Desserts on Decadently Fit

Category: Desserts

02
Jul
2013

Broccoli Slaw Salad & Virtual BBQ

categories: Cheat Day, Desserts, Low Carb, Main Dishes, Side Dish

I love summer time. I love spending more time with my children. I love the late nights swimming. I love going to BBQs. BBQs are a great excuse to hang out with friends, and for the kid’s to run rampant. It’s a chance for everyone to get adventurous making a new dish they saw on Pinterest.

Unfortunately, most of us (even me) use it as an excuse to over indulge. That would be fine if a BBQ happened maybe once a month. Let’s be honest, most us attend a BBQ of some sort during the summer once a week. Over indulging that much can lead to excess pounds no one wants during bathing suit season.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you can’t try your friend’s amazing dishes. I think you should, just watch your portion size and don’t go back for seconds. This nifty chart shows what the correct portion size for each person.

I recently brought this vibrant Broccoli Slaw Salad to a BBQ. Tons of nutritious veggies are incorporated into the salad, including sweet sun-dried tomatoes. Sun flower seeds and red onions give the dish a nice crunch, while the vinegar and pesto liven up your taste buds.

If your goal is to feed a ton of people, while going easy on the wallet, swap out the broccoli for shredded cabbage. If you don’t like sunflower seeds, use pumpkin seeds. Either way, the salad delivers a huge punch of flavor without compromising your waist line.

Recipe For Broccoli Slaw Salad

12 oz broccoli florets, raw, separated into bite size pieces

12 oz. broccoli slaw (refrigerated in produce section)

3 oz. sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (not in oil)

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup red onion, diced

3/4 cup prepared pesto sauce

1/2 cup, plus 2 tablespoons olive oil mayo

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Whisk together mayo, pesto, vinegar, salt and pepper into a small bowl.

Combine the rest of the ingredients with the pesto mixture and chill for 2 hours. Serve cold.

Below I have posted some of my blogger friend’s recipes that they brought to our virtual 4th of July BBQ. I recently met them at Camp Blogaway (a conference for bloggers). They are a group of amazing ladies with incredible talent and wonderful personalities. We joke that there must have been some roommate god that placed us together. The match was just too perfect. On the first night we laughed and chatted till we realized how loud we were being. Oops.

I’m hoping to see them in person in the near future, hopefully at a BBQ where they bring these dishes. Until then, here is our virtual version.

Crème Brûlée Tart

This is Jillian’s contribution, from Food Folks and Fun, to our space age BBQ. She is a sweet military mommy and wife who recently moved to San Diego County. She currently has a little girl and is expecting a little boy. Her blog is full of wonderful recipes, vibrant pictures to match, great printables and wonderful crafts. Pin worthy, great posts, that you should check out today!

Jillian’s interpretation of the French classic: smooth custard in a flaky tart shell with a crackling burnt-sugar topping. Serve with fresh, seasonal berries.

Coffee-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Blueberry Sauce

Here is Barbara’s contribution from Barbara Cooks. Another room-mate from Camp Blogaway, and one of the first people I met at camp. If her sparkling blue eyes don’t capture your attention, her beautiful smile will. A newlywed from San Diego County, Babara approaches food with a healthy spin. Her food is fun and inventive. Right up my alley! Check it out!

Barbara has taken the bold flavor of coffee and barbecued it! Served with a sweet and savory blueberry sauce, this will be a hit at your next backyard barbecue.

Christine’s Colorful Potato Salad

Angela writes the blog Aloha: Yinz Mangia. She is an Italian girl who uprooted her life in Pittsburgh, to live in Hawaii. That should completely demystify the name of her blog. Not only is her blog name fun, so is the author. She is currently planning a wedding to fiance Bryce, while working on the Battleship Missouri. She has an amazing sense of humor, and her love of food is apparent in every post. Warning: Reading her blog will make you very jealous of her amazing Hawaiian life. That being said, check out her blog as quickly as possible!

Angela adds unconventional ingredients like blue cheese and apples to a conventional potato salad. An explosion of flavor is bound to ignite your 4th of July BBQ with this dish!

I hope you bring our dishes to your next BBQ. Happy 4th of July!

A BIG thank you to all the service men and women, past and present that make our country what it is!

19
Jun
2013

Peach Pie Protein Smoothie

categories: Breakfast, Desserts

Eating breakfast is essential. It turns on your body’s fat burning oven and gives you the energy you need to start your day. Skipping this meal can lead to overeating throughout the day. When you skip a meal, your body signals your brain to play catch up. Bad choices are made when our bodies go into starvation mode. Your best plan of attack is to drink a full glass of water right when you wake up. This cleanses your body of impurities and hydrates. Plan on eating within the first hour of waking up to fully kick-start your metabolism. Eating within the first hour can sometimes be a challenge for me. Especially since we are on our 4th week of summer break here. I love simple breakfasts that don’t require tons of prep and clean up. Shakes fit this mold, and fill my tank. This peach protein shake is quick, satiates, and tastes like dessert. Serious bonus. On that note, you can end your day with this shake. Just add 1/2 a cup of your favorite frozen yogurt, and tada! You can pull the wool over your kid’s/husband’s eyes and make them think they are drinking a non-nutritious shake. Onto the fabulous reasons to drink this peachy goodness. The protein in the powder and almond milk will keep you full till your mid-morning snack and build muscle. Who can resist the taste of a fresh peach? I know I can’t. Knowing they are full of vitamin A, C, & B, contain iron and fluoride, and protect from free radicals, make them even more appealing. Cinnamon, well there are so many benefits to ingesting a daily 1/2 teaspoon dose of this spice, I needed a list:

