sweets and treats for pink!
Swaying pink really SUCKS so I think we need a few goodies just for us! (and also to keep our husbands sane, for those who are also trying to stick to the diet!) And with the holiday coming up, if you're having company you may want something to bring to a buffet that you can serve to others (and eat yourself) without having to feel weird about it!
Yoplait has a line of light yogurts that are fat free and sugar free and some of the flavors are things like, "Boston Cream Pie" and "Red Velvet Cake". They still sway pink regardless of their flavor and maybe if you use a lot of imagination, it can be a quick way to stave off a craving. The "Cinnamon Roll" flavor is actually pretty dang good!!
Check out "The Skinny Cow" ice cream products - they are fat free and low in cals (150 or less) and make a great snack or even a meal, when you're just dying for something good to eat. No, they are not strictly girl-friendly (although they do have a "Strawberry Shortcake" ice cream sandwich and also a no-sugar added variety!) but for an occasional treat, they are just perfect! http://www.skinnycow.com/products/
Blue Bunny has a line of sugar-free and fat-free ice cream treats as well! http://www.bluebunny.com/Products/No...Added_Fat_Free Again, not strictly pink friendly (because most have chocolate) but they are still a good choice as quick treats go!
Safeway sells a line of flavored rice cakes that are actually kinda ok tasting. They come in a wide variety of flavors (just from memory, they have buttered popcorn, caramel, marshmallow, yogurt and berry, kettlecorn, sour cream, cheddar, and chocolate) and are low cal, low fat, low protein, and many of the flavors are very low in sodium. The only one I didn't like was chocolate (it's sweetened with Splenda and Splenda makes me kinda sick.)
Cereal bars - These are sold under the name of "Nutri-Grain" bars but some stores sell their own versions. They are not super high in cals or sodium and are low protein. They do have a bit of fat and cholesterol and are vitamin fortified, but they are ok to take with you as a meal on the go, if you don't have time to cook. (Little cheats are better than big cheats, so if a Nutri-Grain bar keeps you from stopping at McDonalds, that's great!!) They also have 25% of the DV for calcium.
Girl-friendly candies - Swedish Fish, Sour Patch Kids, Red Twizzlers, Red Vines red licorice are all acceptible once-in-awhile treats as long as you're not going over your calorie count for the day.
White chocolate - After thinking it over, white chocolate seems ok to me! It doesn't have the antioxidants that dark choc does, plus it's low sodium, low protein. It does have fat and some cholesterol so eat sparingly, but it will def. help with cravings. I like the Safeway Select White Chocolate Blueberry bar, which also has 8% of your day's calcium!!
RECIPES
Melting Moments cookies -
1 cup flour
1/2 cup Argo® or Kingsford's® Corn Starch (corn starch is acidic, even though it sounds like it should be alkaline!)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter OR margarine (NOTE - try to find unsalted margarine, but if you can't find that, use unsalted butter)
Mix with your mixer until it's doughy, then roll into little balls and squish flat with the back of a spoon. Bake at 325 for 8-10 minutes.
Italian sodas - take a can of seltzer water (do NOT use club soda) and mix with a jigger of cream and a jigger of sugar free espresso syrup (you can buy these online or at your local grocery store's espresso stand)
Crispy Rice treats - melt 1/2 stick of either unsalted margarine or unsalted butter (unsalted margarine is better but it's hard to find). Melt a big bag of marshmallows in it and then stir in 6 cups of puffed rice (don't use real rice krispies because they have sodium!)
Sweet frosting - Cook 5 tablespoons flour with 1 cup of skim milk until thick. Let cool for an hour. In the meantime, cream 1 cup of unsalted margarine OR unsalted butter with 1 cup of sugar. When the flour and milk is cold, mix it with the sugar/margarine until it's creamy. This is good for a treat on low sodium bread or with strawberries.
Raspberry Cheese Dip - 1/1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries, Splenda to taste, between 1/4 and 1/2 cup, 1 cup ricotta cheese, 8 oz lowfat, low sodium cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese, softened. Blend in a food processsor until combined and use as a sandwich spread, with crepes, or dip for strawberries. (the ricotta and cream cheese may have a lot of sodium in them so eat this sparingly).
Caramel flan - In a saucepan, heat 1/3 of a cup of sugar (don't use Splenda for this part) over medium high heat until it melts and turns golden brown. (watch it every second!!! It can catch on fire!) Pour it into your serving dish and let stand for 10 minutes. Then make a custard out of 3 eggs, 1 1/2 cup skim milk, 1/3 c. sugar or Splenda, and vanilla and pour it into your serving dish (right on top of the sugar that you melted). Bake at 325 for 30 minutes until a knife in the center comes out clean.
You can also make flan rice pudding by stirring 1 cup cooked rice into the egg/milk mixture.
Cheesecake Bars - 1 stick unsalted butter - melted, 1/2 c packed brown sugar, 1 1/2 c flour 1 1/2 low sodium, low fat cottage cheese 4 oz (half the standard bar) low sodium, lowfat cream cheese or Neufchatel, 2 eggs, vanilla extract. Mix together the melted butter, 1/4 c of the brown sugar, and the flour. Press it into the bottom of a 8x8 pan. Puree the cottage cheese with the cream cheese until they're well mixed, then add the other ingredients. Spread over the crust and bake at 325 for 30 or 40 minutes, until the top feels firm to the touch.
Baked ricotta - 1 lb ricotta cheese (that's it!!) and fruit. Put it into a pie pan and bake at 350 for 35 minutes until the top is golden. When you let it cool after baking, it will firm up and you can cut it into wedges and serve it with fruit sweetened with Splenda.
Bread pudding (since low-sodium bread spoils really quick, you may have some extra bread to use up) - Mix together 4 eggs, 2 c skim milk, 1/3 c. sugar or Splenda 1/2 vanilla, and 3 cups of bread cut into ****s (just quick enough to moisten them. You can toss some craisins in if you want and also a hint of cinnamon goes a long way! Bake at 325 for 35-40 minutes.
The following recipes are from a great website that has a ton of low sodium recipes (that are gourmet!!) http://thedailydish.us/about/
Low sodium, low fat vanilla pudding: http://thedailydish.us/dessert/vanilla-pudding/
Homemade low sodium caramel apples: http://thedailydish.us/dessert/homemade-caramel-apples/
Low sodium birthday cake!! http://thedailydish.us/dessert/best-...birthday-cake/
Low sodium strawberry shortcake!! http://thedailydish.us/dessert/strawberry-shortcake/
