Perfect Filet Mignon for Two

As a steak lover, I can't think of a better meal to enjoy for Valentine's Day.
Since it can be pricey, I only make it on special ocassions – and Valentine's Day is the perfect occasion! Get sizzling in the kitchen for an easy, Romantic dinner for two.

Filet mignon is the most tender cut of steak you can buy, and doesn't require fancy seasonings – coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper is all you need for a delicious steak that's pan seared then finished in the oven and cooked to perfection! I like mine medium rare, but you can cook it to your taste.

It's practically foolproof if you have a meat thermometer, but you can also use the finger test just in case you don't. This starts on the stove and finishes in the oven, so you'll need a heavy oven-safe non-stick skillet, or cast iron skillet to make this. One thing you should keep in mind is you'll want to bring the meat up to room temperature, so let it sit on the counter at least 30 minutes before you're ready to cook. It's perfect with sauteed or roasted vegetables on the side, here I made a quick sauteed garlic broccolini, but you can also serve it with skinny mashed potatoes.


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Amazing Flour-less Brownies

Moist, chocolatey and delicious – finally a low-fat, gluten-free brownie that's pretty darn good!

I can't get over how good these brownies taste considering they're made with no flour and no butter. Yet they're not cakie or dry like most low fat brownies I've tried. I found the original recipe last year on the Roasted Root, which I adapted and have made many times since.

The secret ingredient is black beans, and I'm sure you're thinking… what? But trust me, you don't taste it! My husband even loves them, and can't get over how good they are (and trust me if he didn't like it he would tell me). They really feel like you're eating something loaded with butter, yet it only uses 1/2 teaspoon of oil.  The last version I added some walnuts which increased the points to 5 each, but I gave you the basic recipe without.

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Chocolate Chip Clouds

Light, airy and chewy with chocolate chips in every bite. These cookies are a must for Santa, we've been making them for years and everyone loves them. Made with egg whites, sugar and chocolate, they are very light, gluten free and just melt in your mouth.

The perfect chocolate treat, and when you make them the night before, they are chewier the next day, which is just how I like them. Hope you enjoy and wishing everyone a Merry Christmas!

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Linguini with Sautéed Scallops and Peas

Scallops are great for a quick meal any night of the week and are a real treat. They can be quickly sautéed, then added to salads like this Scallop and Baby Green Citrus Mojo Salad, and this delicious Scallop and Grapefruit Salad, but once in a while when I want something more substantial, I love it with pasta. Here I tossed it with some pasta and peas, for a dinner that took less than 15 minutes to make.

I love sea scallops and it takes very little effort to get delicious results. For best flavor seek out the freshest scallops. Before cooking remove the small, tough muscle attached to the side. You can easily double this recipe for four servings.

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Valentine's Day Cake Balls

Happy Valentine's Day! My daughter is having a Valentine's Day party in school today, so I just wanted to share these cake pops adapted from my skinny cake pop recipe I did a few months back to bring to her class.

I love how you can come up with hundreds of different ideas with this Nordic Ware Cake Pop Pan I purchased at Target. I highly recommend buying 2 pans if you plan on making these to speed this up.

I simply took my recipe and used colored candy melts in place of the white, with heart sprinkles. So cute!

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Red Velvet Pancakes with Cream Cheese Topping

Lightened-up red velvet pancakes made with a blend of white whole wheat flour and all purpose, then topped with a light cream cheese topping.  I adore red velvet, so I can't think of a more fitting time to make red velvet pancakes, then for Valentine's Day!

I don't eat pancakes every day, instead I save them for special occasions, like holidays, birthdays and blizzards! This weekend Nemo hit the North East, which kept most of us indoors or digging our way out. We got around 8 to 10 inches which wasn't too bad, my daughter was really excited to finally use her snow suit and sled.

While my daughter and husband played outside in the snow, I decided to test out these pancakes. My puppy wanted no part of the snow, so he found a cozy blanket and just laid around all morning.

I spent quite a bit of time testing these pancakes out to get them just right. Finally after my third attempt I got them perfect! Fluffy, with just the right amount of sweetness. This was modified from my whole wheat pancake recipe, I simply added some cocoa powder and food coloring and since this is topped with a cream cheese topping rather than maple, I felt the batter needed to be sweetened a bit, so I added a touch more sugar.

