Sunday, February 26, 2012

Week 7 & 8 Recipes - Banana Bread & PB Choc Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Yes, the last post I had was for week 6. Yes, this is technically week 9, but I am a bit behind due to travel for work & vacation. I will make two extra recipes this week and next week to make up for the missed weeks.

Banana Bread

Having just come off a vacation with very delicious (and very caloric) food, I wanted to make something on the lighter side. Pinterest to the rescue! A popular recipe being pinned by several friends is Banana Bread made with honey and applesauce instead of sugar. Sounds good to me!

Recipe adapted from http://www.8weekstoabetteryourecipes.blogspot.com/ for Banana Bread, 8 Weeks Friendly!

Ingredients
  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup applesauce (I used no sugar added)
  • 3/4 cup honey
  • 2 eggs, beaten (I used egg beaters)
  • 3 mashed overripe bananas
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Lightly grease a 9x5 loaf pan.
3. In a large bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
4. In a separate bowl mix together applesauce and honey.Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended.
5. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture. Stir just to moisten.
6. Pour mixture into greased 9x5 loaf pan.
7. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.
8. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Results
It's good! You can tell that it is not the full fat/sugar/etc. version, but it does taste good. I would definitely make this again!

Nutrition via My Fitness Pal recipe calculator
Per serving = 200 calories*48 carbs*1 g fat*5 g protein
Recipe makes about 10 servings

PB Choc Chip Oatmeal Cookies

This is one of those weeks where my hubby and I aren't going to see each other because on the day he flys home, I fly out before he lands and on the day I fly home, he flys out before I land. So, I have decided to leave PB Choc Chip Oatmeal Cookies (hubby's favorite) waiting for him. :)

Recipe from http://www.browneyedbaker.com/ for Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 egg (I used 1/4 cup egg beaters)
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
3. On medium speed, cream together butter, peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract. (About 3 minutes)
4. Add the egg and beat to combine.
5. On low speed, gradually add the flour until just combined.
6. Stir in the oats and the chocolate chips.
7. Drop dough onto cookie sheets about two inches apart.
8. Bake for 10 minutes or until cookies are lightly golden.
9. Cool completely on baking sheet and then store in airtight container.

Results
So, confession time, I only used half a stick of butter instead of the whole stick. Not sure where I got confused, but I just noticed my mistake while writing this entry. That explains why the mixture was a little bit dry. The good news is...they still taste good! Bonus=they are slightly healthier with less butter. haha :)

Enjoy!

Friday, February 10, 2012

Week 6 Recipe - ***Super Bowl Edition***

In the spirit of cooking more this year instead of ordering out, we are having a homemade Super Bowl spread! We are mixing a few old recipes with a few new or revamped ones.

The Spread
Jr. Pub Burgers
Healthier 7-Layer Dip with Baked Scoops
Pepperoni Pizza Roll-Ups New
Pita Chips/Pretzel Chips with Hummus Dip
Carrots, Celery & Cherry Tomatoes with Salad Dressing Dips
Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats
Yes, I know the Bears aren't in the Super Bowl this year, but I am still using my plates today!
Jr. Pub Burgers
A few months ago my husband and I found these great pre-cut pub burgers at our local Jewel. We season them with a little bit of Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning and Omaha Steaks Seasoning. I cook them in a pan until they reach the safe internal temperature of 160 degrees (as recommended by the USDA). If you are in the mood for a great hamburger, these are wonderful!
They were so good we ate them so fast I didn't even get a finished product picture!

Healthier 7-Layer Dip with Baked Scoops
I LOVE 7-layer dip. I made a few adjustments to my regular recipe to make it a little bit healthier and accomodate my husband's preferences.

I used an 8x8 glass pan for this recipe. You can use whatever container you would like and adjust the recipe to fit the container and accommodate your taste preferences. Personally, I am not a huge fan of beans, but I LOVE the sour cream portion and I would add guacamole between the bean and sour cream layer (but my husband hates guacamole, so it is left out this time).

Ingredients
3/4 can fat free refried beans
3/4 container of 8oz light sour cream
3/4 package 40% less sodium Old El Paso taco seasoning
2 cups salsa
2% sharp cheddar cheese
sliced black olives

Directions
Spread a thin layer of refried beans on the bottom of the pan. Next, combine the sour cream & the taco seasoning. Then spread the sour cream mixture over the refried bean mixture. I like to put this in the fridge a this point to let the bottom layers gel together. When I am ready to serve the dip, I spread the salsa on top, then the cheese and finally the olives. Serve with Baked Scoops or any other tortilla chip or cracker you prefer. Enjoy!

Pepperoni Pizza Roll-Ups
If you have read my blog at all, you can guess where I found this recipe...Pinterest! :)This recipe appears several times on the site but I tried the one on www.plainchicken.com.

Ingredients
1 can refrigerated crescent rolls (I use the reduced fat version)
40 slices of pepperoni (You can use the turkey pepperoni, but I don't like it)
4 pieces of mozzarella string cheese cut in half (Huge fan of 2% Sargento)
garlic powder
pizza sauce

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Unroll crescent rolls and separate into 8 triangles. Place 5 slices of turkey pepperoni on each crescent roll. Top pepperoni with string cheese half and roll up. Sprinkle crescent rolls with garlic powder. Place rolls on baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with a side of warm pizza sauce (or cool Ranch!).

Pita Chips/Pretzel Chips with Hummus Dip
Store bought hummus dip, pita chips (for the hubs) & pretzel chips (for me). Simple as that!

Carrots, Celery & Cherry Tomatoes with Salad Dressing Dips
I have spent all the $$$ in the past to buy the pre-made veggie trays from the grocery store. Typically, we only like 1-2 veggies in mix and the dip is high fat so I made my own this year! Carrots, celery & cherry tomatoes with fat free basalmic vinagrette or light ranch. Yum!!!

Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats
Leftover from my Week 5 Recipe - Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats. SOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOD!




Saturday, February 4, 2012

Week 5 Recipe - Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats

This week I have a sweet tooth. My husband and I are trying to eat a little bit healthier so I wanted something that wouldn't totally derail our good eating this week. Rice Krispie Treats are the perfect solution! Not just regular ones though....CAKE BATTER Rice Krispie Treats. :)

Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats from www.gimmesomeoven.com

Ingredients:
  • 3 Tbsp. butter
  • 1 (10 oz.) bag of mini-marshmallows
  • 1/4 cup yellow cake mix (the dry cake mix, not prepared into a batter!)
  • 6 cups crispy rice cereal
  • 1 (1.75 oz.) container of sprinkles
Method:
Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat and add marshmallows. Stir until they begin to melt, adding in (dry) cake mix one spoonful at a time so its combined. Stir in cereal so it is completely coated with marshmallow mixture. Sprinkle in half of the sprinkles and mix. Press into a baking dish (any size will do) and top with remaining sprinkles. Let sit for about 30 minutes before cutting. I find spraying a knife with nonstick spray helps to cut them.

Ali from www.gimmesomeoven.com Tips:
I actually increased the cake batter to 1/3 cup for my recipe to give it a little extra cake batter kick (the 1/4 cup seemed just a little too subtle to me), but add as much in as you like!

***Note: Many readers have asked what to do with the remaining cake mix. If you would like to use it to whip up a batch of cake mix cookies, just measure out 6 oz. of the remaining cake mix, and combine it with 1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil, and 1 egg. Stir until mixed. Then form into cookie dough balls, and bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes.***

THE RESULTS
These were absolutely AMAZING! I would make them again in a heartbeat. So delicious and about 140 calories a serving (if you cut them into 20 squares). Yummm!!!