Pumpkin Spice Muffins

It's that time of year where you can get pumpkin everything!  Pumpkin coffee, pumpkin beer, pumpkin ravioli.  You name it, someone's made it pumpkin!  I, for one, LOVE pumpkin, but most everything out there has been filled with tons of sugar and fat.  These muffins aren't exactly "healthy," but they are lighter than usual, have added fiber, and are portion controlled!

The muffin recipe is from HungryGirl.  It's so simple, you'll be amazed at how easy it is to get delicious results.
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Take one box of spice cake mix.  Add in one 15oz. can of pure pumpkin (be careful NOT to use pumpkin pie mix.  Only pure pumpkin).  Mix.  Fill 24 mini-muffin tins with the batter.  Bake according to package directions, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Don't over bake.  That's it.  

While they are cooling, put about 1/4 cup of cream cheese frosting in a pan, and melt it over very, very low heat.  If you make the heat too high, it will separate.  Stir while it melts, and shut off the heat as soon as it's all melted.  Dip in cooled muffins to just glaze the tops.  

Viola!  Pumpkin spice muffins!  Each mini muffin has about 85 calories (depending on the exact cake mix and frosting you use).  Not to shabby, if you ask me!  So moist and delicious, perfect for something sweet this time of year!  They are best eaten on the same day as the frosting tends to get a little melty overnight.

Frozen Whoopie Pie

This is a combination of my guilty pleasures from childhood- icebox cakes and mixing Cool Whip and hot cocoa powder.  Recipe below makes 4 pies, multiply as needed.  Each whoopie pie has 2 Points+.  Note:  I've never had a real whoopie pie, but I'd imagine it would taste like this if frozen!

Ingredients:

8 chocolate wafers (I used Nabisco Famous)

1/2 cup Fat Free Cool Whip, thawed

1 packet Fat-Free hot cocoa mix (I used Nestle Fat Free Rich Milk Chocolate- it's really good!)

Mix Cool Whip and hot cocoa mix.  Divide the mixture on four of the wafers and cover with the remaining four.  Freeze until firm, about 2 hours.

You can omit the hot cocoa mix if you don't want the flavor.  This does not change the Points+ value.

My house is still standing after a hurricane?  This calls for a celebratory treat!

Chocolate

I am a chocoholic.  It is my biggest weakness.  

I always have to keep something on hand that will satisfy my chocolate desires 

without ruining my weight loss.

Here are my top 4 choices, in no particular order:

Fiber One 90 Calorie Brownie

These brownies are individually wrapped, and clock in at 2 Points+ each.  

They are a decent size, and they have chocolate chips in them!  

Not as good as a homemade brownie, but close enough!

Weight Watchers Dark Chocolate Turtle

Dark chocolate with pecan pieces, how can you go wrong!  It's on the small side, but it definitely does the job when you need a little something sweet for 2 Points+!

Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk + 

Hershey's Lite Syrup

There are times when I crave chocolate milk.  The creaminess of the almond milk plus the syrup does the trick!  1 cup almond milk + 4 tbsp syrup = 3 Points!

Weight Watchers Chocolate Caramel Bar

These are small, too, but they are very dense.  

If you take a big bite, you'll look like Mr. Ed.

2 Points+ each, and worth it!

This ish is bananas...

I had a craving.  An ice cream shake was needed.  Emergency!  Emergency!  Code red!  CODE RED!!!!


Well, ice cream wasn't exactly in my future, at least not in the quantities I really wanted.  Time to improvise.  What about those frozen bananas chilling in my freezer?  You know, the ones that were so ripe and I didn't want to make banana bread so we peeled, sliced and froze them?  Enter the greatest thing ever.


Take about a cup of frozen banana slices (about 1 large banana worth).  Put them in a blender with 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk, 3 packets of Splenda and 1 tsp of vanilla extract.  Blend away!  If you have an old blender like mine, you may have to put some extra effort in to make sure the banana gets pulverized.


This comes out so good!  It has a WW Points+ value of 1!  It completely satisfied my craving!  It's sweet, nice and creamy, and you don't have to add any ice since the banana is frozen, so it doesn't get watered down.  I may even try adding some vanilla protein powder to make it a bit more complete and drink it before the gym.  Perhaps maybe some of my light chocolate syrup would add a little something to it as a dessert. 

Gimme something sweet!!!

There are days when you just need something sweet to act as dessert.  A gallon of ice cream, while the most desirable, isn't ideal.  Here are my latest top choices, depending on the craving:


Something chocolate:

1. Chocolate Almond Milk- 1 cup Blue Diamond Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk + 4 tbsp Hershey's Lite Syrup (3 Points+)
2. Jello Mousse Temptations- Sugar Free Chocolate (2 Points+)
3. WW Chocolate Caramel Bar (2 Points+)

Something Creamy:

1. Kozy Shack- No Sugar Added Rice Pudding or Tapioca Pudding (2 Points+)
2. 2/3 cup Fage Total 0% Yogurt with 2 tbsp Strawberry Preserves (4 Points+)

Then there's the always enjoyable fresh fruit option!


What are your favorite go-to dessert choices when you are trying to be "good"?