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Baking Season Is Upon Us

Hey there W+A readers. Sunday night sneaked up so quickly and Christmas will be upon on us next weekend. We've had our decorations up for a few weeks now and John wrapped all of our presents. I contributed by adding some bows. I'm not big on the wrapping and he seems to enjoy it, so why not let him run with it! This week I did a lot of baking. From cheddar egg muffins to oatmeal coconut dark chocolate "cookies" and tonight I made some healthy pumpkin white chocolate brownies. I've really been trying to use what I have in my kitchen and have started adding to my baking ingredients collection. I stocked up on some chocolate morsels, cinnamon, canned pumpkin, coconut flakes, nuts and some other necessities from the baking aisle. Since it is baking season, I figured I'd try my hand at baking some more, especially guiltless treats that John and I can snack on during the week.

Last Monday I prepared some healthy egg muffins. They take no time to prepare and made our breakfast thoughtless and easy. I made a total of 12 and warmed them in the microwave for 30 seconds each morning. John took some for a mid-morning snack during the week too.


Here is what you'll need:
4 cups broccoli florets
4 whole large eggs
1 cup egg whites
1/4 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar
1/4 cup grated cheese
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
cooking spray

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350° on bake. Boil broccoli in water for about 10 minutes. I liked to get mine soft so I could smash very finely. Crumble into smaller pieces and add olive oil, salt and pepper then mix together. Spray a non-stick cupcake tin with cooking spray and spoon broccoli mixture evenly tins. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites, whole eggs, grated cheese, salt and pepper. Pour into the greased tins over broccoli until a little more than 3/4 full. Top with grated cheddar and bake in the oven until cooked, about 20 minutes. Wrap any leftovers in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator to enjoy during the week.

After having breakfast settled for the week, I decided to make a sweet treat for those nights we are craving a snack while watching TV. Canned pumpkin is always a must in my kitchen. I love using it for baking and substituting it for oil, butter and eggs. I make muffins, cookies, pasta dishes, but tonight I decided to whip up some pumpkin white chocolate brownies. 


Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Mix together 1 box of low-fat fudge brownie mix, 1 can of natural pumpkin and 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips. You can add nuts too, but I skipped on them tonight. Grease a 9x13 cake pan with cooking spray and pour your mixture into the pan. Spread evenly filling all corners and top with 2 more tablespoons of chocolate morsels. Bake for 20 minutes or until your toothpick test comes up clean. Let cool and cut into small squares. I got 30 mini brownies out of he entire pan. Perfect treat to get in your chocolate craving.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and enjoy delicious food with your family and friends! We will be celebrating with 7 fishes on the eve at my parents and Christmas dinner at my in-law's. A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!

-W+A

 

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