Nutella Brownies

Posted by Lori:

Do you like Nutella??  Here is a great recipe using Nutella!  I look forward to trying this soon.  Thanks for the recipe, Renee!

Nutella Brownies

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 cup Nutella

1 cup flour

1 - 2 eggs (Mix one and if too dry, add another one)

Mix ingredients together in medium sized bowl.  Spoon batter into 9 x 13 (I assume greased) pan. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 12 minutes or until center is done (like regular brownies.)

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Almond Cookie Crisp

Posted by Lori:

I shared my sister-in-law's Indian Tea recipe with you last week.  This is another great recipe of hers.  Each little cookie crisp has only 25 calories!  They are delicious!

I've added a note from Deborah about the change she makes from the recipe below:  The only change I made to the cookie recipe was I didn't put almond slices - I ground up my almonds and mixed them into the batter. (You really put a very small amount on the parchment paper. )

Almond Cookie Crisp: (Adopted from Agnes Chang’s Baking Made Easy)

Makes 42 to 45 cookies (depending on the size)

2 large egg whites, room temperature
a pinch of kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons castor sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 cup almond slices
2 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven 325F. Line baking sheet with silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk egg white, salt, vanilla extract and sugar until foamy. Whisk until sugar is completely dissolved. Whisk in flour until no lumps. Then, gently fold in almond slices and butter.

Spoon 1 to teaspoon of batter onto prepared baking sheet and spread batter into a 2 to 3-inch circle. Make sure the almonds flakes are not overlapping each other. Spoon the rest of the batter on baking sheet with each cookie at least 1-inch apart. Might need to bake cookies in batches.

Bake 9 to 12 minutes depending on their size, rotate baking sheet once during baking. Bake until slightly golden brown. Remove from baking sheet and cool completely on wire rack. Cookies will crisp up once completely cool.

*Do not over bake them because they tend to turn a little more golden brown after they're out of the oven. Pin It Now!

Banana Tortilla Snacks

Posted by Lori:
I haven't tried this recipe yet, but found it today on allrecipes.com. I think one or two of my children will like it, but the other two aren't crazy about bananas. Oh, well..."two outta four ain't bad"!

Some of the suggestions on the reviews suggested sprinkling a little bit of cinnamon on the peanut butter/honey mixture before adding the banana and rolling it up. Sounds great and healthy!

Banana Tortilla Snack
1 - 6 inch flour tortilla (regular or whole wheat)
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1 tablespoon honey
1 banana
2 tablespoons raisins (optional)

Lay tortilla flat. Spread peanut butter and honey on tortilla. Place banana in the middle and sprinkle in the raisins, if desired. Wrap, and serve.
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Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Posted by Lori:
(Note:  For some reason, this picture will not post hortizontally!  It looks like the cookies are going to slide off the tray!)

Are you looking for a way to use up over-ripe bananas? Try these Banana Oatmeal Cookies. They are cake-like in consistancy and are good as a snack, a healthy dessert, or even for breakfast. At the time I didn't think to use whole wheat flour, but will try that next time.

I found this recipe on Allrecipes, but changed a few things, such as adding applesauce and reducing the shortening. My children, and even my husband and I, liked them. It was a perfect "sweet" to tuck in the kids' lunch boxes for a few days, too.

BANANA OATMEAL COOKIES

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup applesauce
1 egg, beaten
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon groud cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups rolled oats

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  In a large bowl, stir together the flour, brown and white sugars, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cut in shortening until almost no lumps remain. Stir in the egg, bananas, applesauce, and vanilla. Mix well. Stir in oats. Drop by small spoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven or until edges are browned. Remove from pans immediately to cool on wire racks.

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Oroweat Sandwich Thins Pizza

Posted by Lori:
Have you tried the new Oroweat Sandwich Thins? They are healthy, low fat, and low cal (100 calories for both pieces), but they also taste great. Their texture makes them seem very filling - much more so than just a regular slice of bread.

On Tuesdays our local grocery store sells mini pizzas for $1.99. A few times a month we order the pizzas for the kids and take them to school for their lunch. I guess last week when I was ordering theirs, it made me crave pizza, too, so I figured out a healthy variety for myself for lunch that day. The mini pizza was great!

OROWEAT SANDWICH THIN PIZZA

1 Oroweat Sandwich Thin (I used whole wheat)
2 tablespoons pizza sauce
2 slices Canadian bacon, cut in small pieces
1/4 c. shredded mozzarella (I didn't have low fat at the time.)

