amyella

Looking For Me?

2009-01-05T13:05:00.000-05:00

You can find me here: http://amyella.wordpress.com

Goodbye

2008-05-08T19:28:00.010-04:00

I don't want to be all melodramatic with a long goodbye, but I didn't want to just disappear without saying anything either.

After six years, I'm done blogging. I started to write a long post about why I'm leaving and the truth is that there are lots of reasons but, meh, it doesn't really matter.

I will miss it, because I really enjoyed it. It's been a long time, though, since I could write anything meaningful, funny, entertaining, or creative and I hate coming here and reading my own awful drivel.

Thanks to everyone who's been here consistently. I really appreciate you guys.

Love,
Amyella

EDITED TO ADD: I'm puttin' the recipes back up. Cuz, you know, everyone loves recipes! And, also, the link to the doggies is here because their cuteness, let me show u it.

I Love Fajitas

2008-04-29T11:43:00.006-04:00

All last week I was craving fajitas. I miss my weekend post-workout fajita meal. This weekend I put together some homemade fajitas marinade and pico de gallo. I marinaded both steak and chicken, cooked up some red, green, yellow bell pepper and onion strips and used a dollop of non-fat greek yogurt in lieu of sour cream (Fage really does taste more like sour cream than plain yogurt.) I also ate mine in a bowl with no tortilla, but you could wrap these in a nice regular flour tortilla or get one of the low carb varieties.

Fajita Marinade

juice of 1 lime
2 tsp olive oil
4 cloves minced or crushed garlic
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cumin
1/3 cup chopped cilantro

In a large ziploc bag mix all ingredients. Add strips of sirloin, chicken or shrimp. Marinate in the fridge at least 2 hours or overnight.

Pico de Gallo

2 tomatoes, diced
1 small red onion, finely chopped
juice of 2 limes
2 Tbs chopped cilantro
1 jalepeno pepper minced
salt and pepper to taste

Enjoy!

Oat Pancakes

2008-04-13T09:38:00.007-04:00

Probably anyone reading this blog has made the standard "fitness" oat and eggbeaters pancake. Mostly, it's equal parts oats and eggbeaters with a little cinnamon and Splenda. From there you can doctor it up with all kinds of add-ins, but that's the basic. I started making those in 2001 and let me tell you, I thought I was an innovator!

This morning Bobby Flay was making pancakes and as I was watching I thought - huh. I can make pancakes. Real pancakes. Fluffy, light, golden pancakes. With ingredients I already have on hand all the time. And I did. And now I share them with you:

Amy's Oat Pancakes

1/2 cup oat flour (put oats in a food processor and blend until fine)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 packet Splenda
1/4 cup baby food prunes (prune puree, no sugar)
1/4 cup eggbeaters
1/4 cup non-fat Fage
2 Tbs Hood Carb Countdown fat free milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup Sugar Free maple syrup

Mix all ingredients except maple syrup in a bowl. The batter will be darker than real pancake batter because of the oats and the prunes, but the consistency should be very similar. If it's too thick, add a little more milk.

Make sure your griddle is liberally sprayed with Pam and over med-high heat. I got 4 good size pancakes out of the batter. Cook the first side until the edges get tiny bubbles and a matte finish, then flip and cook the other side. Should get a nice golden color.

Put on a plate and drizzle with sugar free maple syrup. I would say this is two servings, despite the fact that I ate all four pancakes in one sitting. :)

Makes 2 servings. Each serving:
150 calories
1 g fat
25 g carb
3 g fiber
10 g protein

Maggie's Granola Chocolate Chip Protein Cookies

2008-03-25T19:36:00.006-04:00

So last weekend I made Maggie's Granola Chocolate Chip Protein Cookies and they are the most delicious little treats ever! I love this recipe. I'm posting here because I use my own blog as a recipe resource (using the handy "Recipe" link in that top nav). I made very teensy, tiny modifications so the macros below reflect my small substitutions and also my brands of trail mix and protein powder. You can find Maggie's original recipe here.

If you didn't try these when you saw them posted on Maggie's blog, take my word for it: make them. YUM! Thanks, Miss Maggie!!

