Cookies

I've been remiss in adding entries over the last month or so. Don't think I haven't been sampling new recipes or eating this whole time because I most certainly have. Its the holiday season and its been busy. I have sampled several savory meals but have also enjoyed some absolutely scrumptious cookies. Here are just 4 recent cookie recipes I have been sharing with friends during the many cookie exchanges and holiday parties.

Cooking Light "Chewy Chocolate-Cherry Cookies"

I've had several people comment, "These are only 2 points!" These Chewy-Chocolate cookies are soo yummy. I've used the base recipe to make Mocha Butterscotch cookies and have found them to be just as successful. Simply add a tablespoon of instant coffee and butterscotch chips in place of the cherries and chocolate chips, however, beware that the butterscotch chips are much sweeter than the mini chocolate chips.

1 c ap flour

1/3 c unsweetened cocoa

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 c sugar

1/3 c butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 lrg egg

2/3 c dried tart cherries

3 tbsp semisweet mini chocolate chips

cooking spray (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk. Place sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until well blended. Add vanilla and egg; beat well. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture (I sift the mixture into the bowl to avoid over-mixing). Beat until just combined. Fold in cherries and mini chocolate chips.

3. Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray (I line baking sheets with parchment paper and avoid the cooking spray). Bake at 350F for 12 minutes or just until set. Remove from oven; cool on pans 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely on wire racks.

Yield: 30 cookies, Serving Size: 1 cookie

WeightWatchers PointsPlus: 2 pts

Eat What You Love "Amazing Peanut Butter Cookies"

I've made this flourless cookie for my sister who is gluten-free. Which was quite the hit since she normally feels left out when I deliver cookies ;)

1 c peanut butter

3/4 c Splenda granulated sweetener

1/4 c dark brown sugar, packed

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 lrg egg*

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Combine the peanut butter (I used about 3/4 c regular chunky peanut butter and 1/4 c reduced fat creamy peanut butter because its what I had on hand), sweetener, brown sugar, baking soda, and vanilla in a medium bowl and stir until well mixed. Add the egg and stir until dough is formed.

3. Shape the dough, by tablespoons, into 1-inch balls. Place onto an ungreased baking sheet (again I lined the baking sheet with parchment paper) and flatten balls with a fork, forming a crisscross pattern on top of each cookie (I skipped half of this step).

4. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown on the bottom but still slightly soft in the center. Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Remove to wire racks to finish cooling.

Yield: 24 cookies, Serving Size: 1 cookie

WeightWatchers PointsPlus: 2 pts

Cranberry Walnut Oatmeal Cookies adapted from Eat What You Love "Oatmeal Raisin Cookies"

These cookies were soo delicious that they were well worth the extra point. Mmmmm, mmm definitely a repeat recipe for me! If you omit the walnuts, 1 tbsp of applesauce, and use raisins in place of the dried cranberries you will have a 2 WeightWatchers Point Plus cookie.

1/2 c whole wheat flour

1/4 c ap flour

1 1/2 c old-fashioned rolled oats

1/3 c dried cranberries

1/4 c chopped walnuts

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/3 c butter, softened

6 tbsp packed dark brown sugar

2 lrg egg whites

3 tbsp unsweetened applesauce

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

6 tbsp Splenda granulated sweetener

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray or use parchment paper.

2. In a small bowl, combine the flour, oats, cranberries, walnuts, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg and stir until well mixed.

3. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar until light and creamy. Beat in the egg whites, applesauce, vanilla, and sweetener. (The mixture will not get creamy.) Stir in the flour mixture.

4. Drop the dough by level tablespoons onto a baking sheet, 2 inches apart. Flatten the cookies by pressing down on the dough with a spatula or the bottom of a glass.

5. Bake for 7-9 minutes, or until light brown on top. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool.

Yield: 20 cookies, Serving Size: 1 cookie

WeightWatchers PointsPlus: 3 pts

Eat What You Love "Better-For-You Chocolate Chip Cookies"

to be cont...

Maple Pecan Glaze

This glaze can be used in place of the Caramel Sauce on the Pumpkin Bread Pudding or spread over Marlene Koch's "Everyday Cheesecake."

Anne Thorton's Maple Pecan Glaze

1 c whipping cream

3/4 c maple syrup, grade b

3/4 c pecans, chopped

In a medium sized pan, combine the whipping cream and maple syrup, bring to a boil. Boil until slightly thickened, 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the chopped pecans. Cover and chill until time to serve. Stir before serving.

