Blueberry Preserve

I love jam, who doesn't? What I don't love is that most recipes call for a one to one ratio of sugar to fruit. Isn't fruit sweet enough? This is why I made this recipe. I call is a preserve because it's not quite as thick as jam but not as thin as a sauce. This is not only great on toast and pancakes but also on ice cream and definitely in yogurt. If you don't want to go through the trouble of canning it, you can either make a small batch to keep in the fridge or freeze a large batch in small air tight containers and defrost as needed!

All you need is blueberries! (And canning supplies if you are canning). 

1 cup blueberries = 1/2 cup preserve

Clean blueberries.

 Heat jars and lids.

Place blueberries in large pot over medium heat. Stir frequently. As you stir some blueberries will start to squish.

 

Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

Boil 5-10minutes or more depending on the thickness desired (boil longer = thicker)

 

Ladle hot jam into hot jars and cover with hot lid and ring. Allow to cool and make sure all jars seal. Enjoy!

 

Blueberry Field

 This is a simple, delicious, low calorie dessert that is a bit cheesecakey.

Put dates, almonds, peanuts and puffed wheat into a food processor.

 

Process until it sticks together and can be formed with your hand. About 1-2 minutes.

 

Spread mixture in bottom of 9x13 or 12x12 dish.

 

Rinse out food processor and add cream cheese, milk and lemon juice. Blend.

 

In a large bowl, add cream cheese mixture and fold in Cool Whip.

 

Spread mixture over almond mixture.

 

Layer blueberries on top.

 

Chill 2+ hours.

Blueberry Field

1 cup pitted dates

1/2 cup peanuts

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 cup puffed wheat

1 1/2 cups (1 1/2 containers) low fat cream cheese

1 tbsp milk

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 large tub fat free Cool Whip

* You can substitute almonds and peanuts for any other nut

Makes 24 servings

Calories: 112 Fat: 5.3g Cholesterol: 10mg Sodium: 88.7mg Carbs: 11/8g Fiber: 1.3g

Sugars: 6.8g Protein: 2.5g

Hard Boiled Egg White

Eggs are high in protein and make for a great lunch but sometimes I rather not have the added calories and cholesterol of the yolk. Yes I could easily hard boil a couple eggs and simply throw out the yolk but that seems rather wasteful so I cam up with this idea.

You'll Need

Small glass jar

Tight fitting lid*

Egg whites

*If using a canning jar and lid, use a previously use lid or else you'll end up with canned egg whites!

Place desired amount of egg white in to jar. I did a quarter cup which is equal to two egg whites. Place lid on jar and tighten.

 

Fill a deep pot with warm water. Submerge the filled jar into the warm water, allow to sit for about a minute to warm the jar and egg white. Turn stove to a medium heat. Boil for about 10 minutes.

*Do not put jar into already boiling water as it will break (found this out the hard way!)*

Carefully remove jar from boiling water and allow to cool or run under warm water until you are able to open the lid.

Scoop out egg whites into a bowl and add with your favorite egg salad mix-ins. I added a little low fat mayo, mustard and cayenne pepper.

 

I make mine into a pita with homemade guacamole, pickles, cheese and spinach.

Chocolate Dipped Fruit Bouquet

Easy but effective, chocolate dipped fruit is a healthier option you can bring to your next gathering or give as a gift.

You'll Need:

Fruit ( I used strawberries and bananas)

Chocolate (I used dark chocolate chips)

Nuts ( I used walnuts and pistachios)

Coconut

Skewers

To melt chocolate, use a double boiler. If you do not have one, do what I did and use a metal bowl bigger than your pot. Make sure no water gets into your chocolate.

 

Crush nuts. Place is containers suitable for dipping.

 

Dip tip of skewer into chocolate.

 

Place chocolate end into fruit.

 

Place skewered fruit into a cup to allow chocolate to set (5 minutes or so)

 

Dip fruit into chocolate and then into a topping. If your fruit doesn't stay on the skewer while dipping, try using a spatula to spread chocolate over fruit.

 

Repeat with all fruit. Place in glasses to allow chocolate to set. 

 

Arrange in a glass or vase, add a ribbon if you like. Tada! A bouquet anyone would love.

 

Packed Bran Muffins

A lot of muffins these days are higher in fat and calories than doughnuts and cake but this recipe really puts the healthiness back into muffins and obviously tastes great too!

Preheat over to 350F. In a large bowl, combine whole wheat flour, ground flax, oats bran, cinnamon baking soda and baking powder. Set aside. 

In a medium bowl, combine egg, egg white, milk, sugar, honey and applesauce. Whisk. Set aside.

 

Using a food processor or by hand, grate apples and carrots. Set aside.

 

Make a well in dry ingredients and pour in wet mixture. Mix well!

 

Add carrot, apple, walnuts, raisins and dried cranberries. Combine.

 Drop large spoonfuls into line muffin tin.

 Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Packed Bran Muffins

1 1/2 cups wheal wheat flour

3/4 cup ground flax

3/4 cup oat bran

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1 egg

1 egg white

3/4 cup milk (any kind - I used coconut)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp honey

1/2 cup applesauce

2 cups carrots, grated

1 apple, grated

1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

Makes 25 muffins

Nutritional Info: Calories-98 Fat- 2.6g Carbs- 18.2g Fiber- 3.1g Sugar- 9.1g Protein- 3.1g 

Whole Wheat Buns

Making bread used to scare me because I was always afraid of the yeast not working but this recipe makes it super easy and almost foolproof!

Measure room temperature applesauce, leaving a small amount of room in the measuring cup.

 

Add oil to fill cup.

In a large bowl, add warm water, yeast, sugar and applesauce-oil mixture. Whisk well. Set aside for about 15 minutes to allow yeast to grow.

 

Meanwhile, mix white flour and whole wheat flour in medium bowl. I find that if you don't add some white flour that the buns don't rise as well.

 

Once yeast has grown, whisk in an egg.

 

Gradually add flour and mix.

 

Once dough starts to form, knead on floured counter.

 

Knead for about 5 minutes. Dough will have a very slight stick to it still. 

*Depending on your flour and climate, you may not need all the flour*

Break off pieces of dough into egg sized balls

 

Place, far a part, on greased cookie sheets.

 

Cover buns and place somewhere somewhat warm. It just happened to be a sunny day so I put them outside.

 

Depending on the ambient temperature, buns will take anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour to rise completely. Cook buns at 400F degrees for 8 minutes or until golden on top. Rotate pans half way through.

 

Enjoy! Makes 16 buns.

 

Whole Wheat Buns

Apple sauce + oil = 1/3 cup

2 tbsp dry active yeast

1 cup warm water

1.5 tbsp sugar

1 egg

1.5 cups white flour

2.5 cups whole wheat flour

Per bun:   Calories: 115    Fat: 2.1g    Carbs: 21.3g  (Fiber 3.6g, Sugars 1.7g)   Protein: 4.6g 

Here is a video with a slightly different recipe; using all oil and a little more sugar to make a sweeter bun. Can definitely substitute applesauce for oil.