by Lisa Lillien
Line a 12-cup muffin pan with baking cups. (You MUST use baking cups for this recipe.) Do not spray with nonstick spray.
Place cake mix in a medium mixing bowl. Add ½ cup water. Using an electric mixer, beat at low speed for 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium and mix for 1 minute. Let sit for 2 minutes.
Evenly distribute cake mixture among baking cups. Bake in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until tops are golden brown.
Allow cupcakes to cool completely, then carefully peel cupcakes from baking cups and plate them. Spread 1 tablespoon preserves over the top of each cupcake. Top each with 1 tablespoon Cool Whip. Evenly distribute sliced strawberries among the cupcake tops. Yay!
MAKES 12 SERVINGS
jelly-filled cupcakes
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PER SERVING (1 cupcake): 92 calories, 1.75g fat, 155mg sodium, 19g carbs, 0g fiber, 9.5g sugars, 0.5g protein
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Yum! Eat one of these most little cupcakes, and you, too, will be jelly-filled.
Ingredients
2 cups moist-style yellow cake mix (½ of an 18.25-ounce box)
1/3 cup no-sugar-added applesauce
¼ cup sugar-free strawberry preserves
½ teaspoon baking powder
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix and baking powder. Add applesauce and 1 cup water, then stir until blended.
Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray. Evenly distribute cake mixture among the cups. Bake in the oven for 20 to 22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
Meanwhile, place preserves in the bottom corner of a large plastic bag. Snip the corner off with scissors. This will be used to pipe the preserves into the cupcakes.
Remove cupcakes from the oven. Use a knife to carefully poke a small whole right in the middle of the top of each cupcake. Use the baggie to squeeze the preserves evenly into the holes you created in the cupcakes. Allow to cool completely, then enjoy!
MAKES 12 SERVINGS
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HG Tip! Feel free to experiment with your favorite flavors of sugar-free preserves.
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blueberry-packed lemon shorties
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PER SERVING (1 frosted cupcake): 113 calories, 1.5g fat, 241mg sodium, 19.5g carbs, <0.5g fiber, 11.5g sugars, 1.5g protein
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These are short and sweet…literally!
Ingredients
For Cupcakes
2 cups moist-style lemon cake mix (½ of an 18.25-ounce box)
1 cup diet lemon-lime soda
¾ cup fresh blueberries, divided
¼ cup fat-free liquid egg substitute
1 teaspoon baking powder
For Frosting
1 cup Cool Whip Free, thawed
½ cup skim milk
2 tablespoons sugar-free fat-free lemon instant pudding mix
Optional Topping
12 additional blueberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
To make frosting, combine pudding mix and skim milk in a medium mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer set to medium speed, mix for 1 to 2 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes. Mix in Cool Whip and refrigerate until cupcakes are ready to be frosted.
In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, soda, egg substitute, and baking powder. Stir until blended and lump-free.
Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray. Evenly distribute cake mixture among the cups.
Place half of the blueberries on top of the cake mixture in the cups, about 3 to 4 blueberries each. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes.
Remove pan from the oven and evenly distribute remaining blueberries among cups, pressing down slightly to keep the berries from rolling. Return pan to the oven and bake for an additional 7 minutes, or until cupcake edges are slightly browned.
Let cupcakes cool completely, then evenly distribute frosting among the tops. Add a blueberry to the top of each cupcake, if you like. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Lemonlicious!
MAKES 12 SERVINGS
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Chew on This
Blueberries were very important to northeastern Native American tribes; the berries were often used as medicine. They’re also great in cupcakes!
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banana cupcakes with pb frosting
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PER SERVING (1 frosted cupcake): 143 calories, 3.75g fat, 193mg sodium, 25g carbs, 0.5g fiber, 13g sugars, 2g protein
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It’s a rare combo in cupcake-land—banana and peanut butter! Pssst…the frosting is Sooooo peanut buttery!
Ingredients
For Cupcakes
2 cups moist-style yellow cake mix (½ of an 18.25-ounce box)
1 large banana, mashed
1/3 cup Gerber bananas (or another brand of pureed bananas found in the baby foods aisle)
½ teaspoon baking powder
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HG Heads Up!
These are best the day they are prepared
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For Frosting
¾ cup Cool Whip Free, thawed
¼ cup reduced-fat peanut butter, room temperature
Optional Topping
12 slices banana
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a small mixing bowl, combine peanut butter and Cool Whip, stirring until mixed well. Refrigerate until cupcakes are ready to be frosted.
In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix with baking powder and 1 cup water until mixed well. Add pureed bananas and stir thoroughly. Mix in mashed banana.