Maggie's Granola Chocolate Chip Protein Cookies

Ingredients:
1.5 cups rolled oats, dry, uncooked (Old fashioned, not quick oats)
.5 cup Fiber One
3/4 cup Harris Teeter Trail Mix*
1/4 cup Chips, chocolate, semisweet, large
4 scoops Cytosport Cookie's N' Cream protein powder
1/2 tsp Salt, table, 1/5 oz per teaspoon
1/4 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar free Maple Syrup

Directions:
In a large bowl combine the oats, trail mix, chocolate chips, and whey. Add the syrup, vanilla, and salt. Stir until everything is thoroughly mixed. At first, it will seem too dry, but continue stirring and it will eventually blend.

Spray two non-stick 12-compartment muffin tins with cooking spray, then press the mixture into the bottom of each cup firmly. Alternately, spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray, then drop 24 equal blobs of the mixture onto the sheet, squashing each down slightly into a cookie-like thickness.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 6 minutes.

Nutrition (per 2 cookies):
140 Calories
5 g. fat
15.5g carb
3.2 g fiber
11g protein

*Harris Teeter brand trail mix, "Diet Delight." Sunflower seeds, raisins, cashews, almonds, pumpkin seeds, peanut oil.
serving size .25 cup
150 calories
9 g fat
12 g carb
3 g fiber
5 g protein

The Veggie Soup With The Little Meatballs

2008-03-11T21:49:00.004-04:00

This is a recipe I put together after taking elements from a bunch of different recipes. It has a really nice, light and bright flavor. It's not overly salty but it's definitely not bland. Also, it's a relatively inexpensive meal since part of the protein source is canned beans.

The Veggie Soup With The Little Meatballs

1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium zucchini, chopped
Salt and pepper
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
1 (15-ounce) can white beans, drained
6 cups low sodium, fat free chicken broth
1 bag frozen chopped green beans

1 pounds 99% lean ground turkey
1 cup grated fat free Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

In a large bowl, combine 1 cup cheese, Italian seasoning, and ground turkey. Mix together well and form into small meatballs, no larger than 1 inch in diameter; set aside.

Heat a medium soup pot over medium high heat. Spray bottom of pot with non stick spray and add onion and zucchini and season with salt and pepper. Cook 5 or 6 minutes alone, stirring frequently, then add the canned beans and the chicken broth. Cover the pot and bring the soup up to a boil. Add the frozen green beans. Reduce heat to medium. Slowly add the meatballs, stirring gently so that they do not clump together into one uber-meatball. Cook for about 30 minutes, until turkey is no longer pink.

Makes 8 servings. Each serving:
218 calories
1.75 g fat
28.5 g carb
6.6 g fiber
23 g protein

Greek Gyro Meatloaf

2008-03-11T18:15:00.006-04:00

I adapted this recipe from one of Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals. I made it this weekend and it is yummy! Would be delicious with some grilled zucchini and squash on the side.

Greek Gyro Meatloaf

2 pounds ground 96% lean beef
1 (10-ounce) package frozen spinach
2 tablespoons grill seasoning
2 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin, divided
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon coriander
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 to 3 pinches ground cinnamon
1 cup non-fat feta crumbles

1 cup non-fat Greek yogurt (I use Fage)
1 small clove garlic, grated
1/4 cucumber, peeled and grated
1 lemon, juiced

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place beef in a bowl. Add grill seasoning, 2 teaspoons cumin, chili powder, coriander, oregano, cinnamon and feta crumbles. Wring the spinach dry in a kitchen towel and add to beef. Mix the beef and form a long 3-inch roll on a baking sheet and bake 20 minutes.

Mix yogurt, a grated clove of garlic, cucumber, the juice of 1 lemon and 1/2 teaspoon cumin.

Serve beef with yogurt dipping sauce.

Makes 10 servings. Each serving:
188 calories
5.8 g fat
4 g carb
31 g protein

Amy's Broccoli Salad

2008-03-02T12:39:00.008-05:00

I love broccoli salad. It's a mayo based salad, almost like a slaw, that usually has sunflower seeds, raisins and bits of bacon strewn throughout.

Mmm, bacon.

