Red Velvet Cupcakes

Aren’t these adorable?  Doesn’t it make you feel better when you eat your oat bran and it’s cute?  Well, so it doesn’t taste exactly like a red velvet cupcake but it’s as close as you’re going to get and visually you can’t even tell the difference!  So I say, trick your mind into it!!  I got some rhubarb delivered to my house today, so they’re next…

RED VELVET CUPCAKES

8 tablespoons of oat bran
2 egg whites or 1/2 cup egg white substitute
4 T canned pumpkin
2 T fat free sugar free vanilla yogurt
1 t baking powder
2 t unsweetened cocoa powder
2 t Splenda (I use 2 T zero calorie brown sugar)
1-2 T sugarfree chocolate pudding mix
1 t vanilla
a few drops of red food coloring

Frosting:
3 T fat free cream cheese
1 T fat free sour cream
splenda, to your liking
1/2 t vanilla

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl.  Add the pumpkin and eggs and whisk until smooth.  Add vanilla.  Divide the mixture equally between 12 mini muffins in a tin sprayed with olive oil spray

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Mix all the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and keep refrigerated until ready to use.  Only pipe the frosting onto the muffins once they are completely cooled.

4 servings of oat bran

Cinnamon Oat Bran Breadcrumbs

I was answering a comment on the site and thought about these.  Thanks for the inspiration Lisa!  I thought these sounded so good sprinkled over my yogurt I went in and made them right away.  And they were!  A very simple solution to changing up my daily yogurt and a fresh new way to get my oat bran!!  I can’t wait to see what else I can do with these!  They take a little effort but they are well worth it!!

CINNAMON OAT BRAN BREADCRUMBS

6 T Oat Bran
3 T nonfat cream cheese
3 eggs or 3/4 cup egg whites
1 t Splenda, I use 2 T zero calorie brown sugar
1 T cinnamon
1 t vanilla
pinch of salt
3-4 T water

Whisk the first three ingredients together and add  a tablespoon of water at a time until you get it to crepe batter consistency.  Pour 1/4 cup of the mixture into a large non-stick skillet coated with cooking spray.

Tilt the pan until the batter has made a large thin circle and brown the first side, flipping after small air bubbles appear on the surface.

Brown the other side.  After I made all the crepes I toasted them to get them nice and brown.

Then I put them in a food processor after they cooled and processed to breadcrumb consistency.

Then I toasted the breadcrumbs at 350 for 25-35 minutes, until nice and brown and crispy. They almost resembled granola.  Keep unused breadcrumbs in the fridge.

3 servings of oat bran

Turkey Sausage with Poached Eggs

Well, I thought I hated poached eggs.  I waited for Tom to come home before I made them so that he could enjoy them hot.  Well, I took a bite and had to make one for myself!  It was delicious!  And the sausage was kind of fun to season myself.  I really never thought about doing that before.  The maple syrup was a really nice addition to it.  I think i used too much cayenne pepper though!  So I adjusted the recipe so you guys only use 1/4 teaspoon.  Enjoy breakfast for dinner once in a while!

TURKEY SAUSAGE PATTIES WITH POACHED EGGS

2 lean sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
2 T sugar free maple syrup
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1/4 t cinnamon
1/8 t nutmeg
1/4 t black pepper
1/8 t garlic powder
2 T oat bran

Form 2 patties and brown in a saute pan until fully cooked, about 5-6 minutes per side.

POACHED EGGS

2 eggs
2 t of white vinegar
dash of salt

Heat the water in a deep sauce pan and turn off heat.  Add the salt and vinegar.  Break each egg into a small ramekin.  Swirl water and gently drop eggs into it.  Cover and let cook, untouched for 5 minutes.  Remove with a slotted spoon.

Barbecue Chicken Sandwich

This cheese was wonderful with the sweet and spicy barbecue sauce.  I found it at Whole Foods.  And if you slice it really thin, and melt it a bit on the chicken, it’s really good.  I had a hard time finding fat free cheeses, but I really love cheese so it’s a hard thing for me to give up.  Thankfully Whole Foods is carrying this brand again!!

BARBECUE CHICKEN SANDWICH

BARBECUE CHICKEN

Jalapeno Jack Cheese

6 skinless thighs or breasts, or a mixture of both
6 slices fat free Jalapeno Jack cheese
6 sandwich buns

BARBECUE SAUCE

Barbecue Chicken

4 green onions, chopped
1/2 small onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup zero calorie brown sugar substitute
8 oz can of tomato sauce
2 T tomato paste
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup water
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 small Ancho chili, cut into small pieces
1/2 t cumin
1/2 cup bourbon

Saute the onions and garlic in a bit of olive oil spray about 5 minutes.  Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 3o minutes until nice and thick.

Grill chicken on a grill pan or outside grill until done.  Halfway through the cooking, start basting the barbecue sauce over the chicken, turning it frequently, until sauce has carmelized.  Cooking chicken with bones should take 40-50 minutes on medium heat.

SANDWICH BUNS

2 large eggs
1/4 cup egg white substitute
dash of Splenda, or Stevia
pinch of cream of tartar
3 ounces fat free or low fat cream cheese
1/2 t minced onion
1/4 t onion powder
1 t kosher salt
1 t toasted minced onion

Separate the eggs. Whip egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff (the egg white mix has to be VERY stiff). Transfer whites to a chilled bowl Add sweetener, minced onion, onion powder and cream cheese to the yolks and egg substitute. Mix to combine the ingredients together. Using a spatula, gradually fold the egg yolk mixture into the white mixture, being careful not to break down the whites. Line a pizza pan with parchment paper, making 6 mounds. Flatten each mound slightly. Sprinkle salt and toasted onion on top of each bun. No need to spray the paper. Bake 25-30 minutes at 300. Let cool on the sheet for a few minutes and cool completely on a wire rack. Refrigerate until ready to use or use immediately.

Tator Tots

There were two winners this time!  These were fabulous and so were the crab cakes–so we have a tie (I’ll post the crab cakes tomorrow)!  The only thing wrong with this recipe?  If you’re going to take the time to make them, I’d grab 3 heads of cauliflower.  I could’ve eaten all of these myself!!  Another tip, when straining the water from the cauliflower, I used one of these soup socks.  Made it really easy.  I put the sock in a large glass and folded over the ends like I was filling a frosting bag.  I also didn’t have the yeast so I just left it out!  Thanks, Kari, for this wonderful recipe.

Name: Kari
Recipe Name: Dukanized Tator Tots
Original Recipe: I adapted this recipe from one I found on yourlighterside.com which was made from cauliflower and parmesan cheese. I simply made it more dukan friendly.

Appetizer Contest-Before

Dukan-Friendly Recipe:
1 large cauliflower
2 T nutritional yeast
2 T oat bran
1/2 t coarse kosher salt
1 T dried minced onion
2 T grated Parmesan cheese

Appetizer Contest-After

Remove florets from cauliflower and cook, covered, in microwave for 12 minutes. Pour off water and let stand until cool. Process well in a food processor and the squeeze dry in cheese cloth getting out as much moisture as you can.. Place cauliflower in a bowl, add 1 T of the nutritional yeast, oat bran, salt and minced onion. Combine remaining 1 T of nutritional yeast and Parmesan on a plate. Form cauliflower into 1” balls and drop into mixture. Coat with dry mixture. Form into tot shapes. Place tots on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 Degrees for 15 minutes, carefully turning every 5 minutes. These may be frozen before baking and then baked later. Serve with sugar free ketchup or dipping sauce of your choosing. Recipe contains 2 tolerated items (nutritional yeast and Parmesan cheese).