Category: Low Fat

Peanut Butter Granola Bars

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Peanut Butter Granola Bars

  • Servings: 16 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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A snack bar that is good, chewy, and healthy. A square was enough to fill that gap and felt like a sweet treat. (Vegan option below)

Ingredients

  • 2-1/2 cups of old fashioned oats
  • ¾ cup of peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup of honey or maple syrup. (both work well but the honey holds the bars together better)
  • 2 whole eggs
  • 45 grams of protein powder (I used chocolate)
  • 1 tbsp of mini chocolate chips
  • 1 tbsp of sliced almonds
  • 1 tbsp of chia seeds
  • 2 tbsp of pumpkin seeds

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well. (if your peanut butter is solid at room temperature, heat it in microwave for 10-15 seconds before adding to the mix).
  3. Line a 9×9 inch baking dish or pan with parchment paper. (this makes it easier to remove your bars from the dish)
  4. Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish and press firmly the mixture into the pan in an even layer. (the firmer you press the better the bars will stick together)
  5. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until the centre is baked through and the edges are just starting to brown. (start checking at 14 minutes as all ovens are a little different)
  6. Place on a cooling rack and let cool completely before cutting into 16 squares with a very sharp knife..

Nutrition Per Cookie

  • Calories 171
  • Fat 7.7 g
  • Sugar 7.4 g
  • Carbohydrates 20.5 g
  • Protein 7.6 g
  • Fibre 2.5 g

Here are a few notes to help make this for different dietary needs

• You can use peanut free seed butter. You can use any nut or seed butter as long as you make sure it is at a drizzly consistently.

• Instead of eggs you can replace them with flax eggs. To make enough flax egg to replace the 2 eggs, mix 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed with 5 tbsp of water and let set for 5-10 minutes before adding to the recipe.

• You can omit the protein powder but that will alter the protein nutritional content. You can use unflavoured protein powder or any flavour you wish. If you omit the protein powder, increase the rolled oats by ½ cup.

As you can see there are a lot of possible variations on this recipe. Change the seeds, add nuts, less seeds more chocolate chips, no chocolate chips but chopped peanuts instead. We could go on and on but I’d rather stop and let you have fun and make it your own.

Sugar Free Sweet Ice Tea

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Sugar Free Sweet Ice Tea

  • Servings: 6 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Nothing says summer quite like sweet ice tea. To a diabetic or someone that is watching their calorie intake, this one is off their list. A standard sweet ice tea is 30 grams of sugar per 8 ounce glass. Here is a version that you can have without the guilt.

Ingredients

  • 8 bags of black tea
  • 4 cups of boiling water
  • 2 cups of cold water
  • 2/3 cup of Splenda
  • 1/3 cup of Stevia blend (heaping)
  • 1/8 tsp of baking soda

Directions

  1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil.
  2. Take off the heat and add the 8 tea bags and stir.
  3. Cover and let sit for 30 minutes.
  4. Removed the tea bags, squeeze gently.
  5. Add 1/8 tsp of baking soda and stir
  6. Add the Splenda and Stevia and stir until completely dissolved.
  7. Add the 2 cups of cold water and stir.
  8. Put in fridge to finish cooling.

Nutrition Per Cookie

  • Calories 12
  • Fat 0 g
  • Sugar 0 g
  • Carbohydrates 12 g
  • Protein 0 g
  • Fibre 0 g

Is this identical to southern sweet ice tea, no. But it is a good second cousin to it. The stevia cuts the after taste of the Splenda. You can still enjoy the flavour without worrying about the sugar content.

You can dress it up with lemon, orange slices, mint, or any combination that you like. After all, what good is a recipe if you can’t have fun and make it your own.

Oatmeal Muffins

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Oatmeal Muffins

  • Servings: 12 Muffins
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Who doesn’t like muffins? I know I do but when I look at the calories on the store bought or coffee shop muffins, I have to do a hard pass. I came across this recipe and thought how bad can this be? Well to my great surprise, they are quite tasty.

