Info
Calories 227
Total Fat 14.9g 22%
Saturated Fat 8.8g 43%
Monounsaturated Fat 4.1g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.8g
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 103mg 34%
Sodium 121mg 5%
Potassium 69mg 1%
Total Carbohydrate 18.6g 6%
Dietary Fiber 0.4g 1%
Sugars 0.3g
Protein 4.5g 9%

Berry Cheesecake Pie ~ By Gidget

2008-08-03T08:16:00.005-05:00

WOW! People are stepping up to the plate and expiermenting with foods. It's just like high school chemistry. You know, when you mix different chemicals together and sometimes you make a bomb. But other times you create a cure for the common cold!

Well, a friend of mine from Obesity Help Tennessee Forum has come up with a cure for the common cold. If not the cold, I'm sure it will be a cure for something since it looks and sounds so good! I plan on making it sometime this week. After I begged for "Food Porn", she obliged and sent a picture! So, THANKS to Gidget for this scrumptious summer time treat!

Ingredients

8 sheets phyllo dough
6 tbsp i can't believe its not butter melted
2 packages fat free cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup splenda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups fresh or frozen mixed berries (I used frozen mixed raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries
1/2 cup sugar free blackberry jam(I made myself!)
1 cup sugar free whipped cream

Directions

Place one sheet of phyllo dough in a greased 9 in pie plate brush with butter. Repeat 7 times; trim edges. Bake at 425 for 6-8 minutes until edges are golden brown. Cool on wire rack. For filling mix cream cheese, splenda, and vanilla until smooth. Add eggs, beat on low until just combined. Fold in the berries. Spoon into crust. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes, cover edges with foil to prevent overbrowning. Bake 23-27 minutes longer or until center is almost set. Cool on wire rack for 1 hour. Refrigerate until chilled. In a small mixing bowl, beat jelly until smooth; spread over filling. Spread with whipped topping. Garnish with additional berries.

Cookies and Cream Protein Ice Cream

2008-07-27T17:58:00.002-05:00

Scott's Cookies and Cream Protien Ice Cream

1 Cup Hoods Calorie Countdown Milk
2 Scoops Vanilla Protein Powder
2 Tablespoons DaVinci French Vanilla Syrup
3 Sugar Free Oreo Cookies

Chop the Oreo cookies and set aside. Mix together milk, protein, French Vnilla syrup. I used a blender to tackle this portion of the recipe. Pour into ice cream maker. Follow your machine's instructions for freezing. 5 minutes before done add the chopped Oreos. The ice cream can be eaten right away, or stored in your freezer to ripen.

Pistachio Protein Ice Cream

2008-07-27T17:50:00.002-05:00

Shelly's Pistachio Protein Ice Cream

2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Pistachio Pudding Mix

1 Cup Hoods Calorie Countdown Milk

2 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder

1/4 cup chopped pistachios, toasted

Toast 1/4 cup of chopped pistachios for a few minutes in a dry pan. Set aside to cool. Mix together milk, protein, & pudding mix. I used a blender to tackle this portion of the recipe. Pour into ice cream maker. Follow your machine's instructions for freezing. 5 minutes before done add the chopped nuts. The ice cream can be eaten right away, or stored in your freezer to ripen.

All the credit for this recipe goes to Michelle. She rocks!

Caramel Flan Cheesecake

2008-07-20T15:11:00.003-05:00

Caramel Flan Cheesecake (Sugar Free)

Cheesecake Base:
1 pound 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups Splenda
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1 tablespoon orange zest
6 eggs
1 cup half and half

Caramel:
Smucker's Sugar Free Caramel Sauce. Pour caramel sauce into a deep dish glass pie plate. Swirl the caramel around to cover the bottom of the plate and cool in fridge..

Cheesecake Base:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, on low speed work the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar, vanilla, and orange zest. Continue to mix for 2 minutes until smooth. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and scrape down after each addition. On low speed slowly stream in the heavy cream. Scrape down every 30 seconds. Remove from bowl and pour out into prepared cool caramel pan.

Bake in a hot water bath for 1 hour. When finished the cake will be slightly firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and place in the refrigerator. Make sure to cool down for at least 4 hours before flipping over. The cake can be made up to 2 days in advance.

Flip over by placing a 12-inch flat plate over the top of the cake pan. Hold with a firm grip and flip cake upside down. Let the pan sit on top for a second. Lift pan off the cake and serve on its own or with berries.

This recipe has been adapted from Food Network and Wolfgang Puck

Strawberry Caramel Protein Ice Cream

2008-07-20T14:41:00.005-05:00

Strawberry Caramel Protein Ice Cream

Ingredients
1 cup mashed Strawberries

2 Tablespoons Whipped Cream Cheese

2 Tablespoon Sugar Free DaVinci Vanilla Syrup

2 cup Hoods Calorie Countdown milk

4 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder

1/2 cup chopped Strawberries

Mix all your ingredients in blender, except for 1/2 cup strawberries. Pour into your freezer and follow manufacturers directions and wait! 5 minutes before your ice cream freezes, chop the remaining strawberries into small bite size pieces and pour into your freezer. Your ice cream will be the consistency of soft serve. You can enjoy it then, or pop into an airtight container and freeze for a couple of hours, giving it time to ripen!

Now this is Eggface's recipe, but I doubled it and I used ingredients that were in my cupboards. Now, how did this recipe change to Strawberry Caramel? Let me present the story...

Scott: RJ, would you like to try the ice cream?

RJ: Yeah papa, I would! (He takes a small bite). What flavor is this, strawberry caramel?

S: No, it's just plain strawberry.

I then take a spoon to Beth, my wife.

S: Beth would you like to try the ice cram?

B: Yeah! What flavor is this, strawberries and caramel?

S: No! why is everyone asking me this?

B: Did you use a dirty spoon, because I'm tasting caramel!

S: No, I did not!!!

10 minutes pass, and I again offer her another small sample. This time with a different spoon.

S: Well?

B: It's really good, but I'm still tasting caramel!

At this point, my mind goes into uh oh mode and I run to the kitchen! Sure enough I used DaVinci's caramel syrup instead of vanilla! So, there you have it...Strawberry Caramel Protein Ice Cream! I really have to give Michelle the credit for all this. It seems her Protein Ice Cream is taking over the world!

I do know this though...at night for a quick and easy dessert, we are having protein ice cream!

Hope you enjoy!

Chunky Monkey Protein Ice Cream

2008-07-17T19:31:00.008-05:00

Well, I finally did it. I bought a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker with part of my stimulus check. Thank you Uncle Sam!

I have been following Michelle's (Eggface) journey into the art of protein ice cream making. I have to share this with you though...ice cream is what got me into trouble.

My treat for the day (pre-weight loss surgery) was to buy Blue Bell ice cream and eat a half a gallon a day! Sad isn't it? Well I got to say this about Eggface's protein ice cream...yum, yum, yum!!!!

So, here is the recipe I used for my Chunky Monkey Protein Ice Cream (click here).

Chunky Monkey Protein Ice Cream

2 cups Hoods Calorie Countdown Milk

3 Scoops Vanilla Protein Powder (I used Lean Dessert Whipped Vanilla)

2 T DaVinci Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup

1 T Splenda Granulated Sugar

2 Banana

Mix all your ingredients in blender, except for 1 banana. Pour into your freezer and follow manufacturers directions and wait! 5 minutes before your ice cream freezes, chop the remaining banana into small bite size pieces and pour into your freezer. Your ice cream will be the consistency of soft serve. You can enjoy it then, or pop into an airtight container and freeze for a couple of hours. I topped mine with a little Smucker's Sugar Free Hot Fudge sauce, while RJ used Smucker's Sugar Free Caramel.

Strawberry Shortbread Cheescake

2008-07-04T09:24:00.006-05:00

Crust

1 Package of Murray's Sugar Free Shortbread Cookies

1/4 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling

3 (8 ounce) Packages Fat Free Cream Cheese

1 1/4 cups SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

4 Eggs

1 1/2 T Lime Juice

1 Pt Strawberries

1 Pinch Salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch spring form pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
Combine Murray SF Shortbread Cookies, SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener and melted butter in a small bowl. Crush until cookies until crumbled. Press on bottom and up sides of prepared pan.
Bake 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Beat fat free cream cheese together at high speed with a mixer until creamy; gradually add SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, mixing well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until each one is incorporated. Slice 4 strawberries and mix in filling until blended. Add lime juice and a pinch of salt, beat until smooth. Pour into prepared crust.

Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until mixture is almost set, and slightly firm to the touch. Run a knife around edge of pan to release sides, and help prevent cracking. Cool to room temperature on a wire rack; cover and chill at least 8 hours.

Top with Strawberry glaze and remaining strawberries.

Sugar Free Red Velvet Cheesecake

2008-06-29T16:47:00.006-05:00

A good friend of mine from Gatlinburg posted this recipe on the Tenn Forum of Obesity Help.

It makes me feel good when people step out and try things. One of my goals for surgery was not to deny myself of good food. Sometimes we just have to try and experiment.

Sugar free does not always mean calorie free, so we need to use these recipes in moderation and not as a treat every day. But it is really nice to be able to have gourmet food that is deli-sh! Way to go Marilyn! She even provided Food Porn!

Sugar Free Red Velvet Cheesecake

Ingredients
1 package Murray ’s sugar free Oreo like cookies
¼ cup I can’t Believe its not Butter
1 ½ packages (8 ounces) fat free cream cheese
1 ½ packages (8 ounces) ¼ less fat cream cheese
1 ½ cups Splenda
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 cup low fat sour cream
½ cup fat free buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon vinegar
2 (1 ounce) bottles red food coloring
1 ½ ounces fat free cream cheese
1 ½ ounces 1/3 less fat cream cheese
¼ cup I Can’t believe it not Butter spread
2 cups powdered Nature’s crystals
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Crush the cookies and add ¼ cup I can’t believe its not butter and press into 9 inch springform pan. Beat cream cheese and Splenda together 1 minute. Add eggs and next 6 ingredients, mixing on low speed until just blended. Pour into prepared crust. Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes, then 300 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until center is firm. Run a knife along edge of cheesecake. Turn oven off and let cheesecake stand in oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 30 minutes. Cover and chill for 8 hours or until needed. Beat remaining cream cheese; I can’t believe it’s not Butter until creamy. Gradually add Nature’s crystals, and beat until smooth. Spread over top of cheesecake. Remove side of springform pan and serve!

Nutritional Info
16 servings
142 calories per slice
10 grams carbs
7 grams protein

Terrific Teriyaki Wings

2008-06-22T15:43:00.002-05:00

Teriyaki Sauce
¼ C of low sugar ketchup
2 T reduced sodium soy sauce
1 T Splenda Brown sugar
1 T Splenda Sweetened Pineapple Juice
1 ½ t ground ginger
1 t minced garlic 1
t sesame seeds

Marinate chicken wings in the above sauce at least 4 hours, the longer the better. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for 1 hour. We decided to finish the wings on the grill to give them a great summertime flavor!

Red, White and Blue Cheese Coleslaw

2008-06-22T15:27:00.006-05:00

Red, White and Blue Cheese Coleslaw

1 pkg. (16 oz.) coleslaw blend
1 medium red pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 cup KRAFT Blue Cheese Dressing
1/4 cup KRAFT Natural Blue Cheese Crumbles
6 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, cooked, crumbled

Toss coleslaw blend with peppers and dressing in large bowl; cover.
Refredgerate at least 1 hour.
Top with the cheese and bacon just before serving

Nutritional Information
6 servings
Calories 190
Total fat 15 g
Saturated fat 4 g
Cholesterol 25 mg
Sodium 440 mg
Carbohydrate 7 g
Dietary fiber 2 g
Sugars 4 g
Protein 5 g

*Recipe and picture from Kraft Foods Recipes

Fruit Pies

2008-06-22T15:16:00.002-05:00

Strawberry Pie

2 Qt strawberries rinsed and hulled; sliced or chunked
1 pre-baked deep dish pie shell
1 recipe of strawberry glaze

Mix berries and glaze together. Turn onto pre-baked pie shell. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving. Serve with Sugar free Cool Whip topping.

Strawberry Glaze

1 C berries crushed or pureed
¾ C water
¾ C Splenda
3 T corn starch

I use the magic bullet.

Mix all ingredients together in the magic bullet. Blend. Bring to a boil over medium heat in a saucepan. Stir until thickened. Cool. Mix with berries to make pie or tarts.

Blueberry or Mixed Berry Pie

4 pints of berries, rinsed
1-1 ¼ C splenda
¼ C flour
2 t cinnamon
1 deep dish pie shell
Pastry to top ( I use pre-made pie crust – unroll and top the pie)

Mix berries, Splenda, flour and cinnamon together in a large mixing bowl. Turn onto a unbaked deep dish pie shell. Top with unrolled pie crust dough. Pinch seams together. Make steam slits in top pie dough before cooking. Cook in a pre-heated oven at 3500 for approximately 40-45 minutes. Best when made a day ahead of time. Top with sugar free cool whip topping.

Beth’s version of Terrific Teriyaki Turkey Burgers

2008-06-14T19:35:00.008-05:00

It seems today has been the day for cooking! This morning we had Apple Pie Pancakes. This afternoon's selection for dinner was one RJ had found in a Taste Of Home magazine. So Beth took the recipe (along with her helper Chi Chi) , and changed a lot of the ingredients to make it a little more weight WLS friendly. Without further ado, Beth's version of Terrific Teriyaki Turkey Burgers

Sauce:
¼ C of low sugar ketchup
2 T reduced sodium soy sauce
1 T Splenda Brown sugar
1 T Splenda Sweetened crushed Pineapple (Libby's Pineapple Rings)
1 ½ t ground ginger
1 t minced garlic
1 t sesame seeds

Burgers:
1 egg
1/3 C dry bread crumbs
3 T dry minced onion
2 T Splenda sweetened crushed pineapple
1 lb ground Turkey

For crushed pineapple, take 2 slices of pineapple and crush in chopper

1) In a small bowl, combine the ingredients for the sauce. Set aside
2) In a large bowl, combine the egg, bread crumbs, 3 T of sauce, dry onions and pineapple and ground turkey. Mix well. Shape into ½ C patties. (Mine made 6)
3) Coat grill rack with cooking spray. Grill burgers, covered over medium heat for 5-7 minutes on each side or until meat thermometer reads 165 and juices run clear. Brush burgers occasionally with reserved sauce.
4) Grill remaining pineapple slices for 2-3 minutes on each side or until heated through.

Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 6
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 209.1
Total Fat: 8.2 g
Cholesterol: 56.1 mg
Sodium: 470.1 mg
Total Carbs: 14.4 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.0 g
Protein: 18.0 g

Apple Pie Pancakes !

2008-06-14T07:30:00.012-05:00

In my daily reading of blogs (I know, I need to get a life!), I ran across a nice site entitled Melissa's Journey. Now Melissa is not a WLS patient. She is just someone trying to lose a few pounds as well as keep them off.

While reading, I found a nice, easy dessert to make...Apple Pie Enchilada. So I made the apples last night, but fell asleep before we could get them made. So that recipe will be coming soon!

We awoke early this morning and decided to make some breakfast. I asked Beth if she would like some cottage cheese pancakes. While making the pancakes, I had an idea (yes that was smoke a pouring out my ears!). What if I used the apples for a topping for the pancakes?

So, wha-la...Apple Pie Pancakes!

Apple Topping
Ingredients
1 Apple~cored, peeled and chopped
A dash of Cinnamon
Splenda~Sweeten to taste
A Splash of DaVinci Sugar Free Caramel Syrup

Directions
1)Put peeled, cored, and chopped apple in a bowl and toss with Cinnamon and Splenda (if desired).
2)Microwave for 3 minutes, or until soft.
3) Too easy!

Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Ingredients
¼ cup cottage cheese
2 Tablespoons oatmeal
1 egg
1 packet of Splenda
Splash of Cinn-a-bliss (pinch of cinnamon may be substituted)

Directions
1) Grind oatmeal in blender/magic bullet
2) Add cottage cheese, egg, and Splenda, and Cinn-a-Bliss
3) Mix thoroughly in blender/magic bullet
4) Let sit for several minutes for air bubbles to escape

Makes 4 silver dollar pancakes or 1 large pancake.

