Healthy Cinnamon Crisps

It's been a long time since I've been here.  It's been quite a roller-coaster for me, but I am trying to get back on track and I'm on my way to losing weight again.  yea me!

I found a new favorite product.  I can't get enough.  Have you heard about Hungry Girl Flatout Breads?  They are a-ma-zing!  Heartier than any diet bread on market, and healthier than any that I've found.  You've got to take a look at the product line and go to the store locator to find them near you at www.flatoutbread.com.  Please be aware that you will NOT find them in the bread section.  They are in the deli or bakery area.

I have tried the Rosemary and Olive Oil Foldit, the Spicy Italian Thin Crust Flatbread, the Flatout Healthy Grain Harvest Wheat, the Traditional White Foldit, and the 100% Whole Wheat with Flax Foldit Flatbread.  All of them are super delicious and so very healthy.  You'll have to look at their website to see the incredible nutrition stats.

The recipe I'm going to share today uses the 100% Whole Wheat with Flax Foldit Flatbread.  It has just 90 calories, 2.5g fat, 360mg sodium, 15g carbs, 7g fiber and 7g of protein.  Holy cow!  All that fiber and protein packed into a single serving.  Wow!

They are great straight out of the package and made into any type of sandwich.  My personal favorite way to eat them though is crispy.  I like to bake them in the oven at 350F for 10 minutes to get them crispy like a cracker and pile them with toppings.  I'll have to make more posts about some of those coming up.

Ok, so tonight I wanted a sweet treat.  I decided to make cinnamon crisps with my Whole Wheat with Flax Foldit Flatbread.  Here's what I did...

Preheated the oven to 350F.  Put the Fodit on a baking sheet and sprayed it with (generic) butter flavored Pam.  Then I sprinkled 1 teaspoon of cinnamon sugar onto each half.  I used a pizza cutter to cut it in half and then into strips (laying flat and being careful not to overlap them).  I put them in the oven for 10 minutes.  That's it!  They come out like a crispy warm cracker with a nicely sweet coating.

And wait until you hear the stats for this tasty little treat!  123 calories, 2.5g fat, 360mg sodium, 23.4g carbs, 7g fiber and 7g protein.  This has a low low low Weight Watchers Points Plus of 3!!!  I think anyone can fit this yumm-o snack into their healthy diet plan, don't you?

For those of you not sure on the ratio for cinnamon sugar, the best bet is 4:1.  Try 1/4 C sugar with 1 Tbsp cinnamon.  (And if you decide you don't like them as crispy as I do, try 7 or 8 minutes in the oven instead of 10.)

Happy snacking!

Tangy and Delicious Lemon Squares (Recipe, Pics)

Oh, how I love the taste of lemons.  So bright and refreshing, tangy, tart and sweet with a little sugar.  Here's a recipe for a little lemon dessert, made a little healthier by using I Can't Believe It's Not Butter and Stevia to replace half the sugar (but you still need to limit yourself to just one).

Here's what you need:

3/4 C white all purpose flour
4 Tbsp I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light
2 Tbsp reduced fat sour cream
2 Tbsp Stevia
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C Stevia
1 whole egg
2 egg whites
1 Tbsp grated lemon rind
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
  (I used 2 medium lemons to get enough rind and juice)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
pinch of powdered sugar for garnish

btw, in case you don't know this (and I didn't until recently), when you measure flour you are supposed to spoon it into the measuring cup and then level it off with a knife (don't tap it on the counter to level it out) rather than just scoop the flour out with the measuring cup.  when you use the measuring cup to scoop it, it gets really packed in there and you are using more flour than you need, and also adding calories and carbs to your recipe.

Here's how to make them:

1.  Preheat oven to 350F
2.  Combine flour, ICBINB, sour cream, and 2 Tbsp Stevia in a bowl to make a soft dough.  I used a fork to mash it all together, and then Sara used her fingers to combine it into a dough.

3.  Spray an 8x8 inch pan with canola spray.  Press dough down into bottom of the pan all the way to edges.

4.  Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool. (My dough came away from the edges a little.)
5.  Combine sugar, 1/2 C Stevia, egg, egg whites, lemon rind and juice, baking powder and salt.  Whisk together so it is mixed well.

6.  Pour over cooled dough.
7.  Bake 25 minutes or until there is not indentation when touched.  Let cool.  Dust with powdered sugar.  Serves 12.

How delicious does that look?  It not only looks delicious, it IS delicious!  They came out very thin, but don't be deceived.  There is a ton of flavor packed into that little square.  What a nice ending to a great meal with family and friends this would be.

There are 96 calories per serving (serves 12), 2.7g fat, 1g saturated fat, 17.9mg cholesterol, 50mg sodium, 8.75mg potassium, 16.1g carb, 2.1g protein.(3 Points Plus)

I realize that I am trying to give you all healthy recipes, and I also realize that I make a lot of treats.  First of all, I believe that are things are allowed with moderation...have just one, not the whole pan.  Second of all, if you need help keeping to just one, use these dessert recipes to serve when you have guests so they can help you eat it.  They will love them just as much as you do, and they don't have to know how effortless most of what I post here is to make.  Don't tell and they'll think you're a wizard in the kitchen!  I also try to make desserts and treats with less calories and carbs by using lower fat, lower sugar substitutions.  But that doesn't mean you can mindlessly eat them while watching TV or reading Facebook.