Ingredients

  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup of skim milk
  • ¼ cup of unsweetened apple sauce
  • 1-1/3 cup of all purpose flour (I use unbleached white flour)
  • ¾ cup of oatmeal
  • 1/3 cup of stevia blend
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • ¼ cup of unsweetened dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup of chopped walnuts

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400F. Spray a muffin tin or put liners in pan.
  2. In a large bowl beat together the eggs, milk and apple sauce.
  3. In a medium bowl, combine flour, oatmeal, stevia, baking powder and salt.
  4. If you are adding fruit and nuts, lightly coat with about 1 tablespoon of flour so they won’t stick to the bottom of the muffin or batter.
  5. Gently stir the flour and fruit mixtures into the egg batter until combined, do not overmix the batter so your muffins will stay light and fluffy.
  6. Fill muffins tins about 2/3 of the way up.
  7. Bake at 400 for about 8 minutes then lower your oven temperature to 350 and bake for another 8 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the centre comes out clean.
  8. Cool the muffins in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition Per Cookie

  • Calories 116
  • Fat 2.7 g
  • Sugar 3.8 g
  • Carbohydrates 26.9 g
  • Protein 4.51 g
  • Fibre 1.43 g

You can store these at room temperature covered for 3-4 days. You can also freeze them in a freezer bag for up to one month. You can thaw them on a wire rack or reheat the frozen muffin in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.

I was generally surprised that I didn’t taste the stevia. You can use Splenda which is a little sweeter but some people say they can taste the Splenda.

You can change the fruit, nut, decorate it if you feel like it. This version is great for all diabetes but feel free to have fun and make it your own.

Blueberry Cornbread Muffins

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Blueberry Cornbread Muffins

  • Servings: 12 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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These blueberry cornbread muffins are made with healthy options like honey and blueberries. And who can’t use more muffin recipes that are healthy and just delicious

Ingredients

  • 1 c all purpose flour (I use unbleached white flour)
  • 1 c cornmeal
  • ½ tsp of salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp lemon zest
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 c milk (I used no fat protein Lantancia milk)
  • ¼ c olive oil
  • ¼ c honey
  • 1 c blueberries

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375F. Spray a muffin tin or put liners in pan.
  2. In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, salt, baking power and lemon zest. Whisk until the ingredients are evenly distributed.
  3. Combine the egg, milk, olive oil and honey in a second bowl, then whisk until smooth.
  4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just barely combined.
  5. Add the blueberries and fold in using a rubber spatula
  6. Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups.
  7. Put in oven and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
  8. Cool the muffins in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition Per Serving, 1 regular sized muffin

  • Calories 162
  • Fat 1 g
  • Sugar 7 g
  • Carbohydrates 23 g
  • Protein 3 g
  • Fibre 2 g

If you don’t have lemon zest available, you can substitute ½ tsp lemon extract or 2 tbsp of lemon juice. Both whole wheat flour and gluten free flour work well for these muffins.

If using whole wheat, increase the honey to 1/3 cup. To use frozen blueberries, defrost in a colander under cool running water, shake to remove as much moisture as possible, then pat dry with paper towels before adding to the batter. You can add some raw sugar for a little crunch.

These are great at room temperature or you can heat in the microwave for 30 seconds. If you change the recipe while having fun and making it your own, let me know. I’m always willing to try new things.

Healthy Banana Muffins

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Healthy Banana Muffins

  • Servings: 12 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Muffins, who doesn’t like muffins? If I go anywhere near a donut shop, I’m walking out with a muffin. Even their healthier versions are still so high in sugar and fat thus making it not a great choice. And I’m sorry, but there are only so many bran muffins a girl can have. So here, a low fat, low sugar muffin that tastes great and you won’t feel guilty having.