Here is a link to other Cottage Cheese Pancake recipes:
Cottage Cheese Pancakes with Strawberry Topping
Linda's Ricotta Cheese Crepes

Easy BBQ Sloppy joes

2008-06-01T16:10:00.005-05:00

Ingredients:

1 lb. Ground Turkey

1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped red pepper
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 cup Walden Farms Thick & Spicy Barbecue Sauce
4 hamburger buns, split

Directions:

1) Cook turkey in large nonstick skillet until cooked through; drain.

2) Add peppers and onion; cook and stir until tender.
3) Add barbecue sauce; cook until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally.
4) Fill buns with turkey mixture.

Prep Time:5 min

Total Time:20 min
Makes:4 servings

Nutrition Info:
Calories 300
Total fat 11 g
Saturated fat 3 g
Cholesterol 85 mg
Sodium 420 mg
Carbohydrate 26 g
Dietary fiber 2 g
Sugars 4 g
Protein 24 g

***Adapted from Kraft Foods!

Greek Stuffed Chicken Breast

2008-05-31T17:39:00.001-05:00

Ingredients
Boneless Chicken Breast
Salt
Pepper
Onion Powder
Garlic Powder
Poultry Seasoning
Oregano
Thyme
Frozen Spinach
Feta Cheese
Canned Artichoke Hearts

Directions
1) Pound chicken until thin enough to roll.
2) Thaw and drain frozen spinach.
3) Layer spinach, feta cheese, and artichoke hearts in center of chicken. Roll and secure with toothpicks.
4) Season both sides of chicken with seasoning to taste.
5) Saute chicken in garlic and olive oil until brown all the way around.
6) Bake in 350 degree oven until done.

I had a few extra breasts & ran out of feta so I used a little smoked provolone & added a few halved kalamata olives in addition to the spinach & artichokes. I haven't tried that one yet but it looked just as good!!

Enjoy!!

Sugar Free Brownie Trifle

2008-05-04T19:57:00.003-05:00

Last week at church we had a covered dish dinner. One of the desserts that was brought was very similar to a trifle dessert, but was served in a 9 x 13 pan. We thought we would try to recreate it using sugar free ingredients. This is what we came up with. Now I will say this, depending on what stage of diet or weight loss surgery your are at, keep in mind the title of my blog:

Food for Thought And Moderation Too!

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups Splenda sugar substitute
1 cup butter
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS:
1 box of jello sugar free pudding
1 package of sugar free cool whip
1 Russel stover sugar free toffee squares

DIRECTIONS:
1. Melt the butter or margarine and mix all ingredients in the order given.
2. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 to 30 minutes in a 9 x 13 inch greased pan.

Once brownies are cooled, crumble into a 9 x 13 pan. Make 1 box of jello sugar free chocolate pudding as directed. Pour over top of crumbled brownies and chill until pudding is set. When pudding is set, top with 1 package of sugar free cool whip. Chop toffee squares and sprinkle over the top of the cool whip.

Sugar Free Turtle Cheesecake

2008-04-29T03:39:00.002-05:00

Sugar Free Turtle Cheesecake

Crust:
1 pkg. Murray’s SF Fudge dipped graham crackers (Cookies)
¼ Cup graham cracker crumbs
2 Tbsp .Splenda
2-3 Tbsp melted butter
6 unwrapped pieces Russell Stovers’s SF Pecan Clusters

Crush the cookies into crumbs. (I use a food processor.) Mix crust ingredients and pat into a 9 or 10 inch spring-form pan that haws been non-stick sprayed. Bake 5-6 minutes at 350°F. As soon as it comes from the oven put 6 pieces of Pecan Clusters over bottom. Put back in oven for 3-4 minutes. Spread them over bottom crust. Cool on a wire rack.

Filling:
24 oz. cream cheese (I use 2 reduced fat and 1 regular)
1 1/2 C. Splenda
3 large eggs
1/2 C. light sour cream
2 tsp. vanilla
3 Tbsp flour

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place cream cheese, in a mixer and mix well. Add Splenda, sour cream and 2 teaspoons vanilla in large mixer bowl; beat on medium speed until smooth. Add flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, blending well. Add eggs 1 at a time, beat well. Wrap the prepared cheesecake crust that is in a spring form pan in aluminum foil. Place in a larger sided pan. Pour boiling water in the larger pan to about halfway up the spring form pan. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes; without opening oven door, lower temperature to 250 degrees and continue cooking for 30 minutes more. Without opening oven door, turn off heat and let cheesecake sit in oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven. Take pan out of water bath and foil. Let cool completely on a rack then put in refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Topping:
Smuckers Sugar Free Caramel Sauce
Chopped Pecans

Pour caramel sauce over the top and sprinkle chopped pecans around the edge.

Cottage Cheese Pancakes with Strawberries

2008-03-29T16:54:00.003-05:00

This morning for breakfast, Beth decided to make cottage cheese pancakes. Before you say anything, like “blech or uck”, let me say this, “They are good”!!!!! But I decided to carry it a little further. We had some strawberries in the fridge and I suggested we use those. Instead of sugar free syrup, we took a little sugar free strawberry jam and micro waved it. Yum yum!! What a nice way to start the day! Hope you enjoy!

Cottage Cheese Pancakes

¼ cup cottage cheese
2 Tablespoons oatmeal
1 egg
1 packet of splenda

1) Grind oatmeal in blender/magic bullet
2) Add cottage cheese, egg, and splenda
3) Mix thoroughly in blender/magic bullet
4) Let sit for several minute for air bubbles to escape

Makes 4 silver dollar pancakes or 1 large pancake.

Mini Bites

2008-03-23T06:22:00.001-05:00

This recipe is another from my friend Michelle. We modified it slightly to give it a taste of our own. But I have to give credit to her, she is a genius! And we wish her a speedy recovery form her PS! Luv ya Michelle!

Spinach & Garlic Feta Bites
1/2 Yellow Onion, diced
2 Green Onions, diced
2 teaspoon Garlic, minced
1/2 cup cooked Spinach, squeeze water out
1 teaspoon Butter
1 teaspoon Oregano few twists of Black Pepper
5 Eggs, beaten
1/3 cup Fresh Grape Tomato, diced
1/2 cup Garlic & Herb Feta Cheese crumbled
1/2 cup Shredded Quesadilla Cheese

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Sauté onions in butter till golden.
Add garlic and sauté 1 minute more.
Add cooked spinach and sauté till dry and separated about 1 minute.
Set aside to cool.
Mix all ingredients together.
Be sure veggie mixture has cooled slightly before adding to egg mixture.
Spoon (I use a small 1 ounce cookie scoop) into a lightly greased mini muffin tin.
Bake for 30 minutes or until centers are firm.
Makes 24.

Crab and Shrimp Bites
1/2 Yellow Onion, diced
3 Green Onions, diced
2 teaspoons minced Garlic
1 teaspoon Butter
1/2 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
5 Eggs
1 jar/4 oz. Red Pimentos, drained
1/2 cup Artichoke Hearts (non marinated), chopped fine
1 cup Shredded Quesadilla Cheese
1 cup Cooked Crab and Shrimp Meat (Wally World brand)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Sauté onions in butter till golden.
Add garlic and sauté 1 minute more.
Set aside to cool.
Mix all ingredients together.
Be sure onions have cooled slightly before adding egg mixture.
Spoon (I use a small ice cream scoop) into lightly greased mini muffin tin.
Bake for 30 minutes or until centers are firm.
Makes 24.

Sugar Free Mini Ice Cream Sandwiches

2008-03-22T12:00:00.000-05:00

This is a great little treat that RJ actually came up with. When you need that Ice Cream Sandwich fix, this should do it. I used some of the left over sugar free frosting that came for the Died and Gone To Heaven Chocolate Cup Cakes and Murray's Sugar Free Shortbread Cookies.

Take 2 cookies. On the bottom cookie, pipe some of the cake icing. Place a 2nd cookie on top and stick in the freezer until ready to eat. Yum Yum!!

