Low calorie holiday desserts (specifically cookies)

sytar7
sytar7 Posts: 29 Member
in Recipes
Hi all! Looking for recommendations on low calorie desserts for the holidays, specifically cookies!

We always have lots of cookies around the holidays and in the past I have stuck with the old faithfuls and used the following methods 1.just eat less 2. Substitute ingredients 3. taken the extras to work. This year I'll be wfh so 1 & 3 are out. I'm also just looking to mix it up with lower calorie recipes.

Any tried and true lower calorie cookie recipes?

Replies

  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,962 Member
    I've sucessfully made Dutch bitterkoekjes (similar to Italian amaretti) with half the sugar (measured by volume) swapped out for Splenda. Not really low calorie because ground almonds are used instead of flour but there is no fat in the recipe except the almonds. Translating this recipe. Watch the video to get an idea how quick and easy these cookies are.

    https://www.24kitchen.nl/recepten/bitterkoekjes

    Grind 150g almonds with 150g sugar in the food processor and then add 2 egg whites and process to a paste. If you are using egg whites from a carton that is 80g. Blitz in optional 1 teaspoon almond essence. Pipe the dough to form large nipples on a silicon paper lined cookie *kitten*. Alternatively, use a ziplock bag with the corner cut off or drop with a teaspoon. Bake at 190C for approximately 10 minutes until cookies are brown on the outside. They should remain a little soft and chewy on the insde.
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,962 Member
    I don't know why the spellchecker replaced cookie sheet with cookie "kitten".
  • corinasue1143
    corinasue1143 Posts: 7,464 Member
    Thanks so much for that recipe. Never had them. Looks like my kind of cookie, my kind of cooking, and I always have those ingredients in the house. Easy to half the recipe, or double it. And easy to change a little. I’m going to make them with vanilla instead of almond flavor the first time. Will melt some dark chocolate to dip one side in. How about some finely shredded lemon zest added to batter? Or orange?
    I’d better just make 1/2 batches!
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,962 Member
    corinasue1143 wrote: »
    Thanks so much for that recipe. Never had them. Looks like my kind of cookie, my kind of cooking, and I always have those ingredients in the house. Easy to half the recipe, or double it. And easy to change a little. I’m going to make them with vanilla instead of almond flavor the first time. Will melt some dark chocolate to dip one side in. How about some finely shredded lemon zest added to batter? Or orange?
    I’d better just make 1/2 batches!

    I've never tried them with alternatives such lemon zest or vanilla or chocolate dipped. I sometimes forget to put in the almond essence but my Dutch husband prefers his classical bitterkoekjes with the almond essence. I think Middle Eastern orange blossom water woud be great in combination with orange zest. I typically do 150g almonds with 60g sugar and the volume equivalent of 60g sugar in Splenda.

    For a grown up dessert, the warm cookies are amazing dipped in shot glasses of amaretto. I typically live bake bitterkoekjes at a dinner party after any main which generates leftover egg whites such as spaghetti carbonara or steak and asparagus with hollandaise. The cookies only take 15 minutes to make including the 10 minutes in the oven. It's a fun show off thing to bake something from scratch for dessert at the end of a dinner party.
  • sytar7
    sytar7 Posts: 29 Member
    Thanks for the bitterkoekjes recipe and variations! It got me thinking...

    My go-to dessert recipe over the summer was cheesecake bars. High protein, very satisfying. And friends / family didn't know they were diet until my husband in his excitement burst out the nutrition facts! 😂

    I think I might try a variation with mint cheesecake and a chocolate crust. I'll let you know how it goes!

    https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/skinny-chocolate-chip-cheesecake-bars/
  • missysippy930
    missysippy930 Posts: 2,577 Member
    There are a lot of recipes substituting stevia for sugar that lessen the calories of cookies. I pretty much only bake cookies at Christmas time. We usually give most away to friends. Because of covid, that won’t happen this year. In the past, we always use original recipes with sugar. It’s only once a year, and worth the calories. We’ll probably only make true family favorites this year.
  • sytar7
    sytar7 Posts: 29 Member
    Haha good point. However it ends up being ~6 weeks of the year at my house... 😅 Plus ometimes it takes me a week or two to wean myself off routinely having dessert.

    I'm still on the lookout for low calorie desserts
  • missysippy930
    missysippy930 Posts: 2,577 Member
    https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/food-recipes/healthy/g4099/healthy-cookie-recipes-to-bake/

    Google, it’s useful to find whatever you are interested in. There’s a lot of websites for healthier, lower calorie cookie recipes. Thie above site is just a sample.
  • sytar7
    sytar7 Posts: 29 Member
    edited November 2020
    Make quinoa brownies today! They turned out a little wet will probably cook the quinoa with less water next time.

    Steps were pretty straightforward. Cook 1/2 c quinoa, use the food processor to turn the cooked quinoa into a paste, add 100 grams roasted acorn squash (had some leftover), 1/2 cocoa powder, 1/4 c light maple syrup, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1 tsp baking soda. Bake for 30 minutes at 350F. Makes 12 brownies.

    It wasn't quite sweet enough so I melted some white chocolate to drizzle over top. With my ingredients it was 65-70 per bar.
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
    I love mini butternut squash or pumpkin tartlets made in the mini phyllo cups. I make my filling with just pureed squash, stevia, and pumpkin pie spices so they're much lighter than the traditional custard variety (and they're vegan, too!)
  • yayamom3
    yayamom3 Posts: 939 Member
    I love to make meringue cookies. They are easy, fun and low in calories! I make both the regular (with sugar) and the sugar-free for my dad. Lots of good recipes on Pinterest.

  • sytar7
    sytar7 Posts: 29 Member
    acpgee wrote: »
    I've sucessfully made Dutch bitterkoekjes (similar to Italian amaretti) with half the sugar (measured by volume) swapped out for Splenda. Not really low calorie because ground almonds are used instead of flour but there is no fat in the recipe except the almonds. Translating this recipe. Watch the video to get an idea how quick and easy these cookies are.

    https://www.24kitchen.nl/recepten/bitterkoekjes

    Grind 150g almonds with 150g sugar in the food processor and then add 2 egg whites and process to a paste. If you are using egg whites from a carton that is 80g. Blitz in optional 1 teaspoon almond essence. Pipe the dough to form large nipples on a silicon paper lined cookie *kitten*. Alternatively, use a ziplock bag with the corner cut off or drop with a teaspoon. Bake at 190C for approximately 10 minutes until cookies are brown on the outside. They should remain a little soft and chewy on the insde.

    Followed your recipe tonight and they turned out great!!! I added a touch of lemon extract.

    I was able to make 35 cookies at about 25 calories a piece! They are small but wonderful little cookies. Thanks again
  • sytar7
    sytar7 Posts: 29 Member
    rosebarnalice wrote: »
    I love mini butternut squash or pumpkin tartlets made in the mini phyllo cups. I make my filling with just pureed squash, stevia, and pumpkin pie spices so they're much lighter than the traditional custard variety (and they're vegan, too!)

    Tried this with apple pie filling, it was amazing! Little individual apple pies. So good thanks for the idea 💕

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