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp of unsweetened apple sauce
  • 1/3 cup of honey
  • 1 cup of mashed ripe bananas, about 3 medium
  • 1/4 cup of low fat milk, I used Lantancia high protein fat free.
  • 1 tsp of vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp of baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp of salt
  • 1-1/2 cups of flour (I used unbleached white flour)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a muffin tin or put liners in pan.
  2. In a large bowl, put apple sauce, honey, mashed bananas, milk and vanilla in bowl and whisk to combine.
  3. Add the eggs and whisk thoroughly.
  4. Spinkle the cinnamon, baking soda and salt over the wet ingredients. Until well combined.
  5. Add the flour to the bowl and stir with a large spoon or spatula until just combined. Be careful to not overmix.
  6. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tin, about 2/3 but if you use a thick silicon liner like I do, then it’s almost full.
  7. Bake for 20-25 min or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the centre. Mini muffins will take about 10-12 minutes.
  8. Let muffins cool in pan for 5 minutes, then put them on cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition Per Serving, 1 regular sized muffin

  • Calories 144
  • Fat 5 g
  • Sugar 10 g
  • Carbohydrates 23 g
  • Protein 3 g
  • Fibre 2 g

Lots of little extras here. You can make 12 regular sized muffins or 36 mini muffins. To store them, put in airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days or 4-5 in fridge. They also freeze well. Once completely cooled, then you can put them in an airtight zip-top bag for up to 3 months. Thaw and serve at room temperature. It was suggested that if you put the muffins diagonally on the cooling rack, they reach room temperature quicker.

And now for the having fun part, you can add chopped nuts, chocolate chips, fresh or frozen blueberries, I swapped the butter for apple sauce but you can use 4 tbsp of butter for a richer taste.

You can make it with wheat flour but this will make them healthier oh and a little heavier. Gluten free use 1:1 gluten free flour blend for the flour. You can make this egg free by using 2 tbsp of flaxseed meal and 5 tbsp of water. Let the mixture rest for 5 minutes before adding to the wet ingredients. (I’ve never tried it but I hear it works). The riper your bananas, the sweeter it is. It is also a little higher in sugars and glucides.

So as you see, you can have fun and make these your own.

Low-Fat Broccoli Cheddar Soup

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Low-Fat Broccoli Cheddar Soup

  • Servings: 6 Servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Soup season is upon us. Nothing quite like a great bowl of soup to take the chill out of your bones. I go from standards like vegetable soups, to chicken noodle, to beef barley and well cream style soups. Now when you think of creamy soups, you think fat, rich, flavourful. I found this recipe that is both delicious, rich and yet reduced in fat.

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 2 leeks, white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise and sliced thin
  • 1-1/2 lbs of broccoli florets chopped, stems peeled sliced thin
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup of water
  • 1 tbsp of Dijon mustard
  • ¾ cup of fat-free evaporated milk
  • 4 ounces of extra-sharp cheddar cheese shredded (about 1 cup)
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat, add leeks and broccoli stems and cook until just beginning to soften, about 8 minutes.
  2. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  3. Stir in broth and water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until stems are soft, about 8 minutes.
  4. Add broccoli florets, cover and simmer until tender, about 5 minutes.
  5. Transfer soup to blender and puree until completely smooth, about 30 seconds. (Do this in smaller batches if need be to not have your blender overflow with hot liquid)
  6. Put back in pot add mustard, milk, and cheese and heat on low until cheese is melted.
  7. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Nutrition Per Serving

  • Calories 217
  • Fat 12 g
  • Sugar 7 g
  • Carbohydrates 18 g
  • Protein 13 g
  • Fibre 4 g

This was a great way to have a nice warm creamy soup without the fat and calories. Using leeks instead of onions allows the flavour of the broccoli to come through while providing color, and silkiness to the soup. By using the extra sharp cheddar, the distinct cheese flavour is brought to the forefront. You need to remember that when you add the cheese, you can not bring it to a boil or it will separate and make the soup greasy. Same goes for reheating. Using the fat free evaporated milk helps give that creamy texture without the fat. Fat free regular milk won’t work. The cheese, well, that is where you have lots of choices. You can have sharp, jalepeno, Havarti, or even mild, this is where you have fun and make it your own,