If you find that you cannot stop with one, then it would probably be best for you, your waistline and your glucose levels to skip the treats and stick to the proteins, fiber, etc.

Want to try something a little different?  It would probably taste really good, too, with lime instead of lemon.  Orange maybe?  hmmm...if you try something different, let me know how it turns out.

Best wishes and tasty dishes,
Lisa
PS  Hover over the black bar on the right side of the screen to pull out more menu options for my blog.
happyfairylove@live.com

A Savory Side (Recipe Pics & Review)

I've been giving you recipes for main dishes, like the Honey Pecan Chicken, Tilapia, and Chicken Eggplant Casserole.  I've given you some good recipes for sweet treats like Strawberry Dream Mousse and Diet Soda Cake.  Now I thought I should give you a recipe for a side dish.  One of my family's favorite vegetables is broccoli.  We have it a lot, just steamed, no butter or salt or anything.  I got them used to eating it plain and they like it that way.  Sometimes, though, a little cheese and seasoning is a nice switch.

I got this recipe from one that I pinned on Pinterest.  I am not real good with Pinterest yet, and I don't know who the original recipe was from.  But the pin is on my Healthy Cooking board if you want to figure it out.  (To find me on Pinterest, hover over the black bar on the right and look for the Where to Find Me tab.  My links are on there.)

The ingredients are:

16 oz fresh or frozen broccoli, steamed and chopped
1 C Italian seasoned bread crumbs
3 Eggs
1 C shredded colby/jack or cheddar cheese (the original recipe calls for 1/2 C, but I don't think that's enough cheese for that much broccoli)

Preheat oven to 375F

Put everything into a bowl and mix it up.  I tried mixing it with a whisk (definitely didn't work) and a spatula (not good either), and it came down to just getting my hands dirty and mixing it up the best I could.

Then the original recipe says to line a pan with parchment, but I didn't have any of that.  I used aluminum foil with pan spray on it.  Now, mine did stick to the foil a bit, so if you have it try the parchment, or maybe even waxed paper.

Anyhoo, make some patties...it was a little difficult because the mixture kept sticking to my hands when I tried to "pat the patty" (hehe)  So I ended up just putting a small mound on the pan and then shaping it from there.  There will be enough mixture to make 8 patties of a fair size...a little bigger than a golf ball maybe.

Bake for 15 minutes, turn patties over and then continue to bake for another 10 minutes.  I served 2 patties per person.

I made a pork chop dinner tonight.  Whenever I have pork chops it seems that all my target numbers for calories, saturated fats, proteins, etc. all fall in line.  I don't know what it is about pork.  I think maybe because it fills me up well enough that I don't feel like snacking at all.  I also made mashed potatoes and gravy.  One serving of pork chops is about 4 oz, mashed potatoes are 1/3 C and gravy is 1/4 C.  I used Walmart brand instant potatoes and Walmart brand Mushroom Gravy packet.

For just the broccoli patties, the nutritional information for 2 patties (of 8 total) is:  118 calories, 3.8g fat, .9g saturated fat, 73mg cholesterol, 248.8mg sodium, 228mg potassium, 2.48g fiber and 6.6g protein. (3 Points Plus)

If you'd like to have this entire dinner, the nutritional info (including pork flavored shake & bake) with the serving sizes I mentioned is:  577 calories, 8.6g fat, 4.9g saturated fat, 157mg cholesterol, 754mg sodium, 1005mg potassium, 42g carb, 4.5g fiber and 41.6g protein. (10 Points Plus for whole dinner)

Now, what did my family of taste testers think of the broccoli patties?  They were a success!  Everyone liked them and ate them up just fine.  To me, they seemed a little dry, but that could be from a couple different things.  1) I was in a super hurry and didn't have time to really mix the ingredients well, so the eggs and cheese weren't evenly spread throughout the broccoli.  and 2) the directions say to cook at 375F.  I cooked mine at 400F because that's what my pork chops were cooking at.  I could have turned down the heat on the chops and cooked those 5 minutes longer, but the way I did it the broccoli patties somehow got a little dry.  But that didn't take away from the flavor.  And, I don't know about you, but when I've got a plate of potatoes, meat, gravy and vegetables, everything goes in on a bite, so the gravy moistened up the broccoli perfectly.

My family and I do recommend trying this recipe.  It was a nice switch up from the plain steamed broccoli we normally have.  I hope you enjoy it!  Leave a comment here or drop me a line at happyfairylove@live.com.

Merry Meals,
Lisa
P.S. To see more about me, this blog, search words, archives, etc. hover over the black bar on the right to access additional menu options.