The Search for A Heathy Muffin

One of my best friends in the world has a serious problem- she LOVES Lifetime Original Movies.  I know....they're awful in every way, shape, and form.  But she doesn't care- if one is on, she's watching it.  Well, rewind about a year or so ago.  I'm sitting at home alone, Marshall's off somewhere, and I'm trying desperately to find something on one of the bazillion channels we get.  Of course there isn't anything, but somehow, I end up stopping on some Lifetime movie.  Kate would be so proud.....

::hangs head in shame::

I couldn't tell you a single thing about the movie.  Don't remember a thing about it.  But for some reason, one line has stuck with me.  Horrible, Washed-Up Actress #1 is comforting Horrible, Washed-Up Actress #2 because #2 got dumped by Terrible, yet Somewhat Handsome Actor #1.  In doing so, HWUA #1 brings over coffee and a muffin to HWUA #2.  But, not your normal muffin. 

No- its "One of those muffins that fools you into thinking you're only eating a muffin when it really has the same number of calories as a 16-ounce steak. "  And you know those muffins.  They're the size of your face, stuffed full of chocolate chips and nuts and they look and taste like heaven.  And I'll admit it, if I could have one of those babies regularly for breakfast without any negative impacts to my hips, I probably would.  But that is unfortuantely not the case.

So as an alternative, I wanted to find a muffin recipe that was fairly healthy but didn't taste like stale cardboard aka NO BRAN ALLOWED. 

I came across this recipe which was a standard, whole wheat muffin recipe.  However, it needed some piazz and that's where I come in.

So here's my answer to the staying away from the muffin-with-as-many-calories-as-a-16oz-steak muffin: Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Mini Muffin

How Long Is This Gonna Take:

About a half hour or so, which includes the 10 minutes baking time

But Is It Good For Me:

This recipe makes 28 mini muffins, at 3 points+ per 2 muffins, but mine were pretty big. Could probably stretch to 36-48, at 1 point+ per each muffin.

What You'll Need:

What To Do:

1.  Preheat oven to 400F. Spray muffin pan with cooking spray or line with cups (I didn't due either due to my non-stick pans and lack of liner cups).

2.  In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder & salt.  In a small bowl, whisk together milk, banana & egg. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and combine.  Mix in chocolate chips.  

3.  Fill cups 2/3 full (I used my 2 tbsp cookie scoop. It made for a very full cup, but was incredibly easy and mess-free. I highly recommend getting one. The small one would've been better suited for this job though). Bake for 10 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test. Cool 1 minute before removing from pan. 

 

A Valentine's Day Treat

I've never really been into Valentine's Day.  I'm one of these girls that will spend V-Day at a bar chowing down cheeseburgers and Irish nachos (Oh, Murphy's how I miss you....).  Not exactly what most people would call "romantic", but it works for me.

However, I do love a themed dessert.  However, I'm kinda currently "cup-caked" out and since last week was a brownie, I didn't want to do something chocolate.  However, I always bring my dessert creations into work (or send them off with Marshall), so its always best do make something that doesn't require cutting or a plate.

Soooo......

Cookies it is!  I've always loved those peanut butter cookies with the Hershey kisses on top.  And when I came across these heart-shaped chocolates in the store, I knew I had a winning idea.  However, most traditional PB cookie recipes include shortening, tons of sugar and flour, plus PB (duh!) which is incredibly high in fat.  Yeah- that definitely wouldn't be too WW friendly.  So I debated....could I really come up with a recipe that would a) bake up like a cookie b) be pseudo-diet friendly and c) actually taste good??

Well, I was going to try....

I researched several recipes and all kinda mixed-and-matched and hoped it came out decent.

How Long Will It Take:

About an hour total

But Is It Good For Me:

Well, not every dessert recipe is going to be an awesome diet success as the brownies. But that aren't too terrible.  Recipe makes 2 dozen cookies, 3 points+ per cookie

What You'll Need:

What To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Beat together the PB, egg, Splenda, and vanilla.  The add flour and mix until incorporated. Cover and chill for 20 minutes.

2.  Roll into 1/2-3/4 inch balls and place on cookie sheets. Bake about 10 minutes or until lightly browned.  Remove from oven and immediately press a chocolate into the middle of each cookie.  Allow to cool on the sheet for a few mintues and then move to a wire cooling rack.

