Deceptively Delicious - Jessica Seinfeld [34]
Prep: 10 minutes • Freeze: 120 minutes • Makes 8 popsicles
2 cups plain lowfat yogurt
2 cups frozen berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, or cherries), thawed in the microwave for 1 minute
½ to ¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
Combine the yogurt, fruit, and sugar in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Pour into popsicle molds and freeze.
Joy: Each popsicle (only 100 calories!) contains less than 1 gram of fat. Calcium-rich yogurt helps build strong bones and teeth, and berries add a little vitamin C—an antioxidant that helps boost the immune system and aids in healing.
Gingerbread Spice Cake
(WITH BROCCOLI AND CARROT)
My kids would never eat this if they knew what was in it. Since they don’t, it’s usually gone in a day—or less.
Prep: 15 minutes • Total: 60 minutes • Serves 8 to 10 • Packable
Nonstick cooking spray
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 cup broccoli puree
½ cup carrot puree
½ cup nonfat plain yogurt
¾ cup molasses
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Coat a 9x5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.
2. In a bowl or zipper-lock bag, mix the flours with the baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and salt; set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the sugar, oil, and egg until smooth. Beat in the vegetable purees, yogurt, molasses, vanilla, and orange zest. Add the flour mixture and mix until smooth.
4. Pour the batter into the pan and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool 5 minutes in the pan before turning the cake out onto a rack to cool completely.
Jerry: Powdered sugar makes me nutty.
Blueberry Oatmeal Bars
(WITH SPINACH)
Crunchy and sweet, but full of spinach! Let the bars cool completely before serving so that the taste of the spinach has a chance to disappear completely.
Prep: 10 minutes • Total: 50 minutes •Makes 12 bars
Nonstick cooking spray
2 cups old-fashioned oats
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¾ cup Balance trans-fat-free soft tub margarine spread, chilled
1 cup low-sugar blueberry preserves
½ cup spinach puree
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Coat an 8x8-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and vanilla, and stir to mix well.
3. Add the margarine and cut it quickly into the dry ingredients with two knives until the mixture resembles coarse meal and is no longer powdery. Do not overmix—bits of margarine will still be visible.
4. Set aside about half of the oat mixture; press the rest of it firmly into the pan. Bake until lightly browned at the edges (but not fully baked), 13 to 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, mix the preserves with the spinach puree in a small bowl.
6. Spread the blueberry mixture over the partially baked oat layer, then sprinkle with the reserved oat mixture. Bake until the topping is slightly browned, 20 to 25 minutes. Set the pan on a rack to cool completely before cutting into 12 bars.
Chocolate Cupcakes
(WITH AVOCADO AND CAULIFLOWER)
These are a favorite of my son Julian. I brought them to class to celebrate his fourth birthday, and his classmates went through them in seconds. The taste of the avocado is still slightly detectable when the cupcakes are warm, so be sure they’re completely cool before you serve them.
Prep: 15 minutes • Total: 35 minutes • Makes 12 cupcakes • Packable
CUPCAKE BATTER
Nonstick cooking spray
1 cup avocado puree
1½ cups sugar
1 cup nonfat (skim) milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
2 large egg whites
2 cups all-purpose