Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Holiday Flavors without the Holiday Calories

This time of year I start to get a hankering for all of those warm, yummy holiday treats. Unfortunately, this time of year I also start to feel like most of my clothing has shrunk by a size or two!


Since most traditional holiday fare is not exactly what you might call "low calorie" I've developed a few recipes to get my holiday fix without creating the need for an entirely new wardrobe that's several sizes larger!


Anyhow, I've found that what really gives something it's characteristic holiday flavor is more the spices than it is the fat and sugar. So my strategy is to take relatively simple things and doctor them up with holiday spices.


The holiday spice palate generally includes cinnamon, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, vanilla, ginger, anise and peppermint. I avoid the anise because I'm allergic to it (well, and because I think it's one of the most foul tasting substances on the planet) but feel free to use it in any of these recipes if you happen to like it.



So here are some of my favorites this time of year:


Spiced Hot Tea
There are many recipes out there for hot spiced tea. I make mine very simply by brewing plain black tea with whole cloves and a cinnamon stick.


I generally put the cloves in a tea ball of some sort to keep them corralled, but you could always just toss them in and strain them out before serving.

Other spices you could use would include allspice, anise, vanilla, and ginger. Many recipes call for fruit juice like apple, orange, lemon or cranberry, but I'm not a big fan of fruity tea so I keep mine simple.



Hot Apple Compote
This is one of my favorite desserts this time of year. It's ridiculously simple, relatively healthy and gives me that nice holiday flavor. I just cut up one apple (I don't bother to peel it, but you could) add a spoonful of raisins, a sprinkling of cinnamon, and a tablespoon of whiskey (or two, or three, or four... depending on my mood).


I microwave it for 2-3 minutes stopping it every minute or so to give it a good stir, and eat it hot. This method gets the apples soft, but if you wanted it more thoroughly cooked and mushy you could do it on the stovetop on low heat with lots of stirring to be sure it doesn't stick.


I find it to be plenty sweet with just the apple and raisins, but you could always add a little sugar, honey or maple syrup if you want it a bit sweeter - or even a few spoonfuls of frozen juice concentrate. You could easily experiment with more spices from the holiday list above, though I think I'd avoid peppermint on this one. Another variation would be to use craisins instead of raisins.



Hot Milk with Nutmeg
I LOVES me some good hot cocoa this time of year, but after a cup or two those calories really start to add up. So one of my favorite ways to get that same nice hot creamy goodness with fewer calories is to skip the chocolate and sugar and just have the hot milk with a sprinkling of nutmeg on top.


The nutmeg makes it taste vaguely egg-nog-esque even though it's hot. I sometimes add a splash of vanilla for good measure. This one is particularly good in the evening just before bedtime.



Not So Sweet Pumpkin Bread
I love pumpkin bread, but most of the recipes out there should really be called "pumpkin cake" as far as I'm concerned. They're just WAAAAAY too sweet. But, I've come up with a nice variation that still has all the pumkin-y goodness, but is much healthier.


I have to confess that I don't really measure things - I just go by what "looks right" which, I realize, isn't terribly helpful when passing along recipes, but here goes:

Ingredients:

  • About 6-8 cups of pumpkin puree - I generally eyeball this... but err on the side of too much because it makes a nice moist bread (I've never used canned because I generally make this recipe to use up garden pumpkins, so I don't know how much that works out to)
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • about 2 cups whole wheat flour (this amount will vary with the amount of pumpkin you use)
  • 2 tbsp baking powder
  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup pepitas (hulled pumpkin seeds)
  • 2 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground cloves
  • 1 tsp ground allspice
  • 1 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp salt


Method:
Pre-heat oven to 350. Beat eggs, pumpkin, oil, salt and spices together until smooth (I use the immersion blender) mix in flour and baking soda adding more flour if it's too soupy. Fold in the rolled oats and pepitas. Pour batter into a greased and floured cake pan, or 2 loaf pans, or about 18 -24 muffin cups. Bake for about 45 minutes (keep in mind that I live a mile above sea level - if you're at sea level you probably only want to bake it 25 minutes or so) or until a toothpick comes out clean.