Not so good for the waistline, however. I wanted to use it as part of a complete meal so instead of bacon I used my beloved Starkist Hickory Smoked tuna, which also serves as the protein and makes this a damn fine lunch.

Make this a day or two ahead of time so the vinegar has time to break down the raw broccoli a bit and the flavors meld nicely. The recipe below is for one serving, so you can multiply as necessary.

Amy's Broccoli Salad

1 cup raw chopped broccoli
2 Tbls dried cranberries (like Ocean Spray craisins)
2 Tbls diced red onion
1 packet Hickory Smoked tuna
2 Tbls white wine vinegar
1 packet Splenda
3 Tbls fat free mayonnaise

In a medium bowl combine the broccoli, tuna, onion, and craisins. In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, Splenda, and mayonnaise. Pour over broccoli mixture and toss until well mixed. Refrigerate for at least two hours, but a whole day is better.

Makes 1 serving:
268 calories
3 g fat
26 g carbs
6 g fiber
35 g protein

Amy's Cherry Almond Oat Crunch "Muffin"

2008-03-02T12:26:00.005-05:00

Nothing really innovative here, just me modifying one of my own recipes again, but this is a really yummy combination I wanted to share. I'm really loving all the different textures of having the Fiber One and nuts in my oat bars. I reduced the amount of nuts by a quarter of a cup to take the calories and fat down just a hair because that's what fits my meal plan this week. You can tweak to your needs / tastes.

Amy's Cherry Almond Oat Crunch "Muffin"

1 16 oz bag frozen cherries
3 cups oats
2 cups Fiber One cereal
3/4 cup slivered almonds
5 cups eggbeaters
splenda and cinnamon to taste.

Mix all. Spray 12 jumbo muffin tins with cooking spray and distribute evenly. Bake at 425 for 35-40 minutes. Let cool, store in fridge.

Makes 12 servings. Each serving:
208 calories
6 g fat
26.6 g carb
8.25 g fiber
16.75 g protein

Boneless Buffalo Chicken "Wings"

2008-01-28T21:05:00.002-05:00

I've been craving buffalo chicken wings. Last night on the Food Network there was a whole show about buffalo chicken wings (Bobby Flay did a "Buffalo Wing Throwdown") and it was literally making my mouth water.

But chicken wings? I mean, it's mostly skin and bones. Tasty...but nasty, if you think about it. It's the texture and sauce that really make a buffalo wing anyway and hell! I can do that Amyella style! Now, normally I don't cook with regular flour, but you really need it to make these as good and a half cup is spread across 12 servings, so it's not too big a deal.

Boneless Buffalo Chicken "Wings"

2 lb boneless, skinless chicken tenders (or breast cut into strips)
3 Tbs I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light
1/4 cup Franks' hot sauce
1 dash ground black pepper
1 dash garlic powder
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt

Combine the ICBINBL, hot sauce, pepper and garlic powder in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir together and heat until ICBINBL is melted and mixture is well blended. Remove from heat and reserve for serving.

In a large glass bowl mix together the flour, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt. Place chicken tenders in the bowl and toss until they are evenly coated in the flour mixture. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 60 to 90 minutes (don't skip this step!).

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray and place chicken on sheet. Place sheet on top oven rack and cook about 10 minutes - until chicken is just cooked through, golden on top but still juicy.

Serve with hot sauce.

You're welcome. :)

Makes 8-12 servings. (who are we kidding? It's 8 servings.) Anyway, at 12 servings:
111 calories
3 g fat
4.25 g carb
15.3 g protein

At 8 servings:
166.5 calories
4.5 g fat
6 g carb
23 g protein

Walnut Blueberry Oat Crunch "Muffin"

2008-01-25T17:44:00.005-05:00

Tell me this doesn't look divine. Tell me!! You can't, can you? Because it DOES look divine, doesn't it? Like the yummiest little breakfast concoction imaginable.

And a picture of Maggie's variation, below, using 1/2 blueberries and 1/2 cranberries. See comments for her full note. Yes, I know hers do look prettier than mine. ;)

Amy's Walnut Blueberry Oat Crunch "Muffin"

1 bag frozen blueberries (about 2.25 cups)
3 cups oats
2 cups Fiber One cereal
1 cup walnuts
5 cups eggbeaters
splenda and cinnamon to taste.

