Healthified Pumpkin Pie Filling

You can use a regular pie crust or make a pie crust out of Fiber One Original bread crumbs. The nutrition facts for these crusts are not factored into the below recipe. I made this last night and it turned out beautifully, ENJOY!

Makes 8 servings...

1 can (2 cups) pureed pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
3/4 Cup Unsweetened Almond milk
1/2 Cup egg beaters (or 4 egg whites)
3 TBSP Truvia natural sweetener (not splenda) 
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- Optional: You can also add a small 6 ounce container of 0% Vanilla Greek Yogurt for extra protein, flavor, and texture. If doing this, add during step 3. Bake the same way. It adds 100 calories to the entire recipe (or about 12 calories per serving).

Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2.) In a small bowl mix Stevia and spices (last 4 ingredients)
3.) In a large bowl beat eggs (hand whisk) then mix in pumpkin and milk until combined. (and Greek yogurt if using it)
4.) Add Stevia and spice mixture to pumkin mixture, just stir until combined.
5.) Pour in pie crust or cooking sprayed pie pan (if making crust-less version, like I did)
6.) Bake at 400 for 40-50 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center of pie comes out clean.
7.) MUST DO THIS STEP before cutting and serving: Let pie sit and cool for 30 minutes then refrigerate for at least 2 hours. If you skip this you will have pumpkin mush!

Let me know how it goes!!!

Creamy Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal- only 100 calories!

Makes 1 serving

Nutrition Facts: (Using water, no raisins)
Serving Size: 1 bowl, Calories 97, Calories from Fat 11, Total Fat 1.23g, Saturated Fat 0.13g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 124.83mg, Total Carbohydrate 17.79g, Dietary Fiber 5.1g, Sugars 2.8g, Protein 3.44g


Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup canned pumpkin puree (NOT Pumpkin pie filling)


• 1/4 cup (1/2 packet) plain oatmeal (old fashioned oats can also be used)


• 1/2 cup water or unsweetened almond milk (1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk is about 20 calories)


• 2 tsp Splenda or other no calorie sweetener


• 2 TBSP Sugar free pancake syrup (about 20 calories per serving like Mrs. Butterworths) 


• 1 tsp Pumpkin pie spice (or to taste)




• I also like to add 1 TBSP raisins, yummmmm.

Directions: 

1. Cook oatmeal. 




• If using instant oatmeal and microwave, cook in intervals no longer than 1 minute and 30 seconds as the oatmeal might boil over. I suggest even putting a plate under your bowl just in case. Typically shouldn't take longer than 3 minutes depending on amount of liquid used. 


• Old fashioned oats take longer, about 15 minutes, since you need to use your cook top)




2. Once water or almond milk is fully absorbed add pumpkin and syrup. Mix and continue to cook until warm. (prob 20-30 seconds in microwave; 1 minute on stove top)


3. Remove from heat and pour into bowl. Add remaining ingredients and stir. 


4. Enjoy! You can even make this ahead of time to eat cold.

 You can also see this recipe on livestrong.com

2 New Low-Cal Ways to Make Snow Cones!

The following simple and tasty recipes will give you a reason to buy a snow cone maker (ice shaver).

1.) Crystal Light snow cones: Pour some Crystal Light or other Low-Cal beverage over your shaved ice for a guilt free fruity and cool treat

2.) Frozen Hot Chocolate: Use fat free hot chocolate mix (about 1 packet). Let sit for about 1-2 minutes after mixing to let the ice melt a little and dissolve the rest of the mix. THIS IS SOOOO GOOOD! Most hot chocolate mixes will dissolve in cold water as well as hot water. My favorite fat free mixes include Nestle Fat Free Hot Cocoa (about 10 calories per TBSP or 20 calories per serving) and the Kroger Brand fat free mix.

