Sugar Free Frozen Pistachio Pie

So, I had some milk leftover from a (not so healthy) cake I recently made and wanted to use it before it expired.  What to do with cow's milk that I can't do with almond? How about pudding! (Pudding made with almond or soy milk won't set.) Here's my modified recipe for a sugar free, frosty pie!

Sugar Free Frozen Pistachio Pie

Ingredients (Crust)

1.5 cups crushed low-fat graham crackers (or cracked wheat cereal or whatever you have on hand)

2 T butter

1 T unsweetened apple sauce

Ingredients (Filling)

1 oz package sugar-free instant pistachio pudding

6 oz neufchatel cheese

1 cup skim milk

1/4 cup almond milk

4 oz lite cool whip (half a container)

Directions

Melt butter in the microwave; add graham crumbs and applesauce to butter - mix.  Press mixture into the bottom of a pie plate coated with non-stick spray (I had more than I thought was enough for the pie plate so I put the extra into 3 ramekins.).  Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes or until brown. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Whisk pudding into milk and set aside until soft set.  Beat cream cheese until smooth; add pudding to cream cheese and mix.  Fold cool whip into pudding mixture. Spoon mixture over prepared crust and freeze  (or refrigerate) for 4 hours before serving.

Nutrition (makes about 11 servings)

Calories: 139

Total Fat: 7 g

Total Carbs: 15 g

Sugar: 5 g 

Protein: 3g

Ingredient notes:  I skimped on the butter in the crust to lower the calorie count; if you want your crust to stick together better, add 4 T of butter rather than 2.  The original recipe called for 1 1/4 cups of milk; I am still trying to figure out the minimum amount of cow's milk needed to make pudding set, but 1/4 cup of almond milk substituted had no effect on the pudding setting well.

Stay healthy!

10 Easy Substitutions

    Every little bit helps. You may be sick of hearing this phrase - it is a bit cliche. However, it's entirely true! It is unreasonable to expect people to overhaul their diets overnight - it requires time and commitment to a healthy lifestyle, not just cutting out fast food (among other things). Here are some simple ingredient swaps that will add nutritional content to your recipes without removing taste.  

Instead of…	Try…
vegetable or canola oil	unsweetened applesauce
cow’s milk	almond milk (only 40 calories per cup!)
white refined sugar	stevia*, honey, agave, truvia, sucanat, or evaporated cane juice
white all-purpose flour	half white/ half whole wheat flour**
salad dressing	plain balsamic vinegar
white bread	whole or sprouted grain bread
ground beef	lean ground turkey
regular pasta	whole grain or spelt pasta
lunchmeat	grilled chicken
ketchup	all-natural salsa

*stevia is 25-30 times sweeter than sugar so use caution when subbing!

**whole wheat flour is much more dense than white flour, so substituting wheat for all of the white flour is not going to turn out very well.  

You'll need to experiment when using substitutions in baking.  For example, I've never had trouble subbing applesauce for oil; on the other hand, desserts that need to "set" (i.e. pudding) can't be made with almond milk because they won't set.  Another interesting note about sugar in baking is that you can easily reduce the amount called for by half and still have a sweet taste; you may even be able to reduce it by more. 

While the texture of whole grain pasta may take some getting used to, it's a much healthier alternative.  You can also try using polenta in any dish that is served with sauce over top (spaghetti, lasagna, etc.) or shiritaki noodles in place of traditional pasta.

No matter how little the change you make today - every little bit helps!

Stay healthy!

Superfood Snack: Kale Chips!

Since all of my posts so far have been about desserts, I thought it was time for a recipe that's a little salty, rather than sweet.  Kale is a leafy green vegetable that is an awesome source of Vitamin K, Vitamin A, and Vitamin C; it is also full of anti-oxidants.  Kale is touted for its cancer fighting power in that it activates enzymes in your liver that help neutralize carcinogenic substances.  Read all about kale at the World's Healthiest Foods Site.  Even if you've never heard of it, kale is easily found in most supermarkets near other cruciferous veggies. Get rid of the potato chips - try kale!

Baked Kale Chips

Ingredients

bunch of Kale (organic if you can!)
olive oil or non-stick cooking spray
sea salt

** Try any blend of spices you like to season the kale**

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350. Cut the curly leaves of the kale from the center rib (the rib is bitter) and tear into pieces.  Rinse well and allow to drain (you can also pat them dry with paper towels).  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (or spray a sheet if you don't have parchment); place kale on baking sheet and mist with non-stick cooking spray. (You can also toss the kale with a teaspoon or 2 of olive oil in a bowl before placing on the baking sheet.)  Bake for about 7 minutes; sprinkle with sea salt, toss kale and return to oven for another 8-10 minutes.  There's a fine line between baked kale and burnt kale - make sure to keep your eye on it! When it begins to brown, remove from oven. 

Nutrition

Calories: 36 (in 1 cup)

Vitamin K 1328 % DV
Vitamin A 354% DV
Vitamin C 89% DV

Stay healthy!