Mix all. Spray 12 jumbo muffin tins with cooking spray and distribute evenly. Bake at 425 for 35-40 minutes. Let cool, store in fridge.

Dance and sing with joy at its yumminess.

Makes 12 servings. Each serving:
224 calories
8.2 g fat
26.6 g carb
8.25 g fiber
16.25 g protein

Snickerdoodles

2007-12-10T13:52:00.002-05:00

I didn't create this recipe, I got it from allrecipes.com here, but it's Christine's favorite cookie and after I made them for her the other night she asked me to post the recipe that I use, so here it is.

Snickerdoodles

1 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.

In a medium bowl, cream together the shortening and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until well blended.

In a small shallow bowl, stir together the 2 tablespoons of sugar with the cinnamon. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls and roll the balls in the sugar mixture. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Cookies should be slightly golden at the edges. Remove to cool on wire racks.

Give away to prevent devouring entire batch yourself. (I added this part of the recipe! :) )

Sugar to Splenda Conversion Table

2007-12-04T16:34:00.003-05:00

Useful recipe resource.

1 C = 16 T = 48 tsp = 24 packets
3/4 C = 12 T = 36 tsp = 18 packets
1/2 C = 8 T = 24 tsp = 12 packets
1/3 C = 5.3T = 16 tsp = 8 packets
1/4 C = 4T = 12 tsp = 6 packets
1/8 C = 2T = 6 tsp = 3 packets
1T = 3 tsp = 1.5 packet

Low Cal Pumpkin Oatmeal Muffins

2007-12-04T16:24:00.002-05:00

I'm sure you've all seen this on Maggie's blog already (and yeah, I just copied and pasted it here), but I wanted to put it up here as well to add to my collection of recipes (a lot of times I'll come to my own blog and use the recipe label to sort through and figure out what I want to eat for the week!) The original started out as a muffin recipe that Maggie posted on the Pink Dumbbells site and then I went in and modified it a bit to make it more low-cal so I could greedily eat two muffins as one serving :)

Low-Cal Pumpkin Oatmeal Muffins

1 1/2 cups rolled oats, ground in food processor
1/2 cup of Fiber One cereal
1/4 cup oatmeal, dry
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
5 oz of baby food prunes
6 egg whites
13 packets of Splenda (about a half cup of Splenda Granular or Sugar)
1 1/4 cup canned pumpkin

Macros for one muffin:
59 calories, 13 g carb, 3 g protein, .4 g fat, 1 g fiber

Yield: 12 muffins (6 servings)

Yay for 2 muffins = one serving

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray two loaf pans, muffin tins, or 9×13 cake pan with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Combine flour, cereal/bran, baking soda, salt, oats, and spices in bowl and set aside.
4. In large bowl, combine sweetener, applesauce/prunes and egg whites and whisk or mix with an electric mixer until well blended.
5. Combine in dry ingredients until blended.
6. Pour into pans or muffin tins.
7. Bake approximately 25 - 30 minutes (20-25 minutes for cake pan) or until fork inserted in center comes out clean.
8. Allow to cool completely and store in airtight container or cut into pieces to be individually frozen.

Lean Beef Chili

2007-12-01T15:37:00.002-05:00

Super tasty beef and bean chili. I like a lot of heat, so I use a full tablespoon of the cayenne pepper, black pepper and chili powder, but if you like a milder heat follow measurements below or adjust to your taste.

Lean Beef Chili

2 lbs 95% lean ground beef
1 bag frozen pepper and onion mix
2 Tbs minced garlic
3 cans no salt added kidney beans
4 cans diced tomatoes
1/2 Tbs cayenne pepper
1/2 Tbs black pepper
1/2 Tbs chili powder
1 Tbs cumin
1 Tbs oregano
1 Tbs marjoram
1 Tbs cocoa powder
1 tsp salt

Spray a crock pot with non-stick spray and turn on high. In pan, cook meat until no longer pink. Drain fat and add meat to crock pot. Cook onion, peppers and garlic until water is cooked off. Add to crock pot. Add drained beans, chopped tomato and spices to crock pot. Stir well and cover.
Cook 3 hours on high.

