7 Sweets for Santa: Mixed Berry Cream Cheese Muffins
PIN IT!Many people don’t realize, by the time Santa is nearly done with his route, it’s the morning of December 25th! With a long night of work under his belt and about 5 million cookies, Santa is in dire need of a healthy breakfast! Now, since one can’t travel in a sleigh across the globe with scrambled eggs, how about make him a tasty, yet healthy, muffin? Mixed berries, cream cheese and pecans give these muffins a sweet flavor with plenty of protein! Santa will be thanking you with when he gets that extra jolt to get home! Original recipe is from Cooking Light, however, I made some changes!
Mixed Berry Cream Cheese Muffins
What You’ll Need:
- 2/3 cup of fat free cream cheese
- 1/3 cup butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
- 2 cups frozen mixed berries
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
How To Make Them:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix butter and cream cheese together in a medium bowl until creamed. Add sugar and mix until creamy.
- Mix egg, egg whites and vanilla into butter mixture.
- Fold flour, salt, buttermilk, baking powder and baking soda into mixture. After mixed, fold berries and pecans until mixture is fully blended.
- Pour batter into a greased muffin/cupcake pan. Bake for 25 minutes.
Nutritional Information per muffin: 160 calories, 8 grams of fat, 5 grams of protein and 2.6 grams of fiber.
8 Sweets for Santa: Almond Pound Cake
As delicious as cookies are, one needs some variety in their dessert diet this time of year. Now, I can’t speak for the big guy, but if I were Santa Claus, by about the hundredth house, I’d be in dire need of something OTHER than a cookie. So Santa, no need to fret. I’ve got you covered this year. When you come shuffling down my chimney, you’ll be happy to find this decadent almond pound cake beside a glass of nog. Don’t worry, I’ll throw in a few cookies for the road, of course! I had originally thought of frosting this cake, but after I took my first taste, I realized all it needed was a dollop of whipped cream. Don’t you love cakes like that? Easy, low maintenance and still amazingly delicious! [Ps. I’m not sure what happened with my camera, so I apologize for the quality!]
Almond Buttermilk Pound Cake
What You’ll Need:
- 3 cups of all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup soft butter
- 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/3 cups low-fat buttermilk
How To Make It:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder.
- Place sugar, butter, and vanilla in a large bowl; beat with a spoon or mixer until fluffy.
- Add eggs first, mixing well. Then add almond extract.
- Mix flour and buttermilk into the butter mixture. Stir well.
- Pour batter into a loaf dish, 8 by 14. However, if you have mini loaf pans [5 3/4 x 3 3/4–inch] you can make about 5 with this batter. However, with an 8 by 14, you can make two loaves or a loaf and pound cupcakes.
- Bake loaf for 60 minutes [if you only made one]. Bake cupcakes for 1 hour.
Nutritional Information per slice: 220 calories, 10 grams of fat, 1 gram of fiber and 5 grams of protein.
9 Sweets for Santa: Peppermint Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting
9 days until Christmas!! Wahoo! Although, I should probably stop “woahooing” and start shopping since I only have one gift purchased. I do this to myself every year though. Wait until 3 days before Christmas, brave the insanity that is any shopping mall, get run over by carts and strollers and fight with crazed soccer moms over the scarf/mitten sale basket at Macy’s. After a day of that, the first thing I want is a nice glass of spiced eggnog. After that has been daintly sipped [aka chugged], I reach for a decadent piece of chocolate _____. Fill in the blank with your go-to dessert item. Like I mentioned yesterday, chocolate is my stress reducer. Well, to further celebrate the coming of Christmas, I wanted to mix the dynamic duo of chocolate and peppermint again, just in a different way. These peppermint brownies are rich and full of festive flavor. I decided to whip up a cream cheese frosting to coat them and sprinkle crushed candy canes for appearance. If you want more texture or chocolate to your brownie, add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips!
Peppermint Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting
What You’ll Need:
- 1 cup of flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 1/4 cup buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 large egg
- Cooking spray
How To Make Them:
- Preheat oven for 350 degrees.
- Combine flour, cocoa, and salt in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk.
- Combine brown sugar, oil, buttermilk, vanilla, 2 egg whites, and 1 egg in a large bowl; beat with a mixer or wooden spoon until well blended.
