Starving Artist

Looking for an easy, lightened up, yet extremely decadent dessert for your holiday table? This trifle will definitely impress! It’s so simple to make, so it’s a great dessert to bring to a party. I really like making trifles for the holidays. There are so many different combinations of flavors that you can play with. I love the cheesecake, raspberry and chocolate-y red velvet cake together! Enjoy :)

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The Red Velvet cake cooling

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The lineup of yummy ingredients

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RECIPE

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Ingredients:

• 1 package of red velvet cake mix (I used Duncan Hines)
• 1 1/4 cup water
• 1/3 cup applesauce
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup of chocolate chips
• 2 1oz packages of Jello Instant Sugar Free Cheesecake Filling
• 2 cups of cold skim milk
• 1 12oz tub of Lite Cool Whip
• 3/4 cup of raspberry preserves
• 2 oz of dark chocolate
• 3 tbsp Frangelico (optional)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Red raspberries for garnish

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Directions:

1. Cook the red velvet cake according to the directions, but substitute the apple sauce for the oil. Also, stir in the chocolate chips right at the end. Let the cake cool completely after baking.
2. Make the cheesecake filling according to the directions on the box (mix the packets with the skim milk, and chill for 30 minutes).
3. Mix the raspberry preserves in a small bowl with 2 tbsp of the Cool Whip.
4. In the tub of Cool Whip, mix in 1 tsp of vanilla extract.
5. Once the cake and the cheesecake filling are ready to go, you may begin layering. Break up 1/3 of the cake and layer it at the bottom of the trifle bowl. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of Frangelico. This will keep the cake moist and add a nice hazelnut flavor. The Frangelico can be omitted if you’d like.
6. Spread 1/3 of the cheesecake filling over the cake layer.
7. Spread 1/3 of the raspberry mix over the cheesecake layer.
8. Spread 1/3 of the Cool Whip over the raspberry layer.
9. Repeat twice more. The Cool Whip should be your final layer. With a vegetable peeler, shred the dark chocolate over the top of the trifle. Garnish with fresh raspberries if you have them.
10. Chill for an hour or two before serving.

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Happy Holidays! :)

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I think pumpkin is starting to run through my veins, I’ve been eating so much of it. Flavorful pumpkin oatmeal for breakfast, and now onto creamy pumpkin pudding for dessert. I’m definitely making sure that I soak up every bit of these Fall flavors while I can!

After a delicious dinner of whole wheat pesto vermicelli with slow cooked lemon pepper chicken (recipe to come tomorrow!), I realized that within my pantry I had the ingredients to put together a simple pumpkin pudding. And that I did.

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For the pudding, I had a box of Sugar-Free Jello Singles Instant Vanilla Pudding. Individual packets with 60 calories worth of pudding (when mixed), it was the perfect portion. I combined the dry mixture with the following:

• 1/2 cup cold skim milk
• 1 tsp pumpkin butter
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Pinch of cinnamon

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I mixed all of the ingredients together and popped the bowl in the refrigerator to set up. Meanwhile, I prepared a simple crunchy topping consisting of:

• TJ’s Pumpkin Spice Granola
• Pecans
• Light Maple Syrup

When the pudding had set, I piled the topping in the bowl.

So tasty and comforting…

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The perfect treat to cozy up to on the couch while relaxing and watching some Sunday night TV. Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, Mad Men, and The Next Iron Chef. Oh, what to watch, and what to DVR??

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That’s what I’m trying to tell myself after all of the delicious (yet not-so-healthy) food I ate today. Hey, it’s all about balance, right? My sister’s birthday was on Friday, so my family decided to spend Sunday in the North End to celebrate.

Unfortunately it was rainy outside, but we didn’t let that dampen our spirits or our plans. We were initially planning on going to the Waterfront Cafe to watch the Pats game while eating a yummy Italian meal, but when we arrived we realized it was a pretty run-down sports bar and not exactly what we were looking for.

We walked down the street and stumbled upon Nico Ristorante. It was pretty tiny, just like most of the restaurants in the North End. The decor was nice, with the exception of the slightly obnoxious disco ball spinning in the corner. Tacky 70’s decor aside, we sat down and were greeted by the absolute nicest waiter. He was extremely patient with our indecisiveness (the menu just looked so good – it was hard to decide!), and made the best recommendations – my mom’s Sea Bass alla Aqua Pazzo (sea bass served with cherry tomatoes in a garlic, white wine) was melt in your mouth crazy good.

After saluting the birthday girl with our staple Moretti’s…

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… we began our meal with a beautiful antipasto consisting of a variety of Italian meats and cheeses, piled high with Champagne grapes.

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My dad got the most beautiful salad that I just had to photograph (and taste, obviously…)

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Finally it was entree time. After heavily considering ordering the arancini, I landed on the lobster ravioli. The menu called it “world famous”, which I’m not so sure it is, but it sold me so I guess the description worked! It was so amazing.

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With our stomachs full, and a win wrapped up for the Pats, we walked along Hanover Street in the rain. As the rain intensified, we slipped into Cafe Vittoria to take cover.

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Hot cappuccinos were definitely in order.

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And you’d think I would have been full after the feast we just ate, but clearly I had to order a cannoli.

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It wasn’t anything to write home about, the ricotta filling was way too thin. Definitely stick to Mike’s or Modern for pastries!

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Yum! Happy birthday Gina! :)

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One of my close friends recently took a trip to the French countryside, and returned with quite the thoughtful / yummy gift for me. The “Biscuits Fourres a la Framboise” (biscuits with raspberry) came packaged in the most beautiful decorative tin.

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Resting in this metallic piece of art were little bites of heaven. Buttery, crunchy cookies with a slight raspberry taste, filled with a fresh raspberry jam. The jam in the middle tasted so fresh, almost like biting into a ripe raspberry.

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What a treat!

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Happy first day of Fall! To celebrate the change of seasons, I popped into Deluca’s Market on my walk home from work and grabbed a treat of my favorite Fall beer. I went for my go-to, Jack’s Pumpkin Spice Ale – delicioso!

Fall makes me think of apples, and apples make me think of – well, apple crisp of course! A couple of Granny Smiths were kicking around in my fridge, so a lightbulb went off and I decided to put together a quick and healthy recipe for an individual portion of the seasonal dessert (I don’t trust myself with having a whole pan of the dessert in my kitchen… trouble).

This recipe will make 2 individual portions (the other can be refrigerated and then popped in the oven for when you want a second round!).

• The first step is to lightly spray 2 ramekins with cooking spray.
• Peel and core 1 apple (I used a Granny Smith, but any kind will work!), and then cut up into small bite-sized pieces.
• Add the apple to a bowl, along with 1/2 tbsp of cinnamon, 2 packets of Splenda, and 1 tsp light maple syrup.
• Toss to coat, and then divide then apples into the 2 ramekins.

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For the topping, combine the following:

• 1 packet of regular instant oatmeal (flavored will work just fine, just adjust the amount of extra seasoning you add to it)
• 2 tbsp of light margarine
• 1 tsp of cinnamon
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tbsp pecans (optional)
• 2 tbsp of whole wheat flour.

Mix together until the mixture is combined – will be clumpy. Divide the crumble in 2 and top the ramekins. Press onto the apples so you have a nice crust.

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Bake in a 375 degree (preheated) oven for about 25 minutes. The smell is absolutely intoxicating!

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.The finished product!

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Closeup of the best part… the crumble.

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Serve with whipped cream… so warm and comforting!

Now to enjoy this lovely dessert with some DVR’d Biggest Loser. There’s just something wrong with eating dessert while watching others try desperately to lose weight. Whoops.

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