The nutrition info is not to bad either. Just remember...moderation!

Nutrition Info
Serving size: 1 Ice Cream Sandwich
Calories 32.5 g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 35 mg
Total Carbohydrates 5.25 g
Dietary fiber .5g
Sugars 0g
Sugar Alcohol 1g
Protein .5g

Died and Gone To Heaven Cup Cakes

2008-03-22T11:24:00.000-05:00

Died And Gone To Heaven Cup Cakes

1 3/4 cups organic all-purpose flour
1/2 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated
1/2 cup SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups fat free milk (Hood's would be a good alternative)
1 small lunch size container sugar free applesauce
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup hot strong black coffee

DIRECTIONS

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cake pan or bundt with non-stick cooking spray, set aside

2) Blend flour, SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt in large mixing bowl.

3) Combine buttermilk, oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and coffee in a small bowl.

4) Add flour to mixture, using an electric mixer on medium speed, mix until Smooth (about 2 minutes).

5) Pour batter into cake pan or bundt pan. If traveling, I recommend a 13 x 9 pan

6) Bake for 35 minutes, until an inserted toothpick in center of cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes.

Nutrition Info (per serving)

18 servings

Calories 64.6

Protein 3.2g

Fat 1.2g

Saturated Fat .5g

Polyunsaturated Fat .1g

Monounsaturated Fat .4

Carbohydrate 11.9g

Dietary Fiber 1.6g

Sugars .6g

Cholesterol 29mg

Sodium 113.4mg

Sugar Free Frosting

1 (1.4 ounce) package sugar-free instant pudding mix

1 1/2 cups milk
1 shot instant espresso

1 (8 ounce) fat free package cream cheese

1 (8 ounce) container sugar free frozen whipped topping, thawed

DIRECTIONS

1) In a medium bowl, combine pudding mix, milk and espresso. Mix well and let stand until thickened.

2) In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pudding and mix well. Finally, fold in whipped topping.

3) I recommend you keep this cake refrigerated until serving. The frosting will sometimes puddle if it becomes to warm.

Southwestern Skewers

2008-03-16T17:35:00.000-05:00

Southwestern Skewers

Juicy chicken, cherry tomatoes, whole mushrooms and sweet peppers make these skewers filling. But it's the fresh garlic, chili powder, cumin and cayenne pepper that give them their zesty kick.

Ingredients:
1 bottle (8 ounces) reduced-fat Italian salad dressing
10 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 medium green pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
8 large fresh mushrooms
8 cherry tomatoes
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch cubes

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Pour half into a large resealable plastic bag; add the vegetables. Seal bag and turn to coat. Pour remaining marinade into another large resealable plastic bag; add the chicken. Seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate vegetables and chicken for at least 2-3 hours. If grilling the kabobs, coat grill rack with cooking spray before starting the grill. Drain chicken, discarding marinade. Drain vegetables, reserving marinade for basting. On eight metal or soaked wooden skewers, alternately thread chicken and vegetables. Grill, covered, over medium heat or broil 4-6 in. from the heat for 3-4 minutes on each side or until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender, turning three times and basting frequently with reserved marinade. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts
One serving: (2 kabobs)
Calories: 231
Fat: 7 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 63 mg
Sodium: 275 mg
Carbohydrate: 15 g
Fiber: 3 g
Protein: 26 g

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2008-03-08T14:54:00.000-06:00

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This feeds a party, you may want to half it, or freeze some. Serve with crackers, veggies-- celery be great but not for RNYers. This recipe is courtesy of Franks RedHot Sauce.

Ingredients
20 ounces chicken
2 8 oz. packages 1/3 less fat cream cheese
1 cup light bleu cheese dressing
3/4 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce (not the wing sauce)
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese

Directions
Mix chicken cream cheese and hot sauce in a frying pan and heat it up. Add the dressing and half of the cheddar and mix well. Pour into a bowl and top with remaining cheddar-- or add to a crock pot and top with cheddar.

Nutritional facts
Amount Per 4 oz
Calories 208
Calories from Fat 94.5
Total Fat 10.5g
Saturated Fat 5g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0g
Monounsaturated Fat 0g
Cholesterol 65mg
Sodium 922mg
Potassium 0mg
Total Carbohydrate 10g
Dietary Fiber 0g
Protein 18g

Marvelous Mocha Cheesecake

2008-03-01T15:03:00.000-06:00

Marvelous Mocha Cheesecake

Crust

1 box of 100 calorie Oreo Wafers crushed

1/4 cup butter, melted

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

Filling

3 (8 ounce) packages reduced-fat cream cheese

3/4 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

2 eggs

2 egg whites

1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/4 teaspoons instant espresso crystals

2 (.55 ounce) packages Sugar-Free Swiss Miss Instant Cocoa Mix

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2) Mix crust ingredients together, and press into a 9-inch springform pan. Place pan on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature.

3) Reset oven temperature to 325 degrees F.

4) Beat cream cheese and SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener together until well mixed and smooth. Add eggs, egg whites, cornstarch and salt. Mix until smooth. Add sour cream and vanilla; mix until well blended.

5) Measure 1/2 cup of the cheesecake batter and pour into a small bowl. Add instant espresso crystals and cocoa mix. Stir until well combined.

6) Pour half of plain batter over crust. Top with half of the coffee batter by placing rounded spoonfuls over the cheesecake batter. Gently swirl the coffee batter into plain batter with the tip of knife or spatula. Repeat with remaining batters.

7) Bake 45-50 minutes or until center is almost set. Remove from oven and gently run metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cheesecake (this helps prevent cracking).

8)Let cool 20-25 minutes before covering and placing in the refrigerator. Refrigerate 4- 6 hours or overnight before serving. 16 servings.

Nutrition Info (per serving)
Calories 200

Calories from Fat 120

Protein 7g

Fat 13g (sat 8g)

Carbohydrate 14g

Fiber 0g

Cholesterol 65mg

Sodium 270mg

Sugar 4g

Chicken Breast / Sun Dried Tomatoes

2008-02-24T17:57:00.000-06:00

Chicken Breast with Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Light & Tasty
Sun-dried tomatoes provide intense flavor in this delightful chicken entree. If you have all the ingredients for this dish ready before you start to cook, the recipe comes together quickly.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1 green onion, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons minced garlic, divided
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup fat-free milk
Hot cooked pasta, optional

Directions:
Bring 1/2 cup broth to a boil; remove from the heat. Stir in sun-dried tomatoes; let stand for 10 minutes. In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, saute the mushrooms, onion and 1 teaspoon garlic for 1 minute. Stir in the remaining broth; cook 2 minutes longer or until mushrooms are tender. Remove mushroom mixture and set aside.

Rub chicken with remaining garlic. In the same skillet, brown chicken in oil for 3 minutes on each side. Stir in tomato mixture; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until chicken juices run clear. Remove chicken; slice and keep warm.

In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch, basil, salt and pepper. Stir in milk until smooth; add to tomato mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in mushroom mixture. Spoon over chicken. Serve with pasta if desired. Yield: 4 servings. Beth and I each have 1/4 of a chickem breast,

Nutrition Facts
One serving: 1/4 chicken breast with 1/4 cup sauce (calculated without pasta)
Calories: 95
Fat: 2.5 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 33 mg
Sodium: 208 mg
Carbohydrate: 3.5 g
Fiber: 1 g
Protein: 15 g

Fajita Pizza

2008-02-10T19:48:00.000-06:00

I tried something new for the first time today. Inspiration has come from Michelle (eggface). She is always blogging about her tortilla pizzas, and how easy they are to make. Guess what? She is right.

After yesterdays Bariatric Iron Chef Luncheon, I was just food-ed out . There was no way I was going to cook. And my wife was the same way, tired! In fact when the luncheon was over, we came home and fell asleep for about 3 hours. "Nough said, we were tired!

When I woke up, I had an idea. We had ate dinner a couple of nights before at our favorite Mexican restaurant , "Las Maracas". We definitely had leftovers, fajitas! So, here was my idea!

