Say Cheeeeeeesecake! (healthier and portion controlled Recipe, Pics, Review)

omg, do you just love cheesecake???  I thought I'd never be able to have it again without gaining some pounds.  But, lucky for me, I found a "healthified" version that I made today.  How about cheesecake with only 10g carb?!?!  I am so excited to share this with you, in fact, that they are still in the refrigerator cooling.  My son, Matthew, and I shared one while it was still warm and then put the rest back in to chill.

I found this recipe, like so many of my others, on dLife.  I altered it a bit, and I think my version is very good.  Here's what you will need to make 18 mini cheesecakes:

Cupcake liners or cooking spray
18 Nilla Wafers (I did not use Fat Free...they were out.  But if you wanted to save a calorie or two that would be an option for you.)
16 oz Fat Free Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 C Sugar
1/2 C Granulated Stevia
1 1/2 Tbsp White Flour
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 Whole Egg
1 Egg White
2 C Mixed Berry Frozen Fruit, thawed, chopped up

Unlike "real" cheesecake, these are so simple to make!  You will be amazed at how fast you can whip these up.

Preheat oven to 325F

1.  Either line muffin tins with cupcake papers or spray with cooking spray.
2.  Place 1 Nilla wafer in the bottom of each cup.
3.  Beat the cream cheese in a medium mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth.
4.  Add in sugar, Stevia, flour and vanilla.  Beat on medium speed until well combined and smooth.
5.  Add in egg and egg white.  Beat on low just until combined well.
6.  Add 1 dollop of mixture (I measured a "dollop" to be about 1/8 C...it's a well-rounded larger spoonful...the tablespoon, but not the measuring kind of tablespoon.  Just a regular tablespoon.)
7.  Bake in oven for 20 minutes until set.
8.  Chop up fruit after it has thawed to make it easier to spoon out just 1 tsp.

9.  Cool in pan for about 5 minutes.  Cover.  Place in refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours, up to 24 hours.

10.  When ready to serve, remove from pan and add 1 tsp (the actual measuring kind of teaspoon this time) of chopped up fruit onto the top of each cheesecake.  Serve and enjoy!

Matthew and I couldn't resist taking a taste before they were chilled because the kitchen smelled so good after they baked for 20 minutes.  I let them cool only about 10 minutes and got one ready.  I took a taste first.  Heaven!!!  It might not be as totally sweet as cheesecake, but it is sweet enough, especially with the fruit on top, to satisfy any craving.  Rich and delicious.  These would be so awesome to serve as dessert for dinner guests.  And so perfect, too, because they are very simple and quick to make.  Matthew loved it.  A few minutes later he asked me again, "How much longer until they're ready?"  After two bites he is totally ready for more!  I have to admit, I am too!

Here are the stats on 1 mini cheesecake:

71.4 calories, .9g fat, .25g saturated fat, 15.3mg cholesterol, 200mg sodium (blame the cream cheese for all the sodium in this one), 20mg potassium, just 10g carb!!!, and 4.4g protein.  (2 Points Plus) How about that?  And the really beautiful thing is that these cheesecakes are portion controlled, so try to just have one.  Take small bites and savor them slowly.

I highly recommend trying these delicious and easy to make mini cheesecakes.  I think you will love them.  Feel free to leave a comment here or you can always drop me a line at happyfairylove@live.com.

Sweet Treats!
Lisa
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Strawberries N Cream Bars (Recipe, Pics)

Sheer decadence.  That's all I can say.  I saw this recipe on Pinterest and changed it up to make it a little healthier.  I substituted Egg Beaters for real eggs, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter for real margarine, substituted some of the sugar with Stevia and used reduced fat cream cheese.  You still need to limit yourself to one, but if you are having a special get-together, potluck or something else where you want to serve something special (and that's soooo easy but no one has to know!), then this is a great treat for you to make.  It's an incredible, tasty little morsel for the end of a delicious dinner.

Here's what you need:

1 regular sized box vanilla or yellow cake mix
1/3 C I Can't Believe It's Not Butter
1/2 C plain Egg Beaters or other egg substitute, divided (1/4C in the dough and 1/4C in the cream cheese mixture) or 2 eggs
1 lb sliced strawberries
8 oz reduced fat cream cheese
2 Tbsp sugar
3 1/2 Tbsp Stevia
1 tsp vanilla

Here's how to make it:

1.  Preheat oven to 350F
2.  Spray 9x13 pan with cooking spray (I used a 10x10 pan)
3.  In a medium bowl combine ICBINB, 1/4C egg substitute, and cake mix.  Mash with a fork until partially combined.  It's very sticky, so we sprayed our hands with cooking spray and then used our fingers to combine it completely into a dough.

