Healthy Baking: Cake Mix Subsitutions

Scott's birthday was yesterday and while baking his birthday cake I made a mental note to share a quick tip with you all about baking with boxed cake, brownie, cupcakes or cookie mixes.

When deciding what kind of cake to make sometimes you can get a bit overwhelmed with choosing from thousands of recipes online and go for the good 'ol boxed mix.  Scott's favorite is German Chocolate with some kind of caramel frosting, so I picked up the ingredients for what would be close enough.

German Chocolate Cake + Coconut Pecan Icing:

1 box German Chocolate cake mix
1 can of Coconut Pecan icing
1 1/4 cups of water
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp egg whites liquid (9 tbsp total)

*HEALTH TIP: Look at the lower fat recipe at the bottom, there's usually tips right there on the box!

Instead of using vegetable oil and 3 large eggs, substitute 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce and 3 egg whites (equals 9 tbsp total):

Keep that math equation in your back pocket and you'll be set feeling less guilty on your funfetti cupcakes and double chocolate brownie box mixes.

Even with the substitutes, this cake tasted SOOOOO sinful!

more healthy substitutions:

*all pulled from Taste of Home.

• For every 1/2 cup of oil replaced with applesauce, you will save 900 calories and 110 grams of fat.
• Replace 1 cup of cream with fat-free evaporated milk…and you’ll save 600 calories and 84 grams fat.
• Use reduced-fat cream cheese instead of regular cream cheese…and you'll bank 310 calories and 37 grams fat.  Switch from regular to fat-free cream cheese and save even more—560 calories and 80 grams fat!
•  Use 1 cup of reduced-fat sour cream in place of regular sour cream and save 160 calories and 20 grams of fat. If you use fat-free sour cream instead, you'll save 250 calories and 37 fat grams.

Simple tricks like that make desserts okay to indulge in, even for those with strict diets.  Reducing this and buying low-fat that all adds up...without taking the chocolaty or sugary taste you crave away.

Wouldn't you want a piece of me?

Questions:

• Have you ever used the un-sweetened applesauce substitution before?
• What are some of your go-to healthier choices for cooking/baking?

Pumpkin Roll

Last time this year, Scott learned how obsessed with any sort of food (especially baked good) having to do with pumpkin.  Everything was pumpkin this, pumpkin spice that, I really do think I have a slight love affair with it.  Knowing this, he became eager to try out his step mom's Pumpkin Roll recipe and knew I would be right on board.

First, let me say...it was a a bit of effort to get a decent looking roll.  The first time we tried to make made a Pumpkin Roll, we didn't do everything exactly right and the poor roll crumbled in our hands.  Boo! We still ate it though, (and it was still very tasty) but didn't take any pictures of the Pumpkin Roll casualty...although that might have been entertaining. ;)

The other day I was at the grocery store and I was determined to even out this Pumpkin Roll 1 - Hesington 0 score, so I picked up the necessary ingredients to try it again.  When I left for work on Sunday I causally mentioned to Scott that we had everything needed for the roll again and before I knew it I had a REALLY exciting surprise waiting for me when I got home that night: a non-crumbled oooey-gooey finished and successfully rolled Pumpkin Roll.

*DISCLAIMER:  Since Scott re-tried the recipe when I wasn't around, I only have pictures from the first time we made it.  I've added all the photos that apply to the recipe listed, but not each step is pictured, like usual.

Pumpkin Roll:

I took this pic using Instagr.am.  Check out my gallery.

*NOTE: There are several different versions of the pumpkin roll out there, and you can get creative by adding things like raisins, walnuts or cloves.  For this purpose, I will be using the recipe Scott's step-mom, Kay gave us:

3/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs (beaten)
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup quality canned pumpkin
1 cup chopped walnuts (we didn't add this)
cream cheese filling (recipe below)

Cream Cheese filling:
6 tbsp softened butter
8 oz. (1 package) softened cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

To make Pumpkin Bread to roll: Grease a 10x15 inch baking pan and line with parchment paper.  Grease and flour the paper.

Beat eggs for about 5 minutes until they are thick and fluffy.

*NOTE: I used eggbeaters to substitute the real eggs (pictured), but Scott used real eggs for the second one.  I recommend sticking with the real things on this one.

Beat in sugar and pumpkin.

SLOWLY!

*TIP: Try pouring slowly while mixing on low.

*NOTE: It's really important to gradually add the pumpkin in to the batter.  If added to quickly, it might result in a crumbled bread (our first mistake).

Add flour, cinnamon and baking powder.

*NOTE: Pictured above is Baking soda.  One recipe called for soda, another called for half and half soda/powder while Kay's called for baking powder only.  Any combination of those will work.

Mix into pumpkin batter until blended.

Spread evenly onto paper...easy does it.

Sprinkle with walnuts (we did not use nuts). Scott Somebody doesn't like them. :(

The first time we added raisins instead (pictured above).  The second time we didn't (below).

Bake at 375 for 15 minutes.
Loosen cake around edges.
Invert onto clean damp towel dusted with powdered sugar.

*NOTE: You can also opt to use parchment paper, instead of the towel.
Peel off paper.  Trim 1/2 inch off all sides of cake. (Trimming will make more of a squared shape).  Roll up towel and cake together.

Cool seam-side down on wire rack. Make sure it cools completely.  While cake is cooling, make your cream cheese filling.

To make cream cheese filling: cream together the softened butter and cream cheese.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla.