I took 1 tablespoon of refried beans and spread them over a low carb tortilla. At that point I shredded some of the chicken, and scattered that about. 2 slices of low fat provolone cheese. Then topped it off with some of the vegetables. Slid the tortilla in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Man it was good! Thanks Michelle for the idea!

Peanut Butter Pie

2008-02-10T14:23:00.001-06:00

Peanut Butter Pie
(Melinda R.)
http://www.bariatriceating.com/sweets1.html#peanutbutterpie

Crust:
1 1/2 cup sugar-free cookie crumbs OR graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tablespoons butter

Instructions for crust:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.In microwave-safe bowl melt peanut butter and butter. Add to crumbs and mix until well combined. Pat into a 9-inch pie plate. Bake for 10 minutes, or until golden. Cool completely.

Filling:
One 8-ounce pkg. reduced-fat cream cheese
1 cup creamy peanut butter
3/4 cup Splenda Granular or Nature Sweet powdered
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
One 12-ounce container (3 cups) frozen whipped topping, thawed
Chopped peanuts

Instructions for filling:
Stir together cream cheese, peanut butter, Splenda, and vanilla until well mixed. Fold in thawed whipped topping. Pour into prepared pie crust and carefully smooth to edges. Sprinkle chopped peanuts on top for garnish. Cover tightly and freeze or chill overnight. This pie is very rich – a sliver will satisfy any sweet tooth! If you’d rather not have the crust, simply pour filling into individual dessert dishes, garnish with chopped peanuts and chill.

Nutrition Facts:
Makes 16 servings.Per Serving:
219 Cal
7 g Protein
17 g Tot Fat
12 g Carb
1 g Fiber
4 g Sugar
205 mg Sodium

Chicken Fajita Soup

2008-02-10T14:18:00.000-06:00

Chicken Fajita Soup

(Shelia B.)

Ingredients:
2 pounds of chicken tenderloins (diced into ½ inch pieces)
6 14.5 oz cans of tomatoes with jalapenos (Kroger Brand)
1 lb bag of Kroger’s frozen three peppers and onion blend
1 lb bag of frozen carrots (sliced)
1 lb bag of frozen corn
½ of a 1 lb bag of diced frozen onion
3 packages of Fajita seasoning (found in the Mexican Section, Kroger Brand)
1 1lb bag of dry black beans cooked and rinsed or you can use 4 cans of black beans rinsed.

Add chicken broth or water to fill crock pot

I place all ingredients in the crock pot and turn on with liquid until it is capable of being stirred well. Cook on low for 10 hours until chicken is done. You may need to add water as it cooks.

Enjoy!! However, those that is early out from surgery, watch the corn, everything else should be okay, but eat around or omit the corn. This can also be pureed for a good meal.

Banana Cream Pie / Oatmeal Coconut Crust

2008-02-10T14:11:00.000-06:00

Banana Cream Pie

with Oatmeal Coconut Crust

(Melissa M).
http://murraysugarfree.com/cgi-bin/brandpages/recipe/recipe.pl?id=2895;skin=murray-sf

Ingredients:
20 Murray® Sugar Free Oatmeal cookies
2 tablespoons flaked coconut
½ teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons light margarine, melted
2 ¾ cups cold fat-free milk
½ teaspoon coconut extract (optional)
2 packages (4-serving size) vanilla flavor sugar-free, fat-free instant pudding & pie filling
1 large banana
1 ½ cups frozen fat-free non-dairy whipped topping, thawed

Directions:
Finely crush cookies. In small bowl combine cookies, coconut and cinnamon. Add margarine. Toss to coat. Press on bottom and sides of 9-inch pie plate lightly coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 350°F for 8 minutes. Cool completely. In large bowl combine milk and coconut extract, if desired. Add pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk about 2 minutes or until thickened. Pour half of pudding mixture into crust. Slice banana on top. Pour remaining pudding mixture over banana. Spread whipped topping over all. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes. Garnish as desired. Store in refrigerator.

Nutritional Facts:
Calories: 250
Total fat: 9g
Cholesterol: 0mg
Sodium: 430mg
Carbohydrates: 39
Dietary fiber: 1
Sugars: 10g
Protein: 5g

Peanut Butter Cookie Bites

2008-02-10T14:07:00.000-06:00

Peanut Butter Cookie Bites

(Cheryl & Phil)
http://splenda.allrecipes.com/Recipe/Recipe.aspx?nprid=76265

Ingredients:

1/4 cup margarine, softened

1 cup creamy style peanut butter

1/4 cup egg substitute

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Beat margarine and peanut butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until creamy, approximately 1 minute. Add egg substitute, honey and vanilla. Beat on high speed for approximately 1 1/2 minutes. Add SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener and beat on medium speed until well blended, approximately 30 seconds. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a small mixing bowl. Slowly add flour mixture to peanut butter mixture, beating on low speed until well-blended, about 1 1/2 minutes. Mixture may be crumbly. Roll level tablespoons of dough into balls and drop onto a lightly oiled or parchment lined sheet pan, two inches apart. Flatten each ball with a fork, pressing a crisscross pattern into each cookie. Bake 7-9 minutes or until light brown around the edges. Cool on wire rack.

Nutritional Facts:
Calories 120
Calories from Fat 70
Protein 4g
Fat 8g (sat 1g)
Carbohydrate 10g
Fiber 1g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 150mg
Sugar 2g

Easy Chicken Chili

2008-02-10T14:03:00.000-06:00

Easy Chicken Chili

(Cheryl & Phil)
http://www.perdue.com/recipes/recipe_detail.html?id=690

Ingredients:
2 cups cubed, cooked PERDUE® chicken meat

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/2 small onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

2 cans (15 1/2 ounces each) chili beans with sauce

1 can (14 1/2 ounces) Mexican-recipe stewed tomatoes

Salt and ground pepper to taste

Directions:

In large nonstick skillet over medium heat, heat oil.
Add chili powder and onion; cook 2 to 3 minutes until softened. Add 2 cups cubed and cooked chicken meat, beans and tomatoes; stir to blend and season with salt and pepper.
Reduce heat to low and simmer about 5 minutes or until heated through.

Nutrition Facts:
Servings Per Recipe 4
Amount Per Serving (* % of Daily Value)
Calories 379 (19%)
Total Fat 6.9g (11%)
Cholesterol 90mg (30%)
Sodium 976mg (41%)
Total Carbohydrate 29g (10%)
Fiber 7g
Sugars 0g
Protein 27g

Chili Relleno Puff

2008-02-10T13:58:00.000-06:00

Chili Relleno Puff

(Freddie S.)

http://www.bariatriceating.com/egchandsofo.html

Ingredients:

1 pound ground turkey, browned, crumbled and drained

1 small onion, diced (cook with ground turkey)

5 eggs, beaten until lemon-colored (about 3 minutes)

3 Tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 to 1/2 cup salsa (I saved this to put on top)

2 cups lowfat ricotta cheese

1 large can (7 oz.) diced, mild green chilis

1 cup shredded cheese (Jack, Colby, Mozzarella or a mixture)

1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar

Directions:

Brown meat and onions, drain and pat into a 9x9 baking dish. Beat remaining ingredients together (except for the last 1/4 cup cheddar--it is for the top.) Pour onto the ground meat and onion. Top with cheddar. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and puffy (a knife will come out clean.)

Makes 9 servings

Per serving:

320 calories

29 grams protein

Roasted Butternut Squash & Onions

2008-02-10T13:48:00.000-06:00

Roasted Butternut Squash & Onions

(Beth & Scott)

Ingredients:
1 whole butternut squash
1-2 onions
Olive oil
Salt –to taste
Pepper-to taste

Directions:
Peel squash and cut into ½ inch cubes. Peel and chop onions. Toss both items with a little olive oil then salt and pepper to taste. Spread items on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 25 minutes on 350 degrees.