4.  Reserve 3/4C of the dough for the topping and set aside.
5.  Press the dough into the bottom of the pan, all the way to the edges.

6.  Bake for 10 minutes.
7.  While the crust is baking, slice the strawberries in approximately 1/4" slices.
8.  In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, stevia, vanilla and 1/4C egg substitute until creamy and well combined.
9.  Spread cream cheese mixture on top of the partially baked crust.
10.  Evenly arrange the sliced strawberries over the cream cheese mixture and then crumble the reserved dough on top of the strawberries.

11.  Bake for 25 minutes, or until crumbs on top turn golden brown.  The original directions said the center should be set, but mine wasn't really completely set; however, once it chilled it was fine to all of us.

12.  Cool completely and then chill for at least 30 minutes before servings.
13.  Cut into 20 pieces.  Store leftovers in an airtight container.

Heaven on a plate.  This is simply divine.  You need to be careful not to over-indulge here.  The calories and carbs could get away from you very quickly.  I can't imagine what the stats on this dessert would have been had I not made the substitutions I did.  They have 136.4 calories, 5.8g fat, 3g saturated fat, .7g polyunsaturated fat, .3g monounsaturated fat, 8mg cholesterol, 264mg sodium, 44.7mg potassium, 20.6g carbs, .5g fiber, 2g protein. (4 Points Plus)

UPDATE:  It's the next day after making this dessert, and I had put the leftovers in an airtight container like the directions said.  I don't recommend making this a day ahead of an event because even though it still tastes amazing the next day, it doesn't look as pretty.  The strawberries get a little bit of a dull color and they get a little soggy.  Taste-wise, still awesome, but to impress with presentation I recommend making it the same day. Texturally it's a little softer, too.  But believe me, there was no problem with making the leftovers disappear when the kids got home from school today!

Blissful Tasting!
Lisa
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happyfairylove@live.com

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
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happyfairylove@live.com

Mock Baklava (Recipe, Pics)

A couple years ago my husband and I ate a few times at a little hole in the wall Greek restaurant.  One night we got Baklava for dessert.  I thought it was absolutely scrumptious.  Several times I thought about that sweet, delectable treat and that I should try making it, but all the recipes I found for it seemed very involved.  If you haven't noticed by now, I like EASY cooking.

One day I was on one of my favorite sites, dLife, and came across this recipe for Mock Baklava.  It looked tasty AND simple, so I decided to try it.  Here's what you need:

1 cup seedless raisins (I couldn't find anything labeled "seedless", so I just got generic ole raisins)
2 oz dry-roasted walnuts
8 sheets phyllo dough, thawed
Butter flavored cooking spray...I just used my canola oil spray
1/2 C honey
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp melted I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, or something similar

Here are a few preliminary instructions:

I couldn't find anything called "dry roasted" walnuts.  I got a small 2 oz package of walnut pieces in the baking aisle and toasted my own.  I chopped them up into smaller pieces, spread them out on a baking sheet, heated the oven to 375F and toasted for about 10 minutes...be careful not to let them burn.  Just get toast them until they have a nice golden color and you can start to smell them.

Second, put your phyllo dough out to thaw, but DO NOT open the package!  It will dry out VERY quickly and will be ruined.

Here's what you do to make Mock Baklava:

1.  Preheat oven to 350F
2.  Combine raisins and nuts in a bowl.

3.  I covered my baking sheet with aluminum foil, and I've VERY glad I did.  The honey seeps out during baking and will make a horrible sticky mess on your pan.  I sprayed it lightly with canola oil spray.
4.  Lay down a sheet of thawed phyllo dough.  Spray it lightly with pan spray.  Lay down a total of 8 phyllo sheets, spraying lightly every other sheet.

5.  Spread the raisin and nuts on the top of the phyllo sheets, leaving a 1 inch border on all the sides.
6.  Sprinkle with the cinnamon and drizzle on the honey evenly.

7.  Starting with the long side, roll lengthwise, jelly-roll style.  Place roll with the seam side down, and tuck the ends under.
8.  Melt the butter in a dish and brush the top lightly with it.  I don't have a kitchen brush, so I just drizzled it across.
9.  Cut shallow slashes through the pastry to the raisin-nut mixture at 1 1/2" intervals so the steam can escape.