Line a 12-cup muffin pan with baking cups and/or spray with nonstick spray. Evenly distribute cake mixture among the cups.
Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
Once cupcakes have cooled completely, spread frosting evenly over the cupcake tops. Top each cupcake with a slice of banana, if you like. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
MAKES 12 SERVINGS
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For Weight Watchers POINTS® values and photos of all the recipes in this book, check out hungry-girl.com/book.
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chapter ten
sweet stuff
Desserts, Snacks, and Treats
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Yee-haaaa! Custards, puddings, pies, cakes, tartlets, snack mixes, and more. This chapter is overflowing with completely delicious, sweet dessert items. Not gonna waste a second more of your time on the setup. You get the idea. Now dive in and whip up some of these head-explodingly good treats!
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104-calorie crème brûlée
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PER SERVING (1 custard cup): 104 calories, 0.5g fat, 126mg sodium, 18.5g carbs, Og fiber, 17g sugars, 4.5g protein
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This recipe was co-developed with the QUEEN of crème brûlée herself, my pal (and crème brûlée cookbook author) Debbie!
Ingredients
1/3 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute
½ cup fat-free evaporated milk
½ cup fat-free half & half
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon brown sugar (not packed)
1½ teaspoons Coffee-mate Sugar Free French Vanilla powdered creamer
1¼ teaspoons vanilla extract
4 teaspoons granulated white sugar
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HG Heads Up!
You can find a cheapie-cheep kitchen torch at places like Bed Bath & Beyond or online. Or just enjoy this delicious custard without the crispy top!
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Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
In a medium unheated pot, combine evaporated milk, half & half, and brown sugar. Bring to medium heat, then stir and cook unti
l the sugar has dissolved and milk mixture is hot. Stir in the powdered creamer, blending well. Remove from heat.
In a large bowl, mix the egg substitute and vanilla extract together. Gradually whisk in the hot milk mixture. Set four 4-ounce baking ramekins or custard cups in a deep baking dish. Evenly distribute the custard mixture among the cups.
Carefully pour hot water into the baking dish, around the cups, being careful not to splash any water into the custards (or on yourself!). The water should come about halfway up the outsides of the custard cups. Carefully transfer pan to the oven and bake for about 28 minutes, until custards are set.
Remove custard cups from the oven, allow to cool, and then refrigerate until completely chilled, about 2 hours.
Once ready to serve, top each custard cup with 1 teaspoon white sugar. Using a hand-held butane kitchen torch, caramelize the sugar (in other words, blast it with fire ’til browned).
MAKES 4 SERVINGS
super-duper strawberry shortcake
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PER SERVING (entire dessert): 191 calories, 2g fat, 172mg sodium, 41.5g carbs, 2g fiber, 20.5g sugars, 3.5g protein
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Since strawberry shortcake is so good, there are THREE fabulous s-berry shortcake recipes in this book. This one has ice cream, there’s a cupcake version (Chapter 9), and we’ve even got a frozen bite-sized variety (Chapter 11). They’re all reeeally good…so ENJOY!
Ingredients
1 shortcake dessert shell
1/3 cup sliced strawberries
1/3 cup fat-free vanilla ice cream
2 tablespoons Fat Free Reddi-wip
1 tablespoon sugar-free strawberry preserves
Directions
In a small dish, combine preserves with ½ tablespoon hot water. Mix well to make a strawberry sauce and set aside.
Place one-third of the sliced strawberries in the center of the shortcake. Top with ice cream.
Place another third of the strawberries over the ice cream. (If you want to be all fancy, press the berry slices into the ice cream.) Drizzle strawberry sauce on top.
Squirt your dessert with Reddi-wip and top with remaining strawberries. (Again, feel free to get swanky and arrange the fruit prettily around the whipped topping.)
MAKES 1 SERVING
tiramisu pudding
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PER SERVING (entire dessert): 166 calories, 1g fat, 297mg sodium, 24g carbs, Og fiber, 7g sugars, 14g protein
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A few Key ingredients, a few swirls of a spoon, and—voilà—you’ve got tiramisu-flavored pudding. Yes!
Ingredients
½ cup fat-free ricotta cheese
One-half Jell-0 Sugar Free Vanilla Pudding Snack
¼ cup Cool Whip Free, thawed
2 tablespoons Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granulated)
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
Directions
In your favorite dessert bowl, combine ricotta cheese, pudding, Cool Whip, Splenda, and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth.
Sprinkle with cocoa powder. Dig in!