Seperate the sandwich thin into the two pieces. Spread 1 tablespoon pizza sauce on each piece. Top with Canadian bacon and cheese (or cheese and then Canadian bacon - depending on your preference.) Bake at 350 degrees on small cookie sheet for 10 - 15 minutes. TOTAL: CALORIES-215; FAT-6.5 grams (would be less w/low-fat cheese).

When these pizzas first came out of the oven I folded them in half to make them easier to eat walking around the house straightening up. The cheese caused it to stick together and it was so thin it made it's own little "pizza pocket"!

I first found out about these sandwich thins while visiting my sister, Kimberly in Lubbock, Texas. Unfortunately, when I got back to Oklahoma, I couldn't find them in our closest supermarkets. Since then I've found them about an hour away. Can you find them near you? If so, try these healthier mini pizzas!
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Panko Chicken Strips

Posted by Kimberly:

One thing that my kids really like to eat is chicken strips. Because we try to eat healthy, I have tried many recipes for chicken strips but never really was that crazy about any that I had attempted. The seasoning never seemed to be that great and they were never that crunchy. Back in the fall, I came across this recipe on foodnetwork.com. It caught my eye because it used panko bread crumbs. I wasn't disappointed.... The seasoning was really good, and they had the crunch that I had been wanting.

Panko Chicken Strips

1 large egg (I omit this to make the recipe healthier.)
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into strips
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs (These are found in the Asian food aisle of your grocery store.)
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper

Whisk the egg and buttermilk in a medium bowl. Soak chicken strips in egg mixture while you gather remaining ingredients. (As I said above, I don't use the egg. I just put my cut-up chicken in large Ziploc bags and cover the strips in buttermilk. I let them soak in the buttermilk in the fridge for 2-4 hours.) Meanwhile, in another shallow bowl combine panko with paprika, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper, to taste. Lift chicken from buttermilk, letting excess liquid drain back into the bowl, then dip into panko and turn to coat all sides. Place chicken on a foil-lined baking sheet that has been sprayed with a cooking spray. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes or so. (The original recipe had you fry them, but I chose to bake mine to make them even more figure-friendly.)

My family likes to dip these in different sauces/dressings. I prefer honey mustard dressing. My husband and son like to use barbecue sauce, and my daughters like ranch dressing. Also, I always make extra, so we can have them for another meal. They are better reheated in the oven instead of the microwave, though. The microwave makes the bread crumbs soggy, while the oven will return some of their crunch.

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Chewy Granola Bars

Posted by Kimberly:

A couple of weeks ago, we went on vacation to San Antonio. I spent the day before we left baking snacks/cookies for my family to have while we were gone. I wanted a sweet treat, too, but didn't want it to be unhealthy. I remembered that when I had kept a friend's little girl back before school was out, she had left a homemade granola bar for her daughter as a snack. I thought it looked good, so I decided I would call her and see if I could have the recipe. She had actually taken the recipe from a baby food cookbook. Since I do not like a crunchy granola bar, these were the perfect snack for me. They were really good and kept my sweet tooth in check.

Chewy Granola Bars

1-1/2 cups oatmeal
1/4 cup wheat germ (just a healthy addition; you can omit it if you'd like)
1/4 cup ground nuts (I used peanuts.)
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup dried fruit (i.e. raisins)
1/4 cup melted butter or oil
5 tablespoons honey
1 beaten egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all dry ingredients. Mix wet ingredients into dry mixture. Add more honey to moisten or more oats to dry, if necessary. (I didn't have to do this.) Press mixture into a greased 8x8 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Cool and cut into bars.

I doubled the recipe and baked them in a 9x13 dish, and it worked just fine. I also substituted the oil/butter with 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce.

During our week in San Antonio, this was a great way for me to feel like I was getting to eat dessert without having all of the extra calories and fat. I will definitely be making these again when I am going to be faced with the temptation of cookies, brownies, etc.
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Southwestern Cornbread Muffins

Posted by Kimberly:

As I told you in my previous post, I like to fix soups because they are easy and make enough for at least two meals. One of my favorite sides to serve when I make them is southwestern cornbread muffins. I have made several changes to the original recipe in order to make it healthier and more figure-friendly. Don't equate "healthier" with "less tasty" because this recipe is just as good as any that includes oil, sugar, and regular flour. These muffins are moist and they have passed the test of family and friends.

Southwestern Cornbread Muffins

1 can cream style corn
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
2 egg whites
3/4 cup fat-free milk
1/4 cup applesauce
3 tbsp. honey
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 (4 oz.) can green chilies

Combine flour, cornmeal, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, milk, honey, and applesauce. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Add the cheese, chilies, and corn. Pour into prepared muffin pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.




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