10.  Bake for 25 minutes, or until light golden brown.  Slice the pastry, using the vent lines as guides.

This was an amazing morsel of sweet, crunchy, chewy goodness!  When I put the cinnamon on I thought it looked like an awful lot, but the cinnamon flavor comes through absolutely perfectly.  The phyllo on the outside is crisp and flaky, and the inside is a little chewy and sticky from the honey and raisins.  One thing made me very unhappy, though.  It was gone too quickly. :(  lol  But it is so sweet that even one slice of it will surely cure your craving.  Needless to say, my husband and kids loved it.  Except Sami is sick and didn't try it, but she doesn't like raisins, so I don't know that she would like it.  But Matthew and Sara did.  I definitely did!

I don't know what it is with dLife and the ingredients they use.  I never come up with the same nutritional counts as they do.  Sure, I may have used a few more walnuts than they did, but their calories and carbs weren't even close to my calculations.  Are they trying to be deceptive?  Do they use secret low calorie raisins and honey?  I have no idea.  But here's what I came up with, and I am confident my numbers are accurate for the ingredients I used.  The way I do it is I have a little chart that I made.  I list every ingredient's nutritional values for the entire recipe, then I add up the totals and then divide by the number of servings.  Pretty straight forward.  Anyways, here's what I came up with per slice:  137 calories, 3.6g fat, 31mg sodium, 96mg potassium, 26g carb, .9g fiber, 1.9g protein. (4 Points Plus)

You really must try this recipe!  It is so far beyond the typical cake or cookie.  And it was EASY!  I am making this again very soon.

Treat Yourself,

Lisa
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happyfairylove@live.com

Strawberry Dream Mousse (Recipe and Review)

Wow, what a sweet treat this was!  I found a recipe on dLife called "Raspberry Dream Mousse", and I changed it just a little.  Primarily, I substituted strawberries for the raspberries.  Also, it called for the use of fresh fruit and ice cubes.  I saved a step and used frozen fruit.  Here are the ingredients I used (I doubled the recipe listed on dLife):

1 - .6 oz sugar free strawberry gelatin (dry mix, large box)
1 C cold water
1 - 1 lb package frozen strawberries
1 - 3.2 oz package powdered milk

It is super easy to make!

1.  In a sauce pan combine gelatin and water.  Stir well.  Let stand for 1 minute.
2.  Place pan over low heat.  Cook for just 1 minute or until gelatin is dissolved, stirring constantly.
3.  In a blender combine gelatin mixture, frozen fruit and powdered milk. (I added the strawberries maybe 3 or 4 at a time.) Cover and blend until smooth.
4.  Spoon mousse into parfait glasses and serve.

Easy!  I don't have parfait glasses, so all I had to use was little coffee cups.  lol.  I'm so unfancy at my house.

I used a 1/2 C measuring cup and put one 1/2 C scoop in each glass.  I got 6 servings with just a smidge to spare.  Perfect for your "little taste" before the company comes. ;) It would look really wonderful scooped out nicely into martini glasses (or something similar) with a few slices of fresh strawberries on top for garnish.  But, like I said, I'm not fancy and don't have such things, and this was just for my kids...they don't need fancy. lol

The texture is very thick, smooth and creamy.  It is fantastically sweet, and a little will go a long way.  My kids ate half and put the rest in the fridge for later.  I, on the other hand, ate it all.  :)  But that's ok, because the nutritional values are exceptional.  Here's the info (for the amounts and brands shown divided into 6 servings):

91.7 calories, 156.7mg sodium, 260mg potassium, 14.5g carbs, 1g fiber, 7.2g protein.  (2 Points Plus.)  This is a perfect fruit-i-liciously refreshing treat.  I highly recommend trying it.  Sooo easy to make, and simply scrumptious to eat.  My kids definitely want this again, and, if I'm ever social enough to have dinner guests, I think I might make this for dessert.  (Maybe I'll get some nicer glasses.)  I'm not sure how well it keeps in the fridge.  Since the kids put theirs in there I'll check on it every so often to see how it's holding up. (Update:  It's now the next morning, and I checked again on the cups the kids left in the fridge.  The mousse is still holding up just fine.  And if they don't wake up and eat it soon, it just may accidentally disappear! :)

Let me know if you try it.  Going to substitute different fruits?  Let me know here what you use and how it turns out.  As always, you can drop me a line at happyfairylove@live.com.

Merry Desserts!
Lisa
P.S.  I don't know how to get others to see my new blog except to ask you lovely few people who do read it to share it, either on Facebook, Twitter or your own blog.  Do you know anyone who may be interested in a healthier eating plan?  Please let them know about Losing Weight Along the Way.  Thanks so much!