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon per day can lower your bad cholesterol (or LDL).
Cinnamon may help treat Type 2 Diabetes by lowering blood sugar levels and increasing the amount of insulin production in the body.
Cinnamon has anti-fungal properties, and it’s been said that candida cannot live in a cinnamon environment.
Cinnamon can reduce the proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells.
Cinnamon has an anti-clotting effect on the blood.
Honey and Cinnamon combined have been found to relieve arthritis pain.
When added to food, cinnamon inhibits bacterial growth and food spoilage, making it a natural food preservative.
Just smelling cinnamon boosts cognitive function and memory.
Cinnamon fights the E. coli bacteria in unpasteurized juices.
Cinnamon has been found to be an effective natural remedy for eliminating headaches and migraine relief.
Cinnamon can also help stabilize blood sugar (which is great for weight loss). A couple of dashes in your morning tea or cereal is all it takes.

(facts from http://organicauthority.com)

So, when you see the peaches at your local market, make sure you grab a few to make this delicious breakfast treat. You are missing out if you don’t!

Peach Pie Protein Smoothie

Author: Rebekah Gusman

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 9 oz.

Fat: 4.6
Carbohydrates: 28
Sugar: 23
Sodium: 285
Fiber: 4
Protein: 27
Cholesterol: 20

Recipe type: Smoothie, Breakfast

Ingredients

8 ounces vanilla almond milk
½ of a peach (skin removed) or ½ cup frozen peaches, sliced
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
optional additions: (1 tablespoon)
FiProFlax
chia seeds
flax seeds
hemp hearts
wheat germ

Instructions

Put all ingredients in a high powered blender and blend till smooth. I like the milkshake option.

05
Jun
2013

Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia Banana Maple Pudding

categories: Breakfast, Desserts, Snacks, Uncategorized

If you aren’t familiar with chia seeds other than the infamous pets, you probably clicked on this post out of sheer curiosity. I personally was a skeptic at first. I immediately added them to my mental list of foods that are a hippy gimmick. I even tried to convince myself that I wasn’t a hippy at heart. Then I went over my life passions in my head. Oh yeah, I am part hippy. I figured I at least owed it to my fellow hippys to try the seeds. If I didn’t like them, I could move on to something else weird.

Ok, seriously people, they don’t taste like anything. If you like tapioca, you will like them. If you don’t like tapioca, grind them up and drink them in a shake, use them like a flour, so on. There are tons of uses for the nutrient packed seeds. Here is a short list of benefits these poppy seed like beauties contain:

Full of omega-3’s (improves mental performance)
High in fiber
High in protein
High in calcium
High in antioxidants
Helps with weight loss (gives you a full feeling)
Redeuces inflamtion (great for those with arthiritis)
Absorbs extra acid (great for reflux sufferers)
Lowers cholesterol
Lowers the risk of heart disease

With all of these benefits and no taste, I will be adding these to whatever I can. The reccomended amount for an adult is 2 tablespoons a day. An easy amount to add to a morning smoothie, shake, eggs, yogurt, cereal, toast, or even sorbet for dessert. Honestly, I would reccomennd starting off with the recipe below as an introduction. It’s an easy recipe to make, and tastes amazing! The chia seeds act as the thickener. They absorb the liquid and grow 8 times in size. The gelatenous coating creates the pudding like texture. The hardest part in making this is waiting for it to thicken. It will start thickening immediately, but I noticed the greatest consistency 12 hours in.

You can buy these little beauties at your local health food store or by clicking here.

Recipe

2 ripe bananas, mashed

2 cups almond mlik

2 tablespoons real maple extract (vanilla works too)

7 tablespoons chia seeds

Mix the ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. Cover and chill 6 hours. Serve by itself or with fresh berries.

Servings: 8 • Size: 1/2 cup

Calories: 110 • Fat: 6g • Carb: 13g • Fiber: 7g • Protein: 4g •
Sugar: 4g • Sodium: 53mg • Cholesterol: 0mg

25
Apr
2013

Frozen PB & Chocolate Banana Bites

categories: Desserts

Lately my sweet tooth has taken me on a wild high calorie ride. Not having healthier, low caloric options on hand to quench my cravings was a serious down fall. Instead of giving into my urges with unhealthy options, I decided to head my cravings off at the pass. This was one concoction I came up with to quench my cravings. Two of these frozen treats was all I needed.

Bonus: the kids thought I was giving them a super decadent treat because I put them on sticks. Ha!

Recipe

2 – 3 bananas (depending on size), cut into 1 inch pieces

1 cup dark chocolate

1 cup peanut butter (preferably natural/organic)

lollipop sticks

Cover a cookie sheet or plate with wax paper. Place the banana slices cut side down on the sheet, evenly spaced. Put a lollipop stick into each banana. Freeze for about an hour. Take the sheet out of the freezer.

In a shallow bowl melt the peanut butter in the microwave on 50% power for 1 minute increments, until melted. (This can also be done in a double boiler). Dip each banana in the peanut butter until covered. Place back on wax paper. Repeat until all of the bananas are covered in pb. Place back in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Repeat the same process with the chocolate and place in the freezer.

Keep frozen until ready to serve. Thaw for a couple minutes before eating.

Try not to eat the entire batch in one sitting. Try sharing a few with your family. It’s the nice thing to do.

Servings: 8 • Size: 2 bites
Calories: 174 • Fat: 12g • Carb: 22 g • Fiber: 3 g • Protein: 5g •
Sugar: 11g
Sodium: 41 mg • Cholest: 0 mg