Apples and Peanut Butter Crisp

Peanut butter is pretty much its own food group in our household. I love eating it with bananas and apples for breakfast to keep mid-morning hangry-ness (not a typo - hungry + angry) at bay. This recipe is very simple and versatile - I've eaten it for dessert and also mixed it with some plain greek yogurt for breakfast. The chopped peanuts add a nice crunch which is unusual for a crisp. I would definitely serve this with a scoop of some low-fat ice cream. The lack of butter keeps the apples pretty dry, so the ice cream really improves the texture.

Just slice up a mixture of green and red apples and layer in a square baking dish.

Mix in the flour and brown sugar.

Cover with a lid or aluminum foil and bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes. The mix up your topping - oats, brown sugar, flour, peanut butter and chopped peanuts. You'll have to work a bit to get the peanut butter incorporated, but it comes together in a few minutes.

Spread the topping over the baked apples, and just slip it in the oven for another 15-20 minutes.

You probably have everything you need to make this simple family-friendly crisp in your pantry now, so go get busy baking.

Apples and Peanut Butter Crisp

From Better Homes and Gardens, The Ultimate Low-Calorie Book

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 6 medium red and / or green apples, cored and thinly sliced (I left the peels on for extra fiber and texture)
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
• 2/3 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons chopped peanuts

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place apple slices in a 2-quart square baking dish; set aside. In a small bowl, stir together the 2 tablespoons flour and the 1 tablespoon brown sugar until well combined. Sprinkle flour mixture over apple slices in dish; toss to coat.

Bake, covered for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine the rolled oats, the 2 tablespoons flour, and the 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Using a fork, stir in peanut butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in peanuts. Uncover apple mixture; sprinkle with oat mixture.

Bake, uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes more or until apples are tender and topping is golden. Serve warm with vanilla frozen yogurt or ice cream.

Nutrition facts per serving: 174 calories, 6 g total fat, 51 mg sodium, 4 g dietary fiber, 4 g protein, 28 g carbohydrates.

Mini Mocha Cheesecakes

I'm not a huge chocolate person, but this crazy week left me craving a huge piece of rich delicious chocolate cake with mounds of butter cream icing. I flipped through some cookbooks and settled on this recipe because of its simplicity and also because it has under 200 calories per serving! Awesome. You can also make these creamy individual cheesecakes up to three days in advance - great for entertaining. Nick, my foodie friend (and wonderful cook) Caitlin, and I loved the texture of the recipe. Think half cheesecake and half silky chocolate mousse. The chocolate flavor is intensified by the espresso powder and the vanilla. I ate mine with some whipped cream and extra cocoa powder while Nick paired his with some vanilla frozen yogurt.

You should be able to find Famous chocolate wafers in the cookie aisle at a standard grocery store (like Safeway or Giant). We definitely had to search through the shelves, though! If you can't find them, I think it would work to use an Oreo wafer.

This recipe is wonderfully simple - just throw all the ingredients into a food processor and puree! This was my first trial run using my beautiful new Cuisinart 9-cup processor (thanks Mom).

It only took me about a minute to puree the mixture until smooth.

Just fill each cup to the brim and then top with the chocolate wafer.

The only issue I have with these cheesecakes is getting them out of the muffin tin after refrigerating. I managed to free one after prying it out with a butter knife, but the second one got smashed using that method. Next time, I am going to overturn the tin on a cooling rack and then bang them out with a wooden spoon. Be careful when you remove the paper wrapper as the cakes are soft to the touch. Then, enjoy the guilt-free chocolate goodness (bonus - the cottage cheese has a lot of protein)!

Mini Mocha Cheesecakes
From Everyday Food Light (Martha Stewart)
Serves 9

Ingredients

• 2 cups nonfat cottage cheese
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon + 1 1/2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 9 chocolate wafer cookies, such as Famous
• Whipped cream, for serving (optional)

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Line 9 cups of a standard muffin tin with paper liners. In a food processor, combine cottage cheese, eggs, confectioners' sugar, cocoa powder, flour, espresso powder and vanilla. Puree until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.

Divide mixture among prepared cups, filling each one just below rim, and place 1 cookie on top of each. Bake until fillings are set and cookies soften, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely in pan, then refrigerate (in pan) at least 1 1/2 hours (or up to three days covered). 

To serve, invert cheesecakes onto plates and peel off liners. Top each with a dollop of whipped cream, if desired.

Per cheesecake (without whipped cream): 196 calories; 2 g fat (1 g saturated fat); 10 g protein; 34 g carbohydrates; 1 g fiber.