Extra tip: preparing your leeks.
Cut off the tough dark green portion of the leek and discard. Slice the remaining white and light green portion in half lengthwise. Submerge halved leeks in cold water and agitate to remove any dirt. Once the leaks are clean, remove them from the water, pat them dry with paper towels and chop them as desired.

Crustless Pumpkin Pie

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Crustless Pumpkin Pie

  • Servings: 8 servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Who says pumpkin pie is only good at Thanksgiving. Well not I, that is for sure. The only thing that has stopped me in the past, is the calories and sugar content. Well, well, well, I found a recipe in the Canadian Diabetes book that reduced the calories dramatically and quite a bit of the sugar. It is still a treat.

Ingredients

  • 1 14oz can of pumpkin puree
  • ½ cup of sugar
  • ½ tsp of salt
  • ½ tsp of ground ginger
  • 1 tsp of cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp of ground nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp of ground cloves
  • 2 eggs, slightly beaten
  • 13 oz can evaporated skim milk

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, mix pumpkin, sugar, salt, and spices.
  2. Stir in the slightly beaten eggs and mix well.
  3. Add the evaporated milk (shake can before opening) and stir until smooth.
  4. Pour into a lightly greased glass pie plate (this recipe works best in a glass pie plate instead of metal)
  5. Bake in preheat oven of 400 for about 40 minutes or until knife inserted near the center of the pie comes out clean.
  6. Let cool and serve.

Nutritional facts per serving

  • Calories 107
  • Fat 1.3 g
  • Sugar 19.3 g
  • Carbohydrates 21.1 g
  • Protein 5.1 g
  • Fibre 0.5 g

Make sure to use pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie filling or the spices will be way off. I made mine with homemade pumpkin puree which is thinner so my pie was a little wet. But ohhh, the taste. Cutting the pie in 8 pieces is a nice size. You almost don’t notice that there is no crust. It would be nice but it is not necessary and when you think it would double the calories and add an extra 6 sugars if you are using graham cracker crust, I say no crust please.

To be honest even the pie crust I have on this blog, Sebreena’s pie crust, would add a little less sugar than the graham cracker crust but still adds about 75 calories. This is a great alternative if you are really looking to cut down on the fat, calories and sugar but still crave that sweet taste. I found the spice mixture better than pumpkin pie spice mix but here is where you have fun and make it your own.

Brazilian Carrot Cake

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Brazilian Carrot Cake

  • Servings: 16 servings
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Aren’t pot lucks fun? We had our first in two years on my team at work. Well, I got a new recipe from it. (Thank you Juliana) I’ve altered it a little to reduce the fat (hope you are ok with that). She said this a traditional cake to be served with or without icing. A dessert should never be the focus in size or quantity but instead a nice finish to a good meal. This is such a treat.

Ingredients

  • 3 large carrots
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup of apple sauce
  • 1 cup of sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 cups of flour (I used unbleached)
  • 1 tbsp of baking powder

Directions

  1. Put carrots, eggs, applesauce, and sugar in food processor and chop finely.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix flour, salt and baking powder together.
  3. Add wet mixture of carrot and fold in.
  4. Spray bundt pan.
  5. Pour mixture and place in preheated oven at 350.
  6. Cook for 50-55 minutes.
  7. Let cool and serve.

Nutritional facts per serving

  • Calories 125
  • Fat 1.1 g
  • Sugar 14.1 g
  • Carbohydrates 26.9 g
  • Protein 3.4 g
  • Fibre 1.1 g

I serve small pieces. I also didn’t add any icing. Juliana had added a nice chocolate icing to hers for the pot luck. I found both ways delicious. You will want a larger piece but with it being so satisfying, no need for excess. I made mine with regular white unbleached flour. She mentioned using half white and half almond flour, I was out. Using half whole wheat would make it heavier but more filling and healthier. Either way, have fun and make it your own.