Peppermint Tea
OK this one couldn't possibly get any simpler because no doctoring is required. But there's nothing like a steaming hot cup of peppermint tea to put me in the holiday mood. You could always stick a candy cane in it to make it a bit more festive... though that does sorta defeat the low calorie part!


So tell me, what are you're favorite ways to get holiday flavor without becoming a holiday fatty? 










26 comments :

  1. Lots of tea and cocoa this time of year for me too, tried egg nog last weekend but way too rich for my tummy. Cheers!

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    1. I'm not sure if they're making egg nog differently these days or if I'm just getting more sensitive in my old age, but I seriously can't stomach the stuff anymore!

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  2. I do mock eggnog with soy milk, pinch cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and a teaspoon of sugar. But I splurge and do a bit of whip on my mock nog. It's what makes it seem special to me. I drink this cold, when my family is enjoying regular nog.

    I use stevia in a lot of hot beverages. I make cocoa with stevia, soy milk, cocoa powder and vanilla. I don't get that sick stomach feeling that sugary drinks give me.

    Sometimes when I think I want a cookie, I'm actually happy to have a piece of good bread, toasted.

    My clothes have been shrinking on the line, too. I'm not sure how that happens. I thought only the dryer could shrink clothing. But apparently, hanging on a line or rack in December will also shrink clothing. (Sad face here, I had to get out a pair of stretchy pants yesterday!)

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    1. I sure wish I liked stevia. My best friend swears by it, but I just think it has a terrible aftertaste. I wonder if it's one of those things like tonic water where some people can taste it and others can't... or maybe I'm just crazy.

      Anyhow, you just gave me a wonderful idea with your mock eggnog thing. I can't drink soy milk because of migraines, and I have to load up on the lactaid pills to have real milk... BUT I can drink that lactaid milk. I usually don't like it because of the sweet taste, but for stuff like mock nog, or slightly sweet cocoa or mocha or latte, the sweet flavor might actually work well. Hmmm.... I see a milk experiment in my future!

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  3. I don't really have any low calorie Christmas food....but I like your spicy tea idea!

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  4. On the pumpkin bread recipe--Does it really take 6-8 cups of pumpkin? That seems like a lot. That's certainly the way to get your Vitamin A in.

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    1. Well... as I said, I don't measure, so I'm not really sure. But I froze a bunch of pumpkin puree in gallon sized containers, and it seems to me that I used half a container per batch - but you're right, it does seem like a lot. There's certainly no need to use that much... I was just trying to use up pumpkin! :-)

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  5. The only low-cal thing I have at this time of year is sugar-free peppermint lattes (not your favourite, I know) - otherwise, bring on the chocolates, I say!

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    1. Actually that sounds yummy... it's just the artificial sweeteners that I don't like. But I may try that with lactaid milk and see how it tastes.

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  6. Try adding some walnuts to your apple compote.

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    1. Well, I fear the trip to the emergency room would make that somewhat less than enjoyable. :-) Oh the joys of being the world's most allergic human!

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  7. Yummy ideas! I have learned (the hard way) to approach food as "all things in moderation". Sooo I eat one Christmas cookie ... I make homemade cinnamon rolls once a year for Christmas breakfast and eat one ... and try my darndest to exercise regularly to offset some of the goodies! I attempt to eat what I truly enjoy instead of eating just to be eating, and I also try to keep things out of my house that I can't stop eating (Chex mix comes to mind!). I've been on the dark side of eating as I please and I don't want to go back there ...

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    1. Oh you said it! I am NOT going back there either! I think that you must have much greater willpower than I do because I just seem to be incapable of eating just one. I made a batch of cookies around Thanksgiving and downed them all in a few days. YIKES! No more cookies for me this season!

