Low-fat Melted Snowman Cookies

11.30.12
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Sometimes, things just work in the kitchen. The dough rises, the cookies bake perfectly, the frosting turns out just sweet enough. Where every stir, stroke, brush and knead works in unison to create a perfect end result. That happened to me last Friday when I created these low-fat melted snowmen cookies for work. Now, calling them perfect would be in extremely poor taste, and it would be wrong, they aren’t. But they are the cutest things I’ve ever made and I am SO THRILLED with how they came out.

I mean, don’t you want to just hug him? Give his adorable little marshmallow cheek a kiss? Don’t you  just want to DIE looking at his adorable little button mouth? Now, as Gretchen pointed out, he seems really happy to be melting. But the frowing face just wasn’t as cute. So, I made a terrified face on one of them instead.

Poor little nuggle! Still, so cute I just can’t stand it. I wish I could say this was my idea entirely but sadly, I found these snowmen on Pinterest and just KNEW I had to make them. To make them lower in fat, I used my go-to low-fat sugar cookie recipe. Don’t be offended, though, when no one eats these. I brought them with me to the winery and no one touched them. I was a little said until I heard them say “those are just way too cute to eat!”

I’ll take that 🙂

CLICK HERE FOR THE DELICIOUS AND ADORABLE RECIPE ON CHEF MOM! 

Nutritional information per cookie:

Calories: 130
Fat: 4.5 grams
Carbohydrates: 16 grams
Fiber: >1 gram
Protein: 1.4 grams
Weight Watchers Points:  3

Light Nutella Eggnog

11.29.12
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Yes, it’s real. Eggnog and Nutella. Together. Intimately. Sharing the same bed. Kissing all the time. Yep. These two saucy little lovers are together at last. And you know what? After how damn delicious a glass of this tastes, I’m going to say they are going to be lovahs for a LONG, LONG time.

See, I love eggnog.

Anyone else know what this is from? FAIRLY ODD PARENTS! Okay, moving on. I love nog, probably more than normal people should, but to me, it represents my childhood. Every year, we’d decorate the tree around my birthday and my dad would serve us all a big glass of eggnog. When I got older, I’d try to sneak some rum into my nog (sometimes successfully, other times without much avail) because the addition of rum takes eggnog to a whole new level. Even without liquor, every sip warms up my soul a little and reminds me of being a kid on Christmas.

Now, this here nog is not kid-friendly. It has a heaping jigger (or pour) of Captain Morgan spiced rum in it! This little creation is one of the recipes I made for the #CaptainHolidays competition  Our challenge was to create three unique recipes using the rum and then host a party featuring our recipes! I wanted to do something with eggnog since it has so many holiday memories for me, but also something different. I mean, we have to impress Top Chef contestant Spike Mendelsohn, so it has to be awesome.

He’s actually the nicest man, we got to chat on the phone the other day and even with me blubbering like a moron, he was super sweet, charming and funny.

Not to toot my own horn or anything, but this stuff is legit. Each sip is creamy, thick and full of hazelnut and vanilla flavor. Plus, the addition of the rum gives each sip an amazing kick of spice. It’s like christmas in a mug, except better since it has less than 10 grams of fat and less than 150 calories than the regular kind. EVEN WITH Nutella! In all seriousness, I’ll probably never buy eggnog from the store again.

I’m going to serve this in a big bowl at our ugly Christmas sweater party on Saturday! And yes, I already have my sweater picked out, don’t you think it’s super stylish?

I’ll also be serving up my rummy appetizers and dessert there too. But don’t worry, I’ll share those next week. And Spike, I’ll say this again, if you’re around, you are more than welcome to come kick it at the party. I won’t tell the others.

Light Nutella Eggnog

CLICK HERE FOR THE PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS RECIPE!