If you divide glaze into 8 servings, add 6 points to your dessert.

-or-

A slightly more friendly version....

1 c light whipped topping (from freezer section, thawed)

3/4 c maple syrup, grade b

3/4 c pecans, chopped

In medium size bowl, combine ingredients. Stir until smooth, spoon over dessert. If you divide over 8 servings add 4 points to your dessert.

Thanksgiving Dessert - Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce

With Thanksgiving about a week-and-half away its time to start looking for recipes for the big day. While watching Bobby Flay prepare a Thanksgiving dinner, he spoke about a Pumpkin Bread Pudding that his pastry chef was bringing to the dinner in place of a traditional pumpkin pie. I was intrigued so I started hunting around for Pumpkin Bread Pudding recipes and found this one published in Bon Appetit in November 2000. Using hints from Marlene Koch's "Eat What You Love" I altered the recipe to make it a little lower in sugar and fat.

For the actual bread pudding I substituted in Splenda Brown Sugar Blend, because of the sweeter nature of Splenda, I used the conversion chart provided and halved the sugar measurements. I also substituted in fat-free half-and-half. For the actual Caramel sauce you will have to use regular dark brown sugar as caramel sauces need actual sugar for texture. Reviews from other individuals said the original recipe made too much sauce, so I halved the recipe in an effort to cut the sugar a bit. I suppose if you are really worried about the sugar from the sauce you could hunt down a low-sugar caramel sauce from the ice cream aisle.

The original recipe stated this recipe made 6 servings, only its in a 11x7 pan which would suggest really big portions - I've portioned it into 8 portions which brings the point value to 8 per serving. Yes, this is kind of high in points, but you are making it for a special occasion and not eating it every day it should be ok :)

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

2 c fat-free half-and-half

15 oz canned pumpkin puree

1/2 c Splenda Brown Sugar Blend

1 tbsp Splenda Brown Sugar Blend

2 eggs

1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

10 oz egg bread (perhaps challah) 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 c golden raisins

Caramel Sauce

3/4 c dark brown sugar, packed

1/4 stick unsalted butter

1/4 c heavy whipping cream

Powdered sugar (~1 Tbsp)

For bread pudding:

Preheat oven to 350F. Whisk half-and-half, pumpkin, brown sugar substitute, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and vanilla extract in large bowl to blend. Fold in bread cubes. Stir in golden raisins. Transfer mixture to 11x7 glass baking dish. Let stand for 15 minutes so bread absorbs liquid mixture. Bake pumpkin bread pudding until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes (remember that low-sugar baked goods will bake more quickly).

For caramel sauce:

Whisk brown sugar and butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until butter melts. Whisk in cream and stir until sugar dissolves and sauce is smooth, about 3 minutes.

Sift powdered sugar over bread pudding. Serve warm with caramel sauce.

*If you omit the Caramel Sauce you can have 8 servings at 5 points each or 6 servings at 7 points each.

Turkey Bacon, Peas, Sun-Dried Tomato Alfredo Pasta

I mostly eat only poultry, sure on occasion I have some fish. But living in a land locked state as I do its always a little questionable as to how long ago that fish was actually caught. I often find my protein options somewhat limited and am never really sure what to do about the random recipe that calls for bacon. Of course I know about Turkey bacon but since I don't usually eat a whole package before it goes bad I rarely buy it. This recipe though called for so many pieces I figured it would be safe to buy a package this time.

This Alfredo recipe called for a multigrain penne - I had refrigerated fettuccine noodles on hand so I used that, I mean really isn't that what you normally eat alfredo with anyway? The container I had on hand was 12 oz the recipe called for 8 oz of noodles so it was a little dry since I didn't pull noodles out because then I just throw them away. I just added a little of the noodle water into the pan to help keep stretch the sauce. I also enjoy peas so added a cup to the noodles the last few minutes they were in the water.

8 oz fettuccine noodles or multigrain penne

1 - 10 oz package light refrigerated Alfredo sauce

1/2 c sun-dried tomatoes, packed without oil and cut into julienne strips

1 c peas (optional)

10 slices precooked bacon (turkey)

1/4 c chopped fresh basil

1/4 tsp black pepper

2 oz shredded part-skim mozzarella (optional)

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain and keep warm.

2. While pasta cooks, combine Alfredo sauce and sun-dried tomatoes in a sauce-pan. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, 6-8 minutes or until thoroughly heated and tomatoes are juicy and plump. While sauce cooks, microwave bacon according to package directions. Crumble bacon and set aside.