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    2. I force myself to weigh in monthly at Weight Watchers (I'm on the maintenance program so it's free unless I'm more than 2 pounds over my goal weight) so really, I use external controls to help me out as "willpower" really doesn't seem to work for me. Actually, you're doing what I do--just don't keep it around if you can't control yourself!

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    3. I fear I haven't been able to make myself get on the scale this month... be afraid... be very afraid!

      But seriously, you're totally right. If I can maintain control at the supermarket and avoid any baking fiascos, I'm good, otherwise it's Katy bar the door! :-)

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  8. I don't have much for holidays that is particularly low in fat, but winters I avoid adding any more pounds by living on soups. Nothing like a bowl of soup on a cold day.

    I never understood why things made with apples have to have sugar in them, apples are sweet enough on their own. When I make oatmeal, which I can't stand unless it's sweet, I chop an apple up in with it and add cinnamon or nutmeg. Once cooked with the apples I have a bowl of cereal I can enjoy.

    My holiday meal is different from how I eat as only one grand-baby is a vegetarian, the rest expect meat, but I will make onion soup which they all like, and have a couple of different vegetables and always homemade applesauce. The dessert is usually a pie or pumpkin roll which is loaded with sugar unfortunately because I can't make them myself without a stove.

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    1. Onion soup sounds delicious! Do you have a recipe?

      I'm totally with you on the oatmeal... apples and raisins are my favorite sweeteners. Do you use a milk substitute with your oatmeal, or do you just eat it without?

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  9. I usually go ahead and eat whatever I'm craving because otherwise I'll keep dreaming about that oatmeal cookie or whatever it was that I denied myself. And when I make treats, I do it the day before a party (or that day if the party starts late enough) so I don't have things hanging around the house. I gave myself a stomachache from sweets 2 or 3 times as a kid/teenager, so that memory helps me refrain from overdoing it these days.

    I like your pumpkin muffin idea - then we can pop the last few in the freezer before we get sick of pumpkin! (which always seems to happen when I bake pumpkin bread)

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    1. Once again, I think you have incredible willpower. For me having just one is infinitely more difficult than having none at all.

      Actually... that gives me an odd insight. I think the reason that I can never have just one, is that I'll get this craving for something, but then the thing itself never quite lives up to how good I imagined that it would be... so I just keep eating more of them trying hopelessly to quench the craving, but it never works.

      Hmmm.... I'm not entirely sure what to make of my little revelation, but it's very interesting.

      Only making things for parties or special occasions sounds like a wonderful idea!

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  10. Ok, I don't go for low cal stuff this time of year. I just eat it ALL. I know I should be concerned about my health, but frankly, there is little I enjoy in life. If I have to give up holiday treats, what would be the purpose anymore?! I'd take no gifts over giving up my cookies ;)

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    1. Well, of all people, I think you can afford a few extra calories, and if it makes you feel good, I say go for it! In my case it just leaves me feeling sick and yucky so it's really not worth it.

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  11. I suck at actually following through with making anything I see in a recipe, but I get an odd enjoyment out of reading them. I like that moment when I say, "Yeah, that sounds good...I'll try making that this weekend."

    Thanks for these recipes...they sound great!

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    1. You totally crack me up! Try the peppermint tea... no recipe involved. :-)

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  12. I will try the tea, the apple compote and the pumpkin bread - they sound easy & delicious. I baked things from scratch while unemployed because it was cheaper, but I have now lost my taste for commercially prepared baked goods - way too sweet and greasy. I found I could cut the sugar by a third or half in some muffin recipes (I love muffins), and the result would still be sweet enough for me.

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    1. Totally agree on the baked goods... I just can't handle that much sugar! Be aware that the measurements on the pumpkin bread recipe are a tad bit hand-wavy, so alter them as you see fit.

      I just came up with another great one last night - slightly sweet mint cocoa! I just took a cup of lactose free milk (both because I'm lactose intolerant and because it tastes sweeter than the regular kind) mixed in a teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa powder, added a splash of vanilla and one small piece of peppermint candy. It was yummy!

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