Skinny Mardis Gras: Oven Baked Beignets

Diet friendly doughnuts. I won't bother commenting on them, as I assume you'll want to get straight to this recipe.

Skinny Oven Baked Beignets

Serving Size: 3 doughnuts (à la Cafe Du Monde)

WW PointsPlus Value: 3

1/4 cup warm water

1 package active dry yeast

1/4 cup sugar

3 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoon light butter , cold and cut into pieces

3/4 cup lowfat buttermilk

1 egg

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, for topping

Directions:

• Put warm water in a small bowl and add yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar. Let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.
  
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and remaining sugar. Cut in butter until mixture is the consistency of wet sand. With a fork, stir buttermilk and egg into yeast mixture until blended, then make a well in the flour mixture and pour wet mix in. Stir until combined.
  
• On a floured surface, knead dough until it's smooth. Spray the large bowl with cooking spray and place dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes.
• Spray a couple cookie sheets with cooking spray (or line with a silicone baking mat), then on your floured surface, roll dough out until it's a 9x9 square. With a pizza cutter, slice dough into 36 squares. Place on cookie sheets and cover. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and there he dough rise for 20 minutes.
  
• Bake for 10 minutes and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve warm with cafe au lait. Happy Mardis Gras!

Skinny Mardis Gras: Oyster Po' Boy

This Tuesday is Mardis Gras, and I figured that was as good an excuse as any to cook up some delicious Cajun food. I used to celebrate Fat Tuesday by eating the worst food I could imagine (think bacon cheeseburgers with doughnuts for buns). Now, I realize that I can just eat lighter versions of the foods I love, and not have to spend 40 days fasting to make up for that one Fat Tuesday. This year, I'm calling it Mardis Maigre!

Skinny Oyster Po' Boy

Serving Size: 1 sandwich

WW PointsPlus Value: 7

Whole wheat baguette, cut into 4" sections

16 ounces oysters, shucked

1/4 cup lowfat buttermilk

1/4 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs

1 Tablespoon whole wheat flour

1 cup lettuce, shredded

1 Tablespoon mayo

1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt

1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine mayo, Greek yogurt, and Cajun seasoning in a small bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Mix the flour and breadcrumbs together and season mixture well with salt and pepper. Dunk the oysters in the buttermilk, then coat well with breadcrumbs. Spray with a light coating of cooking spray, then bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
• While oysters are cooking, assemble your sandwich. Pull out the insides of the baguette and either discard or store for another recipe. This gives the bread more storage room to hold the sandwich innards while lowering the carb count, as well. Spread 1 Tablespoon of mayo mixture on the bread, and pile with lettuce. When the oysters are done, add them to your sandwich, and et voila! You have a delicious, skinny po' boy.