My husband, was my taste tester and tasted each and every round until we got a winner.

If you're watching your sugar intake, you can certainly substitute the sugar for Stevia or Splenda, or whatever sweetener you prefer to use.

You can prepare the batter the day before and keep it refrigerated for up to 2 to 3 days. The cream cheese topping will also last about 3 days refrigerated.

I used my heart shaped pancake molds which only makes one at a time, so if you plan on doing this and making a lot, I recommend buying more than one mold. It also tends to stick so spraying the mold first helps prevent this.

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Skinny Chocolate Parfaits

A rich, creamy chocolate treat made from semi-sweet chocolate, fat-free milk, vanilla and cornstarch. Layered with a little whipped topped, it's a perfect ending to a special dinner.

I don't have dessert every night, but once in a while, on special occasions, I like to enjoy a sweet treat. Valentine's Day is certainly one of those nights. What's great about this dessert is that you actually make the pudding the day before, so it's easy to assemble just before you are ready to eat.

I love these little glass dessert cups, they are actually from the salvation army but a champagne glass would also work great too.

My light whipped topping of choice is Truwhip – I love that it contains all natural ingredients, no HFCS, hydrogenated oils, transfats or GMOs. They also have a light version, but I can't always find it. There's a store finder on their website if you want to find a store near you that sells it. I also heard Trader Joe's sells their own brand with the same ingredients.



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Angel Hair Pasta with Scallops and Tomatoes

Sauteed bay scallops with tomatoes and a touch of white wine and lemon juice served over angel hair pasta.

If you're looking for a special dinner to make for your loved one this Valentine's Day, this is a perfect dish. For starters, it takes less than 15 minutes to make, so you'll have less time cooking, and more time together. Secondly, scallops date back to ancient Greece as an aphrodisiac. As legend has it, the goddess Aphrodite was carried to earth on the shell of a scallop.

Personally, I love scallops for their sweet, delicate flavor. Bay scallops are the smaller variety and are usually less expensive than sea scallops. They are wonderful tossed with pasta and take less than a minute to cook.

Because bay scallops retain so much water, it's really important that you dry them well before cooking, and you really want to cook them in a hot pan so you get a quick sear. I cook them in 2 or 3 batches depending on the size of my pan. Don't skip this step because you don't want to overcrowd the pan, otherwise the scallops will become rubbery and won't sear.

If you're family doesn't like whole wheat pasta, a great trick I like to do is use both whole wheat and semolina. You don't really notice the taste of the whole wheat and your getting the added benefits of using a whole grain.

For all you spaghetti squash lovers out there, I'm sure this would be wonderful over roasted spaghetti squash as a gluten-free, lower-carb alternative.

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Skinny Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

 

Cheesecake squares, lightened up with yogurt and light cream cheese, baked on a chocolate graham cracker crust drizzled with melted chocolate and topped with fresh raspberries.

With Valentine's Day right around the corner, you NEED to make this cheesecake!

A few years ago I first attempted my first cheesecake with yogurt, and since then I never looked back. I adapted this from my very popular Strawberry Swirled Cheesecake with chocolate in mind, of course.

And since I always second guess myself when making skinny desserts, I gave this to some of my family members who couldn't give a darn about calories or fat, and they loved it! So, if you need an idea for Valentine's Day (or any day) give this dessert a try.

And just an FYI, if you need a fabulous breakfast idea, we LOVE these heart shaped chocolate chip banana pancakes!

If you want to make a super easy 2-ingredient dessert... chocolate covered strawberries always impress!

And if you're a bread pudding lover like myself, and don't mind splurging a few extra calories, I love this Dark Chocolate Chunk Bread Pudding!

PS- Fabulous fork says it all... dessert first! You can find this on Etsy, From Such A Time Designs.

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Recipes For A Skinny Valentine

What can be more romantic on Valentine's Day than sharing a special home cooked meal with your sweetie.

For those of you not making reservations for Valentine's Day I thought I would compile some elegant yet simple skinny dishes your sweetie will enjoy, and you won't be spending hours in the kitchen. Hope you enjoy!!