Mix until smooth.

Carefully unroll the cake and spread cream cheese filling to within 1 inch of edges.

Re-roll (this time without the paper or towel) and refrigerate.

When you're ready to serve, dust with confectioner's sugar, if desired.  Cut into slices & Enjoy!

Oh, I almost forgot the last step: get your favorite helper to be in charge of clean-up! ;)

I hope you enjoy your pumpkin roll as much as we do did (That sucker's long gone now).  If you make one, feel free to share any success stories (or failed attempts like my first one) below in the comments section.

*Don't forget to enter in my Pumpkin Spice Coffee Giveaway: contest closes this Friday, Nov. 4th!

Happy Rolling!

3 Things for Fall

I just love Fall.  I love the leaves changing color, I love the smells and I certainly LOVE fall-inspired recipes + food.

By the of September I was already Fallin' on a Budget, getting ready for the season by adding a few Fall touches to our home.  Of course there's other things I acknowledge and eat or celebrate the season with but here is a short list of quick, easy additions you can bring into your home for Fall.

1. Mini Pine Cones.

I picked a bag of this pine cone mix from The Fresh Market for $4.99.  I kept passing them every time I went in and out of the store and eventually gave them a try.  They smell SO good and give the exact natural fall look I wanted on our coffee table.  

The large glass bowl holding them was a wedding gift from Crate&Barrel, which turned out to be the perfect addition to the coffee table.

2.  Cinnamon Broom.

I grew up smelling the cinnamon scent in our house every fall + winter season.  This is the first time I've actually bought one for my own home, since I always thought of it as a "country" accent.

I wasn't sure where I should put it, since I didn't want it to be in our kitchen screaming "hi, I'm a cinnamon broom producing that wonderful fragrance," so I tucked it away in our kitty spare bathroom, which is next to the kitchen.

Now, every time we walk into the house we immediately smell cinnamon goodness.  Cinnamon is a great offset to whatever other smells seem to come from that room...

I got my broom from Fresh Market, but you can find them at most grocery stores like Publix or Wal-mart.

3.  Cans of Pumpkin + Pumpkin Pie.

Anyone who has read my blog or talked to me in person around this time of year knows I have a true obsession with pumpkin.  It all started with trying the ever-so-popular First Watch Pumpkin Pancakes 3 years ago.  Ever since that first bite of heaven, I immediately wanted to add pumpkin to everything!

Whenever I see quality cans of pumpkin I stock up, before they're all gone.  Finding cans of pumpkin in stock is not always an easy task, so it's good to have them on hand when you're dying to make something pumpkiny.

It's really simple to come up with recipes using pumpkin.  Check out my Pumpkin Spice Muffins, for example: only 3 ingredients!

Stay tuned this week for more pumpkin-inspired baking, spreads and side dishes.  Now that I'm stocked up, I'm ready to rock and (pumpkin) roll!

Question:
What are some of the things you look forward to the most for Fall?

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

It's October which means we are officially in the Fall season and I am very excited about it!  I have already welcomed Autumn by adding leaves, scents and warm colors into our home and you can how in my Fallin' on a Budget post.

The weather this weekend was beautiful and Orlando pleasantly surprised me with temperatures in the 60s, which got me even more into the Fall spirit.  My favorite fall food? ANYthing Pumpkin!  Really...pumpkin pancakes, coffee, bread, cookies, seeds, pies...I am all about the pumpkin and it's seasonings.

First on the list for baking this season is a recipe I found on my favorite phone app, Spark Recipes.  I was craving pumpkin all day on Saturday and decided on my way home from work I wanted to bake something, but didn't want anything too complicated.  With a simple step of typing the word "pumpkin" in the search box of my app I found this wonderful recipe.

*BONUS: There's only 3 ingredients & everything cost under $5!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

1 box of spice cake mix
1 15 oz. can of pure pumpkin
1 cup of water

cook time: 25 minutes
servings: 24 muffins

Canned pumpkin is low in calories and fat and is considered a food full of nutrients.  It is high in vitamins and minerals and includes considerable amounts of Vitamin A, C, fiber, carbohydrates, iron and calcium.  I got this information from Livestrong.com and here you can read more about  Canned Pumpkin Nutrition.  *NOTE: Be careful not to confuse a can of pure pumpkin for a can of pumpkin pie mix.  Recipes usually call for one or the other, so be sure you pick up the right can for yours!

To make pumpkin spice muffins: open the box of Spice Cake and pour into a mixing bowl.

Add in the cup of water and mix until cake mix is smooth.

Add the pumpkin to the spice cake and water and mix until batter is smooth.

Transfer batter into a muffin tin.  I used 2 to make 24 muffins.

Bake 18-21 minutes, or as directed on the spice cake mix box.

Cool muffins for 15 minutes before taking them out of the cupcake pans & Enjoy!

I will probably experiment with different pumpkin bread and muffin recipes throughout the season, but I was drawn to this one because it was so easy.  *BONUS: It was the lowest calories per serving (or muffin) I found:

A pumpkin spice muffin for breakfast, a snack or even dessert for under 100 calories? Sign me up!

And my favorite pairing with these? Pumpkin Spice Coffee, of course.  This time of year, my favorite coffee is the Fresh Market's Pumpkin Spice - hands down.  It comes in both regular or decaf, and you don't even really need to sweeten it with cream or sugar.  Find it in stores or online: Fresh Market Seasonal Coffee.

What are some of your favorite pumpkin recipes?