Nutrition Facts:
Servings: 8
Calories: 69
Fat: 3.5g
Cholesterol: 0g
Sodium: 476g
Carbohydrates: 10g
Fiber: .4g

Quick Cordon Bleu

2008-02-10T13:44:00.000-06:00

Chicken Cordon Bleu

(Beth & Scott)
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Quick-Chicken-Cordon-Bleu

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
½ teaspoon paprika
4 thin slices fully cooked ham
1 cup soft bread crumbs
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
¼ teaspoon pepper
3 to 4 tablespoons fat free mayonnaise

Sauce:
1 tablespoon “I can’t believe it’s not butter”
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 cup skim milk
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup shredded Swiss cheese

Directions:
Flatten the chicken to 1/2-in. thickness. Spread mustard on one side; sprinkle with paprika. Top each with a ham slice. Roll up tightly; secure with toothpicks. In a bowl, combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese and pepper. Brush chicken with mayonnaise; roll in crumb mixture. Place in a shallow 2-qt. microwave-safe dish; cover loosely. Microwave on high for 7 minutes; turn chicken. Cook 5-1/2 minutes more or until juices run clear; keep warm. In a 1-qt. microwave-safe dish, heat butter on high for 20 seconds; stir in flour until smooth. Cook, uncovered, on high for 20 seconds. Add milk and salt. Cook 2-3 minutes longer or until thickened. Stir in cheese until smooth. Add wine. Discard toothpicks from chicken; top with sauce.

Yield: 8 servings. Beth and I split a chicken breast half. A ¼ of a whole chicken breast produces the following nutritional facts.

Nutrition Facts:
One serving
Calories: 235
Fat: 12g
Saturated fat: 4.5g
Cholesterol: 70mg
Sodium: 420mg
Carbohydrates: 6g
Fiber: 0g
Protein: 25g

Mexican Style Chicken Kiev

2008-02-10T13:36:00.000-06:00

Mexican Style Chicken Kiev

(Beth & Scott)
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Mexican-Style-Chicken-Kiev

Ingredients:

2 large boneless skinless chicken breast halves

1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies, drained

2 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, cut into 4 strips

1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs

2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

3-1/2 teaspoons chili powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon pepper
Taco sauce optional

Directions: Flatten chicken to 1/4-in. thickness. Place about 2 tablespoons chilies and one strip of Monterey Jack cheese on long end of each chicken breast. Fold in sides and ends; secure with a toothpick. In a shallow bowl, combine the crumbs, Parmesan cheese, chili powder, salt and cumin. Spray chicken with Pam, then roll in crumb mixture. Place chicken rolls seam side down in an ungreased 11-in. x 7-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Drizzle with remaining butter. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is tender.

Yield: 8 servings. Beth and I split a chicken breast half. A ¼ of a whole chicken breast produces the following nutritional facts

Nutrition Facts

One serving: 1/2 chicken breast

Calories: 123

Fat: 5 g

Saturated Fat: 3 g

Cholesterol: 44 mg

Sodium: 201 mg

Carbohydrate: 3 g

Fiber: 0 g

Protein: 14 g

Mexican Lasagna

2008-02-10T08:36:00.000-06:00

Shelly's Mexican Lasagna

(Beth & Scott)

http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2007/09/happy-fall.html

Filling: 2 whole chicken breasts, boiled and shredded

2 low-carb tortillas

1 tablespoon Southwest seasoning (cumin, oregano, cayenne)

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese + a little for top.

1 - 4 oz. can whole mild green chilies, seeded and chopped

Sour Cream Sauce:

1 small onion, diced

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 can chicken broth

1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter, sauté onion till golden, add flour, and stir well. Add broth, cook till thickened. Stir in sour cream. Set aside. Mix the shredded cooked chicken, mild green chilies, the seasoning and a cup (minus a couple tablespoons) of Mexican shredded cheese together. Layer 1 low carb tortillas in the bottom of a 8x6x2 dish. Spoon 1/2 the chicken mixture on top of the tortillas, spoon 1/2 of the sauce. Place another low carb on top. Then the rest of the chicken and sauce. I finished with a sprinkle of reserved cheese. Bake for 35-40 minutes till golden and bubbly.

Beth modified this recipe to use a low-carb tortillas instead of a corn tortilla.

Died And Gone To Heaven Chocolate Cake

2008-01-27T20:34:00.000-06:00

My FIL's birthday is tomorrow, and we got together to celebrate this evening. Since both my wife and I have had WLS, he suggested we did not need a cake. Excuse me! Birthday's demand that a cake be made available. If we did not have a cake, how could we sing Happy Birthday? so, a searching the world wide webz I went. This is the cake and frosting that I found. The frosting came from All-Recipes, while the cake came form Splenda. Was it a success? Yes, with a capital Y! FIL was happy, that's all I needed! So, if you are looking for a Sugar Free Cake and frosting, give this one a try! Hope you enjoy!

Died And Gone To Heaven Chocolate Cake
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

1/2 cup SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups low-fat buttermilk

1 small lunch size container sugar free applesauce

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup hot strong black coffee

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cake pan or bundt with non-stick cooking spray, set aside
2) Blend flour, SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, SPLENDA® Brown Sugar Blend, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt in large mixing bowl.
3) Combine buttermilk, oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and coffee in a small bowl.
4) Add flour to mixture, using an electric mixer on medium speed, mix until Smooth (about 2 minutes).
5) Pour batter into cake pan or bundt pan. If traveling, I recommend a 13 x 9 pan
6) Bake for 35 minutes, until an inserted toothpick in center of cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes.

Nutrition Info (per serving) 12 servings
Calories 220 Calories from Fat 70 Protein 6g Fat 8g (sat 2g) Carbohydrate 32g Fiber 3g Cholesterol 45mg Sodium 390mg Sugar 12g

Sugar Free Frosting
I (1.4 ounce) package sugar-free instant pudding mix
1 1/2 cups milk

1 shot instant espresso
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 (8 ounce) container lite frozen whipped topping, thawed

DIRECTIONS
1. In a medium bowl, combine pudding mix, milk and espresso. Mix well and let stand until thickened.
2. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pudding and mix well. Finally, fold in whipped topping.
3. I recommend you keep this cake refrigerated until serving. The frosting will sometimes puddle if it becomes to warm.

Presidential Cheese Ball/Ring

2008-01-24T06:57:00.000-06:00

Presidential Cheese Ball/Ring (Paula D.-pdsmile)
4 cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese
3 cups Real Mayo (I used Light)
1 block cream cheese
1 cup chopped pecans
1 bunch finely chopped green onions
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
4 stips chopped bacon

Mix it all up real good and then sprinkle with pecans. If you make it as a ring, place warmed sf strawberry preserves in center to serve. It is yummy.This will make 1 ring or 2 good sized cheese balls.

Southwest Lasagna

2008-01-21T05:17:00.000-06:00

My friend Eggface has done it again! She is phenomenal. If you have never visited her site, please do. You will walk away with a new understanding of WLS and still being able to eat successfully! This is her recipe, and of course my pics! Kudos to Eggface!

Shelly's Southwest Lasagna

1/2 lb. Ground Beef
1 yellow Onion, diced
2 green Onions, diced
1 (15 oz.) can Black Beans, drained
1 cup frozen Corn
1/4 cup Salsa
1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper
1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
Olive Oil

For the cheese sauce:
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Flour
1 1/2 cups Milk
1/2 cup Sour Cream
1 cup Shredded Cheese, Mexican blend
Salt & Pepper
1/2 cup Shredded Cheese, Mexican blend (divided use in layers)
4 Mission Whole Wheat Carb Balance Tortillas

Saute ground turkey. Drain and set aside. Saute onions till golden. Add black beans, corn, salsa, tomato paste, and seasonings. Add beef back to pan and stir to combine. Turn off heat. Set aside. Make cheese sauce: In a saute pan make a roux of butter and flour. Slowly add milk stirring constantly. When you see bubbles and sauce begins to thicken slightly add sour cream and cheese and season to taste. Remove from heat.

Assemble: Place two tortillas in a greased pyrex dish. Spoon 1/2 meat mixture on top. Spoon 1/2 cheese sauce on top. Sprinkle with 1/2 cheese. Place two more tortillas on top. Press down slightly. Repeat layers ending with a sprinkling of shredded cheese. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes until golden.

