Fat burning 4th of July dessert recipes: Decadent patriotic RWB diet desserts

Hello friends! Part of how I lost 100 pounds was with calorie restricting and diet food swaps. Holidays are the hardest times for dieters. So how about decadent diet desserts that actually burn fat instead of create it? Here are fat-burning 4th of July dessert recipes with a patriotic, red-white-and blue theme. 

* Red, White and Blueberry Cream Pie: Cream pie---on a diet? No way. Yes way. Swap non-fat sugar-free Greek yogurt for sour cream. Blend with instant sugarfree, fat-free Jell-O cream cheese or vanilla pudding, sugarfree vanilla almond milk, sliced strawberries and blueberries. Line pie tin with reduced-fat crushed graham crackers blended with milled flax seed (omit butter or shortening; crust will be looser, but doable). Arrange berries on top in star shapes. Make star patterns with spray whipped topping. 

* All-American Apple Upside-Down Pie: Spray pie tin with zero-calorie cooking spray. Pare and slice tart Jonathon or Macintosh apples. Arrange in pan. Dot with light margarine. Sprinkle with zero calorie Ideal sweetener, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and ginger. Blend oats, Ideal sweetener, flax seed and Bob's Red Mill 7-grain pancake mix. Bake till crust is browned. 

* RWB Super-fruit Parfait. Make applesauce leaving skins (for color) on and milling. Cook raw cranberries with one cup water and Ideal sweetener to taste. Cook cubed rhubarb with water and Ideal. Alternate layers of fresh blueberries, spray whipped cream and fruit sauces in fluted or dessert glass, 

* Chocolate Indulgence Cake. Prepare boxed chocolate cake mix with homemade applesauce instead of oil and flax seed for eggs (three tablespoons per egg), half cup Greek yogurt and cold coffee. Melt unsweetened dark chocolate (70-percent or higher cacao). cold coffee, coconut or almond milk, sea salt and Ideal sweetener to glaze consistency. Serve over cake. Top with shaved sweetened dark chocolate, raspberries, and spray whipped topping. 

* Rocky Road Trifle. Cut angel food cake in squares. Melt dark chocolate (70 percent cacao), Before chocolate hardens, blend cake cubes, peanuts and spray whipped topping. Allow to set and top with sliced strawberries. Angel food cake has only 70 calories per serving, no fat and less sugar than regular cake. 

* Caramel-lotta. The cake in the picture features diet food swaps of whole milk Greek yogurt for dairy, flaxseed and sugarless applesauce for oil and eggs,  keto coffee (with coffee, ghee butter, MCT-medium chain triglycerides and coconut oil) and Medjool dates and pure maple syrup for sweetness. We subbed gluten-free almond flour and added pepitas for extra fat-burning protein. 

* Almond Joy Trifle. Follow procedure for Rocky Road Trifle, but substitute unsweetened shredded coconut and almonds for peanuts. Omit berries. 

Capitalize on antioxidant goodness of red and blue berries, apples and dark chocolate and fiber-plus-fatty-acids in almonds, coconut and flax seed. These recipes are so yummy you'll have non-dieters begging for some! Photo is (believe it or not) a fat-burning caramel cake made with yogurt, nuts and seeds, pure maple syrup and coconut oil. 

Father's Day gifts: Man-pleasing recipes, menus and foods dad will flip over!

 

At the risk of gender profiling, let's agree women and men don't always eat the same foods. Gals will subsist on tofu and sprouts to lose weight. We may even fake we like it. Guys typically can't and they certainly won't pretend to like it. On Father's Day, they shouldn't have to. So here's a recipe shout-out for the boys. Use these Father's Day menus of man-pleasing foods to satisfy the y-chromosome! Dad will flip over any one of these Fathers Day menus Happily, recipes are easy and mostly inexpensive. 

There's an urban legend, propagated by marketers that to give dad a nice Fathers Day, it's necessary to spend big. Take it from this penny pincher parent--that's not true. For very little money, you can make big fun, especially on Fathers Day. How? With food--the secret to most any dad's heart is through his stomach. Here are kid-friendly recipes, man-pleaser menus and party food dads love that dad will eat up! These Fathers Day recipes get kids involved and teach children useful cooking skills, too. Here are some of the most successful Fathers Day fetes. 

* Fix-your-own outdoor buffets. Give dad a day off from the grill and use Fathers Day as an opportunity to teach older kids how to use a grill safely. Popular inexpensive kid-friendly recipes and party food dads love include make-your-own-chili dogs, tacos, hamburgers or pizza (wrap pizzas loosely in foil and bake on the grill). 

* From-the-sea feast. Take dad fishing and then cook what's caught. It's good to have some back-up salmon in the freezer just in case the big one gets away, though! Grilled fish makes great kid-friendly recipes. Have children clean and wash fish. Then spray aluminum foil with cooking spray and wrap fish in foil. Whisk a dressing of olive oil (not EVOO for high heat), dill, sage, garlic, pepper, celery and lemon juice. Marinate fish and bake. Firmer-bodied fish like trout, catfish, swordfish and tuna steaks work well for grilling. Or make fish kebabs--kebabs are perfect for man-pleaser menus. Skewer shrimp colored peppers, yellow squash and cherry tomatoes (season with lemon marinade). Kids love assembling kebabs--just make sure they do so carefully.

* Cold party food bar (for hot Fathers Day gigs). Set out deviled eggs, baked beans, a relish tray, cole slaw, fresh fruit chunks, a veggie tray, chips and ham sandwiches. The dad in this house loves Polish roses--snipped green scallions wrapped in baked ham and cream cheese. Children love making these super-easy kid-friendly recipes and dad will love eating them! 

* Crock pot buffet of party foods dads love. Cook outdoors in a crock pot or 3-section food steamer. Put sausage and sauerkraut in a crock pot and cook outside. Meatballs work well too. Add frozen meatballs, grape jelly and ketchup for sweet and sour meatballs. For meatballs in gravy add French onion soup, sour cream and mushroom soup to frozen meatballs. Steam mussels in one of the sections. Or make nacho dip (Velveeta cheese and Ro-Tel tomatoes--easy-peasy kid-friendly recipes for Fathers Day!)

* Indulge dad's sweet tooth. Make an outdoor dessert buffet of party food dads love. Cheesecake, strawberry shortcake, pies and cupcakes are popular on man-pleaser menus. Dads also love gelatin mixed with fruit and whipped topping. These kid-friendly recipes make good summer coolers.

* Enjoy a world food bar of man-pleaser menus. No money for travel? Throw an around the world party with food dads love. Men's favorites include souvlaki and baklava from Greece, brats from Germany, hummus and pita chips from the Middle East, pierogies from Poland, tiramisu from Italy and tropical fruit salad from the Caribbean. 

The man-pleaser menus will be a Fathers Day hit with dads and kids. Phot is me getting ready to make up some homemade salsa!