At 118 calories per cookie, these are a bit high cal, but they are so rich and so delicious that 2 definitely satisfy your sweets craving. A large portion of the calories is due to the walnuts in the recipe, but these are GREAT calories full of MUFA. So don’t feel too bad Serve with a nice Low Fat Latte for a great dessert.

Chocolate Drizzle Cookies

30 servings
118 calories per serving

5 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1 c sugar
1 large egg
1 t vanilla
1 oz. bittersweet baking chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
1 1/3 c flour
1/3 c walnuts, finely chopped
30 walnut halves
Chocolate Glaze (see below)

Beat butter on high 2 minutes or until smooth. Add sugar and beat until creamy. Add egg and vanilla and then stir in melted chocolate. Finally stir in flour and chopped nuts then cover and chill 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and shape dough into 30 balls about 1 inch big and place on cookie sheets. Press a walnut half into each and bake 10-12 minutes and then cool completely. When cool, drizzle chocolate glaze on cookies and let sit until glaze is set.

Glaze:
Melt 1 oz. sweet baking chocolate and 1 T butter then add ¼ t vanilla, 1 c powdered sugar and 2 T skim milk.

The avocado topping brings back much needed moisture to an often dry turkey burger. Feel free to add tomato and onion slices – they carry a minimum of calories. If you can’t get your hands on a nice ripe avocado, substitute Wholly Guacamole (a super fresh guac available in the refrigerator section of your market).

Turkey Burger with Avocado

2 servings
330 calories per serving

2 turkey burgers (Jennie-O)
2 100 calorie buns (Arnold Select Sandwich Thins – multi grain)
Pam
1/2 c worth of avocado slices (about 6 slices) – or use some Wholly Guacamole (available at most markets)
garlic powder
salt and pepper

Heat a pan on medium high. Remove from heat to spray with Pam. Heat frozen burgers according to package instructions (you can alternately grill or broil the burgers, but cook them slow so they do not dry out). When done, place on a bun and add 3 slices of avocado on the top.

This makes the job of making avocado slices a breeze – tools such as these make perfect slices all the time !

If you don’t like the way the cookie crumbles, then this is not a recipe for you. But if you like crunchy little cookie bits like me, then these are heavenly ! And you get the added benefit of eating your MUFA since these have semisweet chocolate and nuts.

Cookie Brittle

48 pieces
60 calories per serving

½ c margarine
2 t vanilla
3 T water
1 t salt
4 T Splenda
1 c flour
1 c semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 c walnuts, chopped very finely

Combine margarine, vanilla, water, salt and Splenda and beat until smooth. Stir in flour, chips and nuts and press into an ungreased 9×13 baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees 25 minutes. Remove from oven and score into pieces. Cool completely then break into pieces.

Wraps are a nice change from a sandwich – and they hold in the contents so much better than 2 slices of bread. Here is a standard turkey, bacon and tomato sandwich and because it is on a wrap you can add in some crumbled feta and avocado slices without worrying about them flying out the sandwich. And the avocado adds your MUFA for the meal Enjoy !

Turkey and Feta Wrap

1 serving
300 calories per serving

1 T Miracle Whip
1 T low fat crumbled feta cheese
1 Whole wheat wrap (80 calorie version by Smart and Delicious)
¼ c shredded lettuce
4 slices deli turkey breast
1 slice tomato, cut into strips
2 slices turkey bacon, cooked
¼ c avocado slices
Pepper

Sprinkle turkey with pepper. Place it all in the wrap and roll it up ! Here is a video that will show you how to fold up a wrap securely

Simple, quick, and a great tasting lunch wrap.

Turkey and Ranch Wrap

2 servings
340 calories per serving

1 T light Ranch dressing
1 Whole wheat wrap (80 calorie version by Smart and Delicious)
1 lettuce leaf
6 slices deli turkey breast
2 slices tomato
1 Laughing Cow light cheese wedge
2 avocado slices

Spread the cheese on the wrap then fill with the rest of the ingredients and wrap it up. Here is a video that shows you how to make a wrap that does not leak

Think Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal – that is the flavor you get from this deliciously sweet treat. You can add or remove flavorings as you see fit – I added bunch more cardamom than the recipe calls for because I am addicted to it’s flavor This is a perfect healthy treat with tons of MUFA for you ! The won’t last long – you might want to make 2 batches !