Mexican Style Chicken Kiev

2008-01-20T13:34:00.000-06:00

Mexican Style Chicken Kiev

(Beth & Scott)

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Mexican-Style-Chicken-Kiev

Ingredients:
2 large boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies, drained
2 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, cut into 4 strips
1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
3-1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Taco sauce optional

Directions: Flatten chicken to 1/4-in. thickness. Place about 2 tablespoons chilies and one strip of Monterey Jack cheese on long end of each chicken breast. Fold in sides and ends; secure with a toothpick. In a shallow bowl, combine the crumbs, Parmesan cheese, chili powder, salt and cumin. Spray chicken with Pam, then roll in crumb mixture. Place chicken rolls seam side down in an ungreased 11-in. x 7-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Drizzle with remaining butter. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is tender. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition Facts
One serving: 1/2 chicken breast
Calories: 123
Fat: 5 g
Saturated Fat: 3 g
Cholesterol: 44 mg
Sodium: 201 mg
Carbohydrate: 3 g
Fiber: 0 g
Protein: 14 g

Mini Cheesecake Tarts

2008-01-18T19:02:00.000-06:00

Cheesecake Tarts

12 - Murray's Sugar Free Vanilla Wafers

2 - 8 oz packages of reduced fat cream cheese, room temp

2 - eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup Splenda

Take the vanilla wafers and place 1 in each cupcake liner in a muffin pan. Set aside.Take the cream cheese and beat until whipped. Add each egg seperately, mix thouroughly before adding the second egg. Add vanilla, mix, add splenda and mix well.Fill muffin liner 2/3 full with the batter.Bake at 350 degree oven for approx 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.

This is a recipe that a good friend of mine posted over at Obesity Help Tennessee Board. April said her cheesecakes cracked, and cheesecake is a tempermental beast. So a suggesstion I have is to bake the mini cheesecake in a hot water bath.

Have fun!

Pepper Jack Stuffed Chicken Breast

2008-01-18T14:47:00.000-06:00

Ingredients:
2 ounces pepper Jack cheese

2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

1 teaspoon Mexican or taco seasoning

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions:

Cut cheese into two 2-1/4-n. x 1-in. x 3/4-in. strips. Flatten chicken to 1/4-in. thickness. Place a strip of cheese down the center of each chicken breast half; fold chicken over cheese and secure with toothpicks. Rub Mexican seasoning over chicken. In a large skillet, brown chicken in oil on all sides. Transfer to a greased 8-in. square baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until chicken juices run clear. Discard toothpicks.

Yield: 4 servings / split chicken breast in half. Beth and I split 1 chicken breast, while RJ ate a whole one. At least it was better than a corn dog!

Nutrition Facts

One serving:

Calories: 146

Fat: 9 g

Saturated Fat: 3.5 g

Cholesterol: 47 mg

Sodium: 163 mg

Carbohydrate: .5 g

Fiber: 0 g

Protein: 15 g

Recipe from: Taste Of Home

Santa Fe Soup

2008-01-09T17:40:00.000-06:00

2 lbs. lean ground beef

1 large yellow onion (diced)

1 1.25 oz packet Old El-Paso taco seasoning

2 1.0 oz packets ORIGINAL Ranch dressing mix (not the dips mix but the original dressing mix )

1 11 oz can Original Ro-Tel (tomatoes and green chilies, find near the canned tomatoes or the mexican foods)

1 to 2 16-oz can(s) or 1 28-oz can tomato wedges or whole tomatoes cut into wedges

1 14 oz can lima beans

1 14 oz can pinto beans

1 14 oz can red kidney beans

1 14 oz can black beans

2 14 oz cans whole kernel white corn (white shoepeg corn is perfect)

~~~~~~

Garnishes
shredded sharp cheddar cheese

sour cream

chopped green onions / scallions

chopped fresh cilantro

~~~~~~~~

Directions:
Brown ground beef with diced yellow onion
add dry ingredients (packets)
add all canned vegetables with all liquid from the cans except the corn, to preseve some "crunch" add the corn in the last 20 minutes
simmer 2 hours Garnish as desired.

