Skinny Irish Soda Bread Scones

Traditional Irish soda bread is a very simple bread served with dinner. It usually consists of just four ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt, and buttermilk. However, if you go to an American grocery store around St. Patty's Day, you'll find Irish soda breads which are sweet, and filled with raisins and caraway seeds. I decided to make a more American interpretation. They're less of a dinner roll and more of a scone/muffin hybrid, but aren't as sweet. I had them with a bit of light butter and they were delicious.

Skinny Irish Soda Bread Scones

Serving Size: 1 scone (1/6th recipe)

WW PointsPlus Value: 3

1 cup white whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon light butter
1 Tablespoon honey
1/2 cup lowfat buttermilk
1 egg white
1/4 cup raisins

1 teaspoon caraway seeds

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray a muffin tin with butter flavored cooking spray. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl, then cut in butter until the texture resembles wet sand. Mix in remaining ingredients and pour into muffin tin.
• Bake for about 20 minutes and serve immediately. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Skinny White Chocolate Pudding

I've recently become obsessed with homemade stovetop pudding. It's quick, easy, and can be made in oh-so-many different ways. My favorite flavor I've tried so far is white chocolate with berries on top. It tastes so decadent, but is really low in points. You can easily vary this recipe by adding milk or dark chocolate chips, cocoa powder, or just leaving it plain vanilla.

Skinny White Chocolate Pudding

Serving Size: 1/2 cup

WW PointsPlus Value: 3

2 2/3 cups skim milk

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 Tablespoons honey or agave nectar

2 Tablespoons white chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

Pinch of salt

Fresh berries, for topping

Directions:

• Whisk together milk, cornstarch, salt, and honey together in a saucepan. Cook over high heat for a minute then add chocolate chips and vanilla. Whisk until pudding thickens, then pour into ramekins, top with fruit, and serve hot. Or chill and serve cold, it tastes great both ways!

Skinny Cottage (or Shepherd's) Pie

With St. Patrick's Day right around the corner, I've been experimenting with lightening up some traditional (and not-so-traditional) Irish recipes. One of my favorite easy dinner recipes is cottage pie. It's got your meat, veggies, and potatoes all in one dish, and it is delicious (note how much was eaten from the platter before I got the chance to take a picture of it)! I like to make this with lean ground beef, but you could easily swap it out for ground turkey or make it a shepherd's pie with ground lamb. I also swapped the traditional mashed potato crust for my own skinny version of mashed "potatoes" with a secret, healthy ingredient: cauliflower. It really does taste like potatoes, and is a great way to trick picky eaters into eating their vegetables. The first time I made it them, I served them loaded with garlic, with chives on top, and watched my veggie-hating boyfriend eat a huge serving of them. I asked him if he liked the "potatoes," and he said they were delicious! Muah ha ha ha ha (that's my maniacal laugh).

Skinny Cottage Pie

Serving Size: 1/6th of recipe

WW PointsPlus Value: 4

1 lb lean ground beef

3 carrots, peeled and diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1 onion, diced

1 head cauliflower

1 small potato

3 cloves garlic

1 Tablespoon light butter

1/4 cup skim milk

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, for topping

1 can tomato paste

Worcestershire sauce, to taste

1 tsp olive oil

Salt and pepper, to taste

Red wine

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Boil cauliflower and potato in a large pot until very tender. Drain, add butter, milk, salt, and whip using an immersion blender until the consistancy of mashed potatoes. Set aside.
• Cook the mirepoix in the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until tender, about 10 minutes. Then add garlic and ground beef. Cook until meat is brown, then add tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and a glug of red wine. Simmer a few minutes, then transfer to an oven-safe baking dish. Top with mashed "potatoes" and sprinkle cheese on top. Bake for about 20-30 minutes, until top is lightly browned.