Monthly Archives: February 2012

Black Bean Brownies

February 21, 2012 in Dessert, Low-Cal Dessert

When I first learned of the possibility of using black beans in a brownie recipe I was first confused, then disgusted, then intrigued. I made a batch of them in my Nutrition class at school and thought they were fantastic. And then promptly forgot about them. As I continue with my diet I’m looking for healthier ways to give in to my cravings without ruining all of my hard work. First I made those cheesecake bars (they do freeze well, btw) and now I’m moving on to chocolatey treats.

For this recipe I looked at tons of different black bean brownie recipes all over the internet, and then as I was putting the info into the myfitnesspal.com recipe calculator I tried my best to keep the calorie and fat content as low as possible. Hence the unsweetened apple sauce in place of any potential oils or butter and the low amount of sugar. Did these come out tasting like brownies? Hell yeah they did! And I even managed to sprinkle them with chocolate chips and keep each brownie to only 84 calories (112 calories if you cut them into 12 pieces instead of 16). I’m just awesome like that.

Before I give you the recipe, here’s a warning: the blend of beans, applesauce, and eggs will smell kind of gross, but once you add everything else it’ll be fine. Trust me. As a tip when buying applesauce, get one of those packs of 4oz cup so that you can set aside the rest for baking with later on.

Printer Version

Black Bean Brownies

Yield: 16 Brownies

Ingredients:

1 15.5oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
3 eggs
½ cup (4oz) unsweetened apple sauce
¼ cup cocoa powder
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. instant coffee
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 ½ tsp vanilla
¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
Preheat oven to 350

Lightly grease an 8×8 baking pan.

In a blender puree beans, eggs, and applesauce. Add cocoa powder, sugar, coffee, baking powder, salt, and vanilla and blend until mixed. Pour into baking dish, sprinkle evenly with chocolate chips, and bake for 30 minutes or until set. Let cool before cutting.

Nutrition info per brownie: Calories 84, Fat 2g, Carbs 12g, Protein 3g

Tags: , , ,
6 Comments »

Chicken and Spinach Stir-Fry

February 12, 2012 in Chicken

People who exercise a lot seem to be obsessed with protein. So here is a high protein, low-calorie, filling, easy, and delicious meal. It was also, conveniently, a good way for me to use up some leftover ingredients  :)

There isn’t much else to say about this recipe other than how awesome it is. Throughout the recipe I used cooking spray when I was changing the ingredients in the pan (you’ll see what I mean) instead of adding a lot of olive oil or vegetable oil because it’s easier to control and you really don’t need all that much oil. And the only time I really used salt and pepper was on the chicken because the soy sauce will add enough sodium for you when it all comes together.

For the brown rice I just used Minute Brown Rice and followed the directions using 2 cups of uncooked rice. You can do whatever you want, which is why I put the amount of cooked brown rice instead of giving you directions on how to cook rice.

Printer Version

Chicken and Spinach Stir-Fry

Serves: 4
Serving Size: about 1 ¼ cup

Ingredients:

2 2/3  cups cooked brown rice
2 whole eggs, whisked
1 ½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken tenders(or breasts), cut into ½ inch cubes
½ onion, finely chopped
8 oz. mushrooms, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
8 oz spinach, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp. Sesame oil
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. Hoisin sauce
1 tsp. vinegar
Cooking Spray
Salt and Pepper to taste

Lightly coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray, and scramble the eggs until cooked through, making sure to break it apart into small pieces. Remove from pan, spray again, and cook chicken until cooked through.

Meanwhile, make the sauce by mixing the sesame oil, soy sauce, hoisin, and vinegar in a small bowl.

Remove chicken from pan when cooked. Add onion, garlic, and mushrooms, and cook until tender. Add the spinach, cooking until wilted, then add the brown rice and stir to thoroughly incorporate it. Add the sauce, stir, and cook for 1 minute. Add in the cooked chicken and egg and heat through.

Nutritional info per serving:  Calories 409, Fat 10g, Carbs 39g, Protein 48g

 

Tags: , , , ,
Comments Off

Low-Calorie Lemon Cheesecake Bars

February 11, 2012 in Dessert, Low-Cal Dessert

I don’t make desserts for this site all that often, but I decided that in honor of my diet I needed to develop a low-calorie dessert to help me satisfy my rare craving for sweets. This is my first real attempt at making cheesecake and I think I did pretty well! There are a few changes I plan on making next time (don’t worry, I’ll let you know how it goes) because there’s a lot of potential for awesomeness here.

See! They actually worked!

I got the idea for making Lemon Cheesecake bars when I saw this recipe on Pinterest. It looked divine and got me craving lemon cheesecake, however they were a bit too high-calorie for me. So first I decided to change the crust. I went with a crust from a Low-Fat Cheesecake recipe on Food Network’s website. After that, I wanted the filling to be lower in calories as well, and used some measurements from a recipe I found on yummly.com. I made some of my own special changes, and a recipe was developed!

These came out absolutely delicious, especially at only 100 calories a piece. They were a little softer than I wanted them, so I didn’t try making a creme brulee top. Maybe I’ll take one of the ones I put in the freezer (for when the craving hits again) and see if it works better when frozen. Next time, to make them firmer, maybe I’ll try adding some egg whites and less lemon juice.

Printer Version

For the Crust:
9 whole low-fat Cinnamon Graham Crackers
2 Tbsp. unsalted Butter, melted
2 Tbsp. water
Cooking Spray

For the Filling:
8 oz. Neufchâtel Cheese, softened
¼ cup sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1 egg
1 Lemon, zested
¼ cup Lemon Juice

Preheat oven to 350.

In a food processor, pulse graham crackers until crumbled. Add butter, and 1-2 Tbsp water as needed until crumbs are thoroughly moistened. Spray an 8×8 inch baking pan lightly with cooking spray, line it with parchment paper, and spray again. Press graham cracker mixture into the bottom and bake for 8 minutes, or until browned. Let cool for at least 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whip the Neufchatel cheese and sugar until smooth. Add milk, egg, lemon zest, and lemon juice and thoroughly mix, scraping the sides. Pour onto graham cracker crust, and bake 20-25 minutes, or until completely set. Let cool, then refrigerate. Cut into 16 pieces, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

 

I know, I really need a new camera, but I did the best I could!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nutritional info per bar: Calories 100, Fat 5g, Carbs 10g, Protein 2g

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Tags: ,
2 Comments »

Logo design by Vic Yambao http://vicyambao.net/