MAKES 1 SERVING
top banana bread
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PER SERVING (1/8th of recipe): 140 calories, 0.5g fat, 267mg sodium, 31g carbs, 3.75g fiber, 7g sugars, 5g protein
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I never EVER thought I could eat banana bread without downing an insane amount of fat and calories. This recipe is pretty amazing because you get a nice FAT CHUNK of sweet banana bread for not a lot of calories—and it has almost 4 grams of fiber to boot!
Ingredients
1¼ cups whole-wheat flour
¼ cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granulated)
1½ cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)
½ cup fat-free liquid egg substitute
½ cup no-sugar-added applesauce
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
Optional toppings: I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! Spray, Cool Whip Free
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, combine both types of flour, Splenda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt (in other words, all the dry ingredients). Mix well.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine mashed bananas, egg substitute, applesauce, and vanilla extract (all the wet ingredients). Mix thoroughly. Add the wet mixture to the bowl containing the dry ingredients and stir until just blended.
Spoon batter into a large loaf pan (about 9 inches by 5 inches) sprayed with nonstick spray. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean.
Allow the loaf to cool slightly, then cut into eight slices. Spritz with some spray butter or spread on some Cool Whip Free just before serving, if you like. YUM!
MAKES 8 SERVINGS
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Chew on This
The average slice of banana bread contains a ridiculous 326 calories and 12 grams fat, and it’s not uncommon for a slice to have TWICE as much fat as that (thanks to all those nuts!). That’s BANANAS!
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“swirls gone wild” cheesecake brownies
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PER SERVING (1 brownie): 133 calories, 1.75g fat, 312mg sodium, 29g carbs, 1.5g fiber, 7.5g sugars, 3g protein
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Not only are these delicious, they’re also kinda pretty!
Ingredients
One 18.25-ounce box devil’s food cake mix
One 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
6 ounces fat-free cream cheese, room temperature
¼ cup Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granulated)
1 teaspoon Coffee-mate Sugar Free French Vanilla powdered creamer
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix and pumpkin, stirring until completely blended. Batter will be very thick.
Spray a large baking pan (about 9 inches by 13 inches) with nonstick spray. Spread batter into the pan and set aside.
Place powdered creamer in a medium mixing bowl. Add 2 tablespoons warm water and stir until creamer has dissolved. Add cream cheese, Splenda, and vanilla extract.
Using a whisk, mix vigorously until completely blended, smooth, and lump-free.
Spoon cheesy mixture over the brownie batter and use a knife to swirl it in. Don’t worry if your swirl isn’t perfect—your brownies will taste delicious no matter what!
Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow brownies to cool completely. Cut into sixteen pieces. Enjoy!
MAKES 16 SERVINGS
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HG Fast Fact:
Rumor has it, a slice of Brownie Sundae Cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory contains 970 calories and 63 grams fat. THAT is brownie insanity!
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gooey crunch fruit tartlets
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PER SERVING (2 fruit tartlets): 86 calories, 1g fat, 120mg sodium, 18g carbs, 2g fiber, 6g sugars, 2g protein
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These tartlets are sweet, fruity, gooey, and crispy all at the same time. They’re also a great little party dessert…
Ingredients
For Fruit Filling
1½ cups strawberries, halved if large
1½ cups peeled peach slices
2 tablespoons Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granulated)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Dash salt
For Tartlets
12 small square wonton wrappers (found with the refrigerated Asian items in the supermarket)
&n
bsp; 48 sprays I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! Spray
Optional Toppings
Fat Free Reddi-wip
Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granulated)
Directions
In a small dish, combine Splenda, cornstarch, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and salt. Add ½ cup cold water and stir until ingredients have dissolved.
Set a medium pot sprayed with nonstick spray over medium-low heat. Add strawberries and peaches, then cover with the liquid mixture from the previous step.
Stirring continuously, cook until liquid mixture becomes uniform, thick, and syrupy. Transfer fruit filling to a storage container and let cool slightly. Refrigerate until completely chilled.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray and set aside.
On a clean dry surface, set out four wonton wrappers. Spray each with two sprays of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! and use your fingers to spread butter spray evenly over each wonton. Gently flip wontons and repeat. Carefully transfer wontons to the muffin pan, placing each in a muffin cup and pressing it in to form a cup shape. Repeat process with remaining wonton wrappers.
Bake wonton cups in the oven for 10 minutes, or until firm and brown. Once cool enough to handle, transfer wonton cups to a plate and allow to cool completely.
When it’s time to serve, evenly spoon chilled fruit filling into the wonton cups. Top each tartlet with a squirt of Reddi-wip or a sprinkling of Splenda, if desired. Enjoy immediately!
MAKES 6 SERVINGS
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For Weight Watchers POINTS® values and photos of all the recipes in this book, check out hungry-girl.com/book.