Makes 12 servings. Each:
223 calories
3 g fat
25 g carb
8 g fiber
23 g protein

Blueberry Oat Bars

2007-11-26T09:24:00.002-05:00

I've just been adding blueberries to my basic oat bar recipe - the same base from which all the variations (pumpkin oat bars, zucchini oat bars, morning glories) were created.

Blueberry Oat Bars

4 cups of oats
5 cups of eggbeaters
2 cups (1 whole bag) frozen blueberries
1/4 cup Splenda
1 tsp - 1 Tbs cinnamon, to taste (I like a lot)

Preheat oven to 425. Mix all. Pour into a 9 x 13 baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Cook for 30-35 minutes. Cool, cut into 12 squares. Refrigerate overnight before eating. Store in fridge.

Makes 12. For each:
163 cals
1.75 g fat
22 g carb
3 g fiber
15 g protein

Thanksgiving Recipes

2007-11-19T11:30:00.003-05:00

Unfortunately I won't be participating in any Thanksgiving festivities this year, but for those of you who won't be curled up at home alone with your dog, a blanket and chinese take out and crying until you have dehydrated yourself into a migraine, here are some lighter versions of Thanksgiving classics.

Herb-Roasted Turkey Breast

12 thyme sprigs
1 rosemary sprig
1 sage sprig
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (12-pound) fresh or frozen turkey breast, thawed
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 lemons, each cut in half
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°.
Remove leaves from thyme sprigs to measure 2 tablespoons chopped; reserve stems. Remove leaves from rosemary sprig to measure 2 tablespoons chopped; reserve stem. Remove the leaves from sage sprig to measure 2 tablespoons chopped; reserve stem. Combine the chopped thyme, chopped rosemary, chopped sage, garlic, shallots, and pepper in a small bowl.
Rinse turkey with cold water, and pat dry. Trim excess fat. Starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from breast by inserting fingers, gently pushing between skin and meat. Rub herb mixture under loosened skin and sprinkle in body cavity. Drizzle lemon juice over skin. Place reserved stems and lemon halves in body cavity. Lift wing tips up and over back; tuck under turkey.
Place turkey on a rack set in a shallow roasting pan. Bake according to times on package. (Cover turkey loosely with foil if it gets too brown.) Remove turkey from oven. Cover loosely with foil; let stand 10 minutes before carving. Discard skin.

Bread Stuffing

1 loaf bread, cut into 1-inch cubes and slightly stale
3 tablespoons I Can't Believe It's Not Butter
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1 (10 1/2-ounce) can low-salt chicken broth
Cooking spray

Place bread cubes in a layer on cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 12 minutes or until toasted; place in a bowl. Melt ICBINB in a saucepan over medium heat. Add celery and onion; saute 10 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in water, salt, poultry seasoning and broth. Add bread cubes, tossing to coat; spoon into a 2-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Cover and bake at 375° for 30 minutes.

Makes 10 servings (serving size: 1/2 cup)

162 Calories
3g Fat
5g protein
27g carbs

Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Pecan Butter

2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound)
3 tablespoons 1% low-fat milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar, divided
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 tablespoon chopped pecans, toasted
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pierce potatoes with a fork; arrange on paper towels in microwave oven. Microwave potatoes at HIGH for 10 minutes, rearranging the potatoes after 5 minutes. Wrap potatoes in a towel; let stand for 5 minutes. Scoop out pulp; discard skins. Combine pulp, milk, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, and salt in a medium bowl; mash.
Combine 1 tablespoon brown sugar, softened butter, pecans, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Top each serving with pecan mixture.

Yield: 2 servings (serving size: 3/4 cup potatoes and 1 tablespoon pecan mixture)

CALORIES 299
FAT 9g
PROTEIN 3.9g
FIBER 5.4g
CARBOHYDRATE 52g
(Cooking Light, APRIL 2001)

Mashed Potatoes with Roasted Garlic and Rosemary

2 whole garlic heads
2 pounds cubed peeled Yukon gold potato
1 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons plain fat-free yogurt
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350°.
Remove white papery skin from garlic heads (do not peel or separate the cloves). Wrap each head separately in foil. Bake at 350° for 1 hour; cool 10 minutes. Separate cloves; squeeze to extract garlic pulp. Discard skins.
Place potato and onion in a saucepan; cover with water, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until potato is tender. Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Combine garlic, potato mixture, 1/4 cup cooking liquid, and remaining ingredients; mash with a potato masher.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1/2 cup)

