Sugar N Spice Baked Apples

I am a person who has a sweet tooth and often likes to have something sweet at the end of the day. Generally I try to serve myself lower calorie, healthier options for my dessert the majority of the time. While cookies, cake, pie, and other sweets have their place, they are not things I want to be eating large amounts of for the sake of my health. I tend to save those for the weekends, holidays, and other special times with friends and family. On those "regular" nights I go for healthier desserts or snacks. Here is one I have been enjoying for years, ever since my days of doing Weight Watchers in my early 20's.

Sugar N Spice Baked Apples - Serves 2

Ingredients:

* 2 apples (I used gala apples today, but most kinds of apples work for this)
* 1 TBSP of dark brown sugar, packed
* 1/4 tsp of ground cinnamon
* 1/4 tsp of pumpkin pie spice
* Cooking spray or about 1 TBSP of melted butter/margarine

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Wash and dry apples. Cut the apples in half and remove the core but leave any stems intact.
3. Place apples on a small, non-stick cookie sheet with the cut, flat side facing up.
4. Mix brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon together in a small bowl.
5. Spray the top of each apple with cooking spray or brush each top with melted butter.
6. Coat each apple half with sugar and spice mixture.
6. Bake apples for 25-30 minutes or until apples are fork tender and soft.

These can be eaten on their own or served with the following for a tasty treat: Vanilla ice cream, vanilla yogurt (greek or regular), or whipped cream. Enjoy this healthy, but still sweet dessert.

Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal Bars

The inspiration for this came from making baked oatmeal for the first time from this recipe using pumpkin puree in place of the applesauce:

http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2011/09/09/cinnamon-roll-baked-oatmeal/

Was so good, that I knew I had to make more baked oatmeal for the upcoming week. I often make weekday breakfasts for at least the first 2-3 days of the week on Sundays as well as some lunches. Gets me set to start the week on the right foot, especially since I am not much of a morning person and have a very busy schedule between work, school, and other activities throughout the week. I also had a few bananas that were very spotty and needed to be used. Hence the inspiration for a banana bread baked oatmeal. Here is the recipe:

Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal Bars - Makes 12 medium sized bars

Ingredients:

* 3 very ripe medium sized bananas, mashed or pureed (a fork, immersion blender, or food processor will work)
* 2 large eggs
* 1 cup of milk (any kind of milk that you like should work)
* 3 cups of old fashioned rolled oats (do not use instant or steel cut oats)
* 1/4 cup of dark brown sugar, not packed (may need more sugar if bananas are not as ripe)
* 1/4 tsp of salt
* 1 tsp of baking powder
* 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
* 1/2 tsp of cinnamon
* Cooking spray (I used canola oil cooking spray)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a large bowl combine dry ingredients together (oatmeal, cinnamon, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt).
3. In a smaller bowl mix eggs, milk, vanilla, and mashed banana together.
4. Combine wet and dry ingredients together and mix well.

5. Spray 13 X 9 inch pan with cooking spray
6. Pour mixture into the pan and place the pan in the oven.
7. Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown.

8. Let oatmeal cool for 5-10 minutes.

9. Slice and serve hot or cold with milk or on its own. Store leftovers in the refrigerator. Makes a great breakfast or healthy dessert. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Spice Pudding

Fall is here and the leaves are starting to change. The pumpkin obsession I have this time of year along with many others around me is back. Finding healthier ways to enjoy this tasty squash/flavoring is not always easy, but this quick and easy pudding is low in calories, high in fiber, and filling. This treat makes a great dessert to have on a warm, breezy fall day.

Pumpkin Spice Pudding - Serves 4 (about 3/4 cup per serving)

Ingredients:

* 1 1.5 oz box of vanilla instant pudding (I used sugar free, fat free mix)
* 1 15 oz can of pumpkin (not the sweetened, pumpkin pie kind)
* 1 1/2 Cups of milk (I recommend only using dairy milk, pudding may not set with non-dairy milk)
* 1/2 tsp of pumpkin pie spice (can be found in the baking aisle)
* 1/4 tsp of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Add pudding mix and spices to a large bowl and mix dry ingredients together.
2. Add milk and canned pumpkin into the bowl and mix everything together with a hand mixer or immersion blender.
3. Cover the bowl and place pudding in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
4. Serve in smaller bowls. Enjoy on its own or with a small amount of whipped cream on top and/or graham crackers.

Sparkling Peach Sorbet

I have been enjoying the fresh peaches and am starting to get sad about them disappearing soon. While I love some of the fall produce like winter squashes and apples, summer fruits like peaches are wonderful. Here is an easy sorbet you can make in a minute or two without an ice cream maker that is slightly sophisticated and refreshing on a summer evening.

Sparkling Peach Sorbet - Makes 1 bigger serving or 2 smaller servings

Ingredients:

* 2 large sliced and peeled peaches, frozen or 3 cups of frozen peach slices
* 1/4 cup (2oz) of your favorite sparkling white wine (can use regular white wine also) or sparkling apple cider (I used verdi spumante)
* Sweetener of your choice if peaches aren't completely ripe (about 1/2-1 tsp or to taste)

Directions:

1. Freeze sliced peaches for at least 3-4 hours if using non-frozen ones.
2. Add peaches and sparking wine to food processor.
3. Blend ingredients together into everything is fully blended.
4. Taste and add sweetener if needed, then blend sweetener with peaches and sparkling wine.
5. Serve in bowl and enjoy!

 
Sorry for the less than perfect picture, the sorbet was not easy to get to look pretty. This is a nice alternative to water ice or a packaged sorbet or sherbet , which usually has a lot more sugar that this sorbet.

Strawberry Sugar Cookies

I love dessert in general as my friends and family will tell you, I have a major sweet tooth. While I don't eat sweets as often as I used to for health reasons, I still enjoy smaller amounts of sweets a few times a week and them in smaller portions or in lower calorie ways that I like. I believe in practicing moderation with food in general. Eating healthy is easier for me when I eat foods I like, eat a wide variety of foods, and can still have treats and indulgences. Here is a recipe for cookies I made today using fresh strawberries and a lower fat sugar cookie dough. Not super healthy, but not as bad as some other cookie recipes out there. They taste a lot like homemade strawberry shortcake, but in cookie form.

Strawberry Sugar Cookies - makes about 12 larger cookies

Ingredients:

• 5 tbsp butter, softened
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, unpacked
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 strawberries sliced into halves, lengthwise
• 1 1/2 TBSP of sugar to sprinkle on cookies (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Using a mixer, beat butter and sugar until creamy. Then add egg and vanilla into the bowl, mixing well.
3. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually stir flour mixture into the mixing bowl until dough forms.
4. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray and form 12 cookie balls on the cookie sheet. Each cookie ball should be about 2 TBSP of cookie dough.
5. Press a slice into each cookie, this will flatten the cookie into a flatter, round shape.
6. Sprinkle each cookie with 1/8 tsp of sugar. Cookies should look like this before heading to the oven:

7. Cook in oven for about 8-12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.
8. Remove cookies from pan onto a cooling rack or a large plate. Should be ready to eat once they cool for at least 15-30 minutes. Enjoy!