Candied Walnuts

Makes 5 cups
2 T nuts = 129 calories

1 egg white
1 t water
5 c walnut pieces
1 c sugar
1 t cinnamon
1/4 t nutmeg
¼ t cardamom
1/8 t ground cloves
½ t salt
Pam

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with pam. Mix egg white with water and add nuts and mix well. Combine spices and toss with nuts. Spread on pan and cook 30 minutes. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

What a symphony of flavors ! Your mouth doesn’t know what to be the happiest about – is it the pine nut accent? Or the spicy pepperjack cheese? Or the creamy avocados? Or the smoky chipotle dressing? This is one of THE BEST salads I’ve ever made.

Southwest Spinach Salad

4 servings
300 calories per serving

8 c fresh baby spinach
1/2 c corn with sweet peppers
1/3 c halved black pitted olives
2 T chopped fresh cilantro
2 oz. diced pepper jack cheese
2 plum tomatoes, cut into 8 wedges each
2 hard boiled eggs, quartered
1 ripe avocado cut into 16 slices
3 T lime juice
2 T oil
1 t chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1/8 t salt
1 garlic clove, minced
2 T toasted pine nuts
A few extra squirts of lime juice if you like your salad nice and ‘wet’

Combine spinach, corn, olives, cilantro and cheese. Place 2 c worth on each plate. Arrange tomato, egg and avocado slices atop the spinach. Combine lime juice, oil, chopped chipotle, salt and garlic. Whisk well and pour over salads. Sprinkle with pine nuts.

When you add creamy avocado to a sandwich, there is no need for any other dressing. And avocado is a great MUFA for your diet. This grilled chicken sandwich is very tasty.

Grilled Chicken Sandwich

1 serving
390 calories per serving

3 oz. chicken breast
1 hoagie / sub roll
1 slice tomato
1 large slice lettuce
Salt and pepper to taste
Garlic powder to taste
¼ c avocado slices

Heat grill. Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper and garlic powder and grill 3-4 minutes each side or until done. During the last minute, slice your roll and place face down on the grill to toast the bun. Make a sandwich of all the ingredients.

If you do not have a grill, you can toast the roll in a toaster oven and you can pan fry the chicken in a skillet sprayed with Pam.

Take out the Bacon, replace it with avocado and you have an ALT instead of a BLT. You still have the bacon flavor since you have Bacos in here, but the main flavor is the avocado. So get your MUFA on and have a great sandwich for lunch today !

ALT Sandwiches

4 servings
290 calories per serving

Even though there are bacon bits here, the main star of this sandwich is the avocado, so I call it an ALT instead of a BLT.

¼ c low fat mayonnaise
2 T bacon flavored veggie bits (Bacos)
8 slices of toast
4 lettuce leaves
1 avocado, pitted and sliced
2 large tomato, sliced

Combine mayo and bacos and mix well then spread of 4 pieces of toast and layer with lettuce, avocado and tomato.

Though the dish packs some calories, it is all good MUFA calories – olive oil, seeds, nuts. So I go ahead and eat it as a lunch instead of a side. The dressing is just superb – the soy added to the Italian dressing gives it such an Asian flair. And the added crunch from the ramen noodles make this a great salad !

Asian Salad

12 servings
260 calories per serving

1 envelope Good Seasons Italian Salad dressing mix
1/3 c sugar
2 T soy sauce
2 3 oz. Packages of ramen noodles
2 16 oz. bags of coleslaw blend
4 green onions, sliced
½ c roasted sunflowers
½ c sliced almonds

Prepare salad dressing mix according to package instructions. Stir in sugar and soy. Break noodles and discard seasoning packet. Add coleslaw, onions, seeds and nuts, Mix and add dressing and toss to coat well.