Buffalo Hummus

1 can Garbanzo Beans, rinsed and drained

1 tablespoon Penzey's Northwoods Seasoning

2 tablespoons Lemon Juice

2 tablespoons Frank's Red Hot Sauce

2 tablespoons water

1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles

Combine above ingredients in food processor. Process until smooth.

Serve with raw veggies, crackers, or pretzel crisps.

Caramel Apple Crepe Cups

2 Crepes

1 can apple pie filling

1 cup caramel bits

Whip Cream

Cinnamon Sugar

Preheat oven to 325.

Turn two juice glasses upside down on a baking sheet. Spray the glasses with cooking spray. Place crepes over the cups evenly. Press sides gently against glass. Spray crepes lightly with cooking spray.

Bake 6-8 minutes, until browned. Carefully remove crepe cups from glass. Cool on wire rack while preparing filling.

In a small sauce pan combine apple pie filling and caramel bits. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally until caramel melts.

Spoon filling into crepe cups. Top with whip cream and cinnamon sugar.

Serve immediately.

Chicken Taco Bake

1 pound ground chicken

1 package taco seasoning

2/3 cup water

1 can fat free refried beans

1 can biscuits

6 fat free cheese slices

Preheat oven to 350.

Brown chicken. Stir in water and taco seasoning.

Spray a square baking dish with cooking spray. Place biscuits in bottom of pan. Press them together with your fingers so the bottom of the pan is completely covered.

Spread beans over biscuit dough.

Spread chicken taco meat on top of beans.

Top with cheese.

Bake 25-30 minutes.

Impossibly Easy Banana Custard Pie

Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker

2 bananas, mashed
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 reduced fat Bisquick mix
1/8 cup Splenda blend sugar
1 tablespoon applesauce

1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup All Whites (2 eggs)
1 can (14 oz) fat free sweetened condensed milk
fat free/sugar free Caramel topping

Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease 9-inch glass pie plate with cooking spray. In small bowl, mix bananas and lemon juice; set aside.

In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients except whipped topping and caramel topping until blended. Add banana mixture; stir until blended. Pour into pie plate.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown and knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate about 2 hours or until chilled.

Drizzle with caramel topping before serving. Store covered in refrigerator.

Honey BBQ Beer Butt Chicken

1 whole chicken

1 tablespoon BBQ seasoning

1/4 cup honey + 1 tablespoon, divided

1 tablespoon water

1 can beer

1 tablespoon butter spray

Preheat oven to 350.

Line a dish with foil. Pour about 1/2 the beer in the pan.

Loosen skin of chicken. Combine BBQ seasoning, 1/4 cup honey, and water in small bowl. Rub under skin of chicken. Pour remaining honey mixture in the beer can.

Stand chicken on can.

Combine 1 tablespoon honey with butter spray. Brush on skin of chicken.

Bake 1 hour 30 minutes, or until white meat reaches 170 degrees and dark meat reaches 180.

Root Beer Pulled Pork

Adapted from All Recipes

1 Boston Butt

12 oz bottle Root Beer

bbq sauce

Place the boston butt in a slow cooker; pour the root beer over the meat. Cover and cook on low until well cooked, 8 to 10 hours.

Drain well. Shred meat and discard fat.

Stir in barbecue sauce. Cook an additional 1-2 hours on low.

Grilled Italian Broccoli

1 head broccoli, cleaned and cut

1/2 cup fat free Italian dressing

Place broccoli on a large sheet of foil. Pour Italian dressing on broccoli. Wrap tightly in foil.

Grill on top rack for 30 minutes.

Cinnamon Apple Bread Pudding

1/2 loaf cinnamon swirl bread, cut into 1 inch chunks

1 large apple, peeled & diced

1/3 cup All Whites (2 eggs)

12 ounce can fat free evaporated milk

1/3 cup packed Splenda brown sugar blend

1 tablespoon vanilla

vanilla ice cream

Spray a 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

Combine bread pieces and apple chunks; spread into bottom of dish.

Whisk eggs in a mixing bowl until foamy. Add evaporated milk, brown sugar, and vanilla; whisk until sugar dissolves.Pour mixture over bread. Push down bread with the back of a spoon to make sure all of it is soaked with the egg mixture.

Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Bake at 350 degrees 35 -40 minutes or until puffed and set in center.

Dulce de Leche Tartlets

Adapted from Southern Living, May 2008

1 package refrigerated piecrust

1 package cream cheese, softened

1 can dulce de leche

¼ cup Fat Free French Vanilla Coffee Mate

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425°.

Unroll piecrust on a flat surface. Cut into 24 rounds using a 3-inch round cutter.

Press rounds onto bottoms of ungreased miniature muffin cups. (Dough will come slightly up sides, forming a cup.)

Prick bottom of each dough circle 4 times with a fork.

Bake at 425° for 6 to 8 minutes or until golden.

Remove from pans to a wire rack, and let cool 15 minutes before filling.

Note: To make ahead, store baked tartlet shells in an airtight container in refrigerator for up to 2 days or freeze up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature 2 hours before filling.

Beat cream cheese, dulce de leche, cream, and cinnamon at medium speed with an electric mixer until combined. Beat at high speed 1 to 2 minutes or until creamy, stopping to scrape down sides.

Spoon cream cheese mixture into a 1-qt. heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag (do not seal). Snip 1 corner of bag to make a small hole. Pipe cream cheese mixture evenly into Flaky Tartlet Shells.

Foil Pack Sweet Potatoes

2 sweet potatoes, cubed (Can also sub butternut squash)

1/4 cup honey

1/8 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend

1 tsp cinnamon

Combine honey, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Toss with sweet potatoes.

Pour sweet potatoes on a double layer of foil. Wrap tightly.

Grill 25-30 minutes.

Reduced Sugar/Fat Vanilla Bean Tractor Cake

1 Pillsbury Reduced Sugar Pillsbury White Cake Mix

1 cup water

1/3 cup apple sauce

9 tablespoons All Whites

2 Vanilla Beans, sliced in half and seeds scraped

Combine above ingredients and bake according to directions on box.

Quick & Easy Cobbler

Adapted from Aunt Charlotte

1/2 cup Splenda Sugar Blend

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

dash of ground cloves

dash of ground nutmeg

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon butter, melted

2 cups fruit

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix Splenda, flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg in a bowl. Add in milk and butter. Stir until well mixed.

Pour batter in 8 x 8 pan. Put fruit on top.

Bake 35-40 minutes.

Zucchini Sticks

Adapted from Ashlee's Cooking

2 egg whites

1 cup Italian style panko bread crumbs

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

¼ tsp. Old Bay seasoning

1 large zucchini, julienned

Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

Whip egg whites in a bowl until they foam.

Combine bread crumbs, salt, cayenne pepper, and Old Bay seasoning in a shallow dish.

Toss zucchini in the egg whites, then toss in the bread crumbs. Place on baking sheet. Sprinkle Parmesan on top. Spray tops lightly with cooking spray.

Bake 15-20 minutes, until crispy and brown.

Granola

Adapted from AllRecipes

4 cups oats
1 cup wheat germ
3/4 cup flax seed meal
1/3 cup Splenda brown sugar blend
1 cup sliced almonds
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup apple sauce
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1/2 cup water

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F

In a large bowl, mix together the oats, wheat germ, flax seed meal, Splenda brown sugar blend, almonds, and cinnamon.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the apple sauce, honey, vanilla bean paste, and water.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry, and mix until evenly blended.

Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper. Spread granola evenly on pan.

Bake for 1 hour in the preheated oven, stirring every 20 minutes, or until toasted.

Let cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Banana Butterscotch Bread Pudding

4 slices Breadsmith Vanilla Egg Bread, torn into small pieces (If using store bought bread it would probably be about half a loaf)
2 bananas, diced
6 tablespoons All Whites (2 eggs)
12 ounce can fat free evaporated milk
1/2 cup packed Splenda brown sugar blend
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup butterscotch chips
vanilla ice cream

Spray a 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

Combine bread pieces and banana chunks; spread into bottom of dish.

Whisk eggs in a mixing bowl until foamy. Add evaporated milk, brown sugar, vanilla paste and cinnamon; whisk until sugar dissolves.

Pour mixture over bread. Push down bread with the back of a spoon to make sure all of it is soaked with the egg mixture.

Sprinkle butterscotch chips over the top of bread.

Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Bake at 350 degrees 35 -40 minutes or until puffed and set in center.

Serve warm with ice cream.

Toasted Coconut Butterscotch Pie Ice Cream

1-1/2 cups Fat Free Half & Half

1-1/2 cups Fat Free Milk

1 package Sugar Free Instant Butterscotch Pudding

1 cup crushed graham crackers

1 cup toasted coconut

Combine half & half, milk, and pudding mix. Pour in ice cream maker. Run 15-20 minutes.

Add graham crackers and coconut. Run 5-10 more minutes or until desired consistency.

Spicy Chicken Sausage Crescents

Adapted from Pillsbury

1 pack Spicy Chicken Sausage (We get it at Trader Joes. It comes in a 4 pack)

1 can reduced fat crescent rolls

4 slices Fat Free Cheese

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Cut cheese slices in half

Slit sausage to within 1/2 inch of ends; insert 2 strips of cheese into each slit.

Press seems of 2 triangles together to form a rectangle. Repeat with remaining dough to form 3 more rectangles. Wrap around sausages.

Place on ungreased cookie sheet, cheese side up.

Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Spicy Mac & Cheese

16 oz pasta
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups fat free buttermilk
12 oz reduced fat cream cheese
8 oz 2% Velveeta, cubed

1 teaspoon chili paste

Preheat oven to 400.

Cook pasta as directed; drain and set aside.

Combine flour and buttermilk in pot over medium-high heat. Stir in cream cheese, Velveeta, and chili paste. Stir occasionally until all the cheese melts.

Stir pasta into cheese sauce.

Pour into greased casserole dish.

Bake 20 minutes.

Soda Pop & Soy Marinade

Adapted from Southern Living June 2008

1 cup Sprite

1 tablespoon brown sugar

3 tablespoons Lite Soy Sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

1 teaspoon roasted minced garlic

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Combine above ingredients and pour over meat. Marinate overnight.

Stawberry Tart

Inspired by La Palette's Strawberry Tart from Baking From My Home To Yours

Reduced Fat Vanilla Wafer Crust
Strawberry Vanilla Jam
Strawberries, cleaned and cut in half
Fat Free Cool Whip

Bake and cool crust.

Spread jam over bottom of crust.
Place strawberries on top of jam.
Put a dollop of cool whip on top.

Dulce de Leche Apple Banana Cake

1/2 cup applesauce

2 eggs

1/2 cup Splenda Blend sugar

1 can Dulce de Leche (13.4 oz)

1-1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Dash of ground cloves

1 apple, cored and chopped

1 banana, chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 6 x 8 pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl mix applesauce, eggs, Splenda blend, and Dulce de Leche. Add flour, soda, cinnamon, and cloves. Fold in apple and banana.

Spread in prepared pan.

Bake 35-40 minutes at 350 or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Notes: The center was molten. It was so good! Next time I think I will make this in ramekins. Day two the cake was just as good! I tossed it in the microwave for 30 seconds to warm it up. Yum!

Banana-Filled Graham Cracker Pancakes

Recipe from Williams-Sonoma
4 oz. graham crackers, broken into pieces (I used 8 Trader Joes squares)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
3 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs, separated
1 3/4 cups buttermilk
2 bananas, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice

Cooking Spray

Put the graham crackers in a blender and blend on high until fine and powdery. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, 3 Tbs. of the sugar and the salt and pulse to combine.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and buttermilk. Whisk the flour mixture into the yolk mixture; the batter will be lumpy.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until stiff but not dry peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, gently stir the whites into the batter in 2 additions.

Spray wells of filled-pancake pan with cooking spray. Set over medium heat and heat until the butter begins to bubble. Pour 2 tsp. batter into each well. Place 3 banana pieces in the center of each pancake and top with 1 tsp. batter. Cook until the bottoms are golden brown and crispy, 3 to 5 minutes. Using 2 skewers, flip the pancakes over and cook until golden and crispy, about 3 minutes more. Transfer the pancakes to a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Makes about 35.

