Light Cream Cheese Frosting

I came up with this recipe when trying to find a healthy but good tasting frosting recipe for my daughter’s first birthday cake- this one is tasty but not too sweet She sure liked it!

Ingredients:

One eight ounce tub light cream cheese
2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Directions:

Put both ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well by hand or with an electric mixer. Refrigerate if not serving immediately.

Makes 12 servings

Serving Size: 1/12 of recipe, little over 1 tablespoon Calories 45 Protein 1 g Carb 2 g Fiber 0 g Sugars 2 g Fat 3 g saturated fat 2 g Sodium 81 mg

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Yogurt Parfait Shots

Easy to make and a fun (and healthy) little dessert to serve your kids or guests.

Ingredients:

1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
4 teaspoons honey or 4 tablespoon light maple syrup
4 teaspoons chopped nuts
handful of berries (about 12 small raspberries, 8 black berries or 2-3 cut up strawberries, or mix n’ match)

Directions:

In a small bowl combine the yogurt and honey or maple syrup. Spoon the sweetened yogurt into four shot glasses, until each is half full, this will be about 2 tablespoons for each. Add 1 teaspoon of chopped nuts the center of each glass. Then fill the glasses with the rest of the yogurt (again about 2 tablespoons per glass) and top each with a few berries.

Makes 4 servings

Serving size: 1 shot Calories 70 Protein 5 g Carb 9 g Fiber 1 g Sugars 8 g Fat 1.5 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium 20 mg

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The BAD/BETTER/BEST of Foods Challenge Post # 8

CREAM CHEESE



BAD – regular cream cheese

Spread a standard serving of 2 tablespoons regular cream cheese on your bagel or toast and you’ll add 100 calories and 9-10 grams of fat, 70 percent of which is saturated fat - the “bad: kind that is linked to heart disease.

BETTER- Neufchatel cheese or whipped cream cheese

Try Neufchatel cheese or whipped cream cheese instead and 2 tablespoons will be 70-80 calories, 6-7 grams fat (1/3 less than regular cream cheese).

BEST- light cream cheese

2 tablespoons will only cost you 60 calories and 3-5 grams of fat (50 percent less than regular). Aside from on bagels and bread, try it in my Strawberry Cream Cheese and Spinach Artichoke Dip recipes.

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Spinach Artichoke Dip

A lower calorie version of a popular appetizer, great served warm or cold!

one 14_oz can artichokes, chopped (1.5 cups)
one 10 ounce package frozen spinach, thawed and water squeezed out (1 cup)
½ cup Greek yogurt
¼ cup light mayo (*use a gluten-free brand such as Best foods if you are on a gluten-free diet)
¼ cup light cream cheese (*use a gluten-free brand such as Trader Joes if you are on a gluten-free diet)
¼ cup parmesan cheese (*use a gluten-free brand such as Trader Joes if you are on a gluten-free diet)
¼ tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup mozzarella cheese (*use a gluten-free brand such as Trader Joes if you are on a gluten-free diet)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix everything except the mozzarella cheese in a medium bowl. Spoon into a small baking dish and bake for 30-35 minutes covered with foil. Uncover, sprinkle mozzarella cheese and bake for another 3-5 minutes until cheese is melted.

Makes 8 servings:

Serving size: 1/8th of recipe Calories 100 Protein 6 g Carb 6 g Fiber 1 g Sugars 1 g Fat 6 g saturated fat 2.5 g Sodium 290 mg

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Ridiculously Easy Sausage Pasta Toss

A great way to use up sausage if you don’t feel like firing up the grill.

Ingredients:

8 ounces chicken or turkey sausage (fully cooked kind, such as Aidell’s or Hillshire Farm)
1 eight ounce package of sliced mushrooms
1 cup of chopped canned artichokes (in water, NOT canned/jarred in oil, I use Trader Joes brand)
2 cups fresh baby spinach
¼ cup chopped olives (kalamata or black)
4 ounces whole wheat, 2 cups cooked pasta (penne or fusili works well)
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
¼ to ½ teaspoon crushed garlic (optional)
parmesan cheese (optional for topping)

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile slice the sausage into 1/4 inch thick rounds, and brown them in a large pan with the olive oil on medim-high heat for a few minutes. Add the mushrooms and artichokes and heat for another few minutes, then remove from heat until pasta is cooked. Once the pasta is done add it to the pan, plus the spinach, olives, basil and garlic and warm through on medium heat for 2-4 minutes. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese if desired.

Makes about 4 servings

Serving size: ¼ of recipe Calories 230 Protein 12 g Carb 25 g Fiber 3 g Sugars 2 g Fat 9 g saturated fat 2 g Sodium 610 mg

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In the News: Eating More Green Leafy Vegetables Like Spinach And Cabbage Could Lower Risk Of Type 2 Diabetes

Researchers from Leicester University in the United Kingdom did a systemic review/meta-analysis on this topic recently published in British Medical Journal, BMJ. They analyzed pooled data from six studies examining links between fruit and vegetable consumption and type 2 diabetes which suggested that increasing daily intake of green leafy vegetables such as spinach, cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli, could significantly lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and should be investigated further. To read a summary of this exciting research click HERE and you can check out the actual research results in BMJ by clicking HERE.

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Baked Carrot Fries

French fries? Forget them and try these for WAAAAAAY more antioxidants and less calories! Super easy to make too :)
Ingredients:

1 pound of carrots
cooking spray (*use a gluten-free brand such as Original PAM if you are on a gluten-free diet)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel the carrots and cut them into strips about in ¼ inch thick and a few inches long. Coat a baking pan with cooking spray and spread the carrots onto it. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake 15 minutes. Flip them over and coat them with a bit more cooking spray, salt and pepper and bake another 15 minutes until lightly browned.

Makes 4 servings:

Serving size: 1/4th of recipe Calories 45 Protein 1 g Carb 11 g Fiber 3 g Sugars 5 g Fat 0 g saturated fat 0 g Sodium 370 mg (sodium based on adding ½ teaspoon of salt to whole recipe)

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