CALORIES 93
FAT 0.2g
PROTEIN 2.8g
FIBER 2.1g
CARBOHYDRATE 21g
(Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2000)

Chicken Tortilla Soup

2007-11-11T11:28:00.002-05:00

I roasted a chicken this weekend and then boned it to make a soup. Erin had mentioned something about Chicken Tortilla Soup the other night on the phone (hmm, Erin and I sure do talk a lot about food and cooking, don't we?) and that sounded damn tasty, so this is what I put together this morning.

I didn't measure anything out but if you're any kind of intermediate cook you can figure out the right portions. I also did not run the macros (kinda hard when you have no measurements) I just know by eyeballing it that it fits into my nutrition plan and that's good enough for me right now.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

A couple or few cups of cooked, diced/shredded chicken
About 1 small onion
1-3 serrano peppers (depending on your heat preference)
Couple cloves of minced garlic
Couple cups frozen corn kernels
1 28oz can tomato puree
2 quarts low sodium, FF chicken broth
salt
pepper
cumin

Sautee the onions, garlic, peppers, corn kernels until softened and slightly golden. Add salt, pepper and cumin to the vegetables. Add the tomato puree, chicken and broth. Bring to a boil then reduce and simmer about 10 minutes. Taste, adjust seasonings if necessary.

You could toast up some corn tortillas and then break them into pieces and serve on top of a bowl of this soup, depending on how much corn you use in the soup and how many carbs you need at that meal. I guess if you don't then it would be Chicken with No Tortillas Soup.

Sugar Free Pecan Un-Pie

2007-11-03T17:51:00.002-04:00

Erin and I were talking the other night and somehow or another the topic of baking a pecan pie came up. We discussed the yumminess and also the utter disgust over the idea of consuming corn syrup. I decided I wanted pecan pie.

But not really. I wanted to eat something that tasted like all the goodness of pecan pie. For that, I don't need to waste calories on a crust, so I worked on making a pecan un-pie.

That is, something that tasted like pecan pie filling. But without that nasty corn syrup. Or oodles of sugar. I created the recipe below and it really does taste like pecan pie! It's not the same consistency, of course, it's got a more...almost custard-y texture, rather than the gooey syrupy texture of a real pecan pie. But it tastes damn good.

Just because I didn't use real sugar or corn syrup I'm not going to go so far as to call this diet food, and I did use real butter because, well, just because I think it needed it. But in terms of a dessert on cheat meal weekend, I enjoyed eating 2 (read: 3) pieces of this with much less guilt (and heaviness!) of a real pecan pie. Hope you enjoy as well.

Sugar Free Pecan Un-Pie

1 3/4 cup Splenda
1/4 cup sugar free maple syrup (I prefer a brand sweetened with sucralose rather than aspartame)
1/4 cup butter
1 Tbs cold water mixed with 2 tsp corn starch
3/4 cup egg whites
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan combine the Splenda, SF maple syrup, butter, water, and cornstarch. Bring to a full boil, and remove from heat.

In a large bowl beat eggs whites until frothy (not peaks, just froth). Gradually beat in cooked syrup mixture. Stir in salt, vanilla, and pecans. Pour into a glass pie dish sprayed with cooking spray. Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until filling is set.

Makes 6 servings. Each serving:
288 calories
24 g fat
15 g carb
6 g protein

Pumpkin Peanut Curry

2007-10-31T14:51:00.003-04:00

I got this from one of Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals. At first I was really unsure about the flavor combinations but decided to give it a shot, since most of the ingredients I always have on hand anyway - it came out quite delicious! I made some minor tweaks (no need for oil!) and I kept it really thick, since I'm not planning on serving it over pasta as a thin sauce. Would be delicious over some brown or basmati rice and sauteed shrimp.