Serves about 6. Recipe inspired by Food Network.
Prep time: >5 minutes
Cook time: About 15 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups 1% milk
  • 1/4 cup light cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch or flour
  • 1 vanilla bean
  • 2 tablespoons of Nutella
  • 1/4 cup Captain Morgan spiced rum

Directions:

  1. Heat 1 1/2 cups milk in a medium size saucepan. Cut vanilla bean in half lengthwise and remove seeds. Add the pods and seeds to the milk. Bring to a simmer and let thicken, about 6 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, whisk eggs, egg yolk, sugar and flour/cornstarch together until fully mixed. Once milk mixture has thickened, add it to the bowl of egg mixture. Carefully whisk them together. Immediately pour the egg/milk mixture back into the saucepan. Let simmer again until thick, stirring constantly) until mixture thicks to the back of a spoon), or about 6 – 8 minutes. *Do not skip the stirring part, otherwise the mixture will congele.
  3. Once thickened, remove from the heat and stir in the cream to stop the cooking. Whisk in the Nutella until fully mixed. Place eggnog on an ice bath, whisking constantly, until cooled. *Do not skip this part either, or else the mixture will thicken too quick into a pudding like substance. Once chilled, whisk in rum and serve!

Nutritional information per serving (about 1/2 cup):

Calories: 164.5
Fat: 7 grams
Carbohydrates: 10.3 grams
Fiber: 2 grams
Protein: 5 grams
Weight Watchers Points:  3

Greek Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Goat Cheese

11.28.12
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I have created a little ode to brussel sprouts today for y’all, in the spirit of the season and my love for these little cabbages. I completely understand if you never come back and burn me from your reader. Before you do that, just look at how delicious these Greek roasted brussel sprouts with goat cheese look. You may hate poems, but how can you hate a side dish with this much flavor?

Oh darling little sprouts, filled with fiber and Vitamin C,
How anyone could not love you, is completely beyond me

You look like little cabbages, and kind of taste them too
If I had my way everyday, every meal would contain you

Sadly though, to my dismay
My husband hates you, in every single way

He claims you smell like socks, you give him bad gas
You haunt and scare him, and you look and taste like grass

I’ve tried to convert him, gussied you up with cheese and spice
Even with all these add on’s, he’d rater eat mice

Normally this would be upsetting, since I don’t agree
But it only means one delicious thing, more brussel sprouts for me!

No need for applause yet, I’m here till Friday 🙂

Greek Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Goat Cheese

CLICK HERE FOR THE PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS RECIPE!

Serves about 6.
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients: 

  • 24 ounces brussel sprouts
  • 6 ounces soft goat cheese
  • About 3 tablespoons Greek seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions: 

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. Place brussel sprouts into a baking dish. Drizzle the sprouts with olive oil and about 2 tablespoons Greek seasoning. Toss the sprouts so they are evenly covered in seasoning.
  3. Roast brussel sprouts for about 20 minutes, or until starting to brown. Do a quick taste test and add additional Greek seasoning to taste. Crumble goat cheese over the sprouts and roast another 10 minutes, or until sprouts are golden brown and cheese is bubbly.

Nutritional information per serving:

Calories: 172
Fat: 10 grams
Carbohydrates: 5.3 grams 
Fiber: 4 grams
Protein: 8.1 grams
Weight Watchers Points: 4

Warm Mushroom Salad with Creamy Pumpkin Dressing

11.27.12
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Hi friends! Happy Tuesday! To brighten up your dreary morning, I’ve decided share a recipe from the gorgeous Mai-Lis of A Sunshiny Day! First of all, cutest blog name ever. Second of all, how absolutely amazing does her warm mushroom salad with creamy pumpkin dressing sound? I mean, pumpkin dressing? Where do I sign up? Not only is she an amazing cook and photographer, she’s always a sponsor this month. So be sure to say hi to her on Twitter and on Pinterest! With that, take it away Mai-Lis!

Hey guys, Mai-Lis of A Sunshiny Day here! I’m happy to be here sharing one of my new favorite recipes with you! This warm salad, sauté, veggie grain mixture or WHATEVER you want to call it is seriously delicious.

I’ve made tons of vegetable quinoa mixtures in the past but this is the first time I thought to put dressing on it.  It added such great seasonal flavor and new complexity that transformed it from a simple meal into something that was, dare I say it? Company worthy?  We enjoyed it as our main dish but it would be a great side to serve at a dinner party.


I used mushrooms and spinach but you could totally customize it to whatever you have in the house or use up some of those leftovers from Thanksgiving.  Just mix them up with some quinoa and top with the pumpkin dressing!

Warm Mushroom Salad with Creamy Pumpkin Dressing

CLICK HERE FOR THE PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS RECIPE!

Serves: 2-3 as main dish, 4-6 as a side.

