The holidays can be tough for anyone who’s trying to lose a few pounds—or at least not gain weight. In addition to an abundance of food, most dishes are laden with calories and fat.

However, by substituting healthy ingredients it’s possible to turn traditional high-calorie recipes into treats that let you enjoy a holiday dessert without breaking your calorie budget.

The Gingered Rice Pudding spices up any holiday meal with its double hit of ginger. The Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding with Apple-Raisin Sauce updates this classic high-calorie treat.

LEGEND:
VERY LOW FAT: Recipes with 10 gm of fat or less per serving.	LOW CHOLESTEROL: Recipes with 30 mg of cholesterol or less per serving.		LOW SODIUM: Recipes with 240 mg of sodium or less per serving.

Gingered Rice Pudding
with Gingered Whipped Cream

For Rice Pudding:
2 c. water
1 c. brown rice
1-1/2 c. 1 percent milk
1 c. Splenda
1 c. crystallized ginger, finely chopped

For Gingered Whipped Cream:
1/2 c. heavy cream
1/4 t. ground ginger
1 T. Splenda

Bring water and rice to a boil in a small saucepan. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for about 30 minutes. Add 1 cup milk and continue cooking for 15 minutes, or until milk is absorbed. Turn off heat. Add final half-cup of milk. Stir in Splenda and ginger. Let sit for about 15 minutes. Rice will continue to absorb milk, but there should be some liquid. Add more milk if necessary. Whip cream with an electric mixer. When just about firm, add ginger and 1 tablespoon of Splenda. Serve warm with a dollop of gingered whipped cream or refrigerate and serve cold. Serves six.

Per Serving
Calories	225
Fat	8.5 gm
Calories from fat	34%
Cholesterol	30 mg
Sodium	39 mg
Carbohydrates	31.5 gm

Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding
with Apple-Raisin Sauce

For Bread Pudding:
Vegetable oil spray
10 slices whole-wheat bread
3 egg whites
1-1/2 c. skim milk
1/4 c. white sugar
2 t. white sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 t. vanilla extract
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. clove

For Apple-Raisin Sauce:
1-1/4 c. apple juice
1/2 c. apple butter
2 T. molasses
1/2 c. raisins
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 t. orange zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 8-by-8-inch baking dish with vegetable oil spray. Lay slices of bread in baking dish in two rows, overlapping like shingles. In medium bowl, beat together egg whites, milk, 1/4 cup of white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Pour egg mixture over bread. In small bowl, stir together cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and the remaining 2 teaspoons of white sugar. Sprinkle spiced sugar mix over the bread. Bake pudding for 30 to 35 minutes, until it has browned on top and is firm to touch. Meanwhile, stir together all apple-raisin sauce ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to simmer over low heat. Let simmer for five minutes; remove from heat. Top pudding with warm apple-raisin sauce. Serves nine.

Per Serving
Calories	233
Fat	3 gm
Calories from fat	12%
Cholesterol	24 mg
Sodium	252 mg
Carbohydrates	46 gm

Sources: Health & You magazine, NHLBI: Keep the Beat Heart Healthy Recipes

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