3. Combine cooked pasta and Alfredo sauce mixture in a large serving bowl. Top with crumbled bacon, basil, black pepper, and mozzarella.

Yield: 5 servings ---> I entered all of the ingredients and the 12oz container of fettuccine noodles in the Weight Watchers recipe builder and divided it into 6 servings at 4 points a piece. If you omit the peas & mozzarella, use pork bacon, and only 8 oz of multigrain penne you will get a recipe that yields 5 servings at 6 points per serving.

Pizza - Individual

For those days that you are craving pizza and really don't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen this quick fix is perfect. A quick pizza using a tortilla and the ingredients left over from making Spinach and Cheese Stuffed Portobello Caps. Add a slice of turkey bacon for a little extra uuumph ;)

96% fat free tortilla

1/4 tsp pesto paste

1/4 cup skim ricotta cheese

1/4 cup spinach, defrosted & drained

1/4 bottled roasted red pepper, chopped

1 slice turkey bacon, diced

2 oz part skim mozzarella

Heat oven 350. Mix ricotta cheese with pesto paste. Spread on tortilla. Arrange spinach, red pepper, and turkey bacon on tortilla. Sprinkle mozzarella on top of assembled pizza. Bake 10 minutes. Cut pizza into 4 and enjoy.

Yield: 1 serving = 7 points

A Sweet Treat

I was chatting with my friend's mom a little earlier today and she mentioned she was doing a low-sugar diet and Splenda was upsetting her stomach a wee bit. So I decided I would adopt the challenge of finding some great low-sugar, low-fat Christmas cookie desserts. In the meantime, I found a Autumn dessert recipe that uses honey in place of sugar to give her something to sample while I do my research.

I'm having a slight variation of this for a snack -

1/4 fat free plain yogurt

1-2 drops vanilla extract

1 small squeeze honey

1 Gala apple, sliced thin

1/8 cup antioxident trail mix (walnuts, almonds, dry cherries, craisins, & dried blueberries)

Very yummy!

Thank you Cooking Light - - Below is the original recipe from Cooking Light

Autumn Fruit with Honey-Yogurt Sauce

2/3 c vanilla low-fat yogurt

1 tbsp honey (more or less to taste)

1 c chopped pear

1 c chopped red apple

1 c seedless green grape halves

Ground nutmeg (optional)

1. Combine yogurt and honey in a small bowl; stir with whisk.

2. Combine pear, apple, and grapes in a large bowl. Spoon 3/4 c fruit into each of 4 dessert dishes; top each with about 2 1/2 tbsp yogurt sauce. Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg if desired.

Yield: 4 servings = 2 points per serving

Pumpkin Spice Cake Revisited

Okay folks, so I think the Pumpkin Spice Cake came out much better this time around. I chose to substitute Splenda for the sugar and am picking up a bit of the Splenda taste when I eat the cupcake/muffin. In the future I might do a 50-50 split with sugar/Splenda which would add 1 point to each serving. I also absolutely HATE the muffin cups I have right now, the paper sticks horribly to the muffins and I find I have no choice but to refrigerate the muffins then heat in the microwave for about 10 seconds to remove the paper. The mini loafs I made were 8,000 times easier to get out of the pan after a light spray of cooking spray.

As I'm typing this up I'm thinking that next time I might choose to make a cake and then make a whipped cream cheese topping to put in between the layers of cake or as a frosting.

1 c whole wheat flour

2 c all-purpose flour

2 c Splenda or other sugar substitute

1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp baking powder

15 oz pumpkin puree

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 c fat-free milk

1/2 c unsweetened applesauce

1. Preheat oven to 375. Spray cake/muffin pan - or insert paper cups - with nonstick spray and lightly dust with flour (I skipped the flour and my mini cakes came out of the pans just fine).

2. In large bowl mix whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and sugar. In a medium bowl, mix pumpkin puree, eggs, vanilla extract, milk, and unsweetened applesauce.

3. Add wet mixture to dry mixture. Stir until just blended - do NOT over-mix or dough will become tough.

4. Pour batter into pan. Bake. If using cake pan bake for 55-60 minutes. Muffin pans take about 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in muffin comes out clean.

5. Cool.

Yield: 18 servings = 2 points per serving -- if you add a glaze or cream cheese as a topping you will need to add additional points :)

Remember -- if you chose to do a 50-50 sugar mixture you will need to add 1 point per serving.