Ingredients:

For the salad: 

  • olive oil
  • 10 oz Portobello Mushrooms (sliced)
  • 1 small onion (sliced thin)
  • 2 cup cooked quinoa
  • Few handfuls fresh spinach
  • 1/2 t garlic powder
  • 1/4 t smoked paprika
  • Salt & pepper to taste
For the dressing: 
  • 3 Tablespoons Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt
  • 3 Tablespoons Pumpkin Purée
  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 2 Tablespoons White Balsamic (or Apple Cider) Vinegar
  • Season with: Salt, pepper, dried sage & cinnamon

Directions: 

  1. Preheat oven or toaster oven to 400 F.  Toss mushrooms in olive oil and season well with salt & pepper.  Arrange mushrooms in an even layer in a oven safe baking dish.  Roast for 20 minutes.
  2. Heat olive oil over medium high heat.  Add onion and cook for 5-10 minutes until lightly browned.  Reduce heat to low and continue cooking until mushrooms are done.  When mushrooms are nicely roasted, add to the onion mixture and stir in a few handfuls of spinach until lightly wilted.  Add quinoa and seasonings and stir well to combine.
  3. To prepare the dressing, combine all of the ingredients well using a whisk or a blender. Drizzle on the warm mushroom salad.

Mini Dark Chocolate Cakes with Mint Chocolate Chip Icing for #SundaySuppers

11.25.12
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Happy Sunday friends! First of all, can you believe it’s already Sunday? I’m still in shock Thanksgiving weekend flew by so fast. But, when you work two jobs and all day on the holiday, time seems to fly by a little quicker. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday, ate tons of food and are now ready to tackle Christmas! I may not have time to decorate, but I’m in a seriously festive mood already. To keep with that, I wanted today’s #SundaySupper’s dish to reflect my happy holiday heart. So I whipped up mini dark chocolate cakes with mint chocolate chip icing for two!

Isn’t that just the cutest little thing? Perfectly portioned for one, you can finally enjoy a dessert you don’t have to share. The dark chocolate cake is absolutely incredible and is made with 50% less fat than regular cakes (thanks to some applesauce!) Paired with my favorite low-fat cream cheese icing, this dessert is completely guilt-free.

This week’s theme was to create something from the heart for the victims of Hurricane Sandy. To me, you can’t bake without putting a little piece of you into what you make. Plus, there’s something so comforting and nostalgic about it, at least for me. My mom spends the entire holiday season making thousands of cookies for our family, to make them happy. When someone bakes something for me, I can’t help but smile and feel all warm and cozy inside.

Couldn’t you just see yourself sitting next to a roaring fire in cozy pjs eating one of these next to the one you love?

Mini Dark Chocolate Cakes with Mint Chocolate Chip Icing

CLICK HERE FOR THE PRINTABLE VERSION OF THIS RECIPE!

Serves 2.
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

For the cake: 

  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons white sugar
  • 3 tablespoons melted dark chocolate
  • 3 tablespoons unsweetened dark cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • Dash of salt
  • 2 tablespoons egg beaters (or about 1/2 egg)
  • 1/4 cup brewed coffee (I used Green Mountain’s Dark Magic)
  • 1/4 cup 1% milk
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
For the frosting: 
  • Low-fat cream cheese icing (minus the vanilla)
  • Green food coloring
  • 1/3 teaspoon peppermint extract
  • 2 tablespoons chopped chocolate chips

Directions: 

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two ramekins with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt together until combined. Add in the egg beaters, applesauce, milk, melted chocolate and coffee and mix until smooth. The batter should be thin, so don’t worry!
  3. Pour the mixture evenly into the two ramekins. Bake for about 25 – 30 minutes,  or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.
  4. Meanwhile, mix the icing, peppermint extract and green food coloring together. Frost each cake with icing and then sprinkle with chopped chocolate chips.

Nutritional information per ramekin:

Calories: 300
Fat: 8 grams
Carbohydrates: 45 grams
Fiber: 3 grams
Protein: 8.5 grams
Weight Watchers Points:  7

Check out all the favorite meals by our Sunday Supper Contributors to bring to friends in need:

Breakfast and Brunch:
Comforting Casseroles and Entrées:
Warming Soups and Sides:
Sweet Endings:
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