Boxed cake mix + alternate ingredients

Why make cake with eggs and oil when there are TONS of better options? Cake mix with diet soda? Just egg substitute? Only applesauce? We tried each of these methods and more (and had fun doing it)! Here's what we learned...    Cake Mix + No-Sugar-Added Applesauce PER SERVING (1 piece, 1/12th of cake): 179 calories, 3.25g fat, 299mg sodium, 36g carbs, 0.5g fiber, 21.5g sugars, 1.5g protein -- PointsPlus™ value 5* Ingredients: One 18.25-oz. box moist-style cake mix 1 cup no-sugar-added applesauce Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine ingredients in a large bowl and add 1 cup water. Whisk thoroughly and transfer to a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray; bake in the oven until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. (Refer to cake-mix box for pan size and approximate bake time.) MAKES 12 SERVINGS Best Flavor: Yellow cake mix. It goes perfectly with the fruity taste of the sauce. The Texture: VERY moist and fluffy. A+! The Taste: AMAZING!!!! Sweet and slightly apple-y. Two YUMS up... Cake Mix + Diet Soda PER SERVING (1 piece, 1/12th of cake): 171 calories, 3.25g fat, 301mg sodium, 34g carbs, <0.5g fiber, 19g sugars, 1.5g protein -- PointsPlus™ value 5* Ingredients:One 18.25-oz. box moist-style cake mix One 12-oz. can diet soda Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk thoroughly and transfer to a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray; bake in the oven until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. (Refer to cake-mix box for pan size and approximate bake time.) MAKES 12 SERVINGS Best Flavor Combo: Yellow cake mix + diet cream soda. Runners-up include lemon cake mix + diet lemon-lime soda and devil's food cake mix + diet cherry cola. The Texture: Moist and light. The Taste: Pretty darn impressive! However, if you're sensitive to the sweetener in diet soda, you may notice a slight aftertaste... especially if you use cola of any kind. Cake Mix + Canned Pure Pumpkin PER SERVING (1 piece, 1/12th of cake): 183 calories, 3.5g fat, 301mg sodium, 37g carbs, 1.25g fiber, 20.5g sugars, 2g protein -- PointsPlus™ value 5* Ingredients:One 18.25-oz. box moist-style cake mix One 15-oz. can pure pumpkin Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine ingredients in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly -- batter will be VERY thick -- and transfer to a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray; bake in the oven until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. (Refer to cake-mix box for pan size and approximate bake time.) MAKES 12 SERVINGS Best Flavor: Devil's food cake mix is CLEARLY a classic choice. (Hello?!Yum Yum Brownie Muffins!) But spice cake mix... WOW. Yellow and white cake mixes, sadly, do not work as well. The Texture: Thick and dense in the BEST possible way. Brownie-like, in the case of the devil's food; the spice cake reminded us of pumpkin bread! The Taste: No one would ever guess this is guilt-free in any way. It's delicious! Cake Mix + Fat-Free Liquid Egg Substitute PER SERVING (1 piece, 1/12th of cake): 181 calories, 3.25g fat, 337mg sodium, 34.5g carbs, <0.5g fiber, 19.5g sugars, 3.5g protein -- PointsPlus™ value 5* Ingredients: One 18.25-oz. box moist-style cake mix 1 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters Original) Directions:Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine ingredients in a large bowl and add 1 cup water. Whisk thoroughly and transfer to a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray; bake in the oven until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. (Refer to cake-mix box for pan size and approximate bake time.) MAKES 12 SERVINGS Best Flavor: Egg sub is like the little black dress of cake companions; it goes well with everything. The Texture: The first time we made this, we used only 1/4 cup of water; it was a little dry and dense, but it reminded us of pound cake, which isn't a bad thing. With a full cup of water, it came out light and fluffy. It had a more substantial, cake-like consistency than the applesauce and soda versions, but it wasn't quite as moist. The Taste: Good! But it's not our favorite. That one's up next... Cake Mix + Fat-Free Greek Yogurt PER SERVING (1 piece, 1/12th of cake): 180 calories, 3.25g fat, 306mg sodium, 34.5g carbs, <0.5g fiber, 20g sugars, 3.5g protein -- PointsPlus™ value 5* Ingredients:One 18.25-oz. box moist-style cake mix 1 cup fat-free plain Greek yogurt (like Fage Total 0%) Directions:Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine ingredients in a large bowl and add 1 cup water. Whisk thoroughly and transfer to a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray; bake in the oven until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. (Refer to cake-mix box for pan size and approximate bake time.) MAKES 12 SERVINGS Best Flavor: Devil's food cake mix. Hands down. The Texture: The word "velvety" comes to mind... Super moist and decadent! Kind of like a brownie-cake hybrid. The Taste: YUMMY! Everyone who tried this loved it. There wasn't any yogurt taste at all... just pure cake-tastic deliciousness!