Oatmeal Waffle

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Oatmeal Waffle

  • Servings: 8 servings of a half waffle
  • Difficulty: Easy
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I got a new waffle maker for Christmas from two very sweet boys. I was suggested to lower the fat to use half applesauce and half oil in the batter. Turns outs that a half waffle is more than enough with some toppings and sides for a complete breakfast.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of all purpose flour (I used unbleached)
  • 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 cup of quick cooking oats
  • 1 tbsp of packed brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp of baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp of salt
  • 2 cups of nonfat milk (high protein) (I use lanctancia)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tbsp of apple sauce
  • 1 tbsp of vegetable oil

Directions

  1. Mix flours, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
  2. Whisk milk, eggs, apple sauce and oil in a medium bowl.
  3. Whisk milk mixture into dry ingredients just until dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened.
  4. Allow batter to rest 5 minutes.
  5. Preheat waffle maker.
  6. Pour 1 cup batter onto the center of the grid.
  7. Bake until waffle is brown.

Nutritional facts per serving

  • Calories 192
  • Fat 5.5 g
  • Sugar 3.5 g
  • Carbohydrates 26.6 g
  • Protein 8.8 g
  • Fibre 2.4 g

On my first run, I had a whole waffle. Oh boy, that was way too much. Especially since I serve mine with a side of scrambled eggs, cheese and the waffle is topped with greek nonfat plain yogourt and fruit. This is much better than any frozen store bought waffle. You can freeze left over waffles wrapped with parcheman paper between each, once cooled. Just let them thaw and put in the toaster or oven at 350 for 10 minutes. It leaves that nice crunchy outside and warm inside. You can top these anyway you like. This is where you have fun and make it your own.

British Homemade Baked Beans

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British Homemade Baked Beans

  • Servings: 6
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Baked beans, something a lot of Quebecers love. The traditional recipe has lots of molasses and brown sugar. I was looking for something that would have a little less sugar. After a some research I came across a few different recipes for British Baked Beans. This is a tomato based recipe. I had never had these so I thought, what the heck. Turns out this is quite good.

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp of olive oil
  • 1/2 red onion finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove finely chopped
  • 1/2 tsp of sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp of pepper
  • 2 tsp of sugar (preferably brown)
  • 1/2 tsp of smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp of dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp of worcestershire sauce
  • 800 gr of cannellini beans or navy beans canned (see below for raw beans)
  • 400 ml of Passata (or ground or crushed tomatoes in a can, more economical)
  • 1 tbsp of tomato paste
  • 1 tbsp of parsley (optional)

Directions

  1. Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the red onion and garlic over medium heat for 5 minutes.
  2. Add salt, pepper, sugar, smoked paprika, and oregano to the onion mixture.
  3. Pour in the passata, worcestershire sauce, and drained and rinsed beans.
  4. Simmer for 15 minutes or until you achieve your required sauce thickness.

Nutritional facts per serving

  • Calories 242
  • Fat 3 g
  • Sugar 5 g
  • Carbohydrates 42 g
  • Protein 14 g
  • Fibre 10 g

This was pretty easy. I personally don’t like canned beans so I used raw. I soaked them overnight. Then simmered them for about 1-1/2 hours or until they were tender but not quite mushy. To get 800 gr you need 650 gr of raw beans. I also used cannellini beans. If you are someone who likes beans but is watching your sugar and fat intake, this is the recipe to go with.

This goes great with breakfast for extra protein, with lunch as a side, or served with toast. Of course, if you want some spice you can always add some hot peppers. How you serve it, when you serve it, or with what you serve it, is all up to you. Just have fun and make it your own.