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Heart-Shaped Chocolate Chip Banana Pancakes

Valentine's Day falls on a Tuesday this year and I can't think of a better way to send your loved ones off to work or school then with these fabulous light and fluffy Chocolate Chip Banana Pancakes!

This is pure love on a plate folks...

I used heart shaped pancake molds which only makes one at a time, so if you plan on doing this and making a lot, I recommend buying more than one mold.

I topped mine with light agave syrup which added the perfect amount of sweetness without distracting from the flavors, but chocolate syrup would be a great option too.

Oh, and if you really want to go nuts like I did, you can top the pancakes with heart shaped bananas! Or drizzle I love you in chocolate syrup. And you don't need a holiday as an excuse to make them, these are great any time of the year. Enjoy!!


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Homemade Skinny Chocolate Cake

Be still my chocolate loving heart, a moist chocolate cake made from scratch with only three tablespoons of oil in the entire cake! Top this with some chocolate syrup and fresh raspberries and oh my, what a chocolate dessert!

I've been experimenting making a cake from scratch with less fat for a few days now and after a few rounds I finally got it to where my taste testers (aka husband and friends) all thought it was great and couldn't believe it was light.

My secret? There's pudding, yogurt and applesauce in the mix!

This recipe was created for those of you who like to make their cakes from scratch, but if you prefer a quicker method by using a box cake mix as an ingredient, see my Super Moist Low Fat Chocolate Cupcake recipe.

This cake rises beautifully and the coffee brings out the flavor of the chocolate. Will it work without the pudding? Yes, however the texture will change and you'll need to increase the sugar. Can you use less oil? Yes, but I've already cut out more than half, and using less will work, but the texture will be drier.

I made this in a 13 x 9-inch pan and used a heart cookie cutter to cut out hearts, but you can make this into 24 cupcakes, a bundt cake or 2 rounds. Hope you enjoy!

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Petite Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Loaves

Valentine's Day is here before you know it, so if chocolate is something you crave, why not make it healthier with these petite loaves made with love... by you!

Whole wheat mini banana bread made with ripe bananas and chocolate chips are sure to leave a smile on anyone's face.

These make 8 large muffins in comparison to using a normal sized muffin tin which gives you 12-13. If you don't have these Petite Loaf Pans you can use one large 8 x 5-inch loaf instead, cooking time will be closer to 50-60 minutes or use a regular sized muffin tin, baking them for about 25 minutes.

Because they are so large the nutritional info is a little higher, so I have also provided the nutritional info for regular sized muffins. Perhaps these cute silicone heart shaped muffin tins?

If you prefer nuts to chocolate in your banana bread see my banana nut bread recipe, hope you enjoy!!


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Skinny Chocolate Chip Buttermilk Scones

Buttermilk scones sweetened just to perfection studded with chocolate chips. Kind of like eating a giant chocolate chip cookie for breakfast... without the guilt.

Yes, I just found my new favorite scone!

I tested them out on some friends, and they agree! In fact, we ate them all before I got to take pictures, so I had to make them again.

No worries...

Chocolate makes everything better!


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Brownie Batter Pancakes

I am very happy to have Katie of Chocolate-Covered Katie as my first guest post here on Skinnytaste. Her recipes are a great fit for Skinnytaste as they are all healthy and low fat, but she also brings something else to he table... all her recipes are vegan! Whether you are a vegan or not, I guarantee you will spend hours drooling at the photos on her blog! Please welcome Chocolate-Covered Katie to Skinnytaste.

Hi chocolate chips!

I’m Katie, of the blog: Chocolate-Covered Katie, and I’m so honored to be a guest on Gina’s blog. I love Gina because she shows that healthier food can taste incredible when it’s prepared the right way. On my own blog, I try to show this, too.

One exception: my blog is only desserts.

Just like Gina, I believe you shouldn’t have to sacrifice good taste in order to be healthy. And today, Gina asked me to share one of my “does not taste healthy” recipes that can be a breakfast or dessert: brownie batter pancakes. This recipe is also vegan AND can easily be made gluten free with Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free flour mix!

Hope you enjoy!!

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