Resource: HungryGirl.com

Sugar cookies... dietitian style

Ingredients:

• 1 stick Smart Balance Butter (softened)
• 1 egg
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup white sugar (or half white sugar and half powdered sugar)
• 1/4 cup Splenda
• 1/2 cup Fiber One Original Cereal bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup flour 

Direction:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Combine all ingredients and gently mix until just combined. (Dont over mix because Splenda doesnt respond well to over stirring and flour will become tougher)
3. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until cookies are brown around edges.

Healthy chocolate chips... you read correctly!

What you need

• Chocolate PB2
• Wax papper
• Plastic bags
• Cocoa powder (not hot chocolate)
• Water

Directions:

Roll out a sheet of wax paper onto a plate. 

Make PB2 according to instructions. If you want a more chocolaty taste add a teaspoon or two of cocoa powder. Cocoa powder is only 30 calories per tablespoon! Make sure the PB2 is not runny.

Drop small amounts of PB2 onto wax paper using a spoon. Dont try to hard to get the shape of chocolate chips because thats probably pretty hard. 

Put plate with wax paper and PB2 in the freezer for about 4 hours or until PB2 hardens. 

Enjoy!

Protein Packed Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake

I have found this to be much easier than making a regular cheesecake. I love pumpkin all year round.

Ingredients

Crust

1/2 cup Fiber One Cereal (original) crumbs, use a blender or food processor

2 TBSP Smart balance spread

1 TBSP Splenda brown sugar blend

Filling

• 1 can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
• 1 small package fat free cottage cheese, pureed using a blender or food processor
• 1/2-3/4 cup Splenda, to taste
• 1/2 cup egg beaters or egg whites (4 egg whites)
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Melt butter in microwave (about 30 seconds)
3. Crush fiber one cereal in blender.
4. Combine crust incredients then press mixture into a pie tin.
5. Bake for 5 minutes.
6. Make cheese cake filling by combining all filling ingredients in mixing bowl, except Splenda. Mix all ingredients to combine, then add Splenda. Do not over stir mixture once Splenda is added. 
7. Pour mixture into pie crust. Lightly tap pie on counter to release air bubbles before putting it in the oven. 
8. Bake for about 45 minutes.

35 second chocolate cake for one

DON'T OVERCOOK or it's rubbery...start out with 35 seconds - then add 5 seconds as needed.  It should still be moist on the bottom - not completely dry - it will continue cooking as it cools.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Splenda
• 2 teaspoons cocoa powder
• Pinch of instant coffee crystals
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch salt
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Drop vanilla

Spray a small coffee cup with Pam and mix all ingredients in cup. Cook for 35-45 seconds...allow to sit for a moment and serve.

Total Recipe: 110 Cal; 2 g Protein; 5 g Fat; 14 g Carb; 1 g Fiber; 0 g Sugar

This recipe was taken from bariatriceating.com

Guilt Free Banana Oatmeal Cookies

These low calorie cookies may help satisfy a dieter's sweet tooth. These cookies could also be a quick breakfast for busy kids and parents on the go.

What you need: Recipe yield 24 cookies

• 2-3 ripe bananas
• 2 1/4 Cup rolled oats
• 1/3 Cup canola oil
• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 Cup dried fruit
• Optional- nuts, powdered peanut butter, or chocolate chips (although the dietitian in me says "no to the chocolate chips", the human-being in me says "they taste really good").  
• Back to being a dietitian... if you add the chocolate chips,  I would not recommend eating them for breakfast.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, mash the bananas. Stir in oats, oil, egg white, vanilla, and optional ingredients.
3. Mix well, and allow to sit for 15 minutes. If you do not let them sit the oats will not absorb the oil and egg. It would be like eating oat meal before you cooked it. In other words, do not skip this step.
4. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet.
5. Bake for 20 minutes

Nutrition Facts (without optional ingredients): 1 cookie contains 55 calories, 3g total fat, 0g saturated fat, 2g monounsaturated fat, 1g polyunsaturated fat, 5g total carbohydrate,  1g fiber, <1g protein, 30mg sodium


This recipe was modified from the section Cookies For Calorie Counters on allrecipes.com

Leah Lunch: Smoothie Day!