- Add flour mixture to brown sugar mixture; beat until blended.
- Pour batter into an 8 by 13 inch pan.
- Bake for 20 minutes. Prick batter with a knife and if it comes out clean, it’s done. Let completely cool.
What You’ll Need for the Frosting:
- 1 (8-ounce) package fat free cream cheese, soft
- 3 tablespoons of butter, soft
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
How to Make It:
- Mix butter, sugar and cream cheese together with an electric mixer or wooden spoon. Mix until creamy.
- Add vanilla to mixture. Mix until smooth.
- Once brownies are completely cool, frost. Sprinkle with crushed candy canes and enjoy!
Nutritional Information per brownie: 220 calories, 8.5 grams of fat, 3 grams of protein and 2 grams of fiber.
10 Sweets for Santa: Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Peppermint and chocolate are proven stress reducers, so eat up!
I don’t have a clever or cute poem for today’s post, I’m sorry! Time has gotten away from me, once again! With 10 days left until Christmas, the holiday stress has caught up! Mix that with my normal work/wedding/personal stress, and I’m 3 steps away from a total meltdown. So obviously, the way to combat stress is to eat copious amounts of chocolate! I tend to stress eat when I’m overwhelmed and chocolate is always my go-to. The antioxidants that are found in chocolate [esp. dark] have been shown to reduce stress, after all 🙂 Another stress reducer, headache reliever and indigestion/IBS fighter is peppermint. Peppermint oil has been proven to reduce tension and stress headaches as well as block the calcium channels that can cause upset stomach. Mix these two health powers together [with some flour, butter and vanilla] and you have yourself some healthy [and festive] cookies! This recipe makes 35-38 cookies.
Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
What You’ll Need:
- 1 stick of butter, softened
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 2/3 cup finely crushed candy canes
- Cooking spray
How to Make Them:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix butter until creamy. Add sugars; beating well.
- Add egg and vanilla. Stir well.
- Combine flour, baking soda and powder and salt. Stir well. Once stirred, add in cocoa.
- Add in crushed candy canes. Stir well.
- Roll dough into small balls. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!
Nutritional information per cookie: 95 calories, 6 grams of fat, 2 grams of protein and 1 gram of fiber.
11 Sweets for Santa: Roasted Banana Bars
On the 11th day of Christmas, I baked Santa something sweet, something flavorful and healthy, a perfect pre-sleigh ride treat; I used some freshly riped bananas, a little dash of butter cream, topped them off with brown butter frosting, creating a dessert fit for a dream; I don’t know about Santa, but I’ve surely enjoyed my share, but it’s the holiday season after all, hoarding them to myself wouldn’t be fair; So enjoy this amazing recipe, courtesy of Cooking Light, trust me you will love them, down to the very last bite! [Don’t you just love my poetry?]
This recipe is as good as gold and didn’t require any “Claire” touches. Sure they aren’t the most healthy things out there, but one won’t set you back! I’m going to use this frosting on everything now. Cakes, cupcakes, cookies, cereal, salad. You name it and I’ll top it. It’s just that good.
Roasted Banana Bars with Brown Butter Frosting
These bars are perfect with a few princess tea cookies!
What You’ll Need:
Bars:
- 3 medium, ripe bananas
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup corn starch
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 cup nonfat buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- Baking spray
Frosting:
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup reduced fat cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
How To Make Them:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- To prepare bars, combine banana, brown sugar, and 1 tablespoon butter in a bowl. Once mixed, transfer to a baking dish. Bake at 400° for 35 minutes, stirring after 17 minutes. Cool and set aside.
- Combine flour, corn starch, soda, and baking powder in a medium bowl.
- Combine sugar and butter into another bowl. Add eggs and stir until creamy.
- Combine banana mixture, buttermilk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla in another medium bowl. Add the banana mixture and sugar mixture into the flour mix. Stir well.
- Pour batter into a 9 by 13 pan and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool.
How To Make the Frosting:
- Melt 1/4 cup butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; cook 4 minutes or until lightly browned.
- In a medium bowl, stir sugar, cream cheese, vanilla and cooled browned butter. Stir until smooth.
- Once cake is completely cooled, frost and sprinkle with pecans.
Nutritional Information per bar: 221 calories, 8 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of protein and 1 gram of fiber.
