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Festive Christmas Desserts
Say yes to yummy puds this festive season! Our fab suggestions deliver the indulgence, without the guilt...
What on earth do you serve for dessert at Christmas when you are used to tucking into traditional Christmas puddings, trifles, profiteroles and all kinds of rich and calorie-laden temptations? Look no further! We give you some fab festive suggestions that deliver the indulgence, without the guilt.
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If you've been following the Plan, you'll be getting used to lighter, fresher flavours. Yet you still want to indulge and enjoy something special. Here are some ideas...
Get Fresh
Make the most of exotic fruits available now, and create some wonderful fruit salads. You can limit the selection in each fruit salad for a fabulous effect. Try quartered ripe figs with sliced clementines, sprinkled with a few pomegranate seeds. Or how about fresh pineapple with sliced kiwi, sliced star fruit and seedless red grapes? Mango, papaya and banana with the pulp from a couple of passion fruits makes a terrific tropical combination. Stunning!
Wobble - in the Right Place!
Get into making your own jellies. You can either use sugar free jelly crystals or powdered gelatine added to unsweetened fruit juices - though you have to get the technique right. For each pint of liquid, you need 1 x 11g sachet of powdered gelatine. - Sprinkle the gelatine over 90ml (3fl oz) of just-boiled water and leave for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until completely clear. Then slowly stir this cooled liquid into unsweetened fruit juice - orange, apple, cranberry, mango, pineapple - you choose!
- Add powdered sweetener, according to taste - and any chunks of fruit that you like (though avoid kiwi or fresh pineapple, as they contain an enzyme that prevents the gelatine from setting). You can even make alcoholic jellies by setting Cava or red wine with cranberry or fruit juice - very pretty!
- Serve topped with extra exotic fruit, such as slices of star fruit or physalis (Cape gooseberry) and you'll have some stunning desserts.
The Big Freeze
A palate-cleansing granita - like a rough-textured sorbet - makes a wonderfully refreshing dessert, so here's an idea for one with sensational flavours.
- Just mix together 400ml (14fl oz) light cranberry juice, 400ml (14fl oz) unsweetened orange juice, 100ml (3 1/2fl oz) Cointreau or Grand Marnier and 3 tbsp powdered sweetener.
- Pour into a rigid freezer box and freeze until almost solid, then use a fork to break up the ice crystals. Give the mixture a thorough stir. Repeat this procedure once more, then freeze completely.
- About 10 minutes before serving, remove the granita from the freezer so that it softens slightly. Spoon into small glasses and decorate with cranberries or mint leaves. Serves 8.
Simply Topping!
Make a delicious orange and vanilla topping to accompany your jellies or exotic fruit salads. This tastes great with the Light & Fruity Christmas Pudding recipe below too. - Simply mix together 6 tbsp 0% fat plain Greek yogurt, 100g (3 1/2oz) low fat soft cheese, ½ tsp vanilla extract, 1 tsp powdered sweetener and 1 tsp finely grated orange rind.
- Cover and chill until ready to serve. Serves 6.
Try this traditional-with-a-twist Christmas pud...
Light & Fruity Christmas Puddings
Makes about 6 servings
Ingredients
- 100g (3 1/2oz) sultanas
- 75g (2 3/4oz) raisins
- 25g (1oz) glace cherries, chopped
- 25g (1oz) dried papaya or mango, chopped
- 25g (1oz) dried blueberries or cranberries
- Finely grated rind and juice of 1 medium orange
- 2 tbsp rum or brandy
- 150g (5 1/2oz) fresh white breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg, beaten
- Low fat cooking spray
Instructions
- Put all the dried fruit into a bowl with the orange rind, orange juice and rum or brandy. Cover and leave to soak overnight.
- Mix the breadcrumbs and egg into the dried fruits. Spray 6 individual pudding basins or ramekin dishes with low fat cooking spray. Share the fruit mixture between them. Cover tightly with foil and steam for 1 hour.
- To serve, run a knife around the basins or dishes to release the puddings, then serve them with the orange and vanilla topping (recipe above).
...or get the party started with these fun festive concoctions!
Hot Rum Punch Papaya
Makes about 4 servings
Ingredients
- 2 large ripe papayas, halved and deseeded
- 1 small mango, peeled, pitted and chopped
- 75g (3oz) seedless red grapes, halved
- 1 pomegranate
- 2 tbsp dark rum
- 2 tbsp orange juice
- 4 tsp demerara sugar
- 15g (1/2oz) flaked almonds
- 8 tbsp 0% fat Greek-style yogurt
- 1 tsp finely grated orange zest
Instructions
- Preheat a hot grill.
- Arrange the papaya halves, cut side up, on the grill rack. (To help them stand firmly, take a tiny slice from underneath each one). Mix together the mango, grapes and pomegranate seeds. Spoon this mixture into the papaya halves. Mix together the rum and orange juice and drizzle 1 tbsp over each papaya half. Sprinkle each one with 1 tsp of sugar.
- Grill the papayas until the sugar melts and begins to bubble, then sprinkle the almonds on top and grill for another few moments until lightly browned. Stir the yogurt and orange zest together and serve with the warm papayas.
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