Pineapple Angel Food Cake

I finally made the famous WeightWatcher's Angel Food Cake. Well, famous on the WW boards... I would make it again. I may even mix in low-fat coconut milk to make it a Pina-Colada cake. The cake is one million times better than the infamous Diet Coke cake.

Angel Food Cake

Simply mix together a box of Angel Food cake mix with a can of crushed pineapple. Bake in a 9 X 13 baking dish as directed on the package.

Serves 12 at 3 points a serving. Or make 1-point cupcakes.

Pineapple with Coconut Curls

All it takes is one pineapple and one coconut to make a healthy and impressive dessert. The fresh pineapple with coconut curls looks more impressive if it is served on the same day that the pineapple is sliced (this photo was taken on the 2nd day).

• Bake the coconut at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

• Cut the pineapple in half, lengthwise. Cut each half into 4 wedges. Leaves should remain intact.
• Cut the core from the center of each wedge.
• Cut the pineapple from the skin, lengthwise, then crosswise. Leave the pieces on the wedge.
• Arrange the pineapple wedges on a serving platter.
  
  
• Crack open the coconut. Remove and reserve the coconut milk.
• Using a sharp vegetable peeler, make ribbons of coconut.
• Arrange the coconut ribbons on top of the pineapple wedges.
• Sprinkle each wedge with a tablespoon of the coconut milk.

Each pineapple used makes 4 servings.

Taken from The Martha Stewart Cookbook

Fruit Shish-Ka-Bobs

I put together these fruit shish-ka-bobs for a staff meeting. The middle skewers are balls of watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew. The outer skewers are fresh strawberries and pineapple. I used a flower cookie cutter to cut out the pineapple pieces.

Pineapple Enchiladas

Everyone loves these vegetarian Pineapple Enchiladas. The recipe was developed by a nutritionist for the Pillsbury Bake-Off contest.

Update: The link is no longer working. After much googling, I found the recipe:

Pineapple-Black Bean Enchiladas (8 servings, 6-points each)

INGREDIENTS
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 can (20 oz) pineapple tidbits in juice, drained, 1/3 cup juice reserved
1 can (15 oz) Progresso® black beans, drained, rinsed
1 can (4.5 oz) Old El Paso® chopped green chiles
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 cups shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese (12 oz)
1 can (10 oz) Old El Paso® mild enchilada sauce
8 whole wheat flour tortillas (8 or 9 inch)
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
8 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro


DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. In 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper; cook 4 to 5 minutes or until softened. Stir in pineapple, beans, green chiles and salt. Cook and stir until thoroughly heated. Remove skillet from heat. Stir in 1/2 cup cilantro and 2 cups of the cheese.
2. Spoon and spread 1 tablespoon enchilada sauce onto each tortilla. Spoon about 3/4 cup vegetable mixture over sauce on each. Roll up tortillas; place seam side down in baking dish.
3. In small bowl, mix reserved 1/3 cup pineapple juice and remaining enchilada sauce; pour over entire surface of enchiladas in dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup cheese. Spray sheet of foil large enough to cover baking dish with cooking spray; place sprayed side down over baking dish and seal tightly.
4. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, removing foil during last 5 to 10 minutes of baking, until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly. Top each baked enchilada with 1 tablespoon sour cream and 1 teaspoon cilantro.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Bake 40 to 45 minutes, removing foil during last 5 to 10 minutes of baking.

1 Serving: Calories 330 (Calories from Fat 70); Total Fat 7g (Saturated Fat 3g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 15mg; Sodium 1110mg; Total Carbohydrate 48g (Dietary Fiber 7g, Sugars 17g); Protein 19g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 20%; Vitamin C 40%; Calcium 40%; Iron 15% Exchanges: 2 Starch; 1 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 2 Lean Meat Carbohydrate Choices: 3 
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Quick Sesame Chicken

I made the Sesame Chicken from Cooking Light's 1990 Annual Recipes Cookbook. The chicken was nice and moist, but I honestly would have preferred chicken with barbeque sauce. The chicken tasted like honey more than sesame. I would make this again, but would have to add sesame oil to the basting mixture. Of course, that would up the fat content.

Quick Sesame Chicken

1 (8 oz.) can pineapple slices

1 TBSP sesame seeds, toasted

3 TBSP Honey

1/4 tsp sage

4 (6 oz.) skinned chicken breast halves

Drain pineapple, reserving 3 TBSP juice. Set aside. Combine the 3 TBSP juice, sesame seeds, honey, and sage in a small bowl; stir well. Place chicken, skinned side down, on rack of a broiler pan that has been coated with cooking spray. Brush chicken with honey mixture. Broil 8 inches from heat for 25 minutes, basting often. Turn chicken; broil an additonal 5 munutes or until tender.

Baste reserved pineapple slices with honey mixtue and broil for 5 minutes, turning once.

4 Servings: 240 calories, 4.8 Fat, Fiber unknown

Shown is 4 oz of sesame chicken and two slices of pineapple. I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

Pineapple Love

I spent part of my day sitting in the sun, drinking lemonade and flipping through my cookbooks. In my Hawai'i's Favorite Pineapple Recipes cookbook, which I purchased in Hawaii, I found a recipe for Pineapple Slaw with Feta Cheese. Unfortunately, I forgot to purchase a bell pepper at the market, but the salad is good none-the-less. (The smallest container is holding the Feta Cheese.) Additionally, I mixed low-fat cream cheese with fresh pineapple and spread it on my toasted bagel. My lunch also features Trader Joe's Cinnamon Almonds.

Pineapple Slaw With Feta Cheese

1. In a large bowl, mix together 1 cup minced fresh or canned pineapple, 2 cups shredded carrot, and 1 julienned green pepper.
2. In a small bowl, whisk 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 3 tablespoons pineapple juice, 1 tablespoon honey, and 1 teaspoon canola oil to make a dressing.
3. Pour dressing over the carrots/pineapple/bell pepper and toss. Chill covered for 1 hour. Top with either feta cheese or a mix of half feta and blue cheese.