Peanut Pumpkin Curry

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 inches ginger root, minced or grated*
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 to 1/3 cup lite soy sauce
1 (15-ounce) can cooked pumpkin
1/2 - 1 cup boiling water, depending on how thick/thin you want your sauce
2 rounded tablespoonfuls mild or hot curry paste (I used a little more red curry, but I like heat!)

Heat a large, deep skillet over medium heat sprayed with cooking spray. Add garlic, ginger, red bell pepper and pepper flakes to the pan and cook together a couple of minutes, then add peanut butter and melt it. Whisk the soy sauce into peanut butter, then stir in pumpkin and curry paste. The sauce will be very thick. Turn down the heat to low. Add 1/2 - 1 cup boiling water to thin sauce a bit and simmer over low heat. Adjust salt to taste.

This makes a lot - easily 8 big servings. If you keep it thick like I did, it's really more like a vegetable side dish than a sauce (next time I'd use 2 red bell peppers, just for more veggie "oomph").

For the entire recipe:
749 calories
40 g fat
76 g carb
26 g protein

For 8 servings, each:
93 calories
5 g fat
9.5 g carb
3.25 g protein

*(I always keep ginger root on hand in the freezer, it lasts forever)

Flourless, Almost Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

2007-10-23T10:25:00.002-04:00

Flourless, Almost Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup cashew butter
1 cup Splenda Granular
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup egg white
1/2 cup chocolate chips (I have found sugar free chocolate chips before, online. If you're really set on making these completely sugar free you could substitute).

Preheat the oven to 350°.

Cream the cashew butter and splenda in a bowl. Add the vanilla, baking powder and egg. Mix until combined (will be sticky). Fold in chocolate chips.

Roll into 12 balls, place on a cookie sheet. Then slightly press down on each one to flatten just a little bit.

Bake about ten minutes and let set for a few minutes before taking them off the cookie sheet (or else they'll just fall apart).

Makes 12, each cookie:

170 cals
13 g fat
13 g carb
5 g protein

Flourless, Sugar Free Peanut Butter Cookies

2007-10-23T10:13:00.002-04:00

Flourless, Sugar Free Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup creamy ANPB
1 cup Splenda Granular
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup egg white

Preheat the oven to 350°.

Cream the peanut butter and splenda in a bowl. Add the baking powder and egg. Mix until combined (will be sticky).

Roll into 12 balls, place on a cookie sheet. Then slightly press down on each one to flatten just a little bit. You can use your fork to create the quintessential peanut butter cookie.

Bake about ten minutes and let set for a few minutes before taking them off the cookie sheet (or else they'll just fall apart).

Makes 12, each cookie:

151 cals
11 g fat
6 g carb
6 g protein

Kung Pao Amy

2007-10-11T14:16:00.003-04:00

Don't tell Maggie that I call this Kung Pao sauce, because she'll probably cringe at my obvious whiteness, but I wanted a spicy chinese-food tasting meal this week and this is what I came up with.

5 Tbs vinegar
4 Tbs lite soy sauce
1 Tbs sesame oil
2 Tbs cornstarch, dissolved in 2 Tbs water
1 packet Splenda
6 ounces of Chinese chili sauce (found in the Asian food section of the store)

This made enough for 12 meals and I put it over a mix of chicken, rice and the Asian blend of frozen veggies from my market.

Nice and spicy and chinese-y. Therefore, it must be Kung Pao sauce, right? :P

Pumpkin Soup

2007-10-01T14:39:00.002-04:00

Pumpkin Soup

A nice starter or side. Pair it with turkey breast for an autumn meal.

Ingredients:

6 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 cups pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup Fage
5 whole black peppercorns

Heat stock, salt, pumpkin, onion, thyme, garlic, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 30 minutes uncovered.

Puree the soup with an immersion blender or in small batches using a food processor or blender.
Return to pot, and bring to a boil again. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for another 30 minutes, uncovered. Stir in Fage. Pour into soup bowls and garnish with fresh parsley.

Makes six servings, each:
93 calories
<1 g fat
17 g carb
6 g protein

I Can't Believe It's Not Bisquick

2007-09-06T15:39:00.002-04:00

1 cup egg whites
1/2 scoop protein powder
2 Tbs FF SF instant vanilla pudding mix
1/8 tsp xantham gum
dash of vanilla
dash cinnamon

Blend and make like pancakes.