Thursday, June 27, 2013

Great Tasting Ranch Dressing!

I love my ranch dressing but hate how unhealthy it is so I searched for a realistic replacement that my pallet would accept.  I finally found it! Super simple to make and tastes better than the real thing!

1/2 cup Plain Greek Yogurt
 and about 1/4 Packet Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Seasoning (or season to taste)
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Mix these together in a small resealable bowl and it lasts for about 4 days in the frig...just simply stir it with each use! Oh it's just so good!



Simply the BEST Peanut Butter Cookies!

Ok y'all....these are the greatest! Not only are these Peanut Butter Cookies easy to make but they only take 4 ingredients! No Flour and No Butter! Gluten Free!



1 cup peanut butter,
1 cup sugar,
1 egg, and
I teaspoon vanilla.

350 degrees at 10-12 min. When they come out of the oven they are REALLY soft so let them cool before you try and take them off your cookie sheet.  Once cooled...they are easy to remove from sheet and they melt in your mouth! Super Yummy!

*Lightly wetting a clean fork helped it not stick when making the cross marks on the cookies.


That's it! Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Makes 24 cookies.  98 Calories each.


Baked Zucchini Pizza!

My husband LOVES....and I do mean LOVES pizza....but I'm not a big fan so I'm always on the lookout for an alternative for myself to enjoy. Boy did I find another great choice!

Baked Zucchini Pizza!

I'm super excited about this Pizza alternative! It's so yummy!

Slice the zucchini in half. Slice off the bottom to keep it stable. Brush with olive oil and top with garlic or garlic powder. Top with sliced tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste. Use mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese or mixed blend.. Bake 375 for 20 to 30 minutes until soft.
  
Another Low Calorie, Gluten free Pizza choice! 

40-50 Calories each!

Guilt and Gluten Free Spaghetti!

Ok people....I just LOVE pasta but I know it's got to get out of my life.  What does a person like me replace that enjoyable pleasure with?  SPAGHETTI SQUASH! OMGoodness! YUMMMOOO and only 186 calories for HALF of the Squash (Squash only...add calories for any sauce).  So here's how to do it....it's SUPER EASY! 


Ingredients:

1 Spaghetti Squash
2 Tbsp Olive oil
Italian seasoning or fresh basil
2 cloves crushed garlic
Salt and Pepper

Pre-heat oven to 425.  Cover a baking dish or lipped cooking sheet with foil and lightly spray with a little non-stick spray. Cut Squash in half (Lengthwise down).  Use a spoon and take out the seeds.  Brush Olive Oil on each half. Sprinkle salt and pepper, Basil/Italian Seasoning, and crushed garlic onto each half.  Bake in the oven for 45 to 60 minutes until soft.  Let squash sit for a few minutes and then use a fork to shred out the soft squash. Cover in whatever sauce you choose (just add those calories to the total).

Super yummy! My husband loved it so much he has even requested it for all future pasta dishes! If you knew my hubby....you'd know how UTTERLY AMAZING that really is! HA! He's a straight shooting Meat and Potato kind of guy! It really is super delish with none of the Pasta calorie guilt! PERFECT! Enjoy! =)

186 Calories!

Guiltless Portobello Pizza!

Made these for lunch today and OMGoodness! YUMMMMOOOO!!! 

Ingredients:    1 cup Mozzerella Cheese
                     1/2 Yellow Onion Chopped
                     1 can or 3 Fresh Diced Tomatos
                     4 Portobello Mushrooms
                     2 Green Onions Chopped
                     2 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
                     4 Cloves Garlic
                     2 Tbsp Olive oil
                     (I added a half can Black olives...Yum)


Chop and Mix all the Ingredients accept the Cheese...save that for later.  Add Olive Oil to pan and bring to a Med-High heat.  Add the Mix and boil for 5 minutes.


While that is boiling....take a spoon and GENTLY scrape out the middle of the Mushrooms.


Cover Baking sheet or Casserole dish with foil (make sure Baking sheet has at least a 1/4 inch edge or the liquid will escape into your oven) and lightly spray with Non-stick spray or homemade Olive oil spray.


Fill the mushrooms with the heated mixture and sprinkle evenly with the cheese.

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees and bake for 12 minutes. 


Let cool and ENJOY!!  Two of these are plenty and are only 303 calories but if you really want more...have all four for only 606 calories TOTAL!! I will never eat another normal Pizza again! This is SO YUMMY and SO filling! AMAZING!! =)


2=303 Calories, 4= 606 Calories!

Guilt Free Banana Ice Cream!

I made me some super YUMMY Guilt-Free Banana Ice Cream today! So here's how ya do it! Great replacement for that need for an Ice Cream fix!

Ingrediants:
4 Small Ripe Bananas
2 Tbsp Creamy Peanut Butter
1 Tbsp Dutch Cocoa (I used 1 Tbsp of Hot Chocolate mix)

First...Peel and freeze bananas for about an hour. Best to use bananas that have just started to spot. 
Take out of the freezer and cut Bananas into Food Processor or Blender (I used my Processor) and blend until it looks like this:


Add Organic Peanut Butter and Cocoa. Blend until everything is mixed well.



Eat right away for a soft serve ice cream or put in freezer for a scoopable ice cream later!


I am thinking about adding maybe fresh strawberries or blueberries next time...maybe even some farm fresh peaches! OMGoodness! YUMMO! =)

2 Servings.  280 Calories each!