Whole Wheat Pizza

**UPDATE**
Cooking tip: Keep your pizza stone in your oven while it preheats and assemble your pizza/calzone on aluminum foil on top of a cookie sheet. (I know, sounds crazy). But then when it come time to put the pizza in the oven, the stone is hot, so the crust gets crispy and you can just slide the pizza on the foil from the sheet to the stone.   
******


Since going on Weight Watchers, there hasn't been too much that I've had to give up for sake of losing weight. The basis of the program is really making good choices and employing moderation (novel concept, huh?!) But I hadn't figured out how to work pizza back in my diet. 2-3 normal pieces would be what I normally am allowed for like lunch and dinner combined. Not worth it to me.


But in doing some searching, I came across a whole wheat crust recipe (from Green Lite Bites). I changed it up a little and it was quite a success. Now I can have my pizza and eat it too :-D

How Long Is This Gonna Take:
45 minutes for the crust, plus 15-20 minutes baking time


But Is It Good For Me:
If topped as I did, each piece is 3 points. A pizza makes 8 slices

What You'll Need:



What To Do:1. In a glass measuring cup (or something else microwave safe), microwave hot tap water for approximately 30 seconds or until it reaches ~120F. Measure out 1/3 cup water and combine with honey and yeast in a small bowl. Whisk together and set aside for 10 minutes. It will froth up. Then combine 1 cup flour, salt, and yeast mixture and mix with a wooden spoon. Its going to form "little balls" and there isn't going to be enough water in the mixture. Using your hands, form the dough into one ball, adding additional water (doesn't need to be hot) 1 tbsp at a time. At this point, the dough will be too wet.

2. Pre-heat oven to 425F. Turn out on to a floured surface, and knead, adding additional flour (up to the extra 1/4 cup) until no longer sticky. Spray small bowl with cooking spray and place dough inside. Cover with a towel and let rise for 25 minutes in a warm spot. (GLB says to throw it in the microwave with a warm cup of water- don't turn it on...it just serves as a warm spot. It worked like a charm for me).


3. Once dough is done rising, use a rolling pin to roll dough out thin. We rolled ours out larger than the stone and then slightly folded the edge over on itself to form a pseudo-crust edge. Sprinkle cornmeal on a pizza stone. Top pizza with pizza sauce, cheese, and veggies galore. I did half mushrooms, onions, and red and green peppers and half mushroom, onions, and Italian turkey sausage.

Good for You and Your Tastebuds Brownies

I was a searching the interwebs for a psuedo-healthy dessert I can make to bring to a Superbowl party and I kept coming across cake and brownie recipes that used black beans. Yeah, you read correctly- black beans....

I know- that was my first reaction too. DISGUSTING.

But, everyone who tried it raved about it, so I thought it couldn't hurt to give it a shot. (wow- 4 "it"s in one sentence...my honors English teacher would be so proud...)

Everyone had their own "recipe" so I thought I'd let my creative side take over and just wing it. Here's what I came up with: Healthified Mocha Brownies Cupcakes

How Long Is This Gonna Take:
About an hour and a half from start to finish


But Is It Good For Me?
The recipe makes 24 cupcakes, 3 points+ each. Not to bad considering its a frosted brownie :)

What You'll Need:

*Yes, I know the picture is of 4 TABLESPOONS of margarine, but after re-consulting several frosting recipes, only about 4 TEASPOONS is needed....sorry for any confusion!

What To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350F (or whatever your brownie directions say). Drain and rinse black beans, but keep the can. Once well rinsed, put beans back into their can and then fill to the top with water. Put beans and water into a blender and puree until smooth. (Its not going to look pretty, but stay with me. DON'T LOSE HOPE)

2. In a bowl, mix together brownie mix, bean puree, and 2 tsp coffee granules. DO NOT ADD any other ingredients that the box says to add. Bake brownies as directed on box (I put mine into cupcake tins because they're easier to transport and serve that way. If you want to do yours like this, I used my 2 tbsp "cookie scoop" to fill the tins. They aren't going to be as thick as normal cupcakes, but you don't want that...these are brownies & an inch thick brownie I think would kill a person. Bake for 25 minutes). And just take a taste of some of the leftover batter- chocolatey, coffee goodness. Not a hint of black beans. And you doubted me....

3. While the brownies bake, dissolve 1 1/4 tsp instant coffee in hot water in a medium bowl. Add powdered sugar and margarine and mix until smooth. If too thick, add an additional 2-4 tsp of water. Spread over completely cooled brownies. (I piped mine onto the "cupcakes"). Add a slight dusting of cocoa powder on top if desired.