Creamy Pepperoni Rapid Risotto

Adapted from Southern Living June 2008

1/4 cup minced onion

2 tablespoons light butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon roasted minced garlic

1 cup uncooked Arborio rice

2-3/4 cups fat free chicken broth

1/4 cup dry white wine

4 oz cream cheese

1/4-1/2 cup fat free chicken broth

1/2 cup diced turkey pepperoni

Stir together first 4 ingredients in a medium-size microwave bowl. Microwave on high 3 minutes. Stir in rice, and microwave on high 2 minutes.

Stir in 2-3/4 cup chicken broth and wine. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Microwave on high 9 minutes. Carefully swirl bowl without uncovering, and microwave on high 8 minutes. Carefully remove and discard plastic wrap. Stir in cream cheese, 1/4 cup broth, and pepperoni; stirring 30 seconds to 1 minute until creamy. Add 1/4 cup broth, 1 tablespoon at a time, if necessary to reach desired consistency.

Crescent Chicken Rounds

Adapted from http://www.pillsbury.com/

4 oz cream cheese, softened
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 tablespoon minced onion
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 cup pineapple, crushed
1 can reduced fat Crescent Dinner Rolls
cooking spray
Panko bread crumbs

Heat oven to 350°F. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add chicken, minced onion, salt, pepper, milk and pineapple; mix well.

Separate dough into 4 rectangles. Firmly press perforations to seal. Spoon 1/2 cup chicken mixture onto center of each rectangle. Pull 4 corners of dough to center of chicken mixture; twist firmly. Pinch edges to seal. Place in cooking dish. spray tops of sandwiches with cooking spray; sprinkle with bread crumbs.

Bake at 350°F. for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Pineapple Peach Freezer Jam

1 box Bell No Sugar Needed Fruit Pectin

1-3/4 cup reduced sugar Apple Juice

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2-1/2 cups peaches, peeled, pitted, and finely chopped

1-1/2 cups pineapple, finely chopped

In a large measuring cup with a pourable spout combine peaches and pineapple.

Combine pectin, apple juice, and lemon juice in a saucepan. Bring to a full boil over medium-high heat. Stir constantly for 1 minute.

Immediately add pectin mixture to fruit. Stir until completely combined, about 2 minutes.

Pour into prepared containers. Store in refrigerator until set, no longer than 24 hours. Jam will be good in the refrigerator for 3 weeks or freezer for a year.

Reduced Fat Vanilla Wafer Crust

Used to make 2 small crusts in mini springform pans. I didn't press the crust evenly on the sides of the pan.

2/3 box Reduced Fat Vanilla Wafers, finely crushed

2 tablespoons Turbino Sugar

4 tablespoons Light Butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine wafer crumbs, sugar, and butter in a small bowl with a fork. Divide crumb mixture evenly among pans. Press into bottom and up the sides of the pan. (It will not reach the top of the pan. )

Bake for 10-12 minutes.

When ready to remove pan use a hairdryer to heat the outside of the pan for easy release.

French Butterscotch Tannies

Adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours.

Ingredients
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup oatmeal
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
1-1/2 sticks butter, at room temperature and cut into 12 pieces
3 large eggs, at room temperature (I used All Whites)
1/2 cup Splenda Sugar Blend


Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 300°F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with non stick foil.


Whisk together the flour, salt and cinnamon.


Put the butterscotch in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Slowly and gently melt the butterscotch, stirring occasionally. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and add the butter, stirring so that it melts. It's important that the butterscotch and butter not get very hot. However, if the butter is not melting, you can put the bowl back over the still-hot water for a minute. If you've got a couple of little bits of unmelted butter, leave them—it's better to have a few bits than to overheat the whole. Set the butterscotch aside for the moment.


Working with a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the eggs and Splenda sugar blend until they are thick and pale, about 2 minutes. Lower the mixer speed and pour in the butterscotch-butter, mixing only until it is incorporated—you'll have a thick, creamy batter. Add the dry ingredients and mix at low speed for about 30 seconds—the dry ingredients won't be completely incorporated and that's fine. Finish folding in the dry ingredients by hand with a rubber spatula, then fold in the oatmeal.


Scrape the batter into the pan and bake 50 to 60 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and allow the tannies to cool to warm or room temperature.

Carefully lift the tannies out of the pan, using the foil edges as handles, and transfer to a cutting board. With a long-bladed knife, cut the tannies into 16 squares, each roughly 2 inches on a side, taking care not to cut through the foil.

Storing: Wrapped well, these can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months.