Many studies have shown that eating protein at breakfast can help you feel less hungry throughout the day.

It is important to know that just because a smoothie contains seemingly healthy ingredients, they can still be up to 300 calories or more depending on what you add and how much you drink.

Smoothies from restaurants can be deceptively high in calories.

Chocolate, peanut butter, and banana smoothie: Makes 1 large serving

• 1 packet of "No sugar added" hot chocolate powder
• OR substitute the hot chocolate for chocolate protein powder
• 1 banana, Peeled then frozen
• 1/2-1C Skim milk plus
• Optional- 2 tablespoons of "P2" Powdered peanut butter

Directions: Add the frozen bananas and the milk to a blender. Blend until smooth. Use a spoon to stir in the hot chocolate powder and the powdered peanut butter. Blend again until combined.

Nutrition Facts:  ~230 calories without powdered peanut butter and protein powder.

About the Ingredients:

• "No sugar added" hot chocolate- At 50 calories per serving, this is half the calories of regular hot chocolate mix.
• I find that the "diet" hot chocolate mix, at only 25 calories per serving, does not taste as good and is less satisfying when you are craving chocolate. 
•  "P2" powdered peanut butter- At only 45 calories per serving (2 Tablespoons), it has less than 1/4th of the calories as regular peanut butter which contains 200 calories per serving (2 Tablespoons).
• P2 contains 5g of protein, which is the same amount of protein in regular peanut butter
• It is lower in calories because it doesn't contain all the fat that regular peanut butter has.
• Just add water to the powder and it becomes spreadable
• P2 can be found in the health food section at HyVee (this is the ONLY place to get it).
• It costs $5.00 for a 14 serving bottle
• It comes in 2 flavors: original and chocolate
• Skim milk plus- At only 80 calories, it is the same as skim milk but has the consistency of 2% milk.
• This is found at Gerbes.
• It has an orange cap and an orange label (be careful not to pick up the 1% milk which has a yellow cap).

Strawberry-banana orange juice smoothie: Makes 3 servings

• 1 16-ounce bag of frozen strawberries, NO SUGAR ADDED!
• 1 banana, peeled then frozen
• 1-2 cups Orange Juice, "Light/ no sugar added"
• Optional- vanilla protein powder
• Optional- Fat free vanilla yogurt. (Dannon fit and active has the least amount of added sugar)

Directions: Add the above at once. Add additional orange juice if needed.

Nutrition Facts: ~130-150 calories without optional ingredients

About the ingredients:

• "Light/ no sugar added" orange juice- At 50 calories per cup, this orange juice is half as many calories as regular orange juice but still tastes great.

A word about protein powders:

To make the above smoothies into a breakfast meal, add a scoop of protein powder. Not all protein powders are created equal.

Protein powders are commonly known for coming in vanilla and chocolate flavors but there are also flavorless options.

When looking for a protein powder make sure it fits the following criteria:

• Less than 150 calories per serving or scoop
• Less than 5 grams of fat per serving
• Less than 5 grams of sugar per serving
• At least 20 grams pf protein per serving
• MUST be made from whey protein isolates because whey has a complete source of protein.
•  A complete protein is one that provides the essential (meaning must come from foods) amino acids.

Where to buy protein powders:

• Complete Nutrition in the Columbia mall has a good selection and they will even let you taste them.
• GNC in the Columbia mall
• Some grocery stores and Walmart have protein powders
• Wherever you go, you must check for the above criteria

In summary:

When adding protein powders to your smoothie you are making them a meal because you are adding at least 130 calories (good calories are still calories).

When making as a dessert I strongly suggest leaving out the protein powders.

You can use what ever ingredients you want in these smoothies, you do not have to add all of the ones i have suggested.

If you try these smoothies, let me know what you think!