Each cookie has 1 1/3 grams of fiber, 110 calories, and 1 1/2 grams of protein.

Fat content is 9 grams per cookie, so this is not a low-fat cookie.  Fat could be reduced by using 3 Tablespoons of Smart Balance instead of 1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) which would reduce the fat by 18 grams.  By leaving out one or two of the following:  chocolate chips (16 grams of fat), coconut (27 grams of fat), or pecans (21 grams of fat but it’s the healthier type), fat content could be greatly reduced.

This makes 1/2 batch of cookies, approximately 30 cookies. To make 5 dozen cookies, double the recipe.

RANGER COOKIES

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Smart Balance (do not use the light version)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup flour (1 & 1/2 grams of fiber)
  
• 1/2 cup Spelt or whole wheat flour (Spelt flour adds 8 grams of fiber)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup instant oatmeal   (8 grams of fiber)
  
• 1 cup Fiber One Honey Cluster flakes (this adds an additional 13 grams of fiber to the recipe)
• 1/2 cup coconut (I used organic, unsweetened)  (5 grams of fiber)
  
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans (2 grams of fiber)
  
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (optional)  (4 grams of fiber for 1/2 cup)
  

Cream together the Smart Balance and both sugars.  Blend in the egg.  In a separate bowl, sift together both flours, baking soda, and baking powder, and then add to the creamed mixture.  Blend well.  Mix in the vanilla.  Add the oatmeal, Fiber One cereal, coconut, pecans, and chocolate chips.  Form into 1 inch balls.  (You can roll in powdered sugar if you like.)   Press down with a fork on greased baking sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 9-12 minutes, depending on how brown you like them.

No-bake cookies are great for summer when we don’t want to use the oven!

• 2 cups milk chocolate chips (12 ounces)
• 1 T. shortening
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds

In double boiler over simmering water, melt the chocolate chips and shortening.  Stir until smooth.  Remove from heat and stir in raisins and almonds.  Drop by tablespoon onto wax paper.  Chill until ready to serve.

Yield: 2 dozen

These individual cheesecakes would be nice to serve at a wedding shower if you wanted something different from traditional cake. They are simple to make with the following ingredients:

• 1 pkg. Nestle Toll House Refrigerated Chocolate Chip Cookie Bar Dough
  
• 2 8-oz pkgs. cream cheese at room temperature
• 1 can Nestle Carnation Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 21-oz can of cherry pie filling (optional)

PREHEAT oven to 325 degrees.

LINE 24 muffin cups with paper liners and place one piece of cookie dough in each muffin cup.

BAKE for 10-12 minutes until cookie has spread to edge of cup.

BEAT cream cheese, canned milk, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.

POUR about 3 tablespoons cream cheese mixture over each cookie in the muffin cups. BAKE an additional 15-18 minutes until the cheese mixture is set. Cool completely. REFRIGERATE for at least one hour. Remove paper liners before serving.

TOP with a teaspoonful of cherries. (Or if red cherries do not go with your color scheme, then you could top with fresh fruit to color coordinate such as kiwi for green, blueberries for blue, etc., or for something neutral you could use shaved chocolate. That’s just my idea.)

I just came across a healthy sounding recipe for One Bowl Banana Nut Muffins with added wheat germ.  I think it’s so important to try to get nutrition into our diets, and it takes added effort to get it into our kid’s diets.  But if we make changes here and there and incorporate extra servings of healthy foods several times a week, it will make a difference in the long run.

One thing I might try different in this recipe is to use 1 cup flour & 1/2 cup spelt flour instead of all white flour.   Spelt flour is so much healthier than white flour!  And if your kids don’t like nuts, just leave them out.

This delicious, low-fat banana bread is now a favorite of mine:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup Spelt flour (or whole-wheat flour)
  
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 eggs (or 1 egg & 2 egg whites)
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 cup mashed bananas
• 1/2 cup dried cherries
• 1 tablespoon flour to mix with cherries

Mix first seven dry ingredients in a bowl. In a larger bowl, mix the eggs, oil, and applesauce. Add bananas and stir until mixed well. Add the flour mixture until all ingredients are moistened. Mix cherries with 1 tablespoon flour and add to mixture. Pour into greased 9″x 5″ loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in the middle of the bread comes out clean. Let cool.

After the bread has completely cooled, wrap tightly in plastic wrap for freshness. Store at room temperature for up to a week. Flavor is best at room temperature.

Here are some time-saving recipes for pie crusts:

• Never Fail Pie Crust (can make ahead of time)
• In a Hurry?….”Mix in the Plate” Pie Crust
• Graham Cracker Pie Crust
  

Most people are so busy and some find it hard to find the time to roll out a pie crust while they are making all the other dishes for their Easter dinner. Here are some helpful recipes!

FIRST LAYER:

• 3 ounce package of lime Jello
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 cup cold water

Dissolve Jello in boiling water. Add cold water and pour into loaf pan. Let it sit until firm.

SECOND LAYER:

• 3 ounce package of lemon Jello
• 1 cup boiling water
• 3 ounces of cream cheese, softened
• 1 small can crushed pineapple with the juice
• 1 teaspoon vinegar

Dissolve Jello in boiling water. Add cream cheese and beat until smooth. Cool. Add pineapple with the juice and the vinegar. Pour on top of the first layer. Let sit until firm.

THIRD LAYER:

• 3 ounce package of cherry or raspberry Jello
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 cup cold water
• Whipped cream

Dissolve Jello in boiling water, then add cold water. Let cool. Pour over the second layer. Let sit in fridge until firm. Top with whipped cream.

If you’re needing an easy but special dessert to take to a pot luck or maybe a luncheon at work, then try this easy one. It is surprisingly good, and when a friend of mine made it, she had several requests for the recipe. I had no idea it had Ritz crackers in it until she gave me the recipe.

Put both cans of pineapple with juice in a long Pyrex dish:

• 1 large can (20 ounces) pineapple chunks with juice

• 1 can crushed pineapple with juice
  

Mix and pour over pineapple:

• 1 cup flour
• 5 tablespoons flour

Then sprinkle over the top:

• 8 ounces of grated Colby & Cheddar cheese

Then:

• 1/2 stick butter, melted
• one “column” of Town House or Ritz Crackers (or similar)
  

Dip crackers in melted butter and place on top of cheese. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

I saw a cute recipe for mini-dessert cups that would be perfect to serve at a wedding shower. It won’t be long until spring gets here and then there will be wedding showers for all the spring and summer weddings.

Have you noticed that a lot of weddings seem to happen within a year or two after your child’s wedding? We had ten wedding showers one year! I was a hostess at every one of those showers, and we were always looking for ways to make each shower unique. If you happen to be planning a shower, check out these cute dessert cups and check back here in the spring for more shower ideas.

This pie crust dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Here are the ingredients:

• 3 cups flour
• 1 1/4 cup shortening
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg well beaten
• 5 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
  

Cut shortening into flour and salt. Combine egg, water and vinegar. Pour liquid into flour mixture. Blend with a spoon just until flour is all moistened. Roll out pie crust as needed.