Fall flavors: satisfy your sweet tooth in a healthy way with these five sophisticated desserts

Muscle & Fitness/Hers, Oct, 2004 by Karen Gillingham, Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan

Eating the right foods in the right amounts can sometimes feel like a bit of a chore, with dessert being nothing more than an occasional cheat-day splurge. If that describes your approach to eating, these recipes are just what you need--and you don't need to feel guilty about enjoying them. The fall fruits used in these recipes provide delicious flavor and important nutrients, proving that desserts can satisfy and have redeeming qualities, too.

Orange-Scented Pumpkin Flan

For this dessert, we lightened a classic flan by using fat-free evaporated milk and a combination of whole eggs and egg whites. We then added pumpkin in honor of autumn. This colorful flan is full of flavor and surprisingly easy to prepare.

3/4 cup sugar, divided
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
  2 whole eggs plus 2 egg whites
  1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
  1 (12-oz.) can fat-free evaporated milk
  1 tsp. finely grated orange peel

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Stir 1/2 cup sugar into a small heavy skillet over medium heat until sugar dissolves and turns light golden. Immediately pour caramel into six (4-6-ounce) custard cups or ramekins or an 8X4-inch loaf pan to cover bottom, tipping to coat about 1 inch up sides of cups or pan. Cool.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk pumpkin with eggs, egg whites, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, vanilla and pie spice. Gradually whisk in milk. Pour into caramel-lined cups or pan.

4. Place cups or loaf pan inside a larger baking pan and add enough water to larger pan to come halfway up sides of cups or loaf pan. Bake until flan is almost set in the center, about 45 minutes. Cool. Refrigerate until cold or up to 2 days.

5. Run a small sharp knife around edges of cups or pan to loosen. Place serving dish over pan and invert. Let stand a few minutes to allow caramel syrup to collect around flan. Slice and serve with some of the syrup, with orange peel sprinkled on top.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS.

PER SERVING:

181 calories
  8 g protein
 33 g carbohydrate
  2 g fat (0.5 g saturated fat)
  1 g fiber

Honey-Nut Banana Sundaes

Just because you're eating well doesn't mean you need to turn away from a good old sundae. This version tops low-fat ice cream with warm bananas in a honey-sweetened sauce.

  1/3 cup honey
1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice
Pinch cinnamon
    2 large bananas, peeled and sliced
    1 pint 98% fat-free vanilla ice cream
  1/4 cup roughly chopped honey-roasted peanuts and cashews

1. Combine honey, lemon juice and cinnamon in a medium skillet. Stir over medium heat until honey begins to bubble. Reduce heat and cook, stirring frequently. 5 minutes, Remove from heat. Add banana slices and stir gently to coat evenly.

2. Place one scoop of ice cream in each of four small bowls.

3. Top with equal amounts of the banana and honey mixture and sprinkle with nuts.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS.

PER SERVING:

304 calories
  5 g protein
 57 g carbohydrate
  6 g fat (1.5 g saturated fat)
  3 g fiber

Oven-Poached Pears with Ginger and Currants

This dessert makes a wonderful finish to an autumn meal. Pears, ginger and currants paired with red wine give a rich flavor, and the dessert is surprisingly low in fat. The best pears for cooking are Bosc or Bartlett, and in this case the fruit can be a little underripe and still poach nicely.

  2 firm pears
  1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
  1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 cup water or pear juice
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. red wine
1/2 tsp. finely sliced ginger
  1 Tbsp. currants

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and put rack on center shelf of oven.

2. Peel and halve the pears, keeping stems intact.

3. Melt butter in a medium baking dish in the oven for 1 minute. Remove from oven and add pears in a single layer, coating with butter.

4. Sprinkle brown sugar on top. Top evenly with water or juice, 1/4 cup wine, ginger and currants. Bake 30-50 minutes (depending on ripeness of the pears), turning occasionally and spooning liquid over pears. Pears are done when they feel tender when touched with a paring knife.

5. Remove pears with a slotted spoon into serving dishes. Pour liquid plus remaining 2 tablespoons of red wine into a small saucepan and reduce by half over a very low simmer, about 5-7 minutes.

6. Serve warm with sauce drizzled over the top. Add a scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt or low-fat ice cream if desired.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS.

PER SERVING:

122   calories
  1   g protein
 22   g carbohydrate
  3   g fat (2 g saturated fat)
  2.5 g fiber

Apricot Yogurt Panna Cotta with Roasted Plums

Here's a great low-fat version of a favorite Italian dessert. We like using strained yogurt because it's extra creamy, but regular fat-free plain yogurt will do. The panna cotta can be made up to two days ahead, making it a great dessert for company.

  1 cup apricot nectar
  1 envelope unflavored gelatin
  1 cup fat-free plain yogurt
  2 Tbsp. honey
  1 (15-oz.) can purple plums in heavy syrup, drained
1/4 tsp. Chinese five-spice powder
1/4 cup plum wine
  2 tsp. minced candied ginger
Nonstick cooking spray

1. In a small bowl, sprinkle the apricot nectar with gelatin. Let stand until softened, about 1 minute.