Suggestion: In one bowl of soup place a single teaspoon of sour cream in the center, then sprinkle the bowl with scallions and cilantro, and top with a generous sprinkle of sharp cheddar cheese. This makes a nice presentation but you will want to stir just before eating.

~~~~~~~~~

Nutrition Facts
24 Servings

Amount Per Serving
Calories 201.6
Total Fat 4.6 g
Saturated Fat 1.1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.3 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.6 g

Cholesterol 28.1 mg
Sodium 272.0 mg
Potassium 439.4 mg

Total Carbohydrate27.0 g
Dietary Fiber 5.5 g
Sugars 0.4 g
Protein 13.5 g

SF Peanut Butter Cookies

2007-12-17T05:54:00.000-06:00

These turned out to be the best Peanut, Butter Cookies I have ever tasted. Now, that might be because I have been on a liquid diet for a week. My wife shared 1 with me while it was still hot! OMG!!!

SF Peanut Butter Cookies

1 Cup Natural Peanut Butter

1 Cup Splenda

1 Large Egg

1 Cap Vanilla Extract

Pinch Salt

DirectionsMix Everything together. Place in 1 tbsp. mounds on a cookie sheet. Bake until lightly brown around the edges.Makes 12 Peanut Butter Cookies

Number of Servings: 12Nutritional Info * Servings Per Recipe: 12 * Amount Per Serving * Calories: 146.7 * Total Fat: 11.1 g * Cholesterol: 17.7 mg * Sodium: 18.2 mg * Total Carbs: 6.1 g * Dietary Fiber: 1.3 g * Protein: 5.2 g

A Great Holiday Drink!

2007-12-15T18:17:00.000-06:00

SUGAR FREE EGGLESS EGGNOG

5 cups milk

1-2 cups ff half & half (depending on how thick you like it)

One 4-serving-size sf vanilla instant pudding powder

3 tablespoons Splenda granular

1 1/2 teaspoons nutmeg (fresh is BEST!)

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoons brandy or rum extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whisk all together and let chill for at least an hour. May need to add more milk if you like it thinner.

Scary Sweet Pumpkin Ceesecake

2007-11-25T16:37:00.001-06:00

Scary Sweet Sugar Free Pumpkin Cheesecake

Ingredients
Crust

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

1/3 cup light butter, melted

Filling

3 (8 ounce) packages fat free cream cheese

2 (8 ounce) packages reduced fat cream cheese

1 1/2 cups SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 pinch ground cloves

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree

1/4 cup fat free half-and-half

1/2 cup egg beaters®

1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with baking spray. Set aside.
Mix crust ingredients together and firmly press onto bottom of prepared springform pan. Bake 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned and firm. Cool.

Blend together cream cheese, SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, flour and spices on medium speed in an electric mixer until cream cheese is smooth and lump free. Scrape sides of bowl. Add pumpkin. Mix on medium speed until well blended. Scrape sides of bowl and mix until mixture is smooth and lump-free.

Turn mixer on low and slowly add half-and-half, Egg Beaters® and vanilla. Blend until well mixed.

Pour over prepared crust. Bake in preheated 350 degrees F oven 50-60 minutes or until center is slightly firm. Remove from oven and cool.

Prepare topping. Blend all ingredients together in a small bowl until well mixed. Pour on top of cheesecake and spread evenly. Return to oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 20-25 minutes on a wire rack. Chill 4- 6 hours or overnight in the refrigerator. This, like all cheesecakes, is best if prepared a day in advance.

Nutrition Info
Servings Per Recipe: 20
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 170

Calories from Fat: 90
Total Fat: 10g
Saturated Fat: 6g
Cholesterol: 30mg
Sodium: 370mg
Total Carbs: 11g
Dietary Fiber: 1g
Sugars: 3g
Protein: 10g

Sugar Free BBQ Sauce

2007-11-19T06:25:00.000-06:00

Sugar Free BBQ Sauce

INGREDIENTS:
2 strips of thick bacon, chopped fine (or see note)
1 small onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 small can (6 oz) tomato paste
1 can (12 oz) diet (sugar-free) cola - Splenda-sweetened preferred
1/4 cup low carb (sugar-free) catsup, (or see note)
3 T mustard
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 pinch ground cloves
Hot sauce to taste

PREPARATION:
Note 1: If you prefer to leave the bacon out, add 1-3 teaspoons of liquid smoke, to taste, near the end of the cooking. Alternatively, add some smoky flavor using 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika, or chipotle powder to taste.

Note 2: If you can't find low carb catsup, leave it out, but add about a tablespoon of vinegar and some sweetener, to taste.

1) Fry the bacon in a saucepan - a 2 qt pan works well.

2) Add the onion and cook over medium until soft - 3-5 minutes. Add garlic at this point if you're using fresh and stir it for half a minute or so.

3) Add the rest of the ingredients, plus about half a cup of water. Stir well. 4) Simmer for 20-30 minutes. It will cook down a bit and flavors will combine. 5) Adjust the seasonings so you have the balance you want - you can add vinegar, artificial sweetener (liquid preferred), or hot sauce. (If it's too hot, adding more sweetener will tone it down.)

The recipe makes approximately 10 servings of 1/4 cup each. Each serving has about 3.5 grams of carbohydrate plus 1 gram of fiber.

Pumpkin Bread (Sugar Free/Low fat Version)

2007-11-18T16:12:00.000-06:00

Pumpkin Bread (sugar free/lowfat)

2 cups splenda

2/3 cup applesauce

1/3 cup vegtable oil

4 lg eggs

2 cups pumpkin

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

2/3 cups water

1 cup finely chopped pecans

3 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Cream together oil, applesauce, and sugar. Add beaten eggs, pumpkin, and watyer. Mix well. Sift together flour and other dry ingredients. Add gradually to the pumpkin mixture, blending well after each addition. Stir in optional ingredients, such as, nuts, raisins, or dates. Pour into greased loaf pans and bake at 350 degrees for 60-75 minutes.

Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 24
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 96.4

Total Fat: 2.8 g
Cholesterol: 35.4 mg
Sodium: 137.5 mg
Total Carbs: 15.0 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.2 g
Protein: 2.9 g

White Bread Stuffing

2007-11-17T19:44:00.000-06:00

White Bread Stuffing

6 slices Wonder Light Bread, any variety (or another light bread)**
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped mushrooms
1 cup fat-free broth, chicken or vegetable; room temperature
1/4 cup Egg Beaters, Original
1 tbsp. LAND O LAKES Whipped Light Butter
2 cloves garlic; finely chopped
salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme

Directions:

For best results, leave bread uncovered for a night or two, until slightly stale. Otherwise, begin by lightly toasting bread. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut bread into 1/2-inch cubes. In a medium-sized pot, combine broth, celery and onion. Cook for 8 minutes at medium heat. Remove from heat and add mushrooms and garlic. Season mixture to taste with salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme. Spray a medium-sized baking dish with nonstick spray, and place bread cubes in it. Once veggie-broth mixture has cooled slightly, add Egg Beaters and butter. Pour mixture evenly on top of bread. Mix gently with a fork. Bread cubes should be moist, but not saturated. If necessary, add 1-2 tablespoons of water. Cover with foil and cook for 20 minutes. Remove foil and fluff/ rearrange stuffing. Return to oven (uncovered) for 10 - 15 minutes, or until top is golden brown. Serves 5.

Serving Size: 1 cup

Calories: 88 Fat: 1.5g Sodium: 305mg Carbs: 16g Fiber: 4g Sugars: 4g Protein: 7g
**Nutritionals may vary depending on the bread you use.

Sugar Free Pumpkin Pie

2007-11-17T19:14:00.000-06:00

Sugar Free Pumkin Pie

2 cups Murray Sugar Free Gingersnaps or Vanilla Wafers

2 tablespoons salted butter, melted

¾ cup Splenda granular

½ teaspoon table salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

3 large eggs

One 15 ounce can Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin (not pre mixed pumpkin pie filling)

One 12 ounce can low-fat evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed milk)

Preheat oven to 325°F. Place the cookies in a food processor and pulse with the butter until you have moist, fine crumbs. Divide the mixture and press evenly into two 8-inch pie plates. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until the crusts just start to color. Cool on a rack while preparing the filling.

Leave the oven on at 325°F. Mix the Splenda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves in a small bowl. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Blend in the pumpkin and the spice mixture. Gradually blend in the evaporated milk. Divide the filling between the two pie shells. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the filling is set around the edges and the center is still a bit soft. Transfer to a rack to cook, then chill, Serve with a dollop of sugar free Cool Whip.

Makes 2 pies, each serving 8 WLS portion, Calories 113, fat 5gr, carbs 12gr, protein 3.5gr

Cranberry Salad

2007-11-17T19:10:00.000-06:00

CRANBERRY SAUCE (BYPASS FRIENDLY)

1 12-ounce package of cranberries

1 large size raspberry jello (SF)

1-2 sleeves of Crystal Lite Morning Sunrise Orange

(depending on how much orange flavor you want)

1/2 Cup Splenda, or to taste

Clean the cranberries and dump them in a pan with 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Stir in the jello and the CL; taste and add Splenda if needed. Let the cranberries cook down for maybe 10 minutes - you might want to smush them up a little bit. That's it - chill until jelled. This is delicious and very low calorie.

Chili Relleno Puff

2007-11-17T19:02:00.000-06:00

Chili Relleno Puff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1 pound ground turkey, browned, crumbled and drained
1 small onion, diced (cook with ground turkey)
5 eggs, beaten until lemon-colored (about 3 minutes)
3 Tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 to 1/2 cup salsa (I saved this to put on top)
2 cups lowfat ricotta cheese
1 large can (7 oz.) diced, mild green chilis
1 cup shredded cheese (Jack, Colby, Mozzarella or a mixture)
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Brown meat and onions, drain and pat into a 9x9 baking dish. Beat remaining ingredients together (except for the last 1/4 cup cheddar--it is for the top.) Pour onto the ground meat and onion. Top with cheddar. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and puffy (a knife will come out clean.)Makes 9 servingsPer serving: 320 calories, 29 grams protein

Sugar Free Pumpkin Cheesecake

2007-11-17T18:54:00.001-06:00

Sugar Free Pumpkin Cheesecake
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crust

3/4 cup gingersnap cookie crumbs
3/4 cup crushed fat-free graham crackers
2 tablespoons SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cheesecake Filling
2 (8 ounce) containers block-style fat-free cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated
1 1/2 cups canned solid pack pumpkin

3 tablespoon Cinn-a-bliss
1/2 cup nonfat evaporated milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
4 eggs

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour an 8 inch springform pan.Using a fork, combine gingersnaps, graham crackers, 2 tablespoons SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, and melted butter. Press mixture onto the bottom and two inches up the sides of the pan to form the crust.With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and 1/2 cup SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener until light and fluffy. Stir in the pumpkin. Mix in the Cinn-a-bliss, evaporated milk, cinnamon, allspice and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing until smooth.Pour batter into prepared crust. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes, or until center of cheesecake is set. Allow to cool in pan for 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.

Previous Recipes

2007-11-10T11:55:00.001-06:00

I hope you enjoy the recipes I have posted here! Most are ones we have gotten from other people, and some are ones we created! Below you will find the links to recipes that were posted on "Bald Is Beautiful". From here on out, I will make it easier to find by placing them on "Food for thought and moderation". Have a great week!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Shepherds Pie (without potatoes)

Mexican Lasagna

Rasberry Parfait

Click here!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Grilled Sesame Seed Chicken

Try this one!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Banana Squash

Summer Squash Casserole

How about these!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chicken Cordon Blue Casserole

You'll enjoy this for sure!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yellow Squash & Zuchinini Casserole

Yummy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ham & Vegtable Torta

Oh Yeah!

Sugar Free Starwberry Dessert

2007-11-10T11:06:00.001-06:00

A friend of mine from Obesity Help posted this recipe, and I thought I would give it a try. The only concern stems from the sugar alcohols in the glaze. Here is the original post. Hope you enjoy!

Tonight, I took a few strawberries, cut them all up, added two spoons of sugar free strawberry glaze found at Kroger, then a few sugar free Murray shortbread cookies (which I found for 1.00 at Big Lots... they are normally 2.99 each) and then whipped cream. Yummy! It was soooo good. It is great portion control rather than making the pie. Then you are not tempted to eat more than just the small amount you fixed for a one time consumption.