Amazing Pumpkin Bars...

My mom sent me this recipe a long time ago and it is FANTASTIC. She found it on greenlitebites.com.  It is a weight watcher friendly recipe, BEFORE I add the cream cheese frosting. The are good plain, but oh man! They are amazing with the frosting. Let me know if you try them! Enjoy.

Pumpkin Bars

INGREDIENTS:
1 box Duncan Hines Spice Cake Mix

2 egg whites
1 15 oz can of pumpkin
< 1 tbsp quick oats (optional – used for decoration)
Non-stick cooking spray

PREPARE:
-Preheat the oven to 325 degrees
-Whisk the egg whites and pumpkin. Stir in the cake mix and blend until just moistened.
-Spray 4 mini-loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray. Evenly distribute the cake batter into the pans, just about half way.
-Sprinkle the tops with quick oats and bake for about 40 minutes.

As for the serving and nutritional information, according to the cake mix package there are 12 servings. That would be 3 servings per loaf. In my opinion, you can count 2 slices per serving and easily serve 4 people per loaf (8 slices). So I’m providing nutritional information for 16 servings. That’s 4 servings per loaf. (I hope that makes sense, I almost confused myself!)

Approx Nutritional Information Per Serving (Before the frosting)
Servings  Calories  Fat  Fiber
16             150       2g    1g

Chicken Salad

I have a true love-hate relationship with chicken salad. I hate the usual calories that lurk behind the false identity of the word salad. On the other hand, I sometimes want to lick my plate if a little drops out of a sandwich or a wrap.  Today I was having a gal from the college group over for lunch and I decided to try and make some. It never quite tastes like the restaurant, but I was very pleased with how this turned out. I will definitely make this again.

Ingredients:
4 cups cubed chicken breast (2 large boneless/skinless)
1 1/4 dried cranberries
1 cup reduced fat olive oil- mayo
1 cup diced celery
2 green onions, chopped
1 tsp. seasoning salt
1 tsp. curry powder
sprinkle of granulated garlic

Prepare:
Mix it all together. Chill if possible.

1/4 cup is 112 calories (Perfect amount for a 100 caloried sandwich thin.)
Yum! Enjoy!

Summer...

Well I have not had a lot of time to be super creative lately. We have been eating the typical BBQ, casseroles etc. around the Fridley house. I have tried new recipes here and there but have not had time to take pictures and post. Well, I thought I would at least post this one.... The salsa does give it a different taste. If you want traditional, replace it with more spaghetti sauce!

Pesto Pinwheels

Ingredients:
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 can (about 4 ounces) mushroom stems and pieces, drained
1/2 cup refrigerated pesto sauce
8 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
2 cups Spaghetti Sauce
3/4 cup Picante Sauce
4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Stir the ricotta, mushrooms and pesto in a medium bowl. Top each noodle with 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture. Spread to the edges. Roll up like a jelly roll. Place the rolls seam-side down in a 2-quart shallow baking dish.

Stir the Spaghetti sauce and picante sauce in a small bowl and pour the mixture over the roll-ups.

Bake at 400°F. for 30 minutes or until they're hot and bubbling. Top with the mozzarella cheese. Bake for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Let stand for 10 minutes.